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
Abbey of Kells granted the land. The Abbey was refounded from Iona, the building taking from 807 until the consecration of the church in 814. The site was a former Irish hill fort. In 814, Cellach, Abbot of Iona, retired to Kells, but, contrary to what is sometimes claimed, it is clear from the "Annals" that Iona remained the main Columban house for several decades, despite the danger of Viking raids. Only in 878 were the main relics, with Columba's reliquary shrine specified in the records, moved to Ireland, with Kells becoming the new main Columban house. Though not mentioned, this might well