"*3 Some of the
Southern
Picts had em-
century.
century.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v3
, chap, iv.
, sect, iv.
, pp.
137, 138.
Also Le Sieur Le Nain Tillemont's " Memoires pour servir a I'Histoire Ecclesiastique," tome xvi.
Art.
ii.
S.
Patrice.
"^ See Ussher, " Primordia," cap. xvii. ,
820. " Trias Thauma- p. Also, Colgan's
turga. " Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. ii. , p. 221,
"7 As this could not answer for his year
372, Ussher probably passed over this matter. Nor would it do for Colgan's A. D. 373 ; since, in neither of these years, did March17thfallonaWednesday. SeeDr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical History of Ire- land, vol. i. , chap, iv. , sect, iv. , n. 18,
'"* " See his
chap. X. , p. 211.
"' See his " Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," chap, i. , p. 8,
chap, iii. , p. 36.
'"
See "Lives of the Irish Saints, from St. Patrick down to St. Laurence O'Toole. " St. Patrick, sect, i. , p. 31.
baptist of our saint, however, but only the recipient of sight, at the infant's hands.
'^9 To this incident, allusion is made in Aubrey De Vere's " Legends of St. Patrick :"—
'=» " See his
'^'^
In the Third Life, cap. iii. , p. 21.
p. 138. History of Ireland," vol. i. ,
'3' See the Seventh Life, i. , cap. iv. , pars,
p. 118.
'3' Thus, first, a fountain, miraculously bursting from the earth, touched by St. Patrick's hand ; secondly, one, blind from his birth, having been restored to sight ; and, thirdly, one, hitherto ignorant of letters, being able suddenly to read the bap- tismal form.
'33 Jocelyn removes this constructive am-
Lives of Illustrious and Dis- tinguished Irishmen," vol. i. , part i. , p. 86. "' See " A Popular Life of St. Patrick,"
"3 See his " chap, iv. , p. 15.
of the Irish
Church,"
biguity of meaning, in the previous Lives, when he thus states, in the Sixth Life : " Fons vero profluvio profusiori
History
praefatus
dilatatus usque in prresens perspicuas ema-
"See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and other Principal Saints," vol. iii. , March xvii.
'=5 In the Second Life, cap. iii. , p. 10.
nans aquas, S. Patricii nomine insignitur, haustu dulcis, gustuque salubris, ut dicitur, variis incommodis laborantibus sospitatem aut levamen impartitur. Oritur enim secus limbum maris, super quem posteriorum dili- gentia edifrcavit oratorium, —habens altare in modum crucis extructum. " Sexta Vita S.
2 H
"7 In the Sixth Life, cap. ii. , p. 65.
^"^
The latter does not constitute him the Vol. III. —No. 8.
" The blind took that infant's hand priest
:
With that small hand, above the
ground
He signed the Cross. At God's command
A fountain rose with brimming bound. "
—"The of St. I. Baptism Patrick," p.
'3° See Miss M. F. Cusack's " Life of St. Patrick, Apostle of Ireland," p. 372.
482 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
Holy Cross. ^34 By some, it is reported, this well is yet to be seen at Kil- patrick,^35 near Dumbarton, in Scotland. It is said to be called Trees' Well,^36 in the immediate vicinity of the present church, erected on the site of a more ancient one ; but, the modern church does not cover the well, both being separated by the public road, leading from Dumbarton to Glasgow. 's? We are told, St. Patrick was born in Valentia, near the end of the northern wall ;'38 and, it is even probable, the Romans extended the stations of their province, on the north bank of the Clyde, to form tHes de pout, against the Pictish incursions. It need only be added, that we find a notice of St. Cair- nech, as being the reputed author of the Senchus Mor. '39 According to another account, the Irish Apostle is said to have been baptized, by Cairnech, also called Carantac, or Carantacus. '-*" However, the agency of Gornias, or Gormas, in this function, has the greater weight of authority to support it. When we deem St. Patrick to have been, in all likelihood, a British Celt,^4i it still remains to be discovered, whether he was one of Scotian or of Irish origin,^42 anAlbanianofPictishblood,''^3 oroneoftheStrath-ClydeCymri, or Cumbrians. ^44
If we are to credit the statement, in St. Fiach's Hymn, the parents of our holy Patron first gave him the name Succat, or Succath,'45 which means
"
warlike. " ^^6 j^^ those primitive times, and in the nation to which he be- longed, martial prowess was held in high estimation. Again, the Second Life remarks, Succet was his first name j^^y while the Third Life writes it Suchet,'*^ and Probus informs us, that Sochet was he called, as well as Patrick. ^49 In the Latin Tripartite Life of our saint, it is also said, that the first name, given to him by his parents, was Suchat. ^so Stanihurst'si calls him Suchar, or
Patricii, cap. ii. , p. 65. The Irish and the F. Skene's " Four Ancient Books of Wales," Latin versions of the Tripartite Life dis- this race took in the district of Arecluta and tinctly state, that it was the well, which the fortress of Alclud. See, also, chap, iv. , bore the shape of a cross.
" ut
from a
'34 The Second and Third Lives
periti aiunt. " The Third Life has, "ut Hymnus, seu Prima Vita S. Patricii, Suc-
loci periti illius dicunt. "
'35 This derived its place
CAC A Aiiim liiC|vul! )]\A'o, stanza, 2, p. i. It
church dedicated to our saint, and it was
formerly very richly endowed. See "Ori-
gines Parochiales Scotire," vol. ii. , p. 20. '3* It is situated, to the south, and in the west corner of the graveyard, in which the
churchstands.
'37 See the Rev. Duncan Macnab's
men ei primo impositum erat. " In the
"
Irish Ecclesiastical Record" version, the letter h, prefixed to the latter word, is omitted, and the English translation thus runs: "Succat was his name, it is said," &c. Seevol. iv. ,pp. 282,283.
"•* According to the Scholiast on St. Fiach, and he tells us, the word is British,
"
place of St. Patrick," pp. 40, 41.
Hill Burton's "
Archaeological Dissertation on the Birth-
"
'3^ See
of . 1. belli a b|vecnAi|' ^-ein ocup oeuj'
John
Scotland," vol. i. , chap, i. , p. 40.
History
'39 See "Ancient Laws of Ireland," vol. ii. Pi^eface, pp. v. to viii.
^'•°
Ibid. , p. viii.
'4' The student will find a very able dis-
lAceii. See ibid. , n. 4.
'••7 It reads : "nam primum Succet voca-
tus est," cap. xii. , p. 12.
Patricius igitur, qui vocabatur et Suchet," &c. , cap. xii. , p. 22.
sertation on the
primitive
races of Scotland
't' He "Sanctus Patricius has,
et So- Vita S.
in the
chet vocabatur. "
Patricii, lib. i. , cap. i. , p. 51.
"
Irish Version of the Historia Brito-
—Probus or
qui Quinta
num of Nennius," by the Hon. Algernon
"Pr—imumfuit
name,
is thus " Succat no- translated, by Colgan,
add,
'^3 See
Colgan's
"Trias
Thaumaturga,"
No.
i. , cap. xvii. , p. 119. In the Irish version, the same account seems to have been given ; but, from the Bodleian and British MSS. of braced Christianity, at least, in the fourth the Irish Tripartite Life, a leaf is here
Herbert. Additional xxix. to Ixiv.
Notes,
XVll. , pp.
stated, Suchat, a parentibus impositum. "
'4= Known generally as the Scoti, Gael, or Gwyddyl, as called by the Welsh.
"*3 Some of the Southern Picts had em-
century.
'** According to the coloured Map of
Prydyn, or Y Gogledd, prefixed to William
Patrick, Apostle of Ireland," p. 376.
'51 See " VitaS. Patricii," lib. i. ,p. 17. We
v. , pp. 42 to 76.
having in Latin the meaning,
Deus belli,"
"*^ "
'5°Therewefindit
missing. See Miss Cusack's
"
Life of St.
Pars,
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 483
Socher. '52 This, as given at the time of his baptism, was only one of the four names he received. 'S3 For, when during after hfe, he was a slave in
Ireland, our saint was called Cathraige, or Cothraige, because he was obliged to serve four different families. Next, was he named Magonius, owing to his wonderfulactions,whenunderthedisciplineofSt. Germanus. ^54 Again,we are told, that the title, Patricius, was given to him, at the time of his ordina- tion, and Celestinus, the comorban, or the successor of St. Peter, bestowed this name on him. These accounts, which are to be found in the Scholia on St. Fiach's Hymn, are also repeated, in the Second'ss and in the Tripartite^s^ Lives of our saint. Yet, it must be remarked, that in his own writings, we find, he never calls himself, by any other than by his received name of Patri- cius. It has been supposed, likewise, that this title was conferred, in con- sideration of parting with his nobility, through a motive of charity, as mentioned, in his epistle to Coroticus. ^57 However, we shall most generally adhere to its use—as most familiar to his devout admirers—throughout the subsequent pages of his biography.
While he was a mere child, the various Acts of St. Patrick record many
miracles, as manifestations of the glorious destiny that awaited him. When
he was in the house of his mother's sister, it was flooded with water, but this
he removed, in a most wonderful manner. He, also, in the winter season,
converted ice into a blazing fire, to afford warmth for his nurse. While
engaged with his sister, Lupita, tending a flock of sheep and lambs, she fell
against a stone, receiving a very grievous wound, on the head, and from it,
blood flowed profusely ; but, Patrick, making a sign of the cross, on the
abraded skin, removed all pain, and only a mark showed, afterwards, the part
healed. A sheep, taken away by a wolf, from a flock he had charge of, and
some cows gored to death, were miraculously restored to life, and his nurse
experienced great joy, in consequence. Again, the husband of his mother's
sister, who was accustomed to carry the infant, Patrick, on his shoulders,
suddenly dropped dead, in a court'^s or hall ; then his wife, in great distress,
said to " O hast thou allowed this death of fosterer? " Patrick, Why, boy, thy
Running forward, and throwing his hand, around the neck of the prostrate
he cried " and let us out, Arise,
go. " Immediately
the dead man was
body,
are further told, that in the Irish language, Ji>-
" Succat primuni nomen ejus in Baptismo a parentibus suis : Cathraige nomen ei indi- turn servitutis tempore in Hibernia : Mago-
nius, i. e. magis agens quam coeteri Monachi
nomen ejus tempore discipulatus apud Ger- manum : Patricius vero vocatus tempore suae ordinationis : et Cselestinus, Petri Co- morbanus sive Successor, est qui hoc ei nomen indidit. " See Scholia Veteris Scho-
cair means mildness, ease, and also
" smooth," &c. Hence, it may have been given, to indicate our saint's character for meekness. See Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesias- tical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap. iv. , sect, v. , p. 141.
"
plain,"
^s^ It is said, in low Latinity, Succa signi-
fies a linen garment, worn by bishops in
public. See Du Cange, in " Glossarium liastas, n. 6, appended to the Prima Vita S. Mediae et Infimas Latinitatis," sicb-voce.
Hence, Dr. Lanigan conjectures, that the
title St. Patrick received, in Irish, might
probably have been derived, from his wear-
ing a succa. This supposition is not in Corotici Tyranni subditos. Villenueva's
accord, however, with the statements, that
his name was British, and more especially,
that his parents first gave it to him, in bap- 243.
which he received while an infant. '^s xhe Latin word in the Alen tism, used,
'53 Such is stated, in the last quoted is curia.
authority; asalso,bySt. Fiach'sScholiast, in the Second, and in the Seventh, Life.
'5* St. Fiach's Scholiast compares his
several names, to a custom, prevailing among the Roman nobility, when he adds :
'59 See the Second Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , x. , pp, 11, 12, and nn. 8, 9, 10 ; the Third Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix,, x. , pp. 21, 22 ; the Fourth Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , x. , pp. 35, 36, and n. 7, pp.
Patricii, p. 4.
'55 See cap. xii. , p. 12,
'5* See lib. i. , cap. xvii. , p. 119.
'57 See S. Patricii Epistola ad Christianos
"
Sancti Patricii, Ibernorum Apostoli, Synodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. , num. 5, p.
MS*,
484 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March
restored to life. '59 Other miracles are even added. ^^° These are of the legend class, which were popularly told, and probably long after his age, to illustrate the
early promise of his future great missionary career. It is said, the admirable progress this holy child made, in the course of virtue, far exceeded his tender years; for,hislovingbreastaboundedinDivinegifts,whileitwasenriched and stored with all virtues. During the slippery career of youth, he did not fall into any faults, that might stain the spotless robe of chastity ; such was his care, in keeping the integrity both of soul and body unblemished. While the inward motions of grace instructed and directed him, in all his actions ; yet, when he came to competent years, his parents took care to train him up in learning. The child applied to his books very diligently. He most particularly desired, to learn psalms, hymns and spiritual canticles. These he committed to memory ; as even from the prime of youth, he was wont every day to repeat the whole Psalter. His tender body was chastised with fastings, watchings, and other exercises of devotion. He presented it, as a livingholocaust,holy,andpleasingtoGod. Helikewiserepresented,inhis mortal flesh, the life of an angel, as if living without any body. Such are the accounts of Jocelyn,'^' and of some, among St. Patrick's more recent biogra- phers ; but, they seem to conflict, with that statement of the Apostle himself, as to how, during the earlier years of life, he was negligent in discharging his religious duties, as he acknowledges,'^^ and in keeping God's commandments. In the true spirit of humility, however, St. Patrick thanked the Lord, who regarded his lowliness, who had compassion on the ignorance of his youth, and who had preserved him, before he knew the Creator of all things, or before he could distinguish good from evil ; by admonishing and consoling him, also, as a father does his child.
CHAPTER IV.
THE EARLY DIALECTS OF THE BRITISH ISLANDS—THEIR DISTURBED SOCIAL RELATIONS —ST. PATRICK'S YOUTH AND HIS ERRORS—THE EVENT WHICH LED TO HIS FIRST CAPTIVITY, ABOUT THE AGE OF SIXTEEN—NIALL OF THE NINE HOSTAGES—MISFOR- TUNES OCCURRING TO ST. PATRICK'S FAMILY—HE BECOMES A SLAVE TO MILCHUO, IN THE NORTH OF IRELAND—HIS MANNER OF LIFE THERE—HIS ESCAPE FROM CAP- TIVITY AND SUBSEQUENT ADVENTURES.
Whether St. Patrick lived amid the Picts or Scots, as a highlander or low- lander, has not been decided. Notwithstanding, it is probable, he first
learned, in North Britain, that Scotish or Gaelic language, which, in after hfe, enabled him, to converse with and preach so eloquently, to the people of
48,49; theSixthLife,cap,iv. ,v. ,vi. ,vii. , viii. , ix. , pp. 65, 66; the Seventh Life, part i,, cap. vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , xi. , xii. , pp. 117 to 119.
"~ Such as those of converting water into
honey, to refresh his nurse, who had been
sick; of raising a dead boy to life; of
having an angel to labour for himself, and
for his nurse; of obtaining butter and cheese
from snow, to pay a tribute for his nurse, to
the king. Tlie miracle of the angel, aiding
St. Patrick to cleanse the king's stables, is
said to have occurred, at Dunbreatan, as called in the British tongue, or " Mons Bri-
torum," as Latinised, in the Vale of Chid,
according to Jocelyn. The Tripartite Life, also, identifies the place, as Alclud. See
Fourth Life, cap. xi. , xii. , xiii. , xiv. , pp. 36, 37 ; the Sixth Life, cap. x. , xi. , pp. 66, 67, and n. 12, p. 109 ; the Seventh Life, pars, i. , cap. x. , xiii. , xiv. , xv. , pp. 118, 119.
""See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga,
Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xii. , p. 67. "
"
'''See Confessio S. Patricii," cap. i,, num. i. Villanueva's " Sancti Patricii,
Ibcrnorum Apostoli, Synodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. , pp. 1S4, 1S5. References to this passage of his Confession are to be
found, in the Second Life, cap. xi. , p. 12 ; in the Third, cap. iv. , p. 21 ; in the Fourth,
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 485
Ireland. ^ So far as we can glean, two great distinctive dialectic differences
—in the Celtic
existed, languages,
even at that remote
These were the
period.
Gaelic now represented by the Irish, Manx, and Scotch Gaelic tongues ; and the Cymric, consisting of the Welsh, the Cornish and the Breton dialects. The three Gaelic languages have a closer affinity, towards each other,thanthethreeCymricdialects; but,eachoneoftheseclassespossesses in common great distinctive differences, which separate it from the other,
while there are, also, analogies so close, vital and fundamental, as to leave no doubt, all those varieties are but children of the same common parent. Another anciently-spoken and now lost Celtic dialect, in these islands, was the Pictish. In the anti-Christian period, the diversity of Celtic languages was probably very great, before the introduction of writing, which raised the standard of their cultivation, chiefly through the agency of that great civiliser, the Christian Church. '
Near the northern outposts of the Romans, in Great Britain, we suppose
Patricktohavespenthisearlyyouth; and,surroundedbyaperpetualclangour of arms, his education must have been often interrupted, owing to the exigencies of this situation. His defective instruction the saint deplored, in after life, complaining, that he could not explain with conciseness of language what his feelings dictated, and what his mind, sense and affections demonstrated ; while blushing for his ignorance, and for his unpolished style of writing, espe- cially when departing from the vernacular. Latin, to him, appears to have been an unfamiliar tongue. 3 Fire trieth gold, however, and the fire of tribu- lationjustmen; but,totheend,thatSaintPatrick'svirtuesshouldbecome more illustrious, and his crown of bliss more glorious, he was exposed, to the assaults of the tempter. The saint confesses and deplores his transgres- sions, with their causes ; for, he declares, that he had withdrawn from God, and did not keep his commandments, and was disobedient to his priests, who advised him on the affair of salvation. To these errors, the humble servant of Christ attributes those temporal afflictions, which overtook him, while he was yet a mere boy, and before he could well understand, what he ought to desire, or to avoid. +
Towards the close of the fourth and the commencement of the fifth
centuries, frequent inroads were made on the British shores, by expeditionary and piratical vessels, saiUng from the coasts of Ireland. 5 The Second Life^ of our saint would lead to the inference, that some of these half-military, half-
cap, i. , p. 35, and in the Seventh Life, pars.
"^ See Ussher, " Primordia," cap. xvii. ,
820. " Trias Thauma- p. Also, Colgan's
turga. " Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. ii. , p. 221,
"7 As this could not answer for his year
372, Ussher probably passed over this matter. Nor would it do for Colgan's A. D. 373 ; since, in neither of these years, did March17thfallonaWednesday. SeeDr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical History of Ire- land, vol. i. , chap, iv. , sect, iv. , n. 18,
'"* " See his
chap. X. , p. 211.
"' See his " Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," chap, i. , p. 8,
chap, iii. , p. 36.
'"
See "Lives of the Irish Saints, from St. Patrick down to St. Laurence O'Toole. " St. Patrick, sect, i. , p. 31.
baptist of our saint, however, but only the recipient of sight, at the infant's hands.
'^9 To this incident, allusion is made in Aubrey De Vere's " Legends of St. Patrick :"—
'=» " See his
'^'^
In the Third Life, cap. iii. , p. 21.
p. 138. History of Ireland," vol. i. ,
'3' See the Seventh Life, i. , cap. iv. , pars,
p. 118.
'3' Thus, first, a fountain, miraculously bursting from the earth, touched by St. Patrick's hand ; secondly, one, blind from his birth, having been restored to sight ; and, thirdly, one, hitherto ignorant of letters, being able suddenly to read the bap- tismal form.
'33 Jocelyn removes this constructive am-
Lives of Illustrious and Dis- tinguished Irishmen," vol. i. , part i. , p. 86. "' See " A Popular Life of St. Patrick,"
"3 See his " chap, iv. , p. 15.
of the Irish
Church,"
biguity of meaning, in the previous Lives, when he thus states, in the Sixth Life : " Fons vero profluvio profusiori
History
praefatus
dilatatus usque in prresens perspicuas ema-
"See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and other Principal Saints," vol. iii. , March xvii.
'=5 In the Second Life, cap. iii. , p. 10.
nans aquas, S. Patricii nomine insignitur, haustu dulcis, gustuque salubris, ut dicitur, variis incommodis laborantibus sospitatem aut levamen impartitur. Oritur enim secus limbum maris, super quem posteriorum dili- gentia edifrcavit oratorium, —habens altare in modum crucis extructum. " Sexta Vita S.
2 H
"7 In the Sixth Life, cap. ii. , p. 65.
^"^
The latter does not constitute him the Vol. III. —No. 8.
" The blind took that infant's hand priest
:
With that small hand, above the
ground
He signed the Cross. At God's command
A fountain rose with brimming bound. "
—"The of St. I. Baptism Patrick," p.
'3° See Miss M. F. Cusack's " Life of St. Patrick, Apostle of Ireland," p. 372.
482 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
Holy Cross. ^34 By some, it is reported, this well is yet to be seen at Kil- patrick,^35 near Dumbarton, in Scotland. It is said to be called Trees' Well,^36 in the immediate vicinity of the present church, erected on the site of a more ancient one ; but, the modern church does not cover the well, both being separated by the public road, leading from Dumbarton to Glasgow. 's? We are told, St. Patrick was born in Valentia, near the end of the northern wall ;'38 and, it is even probable, the Romans extended the stations of their province, on the north bank of the Clyde, to form tHes de pout, against the Pictish incursions. It need only be added, that we find a notice of St. Cair- nech, as being the reputed author of the Senchus Mor. '39 According to another account, the Irish Apostle is said to have been baptized, by Cairnech, also called Carantac, or Carantacus. '-*" However, the agency of Gornias, or Gormas, in this function, has the greater weight of authority to support it. When we deem St. Patrick to have been, in all likelihood, a British Celt,^4i it still remains to be discovered, whether he was one of Scotian or of Irish origin,^42 anAlbanianofPictishblood,''^3 oroneoftheStrath-ClydeCymri, or Cumbrians. ^44
If we are to credit the statement, in St. Fiach's Hymn, the parents of our holy Patron first gave him the name Succat, or Succath,'45 which means
"
warlike. " ^^6 j^^ those primitive times, and in the nation to which he be- longed, martial prowess was held in high estimation. Again, the Second Life remarks, Succet was his first name j^^y while the Third Life writes it Suchet,'*^ and Probus informs us, that Sochet was he called, as well as Patrick. ^49 In the Latin Tripartite Life of our saint, it is also said, that the first name, given to him by his parents, was Suchat. ^so Stanihurst'si calls him Suchar, or
Patricii, cap. ii. , p. 65. The Irish and the F. Skene's " Four Ancient Books of Wales," Latin versions of the Tripartite Life dis- this race took in the district of Arecluta and tinctly state, that it was the well, which the fortress of Alclud. See, also, chap, iv. , bore the shape of a cross.
" ut
from a
'34 The Second and Third Lives
periti aiunt. " The Third Life has, "ut Hymnus, seu Prima Vita S. Patricii, Suc-
loci periti illius dicunt. "
'35 This derived its place
CAC A Aiiim liiC|vul! )]\A'o, stanza, 2, p. i. It
church dedicated to our saint, and it was
formerly very richly endowed. See "Ori-
gines Parochiales Scotire," vol. ii. , p. 20. '3* It is situated, to the south, and in the west corner of the graveyard, in which the
churchstands.
'37 See the Rev. Duncan Macnab's
men ei primo impositum erat. " In the
"
Irish Ecclesiastical Record" version, the letter h, prefixed to the latter word, is omitted, and the English translation thus runs: "Succat was his name, it is said," &c. Seevol. iv. ,pp. 282,283.
"•* According to the Scholiast on St. Fiach, and he tells us, the word is British,
"
place of St. Patrick," pp. 40, 41.
Hill Burton's "
Archaeological Dissertation on the Birth-
"
'3^ See
of . 1. belli a b|vecnAi|' ^-ein ocup oeuj'
John
Scotland," vol. i. , chap, i. , p. 40.
History
'39 See "Ancient Laws of Ireland," vol. ii. Pi^eface, pp. v. to viii.
^'•°
Ibid. , p. viii.
'4' The student will find a very able dis-
lAceii. See ibid. , n. 4.
'••7 It reads : "nam primum Succet voca-
tus est," cap. xii. , p. 12.
Patricius igitur, qui vocabatur et Suchet," &c. , cap. xii. , p. 22.
sertation on the
primitive
races of Scotland
't' He "Sanctus Patricius has,
et So- Vita S.
in the
chet vocabatur. "
Patricii, lib. i. , cap. i. , p. 51.
"
Irish Version of the Historia Brito-
—Probus or
qui Quinta
num of Nennius," by the Hon. Algernon
"Pr—imumfuit
name,
is thus " Succat no- translated, by Colgan,
add,
'^3 See
Colgan's
"Trias
Thaumaturga,"
No.
i. , cap. xvii. , p. 119. In the Irish version, the same account seems to have been given ; but, from the Bodleian and British MSS. of braced Christianity, at least, in the fourth the Irish Tripartite Life, a leaf is here
Herbert. Additional xxix. to Ixiv.
Notes,
XVll. , pp.
stated, Suchat, a parentibus impositum. "
'4= Known generally as the Scoti, Gael, or Gwyddyl, as called by the Welsh.
"*3 Some of the Southern Picts had em-
century.
'** According to the coloured Map of
Prydyn, or Y Gogledd, prefixed to William
Patrick, Apostle of Ireland," p. 376.
'51 See " VitaS. Patricii," lib. i. ,p. 17. We
v. , pp. 42 to 76.
having in Latin the meaning,
Deus belli,"
"*^ "
'5°Therewefindit
missing. See Miss Cusack's
"
Life of St.
Pars,
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 483
Socher. '52 This, as given at the time of his baptism, was only one of the four names he received. 'S3 For, when during after hfe, he was a slave in
Ireland, our saint was called Cathraige, or Cothraige, because he was obliged to serve four different families. Next, was he named Magonius, owing to his wonderfulactions,whenunderthedisciplineofSt. Germanus. ^54 Again,we are told, that the title, Patricius, was given to him, at the time of his ordina- tion, and Celestinus, the comorban, or the successor of St. Peter, bestowed this name on him. These accounts, which are to be found in the Scholia on St. Fiach's Hymn, are also repeated, in the Second'ss and in the Tripartite^s^ Lives of our saint. Yet, it must be remarked, that in his own writings, we find, he never calls himself, by any other than by his received name of Patri- cius. It has been supposed, likewise, that this title was conferred, in con- sideration of parting with his nobility, through a motive of charity, as mentioned, in his epistle to Coroticus. ^57 However, we shall most generally adhere to its use—as most familiar to his devout admirers—throughout the subsequent pages of his biography.
While he was a mere child, the various Acts of St. Patrick record many
miracles, as manifestations of the glorious destiny that awaited him. When
he was in the house of his mother's sister, it was flooded with water, but this
he removed, in a most wonderful manner. He, also, in the winter season,
converted ice into a blazing fire, to afford warmth for his nurse. While
engaged with his sister, Lupita, tending a flock of sheep and lambs, she fell
against a stone, receiving a very grievous wound, on the head, and from it,
blood flowed profusely ; but, Patrick, making a sign of the cross, on the
abraded skin, removed all pain, and only a mark showed, afterwards, the part
healed. A sheep, taken away by a wolf, from a flock he had charge of, and
some cows gored to death, were miraculously restored to life, and his nurse
experienced great joy, in consequence. Again, the husband of his mother's
sister, who was accustomed to carry the infant, Patrick, on his shoulders,
suddenly dropped dead, in a court'^s or hall ; then his wife, in great distress,
said to " O hast thou allowed this death of fosterer? " Patrick, Why, boy, thy
Running forward, and throwing his hand, around the neck of the prostrate
he cried " and let us out, Arise,
go. " Immediately
the dead man was
body,
are further told, that in the Irish language, Ji>-
" Succat primuni nomen ejus in Baptismo a parentibus suis : Cathraige nomen ei indi- turn servitutis tempore in Hibernia : Mago-
nius, i. e. magis agens quam coeteri Monachi
nomen ejus tempore discipulatus apud Ger- manum : Patricius vero vocatus tempore suae ordinationis : et Cselestinus, Petri Co- morbanus sive Successor, est qui hoc ei nomen indidit. " See Scholia Veteris Scho-
cair means mildness, ease, and also
" smooth," &c. Hence, it may have been given, to indicate our saint's character for meekness. See Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesias- tical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap. iv. , sect, v. , p. 141.
"
plain,"
^s^ It is said, in low Latinity, Succa signi-
fies a linen garment, worn by bishops in
public. See Du Cange, in " Glossarium liastas, n. 6, appended to the Prima Vita S. Mediae et Infimas Latinitatis," sicb-voce.
Hence, Dr. Lanigan conjectures, that the
title St. Patrick received, in Irish, might
probably have been derived, from his wear-
ing a succa. This supposition is not in Corotici Tyranni subditos. Villenueva's
accord, however, with the statements, that
his name was British, and more especially,
that his parents first gave it to him, in bap- 243.
which he received while an infant. '^s xhe Latin word in the Alen tism, used,
'53 Such is stated, in the last quoted is curia.
authority; asalso,bySt. Fiach'sScholiast, in the Second, and in the Seventh, Life.
'5* St. Fiach's Scholiast compares his
several names, to a custom, prevailing among the Roman nobility, when he adds :
'59 See the Second Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , x. , pp, 11, 12, and nn. 8, 9, 10 ; the Third Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix,, x. , pp. 21, 22 ; the Fourth Life, cap. v. , vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , x. , pp. 35, 36, and n. 7, pp.
Patricii, p. 4.
'55 See cap. xii. , p. 12,
'5* See lib. i. , cap. xvii. , p. 119.
'57 See S. Patricii Epistola ad Christianos
"
Sancti Patricii, Ibernorum Apostoli, Synodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. , num. 5, p.
MS*,
484 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March
restored to life. '59 Other miracles are even added. ^^° These are of the legend class, which were popularly told, and probably long after his age, to illustrate the
early promise of his future great missionary career. It is said, the admirable progress this holy child made, in the course of virtue, far exceeded his tender years; for,hislovingbreastaboundedinDivinegifts,whileitwasenriched and stored with all virtues. During the slippery career of youth, he did not fall into any faults, that might stain the spotless robe of chastity ; such was his care, in keeping the integrity both of soul and body unblemished. While the inward motions of grace instructed and directed him, in all his actions ; yet, when he came to competent years, his parents took care to train him up in learning. The child applied to his books very diligently. He most particularly desired, to learn psalms, hymns and spiritual canticles. These he committed to memory ; as even from the prime of youth, he was wont every day to repeat the whole Psalter. His tender body was chastised with fastings, watchings, and other exercises of devotion. He presented it, as a livingholocaust,holy,andpleasingtoGod. Helikewiserepresented,inhis mortal flesh, the life of an angel, as if living without any body. Such are the accounts of Jocelyn,'^' and of some, among St. Patrick's more recent biogra- phers ; but, they seem to conflict, with that statement of the Apostle himself, as to how, during the earlier years of life, he was negligent in discharging his religious duties, as he acknowledges,'^^ and in keeping God's commandments. In the true spirit of humility, however, St. Patrick thanked the Lord, who regarded his lowliness, who had compassion on the ignorance of his youth, and who had preserved him, before he knew the Creator of all things, or before he could distinguish good from evil ; by admonishing and consoling him, also, as a father does his child.
CHAPTER IV.
THE EARLY DIALECTS OF THE BRITISH ISLANDS—THEIR DISTURBED SOCIAL RELATIONS —ST. PATRICK'S YOUTH AND HIS ERRORS—THE EVENT WHICH LED TO HIS FIRST CAPTIVITY, ABOUT THE AGE OF SIXTEEN—NIALL OF THE NINE HOSTAGES—MISFOR- TUNES OCCURRING TO ST. PATRICK'S FAMILY—HE BECOMES A SLAVE TO MILCHUO, IN THE NORTH OF IRELAND—HIS MANNER OF LIFE THERE—HIS ESCAPE FROM CAP- TIVITY AND SUBSEQUENT ADVENTURES.
Whether St. Patrick lived amid the Picts or Scots, as a highlander or low- lander, has not been decided. Notwithstanding, it is probable, he first
learned, in North Britain, that Scotish or Gaelic language, which, in after hfe, enabled him, to converse with and preach so eloquently, to the people of
48,49; theSixthLife,cap,iv. ,v. ,vi. ,vii. , viii. , ix. , pp. 65, 66; the Seventh Life, part i,, cap. vi. , vii. , viii. , ix. , xi. , xii. , pp. 117 to 119.
"~ Such as those of converting water into
honey, to refresh his nurse, who had been
sick; of raising a dead boy to life; of
having an angel to labour for himself, and
for his nurse; of obtaining butter and cheese
from snow, to pay a tribute for his nurse, to
the king. Tlie miracle of the angel, aiding
St. Patrick to cleanse the king's stables, is
said to have occurred, at Dunbreatan, as called in the British tongue, or " Mons Bri-
torum," as Latinised, in the Vale of Chid,
according to Jocelyn. The Tripartite Life, also, identifies the place, as Alclud. See
Fourth Life, cap. xi. , xii. , xiii. , xiv. , pp. 36, 37 ; the Sixth Life, cap. x. , xi. , pp. 66, 67, and n. 12, p. 109 ; the Seventh Life, pars, i. , cap. x. , xiii. , xiv. , xv. , pp. 118, 119.
""See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga,
Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xii. , p. 67. "
"
'''See Confessio S. Patricii," cap. i,, num. i. Villanueva's " Sancti Patricii,
Ibcrnorum Apostoli, Synodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. , pp. 1S4, 1S5. References to this passage of his Confession are to be
found, in the Second Life, cap. xi. , p. 12 ; in the Third, cap. iv. , p. 21 ; in the Fourth,
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 485
Ireland. ^ So far as we can glean, two great distinctive dialectic differences
—in the Celtic
existed, languages,
even at that remote
These were the
period.
Gaelic now represented by the Irish, Manx, and Scotch Gaelic tongues ; and the Cymric, consisting of the Welsh, the Cornish and the Breton dialects. The three Gaelic languages have a closer affinity, towards each other,thanthethreeCymricdialects; but,eachoneoftheseclassespossesses in common great distinctive differences, which separate it from the other,
while there are, also, analogies so close, vital and fundamental, as to leave no doubt, all those varieties are but children of the same common parent. Another anciently-spoken and now lost Celtic dialect, in these islands, was the Pictish. In the anti-Christian period, the diversity of Celtic languages was probably very great, before the introduction of writing, which raised the standard of their cultivation, chiefly through the agency of that great civiliser, the Christian Church. '
Near the northern outposts of the Romans, in Great Britain, we suppose
Patricktohavespenthisearlyyouth; and,surroundedbyaperpetualclangour of arms, his education must have been often interrupted, owing to the exigencies of this situation. His defective instruction the saint deplored, in after life, complaining, that he could not explain with conciseness of language what his feelings dictated, and what his mind, sense and affections demonstrated ; while blushing for his ignorance, and for his unpolished style of writing, espe- cially when departing from the vernacular. Latin, to him, appears to have been an unfamiliar tongue. 3 Fire trieth gold, however, and the fire of tribu- lationjustmen; but,totheend,thatSaintPatrick'svirtuesshouldbecome more illustrious, and his crown of bliss more glorious, he was exposed, to the assaults of the tempter. The saint confesses and deplores his transgres- sions, with their causes ; for, he declares, that he had withdrawn from God, and did not keep his commandments, and was disobedient to his priests, who advised him on the affair of salvation. To these errors, the humble servant of Christ attributes those temporal afflictions, which overtook him, while he was yet a mere boy, and before he could well understand, what he ought to desire, or to avoid. +
Towards the close of the fourth and the commencement of the fifth
centuries, frequent inroads were made on the British shores, by expeditionary and piratical vessels, saiUng from the coasts of Ireland. 5 The Second Life^ of our saint would lead to the inference, that some of these half-military, half-
cap, i. , p. 35, and in the Seventh Life, pars.
