"
Some of these belonged to Corbie and
8
See the Second Volume of this work, at
3
that date, Art.
Some of these belonged to Corbie and
8
See the Second Volume of this work, at
3
that date, Art.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v6
Damnoda or Dymna,
surnamed Schene, or " the fugitive," was the daughter to Damen, son to
Corpre, surnamed Damh-airgid, son to Eochod, the son of Crimthann, son to
Fieg,&c,oftheCollaDachriochrace. Hesays,thatherfeastwasheldon
the 13th of June,3 in Ireland, according . to our native Martyrologies, while in
Belgium it was celebrated on the 15th of May. * He also remarks, that in
some this saint's name is found " mac
Manuscripts, written, Damand-Scene, Daimhen," &c, which means, " Damand, the fugitive, the son of Damen. " It is thought, that two errors have crept into these Manuscripts, at this particular
passage. The first was, the transposition of a letter, which converted Damnad, into Damand. For, there was a very celebrated virgin, of the Oirgiell race, called Damnad, who was venerated as patron of Orgiell ; whilst there is no saint, male or female, in Irish Martyrologies or Annals, whose name was Damand. The second error appears to. have been, that instead of these
words, " Mac-Daimen," we should read, " Daimhein," or " Ingen
Ingen mhic-Daimhein," which would mean, " the daughter of Damen," or " the daughter of Damen's son. "* Both Drs. George Petrie and John O'Donovan
thought, however, there was much reason to doubt Colgan's opinion, that the St. Davnet, venerated in Ireland on the 13th of June, and the St. Dympna, whose feast was on the 15th of May in Belgium, could have been one and the same person. Nor do we feel inclined to believe, that the Damnat of Sleibhe Betha, venerated on the 13th of June, and alluded to in the Martyrology of Tallagh, can be fairly identified with St. Dympna, patroness of Gheel. In the year 1835, while Mr. O'Donovan was travelling in the county of Monaghan, he suspected, that the name of this parish must have been derived from a St. Damhnat,6 whose habitation had been there. Then a popular tradition pre- vailed among the old inhabitants, that a St. Davnet was the first founder of
the old church in their parish. 7 They had no idea, however, regarding the age in which that female saint lived, but they thought it was a long time after
the introduction of
Christianity.
On
being
furnished with extracts 8 from the
" The more recent hand adds here
quiimcep, Mar. Matt. Taml. ,' meaning at that date, her Life is written. See
tioprat : '
* Tn the Fifth Volume of this work, and Art. i.
s
Edited by Rev. Drs. nice," xxi. Martii, Appendix ad Acta S.
that he is called Cruimter, not Cruimtheran,
in those — Martyrologies. "
See
Colgan's
"Acta . Sanctorum Hiber-
Article v.
•
Todd and — Endei,
Reeves, pp. 168, 169. iv. ,pp. 713, 714.
•6 Edited by Rev. Dr.
Article, vi. Kelly,p. xxvii.
3
According to the Tract attributed to St. /Engus. " De Matribus Sanctorum Hiber- niae. "
3 See "Acta Sanctorum I Iibernia? ," xxi.
lie conjectured, that the compound de- rivativeswereci5,orcec,orcoig,meaning
a house, and 'O. drmiAice or "OAinrtATOe, a
proper name,
7 For a very interesting account of Tcdav-
net, the reader is referred to Evelyn Philip
Martii, Appendix ad Acta S. /Endei, cap. Shirley's "History of the County of iv\, pp, 713, 714. Monaghan," chap, xi. , pp. 300 to 308.
[June 13.
June 13. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 661
Irish Calendar, he identified Tedavnet with the St. Damhnat, whose feast
occurs at this date. Slieve Beagh lies to the north-west of the parish of
Tedavnet,? which is within the barony and county of Monaghan. 10 That
mountain range—forming about one-fourth part of the parish—stretches
towardsTyrone. Therewasanoldchurch,formerlyintheparish,whichis
now 11 This ruined church a about utterlydestroyed. onlypresents fragment,
six feet by four, at the present time, and it has been made to serve as a
monument for the Robinson 12 This " Bith's Moun- family. place, Anglicized
tain," is situated on the confines of the counties of Monaghan and of Fer- managh. ^ IntheparishofTedavnetwaskeptacrozierofthesaint,called Bachall DamhnaitJ* which remained in possession of a man, named Lamb. He stated, that this relic had been in his family from time immemorial, having descended to him as an heirloom. Some eight years before he had been accustomed to send it as far as Newry and Dundalk, for the use of persons, who swore on it. Deponents were said to be in great danger, if they swore falsely. Some fearful change of their features was an apprehended result ; but, the most usual alteration was said to be their mouths turning awry, or towards the ear. Many persons, when accused of theft by their neighbours, and when threatened, that the Bachall Damhnait should be sent for, frequently came and acknowledged their guilt; for, they feared the result of a false deposi- tion on this relic. 15 In the Martyrology of Donegal l6 is Damhnat, virgin, of
pp. 30, 40.
dated Monaghan, May 4th, 1835.
12 The cemetery of Tedavnet may be seen, in the illustration in our Life of St. Dympna, in the Fifth Volume of this work, at May 15th, Art. i. , chap. v.
x3 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (f), p. 3.
•4 This curious relic of St. Davnet existed in the year 1835, when it was seen by Mr.
O'Donovan, Academy's Museum.
An engraving of it is
in
Evelyn Philip Shirley's
tory of the County of Monaghan," chap, xi. ,
"
p. 301.
presented
but it was so defaced, that Mr. O'Donovan
Martyrs, and other principal Saints," vol. vi. , June
The owner said he had been offered £zo for it, which he re-
xiii. 20
could not decipher it.
pointed
object.
Mr. O'Donovan's Letter is
and it is now in the Irish Royal
" His-
js '» "Lives of the Fathers, This crozier exhibited an inscription, See
In the Irish Calendar, belonging to the
Sliabh Betha, at the 13th of June.
Irish Ordnance 1 ? there is an — —Survey,
? findnoticesofSt. Damhnade; and,intheCircleoftheSeasons2°ismen- tionedDamka-nade,Virgin,inIreland. IntheManuscriptofTrinityCollege,
Dublin, classed B. 3, 12, we find at June 13, Ides, Damnate, Virgo.
entry
Ides or 13th of June. At this date, in the Rev. Alban Butler's work,
1
we
Article VII. —The Venerable Caius Ccelius . Sedulius.
This distinguished man is said to have been a Priest of the Scots, and to have been
8 By Mr. O'Keeffe, then in Dublin. 9 In Irish CeAch 'OArrfn&c.
County of Monaghan," sheet 6.
" See " Letters containing Information
relative to the Antiquities of the Counties of Armagh and Monaghan, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1835,"
fused, although he was then willing to take half the sum for this curious antiquarian
He also said, that three men were about buying it from him, at the time. One of these was named as Doctor Bell, a Scotch- man, who spent eight days at his house, taking sketches of the relic. With great difficulty, Mr. O'Donovan was able to learn from Lamb, that his father used to call him- self O'luAin, a name which is to be found amongst families, descended from the three Collas in Oriel. This family originally lived in the parish of Tedavnet. See "Letters containing Information relative to the Anti- quities of the Counties of Armagh and Monaghan, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1835. " Mr. O'Donovan's Letter, dated Monaghan, May 9th, 1835, pp. 68 to 70.
"6 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
168, 169.
J ? It is now preserved in the Royal Irish
Academy's Library,
l8 Thus: T>ArhnAr; 65 6 Sliab OeacA.
10 The exact location is
out on the " Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the
l8 of St. Damhnat's festival, at the
See p. 165.
662 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[June 13.
a disciple of Hildebert, Archbishop of the Scots, from an early age, to
have left his own country, and to have travelled abroad through France,
1
Italy,AsiaandAchaia,inGreece. InRome,likewise,hewasdistinguished
for his learning. At this date, Thomas Dempster 2 has allusion to the feast
of Sedulius,3 whom he makes a bishop in Greece. According to him, the relation of his relics which were deposited in the monastery of Kilwinnon
belongstothe13thJune. 4 DistrustingthestatementsofDempster,however, the Bollandists 5 are unwilling to accept his authority for Sedulius being a
collected from various sources as quoted, some notices of Caius or Ccelius Sedulius;? but,thereislittlethereproducedtothrowanylightonhisbiogra- phy. Itisstated,byCamerarius,thatafestivaltocommemoratethevene- rable and learned Caius Ccelius Sedulius, had been observed on the 13th of June. Our notices of this distinguished person have been already set down,
8
Article VIII. —Feast of St. Bartholomew, Apostle. In the Feilire of St. ^Engus, the feast of St. Bartholomew the Aposile is commemo-
Grecian 6 but Bishop,
insert some notices of him, at this
that Colgan has alluded to one known as the Venerable Sedulius, at the 12th of February, and who appears to be quite different from the present assumed Greek Bishop. In his Scottish Ecclesiastical History, Thomas Dempster has
at the 1 2 th day of February.
the 28th of December, he writes:
Cavac
Reliquiarum Sedulii depositio et venera- tio. "
5 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii
xiii. Among the pretermitted saints, p. 66s.
* See " Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii
xiii. Among the pretermitted feasts. Article ix. — See the Second Vo-
lume of this work, at that date, Art. i. * *'
*
That he was a bishop is asserted on the
tomus ii. , Junii xiii. saints, p. 664.
'
*
Among the pretermitted Edited by Rev. Dr. Seethe SecondVolume
they
date, remarking
at the of 1 This is set down as the of his Natalis, in
13th June.
day
Again, Ferrarius remarks, th—at
rated,
Persia, according to some old Manuscripts.
this was the day for the Arrival of his Body, at Lipara. The Bollandists 3 who note this feast —promise a further examination of these matters, at the 24th of August, the date for his chief festival.
Article IX. —Festival of the Exhumation of St. Anatolius' Relics,
atSalins,inFrance. Alreadyhavewerecordedthisholypilgrim'sActs,
at the of 1 where the few notices left him have been 3rd February, regarding
given. This day, however, is the anniversary for celebrating the Exhumation
of St. Anatolius' remains, by Hugo, Archbishop of Besancon, in the eleventh 2
century.
Article X. —St. Branduibh, Bishop. At this date, a Bishop Bran-
duibh had veneration paid him, as we find set down in the Martyrology of
1 Tallagh.
Article vil. —*
2"
In his Menologium Scotorum. "
3 " Relatio reliquiarum Sedulii in Graecia
—in Kilvvinnin monasterio re- episcopi, quae "
conditae. B. " Bishop Forbes' Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 202.
4 Dempster refers the date of his deposi- tion to the 13th of January, while again, at
According
in his Liber de Scriptoribus Ecclesiasticis.
p. 572.
toTrithemius
authority of Sigebert. "—
7 See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Sco- torum," tomus i. , lib. iii. , num. 229, pp. 128 to 131, and tomus ii. , lib. xvii. , num. 1028,
Article x.
"
Some of these belonged to Corbie and
8
See the Second Volume of this work, at
3
that date, Art. i. , chap. ii.
' *'
Article viii. — See Transactions of
the Irish Irish
Royal Academy," Manuscript
Series, vol i. , part i.
On the Calendar of
Oengus. By Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p.
xciv. Also, gloss, at p. cii.
a
to Lucca.
See the Bollandists' Acta Sanctorum,"
Kelly, p. xxvii. — Article XI.
June 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
663
Article XI. —Feast for the Translation of the Relics of St. Aldetrude, or Aldetrudis, Virgin and Abbess of Malbod or Mau- beuge, Belgium. At the 25th of February—the chief feast of this holy woman—we have inserted her 1 on
already Acts; but,
tion of her Relics is commemorated, according to Grevan's additions to the Carthusian Martyrology of Bruxelles. 2
Article XII. —St. Caninus. In the anonymous list of Irish Saints
published by O'Sullevan Beare,1 at the 13th of June, we meet with a St!
Caninus, as also in Father Henry Fitzsimon's Catalogue of some Irish 2
Saints, where he is set down as Kaninus. The Bollandists 3 likewise men- tion him, but further particulars regarding this saint is unknown.
tfourtetnti) 23aj) of %\\\\t.
ARTICLE I. —ST. NEM MAC UA BIRN, ABBOT OF ARRAN, COUNTY OF GALWAY.
[SIXTH AND SEVENTH CENTURIES. ]
THE peaked and serrated ridges of Arran display the granite, gneiss, and
scienite while bended headland has its geological structure, every
2
Nem mac h-Birn. He was born probably before the close of the sixth cen- tury. He is also venerated, on this day, in the " Feilire"3 of St. yEngus, where he is called the vigorous descendant of Birn. A commentator adds, that Nem was Papa of Aran, and that he was of Dal Birn of Ossory/ Again, he states, that Nem was successor to Enne of Aran, and that he was called the Papa, who used to be in Aran. s We are informed, besides, that Nem
own 1 In one of the geographic profile.
on the
ing to the Martyrology of Tallagh, a festival was celebrated in honour of
was brother to 6 of Ciaran,
incorrect. as St. Again,
this is
Enda? died about, or some short time after, the year 540, St. Nem cannot
CorrapecAC t>ibLinAib £o]\Aetilich ler^ r- LuAjjAch nemmAChuibij\nbwjAch La benit>Achc mbuA-OAcli.
" They me^t both on one festival, a hostful
Saighir; but, be regarded as his immediate successor.
quite
Little more is recorded of the pre-
of this work, at February 25th, Art. ii. 2"
See the Bollandists' Acta Sanctorum,"
tomusii. ,Juniixiii. Amongthepretermitted feasts.
Article xii. —' See " Historiae Catho- licse Ibemicse Compendium," lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 50.
sea—Nem, the vigorous descen—dant of Bern, "
ting work was printed A. D. 1619.
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii Manuscript Series, vol. i. , parti. On the
Among
the— saints, pretermitted
Calendar of
by Whitley Stokes,
xiii. Article
p. 665.
Oengus, xciv.
i. See Walter Dandy's " Beautiful Islets of Britaine. " 2 Edited Rev. Dr. xxvii.
LL. D. ,
4 See ibid. , p. cii
s We are informed, moreover, it was from
by Kelly, p.
3 In the " Leabhar Breac "
Cooper
p.
Rome that Papa came, and that he chose his panegyric, and it is translated into his sepulchre in A*-an.
we read
English by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :— 6 See an account of him, in the Third
copy
Islands,
13th
of accord- June,
this day, the Transla-
with Benedict the victorious" Transac-
tions of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish
664 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 14.
sent saint, than the date of his departure from this life.
He seems to have
lived at Killeany, on the Island of Aranmore, during the first half of the
seventh 8 A former of Tuam,9 who had
century. distinguished Archbishop
courteously furnished our great national hagiologist with a tabular list of churches and their patrons in his diocese, supposed that a St. Benedict, vene- rated on the 14th of June, as stated by the Cashel Calendar, must have been identical with St. Nehemias,10 reverenced at the same date, as found in our other Martyrologies. Yet, we meet no very satisfactory elucidation, regard- ing the locality or personality of a saint, known by either name. 11 The title
12 at the same date, as Nem Mac Ua Birn, abbot, comorbanor successor to St. Enda, of Ara. The Rev. Alban Butler registers St. Nennus, or Nehemias, Abbot, at the 14th of June. 13 St. Nennus, of Ireland, abbot, is also entered, in the CircleoftheSeasons. 1* Hedieda. d. 654,accordingtotheAnnalsofUlster and of the Four Masters. 15 It is in solitude and surrounded by beautiful objects of nature, that a pious soul and an elevated intellect most freely com-
mune with the Great Creator. 16 So it must have been with this saint.
Article II. —St. Cuman Becc, or Cumman Beg, Virgin, of Cill
of the man present holy
appears,
in the
Martyrology
of
Donegal,
Cuimne. ThenameofCumanBeccofTamnaigh,isenteredintheMartyr- 1
ology of Tallagh, as having been venerated, at the 14th of June. There was an old church, now uprooted at Kilcumney, in the deanery of Mullingar, and county of Westmeath. 2 The Rev. Dr. Kelly appears to identify the place of this virgin with Rathdowney, a village and parish in the southern part of the
as the denomination now " the fort of stands,
3 It
the church ;" but, the correct name should be Rathdowney, representing the
Queen's County.
signifies,
Irish
Rath-tamh-naigh,s
" the fort of the field. "6 This is said to have green
Volume of this work, at the 5th of March, Art. i.
7 See his Life, ibid. , at the 2 1st of March, Art. i.
8 As calculated from the date assigned for his decease.
9 Most Rev. Malachias O'Cadhla (CKealy), Latinized, Malachias Quaeleus, sent his description of theDiocesan Churches and Chapels, a. d. 1645, or shortly before ; and within ten years from this date, the prin- cipal churches of Aranmore were destroyed by Cromwell's governors over these islands. Their materials had been applied towards the
** See p. 166.
*5 See Dr. O'Donovan's Edition, vol. i. ,
pp. 266, 267, and nn. (w, x), ibid.
' 6 To such a state of life, devout aspira- tions are congenial, and as applied to it, we may r—ead these lines of a modern French
poet:
" De ce livre divin ou le saint soli- taire
Lisait les grands secrets du cielet de — la terre. "
Lamartine's CEuvres Poetiques, tome iv. La Chute d'un Ange. Septieme Vision, p.
of a citadel and other defensive
228. Ed. — Svo. Paris, 1839,
building
works then erected. See Roderick O'Fla-
'
p. 429. Whether or not, this had any con- nexion with the present saint cannot be known.
3 See his "Calendar of Irish Saints," pp.
IO, 45.
4 The compounds being Rath and Domk-
nach.
s So it is written, in the "Annals of the
Four Masters. "
Article II. herty's Chorographical Description of p. xxvii.
Edited
by
Rev. Dr.
Kelly,
" WestorIl-Iar
edited
a SeeRev. A.
"DioceseofMeath.
Connaught," Hardiman, n. (x), p. 74.
by James
Cogan's
Ancient and Modem," vol. ii. , chap, xviii. ,
10
As they are separately mentioned in the Feilire of St. ^Engus, we may assume, how- ever, that they were distinct persons.
" See Colgan's " Acta Sanctorum Iliber- nioe," xxi. Martii, Vita S. Endei, Appendix, cap. vii. , p. 715.
" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 170, 171.
13 See " Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs,
and other June xiv.
principal Saints,"
vol.
vi. , "
6 See William in Frazer's Allingham, "
Magazine for Town and Country.
June 14. ]
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
665
been the old pagan name. 7 There was a Tamhnach-an-reata, now Tawny, in the parish of Derryvullan, in the barony of Tirkennedy, and county of Fer-
8 Thereisalsoa or a inthe ofDublin. Tawny Taney, parish county
managh.
In the Martyrology of Donegal,? this saint is recorded, at the same date, as Curaman Beg, Virgin, of Cill Cuimne, at Tamhnach.
Article III. —St. Ciaran, of Bealach-dtjin, now Castle-Kieran,
County of Meath. In the {Eighth Century. ']
of
1
Martyrology
at the 14th of June, the simple entry, Ciaran, of Bealaigh Duin, occurs. According to the Calendar of the O'Clerys, this Ciaran descended from the raceofIrial, sontoConallCearnach,whoisoftheraceofRudhraighe,and who belonged to the progeny of Ir, son to Milidh. 2 He was born probably before or about the beginning of the eighth century. He is thought to have beenoneoftheauthors,whowrotetheLifeofSt. Patrick. 3 Heisdesignated the Devout, and he is distinguished as abbot of Belach-duin. 4 This etymon
or * of the fort. "s This was the ancient pass
means in " the English,
road/'
name of Disert-Chiarain 6 or Castlekieran,? near Kells, in the county of
Meath. In Irish, it is now corruptly called Ister-Chiarain. An old church, yet not founded by the present saint, but called after him, is there situated
on the Abhainn-Sele, or Blackwater River. According to a popular rumour, the present saint was a stone-cutter. 8 Many legends are current regarding
him, in the neighbourhood where he lived, but hardly any of them are of a reliable character. The old church yet remains. It is quadrangular, mea- suring forty-five feet six inches, by twenty feet.
surnamed Schene, or " the fugitive," was the daughter to Damen, son to
Corpre, surnamed Damh-airgid, son to Eochod, the son of Crimthann, son to
Fieg,&c,oftheCollaDachriochrace. Hesays,thatherfeastwasheldon
the 13th of June,3 in Ireland, according . to our native Martyrologies, while in
Belgium it was celebrated on the 15th of May. * He also remarks, that in
some this saint's name is found " mac
Manuscripts, written, Damand-Scene, Daimhen," &c, which means, " Damand, the fugitive, the son of Damen. " It is thought, that two errors have crept into these Manuscripts, at this particular
passage. The first was, the transposition of a letter, which converted Damnad, into Damand. For, there was a very celebrated virgin, of the Oirgiell race, called Damnad, who was venerated as patron of Orgiell ; whilst there is no saint, male or female, in Irish Martyrologies or Annals, whose name was Damand. The second error appears to. have been, that instead of these
words, " Mac-Daimen," we should read, " Daimhein," or " Ingen
Ingen mhic-Daimhein," which would mean, " the daughter of Damen," or " the daughter of Damen's son. "* Both Drs. George Petrie and John O'Donovan
thought, however, there was much reason to doubt Colgan's opinion, that the St. Davnet, venerated in Ireland on the 13th of June, and the St. Dympna, whose feast was on the 15th of May in Belgium, could have been one and the same person. Nor do we feel inclined to believe, that the Damnat of Sleibhe Betha, venerated on the 13th of June, and alluded to in the Martyrology of Tallagh, can be fairly identified with St. Dympna, patroness of Gheel. In the year 1835, while Mr. O'Donovan was travelling in the county of Monaghan, he suspected, that the name of this parish must have been derived from a St. Damhnat,6 whose habitation had been there. Then a popular tradition pre- vailed among the old inhabitants, that a St. Davnet was the first founder of
the old church in their parish. 7 They had no idea, however, regarding the age in which that female saint lived, but they thought it was a long time after
the introduction of
Christianity.
On
being
furnished with extracts 8 from the
" The more recent hand adds here
quiimcep, Mar. Matt. Taml. ,' meaning at that date, her Life is written. See
tioprat : '
* Tn the Fifth Volume of this work, and Art. i.
s
Edited by Rev. Drs. nice," xxi. Martii, Appendix ad Acta S.
that he is called Cruimter, not Cruimtheran,
in those — Martyrologies. "
See
Colgan's
"Acta . Sanctorum Hiber-
Article v.
•
Todd and — Endei,
Reeves, pp. 168, 169. iv. ,pp. 713, 714.
•6 Edited by Rev. Dr.
Article, vi. Kelly,p. xxvii.
3
According to the Tract attributed to St. /Engus. " De Matribus Sanctorum Hiber- niae. "
3 See "Acta Sanctorum I Iibernia? ," xxi.
lie conjectured, that the compound de- rivativeswereci5,orcec,orcoig,meaning
a house, and 'O. drmiAice or "OAinrtATOe, a
proper name,
7 For a very interesting account of Tcdav-
net, the reader is referred to Evelyn Philip
Martii, Appendix ad Acta S. /Endei, cap. Shirley's "History of the County of iv\, pp, 713, 714. Monaghan," chap, xi. , pp. 300 to 308.
[June 13.
June 13. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 661
Irish Calendar, he identified Tedavnet with the St. Damhnat, whose feast
occurs at this date. Slieve Beagh lies to the north-west of the parish of
Tedavnet,? which is within the barony and county of Monaghan. 10 That
mountain range—forming about one-fourth part of the parish—stretches
towardsTyrone. Therewasanoldchurch,formerlyintheparish,whichis
now 11 This ruined church a about utterlydestroyed. onlypresents fragment,
six feet by four, at the present time, and it has been made to serve as a
monument for the Robinson 12 This " Bith's Moun- family. place, Anglicized
tain," is situated on the confines of the counties of Monaghan and of Fer- managh. ^ IntheparishofTedavnetwaskeptacrozierofthesaint,called Bachall DamhnaitJ* which remained in possession of a man, named Lamb. He stated, that this relic had been in his family from time immemorial, having descended to him as an heirloom. Some eight years before he had been accustomed to send it as far as Newry and Dundalk, for the use of persons, who swore on it. Deponents were said to be in great danger, if they swore falsely. Some fearful change of their features was an apprehended result ; but, the most usual alteration was said to be their mouths turning awry, or towards the ear. Many persons, when accused of theft by their neighbours, and when threatened, that the Bachall Damhnait should be sent for, frequently came and acknowledged their guilt; for, they feared the result of a false deposi- tion on this relic. 15 In the Martyrology of Donegal l6 is Damhnat, virgin, of
pp. 30, 40.
dated Monaghan, May 4th, 1835.
12 The cemetery of Tedavnet may be seen, in the illustration in our Life of St. Dympna, in the Fifth Volume of this work, at May 15th, Art. i. , chap. v.
x3 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (f), p. 3.
•4 This curious relic of St. Davnet existed in the year 1835, when it was seen by Mr.
O'Donovan, Academy's Museum.
An engraving of it is
in
Evelyn Philip Shirley's
tory of the County of Monaghan," chap, xi. ,
"
p. 301.
presented
but it was so defaced, that Mr. O'Donovan
Martyrs, and other principal Saints," vol. vi. , June
The owner said he had been offered £zo for it, which he re-
xiii. 20
could not decipher it.
pointed
object.
Mr. O'Donovan's Letter is
and it is now in the Irish Royal
" His-
js '» "Lives of the Fathers, This crozier exhibited an inscription, See
In the Irish Calendar, belonging to the
Sliabh Betha, at the 13th of June.
Irish Ordnance 1 ? there is an — —Survey,
? findnoticesofSt. Damhnade; and,intheCircleoftheSeasons2°ismen- tionedDamka-nade,Virgin,inIreland. IntheManuscriptofTrinityCollege,
Dublin, classed B. 3, 12, we find at June 13, Ides, Damnate, Virgo.
entry
Ides or 13th of June. At this date, in the Rev. Alban Butler's work,
1
we
Article VII. —The Venerable Caius Ccelius . Sedulius.
This distinguished man is said to have been a Priest of the Scots, and to have been
8 By Mr. O'Keeffe, then in Dublin. 9 In Irish CeAch 'OArrfn&c.
County of Monaghan," sheet 6.
" See " Letters containing Information
relative to the Antiquities of the Counties of Armagh and Monaghan, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1835,"
fused, although he was then willing to take half the sum for this curious antiquarian
He also said, that three men were about buying it from him, at the time. One of these was named as Doctor Bell, a Scotch- man, who spent eight days at his house, taking sketches of the relic. With great difficulty, Mr. O'Donovan was able to learn from Lamb, that his father used to call him- self O'luAin, a name which is to be found amongst families, descended from the three Collas in Oriel. This family originally lived in the parish of Tedavnet. See "Letters containing Information relative to the Anti- quities of the Counties of Armagh and Monaghan, collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1835. " Mr. O'Donovan's Letter, dated Monaghan, May 9th, 1835, pp. 68 to 70.
"6 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
168, 169.
J ? It is now preserved in the Royal Irish
Academy's Library,
l8 Thus: T>ArhnAr; 65 6 Sliab OeacA.
10 The exact location is
out on the " Ordnance Survey Townland Maps for the
l8 of St. Damhnat's festival, at the
See p. 165.
662 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[June 13.
a disciple of Hildebert, Archbishop of the Scots, from an early age, to
have left his own country, and to have travelled abroad through France,
1
Italy,AsiaandAchaia,inGreece. InRome,likewise,hewasdistinguished
for his learning. At this date, Thomas Dempster 2 has allusion to the feast
of Sedulius,3 whom he makes a bishop in Greece. According to him, the relation of his relics which were deposited in the monastery of Kilwinnon
belongstothe13thJune. 4 DistrustingthestatementsofDempster,however, the Bollandists 5 are unwilling to accept his authority for Sedulius being a
collected from various sources as quoted, some notices of Caius or Ccelius Sedulius;? but,thereislittlethereproducedtothrowanylightonhisbiogra- phy. Itisstated,byCamerarius,thatafestivaltocommemoratethevene- rable and learned Caius Ccelius Sedulius, had been observed on the 13th of June. Our notices of this distinguished person have been already set down,
8
Article VIII. —Feast of St. Bartholomew, Apostle. In the Feilire of St. ^Engus, the feast of St. Bartholomew the Aposile is commemo-
Grecian 6 but Bishop,
insert some notices of him, at this
that Colgan has alluded to one known as the Venerable Sedulius, at the 12th of February, and who appears to be quite different from the present assumed Greek Bishop. In his Scottish Ecclesiastical History, Thomas Dempster has
at the 1 2 th day of February.
the 28th of December, he writes:
Cavac
Reliquiarum Sedulii depositio et venera- tio. "
5 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii
xiii. Among the pretermitted saints, p. 66s.
* See " Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii
xiii. Among the pretermitted feasts. Article ix. — See the Second Vo-
lume of this work, at that date, Art. i. * *'
*
That he was a bishop is asserted on the
tomus ii. , Junii xiii. saints, p. 664.
'
*
Among the pretermitted Edited by Rev. Dr. Seethe SecondVolume
they
date, remarking
at the of 1 This is set down as the of his Natalis, in
13th June.
day
Again, Ferrarius remarks, th—at
rated,
Persia, according to some old Manuscripts.
this was the day for the Arrival of his Body, at Lipara. The Bollandists 3 who note this feast —promise a further examination of these matters, at the 24th of August, the date for his chief festival.
Article IX. —Festival of the Exhumation of St. Anatolius' Relics,
atSalins,inFrance. Alreadyhavewerecordedthisholypilgrim'sActs,
at the of 1 where the few notices left him have been 3rd February, regarding
given. This day, however, is the anniversary for celebrating the Exhumation
of St. Anatolius' remains, by Hugo, Archbishop of Besancon, in the eleventh 2
century.
Article X. —St. Branduibh, Bishop. At this date, a Bishop Bran-
duibh had veneration paid him, as we find set down in the Martyrology of
1 Tallagh.
Article vil. —*
2"
In his Menologium Scotorum. "
3 " Relatio reliquiarum Sedulii in Graecia
—in Kilvvinnin monasterio re- episcopi, quae "
conditae. B. " Bishop Forbes' Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 202.
4 Dempster refers the date of his deposi- tion to the 13th of January, while again, at
According
in his Liber de Scriptoribus Ecclesiasticis.
p. 572.
toTrithemius
authority of Sigebert. "—
7 See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Sco- torum," tomus i. , lib. iii. , num. 229, pp. 128 to 131, and tomus ii. , lib. xvii. , num. 1028,
Article x.
"
Some of these belonged to Corbie and
8
See the Second Volume of this work, at
3
that date, Art. i. , chap. ii.
' *'
Article viii. — See Transactions of
the Irish Irish
Royal Academy," Manuscript
Series, vol i. , part i.
On the Calendar of
Oengus. By Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p.
xciv. Also, gloss, at p. cii.
a
to Lucca.
See the Bollandists' Acta Sanctorum,"
Kelly, p. xxvii. — Article XI.
June 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
663
Article XI. —Feast for the Translation of the Relics of St. Aldetrude, or Aldetrudis, Virgin and Abbess of Malbod or Mau- beuge, Belgium. At the 25th of February—the chief feast of this holy woman—we have inserted her 1 on
already Acts; but,
tion of her Relics is commemorated, according to Grevan's additions to the Carthusian Martyrology of Bruxelles. 2
Article XII. —St. Caninus. In the anonymous list of Irish Saints
published by O'Sullevan Beare,1 at the 13th of June, we meet with a St!
Caninus, as also in Father Henry Fitzsimon's Catalogue of some Irish 2
Saints, where he is set down as Kaninus. The Bollandists 3 likewise men- tion him, but further particulars regarding this saint is unknown.
tfourtetnti) 23aj) of %\\\\t.
ARTICLE I. —ST. NEM MAC UA BIRN, ABBOT OF ARRAN, COUNTY OF GALWAY.
[SIXTH AND SEVENTH CENTURIES. ]
THE peaked and serrated ridges of Arran display the granite, gneiss, and
scienite while bended headland has its geological structure, every
2
Nem mac h-Birn. He was born probably before the close of the sixth cen- tury. He is also venerated, on this day, in the " Feilire"3 of St. yEngus, where he is called the vigorous descendant of Birn. A commentator adds, that Nem was Papa of Aran, and that he was of Dal Birn of Ossory/ Again, he states, that Nem was successor to Enne of Aran, and that he was called the Papa, who used to be in Aran. s We are informed, besides, that Nem
own 1 In one of the geographic profile.
on the
ing to the Martyrology of Tallagh, a festival was celebrated in honour of
was brother to 6 of Ciaran,
incorrect. as St. Again,
this is
Enda? died about, or some short time after, the year 540, St. Nem cannot
CorrapecAC t>ibLinAib £o]\Aetilich ler^ r- LuAjjAch nemmAChuibij\nbwjAch La benit>Achc mbuA-OAcli.
" They me^t both on one festival, a hostful
Saighir; but, be regarded as his immediate successor.
quite
Little more is recorded of the pre-
of this work, at February 25th, Art. ii. 2"
See the Bollandists' Acta Sanctorum,"
tomusii. ,Juniixiii. Amongthepretermitted feasts.
Article xii. —' See " Historiae Catho- licse Ibemicse Compendium," lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 50.
sea—Nem, the vigorous descen—dant of Bern, "
ting work was printed A. D. 1619.
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Junii Manuscript Series, vol. i. , parti. On the
Among
the— saints, pretermitted
Calendar of
by Whitley Stokes,
xiii. Article
p. 665.
Oengus, xciv.
i. See Walter Dandy's " Beautiful Islets of Britaine. " 2 Edited Rev. Dr. xxvii.
LL. D. ,
4 See ibid. , p. cii
s We are informed, moreover, it was from
by Kelly, p.
3 In the " Leabhar Breac "
Cooper
p.
Rome that Papa came, and that he chose his panegyric, and it is translated into his sepulchre in A*-an.
we read
English by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :— 6 See an account of him, in the Third
copy
Islands,
13th
of accord- June,
this day, the Transla-
with Benedict the victorious" Transac-
tions of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish
664 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 14.
sent saint, than the date of his departure from this life.
He seems to have
lived at Killeany, on the Island of Aranmore, during the first half of the
seventh 8 A former of Tuam,9 who had
century. distinguished Archbishop
courteously furnished our great national hagiologist with a tabular list of churches and their patrons in his diocese, supposed that a St. Benedict, vene- rated on the 14th of June, as stated by the Cashel Calendar, must have been identical with St. Nehemias,10 reverenced at the same date, as found in our other Martyrologies. Yet, we meet no very satisfactory elucidation, regard- ing the locality or personality of a saint, known by either name. 11 The title
12 at the same date, as Nem Mac Ua Birn, abbot, comorbanor successor to St. Enda, of Ara. The Rev. Alban Butler registers St. Nennus, or Nehemias, Abbot, at the 14th of June. 13 St. Nennus, of Ireland, abbot, is also entered, in the CircleoftheSeasons. 1* Hedieda. d. 654,accordingtotheAnnalsofUlster and of the Four Masters. 15 It is in solitude and surrounded by beautiful objects of nature, that a pious soul and an elevated intellect most freely com-
mune with the Great Creator. 16 So it must have been with this saint.
Article II. —St. Cuman Becc, or Cumman Beg, Virgin, of Cill
of the man present holy
appears,
in the
Martyrology
of
Donegal,
Cuimne. ThenameofCumanBeccofTamnaigh,isenteredintheMartyr- 1
ology of Tallagh, as having been venerated, at the 14th of June. There was an old church, now uprooted at Kilcumney, in the deanery of Mullingar, and county of Westmeath. 2 The Rev. Dr. Kelly appears to identify the place of this virgin with Rathdowney, a village and parish in the southern part of the
as the denomination now " the fort of stands,
3 It
the church ;" but, the correct name should be Rathdowney, representing the
Queen's County.
signifies,
Irish
Rath-tamh-naigh,s
" the fort of the field. "6 This is said to have green
Volume of this work, at the 5th of March, Art. i.
7 See his Life, ibid. , at the 2 1st of March, Art. i.
8 As calculated from the date assigned for his decease.
9 Most Rev. Malachias O'Cadhla (CKealy), Latinized, Malachias Quaeleus, sent his description of theDiocesan Churches and Chapels, a. d. 1645, or shortly before ; and within ten years from this date, the prin- cipal churches of Aranmore were destroyed by Cromwell's governors over these islands. Their materials had been applied towards the
** See p. 166.
*5 See Dr. O'Donovan's Edition, vol. i. ,
pp. 266, 267, and nn. (w, x), ibid.
' 6 To such a state of life, devout aspira- tions are congenial, and as applied to it, we may r—ead these lines of a modern French
poet:
" De ce livre divin ou le saint soli- taire
Lisait les grands secrets du cielet de — la terre. "
Lamartine's CEuvres Poetiques, tome iv. La Chute d'un Ange. Septieme Vision, p.
of a citadel and other defensive
228. Ed. — Svo. Paris, 1839,
building
works then erected. See Roderick O'Fla-
'
p. 429. Whether or not, this had any con- nexion with the present saint cannot be known.
3 See his "Calendar of Irish Saints," pp.
IO, 45.
4 The compounds being Rath and Domk-
nach.
s So it is written, in the "Annals of the
Four Masters. "
Article II. herty's Chorographical Description of p. xxvii.
Edited
by
Rev. Dr.
Kelly,
" WestorIl-Iar
edited
a SeeRev. A.
"DioceseofMeath.
Connaught," Hardiman, n. (x), p. 74.
by James
Cogan's
Ancient and Modem," vol. ii. , chap, xviii. ,
10
As they are separately mentioned in the Feilire of St. ^Engus, we may assume, how- ever, that they were distinct persons.
" See Colgan's " Acta Sanctorum Iliber- nioe," xxi. Martii, Vita S. Endei, Appendix, cap. vii. , p. 715.
" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 170, 171.
13 See " Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs,
and other June xiv.
principal Saints,"
vol.
vi. , "
6 See William in Frazer's Allingham, "
Magazine for Town and Country.
June 14. ]
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
665
been the old pagan name. 7 There was a Tamhnach-an-reata, now Tawny, in the parish of Derryvullan, in the barony of Tirkennedy, and county of Fer-
8 Thereisalsoa or a inthe ofDublin. Tawny Taney, parish county
managh.
In the Martyrology of Donegal,? this saint is recorded, at the same date, as Curaman Beg, Virgin, of Cill Cuimne, at Tamhnach.
Article III. —St. Ciaran, of Bealach-dtjin, now Castle-Kieran,
County of Meath. In the {Eighth Century. ']
of
1
Martyrology
at the 14th of June, the simple entry, Ciaran, of Bealaigh Duin, occurs. According to the Calendar of the O'Clerys, this Ciaran descended from the raceofIrial, sontoConallCearnach,whoisoftheraceofRudhraighe,and who belonged to the progeny of Ir, son to Milidh. 2 He was born probably before or about the beginning of the eighth century. He is thought to have beenoneoftheauthors,whowrotetheLifeofSt. Patrick. 3 Heisdesignated the Devout, and he is distinguished as abbot of Belach-duin. 4 This etymon
or * of the fort. "s This was the ancient pass
means in " the English,
road/'
name of Disert-Chiarain 6 or Castlekieran,? near Kells, in the county of
Meath. In Irish, it is now corruptly called Ister-Chiarain. An old church, yet not founded by the present saint, but called after him, is there situated
on the Abhainn-Sele, or Blackwater River. According to a popular rumour, the present saint was a stone-cutter. 8 Many legends are current regarding
him, in the neighbourhood where he lived, but hardly any of them are of a reliable character. The old church yet remains. It is quadrangular, mea- suring forty-five feet six inches, by twenty feet.
