Many have
pontificem tuum inter innumera mirabilia
thought, that it was designed as a sculptural representation of St.
pontificem tuum inter innumera mirabilia
thought, that it was designed as a sculptural representation of St.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v8
Saviour ; but, on the com- ing of the Dominicans into Ireland a few years later, they gave it to them, on condition that the Dominicans should offer a lighted taper on the Feast of the Nativity, yearly, at St.
Mary's Abbey, as an acknowledgment that this monastery did originally belong to the Cistercian Order.
A Dominican Monas- tery was founded here in the year 1224, by William Mareschall, Earl of Pembroke, "for the health of his soul and that of his wife.
" On the 1st of May, 1238, the church was founded and dedicated to St.
Saviour, and in it were interred many persons of rank and influence.
In the year 1316, on the approach of Edward Bruce, with his army of Scots, the citizens of Dublin destroyed the church of the friary, and made use of the stones in repairing the city walls and extending them from Wormwood Gate towards the quay, and at Winetavern- street.
King Edward II.
afterwards commanded the Mayor and citizens to restore the church to its former state.
A bridge which had been erected in the time of King John was swept away in a flood A.
D.
1385 ; but, with the assistance of their generous benefactors, the Dominicans built a new bridge, connecting Church-street with Bridge-street, on the former site.
Their new Church of St.
Saviour was solemnly consecrated on the 5th of the Ides of July,
1402, by Thomas Cranley, Archbishop of Dublin.
"
OldKing'sInns. " InthereignofCharles I. , the Duke of Ormonde became possessed of the Earl of Kildare's part of the property, a portion of which he laid out for building, and opened a new street, which he named Charles-street,inhonouroftheking. The remaining portion he laid out for a public market, which, although it has been long discontinuedassuch,still retainshisname. The Duke also caused the banks of that part of the Liffey adjoining to be walled in, and a new bridge to be erected over the river leading from Charles-street to Wood- quay. This was known as "Ormonde Bridge. "
16 Beforethesuppressionofmonasteries, in the sixteenth century, the Mayor, Re- corder, and Aldermen of the City of Dublin were obliged to assist at High Mass in the Church of St. Saviour, and to hear a sermon on the duties of magistrates preached in the church of this house on every Michaelmas Day. In1662,theCourtofClaimssathere, andin1688,theCourtofGrace; anddur- ing the abode of James II. in Ireland, he held a Parliament in the Cloisters. He also restored to the Dominicans their ancient priory, which was occupied only a short time ; for, on the accession of William III. , they were again obliged to desert it, and to seek a more safe retreat in Cook-street, over the water. The foundation-stone of the present Four Courts was laid by the Duke of Rutland, on the 13th of March, 1786, on the site of the old King's Inns ; and, in
x* On the suppression of the monasteries,
Patrick Hughes, the last prior of the Domi-
nican house, surrendered it to the Crown on
8th of July, in the thirty-first year of the
reign of King Henry VIII. The monastery
and its possessions were afterwards parcelled
out among the favourites of King Henry and
of Queen Elizabeth. Lord Chancellor Allen
and the judges of the other courts obtained ings in Henrietta-street was laid. The
"thesciteand precincts of the monastery and church, with the steeple and cemetery, and the edifices, mills, orchards, and gardens belonging to it, and fifteen messuages in the parish of St. Michan ; one messuage in St. Patrick-street, one messuage in New-street, and the moiety of a meadow called Ellen Hore's Mead, alias Gibbet's meadow. " Afterwards, Queen Elizabeth, in the twentieth year of her reign, granted to Gerald
former bridge over the Liffey fell in 1806, its foundations having been undermined, by a great flood in the river ; and, in 1813, the foundation of a new bridge was laid a short distance westward from the old bridge. The new erection was opened on St. Patrick's day, 1816, and since it has been named Rich- mond Bridge. See an article by Mr. Edward Evans, in the Irish Builder of July
15th, 1892, and from which the preceding
1802, the foundation-stone of the new build- '
374 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIN1S. [August 25.
boundary of the gardens belonging to the Dominican Priory ; but subse- quently, it was granted to the Benchers of Kings Inns. a3 The Granary and other of the above-mentioned places are described in a Deed or grant made
a in 161 1 by King James I. *
Within the Parish of St. Michan, from the introduction of the English Reformation into Ireland, until about the beginning of the last century, the Catholics had no permanent or fixed place where they could assemble for Divine Service. They met most usually in private houses or in retired chambers, situated in back lanes, where they were denounced as recusants, and were subjected to fines and imprisonment for refusing to assist at Pro- testant worship. However, they had a brief respite from persecution during the reign of King James II. , who founded a Benedictine Nunnery in Channel-
accounts are abridged. circular-headed bays on each side, the width x ? This crypt now built up is situated of nave between bays being 24 ft. What
appears to be the new addition to the nave
within a large void space, or yard, popu-
known as "
so called after Mr. Elisha Bayly, who, for
upwards of half a century, carried on the
business of cabinet-maker and timber mer-
chant. Underneath this yard is a large inches.
larly
Bayly's
Timber
Yard,"
at the western end is much narrower than
the original part, it being 30 ft. in length, and 15 ft. in width.
crypt, or vault, 122 ft. long, varying in width from 15 ft. to 32 ft. , and about 14 ft.
21
The width of the chancel and choir is
in height. It is approached from the yard
by a flight of stone steps, about seventeen
in number, at the south side. At the bot- springs from the floor-level, and it is the
tom of these steps is a vaulted hall, 6 ft.
square, and at the western end a well about
8 ft. stone The deep, approached by steps.
well is now dried up and has been so for
many years past ; although, strange to say, the water once more sprung up for a brief
same width as the nave, but it is 4 ft. lower than the crown of nave.
23 states that "in Ormond Duhigg 1639
Market was then part of the gardens of King's Inns ; when laid out to its present use after the Restoration, its original name was New Market, but when the river was
period,andagaindisappeared. Thecrypt
is traditionally said to have been a store-
house for the poor in times of war and extended to both. About the year 1634,
famine, belonging to and supposed to lead from George's Hill to St. Mary's Abbey. The original entrance to this singularly con- structed place was by a narrow circular hall,
the summer houses were new built and it thus resembled the Temple Garden toward theriver,andGray'sInn,whereit fronted Cuckoo-lane, and the adjacent Villages of
'
and by a rather mysterious staircase, at the
eastern end from George's Hill. There <nre
traces of these yet extant in the crypt below.
It is thought, that some centuries ago, when
the bed of the River Liffey was shallow, or the site of St. Mary's abbey, Dublin ; a in some parts not more than a stream,
there was from this and from St. Mary's
Abbey, a subterraneous passage by which
the monks of the Abbey walked unobserved
in procession, on different special festivals,
to the Priory of the Holy Trinity, now western side of the south gate near the river
Christ Church Cathedral.
18
First, towards the South-west, supposed to lead to the Dominican Priory, on the site of which stands the present Four Courts ; secondly, north, via Anne-street, towards the Abbot's Garden, or Anchorite's Park," now the King's Inns, Henrietta-street ; and thirdly, south-east toward St. Mary's Abbey.
19 The nave, which seemsto have a modern addition, is 74ft. in length, 18 ft. in breadth, and about 1 5 ft. in height. The original nave was only 44 ft. in length, and it has 5
I iffey, all within the precinct ; the Anchor- —et's or Ankaster's park without the wall, N. the site of the Church of the said monas- tery, the Church porch, Church-yard, the dorture, and a ruinous tower and a court in the western part thereof, and a small piece of ground called Shillingfoord's Garden, all within the precinct, and all other heredita- ments within the said site, which were ever in the tenure of Robert Piphoe, Esq. , and Sir Edward Waterhouse, KntT, to hold, &c. See an article by Mr. Edward Evans in the
Irish Builder of August 1st, 1 892
20
The length of the chancel is 27 feet, 6
32 ft. , and in height from floor to ceiling about II ft. The choir is 15 feet in length.
32
The chancel arch, which is groined,
quayed in, the Viceroy's [Ormond] name
Grange Gorman and Glasmainoge.
24 This was made to Thomas Ilibbots and
William Crowe, Esqrs. , viz. , a mansion or house called the Abbott's Lodging, within
garden called the Abbott's garden ; a large orchard called the Common Orchard ; the Ashe Park, a granary called the Garnell over the outer gate ; 4 messuages lately called the Abbott's stable, lying on the
August 25. LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 375
row, in 1689, and to this was added a private chapel for the nuns ; but after
his reverses at the battle of the Boyne, that chapel was converted into
secular use for the Catholic parishioners. When the Rev. Dr. Cornelius
Nary, a very learned and distinguished priest,85 had been appointed to take
charge of the parish in 1702, notwithstanding the existence of the penal
laws, he ventured to build a new chapel for the accommodation of his flock.
It was situated on the south side of Mary's-lane ; and on the north-west
corner of Bull-lane. This was popularly known as Mary's-lane Chapel.
For the long period of thirty-six years, the Rev. Dr. Nary governed this
parish. He died in the year 1738. Several other zealous pastors succeeded
96
him.
The old Mary's-lane Chapel had been used by the Catholics until the
beginning of the present century, when finding it in a state of decay, the Rev. Christopher Wall, P. P. , resolved on the erection of a more suitable and com-
modious building. Accordingly, a public meeting was called, at which resolutions were passed for the proposed purchase of a piece of ground, on which a new parochial church and presbytery should be placed. A large
Michan's Catholic Church, Dublin.
North King-street, and known as North Anne-
street, on the northern side of the River LifTey. The Ven. and Very Rev. Arch-
's A brief Memoir has been published by Jesuits in Dublin ; or, Brief Biographic
Walter Harris—who was probably person- ally acquainted with him—and a list of his different writings has been given in Harris' Ware, vol. iii. , "The Writers of Ireland," Book i. , pp. 299, 300.
Sketches of those deceased Members of the Society of Jesus, who were born or who laboured in the Irish Metropolis, with an Account of the Parish of St. Michan, their ancient residence, presenting Details of its Abbey, Priory, Churches, Convents, Schools, Pastors, Curates, Religious," etc. Dublin, 1854, i2mo.
36 A
of these will be found in a valuable tract published by William J. Battersby, "The
very interesting
and accurate account
sumwassubscribed. Soon a site was selected and pur- chased. The building was commenced about the year 181 1, and it was finished before 1814, Theeast end of the church terminated in
ablankwall,whichseparated it from or rather united it
with the presbytery, erected after the year 1820, and which faced on Halston- street. The plot of ground on which both stand was sold on the 30th of April, 1853, m ^e Incumbered Estates Court, when it was purchased in trust for the parishioners.
The front entrance of that Catholic Church, dedicated to St. Michan and built in Gothic style, is sit—uated
in a backward street
off
376 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25.
deacon James M'Mahon, P. P. , erected a new Presbytery for the curates of the parish in Halston-street, and a handsome Gothic church, which
was dedicated to St. Joseph, on Berkeley-road. Afterwards, the Very Rev. Robert F. Canon Conlan, P. P. , who succeeded in 1890 to St. Michan's division of the old parish—a new parish of St. Joseph having been formed around the recently-erected church—resolved on demolishing the former presbytery, with a view of enlarging St. Michan's Church, by extending it to Halston-street. Accordingly on the Sunday, November 14th, 1 89 1, His Grace Most Rev. William J. Walsh, Archbishop of Dublin, presided at a public meeting of the parishioners, who subscribed over ^1,000, after the ceremony of laying the foundation-stone of the new building had taken place. By this most desirable improvement, the church has been lengthened over thirty feet ; while the addition com-
2
prises exteriorly a lofty tower and belfry turret, ? with two entrances to the
church from Halston-street, and interiorly, a chancel, with two side chapels, elegantly designed and suitably decorated, has been constructed. The chancel window, erected in the perpendicular Gothic style, has a very im-
posingappearance. Thetowerrisestoaheightofninety-fourfeet,andit comprises five stories. The main entrance has a double-bayed window over
it ; while a similar window is placed on the corresponding compartment, beside the large chancel-window. Triple lancet windows are in the tower, and lighting the bell-ringing chamber. Above this, there is a circular chiselled limestone case for a clock. The tower-turrets and gables are crenellated ; the whole frontage presenting a very imposing appearance.
The immediate substratum of the entire of the district occupying both sides, in immediate contiguity with the River Lififey, is composed of a bed or series of veins of sand. It varies in depth from 6 in. to 10 ft. or 12 ft. , and this occurs more particularly on the northern side, where it stretches away to a very considerable distance from the river. St. Michan's Protestant Church is built upon that bed of sand ; the foundations, as a matter of course, were excavated through it, and laid upon a substratum of hard tenacious clay. The vaults underlying that church have been for centuries the receptacle of dead bodies a8 and, while some of those have been
;
enclosed for particular families, others have received indiscriminately the coffins and remains of various individuals. A remarkable feature of those
vaults is the antiseptic property they possess for preserving the bodies of
those persons therein deposited. A cemetery also surrounds the church ;
and, for a long series of years, it has been used as a favourite place for
interment, by the Catholics and Protestants of St. Michan's Parish.
If we could at all regard the Bollandists' Latin " Vita sancti Micheae" as a
safe authority, St. Michan was buried in his parochial church at Dublin.
Moreover, he died on the viii. of the September Kalends, according to the
same account 29 these statements are in accord with a reliable ; yet, probably,
popular and local tradition of remote origin.
'7 The accompanying illustration of the New Facade in Halston-street has been
ferred that sketch to the wood, engraved by Mrs. Millard.
"' Several of these were of cele- persons
brity. Among them were the two brothers, John and Henry Shears, who were executed as rebels in 1798, and of whom very full
memoirs are contained in Dr. Richard R. Madden's "United Irish- Evans, and issued, Dublin, 1 892, 4to. From men, their Lives and Times. " Second
it many of the previous statements have been edition, London, i860, 8vo.
drawn. Mr. William F. Wakeman trans- *' The Latin " Vita sancti Micheae "
ap-
from a
in the Irish Builder of October 1st, 1892, and which is given as a frontispiece to an
copied
lithograph,
which
appeared
interesting brochure, "The History of the Roman Catholic Church and Parish of St. and
interesting
Michan, Dublin," written by Mr. Edward
August 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 377
As has been already stated, at this date, in the ancient Martyrology of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, and now known as Christ Church, Dublin, there is a record of St. Michan, Confessor. 3° A more recent
hand has there inserted his title as a Bishop. 3
1
In the Martyrology of
3 at the
honour St. Michan of Cill Michen, in Ath-cliath, now Dublin city. No records seem to have been preserved, and which might serve to attest the year, when St. Michan's Church had been first erected ; but, it is not probable, that an earlier building stood on the site of its present vaults. However, the upper structure was remodelled or repaired at different periods. 33 Nor is there good warrant for the statement, that St. Michan's body is yet preserved in one of the church vaults. 34 It is altogether probable, however, that the holy ecclesiastic himself may have built that church during his life-time, and that he may have been buried therein, or at least, in the cemetery adjoining. It is likely, moreover, that the original church and cemetery were laid out, at one and the same time.
There is a place called Cloonymeaghan, in the barony of Corran, and
"
county of Sligo, and it has been rendered 3s
of Mhican. " According to tradition, it is stated, that St. Mhican, the patron
Donegal,*
25th
of we find that a festival was celebrated to August,
Cluain-michan, i. e. , the retreat of a parish in Dublin, which bears his name, was a bishop and confessor,
and an abbot. There a 6 dated 16th perhaps by Bull,3
December, 1488,37
8
Pope Innocent VIII. granted a license, permitting Eugene MacDonagh3 to found a monastery in that place, for Dominican friars. In the registry
of the order which had been preserved in Sligo, it is recorded that Bernard MacDonagh, the son of Dermot, called the prior, and a reader of divinity
pears to conclude with the following : the individual, whose memory it had been " Oratio : Deus, qui beatum Micheam intended to commemorate.
Many have
pontificem tuum inter innumera mirabilia
thought, that it was designed as a sculptural representation of St. Michan himself.
spaciosum mare sicco vestigio transire
fecisti : concede, quaesumus, nos ejus inter-
ventu ab omnibus nequitiis peccaminum its Scenery, Character," &c, vol. ii. , p. 312.
liberatos esse, secum in aeterna lsetitia con-
Per Dominum &c. " nostrum,"
3* See Mr. and Mrs. Hall's •» Ireland : 35 By the Rev. Thomas Walsh, in his
gaudere.
Concluding their notices of him, the Bol-
History
of the Irish and Hierarchy
" landists state :
Prseter haec, nihil novimus
Monasteries of Ireland," County of Sligo,
p. 645.
36 Thisgrantedfacultiestoer—ectthreenew
de isto qualicumque Michea, quo vel histo-
riam
ipsius comprobemus. "
vel cultum Dominican houses in Ireland one in Kil-
a fabulis — expurgemus,
'•
Acta Sanctorum," tomus v. , Augusti xxv. Among the pre-
ejus
Cloonymeaghan, in the diocese of Achonry.
See De " Hibernia Domi- Bishop Burgo's
nicana," cap. vii. , Num. vii. , p. 75.
37 My attention was first directed to this passage, by Mr. Edward Evans, in a letter headed 40 Corn-market, April 2nd, 1 89 1. He adds : "If St. Michan was born in the town or county of Sligo, and embraced Christianity there, about the ninth century, Saints by the Bollandists is found the and founded an anchorite or monastery
termitted Saints,
3° See "The Book of Obits and Martyro-
p. 3.
logy of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, commonly called Christ Church,
Dublin," edited by John Clarke Crosthwaite, A. M. , and Rev. Dr. James Henthorn Todd,
pp. 68 and 149.
31 Among notices of the pretermitted
" Michanus
variis Kalendariis in nostro Ms indice Osith of Colchester. This event would to a
following,
aliquis
notatur ex
there,
he should be with St. co-temporary
sanctorum, de quo supra. "—" Acta Sancto- rum," tomus v. , Augusti xxv. , p. 4.
3» Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 226, 227.
» When making some alterations in the
certain extent explain why a church was erect«d to his memory in Dublin two centuries later, at a time when the Danes of this country all embraced Catholicity, and had it doubly dedicated to him and to
interior an ancient* stone figure of an St. Osith. "
ecclesiastic was found in one of the side walls, and it is now visible ; but, it has no inscription or special indication to denote
38 In the Constitution of the Pope, he is called Eugenius Macdonchard.
3» However, De Burgo maintains, that it
dare, another in
Meath,
and the third in
378 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25.
there, founded the monastery of Clunimhilian, which afterwards became a cell to that of Sligo. 3^ Although suppressed at the time of the Refor- mation/ the remains of the church and the conventual buildings are still in a good state of preservation. The plan was much the same as the ruined Dominican buildings at Sligo, and having the conventual buildings towards the north. However, all the parts were smaller, as also less
ornate, not having any of the elaborate and artistic carving, which forms so
1
At the viii. of the Kalends of September, or the 25th of August,
a feature in the famous cloisters of
1
Sligo. '' Cloonymeighan
conspicuous
cemetery is now the chief burying place for the united parishes of Cloonog- hill, Kilshalvy and Kilturra.
In his day, the prophet Micheas lamented, that the holy men had perished from earth, and that none were found to be upright among men ; while he was left as one to glean in autumn only the few remaining grapes, whentherewasnoclustertoeat. Moreover,hecomplained,thatthewicked lay in wait for blood, and that every one of these hunted his brother to death, while the evil of their hands was called good, when unrighteousness abounded. Still hoping for the coming of his Saviour, and the taking away of iniquity, the prophet had confidence in the Divine mercy and promises, which should restore to Israel her true inheritance. *' Happily for us, living in a more enlightened age, the dark night ol persecution has ceased, and that sacrifice offered by St. Michan on the spot, hallowed by so many Catholic associations, has been renewed and perpetuated by zealous pastors, even to the present day.
Article II. —St. Sillan, Bishop and Abbot of Magh-bile, or
Moville. [Sixth ami Seventh Centuries. '] In the published Martyrology of Tallagh, a notice of this holy prelate's parentage and place of residence will be
found.
his name is likewise to be met in the Tallagh Martyrology contained in the Book of Leinster ; and there, besides his being called Bishop and Abbot of
he is said to have been son to Findchain. 2 In the
Life of St. Patrick,3 we are informed, that when the Irish Apostle directed his course to the northern parts, he came to a territory known as Bredach,4 where he found three Deacons, his own nephews, and who were the sons of his sister. There ruled Olild, son of Eugene, and there, too, on the Lord's Day, he celebrated the Holy Sacrifice and pointed out a spot on which a
Magh-Bile,
Tripartite
was an independent house, although owing
to the fewness of conventuals of its own, it
was ruled for some time by fathers of the
Sligo community. See " Hibernia Domi- Kelly's "Calendar of Irish Saints," &c,
nicana," cap. ix. , sect, xxxix. , p. 327.
40 It was then granted to the Taaffes, from whom, with the rest of the property, it passed to the Earl of Shelburne, except about two acres under and around the ruins. Those belonged to the Dodwells, and were transmitted by them to their relative, Mr.
Creighton.
41
See Ven. and Very Rev. Terence O'Rorke, D. D. , Archdeacon of Elphin, P. P. of Ballysadare and Kilvarnet, in his
"History of Sligo: Town and County,"
vol.
p. xxxiii.
'Thus reads that entry: Si Haw mac
fitrochAm epf Agur 4bb mobile, "See his Life at the 17th March, in the Third Volume of this work, Art. i. , chap. xiv. 4 So called from a stream that enters Lough Foyle, in that place. This territory comprised about the eastern half of the barony of Inishowen, and County of Donegal. This little river and Bredach-Glyn still retain the former name. See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters," vol. ii. , n.
ii. , chap. xxvi. ,p. 193.
(t), p. 1015.
« See Micheas, vii.
Article II. —
r ** Sillani mac Finncoin Ep. ocus Abb. Maighi Bile. " See Rev. Dr.
August 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 379
church should be built. There, also, the Apostle initiated iEngus,* the son of Oilill, to Holy Orders. Afterwards, that place was known as Domnach bile f but, who the first pastor of this Church had been is not recorded. The pre- sent holy man must have been born about the middle of the sixth century. Where his birth took place does not seem to be known, but probably it was in the northern part of Ireland, and most likely he was trained in a school established in Moville, County of Donegal, at a very early date. However, others consider him to have been connected with Magh-bile, or Moville, in theCountyofDown. ByonewellconversantwiththelanguageofIreland, it is stated, that Magh Bhile signifies the plain of the ancient tree, and as he believes, the early Christians in this island always took advantage of some site of pagan worship, at or near which to erect their churches ; it is con-
on account of some sanctuary of trees that grew on the plain, regarded as a Fidh-nemhedh or " sacred wood. " ' A modern and local writer conjec- tures, that this saint must have been Bishop over Inishowen. There is strong intrinsic evidence, in some archaeological remains found within the grave-yard of Donagh, to indicate that this locality had been formerly the seat of an episcopal church and a residence. Besides many other curious monuments of art, ancient and modern, a stone is pointed out, whereon the figure of a bishop, clothed in pontifical dress, with a crozier in his hand, is
jectured, that the church site of Magh-bhile was selected for such a purpose, ""
represented.
8 A monster
appears ready
to devour him. Behind this
figure
are two angels, bearing a cross, which is surmounted by a crown. These
figures are allegorical. Another figure resembles a round-tower. There
is also an Irish Cross, with four points deeply indented within a circle.
Thismonumentseemsofremoteantiquity,andit is thoughttodatesofar
back as the fifth or sixth century. 9 It would seem that St. Sillan flourished
towards the close of the sixth and the beginning of the seventh century.
About this time, he lived in or presided over the ancient monastery founded
10
at Moville.
The Annals of the Four Masters" and of Inisfallen, at 613, call him both bishop and abbot ; but the territory in which he actually lived has not been indicated. In our Calendars, Martyrologies, and Annals, Maghbile is often mentioned, and in a general and an absolute manner, without any allusion to a
Tighernach and the Annals of Ulster simply style him abbot.
second monastery of that name.
12
However, Harris has the two Movilles or
5 He is said to have been venerated as a probably set here before the Roman alphabet
Saint, on the 18th of February, at Druim was used in Ireland, as there are no
Bearta. See a further account of him, at characters upon it. It is 3^ feet long,
that date, in the Second Volume of this 11 inches broad, and a foot thick. " It lies
work, Art. ix. opposite the south side wall, and not far from
6
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," the corner of a Protestant church, within the
Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, ii. , cap. cxxii , p. 145.
old grave-yard. Itis shaded by giant ash trees,
"
Inishowen : Its Histoiy, Traditions and Antiquities," "A tract in the "Book of Ballymote" chap, xi. , pp. 1 12, 113, and chap, xviii. ,
7 Thus writes William James Doherty :
referring to the Argonautic expedition, the sacred shrine, where Polites and Priam were
killed by Pyrrhus, is called by the name of
p. 196.
10 It is stated hy William James Doherty,
that the patron Saint of Maghbile in Innis-
Fidh-nemhedh by the Irish translator, as owen is Finnian, or Finianus, abbot and
'' equivalent for the very aged laurel that spreads its branches over the altar, an—d which
owen and Tir-connell :
bishop, and that he is venerated in the Irish calendar on the nth of February. See
lI See Dr. O'Donovan's vol. edition,
embraced the Penates in its shades. "
"Innis-owen and Tirconnell
and sect, topographical,"
iv. , pp. 14, 15.
. "The Inishowen anonymous antiquarian states: "It is most likely the oldest-Christian monument in the North of Ireland, and was
i. ,
"Inis- Notes, antiquarian
anti- quarian and topographical," sect, iv. , p. 15.
9 S,ee Maghtochair's
pp. 240, 241.
" In consideration of such omission, and
as a faithful chronicler, Ware was right in
:
Notes,
380 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25,
Maghbiles, while he attributes the foundation of both these to St. Finnian. ^ Archdall goes further, and pretends to give the names of some of the abbots of Moville in Donegal? * It seems very probable, that he was led
The of that Index1* was deceived compiler
astray by
Topographicus
abbot over it.
22
There can be no question, however, but this excellent
to " Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Colgan's
the Index
niae," in which Finian is mentioned as having been at both Maghbiles.
by
Some difficulty has been presented, in ascertaining Siollan's exact place.
Archdall
16
places this saint over Moville, on Lough Foyle, in Inisowen. This
monastery of Domnach-bile, commonly called Maghbile, he says was founded by St. Patrick. On other and apparently more reliable authority, the St. Sillan or Siollan commemorated at this day was placed over Maghbile or
Moville,
neartheheadof
Strangford Lough,
inthe ofDown. 1? How- County
ever, that writer is supposed to have confounded Maghbile or Movill in
Donegal with the former place, owing to a similarity of names. Indeed,
Archdall seems to have been led a statement of 18 that astray by Colgan,
Donnaghbile was afterwards called Magh-bile, and that a monastery was 1
there placed. * It would be still more incorrect to state, that St. Patrick placed over it, ^Lngus, son of Olild. 20 It might be more probable, that
after arriving at mature age, ^Engus founded Donnaghbile, in Bredach,21
some years after the visit of St. Patrick to Inishowen. Some doubts are
expressed,astowhetherMovilleinDonegalhadbeeneveramonastery; for,
although adopting the affirmative opinion, Colgan could not make any person
topographer and antiquary had a perfect local knowledge of the spot ; and, even later, tradition and old monuments existing serve an important purpose, in giving more than probability to his opinion. Moville in Down was a well-knownmonastery,governedbySt. FinianorSt. Finnena3 inthesixth
century. It continued to flourish, until the period of the Reformation, when 2
in 1542 it was suppressed. * Formerly Moville, in Inishowen, formed but one parish, until the year 1788, when it was divided into two Protestant parishes. TheseweredenominatedUpperandLowerMoville. Accordingto
making but one Maghbile or Movill, vix. : that of Down. See " De Hibernia et
Antiquitatibus ejus," cap xxvi. , p. 181.
13 Not having in his day any better guide, Harris as editor should have adhered to Sir
James Ware, his author.
14 There we find an entry of such names
to clerical orders, by St. Patrick. Such
form of expression implies simply receiving tonsure. See the Vita Tripartita S.
1402, by Thomas Cranley, Archbishop of Dublin.
"
OldKing'sInns. " InthereignofCharles I. , the Duke of Ormonde became possessed of the Earl of Kildare's part of the property, a portion of which he laid out for building, and opened a new street, which he named Charles-street,inhonouroftheking. The remaining portion he laid out for a public market, which, although it has been long discontinuedassuch,still retainshisname. The Duke also caused the banks of that part of the Liffey adjoining to be walled in, and a new bridge to be erected over the river leading from Charles-street to Wood- quay. This was known as "Ormonde Bridge. "
16 Beforethesuppressionofmonasteries, in the sixteenth century, the Mayor, Re- corder, and Aldermen of the City of Dublin were obliged to assist at High Mass in the Church of St. Saviour, and to hear a sermon on the duties of magistrates preached in the church of this house on every Michaelmas Day. In1662,theCourtofClaimssathere, andin1688,theCourtofGrace; anddur- ing the abode of James II. in Ireland, he held a Parliament in the Cloisters. He also restored to the Dominicans their ancient priory, which was occupied only a short time ; for, on the accession of William III. , they were again obliged to desert it, and to seek a more safe retreat in Cook-street, over the water. The foundation-stone of the present Four Courts was laid by the Duke of Rutland, on the 13th of March, 1786, on the site of the old King's Inns ; and, in
x* On the suppression of the monasteries,
Patrick Hughes, the last prior of the Domi-
nican house, surrendered it to the Crown on
8th of July, in the thirty-first year of the
reign of King Henry VIII. The monastery
and its possessions were afterwards parcelled
out among the favourites of King Henry and
of Queen Elizabeth. Lord Chancellor Allen
and the judges of the other courts obtained ings in Henrietta-street was laid. The
"thesciteand precincts of the monastery and church, with the steeple and cemetery, and the edifices, mills, orchards, and gardens belonging to it, and fifteen messuages in the parish of St. Michan ; one messuage in St. Patrick-street, one messuage in New-street, and the moiety of a meadow called Ellen Hore's Mead, alias Gibbet's meadow. " Afterwards, Queen Elizabeth, in the twentieth year of her reign, granted to Gerald
former bridge over the Liffey fell in 1806, its foundations having been undermined, by a great flood in the river ; and, in 1813, the foundation of a new bridge was laid a short distance westward from the old bridge. The new erection was opened on St. Patrick's day, 1816, and since it has been named Rich- mond Bridge. See an article by Mr. Edward Evans, in the Irish Builder of July
15th, 1892, and from which the preceding
1802, the foundation-stone of the new build- '
374 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAIN1S. [August 25.
boundary of the gardens belonging to the Dominican Priory ; but subse- quently, it was granted to the Benchers of Kings Inns. a3 The Granary and other of the above-mentioned places are described in a Deed or grant made
a in 161 1 by King James I. *
Within the Parish of St. Michan, from the introduction of the English Reformation into Ireland, until about the beginning of the last century, the Catholics had no permanent or fixed place where they could assemble for Divine Service. They met most usually in private houses or in retired chambers, situated in back lanes, where they were denounced as recusants, and were subjected to fines and imprisonment for refusing to assist at Pro- testant worship. However, they had a brief respite from persecution during the reign of King James II. , who founded a Benedictine Nunnery in Channel-
accounts are abridged. circular-headed bays on each side, the width x ? This crypt now built up is situated of nave between bays being 24 ft. What
appears to be the new addition to the nave
within a large void space, or yard, popu-
known as "
so called after Mr. Elisha Bayly, who, for
upwards of half a century, carried on the
business of cabinet-maker and timber mer-
chant. Underneath this yard is a large inches.
larly
Bayly's
Timber
Yard,"
at the western end is much narrower than
the original part, it being 30 ft. in length, and 15 ft. in width.
crypt, or vault, 122 ft. long, varying in width from 15 ft. to 32 ft. , and about 14 ft.
21
The width of the chancel and choir is
in height. It is approached from the yard
by a flight of stone steps, about seventeen
in number, at the south side. At the bot- springs from the floor-level, and it is the
tom of these steps is a vaulted hall, 6 ft.
square, and at the western end a well about
8 ft. stone The deep, approached by steps.
well is now dried up and has been so for
many years past ; although, strange to say, the water once more sprung up for a brief
same width as the nave, but it is 4 ft. lower than the crown of nave.
23 states that "in Ormond Duhigg 1639
Market was then part of the gardens of King's Inns ; when laid out to its present use after the Restoration, its original name was New Market, but when the river was
period,andagaindisappeared. Thecrypt
is traditionally said to have been a store-
house for the poor in times of war and extended to both. About the year 1634,
famine, belonging to and supposed to lead from George's Hill to St. Mary's Abbey. The original entrance to this singularly con- structed place was by a narrow circular hall,
the summer houses were new built and it thus resembled the Temple Garden toward theriver,andGray'sInn,whereit fronted Cuckoo-lane, and the adjacent Villages of
'
and by a rather mysterious staircase, at the
eastern end from George's Hill. There <nre
traces of these yet extant in the crypt below.
It is thought, that some centuries ago, when
the bed of the River Liffey was shallow, or the site of St. Mary's abbey, Dublin ; a in some parts not more than a stream,
there was from this and from St. Mary's
Abbey, a subterraneous passage by which
the monks of the Abbey walked unobserved
in procession, on different special festivals,
to the Priory of the Holy Trinity, now western side of the south gate near the river
Christ Church Cathedral.
18
First, towards the South-west, supposed to lead to the Dominican Priory, on the site of which stands the present Four Courts ; secondly, north, via Anne-street, towards the Abbot's Garden, or Anchorite's Park," now the King's Inns, Henrietta-street ; and thirdly, south-east toward St. Mary's Abbey.
19 The nave, which seemsto have a modern addition, is 74ft. in length, 18 ft. in breadth, and about 1 5 ft. in height. The original nave was only 44 ft. in length, and it has 5
I iffey, all within the precinct ; the Anchor- —et's or Ankaster's park without the wall, N. the site of the Church of the said monas- tery, the Church porch, Church-yard, the dorture, and a ruinous tower and a court in the western part thereof, and a small piece of ground called Shillingfoord's Garden, all within the precinct, and all other heredita- ments within the said site, which were ever in the tenure of Robert Piphoe, Esq. , and Sir Edward Waterhouse, KntT, to hold, &c. See an article by Mr. Edward Evans in the
Irish Builder of August 1st, 1 892
20
The length of the chancel is 27 feet, 6
32 ft. , and in height from floor to ceiling about II ft. The choir is 15 feet in length.
32
The chancel arch, which is groined,
quayed in, the Viceroy's [Ormond] name
Grange Gorman and Glasmainoge.
24 This was made to Thomas Ilibbots and
William Crowe, Esqrs. , viz. , a mansion or house called the Abbott's Lodging, within
garden called the Abbott's garden ; a large orchard called the Common Orchard ; the Ashe Park, a granary called the Garnell over the outer gate ; 4 messuages lately called the Abbott's stable, lying on the
August 25. LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 375
row, in 1689, and to this was added a private chapel for the nuns ; but after
his reverses at the battle of the Boyne, that chapel was converted into
secular use for the Catholic parishioners. When the Rev. Dr. Cornelius
Nary, a very learned and distinguished priest,85 had been appointed to take
charge of the parish in 1702, notwithstanding the existence of the penal
laws, he ventured to build a new chapel for the accommodation of his flock.
It was situated on the south side of Mary's-lane ; and on the north-west
corner of Bull-lane. This was popularly known as Mary's-lane Chapel.
For the long period of thirty-six years, the Rev. Dr. Nary governed this
parish. He died in the year 1738. Several other zealous pastors succeeded
96
him.
The old Mary's-lane Chapel had been used by the Catholics until the
beginning of the present century, when finding it in a state of decay, the Rev. Christopher Wall, P. P. , resolved on the erection of a more suitable and com-
modious building. Accordingly, a public meeting was called, at which resolutions were passed for the proposed purchase of a piece of ground, on which a new parochial church and presbytery should be placed. A large
Michan's Catholic Church, Dublin.
North King-street, and known as North Anne-
street, on the northern side of the River LifTey. The Ven. and Very Rev. Arch-
's A brief Memoir has been published by Jesuits in Dublin ; or, Brief Biographic
Walter Harris—who was probably person- ally acquainted with him—and a list of his different writings has been given in Harris' Ware, vol. iii. , "The Writers of Ireland," Book i. , pp. 299, 300.
Sketches of those deceased Members of the Society of Jesus, who were born or who laboured in the Irish Metropolis, with an Account of the Parish of St. Michan, their ancient residence, presenting Details of its Abbey, Priory, Churches, Convents, Schools, Pastors, Curates, Religious," etc. Dublin, 1854, i2mo.
36 A
of these will be found in a valuable tract published by William J. Battersby, "The
very interesting
and accurate account
sumwassubscribed. Soon a site was selected and pur- chased. The building was commenced about the year 181 1, and it was finished before 1814, Theeast end of the church terminated in
ablankwall,whichseparated it from or rather united it
with the presbytery, erected after the year 1820, and which faced on Halston- street. The plot of ground on which both stand was sold on the 30th of April, 1853, m ^e Incumbered Estates Court, when it was purchased in trust for the parishioners.
The front entrance of that Catholic Church, dedicated to St. Michan and built in Gothic style, is sit—uated
in a backward street
off
376 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25.
deacon James M'Mahon, P. P. , erected a new Presbytery for the curates of the parish in Halston-street, and a handsome Gothic church, which
was dedicated to St. Joseph, on Berkeley-road. Afterwards, the Very Rev. Robert F. Canon Conlan, P. P. , who succeeded in 1890 to St. Michan's division of the old parish—a new parish of St. Joseph having been formed around the recently-erected church—resolved on demolishing the former presbytery, with a view of enlarging St. Michan's Church, by extending it to Halston-street. Accordingly on the Sunday, November 14th, 1 89 1, His Grace Most Rev. William J. Walsh, Archbishop of Dublin, presided at a public meeting of the parishioners, who subscribed over ^1,000, after the ceremony of laying the foundation-stone of the new building had taken place. By this most desirable improvement, the church has been lengthened over thirty feet ; while the addition com-
2
prises exteriorly a lofty tower and belfry turret, ? with two entrances to the
church from Halston-street, and interiorly, a chancel, with two side chapels, elegantly designed and suitably decorated, has been constructed. The chancel window, erected in the perpendicular Gothic style, has a very im-
posingappearance. Thetowerrisestoaheightofninety-fourfeet,andit comprises five stories. The main entrance has a double-bayed window over
it ; while a similar window is placed on the corresponding compartment, beside the large chancel-window. Triple lancet windows are in the tower, and lighting the bell-ringing chamber. Above this, there is a circular chiselled limestone case for a clock. The tower-turrets and gables are crenellated ; the whole frontage presenting a very imposing appearance.
The immediate substratum of the entire of the district occupying both sides, in immediate contiguity with the River Lififey, is composed of a bed or series of veins of sand. It varies in depth from 6 in. to 10 ft. or 12 ft. , and this occurs more particularly on the northern side, where it stretches away to a very considerable distance from the river. St. Michan's Protestant Church is built upon that bed of sand ; the foundations, as a matter of course, were excavated through it, and laid upon a substratum of hard tenacious clay. The vaults underlying that church have been for centuries the receptacle of dead bodies a8 and, while some of those have been
;
enclosed for particular families, others have received indiscriminately the coffins and remains of various individuals. A remarkable feature of those
vaults is the antiseptic property they possess for preserving the bodies of
those persons therein deposited. A cemetery also surrounds the church ;
and, for a long series of years, it has been used as a favourite place for
interment, by the Catholics and Protestants of St. Michan's Parish.
If we could at all regard the Bollandists' Latin " Vita sancti Micheae" as a
safe authority, St. Michan was buried in his parochial church at Dublin.
Moreover, he died on the viii. of the September Kalends, according to the
same account 29 these statements are in accord with a reliable ; yet, probably,
popular and local tradition of remote origin.
'7 The accompanying illustration of the New Facade in Halston-street has been
ferred that sketch to the wood, engraved by Mrs. Millard.
"' Several of these were of cele- persons
brity. Among them were the two brothers, John and Henry Shears, who were executed as rebels in 1798, and of whom very full
memoirs are contained in Dr. Richard R. Madden's "United Irish- Evans, and issued, Dublin, 1 892, 4to. From men, their Lives and Times. " Second
it many of the previous statements have been edition, London, i860, 8vo.
drawn. Mr. William F. Wakeman trans- *' The Latin " Vita sancti Micheae "
ap-
from a
in the Irish Builder of October 1st, 1892, and which is given as a frontispiece to an
copied
lithograph,
which
appeared
interesting brochure, "The History of the Roman Catholic Church and Parish of St. and
interesting
Michan, Dublin," written by Mr. Edward
August 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 377
As has been already stated, at this date, in the ancient Martyrology of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, and now known as Christ Church, Dublin, there is a record of St. Michan, Confessor. 3° A more recent
hand has there inserted his title as a Bishop. 3
1
In the Martyrology of
3 at the
honour St. Michan of Cill Michen, in Ath-cliath, now Dublin city. No records seem to have been preserved, and which might serve to attest the year, when St. Michan's Church had been first erected ; but, it is not probable, that an earlier building stood on the site of its present vaults. However, the upper structure was remodelled or repaired at different periods. 33 Nor is there good warrant for the statement, that St. Michan's body is yet preserved in one of the church vaults. 34 It is altogether probable, however, that the holy ecclesiastic himself may have built that church during his life-time, and that he may have been buried therein, or at least, in the cemetery adjoining. It is likely, moreover, that the original church and cemetery were laid out, at one and the same time.
There is a place called Cloonymeaghan, in the barony of Corran, and
"
county of Sligo, and it has been rendered 3s
of Mhican. " According to tradition, it is stated, that St. Mhican, the patron
Donegal,*
25th
of we find that a festival was celebrated to August,
Cluain-michan, i. e. , the retreat of a parish in Dublin, which bears his name, was a bishop and confessor,
and an abbot. There a 6 dated 16th perhaps by Bull,3
December, 1488,37
8
Pope Innocent VIII. granted a license, permitting Eugene MacDonagh3 to found a monastery in that place, for Dominican friars. In the registry
of the order which had been preserved in Sligo, it is recorded that Bernard MacDonagh, the son of Dermot, called the prior, and a reader of divinity
pears to conclude with the following : the individual, whose memory it had been " Oratio : Deus, qui beatum Micheam intended to commemorate.
Many have
pontificem tuum inter innumera mirabilia
thought, that it was designed as a sculptural representation of St. Michan himself.
spaciosum mare sicco vestigio transire
fecisti : concede, quaesumus, nos ejus inter-
ventu ab omnibus nequitiis peccaminum its Scenery, Character," &c, vol. ii. , p. 312.
liberatos esse, secum in aeterna lsetitia con-
Per Dominum &c. " nostrum,"
3* See Mr. and Mrs. Hall's •» Ireland : 35 By the Rev. Thomas Walsh, in his
gaudere.
Concluding their notices of him, the Bol-
History
of the Irish and Hierarchy
" landists state :
Prseter haec, nihil novimus
Monasteries of Ireland," County of Sligo,
p. 645.
36 Thisgrantedfacultiestoer—ectthreenew
de isto qualicumque Michea, quo vel histo-
riam
ipsius comprobemus. "
vel cultum Dominican houses in Ireland one in Kil-
a fabulis — expurgemus,
'•
Acta Sanctorum," tomus v. , Augusti xxv. Among the pre-
ejus
Cloonymeaghan, in the diocese of Achonry.
See De " Hibernia Domi- Bishop Burgo's
nicana," cap. vii. , Num. vii. , p. 75.
37 My attention was first directed to this passage, by Mr. Edward Evans, in a letter headed 40 Corn-market, April 2nd, 1 89 1. He adds : "If St. Michan was born in the town or county of Sligo, and embraced Christianity there, about the ninth century, Saints by the Bollandists is found the and founded an anchorite or monastery
termitted Saints,
3° See "The Book of Obits and Martyro-
p. 3.
logy of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, commonly called Christ Church,
Dublin," edited by John Clarke Crosthwaite, A. M. , and Rev. Dr. James Henthorn Todd,
pp. 68 and 149.
31 Among notices of the pretermitted
" Michanus
variis Kalendariis in nostro Ms indice Osith of Colchester. This event would to a
following,
aliquis
notatur ex
there,
he should be with St. co-temporary
sanctorum, de quo supra. "—" Acta Sancto- rum," tomus v. , Augusti xxv. , p. 4.
3» Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 226, 227.
» When making some alterations in the
certain extent explain why a church was erect«d to his memory in Dublin two centuries later, at a time when the Danes of this country all embraced Catholicity, and had it doubly dedicated to him and to
interior an ancient* stone figure of an St. Osith. "
ecclesiastic was found in one of the side walls, and it is now visible ; but, it has no inscription or special indication to denote
38 In the Constitution of the Pope, he is called Eugenius Macdonchard.
3» However, De Burgo maintains, that it
dare, another in
Meath,
and the third in
378 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25.
there, founded the monastery of Clunimhilian, which afterwards became a cell to that of Sligo. 3^ Although suppressed at the time of the Refor- mation/ the remains of the church and the conventual buildings are still in a good state of preservation. The plan was much the same as the ruined Dominican buildings at Sligo, and having the conventual buildings towards the north. However, all the parts were smaller, as also less
ornate, not having any of the elaborate and artistic carving, which forms so
1
At the viii. of the Kalends of September, or the 25th of August,
a feature in the famous cloisters of
1
Sligo. '' Cloonymeighan
conspicuous
cemetery is now the chief burying place for the united parishes of Cloonog- hill, Kilshalvy and Kilturra.
In his day, the prophet Micheas lamented, that the holy men had perished from earth, and that none were found to be upright among men ; while he was left as one to glean in autumn only the few remaining grapes, whentherewasnoclustertoeat. Moreover,hecomplained,thatthewicked lay in wait for blood, and that every one of these hunted his brother to death, while the evil of their hands was called good, when unrighteousness abounded. Still hoping for the coming of his Saviour, and the taking away of iniquity, the prophet had confidence in the Divine mercy and promises, which should restore to Israel her true inheritance. *' Happily for us, living in a more enlightened age, the dark night ol persecution has ceased, and that sacrifice offered by St. Michan on the spot, hallowed by so many Catholic associations, has been renewed and perpetuated by zealous pastors, even to the present day.
Article II. —St. Sillan, Bishop and Abbot of Magh-bile, or
Moville. [Sixth ami Seventh Centuries. '] In the published Martyrology of Tallagh, a notice of this holy prelate's parentage and place of residence will be
found.
his name is likewise to be met in the Tallagh Martyrology contained in the Book of Leinster ; and there, besides his being called Bishop and Abbot of
he is said to have been son to Findchain. 2 In the
Life of St. Patrick,3 we are informed, that when the Irish Apostle directed his course to the northern parts, he came to a territory known as Bredach,4 where he found three Deacons, his own nephews, and who were the sons of his sister. There ruled Olild, son of Eugene, and there, too, on the Lord's Day, he celebrated the Holy Sacrifice and pointed out a spot on which a
Magh-Bile,
Tripartite
was an independent house, although owing
to the fewness of conventuals of its own, it
was ruled for some time by fathers of the
Sligo community. See " Hibernia Domi- Kelly's "Calendar of Irish Saints," &c,
nicana," cap. ix. , sect, xxxix. , p. 327.
40 It was then granted to the Taaffes, from whom, with the rest of the property, it passed to the Earl of Shelburne, except about two acres under and around the ruins. Those belonged to the Dodwells, and were transmitted by them to their relative, Mr.
Creighton.
41
See Ven. and Very Rev. Terence O'Rorke, D. D. , Archdeacon of Elphin, P. P. of Ballysadare and Kilvarnet, in his
"History of Sligo: Town and County,"
vol.
p. xxxiii.
'Thus reads that entry: Si Haw mac
fitrochAm epf Agur 4bb mobile, "See his Life at the 17th March, in the Third Volume of this work, Art. i. , chap. xiv. 4 So called from a stream that enters Lough Foyle, in that place. This territory comprised about the eastern half of the barony of Inishowen, and County of Donegal. This little river and Bredach-Glyn still retain the former name. See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters," vol. ii. , n.
ii. , chap. xxvi. ,p. 193.
(t), p. 1015.
« See Micheas, vii.
Article II. —
r ** Sillani mac Finncoin Ep. ocus Abb. Maighi Bile. " See Rev. Dr.
August 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 379
church should be built. There, also, the Apostle initiated iEngus,* the son of Oilill, to Holy Orders. Afterwards, that place was known as Domnach bile f but, who the first pastor of this Church had been is not recorded. The pre- sent holy man must have been born about the middle of the sixth century. Where his birth took place does not seem to be known, but probably it was in the northern part of Ireland, and most likely he was trained in a school established in Moville, County of Donegal, at a very early date. However, others consider him to have been connected with Magh-bile, or Moville, in theCountyofDown. ByonewellconversantwiththelanguageofIreland, it is stated, that Magh Bhile signifies the plain of the ancient tree, and as he believes, the early Christians in this island always took advantage of some site of pagan worship, at or near which to erect their churches ; it is con-
on account of some sanctuary of trees that grew on the plain, regarded as a Fidh-nemhedh or " sacred wood. " ' A modern and local writer conjec- tures, that this saint must have been Bishop over Inishowen. There is strong intrinsic evidence, in some archaeological remains found within the grave-yard of Donagh, to indicate that this locality had been formerly the seat of an episcopal church and a residence. Besides many other curious monuments of art, ancient and modern, a stone is pointed out, whereon the figure of a bishop, clothed in pontifical dress, with a crozier in his hand, is
jectured, that the church site of Magh-bhile was selected for such a purpose, ""
represented.
8 A monster
appears ready
to devour him. Behind this
figure
are two angels, bearing a cross, which is surmounted by a crown. These
figures are allegorical. Another figure resembles a round-tower. There
is also an Irish Cross, with four points deeply indented within a circle.
Thismonumentseemsofremoteantiquity,andit is thoughttodatesofar
back as the fifth or sixth century. 9 It would seem that St. Sillan flourished
towards the close of the sixth and the beginning of the seventh century.
About this time, he lived in or presided over the ancient monastery founded
10
at Moville.
The Annals of the Four Masters" and of Inisfallen, at 613, call him both bishop and abbot ; but the territory in which he actually lived has not been indicated. In our Calendars, Martyrologies, and Annals, Maghbile is often mentioned, and in a general and an absolute manner, without any allusion to a
Tighernach and the Annals of Ulster simply style him abbot.
second monastery of that name.
12
However, Harris has the two Movilles or
5 He is said to have been venerated as a probably set here before the Roman alphabet
Saint, on the 18th of February, at Druim was used in Ireland, as there are no
Bearta. See a further account of him, at characters upon it. It is 3^ feet long,
that date, in the Second Volume of this 11 inches broad, and a foot thick. " It lies
work, Art. ix. opposite the south side wall, and not far from
6
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," the corner of a Protestant church, within the
Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, ii. , cap. cxxii , p. 145.
old grave-yard. Itis shaded by giant ash trees,
"
Inishowen : Its Histoiy, Traditions and Antiquities," "A tract in the "Book of Ballymote" chap, xi. , pp. 1 12, 113, and chap, xviii. ,
7 Thus writes William James Doherty :
referring to the Argonautic expedition, the sacred shrine, where Polites and Priam were
killed by Pyrrhus, is called by the name of
p. 196.
10 It is stated hy William James Doherty,
that the patron Saint of Maghbile in Innis-
Fidh-nemhedh by the Irish translator, as owen is Finnian, or Finianus, abbot and
'' equivalent for the very aged laurel that spreads its branches over the altar, an—d which
owen and Tir-connell :
bishop, and that he is venerated in the Irish calendar on the nth of February. See
lI See Dr. O'Donovan's vol. edition,
embraced the Penates in its shades. "
"Innis-owen and Tirconnell
and sect, topographical,"
iv. , pp. 14, 15.
. "The Inishowen anonymous antiquarian states: "It is most likely the oldest-Christian monument in the North of Ireland, and was
i. ,
"Inis- Notes, antiquarian
anti- quarian and topographical," sect, iv. , p. 15.
9 S,ee Maghtochair's
pp. 240, 241.
" In consideration of such omission, and
as a faithful chronicler, Ware was right in
:
Notes,
380 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 25,
Maghbiles, while he attributes the foundation of both these to St. Finnian. ^ Archdall goes further, and pretends to give the names of some of the abbots of Moville in Donegal? * It seems very probable, that he was led
The of that Index1* was deceived compiler
astray by
Topographicus
abbot over it.
22
There can be no question, however, but this excellent
to " Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Colgan's
the Index
niae," in which Finian is mentioned as having been at both Maghbiles.
by
Some difficulty has been presented, in ascertaining Siollan's exact place.
Archdall
16
places this saint over Moville, on Lough Foyle, in Inisowen. This
monastery of Domnach-bile, commonly called Maghbile, he says was founded by St. Patrick. On other and apparently more reliable authority, the St. Sillan or Siollan commemorated at this day was placed over Maghbile or
Moville,
neartheheadof
Strangford Lough,
inthe ofDown. 1? How- County
ever, that writer is supposed to have confounded Maghbile or Movill in
Donegal with the former place, owing to a similarity of names. Indeed,
Archdall seems to have been led a statement of 18 that astray by Colgan,
Donnaghbile was afterwards called Magh-bile, and that a monastery was 1
there placed. * It would be still more incorrect to state, that St. Patrick placed over it, ^Lngus, son of Olild. 20 It might be more probable, that
after arriving at mature age, ^Engus founded Donnaghbile, in Bredach,21
some years after the visit of St. Patrick to Inishowen. Some doubts are
expressed,astowhetherMovilleinDonegalhadbeeneveramonastery; for,
although adopting the affirmative opinion, Colgan could not make any person
topographer and antiquary had a perfect local knowledge of the spot ; and, even later, tradition and old monuments existing serve an important purpose, in giving more than probability to his opinion. Moville in Down was a well-knownmonastery,governedbySt. FinianorSt. Finnena3 inthesixth
century. It continued to flourish, until the period of the Reformation, when 2
in 1542 it was suppressed. * Formerly Moville, in Inishowen, formed but one parish, until the year 1788, when it was divided into two Protestant parishes. TheseweredenominatedUpperandLowerMoville. Accordingto
making but one Maghbile or Movill, vix. : that of Down. See " De Hibernia et
Antiquitatibus ejus," cap xxvi. , p. 181.
13 Not having in his day any better guide, Harris as editor should have adhered to Sir
James Ware, his author.
14 There we find an entry of such names
to clerical orders, by St. Patrick. Such
form of expression implies simply receiving tonsure. See the Vita Tripartita S.
