However,be- fore the publication of his Irish Ecclesiastical History, few modern writers seem to have attempted an identification of those localities, named in various original documents, and concerning the saint's
personal
biography, in the same detailedandlabouredmanner.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v3
"
'^ "
See Darn's Histoire de Bretagne,"
tome i. , pp. 40 to 54. Britannia Gallicana,
Minor, Citerior, Cismarina, are terms ap-
plied to it, by Eginhard, and by other early writers.
'*9 He is also called Riothamus or Riothi- mus. He went, as an auxiliary to the Romans. See " De Rebus Ge-
ticis," cap. 45.
'7° C. S. Apollinarus Sidonius who flou-
""
ing to Camden. See Britannia," fi? /. 561. rished A. D. 470, styles them, armatos
"*^
to refugees who fled from Britain to avoid the Saxons. But, Dr. Lanigan rather thinks, it owes origin to the youths, who followed Maximus to the Continent, and who were left there to defend his points of communi-
Ussher ascribes this British settlement
cation with Great Britain.
See vol.
Ecclesias- chap, iii. ,
tical of History
Ireland," sect, xii. , p. 108.
Mons Jovis is the great St. Bernard. Cruc-ochi- dient, means, "western mountain," accord-
'*3 to Hadrian According
Valesius,
Jornandes,
Could Nennius have meant the Pyrenees ? asks Dr. Lanigan. Gildas writes, in his His- tory, that Maximus extended one of his wings to Spain and the other to Italy. See cap. x.
'*'* See Ussher's "Primordia," p. 421. Also, Baronius, Malbranque.
'*5 See Gilford's "History of France,"
vol. i. , p. 34.
""' After what has been quoted above, in
the account of this trans-oceanic expedition of Maximus, Nennius continues, "Hi simt Britones Armorici, et numquam reversi sunt ad propium solum usque in hodiernum diem. "
167 <« Britones namque Armotici, qui ultra mare sunt, cum Maximo tyranno hinc in
tumultuosos, virtute, numero, contubernio contumaces. "
7' According to Apollinarus Sidonius,
" i. ,
Britons were seated near this r—iver. "
"
Bri-
tannos supra Ligerim sitos. " Epistola-
'Hoie ad loc. The best edition of this writer's works is that of
Sirmond, Paris, 1652.
'7^ See F. Guy Alexis Lobineau's "His-
toire de Bretagne," tome i. , liv. i. , sect. i.
to xxviii. , pp. I to 9.
'73 This monarch was the first Christian
King of France, and he reigned, from A. D.
48X to 511.
'? His History, regarding the Establish-
ment of the Britons, was a political work, and
rum,"lib. i. , Epist. 7.
448 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [AIarch 17.
Clotaire, the sons of Clovis. Another opinion has been acTvanced/^s that the soldiers of Riothimus were undoubtedly Continental Britons ; since, at this time, the insular Britons were struggling against the Saxons,'? ^ for a bare existence at home ; or, they were flying away, to more distant countries. This great contest was continued, from about a. d. 45 5'^^ to 492. That great victory, gained by the Britons, near Bath, happened during the latter year,
accordingtopi'evailinghistoricalaccounts. Consequently,theycouldnotthen have organized such a powerful force, to serve as Roman auxiliaries. About the middle of the ninth century, in the time of Nennius, the name of Armoric Britons appears to have been usually applied, only to the people of Britany. Yet, it must be observed, this writer could not mean, that those territories, which the followers of Maximus subdued, had been confined to that province ; since, he mentioned, a little before, many and extensive tracts, in whichtheyweresettled. Ataperiod,longsubsequenttothatofSt. Patrick, north-western Gaul, and a part of Belgium, had been called Britain. '^s Nor could the country, thus named, have been identical with the modern French district of Britany ; for, it would seem, that at a subsequent time, it had been called Normandy. '79
As the infancy and early life of St. Patrick are not sufficiently known, it was
necessary, in a measure, to institute the previous investigation of Britain's former extent ; so that, his being admittedly of British race, and even of Roman ex-
traction, may serve to give us the comparative conditions required, for our
attempt to solve the much debated question, regarding that country, in which his birth took place. An opinion, that St. Patrick had been born in France,
has there held a traditional vogue, as also in Ireland, from times very remote. On the other hand, a theory of ancient origin, most generally accepted, and
having the greatest weight of favouring authority, assumes St. Patrick had beenborninScotland. Indeed,werewetoregardtheargumentsofrespect- able authorities, in reference to the country of St. Patrick's birth, it seems that either Scotland or France must advance the most probable claims, in the assertion of such an honour. Other writers contend for South Britain, as having been the country of St. Patrick's birth ; but, all are not agreed, re- garding the exact locality. Some make him a Welshman ; others will have it, that his nativity must be referred to a south-western locality in England. Not alone St. Patrick is said to have been an Irishman, but his father and sisters are set down, as natives of this island, by Matthew of Westminster. '^° No authority is cited for this statement ; and, yet, it has misled other writers, such as Possevin,'^' and Baronius. '^^ Into this mistake, perhaps, some
it was undertaken, to show the original de- pendence of the Britons on the French kings. This work is at issue, with the theory of Lobincau.
'75 By Rev. Dr. Lanigan.
''* See Bede's
"
Historia Ecclesiastica
''' Thus, in Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hibernire," xvi. Januarii, we read in the Vita S. Fursoei, "Britanniam Provinciam, quce a modernis Normannia nuncupatur. "— Lib. ii. , cap. i. , p. 83. The words, " Bri- tanniam provinciam," are supposed to have been taken from some old document. This compiler of St. Fursey's Life is supposed to have been Arnulfus, the Abbot of Lagny, a town between Paris and Meaux, who lived in the eleventh century. Those words in- dicate a writer, who lived, not earlier than the tentli century.
'""See "Flores Historiarum," at A. D.
CCCCXCI. , p. 177.
Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. 16, as like- wise Smith's notes.
'" See Dr. Lingard's "History of Eng- land," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 63.
''* Thus, in the old Life of St. Fursey, it is related, that he arrived in such a province, on the Continent ; and, on his way, he pro- ceeded towards Rome, by a south-east- wardly direction, through Ponthieu, not far from Boulogne. This Life has been pub- lished by Colgan, and by the Bollandists. It was compiled from older documents, as
'*' " appears, on comparing it with the very See
ancient Life of Fursseus, published by Ma-
Apparatus Sacer. "
'*' See "Annales Ecclesiastic! . "
billon. See "Acta Sanctorum Ordinis S. "
Benedict! , tomus i. , sec. Ii, p. 299, and the following pages,
{
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 449
^vriters may have been led, by that equivocal expression, whicli martyrolo- gists use/^3 for designating the commemoration of a saint's death, as a
Natahs. Such misapprehension may have arisen, likewise, from the fact of St. Patrick having been called Scotus. ''^+ However, the whole tenor of St. Patrick's Acts is quite sufficient to disprove the supposition, of his having been an Irishman, by birth. Nor does it appear to have been a received tradition, in Ireland,'^s and, therefore, we may dismiss the consideration of such theory, in all subsequent phases of the present enquiry.
Therearemanyproofsadvanced,regardingtheprobabilityofSt. Patrickhaving beenanativeoftheEuropeanContinent. H—isFrenchextractionissupposedtobe asserted, in one of the oldest of his Lives that ascribed to St. Eleran. How-
The City of Boulogne, France.
ever, a succeeding part of the narrative shows, that the author of this biography
^^^
refers the foct of his birth to another, and to a more distant, country. The Aremoric Gauls, notwithstanding, are said to have claimed him, as their countryman. '^7 Don Philip O'SuUevan Beare has attempted to reconcile the fact of his being a Briton, with the circumstance of his birth occurring in
*^^
France, by supposing the Irish Apostle to have been a Briton, of Brittany. Other Irish writers have adopted the same opinion. Thus, Bishop David
Roth,'S9 j^gy^ Geoffi-y Keating, D. D. ,^9° and Roderick O'Flaherty,'? ' are among
I '^'i Mbst frequently, they adopt a Latin
"
mortality here, born, were, to eternal life. See Lynch's "Life of
St. Patrick," chap. vii.
'^f'lt is recorded, 'by Baronius, that in
A. I). 431, lived St. Patrick, a Scotchman. The same writer afterwards explains, that by such expression, "an Irishman" is m^ant. Thus he writes, under a. d. 491, for tl]^ death of St. Patrick he has referred to thatyear.
'^3 Yet, Dempster states this, in his " His-
toria Ecclesiastica Gentis Scotonim," tomus
ii. , lib. XV. , num. looi, pp. 520, 521.
'^^ See " Vita S. i. Quarta Patricii," cap.
|Avord, which denotes
day," that is, the day, on which a saint is releasee'! from and as it
nativity," or "natal
'^7"Galli Aremorici civem suum fa-
ciunt. "—Dempster's "Apparatus ad Histo-
riam Scotise," p. 520. '^^ "
See Patriciana Decas," p. 4.
'89 " Quamquam non desint, qui eum —in Britannia Armorica genitum dicant. "
" Ilibernia Resurgens," p. 199.
"
General History of Ireland," booki. ,p. 156. DublinEdition,A. D. 1723.
'9° See
2F
450 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
thenumber. Oneoftheablesthistorians,whocontendsforthistheory,is
the Rev. Dr. Lanigan, while his high authority and acute arguments have determinedmanyattentivereaders,toadopthisconclusions.
However,be- fore the publication of his Irish Ecclesiastical History, few modern writers seem to have attempted an identification of those localities, named in various original documents, and concerning the saint's personal biography, in the same detailedandlabouredmanner. AneloquentandamodernFrenchhistorical writer'9^ claims our saint, as the Gallo-Roman Patrick. '93 Later still, an accomplished writer and a learned investigatorj'S'^ adopting similar views, has examined with great care the general state of this question, and in an admi- rable Essay,'95 he endeavours to prove, that St. Patrick's birth took place, near Boulogne/9^ on the northern coast of France, By the present writer, this Essay has been freely used, in the course of this special enquiry.
The saint himself tells in his " us,'97
that his
of birth was called Enon—if we are to trust some readings—a sup- posed villa, near the town of Bonava,'98 q^ Benava Taburnia. '99 To these localities, the Hymn of St. Fiech-°° adds, that Patrick was born, at a plape, called Nem-tur. ^"' The ancient Lives of our Apostle cite these localities, and with little substantial variation. The Second Life, given in Colgan's collection, declares, likewise, his nativity to have been at Nemp- thur ; and, in the plain of Tabuma. ^°^ The Third Life is nearly word for word with the First, on this point. ^°3 The Fourth suggests, that he was of Jewish descent, through a colony allowed by the Romans, to settle in Armo- to the of Strato
rica ^°* that his were driven
j but,
parents
thence, 5enAH\ pAC^Aic
—"
region 11emchu]^,
'5' See " lib. Ogygia,"
and, the '' NatusestPatricius
Ixxxv. ''*LeVicomteDeMontalembert.
1
writers. Edited by H. E. Manning, Arch-
;
euplionius and belongs to the preceding preposition, precisely as we find ir the old MSS. in ne]\enn for in Erin; in t'AlbAnn for in Albania ; in tIemAin for in Imania, etc. " A very ancient Irish Maniscript, states, that " in a village, the name of which
is Hurnia, in Britain, near the city of Emp- ter. " The text is, a mbAibe •oa]\ lAinm
1ni]\iiiA \&x\ mb|\eACAin Laiii yve ciCAii\ ompcep, St. Patrick's birth took place. See
vol. iv. March, 1868, pp. 282, 283, anun.
=°'
Apparently
ledge, Ur. Lanigan thought, that Nemthur ii not the tnie spelling of the place, where St. Patrick was born, according to Fiech.
*" It states: "Natus est igitur \n ilh ****'* oppido, Nempthor nomine, —
Patricius natus est in campo Talmrtu" "Secunda Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 11.
iii. , cap.
'93 See "Les Moines d'Occident," tome
ii. , livre ix. , chap, i. , p. 454.
'9* Mr. John Cashel Hoey.
'9S«'On the Birthplace of St. Patrick. "
It was published among the Essays on nemchu^ Religion, and Literature. " By various
runs,
Hymnus seu Prima
Yvxvt
that the name of Patrick's birthplace was Nemthur, from the Irish phrase in nem- chup ; however, Eugene Curry well re- '9* The accompanying view of the city of marked, that the initial 11 in thi'^ case is
bishop of Westminster, and published in
London,A. D. 1865. Itembraces,frompp. 106 to 137 of this volume.
Boulogne, taken from a French photograph, was drawn on the v/ood, by William F.
Wakeman, and engraved by Mrs. Millard. The foreground represents the church of St. Nicholas, and the Market Place, in the Grande Rue ; the Cathedral appears, in the distance.
'97 His words are, according to one render- "
ing, Patrem habui Calphumium (or Cal- pornium) Diaconum (or Diacurionem) qui fuit e vico Bonaven (or Benaven) Tabernias ;
villam Enon prope habuit, ubi ego in captu-
ram decidi. " Short as is the
foregoing
sen-
without sufHcicnt know
tence, there are various readings of it, in
different Manuscript and printed copies.
'98 The Bollandists, in their edition of the Confession, read Banaucn. See "Acta Sanctonmi," tomus ii. , Martii xvii. , cap. i. , sect, i. , p. 533.
"
'99 See Dr. Joachim Lorenzo Villanueva's
'°^ It reads : "Natus est igitur Patri:ius nodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. Confessio in illo oppido Nemthor nomine ;**•*—•
S. Patricii, cap. i. , p. 184. Patricius natus est in Campo Taburnia:. " *" The first line of this Hymn reads, "Tenia Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 2I.
Sancti Patricii, Ibernorum Apostoli, Sy-
Confessions,"
place
Latintranslation
Vita Patricii," stanza I, p. i. The version of this Hymn, contained in the "Irish Eccle-
Nemturri. "
S.
siastical Record," has 5enAi]\ Pac]\aicc in ""
it is translated, Patrick wasbornatEmptur. " Tothelatterword,
"
a note is appended :
and,
Many
imagined
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 451
Clude—now understood to be Strath Clyde—and that he was born, in Nempthur, which town was on the Taburnian plain. ^°5 This Life is of very ancient date, and it seems to indicate some old Irish tradition, concerning the saint's birth taking place in France. ^°^ The Fifth Life is thought to have
the merit of even more being
^°7 explicit ; for,
it he was born at Ban- states,
nave Tiburnife, in the Nentria—interpreted the Neustria—province. ^°^ Here, it is asserted,^°9 we may observe the same confused tradition, regarding the saint's French origin ; since, Neustria^'° is said to have been a name, during
the Merovingian period,^" for that whole district, comprised between the Meuse and the Loire. The Sixth and best-known Life, by Jocelyn,^'^ has
Nempthor,andthevillageofTaburnia,neartheIrishSea; and,apparently set down in a manner, to correct a mistake of previous authorities, on this subject. In fine, the Seventh Life^'3 declares, that St. Patrick belonged to the Alcluid Britons,^^'-^ and that his birthplace was Nempthur. ^'s The Irish TripartiteLifecallsitNemtur. ^'^ 'TheBreviariesrepeatmanyofthefore- going names, very vaguely, and with little attempt to fix the actual localities, wheretheyarenowtobefound. ^'7 Wehavealreadyseen,tha—toneIrishManu- script Life^'^ of St. —Patrick states, he was born at Eptor probably a mis-
^^9
spelling of Emptor placed in Provence, France. Thus, it will be
observed, that in the principal authorities presented, there is a concurrence,
in the accepting locality,
The — called
so— and variously denominated, Nempthur Emptor.
" Quarta
denotat,
et nativitatis locus fuit. "—"
Septima
most a version for the word localities, Enon, probably corrupt
"
himself. Furthermore, there is no appearance of certainty, in the minds of the different writers, as to the exact sites of those places mentioned. No one
enim," andBenavenTabernise,arethoughttobenamed,bySt. Patrick
*°^ It adds, "juxta Thyrrenum posside- ret. "
" De Brittanis Alcluidensi-
'°^ It
says,
' ' Sanctus
ergo
Patricius in
:
^'^ See Rev. William G. Todd's "
History
oppido Nempthor nomine * * * * of the Ancient Church in Ireland," 6. j p.
Quod oppidum
campo
qui —
it is
Campus
est, &c.
turrem
cselestem * * * *
in tabernaculorum
Vita S.
Taburnise dicitur,"
"^
etymo
patria
exvocis
Patricii," cap. i. , p. 35. Such is the opinion advanced, by Mr. John Cashel Hoey ; yet, we consider it
hardly sustained by the statements, con- tained in the Fourth Life.
=^"7 According to Mr. John Cashel Hoey. =^°^It states, "Brito fuit natione : * * * * de vico Bannaue Tiburnice regionis, haud procul a mare occidentali : quern vicum indubitanter comperimus esse Nentriae provinci^e, —in qua olim gigantes
Vita S.
Cashel
It is thought, the name Neustria or
New-land" may have originated from its
'"^
Vita S. Patricii," pars, i. , cap. i. , p. 117.
^'^
See Sister Mary Francis Clare Cusack's "Life of St. Patrick," p. 372.
"^ The Breviary of Paris, printed A. D. 1622, says: "in IBritannia natus * * »
pie educatus in oppido Empthori," noct. ii. ,
lect. iv. The still older Breviary of Ar-
magh states, "in illo Brittanioe oppido no-
mine Emptor," lect. i. The old Roman
Breviary, printed at Venice, A. D. 1522, says
"
habitasse dicuntur. " "
S. lect. i. Patricius, genere Brito,"
Quinta Patricii," lib. i , cap. i. , p. 51.
simply
The Breviary of Rheims, printed A. D. 1612,
"
='°9 Mr.
' ' in maritimo Brittanije
states, territorio,
quod Hiberniam respicit," lect. iv. A still more ancient Rheims Breviary has "in maritimo Britannise territorio natus," lect. iv. The Breviary of Rouen is said to read "InBrittaniaGalhcana. " TheBreviaryof the Canons of St. John of Lateran, printed in 1635, states, that the Irish Apostle was "ex Brittaniamagnainsula;" whileastillmore ancient at A. D.
"" By
John
Hoey.
having been a newly-conquered country. See Baxter, at Neustria. This name is said to have began with the Franks, and to date only from the death of Clovis.
=" "
See Hadrian Valesius, at Neustria, in Notitia Galliarum. "
-•^ He " Brito natione states,
in pago Ta- burnia vocabulo, hoc est, tabernaculorum campo, eo quod Romanus exercitus taberna- cula fixerit ibidem, secus oppidum Nemp-
" one, printed Bruxelles,
has Patricius ex Britannia magna insula. "
thor degens, niari Hibernico collimitans "
*'** Transcribed by Michael Mahony of
Ardee, in the county of Kerry, a. d. 1821, "9 See Chapter i. , n. 227, of this Life.
habitatione. "— Sexta Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 65.
='3 It states
bus originem duxit Sanctus Patricius. "
" Thus, interpreted, quod
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " pendix i. , pp. 189 to 196.
Ap-
1622,
452 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
of them venture—s to name that exact district, or diocese, Avhere Enon—a doubtfullocaUty orevenEmptor,BonavenandTaberniaaretobefound.
It is probable enough, that a perusal of the Jesuit Father Malbrancq's historical work,^^" and some fancied topographical coherences, guided Dr. Lanigan to his conclusion, that St. Patrick must have been a Continental or Gallic Briton, by birth.
and when with his living
^^' it is
St. Patrick could
^^^
''^ See "De Morinis et Moiinomm Re-
letter does so not, by any means,
into the changes of dialect.
easily glide
bus," Tornaci Nerviorum, A. D. 1639, 1654.
^^' He " Iterum annos says : post paucos
=^7 Dr. has confounded Therou- Lanigan
in Britanniis eram cum parentibus meis. "
When speaking of Britain, in his own Confession,
only
writers of his Acts. Here, likewise, it has been asserted, the early topogra- phical names may be discovered. ^^3 In later times, the Gallic Britain of St. Patrick's birth, it is alleged, became confounded with Great Britain. ''24 Certain reasons have been adduced,^^^ for identifying Bonaven with Boulogne ; and for making Tabernise^^^ agree with a city,^^? very famous in those French wars, waged during the middle ages. This latter word has not only mystified Colgan, but certain authors of those Lives, whose authority he chose to follow. While they left out Bonavem, because it did not agree with Nem-
thought,
have meant Gaul,^^^^ ^nd such, too, was the presumed opinion of some early
parents there,
retained the word as Taberni^e, or,
choose to write " Cam- it,
thur, they
pus Taburnise. "
making it a district, that got its name, because they assumed it had been the site for a Roman camp, in which there were tents or tabernacles. ^^9 To sustain his identification, however.
'^ "
See Darn's Histoire de Bretagne,"
tome i. , pp. 40 to 54. Britannia Gallicana,
Minor, Citerior, Cismarina, are terms ap-
plied to it, by Eginhard, and by other early writers.
'*9 He is also called Riothamus or Riothi- mus. He went, as an auxiliary to the Romans. See " De Rebus Ge-
ticis," cap. 45.
'7° C. S. Apollinarus Sidonius who flou-
""
ing to Camden. See Britannia," fi? /. 561. rished A. D. 470, styles them, armatos
"*^
to refugees who fled from Britain to avoid the Saxons. But, Dr. Lanigan rather thinks, it owes origin to the youths, who followed Maximus to the Continent, and who were left there to defend his points of communi-
Ussher ascribes this British settlement
cation with Great Britain.
See vol.
Ecclesias- chap, iii. ,
tical of History
Ireland," sect, xii. , p. 108.
Mons Jovis is the great St. Bernard. Cruc-ochi- dient, means, "western mountain," accord-
'*3 to Hadrian According
Valesius,
Jornandes,
Could Nennius have meant the Pyrenees ? asks Dr. Lanigan. Gildas writes, in his His- tory, that Maximus extended one of his wings to Spain and the other to Italy. See cap. x.
'*'* See Ussher's "Primordia," p. 421. Also, Baronius, Malbranque.
'*5 See Gilford's "History of France,"
vol. i. , p. 34.
""' After what has been quoted above, in
the account of this trans-oceanic expedition of Maximus, Nennius continues, "Hi simt Britones Armorici, et numquam reversi sunt ad propium solum usque in hodiernum diem. "
167 <« Britones namque Armotici, qui ultra mare sunt, cum Maximo tyranno hinc in
tumultuosos, virtute, numero, contubernio contumaces. "
7' According to Apollinarus Sidonius,
" i. ,
Britons were seated near this r—iver. "
"
Bri-
tannos supra Ligerim sitos. " Epistola-
'Hoie ad loc. The best edition of this writer's works is that of
Sirmond, Paris, 1652.
'7^ See F. Guy Alexis Lobineau's "His-
toire de Bretagne," tome i. , liv. i. , sect. i.
to xxviii. , pp. I to 9.
'73 This monarch was the first Christian
King of France, and he reigned, from A. D.
48X to 511.
'? His History, regarding the Establish-
ment of the Britons, was a political work, and
rum,"lib. i. , Epist. 7.
448 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [AIarch 17.
Clotaire, the sons of Clovis. Another opinion has been acTvanced/^s that the soldiers of Riothimus were undoubtedly Continental Britons ; since, at this time, the insular Britons were struggling against the Saxons,'? ^ for a bare existence at home ; or, they were flying away, to more distant countries. This great contest was continued, from about a. d. 45 5'^^ to 492. That great victory, gained by the Britons, near Bath, happened during the latter year,
accordingtopi'evailinghistoricalaccounts. Consequently,theycouldnotthen have organized such a powerful force, to serve as Roman auxiliaries. About the middle of the ninth century, in the time of Nennius, the name of Armoric Britons appears to have been usually applied, only to the people of Britany. Yet, it must be observed, this writer could not mean, that those territories, which the followers of Maximus subdued, had been confined to that province ; since, he mentioned, a little before, many and extensive tracts, in whichtheyweresettled. Ataperiod,longsubsequenttothatofSt. Patrick, north-western Gaul, and a part of Belgium, had been called Britain. '^s Nor could the country, thus named, have been identical with the modern French district of Britany ; for, it would seem, that at a subsequent time, it had been called Normandy. '79
As the infancy and early life of St. Patrick are not sufficiently known, it was
necessary, in a measure, to institute the previous investigation of Britain's former extent ; so that, his being admittedly of British race, and even of Roman ex-
traction, may serve to give us the comparative conditions required, for our
attempt to solve the much debated question, regarding that country, in which his birth took place. An opinion, that St. Patrick had been born in France,
has there held a traditional vogue, as also in Ireland, from times very remote. On the other hand, a theory of ancient origin, most generally accepted, and
having the greatest weight of favouring authority, assumes St. Patrick had beenborninScotland. Indeed,werewetoregardtheargumentsofrespect- able authorities, in reference to the country of St. Patrick's birth, it seems that either Scotland or France must advance the most probable claims, in the assertion of such an honour. Other writers contend for South Britain, as having been the country of St. Patrick's birth ; but, all are not agreed, re- garding the exact locality. Some make him a Welshman ; others will have it, that his nativity must be referred to a south-western locality in England. Not alone St. Patrick is said to have been an Irishman, but his father and sisters are set down, as natives of this island, by Matthew of Westminster. '^° No authority is cited for this statement ; and, yet, it has misled other writers, such as Possevin,'^' and Baronius. '^^ Into this mistake, perhaps, some
it was undertaken, to show the original de- pendence of the Britons on the French kings. This work is at issue, with the theory of Lobincau.
'75 By Rev. Dr. Lanigan.
''* See Bede's
"
Historia Ecclesiastica
''' Thus, in Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hibernire," xvi. Januarii, we read in the Vita S. Fursoei, "Britanniam Provinciam, quce a modernis Normannia nuncupatur. "— Lib. ii. , cap. i. , p. 83. The words, " Bri- tanniam provinciam," are supposed to have been taken from some old document. This compiler of St. Fursey's Life is supposed to have been Arnulfus, the Abbot of Lagny, a town between Paris and Meaux, who lived in the eleventh century. Those words in- dicate a writer, who lived, not earlier than the tentli century.
'""See "Flores Historiarum," at A. D.
CCCCXCI. , p. 177.
Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. 16, as like- wise Smith's notes.
'" See Dr. Lingard's "History of Eng- land," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 63.
''* Thus, in the old Life of St. Fursey, it is related, that he arrived in such a province, on the Continent ; and, on his way, he pro- ceeded towards Rome, by a south-east- wardly direction, through Ponthieu, not far from Boulogne. This Life has been pub- lished by Colgan, and by the Bollandists. It was compiled from older documents, as
'*' " appears, on comparing it with the very See
ancient Life of Fursseus, published by Ma-
Apparatus Sacer. "
'*' See "Annales Ecclesiastic! . "
billon. See "Acta Sanctorum Ordinis S. "
Benedict! , tomus i. , sec. Ii, p. 299, and the following pages,
{
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 449
^vriters may have been led, by that equivocal expression, whicli martyrolo- gists use/^3 for designating the commemoration of a saint's death, as a
Natahs. Such misapprehension may have arisen, likewise, from the fact of St. Patrick having been called Scotus. ''^+ However, the whole tenor of St. Patrick's Acts is quite sufficient to disprove the supposition, of his having been an Irishman, by birth. Nor does it appear to have been a received tradition, in Ireland,'^s and, therefore, we may dismiss the consideration of such theory, in all subsequent phases of the present enquiry.
Therearemanyproofsadvanced,regardingtheprobabilityofSt. Patrickhaving beenanativeoftheEuropeanContinent. H—isFrenchextractionissupposedtobe asserted, in one of the oldest of his Lives that ascribed to St. Eleran. How-
The City of Boulogne, France.
ever, a succeeding part of the narrative shows, that the author of this biography
^^^
refers the foct of his birth to another, and to a more distant, country. The Aremoric Gauls, notwithstanding, are said to have claimed him, as their countryman. '^7 Don Philip O'SuUevan Beare has attempted to reconcile the fact of his being a Briton, with the circumstance of his birth occurring in
*^^
France, by supposing the Irish Apostle to have been a Briton, of Brittany. Other Irish writers have adopted the same opinion. Thus, Bishop David
Roth,'S9 j^gy^ Geoffi-y Keating, D. D. ,^9° and Roderick O'Flaherty,'? ' are among
I '^'i Mbst frequently, they adopt a Latin
"
mortality here, born, were, to eternal life. See Lynch's "Life of
St. Patrick," chap. vii.
'^f'lt is recorded, 'by Baronius, that in
A. I). 431, lived St. Patrick, a Scotchman. The same writer afterwards explains, that by such expression, "an Irishman" is m^ant. Thus he writes, under a. d. 491, for tl]^ death of St. Patrick he has referred to thatyear.
'^3 Yet, Dempster states this, in his " His-
toria Ecclesiastica Gentis Scotonim," tomus
ii. , lib. XV. , num. looi, pp. 520, 521.
'^^ See " Vita S. i. Quarta Patricii," cap.
|Avord, which denotes
day," that is, the day, on which a saint is releasee'! from and as it
nativity," or "natal
'^7"Galli Aremorici civem suum fa-
ciunt. "—Dempster's "Apparatus ad Histo-
riam Scotise," p. 520. '^^ "
See Patriciana Decas," p. 4.
'89 " Quamquam non desint, qui eum —in Britannia Armorica genitum dicant. "
" Ilibernia Resurgens," p. 199.
"
General History of Ireland," booki. ,p. 156. DublinEdition,A. D. 1723.
'9° See
2F
450 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
thenumber. Oneoftheablesthistorians,whocontendsforthistheory,is
the Rev. Dr. Lanigan, while his high authority and acute arguments have determinedmanyattentivereaders,toadopthisconclusions.
However,be- fore the publication of his Irish Ecclesiastical History, few modern writers seem to have attempted an identification of those localities, named in various original documents, and concerning the saint's personal biography, in the same detailedandlabouredmanner. AneloquentandamodernFrenchhistorical writer'9^ claims our saint, as the Gallo-Roman Patrick. '93 Later still, an accomplished writer and a learned investigatorj'S'^ adopting similar views, has examined with great care the general state of this question, and in an admi- rable Essay,'95 he endeavours to prove, that St. Patrick's birth took place, near Boulogne/9^ on the northern coast of France, By the present writer, this Essay has been freely used, in the course of this special enquiry.
The saint himself tells in his " us,'97
that his
of birth was called Enon—if we are to trust some readings—a sup- posed villa, near the town of Bonava,'98 q^ Benava Taburnia. '99 To these localities, the Hymn of St. Fiech-°° adds, that Patrick was born, at a plape, called Nem-tur. ^"' The ancient Lives of our Apostle cite these localities, and with little substantial variation. The Second Life, given in Colgan's collection, declares, likewise, his nativity to have been at Nemp- thur ; and, in the plain of Tabuma. ^°^ The Third Life is nearly word for word with the First, on this point. ^°3 The Fourth suggests, that he was of Jewish descent, through a colony allowed by the Romans, to settle in Armo- to the of Strato
rica ^°* that his were driven
j but,
parents
thence, 5enAH\ pAC^Aic
—"
region 11emchu]^,
'5' See " lib. Ogygia,"
and, the '' NatusestPatricius
Ixxxv. ''*LeVicomteDeMontalembert.
1
writers. Edited by H. E. Manning, Arch-
;
euplionius and belongs to the preceding preposition, precisely as we find ir the old MSS. in ne]\enn for in Erin; in t'AlbAnn for in Albania ; in tIemAin for in Imania, etc. " A very ancient Irish Maniscript, states, that " in a village, the name of which
is Hurnia, in Britain, near the city of Emp- ter. " The text is, a mbAibe •oa]\ lAinm
1ni]\iiiA \&x\ mb|\eACAin Laiii yve ciCAii\ ompcep, St. Patrick's birth took place. See
vol. iv. March, 1868, pp. 282, 283, anun.
=°'
Apparently
ledge, Ur. Lanigan thought, that Nemthur ii not the tnie spelling of the place, where St. Patrick was born, according to Fiech.
*" It states: "Natus est igitur \n ilh ****'* oppido, Nempthor nomine, —
Patricius natus est in campo Talmrtu" "Secunda Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 11.
iii. , cap.
'93 See "Les Moines d'Occident," tome
ii. , livre ix. , chap, i. , p. 454.
'9* Mr. John Cashel Hoey.
'9S«'On the Birthplace of St. Patrick. "
It was published among the Essays on nemchu^ Religion, and Literature. " By various
runs,
Hymnus seu Prima
Yvxvt
that the name of Patrick's birthplace was Nemthur, from the Irish phrase in nem- chup ; however, Eugene Curry well re- '9* The accompanying view of the city of marked, that the initial 11 in thi'^ case is
bishop of Westminster, and published in
London,A. D. 1865. Itembraces,frompp. 106 to 137 of this volume.
Boulogne, taken from a French photograph, was drawn on the v/ood, by William F.
Wakeman, and engraved by Mrs. Millard. The foreground represents the church of St. Nicholas, and the Market Place, in the Grande Rue ; the Cathedral appears, in the distance.
'97 His words are, according to one render- "
ing, Patrem habui Calphumium (or Cal- pornium) Diaconum (or Diacurionem) qui fuit e vico Bonaven (or Benaven) Tabernias ;
villam Enon prope habuit, ubi ego in captu-
ram decidi. " Short as is the
foregoing
sen-
without sufHcicnt know
tence, there are various readings of it, in
different Manuscript and printed copies.
'98 The Bollandists, in their edition of the Confession, read Banaucn. See "Acta Sanctonmi," tomus ii. , Martii xvii. , cap. i. , sect, i. , p. 533.
"
'99 See Dr. Joachim Lorenzo Villanueva's
'°^ It reads : "Natus est igitur Patri:ius nodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. Confessio in illo oppido Nemthor nomine ;**•*—•
S. Patricii, cap. i. , p. 184. Patricius natus est in Campo Taburnia:. " *" The first line of this Hymn reads, "Tenia Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 2I.
Sancti Patricii, Ibernorum Apostoli, Sy-
Confessions,"
place
Latintranslation
Vita Patricii," stanza I, p. i. The version of this Hymn, contained in the "Irish Eccle-
Nemturri. "
S.
siastical Record," has 5enAi]\ Pac]\aicc in ""
it is translated, Patrick wasbornatEmptur. " Tothelatterword,
"
a note is appended :
and,
Many
imagined
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 451
Clude—now understood to be Strath Clyde—and that he was born, in Nempthur, which town was on the Taburnian plain. ^°5 This Life is of very ancient date, and it seems to indicate some old Irish tradition, concerning the saint's birth taking place in France. ^°^ The Fifth Life is thought to have
the merit of even more being
^°7 explicit ; for,
it he was born at Ban- states,
nave Tiburnife, in the Nentria—interpreted the Neustria—province. ^°^ Here, it is asserted,^°9 we may observe the same confused tradition, regarding the saint's French origin ; since, Neustria^'° is said to have been a name, during
the Merovingian period,^" for that whole district, comprised between the Meuse and the Loire. The Sixth and best-known Life, by Jocelyn,^'^ has
Nempthor,andthevillageofTaburnia,neartheIrishSea; and,apparently set down in a manner, to correct a mistake of previous authorities, on this subject. In fine, the Seventh Life^'3 declares, that St. Patrick belonged to the Alcluid Britons,^^'-^ and that his birthplace was Nempthur. ^'s The Irish TripartiteLifecallsitNemtur. ^'^ 'TheBreviariesrepeatmanyofthefore- going names, very vaguely, and with little attempt to fix the actual localities, wheretheyarenowtobefound. ^'7 Wehavealreadyseen,tha—toneIrishManu- script Life^'^ of St. —Patrick states, he was born at Eptor probably a mis-
^^9
spelling of Emptor placed in Provence, France. Thus, it will be
observed, that in the principal authorities presented, there is a concurrence,
in the accepting locality,
The — called
so— and variously denominated, Nempthur Emptor.
" Quarta
denotat,
et nativitatis locus fuit. "—"
Septima
most a version for the word localities, Enon, probably corrupt
"
himself. Furthermore, there is no appearance of certainty, in the minds of the different writers, as to the exact sites of those places mentioned. No one
enim," andBenavenTabernise,arethoughttobenamed,bySt. Patrick
*°^ It adds, "juxta Thyrrenum posside- ret. "
" De Brittanis Alcluidensi-
'°^ It
says,
' ' Sanctus
ergo
Patricius in
:
^'^ See Rev. William G. Todd's "
History
oppido Nempthor nomine * * * * of the Ancient Church in Ireland," 6. j p.
Quod oppidum
campo
qui —
it is
Campus
est, &c.
turrem
cselestem * * * *
in tabernaculorum
Vita S.
Taburnise dicitur,"
"^
etymo
patria
exvocis
Patricii," cap. i. , p. 35. Such is the opinion advanced, by Mr. John Cashel Hoey ; yet, we consider it
hardly sustained by the statements, con- tained in the Fourth Life.
=^"7 According to Mr. John Cashel Hoey. =^°^It states, "Brito fuit natione : * * * * de vico Bannaue Tiburnice regionis, haud procul a mare occidentali : quern vicum indubitanter comperimus esse Nentriae provinci^e, —in qua olim gigantes
Vita S.
Cashel
It is thought, the name Neustria or
New-land" may have originated from its
'"^
Vita S. Patricii," pars, i. , cap. i. , p. 117.
^'^
See Sister Mary Francis Clare Cusack's "Life of St. Patrick," p. 372.
"^ The Breviary of Paris, printed A. D. 1622, says: "in IBritannia natus * * »
pie educatus in oppido Empthori," noct. ii. ,
lect. iv. The still older Breviary of Ar-
magh states, "in illo Brittanioe oppido no-
mine Emptor," lect. i. The old Roman
Breviary, printed at Venice, A. D. 1522, says
"
habitasse dicuntur. " "
S. lect. i. Patricius, genere Brito,"
Quinta Patricii," lib. i , cap. i. , p. 51.
simply
The Breviary of Rheims, printed A. D. 1612,
"
='°9 Mr.
' ' in maritimo Brittanije
states, territorio,
quod Hiberniam respicit," lect. iv. A still more ancient Rheims Breviary has "in maritimo Britannise territorio natus," lect. iv. The Breviary of Rouen is said to read "InBrittaniaGalhcana. " TheBreviaryof the Canons of St. John of Lateran, printed in 1635, states, that the Irish Apostle was "ex Brittaniamagnainsula;" whileastillmore ancient at A. D.
"" By
John
Hoey.
having been a newly-conquered country. See Baxter, at Neustria. This name is said to have began with the Franks, and to date only from the death of Clovis.
=" "
See Hadrian Valesius, at Neustria, in Notitia Galliarum. "
-•^ He " Brito natione states,
in pago Ta- burnia vocabulo, hoc est, tabernaculorum campo, eo quod Romanus exercitus taberna- cula fixerit ibidem, secus oppidum Nemp-
" one, printed Bruxelles,
has Patricius ex Britannia magna insula. "
thor degens, niari Hibernico collimitans "
*'** Transcribed by Michael Mahony of
Ardee, in the county of Kerry, a. d. 1821, "9 See Chapter i. , n. 227, of this Life.
habitatione. "— Sexta Vita S. Patricii," cap. i. , p. 65.
='3 It states
bus originem duxit Sanctus Patricius. "
" Thus, interpreted, quod
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " pendix i. , pp. 189 to 196.
Ap-
1622,
452 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
of them venture—s to name that exact district, or diocese, Avhere Enon—a doubtfullocaUty orevenEmptor,BonavenandTaberniaaretobefound.
It is probable enough, that a perusal of the Jesuit Father Malbrancq's historical work,^^" and some fancied topographical coherences, guided Dr. Lanigan to his conclusion, that St. Patrick must have been a Continental or Gallic Briton, by birth.
and when with his living
^^' it is
St. Patrick could
^^^
''^ See "De Morinis et Moiinomm Re-
letter does so not, by any means,
into the changes of dialect.
easily glide
bus," Tornaci Nerviorum, A. D. 1639, 1654.
^^' He " Iterum annos says : post paucos
=^7 Dr. has confounded Therou- Lanigan
in Britanniis eram cum parentibus meis. "
When speaking of Britain, in his own Confession,
only
writers of his Acts. Here, likewise, it has been asserted, the early topogra- phical names may be discovered. ^^3 In later times, the Gallic Britain of St. Patrick's birth, it is alleged, became confounded with Great Britain. ''24 Certain reasons have been adduced,^^^ for identifying Bonaven with Boulogne ; and for making Tabernise^^^ agree with a city,^^? very famous in those French wars, waged during the middle ages. This latter word has not only mystified Colgan, but certain authors of those Lives, whose authority he chose to follow. While they left out Bonavem, because it did not agree with Nem-
thought,
have meant Gaul,^^^^ ^nd such, too, was the presumed opinion of some early
parents there,
retained the word as Taberni^e, or,
choose to write " Cam- it,
thur, they
pus Taburnise. "
making it a district, that got its name, because they assumed it had been the site for a Roman camp, in which there were tents or tabernacles. ^^9 To sustain his identification, however.
