The town is situated about 4^ panno serico involutum
composuerunt
in miles north of Paris, and near the right
splendida ex argento deaurato preciosisque monilibus decorata theca, donata per fratrem Theobaldum de Milly, religiosum et the- saurarium S.
splendida ex argento deaurato preciosisque monilibus decorata theca, donata per fratrem Theobaldum de Milly, religiosum et the- saurarium S.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v9
ix.
2
At that date, the Bollandists, among the pretermitted feasts, have some notices of her. 3 A copy of this MS. had been sent by Cas- tellan, Canon of Paris, to the Bollandist Fathers, in a communication, dated A. D.
238 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 9.
preserved at Anisolensis,* in the church of St. Carilefus, Carilulphe or
Marculf, diocese of Mans. ' As this is fuller in matter than the former one,
and yet frequently coincides with it in phrases and order of narrative ; Father
Suysken thinks its compiler used the former, so that he not only supplied the
lacuna, but enlarged its narrative, occasionally by conjecture, or otherwise
from a different source, or possibly from the fallacies of his own imagination.
Evidently taken from some old codex, the writer's name not known, John
Capgrave has fuller notices of this saint,6 and differing from the St. Denis
Life in certain places. This narrative is closely followed by Dean Jacques
Doublet,? a Benedictine Father, in his work on the History of the Abbey of
St. Denis. 8 Wilson,' Robert Buckland,10 11 and Lobineau12 John Saussay,
have accounts of St. Osrnana. The Bollandists give her Acts, 13 at the 9th of
1
September. * These are taken from an old Life of the saint, by some
anonymous writer, and they were found in a Manuscript belonging to the former Benedictine Abbey of St. Denis, near Paris. This Life has be—en
collated, by the editor, Father Constantine Suysken, with a more lengthy
yet not more correct— one sent to the Bollandists in 1630, which was copied
fromaManuscriptbelongingtothechurchofSt. Carilefus,'5 inthediocese
of Mans.
16
Again, also, he makes use of that Life published by John
Capgrave. A Previous Commentary is given in two sections and twenty- seven paragraphs, while the Acts and Appendix are comprised in eleven paragraphs, with accompanying notes. There are notices of St. Osmanna in Rev. Alban Butler's1? work, and in that of the Petits Bollandistes. '8
She was the daughter of an Irish prince, according to the Legend of 1
her Acts, ' and from her very infancy, she was remarkable for her
innocence, and for observing all the Divine precepts. We are told, also,20 that the name by which she was first known in Ireland was Agariarga, and which she bore to the time when Osmanna was given her in baptism. Her
1691. The original manuscript—now pro- bablylost—had been traced in Gothic letters.
The imperfect -passages were marked with dots, by Castellan.
4 This Latin name is not to be found in the "Novum Lexicon Geogiapliicum," edited by P. Ferrarius and M. A. Baudrand.
s A copy of this had been sent to the Bob landist Fathers in 1638, by Father Jean Daide of their Society.
6 In " Nova Legenda Anglise," fol. ccxlvii. , ccxlviii. , at quinto Idibus Septembris.
7 He was born in 1560 and he died in
1648, at the age of eighty-eight. See M. Le Dr. Hoefer's "Nouvelle Biographie Ge*ie- rale. " tome xiv. , col. 672.
James I. See Joannis Pitsei " Relationvm
Historicarvm de Rebus Anglicis," Aetas
In his Martyrologium Gallicanum. " I2 Se Lobineau's "Saints de Bretagne," tome ii. , cent, vii. , Septembre ix. , pp. I to 4. ' 3 See " Acta Sanctorum," tomus iii. ,
l6 Cenomanum, now le Mans, was the chief city of the Cenomani, a people of 8 See "Histoire de l'Abbaye de Saint- Gallia Celtica, their country being now
Denys en France, contenant les Antiquites
known as le Maine.
' 7 See "Lives of the Fathers,
9 In "
Martyrologium Anglicanuin. "
tember ix.
,8 See "Vies des Saints," tome x. , ixe
les et Fondations, Prerogatives
Martyrs and other principal Saints," vol. ix. , Sep-
d'icelle,
Privileges," Paris, 1625, two tomes, 4to.
10 to Ferrarius in " According Catalogus
Generalis Sanctorum. " The Bollandist
Suysken does not know who this Robert
Buckland had been, unless he may be con-
sidered identical with one Rudolph Buck-
land, a Priest, who is said to have translated
into English all the volumes of Surius and
to have prepared them for the press. He earn OSMANAM, cum antea gentili nomine died in the year 161 1, during the reign of vocaretur Agariarga. "
decimaseptima, p. 816. ""
ix. Septembris, pp. 417 to 425.
:
,4 Headed " De S. Osmanna Virgine,
quae colitur in Abbatia S- Dionysii prope Parisios in Francia. "
,s Ex Anisolensi, St. Carilefus, also called
Cariulphe of Bayeux, and Masculphe or Mascoul, is venerated on the 1st of May.
Jour de Septembre, p. 595.
'• And likewise by John Capgrave.
" Beata virgo Osmanna clara stripe ac regali Iliberniensium progenita," &c.
2° The Anisolensen Manuscript Life states : "Tunc baptizavit illam episcopus, vocans
September 9. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS 239
parents were idolaters, and were opposed to her inclinations for becoming a Christian. However, she required them to answer, could she be compelled, as a believer in the one true God, to adore mute idols having no power to aid her, and to follow the pagan customs. This reluctance on her part, to continue in the old superstitions, caused them great sadness, and they devised a means, as they thought, to divert her from leading a Christian life. They wished her to marry a pagan prince, in her country, which is called Hibernia. But, to avoid their importunities, Osmana left her home and native island, accompanied only by one of her female attendants, named Aclitenis. 21 Their destination was to Armoric22 Britain. 23 Having embarked on board a vessel, they were wafted towards the shores of Gaul, and there they disembarked on the coast near Saint-Brieuc. 2^ They sought a very solitary place, far from
2
human habitation, and* near the banks of the River Loire. 5 In that part of
the country, they constructed a sort of shieling, with the branches of trees ; and in it, for a long time, they passed a life of meditation and penance. The place of their retreat was at length accidentally discovered by a hunter, who, with his dogs, followed a boar, that fled before them, and sought refuge in the hut of St. Osmana. The animal lay down at her feet, and in that position was found by the hunter, who would not heed the pathetic remonstrances of the virgin. But, neither his hunting spear nor dirk was able to penetrate even the skin of the prostrate animal. Astonished at such an adventure, the
26
where he related what had occurred. Whereupon, the bishop of that see, to be better informed, went with a number of his clergy and people to the holy virgin's hermitage. Theretheyfoundher,coveredonlywiththerudestkindofgarment, woven from rushes and long grass into a sort of camlet, while her bed was covered with thorns on which she lay, so as to expose herself to the utmost bodily mortification. The bishop enquired if she believed in the Christian's doctrine, and desired to receive baptism. On signifying her earnestness to have that sacrament conferred on her, a vessel of water was procured, and in presence of those assembled, she was made a member of Christ's fold. At
that time, also, she wrought a remarkable miracle ; for a man who had been
blind for three years was restored to sight, by her touching him. All present
greatly rejoiced, and proclaimed Osmana a true sen-ant of Christ and a most
holy virgin. We are informed, that after her baptism, the bishop employed
a peasant to prepare a garden and lawn around Osmana's place of habita-
2
tion, 7 while another man was engaged to construct an oratory in which her
21
The Anisolensen Manuscript reads Ac- between the embouchures of the Seine and lytenis. However, Father Louis Jobert, the Loire. All Bretagne in France was
hunter returned to a city or town called Briscis or Brisis,
S. J. , Wrote to Father Papebroch in 1678,
that there was a village called St. Cerota, in
Le Vendosmois, diocese of Mans, and about
eight leagues distant from Le Mans. St.
Cerota was there venerated, on the 22nd of Saints,'' tome x. , ixe Jour de Septembre, June, and she had an office from the Common
of Virgins. She was considered by the people there, to have been the female ser- vant of Osmanna, the daughter of an Irish king, revered on the 9th of September, and whose relics had been preserved in the Church of St. Denis, near Paris. On the high altar of her place was the image of St. Cerota, clad in the Benedictine habit.
"
On the 3 This territory of ancient Gaul lies
"This Celtic word
a legend of this man having yielded
sea-borders. " ~
signifies
to the seductions of the Evil One, and of having entered into a compact with him to renounce
comprised within it. See Pierre Larousse's "Grand Dictionaire Universel du xixe
Siecle," tome i. , p. 671.
24 See Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
"
known to Father Suysken. By Doublet and Saussay, it was thought to have been St. Brioc or Brieu, on the British Channel, and so called from its Irish patron saint, wtfose feast occurs on the 1st of May.
2? In the Anisolensen Manuscript, there is
p. 595.
2= Latinized Liger or Ligeris.
26 Such place denominination was un-
»4o LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 9.
devotions could be practised. It is related in her Acts, that she wrought
many miracles, in restoring sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the mute. One in particular was known to have been effected, in the case
of a rich man's daughter, whose name was Androchildis. A bone had accidentally stuck in her throat, which caused the loss of speech. Hearing
of St. Osmana's gift of miracles, her parents had their daughter brought to the holy virgin, who, having offered a fervent prayer to God, touched her throat, and the bone was ejected with some effusion of blood. Although we have no record or notice to divine her period ; yet, that she flourished in the sixth or seventh century seems most probable. The time or place of St. Osmana's death is not recorded. According to one statement,28 she dwelt
2
and was buried in a place called Jotrum, 9 in the province of Bria ^° and
these facts are said to have been made known through a revelation accorded
and
two leagues from Liege, in Belgium. Nor does Father Suysken think it at all
improbable, that St. Osmana, who at first lived in Lesser Britain, afterwards went to Bria, and that there she died and was buried in Jotrum, where she has been so long held in special veneration. Another opinion prevails, that our saint departed this life in Aremoiic Britain, and that about the time of the Norman Invasion, her remains were removed to Jotrum to save them from desecration. 32 After the death of St. Osmana the place of her burial became celebrated for the performance of many miracles. In the ninth century, a churchwasbuiltoverthesiteofoursaint'shermitage. Somewhatlater,ata little distance from that church, there was another oratory, and this gave rise to the parish of St. Osmane. 33 A considerable portion of this holy virgin's relics for many centuries has been preserved in the Abbey Church *of Saint Denis,3* near Paris.
to St. 1 the Lutgarde^
holy virgin
religious
of which lies about Aywieres,
thither from Jotrum.
In the opinion of Arturus, her remains were translated However, by others it has been held, that during the
As a punishment, the peasant was deprived of sight, and then he began to feel remorse for his error. He
applied to the holy virgin for his restoration,
and Osmana praying fervently, he recovered
the favour of seeing as before.
28
the service of St. Osmana.
quondam regis Sotiae et per miraculum
Domini ad partes Gallirc adducta, sancte
vixi, defunctaque ibidem ac sepulta solemni-
ter, mei tandem per negligentiam temporis incolae obliti sunt. Haec itaque cum pia
Lutgardis dicto viro referret, subjunxit:
being
3 ' Her feast is held on the 16th of
That of Thomas Cantipratanus, or
Vellem, ut hcec eadem tibi Dominus in Cantimpre, in his Life of St. Luitprande. testimonium veritatis ostenderet. Et ille,
He was a contemporary and friend of that holy Cistercian abbess, who died in the year 1246. His Life of the saint has been re- published, by Surius, who has changed, in several passages, the terminology of the original Acts. Thus, in the story there related of Osanna, by Thomas Cantipratanus, she is called Osinanna, by Surius.
29 About four miles from Meldensis or
Non sum, inquit dignus, ut mini talia de- monstrantur. Cui ilia : Etsi forte minus
dignus sis, tamen ilia digna est, cujus dignepneconiarevelenter. Neemora,super
hoc pia Lutgarde orante Dominum, eadem nocte dicto viro per somnum tribus vicibus
Virgo apparuit, et quod Osanna [Sttrit Osmanna) vocata sit, indicavit. Qui vidit
testimonium perhibuit, et scimus, quia verum
ejus. "
3° La Brie, a province of France, between
the Seine and Maine rivers, not far from Paris. See " Novum Lexicon Geographi- cum," tomus i. , p. 131.
June, 3* ThisseemstobetheopinionofArturus, in Sacro Gynecoco, when noticing this saint
at the 1st of April, and at the present day.
" In Sarthe, arrondissement, and canton of Saint-Calais.
34 Originally called Catolacum or Catul- liacum by the Romans. A chapel was
Meaux. While here a certain
to have entered a crypt, in which the bodies of several saints had been buried, and there he prayed during night. One of the tombs formed from alabaster he found open ; but,
unable to discover the name and merits of the occupant, he afterwards asked St. Lutgarde -to obtain from the Almighty the favour of such a discovery, and his
est testimonium
request was granted. The sequel is thus "
related by Cantipratanus. Apparens enim ei prsedicta Sancta dixit : Ego vocar Osana
{apud Surium legitur Osmanna) virgo, filia
priest
is said
September 9. ] LIVES OJF THE IRISH SAINTS. 241
Northmen Invasions of Britanic Aremorica, the body of St. Osmana had been brought direct and tor better preservation to Saint-Denis. In the examina- tion of this question, the Bollandist Father Suysken supposes, that her relics had been there deposited, before the middle of the twelfth century, as in the dedication of that great Abbey Church, which the Abbot Sugerius 35 enlarged and magnificently adorned, mention is made of a chapel then in it, and dedicated to St. Osmana. Her body was again transferred to a new shrine, towards the middle of the thirteenth century, and an inscription to that effect 36 was to be found on a tablet placed behind the reliquary. It is said, that St.
Osmanna's remains were deposited in a shrine of iron, richly gilt. Her precious relics were profaned and dispersed, owing to the disorders occasioned by the Calvinists, in the year 1567. The former shrine of St. Osmana appears to have been spoiled of all its rich ornaments, and it no longer exists. In its place was substituted a wooden shrine painted, in which probably the relics of various saints were indiscriminately placed, so that it remains doubtful, if the several portions could be properly distin- guished. Moreover, during the frenzy of the French Revolution, by a decree of the Convention in 1793, the royal tombs in the church of St. Denis
were destroyed, and the valuable relics and other treasures 37 f the Abbey were carried away. This holy virgin is greatly venerated in the dioceses of
Paris, of Saint-Brieuc, and of Mans. 38 Among the Masses Proper for the Patrons and Tutelary Saints of France and Ireland, edited by order of Pope Clement XII. , and published at Paris in 1734, there is a special Mass for our saint, at the 9th of September. 39 In that copy of Usuard, belonging to the Queen of Sweden, at this date* is commemorated St. Osmanna, and also in
erected here in the third century over the MCCXLVI. , Kalendis Aprilis, sanctissimo tomb of St. Denis the martyr, and thence- Resurrectionis Domini nostri die, vene- forward it bore his name. At present, it rabiles praelati Aturensis, episcopus Leo- forms an arrondissement, canton, commune nensis et Guilielmus abbas S. Dionysii, and town of France, in the department of corpus sanctse sacraeque virginis Osmannse, the Seine.
The town is situated about 4^ panno serico involutum composuerunt in miles north of Paris, and near the right
splendida ex argento deaurato preciosisque monilibus decorata theca, donata per fratrem Theobaldum de Milly, religiosum et the- saurarium S. Dionysii, qui singulari pietate erga hanc sanctam afficiebatur. " However, Father Suysken seems to doubt the genuine- ness of the foregoing inscription.
37 these were the crown and sword Among
of Charlemagne, the sword of Toan of Arc,
the great cross, &c. The buildings of the Abbey are now used as an establishment for the education of 500 daughters of the mem- bers of the Legion of Honour. See " Gazetteer of the World," vol. ii. , p. 870.
38 See Les Petits Bollandistes, " Vies des Saints," tome x. , ixe Jour de Septembre,
"
In festo S. Osmannse the year 1243, and on the vii. of the Ides of virginis ac Hibernise regis filiae, necnon October, an altar was dedicated in the patronae ecclesiae abbatialis et regalis S.
bank of the Seine. The church, founded in
the twelfth century, is a grand specimen of Gothic architecture, and rebuilt by St.
Louis, in 123 1. See the
"
Encyclopaedia Britannica," vol. xxi. , p. 161. Ninth
edition.
35 He wrote an account of this
"
chapel of St. Osmanna, to her and other saints, and during the same century, a beautiful shrine was fashioned, in which her
solemnity, which has been quoted by Dom Michel
Felibien in his
Histoire de l'Abbey royal de St. - Denis," published at Paris, in folio, 1706. We are informed there, that on the Second Sunday of June, viz. , the iii. of the Ides, and on the feast of the Apostle, St. Barnabas, A. D. 1 144, among the various altars consecrated was one of St. Osmanna, while the relics of different saints were placed in their respective shrines. Also in
P- 595-
39 It is headed :
relics were placed, according to James mentary to the Acts of St. Osmanna, at this
Doublet, in his History of the Monastery of
day. See sect, i. , num. 6, 7.
40Thus " beatissimaeOsmannae : Ipsodie,
St. tome Denis,
xlii. ,
36 The following is the record : " Anno virginis. "
i. , cap.
p. 314.
Dionysii O. S. B. prope Lutetiam Parisio- rum. " Some portions of this Mass are given by Father Suysken, in his Previous Com-
242 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [September9.
theMartyrologiumParisiense. 41 AmongtheAdditionstoUsuard,mentioned by Father Soller, the Codex Hagenoyensis has her feast at this day, but in a
triumph took placed John Wilson, in his Martyrologium Anglicanum, published in 1640, places the feast of St. Osmanna, at the 9th of September. Her name appears, at the 9th of September, in the list of Irish Saints, publishedbyFatherHenryFitzsimon. " IntheCircleoftheSeasons,**her festival is entered, at the present date.
Article III. —St. Cera, Virgin, of Killahear, Parish of Aghna-
mvllen, County of Monaghan. \_Sixth Century! ] Purity, charity and energy, of a high order and a wide range, always vital and effectual, charac- terize the Virgins of Christ. Their lives and conversation give edification to the world ; but, we must often, as in this instance, regret the loss of materials to illustrate their holy practices. The name of St. Cera, Virgin, is to be
1
found in the published Martyrology of Tallagh, at this day, and in this
form : Findbarr Cille Cunge, i Broednea et Sae Cerae, Vir. In the Book of
Leinster the copy,
entry
is more correct. 2 We are indebted to the
Very
2 Without
Andrew
also a martyr, "while stating, that at the 9th of September, the day of her
peculiar entry/
authority,
Saussay
has made this
virgin
Rev. Daniel O'Connor, P. P. , of Newtownbutler, for the following interesting
identification, regarding the relationship, locality and period of this holy
woman. 3 Killahear marks the site ot the cell and capella of one among the
most venerated saints of Clogher diocese. St. Cera was the spiritual sister
of St. MacCarthan4 and St. Tighernach,* and in a special manner the
patroness of the territory, variously called Crichmugdorn6 and Donagh- moyne. To most readers the name of Killahear will appear quite new ;
and, yet it is the designation by which is known a largely used graveyard in
the of 8 of and near the ancient parish Aughnamullen, barony Crernorne,
town of Ballytrain. 9 The place is referred to by Shirley, but not under that
name. 10 He
that in the townland of Corlat" a situated. It has also escaped the notice of Irish hagiologists.
is
At the time
merely says,
graveyard
in which St. Cera lived, namely, during the episcopate of St. Tighernach,
Donaghmoyne was included in the territory of the Mugdorne, and indeed for a
41 Thus : "Eodem die, sanctae Osmannae
virginis, cujus reliquiae in basilica S. Dionysii in Francia asservantur. "
:
4'Thus " In Hybernia, sanctae Osmannae
reginae Christianissimae. "
43 Thus, at the Kalends of April, he states,
* See the Eighth Volume of this work at
15th of August, Art. i.
5 See Volume the Fourth of this work, at
4th of April, Art. i.
6
Modernised, Cremorne.
7 Like many another well-known town-
in the Martyrologium Gallicanum : "In land name, this denomination has been
agro Parisiensi, ccenobio San-Dionysiano, Elevatio corporis sanctae Osmannae virginis
omitted from the Ordnance Survey Maps of Ireland.
8
This larger parish is outlined on the "Ordnance Survey Townland Maps of Ire- 44 See "Historiae Catholicae Iberniae land for the County of Monaghan," Sheets
et martyris, cujus triumphus colitur die IX. Septembris. "
Compendium," tomus i. , lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 51.
18, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28.
s Omitted from the Ordnance Survey
Maps of Ireland.
« At p. 253.
Article hi. —' Edited
the Rev. Mr.
,0 See " Evelyn Philip Shirley's
Kelly, D. D. , p. xxxiii.
*
Thus : SAticcAe Cepae.
by
History of the County of Monaghan/' chap, xii. ,
p. 349.
3 """
Extracted from an article, St. Cera's Described on the Ordnance Survey Church, Killahear," which appeared in the Townland Maps for the County of Mona- reopWs Advocate of Monaghan, January ghan," Sheet 27.
I2
2nd, 1892, and written by Father O'Connor, In Evelyn Philip Shirley's "History of
then P. P. of Emyvale. the County of Monaghan," the feast of St.
September 9. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 243
considerable period, the two names were convertible terms. Therefore, the
name of this cemetery has been handed down traditionally by the people, who always Call it Killahear, which means neither more nor less than the
cell or Church of St. Cera, Virgin, whose feast is kept, according to the 13
Martyrology of Tallaght, on the 9th of September. " Killahear is situated on the summit of a round hill near Corlat lake and in the vicinity of scenery
b—oth varied and attractive.
is
which latter situated
Local tradition says of it and of Chapel Moyle
in the townland of in the eastern Latton-faskey,
Killahear Graveyard, Parish of Aughnamullen, Diocese of Clogher.
division of 14—" that Aughnamullen
are
of the most ancient burial-places in Ireland. " We are told on the authority
Cera, patroness of the church of Donagh- moyne, is placed at the 5th of January. See chap, xii. , p. 358, and n. 2, ibid.
13 The accompanying illustration of the Cemetery of Killahear was obtained from a photograph, taken by Mr. Philip Mulligan,
a student of Maynooth, in August, 1895.
photograph it has been drawn on the wood
and engraved by Gregor Gray.
14 On the shore of Lough Egish. A de-
scription of the surface and statistics of this parish, in 1846, may be found in the " Par- liamentary Gazetteer of Ireland," vol. i. , p. 110.
Rev. Daniel O'Connor, P. P. of Newtownbutler. The view of the grave-yard is looking west. From the
15 See " Evelyn Philip Shirley's
It was sent
by Very
History of the County of Monaghan," chap, xii. ,
they
registered
of the Register of Clogher, one of our lost books, but of which many extracts are preserved, that the deanery of Clones is called after the church of St.
Cera of Donaghmoyne, the spiritual sister of the blessed bishops of Ergal, MacCarten and Tighernach. It is stated, that St. Tigernach consecrated a church for the aforesaid virgin ; and in honour of the bishop himself a stone cross was erected there, as was manifest to those
the church. 15 The stone cross referred to is possibly the venerable cross at present to be seen in the Diamond at Clones. It would appear, that St. Tigernach placed the
P. 358.
visiting
in Rome as two being
244 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [September9.
deanery of Clones under the patronage of the holy virgin, St. Cera, and that he dedicated a church for her, which was probably the church erected near her cell at Killahear, in the land of " Owenagh of the Mills. " 16 In the published Martyrology of Donegal,17 we do not find her mentioned —at least under such a name as Cera—at the 9th day of September.
Article IV. —St. Bertellinus or Eettelin, Hermit, and Patron of Stafford, England. [In the Eighth Century. } In the list of saints left by
September. His Life has been written by John Capgrave,* but it is hardly anything more than a collection of popular legends/ An earlier Life of
Bettelin, by Alexander, is regarded as possessing little credit in the latter of its statements. Two other writers, Ingulphus and Felix, preserve incidental mention of him, and it is more trustworthy. s The Bollandists have pub- lished his Acts 6 at this date ;? but these are regarded as being unauthentic and abounding in fables. They have been edited by Father Constantine Suysken, and" have a Previous critical Commentary of seventeen paragraphs. They seem to have been composed after the year 1386, if we are to judge from the relation of a miracle wrought in that year, and attributed to the merits ofour saint. 8 This composition has been used by John Capgrave in compiling a Life of St. Bertellinus. 9 By Molanus,10 it is thought the author had been Alexander Essibiensis Prior," and John Pits states, that he flourished a. d. 1220 12 however, this can hardly be reconciled with the
;
account of a miracle, attributed to the merits of St. Bertellin in those acts, and stated to have occurred in a. d, 1386. A very elegant biography of this
saint, called Betellin, has been compiled by one of the Anglican writers in the rare and much admired work, " Lives of the English Saints. 1 * There is
1 it would seem he had intended the Acts of St. Bertel- publishing
Colgan,
linus, at the 9th of September, or at the 12th of August. For a nearly similar notice, the reader is referred to this latter date, in the Eighth Volume of this work,* where we have deferred further notices of him to the 9th of
,6 The foregoing is mainly taken from a
letter, written by Very Rev. Daniel
O'Connor, P. P. , and dated Emyvale, 23rd
8 It is possible, however, as this is in a
concluding paragraph, that it may have been an addition to an older copy of St. Bertellin's
Acts.
f Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves. 'See
August, 1892. "
Legenda Sanctorum Angliae,"
Article iv. —* See Catalogus aliquorum fol. 1.
" Alexander
Sanctorum quae MSS. habentur.
2 See at August 12th, Art. vi.
3 He died at Lynn, the place of his birth,
In his notes, he says :
on the 12th day of August, a. d. 1464, at the quantum intellectui nostro. " These are age of seventy years. See Introduction to the very words beginning that Manuscript the " Chronicle of England," edited by the Life published by the Bollandists, and Rev. Francis Charles Hingeston, B. A.
2
At that date, the Bollandists, among the pretermitted feasts, have some notices of her. 3 A copy of this MS. had been sent by Cas- tellan, Canon of Paris, to the Bollandist Fathers, in a communication, dated A. D.
238 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 9.
preserved at Anisolensis,* in the church of St. Carilefus, Carilulphe or
Marculf, diocese of Mans. ' As this is fuller in matter than the former one,
and yet frequently coincides with it in phrases and order of narrative ; Father
Suysken thinks its compiler used the former, so that he not only supplied the
lacuna, but enlarged its narrative, occasionally by conjecture, or otherwise
from a different source, or possibly from the fallacies of his own imagination.
Evidently taken from some old codex, the writer's name not known, John
Capgrave has fuller notices of this saint,6 and differing from the St. Denis
Life in certain places. This narrative is closely followed by Dean Jacques
Doublet,? a Benedictine Father, in his work on the History of the Abbey of
St. Denis. 8 Wilson,' Robert Buckland,10 11 and Lobineau12 John Saussay,
have accounts of St. Osrnana. The Bollandists give her Acts, 13 at the 9th of
1
September. * These are taken from an old Life of the saint, by some
anonymous writer, and they were found in a Manuscript belonging to the former Benedictine Abbey of St. Denis, near Paris. This Life has be—en
collated, by the editor, Father Constantine Suysken, with a more lengthy
yet not more correct— one sent to the Bollandists in 1630, which was copied
fromaManuscriptbelongingtothechurchofSt. Carilefus,'5 inthediocese
of Mans.
16
Again, also, he makes use of that Life published by John
Capgrave. A Previous Commentary is given in two sections and twenty- seven paragraphs, while the Acts and Appendix are comprised in eleven paragraphs, with accompanying notes. There are notices of St. Osmanna in Rev. Alban Butler's1? work, and in that of the Petits Bollandistes. '8
She was the daughter of an Irish prince, according to the Legend of 1
her Acts, ' and from her very infancy, she was remarkable for her
innocence, and for observing all the Divine precepts. We are told, also,20 that the name by which she was first known in Ireland was Agariarga, and which she bore to the time when Osmanna was given her in baptism. Her
1691. The original manuscript—now pro- bablylost—had been traced in Gothic letters.
The imperfect -passages were marked with dots, by Castellan.
4 This Latin name is not to be found in the "Novum Lexicon Geogiapliicum," edited by P. Ferrarius and M. A. Baudrand.
s A copy of this had been sent to the Bob landist Fathers in 1638, by Father Jean Daide of their Society.
6 In " Nova Legenda Anglise," fol. ccxlvii. , ccxlviii. , at quinto Idibus Septembris.
7 He was born in 1560 and he died in
1648, at the age of eighty-eight. See M. Le Dr. Hoefer's "Nouvelle Biographie Ge*ie- rale. " tome xiv. , col. 672.
James I. See Joannis Pitsei " Relationvm
Historicarvm de Rebus Anglicis," Aetas
In his Martyrologium Gallicanum. " I2 Se Lobineau's "Saints de Bretagne," tome ii. , cent, vii. , Septembre ix. , pp. I to 4. ' 3 See " Acta Sanctorum," tomus iii. ,
l6 Cenomanum, now le Mans, was the chief city of the Cenomani, a people of 8 See "Histoire de l'Abbaye de Saint- Gallia Celtica, their country being now
Denys en France, contenant les Antiquites
known as le Maine.
' 7 See "Lives of the Fathers,
9 In "
Martyrologium Anglicanuin. "
tember ix.
,8 See "Vies des Saints," tome x. , ixe
les et Fondations, Prerogatives
Martyrs and other principal Saints," vol. ix. , Sep-
d'icelle,
Privileges," Paris, 1625, two tomes, 4to.
10 to Ferrarius in " According Catalogus
Generalis Sanctorum. " The Bollandist
Suysken does not know who this Robert
Buckland had been, unless he may be con-
sidered identical with one Rudolph Buck-
land, a Priest, who is said to have translated
into English all the volumes of Surius and
to have prepared them for the press. He earn OSMANAM, cum antea gentili nomine died in the year 161 1, during the reign of vocaretur Agariarga. "
decimaseptima, p. 816. ""
ix. Septembris, pp. 417 to 425.
:
,4 Headed " De S. Osmanna Virgine,
quae colitur in Abbatia S- Dionysii prope Parisios in Francia. "
,s Ex Anisolensi, St. Carilefus, also called
Cariulphe of Bayeux, and Masculphe or Mascoul, is venerated on the 1st of May.
Jour de Septembre, p. 595.
'• And likewise by John Capgrave.
" Beata virgo Osmanna clara stripe ac regali Iliberniensium progenita," &c.
2° The Anisolensen Manuscript Life states : "Tunc baptizavit illam episcopus, vocans
September 9. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS 239
parents were idolaters, and were opposed to her inclinations for becoming a Christian. However, she required them to answer, could she be compelled, as a believer in the one true God, to adore mute idols having no power to aid her, and to follow the pagan customs. This reluctance on her part, to continue in the old superstitions, caused them great sadness, and they devised a means, as they thought, to divert her from leading a Christian life. They wished her to marry a pagan prince, in her country, which is called Hibernia. But, to avoid their importunities, Osmana left her home and native island, accompanied only by one of her female attendants, named Aclitenis. 21 Their destination was to Armoric22 Britain. 23 Having embarked on board a vessel, they were wafted towards the shores of Gaul, and there they disembarked on the coast near Saint-Brieuc. 2^ They sought a very solitary place, far from
2
human habitation, and* near the banks of the River Loire. 5 In that part of
the country, they constructed a sort of shieling, with the branches of trees ; and in it, for a long time, they passed a life of meditation and penance. The place of their retreat was at length accidentally discovered by a hunter, who, with his dogs, followed a boar, that fled before them, and sought refuge in the hut of St. Osmana. The animal lay down at her feet, and in that position was found by the hunter, who would not heed the pathetic remonstrances of the virgin. But, neither his hunting spear nor dirk was able to penetrate even the skin of the prostrate animal. Astonished at such an adventure, the
26
where he related what had occurred. Whereupon, the bishop of that see, to be better informed, went with a number of his clergy and people to the holy virgin's hermitage. Theretheyfoundher,coveredonlywiththerudestkindofgarment, woven from rushes and long grass into a sort of camlet, while her bed was covered with thorns on which she lay, so as to expose herself to the utmost bodily mortification. The bishop enquired if she believed in the Christian's doctrine, and desired to receive baptism. On signifying her earnestness to have that sacrament conferred on her, a vessel of water was procured, and in presence of those assembled, she was made a member of Christ's fold. At
that time, also, she wrought a remarkable miracle ; for a man who had been
blind for three years was restored to sight, by her touching him. All present
greatly rejoiced, and proclaimed Osmana a true sen-ant of Christ and a most
holy virgin. We are informed, that after her baptism, the bishop employed
a peasant to prepare a garden and lawn around Osmana's place of habita-
2
tion, 7 while another man was engaged to construct an oratory in which her
21
The Anisolensen Manuscript reads Ac- between the embouchures of the Seine and lytenis. However, Father Louis Jobert, the Loire. All Bretagne in France was
hunter returned to a city or town called Briscis or Brisis,
S. J. , Wrote to Father Papebroch in 1678,
that there was a village called St. Cerota, in
Le Vendosmois, diocese of Mans, and about
eight leagues distant from Le Mans. St.
Cerota was there venerated, on the 22nd of Saints,'' tome x. , ixe Jour de Septembre, June, and she had an office from the Common
of Virgins. She was considered by the people there, to have been the female ser- vant of Osmanna, the daughter of an Irish king, revered on the 9th of September, and whose relics had been preserved in the Church of St. Denis, near Paris. On the high altar of her place was the image of St. Cerota, clad in the Benedictine habit.
"
On the 3 This territory of ancient Gaul lies
"This Celtic word
a legend of this man having yielded
sea-borders. " ~
signifies
to the seductions of the Evil One, and of having entered into a compact with him to renounce
comprised within it. See Pierre Larousse's "Grand Dictionaire Universel du xixe
Siecle," tome i. , p. 671.
24 See Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
"
known to Father Suysken. By Doublet and Saussay, it was thought to have been St. Brioc or Brieu, on the British Channel, and so called from its Irish patron saint, wtfose feast occurs on the 1st of May.
2? In the Anisolensen Manuscript, there is
p. 595.
2= Latinized Liger or Ligeris.
26 Such place denominination was un-
»4o LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 9.
devotions could be practised. It is related in her Acts, that she wrought
many miracles, in restoring sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the mute. One in particular was known to have been effected, in the case
of a rich man's daughter, whose name was Androchildis. A bone had accidentally stuck in her throat, which caused the loss of speech. Hearing
of St. Osmana's gift of miracles, her parents had their daughter brought to the holy virgin, who, having offered a fervent prayer to God, touched her throat, and the bone was ejected with some effusion of blood. Although we have no record or notice to divine her period ; yet, that she flourished in the sixth or seventh century seems most probable. The time or place of St. Osmana's death is not recorded. According to one statement,28 she dwelt
2
and was buried in a place called Jotrum, 9 in the province of Bria ^° and
these facts are said to have been made known through a revelation accorded
and
two leagues from Liege, in Belgium. Nor does Father Suysken think it at all
improbable, that St. Osmana, who at first lived in Lesser Britain, afterwards went to Bria, and that there she died and was buried in Jotrum, where she has been so long held in special veneration. Another opinion prevails, that our saint departed this life in Aremoiic Britain, and that about the time of the Norman Invasion, her remains were removed to Jotrum to save them from desecration. 32 After the death of St. Osmana the place of her burial became celebrated for the performance of many miracles. In the ninth century, a churchwasbuiltoverthesiteofoursaint'shermitage. Somewhatlater,ata little distance from that church, there was another oratory, and this gave rise to the parish of St. Osmane. 33 A considerable portion of this holy virgin's relics for many centuries has been preserved in the Abbey Church *of Saint Denis,3* near Paris.
to St. 1 the Lutgarde^
holy virgin
religious
of which lies about Aywieres,
thither from Jotrum.
In the opinion of Arturus, her remains were translated However, by others it has been held, that during the
As a punishment, the peasant was deprived of sight, and then he began to feel remorse for his error. He
applied to the holy virgin for his restoration,
and Osmana praying fervently, he recovered
the favour of seeing as before.
28
the service of St. Osmana.
quondam regis Sotiae et per miraculum
Domini ad partes Gallirc adducta, sancte
vixi, defunctaque ibidem ac sepulta solemni-
ter, mei tandem per negligentiam temporis incolae obliti sunt. Haec itaque cum pia
Lutgardis dicto viro referret, subjunxit:
being
3 ' Her feast is held on the 16th of
That of Thomas Cantipratanus, or
Vellem, ut hcec eadem tibi Dominus in Cantimpre, in his Life of St. Luitprande. testimonium veritatis ostenderet. Et ille,
He was a contemporary and friend of that holy Cistercian abbess, who died in the year 1246. His Life of the saint has been re- published, by Surius, who has changed, in several passages, the terminology of the original Acts. Thus, in the story there related of Osanna, by Thomas Cantipratanus, she is called Osinanna, by Surius.
29 About four miles from Meldensis or
Non sum, inquit dignus, ut mini talia de- monstrantur. Cui ilia : Etsi forte minus
dignus sis, tamen ilia digna est, cujus dignepneconiarevelenter. Neemora,super
hoc pia Lutgarde orante Dominum, eadem nocte dicto viro per somnum tribus vicibus
Virgo apparuit, et quod Osanna [Sttrit Osmanna) vocata sit, indicavit. Qui vidit
testimonium perhibuit, et scimus, quia verum
ejus. "
3° La Brie, a province of France, between
the Seine and Maine rivers, not far from Paris. See " Novum Lexicon Geographi- cum," tomus i. , p. 131.
June, 3* ThisseemstobetheopinionofArturus, in Sacro Gynecoco, when noticing this saint
at the 1st of April, and at the present day.
" In Sarthe, arrondissement, and canton of Saint-Calais.
34 Originally called Catolacum or Catul- liacum by the Romans. A chapel was
Meaux. While here a certain
to have entered a crypt, in which the bodies of several saints had been buried, and there he prayed during night. One of the tombs formed from alabaster he found open ; but,
unable to discover the name and merits of the occupant, he afterwards asked St. Lutgarde -to obtain from the Almighty the favour of such a discovery, and his
est testimonium
request was granted. The sequel is thus "
related by Cantipratanus. Apparens enim ei prsedicta Sancta dixit : Ego vocar Osana
{apud Surium legitur Osmanna) virgo, filia
priest
is said
September 9. ] LIVES OJF THE IRISH SAINTS. 241
Northmen Invasions of Britanic Aremorica, the body of St. Osmana had been brought direct and tor better preservation to Saint-Denis. In the examina- tion of this question, the Bollandist Father Suysken supposes, that her relics had been there deposited, before the middle of the twelfth century, as in the dedication of that great Abbey Church, which the Abbot Sugerius 35 enlarged and magnificently adorned, mention is made of a chapel then in it, and dedicated to St. Osmana. Her body was again transferred to a new shrine, towards the middle of the thirteenth century, and an inscription to that effect 36 was to be found on a tablet placed behind the reliquary. It is said, that St.
Osmanna's remains were deposited in a shrine of iron, richly gilt. Her precious relics were profaned and dispersed, owing to the disorders occasioned by the Calvinists, in the year 1567. The former shrine of St. Osmana appears to have been spoiled of all its rich ornaments, and it no longer exists. In its place was substituted a wooden shrine painted, in which probably the relics of various saints were indiscriminately placed, so that it remains doubtful, if the several portions could be properly distin- guished. Moreover, during the frenzy of the French Revolution, by a decree of the Convention in 1793, the royal tombs in the church of St. Denis
were destroyed, and the valuable relics and other treasures 37 f the Abbey were carried away. This holy virgin is greatly venerated in the dioceses of
Paris, of Saint-Brieuc, and of Mans. 38 Among the Masses Proper for the Patrons and Tutelary Saints of France and Ireland, edited by order of Pope Clement XII. , and published at Paris in 1734, there is a special Mass for our saint, at the 9th of September. 39 In that copy of Usuard, belonging to the Queen of Sweden, at this date* is commemorated St. Osmanna, and also in
erected here in the third century over the MCCXLVI. , Kalendis Aprilis, sanctissimo tomb of St. Denis the martyr, and thence- Resurrectionis Domini nostri die, vene- forward it bore his name. At present, it rabiles praelati Aturensis, episcopus Leo- forms an arrondissement, canton, commune nensis et Guilielmus abbas S. Dionysii, and town of France, in the department of corpus sanctse sacraeque virginis Osmannse, the Seine.
The town is situated about 4^ panno serico involutum composuerunt in miles north of Paris, and near the right
splendida ex argento deaurato preciosisque monilibus decorata theca, donata per fratrem Theobaldum de Milly, religiosum et the- saurarium S. Dionysii, qui singulari pietate erga hanc sanctam afficiebatur. " However, Father Suysken seems to doubt the genuine- ness of the foregoing inscription.
37 these were the crown and sword Among
of Charlemagne, the sword of Toan of Arc,
the great cross, &c. The buildings of the Abbey are now used as an establishment for the education of 500 daughters of the mem- bers of the Legion of Honour. See " Gazetteer of the World," vol. ii. , p. 870.
38 See Les Petits Bollandistes, " Vies des Saints," tome x. , ixe Jour de Septembre,
"
In festo S. Osmannse the year 1243, and on the vii. of the Ides of virginis ac Hibernise regis filiae, necnon October, an altar was dedicated in the patronae ecclesiae abbatialis et regalis S.
bank of the Seine. The church, founded in
the twelfth century, is a grand specimen of Gothic architecture, and rebuilt by St.
Louis, in 123 1. See the
"
Encyclopaedia Britannica," vol. xxi. , p. 161. Ninth
edition.
35 He wrote an account of this
"
chapel of St. Osmanna, to her and other saints, and during the same century, a beautiful shrine was fashioned, in which her
solemnity, which has been quoted by Dom Michel
Felibien in his
Histoire de l'Abbey royal de St. - Denis," published at Paris, in folio, 1706. We are informed there, that on the Second Sunday of June, viz. , the iii. of the Ides, and on the feast of the Apostle, St. Barnabas, A. D. 1 144, among the various altars consecrated was one of St. Osmanna, while the relics of different saints were placed in their respective shrines. Also in
P- 595-
39 It is headed :
relics were placed, according to James mentary to the Acts of St. Osmanna, at this
Doublet, in his History of the Monastery of
day. See sect, i. , num. 6, 7.
40Thus " beatissimaeOsmannae : Ipsodie,
St. tome Denis,
xlii. ,
36 The following is the record : " Anno virginis. "
i. , cap.
p. 314.
Dionysii O. S. B. prope Lutetiam Parisio- rum. " Some portions of this Mass are given by Father Suysken, in his Previous Com-
242 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [September9.
theMartyrologiumParisiense. 41 AmongtheAdditionstoUsuard,mentioned by Father Soller, the Codex Hagenoyensis has her feast at this day, but in a
triumph took placed John Wilson, in his Martyrologium Anglicanum, published in 1640, places the feast of St. Osmanna, at the 9th of September. Her name appears, at the 9th of September, in the list of Irish Saints, publishedbyFatherHenryFitzsimon. " IntheCircleoftheSeasons,**her festival is entered, at the present date.
Article III. —St. Cera, Virgin, of Killahear, Parish of Aghna-
mvllen, County of Monaghan. \_Sixth Century! ] Purity, charity and energy, of a high order and a wide range, always vital and effectual, charac- terize the Virgins of Christ. Their lives and conversation give edification to the world ; but, we must often, as in this instance, regret the loss of materials to illustrate their holy practices. The name of St. Cera, Virgin, is to be
1
found in the published Martyrology of Tallagh, at this day, and in this
form : Findbarr Cille Cunge, i Broednea et Sae Cerae, Vir. In the Book of
Leinster the copy,
entry
is more correct. 2 We are indebted to the
Very
2 Without
Andrew
also a martyr, "while stating, that at the 9th of September, the day of her
peculiar entry/
authority,
Saussay
has made this
virgin
Rev. Daniel O'Connor, P. P. , of Newtownbutler, for the following interesting
identification, regarding the relationship, locality and period of this holy
woman. 3 Killahear marks the site ot the cell and capella of one among the
most venerated saints of Clogher diocese. St. Cera was the spiritual sister
of St. MacCarthan4 and St. Tighernach,* and in a special manner the
patroness of the territory, variously called Crichmugdorn6 and Donagh- moyne. To most readers the name of Killahear will appear quite new ;
and, yet it is the designation by which is known a largely used graveyard in
the of 8 of and near the ancient parish Aughnamullen, barony Crernorne,
town of Ballytrain. 9 The place is referred to by Shirley, but not under that
name. 10 He
that in the townland of Corlat" a situated. It has also escaped the notice of Irish hagiologists.
is
At the time
merely says,
graveyard
in which St. Cera lived, namely, during the episcopate of St. Tighernach,
Donaghmoyne was included in the territory of the Mugdorne, and indeed for a
41 Thus : "Eodem die, sanctae Osmannae
virginis, cujus reliquiae in basilica S. Dionysii in Francia asservantur. "
:
4'Thus " In Hybernia, sanctae Osmannae
reginae Christianissimae. "
43 Thus, at the Kalends of April, he states,
* See the Eighth Volume of this work at
15th of August, Art. i.
5 See Volume the Fourth of this work, at
4th of April, Art. i.
6
Modernised, Cremorne.
7 Like many another well-known town-
in the Martyrologium Gallicanum : "In land name, this denomination has been
agro Parisiensi, ccenobio San-Dionysiano, Elevatio corporis sanctae Osmannae virginis
omitted from the Ordnance Survey Maps of Ireland.
8
This larger parish is outlined on the "Ordnance Survey Townland Maps of Ire- 44 See "Historiae Catholicae Iberniae land for the County of Monaghan," Sheets
et martyris, cujus triumphus colitur die IX. Septembris. "
Compendium," tomus i. , lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 51.
18, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28.
s Omitted from the Ordnance Survey
Maps of Ireland.
« At p. 253.
Article hi. —' Edited
the Rev. Mr.
,0 See " Evelyn Philip Shirley's
Kelly, D. D. , p. xxxiii.
*
Thus : SAticcAe Cepae.
by
History of the County of Monaghan/' chap, xii. ,
p. 349.
3 """
Extracted from an article, St. Cera's Described on the Ordnance Survey Church, Killahear," which appeared in the Townland Maps for the County of Mona- reopWs Advocate of Monaghan, January ghan," Sheet 27.
I2
2nd, 1892, and written by Father O'Connor, In Evelyn Philip Shirley's "History of
then P. P. of Emyvale. the County of Monaghan," the feast of St.
September 9. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 243
considerable period, the two names were convertible terms. Therefore, the
name of this cemetery has been handed down traditionally by the people, who always Call it Killahear, which means neither more nor less than the
cell or Church of St. Cera, Virgin, whose feast is kept, according to the 13
Martyrology of Tallaght, on the 9th of September. " Killahear is situated on the summit of a round hill near Corlat lake and in the vicinity of scenery
b—oth varied and attractive.
is
which latter situated
Local tradition says of it and of Chapel Moyle
in the townland of in the eastern Latton-faskey,
Killahear Graveyard, Parish of Aughnamullen, Diocese of Clogher.
division of 14—" that Aughnamullen
are
of the most ancient burial-places in Ireland. " We are told on the authority
Cera, patroness of the church of Donagh- moyne, is placed at the 5th of January. See chap, xii. , p. 358, and n. 2, ibid.
13 The accompanying illustration of the Cemetery of Killahear was obtained from a photograph, taken by Mr. Philip Mulligan,
a student of Maynooth, in August, 1895.
photograph it has been drawn on the wood
and engraved by Gregor Gray.
14 On the shore of Lough Egish. A de-
scription of the surface and statistics of this parish, in 1846, may be found in the " Par- liamentary Gazetteer of Ireland," vol. i. , p. 110.
Rev. Daniel O'Connor, P. P. of Newtownbutler. The view of the grave-yard is looking west. From the
15 See " Evelyn Philip Shirley's
It was sent
by Very
History of the County of Monaghan," chap, xii. ,
they
registered
of the Register of Clogher, one of our lost books, but of which many extracts are preserved, that the deanery of Clones is called after the church of St.
Cera of Donaghmoyne, the spiritual sister of the blessed bishops of Ergal, MacCarten and Tighernach. It is stated, that St. Tigernach consecrated a church for the aforesaid virgin ; and in honour of the bishop himself a stone cross was erected there, as was manifest to those
the church. 15 The stone cross referred to is possibly the venerable cross at present to be seen in the Diamond at Clones. It would appear, that St. Tigernach placed the
P. 358.
visiting
in Rome as two being
244 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [September9.
deanery of Clones under the patronage of the holy virgin, St. Cera, and that he dedicated a church for her, which was probably the church erected near her cell at Killahear, in the land of " Owenagh of the Mills. " 16 In the published Martyrology of Donegal,17 we do not find her mentioned —at least under such a name as Cera—at the 9th day of September.
Article IV. —St. Bertellinus or Eettelin, Hermit, and Patron of Stafford, England. [In the Eighth Century. } In the list of saints left by
September. His Life has been written by John Capgrave,* but it is hardly anything more than a collection of popular legends/ An earlier Life of
Bettelin, by Alexander, is regarded as possessing little credit in the latter of its statements. Two other writers, Ingulphus and Felix, preserve incidental mention of him, and it is more trustworthy. s The Bollandists have pub- lished his Acts 6 at this date ;? but these are regarded as being unauthentic and abounding in fables. They have been edited by Father Constantine Suysken, and" have a Previous critical Commentary of seventeen paragraphs. They seem to have been composed after the year 1386, if we are to judge from the relation of a miracle wrought in that year, and attributed to the merits ofour saint. 8 This composition has been used by John Capgrave in compiling a Life of St. Bertellinus. 9 By Molanus,10 it is thought the author had been Alexander Essibiensis Prior," and John Pits states, that he flourished a. d. 1220 12 however, this can hardly be reconciled with the
;
account of a miracle, attributed to the merits of St. Bertellin in those acts, and stated to have occurred in a. d, 1386. A very elegant biography of this
saint, called Betellin, has been compiled by one of the Anglican writers in the rare and much admired work, " Lives of the English Saints. 1 * There is
1 it would seem he had intended the Acts of St. Bertel- publishing
Colgan,
linus, at the 9th of September, or at the 12th of August. For a nearly similar notice, the reader is referred to this latter date, in the Eighth Volume of this work,* where we have deferred further notices of him to the 9th of
,6 The foregoing is mainly taken from a
letter, written by Very Rev. Daniel
O'Connor, P. P. , and dated Emyvale, 23rd
8 It is possible, however, as this is in a
concluding paragraph, that it may have been an addition to an older copy of St. Bertellin's
Acts.
f Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves. 'See
August, 1892. "
Legenda Sanctorum Angliae,"
Article iv. —* See Catalogus aliquorum fol. 1.
" Alexander
Sanctorum quae MSS. habentur.
2 See at August 12th, Art. vi.
3 He died at Lynn, the place of his birth,
In his notes, he says :
on the 12th day of August, a. d. 1464, at the quantum intellectui nostro. " These are age of seventy years. See Introduction to the very words beginning that Manuscript the " Chronicle of England," edited by the Life published by the Bollandists, and Rev. Francis Charles Hingeston, B. A.
