18. TNW The Whitty monument

In the ruin of the ancient parish church in Grange cemetery, Kilmore lies a site of special historical significance - the marble Whitty memorial, erected in 1647. It is the only surviving memorial to an Anglo-Norman family in the country. Its Latin inscription translates follows:

'Here lies Walter Whitty, of Ballyteigue, Esquire, who died 9th November in the year of Lord 1630, and Helen, his wife, daughter of Hammon Stafford, of Ballyconnor Gentleman, who died 27th April, in the year of the Lord 1646, and Catherine, first wife of Richard Whitty, Esquire, daughter of Philip Devereux of Ballymagyr, Esquire, who died 18th of August, in the year 1646, in whose honour the same Richard, the first born of the aforesaid Walter and Helen, with his won second wife, Catherine Eustace, daughter of Oliver Eustace, of Ballymurray, Esquire, cause me (this monument) to be erected, 29th January 1647'.

Grange refers to a monastic grange which was a manor or other centre of an outlying farming estate belonging to a monastery and used for food production in Great Britain, Ireland, or Austria. Though initially just a description of the area of land used for food production, in Ireland, the word 'Grange' often evolved into the name of the townland or parish, replacing an earlier name. One of the original Normans to the area was Strongbow Earl of Pembroke. His uncle was Hervey de Monte Marisco, who had been sent over to watch his nephew's interests. When Hervey became a monk in 1179, he bestowed all his lands in south Wexford to his abbey in Canterbury which in time was transferred to the abbey at Tintern with the surrounding lands being used for food production for this nearby abbey.

Audio: Willie Murphy, 2017

Our video piece of the Whitty monument: https://youtu.be/Z90oejwaFeQ
Narration: John Ward

The Norman Way, Wexford, Forth and Bargy
See https://www.racontour.com/the-norman-way/ for more content on south Wexford
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