No More Learning

5^ At this day, Colgan intended to have
published another Life of this saint, taken fromtheBookoftheIsland. Thisissup- posed to be the feast of some translation of his remains.
Article ii. "
trea-
lected and edited by Rev. John Lynch, P. P. , Ballymena, p. 21, Dublin, 1870, 8vo.
"See Wills' "Lives of Illustrious and
Distinguished Irishmen," vol. i. , part i. Ecclesiastical and literary series. First
period, p. 107.
3 See " Acta Sanctorum Hibemise," xvii.
Februarii. De S. Cormaco Episcopo Ath-
interesting
February 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 599
chapters/ TheBollandistshavenospecialmentionofthisholyprelate,at
the present date ; unless, indeed, he may be classed with a Cormac, Bishop of Trim, who is entered in a Hst of saints, connected with that place. s A certain Gormac, called the son of Enda, is thought^ to have been a nephew to King Leogaire. 7 He is said, subsequently to have become Archbishop of Armagh. This Dr. Lanigan suspects to be a mistake ; since Enda's son, Cormac, whom his father had entrusted to the care of St. Patrick,* is not mentioned in the oldest accounts concerning him, as having ever become a bishop, although in the passages relative to him the see of Armagh is particularly mentioned. 9 The same writer doubts, that the present Cormac's father was Enda, brother of King Leogaire. His mother is said to have been Fuineacht, daughter of Maelfithrigh, son to Dioma,sonofColman. ^° ThatCormachadbeenBishopofTrim,beforehe was promoted to Armagh, has been the mistake of some writers. It is true, that certain compilers of our Calendars represent him to have been such ; but, it is easy to account for their having done so. There was a Cormac, Bishop of Trim, in the eighth century, whose memory, together with that of St. Luman and of several others, was revered there, on the 17th February. Dr. Lanigan asserts, that Trim was not an episcopal see in the fifth century, and that its first bishop, who is named Luman or Loman, belonged to the seventh. " Oneaccountmakeshimabbot,atthisplace. " ThatCormac,sonofEnda, said to have been consigned to St. Patrick,^3 ijsed to receive from certain bishops, whom the Apostle had appointed as his masters, some cows on each AllSaints'Daytowardshissupport. Astheseweregiventohim,inhonour of St. Patrick, their successors used to continue this sort of payment, it is said,totheseeofArmagh,afterthedeathofCormac. But,theTripartite Life of St. Patrick does not mention Cormac, as having been a bishop, and itgiveshimnoothernameortitle,thanthatofCormacSnithine. ''^ Jocelin, who usually follows the Tripartite, or, at least, certain documents, whence that work was in part derived, has an account of Enda, and of his consigning Cormac to St. Patrick's care, which account he thus concludes, by stating, that
trumensi, et postea Archiepiscopo Ardma- chano. Exvariis,pp. 358,359.
4 See ibid. , pp. 360, 361.
s See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus iii,, Feb-
ruarii xvii. Among the pretermitted saints, at p. 3.
^
By Sir James Ware, who appears to have followed Colgan's opinion.
7 See "Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, viii,, sect, xii. , p. 415.
bishops of Armagh, although noticing his having—been also, as he states, Bishop of Trim. " " Memoir introductory to the early
History of the Primacy of Armagh," p. 69. ^3 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " Septima Vita S. Patricii, lib. ii. , cap. 18,
19.
^4 Dr. Lanigan remarks, that thus the
matter stands in the text, as quoted at full
length, by Colgan, at the 17th of February.
Yet, in his edition of the Tripartite in
" Trias has thrown Thaumaturga," Colgan
in some words, indicating that this Cormac
"Martyrology of Donegal," pp. 50, 51. read at the 1 7th of February, Et sic postea Yet, such parentage, on the mother's side, is haec servitus (of giving the cows) eorum ec- more probably referable to St. Cormac, clesiis adhaesit, donee Nuadhat abbas Ard-
^
See his Life at the 17th of March.
9 See ibid. Also nn.
150, 151, 152, p.
417.
"See Rev. Drs. Reeves' and Todd's
was Bishop of Armagh. Instead of, as we "
Bishop of Trim, likewise venerated on this day.
machanus," he swells up the text in
"
Trias
Thaumaturga" with the following words ;
" Et ille mos eorum successores postea apud
transiit in consuetudinem et debitum, ut
singuli nempe quotannis successoribus S. Cormaci vaccam debeant solvere, donee
Nuadhat," &c. Colgan thought, this tri- bute could not be paid to Armagh, unless
"
Ec- been abbot there, instead of at Armagh. clesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. ,
" See "Ecclesiastical
vol. i. , chap, viii. , sect, xii. , p. 416.
^^
Thus the Rev. Robert King writes : In the copy of the jp^/z>^, or Festilogy, of ^ngus, preserved in the Zm(5/5ar ^? -^«<r, this
"
"
Cormac is called
Trim," which would make him to have
History
of
Ireland,"
Coa7'b of Patrick in
Cormac had been bishop there. See Ware enumerates him among the Arch- chap, viii,, sect, xii. , n. 151, p. 417.
6oo LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[February 17.
St. Patrick baptized, educated,'s and imbued with a knowledge of letters, the boy who was called Cormac, surnamed Snithine. ^^ He grew in age, in wisdom and in sanctity ; and being renowned for his virtues and miracles, this Cormac happily slept in the Lord. '7
he had been raised to the
Archiepiscopal
see of
Armagh.
^^ At a
period,
when St. Patrick is said to have been very old, and wholly intent on Divine
contemplation, St. Cormac, having become an eminent example for innocence,
piety, learning, and a knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, was appointed
successor to Jarlath, a. d. 485, by the Irish Apostle himself. '^ This St.
Cormac, Archbishop of Armagh, is mentioned in many Irish Calendars, but withouttheadditionofhisbeingcalledthesonofEnda. Thiswouldhardly have been omitted, were he the same person. For Enda was a chieftain of high consideration ; and, were it merely to remind the reader of his having consigned his son Cormac to St. Patrick, the authors of these Calendars would have mentioned his name when treating of the Archbishop Cormac. =° Again, Colgan strives to distinguish a supposed Cormac junior from an older one,whowaslikewiseaBishopofTrim,ashethought. ThisolderCormac was assumed to have vacated the see of Trim, and then to have become Archbishop of Armagh. =^^ To the former see, it is said, St. Patrick had like* wise nominated him f^ but, this supposed appointment does not appear to be a well-founded statement. Now, it happened, that this was the very day forthefestivalordeathofCormac,ArchbishopofArmagh. Henceitcame to pass, that the two Cormacs were confounded together. Then it became necessarytosupposethetranslationofCormacfromTrimtoArmagh. This proceeding would not have been allowed by the Western Church, in the fifth century, without the greatest necessity existing for such a change. Next came another paradox, viz. , the burying of Cormac at Trim, because he, who was really Bishop of Trim had been buried there. Surely the clergy and people of Armagh would not have suffered the remains of their archbishop to be removed to another diocese. However, the two Cormacs are very clearly distinguished from each other in the Irish Annals. =3 Now, Jarlath, Archbishop of Armagh, died, early in the year 482. St. Cormac was his immediate successor, and he is thought to have governed this church for the cerm of fifteen years. ''^ He is called St. Patrick's heirj^'s because, as it is stated, he survived the illustrious founder. Again, this archbishop is distin- guished, in the Irish Annals, from many other Cormacs, by an addition that hewasfromthedistrictofErnaidhe. ^^ Thelocaleofthisregionwasasub-
^5 In Harris' Ware, it is stated, that he was educated under four of St. Patrick's
=° Dr. Lanigan adds to the foregoing re- marks: "How much more distinct would
See vol. i. , Armagh, p. 36.
^^
"
of
not his
have been — specification by marking
disciples.
"
Archbishops
Colgan thinks he received this cogno- men, because Snilhine was—the place where he received his education for this remark seems to be an addition to the original text.
"
See "Trias Thaumaturga. Septima Vita
S. Patricii, lib. ii. , cap. 19.
'7 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. "
Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. c.
'•* Dr.
himthesonofEnda,hadhebeensuch? "
"Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. ,
this
" Would he not have mentioned his having been raised to the primacy of Ar- magh, if he had known that to have been the case? "—" Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," vol. i. , chap, viii. , sect, xii. , p. 417.
'9 See Harris' Ware, vol. "
i. , Archbishops
xii. , p. 416.
'* See Harris' vol. Ware,
" Arch-
tion
:
bishops of Armagh," p. 36.
''S in the "Annals of Ulster. "
tores. " —
Lanigan pertinently puts
ques-
i. ,
of Armagh," p. 36.
"Acta Sanctorum "xvii. Februarii. Hibernioe,
De S. Cormaco Episcopo, &c,, n. 18, p. 359.
It seems doubtful, however, that
chap, viii. , sect, xii. , pp. 415, 416.
'^
See ibid.
"See Harris' Ware, vol. i. ,
bishops of Armagh," p. 36.
"
"Arch-
=^3 See Dr. Lanigan's
Ecclesiastical His- tory of Ireland," vol. i. ,chap. viii. , section
See Dr. O'Conor's " Rerum Hibernicarum Scrip-
'* "
De regione Ernaidhe. "
Colgan's
February 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 601
ject of doubt to Dr. Lanigan. ='7 It is also called Crioch an Emidhe.
^^ This
may be a corruplion of Crioch Leoghaire. ^9 It was probably some part of the country near Lough Erne, or the river of said name, as Dr. Lanigan sup- poses, unless it was the same as Ernatia, which seems to have been in the county of Louth. 3° It may, however, have been one of those places, now designated Urney, and to which allusion has been already made. 3^ It was certainly different from the territory, in which Enda lived, viz. , Usneadh or
Usny. 32 However, concerning this archbishop's transactions, we find nothing particularly recorded, except his having become a very perfect man, and his general repute of having wrought miracles. 33 This holy prelate departed fromlife,mostprobablyatArmagh,onthe17thofFebruary. Hisfeastwas celebrated, likewise, on this day. In the Festilogy of St. ^ngus, at the 17 th —ofFebruary,thissaintiscommemorated. 3+ IntheMartyrologiesofTallagh3S
Cashel, of Marianus O'Gorman, and of Donegal,36 his festival is entered, at the same date. 37 a. d. 4963s or 497,39 was the year of his death. It is said, he was buried at Trim. There, and at Armagh, his festival was observed, on the day of his death. 4° Yet, it appears most likely, he was interred at Armagh ; although, it is possible, some of his relics may have been pre- servedatTrim. 41 Otherwise,itisnoteasytoaccountforthelocalreverence in which he was there held. At this date, also, the Bishop Cormac's feast had an Ofhce of Nine Lessons. ^^
Article III. —St. Loman or Luman, said to have been the first
Bishop, at Trim. {Fifth Century^ This holy man is classed among St. Patrick's disciples ; and, he flourished about the middle, or towards the close, of the fifth century. He is stated, to have been the first founder of a
that he is the same — we cannot be sure, however, Bishop Cormac of
^^ He alludes to an Ernaidhe, in Muskerry, countyofCork; but,heremarks,thatitis
and besides that it was more natural to suppose, that Cormac was a native of Ulster rather than of Munster. See "Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, viii. , sect, xii. , n. 154, p. 418. " Memoir In- troductory to the early History of the Pri-
The feast of Cormac, of pure pros- "
perity.
35 Edited Rev. Dr. by
not called a district ;
xvi.
^6 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
^^ See Rev. Robert
n.
38 Duald Mac Firbis enters, under the
head of Ath Truim, Cormac, bishop, and combarb of Patrick [ob. ], anno 496, at 17th
"
or "little church. " See "Annals of the Royal Irish Academy. " Irish MSS. series, Four Masters," vol, i. , n. (k), p. 160. vol. i. , part i. , pp. 88, 89. See also the
"" 3° See Dr. Lanigan's Ecclesiastical His-
tory of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, viii. , section xii. , p. 416.
3' See what occurs at the i ith of February, art. v.
32 See Dr. Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical His-
tory of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, viii. , section niae," xvii. Februarii. De S. Cormaco xii. , p. 416. Episcopo, &c. , cap. iv. , p. 359. Also, Dr.
33 At least, such is Colgan's account. See Lanigan's "Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
macy of Armagh," p. 68.
^9 Dr. O'Donovan renders Crioch-in-Er-
naidhe,
the territory of the little oratory"
of February. See "Proceedings of the
"Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," xvii. Feb-
ruarii. De S. Cormaco Episcopo, &c,,
cap, ii. , p. 358.
34 The following translation of the Irish,
as found in the " Book of Lecain," R,I,A. ,
land," vol. i. , chap, viii. , sect, xii. , p. 416. '^° See Harris' Ware, vol. i,, "Arch-
bishops of Armagh," p. 36.
4i See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the
was furnished t—o me
by
the late
J.
O'Beirne
Four Masters," vol, i. n. (k), p. 160.
42 A in classed B. MS,, T. CD,,
3,
12,
xiii.
Crowe, A. B.
:
contains, at Lect.
February 17th
or Kal.
"
Martii, the entry, Sancti Cormaci, Epis. ix.
All relate, as far as the great sea,
King's
Episcopo, &c. ,
21, p. 359,
_
_
50, 51.
^^ See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
nise," xvii. Februarii. De S. Cormaco
Chronicon Scotorum. " At the year 496, we read in Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters" that Cormac of Crioch-in- Ernaidhe, successor of Patrick, resigned Jiis spirit. See vol. i. , pp. 160, 161.
39 See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
Kelly, p.
602 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS
[February 17.
church,atTrlm. ^ Itisalsosupposed,thisplacehadbeenerectedintoan episcopal see, before the middle of the fifth century. ^ The late Sir Wiliam
R. Wilde has given a very elegant description of Trims and the scenery im- mediately surrounding it. -* Nor has this distinguished antiquary failed to invest its historic associations, with the charms his taste and knowledge con-
veyed through his writings. Later still, Eugene Alfred Conwell, M. R. I. A. , published a detailed topographical and historical account of the ruins, which lie in and around this old town. s In or soon after a. d. 432, its historic life com- menced,itissaid,whenSt. PatrickfirstbeganhisIrishApostolate. Oursaint was appointed its first Bishop. As, however, the feast of St. Loman is marked in
View of Trim, County Meath.
theIrishCalendars,atthenthofOctober; forthatday,wereserveamore extended biography, while the present festival is thought by Colgan to denote some translation or elevation of his relics. He being venerated, with many other companions in Trim, and all their celebrations occurring, on the 17th of February ; perhaps, Colgan's is the preferable hypothesis, and all these
Article hi. —^ In the Tripartite Life of
St. Patrick, part ii. , it is stated, that St.
Loman received the grant of this place from
Fethlimid, the son of King Laogaire, who
shown on Sheet 36.
3 The accompanying view of Trim from
the bank of the River Boyne, was drawn on the spot, and afterwards transferred to the
lived in that locality. The proprietor is wood, by William F. Wakeman. It was
said to have presented the site to God and
St. Patrick, as also to Lomman and Fort-
chern. See Miss M. F. Cusack's "Life of
St. Patrick, Apostle of Ireland," p. 394.
»
engraved by William Oldham, and by his son, Alfred.
< See his " Beauties of the Boyne and
Blackwater," iv. , to 102. chap, pp. 79
The parish of Trim is situated in the
baronies of Lower Moyfenrath and Upper
Navan. Its limits are defined on the " Ord-
nance Survey Townland Maps for the County
of Meath. " Sheets 30, 35, 36, 41, 42. The 430- A continuation of^ this paper is pro- town and immediate precincts of Trim are mised.
s See his ** A Ramble round paper
Trim," in "The Journal of the Royal Historical and Archfeological Association of Ireland," vol. ii. Fourth series, part ii. , pp. 361 to
February 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 603
holy persons may have lived contemporaneously with him. Another con- jecture, notwithstanding, may be offered, viz. , that althougli called his com-
panions—perhaps in a public veneration only—they may have flourished at different periods, and some of them long after his time. Indeed, the genea-
logies, and chronology, supposed to be referable to them, appear to favour this latter view of the case. Colgan has given St. Loman's or St. Luman's Acts, at the 17th of February. '^ In like manner, the Bollandists unite the Acts of Saints Loman and Fortchern, of Trim, in two sections, and in 13 paragraphs, at the 17th of February. 7 The Rev. A—lban Butler confounds this — with St. Lomman, of Portloman
a different and has his festival, at the same date. ^ The Rev. Richard Butler treatsaboutSt. LomanandSt. Forcherne. 9 Inlikemanneraretheseholy men classed together, on this day, in the Rev. S. Baring-Gould's work. '° Yet, their history and historic associations still require to be purged of great
holy bishop altogether person
obscurities and misstatements.
Article IV. —St. Fortchern, said to have been Second Bishop, AT Trim. \Fifth atid Sixth Centuries. '] This holy man is thought to have suc- ceeded St.