St Canices Graveyard and Abbey

Not being originally from Finglas i would count that as the reason i didn’t know about this graveyard until the last couple of years. Apparently this was connected to one of the most influencial monasteries in Dublin and is there since around the 11^th centuary. It served the people of Finglas up until around 1841 and around 1000 people are buried there including a distant relative of Princess Diana. A viking woman was found buried just outside the graveyard which leads me to believe that an excavation of the area would reveal some wonderful treasures.
The graveyard is a bit hidden and unless you know where to look you will miss it easily. The big church in the village tends to draw the eye these days but lacks the elegance of this graveyard and ruined church.
I read too a story about Cromwell who came to Ireland and smashed up all that was catholic and on hearing of his imminent arrival the people of Finglas apparently took down and hid the big celtic 1000 year old cross. This hiding of the stone was shared as a story for over 150 years until a priest decided to see if there were any truth in the story and lo and behold he found it in a field near the graveyard hidden until the soil. It was repaired and replaced and stands in the corner of the graveyard.
The only negative thing i would say is that there are apartments built just in front of the graveyard and abbey which is typical of modern Ireland. Built apartments on sacred and ancient land instead of cherishing our heritage.