O'Rourkes Tower O'Rourke's Tower dates from the 10th Century. It was built by Fergal O'Rourke, the King of Connacht who undertook to keep all the churches in repair during his lifetime for "his soul's sake".
The tower was apparently unfinished when Fergal died in 960 and was not completed until the 12th Century in 1124 by Bishop Ui Maol Eoin, the successor of Ciaran. In 1135, its top was struck by lightening, which helps to explain why the present upper storey, with its eight openings, was added in later medieval times.
	The finely built tower of well shaped limestone blocks sits in the north west corner of the site. It is 5.6 metres in diameter and tapers evenly up to the present top of 19 metres. The doorway is well above the ground at 3.3 metres high which served as a defensive feature, where during attacks, the monks sought refuge in the tower with their books and valuables. It would have had wooden floors with ladders connecting them.