Abbey of Kells to its presence at the abbey. Later in the same century, the monastery was dissolved with the abbey becoming a parish church and the Book of Kells continued to be kept there. Catholic landowners acquired the land. The Book of Kells remained at Kells until the 1650s when Cromwell's troops were stationed in the town. At that point it was sent to Dublin for safekeeping. In 1661, the Book of Kells ended up in Trinity College, Dublin where it has stayed ever since. Today, the monastic site includes a 10th-century round tower that rises around 90 feet from the original
Archdeacon of Kells to the bishopric of Meath. Before the dissolution of the Monasteries and Henrican reforms of the 16th century took full effect in Ireland, there were Archdeacons of Kells, County Meath. The Diocese of Kells was established sometime after the Synod of Kells (1152), and incorporated with the Diocese of Meath after 1211. The deanery of Kells was created by Simon (de) Rochford, Bishop of Meath, in 1216. At the time, it was one of twelve rural deaneries in Meath, later becoming one of the two archdeaconries of the same diocese. Nobber was once an important town in the Kingdom of