,
Lanigan's
'53SeetheIrishVersionofthe'' Historia "
Britonum of Nennius.
Lanigan's
'53SeetheIrishVersionofthe'' Historia "
Britonum of Nennius.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v3
vi.
"° "
Thus, we find, in Ccesar, caiterDeque civitates positae in ultimis Gallic finibus,
cap.
ocean—o conjunctse, qure Armoricce appellan-
tur. " "De Bello Gallico," lib. viii. , cap. Somonam amnem. Cluverius hie Briannos
31-
'" According to Dom Guy Alexis Lobi-
'
neau.
'" Aremorica, in the old Gaulish and
British dialects, signifies, "by the sea- side. " See Camden's "Britannia," col. xxix. Gibson's edition.
"
legi mavult. " See Germania Antiqua,"
lib. ii. , cap. 27. Leyden, 1616, two vols. , fol. Ussher follows him, in reading Briatiiti for Britanni. See " Primordia," p. 471.
"' A glance at the map will show the close relation of tlie district, marked by the present towns of Etaples, Montreuil, Hes- din and Ponthieu, to localities, named in the previous note.
Britannicum," lib. iv. , sect. 37. Some are of opinion, this port had been so distin- guished, because it was the place for Conti- nentals debarking, when on a voyage to Great Britain, or because it was near the Straits. See Hardouin's note.
"3 In British, Mor s\gw\^\t% "the sea. "
"
Moil- is said to have a like
"3 Certain geographers have placed Ar- morica between the Seine and the Loire. See Cluverius and Martiniere. However, they regard rather the usage of a certain period, and not the more ancient acceptation of the name.
"Historia
In Irish, inui]\
means "the meaning.
sea. "
"'See
Pliny's
Naturalis,"
lib.
"3Baudrand makes Gessoriacum the
sea-coast, Morinwyr.
entendoient toutes les cotes occidentales des
Gaules, habitees par les Aquitains, les Ar-
moricains, et les Morins, tons noms qui
signifient la meme chose, c'est a dire, peu-
ples maretimes. "—Lobineau's " Histoire de
Bretagne," vol. ii. , p. 7.
'^° these " Deinde Pliny gives words,
Menapii, Morini, Oromansaci juncti pago, qui Gessoriacus vocatur ; Brittani, Ambiani, Bellovaci. " See Plinii Secundi " Historia
note on the word "
quotation.
'"He "Portum Morinorum styles it,
]\[arch 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 445
Boulogne. '^-f The Biitanni have been placed, by Pliny, in its vicinity,'*5 or, as Camden has expressed it, in the country, adjoining Boulogne. '^^ The
Greek writer, Dionysius Periegetes'^7 distinguishes this Briton district,"^^ with sufficient accuracy. "9 Indeed, the Welsh Triads declare, that people of Great Britain originally came from this quarter. 'so We have been thus par- ticular, in alluding to what is stated, regarding the Britanni,'3i thought to have been living near Boulogne, since some writers of great authority con- sider this to have been the native country of St. Patrick.
There can be no manner of doubt, that other indigenous or idiomatic denominations, unknown to the classic writers, prevailed among those people. Thus, we find the Britons of Britany are distinguished from the Gauls. ^32 Again, the old Belgian Alobrites, or Gallo-Britons,'33 lived in Walloon, near Germany, or in the Low Countries,'34 during the time of Dionysius, the African. In early times, Pliny has styled that part of the northern sea Britannic,'35 which flows between the Seine's^ and the Rhine. He also alludes to the Herba Britannica,^37 which grew on the Continent, and probably had been indigenous to some parts of the country, which is now known as Belgium. '38 The same writer was inclined to think,^39 the Frisians had been considered Britons ^'•° nay, that even in the beginning, all
;
the Belgians were denominated, in like manner. ^'*'
same as Bononia. Portus Iccius, however, land of Lhdaw they came, having their "
he distinguishes fiom Boulogne. See No- descent from the primary stock of the
vum Lexicon Geographicum," tomus i. , pp. 125, 322, 370.
'''» See Hadrian Valesius, at Gessonacum, "
Cymmry. " And again, Cynan is spoken of as lord of Meirion (probably a Celtic form of the word Morini) in Liydaw. Taliessin also mentions the Morini Brython in his Frif Gyfarch. It is supposed, that Lydaw, latinized Letavia, is one of the early Celtic names of the country of the Morini, as Neus- tria was that given in the Merovingian period to the whole province, between the Meuse and Loire, including Boulogne.
'3' See a learned Essay on this subject, in the BoUandists' " Acta Sanctorum," tomus ix. Octobris xxi. Acta S. Ursula;.
'3^ When St. Maclovius, Bishop of St. Malo, had been expelled from his See, we
Geographia Antiqua," lib. ii. ,
Cellarius,
cap. 3, and other. writers. lena, 1691, fol.
'^5 Following Pliny, for
portus," Ricardus Corenensis has, tannicre gentis portus. " See " De situ Britanniae," lib. i. , sect. 4.
"^ See "Britannia," Gibson's edition, col. xvi.
"7 In his poem Feriegesis, alluding to the African and European Continents, having first invoked the l\Iuse, Dionysius treats of Islands, at v. 447. Then, he describes the British Islands, opposite the mouths of the
Rhine, as being the largest insular—lands, known at the time when he wrote :
Aicrcrai vrjffoi iaai Bperavides avrla V-qvov'— lldwv TOL fiiyeOos vepiibaiov' oud^ ris dWrj
ev wdarjai —iao(papii€i. Nijo-ots Bperaviaiv
Vv. 566-569.
"8 See idid. , vv. 283-287.
»=9 The commentator, Eustathius, at this passage, remarks, that opposite to Conti- nental I3ritain the British islands lay, and that their people had been formerly of the old Belgic race, or Walloons.
"
Britannicus
'3° Thus—"The three beneficent tribes of
the Isle of Britain. The first was the nation
of the Cymmry who came with Hu the
mighty to the Isle of Britain, who would . cus. " See lib. iv. , sect. 33.
possess nor country nor lands through fight- ing and persecution, but of equity and in peace ; the second was the stock of the Lloegrians, who came from the land of
Gwasgwyn (Gascoigne), and were descended from the primitive stock of the Cymmry ; the third were the Brython, and from the
'37 See ibid. , lib. xxv. , cap. 3.
'3^ Hardouin says, it was so called, from Bretannia, in Friesland. Hadrian Junius and some writers otherwise account for the name.
'39 Where he writes about the Britannic
herbage having been shown, by the Frisian soldiers of Germanicus.
"
Bri-
"
Britannis in Gallias abiit. " See Sigebert's
have added to the account,
maledictis
" "
Chronicon," and Matthesu Florilegus, Flores Historiarum," p. 195, at A. D. 561. '33 In the Vatican Codex, they are incor-
rectly, or, at least, synonymously, called "
Alobriges. See William Baxter's Glossa- rium Antiquitatum Britannicarum," at the denomination, Alobrites, 1719 and 1733. London, 8vo.
'34 This is stated, by a certain very ancient, but by an anonymous author.
'35 It is supposed, this name might be as well derived from continental as from in- sular Britain.
'3* He remarks, too, that the ocean "in- ter eum et Pyrenaeum" was called " Galli-
446 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
Towards the close of the fourth century, a large accession of insular and
armed Britons had been brought to the Continent, by Maximus,'*^ who landed at the mouths of the Rhinc'-^s Yet, another account of their arrival atitsestuariesiscurrent. ^14 Oppositethese,intheocean,andlyingnotmore than two hundred stadii, or about twenty-five miles, from the Continent, over against the furthermost parts of Gaul, an island, called Brittia, is said'45 to have been situated, between Britannia^^^ and Thule, where were also islands. Brittia was inhabited, likewise, by three very numerous nations, living under their several kings. Those people were called Angles, Frisons,^47 and insular Britons. Their country contained a vast multitude of inhabitants. '^^ Here, moreover, a long wall had been formerly built. '-f?
cannot suit in or near Holland '5° it any island, ; but,
held,
with Great Britain. In those early times, geographic science had made only a slight progress ; while, the distance and relative situation of distinct countries were very imperfectly known. 's^ We are also informed,'s^ that many of these followers obtained tracts of land, on different parts of the Con- tinentals Some of those were near a place, known as Canacuic,'54 or Cant- guic. '5s It has been ingeniously conjectured,'s^ that by such etymon must be meant Catwyck,'57 or Katwickj'ss in Holland ; and, that it must be sought for, about two leagues below Leyden,'59 where a middle branch of the Rhine
X40 Procopius, in his work, " De Bello Go-
thico," says the Frisians are stated to have
inhabited Britain, together with the Angli. '^' Pliny even mentions the Belgic Britons. The anonymous writer of Ravenna also speaks of Gallic Belgium, or Rhenish France, as having for inhabitants the Alo- brites, so called, and tantamount to Gallo-
britones.
'^^ These youths, who followed the tyrant,
never again returned to their own homes. See the celebrated work of Gildas, "De Excidio Britannise," cap. xi. Maximus died A. D. 384.
'^3 See Camden's "Britannia," col. 1504.
'»* Thus, Dom. Guy Alexis Lobineau tells
us, that the Britons, probably carried thither
by a storm, established themselves at the
mouths of the Rhine. Their isle and aban-
doned fortress are now destroyed by the
waters, like many others on these coasts.
agrees exactly
Ussher. See " Primordia," pp. 400, 419.
'5' Thus Tacitus places Hibernia in a site,
between Britannia and Hispania. See
"
sect. XV. , p. 6.
James Henthom Todd and the Hon. Alger-
non Herbert, pp. 66, 67. And Appendix No. x. , pp. xvii. to xix.
'54 In the Irish Version of the " Historia
Britonum," it is called Cahacuic, or Centu- moid.
'55 Speaking of Maximus, he says, this leader would not disband the soldiers, who came from Britain, nor allow them to re- visit their wives, nor children, nor lands ; but, he bestowed on them large tracts, near a marsh, "quod est super verticem montis Jovis usque ad civitatem, qui vocatur Cant- guic, et usque ad cumulum Occidentalem, id est, Cruc-ochidient. " Perhaps le Mont
See
Histoire de Bretagne," tome
i. , liv.
i. ,
X45 By Procopius Csesariensis, who flou- rished A. D. 560. He wrote a work, " De
Bello Vandalico," and another, " De Bello Gothico. " See Editio Maltreti, Parisiis, 1662.
'^* It is added " Etenim Britannia ad Jou, and Ouessant, west of Britanny.
:
solem occidentem, qua extremam Hispaniam
spectat, a continente stadia circiter quatuor
millia distat. " It will not be easy to ex-
plain this location, except that by Britannia guit. " The latter adds, "et ipsi sunt ad
the writer probably meant Ireland.
'•7 By the anonymous geographer of Ra- venna, the Frisones are called, Frixi, and
Frigones,
'^^ Ccesar had said, that Britain, in his
time, had been well peopled.
appended to the Irish Version of the toria Britonum. "
"
His-
" De Bello
'5° This is a conjecture hazarded by of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, iii. , sect, xii. , p.
'« See
lib. i. , cap. 20.
Gothico,"
Procopius,
'^
"
Vita AgricoUe," cap. xxiv. Again, the
This description, it is
Venerable Bede has our Island, near Spain,
and about 500 miles from the Continent. See
"
lib. i. , cap. i. In like manner Procopius.
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum,"
'5= See Dr.
tory of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, iii. , sect, xii.
,
Lanigan's
'53SeetheIrishVersionofthe'' Historia "
Britonum of Nennius. Edited by Rev.
'5* By Dr. Lanigan.
'57 Priscius has Cantiguit, in Hfet. Biyt.
"
cumulum occidentalem, i. e. Crutochidenit. " '5" See Martiniere, at Katwick.
'59 In reference to the settlements of those
colonists, the reader is referred to the Addi- . tional Notes, No. x. , xi. , pp. xvii. to xx. ,
Def. p. 50, and Gale's edition reads
Tant-
" Ecclesiastical His-
Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical History
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 447
formerly joined the sea. '^° A Dutch chronicler places a British settlement
there, and from it, the fortress, since called Het huys te Britten,^^' is thought
to have had its
mentioned by the ancient Avriters. '^3
easy, now,
to
identify
those
origin.
places,
^^^ It is not so
Several ancient'^* and modern'^s writers have derived the Armoric Britons
from the followers of Maximus,'^^ who appear to have spread along and
ravaged the northern coasts of France, to their remote extremity of Britany. '^7 The Bretons of this province, however, have an obscure history ; but, after the time of Maximus, the westernmost corner of Gaul began to be styled Britannia. '^^ we are
107, and Ussher's 419.
Primordia," pp. 400,
expeditionem exeuntes, quoniam redire ne- quiverant, occidentales partes Gallise solo tenus vastaverunt— eorum uxori-
'*' Baudrand
" Britanni etiam
pop.
acceptisque
bus et filiabus in conjugiam," &c. Dr.
Again,
told,
that the
conquests
of the Saxons a brought
great number of fugitive insular Britons, under the leadership of one of their
princes, named Reith, or Riwal, to seek an asylum among the Armoricans,
their allies. This happened, about the middle of the fifth century ; and,
soon after, new accessions of immigrants gradually crowding into north- western Gaul, Armorica changed its name for Bretagne. Another British
Prince, Riothime,'^9 at the head of 12,000 men,'7° is said to have landed, at the mouth of the Loire,'? ' and to have ascended this river to Berri, where, at
Bourdeols, he was attacked and defeated, by Euric, King of the Visigoths, A. D. 470. ^7* The Britons were probably dispersed, and settled in northern France, until such time as they became united to the Franks, under their king, Clovis,'73 about the beginning of the sixth century. Other writers have denied, that there were Bretons, in Bretagne, so early as the middle of the fifth century. Vertot'74 contends, that they had not been fixed there, until the sixth century, when they were received as fugitives, by Childebert and by
"
says,
Belgii, quorum tractus apud ostium Rlieni,
T/iays te Breiten appellatur, teste Ort. " See
"Novum Lexicon Geographicum," tomus
i. , p. 134.
Lanigan, however, thinks this passage an in- terpolation of Nennius, having been origi-
nally onlya comment on his work. Certainly,
it does not appear, in the Irish Version of
the " Historia Britonum. "
'^ "
See Darn's Histoire de Bretagne,"
tome i. , pp. 40 to 54. Britannia Gallicana,
Minor, Citerior, Cismarina, are terms ap-
plied to it, by Eginhard, and by other early writers.
'*9 He is also called Riothamus or Riothi- mus. He went, as an auxiliary to the Romans. See " De Rebus Ge-
ticis," cap. 45.
'7° C. S. Apollinarus Sidonius who flou-
""
ing to Camden. See Britannia," fi? /. 561. rished A. D. 470, styles them, armatos
"*^
to refugees who fled from Britain to avoid the Saxons. But, Dr. Lanigan rather thinks, it owes origin to the youths, who followed Maximus to the Continent, and who were left there to defend his points of communi-
Ussher ascribes this British settlement
cation with Great Britain.
See vol.
Ecclesias- chap, iii. ,
tical of History
Ireland," sect, xii. , p. 108.
Mons Jovis is the great St. Bernard. Cruc-ochi- dient, means, "western mountain," accord-
'*3 to Hadrian According
Valesius,
Jornandes,
Could Nennius have meant the Pyrenees ? asks Dr. Lanigan. Gildas writes, in his His- tory, that Maximus extended one of his wings to Spain and the other to Italy. See cap. x.
'*'* See Ussher's "Primordia," p. 421. Also, Baronius, Malbranque.
'*5 See Gilford's "History of France,"
vol. i. , p. 34.
""' After what has been quoted above, in
the account of this trans-oceanic expedition of Maximus, Nennius continues, "Hi simt Britones Armorici, et numquam reversi sunt ad propium solum usque in hodiernum diem. "
167 <« Britones namque Armotici, qui ultra mare sunt, cum Maximo tyranno hinc in
tumultuosos, virtute, numero, contubernio contumaces. "
7' According to Apollinarus Sidonius,
" i. ,
Britons were seated near this r—iver. "
"
Bri-
tannos supra Ligerim sitos. " Epistola-
'Hoie ad loc. The best edition of this writer's works is that of
Sirmond, Paris, 1652.
'7^ See F. Guy Alexis Lobineau's "His-
toire de Bretagne," tome i. , liv. i. , sect. i.
to xxviii. , pp. I to 9.
'73 This monarch was the first Christian
King of France, and he reigned, from A. D.
48X to 511.
'? His History, regarding the Establish-
ment of the Britons, was a political work, and
rum,"lib. i. , Epist. 7.
448 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [AIarch 17.
Clotaire, the sons of Clovis. Another opinion has been acTvanced/^s that the soldiers of Riothimus were undoubtedly Continental Britons ; since, at this time, the insular Britons were struggling against the Saxons,'? ^ for a bare existence at home ; or, they were flying away, to more distant countries. This great contest was continued, from about a. d. 45 5'^^ to 492. That great victory, gained by the Britons, near Bath, happened during the latter year,
accordingtopi'evailinghistoricalaccounts. Consequently,theycouldnotthen have organized such a powerful force, to serve as Roman auxiliaries. About the middle of the ninth century, in the time of Nennius, the name of Armoric Britons appears to have been usually applied, only to the people of Britany. Yet, it must be observed, this writer could not mean, that those territories, which the followers of Maximus subdued, had been confined to that province ; since, he mentioned, a little before, many and extensive tracts, in whichtheyweresettled. Ataperiod,longsubsequenttothatofSt. Patrick, north-western Gaul, and a part of Belgium, had been called Britain. '^s Nor could the country, thus named, have been identical with the modern French district of Britany ; for, it would seem, that at a subsequent time, it had been called Normandy. '79
As the infancy and early life of St. Patrick are not sufficiently known, it was
necessary, in a measure, to institute the previous investigation of Britain's former extent ; so that, his being admittedly of British race, and even of Roman ex-
traction, may serve to give us the comparative conditions required, for our
attempt to solve the much debated question, regarding that country, in which his birth took place. An opinion, that St. Patrick had been born in France,
has there held a traditional vogue, as also in Ireland, from times very remote. On the other hand, a theory of ancient origin, most generally accepted, and
having the greatest weight of favouring authority, assumes St. Patrick had beenborninScotland. Indeed,werewetoregardtheargumentsofrespect- able authorities, in reference to the country of St. Patrick's birth, it seems that either Scotland or France must advance the most probable claims, in the assertion of such an honour. Other writers contend for South Britain, as having been the country of St. Patrick's birth ; but, all are not agreed, re- garding the exact locality. Some make him a Welshman ; others will have it, that his nativity must be referred to a south-western locality in England. Not alone St. Patrick is said to have been an Irishman, but his father and sisters are set down, as natives of this island, by Matthew of Westminster. '^° No authority is cited for this statement ; and, yet, it has misled other writers, such as Possevin,'^' and Baronius. '^^ Into this mistake, perhaps, some
it was undertaken, to show the original de- pendence of the Britons on the French kings. This work is at issue, with the theory of Lobincau.
'75 By Rev. Dr. Lanigan.
''* See Bede's
"
Historia Ecclesiastica
''' Thus, in Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hibernire," xvi. Januarii, we read in the Vita S. Fursoei, "Britanniam Provinciam, quce a modernis Normannia nuncupatur. "— Lib. ii. , cap. i. , p. 83. The words, " Bri- tanniam provinciam," are supposed to have been taken from some old document. This compiler of St. Fursey's Life is supposed to have been Arnulfus, the Abbot of Lagny, a town between Paris and Meaux, who lived in the eleventh century. Those words in- dicate a writer, who lived, not earlier than the tentli century.
'""See "Flores Historiarum," at A. D.
CCCCXCI. , p. 177.
Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. 16, as like- wise Smith's notes.
'" See Dr. Lingard's "History of Eng- land," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 63.
''* Thus, in the old Life of St. Fursey, it is related, that he arrived in such a province, on the Continent ; and, on his way, he pro- ceeded towards Rome, by a south-east- wardly direction, through Ponthieu, not far from Boulogne. This Life has been pub- lished by Colgan, and by the Bollandists. It was compiled from older documents, as
'*' " appears, on comparing it with the very See
ancient Life of Fursseus, published by Ma-
Apparatus Sacer. "
'*' See "Annales Ecclesiastic! . "
billon. See "Acta Sanctorum Ordinis S. "
Benedict! , tomus i. , sec. Ii, p. 299, and the following pages,
{
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 449
^vriters may have been led, by that equivocal expression, whicli martyrolo- gists use/^3 for designating the commemoration of a saint's death, as a
Natahs. Such misapprehension may have arisen, likewise, from the fact of St. Patrick having been called Scotus. ''^+ However, the whole tenor of St. Patrick's Acts is quite sufficient to disprove the supposition, of his having been an Irishman, by birth. Nor does it appear to have been a received tradition, in Ireland,'^s and, therefore, we may dismiss the consideration of such theory, in all subsequent phases of the present enquiry.
Therearemanyproofsadvanced,regardingtheprobabilityofSt. Patrickhaving beenanativeoftheEuropeanContinent. H—isFrenchextractionissupposedtobe asserted, in one of the oldest of his Lives that ascribed to St. Eleran. How-
The City of Boulogne, France.
ever, a succeeding part of the narrative shows, that the author of this biography
^^^
refers the foct of his birth to another, and to a more distant, country. The Aremoric Gauls, notwithstanding, are said to have claimed him, as their countryman. '^7 Don Philip O'SuUevan Beare has attempted to reconcile the fact of his being a Briton, with the circumstance of his birth occurring in
*^^
France, by supposing the Irish Apostle to have been a Briton, of Brittany. Other Irish writers have adopted the same opinion. Thus, Bishop David
Roth,'S9 j^gy^ Geoffi-y Keating, D.
Thus, we find, in Ccesar, caiterDeque civitates positae in ultimis Gallic finibus,
cap.
ocean—o conjunctse, qure Armoricce appellan-
tur. " "De Bello Gallico," lib. viii. , cap. Somonam amnem. Cluverius hie Briannos
31-
'" According to Dom Guy Alexis Lobi-
'
neau.
'" Aremorica, in the old Gaulish and
British dialects, signifies, "by the sea- side. " See Camden's "Britannia," col. xxix. Gibson's edition.
"
legi mavult. " See Germania Antiqua,"
lib. ii. , cap. 27. Leyden, 1616, two vols. , fol. Ussher follows him, in reading Briatiiti for Britanni. See " Primordia," p. 471.
"' A glance at the map will show the close relation of tlie district, marked by the present towns of Etaples, Montreuil, Hes- din and Ponthieu, to localities, named in the previous note.
Britannicum," lib. iv. , sect. 37. Some are of opinion, this port had been so distin- guished, because it was the place for Conti- nentals debarking, when on a voyage to Great Britain, or because it was near the Straits. See Hardouin's note.
"3 In British, Mor s\gw\^\t% "the sea. "
"
Moil- is said to have a like
"3 Certain geographers have placed Ar- morica between the Seine and the Loire. See Cluverius and Martiniere. However, they regard rather the usage of a certain period, and not the more ancient acceptation of the name.
"Historia
In Irish, inui]\
means "the meaning.
sea. "
"'See
Pliny's
Naturalis,"
lib.
"3Baudrand makes Gessoriacum the
sea-coast, Morinwyr.
entendoient toutes les cotes occidentales des
Gaules, habitees par les Aquitains, les Ar-
moricains, et les Morins, tons noms qui
signifient la meme chose, c'est a dire, peu-
ples maretimes. "—Lobineau's " Histoire de
Bretagne," vol. ii. , p. 7.
'^° these " Deinde Pliny gives words,
Menapii, Morini, Oromansaci juncti pago, qui Gessoriacus vocatur ; Brittani, Ambiani, Bellovaci. " See Plinii Secundi " Historia
note on the word "
quotation.
'"He "Portum Morinorum styles it,
]\[arch 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 445
Boulogne. '^-f The Biitanni have been placed, by Pliny, in its vicinity,'*5 or, as Camden has expressed it, in the country, adjoining Boulogne. '^^ The
Greek writer, Dionysius Periegetes'^7 distinguishes this Briton district,"^^ with sufficient accuracy. "9 Indeed, the Welsh Triads declare, that people of Great Britain originally came from this quarter. 'so We have been thus par- ticular, in alluding to what is stated, regarding the Britanni,'3i thought to have been living near Boulogne, since some writers of great authority con- sider this to have been the native country of St. Patrick.
There can be no manner of doubt, that other indigenous or idiomatic denominations, unknown to the classic writers, prevailed among those people. Thus, we find the Britons of Britany are distinguished from the Gauls. ^32 Again, the old Belgian Alobrites, or Gallo-Britons,'33 lived in Walloon, near Germany, or in the Low Countries,'34 during the time of Dionysius, the African. In early times, Pliny has styled that part of the northern sea Britannic,'35 which flows between the Seine's^ and the Rhine. He also alludes to the Herba Britannica,^37 which grew on the Continent, and probably had been indigenous to some parts of the country, which is now known as Belgium. '38 The same writer was inclined to think,^39 the Frisians had been considered Britons ^'•° nay, that even in the beginning, all
;
the Belgians were denominated, in like manner. ^'*'
same as Bononia. Portus Iccius, however, land of Lhdaw they came, having their "
he distinguishes fiom Boulogne. See No- descent from the primary stock of the
vum Lexicon Geographicum," tomus i. , pp. 125, 322, 370.
'''» See Hadrian Valesius, at Gessonacum, "
Cymmry. " And again, Cynan is spoken of as lord of Meirion (probably a Celtic form of the word Morini) in Liydaw. Taliessin also mentions the Morini Brython in his Frif Gyfarch. It is supposed, that Lydaw, latinized Letavia, is one of the early Celtic names of the country of the Morini, as Neus- tria was that given in the Merovingian period to the whole province, between the Meuse and Loire, including Boulogne.
'3' See a learned Essay on this subject, in the BoUandists' " Acta Sanctorum," tomus ix. Octobris xxi. Acta S. Ursula;.
'3^ When St. Maclovius, Bishop of St. Malo, had been expelled from his See, we
Geographia Antiqua," lib. ii. ,
Cellarius,
cap. 3, and other. writers. lena, 1691, fol.
'^5 Following Pliny, for
portus," Ricardus Corenensis has, tannicre gentis portus. " See " De situ Britanniae," lib. i. , sect. 4.
"^ See "Britannia," Gibson's edition, col. xvi.
"7 In his poem Feriegesis, alluding to the African and European Continents, having first invoked the l\Iuse, Dionysius treats of Islands, at v. 447. Then, he describes the British Islands, opposite the mouths of the
Rhine, as being the largest insular—lands, known at the time when he wrote :
Aicrcrai vrjffoi iaai Bperavides avrla V-qvov'— lldwv TOL fiiyeOos vepiibaiov' oud^ ris dWrj
ev wdarjai —iao(papii€i. Nijo-ots Bperaviaiv
Vv. 566-569.
"8 See idid. , vv. 283-287.
»=9 The commentator, Eustathius, at this passage, remarks, that opposite to Conti- nental I3ritain the British islands lay, and that their people had been formerly of the old Belgic race, or Walloons.
"
Britannicus
'3° Thus—"The three beneficent tribes of
the Isle of Britain. The first was the nation
of the Cymmry who came with Hu the
mighty to the Isle of Britain, who would . cus. " See lib. iv. , sect. 33.
possess nor country nor lands through fight- ing and persecution, but of equity and in peace ; the second was the stock of the Lloegrians, who came from the land of
Gwasgwyn (Gascoigne), and were descended from the primitive stock of the Cymmry ; the third were the Brython, and from the
'37 See ibid. , lib. xxv. , cap. 3.
'3^ Hardouin says, it was so called, from Bretannia, in Friesland. Hadrian Junius and some writers otherwise account for the name.
'39 Where he writes about the Britannic
herbage having been shown, by the Frisian soldiers of Germanicus.
"
Bri-
"
Britannis in Gallias abiit. " See Sigebert's
have added to the account,
maledictis
" "
Chronicon," and Matthesu Florilegus, Flores Historiarum," p. 195, at A. D. 561. '33 In the Vatican Codex, they are incor-
rectly, or, at least, synonymously, called "
Alobriges. See William Baxter's Glossa- rium Antiquitatum Britannicarum," at the denomination, Alobrites, 1719 and 1733. London, 8vo.
'34 This is stated, by a certain very ancient, but by an anonymous author.
'35 It is supposed, this name might be as well derived from continental as from in- sular Britain.
'3* He remarks, too, that the ocean "in- ter eum et Pyrenaeum" was called " Galli-
446 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
Towards the close of the fourth century, a large accession of insular and
armed Britons had been brought to the Continent, by Maximus,'*^ who landed at the mouths of the Rhinc'-^s Yet, another account of their arrival atitsestuariesiscurrent. ^14 Oppositethese,intheocean,andlyingnotmore than two hundred stadii, or about twenty-five miles, from the Continent, over against the furthermost parts of Gaul, an island, called Brittia, is said'45 to have been situated, between Britannia^^^ and Thule, where were also islands. Brittia was inhabited, likewise, by three very numerous nations, living under their several kings. Those people were called Angles, Frisons,^47 and insular Britons. Their country contained a vast multitude of inhabitants. '^^ Here, moreover, a long wall had been formerly built. '-f?
cannot suit in or near Holland '5° it any island, ; but,
held,
with Great Britain. In those early times, geographic science had made only a slight progress ; while, the distance and relative situation of distinct countries were very imperfectly known. 's^ We are also informed,'s^ that many of these followers obtained tracts of land, on different parts of the Con- tinentals Some of those were near a place, known as Canacuic,'54 or Cant- guic. '5s It has been ingeniously conjectured,'s^ that by such etymon must be meant Catwyck,'57 or Katwickj'ss in Holland ; and, that it must be sought for, about two leagues below Leyden,'59 where a middle branch of the Rhine
X40 Procopius, in his work, " De Bello Go-
thico," says the Frisians are stated to have
inhabited Britain, together with the Angli. '^' Pliny even mentions the Belgic Britons. The anonymous writer of Ravenna also speaks of Gallic Belgium, or Rhenish France, as having for inhabitants the Alo- brites, so called, and tantamount to Gallo-
britones.
'^^ These youths, who followed the tyrant,
never again returned to their own homes. See the celebrated work of Gildas, "De Excidio Britannise," cap. xi. Maximus died A. D. 384.
'^3 See Camden's "Britannia," col. 1504.
'»* Thus, Dom. Guy Alexis Lobineau tells
us, that the Britons, probably carried thither
by a storm, established themselves at the
mouths of the Rhine. Their isle and aban-
doned fortress are now destroyed by the
waters, like many others on these coasts.
agrees exactly
Ussher. See " Primordia," pp. 400, 419.
'5' Thus Tacitus places Hibernia in a site,
between Britannia and Hispania. See
"
sect. XV. , p. 6.
James Henthom Todd and the Hon. Alger-
non Herbert, pp. 66, 67. And Appendix No. x. , pp. xvii. to xix.
'54 In the Irish Version of the " Historia
Britonum," it is called Cahacuic, or Centu- moid.
'55 Speaking of Maximus, he says, this leader would not disband the soldiers, who came from Britain, nor allow them to re- visit their wives, nor children, nor lands ; but, he bestowed on them large tracts, near a marsh, "quod est super verticem montis Jovis usque ad civitatem, qui vocatur Cant- guic, et usque ad cumulum Occidentalem, id est, Cruc-ochidient. " Perhaps le Mont
See
Histoire de Bretagne," tome
i. , liv.
i. ,
X45 By Procopius Csesariensis, who flou- rished A. D. 560. He wrote a work, " De
Bello Vandalico," and another, " De Bello Gothico. " See Editio Maltreti, Parisiis, 1662.
'^* It is added " Etenim Britannia ad Jou, and Ouessant, west of Britanny.
:
solem occidentem, qua extremam Hispaniam
spectat, a continente stadia circiter quatuor
millia distat. " It will not be easy to ex-
plain this location, except that by Britannia guit. " The latter adds, "et ipsi sunt ad
the writer probably meant Ireland.
'•7 By the anonymous geographer of Ra- venna, the Frisones are called, Frixi, and
Frigones,
'^^ Ccesar had said, that Britain, in his
time, had been well peopled.
appended to the Irish Version of the toria Britonum. "
"
His-
" De Bello
'5° This is a conjecture hazarded by of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, iii. , sect, xii. , p.
'« See
lib. i. , cap. 20.
Gothico,"
Procopius,
'^
"
Vita AgricoUe," cap. xxiv. Again, the
This description, it is
Venerable Bede has our Island, near Spain,
and about 500 miles from the Continent. See
"
lib. i. , cap. i. In like manner Procopius.
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum,"
'5= See Dr.
tory of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, iii. , sect, xii.
,
Lanigan's
'53SeetheIrishVersionofthe'' Historia "
Britonum of Nennius. Edited by Rev.
'5* By Dr. Lanigan.
'57 Priscius has Cantiguit, in Hfet. Biyt.
"
cumulum occidentalem, i. e. Crutochidenit. " '5" See Martiniere, at Katwick.
'59 In reference to the settlements of those
colonists, the reader is referred to the Addi- . tional Notes, No. x. , xi. , pp. xvii. to xx. ,
Def. p. 50, and Gale's edition reads
Tant-
" Ecclesiastical His-
Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical History
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 447
formerly joined the sea. '^° A Dutch chronicler places a British settlement
there, and from it, the fortress, since called Het huys te Britten,^^' is thought
to have had its
mentioned by the ancient Avriters. '^3
easy, now,
to
identify
those
origin.
places,
^^^ It is not so
Several ancient'^* and modern'^s writers have derived the Armoric Britons
from the followers of Maximus,'^^ who appear to have spread along and
ravaged the northern coasts of France, to their remote extremity of Britany. '^7 The Bretons of this province, however, have an obscure history ; but, after the time of Maximus, the westernmost corner of Gaul began to be styled Britannia. '^^ we are
107, and Ussher's 419.
Primordia," pp. 400,
expeditionem exeuntes, quoniam redire ne- quiverant, occidentales partes Gallise solo tenus vastaverunt— eorum uxori-
'*' Baudrand
" Britanni etiam
pop.
acceptisque
bus et filiabus in conjugiam," &c. Dr.
Again,
told,
that the
conquests
of the Saxons a brought
great number of fugitive insular Britons, under the leadership of one of their
princes, named Reith, or Riwal, to seek an asylum among the Armoricans,
their allies. This happened, about the middle of the fifth century ; and,
soon after, new accessions of immigrants gradually crowding into north- western Gaul, Armorica changed its name for Bretagne. Another British
Prince, Riothime,'^9 at the head of 12,000 men,'7° is said to have landed, at the mouth of the Loire,'? ' and to have ascended this river to Berri, where, at
Bourdeols, he was attacked and defeated, by Euric, King of the Visigoths, A. D. 470. ^7* The Britons were probably dispersed, and settled in northern France, until such time as they became united to the Franks, under their king, Clovis,'73 about the beginning of the sixth century. Other writers have denied, that there were Bretons, in Bretagne, so early as the middle of the fifth century. Vertot'74 contends, that they had not been fixed there, until the sixth century, when they were received as fugitives, by Childebert and by
"
says,
Belgii, quorum tractus apud ostium Rlieni,
T/iays te Breiten appellatur, teste Ort. " See
"Novum Lexicon Geographicum," tomus
i. , p. 134.
Lanigan, however, thinks this passage an in- terpolation of Nennius, having been origi-
nally onlya comment on his work. Certainly,
it does not appear, in the Irish Version of
the " Historia Britonum. "
'^ "
See Darn's Histoire de Bretagne,"
tome i. , pp. 40 to 54. Britannia Gallicana,
Minor, Citerior, Cismarina, are terms ap-
plied to it, by Eginhard, and by other early writers.
'*9 He is also called Riothamus or Riothi- mus. He went, as an auxiliary to the Romans. See " De Rebus Ge-
ticis," cap. 45.
'7° C. S. Apollinarus Sidonius who flou-
""
ing to Camden. See Britannia," fi? /. 561. rished A. D. 470, styles them, armatos
"*^
to refugees who fled from Britain to avoid the Saxons. But, Dr. Lanigan rather thinks, it owes origin to the youths, who followed Maximus to the Continent, and who were left there to defend his points of communi-
Ussher ascribes this British settlement
cation with Great Britain.
See vol.
Ecclesias- chap, iii. ,
tical of History
Ireland," sect, xii. , p. 108.
Mons Jovis is the great St. Bernard. Cruc-ochi- dient, means, "western mountain," accord-
'*3 to Hadrian According
Valesius,
Jornandes,
Could Nennius have meant the Pyrenees ? asks Dr. Lanigan. Gildas writes, in his His- tory, that Maximus extended one of his wings to Spain and the other to Italy. See cap. x.
'*'* See Ussher's "Primordia," p. 421. Also, Baronius, Malbranque.
'*5 See Gilford's "History of France,"
vol. i. , p. 34.
""' After what has been quoted above, in
the account of this trans-oceanic expedition of Maximus, Nennius continues, "Hi simt Britones Armorici, et numquam reversi sunt ad propium solum usque in hodiernum diem. "
167 <« Britones namque Armotici, qui ultra mare sunt, cum Maximo tyranno hinc in
tumultuosos, virtute, numero, contubernio contumaces. "
7' According to Apollinarus Sidonius,
" i. ,
Britons were seated near this r—iver. "
"
Bri-
tannos supra Ligerim sitos. " Epistola-
'Hoie ad loc. The best edition of this writer's works is that of
Sirmond, Paris, 1652.
'7^ See F. Guy Alexis Lobineau's "His-
toire de Bretagne," tome i. , liv. i. , sect. i.
to xxviii. , pp. I to 9.
'73 This monarch was the first Christian
King of France, and he reigned, from A. D.
48X to 511.
'? His History, regarding the Establish-
ment of the Britons, was a political work, and
rum,"lib. i. , Epist. 7.
448 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [AIarch 17.
Clotaire, the sons of Clovis. Another opinion has been acTvanced/^s that the soldiers of Riothimus were undoubtedly Continental Britons ; since, at this time, the insular Britons were struggling against the Saxons,'? ^ for a bare existence at home ; or, they were flying away, to more distant countries. This great contest was continued, from about a. d. 45 5'^^ to 492. That great victory, gained by the Britons, near Bath, happened during the latter year,
accordingtopi'evailinghistoricalaccounts. Consequently,theycouldnotthen have organized such a powerful force, to serve as Roman auxiliaries. About the middle of the ninth century, in the time of Nennius, the name of Armoric Britons appears to have been usually applied, only to the people of Britany. Yet, it must be observed, this writer could not mean, that those territories, which the followers of Maximus subdued, had been confined to that province ; since, he mentioned, a little before, many and extensive tracts, in whichtheyweresettled. Ataperiod,longsubsequenttothatofSt. Patrick, north-western Gaul, and a part of Belgium, had been called Britain. '^s Nor could the country, thus named, have been identical with the modern French district of Britany ; for, it would seem, that at a subsequent time, it had been called Normandy. '79
As the infancy and early life of St. Patrick are not sufficiently known, it was
necessary, in a measure, to institute the previous investigation of Britain's former extent ; so that, his being admittedly of British race, and even of Roman ex-
traction, may serve to give us the comparative conditions required, for our
attempt to solve the much debated question, regarding that country, in which his birth took place. An opinion, that St. Patrick had been born in France,
has there held a traditional vogue, as also in Ireland, from times very remote. On the other hand, a theory of ancient origin, most generally accepted, and
having the greatest weight of favouring authority, assumes St. Patrick had beenborninScotland. Indeed,werewetoregardtheargumentsofrespect- able authorities, in reference to the country of St. Patrick's birth, it seems that either Scotland or France must advance the most probable claims, in the assertion of such an honour. Other writers contend for South Britain, as having been the country of St. Patrick's birth ; but, all are not agreed, re- garding the exact locality. Some make him a Welshman ; others will have it, that his nativity must be referred to a south-western locality in England. Not alone St. Patrick is said to have been an Irishman, but his father and sisters are set down, as natives of this island, by Matthew of Westminster. '^° No authority is cited for this statement ; and, yet, it has misled other writers, such as Possevin,'^' and Baronius. '^^ Into this mistake, perhaps, some
it was undertaken, to show the original de- pendence of the Britons on the French kings. This work is at issue, with the theory of Lobincau.
'75 By Rev. Dr. Lanigan.
''* See Bede's
"
Historia Ecclesiastica
''' Thus, in Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hibernire," xvi. Januarii, we read in the Vita S. Fursoei, "Britanniam Provinciam, quce a modernis Normannia nuncupatur. "— Lib. ii. , cap. i. , p. 83. The words, " Bri- tanniam provinciam," are supposed to have been taken from some old document. This compiler of St. Fursey's Life is supposed to have been Arnulfus, the Abbot of Lagny, a town between Paris and Meaux, who lived in the eleventh century. Those words in- dicate a writer, who lived, not earlier than the tentli century.
'""See "Flores Historiarum," at A. D.
CCCCXCI. , p. 177.
Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. 16, as like- wise Smith's notes.
'" See Dr. Lingard's "History of Eng- land," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 63.
''* Thus, in the old Life of St. Fursey, it is related, that he arrived in such a province, on the Continent ; and, on his way, he pro- ceeded towards Rome, by a south-east- wardly direction, through Ponthieu, not far from Boulogne. This Life has been pub- lished by Colgan, and by the Bollandists. It was compiled from older documents, as
'*' " appears, on comparing it with the very See
ancient Life of Fursseus, published by Ma-
Apparatus Sacer. "
'*' See "Annales Ecclesiastic! . "
billon. See "Acta Sanctorum Ordinis S. "
Benedict! , tomus i. , sec. Ii, p. 299, and the following pages,
{
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 449
^vriters may have been led, by that equivocal expression, whicli martyrolo- gists use/^3 for designating the commemoration of a saint's death, as a
Natahs. Such misapprehension may have arisen, likewise, from the fact of St. Patrick having been called Scotus. ''^+ However, the whole tenor of St. Patrick's Acts is quite sufficient to disprove the supposition, of his having been an Irishman, by birth. Nor does it appear to have been a received tradition, in Ireland,'^s and, therefore, we may dismiss the consideration of such theory, in all subsequent phases of the present enquiry.
Therearemanyproofsadvanced,regardingtheprobabilityofSt. Patrickhaving beenanativeoftheEuropeanContinent. H—isFrenchextractionissupposedtobe asserted, in one of the oldest of his Lives that ascribed to St. Eleran. How-
The City of Boulogne, France.
ever, a succeeding part of the narrative shows, that the author of this biography
^^^
refers the foct of his birth to another, and to a more distant, country. The Aremoric Gauls, notwithstanding, are said to have claimed him, as their countryman. '^7 Don Philip O'SuUevan Beare has attempted to reconcile the fact of his being a Briton, with the circumstance of his birth occurring in
*^^
France, by supposing the Irish Apostle to have been a Briton, of Brittany. Other Irish writers have adopted the same opinion. Thus, Bishop David
Roth,'S9 j^gy^ Geoffi-y Keating, D.
