At the same date, he has
published
what he
^
See "Annales Ordinis S.
^
See "Annales Ordinis S.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
Edited by Drs.
Todd and Reeves, pp.
28, 29.
'
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xiv. In the Franciscan copy is the following inser- tion, ©ocViAiT) ep]^ ocuf <\bb. CahiLac.
in Bishop Forbes Kalendars Scottish Saints. " Lennox, in Scotland, is called Le- vina, from the Leven river, so celebrated in the ode of Tobias Smollett : —
" from lake, Devolving thy parent
A charming maze thy waters make ; By bow'rs of birch and groves of pine, And hedges flower'd with eglantine. "
"
3 See " Trias Colgan's
Thaumaturga. " Quarta Appendix ad Acta S. Columbas, cap.
X. , p. 489.
*The parish of Tallagh in the barony of "
Upper Cross is sho^vn on the Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the County of
The original name was Leven-ach, Dublin," Sheets 21, 22, 24, 25, 27. The field of the Leven," and it was very appro-
townland proper is on Sheets 22, 23.
s The parish of Tanilaght, situated partly in the barony of Loughinsholin, is shown on the " Ordnance Townland for
priately designated the basin, not only of
the River Leven, but also of Loch Lomond,
anciently called Loch Leven. See FuUar-
ton's " Gazetteer of Scotland, To- Imperial
pographical. Statistical, and Historical," vol. ii. , p. 319.
Survey Maps the County of Londonderiy," Sheets 47, 48, 49; and partly in the barony of Upper
Tyrone," Sheets 30, 39. *"
**
Article vi. See George Buchanan's
Rerum Scoticarum Historia," lib. v. , pp.
142, 144, '"
the
January 28. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 469 According to the Bollandists,3 Dunstanus, Abbas Scotus, is called a saint,
by Ferrarius, gium Anglicanum
"
has^noticed him, at the i8th of June. In the new he is
It is probable, the present holy man had been a disciple
and Camerarius after him at this The old "
by day. Mart)n:olo-
entirely omitted,*
of the illustrious Columkille.
Article VII,—St, Acobran of Kilrush, Probably in the County
OF Clare. Such devotional exercises, as bring all our feelings, emotions, and sentiments into accord with the Divine will, subduing passion, removing
hatred, malice, jealousy, revenge, and opening the portals of heaven to all those who seek rest, peace, and sweet repose, were practised by St. Acobran. Without any other distinction, he is mentioned in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 28th of January, But we are not left in doubt regarding his locality, if we depend on the succeeding statement. According to the Martyrology of Donegal,' we find Accobhran, of Cill-Ruis, in the Termon of Inis-Cathaigh,3ashavingafestivalcelebratedonthisday. Inatablepostfixed to this Martyrology, his place is thought to have been Kilrush, in the county of Kildare. He is said to have been otherwise called Occobhran, whence Ocobrus, Ocoras [Desiderius). ^ The place usually designated for this saint is the present Kilrush, a parish in the barony of Moyarta and county of Clare. 5 The ruins of several ancient churches, forts, and raths exist in this parish. ^ Among these, at Mullagha are the remains of an old chapel or cell, traditionally supposed to have been built by St, Senan, who is said to have been a native of this place. Attached to it there is a burial ground still in use, and near it, also, there is a holy well,7 In fact, there are two old churches in this parish dedicated to St. Senan. The one is a small Damliag, andtheotherisanoratoryofinsignificantdimensions. ^ Thelargerchurch measures in length 32 feet 3 inches, and in breadth 13 feet. Its walls are less than 3 feet in thickness. AH the north wall was level with the ground, but about 14 feet of the south side wall, connected with the west gable, stood in 1839. 9 The eastern gable was in tolerable preservation. It was 3 feet in thickness, and it contained a window, measuring on the inside
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomusii. ,xxviii. the County of Clare," Sheets 56, 57, 58, Januarii, Prffitermissi et in alios dies re- 66, 67.
jecti, p, 807,
* Bishop Forbes omits him, in the biogra-
phical notices of his Scottish Saints.
'
Article vii,— Edited by the Rev. Dr.
Kelly, Ip. xiv. In the Franciscan copy is the inscription of -dccobpAin simply,
^
Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 28, 29.
3 Neither St, Mellan nor St. Occobran, venerated on this day at Kilrush, are re- membered at Kilrush in the county of Clare, See Dr. O'Donovan's letter, dated Kildy- sart, 9th of November, 1839, in "Letters Containing Information relative to the An- tiquities of the County of Clare, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Sur- vey in 1839," vol, ii,, p, 2,
•We find added: "Three miles from
Cill-dara of the white bell in Ros Mucroise,"
PP- 354> 355> i^'^-
5 The situation of this parish is noted on
^"
See Lewis' Topographical Dictionary
of Ireland," vol, ii. , pp. 204 to 206.
? See Clare Townland Maps, Sheet 67, for
the townland of Molougha,
^SeeDr, O'Donovan's letter dated Kildy-
sart, 9th November, 1839, in " Letters Con- taining Information relative to the Antiqui- ties of the County of Clare, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1839," vol. ii. , pp. 4 to 6,
9 Then a considerable portion of the west
gable remained, but its only distinguishing feature was destroyed, that is, a little win- dow or belfry, which had been placed near the top. Over it was a small cross of an- tique form. This was broken to pieces and lying on the ground, outside the west gable. The pedestal was perfect, however, and it was the finishing stone of the gable, so that a pretty accurate idea might be formed re- garding its shape and size from this part,
the
"
Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for
and the otherfragments then remaining.
470
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 28.
the ruined oratory, called Seipeal Beag Sheanain,
the small chapel of St.
and
feet inches in width. '° On the outside it 3
inches in
was 5 feet 3 inches in height, and 5 inches in width, at the top ; but the south side at the bottom being destroyed, its breadth there could not be ascertained with sufficient accuracy. The west gable" is 3 feet 4 inches in thickness. ", Aboutninepacesfromthenorth-eastcornerofthischurch'3is
7
feet
5
height,
3
"
Scnanus. " Itmeasuresontheoutside11feet7inchesinlength,and9feet
Moylogha Church, Co. Clare.
8 inches in breadth. Its little walls are 2 feet 7 inches in thickness. The east gable contains a rectangular window at top inside and outside. It measures on the inside 3 feet 10 inches in height and i foot 10 inches in width ; on the outside it is 2 feet 1 1 inches in height, and 6 inches in width. It is covered on the top inside and outside with one stone. '* The present
'" The accompanying illustration of Moy- lougha old church was drawn by William F. Wakeman, and it is now numbered 8,
''
among the Clare, Cork, and Kerry
Sketches," for the I. O. S. , preserved among the R. LA. Records. The engraving has been executed by Mrs. Millard.
" It exhibits at both comers the long and short style of masonry. Dr. O' Donovan remarks, that he observed this to be charac- teristic of the mediasval churches from the ninth to the thirteenth centuries, yet not to those belonging to the primitive ages of the Irish Church. The east gable did not show much of this style, and it looked much more ancient than any part of the western gable, excepting a few feet at the lower part.
" Both gables were rebuilt, from the height of 5 or 6 feet ; but the western would
appear to have been rebuilt at a later period than the eastern gable.
'3 Three paces north of the west comer of the larger church were the foundations of a house or small church, 30 feet 3 inches in length, and 16 feet 6 inches in breadth. The south wall was 2 feet 9 inches in thick- ness, as ascertained from a distinct part of its foundations remaining. About 5 perches, nearly due east of the larger church, there
was a square pile of stones, called Altair ''"
Sheanain, the altar of St. Senanus. See
pp. 5, 6, ibid.
' In the south wall there was a broken
little window, over 4 feet in width on the outside. The doorway was in the west gable, but it was broken to the threshold, in 1839. There its breadth was ascertained to be a little over 2 feet. Dr. O'Donovan did
January 29. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 471
saint, to whatever place he belonged, appears to have lived in or before the eighth century. This is proved from the "Feilire" of St. -^ngus the Culdee. 's
Article VIII. —Reputed Festival of the Translation of the Holy Martyrs,St. UrsulaandherCompanions,inGermany. Thereissaid to have been a festival, having reference to a translation of the holy martyrs, St. Ursula and her companions,' in the Carthusian additions to Usuard, in Florarius, as also in the Cologne and German Martyrologies. However, it has been passed over by the Bollandists, in their great work,^ although entering a notice of this feast at the present day.
Ch)entp4tmt! ) J3ap of Sanuarpv
ARTICLE I,—LIFE OF ST. GILDAS BADONICUS, OR ST. GILDAS THE WISE.
[FIFTH AND SIXTH CENTURIES. ]
CHAPTER I.
iNTRODUCTION—DIFFERENCES OF OPINION REGARDING MORE THAN ONE GILDAS—' MANUSCRIPT LIVES AND AUTHORS WHO HAVE TREATED ON THE BIOGRAPHY OF ST. GILDAS—DATE OF ST. GILDAS' BIRTH—THE PLACE WHERE HE WAS BORN, AND HIS FAMILY—EDUCATED BY ST. ILUTUS—HIS YOUTHFUL STUDIES AND CHARACTER.
are the biographies of early British saints more difficult to treat
than the Acts of St. Gildas, so diverse are the accounts now remaining, FEW
and coming to us from times very remote. Those biographies we possess seem to have been written in dififerent countries, and therefore were they more likely to have been derived from distinct sources. A pretty general opinion has prevailed, that these acts treat about more than one saint of the
not believe this little oratory to be of St.
Senan's period.
'5 With its English translation, Professor
Africa, and to have been part of a band, commemorated in St- Jerome's ancient Martyrology, as indicated by the Bollandists in "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , xxviii.
O'Looney has furnished the following stanza
from the Leabhar Breac copy in the R. I. A. Januarii. Prietermissi et in alios dies re-
5. tt. ki. tA h-Acob]\An riAinni. pAi-p . U111. n-UAg CO n-Ani 5AbfAC buAiTD CO n-T)ii\5e
G. u. kl.
With Acobran we celebrate
The passion of eight noble dotis. "
SLuAg moj\ 11li-pei\iAiii.
virgins;
They gained a
them at the 2 ist of October. ^"
triumph of The great Miserian host.
See ActaSanctorum,"tomusii. , xxviii. Januarii. Praetermissi et in alios dies re- jecti, p. 807.
righteousness,
These latter seem to have been martyrs in
^^
MS. Dun- galense pro Censoriano Messorianum habet, aliosque adjungit his verbis: Messoriani et aliorum xxv. Victoris, Festi, Perpetuse, MariniB, Agnatse, Telipta;, Messoriani, Vin- centiana; Canti et aliorum xxxv. Victoria;, Papeae, Genuini, Secundi, Infirmi Sacer-
Article viii. — 'See notices regarding
jecti,p. 807. Thereweread:
472 LIVES 02^ THE IRISH SAINTS, [January 29.
name, although Leland, Stillingfleet,'' Mabillon,' Bollandus,3 and other critical writers, do not admit of a distinction in this case. '* This view is likewise maintained by the learned Dr. Lanigan, and with great force of argument. 5 sir Thomas Duffus Hardy,^ the Rev. S. Baring-Gould,7 and several modem writers, seem to advocate such an opinion. ^ However, others have conjectured there were two, if not three or more individuals, bearing this name of Gildas. These are supposed to have been severally denominated Albanius, Cambrius, and Sapiens or Badonicus. John Bale, Pits, Ussher, Ware,9 Colgan,^° and Cressy," have adopted the theory of at least two distinct Gildases ; one living in the fifth and the other in the sixth century. Gildus, Gilda, and Gildasius, are other forms of this name, used by different writers. Colgan, who publishes the Acts of four Gildases, for the month of January,'^ brings twelve arguments against the opinion of Bollandus. By these he tries to make it appear, that many things are attri- buted to a Gildas, which could not be true of the saint whose life we here give. Therefore, he concludes, there must have been another more ancient St. Gildas. '3 He is supposed to have been a disciple of St. Patrick, and to have
Art. I. —Chap. i. —' This writer 5 See"De says,
lib.
Scriptoribus Hibemiae," that although "want of skill may make cap. i. , pp. 104, 105, 107.
iu,
Caradoc set his Gildas elder than he ought to have done, yet whosoever will compare that life published by yohn a Bosco with the other by Caradoc will find that they were designed for the same person. " See "An- tiquities of the British Church," chap. iv.
'°He has published Capgrave's "Life of Gildas," which he calls that of Gildas Alba-
nius, at the 29th of January. To this he adds certain excerpts, from the life by Ca- radoc of Lancarvan, taken from Ussher.
At the same date, he has published what he
^
See "Annales Ordinis S. Benedicti," calls the life of Gildas Badonicus, after
tomus i. , lib. vi. , § xix. , p. 150.
3 His acts are given from those \vritten by
the Monk of Ruys in eight chapters, with five sections of Trolegomina, and explana-
John de Bosco, and extracted from the Bibliotheca Floriacensis. With this Colgan takes some editorial liberties, and excepts to a small portion of the first chapter, the second, with a part of —the ninth and a part of the twelfth chapters printed in a smaller type. These extracts he supposes to have reference to an earlier Gildas Albanius. See " Acta Sanctorum Hibemia? ," xxix. Vita S. GildaeAlbanii,Abb. etConfes. , pp. 178 to 179, Then follow the " Quaedam ex- cerpta,"&c. , pp. 179, 180. Vita S. Gild© Badonici, Abbatis et Confessoris, pp. 181 to 194, with notes included. Afterwards he inserts an appendix having reference to se- veral distinct Gildases, in four different chap- ters. These are followed by "Epistola Gildae ad Rabanum Monachum," which Colgan seems inclined to attribute to Gildas Badonicus,ortheWise. Seepp. 202,203. See likewise n. i. , p. 187.
tory notes, in the
"
Acta Sanctorum," tomus
ii. , xxix. Januarii. De S. Gilda Sapientis, Abbate in Britannia Armorica, pp. 952 to
967.
* Dr. Lanigan remarks, that while Colgan
admits a great part of the life of Gildas Ba-
donicus by John of Bosco belongs not to
him but to Gildas Albanius, he might as
well have said the same regarding that by
Capgrave. Ussher and himself supposed
this to have been intended for Albanius.
*'
The fact is that they were all intended as the acts of one and the same Gildas, al- though we meet with, as usual, some strange
" anachronisms here and there. " See Ec-
clesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap. ix. , § X. , n. 156, p. 480.
5 See ibid. , % x. , and the various notes at-
tached to this section, pp. 476 to 489.
Britain and Ireland," vol. i. , part i.
7 See "Lives of the Saints," vol. i. , Ja-
nuary xxix. , p. 440.
^ It is evident that Gale, the learned edi-
tor of Gildas' works, knew only of one Gil- das, yet named under various titles. Thus, in his General Preface, he writes, "Gildas Historicus, Albanius, Badonicus, Sapiens (totenim innotuit titulis) Iltuti discipidus," &c. See "xv. Scriptores. "
" In his " Church History of Brittany," book xi. , chap, iii. , he has "the gests" of St. Gildas whom he calls the
^ See "
of Mate- rials relating to the History of Great
Albanius,
Elder ; and in book xii. , chap, x. , he enters
Descriptive Catalogue
"the gests" of St. Gildas Badonicus or Sa-
piens, whom he calls the Younger. See pp. 228 to 230, and 267, 268.
" See " Acta Sanctorum Hibemite," xxix,
Januarii. De S. Gildasio Abbate, pp. 176, 177. Vita S. Gildae Albanii Abb. et Confes. , pp. 1 78 to 180. Vita S. Gildae Badonici, Abba- tis et Confessoris, pp. 1 8 1 to 203, xxxi. Januarii. De S. Gildasio Confessore, pp. 226 to 228.
'3 See ibid. , xxix. Januarii. Appendix ad
January 29. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 473
been eminent for his sanctity and learning. ^* From certain chronological notices in two different lives of Gildas, Ussher thinks the Monk of Ruys has confounded Gildas Albanius's with Gildas Badonicus, It must be allowed, perhaps, that unchronological and misleading statements have been made by both ^vriters ; and such admission may serve to clear away many of the difh- rulties that now beset the biographer of an unquestionable and a historical St. Gildas.
Formerly various manuscript lives of St. Gildas were extant : some have
beenpreservedtothepresenttime. ^^ Theearliestliferemaining^7isthought to have been written by some unknown monk of Ruys, near Rennes, about
the year 919. '^ A different opinion of Bollandus assigns its composition to a time shortly after 1024. But Caradoc of Lanncarvan, who is thought to have lived in the twelfth century, wrote a different biography of our saint, in
which we find divergent, if not discordant, statements regarding' him put forward. '9 Nor need this seem so very strange, when both accounts had been drawn up several centuries after the lifetime of Gildas, and when they had been written in different centuries and in separate countries. The di- versities of chronological events and of persons hardly contemporaneous will only enable us to infer, that the sources of information were occasionally doubtful, while various coincidences of narrative_ seem to warrant a conclusion that both tracts were intended to chronicle the life of one and the same
Vitas SS. Gildarum, cap. ii. , pp. 195 to 197.
In the succeeding chapter, Colgan treats of several other holy men in Ireland who bore the name of Gildas or Gilda, besides those who were externs. See cap. iii. , pp. 198 to 201.
'^ Colgan's chiefest objections are resolv-
able into the apparently irreconcilable and
ui. chronological incidents occurring in both lives. This point he argues with much
learning, especially in the first chapter of his appendix, where he inquires about the
lish Historical Society. Vita S. Gildas, MS.
Sloane, 4785, ff. 9. 15. This is a transcript of the former, made in the last century. Vita S. Gildae. MS. Reg. 13, B. vii. , ff. 20- 25, b. paper folio, xvi. cent. This is appa- rently a transcript of the Bumey MS. In some instances, it corrects the errors of that copy. Vita Sanctissimi atque doctissimi Gildae. MS. Eccl. Dunelm, Bii. , 35, 7 folio. This fine copy was written about A. D. 1166. It seems to agree with the MS. c. c. c. Cant. Ici commence la vie Monseigneur S.
age when Gildas Badonicus, or the Wise, Gildas. MS. Egerton, No. 745, ff. 78b-90,
flourished.
'5 Ussher thinks that the Monk of Rhuys
has confounded the separate acts of Gildas
Albanius with those of Gildas Badonicus.
He throws out a conjecture, that the former
was bom in 425, while the latter was bom
veil. 4to, xiv. cent. In this it is said, St. Gildas was a native of Bretagne, and that he had been educated by St. Phylebert, who was then Abbot of Toumay. De Sancto Gilda Abbate et Confessore. MS. Cott. Tiber. E. i. , ff. 3lb-32, veil, folio. This is
in See "Britannicamm Ecclesiarum
in
John Capgrave's
"Nova
Legenda
'* The following manuscript lives of Gil- veil, folio, XV. cent. It is the same text as das are—noticed by Sir Thomas Duffus the former one. Vita Gildse. MS. Trin.
Vita S. Gildas ab anno Hardy : Sapientis
520 usque an. 570, auctore Caradoco Lan- carbanensi. MS. c. C. C. Cant. 139,^24, veil, folio, xii. cent. This is apparently the MS. used by Ussher, and cited by him in his "Primordia," pp. 442, 468. A couplet found in it seems to attribute its authorship to Caradoc of Lancarvan. There is also a transcript of this MS. of the seventeenth century in MS. C. C. C. Cant. loi, p. 43. Vita Sanctissimi atque doctissimi viri Gildre,MS. Bumey,310,ff. 330,veil,folio, xiv. cent. This volume was written at Fin- chale, near Durham, A.
'
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xiv. In the Franciscan copy is the following inser- tion, ©ocViAiT) ep]^ ocuf <\bb. CahiLac.
in Bishop Forbes Kalendars Scottish Saints. " Lennox, in Scotland, is called Le- vina, from the Leven river, so celebrated in the ode of Tobias Smollett : —
" from lake, Devolving thy parent
A charming maze thy waters make ; By bow'rs of birch and groves of pine, And hedges flower'd with eglantine. "
"
3 See " Trias Colgan's
Thaumaturga. " Quarta Appendix ad Acta S. Columbas, cap.
X. , p. 489.
*The parish of Tallagh in the barony of "
Upper Cross is sho^vn on the Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the County of
The original name was Leven-ach, Dublin," Sheets 21, 22, 24, 25, 27. The field of the Leven," and it was very appro-
townland proper is on Sheets 22, 23.
s The parish of Tanilaght, situated partly in the barony of Loughinsholin, is shown on the " Ordnance Townland for
priately designated the basin, not only of
the River Leven, but also of Loch Lomond,
anciently called Loch Leven. See FuUar-
ton's " Gazetteer of Scotland, To- Imperial
pographical. Statistical, and Historical," vol. ii. , p. 319.
Survey Maps the County of Londonderiy," Sheets 47, 48, 49; and partly in the barony of Upper
Tyrone," Sheets 30, 39. *"
**
Article vi. See George Buchanan's
Rerum Scoticarum Historia," lib. v. , pp.
142, 144, '"
the
January 28. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 469 According to the Bollandists,3 Dunstanus, Abbas Scotus, is called a saint,
by Ferrarius, gium Anglicanum
"
has^noticed him, at the i8th of June. In the new he is
It is probable, the present holy man had been a disciple
and Camerarius after him at this The old "
by day. Mart)n:olo-
entirely omitted,*
of the illustrious Columkille.
Article VII,—St, Acobran of Kilrush, Probably in the County
OF Clare. Such devotional exercises, as bring all our feelings, emotions, and sentiments into accord with the Divine will, subduing passion, removing
hatred, malice, jealousy, revenge, and opening the portals of heaven to all those who seek rest, peace, and sweet repose, were practised by St. Acobran. Without any other distinction, he is mentioned in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 28th of January, But we are not left in doubt regarding his locality, if we depend on the succeeding statement. According to the Martyrology of Donegal,' we find Accobhran, of Cill-Ruis, in the Termon of Inis-Cathaigh,3ashavingafestivalcelebratedonthisday. Inatablepostfixed to this Martyrology, his place is thought to have been Kilrush, in the county of Kildare. He is said to have been otherwise called Occobhran, whence Ocobrus, Ocoras [Desiderius). ^ The place usually designated for this saint is the present Kilrush, a parish in the barony of Moyarta and county of Clare. 5 The ruins of several ancient churches, forts, and raths exist in this parish. ^ Among these, at Mullagha are the remains of an old chapel or cell, traditionally supposed to have been built by St, Senan, who is said to have been a native of this place. Attached to it there is a burial ground still in use, and near it, also, there is a holy well,7 In fact, there are two old churches in this parish dedicated to St. Senan. The one is a small Damliag, andtheotherisanoratoryofinsignificantdimensions. ^ Thelargerchurch measures in length 32 feet 3 inches, and in breadth 13 feet. Its walls are less than 3 feet in thickness. AH the north wall was level with the ground, but about 14 feet of the south side wall, connected with the west gable, stood in 1839. 9 The eastern gable was in tolerable preservation. It was 3 feet in thickness, and it contained a window, measuring on the inside
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomusii. ,xxviii. the County of Clare," Sheets 56, 57, 58, Januarii, Prffitermissi et in alios dies re- 66, 67.
jecti, p, 807,
* Bishop Forbes omits him, in the biogra-
phical notices of his Scottish Saints.
'
Article vii,— Edited by the Rev. Dr.
Kelly, Ip. xiv. In the Franciscan copy is the inscription of -dccobpAin simply,
^
Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 28, 29.
3 Neither St, Mellan nor St. Occobran, venerated on this day at Kilrush, are re- membered at Kilrush in the county of Clare, See Dr. O'Donovan's letter, dated Kildy- sart, 9th of November, 1839, in "Letters Containing Information relative to the An- tiquities of the County of Clare, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Sur- vey in 1839," vol, ii,, p, 2,
•We find added: "Three miles from
Cill-dara of the white bell in Ros Mucroise,"
PP- 354> 355> i^'^-
5 The situation of this parish is noted on
^"
See Lewis' Topographical Dictionary
of Ireland," vol, ii. , pp. 204 to 206.
? See Clare Townland Maps, Sheet 67, for
the townland of Molougha,
^SeeDr, O'Donovan's letter dated Kildy-
sart, 9th November, 1839, in " Letters Con- taining Information relative to the Antiqui- ties of the County of Clare, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1839," vol. ii. , pp. 4 to 6,
9 Then a considerable portion of the west
gable remained, but its only distinguishing feature was destroyed, that is, a little win- dow or belfry, which had been placed near the top. Over it was a small cross of an- tique form. This was broken to pieces and lying on the ground, outside the west gable. The pedestal was perfect, however, and it was the finishing stone of the gable, so that a pretty accurate idea might be formed re- garding its shape and size from this part,
the
"
Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for
and the otherfragments then remaining.
470
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 28.
the ruined oratory, called Seipeal Beag Sheanain,
the small chapel of St.
and
feet inches in width. '° On the outside it 3
inches in
was 5 feet 3 inches in height, and 5 inches in width, at the top ; but the south side at the bottom being destroyed, its breadth there could not be ascertained with sufficient accuracy. The west gable" is 3 feet 4 inches in thickness. ", Aboutninepacesfromthenorth-eastcornerofthischurch'3is
7
feet
5
height,
3
"
Scnanus. " Itmeasuresontheoutside11feet7inchesinlength,and9feet
Moylogha Church, Co. Clare.
8 inches in breadth. Its little walls are 2 feet 7 inches in thickness. The east gable contains a rectangular window at top inside and outside. It measures on the inside 3 feet 10 inches in height and i foot 10 inches in width ; on the outside it is 2 feet 1 1 inches in height, and 6 inches in width. It is covered on the top inside and outside with one stone. '* The present
'" The accompanying illustration of Moy- lougha old church was drawn by William F. Wakeman, and it is now numbered 8,
''
among the Clare, Cork, and Kerry
Sketches," for the I. O. S. , preserved among the R. LA. Records. The engraving has been executed by Mrs. Millard.
" It exhibits at both comers the long and short style of masonry. Dr. O' Donovan remarks, that he observed this to be charac- teristic of the mediasval churches from the ninth to the thirteenth centuries, yet not to those belonging to the primitive ages of the Irish Church. The east gable did not show much of this style, and it looked much more ancient than any part of the western gable, excepting a few feet at the lower part.
" Both gables were rebuilt, from the height of 5 or 6 feet ; but the western would
appear to have been rebuilt at a later period than the eastern gable.
'3 Three paces north of the west comer of the larger church were the foundations of a house or small church, 30 feet 3 inches in length, and 16 feet 6 inches in breadth. The south wall was 2 feet 9 inches in thick- ness, as ascertained from a distinct part of its foundations remaining. About 5 perches, nearly due east of the larger church, there
was a square pile of stones, called Altair ''"
Sheanain, the altar of St. Senanus. See
pp. 5, 6, ibid.
' In the south wall there was a broken
little window, over 4 feet in width on the outside. The doorway was in the west gable, but it was broken to the threshold, in 1839. There its breadth was ascertained to be a little over 2 feet. Dr. O'Donovan did
January 29. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 471
saint, to whatever place he belonged, appears to have lived in or before the eighth century. This is proved from the "Feilire" of St. -^ngus the Culdee. 's
Article VIII. —Reputed Festival of the Translation of the Holy Martyrs,St. UrsulaandherCompanions,inGermany. Thereissaid to have been a festival, having reference to a translation of the holy martyrs, St. Ursula and her companions,' in the Carthusian additions to Usuard, in Florarius, as also in the Cologne and German Martyrologies. However, it has been passed over by the Bollandists, in their great work,^ although entering a notice of this feast at the present day.
Ch)entp4tmt! ) J3ap of Sanuarpv
ARTICLE I,—LIFE OF ST. GILDAS BADONICUS, OR ST. GILDAS THE WISE.
[FIFTH AND SIXTH CENTURIES. ]
CHAPTER I.
iNTRODUCTION—DIFFERENCES OF OPINION REGARDING MORE THAN ONE GILDAS—' MANUSCRIPT LIVES AND AUTHORS WHO HAVE TREATED ON THE BIOGRAPHY OF ST. GILDAS—DATE OF ST. GILDAS' BIRTH—THE PLACE WHERE HE WAS BORN, AND HIS FAMILY—EDUCATED BY ST. ILUTUS—HIS YOUTHFUL STUDIES AND CHARACTER.
are the biographies of early British saints more difficult to treat
than the Acts of St. Gildas, so diverse are the accounts now remaining, FEW
and coming to us from times very remote. Those biographies we possess seem to have been written in dififerent countries, and therefore were they more likely to have been derived from distinct sources. A pretty general opinion has prevailed, that these acts treat about more than one saint of the
not believe this little oratory to be of St.
Senan's period.
'5 With its English translation, Professor
Africa, and to have been part of a band, commemorated in St- Jerome's ancient Martyrology, as indicated by the Bollandists in "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , xxviii.
O'Looney has furnished the following stanza
from the Leabhar Breac copy in the R. I. A. Januarii. Prietermissi et in alios dies re-
5. tt. ki. tA h-Acob]\An riAinni. pAi-p . U111. n-UAg CO n-Ani 5AbfAC buAiTD CO n-T)ii\5e
G. u. kl.
With Acobran we celebrate
The passion of eight noble dotis. "
SLuAg moj\ 11li-pei\iAiii.
virgins;
They gained a
them at the 2 ist of October. ^"
triumph of The great Miserian host.
See ActaSanctorum,"tomusii. , xxviii. Januarii. Praetermissi et in alios dies re- jecti, p. 807.
righteousness,
These latter seem to have been martyrs in
^^
MS. Dun- galense pro Censoriano Messorianum habet, aliosque adjungit his verbis: Messoriani et aliorum xxv. Victoris, Festi, Perpetuse, MariniB, Agnatse, Telipta;, Messoriani, Vin- centiana; Canti et aliorum xxxv. Victoria;, Papeae, Genuini, Secundi, Infirmi Sacer-
Article viii. — 'See notices regarding
jecti,p. 807. Thereweread:
472 LIVES 02^ THE IRISH SAINTS, [January 29.
name, although Leland, Stillingfleet,'' Mabillon,' Bollandus,3 and other critical writers, do not admit of a distinction in this case. '* This view is likewise maintained by the learned Dr. Lanigan, and with great force of argument. 5 sir Thomas Duffus Hardy,^ the Rev. S. Baring-Gould,7 and several modem writers, seem to advocate such an opinion. ^ However, others have conjectured there were two, if not three or more individuals, bearing this name of Gildas. These are supposed to have been severally denominated Albanius, Cambrius, and Sapiens or Badonicus. John Bale, Pits, Ussher, Ware,9 Colgan,^° and Cressy," have adopted the theory of at least two distinct Gildases ; one living in the fifth and the other in the sixth century. Gildus, Gilda, and Gildasius, are other forms of this name, used by different writers. Colgan, who publishes the Acts of four Gildases, for the month of January,'^ brings twelve arguments against the opinion of Bollandus. By these he tries to make it appear, that many things are attri- buted to a Gildas, which could not be true of the saint whose life we here give. Therefore, he concludes, there must have been another more ancient St. Gildas. '3 He is supposed to have been a disciple of St. Patrick, and to have
Art. I. —Chap. i. —' This writer 5 See"De says,
lib.
Scriptoribus Hibemiae," that although "want of skill may make cap. i. , pp. 104, 105, 107.
iu,
Caradoc set his Gildas elder than he ought to have done, yet whosoever will compare that life published by yohn a Bosco with the other by Caradoc will find that they were designed for the same person. " See "An- tiquities of the British Church," chap. iv.
'°He has published Capgrave's "Life of Gildas," which he calls that of Gildas Alba-
nius, at the 29th of January. To this he adds certain excerpts, from the life by Ca- radoc of Lancarvan, taken from Ussher.
At the same date, he has published what he
^
See "Annales Ordinis S. Benedicti," calls the life of Gildas Badonicus, after
tomus i. , lib. vi. , § xix. , p. 150.
3 His acts are given from those \vritten by
the Monk of Ruys in eight chapters, with five sections of Trolegomina, and explana-
John de Bosco, and extracted from the Bibliotheca Floriacensis. With this Colgan takes some editorial liberties, and excepts to a small portion of the first chapter, the second, with a part of —the ninth and a part of the twelfth chapters printed in a smaller type. These extracts he supposes to have reference to an earlier Gildas Albanius. See " Acta Sanctorum Hibemia? ," xxix. Vita S. GildaeAlbanii,Abb. etConfes. , pp. 178 to 179, Then follow the " Quaedam ex- cerpta,"&c. , pp. 179, 180. Vita S. Gild© Badonici, Abbatis et Confessoris, pp. 181 to 194, with notes included. Afterwards he inserts an appendix having reference to se- veral distinct Gildases, in four different chap- ters. These are followed by "Epistola Gildae ad Rabanum Monachum," which Colgan seems inclined to attribute to Gildas Badonicus,ortheWise. Seepp. 202,203. See likewise n. i. , p. 187.
tory notes, in the
"
Acta Sanctorum," tomus
ii. , xxix. Januarii. De S. Gilda Sapientis, Abbate in Britannia Armorica, pp. 952 to
967.
* Dr. Lanigan remarks, that while Colgan
admits a great part of the life of Gildas Ba-
donicus by John of Bosco belongs not to
him but to Gildas Albanius, he might as
well have said the same regarding that by
Capgrave. Ussher and himself supposed
this to have been intended for Albanius.
*'
The fact is that they were all intended as the acts of one and the same Gildas, al- though we meet with, as usual, some strange
" anachronisms here and there. " See Ec-
clesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap. ix. , § X. , n. 156, p. 480.
5 See ibid. , % x. , and the various notes at-
tached to this section, pp. 476 to 489.
Britain and Ireland," vol. i. , part i.
7 See "Lives of the Saints," vol. i. , Ja-
nuary xxix. , p. 440.
^ It is evident that Gale, the learned edi-
tor of Gildas' works, knew only of one Gil- das, yet named under various titles. Thus, in his General Preface, he writes, "Gildas Historicus, Albanius, Badonicus, Sapiens (totenim innotuit titulis) Iltuti discipidus," &c. See "xv. Scriptores. "
" In his " Church History of Brittany," book xi. , chap, iii. , he has "the gests" of St. Gildas whom he calls the
^ See "
of Mate- rials relating to the History of Great
Albanius,
Elder ; and in book xii. , chap, x. , he enters
Descriptive Catalogue
"the gests" of St. Gildas Badonicus or Sa-
piens, whom he calls the Younger. See pp. 228 to 230, and 267, 268.
" See " Acta Sanctorum Hibemite," xxix,
Januarii. De S. Gildasio Abbate, pp. 176, 177. Vita S. Gildae Albanii Abb. et Confes. , pp. 1 78 to 180. Vita S. Gildae Badonici, Abba- tis et Confessoris, pp. 1 8 1 to 203, xxxi. Januarii. De S. Gildasio Confessore, pp. 226 to 228.
'3 See ibid. , xxix. Januarii. Appendix ad
January 29. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 473
been eminent for his sanctity and learning. ^* From certain chronological notices in two different lives of Gildas, Ussher thinks the Monk of Ruys has confounded Gildas Albanius's with Gildas Badonicus, It must be allowed, perhaps, that unchronological and misleading statements have been made by both ^vriters ; and such admission may serve to clear away many of the difh- rulties that now beset the biographer of an unquestionable and a historical St. Gildas.
Formerly various manuscript lives of St. Gildas were extant : some have
beenpreservedtothepresenttime. ^^ Theearliestliferemaining^7isthought to have been written by some unknown monk of Ruys, near Rennes, about
the year 919. '^ A different opinion of Bollandus assigns its composition to a time shortly after 1024. But Caradoc of Lanncarvan, who is thought to have lived in the twelfth century, wrote a different biography of our saint, in
which we find divergent, if not discordant, statements regarding' him put forward. '9 Nor need this seem so very strange, when both accounts had been drawn up several centuries after the lifetime of Gildas, and when they had been written in different centuries and in separate countries. The di- versities of chronological events and of persons hardly contemporaneous will only enable us to infer, that the sources of information were occasionally doubtful, while various coincidences of narrative_ seem to warrant a conclusion that both tracts were intended to chronicle the life of one and the same
Vitas SS. Gildarum, cap. ii. , pp. 195 to 197.
In the succeeding chapter, Colgan treats of several other holy men in Ireland who bore the name of Gildas or Gilda, besides those who were externs. See cap. iii. , pp. 198 to 201.
'^ Colgan's chiefest objections are resolv-
able into the apparently irreconcilable and
ui. chronological incidents occurring in both lives. This point he argues with much
learning, especially in the first chapter of his appendix, where he inquires about the
lish Historical Society. Vita S. Gildas, MS.
Sloane, 4785, ff. 9. 15. This is a transcript of the former, made in the last century. Vita S. Gildae. MS. Reg. 13, B. vii. , ff. 20- 25, b. paper folio, xvi. cent. This is appa- rently a transcript of the Bumey MS. In some instances, it corrects the errors of that copy. Vita Sanctissimi atque doctissimi Gildae. MS. Eccl. Dunelm, Bii. , 35, 7 folio. This fine copy was written about A. D. 1166. It seems to agree with the MS. c. c. c. Cant. Ici commence la vie Monseigneur S.
age when Gildas Badonicus, or the Wise, Gildas. MS. Egerton, No. 745, ff. 78b-90,
flourished.
'5 Ussher thinks that the Monk of Rhuys
has confounded the separate acts of Gildas
Albanius with those of Gildas Badonicus.
He throws out a conjecture, that the former
was bom in 425, while the latter was bom
veil. 4to, xiv. cent. In this it is said, St. Gildas was a native of Bretagne, and that he had been educated by St. Phylebert, who was then Abbot of Toumay. De Sancto Gilda Abbate et Confessore. MS. Cott. Tiber. E. i. , ff. 3lb-32, veil, folio. This is
in See "Britannicamm Ecclesiarum
in
John Capgrave's
"Nova
Legenda
'* The following manuscript lives of Gil- veil, folio, XV. cent. It is the same text as das are—noticed by Sir Thomas Duffus the former one. Vita Gildse. MS. Trin.
Vita S. Gildas ab anno Hardy : Sapientis
520 usque an. 570, auctore Caradoco Lan- carbanensi. MS. c. C. C. Cant. 139,^24, veil, folio, xii. cent. This is apparently the MS. used by Ussher, and cited by him in his "Primordia," pp. 442, 468. A couplet found in it seems to attribute its authorship to Caradoc of Lancarvan. There is also a transcript of this MS. of the seventeenth century in MS. C. C. C. Cant. loi, p. 43. Vita Sanctissimi atque doctissimi viri Gildre,MS. Bumey,310,ff. 330,veil,folio, xiv. cent. This volume was written at Fin- chale, near Durham, A.
