During the time of the Plantation of Ulster in 1610, Sir William Stewart received 1,000 acres of land in the parish of Tullyaughnish, and here in Rathmelton he erected a castle with a bawn, and a church.
The church remained in use till 1826.
The building measures about 25 metres in length and 9 metres in width, and is aligned to the east (90°).
All walls stand at their full height and are supported by massive buttresses.
The north wall has only one window but it's been walled up. There are four semi-arched windows in the south wall, a round-headed doorway in the west wall, and a four-light window, with a nice tracery, in the east window.
Above this window, set into the wall, there is a decorated slab, dating from the 12th century, and originally placed on the wall of the Romanesque Church of St. Columba on Aughnish Island. The carving on this slab depicts a tree with four curled trees in the middle, and two creatures on its sides. The creature on the south side looks like a wolf, the other one might be a griffin. The lower side of the slab has a semi-circular opening framed by a bead moulding. According to some sources the carving represents the coat of arms of the Abbot of Aughnish.
In my opinion this is the only detail of interest in the whole church that is otherwise plain and ordinary.
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