This book is a reprint from William Shaw Mason's "Statistical Account or
Parochial
Survey of Ireland," vol.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
s HeiscalledAbbotofOssory,^and this appears to have been the only established house of the order in that
diocese, during the present distinguished prelate's lifetime. 7 It would seem, that he exercised conjointly—at least for some time—the ofiices of bishop and abbot in Ossory. To this see he succeeded in 1178. ^ It is stated, that he lived at Aghaboe, whence he removed the episcopal seat to Kilkenny. Here he is thought by some to have laid the foundations of the existing mag- nificent cathedral of St. Canice's ;9 the greatest attraction in that fine old City of the Confederation. According to one account, the present bishop lived to dedicate this noble cathedral to St. Canice. '° However, it is supposed, that such transfer and dedication, could not have taken place during the lifetime
Article hi. —' See Rev. Joseph Dixon's "General Introduction to the Sacred Scrip-
tures," vol. i. Dissertation x. , p. 240.
Donat O'Donaghoe. See Jacobi Grace,
"
AnnalesHibernioe. " Edited by Rev. Richard Butler, M. R. I. A. , p. 17. Also "Annales Breves Hiberniae," auctore Thaddaeo Dowling. Edited by Rev. Richard
Butler, M. R. I. A. , p. 13.
^ See " Harris' Ware," vol. i. , Bishops of
Ossory, p. 403.
7 Ledwich gives Delany as another form
ofhisname. See"AntiquitiesofIreland,"
p. 329.
^ Qjj ^j^g death, this year, of Donald
O'Fogarty.
» The Life of St. Canice will be found at
the nth of October.
'See
Chrysostom Henrique's
" Mene-
logium Cisterciensium," at the 24th day of
January.
^ See the BoUandists' "Acta Sanctorum
Januarii,"tomusii. ,xxiv. Januarii. Pra;ter- missi et in alios dies reject! , p. 562.
* From the foundation of Mellifont Abbey,
A. D. 1 142 to A. D. 1 160, no less than thirty-
two noble Cistercian abbeys vi'ere founded
in Ireland. See an account of those several
erections in Sir James Ware's treatise,
"
Archiepiscoponim Casseliensium et Tu- amensium Vitse duobus expressK Com- mentariolis. Quibus adjicitur Historia Csenobiorum Cisterciensium Hibemife," pp.
'
60 to 81.
This house was founded A. D. 1 180, by
"
" Harris cites a manuscript treatise,
Synopsis de Viris illustribus Cistertientium
Kilkenniensis,
Hibemorum," by John Hartrey, a Cistercian monk of Holy Cross Abbey, for this state- ment.
January 24. ]
LIVES OJ^ THE IRISH SAINTS,
425
of Bishop O'Dullany. St. Canice's cathedral, for the most part, was built earlyinthethirteenthcentury. Itisthought,inthetimeofBishopO'Dullany, aparishchurchofconsiderableimportanceoccupieditssite. Thatchurchmay haveoweditserectiontotheblessedprelateFelix. " Threegreatchanges,at irregular intervals, were made in the original plan of the cathedral now remain- ing. The round tower, adjoining the present cathedral, is of a period long anterior : its supposed erection lies between the sixth and the ninth century. "
Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny.
Its architectural features are doubtless very ancient Iooking. »3 The whole group of buildings is on a commanding site, and within the enclosure of an extensive old burial-ground. '* It is probable, the building of St. Canice's cathedral had been commenced during the episcopacy of Hugh Rufus or de Rous ;'s nor does the see appear to have been changed from Aghaboe, until afterthedeathofBlessedFehxO'Dullany. *^ Aghaboewasformerlyarural
" See that invaluable work, "The His- tory, Architecture and Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," by the Rev. James Graves, A. B. , and John G. Augustus Prim, sect, i. , chap, i. , pp. 29 to 32, and nn. (c, d, a), ibid.
'^ See "The
Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," sect, i. , chap, iv. , p.
'* The accompanying view was drawn on the spot by William F. Wakeman, and afterwards on wood, for the engravers, William and Alfred Oldham, of No. 8 Lower Gloucester-street, Dublin.
'5 A most learned and exhaustive account
of this fine structure will be found in "The
History, Architecture, and Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kil-
kenny," sect, i. , chap. ii.
'* See Dr. "Ecclesiastical Lanigan's
124.
'3 Several most beautiful wood
History, Architecture,
and
engravings of its details are in the work already quoted.
History of
Ireland," vol, iv. , chap.
426 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 24.
see or deanery,'7 having twelve surrounding rectories and vicarages subject to its inspection. Within an irregular figure, these contained about 60,000
'^
acres.
The first great change in the cathedral building took place within little
more than a century from the foundation having been laid. The annalist Clyn, living at the time, records, that in the year 1332, on Friday, the nth
Kalends of June, the belfry of St. Canice at Kilkenny fell, and great part of the choir. The ruins broke down the vestibule of the chapels and the bells, so that it was a horrid and pitiful spectacle to the beholders. '9 Bishop De Ledred, who filled the see at this time, and who continued to occupy it till 1360, re-erected the tower and repaired the general damage done by this catastrophe. The original choir-plan consisted of arches between the side chapels, with a row of clerestory windows above, and on either side. =° Only those arches nearest the tower had fallen, and had been built up in a solid, but in an unsightly manner, by Bishop Ledred. ^' Arches are found to have existed, till the same calamity destroyed them, between the choir aisles and transepts. These aisles had originally formed continuations of the northern andsouthernlateralaislesofthenave. " Aftertheancientcathedralpassed out of the hands of the CathoHc bishops, John Bale, when appointed to this see, in 1552, broke do\^^^ the statues and effigies of the saints there, sparing, however, the painted windows put up by Bishop De Ledrede. ^3
Never were the holy sacrifices and ceremonies of the Catholic Church
effected with greater magnificence and impressiveness, than during that time, when the Parliament and administrative affairs of the Irish Confederate
CatholicshadbeenlocatedinKilkenny. '4 DavidRoth,thelearnedBishop of Ossory, presided over the see. The Protestant Bishop Griffith WiUiams, who had been advanced to his dignity, in July, 1641, in three months after- wardsfledfromKilkenny. In1650,thesoldiersofCromwelltookpossession of this city. The new Cromwellian raiders made sad havoc in the cathedral, during the period of their occupation. Bishop Williams returned to the dio- cese of Ossor>', after the Restoration of Charles II. to the English throne. '^
xxix. , sec. xiv. , p. 237, and n. 92, pp. 239, 240.
'7 According to a Manuscript "Visitation
Book of Bishop Otway," preserved in the
episcopal palace, Kilkenny.
'* See Rev. Edward Ledwich's "Anti-
of the choir became apparent, as also a niche in the latter wall. This evidently had once formed portion of a sepulchral monu- ment. The j^^///ii and aumbrey have since been very beautifully restored.
=3 See "The History, Architecture and
Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St.
Canice, Kilkenny," sect, i. , chap, ii. , p. 37. -^ The fullest general account of these transactions will be found in Rev. Charles
"
P. Median's History of the Confederation
of Kilkenny. "
"s He inveighs most bitterly against those
"fanatic Limbs of the Beast," as he styled
quities of Ireland," p. 397. " '5 See Fratris Joannis Clyn,
Annales
Hiberniic," p. 24. Edition of the Irish
Archaeological Society by Very Rev. Richard Butler, M. R. I. A. K-^--^f^-
*° This was a late discovery, but previously anticipated by the accomplished writers of "The History, Architecture, and Antiqui- ties of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice," published in 1857, who had speculated that, the choir fittings being removed, and the various layers of plaster and dashing being hacked off the walls, those ancient architec- tural features must come to light.
the Cromwellians, for having "beheaded" most of his churches. Respecting the prin-
*' He had so
a fear of the tower fall-
and broken goodly Bells,
great
away
great
ing again, that he constructed solid walls,
as a support, where arches previously had
been, and thus he changed in a considerable
degree the plan of the internal church ar-
rangements.
-^ The recesses of the ancient sedilia in the
south and of an aumbrey in the north wall
—"The and fa- great,
cipal one he \vrites
mous, most beautiful Cathedral Church of St. Keney they have utterly defaced and ruined, thrown down all the Roof of it, taken
five
down all the Windows, and carried away every bit of the Glass that they say was worth a great deal ; and all the doors of it, that Hogs might come, and root, and the Dogs gnaw the Bones of the dead ; and they brake down a most exquisite Marble Font (whercm the Christians' Children were re-
January 24. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 427
But he exhibited more munificence than taste in the proceedings which he at once entered on with a view of repairing the injuries of this CromweUian visita- tion. He repaired the roofs and doors, but stopped up several windows, to save the expense of re-glazing, and made several other disfiguring changes,
which want of means, perhaps, as much as lack of taste, may have suggested. The monuments in particular appear to have been treated as mere rubbish. About a century ago. Bishop Pococke entered on a further work of " Re- storation. " But his very fine internal choir-fittings of carved oak, in the Corinthian style, were terribly incongruous. Hi—s colonnade, built against the gable of —the north transept, in the Ionic order in itself a very handsome structure formed a glaring excrescence, till it was removed within the past few years. He showed most commendable care for the ancient monuments, which he caused to be collected and arranged in the nave. However, he built up, or allowed to remain built up, considerable portions of nearly all the windows, which continued thus dwarfed of their fair proportions. He ex- pended a considerable sum of money in effecting these objectionable and un- architectural arrangements.
Latterly,however,agreatimprovementhasbeenaccomplished. Tore- move the unsightly additions of those three periods of change, and to bring
the old cathedral back as nearly as possible to its original purity of design, was the object of those works which the dean and chapter of St. Canice con- templated, and which were actually commenced in the month of November, 1864. In the form of a Latin cross and as a specimen of Irish architecture,
"
being thirteenth century, or,
elegance of the plan and the harmony of its proportions, are features which strike the visitor. The structure affords a good and chaste example of a pure and correct period. *^ The late restorations^? have been generally executed with taste and judgment. ^^ What has been done doubtless is not wholly faultless, and many important details are still left unfinished.
The Blessed Felix O'DuUany was a great benefactor to Jerpoint Abbey,^? on which he bestowed the town and lands of Kell-Rudi. 3° He is said to have been the first abbot over Jerpoint. 3^ Whether he lived there, and how
generated) all to pieces, and threw down
^s Among the many iUustrations contained
the
many — Marble Monuments many goodly
"
in the "
Survey
of Tullaroan or Grace's
that were within. " vSeven Treatises very
necessary to be observed in these very bad
Days," &c. Prefatory Remonstrance.
London, 1661.
'^
For a full description, with numberless elegantly engraved plans, views and details,
**
The History, Architecture, and Antiquities of the Cathe- dral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," sect. i. , chap. iii. " The Architecture of the Ca-
thedral," pp. 65 to 107.
'^ Effected under the direction of T. N.
parish, in the Cantred of Grace's Country,
and County of Kilkenny," mainly written by
Sheffield Grace, Esq. , there is a fine copper-
plate engraving, which represents a N. E. view of the Mitred Abbey of Jerpoint. It
is seen at p. 52, in the copy presented to the Irish poet, Thomas Moore, and now pre- served in the library of the R. I. A. , Dublin, 1819, 8vo.
This book is a reprint from William Shaw Mason's "Statistical Account or Parochial Survey of Ireland," vol. iii. , No. xxv. , pp. 498 to 710.
the reader is referred to
Early English Gothic" in style, the simple
Deane, Esq. , architect.
^^ ""
That eminent archaeologist and accom-
plished ecclesiologist, the Rev. James Graves, to whose presence in the chapter the success of the late restorations owes so much, ably directed the decisions of the
chapter in the plans and style to be adopted.
He was zealously seconded by the Dean,
Very Rev. Charles Vignoles. See "The veyed in stately and harmonious measure.
Kilkenny Moderator," of October 15th, This poem was printed for private circula- 1870. tion in 1820, but it deserves the most exten-
3o According to a recital in King John's charter to Jerpoint. See Harris' Ware,
vol. i. , Bishops of Ossory, p. 403.
3« in a series of poetical and beautiful
"
Abbey," by Mr. S. C. Hall, and addressed
stanzas, intituled,
Lines written at Jerpoint
to Sheffield Grace, Esq. , some interesting
vicissitudes of this old establishment are con-
428 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 24.
long,seemalikeunknown. Thisholyprelatedieda. d. 1202:32havingruled
overtheseeofOssoryabouttwenty-fouryears. The24thofJanuaryappears to have been the date of his departure. He was buried in St. Mary's Abbey, at Jerpoint. His tomb lay on the north side of the high altar, and there it is reported, that many miracles were formerly wrought. 33
Article IV. —St. Guasacht, Bishop, son of Maelchu, in Granard, County of Longford. \Fifth Century^ This holy man seems to have
He
so that they were early disposed, through Divine grace, to receive the precious gift of faith. Their pagan father had a remarkable vision or dream, and he askedtheslave-boytosolveitsmeaning. St. Patrickdeclaredthattheflame which he seemed to light in that house signified faith in the Most Holy Trinity ; while the burning of the house, with its inmates, meant the future illumination and great sanctity of Milcho's three children, whose relics should cure diseases wherever they were borne throughout Ireland ; yet Milchuo himself must die a miserable death by fire, and in a state of impenitence. In due course, St. Guasacht became one of St. Patrick's disciples^ and con- verts. "* He renounced the world's inheritance, ^ and after the necessary pre- paration for orders, he was promoted to the ofiice of bishop for Granard, in
thecountryofTreffia. Withthisdistinction,intheMartyrologyofDonegal,s onthisday,hisfestivalhasbeenplaceduponrecord. Guasacht'spromotion seems to have taken place when St. Patrick had returned to Dalaradia, after his missionary tour through Meath, Connaught, and the north-western districts of Ireland. The present holy prelate is entered in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ in a nearly similar manner, on the 24th of January, as Bishop Guasacht of Granaritt, now Granard, a town in the county of Longford. ' Marianus O'Gorman has an account of this saint and his festival, for the same date. Duald Mac Firbis notices Guasacht, Bishop of Granard, at the 24thofJanuary. ^ AgreateffortismadebyColgantoshowthatthisholy
been born towards the close of the fourth century, or early in the fifth. ' became one of St. Patrick's earliest companions, for he was a son of Maelchu, or Milcho, with whom the future Apostle of Ireland spent the years of his captivity in Ireland. During this term of servitude, the young Guasacht and his two sisters—both named Emeria^—were most affable and kind to the gentle boy, to whom they felt greatly attached. In return for this childlike soHcitude, St. Patrick taught them the elements of the Christian doctrine. He greatly edified them by the purity of his morals, and by his holy advice,
sive publicity. Mr. Hall afterwards became
the distinguished editor of "The Art Jour- nal," and his amiable and talented wife is highly esteemed as a writer of various popu- lar works.
3^ See Ussher's " De Primordiis Britanni-
carum Ecclesiarum," p. 957. By mistake, the date is printed Mcii. in both the Dublin and London edition, as also in Dr. Elring- ton's collected edition of Ussher's
at the nth of December, the day assigned for their festival.
3 gee Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Pa- trici, cap. xxiii. , p. 266. " Trias Thauma- turga. "
*See "Harris Ware," vol. i. Arch-
bishops of Armagh, p. 13.
5 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
26, 27.
'' Edited Rev. Dr. xiii. The by Kelly, p.
Franciscan copy has ©pf JUAfAchc o 5i\aiia|mc.
7 The parish of Granard is situated in the
vol. iv. , p. 526.
33 See " Harris' Ware," vol.
66, 230, pp. 170, 171, 176, 183.
Bishop
of
Ossory, p. 403. — Article iv.
" Trias Thaumaturga," Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, i. , cap. XX. , p. 120, and pars, ii. , cap. XXX. , cxxxvii. , pp. 133, 148, with nn. 9,65,
' See further notices
ol these holy sisters,
* See
"Proceedings
of the Irish Royal
»
See
baronies of and Granard. It is re- Ardagh
Colgan's
presented on the " Ordnance Survey Town-
i. ,
"Works,"
land Maps for the County of Longford. " Sheets 6, 7, 10, li, 15, 16. Granard town and townland will be found on Sheet 10.
January 24. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 429
bishop lived on to the time of St. Evin, the reputed author of the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick, ^^'herefore a conjecture is offered, that St. Guasacht may have attained the very advanced age of 130 or 140 years, and that he may have survived to a. d. 520 or 530. This calculation, however, is based on the mistaken
of a —in which it is that interpretation passage, stated, during
thewriter'stimeGuasachtwasatGranard themeaningis, thathisremains were there buried. 9 Near Granard there is a very remarkable fort. '°
Article V. —Feast of St. Florentin, Confessor. The festival of St. Florentin is kept on this day, according to Dempster. ' His acts will be found at the iSth of April.
Article VI. —St. Batan or Buatan of Methuis Truim or Eathais- Cruimm. We read, in the Martyrology of Tallaght,' that veneration was paid to Batan Methais Truim on the 24th of January. But there may have been some mistake in the foregoing entry : it differs niaterially from that of Buatan,^ of Eathais-Cruimm, as recorded in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 on this day. There are many legends referring to St. Patrick in Jocelyn's life of him, and which seem to be strung together with little regard even to chronological order. It is probable, the followiiig has bee—n intended to refer
to the apostolic man's first visit to the western province
about to pass the Shannon, a deep and rapid river, that runs between Meath and Connaught, could not get a boat to ferry him over. He prayed, there- fore, to God for help. The earth, it is stated, arose so high in the river, that it afforded a dry passage to the saint and to all his company. This may be accounted for, however, by his selecting a place for passage that was fordable. The saint thought- it expedient for the advancement of religion to build a church on the banks of the Shannon, and where his charioteer was buried.
It afterwards belonged to Armagh, says Jocelyn. But the Tripartite Life relates more fully, that this see claimed jurisdiction over the church, called
Lill-Buadhmaoil, after one of St. Patrick's servants, named Buadmael, who died and was buried in that place, also near the River Shannon. -^ He is
enumerated among the disciples of St. Benignus. 5 Nor could Colgan find anything more about him,^ only that in reference to a supposed saint, bearing this name, he throws out a loose conjecture.
Article VII. —Supposed Feast of St. Ernan, Abbot of Druim ToMMA. \Stirnth Century^ In his usual unsupported manner, Dempster
Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. ,
parti. , pp. 112, 113.
9 This matter is rendered still more evi-
dent, from the subjoined account, that the two Emerias then were deposed at Clon-
broney.
'° See O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four
tains "Vita S. Buadani" at fol. 53. But we cannot state whether or not it has re- ference to this saint.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
26, 27.
* Sec the account of these transactions in
Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," Sexta Vita
Masters," vol. —i. , n. (i), p. II2.
Article V. 'See " Historia 113. Septima
tica Gentis Scoto—rum," lib. vi. , num. 509. xxxiii. , p. 134.
Patricii, ii. , cap.
A VitaS. Kelly, p. xiii. After the entry of twenty- alluded to.
S. Patricii, cap. civ. , p. 89, and n. 118, p. Ecclesias- Vita S. lib.
is here
176. He adds : "nisi the first entry of an Irish saint is "beACAU in festilogiis syb nomine Buadani ponatur mechuif Ci\uini. 14 vel. 24, Januarii, vcl. 23Martii. " "Trias
Dr. 5 Article vi. 'Edited by Rev. MS. ,
Benigni, cap. xi. ,
three saints at the of '' See a note, 68, foreign 24th January,
p.
^ A MS. in T. C.
diocese, during the present distinguished prelate's lifetime. 7 It would seem, that he exercised conjointly—at least for some time—the ofiices of bishop and abbot in Ossory. To this see he succeeded in 1178. ^ It is stated, that he lived at Aghaboe, whence he removed the episcopal seat to Kilkenny. Here he is thought by some to have laid the foundations of the existing mag- nificent cathedral of St. Canice's ;9 the greatest attraction in that fine old City of the Confederation. According to one account, the present bishop lived to dedicate this noble cathedral to St. Canice. '° However, it is supposed, that such transfer and dedication, could not have taken place during the lifetime
Article hi. —' See Rev. Joseph Dixon's "General Introduction to the Sacred Scrip-
tures," vol. i. Dissertation x. , p. 240.
Donat O'Donaghoe. See Jacobi Grace,
"
AnnalesHibernioe. " Edited by Rev. Richard Butler, M. R. I. A. , p. 17. Also "Annales Breves Hiberniae," auctore Thaddaeo Dowling. Edited by Rev. Richard
Butler, M. R. I. A. , p. 13.
^ See " Harris' Ware," vol. i. , Bishops of
Ossory, p. 403.
7 Ledwich gives Delany as another form
ofhisname. See"AntiquitiesofIreland,"
p. 329.
^ Qjj ^j^g death, this year, of Donald
O'Fogarty.
» The Life of St. Canice will be found at
the nth of October.
'See
Chrysostom Henrique's
" Mene-
logium Cisterciensium," at the 24th day of
January.
^ See the BoUandists' "Acta Sanctorum
Januarii,"tomusii. ,xxiv. Januarii. Pra;ter- missi et in alios dies reject! , p. 562.
* From the foundation of Mellifont Abbey,
A. D. 1 142 to A. D. 1 160, no less than thirty-
two noble Cistercian abbeys vi'ere founded
in Ireland. See an account of those several
erections in Sir James Ware's treatise,
"
Archiepiscoponim Casseliensium et Tu- amensium Vitse duobus expressK Com- mentariolis. Quibus adjicitur Historia Csenobiorum Cisterciensium Hibemife," pp.
'
60 to 81.
This house was founded A. D. 1 180, by
"
" Harris cites a manuscript treatise,
Synopsis de Viris illustribus Cistertientium
Kilkenniensis,
Hibemorum," by John Hartrey, a Cistercian monk of Holy Cross Abbey, for this state- ment.
January 24. ]
LIVES OJ^ THE IRISH SAINTS,
425
of Bishop O'Dullany. St. Canice's cathedral, for the most part, was built earlyinthethirteenthcentury. Itisthought,inthetimeofBishopO'Dullany, aparishchurchofconsiderableimportanceoccupieditssite. Thatchurchmay haveoweditserectiontotheblessedprelateFelix. " Threegreatchanges,at irregular intervals, were made in the original plan of the cathedral now remain- ing. The round tower, adjoining the present cathedral, is of a period long anterior : its supposed erection lies between the sixth and the ninth century. "
Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny.
Its architectural features are doubtless very ancient Iooking. »3 The whole group of buildings is on a commanding site, and within the enclosure of an extensive old burial-ground. '* It is probable, the building of St. Canice's cathedral had been commenced during the episcopacy of Hugh Rufus or de Rous ;'s nor does the see appear to have been changed from Aghaboe, until afterthedeathofBlessedFehxO'Dullany. *^ Aghaboewasformerlyarural
" See that invaluable work, "The His- tory, Architecture and Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," by the Rev. James Graves, A. B. , and John G. Augustus Prim, sect, i. , chap, i. , pp. 29 to 32, and nn. (c, d, a), ibid.
'^ See "The
Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," sect, i. , chap, iv. , p.
'* The accompanying view was drawn on the spot by William F. Wakeman, and afterwards on wood, for the engravers, William and Alfred Oldham, of No. 8 Lower Gloucester-street, Dublin.
'5 A most learned and exhaustive account
of this fine structure will be found in "The
History, Architecture, and Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kil-
kenny," sect, i. , chap. ii.
'* See Dr. "Ecclesiastical Lanigan's
124.
'3 Several most beautiful wood
History, Architecture,
and
engravings of its details are in the work already quoted.
History of
Ireland," vol, iv. , chap.
426 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 24.
see or deanery,'7 having twelve surrounding rectories and vicarages subject to its inspection. Within an irregular figure, these contained about 60,000
'^
acres.
The first great change in the cathedral building took place within little
more than a century from the foundation having been laid. The annalist Clyn, living at the time, records, that in the year 1332, on Friday, the nth
Kalends of June, the belfry of St. Canice at Kilkenny fell, and great part of the choir. The ruins broke down the vestibule of the chapels and the bells, so that it was a horrid and pitiful spectacle to the beholders. '9 Bishop De Ledred, who filled the see at this time, and who continued to occupy it till 1360, re-erected the tower and repaired the general damage done by this catastrophe. The original choir-plan consisted of arches between the side chapels, with a row of clerestory windows above, and on either side. =° Only those arches nearest the tower had fallen, and had been built up in a solid, but in an unsightly manner, by Bishop Ledred. ^' Arches are found to have existed, till the same calamity destroyed them, between the choir aisles and transepts. These aisles had originally formed continuations of the northern andsouthernlateralaislesofthenave. " Aftertheancientcathedralpassed out of the hands of the CathoHc bishops, John Bale, when appointed to this see, in 1552, broke do\^^^ the statues and effigies of the saints there, sparing, however, the painted windows put up by Bishop De Ledrede. ^3
Never were the holy sacrifices and ceremonies of the Catholic Church
effected with greater magnificence and impressiveness, than during that time, when the Parliament and administrative affairs of the Irish Confederate
CatholicshadbeenlocatedinKilkenny. '4 DavidRoth,thelearnedBishop of Ossory, presided over the see. The Protestant Bishop Griffith WiUiams, who had been advanced to his dignity, in July, 1641, in three months after- wardsfledfromKilkenny. In1650,thesoldiersofCromwelltookpossession of this city. The new Cromwellian raiders made sad havoc in the cathedral, during the period of their occupation. Bishop Williams returned to the dio- cese of Ossor>', after the Restoration of Charles II. to the English throne. '^
xxix. , sec. xiv. , p. 237, and n. 92, pp. 239, 240.
'7 According to a Manuscript "Visitation
Book of Bishop Otway," preserved in the
episcopal palace, Kilkenny.
'* See Rev. Edward Ledwich's "Anti-
of the choir became apparent, as also a niche in the latter wall. This evidently had once formed portion of a sepulchral monu- ment. The j^^///ii and aumbrey have since been very beautifully restored.
=3 See "The History, Architecture and
Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of St.
Canice, Kilkenny," sect, i. , chap, ii. , p. 37. -^ The fullest general account of these transactions will be found in Rev. Charles
"
P. Median's History of the Confederation
of Kilkenny. "
"s He inveighs most bitterly against those
"fanatic Limbs of the Beast," as he styled
quities of Ireland," p. 397. " '5 See Fratris Joannis Clyn,
Annales
Hiberniic," p. 24. Edition of the Irish
Archaeological Society by Very Rev. Richard Butler, M. R. I. A. K-^--^f^-
*° This was a late discovery, but previously anticipated by the accomplished writers of "The History, Architecture, and Antiqui- ties of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice," published in 1857, who had speculated that, the choir fittings being removed, and the various layers of plaster and dashing being hacked off the walls, those ancient architec- tural features must come to light.
the Cromwellians, for having "beheaded" most of his churches. Respecting the prin-
*' He had so
a fear of the tower fall-
and broken goodly Bells,
great
away
great
ing again, that he constructed solid walls,
as a support, where arches previously had
been, and thus he changed in a considerable
degree the plan of the internal church ar-
rangements.
-^ The recesses of the ancient sedilia in the
south and of an aumbrey in the north wall
—"The and fa- great,
cipal one he \vrites
mous, most beautiful Cathedral Church of St. Keney they have utterly defaced and ruined, thrown down all the Roof of it, taken
five
down all the Windows, and carried away every bit of the Glass that they say was worth a great deal ; and all the doors of it, that Hogs might come, and root, and the Dogs gnaw the Bones of the dead ; and they brake down a most exquisite Marble Font (whercm the Christians' Children were re-
January 24. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 427
But he exhibited more munificence than taste in the proceedings which he at once entered on with a view of repairing the injuries of this CromweUian visita- tion. He repaired the roofs and doors, but stopped up several windows, to save the expense of re-glazing, and made several other disfiguring changes,
which want of means, perhaps, as much as lack of taste, may have suggested. The monuments in particular appear to have been treated as mere rubbish. About a century ago. Bishop Pococke entered on a further work of " Re- storation. " But his very fine internal choir-fittings of carved oak, in the Corinthian style, were terribly incongruous. Hi—s colonnade, built against the gable of —the north transept, in the Ionic order in itself a very handsome structure formed a glaring excrescence, till it was removed within the past few years. He showed most commendable care for the ancient monuments, which he caused to be collected and arranged in the nave. However, he built up, or allowed to remain built up, considerable portions of nearly all the windows, which continued thus dwarfed of their fair proportions. He ex- pended a considerable sum of money in effecting these objectionable and un- architectural arrangements.
Latterly,however,agreatimprovementhasbeenaccomplished. Tore- move the unsightly additions of those three periods of change, and to bring
the old cathedral back as nearly as possible to its original purity of design, was the object of those works which the dean and chapter of St. Canice con- templated, and which were actually commenced in the month of November, 1864. In the form of a Latin cross and as a specimen of Irish architecture,
"
being thirteenth century, or,
elegance of the plan and the harmony of its proportions, are features which strike the visitor. The structure affords a good and chaste example of a pure and correct period. *^ The late restorations^? have been generally executed with taste and judgment. ^^ What has been done doubtless is not wholly faultless, and many important details are still left unfinished.
The Blessed Felix O'DuUany was a great benefactor to Jerpoint Abbey,^? on which he bestowed the town and lands of Kell-Rudi. 3° He is said to have been the first abbot over Jerpoint. 3^ Whether he lived there, and how
generated) all to pieces, and threw down
^s Among the many iUustrations contained
the
many — Marble Monuments many goodly
"
in the "
Survey
of Tullaroan or Grace's
that were within. " vSeven Treatises very
necessary to be observed in these very bad
Days," &c. Prefatory Remonstrance.
London, 1661.
'^
For a full description, with numberless elegantly engraved plans, views and details,
**
The History, Architecture, and Antiquities of the Cathe- dral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny," sect. i. , chap. iii. " The Architecture of the Ca-
thedral," pp. 65 to 107.
'^ Effected under the direction of T. N.
parish, in the Cantred of Grace's Country,
and County of Kilkenny," mainly written by
Sheffield Grace, Esq. , there is a fine copper-
plate engraving, which represents a N. E. view of the Mitred Abbey of Jerpoint. It
is seen at p. 52, in the copy presented to the Irish poet, Thomas Moore, and now pre- served in the library of the R. I. A. , Dublin, 1819, 8vo.
This book is a reprint from William Shaw Mason's "Statistical Account or Parochial Survey of Ireland," vol. iii. , No. xxv. , pp. 498 to 710.
the reader is referred to
Early English Gothic" in style, the simple
Deane, Esq. , architect.
^^ ""
That eminent archaeologist and accom-
plished ecclesiologist, the Rev. James Graves, to whose presence in the chapter the success of the late restorations owes so much, ably directed the decisions of the
chapter in the plans and style to be adopted.
He was zealously seconded by the Dean,
Very Rev. Charles Vignoles. See "The veyed in stately and harmonious measure.
Kilkenny Moderator," of October 15th, This poem was printed for private circula- 1870. tion in 1820, but it deserves the most exten-
3o According to a recital in King John's charter to Jerpoint. See Harris' Ware,
vol. i. , Bishops of Ossory, p. 403.
3« in a series of poetical and beautiful
"
Abbey," by Mr. S. C. Hall, and addressed
stanzas, intituled,
Lines written at Jerpoint
to Sheffield Grace, Esq. , some interesting
vicissitudes of this old establishment are con-
428 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 24.
long,seemalikeunknown. Thisholyprelatedieda. d. 1202:32havingruled
overtheseeofOssoryabouttwenty-fouryears. The24thofJanuaryappears to have been the date of his departure. He was buried in St. Mary's Abbey, at Jerpoint. His tomb lay on the north side of the high altar, and there it is reported, that many miracles were formerly wrought. 33
Article IV. —St. Guasacht, Bishop, son of Maelchu, in Granard, County of Longford. \Fifth Century^ This holy man seems to have
He
so that they were early disposed, through Divine grace, to receive the precious gift of faith. Their pagan father had a remarkable vision or dream, and he askedtheslave-boytosolveitsmeaning. St. Patrickdeclaredthattheflame which he seemed to light in that house signified faith in the Most Holy Trinity ; while the burning of the house, with its inmates, meant the future illumination and great sanctity of Milcho's three children, whose relics should cure diseases wherever they were borne throughout Ireland ; yet Milchuo himself must die a miserable death by fire, and in a state of impenitence. In due course, St. Guasacht became one of St. Patrick's disciples^ and con- verts. "* He renounced the world's inheritance, ^ and after the necessary pre- paration for orders, he was promoted to the ofiice of bishop for Granard, in
thecountryofTreffia. Withthisdistinction,intheMartyrologyofDonegal,s onthisday,hisfestivalhasbeenplaceduponrecord. Guasacht'spromotion seems to have taken place when St. Patrick had returned to Dalaradia, after his missionary tour through Meath, Connaught, and the north-western districts of Ireland. The present holy prelate is entered in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ in a nearly similar manner, on the 24th of January, as Bishop Guasacht of Granaritt, now Granard, a town in the county of Longford. ' Marianus O'Gorman has an account of this saint and his festival, for the same date. Duald Mac Firbis notices Guasacht, Bishop of Granard, at the 24thofJanuary. ^ AgreateffortismadebyColgantoshowthatthisholy
been born towards the close of the fourth century, or early in the fifth. ' became one of St. Patrick's earliest companions, for he was a son of Maelchu, or Milcho, with whom the future Apostle of Ireland spent the years of his captivity in Ireland. During this term of servitude, the young Guasacht and his two sisters—both named Emeria^—were most affable and kind to the gentle boy, to whom they felt greatly attached. In return for this childlike soHcitude, St. Patrick taught them the elements of the Christian doctrine. He greatly edified them by the purity of his morals, and by his holy advice,
sive publicity. Mr. Hall afterwards became
the distinguished editor of "The Art Jour- nal," and his amiable and talented wife is highly esteemed as a writer of various popu- lar works.
3^ See Ussher's " De Primordiis Britanni-
carum Ecclesiarum," p. 957. By mistake, the date is printed Mcii. in both the Dublin and London edition, as also in Dr. Elring- ton's collected edition of Ussher's
at the nth of December, the day assigned for their festival.
3 gee Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Pa- trici, cap. xxiii. , p. 266. " Trias Thauma- turga. "
*See "Harris Ware," vol. i. Arch-
bishops of Armagh, p. 13.
5 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
26, 27.
'' Edited Rev. Dr. xiii. The by Kelly, p.
Franciscan copy has ©pf JUAfAchc o 5i\aiia|mc.
7 The parish of Granard is situated in the
vol. iv. , p. 526.
33 See " Harris' Ware," vol.
66, 230, pp. 170, 171, 176, 183.
Bishop
of
Ossory, p. 403. — Article iv.
" Trias Thaumaturga," Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, i. , cap. XX. , p. 120, and pars, ii. , cap. XXX. , cxxxvii. , pp. 133, 148, with nn. 9,65,
' See further notices
ol these holy sisters,
* See
"Proceedings
of the Irish Royal
»
See
baronies of and Granard. It is re- Ardagh
Colgan's
presented on the " Ordnance Survey Town-
i. ,
"Works,"
land Maps for the County of Longford. " Sheets 6, 7, 10, li, 15, 16. Granard town and townland will be found on Sheet 10.
January 24. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 429
bishop lived on to the time of St. Evin, the reputed author of the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick, ^^'herefore a conjecture is offered, that St. Guasacht may have attained the very advanced age of 130 or 140 years, and that he may have survived to a. d. 520 or 530. This calculation, however, is based on the mistaken
of a —in which it is that interpretation passage, stated, during
thewriter'stimeGuasachtwasatGranard themeaningis, thathisremains were there buried. 9 Near Granard there is a very remarkable fort. '°
Article V. —Feast of St. Florentin, Confessor. The festival of St. Florentin is kept on this day, according to Dempster. ' His acts will be found at the iSth of April.
Article VI. —St. Batan or Buatan of Methuis Truim or Eathais- Cruimm. We read, in the Martyrology of Tallaght,' that veneration was paid to Batan Methais Truim on the 24th of January. But there may have been some mistake in the foregoing entry : it differs niaterially from that of Buatan,^ of Eathais-Cruimm, as recorded in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 on this day. There are many legends referring to St. Patrick in Jocelyn's life of him, and which seem to be strung together with little regard even to chronological order. It is probable, the followiiig has bee—n intended to refer
to the apostolic man's first visit to the western province
about to pass the Shannon, a deep and rapid river, that runs between Meath and Connaught, could not get a boat to ferry him over. He prayed, there- fore, to God for help. The earth, it is stated, arose so high in the river, that it afforded a dry passage to the saint and to all his company. This may be accounted for, however, by his selecting a place for passage that was fordable. The saint thought- it expedient for the advancement of religion to build a church on the banks of the Shannon, and where his charioteer was buried.
It afterwards belonged to Armagh, says Jocelyn. But the Tripartite Life relates more fully, that this see claimed jurisdiction over the church, called
Lill-Buadhmaoil, after one of St. Patrick's servants, named Buadmael, who died and was buried in that place, also near the River Shannon. -^ He is
enumerated among the disciples of St. Benignus. 5 Nor could Colgan find anything more about him,^ only that in reference to a supposed saint, bearing this name, he throws out a loose conjecture.
Article VII. —Supposed Feast of St. Ernan, Abbot of Druim ToMMA. \Stirnth Century^ In his usual unsupported manner, Dempster
Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. ,
parti. , pp. 112, 113.
9 This matter is rendered still more evi-
dent, from the subjoined account, that the two Emerias then were deposed at Clon-
broney.
'° See O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four
tains "Vita S. Buadani" at fol. 53. But we cannot state whether or not it has re- ference to this saint.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
26, 27.
* Sec the account of these transactions in
Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," Sexta Vita
Masters," vol. —i. , n. (i), p. II2.
Article V. 'See " Historia 113. Septima
tica Gentis Scoto—rum," lib. vi. , num. 509. xxxiii. , p. 134.
Patricii, ii. , cap.
A VitaS. Kelly, p. xiii. After the entry of twenty- alluded to.
S. Patricii, cap. civ. , p. 89, and n. 118, p. Ecclesias- Vita S. lib.
is here
176. He adds : "nisi the first entry of an Irish saint is "beACAU in festilogiis syb nomine Buadani ponatur mechuif Ci\uini. 14 vel. 24, Januarii, vcl. 23Martii. " "Trias
Dr. 5 Article vi. 'Edited by Rev. MS. ,
Benigni, cap. xi. ,
three saints at the of '' See a note, 68, foreign 24th January,
p.
^ A MS. in T. C.
