 Their initial success was phenomenal, as Mellifont sent out its monks to found one daughter house after another within a decade of its foundation.For some as yet unexplained reason, the Cistercians found it difficult to find a permanent home for themselves in Connacht, making three false starts before they finally settled at Boyle in 1161 beside a small river that flows into Lough Key.Their original patrons were the McGreevys, lords of Moylurg and later, after a power struggle, the MacDermott.