Mention is made,
regarding
another apparition of this St.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v2
, cap.
iii.
, sect.
2, p.
147.
5' In Vita
Butler's
The Bollandist
59 The of had the abbey Epternach
Dermargillse.
Henschenius professes himself entirely igno- of a Martyrology which is very old j this rant regarding this Life. and several other Kalendars style him
ham, Lancaster, &c.
"
St. Augurius bischop in Ire-
Thomas Dempsterus, de passionis tempore cum Genebrardo consentiens, de patria repugnat : et suae, id est, recentiore Scotioe antiquem Christi martyrem vendicat. Quod ne sine authore fecisse videretur ; Hunibeitevi Scotiim, scriptoretn antiquis- simum in sua historia ejus in Scotia labores
other,
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 391
Article IV. —St. Medan, Mellan, Meldan, or Meallan Mac Ui
CuiNN, OF Inis Mac-Ui-Cuinn, now Inchiquin, in Loch Oirbsen, now Lough Corrib, County of Galway. [^Stxth and Seventh Centuries? ^ The great celebrity of this holy man is chiefly due to the circumstance of his appearance to St. Fursey/ in that remarkable vision, to which allusion has been
in his Acts.
it does not seem probable, a knowledge of St. Medan or Mellan, or ? leldan
already made,
During
the earlier
under any form of his name—could have been so imperfect, as we are bound to confess it has become in later years. His Acts seem to have perished.
Still, we feel confident, that among the yet unpublished stores of our manu- scriptliterature,furtherdiscoveriesregardinghimcouldbemade. Tothe
authorities, most readily accessible, must we have recourse for these following brief notices. The Acts of St. Meldan, a bishop and confessor, have been compiled from various sources, by Colgan, who has entered notices of him, atthe7thofFebruary. ^ Apreviouscommentaryandactsofthi—ssaintare
—t the same date. + That St. Mellan
given by the Bollandists,3 a probably
the truest form of his name lived at a very early period, we have reason to conclude, from an entry in the "FeiHre" of St. ^ngus. s The Martyrology
of Tallagh^ registers at the 7th of February, Mellan, Insi mic h Cuinn. Marianus O'Gorman has a notice of him, at this same date. The scholiast
The Kalendar of Dmmmond states, at
St. — to Ireland, Mellan, confessor, departed
most writers have assumed it that Mellan or Meallan, mentioned in the Irish martyro- logies, at this date, must necessarily be identified with the St. Meldan,^ who is recorded as having been seen, in the visions of St. Fursey,9 while the latter lived near Lough Orbsen. In the Acts of St. Patrick, we find it related, that a certain Meldanus,'° or Mellanus," a priest, and an Irishman by birth, left his native country, with five other companions, for the purpose of study- ing the Sacred Scriptures, and of visiting holy places. '^ By a happy chance, they met St. Patrick returning from Britain. Falling on their knees, they obtained his blessing, and the Irish Apostle then predicted, that all of these persons should become bishops. ^3 They all applied most sedulously to their
on St. ^ngus likewise coincides.
the vii. Ides of that in February,
Christ. 7 It can
—not be as certain
Studies, and became great scholars.
Article iv. —^ See his Life at the i6th of
January.
"^ See "Acta Sanctorum
Confessore," pp. 269 to 271. .
Afterwards, in due course, they were
Of Loch Uar—a noble guest.
vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano Episcopo et
^ Edited Rev. Dr. xiv. by Kelly, p.
3 See "Acta
Februarii. De S. Medano, sive Meldano,
Episcopo Hiberno, Peronse in Gallia, pp. 66 to 68.
^ This Life is edited by Father Godefrid Henschen.
5 The following rann, for this day, is ex-
Scottish Saints," p. 4.
^ that Meldan Colgan maintains, however,
is equivalent to Mellan. See "Acta Sanc- torum Hibemise," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, n. i. , p. 271.
9 His Life will be found at the 1 6th of
January,
'° to According Joceline.
Sanctorum,"
tomus
ii. ,
vii.
tracted Irom the " Leabhar Breac"- and translated by Professor O'Looney
C tin. It) mellAn in-ofe UAifle ITlAc . h. Chuint) nocriAti
LoinAn bochA^n bpige tochA tlAi|\ Apt) Aige.
copy,
Mellan of the noble island,
Of Mac Ua Cuind implore him j Loman the powerful lamp
Patricii, lib. ii. , cap. ix. , p. 130.
" The reader is referred to a still more
detailed account of these recorded incidents, in the notices of St. Meallan, of Kilrush or of Cloncraff, at the 28th of January, article ii.
^3 See conjectural notices and festivals regarding them, in notes to the memoranda^ already quoted.
deemed, wholly
although
Hibemise,"
7 See Bishop Forbes' " Kalendars of
:
—" totheVita S. According Tripartita
of our — ages Christianity,
392 LIVES 01* THE IRISH SAINTS. [February 7.
raised to the episcopal rank. By word and example, they brought many to a sense of their Christian duties, while all of those bishops happily departed totheLord. ^* Theyflourishedtowardsthecloseofthefifthcentury,andit seems probable many of them lived early in the fifth. In the Irish Life of
St. Patrick,'^ this Meldan is said to have been Bishop of Cluancremensis, or Cluain-Chembre,^*^ in Ireland. ^7 The period, at which this St. Meldan flourished, does not allow us to conclude, that he was identical with him, mentioned in St. Fursey's Acts. In the account of St. Fursey's vision, by Venerable Bede,^^ he alludes to the appearance among the angels of holy and just men. These he does not specially name, but, we are told, they wereScots,andofSt. Fursey'sownnation; thatataformerperiod,theywere celebrated, and that they had not unworthily enjoyed the grade of priests. It is likely, they were named in the more ancient little book of St. Fursey's Life, to which Bede alludes, and quotes as an authority, for a brief account of the vision. In all the other Acts of St. Fursey^^ published, Meldan is the name of that holy person,^^ who was at first—his spiritual father, and who was living—on the island, designated Esbren^' supposed to be incorrectly so called when Fursey visited his part of the country. Loch Oirbsen*^ was the ancient name for the present Lough Corrib, in the county of Galway. On an island of this lake. Saint Meldan's religious establishment was situated. ^3 As we have already stated, this island seems to have been the one, now known as Inchiquin. Here it is thought, that St. Meldan lived, a disciple of St. Brendan, who died on the i6th of May, a. d. 576 or 577, as generally supposed. ^* If so, St. Meldan was born, probably, about the middle of the sixth century. It is conjectured, also, that he aided his pupil, St. Fursey, in ministerialworks,especiallywhilepreaching. ^'s AlthoughSt. Meldanisonly noticed, as a priest, by Venerable Bede ; yet, it has been urged,^^ that he probablyattainedepiscopalrank,^? owingtohistalentsandrenown. =^ He probably lived, too, as an anchoret. It seems highly probable, that the St.
Meldan, who dwelt at Inchiquin, and who flourished about the year 58o,='9 died soon after he had formed the acquaintance of St. Fursey, and in the earlier part of the seventh century, before the commencement of those re- markable visions Fursey had while living in the province of Connaught. In St. Fursey's Acts, at the i6th of January, Saints Meldan and Beoan seem to be
'4 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " May—is said to have built the religious
Jocelyn's or Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xciii. , p. 86.
house, at this place,
^5 In the Second Book.
Hibhsean, in Western Connaught.
=3 Yxom him it seems to have taken the See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Feb- name of the Island of Mac-Hua-Coinn, or
'^ So is the place written by Henschen.
ruarii vii. De S. Medano, sive Meldano,
&c. , num. 6, p. 67,
^7 The name seems resolvable into Clon-
craff or Clooncrave. The place has not
Inisquin, now Inchaquin. See more re- garding it in the Life of St. Fursey, at the
i6th of January, chapter iii.
=4 See Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical His-
tory of Ireland," vol. ii. , chap, x. , sect, vii. , See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis and n. 120, pp. 30, 38.
been identified.
^^ "
Anglorum," lib. iii. , cap. 19, pp. 211, 212. '5> See what has been already stated, in
his Life at the 16th of January.
"^ He is called Mac-Hua-Coinn, because
=5 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nite," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, cap. i. and n. 7, pp. 269, 271.
=^ By Colgan, ibid, and n. 8.
his origin had been derived from the cele-
brated Monarch of Ireland, Conn of the
Hundred Battles. See Colgan's "Acta
Sanctorum Hibernife," Februarii vii. De Meldans, who were bishops, in liber ordi-
S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, n. i. ,
num, cap. i. Colgan thinks one or other of these must have been the present saint.
p. 271. —
='
St. Brendan venerated on the i6th of
='
In Colgan's opinion.
==*
It is said to have been in the region of
=7 By Sacerdos was often meant Episco- pus, according to a usage of ancient writers. =^ St. yEngus the Culdee enumerates two
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS, 393
considered as Irishmen, by birth. Even it is said there, St. Fursey, on look- ing, beheld these two venerable men of that province, in which the man of God was bom. 30 St. Meldan was the one most familiar, as the Sinedrus or spiritual director of Fursa, who afterwards went to Peronne, according to Cathal Maguire. 3'^ But, at the time of the vision, Meldan was already dead, and numbered among the blessed ; while, his remains were most probably interred, in the first instance, at Inisquin, on Lough Corrib,32 some time after the beginning of the seventh century. Probably, when St. Fursey left Ireland for England, and subsequently for France, he did not chose to dis- turb St. Meldan's remains, while not assured he could find a suitable place for their deposition. Unquestionably this was the St. Meldan that appeared in vision to his disciple and spiritual son, the future Abbot of Lagny, and whose relics the latter brought over to France when there established.
Mention is made, regarding another apparition of this St. Meldan to a monk, namedColman. 33 Whetherthishappenedbefore,orafter,thedeathofSt. Comgall,34 has not been determined. Judging by the narrative in the Acts of St. Fursey, St. Meldan was not living, when the Irish missionary went to Gaul. 35 His relics were brought to France, however, by St. Fursey, who deposited them at Perrone, Picardy. Of this town, he is regarded as a
and there honoured. 3^ The translation of St. Meldan's from body
patron,
Ireland probably took place, after Erchinoald37 had founded the Church of
Saints Peter and Paul, on the top of the mount at Cignes, near Perrone.
This happened during the lifetime of St. Fursey, who deposited in this church, moreover, the bodies or relics of St. Bean or Beoan, of St. Patrick,38
and of many other saints,39 as sacred pledges, while through their merits many miracles were afterwards wrought. In this church, St. Fursey himself loved to pray. However, in the seventeenth century, local traditions had not preserved a recollection of the exact spot, where those saintly reHcs lay, at Perrone. The neglect of preceding generations, or the ravages of time, had caused this total oblivion. ^o It does not seem probable, that this St. Meldan, who was a priest, can be identified with the succeeding St. Meldan, called a bishop. '^^ According to Colgan,^^ St. ^ngus places the natal day of St. Meldanus with that of his companions, SS. Nassadius and Beodanus, at the26thofOctober. 43 Atthissamedate,theMartyrologyofTallaghtsays, that three saints from Britain lived at Tamlachta Umhail, in the region of
3° In Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nise," xvi, Januarii. Vita S. P'urssei, lib. i. , cap. xxi. , p. 79. Also, Desmay's Life of St. Fursey, chapter vii. , at the 9th of Feb-
^s gee Bishop Challoner's ''Britannia
Sancta," part i,, p. ill.
37 He was Major-domo to King Clevis II.
of France,
38 it is difficult to determine who these
saints were, as we find multiple names in our calendars.
39 Whether of Ireland or of the Continent cannot be known.
^o c^gg " Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Colgan's
niae," Februarii vii. De S. Meldano, Epis- copo et Confessore, cap. iv,, v. , p. 270.
288.
31 When treating about St. Fursey, at the
1 6th of January.
32 See the highly interesting description of this fine expanse of water, in Sir William
ruary, ibid. , p.
R. Wilde's "
Lough
Corrib, its Shores and
Islands ; with some notices of Lough Mask,"
chap. ii. , pp. 18 to 38, with Appendix B.
4i See the BoUandists' "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Februarii vii. De S. Medano, 34 His departure is usually assigned to sive Meldano. Commentarius prasvius,
33 This is related in the Life of St. Com- gall, chapter Iv.
the loth of May, a. d. 601. See his Life at
num. 5, p. 67. ''
that
35 Colgan supposes St. Meldan died before
the year 626. See "Acta Sanctorum Hi- bemias," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, cap. v. , and n. ii, p. 271.
'^See ActaSanctorumHibemise,"Feb-
day.
ruariivii,, n. I, p. 271.
43 The reader is referred to their Acts, at
that day, where further remarks, in reference to the Saints Meldan and Beoan, of St. Fursey's vision, will be found.
394 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIJ^TS. [February 7.
Ivechia, in Ultonia. They dwelt near Lake Bricreann. 44 These tliree are called Nasad; Beoan and Mellan. They lived in the same church. As tlieir province was Ultonia, however, this seems alone sufficient to make us doubt, if the Beoan and Meldan of St. Fursey's vision can be identified with two of thenumberhavingaccordantnames. ^s Thissaintmusthavebeenfamous atonetime,sincemanychurcheswerededicatedtohim. Sometimes,aswe aretold,heiscalledMedan. ^*^ Theremovalofhisremains,toafardistant land, does not appear to have occasioned forgetfulness of his merits and miracles in the province, which seems to have been the one that can best lay claim to his nativity. Around the beautiful shores and islands of Lough Corrib, his name was long a household word. He is mentioned in the list ofsaintsfoundintheMartyrologyofDonegal. 47 Thereweread,asbeing venerated on this day, Meallan, Mac Ui Cuinn, of Inis Mac Ui Cuinn, in
LochOirbsen,inConnaught. TheRev. S. Baring-Gould,remarkingonthe loss of his Acts, refers his period to the end of the sixth century. ^^ At pre- sent, not even a trace of his former hermitage remains.
Article V. —St. Aid, Aedh, or Aidus, Bishop of Sleaty, Queen's County. \Seve71th Cefitury. '\ Beside the River Barrow, where St. Fiach^ founded his early religious establishment, in the fifth century, dwelt this venerable man, who is called an anchorite. He appears, further- more, to have attained a still higher distinction, in connexion with this place. The name. Aid, Bishop of Sleibthe, is the only mention made of him, in the Martyrology of Tallagh. ^ He was probably abbot, as well as bishop, over the religious community, that lived at Sleaty or Sletty. The situation of this house has been pointed out, by Ussher, as having been on the White Plain, neartheRiverBerbhaorBarrow. 3 Forthisstatement,hequotesthetesti-
mony of the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick ; and, yet, in that copy, published by Colgan, we look in vain for verification of this reference. * It has generally
been assumed, that Sleibthe,5 so written by all Irish autliorities,^ must have derived its name from its contiguity to the hills or mountain range of Slieve
Marigue. ^ Itshouldberemarked,however,thatSleatyorSlettyoldchurch^ was on a level site, surrounded by its enclosed graveyard, near the right bank of the River Barrow, and removed some miles from the Sliabh Mairge
^° It lies two miles northward of Carlow and it seems town,
range.
44 This account is confirmed by the Scho-
liast on ^ngus, and by the Martyrology of Cashel.
45 The time, moreover, does not
For the Mellan or Meldan of St. Fursey's acquaintance flourished long before Beoan and Mellan, here mentioned, who are called the uncles of St, Cuthbert. Their respec- tive pedigrees also differ.
4^ See Rev. S. Baring-Gould's "Lives of
the Saints," vol. ii. , February vii. , p. J93. *^ Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
40>41-
4^ See "Lives of the Saints," vol. ii. ,
February vii. , p. 193.
Article v. —' See his Life at the 12th
of October.
=
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xv.
3 See " Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Anti-
quitates," cap. xvii. , p. 449.
See "Trias Thaumaturga. " Septima
pretty
agree.
^ See Dr. P. W. " and Joyce's Origin
History of Irish Names of Places," part iv. , chap, i. , p. 367.
^ It now gives name to a barony in the
Vita S. Patricii, lib. iii. , cap. xxi. , to xxv.
pp. 152, 153. s"
Pronounced Sleaty. "
Queen's County.
« **
See Dr. O'Donovan's Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (c), p. 300.
9 The townland and small parish of Sleaty
are noted on the " Ordnance Survey Town-
landMapsfortheQueen'sCounty. " Sheet
32. ^o
Yet, the author of the Tripartite Life, who seems to have known the situation well, translates Slepte, by the Latin word
"montes. " See Colgan's "Trias Thau- maturga. " Septima Vita S. Patricii, lib. m. , cap. xxiii. , p. 153.
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 395
evident," that in former times the Barrow once formed a lough, in the inter-
mediate space. " We read in the Martyrology of Donega^s as being venerated
on this day, Aedh, Bishop of Slebte. The " Ciin Adamnain" states, that he
was one the saints whom Adamnan ^'> found as to free the among security,
women of Ireland from every slavery which was upon them. Both of these holy men were contemporaries ; and the year of Adamnan's death we know to have been 703. ^5 Colgan^° and the Bollandists^7 assign the festival of St. Aidus, to the 7th of February. Yet, Colgan has no special Acts at the present date. Under the head of Slebhte, Duald Mac Firbis enters Aedh, a disciple of Palrick,^^ Bishop of Slebhte, at February the 7th. '9 His death is set down at A. D. 696,=^° 698^' or 199. " His birth and death appear to have happened within the seventh century.
Article VI. —St. Ronan, Bishop and Confessor, Scotland. \Seventh Century?
5' In Vita
Butler's
The Bollandist
59 The of had the abbey Epternach
Dermargillse.
Henschenius professes himself entirely igno- of a Martyrology which is very old j this rant regarding this Life. and several other Kalendars style him
ham, Lancaster, &c.
"
St. Augurius bischop in Ire-
Thomas Dempsterus, de passionis tempore cum Genebrardo consentiens, de patria repugnat : et suae, id est, recentiore Scotioe antiquem Christi martyrem vendicat. Quod ne sine authore fecisse videretur ; Hunibeitevi Scotiim, scriptoretn antiquis- simum in sua historia ejus in Scotia labores
other,
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 391
Article IV. —St. Medan, Mellan, Meldan, or Meallan Mac Ui
CuiNN, OF Inis Mac-Ui-Cuinn, now Inchiquin, in Loch Oirbsen, now Lough Corrib, County of Galway. [^Stxth and Seventh Centuries? ^ The great celebrity of this holy man is chiefly due to the circumstance of his appearance to St. Fursey/ in that remarkable vision, to which allusion has been
in his Acts.
it does not seem probable, a knowledge of St. Medan or Mellan, or ? leldan
already made,
During
the earlier
under any form of his name—could have been so imperfect, as we are bound to confess it has become in later years. His Acts seem to have perished.
Still, we feel confident, that among the yet unpublished stores of our manu- scriptliterature,furtherdiscoveriesregardinghimcouldbemade. Tothe
authorities, most readily accessible, must we have recourse for these following brief notices. The Acts of St. Meldan, a bishop and confessor, have been compiled from various sources, by Colgan, who has entered notices of him, atthe7thofFebruary. ^ Apreviouscommentaryandactsofthi—ssaintare
—t the same date. + That St. Mellan
given by the Bollandists,3 a probably
the truest form of his name lived at a very early period, we have reason to conclude, from an entry in the "FeiHre" of St. ^ngus. s The Martyrology
of Tallagh^ registers at the 7th of February, Mellan, Insi mic h Cuinn. Marianus O'Gorman has a notice of him, at this same date. The scholiast
The Kalendar of Dmmmond states, at
St. — to Ireland, Mellan, confessor, departed
most writers have assumed it that Mellan or Meallan, mentioned in the Irish martyro- logies, at this date, must necessarily be identified with the St. Meldan,^ who is recorded as having been seen, in the visions of St. Fursey,9 while the latter lived near Lough Orbsen. In the Acts of St. Patrick, we find it related, that a certain Meldanus,'° or Mellanus," a priest, and an Irishman by birth, left his native country, with five other companions, for the purpose of study- ing the Sacred Scriptures, and of visiting holy places. '^ By a happy chance, they met St. Patrick returning from Britain. Falling on their knees, they obtained his blessing, and the Irish Apostle then predicted, that all of these persons should become bishops. ^3 They all applied most sedulously to their
on St. ^ngus likewise coincides.
the vii. Ides of that in February,
Christ. 7 It can
—not be as certain
Studies, and became great scholars.
Article iv. —^ See his Life at the i6th of
January.
"^ See "Acta Sanctorum
Confessore," pp. 269 to 271. .
Afterwards, in due course, they were
Of Loch Uar—a noble guest.
vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano Episcopo et
^ Edited Rev. Dr. xiv. by Kelly, p.
3 See "Acta
Februarii. De S. Medano, sive Meldano,
Episcopo Hiberno, Peronse in Gallia, pp. 66 to 68.
^ This Life is edited by Father Godefrid Henschen.
5 The following rann, for this day, is ex-
Scottish Saints," p. 4.
^ that Meldan Colgan maintains, however,
is equivalent to Mellan. See "Acta Sanc- torum Hibemise," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, n. i. , p. 271.
9 His Life will be found at the 1 6th of
January,
'° to According Joceline.
Sanctorum,"
tomus
ii. ,
vii.
tracted Irom the " Leabhar Breac"- and translated by Professor O'Looney
C tin. It) mellAn in-ofe UAifle ITlAc . h. Chuint) nocriAti
LoinAn bochA^n bpige tochA tlAi|\ Apt) Aige.
copy,
Mellan of the noble island,
Of Mac Ua Cuind implore him j Loman the powerful lamp
Patricii, lib. ii. , cap. ix. , p. 130.
" The reader is referred to a still more
detailed account of these recorded incidents, in the notices of St. Meallan, of Kilrush or of Cloncraff, at the 28th of January, article ii.
^3 See conjectural notices and festivals regarding them, in notes to the memoranda^ already quoted.
deemed, wholly
although
Hibemise,"
7 See Bishop Forbes' " Kalendars of
:
—" totheVita S. According Tripartita
of our — ages Christianity,
392 LIVES 01* THE IRISH SAINTS. [February 7.
raised to the episcopal rank. By word and example, they brought many to a sense of their Christian duties, while all of those bishops happily departed totheLord. ^* Theyflourishedtowardsthecloseofthefifthcentury,andit seems probable many of them lived early in the fifth. In the Irish Life of
St. Patrick,'^ this Meldan is said to have been Bishop of Cluancremensis, or Cluain-Chembre,^*^ in Ireland. ^7 The period, at which this St. Meldan flourished, does not allow us to conclude, that he was identical with him, mentioned in St. Fursey's Acts. In the account of St. Fursey's vision, by Venerable Bede,^^ he alludes to the appearance among the angels of holy and just men. These he does not specially name, but, we are told, they wereScots,andofSt. Fursey'sownnation; thatataformerperiod,theywere celebrated, and that they had not unworthily enjoyed the grade of priests. It is likely, they were named in the more ancient little book of St. Fursey's Life, to which Bede alludes, and quotes as an authority, for a brief account of the vision. In all the other Acts of St. Fursey^^ published, Meldan is the name of that holy person,^^ who was at first—his spiritual father, and who was living—on the island, designated Esbren^' supposed to be incorrectly so called when Fursey visited his part of the country. Loch Oirbsen*^ was the ancient name for the present Lough Corrib, in the county of Galway. On an island of this lake. Saint Meldan's religious establishment was situated. ^3 As we have already stated, this island seems to have been the one, now known as Inchiquin. Here it is thought, that St. Meldan lived, a disciple of St. Brendan, who died on the i6th of May, a. d. 576 or 577, as generally supposed. ^* If so, St. Meldan was born, probably, about the middle of the sixth century. It is conjectured, also, that he aided his pupil, St. Fursey, in ministerialworks,especiallywhilepreaching. ^'s AlthoughSt. Meldanisonly noticed, as a priest, by Venerable Bede ; yet, it has been urged,^^ that he probablyattainedepiscopalrank,^? owingtohistalentsandrenown. =^ He probably lived, too, as an anchoret. It seems highly probable, that the St.
Meldan, who dwelt at Inchiquin, and who flourished about the year 58o,='9 died soon after he had formed the acquaintance of St. Fursey, and in the earlier part of the seventh century, before the commencement of those re- markable visions Fursey had while living in the province of Connaught. In St. Fursey's Acts, at the i6th of January, Saints Meldan and Beoan seem to be
'4 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " May—is said to have built the religious
Jocelyn's or Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xciii. , p. 86.
house, at this place,
^5 In the Second Book.
Hibhsean, in Western Connaught.
=3 Yxom him it seems to have taken the See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Feb- name of the Island of Mac-Hua-Coinn, or
'^ So is the place written by Henschen.
ruarii vii. De S. Medano, sive Meldano,
&c. , num. 6, p. 67,
^7 The name seems resolvable into Clon-
craff or Clooncrave. The place has not
Inisquin, now Inchaquin. See more re- garding it in the Life of St. Fursey, at the
i6th of January, chapter iii.
=4 See Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical His-
tory of Ireland," vol. ii. , chap, x. , sect, vii. , See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis and n. 120, pp. 30, 38.
been identified.
^^ "
Anglorum," lib. iii. , cap. 19, pp. 211, 212. '5> See what has been already stated, in
his Life at the 16th of January.
"^ He is called Mac-Hua-Coinn, because
=5 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nite," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, cap. i. and n. 7, pp. 269, 271.
=^ By Colgan, ibid, and n. 8.
his origin had been derived from the cele-
brated Monarch of Ireland, Conn of the
Hundred Battles. See Colgan's "Acta
Sanctorum Hibernife," Februarii vii. De Meldans, who were bishops, in liber ordi-
S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, n. i. ,
num, cap. i. Colgan thinks one or other of these must have been the present saint.
p. 271. —
='
St. Brendan venerated on the i6th of
='
In Colgan's opinion.
==*
It is said to have been in the region of
=7 By Sacerdos was often meant Episco- pus, according to a usage of ancient writers. =^ St. yEngus the Culdee enumerates two
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS, 393
considered as Irishmen, by birth. Even it is said there, St. Fursey, on look- ing, beheld these two venerable men of that province, in which the man of God was bom. 30 St. Meldan was the one most familiar, as the Sinedrus or spiritual director of Fursa, who afterwards went to Peronne, according to Cathal Maguire. 3'^ But, at the time of the vision, Meldan was already dead, and numbered among the blessed ; while, his remains were most probably interred, in the first instance, at Inisquin, on Lough Corrib,32 some time after the beginning of the seventh century. Probably, when St. Fursey left Ireland for England, and subsequently for France, he did not chose to dis- turb St. Meldan's remains, while not assured he could find a suitable place for their deposition. Unquestionably this was the St. Meldan that appeared in vision to his disciple and spiritual son, the future Abbot of Lagny, and whose relics the latter brought over to France when there established.
Mention is made, regarding another apparition of this St. Meldan to a monk, namedColman. 33 Whetherthishappenedbefore,orafter,thedeathofSt. Comgall,34 has not been determined. Judging by the narrative in the Acts of St. Fursey, St. Meldan was not living, when the Irish missionary went to Gaul. 35 His relics were brought to France, however, by St. Fursey, who deposited them at Perrone, Picardy. Of this town, he is regarded as a
and there honoured. 3^ The translation of St. Meldan's from body
patron,
Ireland probably took place, after Erchinoald37 had founded the Church of
Saints Peter and Paul, on the top of the mount at Cignes, near Perrone.
This happened during the lifetime of St. Fursey, who deposited in this church, moreover, the bodies or relics of St. Bean or Beoan, of St. Patrick,38
and of many other saints,39 as sacred pledges, while through their merits many miracles were afterwards wrought. In this church, St. Fursey himself loved to pray. However, in the seventeenth century, local traditions had not preserved a recollection of the exact spot, where those saintly reHcs lay, at Perrone. The neglect of preceding generations, or the ravages of time, had caused this total oblivion. ^o It does not seem probable, that this St. Meldan, who was a priest, can be identified with the succeeding St. Meldan, called a bishop. '^^ According to Colgan,^^ St. ^ngus places the natal day of St. Meldanus with that of his companions, SS. Nassadius and Beodanus, at the26thofOctober. 43 Atthissamedate,theMartyrologyofTallaghtsays, that three saints from Britain lived at Tamlachta Umhail, in the region of
3° In Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nise," xvi, Januarii. Vita S. P'urssei, lib. i. , cap. xxi. , p. 79. Also, Desmay's Life of St. Fursey, chapter vii. , at the 9th of Feb-
^s gee Bishop Challoner's ''Britannia
Sancta," part i,, p. ill.
37 He was Major-domo to King Clevis II.
of France,
38 it is difficult to determine who these
saints were, as we find multiple names in our calendars.
39 Whether of Ireland or of the Continent cannot be known.
^o c^gg " Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Colgan's
niae," Februarii vii. De S. Meldano, Epis- copo et Confessore, cap. iv,, v. , p. 270.
288.
31 When treating about St. Fursey, at the
1 6th of January.
32 See the highly interesting description of this fine expanse of water, in Sir William
ruary, ibid. , p.
R. Wilde's "
Lough
Corrib, its Shores and
Islands ; with some notices of Lough Mask,"
chap. ii. , pp. 18 to 38, with Appendix B.
4i See the BoUandists' "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Februarii vii. De S. Medano, 34 His departure is usually assigned to sive Meldano. Commentarius prasvius,
33 This is related in the Life of St. Com- gall, chapter Iv.
the loth of May, a. d. 601. See his Life at
num. 5, p. 67. ''
that
35 Colgan supposes St. Meldan died before
the year 626. See "Acta Sanctorum Hi- bemias," vii. Februarii. De S. Meldano, Episcopo et Confessore, cap. v. , and n. ii, p. 271.
'^See ActaSanctorumHibemise,"Feb-
day.
ruariivii,, n. I, p. 271.
43 The reader is referred to their Acts, at
that day, where further remarks, in reference to the Saints Meldan and Beoan, of St. Fursey's vision, will be found.
394 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIJ^TS. [February 7.
Ivechia, in Ultonia. They dwelt near Lake Bricreann. 44 These tliree are called Nasad; Beoan and Mellan. They lived in the same church. As tlieir province was Ultonia, however, this seems alone sufficient to make us doubt, if the Beoan and Meldan of St. Fursey's vision can be identified with two of thenumberhavingaccordantnames. ^s Thissaintmusthavebeenfamous atonetime,sincemanychurcheswerededicatedtohim. Sometimes,aswe aretold,heiscalledMedan. ^*^ Theremovalofhisremains,toafardistant land, does not appear to have occasioned forgetfulness of his merits and miracles in the province, which seems to have been the one that can best lay claim to his nativity. Around the beautiful shores and islands of Lough Corrib, his name was long a household word. He is mentioned in the list ofsaintsfoundintheMartyrologyofDonegal. 47 Thereweread,asbeing venerated on this day, Meallan, Mac Ui Cuinn, of Inis Mac Ui Cuinn, in
LochOirbsen,inConnaught. TheRev. S. Baring-Gould,remarkingonthe loss of his Acts, refers his period to the end of the sixth century. ^^ At pre- sent, not even a trace of his former hermitage remains.
Article V. —St. Aid, Aedh, or Aidus, Bishop of Sleaty, Queen's County. \Seve71th Cefitury. '\ Beside the River Barrow, where St. Fiach^ founded his early religious establishment, in the fifth century, dwelt this venerable man, who is called an anchorite. He appears, further- more, to have attained a still higher distinction, in connexion with this place. The name. Aid, Bishop of Sleibthe, is the only mention made of him, in the Martyrology of Tallagh. ^ He was probably abbot, as well as bishop, over the religious community, that lived at Sleaty or Sletty. The situation of this house has been pointed out, by Ussher, as having been on the White Plain, neartheRiverBerbhaorBarrow. 3 Forthisstatement,hequotesthetesti-
mony of the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick ; and, yet, in that copy, published by Colgan, we look in vain for verification of this reference. * It has generally
been assumed, that Sleibthe,5 so written by all Irish autliorities,^ must have derived its name from its contiguity to the hills or mountain range of Slieve
Marigue. ^ Itshouldberemarked,however,thatSleatyorSlettyoldchurch^ was on a level site, surrounded by its enclosed graveyard, near the right bank of the River Barrow, and removed some miles from the Sliabh Mairge
^° It lies two miles northward of Carlow and it seems town,
range.
44 This account is confirmed by the Scho-
liast on ^ngus, and by the Martyrology of Cashel.
45 The time, moreover, does not
For the Mellan or Meldan of St. Fursey's acquaintance flourished long before Beoan and Mellan, here mentioned, who are called the uncles of St, Cuthbert. Their respec- tive pedigrees also differ.
4^ See Rev. S. Baring-Gould's "Lives of
the Saints," vol. ii. , February vii. , p. J93. *^ Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
40>41-
4^ See "Lives of the Saints," vol. ii. ,
February vii. , p. 193.
Article v. —' See his Life at the 12th
of October.
=
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xv.
3 See " Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Anti-
quitates," cap. xvii. , p. 449.
See "Trias Thaumaturga. " Septima
pretty
agree.
^ See Dr. P. W. " and Joyce's Origin
History of Irish Names of Places," part iv. , chap, i. , p. 367.
^ It now gives name to a barony in the
Vita S. Patricii, lib. iii. , cap. xxi. , to xxv.
pp. 152, 153. s"
Pronounced Sleaty. "
Queen's County.
« **
See Dr. O'Donovan's Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (c), p. 300.
9 The townland and small parish of Sleaty
are noted on the " Ordnance Survey Town-
landMapsfortheQueen'sCounty. " Sheet
32. ^o
Yet, the author of the Tripartite Life, who seems to have known the situation well, translates Slepte, by the Latin word
"montes. " See Colgan's "Trias Thau- maturga. " Septima Vita S. Patricii, lib. m. , cap. xxiii. , p. 153.
February 7. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 395
evident," that in former times the Barrow once formed a lough, in the inter-
mediate space. " We read in the Martyrology of Donega^s as being venerated
on this day, Aedh, Bishop of Slebte. The " Ciin Adamnain" states, that he
was one the saints whom Adamnan ^'> found as to free the among security,
women of Ireland from every slavery which was upon them. Both of these holy men were contemporaries ; and the year of Adamnan's death we know to have been 703. ^5 Colgan^° and the Bollandists^7 assign the festival of St. Aidus, to the 7th of February. Yet, Colgan has no special Acts at the present date. Under the head of Slebhte, Duald Mac Firbis enters Aedh, a disciple of Palrick,^^ Bishop of Slebhte, at February the 7th. '9 His death is set down at A. D. 696,=^° 698^' or 199. " His birth and death appear to have happened within the seventh century.
Article VI. —St. Ronan, Bishop and Confessor, Scotland. \Seventh Century?
