Esker Monastery is situated about fourteen or fifteen miles east of Galway, or if you travel on the main road from Dublin to Galway you’ll see a white sign which leads you to the monastery. Esker Monastery was built by the Dominicans over one hundred years ago. These Dominicans were first hunted out of Athenry by the English soldiers at the time of the battle which occurred there in the year 1316.

When hunted out of Athenry some of the Dominicans fled to the Abbey of Holy Cross at Louvain and the remainder hid in the woods around Athenry. For many years they lived in the roughly made houses scattered here and there through the woods. All the friars met in common at night for prayers.About the seventeenth century the Dominican Provincial asked the Earl of Clanricarde for same place of refuge, he was granted a patch of