tyrology
Donegal,
A parish in the Barony of East Mus- kerry, in the West Riding of Cork.
A parish in the Barony of East Mus- kerry, in the West Riding of Cork.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v9
56 The
anonymous list of Irish Saints, published by O'Sullevan Beare records Alpho, atthe5thofSeptember. Alsointhe"MenologiumScoticum"ofThomas
Dempster, this festival is entered. 5?
38 His feast occurs on the 27th of April.
39 Venerated on the 20th or 24th of Octo- ber.
40 Venerated at Saltzburgh, on the 24th of September.
It has been conjectured, that this must
s3 Also called Welf, or Welpho, from the Teutonic word Welf, rendered into Latin by the word " Catulus," and pronounced by the
Belgians Welp, or Wulp. Various opinions have been held regarding the origin of that name. In later ages, the Guelphs sustained the rights of the Apostolic See in Italy, against the powerful faction of the Gibel lines. Weingarten has written a work, " De
"
Guelfis Principibus.
54 A curious tradition is given by the
anonymous writer of our Saint's Acts regard- ing the apparition of Alto to enforce the necessity for this restoration.
41
Venerated at Saltzburgh, on the 24th of
September.
42 Venerated on the 24th of November. 43 Venerated on the 8th of January.
44 Venerated on the 8th of January.
4s Venerated on the 1st of December.
46 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
nise," Februarii ix. De S. Altone Abbate
Alto-Monasterii in Bavaria," and nn. 3, 4,
5, pp. 301, 302.
4? This account, Rader obtained from the
monastery itself. See " Bavaria Sancta," lib. ii. , p. 115.
48 It is noted in the dyptics of Altmunster,
according to Rader.
49 See Bishop Challoner's Brittania
Sancta," part ii. , pp. 1 19, 120.
s° Pliny calls them Licates, and enumerates
** Direptum a quodam
tribes.
Lib. iv.
Dr. William Smith's " of Dictionary
s2
Greek and Roman Geography," vol. ii. ,p. 182.
See
"
them among the Alpine tribes subdued by ac demum saeculo quinto-decimo Altoni—s
Augustus. See "HistoriaNaturalis,"lib. iii. , monasterium Brigittanis concessum est. "
"Annates Ordinis S. Benedicti," tomus ii. , s 1 Now the River Lech. Strabo calls their lib. xxi. , num. lxxvii. , p. 122.
cap. 24.
town Damasia, and he mentions them as being the most audacious of the Videlicean
56 At the time when Rader wrote, that
community was in a flourishing state. See "Bavaria Sancta," lib. ii. , p. 115.
57 See Forbes' "Kalendars of Bishop
Scottish Saints," p. 210.
5S Mabillon states
Alamannise seu Sueviae comite monasterium, seculo decimo instauratum est, traditumque aliquanto post tempore Altorfiensibus sancti- monialibus Benedictinis, quae coenobium suum. Alto-monasteriensibus monachis ces- serunt Altorfio deinde in paraecialem ecclesiam commutato, Altorfienses in no- vum Weingartense Monasterium translati :
:
io4 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September 5.
have been a festival to commemorate some translation of his relics. *8 The English Martyrology and Henry Fitzsimons, at this same date, enter a feast
for St. Altho. 59 The Bollandists also notice this 60 in their festival,
great work.
Article II. —St. Faithleann, possibly of Innisfallen, County of Kerry. At the 5th of September, the name of St. Faithleann occurs in the Irish Calendars. 1 The name Faithlenn Deochoin, or Deacon, without further designation, appears in the published Martyrology of 2 at of
Tallagh, 5th September. 3 From this we can only infer, that he flourished, at an early period. It has been suggested,* that he may be Faithlenn, Deacon, son to
[nnisfallen Oratory, Lower Lake of Killarney.
Aedh Domhain, of Munster, and sprung from the race of Core, son to Lughaidh, son of Oilill Flannbeg, who was son of Fiacha Muilleathan, son to EoghanMor,sonofOilillOlum. Yet,itwouldseem,thelatercalendarists had some doubt regarding Faithleen having been correctly identified as Deacon,sonofAedhDamhain. Inis-Faithlenn,snowknownasInnisfallen, on the Lower Lake of Killarney, is thought to have been named from him. 6 There are still the remains of an ancient oratory 1 to be seen on the margin
58 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- 3 In that copy contained in the Book of nise," Februarii ix. De S. Altone Abbate Leinster is found £41chlean 'Oechoin.
Alto-Monasterii in Bavaria, n. 8, p. 302. 59SeeO'SullevanBeare's"HistoricCatho- licse Ibemiae Compendium," tomus i. , lib. iv. ,
cap. xi. , xii. , pp. 50, 52.
4 By the O'Clerys.
5 PronouncedInish-Fah-len.
°° " See
tembris v. p. 486.
Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Sep- Among the pretermitted feasts,
already written regarding it, at the 7th of April, in the Fourth Volume of this work, Art. i. , where the Acts of St. Finan, Patron and Abbot of Kinnety, King's County, are written, chap. ii.
7 With the Acts of St. Finan, there is an illustration of the ancient oratory of Innis- fallen given. From a different point of view,
1
Article ii. -— At this date, his feast is set
down in a MS. Calendar of Professor Eugene
O'Curry.
3
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xxxiii.
6
The reader is referred to what has been
September 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 105
of that beautiful and fertile island. 8 In the beginning of the present century, the ruins of an abbey, situated at the north-eastern extremity of Innisfallen, were much more extensive. The church, which consisted of a single aisle, was seventy feet in length, by twenty wide. The architecture of the cloister, and what seemed to have been the apartments of the monks, were rude, without sculptured ornaments, lofty arches or spacious windows. The cloister was only thirty-eight feet square, and though its walls were very much dilapidated, the limits of its covered walk and the apertures to the interior area might be distinctly traced. 9 By a monk of this abbey, the Annals of
Innisfallen are said to have been written, about the year 1216. However, there seems to be good reason for supposing, they had been commenced, at least two centuries before that period ; and a tradition has always existed in the South of Ireland, that a learned man, named Maelsuthain O'Cearbhaill,10 had originally composed those Annals. 11 The Four Masters assign his death
to a. d. I2 The foundation of a 1009.
religious
house at Innisfallen is
usually
attributed to St. Finan Lobhar,^ in the latter part of the sixth century. The
present saint is mentioned in the Martyrology of Donegal ** as simply
Faithlenn, at the 5th day of September.
Article III. —St. Eolang, said to have been of Aghaboe, Queen's
County,yetprobablyofAghabollogue,CountyofCork. Thisholy
man must have lived during an early century of Christianity in the Irish Church, since his name has been entered in the Calendar of Oengus, where
he is
designated
a "fair 2
" and a of 1 The "victory piety. "
published
pillar Martyrology Tallagh mentions,
and also the in the Book of Leinster,3 copy
of
that, at the 5th of September, veneration was given to Eolang, of Achaid-bo. This is the celebrated Aghaboe, a parish in the barony of Clarmallagh, and in the southern part of the Queen's County. In the Martyrology of Donegal ,« at the same date, he is recorded as Eolang, of Achadh-bo-Cainnigh, in
and taken from a photograph, Mr. Gregor the Manuscript Materials of Ancient Irish
History," Lect. iv. , p. 79,
" At this
smoothly plastered and whitened ; two p. 761.
modern bow-windows have been opened to 13 See his Life, already given at the 1 6th
thenorthandsouth,andthefloorhasbeen ofMarch,intheThirdVolumeofthiswork,
Grey has drawn the present illustration on the wood, also engraved by him.
" Maelsuthain Ua Cearbhaill [one] of the family of Inis- Faithleann, chief doctor of the western world in his time, and lord of Eoghanacht of Loch- pompous appellation of the banqueting- Lein, died after a good life. "—Dr. O'Dono- house. The walls at the inside have been van's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. ii. ,
8
Isaac Weld thus writes: "This little building has, within a few years, been fitted up as a place of entertainment,, under the
boarded. One cannot but deplore the frivolity of that taste which has thus injudiciously
Art j There, likewise, may be found two diflferent views of the ruined oratory on Innis- fanen. See chap i
metamorphosed it.
The changes which are
M ^^ g _
effected by time command our reverence and
dispose the soul to contemplation ; but those
discordant alterations of the works of ancient days untune the mind and interrupt that
,
J
Drs
Todd and
ReeveSf pp
.
thought
"
Se/ies yoL Q b b
which the rema—ins of anti-
course of
quity are calculated to inspire.
tions of the Scenery of Killarney and the Surrounding CountryS, sect, ii. , pp. 128, 129. London, 1812, 8vo
2
4leltwa? d0 "Chronological
Account of nearly Four Hundred Irish
Writers," p. lxx.
11 "
See Professor O'Curry's Lectures on 236, 237.
Illustra-
year
is entered
:
" articleIII. —See Transactionsofthe
, m Irish
R Irish Acade y," Manuscript
•
t L Qn the Calendar of Whitley Stokes, LL. D. . p. cxxxvi. The Schoi iast m the Leabhar Breac adds, that he belonged to Achad Bo, of Cainnech,
in Ossory. '
See ibid. , p. cxliii.
the Rev. Dr. Kelly, p.
-
by
3 Thus inserted, 5
1
xxxiii-
eoUn AcAvobo.
4 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
Edited
io6 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September 5.
Osraighe. The O'Clerys state, that he was descended from the race of
Conaire, son to Moghlamha, Monarch of Erin, according to the poem beginning, "The Saint-History of the Saints of Inis Fail. " After the entry of this holy man's name in the last-mentioned calendar, a space is left, as if to supply a notice of his ecclesiastical rank, when that might have been better ascertained. However, such identification of his locality seems to be
:
more than doubtful, since Mr. William M. Hennessy states s " There is a
Tober near 6 of Cork, where s name Eolang, Aghabollogue, County Eolang'
is venerated at the 5th of September. " In the table appended to the
Martyrology of Donegal,7 this saint's name is Latinised Eulogius. Among the abbots or religious of Aghaboe, as entered in the Irish Annals, the name of Eolang does not occur.
Article IV. —St. Brecc-buaid or Bricin, said to have been ofTuaim- Dreacain,nowToomregan,CountyofCavan. IntheCalendarofSt. ^ngus,1 there is a commemoration of Brecc-buaid, who was called forth from Ireland. It occurs at this date. A comment is found affixed,2 which very fairly gives us to understand, that the scholiast had no prec—ise knowledge regarding the saint there recorded. It may be observed here once for ail- that the O'Clerys are too apt, in following the authority of this scribe, to suppose that he is always reliable, and frequently they assume, that his conjectures in notes on the Calendar of ^Engus may be resolved into state- ments to be accepted. Accordingly, in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 we find set down at the 5th of September, a festival in honour of Bricin. A space is left there for an insertion , the compiler of the Calendar having been uncertain whether Bricin should be classed as a bishop or as a priest/ It is remarkable, that in the Scottish Kalendar of Dru,mmond, he is noticed as a Confessor, and belonging to Ireland. s According to the calendarist, Bricin is said to have been of Tuaim Dreacain, in Breifne of Connaught. But, immediately afterwards, he adds, it is in Breifne Ui
6 The of this saint has been anglicised as Toomregan. place
Raghallaigh.
In the County of Cavan, there is a parish so called,? and a part of which
s In a MS. note to his copy of the Mar-
of lenttothewriter.
tyrology Donegal,
A parish in the Barony of East Mus- kerry, in the West Riding of Cork. It is described on the " Ordnance Survey Town- land Maps for the County of Cork," sheets 49, 60, 61, 71, 72.
^ Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 410,411.
Article iv. — ' In that copy found in the
Leabhar Breac we find :—
La br*ecbu4it> oopiume UorxogpAX) ahero
The Irish is thus rendered into English :
caro cam dchATo bo buaiT> ler\i.
Thus iranslated by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :
"With Breccbuaid, who was called forth
from Ireland, I reckon Eolang, holy, fa—ir
pillar of Achad Bo, a victory of piety. " "Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy,"
Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of OZngu? , p. cxxxvi.
namely, in undergoing Martyrdom together with him, for thai is a victory to him, since he it —is that preached unto them God's word. " Ibid. , p. cxliii.
3 Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 136, 137-
* Note by Rev. Dr. Todd.
5 See Bishop Forbes' " Kalendars of
Scottish Saints," p. 23.
° A note Dr. Reeves states at Ui by
Raghalliagh, "or East Breifne, as distin- guished from bneipne 111 Uuai^c, or West Mreifne. "
7 It lies within the barony of Lower Loughouter, containing 2,256a. I r. 22p. , and the barony of Tullyhaw, containing 5,221a. or. 12/). See " Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the County of Cavan," sheets 9, 10, 14.
eoUng
Ai$e
2
byDr. WhitleyStokes "BriccineofTuaim Drecoin, in Brefne of Connaught, I reckon, Or 'with Breccbuaid,' i. e. , various victory, i c, men and women giving him victory,
September 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 107
extends within the adjoining County of Fermanagh.
emendation for his locality, and reference to the designation Brecc-Buaid— rendered ( various reward,'9 and applied to him—is given by the scholiast on theCalendarofOengus. SothatBriccinseemstohavebeenhisrealname. According to the O'Clerys, this saint belonged to the race of Tadhg, son to Cian,sonofOilillOlum. Wecannotrely,however,ontheaccuracyofthis statement ; nor can we at all find materials, to disclose any reliable facts in relation to him. Neither in the Martyrology of Tallagh, published by the Rev. Dr. Matthew Kelly, nor in that contained in the Book of Leinster, is there any entry of Brecc-buaid or Bricin, at this date. If we are to accept the statement, that Brecc-buaid was called forth from Ireland ; perhaps he was one of the many missionaries who left our country to spread the Gospel in more distant lands. The names of numerous Irish saints are endeared to grateful Catholic memories ; but, the record of a still greater number of worthies is now wholly forgotten.
Article V. —St. Dubhscuile. At the 5th ofSeptember, veneration was 1
given, according to the published Martyrology of Tallagh, to Duibsuile. That copy in the Book of Leinster has the name written Duibscuili. 2 The
Martyrology of Donegal,3 at the same date, simply registers the name Dubhscuile.
ArticleVI. —St. Elacha. Asaint,namedElacha,isregisteredinthe 1
published Martyrology of Tallagh, at this date. In that copy contained in the Book of Leinster, the name is written Elacho. 2
ArticleVII. —St. Eolog,Anchoret. Evenwherecertainnamesare
found unrecognised, the merits or genius of worthy persons who have perished on earth, are still most likely to be registered in heaven. A festival in
honour of Eolog, an Anchoret, is found entered in the published Martyrology
asdistinctfrom ofAchaidh-bo. Thesame Eolang
of 1 atthis Tallagh,
date,
notice occurs in the copy of that calendar in the Book of Leinster. 3 The
Kalendar of Dru—rnmond3 also enters a festival, at the 5th of June for a ConfessorEulaig probablyidenticalwiththepresentholyman.
ArticleVIII. —St. Indeacht,Deacon. IntheChurchofGod,there have been pious ministers and noble saints, who have even wrought wonderful miracles ; yet, these have never been called to the trust of an episcopal
"
*. <? . , folk of every age he brought to Christ,
*
8 This
portion
of it is in the of Article v. —1 Edited by Rev. Dr, Kelly, barony
Knockninny, and it contains 3,200a. 27. 30/. p. xxxiii-
"2 See Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for
the County Fermanagh," sheets, 38, 41.
9 The note in Irish is thus translated :
Thus, Otnbfctnli.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
236. 237.
Article vl— Edited by the Rev. Dr.
Kelly, p. xxxiii.
2
Thus,et&cho.
Article vii. -' Edited by Rev. Dr.
or he won a victory from divers champions,
i. e. BriccinofDisert,BriccininUi-Drona,or ,
Briccin of T—uaim-Drecain, in Brefne of
Connaught. " "Transactions
Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript Series,
vol. i. , i. On the Calendar of part
3 See Bishop Forbes' tish Saints," p. 23.
"
Kalendars of Scot-
CEngus. By Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p. cxliii-
of the xxxiii. Royal Kelly, p.
2
Thus, elog -Anchor*.
8
Another conjectural
io8 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September
station, nor have they even attained the grade of sacerdotal rank. We find,
ofDonegal,1 thenameofIndeacht,Deacon,recordedat
inthe
the 5th of September. More regarding him is not known.
Martyrology
Article IX. —Reputed Feast of St. Ultan. In the Townland and
*fjrtb 2>ap of September.
ARTICLE I. —ST. BEGA OR BEES, VIRGIN, OF COPELAND, ENGLAND.
[SEVENTH CENTURY. }
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION—WRITERS OF ST. BEGA's ACTS—HER BIRTH IN IRELAND AND REPUTED PARENTAGE—HER VIRTUES DURING THE PERIOD OF YOUTH—SHE DECLINES A PROPOSED MARRIAGE—ABANDONS HOME AND FRIENDS TO LIVE A RELIGIOUS LIFE IN ANGLIA—SETTLES ON THE WESTERN SHORE OF CUMBERLAND—DESCRIPTION OF ST. BEES—THE MIRACLES OF ST. BEGA AND HER MANNER OF LIFE WHILE THERE— SHE RECEIVES THE HABIT AND VEIL FROM ST. AIDAN-SHE FOUNDS A CONVENT AT HERIETSEU, OR HERUTEU, AND GATHERS A RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY AROUND HER.
is much to be regretted, that obscurities and uncertainties have involved IT the few early records, regarding St. Bega or Bees, in the Manuscript
1 County of Louth, the patron saint is known as Ultan, 2
Parish of
whosefeastfallsonthe5thofSeptember. Bytheinhabitantsoftheplace it is called Ultan's Day. 3 There is also a welH named after him. Most probably, the saint here venerated is not distinct from St. Ultan of Ardbraccan, about whom we have treated on the day preceding. *
Killanny,
Lives and Acts of this holy woman, which are still extant.
1
In his Ecclesias-
tical History, the Venerable Bede is supposed to have called her by the
name of Heiu. 2 the various forms of name Beda, Vega, Heyna,
Again, Bega,
Heiu, and Hieu are supposed by some 3 to stand for this holy virgin ; while
Article viii. —l Edited by Drs. Todd S. Begse, Virginis, in Provincia Northum-
1
Article ix. — The townland and a por- veil. ,
nance Survey Townland Maps for the 138^.
and Reeves, pp. 236, 237. broruni, M. S. Cott. Faust. B. iv. ff. 122-131,
folio,
tion of the palish are noted on the "Ord- MiraculaS. Begae, Virginis. Ibid. , ff. 131 to
County of Louth," sheet 10. The greater part of this parish is within the Barony of
Farney, County of Monaghan, and it is shown on the M Ordnance Survey Townland
Maps for the County of Monaghan," sheets 31, 32, 34.
1
a"
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
Anglorum," lib. iv. , cap. xxiii.
3 Among these maybe mentioned R. P.
Michaelis Alfordus (alias Griffith, an English
Jesuit, writing under that assumed name),
MFides Brilannica, siv6 Annales Regia
See Thomas O'Conor's Letter, dated Ecclesia; Britannicae," in Annalibus Anglo- Louth, Feb. 12th, 1836, in the County of Saxonicis, tomus ii. , p. 294. lie argues, that Louth Antiquarian Letters of the Irish to the Virgin Heyna by Rede called Heiu,
Ordnance Survey, vol. i. , p. 253.
3 In Irish written L& I UlcAin.
4 In Irish it is written Cobar\ Ulcam.
s In the present volume, Art. i.
Article l—• Thus do we find them The Bollandist editor of St.
described by Sir Thomas Duffus Hardy : Vita adopts a like opinion.
small dbl. cols. xii. cent,
—— and by others more commonly Bega are
attributed coincidences of historic incidents, even although different festival days be assigned them in the English Martyrology.
—
Bega's
Acts
September 6. 1 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
09
others hold the opinion, that those forms refer to more than a single individual. '*
To these denominations, also, Bishop Forbes s adds the names Begha, Begagh and Bez.
St. is commemorated in the Aberdeen Bega
Breviary,
6 in the
Anglican
Martyrology of John Wilson,7 and by Thomas Dempster, in his Scottish
Menology. 8 At the 6th of September, the Bollandists have published the
Acts of St. Bega, Abbess,^ taken from the Proper Lessons IO of the Breviary
of Aberdeen, 11 in Scotland. To these they have prefixed a previous com-
12
and added notes. *3 She is also commemorated by Dean Cressy, 14
mentary,
by Mabillon/s and by Bishop Challoner. 16 Some brief notices of her may be
1
found in the learned and valuable work of the Rev. Alban Butler. ? In the
First Volume of Lives of the English Saints, a Life of St. Bega is to be
found. 18 At the 6th of in the Petits 1? there is a September, Bollandistes,
commemoration of St. Beges, Bees, Vdgue or V£e, an Irish virgin.
anonymous list of Irish Saints, published by O'Sullevan Beare records Alpho, atthe5thofSeptember. Alsointhe"MenologiumScoticum"ofThomas
Dempster, this festival is entered. 5?
38 His feast occurs on the 27th of April.
39 Venerated on the 20th or 24th of Octo- ber.
40 Venerated at Saltzburgh, on the 24th of September.
It has been conjectured, that this must
s3 Also called Welf, or Welpho, from the Teutonic word Welf, rendered into Latin by the word " Catulus," and pronounced by the
Belgians Welp, or Wulp. Various opinions have been held regarding the origin of that name. In later ages, the Guelphs sustained the rights of the Apostolic See in Italy, against the powerful faction of the Gibel lines. Weingarten has written a work, " De
"
Guelfis Principibus.
54 A curious tradition is given by the
anonymous writer of our Saint's Acts regard- ing the apparition of Alto to enforce the necessity for this restoration.
41
Venerated at Saltzburgh, on the 24th of
September.
42 Venerated on the 24th of November. 43 Venerated on the 8th of January.
44 Venerated on the 8th of January.
4s Venerated on the 1st of December.
46 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
nise," Februarii ix. De S. Altone Abbate
Alto-Monasterii in Bavaria," and nn. 3, 4,
5, pp. 301, 302.
4? This account, Rader obtained from the
monastery itself. See " Bavaria Sancta," lib. ii. , p. 115.
48 It is noted in the dyptics of Altmunster,
according to Rader.
49 See Bishop Challoner's Brittania
Sancta," part ii. , pp. 1 19, 120.
s° Pliny calls them Licates, and enumerates
** Direptum a quodam
tribes.
Lib. iv.
Dr. William Smith's " of Dictionary
s2
Greek and Roman Geography," vol. ii. ,p. 182.
See
"
them among the Alpine tribes subdued by ac demum saeculo quinto-decimo Altoni—s
Augustus. See "HistoriaNaturalis,"lib. iii. , monasterium Brigittanis concessum est. "
"Annates Ordinis S. Benedicti," tomus ii. , s 1 Now the River Lech. Strabo calls their lib. xxi. , num. lxxvii. , p. 122.
cap. 24.
town Damasia, and he mentions them as being the most audacious of the Videlicean
56 At the time when Rader wrote, that
community was in a flourishing state. See "Bavaria Sancta," lib. ii. , p. 115.
57 See Forbes' "Kalendars of Bishop
Scottish Saints," p. 210.
5S Mabillon states
Alamannise seu Sueviae comite monasterium, seculo decimo instauratum est, traditumque aliquanto post tempore Altorfiensibus sancti- monialibus Benedictinis, quae coenobium suum. Alto-monasteriensibus monachis ces- serunt Altorfio deinde in paraecialem ecclesiam commutato, Altorfienses in no- vum Weingartense Monasterium translati :
:
io4 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September 5.
have been a festival to commemorate some translation of his relics. *8 The English Martyrology and Henry Fitzsimons, at this same date, enter a feast
for St. Altho. 59 The Bollandists also notice this 60 in their festival,
great work.
Article II. —St. Faithleann, possibly of Innisfallen, County of Kerry. At the 5th of September, the name of St. Faithleann occurs in the Irish Calendars. 1 The name Faithlenn Deochoin, or Deacon, without further designation, appears in the published Martyrology of 2 at of
Tallagh, 5th September. 3 From this we can only infer, that he flourished, at an early period. It has been suggested,* that he may be Faithlenn, Deacon, son to
[nnisfallen Oratory, Lower Lake of Killarney.
Aedh Domhain, of Munster, and sprung from the race of Core, son to Lughaidh, son of Oilill Flannbeg, who was son of Fiacha Muilleathan, son to EoghanMor,sonofOilillOlum. Yet,itwouldseem,thelatercalendarists had some doubt regarding Faithleen having been correctly identified as Deacon,sonofAedhDamhain. Inis-Faithlenn,snowknownasInnisfallen, on the Lower Lake of Killarney, is thought to have been named from him. 6 There are still the remains of an ancient oratory 1 to be seen on the margin
58 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- 3 In that copy contained in the Book of nise," Februarii ix. De S. Altone Abbate Leinster is found £41chlean 'Oechoin.
Alto-Monasterii in Bavaria, n. 8, p. 302. 59SeeO'SullevanBeare's"HistoricCatho- licse Ibemiae Compendium," tomus i. , lib. iv. ,
cap. xi. , xii. , pp. 50, 52.
4 By the O'Clerys.
5 PronouncedInish-Fah-len.
°° " See
tembris v. p. 486.
Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Sep- Among the pretermitted feasts,
already written regarding it, at the 7th of April, in the Fourth Volume of this work, Art. i. , where the Acts of St. Finan, Patron and Abbot of Kinnety, King's County, are written, chap. ii.
7 With the Acts of St. Finan, there is an illustration of the ancient oratory of Innis- fallen given. From a different point of view,
1
Article ii. -— At this date, his feast is set
down in a MS. Calendar of Professor Eugene
O'Curry.
3
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xxxiii.
6
The reader is referred to what has been
September 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 105
of that beautiful and fertile island. 8 In the beginning of the present century, the ruins of an abbey, situated at the north-eastern extremity of Innisfallen, were much more extensive. The church, which consisted of a single aisle, was seventy feet in length, by twenty wide. The architecture of the cloister, and what seemed to have been the apartments of the monks, were rude, without sculptured ornaments, lofty arches or spacious windows. The cloister was only thirty-eight feet square, and though its walls were very much dilapidated, the limits of its covered walk and the apertures to the interior area might be distinctly traced. 9 By a monk of this abbey, the Annals of
Innisfallen are said to have been written, about the year 1216. However, there seems to be good reason for supposing, they had been commenced, at least two centuries before that period ; and a tradition has always existed in the South of Ireland, that a learned man, named Maelsuthain O'Cearbhaill,10 had originally composed those Annals. 11 The Four Masters assign his death
to a. d. I2 The foundation of a 1009.
religious
house at Innisfallen is
usually
attributed to St. Finan Lobhar,^ in the latter part of the sixth century. The
present saint is mentioned in the Martyrology of Donegal ** as simply
Faithlenn, at the 5th day of September.
Article III. —St. Eolang, said to have been of Aghaboe, Queen's
County,yetprobablyofAghabollogue,CountyofCork. Thisholy
man must have lived during an early century of Christianity in the Irish Church, since his name has been entered in the Calendar of Oengus, where
he is
designated
a "fair 2
" and a of 1 The "victory piety. "
published
pillar Martyrology Tallagh mentions,
and also the in the Book of Leinster,3 copy
of
that, at the 5th of September, veneration was given to Eolang, of Achaid-bo. This is the celebrated Aghaboe, a parish in the barony of Clarmallagh, and in the southern part of the Queen's County. In the Martyrology of Donegal ,« at the same date, he is recorded as Eolang, of Achadh-bo-Cainnigh, in
and taken from a photograph, Mr. Gregor the Manuscript Materials of Ancient Irish
History," Lect. iv. , p. 79,
" At this
smoothly plastered and whitened ; two p. 761.
modern bow-windows have been opened to 13 See his Life, already given at the 1 6th
thenorthandsouth,andthefloorhasbeen ofMarch,intheThirdVolumeofthiswork,
Grey has drawn the present illustration on the wood, also engraved by him.
" Maelsuthain Ua Cearbhaill [one] of the family of Inis- Faithleann, chief doctor of the western world in his time, and lord of Eoghanacht of Loch- pompous appellation of the banqueting- Lein, died after a good life. "—Dr. O'Dono- house. The walls at the inside have been van's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. ii. ,
8
Isaac Weld thus writes: "This little building has, within a few years, been fitted up as a place of entertainment,, under the
boarded. One cannot but deplore the frivolity of that taste which has thus injudiciously
Art j There, likewise, may be found two diflferent views of the ruined oratory on Innis- fanen. See chap i
metamorphosed it.
The changes which are
M ^^ g _
effected by time command our reverence and
dispose the soul to contemplation ; but those
discordant alterations of the works of ancient days untune the mind and interrupt that
,
J
Drs
Todd and
ReeveSf pp
.
thought
"
Se/ies yoL Q b b
which the rema—ins of anti-
course of
quity are calculated to inspire.
tions of the Scenery of Killarney and the Surrounding CountryS, sect, ii. , pp. 128, 129. London, 1812, 8vo
2
4leltwa? d0 "Chronological
Account of nearly Four Hundred Irish
Writers," p. lxx.
11 "
See Professor O'Curry's Lectures on 236, 237.
Illustra-
year
is entered
:
" articleIII. —See Transactionsofthe
, m Irish
R Irish Acade y," Manuscript
•
t L Qn the Calendar of Whitley Stokes, LL. D. . p. cxxxvi. The Schoi iast m the Leabhar Breac adds, that he belonged to Achad Bo, of Cainnech,
in Ossory. '
See ibid. , p. cxliii.
the Rev. Dr. Kelly, p.
-
by
3 Thus inserted, 5
1
xxxiii-
eoUn AcAvobo.
4 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
Edited
io6 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September 5.
Osraighe. The O'Clerys state, that he was descended from the race of
Conaire, son to Moghlamha, Monarch of Erin, according to the poem beginning, "The Saint-History of the Saints of Inis Fail. " After the entry of this holy man's name in the last-mentioned calendar, a space is left, as if to supply a notice of his ecclesiastical rank, when that might have been better ascertained. However, such identification of his locality seems to be
:
more than doubtful, since Mr. William M. Hennessy states s " There is a
Tober near 6 of Cork, where s name Eolang, Aghabollogue, County Eolang'
is venerated at the 5th of September. " In the table appended to the
Martyrology of Donegal,7 this saint's name is Latinised Eulogius. Among the abbots or religious of Aghaboe, as entered in the Irish Annals, the name of Eolang does not occur.
Article IV. —St. Brecc-buaid or Bricin, said to have been ofTuaim- Dreacain,nowToomregan,CountyofCavan. IntheCalendarofSt. ^ngus,1 there is a commemoration of Brecc-buaid, who was called forth from Ireland. It occurs at this date. A comment is found affixed,2 which very fairly gives us to understand, that the scholiast had no prec—ise knowledge regarding the saint there recorded. It may be observed here once for ail- that the O'Clerys are too apt, in following the authority of this scribe, to suppose that he is always reliable, and frequently they assume, that his conjectures in notes on the Calendar of ^Engus may be resolved into state- ments to be accepted. Accordingly, in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 we find set down at the 5th of September, a festival in honour of Bricin. A space is left there for an insertion , the compiler of the Calendar having been uncertain whether Bricin should be classed as a bishop or as a priest/ It is remarkable, that in the Scottish Kalendar of Dru,mmond, he is noticed as a Confessor, and belonging to Ireland. s According to the calendarist, Bricin is said to have been of Tuaim Dreacain, in Breifne of Connaught. But, immediately afterwards, he adds, it is in Breifne Ui
6 The of this saint has been anglicised as Toomregan. place
Raghallaigh.
In the County of Cavan, there is a parish so called,? and a part of which
s In a MS. note to his copy of the Mar-
of lenttothewriter.
tyrology Donegal,
A parish in the Barony of East Mus- kerry, in the West Riding of Cork. It is described on the " Ordnance Survey Town- land Maps for the County of Cork," sheets 49, 60, 61, 71, 72.
^ Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 410,411.
Article iv. — ' In that copy found in the
Leabhar Breac we find :—
La br*ecbu4it> oopiume UorxogpAX) ahero
The Irish is thus rendered into English :
caro cam dchATo bo buaiT> ler\i.
Thus iranslated by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :
"With Breccbuaid, who was called forth
from Ireland, I reckon Eolang, holy, fa—ir
pillar of Achad Bo, a victory of piety. " "Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy,"
Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of OZngu? , p. cxxxvi.
namely, in undergoing Martyrdom together with him, for thai is a victory to him, since he it —is that preached unto them God's word. " Ibid. , p. cxliii.
3 Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 136, 137-
* Note by Rev. Dr. Todd.
5 See Bishop Forbes' " Kalendars of
Scottish Saints," p. 23.
° A note Dr. Reeves states at Ui by
Raghalliagh, "or East Breifne, as distin- guished from bneipne 111 Uuai^c, or West Mreifne. "
7 It lies within the barony of Lower Loughouter, containing 2,256a. I r. 22p. , and the barony of Tullyhaw, containing 5,221a. or. 12/). See " Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the County of Cavan," sheets 9, 10, 14.
eoUng
Ai$e
2
byDr. WhitleyStokes "BriccineofTuaim Drecoin, in Brefne of Connaught, I reckon, Or 'with Breccbuaid,' i. e. , various victory, i c, men and women giving him victory,
September 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 107
extends within the adjoining County of Fermanagh.
emendation for his locality, and reference to the designation Brecc-Buaid— rendered ( various reward,'9 and applied to him—is given by the scholiast on theCalendarofOengus. SothatBriccinseemstohavebeenhisrealname. According to the O'Clerys, this saint belonged to the race of Tadhg, son to Cian,sonofOilillOlum. Wecannotrely,however,ontheaccuracyofthis statement ; nor can we at all find materials, to disclose any reliable facts in relation to him. Neither in the Martyrology of Tallagh, published by the Rev. Dr. Matthew Kelly, nor in that contained in the Book of Leinster, is there any entry of Brecc-buaid or Bricin, at this date. If we are to accept the statement, that Brecc-buaid was called forth from Ireland ; perhaps he was one of the many missionaries who left our country to spread the Gospel in more distant lands. The names of numerous Irish saints are endeared to grateful Catholic memories ; but, the record of a still greater number of worthies is now wholly forgotten.
Article V. —St. Dubhscuile. At the 5th ofSeptember, veneration was 1
given, according to the published Martyrology of Tallagh, to Duibsuile. That copy in the Book of Leinster has the name written Duibscuili. 2 The
Martyrology of Donegal,3 at the same date, simply registers the name Dubhscuile.
ArticleVI. —St. Elacha. Asaint,namedElacha,isregisteredinthe 1
published Martyrology of Tallagh, at this date. In that copy contained in the Book of Leinster, the name is written Elacho. 2
ArticleVII. —St. Eolog,Anchoret. Evenwherecertainnamesare
found unrecognised, the merits or genius of worthy persons who have perished on earth, are still most likely to be registered in heaven. A festival in
honour of Eolog, an Anchoret, is found entered in the published Martyrology
asdistinctfrom ofAchaidh-bo. Thesame Eolang
of 1 atthis Tallagh,
date,
notice occurs in the copy of that calendar in the Book of Leinster. 3 The
Kalendar of Dru—rnmond3 also enters a festival, at the 5th of June for a ConfessorEulaig probablyidenticalwiththepresentholyman.
ArticleVIII. —St. Indeacht,Deacon. IntheChurchofGod,there have been pious ministers and noble saints, who have even wrought wonderful miracles ; yet, these have never been called to the trust of an episcopal
"
*. <? . , folk of every age he brought to Christ,
*
8 This
portion
of it is in the of Article v. —1 Edited by Rev. Dr, Kelly, barony
Knockninny, and it contains 3,200a. 27. 30/. p. xxxiii-
"2 See Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for
the County Fermanagh," sheets, 38, 41.
9 The note in Irish is thus translated :
Thus, Otnbfctnli.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
236. 237.
Article vl— Edited by the Rev. Dr.
Kelly, p. xxxiii.
2
Thus,et&cho.
Article vii. -' Edited by Rev. Dr.
or he won a victory from divers champions,
i. e. BriccinofDisert,BriccininUi-Drona,or ,
Briccin of T—uaim-Drecain, in Brefne of
Connaught. " "Transactions
Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript Series,
vol. i. , i. On the Calendar of part
3 See Bishop Forbes' tish Saints," p. 23.
"
Kalendars of Scot-
CEngus. By Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p. cxliii-
of the xxxiii. Royal Kelly, p.
2
Thus, elog -Anchor*.
8
Another conjectural
io8 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[September
station, nor have they even attained the grade of sacerdotal rank. We find,
ofDonegal,1 thenameofIndeacht,Deacon,recordedat
inthe
the 5th of September. More regarding him is not known.
Martyrology
Article IX. —Reputed Feast of St. Ultan. In the Townland and
*fjrtb 2>ap of September.
ARTICLE I. —ST. BEGA OR BEES, VIRGIN, OF COPELAND, ENGLAND.
[SEVENTH CENTURY. }
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION—WRITERS OF ST. BEGA's ACTS—HER BIRTH IN IRELAND AND REPUTED PARENTAGE—HER VIRTUES DURING THE PERIOD OF YOUTH—SHE DECLINES A PROPOSED MARRIAGE—ABANDONS HOME AND FRIENDS TO LIVE A RELIGIOUS LIFE IN ANGLIA—SETTLES ON THE WESTERN SHORE OF CUMBERLAND—DESCRIPTION OF ST. BEES—THE MIRACLES OF ST. BEGA AND HER MANNER OF LIFE WHILE THERE— SHE RECEIVES THE HABIT AND VEIL FROM ST. AIDAN-SHE FOUNDS A CONVENT AT HERIETSEU, OR HERUTEU, AND GATHERS A RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY AROUND HER.
is much to be regretted, that obscurities and uncertainties have involved IT the few early records, regarding St. Bega or Bees, in the Manuscript
1 County of Louth, the patron saint is known as Ultan, 2
Parish of
whosefeastfallsonthe5thofSeptember. Bytheinhabitantsoftheplace it is called Ultan's Day. 3 There is also a welH named after him. Most probably, the saint here venerated is not distinct from St. Ultan of Ardbraccan, about whom we have treated on the day preceding. *
Killanny,
Lives and Acts of this holy woman, which are still extant.
1
In his Ecclesias-
tical History, the Venerable Bede is supposed to have called her by the
name of Heiu. 2 the various forms of name Beda, Vega, Heyna,
Again, Bega,
Heiu, and Hieu are supposed by some 3 to stand for this holy virgin ; while
Article viii. —l Edited by Drs. Todd S. Begse, Virginis, in Provincia Northum-
1
Article ix. — The townland and a por- veil. ,
nance Survey Townland Maps for the 138^.
and Reeves, pp. 236, 237. broruni, M. S. Cott. Faust. B. iv. ff. 122-131,
folio,
tion of the palish are noted on the "Ord- MiraculaS. Begae, Virginis. Ibid. , ff. 131 to
County of Louth," sheet 10. The greater part of this parish is within the Barony of
Farney, County of Monaghan, and it is shown on the M Ordnance Survey Townland
Maps for the County of Monaghan," sheets 31, 32, 34.
1
a"
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
Anglorum," lib. iv. , cap. xxiii.
3 Among these maybe mentioned R. P.
Michaelis Alfordus (alias Griffith, an English
Jesuit, writing under that assumed name),
MFides Brilannica, siv6 Annales Regia
See Thomas O'Conor's Letter, dated Ecclesia; Britannicae," in Annalibus Anglo- Louth, Feb. 12th, 1836, in the County of Saxonicis, tomus ii. , p. 294. lie argues, that Louth Antiquarian Letters of the Irish to the Virgin Heyna by Rede called Heiu,
Ordnance Survey, vol. i. , p. 253.
3 In Irish written L& I UlcAin.
4 In Irish it is written Cobar\ Ulcam.
s In the present volume, Art. i.
Article l—• Thus do we find them The Bollandist editor of St.
described by Sir Thomas Duffus Hardy : Vita adopts a like opinion.
small dbl. cols. xii. cent,
—— and by others more commonly Bega are
attributed coincidences of historic incidents, even although different festival days be assigned them in the English Martyrology.
—
Bega's
Acts
September 6. 1 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
09
others hold the opinion, that those forms refer to more than a single individual. '*
To these denominations, also, Bishop Forbes s adds the names Begha, Begagh and Bez.
St. is commemorated in the Aberdeen Bega
Breviary,
6 in the
Anglican
Martyrology of John Wilson,7 and by Thomas Dempster, in his Scottish
Menology. 8 At the 6th of September, the Bollandists have published the
Acts of St. Bega, Abbess,^ taken from the Proper Lessons IO of the Breviary
of Aberdeen, 11 in Scotland. To these they have prefixed a previous com-
12
and added notes. *3 She is also commemorated by Dean Cressy, 14
mentary,
by Mabillon/s and by Bishop Challoner. 16 Some brief notices of her may be
1
found in the learned and valuable work of the Rev. Alban Butler. ? In the
First Volume of Lives of the English Saints, a Life of St. Bega is to be
found. 18 At the 6th of in the Petits 1? there is a September, Bollandistes,
commemoration of St. Beges, Bees, Vdgue or V£e, an Irish virgin.
