On his death, about the year 1578, Darby O'Hurley was appointed
Archbishop
of Cashel by Pope Gregory XIII.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v9
i.
84 At Castledermot was founded a fine abbey, by Lord Offaly, father of the first Earl of Kildare, in the reign of King Edward I. Of this Abbey we have a beautiful
Aquatinta view, by Jonathan Fisher, in his "*
Scenery of Ireland," plate ix. , a. d. , 1 792.
85 See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , "Archbishops of Cashel," vol. i. , p. 467.
86 Rev. Dr. Lanigan remarks, " there is
good reason to think that, as the capital of
Munster, its following bishop gradually acquired, even before it became a really
Metropolitan See, the ascendancy which had bee—n formerly enjoyed by the church of Emly. " "Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," vol. iii. , chap, xxii. , sect, iv. , p. 350.
9 See an account of it, and the bounds of Cashel Diocese, at that period, at the Festi- val of St. Gille or Gillebert, in the Second Volume of this work, at February 4th, Art. v. , and n. 77, ibid.
92 See his Acts, at the 6th of April, in the Fourth Volume of this work, Art. i.
93 Held in the year im.
94 Pope Innocenr the Second was called to
ii
fill St. Peter's chair, a. d. 30, and he occu-
pied it 13 years, 7 months, and 9 days.
8?
Ecclesiae Hibernica? ," vol. i. , Province of Munster, p. 4.
See Archdeacon Henry Cotton's "Fasti
^ It seems very probable, it is the place now called Knockahaw, situated between
Templemore and Borris-in-Ossory.
^ Chamh-Coill, or " the eminent wood," is now known by the name of Knawhill. Hibernica. " This is situated between Cashel and Salchoid, in
the County of Tipperary.
9° Grine-Airbha, or Cross-Grein, must
have been somewhere about the conflux of the river Suir with the Lingan, which divides Tipperary from the County of Kil- kenny, at and above the Three Bridges.
Seward's "
Topographia
At this
"
366 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
Pallium was then bestowed on Armagh, Dublin, Tuam and Cashel. 95 In the latter See, its ruling prelate was Donat O'Lonergan, who died at a good
6 He was succeeded
time a Synod was held at Cashel, a. d. 1172, by order of King Henry II. , and over it Christian O'Conarchy, Bishop of Lismore, and the Pope's Legate, presided. With the exception of Gelasius, Archbishop of Armagh, all the other ArchbishopsandBishopsofIrelandassistedatit, withdiversAbbots,Deans, Priors and Clerics, together with ecclesiastics who represented the kings. In this Synod, they constituted Henry II. and his heirs, kings and lords of Ireland for ever, and passed some other important decrees. The charters
of the Archbishops and Bishops, with their seals pendent, were received by the King,who trans- mitted a copy of those charters to Pope Alexander, who by his apostolic authority confirmed their decrees. At this same Synod, the Laws of Eng- land were received by all, and the ob- servance of them confirmed by an oath. In 1179, Cashel was burned, and in 1182, Arch-
old in age
1158. 9
by
Donald and in his O'Hallucan,
Donald died. 97 Shortlybe- fore the time when the English arrived in Ireland, Donald O'Brien, King of Limerick, built a new Cathedral dedi- cated to St. Patrick on the Rock of 8 and con- verted Cormac's chapel into a chapel or chapter-house, on the south side of the choir He also endowed it with lands. 99 This twelfth-century Cathedral seems to have been built of
Cathedral of Cashel, Interior.
95 The Most Rev. John Healy says, Whilst formally recognising the superiority of Armagh as the Primatical See, four palls were granted by the Cardinal Legate, thus
legally constituting fou—r archbishops in Ire- "
DAlton in 1
See " Irish Penny Magazine," vol. i. , No.
land for the first time. " Insula Sanctorum et Doctorum, or Ireland's Ancient Schools and Scholars," chap, xv. , sect, iv. , p.
98 to According
John
169.
361.
96 According to the Annals ot the Priory
bishop
Cashel,?
of All Saints, on Lough Ree of the River
Shannon. 97SeeArchdeaconHenryCotton's Fasti
Ecclesiae Hibernicse," vol. i. , Province of Munster, p. 5.
34, p. 266.
99 See Harris' Ware, vol. i. ,
of Cashel," p. 464.
"
Archbishops
"
September . 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 367
limestone taken from the precipitous rock on which it stands. It was
cruciform in shape, and had a large square tower in the centre of the cross.
The length of this ruin from east to west, including the nave and choir, are
about 210 feet ; the transepts from north to south are about 170 feet long.
At present, there are no appearances of piers, arches or lateral aisles, in either
nave or choir. There are three lofty lancet-arched windows, each one quite
distinct from the other, in both the north and south transepts. The side
windows of the choir and nave are of a similar construction. The eastern
window and the wall which was around it are now quite destroyed. Several
ancient flat tombs are to be seen within the nave IO° but for the most ——; part
their inscriptions if any such existed are, for the most part, effaced.
Without are many modern tombs, to indicate the family burial-places of
—— various deceased members. 101 The old regal or rather episcopal residence
lies towards the west ; and on the interior of the Cathedral, to which it had been attached, the vestige of a gallery may still be traced. This faced the
position occupied by the high altar. Several of the windows, doorways and
arches have very fine moulded and ornamental stones. Through the thick-
ness of the walls " the monks' walk" is to be seen. 102 Immediately under
the Castle wall—now so designated—there is a well of curious construction.
It has been bored through the solid rock, and it is thirty-two feet in depth.
It usually contains fifteen feet of water in depth, but sometimes during the
droughts of summer it only contains eight feet of water. Below, the well is
eight feet in diameter, but it is only three feet at the top, which has been
surrounded with neatly-pointed stone. 10^ With regard to the position of the
existing church ruins on the Rock of Cashel, it has been stated by a local
10
writer, * that the chancel of Cormac's Chapel is not placed in the centre of
the church, but that it inclines to the south. To account for this, a mystic
10* it has been noticed, that Cormac's Again,
has been
Chapel and the Cathedral adjoining do not stand parallel with each other. For this peculiarity, the theory of orientation is alleged. Cormac's Chapel is supposed to have been founded on the 1st of May, and the adjoining Cathedralonthe17thofMarch. Thus,itisinferred,thattheinclinationof
100
meaning
their respective angles may be solved.
100
Apparently those of prelates and other distinguished ecclesiastics or lay-persons.
101 One of the most interesting and con-
spicuous is that in limestone, with plain, chaste mouldings, surmounted by a funer—al
urn, and having the following inscription:
Sacred to the Memory
of
Denys Scully, Esq.
Born on 4th May 1773,
Died on
Requiescat in Pace.
25th
October
1830. Amen.
—"
Patriots who contended for Freedom of
Conscience and Constitutional Liberty he bore a promineut Part. His Statement of the Penal Laws is a solid Monument of his
own Genius, and of the complicated Oppres- sion of his Country and his Religion. "
102 During a visit made to the Rock of Cashel in November, 1853, the writer saw an adventurous goat browsing on the very highest top of the side-wall. The accom-
On the reverse we read
:
Among
the
Documents," Clonmel,
I0S Mr. White thus states his opinion ;
"As the Church is the 'Body of Christ,'
this church is built to represent Him a—s He
— the Cross, with His head the hung upon
sought.
panying illustration of the interior of the Cathedral, from an approved view, has been drawn on the wood and engraved by Gregor
Grey.
I03 This well had been examined in Sep-
tember, 1848, and several pieces of old tombs, ruinous tracery, and a remarkable
grotesque figure, called by the local guide,
"
a Buddhist Divinity," were found. About this time a portion of
the old castle had fallen.
I0* DavisWhite,inhis "Cashel John book,
of the Kings ; Being a History of the City of Cashel, compiled from scarce Books and
George Haskins,
original
1863.
to one side ; the nave represents the rest of the body, and the towers at each side (there being no tran- septs) the arms. " By whom, such position of the Chancel thus accounted for, has been
imagined, Mr. White does not mention.
chancel leaning
368 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
The Round Tower on the Rock of Cashel10? stands at the north-east angle of the Cathedral northern transept, with which it is connected. 108 Its circumference at base is 56 feet, and it is stated to be 90 feet in height ; it retains its original conical stone roof, which springs from a projecting string-course. The masonry of the tower exhibits some curious features : it rises from a plinth of 6 inches projection ; for 5 feet in height it is built of freestone in irregularly squared blocks ; there is next a long patch of lime- stone about 4 feet high, roughly built, the stones cracked and damaged, and looking like a repair. Next appears about 6 feet high of freestone masonry inblocks,roughlydressed,butwithoutspawls; fromthisupwardsthework is all of even character, being of freestone in irregular courses of from 7 inches to 12 inches high, rough-squared but closely laid, and an admirable piece of work. The original doorway faces south-west, and is of small dimensions ; it is 10 feet from the ground level; the ope is at present built up, the sill-stone is gone, and the jambs are much damaged. There is a more modern doorway broken into the north-eastern angle of transept. It has a quadrangular window-ope about 20 feet from the ground, which faces south ; a similar ope is at 36 feet, facing east ; and one at about 50 feet, facing to the south-west. As usual, these opes are of small dimensions, and they have sloping jambs. In the attic story, immediately under the eave- course, are four window opes of larger dimensions, having angular heads externally and square heads internally. Those opes are well proportioned, and nearly face the cardinal points ; two of the angular heads are cut out of solid stones, and the other two are built of two or more blocks.
Internally
100
there are offsets taken from the thickness of the wall.
The history of the Catholic Archbishops and See of Cashel since the
Reformation is best given in the valuable and recondite work of the Very*
Rev. Laurence F. Renehan, D. D. , formerly President of Maynooth College, published from his Manuscripts, and edited by the Very Rev. Daniel M'Carthy, D. D. 110 This work has been compiled from printed and contem- poraneous documents and scarce books, on which the learned collector has exercised great research, combined with sound judgment, in connexion with his subject. The history of the Protestant Archbishops may be found very
111
trans- lated by him into English, with very numerous and important additions to
fully related in Walter Harris' edition of Sir James Ware's works,
the
originals.
118 It is said, that about a. d. 12 16, the town of Cashel had
,o6 To illustrate such a position, Mr. John
"
History of Hertfordshire," p. 43: "One end of every church doth point to such place where the sun did rise at the time the foundation thereof was laid, which is the reason why all churches do not directly point to the east ; for if the foundation was laid in June, it
coeval with that of the adjoining Cathedral walls. However, Mr. Brash regards the Round Tower as the oldest erection on the
Rock of Cashel.
109 In Marcus Keane's "Towers and
Temples of Ancient Ireland," there is an engraving of what he calls an idol of well- cut limestone, two feet six inches in height, discovered some few years before the pub- lication of that work in 1867 (Dublin 4to) buried several feet under the ground near the base of the Round tower at Cashel. See
Davis White thus cites Chau—ncey's
pointed to the north-east, where the sun
rises at that time of the year ; if it was laid
in the spring or autumn, it was directed full
east ; if in winter, south-east : and by the
standing of these churches it is shown at p. 33.
lt0 " what time of the year the foundations of See
them were laid. "
107 See Richard Rolt Brash's " Ecclesias-
tical Architecture of Ireland," chap. vii. ,
Cashel, pp. 91, 92. • 108 An examination of the door-way, which enters the Round Tower internally, shows manifestly, that its time of building was
Collections on Irish Church His- tory," vol. i. , Archbishops of Cashel, pp.
239 to 386.
"'See vol. i. "Archbishops of Cashel,"
pp. 463 to 488.
,,a Neither of the authorities mentioned in
the text, however, bring the history of Cashel down to the present date.
September 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 369
been erected into a borough, "3 by Archbishop Donat O'Lonergan, the third bearing that name in the See. 11* Soon after the succession of Marian
O'Brien, Pope Honorius III. confirmed the number of twelve Canons in the Cathedral of Cashel, by a Bull, dated the 6th May, 1224. Archbishop David Mac Kelly founded a Dominican Convent in Cashel, a. d. 1243, the ruins of which are still to be seen ; and about a. d. 1250, a Franciscan friary was founded by William Hacket. In the year 1276, a royal mandate issued for the erection of a king's castle in Cashel, and early in the fourteenth century, the city was surrounded with a stone wall, and a castle was built, which was left in charge of a constable. In the year 1372, an Irish parlia- ment—not then confined to any particular locality—was held in Cashel. When Richard O'Hedian or O'Heden ruled that See from a. d. 1406 to 1440, he re-built, or at least repaired, from a very ruinous condition, the Cathedral of St. Patrick. He built a Hall, likewise, for his Vicars Choral, confirming to them the lands of Grange Connell and Thurles-Beg. In the year 1495, Gerald FitzGerald, Earl of Kildare, burned the Cathedral, to be revenged on the reigning Archbishop, David Creagh. The last Austinian Prior of Athassel Priory, Edmund Butler, was consecrated Archbishop of Cashel in 1527, holding his conventual house in commendam, until the period of the dissolution of monasteries. His successor was Roland Baron, alias Fitz-
Gerald, desended from the ancient family of the Geraldines, and he departed this life on the 28th of October, 1561. After his death, the See continued vacant for six years ; the Catholic Archbishop, Maurice Gibbon or Fitzgibbon, apparently struggling against the power of Queen Elizabeth, who, on the 2nd of October, a. d. 1567, had promoted by Letters Patent James MacCaghvvell,intheinterestsoftheReformation. Duringhistime,byanAct of Parliament, in a. d. 1568, the See of Emly was united to that of Cashel.
When Mac Cagwell died in 1570, the celebrated Miler Magrath, who from being a Franciscan friar had become a pervert to Protestantism, was trans- lated by the Queen from the See of Clogher to the Sees of Cashel and Emly. Meantime,theCatholicArchbishopFitzgibbonhadbeennecessitated to fly from Ireland and seek refuge in Spain and France.
On his death, about the year 1578, Darby O'Hurley was appointed Archbishop of Cashel by Pope Gregory XIII. , but on returning to Ireland, he was discovered and arrested. Brought before the Privy Council in Dublin, and refusing to take the objectionable oaths of supremacy and allegiance, he was at first subjected to frightful tortures, and afterwards this holy martyr was hanged on Stephen's Green, on the 6th of May, 1584. It has been supposed that Turlough O'Neill and William Burgat were the Catholic Archbishops immediately succeeding; andnextfollowedDavidKearney,whoseappointmenttookplace between the years 1602 and 1605, when, amid great difficulties and dangers, he continued to exercise episcopal duties, during the rule of Miler Magrath, whichcontinuedtohisdeathini622"5. ArchbishopKearneydiedinexile, on the 10th of March, 1625, in the Cistercian monastery at Bonlieu, near
113
Burgage holdings
were
"5 his life-time, Miler During
to the burgesses.
1,4 In the year 1224, it has been said, that
Pope Honorius III. , who took a great inte- rest in the celebrated and learned Michael
ment, witii the following Latin inscription composed by himself : Mileri Magrath,
— Casheliensis ad viatorem Archiepiscopi
him to the See of Cashel ; but on his declining that honour, he had permission to hold a benefice in Italy. See "The Dublin Review," vol. cxxiii. , October, 1898, No. 247, Art. ix. , English Scholarship in the Thirteenth Century, by Dom F.
Aidan Gasquet, D. D. , O. S. B. , p. 366.
Scott, appointed
given, likewise,
Magrath erected within the Cathedral, on a high basis at the south side of the choir, a stone Monu-
Carmen
Venerat in Dunum primo sanctissimus olim,
Patricius, nostri gloria magna soli,
Huic ego succedens, ultinam tarn sanctus ut
-lie,
:
370 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAJNTS. [September14.
Bordeaux. When the Insurrection of 1641 broke out, Cashel fell into the hands of the Confederate Catholics, and it continued in their possession until taken in 1647 by Lord Inchiquin by storm, when several of the clergy and laity, who had fled to the Cathedral as to a citadel, were by him inhumanly massacred. A curious old painting of Cormac in robes, partly
royal and partly archiepiscopal, together with his patron, St. Patrick, was to be
seen in the new and the present century.
of the
In the year 1874, several noblemen and gentlemen of
spacious
city
Cashel,
ArchbishopCroke'sMemorialCross,Cashel.
Rock and its ruined
buildings. TheArch-
Catholic
chapel
of
different religious per- suasions allowed their
names to be placed on a committee for
purchasing "i and re- storing the ecclesias-
tical and other build- ings, on the Rock of Cashel, with the Most Rev. Dr. Leahy, Arch- bishop of Cashel, as their chairman. The Catholic inhabitants of the city of Cashel took action in the matter by sending for- ward a memorial to the head of the Govern- ment. The Catholic
bishop issued an ap- peal to all students of the history and antiquities of Ireland, to aid in restoring a noble monument of mediaeval civilization, and sent it to persons
Sic Duni primo tempore Pmesul eram.
Anglia, lustra decern sed post tua sceptra colebam,
Principibus p acui, Marte tonante, tufa.
I lie ubi sum positus, non sum, sum non ubi
non sum
Sum nee in ambobus, sum sed utroque loco.
1621.
Dominus est qui me judicat. i. Cor. 4. Qui stat, caveat ne cadat.
Thus re—ndered into English verse by Walter Harris
Patrick, the glory of our Isle and Gown, First sat a Bishop in the See of Down.
1 wish that I, succeeding him in place
As Bishop, had an equal share oi Grace.
I served thee, England, fifty years in jars, And pleased thy Princes in the midst of wars ; Here where I'm plac'd, I'm not ; and thus
the case is,
I'm not in both, yet am in both the Places.
1621.
He that judgeth me is the Lord.
;
1 Cor. 4.
Let him who stands,
take care lest he fall.
of the diocese of Cashel and Emly con- curred with the in- habitants of the
and the Catholic clergy of both dio- ceses authorised their
Archbishop, the Most Rev. Dr. Leahy, to take steps, in their name, for obtaining
laity
possession
of the
116 in early
city,
September 14. ] L/VF. S OF THE IRISH SA/. VTS 371
of influence at home and abroad, in Ireland, in Great Britain, in
America, in Australia, in India, so that funds might be procured to
realize a restoration tor of Catholic 8 To commemorate purposes worship. "
the attainment of the Episcopal Silver Jubilee of their present patriotic and distinguished prelate in the See of Cashel, the inhabitants of that
town and neighbourhood resolved on erecting a Celtic cross, and on a suitablesitegrantedforsuchpurposebytheTownCommissioners. Itwas designed by Mr. Edward O'Shea, of Kilkenny, and it has been wrought in grey
marble limestone taken from a quarry near Callan.
It stands in the market
over sixteen feet in existing old Irish crosses. .
11^ The
from carvings on
place,
height.
motifs
copied
are
The chief sculptures on it are the figure of Christ
crucified, treated in the reverent manner of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Underneath the Crucifixion reveal are two panels ; the one representing St. Cormac Mac Cuillenan, and the Teampul Chormaic on the Rock, the other St. Ailbe preaching to the chief and tribes of the country about Emly. Below on the pedestal is shown the traditional scene representing St. Patrick baptising ^Engus, the first Christian King of Cashel ,2° On the reverse side is the commemorative 1 The of this Memorial Cross
before an enthusiastic assemblage of clergy and people, who came from far and near to participate in that grand demonstration.
inscription. " unveiling
took place on Sunday, January 24th, 1897, with suitable ceremony and
At the of the of 122
14th September, Martyrology Donegal registers
a festival in honour of Corbmac Mac Cuilennain, King of Munster. He is also called Bishop and Martyr. The age of Christ when he fell by the Lagenians,
is said to have been 919,123 according to the Calendarist. In the " Circle of •the Seasons,"12* we find the festival of this pious King-Bishop assigned to the 14th of September, in accordance with the arrangement of most hagio-
logists who have treated regarding him.
An antidote to the evils of anarchy was found in that influence
frequently exercised by ecclesiastics, representing the Church in Ireland. To their spiritual teaching and decrees, both princes and people bowed with
respect. Nevertheles, the turbulence and rivalry of faction and of personal ambition excited those passions, so little in accordance with reason and
religion. A corrective to the disruptured state of our country was found, no doubt, in that unity of doctrine and those religious usages, prevailing in the various dioceses. However, external violence and domestic intrigues rendered the kings and chiefs, in many instances, both victims and participants, in a series of ruinous feuds and wasting conflicts. Peace was
116 See Rev. Dr. Milner s " Letters on Ire- and," note at p. 130.
1. 7 From the Church Commissioners.
1. 8
This address is dated Thurles, June 5th, 1871.
"9 The accompanying illustration has
been selected from photographs kindly presented by Very Rev. Dean Thomas II. Kinane, V. G. , and P. P. of Cashel. It was drawn and engraved on the wood, by Gregor Grey.
This Market Cross has been erected by the
'" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 120 On the side panels of the base 248, 249.
are the armorial bearings of the Cashel Diocese, and the family arms of Archbishop Croke.
,23 In a note, Dr. Reeves says, at this date of 919, "Thus in the manuscript ; but 909
121
In the following terms
:
—
is the true year. " Masters. "
See "Annals of the Four
Citizens of
And a few other Friends,
to perpetuate the Silver
Episcopal Jubilee of
His Grace, the Most Heverend Thomas
W. Croke, D. D. , Archbishop of Cashel and Emly. July 10th, 1895.
124 At p. 258.
Cashel,
372 LJVES Of THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
rarely continuous and uninterrupted. Feeling was not always based on those principles of right and forbearance, that should characterize the relations of
neighbouring provinces and people. War was sometimes conducted according to the recognized usage and chivalry of civilized nations ; but, for the most part, a remorseless and powerful despot became the scourge over a
neighbouring territory, and he imposed galling conditions of tribute on its people, when too weak to resist his claim. Jealousies, divisions and distrusts pervaded the minds of petty princes, and misdirected their policy. Hence the painful and ignoble records of exactions, invasions and battles, desolating in their effects, and precluding all permanent and successful attempts for the social and political regeneration of a common country. The reformer was wanting, with a head to conceive, a will to resolve, and a power to accomplish effective means, necessary to remove these disastrous results based on anarchial usages and national prejudices. Thus, the virtuous and accomplished man, whose career we have endeavoured to trace, was unfortunately overborne in a desire to rule with justice and moderation, while disaster followed, because he had weakly yielded to the persuasions of unwise counsellors.
Article II. —St. Caemhan Brec, Bishop of Ross-each, now Russagh,
County of Westmeath. At the 14th of September, according to the
12
Feilire of yEngus and the Mart) rology of Tallagh, veneration was given to
Coeman Breic, of Ross ech, in Caillfollomon. 3 Such should have been the correct insertion ;butit reads otherwise in the published copy. According to the Scholiast on the Feilire of ^Engus, Coeman is called Mac Nisse, or son of Nisse. He is commemorated on this day in Marianus O'Gorman's " Felire," 4 with a note by his commentator, that Coeman Brecc was from Ross Ech in Caille Folamain, in Meath. He descends from the race of Conaire, son to Moghlamha, monarch of Erin, who belonged to the race of Heremon. Caille-Fallamhain has been interpreted Fallon's Wood. The situation 01 this place appears, from the foregoing record, as also from the Feilire Aenguis, to have embraced a territory in which the church of Ros-each had been situated. Yet, the district of Caille Fallamhain does not seem to have been exactly ascertained ; although it was doubtless within the territory of ancient Meath. It is said, that the place is now called Russagh,s near the
Articleii. —* Inthatcopycontained—in CoemanbpeccicllojTech1 Cailli£t>llo-
the Leabhar Breac we read at this date
:
"Oolmj; t>eic jreib Choemam bwc la T)i(i)r- mbolmain bar* cait> Cippiam oemnain Lacefat) cam Cormil.
•
Thus translated into English:—"To thee
hatli sprung the feast of Coeman Brecc,
—te with a wise (? ) pair: vast Ciprian's chas
death with the fair passion of Cornelius. " Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy,
tmrni.
3 The Scholiast to Oengus states, that he
belonged to Ross Ech, in Meath, and a son of his mother was MacRustaing ; and hence we are told, that both were maternal brothers, but whether by the same father is not so clear.
translation is: "Coeman
the hardships. " Whitley Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On Ilui Gormain," pp. 176, 177.
the Calendar of Oengus, p. cxxxvii. See 5 This parish is marked on the "Ordnance
also p. cxlv. Survey Townland Maps for the County of
"
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xxxiv. Westmeath," sheets 5, 6. The townland
In the Book of Leinster copy we read : proper is on sheet 6.
4 Thus—Caeman, Brec, brig bladmar, diar ndfn ar na dodngibh. —
The
English
Brecc—famous —
—to us from
!
vigour protect
" Stokes' Felire
September 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 373
6
village of Street, in the baronyot Moygoish. and in the County of Westmeath. More incorrectly, it would seem, the district had been called Chailli in Ollaim, " the wood of the Ollamh," or chief Professor. ? There is also a Clonabreany or Russagh, in Diarmor Parish, deanery of Keils, and barony of Fore, County of Meath. 8 Here an old church stood ; and only a grave- yard, overgrown with flaggers, thistles, and other weeds, may now be see—n. A holy well springs near the church-yard, and it is dedicated to St. Kevin probably the present St. Caemhan Brec. He appears to have been a former" patron of this place. ? According to the Annals of Ulster and those of the
10
Four Masters, this holy man died on the 14th of September, a. d. 6i4. According to the commentator on Oengus, his maternal brother Mac Rustaing—reputed to have been a poet—was buried in Ross Ech in
13
Article III. —St. 6eledabhaill, Abbot of Bangor, County of Down. This holy man was the son of Scannall. He was born about 868, and he is distinguished as a Scribe, a preacher, a learned doctor, and a bishop. He was likewise the successor of St. Comhgall of Beannchair, now Bangor,
moreover, that Coeman Breach was buried in Ross
Meath. 11 He
Liac, which place was unknown to him. In the Martyrology of Donegal, at the same date, he is designated Caemhan Brec, of Ros-each,^ in Gaille Fallamhain, in Meath.
states,
in the County of Down. He died on the 14th of September, while on his 12
pilgrimage at Rome, in the fifty-ninth year of his age, and in the year 92 7.
Article IV. —The Daughters of Colum, in Cremtannaibh. We find
inserted, in the published Martyrology of Tallagh, at the 14th of September,
the name and 1 Colum of Cremtannaibh. 2 The is different in place, entry
that copy contained in the Book of Leinster. 3 There can hardly be a doubt,
but that the present entry incorrectly found its way into the published Martyrology of Tallagh, through some mistake of a scribe. It seems
6 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (x. ), p. 252.
7 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Leabhar na-g-
Ceart, or Book of Rights," n. (j), p. 182.
8 It is shown on the " Ordnance Survey
Townland Maps for the County of Meath,"
I2 Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 248, 249.
I3 In the table appended to this Martyr-
ology, a Latin memorandum is inserted in
the Irish character, and thus rendered into
English, after the proper name Ros-ech ;
sheets
9 See Rev. A. Cogan's "Diocese of
Meath, Ancient and Modern," vol.
84 At Castledermot was founded a fine abbey, by Lord Offaly, father of the first Earl of Kildare, in the reign of King Edward I. Of this Abbey we have a beautiful
Aquatinta view, by Jonathan Fisher, in his "*
Scenery of Ireland," plate ix. , a. d. , 1 792.
85 See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , "Archbishops of Cashel," vol. i. , p. 467.
86 Rev. Dr. Lanigan remarks, " there is
good reason to think that, as the capital of
Munster, its following bishop gradually acquired, even before it became a really
Metropolitan See, the ascendancy which had bee—n formerly enjoyed by the church of Emly. " "Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," vol. iii. , chap, xxii. , sect, iv. , p. 350.
9 See an account of it, and the bounds of Cashel Diocese, at that period, at the Festi- val of St. Gille or Gillebert, in the Second Volume of this work, at February 4th, Art. v. , and n. 77, ibid.
92 See his Acts, at the 6th of April, in the Fourth Volume of this work, Art. i.
93 Held in the year im.
94 Pope Innocenr the Second was called to
ii
fill St. Peter's chair, a. d. 30, and he occu-
pied it 13 years, 7 months, and 9 days.
8?
Ecclesiae Hibernica? ," vol. i. , Province of Munster, p. 4.
See Archdeacon Henry Cotton's "Fasti
^ It seems very probable, it is the place now called Knockahaw, situated between
Templemore and Borris-in-Ossory.
^ Chamh-Coill, or " the eminent wood," is now known by the name of Knawhill. Hibernica. " This is situated between Cashel and Salchoid, in
the County of Tipperary.
9° Grine-Airbha, or Cross-Grein, must
have been somewhere about the conflux of the river Suir with the Lingan, which divides Tipperary from the County of Kil- kenny, at and above the Three Bridges.
Seward's "
Topographia
At this
"
366 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
Pallium was then bestowed on Armagh, Dublin, Tuam and Cashel. 95 In the latter See, its ruling prelate was Donat O'Lonergan, who died at a good
6 He was succeeded
time a Synod was held at Cashel, a. d. 1172, by order of King Henry II. , and over it Christian O'Conarchy, Bishop of Lismore, and the Pope's Legate, presided. With the exception of Gelasius, Archbishop of Armagh, all the other ArchbishopsandBishopsofIrelandassistedatit, withdiversAbbots,Deans, Priors and Clerics, together with ecclesiastics who represented the kings. In this Synod, they constituted Henry II. and his heirs, kings and lords of Ireland for ever, and passed some other important decrees. The charters
of the Archbishops and Bishops, with their seals pendent, were received by the King,who trans- mitted a copy of those charters to Pope Alexander, who by his apostolic authority confirmed their decrees. At this same Synod, the Laws of Eng- land were received by all, and the ob- servance of them confirmed by an oath. In 1179, Cashel was burned, and in 1182, Arch-
old in age
1158. 9
by
Donald and in his O'Hallucan,
Donald died. 97 Shortlybe- fore the time when the English arrived in Ireland, Donald O'Brien, King of Limerick, built a new Cathedral dedi- cated to St. Patrick on the Rock of 8 and con- verted Cormac's chapel into a chapel or chapter-house, on the south side of the choir He also endowed it with lands. 99 This twelfth-century Cathedral seems to have been built of
Cathedral of Cashel, Interior.
95 The Most Rev. John Healy says, Whilst formally recognising the superiority of Armagh as the Primatical See, four palls were granted by the Cardinal Legate, thus
legally constituting fou—r archbishops in Ire- "
DAlton in 1
See " Irish Penny Magazine," vol. i. , No.
land for the first time. " Insula Sanctorum et Doctorum, or Ireland's Ancient Schools and Scholars," chap, xv. , sect, iv. , p.
98 to According
John
169.
361.
96 According to the Annals ot the Priory
bishop
Cashel,?
of All Saints, on Lough Ree of the River
Shannon. 97SeeArchdeaconHenryCotton's Fasti
Ecclesiae Hibernicse," vol. i. , Province of Munster, p. 5.
34, p. 266.
99 See Harris' Ware, vol. i. ,
of Cashel," p. 464.
"
Archbishops
"
September . 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 367
limestone taken from the precipitous rock on which it stands. It was
cruciform in shape, and had a large square tower in the centre of the cross.
The length of this ruin from east to west, including the nave and choir, are
about 210 feet ; the transepts from north to south are about 170 feet long.
At present, there are no appearances of piers, arches or lateral aisles, in either
nave or choir. There are three lofty lancet-arched windows, each one quite
distinct from the other, in both the north and south transepts. The side
windows of the choir and nave are of a similar construction. The eastern
window and the wall which was around it are now quite destroyed. Several
ancient flat tombs are to be seen within the nave IO° but for the most ——; part
their inscriptions if any such existed are, for the most part, effaced.
Without are many modern tombs, to indicate the family burial-places of
—— various deceased members. 101 The old regal or rather episcopal residence
lies towards the west ; and on the interior of the Cathedral, to which it had been attached, the vestige of a gallery may still be traced. This faced the
position occupied by the high altar. Several of the windows, doorways and
arches have very fine moulded and ornamental stones. Through the thick-
ness of the walls " the monks' walk" is to be seen. 102 Immediately under
the Castle wall—now so designated—there is a well of curious construction.
It has been bored through the solid rock, and it is thirty-two feet in depth.
It usually contains fifteen feet of water in depth, but sometimes during the
droughts of summer it only contains eight feet of water. Below, the well is
eight feet in diameter, but it is only three feet at the top, which has been
surrounded with neatly-pointed stone. 10^ With regard to the position of the
existing church ruins on the Rock of Cashel, it has been stated by a local
10
writer, * that the chancel of Cormac's Chapel is not placed in the centre of
the church, but that it inclines to the south. To account for this, a mystic
10* it has been noticed, that Cormac's Again,
has been
Chapel and the Cathedral adjoining do not stand parallel with each other. For this peculiarity, the theory of orientation is alleged. Cormac's Chapel is supposed to have been founded on the 1st of May, and the adjoining Cathedralonthe17thofMarch. Thus,itisinferred,thattheinclinationof
100
meaning
their respective angles may be solved.
100
Apparently those of prelates and other distinguished ecclesiastics or lay-persons.
101 One of the most interesting and con-
spicuous is that in limestone, with plain, chaste mouldings, surmounted by a funer—al
urn, and having the following inscription:
Sacred to the Memory
of
Denys Scully, Esq.
Born on 4th May 1773,
Died on
Requiescat in Pace.
25th
October
1830. Amen.
—"
Patriots who contended for Freedom of
Conscience and Constitutional Liberty he bore a promineut Part. His Statement of the Penal Laws is a solid Monument of his
own Genius, and of the complicated Oppres- sion of his Country and his Religion. "
102 During a visit made to the Rock of Cashel in November, 1853, the writer saw an adventurous goat browsing on the very highest top of the side-wall. The accom-
On the reverse we read
:
Among
the
Documents," Clonmel,
I0S Mr. White thus states his opinion ;
"As the Church is the 'Body of Christ,'
this church is built to represent Him a—s He
— the Cross, with His head the hung upon
sought.
panying illustration of the interior of the Cathedral, from an approved view, has been drawn on the wood and engraved by Gregor
Grey.
I03 This well had been examined in Sep-
tember, 1848, and several pieces of old tombs, ruinous tracery, and a remarkable
grotesque figure, called by the local guide,
"
a Buddhist Divinity," were found. About this time a portion of
the old castle had fallen.
I0* DavisWhite,inhis "Cashel John book,
of the Kings ; Being a History of the City of Cashel, compiled from scarce Books and
George Haskins,
original
1863.
to one side ; the nave represents the rest of the body, and the towers at each side (there being no tran- septs) the arms. " By whom, such position of the Chancel thus accounted for, has been
imagined, Mr. White does not mention.
chancel leaning
368 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
The Round Tower on the Rock of Cashel10? stands at the north-east angle of the Cathedral northern transept, with which it is connected. 108 Its circumference at base is 56 feet, and it is stated to be 90 feet in height ; it retains its original conical stone roof, which springs from a projecting string-course. The masonry of the tower exhibits some curious features : it rises from a plinth of 6 inches projection ; for 5 feet in height it is built of freestone in irregularly squared blocks ; there is next a long patch of lime- stone about 4 feet high, roughly built, the stones cracked and damaged, and looking like a repair. Next appears about 6 feet high of freestone masonry inblocks,roughlydressed,butwithoutspawls; fromthisupwardsthework is all of even character, being of freestone in irregular courses of from 7 inches to 12 inches high, rough-squared but closely laid, and an admirable piece of work. The original doorway faces south-west, and is of small dimensions ; it is 10 feet from the ground level; the ope is at present built up, the sill-stone is gone, and the jambs are much damaged. There is a more modern doorway broken into the north-eastern angle of transept. It has a quadrangular window-ope about 20 feet from the ground, which faces south ; a similar ope is at 36 feet, facing east ; and one at about 50 feet, facing to the south-west. As usual, these opes are of small dimensions, and they have sloping jambs. In the attic story, immediately under the eave- course, are four window opes of larger dimensions, having angular heads externally and square heads internally. Those opes are well proportioned, and nearly face the cardinal points ; two of the angular heads are cut out of solid stones, and the other two are built of two or more blocks.
Internally
100
there are offsets taken from the thickness of the wall.
The history of the Catholic Archbishops and See of Cashel since the
Reformation is best given in the valuable and recondite work of the Very*
Rev. Laurence F. Renehan, D. D. , formerly President of Maynooth College, published from his Manuscripts, and edited by the Very Rev. Daniel M'Carthy, D. D. 110 This work has been compiled from printed and contem- poraneous documents and scarce books, on which the learned collector has exercised great research, combined with sound judgment, in connexion with his subject. The history of the Protestant Archbishops may be found very
111
trans- lated by him into English, with very numerous and important additions to
fully related in Walter Harris' edition of Sir James Ware's works,
the
originals.
118 It is said, that about a. d. 12 16, the town of Cashel had
,o6 To illustrate such a position, Mr. John
"
History of Hertfordshire," p. 43: "One end of every church doth point to such place where the sun did rise at the time the foundation thereof was laid, which is the reason why all churches do not directly point to the east ; for if the foundation was laid in June, it
coeval with that of the adjoining Cathedral walls. However, Mr. Brash regards the Round Tower as the oldest erection on the
Rock of Cashel.
109 In Marcus Keane's "Towers and
Temples of Ancient Ireland," there is an engraving of what he calls an idol of well- cut limestone, two feet six inches in height, discovered some few years before the pub- lication of that work in 1867 (Dublin 4to) buried several feet under the ground near the base of the Round tower at Cashel. See
Davis White thus cites Chau—ncey's
pointed to the north-east, where the sun
rises at that time of the year ; if it was laid
in the spring or autumn, it was directed full
east ; if in winter, south-east : and by the
standing of these churches it is shown at p. 33.
lt0 " what time of the year the foundations of See
them were laid. "
107 See Richard Rolt Brash's " Ecclesias-
tical Architecture of Ireland," chap. vii. ,
Cashel, pp. 91, 92. • 108 An examination of the door-way, which enters the Round Tower internally, shows manifestly, that its time of building was
Collections on Irish Church His- tory," vol. i. , Archbishops of Cashel, pp.
239 to 386.
"'See vol. i. "Archbishops of Cashel,"
pp. 463 to 488.
,,a Neither of the authorities mentioned in
the text, however, bring the history of Cashel down to the present date.
September 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 369
been erected into a borough, "3 by Archbishop Donat O'Lonergan, the third bearing that name in the See. 11* Soon after the succession of Marian
O'Brien, Pope Honorius III. confirmed the number of twelve Canons in the Cathedral of Cashel, by a Bull, dated the 6th May, 1224. Archbishop David Mac Kelly founded a Dominican Convent in Cashel, a. d. 1243, the ruins of which are still to be seen ; and about a. d. 1250, a Franciscan friary was founded by William Hacket. In the year 1276, a royal mandate issued for the erection of a king's castle in Cashel, and early in the fourteenth century, the city was surrounded with a stone wall, and a castle was built, which was left in charge of a constable. In the year 1372, an Irish parlia- ment—not then confined to any particular locality—was held in Cashel. When Richard O'Hedian or O'Heden ruled that See from a. d. 1406 to 1440, he re-built, or at least repaired, from a very ruinous condition, the Cathedral of St. Patrick. He built a Hall, likewise, for his Vicars Choral, confirming to them the lands of Grange Connell and Thurles-Beg. In the year 1495, Gerald FitzGerald, Earl of Kildare, burned the Cathedral, to be revenged on the reigning Archbishop, David Creagh. The last Austinian Prior of Athassel Priory, Edmund Butler, was consecrated Archbishop of Cashel in 1527, holding his conventual house in commendam, until the period of the dissolution of monasteries. His successor was Roland Baron, alias Fitz-
Gerald, desended from the ancient family of the Geraldines, and he departed this life on the 28th of October, 1561. After his death, the See continued vacant for six years ; the Catholic Archbishop, Maurice Gibbon or Fitzgibbon, apparently struggling against the power of Queen Elizabeth, who, on the 2nd of October, a. d. 1567, had promoted by Letters Patent James MacCaghvvell,intheinterestsoftheReformation. Duringhistime,byanAct of Parliament, in a. d. 1568, the See of Emly was united to that of Cashel.
When Mac Cagwell died in 1570, the celebrated Miler Magrath, who from being a Franciscan friar had become a pervert to Protestantism, was trans- lated by the Queen from the See of Clogher to the Sees of Cashel and Emly. Meantime,theCatholicArchbishopFitzgibbonhadbeennecessitated to fly from Ireland and seek refuge in Spain and France.
On his death, about the year 1578, Darby O'Hurley was appointed Archbishop of Cashel by Pope Gregory XIII. , but on returning to Ireland, he was discovered and arrested. Brought before the Privy Council in Dublin, and refusing to take the objectionable oaths of supremacy and allegiance, he was at first subjected to frightful tortures, and afterwards this holy martyr was hanged on Stephen's Green, on the 6th of May, 1584. It has been supposed that Turlough O'Neill and William Burgat were the Catholic Archbishops immediately succeeding; andnextfollowedDavidKearney,whoseappointmenttookplace between the years 1602 and 1605, when, amid great difficulties and dangers, he continued to exercise episcopal duties, during the rule of Miler Magrath, whichcontinuedtohisdeathini622"5. ArchbishopKearneydiedinexile, on the 10th of March, 1625, in the Cistercian monastery at Bonlieu, near
113
Burgage holdings
were
"5 his life-time, Miler During
to the burgesses.
1,4 In the year 1224, it has been said, that
Pope Honorius III. , who took a great inte- rest in the celebrated and learned Michael
ment, witii the following Latin inscription composed by himself : Mileri Magrath,
— Casheliensis ad viatorem Archiepiscopi
him to the See of Cashel ; but on his declining that honour, he had permission to hold a benefice in Italy. See "The Dublin Review," vol. cxxiii. , October, 1898, No. 247, Art. ix. , English Scholarship in the Thirteenth Century, by Dom F.
Aidan Gasquet, D. D. , O. S. B. , p. 366.
Scott, appointed
given, likewise,
Magrath erected within the Cathedral, on a high basis at the south side of the choir, a stone Monu-
Carmen
Venerat in Dunum primo sanctissimus olim,
Patricius, nostri gloria magna soli,
Huic ego succedens, ultinam tarn sanctus ut
-lie,
:
370 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAJNTS. [September14.
Bordeaux. When the Insurrection of 1641 broke out, Cashel fell into the hands of the Confederate Catholics, and it continued in their possession until taken in 1647 by Lord Inchiquin by storm, when several of the clergy and laity, who had fled to the Cathedral as to a citadel, were by him inhumanly massacred. A curious old painting of Cormac in robes, partly
royal and partly archiepiscopal, together with his patron, St. Patrick, was to be
seen in the new and the present century.
of the
In the year 1874, several noblemen and gentlemen of
spacious
city
Cashel,
ArchbishopCroke'sMemorialCross,Cashel.
Rock and its ruined
buildings. TheArch-
Catholic
chapel
of
different religious per- suasions allowed their
names to be placed on a committee for
purchasing "i and re- storing the ecclesias-
tical and other build- ings, on the Rock of Cashel, with the Most Rev. Dr. Leahy, Arch- bishop of Cashel, as their chairman. The Catholic inhabitants of the city of Cashel took action in the matter by sending for- ward a memorial to the head of the Govern- ment. The Catholic
bishop issued an ap- peal to all students of the history and antiquities of Ireland, to aid in restoring a noble monument of mediaeval civilization, and sent it to persons
Sic Duni primo tempore Pmesul eram.
Anglia, lustra decern sed post tua sceptra colebam,
Principibus p acui, Marte tonante, tufa.
I lie ubi sum positus, non sum, sum non ubi
non sum
Sum nee in ambobus, sum sed utroque loco.
1621.
Dominus est qui me judicat. i. Cor. 4. Qui stat, caveat ne cadat.
Thus re—ndered into English verse by Walter Harris
Patrick, the glory of our Isle and Gown, First sat a Bishop in the See of Down.
1 wish that I, succeeding him in place
As Bishop, had an equal share oi Grace.
I served thee, England, fifty years in jars, And pleased thy Princes in the midst of wars ; Here where I'm plac'd, I'm not ; and thus
the case is,
I'm not in both, yet am in both the Places.
1621.
He that judgeth me is the Lord.
;
1 Cor. 4.
Let him who stands,
take care lest he fall.
of the diocese of Cashel and Emly con- curred with the in- habitants of the
and the Catholic clergy of both dio- ceses authorised their
Archbishop, the Most Rev. Dr. Leahy, to take steps, in their name, for obtaining
laity
possession
of the
116 in early
city,
September 14. ] L/VF. S OF THE IRISH SA/. VTS 371
of influence at home and abroad, in Ireland, in Great Britain, in
America, in Australia, in India, so that funds might be procured to
realize a restoration tor of Catholic 8 To commemorate purposes worship. "
the attainment of the Episcopal Silver Jubilee of their present patriotic and distinguished prelate in the See of Cashel, the inhabitants of that
town and neighbourhood resolved on erecting a Celtic cross, and on a suitablesitegrantedforsuchpurposebytheTownCommissioners. Itwas designed by Mr. Edward O'Shea, of Kilkenny, and it has been wrought in grey
marble limestone taken from a quarry near Callan.
It stands in the market
over sixteen feet in existing old Irish crosses. .
11^ The
from carvings on
place,
height.
motifs
copied
are
The chief sculptures on it are the figure of Christ
crucified, treated in the reverent manner of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Underneath the Crucifixion reveal are two panels ; the one representing St. Cormac Mac Cuillenan, and the Teampul Chormaic on the Rock, the other St. Ailbe preaching to the chief and tribes of the country about Emly. Below on the pedestal is shown the traditional scene representing St. Patrick baptising ^Engus, the first Christian King of Cashel ,2° On the reverse side is the commemorative 1 The of this Memorial Cross
before an enthusiastic assemblage of clergy and people, who came from far and near to participate in that grand demonstration.
inscription. " unveiling
took place on Sunday, January 24th, 1897, with suitable ceremony and
At the of the of 122
14th September, Martyrology Donegal registers
a festival in honour of Corbmac Mac Cuilennain, King of Munster. He is also called Bishop and Martyr. The age of Christ when he fell by the Lagenians,
is said to have been 919,123 according to the Calendarist. In the " Circle of •the Seasons,"12* we find the festival of this pious King-Bishop assigned to the 14th of September, in accordance with the arrangement of most hagio-
logists who have treated regarding him.
An antidote to the evils of anarchy was found in that influence
frequently exercised by ecclesiastics, representing the Church in Ireland. To their spiritual teaching and decrees, both princes and people bowed with
respect. Nevertheles, the turbulence and rivalry of faction and of personal ambition excited those passions, so little in accordance with reason and
religion. A corrective to the disruptured state of our country was found, no doubt, in that unity of doctrine and those religious usages, prevailing in the various dioceses. However, external violence and domestic intrigues rendered the kings and chiefs, in many instances, both victims and participants, in a series of ruinous feuds and wasting conflicts. Peace was
116 See Rev. Dr. Milner s " Letters on Ire- and," note at p. 130.
1. 7 From the Church Commissioners.
1. 8
This address is dated Thurles, June 5th, 1871.
"9 The accompanying illustration has
been selected from photographs kindly presented by Very Rev. Dean Thomas II. Kinane, V. G. , and P. P. of Cashel. It was drawn and engraved on the wood, by Gregor Grey.
This Market Cross has been erected by the
'" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 120 On the side panels of the base 248, 249.
are the armorial bearings of the Cashel Diocese, and the family arms of Archbishop Croke.
,23 In a note, Dr. Reeves says, at this date of 919, "Thus in the manuscript ; but 909
121
In the following terms
:
—
is the true year. " Masters. "
See "Annals of the Four
Citizens of
And a few other Friends,
to perpetuate the Silver
Episcopal Jubilee of
His Grace, the Most Heverend Thomas
W. Croke, D. D. , Archbishop of Cashel and Emly. July 10th, 1895.
124 At p. 258.
Cashel,
372 LJVES Of THE IRISH SAINTS. [September 14.
rarely continuous and uninterrupted. Feeling was not always based on those principles of right and forbearance, that should characterize the relations of
neighbouring provinces and people. War was sometimes conducted according to the recognized usage and chivalry of civilized nations ; but, for the most part, a remorseless and powerful despot became the scourge over a
neighbouring territory, and he imposed galling conditions of tribute on its people, when too weak to resist his claim. Jealousies, divisions and distrusts pervaded the minds of petty princes, and misdirected their policy. Hence the painful and ignoble records of exactions, invasions and battles, desolating in their effects, and precluding all permanent and successful attempts for the social and political regeneration of a common country. The reformer was wanting, with a head to conceive, a will to resolve, and a power to accomplish effective means, necessary to remove these disastrous results based on anarchial usages and national prejudices. Thus, the virtuous and accomplished man, whose career we have endeavoured to trace, was unfortunately overborne in a desire to rule with justice and moderation, while disaster followed, because he had weakly yielded to the persuasions of unwise counsellors.
Article II. —St. Caemhan Brec, Bishop of Ross-each, now Russagh,
County of Westmeath. At the 14th of September, according to the
12
Feilire of yEngus and the Mart) rology of Tallagh, veneration was given to
Coeman Breic, of Ross ech, in Caillfollomon. 3 Such should have been the correct insertion ;butit reads otherwise in the published copy. According to the Scholiast on the Feilire of ^Engus, Coeman is called Mac Nisse, or son of Nisse. He is commemorated on this day in Marianus O'Gorman's " Felire," 4 with a note by his commentator, that Coeman Brecc was from Ross Ech in Caille Folamain, in Meath. He descends from the race of Conaire, son to Moghlamha, monarch of Erin, who belonged to the race of Heremon. Caille-Fallamhain has been interpreted Fallon's Wood. The situation 01 this place appears, from the foregoing record, as also from the Feilire Aenguis, to have embraced a territory in which the church of Ros-each had been situated. Yet, the district of Caille Fallamhain does not seem to have been exactly ascertained ; although it was doubtless within the territory of ancient Meath. It is said, that the place is now called Russagh,s near the
Articleii. —* Inthatcopycontained—in CoemanbpeccicllojTech1 Cailli£t>llo-
the Leabhar Breac we read at this date
:
"Oolmj; t>eic jreib Choemam bwc la T)i(i)r- mbolmain bar* cait> Cippiam oemnain Lacefat) cam Cormil.
•
Thus translated into English:—"To thee
hatli sprung the feast of Coeman Brecc,
—te with a wise (? ) pair: vast Ciprian's chas
death with the fair passion of Cornelius. " Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy,
tmrni.
3 The Scholiast to Oengus states, that he
belonged to Ross Ech, in Meath, and a son of his mother was MacRustaing ; and hence we are told, that both were maternal brothers, but whether by the same father is not so clear.
translation is: "Coeman
the hardships. " Whitley Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On Ilui Gormain," pp. 176, 177.
the Calendar of Oengus, p. cxxxvii. See 5 This parish is marked on the "Ordnance
also p. cxlv. Survey Townland Maps for the County of
"
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xxxiv. Westmeath," sheets 5, 6. The townland
In the Book of Leinster copy we read : proper is on sheet 6.
4 Thus—Caeman, Brec, brig bladmar, diar ndfn ar na dodngibh. —
The
English
Brecc—famous —
—to us from
!
vigour protect
" Stokes' Felire
September 14. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 373
6
village of Street, in the baronyot Moygoish. and in the County of Westmeath. More incorrectly, it would seem, the district had been called Chailli in Ollaim, " the wood of the Ollamh," or chief Professor. ? There is also a Clonabreany or Russagh, in Diarmor Parish, deanery of Keils, and barony of Fore, County of Meath. 8 Here an old church stood ; and only a grave- yard, overgrown with flaggers, thistles, and other weeds, may now be see—n. A holy well springs near the church-yard, and it is dedicated to St. Kevin probably the present St. Caemhan Brec. He appears to have been a former" patron of this place. ? According to the Annals of Ulster and those of the
10
Four Masters, this holy man died on the 14th of September, a. d. 6i4. According to the commentator on Oengus, his maternal brother Mac Rustaing—reputed to have been a poet—was buried in Ross Ech in
13
Article III. —St. 6eledabhaill, Abbot of Bangor, County of Down. This holy man was the son of Scannall. He was born about 868, and he is distinguished as a Scribe, a preacher, a learned doctor, and a bishop. He was likewise the successor of St. Comhgall of Beannchair, now Bangor,
moreover, that Coeman Breach was buried in Ross
Meath. 11 He
Liac, which place was unknown to him. In the Martyrology of Donegal, at the same date, he is designated Caemhan Brec, of Ros-each,^ in Gaille Fallamhain, in Meath.
states,
in the County of Down. He died on the 14th of September, while on his 12
pilgrimage at Rome, in the fifty-ninth year of his age, and in the year 92 7.
Article IV. —The Daughters of Colum, in Cremtannaibh. We find
inserted, in the published Martyrology of Tallagh, at the 14th of September,
the name and 1 Colum of Cremtannaibh. 2 The is different in place, entry
that copy contained in the Book of Leinster. 3 There can hardly be a doubt,
but that the present entry incorrectly found its way into the published Martyrology of Tallagh, through some mistake of a scribe. It seems
6 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , n. (x. ), p. 252.
7 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Leabhar na-g-
Ceart, or Book of Rights," n. (j), p. 182.
8 It is shown on the " Ordnance Survey
Townland Maps for the County of Meath,"
I2 Edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves,
pp. 248, 249.
I3 In the table appended to this Martyr-
ology, a Latin memorandum is inserted in
the Irish character, and thus rendered into
English, after the proper name Ros-ech ;
sheets
9 See Rev. A. Cogan's "Diocese of
Meath, Ancient and Modern," vol.
