St Mary’s church was originally built in the 13th century by the greatest Norman knight William Marshall and his wife Isabel. Not only is this church considered to be the largest parish church built in medieval Ireland, but it also houses one of the largest collections of funerary monuments found in the country. You can follow the trail around the church and graveyard and experience the atmosphere and discover the history of St. Mary’s. Though the medieval church is largely intact, it is almost completely unroofed. The roofed church which stands at the front of the medieval church was constructed in the 19th century and is still in use by the Church of Ireland congregation. Isabel, the wife of William Marshall, was the granddaughter of Diarmuid McMurrough, Gaelic King of Leinster and daughter of his daughter Aoife and ‘Strongbow’, the Earl of Pembroke. Although Isabel’s body was laid to rest in Wales, her heart was sent across the Irish sea to be interred in St. Mary’s such was her bond with the church and the town. Visitors to St Mary’s church yard can explore the architecture and art of medieval masons and follow in the footsteps of pirates and pilgrims and imagine themselves at the centre of a bustling medieval port town.