New
New
Year 5
The growth of Irish monasteries
I can describe how the monasteries of Ireland grew in importance.
New
New
Year 5
The growth of Irish monasteries
I can describe how the monasteries of Ireland grew in importance.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- By the early 6th century, monasteries began to be set up across Ireland.
- At first, these were meant as places for Christians to retreat to and dedicate their lives to God.
- They were often in remote, hard to reach places like the island of Skellig Michael.
- Many monasteries, though, attracted the patronage of kings and the rich and grew in both size and importance.
- They were centres for the teaching of poetry, literature, and the arts and produced manuscripts like the Book of Kells.
Keywords
Monastery - a monastery is a building lived in by a community of monks who follow religious vows
Patronage - patronage is the support given by a person to another person, organisation or cause, usually involving money
Monk - a monk is a member of a community of men living under religious vows
Common misconception
Pupils may think monasteries were only a place for prayer.
Monasteries were places for learning and culture where people could pray, study the bible and create things.
Explore images of the different monasteries in Ireland and the isolated places they can be found.
Teacher tip
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on
Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Starter quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
St Patrick was born in ...
Q2.
Who was Patrick taken prisoner by?
Irish traders
Irish jewellers
Q3.
After receiving a vision from an angel, Patrick became a ...
Q4.
Patrick was in danger of becoming a when he tried to convert the Irish kings.
Q5.
Put these events into chronological order.
Q6.
Put these events from St Patrick's life into chronological order.
Exit quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
Monasteries were built in places.
Q2.
Monasteries were built across Ireland by the ...
4th century
6th century
Q3.
Why did the monks choose isolated places to build the monasteries?
It was easier to build there.
They were beautiful.
Q4.
Which of these happened at the monasteries?
baking cakes
Q5.
The monks would make beautiful for the manuscripts.
Q6.
What is patronage?
a member of a community of men living under religious vows
a building lived in by a community of monks
Additional material
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