John Chetwode Eustace's
of which closely resemble our most primitive Irish—churches.
of which closely resemble our most primitive Irish—churches.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
Gall, in three vo-
"
Frognall Dibdin'& Bibliographical, Anti- lumes 8vo. , a. d. 1810 to 1813.
quarian and Picturesque Tour in France
and Germany," vol. i. , Letter ix. , pp. i6i
'^ Several very curious illustrations and accounts of these invaluable manuscripts
to 179.
^8=
See ibid. , p. 180, ''^s See Miiller,
are to be seen in Cooper's "
"
" Monumenta Germanise His- German Ruins, pp. 106 to iio. Published torica," edited by George Henry Pertz.
Runen," Concerning collection,
Librorum
the "Casus S. Galli
Ebel, Berolini,
also,
" Resena Historia de la
Universidad,"
cliv INTRODUCTION.
dents, and its bi—blioteca contained manuscript acts of our island saints. '53 Salmansweiler. Atthemonasteryofthisplace,inBaden,thereisavalu- able collection of manuscripts. '9* Among these are some interesting to the Irish hagiographer. 'ss The learned Benedictine Fathers, John Mabillon and Micliael Germanus, have left some notices of this place. '? ^ Saltzburg. —Near this city of Upper Austria'97 is the Benedictine abbey of Monchs- berg,'98withitsfinelibraryof36,000vGlumes. '99 Thiscityhadauniversity formerly,3<» but it is now reduced to a lyceum, having a library of 20,000 volumes, and probably containing 120 manuscripts. 3o» Some of these latter belong to the eighth and ninth centuries. 3°' Several are of great interest for the Irish ecclesiologist and antiquary. 3°3 Among them is an account of the life and miracles of the Irish founder, St. Virgil, apostle of Carinthia. 3°4 ScHAFHAUSEN. —This Swiss town is situated on the northern shore of the Rhine. 3°5 Here there is a fine public library, and from the published cata-
3°^ we are made — with the logue, acquainted
that it
Irish histo-
rical records. 3°7 Simancas.
from Valladolid—formerly a royal seat—preserves the archives of Spain. In 1853, contained in forty-three rooms, there were 90,000 packages of paper, awaiting investigation from the curious. 3°^ Here, on the loth of September, 1602, died Red Hugh 0'Donnell,^°5 in that house belonging to the King of Spain. 3»° Stockholm. —In this capital city of Sweden, the
This old
by several of its Professors, published at Salamanca, A D. 1849.
•93 Colgan frequently quotes such manu- scripts as once belonging to Salamanca.
*9^ See Z "Reisen in Klostem- ipf's einigen
Schwabens," or Travels in some Cloisters
of Swabia, p. 54. Also Gerbertus' *' Iter "
Alemannicum, p. 245. "
Spanish towTi,
''" Sammlungkurtzer Reisebesclireibungen,
"95 See Cooper's Appendix A," p. 202.
pendix A," p. 66.
3°5 See Coxe's ' ' Travels in Switzerland,
and in the Country of the Grisons," vol. i. . Letter 2, p. 5.
3<* For the first time, the Catalogue of the Public Library at Shalhausen was printed in 1824. It is an octavo volume of 574
^ See the
to Mabillon's
and 25.
*'
"
"
•99 See
Murray's
" Handbook for Travel-
Iter Germanicum," prefixed
Vetera Analecta," pp. 14
'9' See Gerbertus, " Iter See, " Bibliotheca Ministerii Alemannicum," pages. also,
p. 419.
*»* There is a printed Catalogue, "Biblio-
thek der Benedictiner Abbey, St. Michaelis *uf dem Monchsberg. "
Sacri Scaphusiensis," a. D. 1820. Likewise
"
Teutsches Kunstler-Lexicon, band iii. , p. 501.
3°7SeeCooper's"AppendixA,"p. 204,
and" to A," 66, Supplement Appendix pp.
67.
3°* See Lady Louisa Tenison's superbly-
lers in Southern Germany," sect, xi. , p.
241.
"
3<»A description of this occurs in the
illustrated work,
Castile and Andalucia,"
Iter Germanicum," prefixed to Mabillon's "Vetera Analecta," pp. il, 12.
*»See J. R. M'Culloch's "Dictionary, Geographical, Statistical and Historical," vol. iv. , p. 121.
3°' Archiv der Gessellschaft fiir altere deulsche Gcschichtkunde. " Also Bernouilli,
chap, xiv. , pp. 393, 394-
3°9 He was buried in the church of the
Monastery of St. Francis in Valladolid, but now not a vestige of the convent or of his tomb remains. See ibid. , p. 396.
3'° See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters," vol. vi. , pp. 2296 to 2299.
fact,
possesses about two
band xii. , p. 220. 3°3 See Cooper's
"
Appendix A," pp. 202
10204. 3°< See
" to Cooper's Supplement Ap-
see Meusel,
leagues
INTRODUCTION. civ
Royal Library contains 70,000 volumes, with several rare manuscripts. 3" The Stockholm libraries are rich in Icelandic manuscripts, which have been chiefly collected within the last two centuries. These are of great historical and antiquarian interest,3" Many of them ought, doubtless, throw great light on the relations of Ireland with more northern nations, during the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries. Strasburg —The fine public library here containedmanyvaluablebooksandmanuscripts. 3'3 Someoftheselatterhad a special value for the Irish hagiographer and ecclesiologist. The public library of Strasburg was founded by Bishop Otho, in the sixteenth century ;3i4 but unfortunately its valuable books and manuscripts have been utterly de- stroyed,3's during the bombardment, in the late war between France and Prussia. Struttgart. —This town lies in a beautiful and flourishing coun- try. 3'<5 fhg public and royal libraries3''' at Struttgart, in Wiirtemberg, con- tain several invaluable manuscripts3'^ for the Irish hagiographer's object. 3'9 The public library has a collection of 130,000 volumes. 3^° Some of the manuscripts are very old and very curious. s^^ Triers or Treves. —The public library of this Prussian city contains 70,000 volumes,3" and 10,000 MSS. ,orbooks,printedinEnglandbefore1500. 3*3 Theseillustrateancient Church history3*'« to a remarkable degree. It contains several of use for the Irish hagiologist. Turin. —The city of Turin, in Northern Italy, probably possesses manuscripts, both written and glossed by Scoti. The university
On this hero, the Franciscan annalists have pronounced a most pathetic and noble
1872, 8vo, in three volumes.
3'* See William Howitt's "Rural and
Domestic Life of Germany," chap, xviii. ,
§ 2, 270. p.
eulogy. 3" See
Murray's
" Handbook for Travel-
3'7 See a description and details of the ""
lers in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland, Route 60, p. 323. Third edition. London, 1858, 8vo.
Royal Library here in Dibdin's Biblio-
graphical, Antiquarian and Pic'uresque
Tour in France and " Germany, vol. iii. .
3i" As a to their key
a valuable
study, "Icelandic-English Dictionary," based on
Letter xxxviii. , pp. 157 to 165. "
the manuscript collections of Richard Cleasby, enlarged and completed by Gud-
3'8See Meusel, Teuisches Kiinstler- Lexicon," band iii. , p. 509,
brand
G. W. Dasent, D. C L.
has been edited
It issued from the
3'9 See " 206 Cooper's Appendix A," pp.
to 208, and "Supplement to Appendix A," pp. 67 to 79.
Vigfiisson, M. A. ,
by
Clarendon Press, at Oxford, in 1874.
3'3Someofthe
late, at Strasbourg, are described in Rev.
3"Dibdin's "
rian and Picturesque Tour in France and
Thomas Dibdin's " Frognall
Germany," to 147.
vol.
Letter
pp. 48 to 71.
j'^ See Thomas Astle's "
"
3" See ibid. , pp. 147 to 157.
3» See M. Malte-Brun's " Universal Geo-
literary treasures,
untilof
Bibliographical, Antiqua-
Bibliographi- cal, Antiquarian and Picturesque Tour in France and Germany," vol. ii. , Letter xxxv. ,
Hi. ,
xxxviii. , pp. 131
and Pro- gressofWriting, Introduction,p. xix.
vol. book
vii, cxx. , p. 249, for a
Origin
graphy," moreparticularaccount.
3'SOnthe 24th of August, 1870. See
Col. W, RUstow's "War for the Rhine 209, 210, and "Supplement to Appendix
Frontier, 1870 ; its political and military
Translated from the German John Leland Needham, vol. ii. , chap, xxv. , p. 182. Edinburgh and London. 187 1,
3'3See Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. A," pp. 79, 80.
Voyage Litteraire de Deux Re- ligieux Benediclins de la Congregation de S.
Maur," tomeii. , p. 285.
History. "
by
3"' See "
clvi INTR on UCTION.
here is a noble establishment, with library, museum, observatory and halls. 3^5 The public library of Turin contains 120,000 volumes of printed books, and a valuable collection o—f manuscriptSjS^^ many of which belonged to the Dukes of Savoy. 3^7 Upsala. The libraries of the Swedish City, Upsala, abound in
Icelandic manuscripts. The University Library alone contains about 130,000 printed books and 7,000 manuscripts. 3'^ Some ot these should doubtless re- ward the study of an Irish antiquary. A very valuable work, for the ecclesiastical antiquary's and historian's consultation, is the " Monumenta Ullerakerensia, cum Upsalia Nova illustrata," &c. , composed in Swedish and Latin. It includes many very fine and curious plates, especially of Upsala, its cathedral and monuments. 3'9 This work was written by Johan Peringskiold. 330 Verden. —The town of Verden, in Hanover, has a library, which contains some Acts of Irish Saints,33' among its manuscripts. 33' Vienna. —This beautiful capital of Austria is rich in the possession of fine libraries. 333 In 1480, the Vienna Imperial Library was founded by Maximilian I. , and this he enriched with a vast number of manuscripts,33< collected or copied from theAustrianmonasteries. 335 Hence,wehavethegleaningofliterarystores,336
3'5 See Rev.
John Chetwode Eustace's
of which closely resemble our most primitive Irish—churches. Inscriptions and coins of
singular interest are likewise represented. 33' Among these are noticed, "Vita S. Fursei," and "Vita S. Brigidie ex Scotia. " See " De Codicibus Antiquis Manuscriptis,"
" Classical Tour through Italy in mdcccii," vol. iv. , chap, iv. , p. 95.
^ Among these is a Latin manuscript of Sedulius, which dates back to the seventh century, and it is one of the oldest at Turin.
SeeM. " Lit- Valery's Voyages Historiques,
teraires, el Artistiques en Italic, Guide Rai- sonne et complet du Voyageur et de I'Ar-
tomus
33* See Cooper's "Appendix A," p. 211,
and " Supplement to Appendix A," p. 80. 333 See Lambecius, "Commentani de
"
Pub- lished at Vienna, A. D. 1665—1679, in eight volumes folio. This same work was issued,
"operaet studio A. F. Kollarii,"at Vienha,
A. D. in volumes folio. 1766—1782, eight
See Kollarius, "Analecta Monumentorum
"
omnis aevi Vindobonensia.
Vienna, A. D. 1761, 1762. Two volumes
will find much curious information about
ancient Upsalia, in that interesting work of at Vienna, a. d. 1790, in folio. Like-
tist," deuxime edition, tome iii. , liv. chap, iii. , p. 423.
xxi. ,
3^7 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel-
lers in Northern Italy," part L, Route i. , p.
land," Route 62, p. 338.
3*9 This is a folio volume, printed at
Stockholm, A. D. 1719.
330 Ecclesiastical and other antiquaries
27.
3=^8 See
" Handbook for Travel- lers in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Ice-
Murray's
Johan Peringskiold, "Monumentorum Sveo- wise, Leon, "
Gothicorum Liber Primus, Uplandias Partem der K. K. Hof-Bibliothek in Wien," or Primariam Thiundiam continens, cum Brief Description of the Court Library in Antiquitatibus ac Inscriptionibus quae Vienna. Published at Vienna, A. D. 1820, Cippis et Rupibus, vel Tumbis incisa in 24mo.
passim reperiuntur; justa delineatione, 33* It contains 16,076 manuscripts. See ""
brevique Commentario illustratas. This thin folio volume, written in Swedish and Latin, was published at Stockholm, A. D.
Murray's Handbook for Souihera Ger- many," sect, xi. , p. 202.
and Pro-
Origin
\^\o. It contains curious engravings of gress of Writing. " Introduction, p. xviii.
ancient Northern—in a style, many features 33*' In Rev. Thomas Frosmall Dibdin's
Podronus, p. 37.
Bibliotheca Caesarea Vindobonensi.
folio. See also
Commentariorum libros octo Supplemen- tum. " Liber Primus Posthumus. Published
335 See Thomas Astle's "
Kollarius,
Kurtzgefasste Beschreibung
Published at
" Ad Lambecii
"
and Pic-
Bibliographical, Antiquarian
turesque Tour in France and Germany," a most admirable account of this great collec- tion will be found, with a number of beauti-
fully engraved fac-similes of the manuscripts. Vol. iii. , letters xlvii. , xlviii. , pp. 446 to
pp. 13, 171.
534-
337 See Cooper's Appendix A," pp 212.
this subject.
338 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel-
lers in Southern Germany," sect, xi. , p.
215.
339 See Rev. Thomas Frognall Dibdin's
Burckhard, Historia Bibliothecse Augus-
tse, Wolffenbutteli est. " Published at que
Leipzig, A. D. 1744, 1746, in two volumes 4to.
348 See Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. 245 to 253, and "Supplement to Appendix A," pp. 83, 84.
349 See his Life at the 8th of July.
350See "HandbookforTravel- Murray's
lers in Southern Germany," sect x. , p. 88. 35' See Eckhart, " Commentarii de Rebus Francise Orientalis et Wice-
burgensis," tom. i. , p. 452. Also, Gercken's
to and " 239,
INTRODUCTION. clvii
likely to be of singular value for the Irish historiographer's examination. 337 But there are, likewise, several other magnificent libraries in and around
Vienna suchasthe ;
Private
the — Library, University Library,338
Emperor's andthatbelongingtotheMonasteryofClosterneuburg,339 Wiengarten.
In this city of Baden, once existed the Abbey of Wiengarten. 34° It was re-
peatedly burned, yet Gerbert observes, that several fine manuscripts have been preserved. 34' Some of Irish interest are among these. 34^ Mabillon gives
an interesting account of his literary researches, at WeingaTten. 343 Wind- berg. —This town, in Austrian Styria, had a collection of manuscripts. 344
hagiographers. 34S
WoLFENBUTTEL. The city of Wolfenbuttel, in Brunswick, has a public
library, containing 220,000 volumes. 34^ Among the manuscripts of this
place are several,347 which deserve the attention of an Irish historical inves- tigator. 348 WuRZBURG. —In Bavaria, at Wurzburg, situated on the Main,
the martyrdom of the Irish Apostle of Franconia, St. Kilian,349 took place. The great cathedral there now occupies that exact site. 35° Here, too, there is a university and some monastic establishments. 35i Some curious manu- scripts,352 of interest for the Irish student, are shown, and among these is a BookofGospels,saidtohavebeenusedbySt. Kilian. 353 IntheBurgundian Library, at Bruxelles, there is a tract,354 which specially refers to this local
these are which have an interest for Irish some,
Among —
345 See Cooper's "Appendix A," p. 244, ""
and Supplement to Appendix A, p. 83. 346 ^ee "Gazetteer of the World," vol.
xiv. , p. 532.
347 See "Archiv der Gesellschaft fiir al-
tere deutsche Geschichtkunde. " Also ""
to
pp. 80 to 82, for very copious reports on
Murray's
34' See "Iter
Also Gercken's "
" Reisen,"
to
ii. , pp. 340 343.
Supplement
Appendix A,"
and Pic- turesque Tour in France and Germany,"
"Bibliographical, Antiquarian vol. iii. , letter xlix. , pp. 589 to 619.
" Handbook for Travel- Alemannicum," p. 235.
34° See
lers in Southern Germany," sect, ix. , p. 30.
Episcopatus
Theil or part i. , pp. 119, 120, 142.
3*^ See 243-
353 See
254, and
84 to 87.
354
"
Supplement to Appendix A," pp.
Reisen,"
or Travels.
352 See
Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. 242,
Cooper's "
Appendix
A,"
pp. 253
343 See "Iter Germanicum," p. 6, pre- fixed to " Vetera Analecta. "
" De Monasterio S.
This was a peculiarly Irish
Intituled, 344 " "
Jacobi
See, Canisius, Lectiones Antiquge," Herbipolensis. torn, i. , p. 674, torn, ii. , p. 161, tom. iii. , foundation.
theil
Hirsching, Sehenswiirdige
" Bib- liotheken Teutschlands," band i. , p. 261.
clviii
INTRODUCTION.
religious
Thus have we endeavoured to a suc- give very
establishment. 355
cinct account, respecting those chief European libraries and archives, whence matters of import may be gleaned, for the illustration of our national Saints' Acts, and of our early ecclesiastical history. Yet, there can hardly be a
doubt, regarding the preservation of innumerable and of nearly similar ma- terials, in cities or towns unnamed—the examination and description of which must devolve on future investigators. Whether or not Irish hagio- graphical manuscripts have been removed to, or written, in other parts of the world, and if preserved, in any considerable number, has not been ascer- tained, as yet, to a very satisfactory extent, by the present writer.
Conclusion.
The foregoing writers and hagiographical works, printed or in manuscript, comprise not all that might be named or noted, in reference to universal or special Irish sacred biographies. While the chief authors and books have been mentioned, regarding general and classified collections of holy lives'; it must be observed, that various writers, scribes, and productions of minor celebrity, or invested with less historic importance, have escaped our notice, or have been placed without the range of our examination and knowledge. Having, likewise, designated the various libraries or archives throughout Europe, where, in different languages, several acts of the Irish Saints have been hitherto kept, and having described the most important and authentic published works or documents, from which succeeding biographies are chiefly drawn : it may be remarked, that, under headings of the respective names or festivals of our holy personages, marginal and reference notes will furnish a more detailed enumeration and critical analysis respecting those authorities, which have been used for the author's purposes of evidence —or illustration. As a study, Irish H—agiology hardly ever suppresses or alters
although occasionally it distorts facts of our ecclesiastical history
does it suggest wrong inferences, nor directly give any false colouring to
pastrecords. But,acutenessofmind,correctjudgment,anddelicacyofper-
ception,arealwaysrequiredduringtheprocessofinvestigation. Thesegifts
are necessary qualifications for writers or readers, who, in this field of re- search, must niver consider their education adequate, much less complete.
Some interesting popular legends of our saints have been preserved in oral tradition, and have been transferred, in various instances, to these pages. Such reminisences of our peasantry may not always prove to be genuine illustrationsofnationalhagiology; yet,inallcases,theypreserveasound morality, and have often engaged the interest and sympathies of highly- educated and pious persons. They serve, also, to popularize the mere
3SS See " Inventale," vol. xviii. , >'o. multi in Scotia. " No doubt, this tract
5313. It commencci,
"
Circa hoc tempus should interest the Irish student
;
neither
INTRODUCTION. clix
chronological or topographical details, which otherwise might hardly excite sufficient narrative interest. Besides, such lore should be likely to fade away
from recollection, after the lapse of a few generations ; whereas, once com- mitted to type, those stories may afford future archaic and hagiological stu- dents means for critical comparison with hitherto unpublished or undiscovered actsofsomesaints. Anunaccountableandindescribableanalysisofadventi- tious legends has frequently placed obscure historic accounts within the limits of reliable fact ; or, at least, traces of truthful narrative apparently gleam through the tinsel of false ornament, in which tradition had been so long dis- guised.
It is very possible, that some biographical incidents—which were origin- ally simple and natural enough—had passed, in traditional narratives, and through exaggerated statements, to the writers of our saints' lives. Chiefly from defect of attention or of memory, such accounts were subject to various alterations ; and, as they did not all come from similar sources, the biographer may have been obliged to compose his acts, without regard to proper order or system, in his arrangement. The most marvellous and inexact details were those most likely to be fixed in people's minds ; so that, after the lapse of a few ages, we may easily comprehend, how difficult it must have been to obtain wholly reliable facts, dates, or traits of personal character, without the aid of contemporaneous records.
Through mistake of entry, or owing to the circumstances, that different festivals or forms of name had been assigned to the same individual, in certain instances, our Calendarists appear sometimes to have multiplied or confounded particular saints' feasts. Frequently, the same saint had been venerated at more than one place, and thus correct identifications have be- come exceedingly difficult. It requires great study, close attention, instinc- tive capacity, and special knowledge, to detect such errors. In many cases, the effort must be attempted with very doubtful results. Genealogies of the saints, topographical objects or denominations, popular traditions, and an- nalistic entries, are the best guides to establish a distinction or identity. Yet, even these fail us, in regard to several of our holy personages. The obsolete names of places, their divergency, or proximity of distance, and frequently local folk-lore or legends, often help us to an exact solution of problems in our Calendar. Ancient records, charters, inquisitions, and maps of remote date, furnish likewise very important aids towards forming an opinion, or pronouncing a judgment, on subjects under consideration.
As the author's design includes in his work the lives of saints, connected
with our island, by birth, residence, or death, it may be observed, this publi- cation must tend, incidentally, to illustrate the Hagiology and Church His-
tory of England, Scotland, Wales, and many other countries on the Con- tinent of Europe. Throughout, it inculcates lessons of faith, of morality, and of Christian heroism. Every possible effort has been made to discover
and place upon record—arranged according to a monthly and diurnal order— the biographies, festivals, and commemorations of all known, or reasonably
clx INTRODUCTION.
reputed, to be Irish Saints. Patrons of various churches, parishes, or dio- ceses, throughout Ireland, and in more distant countries, as likewise the patrons of different families, are identified, in a vast number of cases ; while
ecclesiastical ruins, more modem structures, shrines, artistic and antiquarian objects, having close reference to them, are accurately noted and described. In order to render the life of each saint comprehensive and complete, as materials and information furnished to the writer will allow, he has been careful to omit no statement of importance, judged consistent with sound
moralsanddoctrine,orChristianedification.
"
Frognall Dibdin'& Bibliographical, Anti- lumes 8vo. , a. d. 1810 to 1813.
quarian and Picturesque Tour in France
and Germany," vol. i. , Letter ix. , pp. i6i
'^ Several very curious illustrations and accounts of these invaluable manuscripts
to 179.
^8=
See ibid. , p. 180, ''^s See Miiller,
are to be seen in Cooper's "
"
" Monumenta Germanise His- German Ruins, pp. 106 to iio. Published torica," edited by George Henry Pertz.
Runen," Concerning collection,
Librorum
the "Casus S. Galli
Ebel, Berolini,
also,
" Resena Historia de la
Universidad,"
cliv INTRODUCTION.
dents, and its bi—blioteca contained manuscript acts of our island saints. '53 Salmansweiler. Atthemonasteryofthisplace,inBaden,thereisavalu- able collection of manuscripts. '9* Among these are some interesting to the Irish hagiographer. 'ss The learned Benedictine Fathers, John Mabillon and Micliael Germanus, have left some notices of this place. '? ^ Saltzburg. —Near this city of Upper Austria'97 is the Benedictine abbey of Monchs- berg,'98withitsfinelibraryof36,000vGlumes. '99 Thiscityhadauniversity formerly,3<» but it is now reduced to a lyceum, having a library of 20,000 volumes, and probably containing 120 manuscripts. 3o» Some of these latter belong to the eighth and ninth centuries. 3°' Several are of great interest for the Irish ecclesiologist and antiquary. 3°3 Among them is an account of the life and miracles of the Irish founder, St. Virgil, apostle of Carinthia. 3°4 ScHAFHAUSEN. —This Swiss town is situated on the northern shore of the Rhine. 3°5 Here there is a fine public library, and from the published cata-
3°^ we are made — with the logue, acquainted
that it
Irish histo-
rical records. 3°7 Simancas.
from Valladolid—formerly a royal seat—preserves the archives of Spain. In 1853, contained in forty-three rooms, there were 90,000 packages of paper, awaiting investigation from the curious. 3°^ Here, on the loth of September, 1602, died Red Hugh 0'Donnell,^°5 in that house belonging to the King of Spain. 3»° Stockholm. —In this capital city of Sweden, the
This old
by several of its Professors, published at Salamanca, A D. 1849.
•93 Colgan frequently quotes such manu- scripts as once belonging to Salamanca.
*9^ See Z "Reisen in Klostem- ipf's einigen
Schwabens," or Travels in some Cloisters
of Swabia, p. 54. Also Gerbertus' *' Iter "
Alemannicum, p. 245. "
Spanish towTi,
''" Sammlungkurtzer Reisebesclireibungen,
"95 See Cooper's Appendix A," p. 202.
pendix A," p. 66.
3°5 See Coxe's ' ' Travels in Switzerland,
and in the Country of the Grisons," vol. i. . Letter 2, p. 5.
3<* For the first time, the Catalogue of the Public Library at Shalhausen was printed in 1824. It is an octavo volume of 574
^ See the
to Mabillon's
and 25.
*'
"
"
•99 See
Murray's
" Handbook for Travel-
Iter Germanicum," prefixed
Vetera Analecta," pp. 14
'9' See Gerbertus, " Iter See, " Bibliotheca Ministerii Alemannicum," pages. also,
p. 419.
*»* There is a printed Catalogue, "Biblio-
thek der Benedictiner Abbey, St. Michaelis *uf dem Monchsberg. "
Sacri Scaphusiensis," a. D. 1820. Likewise
"
Teutsches Kunstler-Lexicon, band iii. , p. 501.
3°7SeeCooper's"AppendixA,"p. 204,
and" to A," 66, Supplement Appendix pp.
67.
3°* See Lady Louisa Tenison's superbly-
lers in Southern Germany," sect, xi. , p.
241.
"
3<»A description of this occurs in the
illustrated work,
Castile and Andalucia,"
Iter Germanicum," prefixed to Mabillon's "Vetera Analecta," pp. il, 12.
*»See J. R. M'Culloch's "Dictionary, Geographical, Statistical and Historical," vol. iv. , p. 121.
3°' Archiv der Gessellschaft fiir altere deulsche Gcschichtkunde. " Also Bernouilli,
chap, xiv. , pp. 393, 394-
3°9 He was buried in the church of the
Monastery of St. Francis in Valladolid, but now not a vestige of the convent or of his tomb remains. See ibid. , p. 396.
3'° See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters," vol. vi. , pp. 2296 to 2299.
fact,
possesses about two
band xii. , p. 220. 3°3 See Cooper's
"
Appendix A," pp. 202
10204. 3°< See
" to Cooper's Supplement Ap-
see Meusel,
leagues
INTRODUCTION. civ
Royal Library contains 70,000 volumes, with several rare manuscripts. 3" The Stockholm libraries are rich in Icelandic manuscripts, which have been chiefly collected within the last two centuries. These are of great historical and antiquarian interest,3" Many of them ought, doubtless, throw great light on the relations of Ireland with more northern nations, during the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries. Strasburg —The fine public library here containedmanyvaluablebooksandmanuscripts. 3'3 Someoftheselatterhad a special value for the Irish hagiographer and ecclesiologist. The public library of Strasburg was founded by Bishop Otho, in the sixteenth century ;3i4 but unfortunately its valuable books and manuscripts have been utterly de- stroyed,3's during the bombardment, in the late war between France and Prussia. Struttgart. —This town lies in a beautiful and flourishing coun- try. 3'<5 fhg public and royal libraries3''' at Struttgart, in Wiirtemberg, con- tain several invaluable manuscripts3'^ for the Irish hagiographer's object. 3'9 The public library has a collection of 130,000 volumes. 3^° Some of the manuscripts are very old and very curious. s^^ Triers or Treves. —The public library of this Prussian city contains 70,000 volumes,3" and 10,000 MSS. ,orbooks,printedinEnglandbefore1500. 3*3 Theseillustrateancient Church history3*'« to a remarkable degree. It contains several of use for the Irish hagiologist. Turin. —The city of Turin, in Northern Italy, probably possesses manuscripts, both written and glossed by Scoti. The university
On this hero, the Franciscan annalists have pronounced a most pathetic and noble
1872, 8vo, in three volumes.
3'* See William Howitt's "Rural and
Domestic Life of Germany," chap, xviii. ,
§ 2, 270. p.
eulogy. 3" See
Murray's
" Handbook for Travel-
3'7 See a description and details of the ""
lers in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland, Route 60, p. 323. Third edition. London, 1858, 8vo.
Royal Library here in Dibdin's Biblio-
graphical, Antiquarian and Pic'uresque
Tour in France and " Germany, vol. iii. .
3i" As a to their key
a valuable
study, "Icelandic-English Dictionary," based on
Letter xxxviii. , pp. 157 to 165. "
the manuscript collections of Richard Cleasby, enlarged and completed by Gud-
3'8See Meusel, Teuisches Kiinstler- Lexicon," band iii. , p. 509,
brand
G. W. Dasent, D. C L.
has been edited
It issued from the
3'9 See " 206 Cooper's Appendix A," pp.
to 208, and "Supplement to Appendix A," pp. 67 to 79.
Vigfiisson, M. A. ,
by
Clarendon Press, at Oxford, in 1874.
3'3Someofthe
late, at Strasbourg, are described in Rev.
3"Dibdin's "
rian and Picturesque Tour in France and
Thomas Dibdin's " Frognall
Germany," to 147.
vol.
Letter
pp. 48 to 71.
j'^ See Thomas Astle's "
"
3" See ibid. , pp. 147 to 157.
3» See M. Malte-Brun's " Universal Geo-
literary treasures,
untilof
Bibliographical, Antiqua-
Bibliographi- cal, Antiquarian and Picturesque Tour in France and Germany," vol. ii. , Letter xxxv. ,
Hi. ,
xxxviii. , pp. 131
and Pro- gressofWriting, Introduction,p. xix.
vol. book
vii, cxx. , p. 249, for a
Origin
graphy," moreparticularaccount.
3'SOnthe 24th of August, 1870. See
Col. W, RUstow's "War for the Rhine 209, 210, and "Supplement to Appendix
Frontier, 1870 ; its political and military
Translated from the German John Leland Needham, vol. ii. , chap, xxv. , p. 182. Edinburgh and London. 187 1,
3'3See Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. A," pp. 79, 80.
Voyage Litteraire de Deux Re- ligieux Benediclins de la Congregation de S.
Maur," tomeii. , p. 285.
History. "
by
3"' See "
clvi INTR on UCTION.
here is a noble establishment, with library, museum, observatory and halls. 3^5 The public library of Turin contains 120,000 volumes of printed books, and a valuable collection o—f manuscriptSjS^^ many of which belonged to the Dukes of Savoy. 3^7 Upsala. The libraries of the Swedish City, Upsala, abound in
Icelandic manuscripts. The University Library alone contains about 130,000 printed books and 7,000 manuscripts. 3'^ Some ot these should doubtless re- ward the study of an Irish antiquary. A very valuable work, for the ecclesiastical antiquary's and historian's consultation, is the " Monumenta Ullerakerensia, cum Upsalia Nova illustrata," &c. , composed in Swedish and Latin. It includes many very fine and curious plates, especially of Upsala, its cathedral and monuments. 3'9 This work was written by Johan Peringskiold. 330 Verden. —The town of Verden, in Hanover, has a library, which contains some Acts of Irish Saints,33' among its manuscripts. 33' Vienna. —This beautiful capital of Austria is rich in the possession of fine libraries. 333 In 1480, the Vienna Imperial Library was founded by Maximilian I. , and this he enriched with a vast number of manuscripts,33< collected or copied from theAustrianmonasteries. 335 Hence,wehavethegleaningofliterarystores,336
3'5 See Rev.
John Chetwode Eustace's
of which closely resemble our most primitive Irish—churches. Inscriptions and coins of
singular interest are likewise represented. 33' Among these are noticed, "Vita S. Fursei," and "Vita S. Brigidie ex Scotia. " See " De Codicibus Antiquis Manuscriptis,"
" Classical Tour through Italy in mdcccii," vol. iv. , chap, iv. , p. 95.
^ Among these is a Latin manuscript of Sedulius, which dates back to the seventh century, and it is one of the oldest at Turin.
SeeM. " Lit- Valery's Voyages Historiques,
teraires, el Artistiques en Italic, Guide Rai- sonne et complet du Voyageur et de I'Ar-
tomus
33* See Cooper's "Appendix A," p. 211,
and " Supplement to Appendix A," p. 80. 333 See Lambecius, "Commentani de
"
Pub- lished at Vienna, A. D. 1665—1679, in eight volumes folio. This same work was issued,
"operaet studio A. F. Kollarii,"at Vienha,
A. D. in volumes folio. 1766—1782, eight
See Kollarius, "Analecta Monumentorum
"
omnis aevi Vindobonensia.
Vienna, A. D. 1761, 1762. Two volumes
will find much curious information about
ancient Upsalia, in that interesting work of at Vienna, a. d. 1790, in folio. Like-
tist," deuxime edition, tome iii. , liv. chap, iii. , p. 423.
xxi. ,
3^7 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel-
lers in Northern Italy," part L, Route i. , p.
land," Route 62, p. 338.
3*9 This is a folio volume, printed at
Stockholm, A. D. 1719.
330 Ecclesiastical and other antiquaries
27.
3=^8 See
" Handbook for Travel- lers in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Ice-
Murray's
Johan Peringskiold, "Monumentorum Sveo- wise, Leon, "
Gothicorum Liber Primus, Uplandias Partem der K. K. Hof-Bibliothek in Wien," or Primariam Thiundiam continens, cum Brief Description of the Court Library in Antiquitatibus ac Inscriptionibus quae Vienna. Published at Vienna, A. D. 1820, Cippis et Rupibus, vel Tumbis incisa in 24mo.
passim reperiuntur; justa delineatione, 33* It contains 16,076 manuscripts. See ""
brevique Commentario illustratas. This thin folio volume, written in Swedish and Latin, was published at Stockholm, A. D.
Murray's Handbook for Souihera Ger- many," sect, xi. , p. 202.
and Pro-
Origin
\^\o. It contains curious engravings of gress of Writing. " Introduction, p. xviii.
ancient Northern—in a style, many features 33*' In Rev. Thomas Frosmall Dibdin's
Podronus, p. 37.
Bibliotheca Caesarea Vindobonensi.
folio. See also
Commentariorum libros octo Supplemen- tum. " Liber Primus Posthumus. Published
335 See Thomas Astle's "
Kollarius,
Kurtzgefasste Beschreibung
Published at
" Ad Lambecii
"
and Pic-
Bibliographical, Antiquarian
turesque Tour in France and Germany," a most admirable account of this great collec- tion will be found, with a number of beauti-
fully engraved fac-similes of the manuscripts. Vol. iii. , letters xlvii. , xlviii. , pp. 446 to
pp. 13, 171.
534-
337 See Cooper's Appendix A," pp 212.
this subject.
338 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel-
lers in Southern Germany," sect, xi. , p.
215.
339 See Rev. Thomas Frognall Dibdin's
Burckhard, Historia Bibliothecse Augus-
tse, Wolffenbutteli est. " Published at que
Leipzig, A. D. 1744, 1746, in two volumes 4to.
348 See Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. 245 to 253, and "Supplement to Appendix A," pp. 83, 84.
349 See his Life at the 8th of July.
350See "HandbookforTravel- Murray's
lers in Southern Germany," sect x. , p. 88. 35' See Eckhart, " Commentarii de Rebus Francise Orientalis et Wice-
burgensis," tom. i. , p. 452. Also, Gercken's
to and " 239,
INTRODUCTION. clvii
likely to be of singular value for the Irish historiographer's examination. 337 But there are, likewise, several other magnificent libraries in and around
Vienna suchasthe ;
Private
the — Library, University Library,338
Emperor's andthatbelongingtotheMonasteryofClosterneuburg,339 Wiengarten.
In this city of Baden, once existed the Abbey of Wiengarten. 34° It was re-
peatedly burned, yet Gerbert observes, that several fine manuscripts have been preserved. 34' Some of Irish interest are among these. 34^ Mabillon gives
an interesting account of his literary researches, at WeingaTten. 343 Wind- berg. —This town, in Austrian Styria, had a collection of manuscripts. 344
hagiographers. 34S
WoLFENBUTTEL. The city of Wolfenbuttel, in Brunswick, has a public
library, containing 220,000 volumes. 34^ Among the manuscripts of this
place are several,347 which deserve the attention of an Irish historical inves- tigator. 348 WuRZBURG. —In Bavaria, at Wurzburg, situated on the Main,
the martyrdom of the Irish Apostle of Franconia, St. Kilian,349 took place. The great cathedral there now occupies that exact site. 35° Here, too, there is a university and some monastic establishments. 35i Some curious manu- scripts,352 of interest for the Irish student, are shown, and among these is a BookofGospels,saidtohavebeenusedbySt. Kilian. 353 IntheBurgundian Library, at Bruxelles, there is a tract,354 which specially refers to this local
these are which have an interest for Irish some,
Among —
345 See Cooper's "Appendix A," p. 244, ""
and Supplement to Appendix A, p. 83. 346 ^ee "Gazetteer of the World," vol.
xiv. , p. 532.
347 See "Archiv der Gesellschaft fiir al-
tere deutsche Geschichtkunde. " Also ""
to
pp. 80 to 82, for very copious reports on
Murray's
34' See "Iter
Also Gercken's "
" Reisen,"
to
ii. , pp. 340 343.
Supplement
Appendix A,"
and Pic- turesque Tour in France and Germany,"
"Bibliographical, Antiquarian vol. iii. , letter xlix. , pp. 589 to 619.
" Handbook for Travel- Alemannicum," p. 235.
34° See
lers in Southern Germany," sect, ix. , p. 30.
Episcopatus
Theil or part i. , pp. 119, 120, 142.
3*^ See 243-
353 See
254, and
84 to 87.
354
"
Supplement to Appendix A," pp.
Reisen,"
or Travels.
352 See
Cooper's "Appendix A," pp. 242,
Cooper's "
Appendix
A,"
pp. 253
343 See "Iter Germanicum," p. 6, pre- fixed to " Vetera Analecta. "
" De Monasterio S.
This was a peculiarly Irish
Intituled, 344 " "
Jacobi
See, Canisius, Lectiones Antiquge," Herbipolensis. torn, i. , p. 674, torn, ii. , p. 161, tom. iii. , foundation.
theil
Hirsching, Sehenswiirdige
" Bib- liotheken Teutschlands," band i. , p. 261.
clviii
INTRODUCTION.
religious
Thus have we endeavoured to a suc- give very
establishment. 355
cinct account, respecting those chief European libraries and archives, whence matters of import may be gleaned, for the illustration of our national Saints' Acts, and of our early ecclesiastical history. Yet, there can hardly be a
doubt, regarding the preservation of innumerable and of nearly similar ma- terials, in cities or towns unnamed—the examination and description of which must devolve on future investigators. Whether or not Irish hagio- graphical manuscripts have been removed to, or written, in other parts of the world, and if preserved, in any considerable number, has not been ascer- tained, as yet, to a very satisfactory extent, by the present writer.
Conclusion.
The foregoing writers and hagiographical works, printed or in manuscript, comprise not all that might be named or noted, in reference to universal or special Irish sacred biographies. While the chief authors and books have been mentioned, regarding general and classified collections of holy lives'; it must be observed, that various writers, scribes, and productions of minor celebrity, or invested with less historic importance, have escaped our notice, or have been placed without the range of our examination and knowledge. Having, likewise, designated the various libraries or archives throughout Europe, where, in different languages, several acts of the Irish Saints have been hitherto kept, and having described the most important and authentic published works or documents, from which succeeding biographies are chiefly drawn : it may be remarked, that, under headings of the respective names or festivals of our holy personages, marginal and reference notes will furnish a more detailed enumeration and critical analysis respecting those authorities, which have been used for the author's purposes of evidence —or illustration. As a study, Irish H—agiology hardly ever suppresses or alters
although occasionally it distorts facts of our ecclesiastical history
does it suggest wrong inferences, nor directly give any false colouring to
pastrecords. But,acutenessofmind,correctjudgment,anddelicacyofper-
ception,arealwaysrequiredduringtheprocessofinvestigation. Thesegifts
are necessary qualifications for writers or readers, who, in this field of re- search, must niver consider their education adequate, much less complete.
Some interesting popular legends of our saints have been preserved in oral tradition, and have been transferred, in various instances, to these pages. Such reminisences of our peasantry may not always prove to be genuine illustrationsofnationalhagiology; yet,inallcases,theypreserveasound morality, and have often engaged the interest and sympathies of highly- educated and pious persons. They serve, also, to popularize the mere
3SS See " Inventale," vol. xviii. , >'o. multi in Scotia. " No doubt, this tract
5313. It commencci,
"
Circa hoc tempus should interest the Irish student
;
neither
INTRODUCTION. clix
chronological or topographical details, which otherwise might hardly excite sufficient narrative interest. Besides, such lore should be likely to fade away
from recollection, after the lapse of a few generations ; whereas, once com- mitted to type, those stories may afford future archaic and hagiological stu- dents means for critical comparison with hitherto unpublished or undiscovered actsofsomesaints. Anunaccountableandindescribableanalysisofadventi- tious legends has frequently placed obscure historic accounts within the limits of reliable fact ; or, at least, traces of truthful narrative apparently gleam through the tinsel of false ornament, in which tradition had been so long dis- guised.
It is very possible, that some biographical incidents—which were origin- ally simple and natural enough—had passed, in traditional narratives, and through exaggerated statements, to the writers of our saints' lives. Chiefly from defect of attention or of memory, such accounts were subject to various alterations ; and, as they did not all come from similar sources, the biographer may have been obliged to compose his acts, without regard to proper order or system, in his arrangement. The most marvellous and inexact details were those most likely to be fixed in people's minds ; so that, after the lapse of a few ages, we may easily comprehend, how difficult it must have been to obtain wholly reliable facts, dates, or traits of personal character, without the aid of contemporaneous records.
Through mistake of entry, or owing to the circumstances, that different festivals or forms of name had been assigned to the same individual, in certain instances, our Calendarists appear sometimes to have multiplied or confounded particular saints' feasts. Frequently, the same saint had been venerated at more than one place, and thus correct identifications have be- come exceedingly difficult. It requires great study, close attention, instinc- tive capacity, and special knowledge, to detect such errors. In many cases, the effort must be attempted with very doubtful results. Genealogies of the saints, topographical objects or denominations, popular traditions, and an- nalistic entries, are the best guides to establish a distinction or identity. Yet, even these fail us, in regard to several of our holy personages. The obsolete names of places, their divergency, or proximity of distance, and frequently local folk-lore or legends, often help us to an exact solution of problems in our Calendar. Ancient records, charters, inquisitions, and maps of remote date, furnish likewise very important aids towards forming an opinion, or pronouncing a judgment, on subjects under consideration.
As the author's design includes in his work the lives of saints, connected
with our island, by birth, residence, or death, it may be observed, this publi- cation must tend, incidentally, to illustrate the Hagiology and Church His-
tory of England, Scotland, Wales, and many other countries on the Con- tinent of Europe. Throughout, it inculcates lessons of faith, of morality, and of Christian heroism. Every possible effort has been made to discover
and place upon record—arranged according to a monthly and diurnal order— the biographies, festivals, and commemorations of all known, or reasonably
clx INTRODUCTION.
reputed, to be Irish Saints. Patrons of various churches, parishes, or dio- ceses, throughout Ireland, and in more distant countries, as likewise the patrons of different families, are identified, in a vast number of cases ; while
ecclesiastical ruins, more modem structures, shrines, artistic and antiquarian objects, having close reference to them, are accurately noted and described. In order to render the life of each saint comprehensive and complete, as materials and information furnished to the writer will allow, he has been careful to omit no statement of importance, judged consistent with sound
moralsanddoctrine,orChristianedification.
