•:;M.|};f>i.r!!;;[jH|!|«Jw»>»»{ti, HKt i^H;i,„.. RTJT'Tfpf;');;:, ' '^ ■ 1 ! ia>u "n ■■ iiOB-:: ■■■■ , ■'■..,'■: ii^ • lis '' ' ' ■ ^^BiHfUiWiiiiititinT ! Vi^ '.'■■■-'■■■,■'.■■;,,.■ ■■'■ . '.'/'.■ ' ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ' " ■ • . ■ ' ' ■■■;■ I .- ■■ ■ i ■ 1 i^l:^::^:''-^-''''4,-:i:- li":'^^-■ ■:'■-- ' ': <'l;-^' ■■■■ m UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES 11 ANTIQUITIES OF ( ^^///r//y/ ^^/^y//Yr// zzM y Secoxiil E flition THE ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. »t«»t99fl6®® <^^ ®®®®89»»«»e THE SECOND EDITION, ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS. TO WHICH IS ADDED. A Collection of Miscellaneous Antiquities. EDWARD LEDWICH, L. L. D. MEMBER OF MANY LEARNED SOCIETIES. PRINTED BY AND FOR JOHN JONES, 90, BRIDE-STREET. 1804. PNEUN TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE EARL OF UPPER OSSORY, BARON GOWRAN OF GOWRAN, IN IRELAND : AND IN ENGLAND BARON UPPER OSSORY OF AMPTHILL, AND Lord Lieutenant of the County of Bedford, A JUDGE AND A PATRON OF LEARNING AND THE POLITE AETS, IS MOST RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED BY THE A UTIIOR. ruiiil-Of;'' PREFACE. '— <'5^eCi*>-^ 1 HE public fentiment in favour of the firfi: Edition of thefe EfTays, exprefled in the refpedable literary Journals at the time of their publication, encouraged the Author to prepare a fecond with conllderable additions and corredions. Moil of the additions have already appeared in the works of the dif- ferent learned Societies, of which he has the honour to be a member. That on the origin of Saxon and Gothic architecture, re- quires perhaps fome apology for its introduction here ; though the fubjedt feems to be not unconnected with the beautiful fpecimens of thefe ftyles, ftill remaining in this kingdom. The hiftory of Kilkenny, is an attempt to trace the beginning and progrefs of an Irifh city of fome celebrity ; and contains, probably, fome memorials that may intereft curiofity. Was this plan generally adopted, materials would be coUeCted, va- luable to future hiftorians and antiquaries. The few topographical antiquities at the end, were printed and publiflied before the Author undertook to complete Grofe's Antiquities of Ireland, of wich that amiable and excellent an- tiquary lived to write but feven pages. PREFACE. The view of fociety and manners in ancient Ireland is, with little variation, the fame as that of the mod poliflied nations of modern Europe in remote periods. England, the bulwark of the civilized world, can behold without emotion, or mauvaife honte^ her mental and political degradation at the arrival of the Romans, and fmile with contempt at the flattering fables of Geoffry of Monmouth. Scotland, celebrated for talents and accomplifliments, and rivalling her illuftrious fifter in her glo- rious career, afTumes no pride from bardic tales, or the pages of Hedor Boethius. No longer is the wild romance of Geoftry Keating, the heraldic regiftry of the Irilh nation : its learning, its valour, and fame, are recorded in the more durable monu- ments of true hiftory. When Hibernians compare their pre- fent with their former condition ; their juft and equal laws with thofe that v/ere uncertain and capricious ; the happy fe- curity of peace with the miferies of barbarous manners, their hearts muft overflow with gratitude to the Author of fuch blef- fings : nor will they deny their obligations to the foftering care of Britain, the happy inftrument for conferring them. In a work, embracing fuch a variety of topics, errors will be found ; the learned and candid can befl: eftimate the difiiculty of avoiding them, and the degree of indulgence they are enti- tled to. The Author declines hacknied apologies ; in their place he begs leave to conclude with a line of an eminent poet : i.i En adjurn ! et vetiiam confejjus^ cr'im'ma^ pofco,^'' SUBSCRIBERS. His Excellency Philip Yorke, Earl Hardwicke, Lord Lieutenani- General, and General Governor of Ireland, 2 copies. RIGHT Honourable Lord Avonmore, Lord Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer, m. r. i. a. Hon. and Rev. Dean of Ardagh. Hon. and Rev. Wm. Annefly, Dean of Down. Wm. Annefly, Efq. Brigadier Gen. Affleck. Henry Alcock, Efq. Mayor of Water- ford, Wilton, Ennifcorthy. W.Congreve Alcock, Efq. m.p. Waterford. Chriftopher Allen, Efq. Mayor of Cork. Rev. Doftor Auftin, Mitchelflown. Rev. Gilbert Aultin, m.r.i.a. Woodville. Jn. Warnerford Armflrong, Efq. Kilmore. Henry Adams, Efq. Youghall. William Henry Armflrong, Efq. Doftor Robert Anderfon, Edinburgh. IV'r. Wm, Andrews. Mr. Archer, Boold'eller, 20 Copies. B. Rev. Dean Batfon, Waterford. Lieut. Gen. Biakeney. Hon. P. B. Blaquiere. W. H. B. 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Ridgeway, Efq. Jofeph Ridgeway, Efq. William Robinfon, Efq. Armdrong Ryves, Efq. Jonathan Bruce Roberts, Efq. Charleville. Matthew Read, Efq. Oughterard. Richard Read, Efq. Iliitton-read. Richard Ronayne, Efq. Youghatl. Francis Reynolds, Efq. Kilkenny. Robeit Rogers, Efq. Rofs. John Rochfort, Efq. County Carlow. Bryan Roche, Efq. George Read. Efq. h'r. Hugh Reilly, Caftleroach. Mr. Hugii Reilly, Dublin. Mr. Daniel Ryuh. ^'r3. Ray. K.'elfrs. Ramfcy and Birney, Bookfcllers, Waterfor-d, 12 copies. S Vilcount Soinerton, Archbifliop of Dublin. III. lion, bir Michael biuith, Burt. iV.'ader of the Rolls. Lady St. George. Kt. lion. Sir John Stewart, Bart. m. p. Captain Oniagh Cavalry. Sir Marcus Somerville, Bart. m. p. M. R. I. A. Rev. Jas. Symes, Ballyarthur, m. r. i. a. Rev. William Sutton, Longrainge. Charles IE Sirr, Efq. Town Major. Arthur Stanley, Efq. Captain A'!crchants* Infantry. Solomon Speer, Efq. Leonard Speer, Efq. Hayward St. Leger, Efq. Sidney-place, Cork. Graves Chamney Swan, Efq. Peter Sinnott, Efq. Rock Lodge. Richard Sparrow, Efq. ClonmeU, Swan, Efq. Theophilus Swift, Efq. Roger Svveetman, Efq. Williiim Sharman, Efq. Moira Caftlc. Walter Sweetman, Efq. A. SeroQ, Efq. Thomas Sinclair, Efq. Richard Steele, Efq. George Steele, -Efq. John Small, Efq. Dr. Sempill. Mr. John Stewart, Mr. John Short. Mr. William Sterling. Mr. Robert Sharland, Uillfborough. Mr. Martin Scott. Mr. Saunders. Mr. William Scott. Mr. Shea, Bookfeller, 3 copies. Mr. Stockdalc, Printer, 3 copies. Mr. Wm. Shcppavd, Bookfeller, Briflol^ 6 Copies. Rev, SUBSCRIBERS. .•t-4 ■<■■* ■< •*■■< ■< ■< ■* '< ■<■■* ■< ■< ■<■■< ■< ■< ■< -< < 4 ■ ; ■< <■<-<■<■■<■■< 4 *■•<■•< <<-■>-! > >• >• > >■> : > > > > ►->>■> > T. Rev. Archdeacon Trail, Lifburn. Rev. William Tew. Rev. Hoiafio Townfend. William Taylor, Efq. Dublin Caflle. Nicholas Power Trench, Efq. Galway. William Thompfon, Efq. John Taylor, Efq. C. Taylor, Efq. Frederick Trench, Efq. Haywood, Queen's County. Charles Trench, Efq. Alderman Charles Thorp. Moft Rev. Dr. Troy John Tarleton, Efq. Liverpool. Mr. James Tallan, Dundalk. Mr. P\.oI'ert Thompfon. Mr. William Taggart. U Earl of Upper Oflbry.. Rev. Hemfvvorth Ulher, a. m. Toarhoufe. Arthur Uflier, Efq. Youghall. V Rev. James Verfchoyle, Dean of St, Patrick. Travers Hartley Vaughan, Efq. Edward Verdon, Efq. W Rt. Hon. Wm. Wickham, Dublin Caflle. Rev. Richard Woodward. Rev. Chamberien Walker, Rofconnel. Richard Waller, Efq. Caftle Waller, M. R. I. A. Jofeph Cooper Walker, Efq. M. R. I. A. St. Valeri. Samuel Walker, Efq. M. R. I. A. Cuf- torn Houfe. Lieut. Col. Weldon, Royal Queen's County Militia. James Wemys, Efq. Kilkenny. Robert Way, Efq. Kilkenny. .'.obert V/eir, Efq. John Ward, Efq. Rofs. Lieut. Robt. White, Royal Marines. Benjamin Watfon, Efq. Lime Park. William Baily Wallace, Efq. Henry Woodward, Efq. George Wade, Efq. Robert Warren, Efq. H. S. Willock, Efq. Rathfryland. William Wallh, Efq. btadalt. James Whitedcne, efq. Capt. Wilfon, Liberty Rangers. Mr. Samuel Wolfey, Belfafl. Mr. William Wright. Mr. Robert Wallh, B-lfaft. Mr. Edward Wolfenden. Mr. Robert Wilion. Mr. P. Wogan, Bookfeller, 3 copies. Mr. Andrew Watfon, Bookfeller, Lime- rick, 8 copies. Meffrs. Watfon and Co. Book-fellers, Dublin 2 copies. THE Cliaracter of the fir.^t and second EJiiion of this Work is extracted tVoni l!ie following very resjicctable authorities. " Wc Iiave thiis taken a survey of ^^r. l.cdwich's Essays on tha Antiquities of Ireland. Instead of relvin;^ on ctymologj-, like n\any of his predecessors, he has had recourse, when possible, to written authorities ; which he first oxan)ines separately, and then compares with each other. His- present work exhibits abundant marks of K arning and industry." J.r.alijiica.1 Uc-vit-x for May, 1792. " The Anti(]uities of Ireland have been long negleci.ted, or treated witli strong preju- dices for iaijle and visioi.ary etymologies. It is with peculiar pLasure that we at length .^ee a ratiosal and learned work on this subject. Upon the whole, we hare not perusetF any antiquarian work with more pleasure and instruction." Critical Ri view for ylitgitst, 1792, and .^Jppcndi.r. *' When we meet with a jirofessed Anticjuary, who is at the same time a man of gcueral learning, cultivated taste, liberality of sentiment, ami a correct and elegant writer, (instances of wiiich in such happy union are not very common) we accom|)any him in'liis literar}- and scientific excursions with care and peculiar satisfaction. Such a man, such a writer is Mr. Ledwicii ; whose entertaining and instructive performance we now, without farther preamble or ceremony, but with sincere pleasure, introduce to the acquaintance of our readers. " Tims have we endeavoured to give our readers a view of a performance in \^llich (ve find niutli to commend and little to disapprove. If in an instance or two we might hesitate, or be inclined to object, our intention is o\creome by the good sense, the learning, the judgment, t!ie diligence, tlie accuracy and the liberality which pervade the wliole. Wc eonsidcr the puljlic as indebted to this Author for so instructive and useful- a production ; which we trust will have its efTeet, in concurrence with other aids, to- wards the destruction of bigotry, superstition, and, false science, with all their idle fancies and childish chiniBcras ; and thus contribute to the advancement of solid learning, rational religion and virtue. The value of the Volume is still greatly enhanced by the Engravings, exact and beautiful, with which it is attended." Monthly Bcvirx for May and June, 1793. See the learned and nccomplished Bishop Percy's Jieliques of ancient English Poetry , ^ol. I. 1794. " Seldom CHARACTER OF THE WORK. " SelJom do we fiiul siicli profoiinJ antiquarian investigations so free from hypothesis and conjecture, or so firmly established on well-selected authorities. Ur. Ledivich keeping the plan of tiiat excellent Antiquary, Sir James Ware, in view, has omitted the fictions whicli strong national prejudices obliged the Knight to recite: witli equal talents, su- perior information, and profound erudition, the Doctor has constructed his present work The c'laracter here given of it coincides with the public opinion expressed of it on its first appearance. It was eagerly sought after, as alone exhibiting a genuine picture of the ancient state of Ireland." British Critic, for Stp.'imbir and October ^ 1804. " The account we have given of tliis very abh; work renders it unnecessary to speak iuriher in commendation of it. \\'c will only add, that it has the rare merit of being a cheap book^ as well as a good one." Aikiii's Ann. Review, Vol. 3. p. 413. " Ledwich's book on the Antiquities of Ireland is a most valuable performance." Gordon's History of Ireland, Vol. l. pag,39. " In the preceding descrrption, I follow Doctor Ledwich's work, who illuminates and illustrates Irish Antiquities with classic taste and scientific wisdom." Du/iigg's King's Inns Remembrances, page 85. " Doctor Ledwich has published a second edition of his Antiquities of Ireland. Many years have elapsed since this work first excited and gratified the attention of the curious and learned world. Dr. Ledwich has now revised his Essays, and to the original number added nine others. They have always borne a high reputation, and confirmed upon their Author the deserved reputation of a good scholar, and an accu""ate and discrimi- native Antiquary." Retrospect of Domestic Literature in Monthli/ Mag. Vol. IS. pag, 5S^.. CONTENTS OF THE ESSAY a*«(9 -«•-»»••• T. On the Romantic Hlflory of Ireland — • — Page i II. Ancient Notices refpeiliij^'^r eland, and of its Name — I2. III. Of the Colonization of Ireland — — - — ^i IV. Of the Druids, and their Religion — — 02 v. Of the Pagan State of Ireland, and its Remains — 42- "VI. Of the Introduction of Chri/lianity, and of St. Patrick — 54 VII. • Anecdotes of early Chri/iianity in Ireland — — 70 VIII. Origin and Progrefs of Monachifm in Ireland — 88 IX. Of the Irijh Culdees, and Antiquities of Monaincha — 103 X. State of the Irifh Church in the Eleventh Century, and after 121 XI. Of the Stone-roofed Churches, and Cormac's Chapel — 1-58 XII. Of the Round Towers in Ireland — — i r r XIII. Hijlory and Antiquities of -Glendaloely — — 171, XIV. Obfervations on Saxon and Gothic Archite6lure — 187 XV. Of ancient IriJh Coins — .. — — 211 XVI. Obfervations on the Harp, and ancient IriJh Mufic — 22S XVII. Of ancient Irijh Mufical Injlruments — — 242 XVIII. Of the ancient Irifl:> Drcfs — — — 250 XIX. The Military Antiquities of Ireland — — 277 XX. Political Conjiitution and Laws of the ancient Irifi — ^oi XX!. On the Ogham Chara^crs and Ahhabetic Elements of the ancient LiJJ} 0,2 XXII CONTENTS OF THE ESSAYS. r< ■<.■<-<-<•( .«.< <-«■■<( <.<[.< 4-4.^.4 4 4 .<..4:.<..<^ .«..(.« .4..<..(..<-< ^.■4..<..<.<..<.^4.>-. >■.>■>. >;^. >.^.>. >>■ K>.>.» > > i-^-t-^ >•►■>-» »«'>•>->'>>' fr >■»- » k> fc- XXII. y4 Review of IriJIj Literature in the middle J ges XXIII. Gira/di/s Cambrenfts illujlrated — XXIV. liijlory and Antiquities of Irifitoivn and Kilkenny XXV. Appendix of Records to Irijhtown and Kilkenny XXVI. Abbey and Church of Aghaboe — XXVII. Abbey of Athajd — — XXVIII. Abbey of Devenifh >— — XXIX. Chapel at Holy-Crofs — ^ — . XXX. Abbey of Knockmoy — ''*— XXXI. OldLeighlin — >m ~ XXXII. Mifcellaneous Antiquities — 34^ 382 498 509 520 522 524 A THE ANTICLUITIES OP IRELAND. »oo<:>oooo< ON THE ROMANTIC HISTORY OP IRELAND, WHEN we review the remote hiftories of England, Scotland and Ireland, and find names and fadls delivered with unhefitating confidence and chronolo- gical accuracy, it feems, at firrt: fight, an unreafonable degree of fcepticifm to with- hold our affsnt from them, or queftion their authenticity : but minuter enquiry fatisfaclorlly evinces them to be but fpacious delufions, and fome of the numberlefs vagaries of the human mind. The want of literary memorials created an impenetrable obfcurity, which every attempt to deduce the origin of nations, or detail early events, was unable to pene- trate or difpel. How then were national honour and high-born anceflry, the love of which is moft confpicuous and prominent in rude people, to be fupported ? The anfwer is by poetic tales and bardic inventions ; and hence we find the wild and naked German (i) fang the praifes of his great progenitor, Tuifco; the Highlander of Scotland the exploits of Cuchullin, and the Hibernian the wonderful peregrina- tions of Milefius. Bardic fidtions and unfounded traditions are the oral records of every barbarous nation. As foon as fociety, by the aid of regular government and the ufe of letters, emerged from rudenefs to an imperfect civilization, a new fpecies of hiftoric compo- B fition ;i) Celebrant carminibu) intiqui»j ipod unnin apud illos menwri* & annalium genui eft, Lc. Tacit. Germ. 2 ROMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. fition appeared, made (2) up of popular tales and genuine fads, fo ingenioufly in- terwoven as not only to referable but to pafs for true hiftory. This was the origin of romantic hiflory, and of the Iliad, the Thebaid, the . Argonautics and fimilar produftions. Thefe works flattered general prejudices by embodying and identifying truth and fiction, fo that it (3) became a difficult tafli for fubfequent writers to fepa- rate the one from the other. It was not without fome ftruggle that people relin- qullhed popular fables, the delight of their youth, and the conftant themes of gar- rulous old a^c, however they vaniflied in the fuperior illumination of learning and crilicifm : wherever they are ftill retained, that people may be pronounced cre- dulous and ignorant. What has been advanced . will receive confirmation from exa- mining the origin of- romantic hiftory in Ireland. Ireland in .the iixth and fucceeding centuries pofTefTed a literary reputation, which is proved by indifputable evidence. But her political conftitution, municipal laws, and the prevailing ftudies of the times v/ere but ill calculated to advance letters or improve civility. It cannot therefore be doubted, but that romantic hiftory was a favourite fubjeft, and much cultivated by a people thus circumftanced. But of this no monument exifts antecedent to the (4) age of Nenniuo, A. D. 830. That it was much earlier muft appear from his having confulted the rnoft fKilful Iriftj Antiqua- ries ; who told him the fable of Pharaoh's fon-in-law, his expulfion from Egypt, his travels through Africa and Spain, and from thence to Ireland. Nennius's judg- ment of this fiftion is decifive, when he (5) declares, that there was no fure hiftory of the origin of the Irifli. A learned and very (6) ingenious writer has carefully exa- mined and fully confuted the notion of the Hilpanian' extraction of the Irifti ; had he turned his thoughts to the origin of the fable, nothing more could have been faid, at once to fubvert it, and let the foolifli fiction for ever at reft. The follow- ing hints are offered, in fome fort, to fupply their omiftion. Spain, the (7) centre of oriental fabling, always enjoyed a celebrity above that of any European country ; the Iriili therefore efteemcd it a matter of the greateft importance (a) Milefius cycllcus, fic di(Jlu?, quonlam cyclum partira mytliicum, partlm hiftnricum fciipfcrat, ita iit verffimilliu- diucm & ad probilitatis hiftoriie legem esigeret ea, quae a poetis, feu antiquis fcriptoribus effeiit iiarrata. Heync, df Ion- libuB Diodoti, p. 67. Edit. Biponr. Sec alfo Salmas. Plin. Exorcit. in Solin. p. 846. where much curious learning may bt fuuiid on the original poetic and hifloric compofitions of the Greeks. ii) Ciiioquidtm confilio nihil polerat cffe incptius, nihil ad ipras hiflnrias perriciofius. Hcyne, fup. (4) I am obliged to fpealt of iliij author's work as authentic, bccaufe others have done fo, though 1 think it tlic patchei prudui^ion of various writers, or one of the fuppofititious performances of the middle ages. (?) Nulla tamcn certa hiftoria originis Scotorum rcpcritur. Ncnn. p. lOj. EJ. Bertram. (6) Macpherfon's Introdudion to the Ilift. of Great Britain and Ireland. (7) Warion'a Hift. of linglifij Poetry, V. i. Difl". i. ROMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. , 3 importance to exhibit a clear deduftion of their anceftors from thence, and which their native writers, in every age, have zealoufly inculcated. When the Arabians entered Spain in the beginning of the eighth century, (obferve Nennius lived in the ninth) with the revival of Greek literature they introduced a knowledge of the fci- ences and arts before but little fludied, and in many parts of weftern Europe not known. From the earlieft period they cultivated magic ; they extolled their inti- mate acquaintance with the occult qualities of bodies ; their fkill in metallurgy, in optics, in vitrification, and In precious ftones and medicine fupported their high pretenfions, and aftonllhed and confounded the incredulous. Nor were they lefs diltingullhed for a vein of romantic fittlon : here they difpiayed an exuberance of fancy in the creation of imaginary beings, in the wildnefs and variety of their ad- ventures, and in the extravagance of their fables^ all fpringing from their moBes of thinking and their peculiar philofophy. A brilliancy of thought and pomp of ex- preffion at once captivated and delighted the reader. The pleafmg contagion quickly diffufed itfeU through every people : the genial warmth of oriental fidlion enlivened their fongs : the monotonous and difmal tales of blood and (laughter were fucceeded by more amufmg and fprightly relations, by the heroic atchievements of gallantry, or the bland occupations of love; all thefe worked up v.i;h Arabian Inventions and Arabian philofophy are vifible, as vv^e (hall fee, not only in our civil hlftory but in our haglography, The(8) Armoric and Welfla bards very early attained eminence in romantic fabling; the Irifli, who fymbollzed with them in every article of religion, foon adopted the fame talie, as did the Cornifh poets. The connexion between the Armoric Bri- tons, the Cornlfh, the Welili and Irifli was for many ages Intimate, fo that a fond- nefs for romantic hiltory was foon propagated here: even the numerous refort of foreigners to our celebrated fchools facilitated the Introduction of this fpecies of writing. A few proofs are necefl^iry to eftablilh what Is now delivered. Our mythologies (9) Inform us that three Spanifli fifliermen arrived here before the flood, and foon after that awful event, the Fomoraigh or Africans (10) fubdued the Ifle, or others from the continent of Africa frequently vliited it, and that it was finally colonized by (11) Mllelius, a Spaniard. Nennius relates that theie Spa- niards in their voyage faw a tower of glafs, which endeavouring to take, they were drowned in the attempt. This tower Is a fure mark of an oriental fancy, and fimllar (8) W'arton, fupra. (9) Keating, p. 18—46. (10) Keating, p. ir. (II) Pinkerton has the following curious note. " Nennius knew nothing of Milefius, but only mentions MUej quUam Uifpanui, a certain Spanifh foldier. Of this Miks the Irifli made MikCus, as of Julius Csfir they tuaje Csfara, Noah '3 niece. Hifl, of Scotland, V, x. p. 6. 4 ROMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. . < •< <<<<<<<< < « '< ^ <<<<<<<<<< < ■< < < < ■< •< •< •< ■< < < ■< <+>■>■■>• >■>->->•>■>•>■ >>■>>•>>>>■>■>> ►">■>■♦ >»•»►■*♦■>•♦».»..». > > r fimilar to the to\\=er of glafs, faid to be built fi2) by Ptolemy, Jind Boyardo's wait of glafs made by aa African magician, and the pillars of Hercules erefted on ma- gical looking glafles. The Milefians, when they landed in Ireland, had various (13) battles with the Tuatha de Danans, a nation of enchanters and magicians, whom they at length fubdued by fuperior fkill and bravery. In our Legends the fame fplrit of romantic fidion abounds. No one (14) but a virgin could ufe the magic girdle of St. Colman. St. Cuthbert's zone cures many difeafes. An Irifh prieft complains to St. Gerald, that a huge rock impeded the na- vigation of a river, immediately the Saint throws a (ij) wonderful Hone on it, and it fplits into pieces. At another time he puts the fame ftone into the mouth of a dead man and he revives. St. Kiaran, St. Fechin and St. J£nd are as fafely con- veyed over rivers, lakes, and the ocean on ftenes as in fhips. The myftical power of ftones declares the oriental complexion of our fpiritual romances. Some of our ficlions are of a later date. Thus St. Patrick, a perfonage who (16) never exifted but in legendary ftory, is born In Taburnia in Cornwall ; his mother(i 7) is(i 8)Concheffa, a Frenchwoman of Tours : others make him a native of Airmuirc or Armorica. From this region he and his filter Lupita are carried away by Irilh pi- rates. He goes to Rome, and on his return preaches in Cornwall '. Fingar alfo and other Irifh Saints travel to Armorica, *' The people of Cornwall, fays Camden, have always borne fuch veneration to Irifh Saints, who retired there, that almoft all their towns have been confecrated to their memory." In a fig) council held by St. Patrick, all ihe unconverted Irifh are baptized, and fo violent a -religious paroxyfm fcizes them, that thirty thoufand, divided into three bodies, begin a pilgrimage with the Saint's benedidion to Rome and Jeru- lalem, and other parts of Europe, Ana and Africa. Here is a fiftion calculated to countenance the Crufades, and not earlier than the eleventh century, or it may refer to the feventy thoufand perfons who took a voyage to Paleftine, A. D. 1062, and who were either killed or made prifoners. It is remarkable that the learned Jefuit, Bollandus, from a (20) critical and judicious examination (well worth perufal) dates the fabrication of our Legends about the eleventh century. Many (II) WarloD, fup. {e&. ij. (iv^ Keating, p. jj. (14) A die. Aft. Siauil. ad 16 IkUrtie, p. 581. BoUandui died in i66j. Romantic history of Ireland. 5' Many of the bardio figments are ftill more recent. The (21) Milefians ii* a. flarry night of winter ulfcovered IreLind from the tower of Brigantia in Galicia by the help of a telefcope. Roger Bacon (22) affirms, that Julius Crefar before he' invaded Britain, viewed with a telefcope her Ihores and harbours. He died in the thirteenth century. In (23) Offian's combat of Ofgar and Ilian, a beautiful damfcl complains, that lllan, eldefl fon of the king of Spain, purfued her, and threatened wounds and dellruction to the Flans : " wherever he goes, adds fhc, to the eaft or v/eft, or to the four quarters of the world, his fliarp-edged weapon makes every foe yield the viftory." The words — four quarters of the world — evince this poem to have been written in the fifteenth century. Numberlefs other figments are of the fame date. The fifteenth century is noted for literary impoftures and fuppofititious authors. The Berofus, Manetho, Megafthenes and Cato of Annius of Viterbo, the Tufcan infcriptions of Inghiramius, and Boethius's Scottilh hiilory are the productions of this period, and their fabulous charader well known. At this time, fays (24) a learned writer, men began to be inquifitive into matters of antiquity, and therefore fome who had more learning and better inventions than others, fet themfelves to work to gratify this curiofity. The fuccefs of their impoftures was fo great, that it became no eafy matter to undeceive the public, and convince them they were but forgeries. Trithemlus, an ecclefiaftic of learning in this age, gave a plaufible lift of ideal French princes from their departure from Troy, which he declared was taken from an ancient author, named Hunibald. Frederic, Eleftor of Saxonv, writ to Trithemlus, requefting Hunibald might be fent to him. Trithemlus had no wav to fcreen his forgery, or evade compliance but by faying, the MS. was not in his poffeilion, having changed his refidence from Hitchau to Wurtzburgh, fo that ir •was fairly (25) concluded — que cet auteur pretendu ell de la propre fabrique de Tritheme. Emancipated at length from the bondage of igr.orance, credulity and fuperftltion by the cultivation of learning, the human mind acquired a firm tone and power of difcrimination to which it had been long a Ilranger. The evanefcent meteors of romantic hiftory loit all their charms ; truth and authentic records were the gula- ipg ilars of every enlightened hillorian and antiquary ; nor is it undeferving notice, that the northern writers, whofe annals are clouded with fables, were among the c foremoll: Jit) Keating, p. 44. {li) Warton, fup. (23") Trarf. of the Koyal Irifli Acai'. V. i. p. y^. <2.i) SiiUingfKct's Brit, churchc!, frtf. (i;.) Recucil dc div. ricces, par Leibnitz, Clarke, 5-c. T. ., p. 287, 6 ROIMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. foremoft in this laudable career. Bartholine (26) defires his reader to ufe much caution in perufing the Icelandic chronicles, and in feparating the true from the falfe ; and not to be iinpofed on by the words — fornum bokum or old books — or fornum fogum or poetic ficiions — Loccenius, a celebrated lawyer and antiquary of Upfal in Sweden, (27) declares the ancient Swedifli hiftory to be fo uncertain, that, not to miflead the reader, he would place no dates in his margin antecedent to the age of St. Eric, A. D. 11 50, nor was any hiftorical relation to be depended on before the introduftion of Chrif- tianity in the reign of Bero or Biorn, A. D. 816. Thefe acknowledgments while they upbraided our pertinacity in defending palpable fictions, produced fome good eftects. Some it emboldened totally to rejeftour fables; others with a ti- morous and trembling hefitancy relinquiflied fome of them, and weakly endea- voured to defend others. Great care and critical fagacity, according to (28J O'Flaherty, are to be exercifed in the choice of Irifh MSS. Some are plainly apocryphal, or inventions for amufe- ment ; fome to flatter the pride and ambition of Patrons are filled with hyperbolical and incredible narrations : however, adds he, undoubted truths may be drawn from them, as tradition and the confent of antiquaries allow. — This writer in another (29) work tells us, that as to Scota, the daughter of Pharaoh, who gave the name of Scotia to Ireland, the Irifli when they embraced chriftianity and became conver- fant with facred writ, thought it glorious to their country to have their anceftors derived by a mother from the Egyptian Pharaoh, and to have had familiar conver- faiion with Mofes and the Ifraelites. — Here O'Flaherty fees the childifli abfurdity of Irifli fables, but fears to offend popular prejudices. Very diflerent is the language of two eminent Prelates. Doctor Talbot, titular ArchblOiop of Dublin in 1674, a man of talents, family, and by no means a bigot, obferves, that (30) among our Annalifl;s and writers who merit little regard are thofe vernacular authors whom Colgan calls the Foiir Mafliers : for they were illi- terate ri6) Plurima itaqu6 cautela in Ubris Tctcrlbus Iflandicis utendum eft, & verx liiftorix a fallis magna rircumrpei5)ione ' fcccrnendx, &c. Barthnl. ■■>■>■ >■■>■ >■ >■■>•■>->•>. >. >..>.>..>.>. >..>..>.>..>..>.>..>..>..>..>..>..>..>..>..>..>.>..>..>..>.->. >.. terate and fo devoted to party that but little of truth can be coUefted or inferred from their performances. Nor is there any relying on Keating who follows them, for he exprefsly treats of the genealogies of the Irilh, deducing them in diftin£t generations from Adam. Many things he introduces from Bardic poems, filled with ftories of giants. What valuable information can be had from fuch writers, I profefs myfelf ignorant. Dodor O'Brien, titular Bifliop of Cloyne, author of an Irifh dictionary and a man of letters, deHvers (31) his fentiments with equal boldnefs and candour. " Parforis in his remains of Japhet feems but too well inclined to favour the anti- quities of Ireland, without confidering, that nothing could be of greater prejudice or dilcredit to them than aflerting thofe fabulous genealogies, and the ftories of the travels of the fuppofed leaders and chiefs of their ancient colonies, fuch as have been rejefted with juft contempt by all learned nations : firfl invented in Ireland by Bards and Romancers after they came to fome knowledge of both facred and pro- phane hiflory. The real and true antiquities of Ireland are not to be derived from any other fources than our authentic annals ; fuch as thofe of Tigernach, of Innis- fallen, the Chronicon Scotorum and a few others, wherein are no fabulous ftories, I'uch as thofe in the book called leaver Gabbhala, and others of that kind publiftied in the tranflation of Keating's hiflory of Ireland, w'^ch he never intended for the public, but for. the (32) amufement of private famihes." But there are two works, much relied on by native writers ; thefe are the • (33) Pfalter of Cafliel and Cormac's gloffary. Lhuyd and Nicolfon fay, a part of the firft is in the Bodleian Library, but I do not recoUeft any one, who profefles to h:ive feen it. Walfti gives this extrafl; from it, which muft deftroy its credit as an hiftorical record : " That the Fids ferved in Thrace under one Polycornus, that they fled that country, and roamed up and down at fea till they came to Gaul, and there founded the City of Pictavia : that they were forced to leave Gaul and retire to Ireland : that Trofdan, a magician, advifed the Irifh army to bathe in the milk of one hundred and fifty white crumple-horned cows, as a fure antidote againft the envenomed arrows of the Britons." This (ji) Preface to hij Dii!l. p. 40. {ii) It is finijubr, that the celebrated northern Eddas were compiled with the fame intent. " Nee quidem ipCus auc- tori, five Sturlonides illefuerit five "alius, aliud piopofitum fuit, ipfonict profuentc, quam hafce poetarum antiquorum fiiSiones, apto ordine conueilere & libcllj animi recreandi gratia compleiSti." Murray, apiid Nov. Com. Gotting. t. 4. p 01. iSi) Walfli's profpefl, p. 490. 8 ROMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. This is the wonderful Pfalter compofed by Cormr.c, Prince of Miinfter and BIHiop of Cailiel. Such daring fceptics as Stillin'^1'>^ CatnJcR. uiluL»iuaU| fee. ROMANTIC HISTORY OF IRELAND. ti and inquifitive ? To this I anfwer with confidence, that there are as many curious and interefting fubjects for antiquarian inveftigation, and fupported by authentic records and exifting monuments, as are to be found in any country, not the feat of an empire. The colonization of the Ifle, the formation of the Irifh alphabet, the ftate of literature from the fixth to the ninth century, our ancient mufic, round towers, ftone-roofed crypts, our coins, laws, with our pagan religion and primitive chrifdanity, all admit proofs and folicit illuflration, which they have never received. Thefe and other topics would abundantly exercife the ingenuity and erudition of the philologer, the grammarian, architect, theologian and antiquary. Thefe Effays pretend to no more than to exhibit fome new views and new illudra- tions of the foregoing fubjects j fupported by plain fenfe and folid authorities. Quicquid id eft, fylveftre licet videatur acutis Auribus, et noftro tantum memorabile pago ; Dum mea rufticitas, fi non valet art^ polita Carminis, at certe valeat veritate probari. C)onif C 12 ) SOME ANCIENT NOTICES RESPECTING IRELAND, AND OF THE NAME OF THE ISLE. IN the foregoing Eflay the pretenfions of the Irifli to remote genuine hidory have been examined, and found deftitute of verifimilitude or probability ; and yet on the wild tales of bardic fablers their modern antiquaries have engrafted the etymo- logical reveries of Bochart, Sammes, Stukeley and (i) others: thus defending one abfurdity by another ; 2 mode of argumentation which fupplies a ftandard for mea- furing the talents, the judgment and information of fuch writers. Bochart was a man of uncommon erudition, but his fcheme of proving the eaflern colonization of Europe, through the medium cf etymology, appeared vifionary to his (2) contemporaries : nor was he, in the opinion of an (3) excellent judge, fuffi- ciently fkilled in the oriental tongues for .the tailc he had engaged in. That the world was peopled by the fons of Noah, is a fact recorded in holy writ, but the particular countries occupied by each cannot be afcertained at this day. The Jewifli Targums, Jofephus and the Rabbins, all of whom knew as much of the matter as thofe who lived before the cataclyfm, very confidently fupply the obfcurity of fcrip- ture, and dillinclly parcel Europe among the pofterity of the grand Patriarch. This was pride and vanity in the Jews, and we muft fuppofe piety in chriftians, who adopted their ideas. This made Poflell, a revivor of oriental learning in the 1 6th century, derive Irin from (4) lurin, or the land of the Jews; and Bochart to bring Hibernia from the Phoenician (5J Iber-nae, or the farthell habitation. This hint of the Phoenicians, (who were great navigators and traders) afted as a ftrong ferment on the intellects of Britifli and Irifli antiquaries, and produced the frothy fyflems in the writers before named, and particularly in the author of the CoU ledanea de reb. llib. who has completely orientalized our ancient hiltory. Let (1) As O'Conor in liis DifT. and the author of the Ccllcift. palf. {1) Merit C^raubnn, alluding to this work, fays, — torquciidi vocabula, aiUIendo, detralicndo, mutando, tranrponendo fine ullo auc modo aut rationt ccrta liccntiam fumpfcre, ut quicquid ufpiam verborum, n;)n vetcrum taiitum, fed et recen- ciorum in Gcrmauia Gallia, alibi vcl rcmolinimnruni, pari ratione Hebraicuni fuerit. Dc ling. Angh.-. vet. p. I si. (3) Ru'hardriin'a DilT. on the languages of the Eaft, p. 251. (4) Warsi Antiq. c. 1. (j) Ccogr. fac. 1. I. c. 63. Ed. Leufdcn. ANCIENT NOTICES RESPECTING IRELAND. 15 "« ■* •< •(■<<•<•■<■<■<■<(■< <■< < ■< ■< .< .< .< .< .< .<..<<..< <■<■<■< .<■■< <•-< <■< 1 *•{•>■ >■>•■►■ »->->■ >->->-->•■>■>■>■>->>■ I >->.>.» >.-♦•.! Let us then confuler what grouiiLls there are to fupport the' notion of an eaftern ifitercourfe with Ireland. Herodotus, who lived about 400 years before our £era, informs (6) us, that Tin and Amber were brought from the northern, parts, and he feems to point cut Britain and the Baltic, as the places from whence they came. Tin was a metal highly valued, and is mentioned by Mofes 1500, and by Homer 900 years' (7) B. X. The (S) boots or greaves of the heroes in the latter writer arc of fnining tin. But it was not from Britain tin was produced, for It was then (9) thinly inhabited by a few wandering Celtes, who were to the Scythians, who fuc- ceeded them, what the favages of America are to the Europeans. The Belgce, part of the Scythian fwarm, arrived in Britain (16) about 500 years before the nati- vity. They firfl introduced the knowledge and names of metals. From whence then came the tin of which Mofes and Homer fpeak ^ The anfwer is from the EalT:, ■where it abounds in rich mines, and of fo fuperior a quality, that the Malacca tin is at prefent preferred there to the European. If therefore the Belgjs arrived in Britain but one hundred years before the age of Herodotus, that feems too fliort a fpace of time for new colonics to fettle;, and open fources of commerce : it is pro- bable the CafTiterides were iflands on -the coaft of Spain, where thefc ancient mer- chants had depots of the precious metals, which they collected from the continent : indeed the riches of Spain were (11) fo great, that they muft be fufficient to fatisfy the mofl: avdticious adventurer, without hazarding the dangers of untried feas and inhofpitable fliores. From the notices in ancient writers, we cannot determine the (12) pofuion of thefe celebrated illes. Pliny, Solinus, Mela and Dionyllus place them oppofite Spain, fome will have them near Cape Finiderre, others near Cape St. Vincent, but none more northerly than the firfl. Euflathius, in his commen- tary on Dionyfius, with ail the lights his induftry could acquire, and that in the 1 2th century, leaves their fituation problematical. Befides the Sidonian and Phoe- tiician fliips were almoll (13) round; a form ill adapted for dillant navigation. Strabo, as is (14) well obferved, allows but little credit to the relations of the Phoenician voyages in remote times ; and he blames Eratollhones for believing E them : (6) I7po; ^/)£iv aK/Ltoy. am rrt rty iiXttfsr 'pnrarf Xayfl- EjTi," tirt mratf c'Ja KamrsH^ttu Lih. j, (7) lufe Playfairc's chronology. (t) Tttfi Jt >■ > >■■> .•>.■> .. , > > ,. >. , , .. >■ .. >. , , . .■ > ». »i >.),.,, .. ► ,. them : for it appears by Hanno's voyage (about 1 50 years after Herodotus) how little they had dlfcorered beyond the pillars of Hercules, for Cerne was no farther beyond them on the African coafl: than it was from Carthage to them. If the Phcenicians did not vifit Britain in remote ages, they had no inducement tt* come to Ireland. Leaving the uncertainty of thefe early navigations, let us attend to facls. About two centuries and a half B. X. the court of Ptolemy Philadelphus, who then fwayed the Egyptian fceptre, was illuminated with bright (15) conftellations of learned men. Among thefe Eratollhenes, his librarian, an excellent geometrician and geographer, was confpicuous. Strabo (16) praifes his private collection of maps and books, and he was fo well acquainted with the weilern parts of Europe, that he gives the dillance of Ireland from (17) Celtica. This is perhaps the earlieil authentic notice that occurs of Ireland. It is evident the names and fituation of countries muft have been known and afcertained before they could be reduced into a map. The ehurlifli jealoufy of Phoenician and Carthaginian traders would not (18) permit them to give information of the countries they frequented, this was to be had from people of more liberal fentiments, and thefe weie the Grecian colonies fettled at Syracufe, Rhegium, Tarentum, and along the Italian coaft, and particu- larly from the Phocasan, eftabliflied at Mafiylia, or Marfeilles 540 years before our sera. Thefe Greeks gave letters to, and introduced (19) not only civiiity but a high degree of polilli and urbanity among the Gauls, and being alfo a mercantile people opened a commerce with the interior of the country. If we may judge from mo- dern efforts in purfuit of trade, (and the Greeks were inferior to no nation) they probably penetrated to the confines of Britain, about 500 miles, and to the fhores of the Baltic, and from thence brought both tin and amber. This fuppofition is not entirely groundlefs from what Diodorus Siculus relates, that tin was conveyed from Britain to Gaul in wicker boats, and palling through the country arrived at Narbonne on the Mediterranean in thirty days. The tranfport of amber was per- formed in the fame manner. Thefe commodities were by the Maffylians difpcrfed among the Greeks, and thus Herodotus derived an imperfed knowledge of the parts from which they eame. About (15) Defidcs the Plcadcs, or fcven famed poets, he had Dcmctriu% Phalercus, Epicurus, and many more. (16) Lib. 1. (17) Strab. fup. Cafaulion fay<, — Sic ct kixtikh apud vctuftidlmos Grscos ca tantum Galliw pars, quaoi mare MedU Uirancum alluit. In Slrab, p. 63, (i8) Sirab. 1. 3. (i;;} See Suabo^ Plautusj Cicc(o, &c, « AND OF THE NAME ,0F THE ISLE.- ,5 "4 •< ■<■ AA ■< <■< ■■ ■■< ■< < < ■<■■< <■•<••<•" >>■>>>•>>> >>>>>>>>>. !> > ».>„>..) , ,..| About one. hundred 3'ears after the age of Herodotus, Tyre was deflroyed by Alexander the Great, and the city of Alexandria was founded, and foon became the grand emporium of eaftern and weftern commerce. Thither (20) catapli or fleets failed from Maifeillcs, and on their return great fairs were heldi A new fpring was given to induflry; the profpeft of gain prompted men to explore diftant regions, and to become more intimately acquainted with their produdions. With this view (21) Pytheas fet out from Marfcilles to examine the weft and north of Europe, and proceeded as far as Thule, which Forfter believes to be the Shetland iflands. He defcribed Britain, for Strabo (22) introduces Polybius- com.paring the accounts of Pytheas, Dicosarchus and Eratofthenes as to the magnitude of Britain. If Ireland was colonized by an eaftern people, had regular government and ob- jeds of trade, would antiquity be fdent on thefe heads ? They would not. But granting the Phoenicians or Carthaginians vifited Ireland, they could form only fuch faftories as the moderns do in remote countries ; and we can eafily appreciate the knowledge and improvement the one was likely to communicate, and the other to receive from them. Have the favages of Arrterica adopted the arts or manners of the Englifli, French or Spaniards fettled among them for near two centuries. It is the civilized not the rude who are prone to change. But what is exactly in point is, that ('23) the natives contiguous to the Phoeniciari fettlements in Spain are not remarked by Diodorus Siculus or Strabo for an advancement in civilization above their countrymen. Bcfides the ingenious writer laft cited has colleded fuch traits of barbarifm in the Irifti charader, and to a late period, as demonftrate them, before the light of chriftianity, to be deftitute of mental and civil cultivation. The moft celebrated nations of the world, at certain times, have been fimilarly circumftanced. While man continues the fame, and while hiftoric records fupply certain informa- tion to direfl: our inquiries, Irifli antiquaries may exhauft their time and talents In rehearfing the literature and arts of their anceftors, the long catalogue of their Kings^ and the fplendour of their monarchy, — but In vain, for the learned will fay of fuch writers as Ovid does of a' famed poetic perfonage : Quserit aquas in aquis, & poma fugacia captal Tantalus ; hoc illi g^arrula lingua dedit. • Our (zc) Du Cange in voce. (21) Foratr's north, difcoverits, initio. Iflt) Lib. ». (»3) Macpherfon's IiiU-oduia. j6 ANCIENF notices respecting IRELAND, Our learned Primate Uflier, after quoting Orpheus for Ireland not being (24) un- Tvnown in his time, exultingly fays,— (25) Not even the Roman people can pro- duce fuch teilimony of their antiquity. — Is it an honour to any country, that it \va8 inhabited in very remote ages by roving barbarians with a proper name ? Then the various tribes of Tartars and of Indians may claim this diftinaion, and probably go beyond the Romans and Irlfli. This ill-judged ebullition of patriotifm might pafs very well when the Primate writ, (1639) but will be more rigoroufly exa- iniiied at this day. Define blandltias, & verba potentia quondam Perdere, non ego fum ftultus ut ante fui. The Greeks certainly knew our Ifle exifled and had inhabitants three centuries before our tera. But the perpetual warfare carried on by the Romans in the ead and weft made it totally negleded, particularly, as in a political view (26) It could neither ferve or injure ihem. Geography was ftudied at Rome, and youth learned the fcience on (27} illuminated maps. Cicero (2S) meditated a large work on the fubjeci:. When Julius Ca;far was made Conlul, he obtained a decree of the Senate for a furvey of the (29) empire ; but they were Greek artifts who undertook it, and after thirty two years labour they delivered their charts and memoirs to the Senate. Ealbus (30) feems to have been the perfon who reduced to proper and intelligible i'orm the mafs of materials which had been collected, and M. Vipfanius Agrippa, fon-in-law of Auguftus, from the whole had a great map of the Roman empire con- ftructed, and placed in a (31) portico at Rome. Among thefe documents was a map or topography of Ireland, and to which (32) Pliny refers. We fhall now examine the name of our Ifle. No mortal, fays (;^^) Ilerodctus, can difcover whence the name of Europe is derived. This candour in the father of Grecian hiftory has not been imitated by antients or moderns. Plato, his contem- porary, K24) naf- »• Argonautics jre a wild unin- telligible romance. (15) Cujufmodi antiqultalis, nc ipfequldem populus Roniafius fui nominis tcllcm piofcrre potcrlt. Piimcrd. p. 7:4. (z6) Mutj Xuxi.v, fxiT ivfiUiy rc>i^x^^-,x, as proofs only which put a good face on the matter. — Accordingly when he comes to treat of Ireland in his Britannia, he recites the various names of the Ifle as they lie in ancient authors, and juftly remarks — that the etymology of thefe feveral names has given rife to different opinions, as is natural on fo obfcure a fubjecl ; and he mo- deftly adds, I have no conjedlure to propofe, unlefs it may be derived from Hiere, an Irifli word, fignifying eall or weftward, whence Eri, or the weltern country may be deduced. I once thought this a fortunate conjecture. — Though he does not ftate his reafons why he did not continue to think this a fortunate conjefture, they were perhaps fuch as thefe. There is no H as a letter (36) in the Irifli language, as be- ing a mere afpirate, though from want of a notation commenfurate with the founds in that tongue, its ufe is ^37) various and multiplied. There is no fuch word as lerne, but lar fignifying back or backward, or the weft, when the face was turned to the holy land, or the eaft. But who gave our Ifle the appellation of — Eri ? — Could it be the Celtes, its pri- mitive poffeffors ? thefe were wandering favages, of whom little is recorded, and that little proclaims their ignorance and barbarifm. If the names of Europe, Afia and Africa were (38) unknown in the age of Homer, and alfo (39) the cardinal points ; if (40) Eudoxus made the Greeks acquainted with the motions of the ce- F leflial (34) CoBec. de reb. Hib. paflim. (j,) He»rue's Antiq. difcourfes, V. 3. p. 90. (36) O'Brien's Irith Did. p. 291. (37) MoUoy, Gramm. Lat. Hib. p. »3. who devotes to it a long chapter (4) of (en pagtJ. (38) Strab. 1. 12. (39) Satmas. Plin. Exerc. p. IJ48. (40) Eudoxum primura hoi mo'.us in Orstciam tranftulifle. Seeec. nic- <^u«ft. 1. 7. e. 3. i8 ANCIENT NOTICES RESPECTING IRELAND. leftial bodies but 360 years B. X. can it be fuppofed the Celtes were more en- lightened ? Some defcribed the world with their faces to the north ; others with their faces to the weft. Dubricius, Bifliop of Caerleon, at the dole of the 6th century, prefided over all the Britons — (41) dextralis partis Britannise. — Ulher thinks the Britons, following the Jews, called the fouth the right hand, but (42) Stillingfleet doubts this. O'Brien (42) fliews, that the Irifh adopted the Jewifli manner in call- ing the fouth the right, and further remarks : — that Camden's derivation of the word Eri, the name of Ireland, from the Irifh word, lar, feems abfurd for two reafcns : i. becaufe the Irilh word, lar, ftriftly and properly means only after, in Latin poft and poftea, or behind, and does not fignify the weft, but relatively to the pofition of perfons facing to the eaft at public prayers. In this pofition the fouth is called by the name of the right hand, and the north by that of the left, and thus lar is to be explained and not otherwife; for if a perfon turns his face to any other point, lar is applied to what is behind him. 2. Ireland is not properly to be counted a weftern country, but relatively to Britain, and the lower parts of Gaul and Ger- many, but we do not find the natives ufed it to fignify the weft ; and as to thelridi, it feems contrary to the propriety of language and common fenfe that they Ihould have formed the name from its weftern pofition, which was only rehi'ive to others, and not to them who were the inhabitants. — Thus far our Lexicographer. To which may be added, that had lar a reference to the weft, it would have been found in fimple or compound words, and in the names of our rivers, mountains, vallies or champaign grounds, which, I believe, it is not. The earlieft notice in Roman writers of the name of Ireland (Hibernia) is in Julius Cicfar, and was given, probably, by him or his countrymen, from its fup- pofed coldnefs : for it was the practice of antiquity, to give appellations to coun- tries and people from their fituation, produftions, or fome peculiarity : witnefs Mauritania, Cafiiterides, Lotophagi, Hefperia, Interamna, and innumerable other inftances. Strabo, who writ long after Ca;far, defcribes Britain as (44) frigid from its vicinity to the north, and Ireland aa fcarccly {4$) habitable from its coldnefs. Hib'.-rnia was then 'an appellation fuitable to fu'ch conceptions, and is in the opinion of (46) Ware and Baxter alluded to in this line of Propertius : Ibernufque Getes, pidoque Britannia curru. Claudian (41) Primord. p. 80. (4*) Brit, cliurcltcs, p. 203. (43) Die. fup. in Dsas & Eirin. (44) I.ib. 5. (45) ASXiKt }i Jilt Vvxi; axufisiiy. Lib. 2. At a later pctiotl, Tacitus lays, the fca about the Orkneys was— > jigruin & grave navigantibus, and that bcyonrt the Suioiics— immotum prope. (<\0) Warivi aniiq i, Bmccf. OlolT. ia Ibcraica. Tbcrc isMiuilicr reading of the line— Hibcroiiiue Gctx. AND OF THE NAME OF THE ISLE. 19 Claudian ftyles Ireland — glacialis lerne — and this at the end of the 4th century. The other derivations of liiberaia we leave to thofe who are delighted with their own whimfies. Whether the record compiled by Balbus, and before mentioned, was acceflible to the public, or the inquifitive, we are not told: if it was, Strabo and Diodorus Siculus would have been more copious in their account of our Ifle and other coun- tries,. It would have faved niuch time and labour to the latter, who affures us he fpent (47) thirty years in compofmg his hiflory : that his predeceflbrs in that walk had lapfed into great errors for want ot the perfonal examination of places : that to remove thefe, he had travelled over a great part of Europe and Afia, and alfo had refided at Rome. Accordingly his work, though not free from faults, has much exa£l and curious information. Nor is it his leaft praife, that (4s) Pliny exempts him from the herd of literary Greek triikrs, and in the opinion of the learned (49) Heyne, he has fome original remarks on Britain. What he favs of Ireland is very remarkable. — (50) The remote northern nations, who border upon Scythia, are ferocious, devouring men, as is reported of the Britons who inhabit Iris.— The firfl; charge will be hereafter confidered, but it deferves notice, that he calls the Irifli Britons, and juftly, as both were defcended from the fame Celtic ftock. AVeffeling, the latefl editor of Diodorus, acknowledges he cannot account for Ireland (51) being thus named inftead lerne, louernia and lernis. But Diodo- rus, who had penetrated far into the north of Europe, there firft heard, and has happily preferved the genuine name of our Ifle : a name almoft two ihoufand years old, and yetr unaccountably paffed over by all our antiquaries : a name, which re- moves every C52) difficulty about the country defigned by Diodorus. Iri, or as now written Eri, in (s3) Irifli, is the great lile. In Teutonic (54) Er-aii, contracted into Eri, is the farther Ifle. It received this appellation from the Teutonic tribes, who then poflefled Europe, and has been invariably ufed by them in every age. Here are the proofs. A. D, (47) Tpiay.ovra |«=v ETn. Lib. I. p. 7. (48) Apiiu Grrecos, dciiU nugari Diodorus. Plin. prsef. (49) In iii qu.-e de Briiaiinia afftrt DioJorus, nunnulla de fuo penu attjilifle videri debet. De font. Diodori, fupra. (50) Slff-xtf Hai T»v Jifi-anaiv 7faj HaTomayra; ■7r,v ova/jta^ofju'^riv Ipiv. Lib. 5. (jl) Id in obfcura raanet, cur lp« adpellat, qua; caieris Xtfvo, lusfna, itfji; did folet. In loco. (52) Dr. Macphcrfon's Diff. {^-3) O'Brien's Dicl. in Er. The ancient Iriih alpliabet had but four vowels ; E was not ufed. O'Brien in E & K ^54j liilian. Die. Teuton, in Er, Procop. hift. Guth. p. JS4. Ed, Groiii, ao ANCKNT NOTICES RESPECTING IRELAND, A.D. 540. Gi!« Jiffvrcnt piwe' diftinguiftes tjjcajj fl4 coLcmzATim of IRELAKD. colonies to Scotland, w'here they were called Albin Scutes ; fome came to Ireland and were named Irin Scutes. Hence Sidonius Apollinaris in the 5th century, fpei\l« of them as a kindred people, who united in pillaging the Roman provinces. Fuderit et quanquam Scotum & cum Saxone PiClum. And fo does Claudian. Scottica nee Pldum tremerem, nee litore toto Profpicerem dubiis venientem Saxona ventis. It is conje£tured, that the Scots came to our Ifle two or three centuries beforci •the nativity, and as to their (19J name that feems not derived from a city or par- ticular place, or ferocity or eminence in war, but from their (20) original country, Scythia. Uflier has (21) {hewn, that they were diftinguiflied by this appellation from the 3d to the i2Lh century, and of coiirfe were the dominant people. After the fettlement of tnie Belgje, Fids and Scots in Ireland, every gale wafted over in- numerable hordes of northern rovers, thefe the Irlfli called (22; Fomora, from Fo- mcire, or Finnland. There is an ifle in the Baltic on the coafl: of Holllein named Femera or Fetneren, where probably fome powerful piratical chief reigned, who united under his command Danifli, Swedifh, lutifli, Finnifh and Norwegian adven- turers in predatory voyages, as was common in the middle ages, and which the words of O'Fkherty feem to intimate. In the age of (23) Tacitus, the Finns were merefavages; after\yards Finnland contained fix provinces and various tribes, and became, as we fee., fuperior to their nighbours. O'Flaherty relates, that Tuathal, an Irifh prince., married Bania the daughter of Scalius, King of Finnland, about A. D. 130. O'Brien (24) remarks that Tuathal, after changed into Tothil, Tohill and Topic, was tho fame as Totila among the Goths, and that many Gothic names are to be found among the Scots or Irifli. And O'Conor, from this marriage, concludes, that a clofe intercourfe was maintained with the nations bordering on the Baltic in the 2d century. However the reigns of Tuathal and Scalius are ante- dated f 19) Cafar fays — Qui omncs fere eomlnilius civitatum oppellabantur, quibvis orti excivitatibus, c6 pcrvereruiit. He 'xplaiiii thcfe cities to be rcGctcncc of families, or cbiis. Lib, 6. c. zi. Ludolp. jEthiop. p. 61. Rau, lie aia Ubior. p. 5<- (10) Gcrniaiii imfcriorci Scj'lhas & Scotos, uno uomiiie, Scuttcn appellant ; fic Britaiinos utroAjuc uno iioniiiie— Y Sctt-dlxJnc. CanidcD. (li) I'rimord. p. 7t8, & fcq. (xa) bcalium Ilium Tuat-lialii focerum rcgcm Fomoir«, i. e. FiaiilanJ dii51uni repcrio; ex quo Fialaiidix cum fuiff* regcm intclligo, & illos tcrrarum fcptciitrii nallum iiicolas (nunc Dauos, Suecos, J«tli08, Finnos) a nuftris dutiqultus com- muni voc:il)ulr>, Fomora, i. c, Fomorios nuncupaios, O'Flahcr. p. 13, 503. (zj) Knnis mira fcriut, fada , auprttui. Ucrm. c. 46. {14) Vii voce Dealbacb. COLONIZATION OF IRELAND. »•< -^ ■« ■< »■•<•<■■< •< A X-1. <■■<-■<■<■<■<■< * •< ■ ■♦ »-» >'>>A'>-»'>-> *•■ dated by fome ages, Scalcus (not the Scalius of O'Flaherty, or the Scalbalch of O'Conor) was (25) King of Slavia, and nearly contemporary with (26) Tuathal, about 534, of our JEra. Fedlim, fon of Tuathal, efpoufed the daughter of another King of Fomoire, who was called King of Lochlin. Lochlanicc was another ap- pellation given to thefe northerns by the Irilh, becaufe they inhabited a country (27) fall of lakes, which was very applicable to the regions furrounding the Baltic ; and hence (28; Lhychlyn in WeiOi, and Lochlyn in Irilh comprehended Denmark, Sweden and Norway. So famous and refpcfted were the Finns or Fians in Ireland, that the word Finn was ufed as an honourable (29) addition to the names of our princes. As Fiatach-finn, Fiah Finnoladh, Finn-nachta, Sec. The diftrids feized by the Finns were named Befcha na Fene, and their monltrous (tone monuments, (30) Leabthachana Bhfeinne, the beds or tombs of the Fene or Finns, and they had the Bhearla na Fene, or Finniih dialefl:. To reilrain their cruel receffes and render thefe pirates ufeful, the Irilh Inter- married with them, and of them formed a militia to proted the coafls againft their marauding countrymen. This was the body of national forces, celebrated in Irifli romantic hiftory under the name of Fionn Eirionn, and led by the great Fin Mac Cumhal, their general. It is (31) pretended that the names of the ftations and oflicers cf this Finniih militia are Hill extant. Among the latter we find Olhen Mac Finn, Fian Mac Fenraffe, Boge Mac Finn, Row Mac Finn, Rogfklaygh Mae Finn. Camden informs us, the tales and fongs concerning the giants Finn Mac Huyle and Olhin, Mac Owen, were popular among the Irifli in his time. Let every reader appreciate the value of thefe traditions, and alfo thofe in Mr. Mac- pherfon's OlTian ; fo much with certainty may be inferred from them, that of theft I'enni, Fene, Phinni and Phoenii, our bards and their followers have made Phoeni- cians, and all the wild oriental fabling which has difgraced -our antiquities. Had they confulted the book of Lecan, their oracle, and the fountain of Irifh fidions, they would find the Finns exprefsly called r32) Feinoice Muirituadh — i. e. Fenians of the northern fea. This evidence muit be decifive with thofe who implicitly rely on this MS. Another colony of northerns are recognized by our hiftorians under the names of Tnatha de Dana^is, Danir, Dansfir, or Danes. They came from (2;^) Den- H mark. / (is) ."SaT. Gramm. 1 2. Suenon. oper. p. 4. (26) Piiilcerton, V. 2. Taljle of K'wgs. (17) Colleft. de rel). Hib. No. 4. p. 496. Strahleoberg'a Si' eria, p. 35. not. i6. Tookc's Rulia, (iX) I.huyd, Archaol. Biitann. (29) O'flahtrt. p. 301, 30J. (30) O'Srien in Leaba. Collet. No. 5. p^ Oi. (31) Hanmer's chronicle, p. i6, 27. (^z) Viiidic, of IriJh hift. p. 337. (33) CoUeflan. No. 4. p. 452. 25 COLONIZATION OF IRELAND. : < •< « ■< ■< -. ,. >. >. >. >.>.>. V->->- *->■ >■ 1 mark. O'Fiaherty (34) faw no objeclion to this, but that the name of Dane was not known till the 6th century. However, as he well obferves, like thofe of the Picts and Scots, the name might have been long known among the people of the north before the Romans became acquainted with it. O'Fiaherty allows they fpoke (31;} the German or Teutonic, and inhabited the cities Falia, Goria, Finnia and Muria in the north of Germany. In the black book (36) of Chrift-church, Dub- lin, the arrival of the Danes here before the age of St. Patrick, is recorded. O'Conor, with that fcantinefs of information which marks his writings, (37) aflerts that the Scandinavian tribes which infefted Ireland, were not diflinguillied by parti- cular names. One is almofh tempted to pardon fuch effrontery and ignorance, ^'hen fo but procured wives from the natives, whereby they and their children infcnfibly loft their native language." And this he exemplifies in the cafe of the Englifli who came over in fmall parties after the conqueft of Ireland. To which may be added, that the Celtes here, lying fo much out of the way of invafion, had multiplied fo as to be an overmatch for a handful of pirates ; and Icfs probability was there of their extermination; for it was extermination that fixed the Saxon toniiue in Encr. land. (47) Johnftone's amiq. Cclto-Scand. p. 14. (48) S^yllog. epift. p. 162. (49) Nov. Comm. Gotiing. t. 3. p. 80. (50) Tac. Germ. c. 45. Broticr's note is : Quod Ocftii in extremis Germanis fiu'ibus poffti, liiiguam ScjthicoCclu- ■>•■>■>■*■>•>■*■•■■>■■> ■>*>'5»-*->-*« 2« COLONIZATION OF IRELAND. .< ■« ■< <-■< ■< -4 ■< •< -4 -< -4 -4 <.C * ■4-4 ■4-4-*<"4 ■<■<■<■<■<■< ■<•<<■<•<■< t ■<-< -4 ■<+)'■>•■>■>->■>■>■•>■■►■ >►■•>■>■»■>■»"♦■■>■>■ ^'^"^ land on the ruin of the Brhlfli. O'Brien candidly admits the coming of thefe fo- reign colonies, and (57) Sir Henry Spelman calls the Irifii — Germanorum nepotes. — It is a curious fact, that the incurfions of thefe northern rovers, though never intermitted, were Icfs frequent from the 5th to the 9th century. This requires £xplanation. The operations of thefe piratical plunderers were no farther known to the Romans than as they dillurbed the public repofe. In the 3d and fubfequent centuries, the great Saxon nation refiding en the Cimbric Cherfonefe, and com- pofed of many namelefs tribes, was fo troublelbme as to make the creation of a Count of the Saxon fliore indilpenfably neceffary. Notwithflanding the power and •vigilance of the Ramans, thefe barbarians, with their confederates, continued their depredations on Britain till the final departure of the Roman army. The Britons attacked on all fides by ferocious enemies, and having, from long flavery, become indolent and pufillanimous, threw themfelves into the arms and under the protec- tion of their mofl: formidable invaders. Thefe new allies were the Saxons, Jutes and Angles, v/ith a motley affociatlon of other tribes from the Baltic. A drain was now opened to receive the overflowings of thefe northern adventurers, and gratify them with fpoils not to be found in Ireland, and therefore very little is recorded of them in this Iflc antecedent to the end of the 8th century; when excluded by the policy and ftrength of every country, they again united in large bodies, and com- menced their inroads into our Ifle. For about 200 years they feem to have poured their fv/arms imo Britain, but when that kingdom alTumed fome regular govern- ment under the Heptarchy, their influx was flopped. A valuable document in \5^) Spelman proves their never having relinquiflied this country, and illuflrates the fubjeft in general. Ina, the nth Wefl;-Saxon King, pofl"efled an extenfive fea-coafl:, open to piratical attempts. Small roving parties had, early in his reign, invaded and harafled his dominions. His Brhifli fubjefts were unfriendly, and fo were the Irlfh. Of a quiet and peaceable dilpofition, he thought it the wifed courfe to cement an union of his Saxons with the Britons and Irlfh by intermarriage, and he himfelf led the way by efp.oufing Guala, daughter of Cadwallader, King of Wales ; this, though an aft of bigamy, was fanftloned by his council of BIfliops, F.arls, and all his people in 714. Bfcfides thefe particulars, the ads of this council exprefsly informs us, that the Angles at this time took Britifli wives, as the Britons did Anglic ones of the noble and illuflrious blood of the Angles of Germany : that fome Angles married Iilfli (57) GluO". p. 174. (58J Condi. V. I. p. I JO. •COLONIZATION OF iRELxVND. 49 Irifh women, as almoft the whole Irifli nation did Germano- Anglic ones ; and that the confequence of this connection was, a clofe confederacy againft the Danes and Norwegians, with whom they had already waged feme bloody wars. This predileiflion in the Irifli for Germano-Anglic women was extremely natural, as they confidered themfelves derived from the fame country and flock. From what has been delivered in this Effay there can be no reafon to doubt the authen- ticity of this council, but rather very ftrong ones to believe it genuine. Spelman fufpects it, becaufe in the common Englifh hiftorians, no notice is taken of Ina's marriage with Guala. But it is not difficult to difcover the caufe of this filence. Our hiftorical compofers were Monks, and Ina their peculiar favourite. He and his Queen entered into their Order ; he largely endowed the church, and above all was the firft who confented to pay Peter's pence. Any of thcfe ads were fufficient to atone for his fins. But where are our hidorians accurate in their works ? They mention no tranladlions during the firft years of Ina's reign, as if none happened in tiiefe turbulent times. Befides the Wincheder chronicle and Rudburn agree as- to the intermarriages of the Saxons and Britons, but omit the more heretical Irifli. We can hardly believe this Council would be added to the 35th chapter of the Laws of Edward the Confeflbr, where Spelman found if, if it was not genuine. In a word, without indulging any idle or abfurd hypothefis or conjecture, but taking the evidence of an'cienl: writers as they fairly lie before us, there are ample grounds for believing the firfl: northern invafion of this Ifle was many, ages before the incarnation. Ptolemy proves the exifl:ence of German tribes here in tlie 2d ct-ntury, and Latin poets and hifl;orians evince the connexion between the Irifli and northerns to the end of the 4th. The author of (59) the Eulogium particularly remarks the invitation of the Gothic nation of the Picls into Biitain by Gratian and Valcntinian, A. D. 3S2. In fome time after, Gratianus Municeps drove the Irifli back to their country ; but on his death in 407, they returned and brought with them the (60) Scots, Norwegians and Dacians or Danes, and wafl:ed Britain. Throughout the 5th century, they infelled (61) England, and about 450, the x\nglo- Saxons arrived in that Ifland. The perpetual wars excited by thefe foreigners was as fubverfive of literary repofe as it was deftrudive of literary memorials, and Irilh writers unanimoully complain of the latter being loft in thcfe convulfions. Very little can therefore be expeded previous to the 9th c>;ntury j from that time the 1 northerns, (59) Gentem Gothicam, Pi>5>orum l.'.anditus alleaam, a Scythia (:nibu9 sj Btltaooiam. UCt. S- S9;~'- (60) Sccum Scotos, Norwegciife-, ft Dacos coiuluamcs. ■Uiri;r. Ai^'. . ((1) Tetri Scoioruni Pidorunique Urc^c^. Uild. p. ;''. •30 COLONIZATION OF IRELAND. northerns themfelves had fome imperfed records of their atchievements, and partly fupply the defe£ls of our domeilic annalifts. Thus the Icelandic (62) chronicles have the names of Gliomal in 89c ;'of Murchard, {6t,) about 962 ; of Conchobar -in 1018, and of Dubnial and Kyriawal in (64) the 9th century, as Kings of Ire- land. But the moil extraordinary omiffion of our hiftorians, is their not enquiring who Turgefius or Turges wa*:, from whom defcended and when he fiourifhed. lu- ■ftead of thefe interefting fafls we are amufed with childifli tales of his cruelty and amorous adventures. It would have been ftrange indeed, if a leader who fubdued the Irifh, cailellated and garrifoned their country, and with a triumphant army for •many years held fovereign fway, fliould not have found one Scald to tranfmit his name and adions to pofterity. The Icelandic records introduce us to this celebrated chief under the name of Thorgils. The Irifli not ufmg the letter H but as an (G-;) atpirate, and dropping one where two confonants come together, made from Thor- gils, Torgis': thus Torges or Torgefius an Oilman, was (66) Biflaop of Limerick, and Thorgils is, at prefent, in Norway pronounced Torges. Ilarald Ilarfagre was monarch of Norway about 870, he reduced the petty princes of that country, being ten or twelve in number, and divided it among his Ions, conferring on them the regal title and fucceffion, and appointed that tholb Ihould be (68) larls, Earls or prime nobility who were born of the female branches of his family. To Thorgils and Frotho, two of his fons, he gave a well appointed ileet, to plunder the coafl of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. They landed in Dublin and reduced it under their power. Frotho was taken off by poifon, but Thorgils reigned long in that city, and at length fell by the machinations of the Irifli. Such is the account given (69) by Snorro. Thorgils was attended by 120 fliips and nu- merous forces. The northerns, difperfed over our Ifle, quickly ilocked to hi* ilandard, and recognized the fon of the great Harald. For thirty years he poffeiTed the fovercignty of Ireland j " (70) built callles, forts ind wards, call up trenches, banks (62) Jo^nftonc's Antiq. Ctlto-Scand, p. 19, 40, 157. (63) 'I'liorkclin's fragmtrits, prcf. [>. u. (64) Arngr. Jon. Tpec. Idand. hid. p. 15. (60 O'Britn'* Die. in C. Lhuyd, p. 500. See Murray for Thorgils. Nov. Comm. Dotting, t. 3. p. 95. (6ft) Ware's Bilhops. (67) Mallet's North. Antiq. V. i. p. 462. Pi:jkcrton's date is about y^O. (6X) larli vcro cffi-nt, qui fui ftcmmailsorti crant foemellis. Johnftonc, fup. p. I2. (69) Johnftone, fup. The following is an illuftratlon. Confuetum erat piratis, fi rcgli lilieri miIiti.T; pr.-ecffent, ipfiflf re(;i» nominarc ctiamfi regnis carcrcnt. Hinc faiSuni c.l, Daiiis aflidua iiifcAatione Angliam, Hiherniani Galliafque ad imerntcioncm fere vaftanlibus, ijuoJ Wt rcgum noniiiia occurraut, cum ex rcgibus Danicis tlcfccndcntes, eu duccrciit «o» Ilia). Uurthol. p. 446. <70) Hanmtr, p. 84. COLONIZATION OF IRELAND. 31 banks and ditches for fafeguard and refuge : was enamoured with the fair daughter of O'Mehighlin, King of Meath, who agreeing to fend his daughter to him, accom- panied her with fixteen young men in female attire, who difpatched Thorgils with their fkenes." Such is the Irifh account. The Icelandic as well as our Irilh chronology is very incorrect. Ufher (71) dates the arrival of Turges in 8j8, and his death in 848. The Icelandic chronicles make llarald divide his dominions among his fons, A. D. 903 ; he was then fifty years old, being born (72) in S53. He married early and had many fons ; fome of them mufl: have been quahfied to conduct a naval expedition before the loth century. We know that Eric, brother of Thorgils, was but of the age of (73) twelve years when he commenced his piracies. " At twelve years began" " The King to plunder." The interval between the Irifh and Icelandic accounts is probably not very great. Such is the fcheme of colonization concifely flcetched out, and now laid before the reader. It admits of enlargement even to laffitude. This fcheme is founded on the fare bafis of written authorities, and which while it difpels the obfcurities, cads a (feady light on every branch of Irifh antiquities. Let others enjoy the gib- berifh of oriental etymologies, and the company of Milefians, Phoenicians and Ma- gicians in that gloomy cave : Quo nunquam radiis oriens, mediufve cadenfve Phoubus adire potefl. (71) lud. chron. p. 1173, V.'arsi difq. p. 124. (71) Johndone, fup. p. 291. (73) Lodbrokar Quida, p. no.- OF ( 3^ } ,»t, ,•.. .«#. ,•., ^■, .•., .•■. ••' ». .•*. *••* .»'•.. ,•••.. .•••». ,»"•,..•'•'. .'•*• ,•"••', .«*•*. .'*'*. *•'* «•'* •*'* ,»••. .*». ••*> »•-•. ••*» - • "j OF THE DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION-. AFTER having treated of the colonization, it feems, in the next place, pro- per to fpeak of the religion of the original inhabitants of this Ifle. There is not, perhaps, in the extent of ancient literature, a more unaccountable phenomenon than vhat is delivered by Caefar of the Druids and their fuperftition. In the firfl: lines of his Commentary, this celebrated Roman general and author tells us, all Gaul was divided into three parts, and poffeffed by the Belgee, Aquitani and Celtes. Each differing from the other in language, manners and laws. The word he ufes (inflitutaj for manners, muft include part of public and private man- ners, as their religion, arts, domeitic occupations, &c. He is correft in what he advances refpeQing the diverfity of (i) languages; but when he comes to difcourfe of their laws and manners, inltead of the Celtic, he almofl literally tranfcribes the Roman. Whether the evidence to be produced will fupport the charge now made, (I confefs with di(hdi;nce) is fubmitted to the judgment of the learned reader. On no fubjett has fancy roamed with more licentious indulgence than on that of the Druids and their inftitutions. Though funk in the groffeft ignorance and bar- barifm, their admirers have found them, in the dark receffes of foreRs, fecluded from mankind and almoft from day, cultivating the abilrufefl: fciences, and pene- trating the fublimell myfteries of nature, anticipating the difcoveries of Pythagoras, r.picunis, Archimede and Newton ; and all this without the aid of letters, or of experiments ; without thofe progreflive fteps in civilization which polifli and refine the mind, and naturally lead it to the (ludy of abfi:rafl:ed knowledge. The foundaiion, whereon thele towering fuperdruftures have been reared, is no more than a few imperfect and incidental notices in Ca^far and other ancients, ^' Thefe, as has been (2) obferved, have written in fo loofe and trifling a manner, that all their fragments put together would hardly amount to three or four pages ; and thefe reduced to their jull value, would lofc one half of their bulk : whether it be, (i) Cxfar, Tup, (1) UiuT. Iilft. V. i?. p. J. OF THE DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION. 33 ; .< .<..«..< -*.f >. >. >. >-> >. >. >. ; be, that thefe authors have but jufl: copied one another, or only defigned to fay the fame things." The tenets of the Celtic religion, fays an (2) admirer of the Druids, are not as yet fully known. The revelation of them in the writings of the author of the CoUeftania, will never procure it many difciples. We are told, the Druids taught the unity of God ; were not Polytheifts : that Hefus, Teutates and Taranis were only names and titles of the fupreme being ; nor did they worfhip the heavenly bodies : That (3) Apollo and Beal were the prime deities of the pagan Irifli : that they fwore by the Sun, Moon and Stars, and that they venerated the planets, as types of the great Creator. Schedius declares their reli- gion differed from the Roman. Borlafe affures us, that every tenet and rite which the Druids taught and pradifed, every deity which they are faid to have worfliipped, was common to them and the moft ancient idolaters of the Eaft. Some of thefe notions are oppofed by the authors of the Univerfal hiftory. " The Celtic hiftory, fays the learned (4) Bruker, labours under fuch infuperable obfcurity and incerti- tude, that we cannot promife any thing above a fmall degree of verifimllitude ; this we prefer modeftly confeiling, rather than, as Is common,' obtruding uncertain con- jeftures for undoubted truths." Ceefar is the. earlieft writer who mentions the Druids ; his account of their reli- gion we fliall now compare with the Roman. I. The (5) Druids prefided over divine affairs ; took care of public and private facrilices, and were the interpreters of religion. So did the Roman priefthood, as related by (6) Dionyfius Halicarnafeus, and almofl in the words of Casfar. II. The Druids exercifed a (7) civil and criminal jurifdidion. So did the (8) Roman facred College. Cicero informs us, that it was the faying of aged men that he could not be a good Pontiff, who was ignorant of the (9) civil law. K III. They (1) On the Celtic lang. p. 43. (3) Compare the'author of the Collefl. on the Celtic language, p. 37, with his Antiquity of the Iridi lang. p. 175, 281. (4) Tantis vero diiBcultatibus & infuperabili fere obfcurltatate & inceriitudine laborat Ceh.iruin liiftoria, &c. Hift. Grit. Phil. 1. j. c. 9. (5) Illi rebus divinis iiiterfunt : facraficia publica ac privata procurant ; religiones interpretantur. Csef. I. 6. §. 13. EJ. Clarke. (6) Amiq. Pom. 1. 1. (7) De omnibus fere controverfiis, publicis privatifque, conftituunt. Caef. fup. (8) Diodj'f. Hal. 1. 2. Lib. 1. I. Ad eos, de omnibus divinis utque humanis rebus referretur. Cic, de orat. & pro domn. (9) At inquit Publil filius, ex patre audivi.pontlficem neminem bonum effe, nifi qui jus civile cognofcet. Cic. de leg. I. 2. The facerdotiil and judicial offices were united in the fame perfon, AiKxecti h to ufX"'" "'"f Aiyt/ryicn nf.ij nsxf. uEliivn, var. hift, 1, 14, c. 34, 34 OF THE DRUTDS, AND THEIR RELIGION, III. They who did not obey their decrees were interdidled the (lo) facrifices. Among the Romans fuch a prohibition implied the moft (i i) atrocious guilt. IV. There was a head Druid, who had (12) fupreme authority. The ^3) pon- tifex maximus was a well known dignity in the Roman hierarchy. V. On the deceafe of the head Druid, the next in dignity fucceeded : if there were equals, one was chofenby (14) fufFrage. The facred College at Rome was filled by (15) fufFrage. " • • VI. The Druids were exempted from ferving in war and from (16) taxes. The Ro- man (17) prieflhood was free from military duty and city taxes : from others it may be colleded, that they had an immunity from taxes, VII. The Druids (18) taught their difciples' a great number of verfes. It was (19) the Roman cuftom for youth always to begin their ftudies with poetical works. (20) Det primos verfibus annos, Masoniumque bibat foelici pedlore fontem. VIII. It was unlawful for the Druids to commit their fecrets to (21) writing. The Roman Augurs were (22) fworn to fecrecy. IX. The Druids taught the (23) Metempfydiofis. This was the belief of the un- learned Romans, and as fuch is ridiculed by Cicero, Ovid and Seneca. X. The (10) S' tjuij eorum decreto non fleterit, facraficiis interdicunt. Casf. fup. (11) Moneo ne facra manus Violata c- ►■•>• >•>■>■ >■ >. >- >■ >■ >■ >->■ >• >■•>■>■■>■ >■■>■>■>■■>•■>■ »■>•+■ ^.^^.y.y.^. >. >. >->.>. X. The Druids difcourfed much of the (24) ftars and their motions ; of the magni- tude of the world ; of the nature of things, and of the greatnefs and power of the immortal G,ods. Such fpeculations employed the Roman clergy, as we (25) learn from Cicero, Plutarch and Am. Marcellinus. This parallel, fo exadtly agreeing in every particular, forms the phenomenon before noticed. Are Ctefar's words either exadi: or true, that the Celtes, but whom he calls (26) Gauls, had religious cuftoms peculiar to themfclves ? They could have no conceptions of the Roman fuperftition, for the Celtic or Druidic was, according to him (27) invented in Britain, which the Romans had not fubdued. Shall we then fay with (28) Pelloutier, that he was not fully informed as to the Celtic religion ; and that he wrote more like a foldier than a philofopher ? It is flrange, that Pel- loutier, who had thus a glimpfe of Csefar's imperfect reprefentation of the Druids: and their fuperftition, fliould have greatly added to the confufion in which both are involved, by his hiftory of the Celtes ; in which we fee no attempt to feparate Druidic from Gothic or Teutonic praftifes. The labour of fuch difcrimination will be confiderable, and fuccefs in the event doubtful, but it will be abfolutely neceflary towards giving ajufl: idea of the fubjed:. Let us now attend to the fentiments of the ancients who mention the Druids. Cicero, who was contemporary with Csefar, and a man- of univerfal knowledge and great curiofity, never, I think, fpeaks of the Druids, or even Britain, unlefs in one or two places, and then as a country, from whence (29) flaves alone could be procured. " Thefe you mufl; not exped to find {killed in letters or mufic," fays he writing to Atticus. Diodorus Siculus, who lived about the age of Csfar, tells us the (30) Saronides were the Gaulifh philofophers and divines, and held in great eflimation j nor was it lawful to perform any facrifice without the prefeuce of a philofopher. There were alfo (■^i) Vates, who from aufpices and the entrails of victims preditted future events. The (14) Muka prslerea de Cderibus atque eorum motu : de muntli ac terrarum magnitudiiie,; dc r:rum naturx; de dco- rum imniortalium vi ac poteflate difputant. Csf, fup. (25) Cic. de nat. Deor 1. 2. Plutarch, de Ei apud Delph. Amm. Marcel. 1. 21. (i6) Q^ii ipforiim lingua Celtse, notlra Galli appellamur. Ca;!" initio. (j?) Dilciplina in Britannia repcrta, atque inde in Galliam tranflata. Cxf. 1. 6.5. 13. (4S) Hid. de Celtes, 1. I. p. 125, 126. (29) Neque argenti fcrupulum effe uUam in ilia infula; neque ullara fpcm prxdx nili ex mancipiis : en quilus nullos puto tc Uteris aut mufic's eruditus expe<5tare. Ep. 15. I. 4. (10) iLtXoio^ai Ts Tiws? itfi x«i Qiohc-yai ^tpirrtu; TifAu^iyst, Hxai "Zxfuvt^'.t ovauu^ti;/. Lib, 5, According tO BochsU'tf SarolS cr Saronis, among the Greeks was an oak, and equivalent to Druis PhaKg. p. 74 1 » (jj) \futrai it »«! f»«yrisiit, Diod. fup, (32) Orig. l."^. c. ii. 36 OF THE-DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION. .< < < < < < ■< •« •< -< ■< ■< •<■<■< < « < < < •< < < ■< < ■< ■< <■<<■< < ■< < <•<<■< < ■< •+> > > > >■ > > > >• > > > > > > > > > > > > >•>•>•>■>■ >>■>>>>>>> > > I V ■ The fir ft part of this citation has fuppHed the moderns with all the fine things they have advanced on the Druids. From their conclufions, it is probable they thus pro- ceeded. A philofopher is a man {killed in every art and fcience. Does not (32) Ifidore de- fine philofophy, the knowledge of human and divine things ? Does he not make it confifi: of three branches ; natural, or phyfics ; moral, or ethics ; rational, or lo- gics ? Phyfics, according to Plato, include arithmetic, geometry, mufic and aftro- nomy. Thefesfew lines of Ifidore, have been the occafion of m,uch learned trifling, " The Druids, fays (33) RoAvlands, confidered nature in her largeft extent : in her fyftems and in her motions ; in her magnitudes and powers ; in all which they feemed to cabalize. Their philofophy was fo comprehenfive as to take in with the theory of nature, aftronomy, geometry, medicine and natural magic, and all this upon the corpufcularian hypothefis." — Upon the corpufcularian fyftem ! — Truly that is wonderful ! Mr. Rowlands, a native and inhabitant of Anglefey, and no doubt of Druidic defcent, muft have had communication with the manes of thofe venerable Druids, who dill hover over that famous Ifle : they alone could inform him how they became acquainted with a do£lrine taught in the (34) fchools of Mofchus, Epicurus, Democritus and Leucippus. Borlafe (35) alfures us, the Druids were remarkable for learning fix hundred years B. X. who are his authorities ? Hoffman's didionary, Steph. Forcatulus, Pi- card, Frickius and Caftlenau, rnoderns who only retail the ufual fcraps of antiquity, eked out with their own whimfies. Serioufly, fuch aifertions and authorities have every appearance of bantering the reader : at leaft we may fay with Martial : Turpe eft difficiles habere nugas } Et flultus ed labor ineptiaruni. The men who would thus impofe phantoms for realities on us, and whom to pur- fue and detedl through every winding of hypothefis andabfurdity is extremely irk- fome, fhould have applied their time and erudition to the difcovery of the real im- •port of Diodorus's words. They then would have found, that Sophia and Philofo- phia among the antients implied fkill in any particular branch of knowledge : thus (36) rhetoric and oratory are the philofophy of words : Government, political phi- lofophy, (33) Mona anilqua. p. 6a. (j.t) Scxt. Empir. I. 9. Scrab. 1. 16. (3;) Antiq. of Cornwall, p, 74. (36) Tifi Tvt Xo^Kt fi>.ntficiv. Ifiicrat paiKgyr. And Cicero; banc cnim pcrfc(i1am philufophbm fcmper judi- cavi, qua: dc maximis quxftioiiibus copiost poITct trnatcque dictrc Tufc. quaft- 1. Ce Oiat. 1. I. ^/A^-ofi* ir»X'Ti»ii. Dionyf. Hal- dccbarac. Thucyd, OF THE DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION. 37 lofcphy, and fo on. But phllofophy primarily refers to theology, and the pried is exprefsly (37) called the philofopher. The idea which Diodorus would convey of the Saronides is their fuperintendance of the rites of religion. This is explained and confirmed by his adding, that no facrifice was to be made without the prefence of the philofopher. The only inducement he might have had for ufmg the word phi- lofopher was from a perufal of Csefar, who mentions their difcourfes on the ftars ; but left he (liould be mifunderftood, he immediately adds, theologifts, as theology included fuch contemplations. The paffage in (38) Diogenes Laertius fo triumph- antly brought, as making the Druids the authors of philofophy among the Celtes and Gauls, is explained in few fubfequent pages, where it appears the philofophy he was fpeaking of (39) was theology. Thus the DruidiRs not only ftrain, but mani- feftly pervert the words of every ancient writer to favour their purpofe. Had they refieded on what occafions the philofopher's prefence was neceflary, they certainly could never think them fuch as became an enlightened or civilized man. He was not called from his fubterraneous retreat to communicate difcoveries advanta- geous to fociety, the refult of his application to natural philofophy or politics : it was not to open new fources of trade and manufadures, or new improvements in legiflaticn : No, it was to behold one of his own fpecies ftretched on his back, his breaft diffeded with the (40) flroke of a fword, while the philofopher and Vates flood around, and with curious eyes viewed the convulfions of the members, the ftrearning of the vital fluid, and from the fpedacle deducing cruel prefages. The Vates feem to be the fame as the Roman (41) Harufpices, the low«ft of the facer- dotal order, and fo odious their employment, that they were fcarcely admiflible to the rank of Senators. But it will be fiiid, that the intelligent and judicious (42) Strabo informs us, the Druids befides the ftudy of natural caufes or phyfics, cultivated alfo moral difcipline or Ethics, which in the Grecian fchool were principal (43) parts of philofophy. AsDiodorus from Cscfar's account of their employment called them philofophers, fo Strabo from jL feeing o (37) Arid. ilnf. 12. 2. Metajihyf. 4, 3. 11, 3. HIeroc. in carm. Pylhag. iniiio, where this is fully confirmed. Porphyry has a remarkable exprcfTion to our purpofe. Em»»t«5 «/>» a .Ki>(fts xai hv npiJS, de abfliii. 1, 4. §. 49. (3S) To Tn; jfr/.(!;if,u.; ifyai i«iS( airo SufS^^fay tcfS^i ■rxfin rt xeXto/s Kiti TaXstTai; nil Kci>.Hfiifll; iifvMs. Proem. (^o) E^w ?£ ii T6V 'Tift 61UV i^ccyepivsxvTCt TaKCVTX ^fn ^iXgso^ov KuXliv. Ed. Calaub. (40) As dcfcribeii by Dii.d. Sic. Lefore, and Cafar— adminiftrifque ad ca facraficia Druidibuf. utuntur. Supra, and what he delivers of their inclofing meo alive in wicker frames. (41) Neque enim erat ferendum, cum qui hodie harufpicinam facereni in fcnatu Romx Icgercntur ; cos qui aliquandc- f rxcouiumTecitTeQt, in miinicipiii decuriones cITe non licert. Cic. ep. 18. 1, 6. ^4 ) Lib. 4. (-ij) Wog. Laert. vit. r.pic. 38 OF THE DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION. feeing them thus named, defcribes their philofophy in terms folely applicable to the improved ftate of it in Greece, and by no means adapted to the wretched conjuring tricks of the Druids. If Strabo intended an eulogy on the religion and learning of the Celtes as is pretended, he palpably contradidts himfelf in giving fuch charac- teriftic traits of national barbarity, as are only found among the mofl ignorant and favage people. CMiibus poflunt illachrymare fevx. Pafling over Mela Lucan and Tacitus, who record nothing remarkable of the Druids, I fhall proceed to what Pliny has (44) delivered concerning them. The Druids, fays he, who are the Gaulifh Magi, hold nothing fo facred as the mifTeltoe, and the tree on which it grows, if it be an oak. They felefl: groves of this wood for religious purpofes ; nor do they perform any facred office without garlands of its leaves, from whence they derive their name of Druids. This is done on the fixth day of the Moon j a day fo much efteemed by them, that they have made their months and ages (which confifl: but of thirty yearsj to take their bf;ginning from it: the Moon at that time being flrong enough, though not arrived at half her fulnefs. This day they call All Heal. The mifeltoe (very fcarcc) when found, is coilefted with great ceremony. Having prepared their fcaus and f- >■.>.>■.>■■>.■>->■ >■>■■>..>■ >..; Dionyfius Hal. (60) remarks : — that a long feries of years could not make the Egyptians, the Africans, the Celtes, Scythians, Indians, or any barbarous nation for- get their country Gods, or alter their religious ceremonies, except they were re- duced under the power of others, and compelled to receive their ritual. — To apply this to our fubjeft ; we know the Belgje colonized and fubdued the Celtes three or four centuries before our jera, and impofed on the conquered their fuperftition and manners, and alfo adopted feme that were Celtic. If we were not told by Ca;far, it mud neceflarily follow, that where two people elTentially differ in language, as did the Celtes and Belgte, there will be charaderiilic variations in their modes of think- ing, and alfo in their modes of life. This remark fo obvious and fo important has not been attended to by many eminent writers and antiquaries, and of courfe their mofl; laboured productions, as thofe o^ Pelloutier, Mallet and Bruker, want that difcriniination on which the value of fuch works muft always depend. The very in- genious and learned Doftor Percy, Bifhop of Dromore, has, in his excellent edition of Mallet's northern Antiquities, clofely attended to the diftindion of Celtic and Gothic or Teutonic antiquities : and with critical tafte and judgment has offered a fpeclmen of what may, and ought to be done in this way. We have to lament that a preface confined his exertions within narrow bounds. Druidiftn was profeffed by all the Celtic tribes, how widely foever difperfed. Its priefts were (59) called Druids from their adoration of, and their celebration of di- vine rites in oaken groves, and [60) iElian exprefsly tells us, the Celtic Jupiter was a tall oak. When Agricola penetrated into Mona, or Anglefea, he found the Druids enveloped in thick woods : thefe to eradicate their fuperftition, he ordered to be cut down. " Among the (6ij Naharvali, a grove of the ancient religion was pointed out ; it had no images, nor any veltige of foreign fuperftition." And yet Tacitus adds, that it was dedicated to Caitor and Pollux, which it could not be, without their images, and he alfo tells us, the deity adored there was called Alcis. Here and in other places Tacitus, as well as Ca^far before, wiflies to allimilatc the deities of other countries with the Roman, and falls into dired contradictions. But what was this ancient religion, that had no vellige of foreign fuperllition _? It mull be the religion of the prima:val inhabitants who were Celtes, and that was the true Druidic. It will be objedcd, that Caefar declares there were no Druids in Germany. Befidcs the doubt attached to his tefllmony, there is rcafon to (62) be- lieve, (58) Lib. 7. (59) This ij Pliny's fuggcflion. Didiinfon, D^lph. Phocn'z. p. |8S. LhuyJ, .-^icluol. Erit. in voce. (60) Ki/Tai iiZmii iii> A.ux, oi ims KO.TiKtt vTsK>.n ifVi, DifT. 38. (61 ) Tacit. Germ, c. 4-. The Naharvali were fcalcJ about the Viftula. Dithmar in loco. (6i) Aveniin. Ann. Boior. p. 8j — 83. Althamcr. ia 1 acii. p. 134. OF THE DRUIDS, AND THEIR RELIGION. 41 lieve, that the Emperors Tiberius and Claudius, by their feverify, baniOied the Druids beyond the Rhine, where they propagated their doctrine : or elfe Druidifm continued in certain tribes from the earliefi: ages. Nor is this lafl fuppofiiion grotindlefs, for Tacitus informs us, that the JEHii fpoke a language nearly Britifh, which was Celtic. Thefe Druidic groves are accurately marked by Tacitus by his {6^) calling them — Cafta nemora — undefileJ, unpolluted groves. I rely on the Idea annexed by the befl Latin writers to the word, Callus, as meaning perfeft purity, which could not be, did the Celtic priefls flaia their altars with human blood ; a praftice of which the (66) Roman writers fpeak with abhorrence.- In defcribing the religious rites of the Germans, Tacitus bpfes into the error common among the ancients, that of not difcriminating the praftifes of the different Germanic people, while, to an attentive obferver, he incidently makes fuch diftkiction. Thus in agreement with what he fays of the ancient religion and unpolluted groves of the ancient Germans, he adds ; " that they thought it inconfiftent wkh the greatnefs of the Gods to confine them within walls, or give human reprefentations of them. They confecrate groves and fureds, and call by the names of their deities that fccret {67) recefj;, which they look on with reverence." This frcedpra from fuperdition and idolatry made Leib- nitz fay : — (68) La religion des Gaulois diiT.roit de celle des Germains en ce, que la premiere plus raiinee. — As the Celtes had not any knowledge of metals, for the Irilh names of them are all Gothic or Teutonic, fo they were unable to form ftone- temples and images •, and therefore it is moil erroneous, to call (tone circles and cromkhs, Druidic, wlien they clearly belong to the. (69) Delgse or Scythians. 'l"u enumerate the Druidic deities, is impoffibb. If they {70) were, for inftance, the Sighc, inhabiting hills, then they were the fame as the (71) Gothic Dvvergh, fo that it cannot be determined with whom thefe divinities originated. In the next Eflay we Hiall endeavour to trace the origin of the Scythic fupcrftition, and point out, as far as truth and probability will permit, its union with the Druidic. Becaufe but' little notice is taken of the Druids in Irifli records, it is argued that there were none: but as original Celtes they cerfainly had fuch priclts, and the inflances hereafter pro- duced, prove Druidifm prevailed over the Ille. (65) Tacit, fup. c. 40. Airo, Sj-lva facra, rienius facrum, Tanfanos hicus, &c. (6'') Scekre pro remtdio ufi Aint. Jufiin. Sacrjlegiiim vcrius thon and bloody facrifices of brave but ferocious conquerors. A compound fuper- ftition fucceeded, which I have denominated pagan, to diftinguidi it from pure Druidifin, and v-'hich Tacitus affures us had nothing foreign in it. Let v.ho will Ti) be the leaders of the Scythic or Gothic tribes into Europe, or let the period of their arrival be what it may, the northern chronicles preferve abundant proofs of the introdudion of a new fuperllition fonie years before the incarnation. This cer- tainly was, not eftablilhed in Britain in the age of Cjefar in all its parts, for he men- tions only cremation, but nothing of flone-monuments. Nor was it univerfally adopted in GermanywhenTacituswr.it: for the (2) green turf, elevated a little ^bove the furface, pointed out the tumble Celtic grave : nor do I recoiled any no- tice in him of the monilrous (lone-flru^tures which afterwards were to be feen in Scandinavia and Germany. Pliny ('3) indeed fays, that raifed funeral tumuli or barrows obtained among the Chauci ; the very tribe fettled, in the age of Pto- lemy, in the foutb-eaft part of Ireland. It was a law of Odin, the great Gothic deity and legiflator, that large barrowi fliould be (4) raifed to perpetuate the memory of celebrafed chiefs. Thefe were (5) compofed of ftones and earth, the whole formed with infinite labour and fome art. ,1 In the (6) Brende-iiid, or fiery age, which was the fird among the Northerns, the body was ordered by Odin to be burned with all its ornaments, the allies to be coUeded (O Pliikcr'on, fup. V. i. p. 385. Wanton's Hid. Engl pn'try. V, i dilT. i. (1) Scpukhrum ccfpcs crigit : moniimcntnrum arJuuni & opoiofum honorcm, ut gravcni ilcfuniTiis afpernantur. Tac. Germ. (3) Altos oblinucrint tumulos, ant (rihunalia flrufla munilus 1 ii'i. c. I. ' . (4) Manlavit eiiam, ut an. p. ()X. I.occfH, p. 118. (5) Tumulos in monticuli feu collu magiiitudincin, aggcfla glcba & ^^pi■lrllu^ artificiofc cttruxcrunt. Wurni. firp. p. 39. (6) Worm, fupra. And Bartliolinc, who is very miniitc- 1'" 57'- •'* '*^'l- ^ !'• ' '3- \Atl- 0/l.l.\-fiK _ '^''' /.)',;,/. . Z/^,^/ 'V,, ,.; OF TIIE PAGAN STATE OF 11^ ELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. 43 collefted in an urn and laid in a grave. But in the Hodft-tiid or age of hillocks, being the fccond, the body untouched by fire, was depofited in a cave or fepulchre under a barrow, and this mode was pradifed until the third epoch, called Chriden- doms-old, or the age of ChriPiianity. As no fafliion is at once (7) relinquiflied, and though the modes of interment now enumerated are accurately defined, we are not to be furprifed at finding infiances of cremation and inhumation in the fame barrow. The firfi: mode prevailed from the incurfion of the Scythians into Europe till the coming of Odin, whofe Afiatic followers affefted what 'J'acitus before calls more arduous and elaborate fepulchral honours, and this (8) Wormius clearly inti- mates. This fecond age will be hereafter found to extend itfelf into that, wherein Chriftianity was not unknown to the Northerns. To confirm what has been advanced, that ingenious Antiquary, | Governor Pow- nall obferves : " that the explanation of niarty of our Antiquities niufl depend upon the cuftoms and manners of the northern colonies being well underftood. The mode of burial and tlie fpecies of fepulchral monument at New Grange may be traced through Denmark, Sweden, Ruflla, Poland, and the Stepps of J artary." This he evinces in an ample and fatisfaftory manner by alleging tumuli raifed by the princes of Naumdhall and Harald Blaatand, and by fome hundreds of barrows to be feen about Upfal in Sweden. Three of the latter are called Kongs (y) llogarn, or Kings' High Cairn. Thefe Kings* barrows are traced to an oiigin not verv re- mote from Odin. He therefore fuppofes it will not appear a far-fetched conjecture to make our mount at New Grange, a Danifh work. Another law of Odin directed great upright ftones to be erected on and round the fepulchre of the deceafed, and the (10) rule was, that a fingle circle round the bafe of the barrow indicated it to be the tomb of fome chieftain or general, and there facrifices were performtd in memory of the deceafed (i 1). Ketill, f 7) Ncq'ic tatr.en prntimis in fccimila xta'e mo? crtmandi catiavera ccfTavit, fed inJifcriniiiiafim nonmiijiiuam in cinirts Mdigebantur, aliquando Integra recondeliaiitur. Bartliol. p. xgq. (ii) ^tatis jirogrtlTu, v'"S oi'S'"* in niagiiatum tiimnlis polltiim viderur. Wiirm. Mon Dan. f Arthaciilog. V. 2. p. 2 jo. Our moirumcnt is mentiuned l)y Lhuyd in Rowland's Mona aiitiqoa, and Iiy M.'Iynfui 4.1 Darifh mounts. (y) This ftems an liylirid word 5 hoch or hog, in German, is mons, collis. Spelman in Ilupa ; and C.iirn. Infli, an heap of fiines. Ttie Swedes call thofe hills, on which their kings were crowned, Kreuacfhugfr. Luocen. p. 46 (10) Ex iis 4'ii una lapijiiin ftrie circa bafim cinguntur citrciium inipcralorihus aliifque tiiagnaiibu» dicati cccduntur. Wcrin. fupra, (11) Unica iibi viftur maxima ex parte fcpuljiro iniptjfiia cfft futef, eo fine in ibidem in nunioriam dcfi.ncii nijutatmis facra peragantur, Wotm. fupra. 44 OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. «< .< < ■< ■< -< < < ■< ■< ■< -< < < • ■> > > >■ >■■> > > > > > > > >■>■>■ >>■»>■ Ketill, a great Norwegian leader (12) declares, " It was the cuRom cf illuflrious men, of kings and earls to engage in piracy, and that the treafure they acquired fliould not go to their heirs, but be buried in their barrows with them. " Potius tumu'.o ipfo cum defuncio mandaretur." Frederic William, the lafl: Ele^lor of Brandenburgh, told (13) Tollius that he had many flone-monuments dug up and examined, which were called the " Cemeteries of the Vandals," and that nothing was difcovered but fome coins. The monument at New Grange, near Drogheda, will at once fliew the paganifm cf the Irifh, and exhibit an admirable inilance of its remains. About the year , 1699, a Mr. Campbell, who refided in the village of New Grange, obfcrving Hones' under the green fod, carried much of them away to repair a road ; and proceeding in this work, he at length arrived at a broad flat flone, that covered the mouth of the gallery. At the entrance, this gallery is three feet wide and two high : at thirteen feet from the entrance it is but two feet, two inches wide. The length pf the gallery from its mouth to the beginning of the dome is fixty-two feet ; from thence to the upper part of the dome, eleven feet fix inches : the whole length, A:venty-one feet and a half. The dome or cave with the long gallery gives the exa :t fi'Ture of a crofs : the length between the arms of the crofs is twenty feet. The dome forms an oftagon, twenty feet high, with an area of about feventeen. It is Gompoi'ed of long flat ftones, the upper projedling a little below the lower, and clofed in, and capped with a fiat flag. There s': two oval rock bafons in the cave •, rne in each arm of the crofs. Though they contain no cineritious rcmiiius, nor are there any marks of cremation in the cave, yet as it was ufual to have urns in etmeteries, the cuflom is here continued. Mr. Wright, in his additions to the Louthiana, a MS. in the poifcffion of the refpectable Mr. Allan of Darlington, fays, New Grange is the oldefl: monument he • examined in Ireland. On firfl; entering the Dome, not far from the centre-, a pillar was found, and tv/o flveletons on each fide, not far from the pillar. In the recelfes were three hollow ftone-bafons, two and three feet diameter. But when he vifiteJ- New Grange again, in 1746, thefe bafons had been removed, and placed upon one another. One of the cells had an engraved \;olute, which he fiippoies was dedi- cated to Woden, or Jupiter Ammon J another had lightning cut oa iis lintel, as lacred (Ij) Thorkclin's two fragmcntJ, p. 59. Lond. 1788- Barthol. p. 43^- (I ,) Tdllli Itiiier. i. p. 43. IMit. Ilcnninii. Worm. fup. p. 41, and Molyiicux fupra, p. 207. allow the pradiic to b* Dwiilh, and [j dots Wright, l.ouihiaiia , p. 1 1 . OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. 45 < < < < ■< ■< < .< « < < ■< < < « < ■< < < .< < .«.<.<<.<.<.< .< ., .< < •< .« .< < .< << '<4.>. >. >. >..>>..>. >.>.■>.>>>.>.> >..>>.>. >.>••>•>.>■>■>> >>■>->> f >■ >. > > >.>-,.. facred to Thor. Among the Greeks and Romans, urns were of various (14) fhapes, and of clay and (tone. Montfaucon, in his (15) Italian tour, faw marble and granite urns, which it was believed belonged to the Goths. We mult remark, that the boat-like figure of our urns, as well as one at (16) Knowth, indicate the perfon, for whom they were defigned to be naval commanders. A fhip was their niofl: beloved obje£l in life, and their (17) fepulchres were of this fhape. At New Grange, on the top of the Mount, were found two golden coins, one of the elder Valentinian, the other of Theodofms. Odin, fays the (i8)Edda, placed on his barrow a golden ring ; and the arms, horfes', and whatever the deceafed held mofi: precious, were either burned, or depofited in his grave. Deers horns, and other bones, with human fkeletons were in our cave, on each fide of a pillar or (tone column. This pradice is very well explained by Bartho- line. Sometimes, fays (19) he, Kings were feen in a fitting pofture in tombs, witU their principal foldiers on each fide of them. Our pillar fhali be hereafter noticed. Runic (20) infcriptions to the deceafed were common: thefe contained their names, titles, and the magic runes which they wore. " Near Exmore, fays Speed, are certain remains of an ancient work, namely, mighty ftones fet in form of a triangle, others in round, orderly difpofed, and upon one of them was an engravc- ment in Danifti letters, which could not be read by men moft learned." On a flat ftone in one of the arms of the crofs at New Grange are traces of letters. Lhuyd defcribes them to be fpiral like a fnake, but without diftindion of head or tail. This was a perfed Danilh figure, as may be feen in Wormius. Thefe fculptures are very different from the trellis work in the cave, which all allow to be Danifh. The Irifh adopted the notion of the magical power of letters from the North- erns, and the magic Runes they called Ogums. Thus " Fiacra was mortally wounded at the battle of Caonry, his funeral leacht or ftone, was erected, and on his tomb was infcribed his (21) Ogum name." Thefe Runes and Ogums were N . efteemed (14) The Greeks had their KaXvu, VJpin and k^mo-o-s,-. In urnis, ollls, cacabu, urccii, a-!ipu'li=, anipIiOii;, cupls, or^-ij & aliis hujufmodi vafculis cineres condebantur. Salinas. Plin. Exerc. p. 1104. Kcc ejurdcm materia;, iicc figura; fcnipcr fviiflfe. Worm. fup. p. 4a. (ij) Diar. Italic, p. ijo. {16) Molyneux on Danifli mounts, p. 200. (17) Nihil magis optabant, quam in navigio fcpelir! ; five corporibus intcgris hun:arentur, five crcmatione prius sd rineres rcdadiis, Barthol. p. i88. And he gives inftances of both kinds. (18) Bircherod. Spec, rci monct. p. 14. Bartholine iUuftrates this cuflum by many curious examples, p. 434, et feq, (19) Nonnunquam autem fedentes in tuniulis coUocati reges : et quos idem c.xitus manftrat, milites pncipui, eorum ab utroque latere conftituti. Sup. p. 572. (20) Nam non folum lis grandes cippos, patiiis Uteris D' .aios, iinpofuerunt dcfuni5ii tiiulos exhibeote!. Worn), .'up. (ti) Irilh Gtanimar, p. 7. 46 OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. efleemed a fovereign protedion to the living, and were fuppofcd not lefs potent in guarding the dead. Lhuyd, (22) from the coins, imagined our monument to be older than the arrival of the Oftmen, and that it belonged to the ancient Irifli. At the very time thefe coins were ftruck, the 4th century, the Irifli were intimately connefted with the Saxons, Picts, and other northern tribes ; they united in plundering the Roman provinces, and Roman coins mud have conftituted not the leafl valuable part of their fpoil. Notwithflanding this, I am clearly of opinion the confl:ru£lion of mounts, or, to fpeak with AVorinius, the age of hillocks was much later, for the Brende-tiid, or age of cremation certainly had not ceafed in the North or Germany in 789, for a (23) capitular of Charlemagne, of that year, punifhes with death fuch Saxons as burnt their dead after the manner of pagans. Chriftianity had been long preached among the fubjeds of this prince, and yet they were ftill but half Chriftians. It is evident from the contents of our cave that cremation had ceafed among the Oftmen in Ireland, they alfo fliew the dawnings of chriftianity among them ; every other circumftance evinces pagan ideas. This might reafonably be fuppofed to hap- pen at the period of their converfion : then we might expeft to find in the- fame flrudure fome indications of their new, and many of their old religion : for an inftantaneous dereli£tion of thtir ancient creed never occurred among a rude people. The Irifli Oftmen embraced the faith about 853, and in this century I think we may date the conftruction of the mount at New Grange : it was made and adorned with every fepulchral honour to the memory of fome illuftrious north- ern chief. From the annals of (24) Ulfter we learn, that the piratical rovers from the North greatly infefted Ireland in the ninth century. They generally debarked in the Boyne, where fecuring their Ihips, they fpread devaftation around to a confi- fiderable extent. In J:he year 824, thefe annals record the plundering of Damliag or Duleek, not far from Drogheda, by them. In 826, a great battle was fought at the fame place between thefe Gals or Oftmen and the king of the Firtuaths in Leinfter, where many were flain. In 831, the Gals again fpoiled Duleek. In 847, the Gals were defeated at Fore in Weftmeath, and in 858 and 860, they invaded Meath with a great array. On any of thefe occafions, a principal commander dying at (iz) Apud Molyneux, fupra, p. i8j — 186. (13) Si quiscoipin defunfli hominis fccuiulum ritum paganorum flamnil confumi fccsrit & ofTa ejus ad cincros rcdigcrit, capitc puuictur. Apud Garthulin, Tup. p. Z)<). This capitular of Cliarlcmagiic, made .'V. D. 789, evinces the Saxons thcu buruc their dead. (m) Johnltonc's Aniiij. CcItoNorm, p. 64. OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. 47 at New Grange, might have been interred there. On the lands of Ballymacfcanlan, in the county of Louth, in a large Rath, and on it a great ftone, having in the centre a crofs with four fmaller ones. About thirty yards from the rath is an en- trance into a cave running under the rath, but it has not been explored. Tradition calls this the tomb of Mac Scanlan : one of that name was king of Fignitie, and had a great battle with the (25) Gals, A. D. 833. Whether Fignitie was Ballymac- fcanlan is not eafy to determine, however the ftone with crofTes and the cave lliow a compound of chriftian and pagan ideas, fimilar to that at New Grange, and hence I am led to conclude, from the fubftrufture of the latter, that it was the work of femi-chriftian Oftmen in the 9th century. The cruciform fliape of that fubftruc- ture is exaftly that of a (26") crux immiifa : this figure thefe rude architetts accu- rately conceived and as admirably executed. From the age of Conftantine, but particularly in the 9th century, the virtues afcribed to the crofs, and the veneration paid to it were boundlefs, and fuperftitious in the higheft degree. (27) Churches and cryptical chapels were built in this form, and this is the figure of our gallery and its cells. The refped for holy water, which the rock bafons probably held, was fcarcely inferior to that for the crofs ; it was the moft (28) powerful protedtion againfl malignant fpirits. Anxious to fecure to a beloved chief the felicities held out by a new religion, they laid him on a crofs with each arm extended to the laver of regeneration, yet without relinquifliing the favour of their ancient deities repre- fented by ftone pillars. It will tend to confirm this notion to allege fome inftances of the ftate of nafcent chriftianity among various tribes of this barbarous people. Procopius (29) com- plains that the Franks, though converts, obferved many rites of their priftine fuper- ftition. Againft fuch practices (30J councils in vain fulminated anathemas : in vain the King and Bifliops were to inquire, whether any believed (31) genii inhabited bawows or rivers, and endeavoured to raife them and fpectres. Redwald, king of the Eaft Saxons, after embracing the gofpel, relapfed into idolatry, yet without wholly (15) Johnftone, fupra, (i6) Lipf. de Cruce, p. 1165. Edit, Svo. (27) Greg.-4faz. calls them a-Taiifonna; n'Kivfii;. Sec Hieron de loc. fandl. Bed. de Inc. faasft. c. 15. Cedren. in Jullin. In the'ioth century, the Norwegians marked their fliields, helmets and •enDgns with crolTes, and much earlier the linglifli, Mercians and Northumbrians. Thorkelin. fup. p. 4a — 43. (iSij Du Cange. voc. Aqua exorciz. Regin. de ecc. difcip. p. 70 — 71. Edit. Baluz. (»9) Barbari enim ifti chriftiani elTcdi, multos prifcs fuperftitionis ritus oblervant. Gothic. I. z. c. 15. (30) Cone. Nann. Arlet. & Aquifgran. L. L, Edg. & Canut. Lindenbrog. p. I357. (31) Si in genios locorum credat aliquis, quod tumulos vel flumina iuhabiicut. Si quis tentct lemurct & tumulicolas n- citare. KeyOtr. Aiitiq. Septen. Selec. p. 89 — 100. ' 48 OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. ■V* .4-4 -<-< A ■*•*•-< -<■•< ■< ■«-«■■< -' 1 -<■■<■■< -<-<■■<+>■ >->■ > >■■>■■>■ >■■>->■■>■ >■>->■>■■>■ >■■>->- > >■ >. >. >• >■•>'>■>■ >■ >■>■>. y >■*■•>■ >- >■ >. »■■ wholly rejeding his new creed : like the Samaritans of old, fays the ("32) venerable hillorian, he had in the fame temple an altar dedicated to Chrift, and another to idols. Thorolf and Egil, two celebrated northern commanders, whofe piracies and courage frequently made Ireland and Scotland tremble, at the defire of iEthelftan. the Anglo-Saxon king, received the fign of the crofs, but were in name rather than in reality Chriftians ; for the (33) author adds, that it was the cuflom of the age for thofe who had received the firft fignation to hold commerce indifcriminately with Chriftians and Gentiles, adhering however to that religion which bed pleafed them. Such fecms to me to have been the chriftiauity profelled by the founders of the mount at New Grange, and of which they have left permanent evidence in its fubftruflure. The external bafe of the Mount at New Grange was encircled by a number of enormous unhewn (tones, fet upright. Ten remained in 1770: they are from feven to nine feet above ground, and weigh from eight to ten tons each, and one flood on the fummit of the mount, which was exactly conformable to the northern prac- tice, as delivered (34) by Wormius, as there facrifices were performed in memory of the deceafed. The dead, to whom divine honours vvere paid, were illuflrious warriors, or great princes, whom the veneration of their countrymen t^^') deified. I fhall now endeavour to give the rationale of this mode of interment among the Northerns, and the fuperllition refpefting it, as it will enable us to form pro- per notions of our various flone monuments, and numerous caves. It is very well obferved by Rowlands, (t,6) " that by what remains of our ancientefl: buildings, it feems the very form of our houfes and that of our churches were much the fame : it is probable our churches were at firft dwelling-houfes." The Scythic and Ger- man nations inhabited caves a great part of the year, and fo did our Firbolgs. i\Iany of thcfe fouterreins are enumerated in Smith's (37) Hiftories, in Harris and various periodical publications : fome are natural, others artificial, and moft of them retain velliges of human refidcnce. That the Irifli in the fixth century were Trog- lodytes (31) Bed. 1. t, c. 15. Scvcrus worfhippcd Chrift ; Abraham, Orpheus and Apollo in the fame Lararium. LampiiJ hi Sever. jjfr. 33) Johnftonc, fupra, p. 3a. *• (34) Uoicam ill viniur maiima ei parte fcpulchro impoCta elTc fulct, eo Cnc ut ibidem in memoriam dcfunifli quotannis j^cra pcragantur. Worm. fup. (35) Barthol. p. 211 — lij, and the inftancci andauthori there cited. (36) Mona Ant!(]ua, p. 138, (37) Smith's Cork, V. 3. p. >(o:. Campbell's Polit. Survey in Skic. Macauley'i St. Kil:,)^, OF THE PAGAN STATE ( F IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. 49 lodytes appears (38) in Gildas. He rcprefents them as ifTuing from their narrow caves, and their (kin of a duiky hue : nor had they (39) relinquifhed them in 6go. In 1 1 77, Miles Cogan parted the Shannon and invaded Connaught ; the natives every where burnt their villages and churches, and deftroyed the com and provifions which they could not conceal in (40) Hypogasa. Here, though they had deferted their ancient habitations, they did not forget the proteftion they originally afforded them. Thefe antrile retreats became foon places of worfliip and confecrated to religion. The Druids when known to the Greeks and Romans, had united the Celtic and Sc)thic rituals, and exercifed their funftions both in groves and ('41) caves. Thus fanclified, no place appeared more fuitable for the interment of the heads of families and celebrated chiefs, whom while living they loved and admired, and whofe virtues and manes they adored in the grave. Thus men became heroes and gods, and their ancient (42) habitations cemeteries and temples. And of this there is a very curious and ftrong proof in the (43) Irifh word Cill or Kill, which at firll denoted a grave, and after a church. Celtic inhumation being exchanged for Scythic cremation, the body was con- fumed by fire, the afhes coUefted in an urn and placed under a barrow, with fpears, arms, gold and filver, and fuch like rarities as were dear to the deceafed in his life- time. The fame fuperftition required upright (tones, ftone-circles and trilithons on and about the grave. Odin mud have taught his followers that thefe monflrous pillars were fymbols of the Deity and endued with peculiar virtues, for it is certain they after confidered them as (44) gods and paid them divine honours. The Edda (45) declares a race of fpirits or daemons, called Nani, inhabited them. From this holinefs of large pillars the mofl folemn offices, civil and religious, were performed within circles of them. "Wormius affiires us they were ufed either as Fora, for the adminillration of juftice ; or as Comitialia, for the election and inauguration of kino-s; or as places of fingle combat, or as temples of tribes. Inflances of their application to all thefe purpofes occur in Ireland, and a few of them fhali now be given. o On (38) De arflilTimis foraaiinum cavcrnulis fufci vermiculorum ciinei, Scotorum Piflorumque greges. p. yS. ^.19) This may be coUecled from an expreflion of Aldhclm. Latebras antrorum praspropere petunt. Uffer. Epift. p. nt, (40) Gir. Cambrens p. 795. ^ (41) Clam & diu vicenis annisinfpecu aut in abdilis faltibus. Mel. I. 3. c. j. Borlafc's Cornwall, palT. (4Z) A prima origine intra fuas quifque ades dirfoiTa cadavcra haberet : unde Lares in fingulis asdibus colendi religio per- fuaflc A. ab Alcxand. 1. 6. c. 1 4. (43) O'Brien in voce. (44) Iflauds Landnama. p. 94. Pinkcrton's Scot. V. i. p. 408. (4i) Quibus Nanos Spiritual vel dxmonum g«uus credebam faxa inhabitare. Kejflcr Aip. p. 1 9 — so, 50 OP THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. On the (46) plain of Ballynahatnc are concentric ftone-circles : its ruins fliew it to have been a very laboured conftruftion, and as Wright well remarks, not unlike Stonehenge. The name of Stonehenge reminds us of the various extravagant whim- ■fies entertained concerning that curious monument, whofe origin feems to have been miftaken by every author, except two excellent antiquaries, Keyfler and Warton. The latter thus fpeaks (47) of it : " No other notion refpefting Stonehenge pre- vailed than the fuppofition that had been delivered down by long and conflant tra- dition, that it was erefted in memory of Hengift's maffacre. This was the eltabliflied and uniform opinion of the WeKh and Armorican bards, who mod probably re- ceived it from the Saxon minftrels. This was the popular belief in the age of Geoffrey of Monmouth, and in this Robert of Gloucefter and all the monkifli chroniclers agree. That the Druids couftrucled this llupendous pile for a place of V'orflnp, was a difcovery referved for the fagacity of a wifer age, and the laborious difcuffion of modern antiquaries." Befides the name Stan Hengift, Hengift's Stones, the authority of the Welfh and Armoric bards is ftrong evidence of the founding of Stonehenge in the fifth cen- tury. The Britifli minftrels, whofe conftant theme was the exterminating fury of the pagan Saxons, afcribed this work to their countrymen, as a pious monument to their flaughtered brethren, when in reality it was a triumphant memorial erected by Henrift's army for a fignal defeat of the Britons, juft as (48) Regner, according to Saxo, conftrufted a penfile trophy for his vidory over the Biarmi and Finni. The Britons, if they prefervcd their original cuftoms and adhered to their Celtic ritual, had no ftone-temples } but they might have embraced the Belgic or Scythic fuper- ftition, and Stonehenge lay within the territories of the Belgse. At (49) Templcbricn in the County of Cork, is a circle of nine upright ftones }6!aced round a tenth in the centre, and about twenty feet to the N. W. ftands an eleventh. '50) " Kings," fays Wormius, *' were created in circles compofed of great ftones, for the moti part twelve in number (utplurimum duodecim.) lu the middle was (46) Loulhiana, fup. p. 9. .447) Warton's Hi(K of Eiij[lifli Poctrj-, V. 2. p. 155. Vtrum, ut qy.-e res c(Te vlJcUur, apcrtliis dicam, hnjufmodi D-.onunicnioruni q-jaiulo alii, in qnibus Scoiichcnge, &c. propter alium filentium dc iis apud auilorcs Gr.tcos & Laiinoa recentiora juiliccntur, Gc alia, .quorum iii nuniero monumentumiiocce noftriim ante Bclgaruni adventum a Ruiiarum coloina ^liaJim erigi uii tcincrc nun ftjtuero, iia pr.-ufradlc non nfgavcro. Mufgravc. Bclg. Brit. p. ail. (48) Rcjjncrus Sjxis rcnim gcllarum apices prx fc fercntlbiis, lifd»;m >■ >■>■•> >■ > >■ >■■» >■ >■■> .» » >■ >. > >"».->.>• >.->>>. >. >. >- >■■>. >->■ >-y >->-■»•>■ *< vanced a dozen lines before he complains of the " obfcurity and uncertainty of Celtic hiltorv, of its being loaded with fo many difficulties that he can promife to give it but a tery inferior degree of verfimilitude, and that he would rather modeftly confefs this than, as is too common, obtrude on the reader vague conjectures for certain truths." This fl-iow of candour however will never atone for the monflrous confufion he has introduced into Celtic antiquities, the more fatal as it is fupported by inG;enuity and uncommon learning, tie cannot avoid remarking the oppofue tcdimonies of Ca'lar and Tacitus on the religion of the Druids : the latter fays they had no temples or altars, but the former intimates both. He has noway of recon- ciling ihefe writers, but by alluring us, the religion of the Northern Celtes, the Germans and Gauls was originally the fame, and that the Gallic deities, (latues, al- tars and temples were (^d) foreign importations. Here a critical inquiry fhould have commenced into the religion and philofophy of the Celtes, grounded on their language, religion, and the few hints preferved by the ancients. The materials for a fimilar procedure with the Scythians are abundant ; and laftly the union of the Celtic and Scythic rituals might be eafily fhown. Mr. Pinkerton in his Difiertation on the Goths and lliftory of Scotland has laboured fuccefsfully on this fubject, thefe valuable works being an excellent inrrodu£lion to the lludy of the Britifli antiquities. Borlafe, a man of confiderable learning but little judgment, lapfes into Bruker's errors. He perceives no (^y) difference between the religion of the Germans, Danes, Norwegians and Swedes and that of the Britons and Gauls, but that the prieRhood among the latter was more dignified and learned than among the former. From fuch a declaration, fo early made, nothiiig could be expefted but confufion. An antiquary who could affirm rock-bafons, circles, ered (tones, cromleace, cairns, and groves of oaks, a cave and an inclofure (58) marked a Druidic monument, was ill qualified to difembarrafs Celtic and Scythic antiquities, or to give a dictlnet view of each. And yet clouded as his ideas were, he fiiw through the gloom difficulties which he could not folve ; he (59) tells us, the fuperftition of the Germans and Northern nations throw great light on that of the Druids, but not vice verfa. The meaning of which is, that the original dogmas of Druidifm were loft, or fo incor- porated with the Northern religion, that there was no way of illuftrating the former but by the latter. But the fact is the ancients fupply us with accurate diftinftions, and indubitable marks of genuine Druidifm. Both the Celtic and German fuper- llitions were early mingled with each other ; this, it is confeiTed, obfcured the fub- jea, (56) PciegriiiUrcKgimiibiii advtfflis (lebcntiir. Brukcr. fup.'jjo. (57) Antiquities of Cornwall, p. 71. (5I;) Borlafe, ruj-ra, p. lio. (sy) Borlafe, fup. p. 7J. OF THE PAGAN STATE OF IRELAND, AND ITS REMAINS. 53 1.4..^ .< .<..< .< .< .< .< .,..< .<-.<..< .<..< .«■.<. <..4.4 .<..< <..< .< .« .<..<..<-.<..<.< .<..<..< .< + >. >.->. >..>,.; ■■>■>->■>•>.•>>■■>■■>■■; ■>■>>■■>■■>.>.>■>■>>■>■■>■• jeft, and led inattentive ancients and moderns aflray. I have juft alleged an inftance from Borlafe, of this compound religion, where an oaken grove and inclofure mark the Celtic, as the rock-bafons, erefb ftones, &c. do the Scythic fuperflition. As to this mixt religion being called Druidic, vi'here the Celtes were more numerous than their invaders, as in thefe ifles, their priefls preferved their ancient appellation : where the Scythians prevailed, the name was loft, and in its room we find Runer, Adelruner, (60) DIar, Hofgodar and Magi introduced. Confounding the Druidic and Scythic rituals, the very learned and ingenious Whitaker tells (61) us, " the Druidical fpecies of heathenifm was that particularly calculated to arreft the atten- tion and to imprefs the mind. The rudely majeftic cincture of ftones in their tem- ples, the huge enormous Cromleach, the maffy tremulous Logan, the great conical carnedde, and the magnificent amphitheatre of woods, &c." Except the amphi- theatre of woods, nothing elfe was Druidical. Many opportunities will ofter in the enfuing effays, in treating of the Antiquities of the Irifh Church, to confirm th-e idea purfued in thefe pages. (fic.) rinkcrton, Vit. S. Scot. p. 87. (61) Hift. of Mandieft. V. r. «r ( 54 ) J•^._y^._y^.^..•^.,y^._,••s.. ,^'..,y•^..|'^.^•'^.,.••^..y■^.y•■M.•■'■..."''^.■•''^.••''^.■'''^o■"■■.•"'■".. ■'*'•., **'^o'''.. .■'■••.■•*■•.. .•'V.y"^, .•"••., ,••'-. [+ + + + + + + + 4. + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + ** + + + + *-r + + + + + + + + + + + + '; OP THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY', AND OF ST. PATRICK. AN hierarchy was early eflabliflied in England, as three Britlfii Bifhops affifled at the Council of Aries, A. D. 314, being one for each province into which the kingdom (1) was then divided. Of confequence Chriflianity there was of older date than the 4th century. When wc reflect on the zeal of the primitive preachers of the Gofpel, and the contiguity of Ireland to England, it cannot be fuppofed the former ifle efcaped their evangelical labours. It aflbrded the terrified Britifh clergy a fecure afylum from the Dioclefian perfecution in 303. So that it is highly proba- ble the glad tidings of a Redeeming Saviour were promulgated here A^ery little later than in Britain. And I am the more inclined to believe what is advanced, becaufe St. Jerome inconteflibly proves there was a Chriflian church in Ireland in the 4th and beginning of the 5th century, and that letters were then known and cultivated here. Speaking of Ceiellius, the bofom friend of Pelagius the Herefiarch, he fays : *' he was made fat with Scottilh (2) flummery." Now (3) Pelagius was a Britifli Monk, and an eminent (4) fcholar : to him reforted youth from England and Ire- land for infl;ru£tion, and among others our countryman Celeftius, who embraced the (5) monallic life. While in the Britifli monafl:ery he (6) writ to his parents in Ireland three pious epifl.les, exhorting them to the praftice of virtue. All this evinces, that our ifle had been long chrifl;ian. Pelagius was an able teacher and veil read in (7) Greek philoibphy : it was there he found the notions about God and the human foul, which were the foundations of his herefy. This knowledge of Greek literature will now be fully and fatisfaftorily explained. The Irifli themfelves are the befl. evidences of the origin of their faith. About the year 661, a conference was held at (8) Whitby, to determine whether the ancient (1) Stillingflcct, fup. p. 76. (2) Ncc rccordatur llolidinimus, ct Scotorulu pultibus pngrivatas. Hieron. in Hicrem. Again, Haliet cnim progc- clcm Scoticx gtntis, dc Britannorum vicinia. (3) AuguRin. dc lixrcs. c. 88. Uffcr. p. ao8. (4) Ufler. fupra, (5) Gciinad, c. 41. (6) Gcnnad. fupra, (y) Moflicim. Mar. Mercat. Edit. Garncri. (8j Btd. i. 3. c. is- OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 55 ^ .< ■< -^ .<..4 •CC'< •< ■< •«-<■•<-< ■<■<-<■<■■< .<..«..<..<..<..< .<■■< .< .< .<"<■< .<.<--<■■<..<■<-<+>- y- >.>..>.>->..>.->.>. ►..] ancient difcipllne of the Britifh and Irifh churches refpeding the pafchal feftival, tonfure and other rites, fhould be continued, or whether the Romifh innovations, adopted by the Anglo-Saxon church, fhould be preferred. Wilfrid, aii Eleve of Rome, fupported the latter, as Colman, an Irifliman, educated among the Culdees at Hy, and Bifhop of Lindisfern, did the former. " The Eafter I keep, fays Col- man, I received from my elders, '«\'ho fent me Bifliop hither ; the which all our forefathers, men beloved of God, are known to have kept after the fame manner ; and that the fame may not feem to any contemptible or worthy to be rejected, it is the fame which St. John the Evangeliil and the Churches over which he prefided, obferved.'* About the year 160, the Gallic Church, in a long epiftle to the brethren in (9) Afiaand Phrygia, relates the martyrdom of many profeffors of the Gofpel. Pothinus was then Biihop of Lyons, and a (10) Grecian; as were Attalus, Alexander, and Alcibiadas, who were miffioners in Gaul. Thefe were ( 1 1 ) fent by Poly carp into France when he went to Rome in the pontificate of Anicetus, of courfe the letter written by them to the Chriftians in Afia was in Greek, and this is remarked by Valefms. Irenasus, who fucceeded Pothinus in Lyons, was a Greek of Smyrna, of which city Polycarp was Bifhop. Irenjeus when a youth faw and converfed with Polycarp, and heard him relate the (12) difcourfes he held with St. John and with the reft who had feen Chrift. From hence we clearly difcoVer the grounds of Bifliop Colman's practice, and how it was ded-iiced from St. John. Polycarp was difciple of (12,) St. John, as Pothinus and (14) Irensus were of Polycarp. Thefe Afiatic miiTionaries founded churches, ordained Bifliops, and gave to the Chriftians of Bri- tain and France a liturgical form. A very ancient (15) MS. informs us, that St. John the Evangelift firft fang the Galilean oflice, then the blefled Polycarp his dif- ciple, and after him Irenasus, Bifhop of Lyons. Bifhop Stillingfleet, who carefully examined this ancient curfus or office, flrows that it agreed with the Greek, and ma- terially differed from the Roman in the communion fcrvice, in the prophetical lef- fons, in the fermon and offices after it, and in various other particulars, and that this office was adopted by the Britifli church, and no doubt by the Irifli, which per- fectly fymbolized with it. Indeed we have direct and pofitive proof that our liturgy was not # ^g) T«j; *«ra \;/kv xat ^pvyixf «S"£X^fl/;. Eufcb. 1. 5. c. i. (10) Pothini quoque epifcopi vcl nomcn ipfum Grxcam originem defignat. Vales, ad Eufcb. fup. p. 86. (11) Cave. Hid. Liter, p. 3. Modieim, Cent. 2. (12) Eufeb. 1. 5. c. jo. (13) Hieron. de Scrip. EccUf. (1^) Greg. Turon. Hill. Franc. I. t. c. j. (ij; Prefcrved by Spelmin. C»ncil. V. i. p. 176. ^ OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, ;-<-<■■<■■< -<-< ■<■■< ■< + >• >■ >■■>■ >->■ >■ >..>..>-.>..>.->..>..>-■>..>..>..>. >.>..>..>..; not the ( 1 6) Roman, in Gillebert the Bifhop of Limerick's epiftle to the Irifli Pre- lates in 1090. We fhall find the Irifh rites and ceremonies differing from the Ro- man, in the celebration of Eafter, in the adminiftration of baptifm, in the multi- plication of Bifliops, and in numberlefs other points wherein they agreed with the Afiatic and Britilh Chriflians, from whom they received their faith. Irenaus, in the 2d century, loudly complained of Romifh innovations, " that the fchifmatics at Rome had (17) corrupted the fincere law of the church, which led to the greatefl impieties. Thefe opinions, adds he, the Prefbyters who lived before our times, who were alfo the difciples of the Apoftles, did in no wife deliver. I, who faw and heard the bleifed Polycarp, am able to protefl in the prefence of God, that if that apoflolic Prefbyter had heard thefe things, he would have flopped his ears, and cried out according to his cuftom, " Good God ! for what times haft thou referved me, that I fhould fuffer fuch things. He would have fled from the place where he was fitting or ftanding, fhould he have heard thefe things." Thus far Irenasus. Thefe fentiments of Romifh corruptions the Afiatic mifTioners brought with them into Weftern Europe, they Inculcated them on their converts, and the horror and deteftation they excited In their minds were not efiaced for many ages ; it lafted in Ireland for more than ten centuries. Such was the origin of Chrlftianlty in Ireland, and fuch the orientalifm of our rites and ceremonies, which during our progrefs in thefe Inquiries we fhall have frequent occafion to remark. How laborious foever thefe refearches may be, I apply to them with ardour and pleafure in hopes of difcovering truth ; but I confefs myfelf difplrited and dejefted when reduced to the miferable necelTity of combating fenfelefs fidlons, and all the ignorance and abfurdity of Irifh hagiography. No laurels are here to be reaped, no reputation to be obtained, and yet filent contempt would foon be conftrued into ac- qulefccnce, if not approbation. The puerile figments of (18) Vincent of Beauvals, Moronus, VafalJus, O'Sul- livan and Colgan, concerning the firft preachers of the Gofpel in Ireland, are to- tally undeferving notice. Prudentius has charatterifed fuch pious and lying fables ia one line ; Corruptelay dolus, commcnla, infomnia., fordes. The (16) Ut diverfi & fchifmatlci illi orjints, quibus Hibcrnia penc dclufa eft, uiii Catliolico & Romano ccd.int officio. Uffcr. 3yllog. Epii.p. ;7. (17) E^i^atrja; ^i TUM IVi Pu^KS Ttv v^trj ttjs t}tx}.nffiai fifffJ.*\ •rufax^-ftir'TtyTMVj h'f'HCties h«t^tf}is tvisckUi fUvrfi^TH. Eufcb. 1. ;, c 20. (i8j Rii-haiiifon. prxicfl. €cc. V. 2. p. 102. Ufl'cr. Llujd, Sti)l!i:gflccf, &c. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. 57 The Acls of our (19) Saints inform us, that Kiaran, Declan, Ailbe and Ibar were Hibernians, who, after refiding at Rome for fome years, were confecrated Bifhops, and ereded Sees here about the year 400. This is an artful monkiiTi fic- tion to excite our gratitude to Rome, who fo maternally watched over our falva- tion, and fent us thefe precurfors to reclaim us from paganifm. Bi^iop Lloyd, though ingenuous and learned, was not profound in antiquities, fays, (20) " I dare not wholly rejecl thofe Irifh legends of Kiaranus, Declanus and Ibarus." Every refped is due to authenticated, and in remote matters, even to probable fads ; but why the fame regard is to be paid to fufpicious legends, is not eafy to difcover. It was his bufmefs to eflablifli their credit, but he found this too difficult to attempt. It was impoffible to be done ; for if thefe precurfors of St. Patrick ever exifled, and lived no longer than the reft of mankind, their age will be found pofterior inftead of being prior to that of our apoftle, who, it is faid was fent hither, A. D. 432. Now the annals of Ulfter and Innisfallen, as cited by (21) Ware, place the death of Ibar in 500, that of Ailbe in 527, of Declan later, and Kiaran at an advanced age was difciple of St. Finian of Clonard, about 520. If we rejecl thefe authorities, we beftow on thefe precurfors a longevity beyond verifimilitude ; if we adopt them, the legend is more than doubtful. Thefe teachers we are told travelled to Rome, and there received ordination. This is incredible, becaufe Bede is an unexceptionable evidence that our hierarchy was exactly fimilar to the (22^ Britifli, and that we know was independent and epif- copal. Epifcopal, for her Bifhops appeared in the Councils of Aries, Nice, Sardij and Ariminum, all In the 4th century. Independent, for the Britilli Prelates noblv oppofed the ufurpation of Auguftine fent by Pope Gregory, and refufed obedience to a foreign jurifdiction, confequently they would not (23) receive ordination from the hands of ftrangers. But thefe filly fidions are trifles in comparifon of the le- gend of St. Patrick, which comes next to be examined. The exiftence of this Saint, and his converfion of the Irifli, are points not only firmly believed by the Irifh, but referred to as undoubted hiftoric fads by every Q. writer (19) U.Ter. Prim p. 789. (io) Of Church Government, p. JO — 51. (2".) Annut. in St. Patric. opufc. p; 106. (12) Scoti nihil difcrcpabant in convcrlatione a Britannis. Confervatio here means reliyioiis life, and fnm -times a mn- Baftlc rule, Du Cange in Converfare & cnnverfatio, Btde fays again of the Irifti and Britojii : Similtm vii«m & pro- feflionem cgiffe, Hanmet's Chron. p, 9. for the connexion between the Irifh and Welih. (13) Britannia ordinationes fiias intra fe ftmper concclcbrabant, & hoc eft alterum juris patriarchalis rftr'iin fivehono- rariiim. UfTcr. de lihert, Ecc. Brit, p, 1 18. An admirulile woik but littk known. Set alfo SiiUingfleet, fup. 3c. Anfv»« to Crcffy. Cave of Cliur;h Go-criimcnt, p. 244. 58 OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, ■ 4 « < ■< « 4 -i-< < ■< * •< < 4 < < -4 < 4 4 -4 4 4 4 .4-4 4 4 -4 -4 < 4 4 -4 ■< 4 4 4 .4 + >. > >.-> > > > >.>■ >- >..>.>.>.>.,>. >..>. >.->. >..>, >. ,.-^-.>. .>.>.>..>, >■ >.■>.->..>- >.>. >. >* writer who has treated of the civil and ecclefiaftical hiftory of this country. But about the year 1618, Dodtor Ryves, one of the Maflers in Chancery here, and Judge of the Faculties and Prerogative Court, to anfwer a (24) calumnious and in- flammatory libel, was obliged to confider minutely the ancient hiftory of our church. Doubts arofe in his mind as to the (25) reality of our apoftls, and of the age in which he was fuppofed to have flouriflied. However before he ferioufly applied to an inveftigation.of thefe matters, he thought it proper and becoming to (26) confult Camden and Ufher, the two great luminaries of Britifli and Irilh Antiquities. To the latter he opens his objections ; and firft, he obferves the wonderful miracles re- corded by St. Patrick were neither common or believed in the age in which he lived ; and this he proves from St. Auftin, who was coetaneous with our apollle. Secondly, he argues from the filence of Platina, who, though in his life of Pope Celeftine he mentions the fending St. Germanus into England and Palladius into Scotland, takes no notice of his appointing Patrick to Ireland, and therefore concludes he muft have lived later than was generally fuppofed. Unacquainted with Camden, yet defirous of his opinion, Ryves prevailed on Ufhei" to lay his letter before him, which he did. Ufher feems not to have afted friendly, ■impartially or candidly on this occafion, for in his letter to Camden, inclofing that of Ryves's, he endeavours to prepoflefs him in favour of St. Patrick, and even to point out what anfwer he (liould give. He indeed remarks that " the ridiculous miracles faftened upon our Saint were the work of later writers," and in this Cam- den agrees. On the prefent occafion, our learned Primate and his exceHent friend deviate ftrangely from ftriiit veracity ; for the Roman Martyrology, Erric of Aux- erre, Nennius and others, never omit St. Patrick's miracles when they name him ; they are both coeval and from the fame mint. Nor would an argument fo open to confutation ever have been brought forward was a better to be found. His miracles are fo monftrous and incredible, fo numerous and unneceiTary, and fuch a pvoftitu- tlon of divine omnipotence, that the moft flupid, credulous or bigotted cannot di- geft them. Thefe firft fuggefted to Ryves, as they would to every man of fcnfe, the fufpicions before ftated. As to Platina, few were more converfant in ecclefiaUical hiftcry than he ; fo that his filence about St. Patrick is really inexplicable, was he convinced of his miflion. A Cotton MS. recording St. Patrick, is much boafted of; furely we might expeft to find inUlher's Primordia, publilhed twenty-one years after his writ- ing this letter to Camden, an account of its poUeiTors, its letters and language, fo as to (14) WartS Writers by Harris, p. J40. (i;) Ryv, rfgim, Anglic, inllilj. p. 47' =' ^'1' {li) CsBuitniifin. p, 2j6, ctfc^. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. 59 ..4 .< .4 .<..< .4 .4-< .4 .4..4--4 -<.-4 4 ■4--<-4-<-« 4-4 4 -4-4 -4 -4 -4 < ■4'4 ■4-< ■<-4 4 -4 -4 ■<•(•>• >->->■ >■■>.>. >■>..>..> >..>.>. >■>.■>■■>■.>.>.■>■■>■>. >. >. ).>.,>..>..>. >„>. >..>..>.,.>.-,.. to enable us to form fome judgment of its antiquity ; but none of thefe appear, if I recoUeft right, in that work. A Cottonian MS. occurs, but it is not noticed as remarkable for age or contents. Ryves thus difcountenanced by the oracular decifions of thefe eminent men, and overborne folely by authority, no farther purfued this curious fubjefl:, a few hints excepted, although his learning enabled him to bring it to a fair conclufion. This triumph of hagiography over criticifm and erudition has continued to the prefent hour. A well-informed (27) writer in 1700 declared, " he was not fatislied about St. Patrick's 365 Bifliops, it was probably a fable, and himfelf a Saint of imagina- tion ; for who can tell, but Patricius Avernenfis may have funk a day lower in the calendar, and made the Irifh a Patricius Hibernenfis, or the Spanifh Patrick of Malaga, who, according to Luitprandus, lays claim to that day, might appear ta the Ivilh in a dream, as St. Georg-e did to the Englifh, and become their Protector and at laft their Apollle. For the calendar is the ground upon which the legenda- ries run divifions, and as barren as it feems to be, it has produced a world of devout fables. For in old time, give a Monk but a name, and he W'Ould quickly write a life." Thus far Maurice, whofe conjectures, thus vaguely and jocularly thrown out, • are yet the refult of uncommon knowledge of the fubjed, as we fliall now fee. The Calendar is certainly the ground-work of every fabulous legend. Each church we are (28) told kept one for its faints and martyrs, but Ruinart declares they were exceedingly imperfect. Nor could it be otherwife among barbarous nations, where Chridianity was without ellablilhment and its preachers itinerant, fupporting a pre- carious life among rude and ferocious pagans. As the common martyrologies (29) were compiled from the Calendars, it will not be wondered at if they are but little to be depended on. But two have reached us, one Roman Calendar of the fourth and one Carthaginian of the fifth century, both to be fufpefted and not contribut- ing to the credit of fach works*. Our calendars and martyrologies are lefs eftima- ble and of lefs authority. Colgan, it may be imagined, gives in the Preface to his Irifli Sain(s, the beft reafons he could invent to induce us to believe the tales he delivers concerning them. He quotes C30) Gorman, who writ about 1170; the Cafhel calendar compofed, as he fays, earlierj and the martyrology of iEngus and Melruan of the eighth century. Now the latter, like the other Irifh manufcripts, famous- (i?) Maurice's Defence of Epifcopacy, p. 155. Fuller's Church Hiftory, ad Ann. 730. (28) Ruinart. Praf. ^en. in Aft. Sinccr. Martyr, p. 17. (19) Ex Kalenuariis qu« vulgzta inartyrologii antecedunt, duo foluramodo ad nos pcrvenrre. Ruinart, fupra, (jj) Ut praetertani B. Mar. Gynuauum, ciui ante annos prope ijuingeiio,% &c. frst. ad Ail. Sane Hibernia. 6o OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, famous in obfcurity, has never feenthe light, nor is it to be regretted, becaufe it carries internal marks of forgery. Let one inftance fuffice. In its fccond Preface it cites the martyrology of St. Jerome. Launoy has (31) proved, that no fuch work under the name of St. Jerome was known to early writers, but that about the ninth century, a trick, then common, was praftifed, that of fathering on him a fuppo- fititious performance. Neither Bellarmine or Sixtus Senenfis enumerate this among his works, fo that inftead of the eighth this martyrology cannot be older than the ninth century. Colgan acquaints C32) us, that the deaths of iEngus and Mtlruan are found in this martyrology and thofe of other faints pofterior to them, which he fuppofcs the additions of fome Monk living about the conclufion of the ninth century. No proof is brought of this conjecture, fo that the antiquity of this work reds folcly on the fuppofition of an interefted individual, and is oppofed by the (trongeft external and internal proofs. Take the facls as flated by Colgan him- felf, and let any judicious and impartial reader pronounce on the credibility and degree of wei;j;ht this martyrology carries with it when it depofes for St. Patrick and other ideal faints. • The (33) Roman martyrology is the oldeft in which we find the name of our apoftle. This like the reft has been interpolated in various ages, fo that it is im- poffible to know what were its original contents. By the French antiquaries it has often been convifted of falfehood : its making Scrgius Paulus firit Bifhop of Nar- bonne, and Dionyfius Areopagita the Apoftle of France, dcftroys every claim it can make to authenticity. St. Patrick is in Bede's martyrology. Whether he ever compofed fuch a v/ork is very doubtful, as he barely hints at it in one of his compofitions. Cave's (34) opi- nion of that pafling under his name, is by no means in its favour. It would be tedious and difgufting to review the fables and errors of Ufardus, Notkcrus Bal- bulus and others, who lived later, and have the name of our Apoftle : the fame bold, plaufiblc and groundlcfs (35) figments crowd all their pages. What idea muft we form of Martyrologies, when Durandus, Bifliop of Maude, (36) declared, there were above five thoufand Saints for every day in the year; and it (31) Difpuni3. ]Uod nunc circunilcrtur, crcbrh allorum iiitcrpolationibiis, dcturpatum clTc multuni, dudum not;irum. Hid, 1-it. p. 35J- (35) Vof'. Je Hid. l.at. p. 309 — 697. Cave, fup. p. j8;, Valvs. ad Euftb. 1 S- ^"^ 'he Aory uf Zacharias, I36) Daylf, Die. Crit. article, Launoi. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. g, -< ■<< •< <■< ■<-< -^4-4 ■<■<■■< ■4-<-.*-.<-4"4 •<■■<-<■< ■< .<■.<-< ■< •<-<"4-< .<•<■< ■«■■< ■'+>■ >■ >->•■>•>- >■■>•■>.•; ■■>•■>■♦■>.>.>.■>_ it has been fuppofed, not improbably, that All Saints day was appointed, to fupply the want of days in the year, and to appeafe the anger of thofe who had not par- ticular honour paid them. Bollandus and Papebroch, learned Jefuits, Launoi Tillemont and many other eminent Catholic writers not only rejcd thefe deified phantoms, but fpeak contemptibly of the reft. As nothing advanced by Ufher, Camden, or the Martyrologifts can in the fmalleft degree fupply evidence of the exiftence of St. Patrick, fo neither will the general character of our Sandology, which (37) Bollandus declares to be the com- pilation of arrant fablers, and not older than the 1 2th century. Tillemont's words are equally ftrong. " Que la plupart, font d'auteurs tres-fabuleux." This is the language of liberal, learned and enlightened Roman Catholic writers, who faw the difgrace brought on religion, and the real injury done it, by lying miracles and horrible blafphemies. Even St. Auftin in the 4th century declared (38) there were few genuine memoirs of Martyrs or Saints. The Trullan (39) council ordered all forged ads, which began greatly to multiply, to be burnt, becaufe as Balfamon on this Canon obferves, they lead " to laughter and infidelity." From the manner of compofmg thefe Lives of Saints, we may judge of the de- plorable mental weaknefs of thofe who believe them, and the confummate hypocrify and wickednefs of thofe who inculcate them on the ignorant. Cardinal Valeric (40) tells us, it was ufual with the Monks to exercife their fcholars in ccmpofition by propofmg the ufual topics to them, the lives and martyrdom of Saints. Popular ftories, and more commonly the fuggeftions of their own fancy, were the ground- work of their amplifications. The bed of thefe were laid by, and after fome years produced as genuine works. There is a curious anecdote in (41) Mr. Warton to this purpofe. About 1380, flourifhed Gilbert de Stone, a learned ecclefiaftic, and good Latin writer. The Monks of Holywell, in Flintfliire, applied to him to write the life of their patron-faint ; Stone aflced for materials, he was anfwered there were none ; upon which, he faid, " he could execute the work without mate- rials, and would write them a moft excellent Legend, after the nianner of the le- gend of Thomas a Becket." R By {37) Ab auiloribus fabulofiflimis confarcinata, nee ulla fccculo d'.:oJec!mo priora. A>ft. Sanfl. ad 17 Martii. (.^8) Strm 93. (39) Can. 63. (40) Bayle, Did. article, Valerius. (41) Hiftory of Englilh poetry. V. 2, p. 190. Cardiiisl B-ffjrion faid oi" thefe deiflcations: aflc chc quefti Santi mo- d^riii, mi fauau aiTai dubitare dclli pafiati. 62 OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, ■■<<■•« .< .4..<-<-< -<■<-■ ,. ».>, >,. >. >, >. >.>->..>■■>■■>■>■>- ►■ > ■>■■] By fuch juvenile Monkifli exercifes, lives of St. Patrick multiplied amazingly. When Joceline fat down to compofe his life, he (42) found fixty-fix biographers had preceded him in this walk: all but four were deftroyed in-the Norwegian invafion ; from thefe, he tells us, he feleded fuch facls as delerved (43) belief. Here are fome of the miracles which our author thinks credible. St. Patrick while an infant, brought a new river from the earth, which cured the blind. He produced fire from ice. He raifed his nurfe from the dead. He expelled a devil from an heifer, and he changed water into honey. Thefe were but the infant fports of this wonder- working Saint. The miracles recorded in holy writ, even that of creation itfelf, are paralleled, and if poffible furpaffed by thofe of our' fpiritual hero. So that for authenticity, the Legend of St. Patrick merits no higher eilimation than the moil contemptible fittions. I fliall now proceed with Wronger -evidence, to prove our Apoftle an ideal per- fonage. If he received his million from Pope Celefline, his orders in the Church of Rome ; was graced with the archiepifcopal dignity ; formed an hierarchy, and eftabliflied rites and ceremonies from Roman originals, as all his biographers boaft, can the utmoft ftretch of human ingenuity aflign a reafon why Cogitofus, Adam- nan, Cummian and Bede have paffed over thefe interefting particulars unnoticed ? Bede, whofe predileftion for Rome and her tenets had led him into many errors, and whom all allow to be well informed, never would have omitted fo capital an event as the converfion of Ireland by a miffioner from Rome, and the miracles of that miffioner in fupport of his favourite dodrines, did fuch fafts or any tradition of them exift in the beginning of the 8th century, for Bede died A. D. y^S- About the year 604, Laurence, Bifhop of Canterbury, and two other Prelates writing to the Bifliops and Abbots in Ireland, have thefe remarkable words : " When (44) the Apoflolic See fent us to thefe weftern parts to preach to pagan nations, and we happened to come into this ifland of Britain, we very much efteemed the holincfs of the Britons and Irifli before we knew them, believing they proceeded according to the cuftom of the univerfal church ; but we have been informed, that the Scots (the Irifli) do not differ in religious fentiments from the Britons, for Bifhop Dagan coming to us, not only refufed to eat with us, but even to take any repaft in the fame houfe." Let the advocates for the exiflence of St. Patrick confider well this citation. Bifliop Laurence fuccecded Augufline in the See of Canterburv, and (45) Vit. S. Patric. apud McHingliam, p. 8t. (43) Q^xcunijue fide digna rqicrjrc patui. Vit. S. Patricii. (44) Btd. 1. 1. c. 4. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. 6^ ■ I .< it < < < < < ■« < < •< ■< ■< < < ■< t < < < <<■*<-< < < < < < ■< < < < < ' < < + >■ : '■> !'->'>">'>->'».->.».> >■►.*■>.►■>■• » »-» >■>■>..■> 1 and was by (45) birth a Roman. St. Patrick was dead but an hundred years. Could all remembrance of his miffion from Rome, and his connexion with that See be forgotten in that fpace of time ; if it could not, would he have neglefted to upbraid them with ingratitude to their Apoflle and a dereliction of his dodrines ? And does not this letter demonilrate what was before advanced of the difference between the Britifli and Roman Churches in religious tenets, arf.l that the Irilh agreed with the Britifh? By Bifliop Dagan's refufmg to eat with, or remain in the fame houfe with the Roman miffioners, we mufl: know, that a perfon' whofc com- pany was thus rejefted, was under excommunication, for fo it is expreffcd in (46) ancient Irilh canons. The Britons, fays (47) Bede, would no more communicate with the Anglo-Saxons than with pagans. The Iriih, we fee, had exaftly the fame fentiments. " The Britifli Priefts, complains (48) Aldhelm, puffed up with a con- ceit of their own purity, do exceedingly abhor communion with us, infomuch that they neither will join in prayers with us in the church, nor in communion, nor will they enter into fociety with us at table : the fragments we leave after refeftion, they will not touch but throw to dogs. The cups alfo out of which we have drank, they will not ufe, until they have cleanfed them with fand and afhes. They refufe all civil falutations, and will not give us the kifs of pious fraternity. Moreover, if any of us go to take an abode among them, they -will not vouchfafe to admit us, till we are compelled to fpend forty days in penance." Words cannot convey a ftronger deteftation of Popery than this teftimony of Aldhem, an excellent fcholar and contemporary with Bifliop Laurence. We may obferve that the Britifli and Irilh Churches had hierarchies independent and epifcopal among them, and that they fulminated excommunication againfl: intruders. In 630, the Roman clergy addrefs an epiflle (to be feen in Bede) to five Irlfli bilhops and five prefbyters, on the pafchal fefliival. Here, again, St. Patrick might be very properly and advantageoufly introduced, and his own, as well as his fuc- ceffors, praftice in the fee of Armagh. But nothing to this purpofe occurs in our ecclefiaftlcal hiftorian : the Bifliops are fl:yled, without any diflinction, the mofl beloved and moll holy Tomlanus, Columbanus, Cronanus, Dimanus and Baithanus. 1 have before mentioned the convention ut Whitby in 661. Thcfe, it may be faid, are (45) Paikcr. dc Antiq. Ecc Brit. p. y;. Edit. Drake. (46) A communione & menfa, a miffa Sc pace. S. Patric. opufc. fupra. .\j:ain : quiciinqiie clericus ab aliquo eicom« municatus fuerit & alius euni fufcepcrit, ambo co.xqiiali poenitcntia utantur. Pag. 4 ;. (47) Moris fit Britonum, fidcni religioiicmque Anglorum fro uitiilo habere; iicque in allquo iis migii commuakare quam pngaiiis I^. 1. c. 20. (48) Epift. ad Damnou. 44, inter Epltt. Donifac. 64 OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, I. >■>■■>■ >■ >■ >• > >■>■->> > V w are negative arguments ; but is an accumulation of thefe of no weight, particularly in very remote matters ? But the fubje£l does not reft folely on thefe : it is a pofitivc facl, that Columba and his Culdees differed widely, as we fhall fee, from Rome in doflrine and difcipline, in the 6th century, when St. Patrick was but a few years dead. We have juft feen the fame difference fubfifting in 604. In 639, Pope Ho- horius teftifies the fame in Bede, and in 730, Bede declares our averfion from Romifli cuftoms. Will any impartial and fober man affert, that if St. Patrick founded the Irifli church, and that his rites and ceremonies were from Roman arche- types, there could be fuch a total falling off from them within a few years after his death ? A barbarous people are ever retentive of firft impreffions. Who was the preacher of thefe new opinions fo oppofite to the Roman? Hiflory does not record his name. The fact is, and we find it has been amply confirmed, that Chriftianity flourifhed in Ireland long before the age of St. Patrick, and that it was firft preached, not by Roman but by Afiatic miffioners, or their difciples, the latter diffenting in various important particulars from the former, as will hereafter appear. If the principal events of our Apoftle's life are fliown to be not only incredible and uncertain, but abfolutely falfe, it muft decifively remove the vulgar prejudices refpeding his exiftence and miffion. He is (49) fald to have been a North Briton, born at Kilpatrick, A. D. 372, his father was Calpurnius a Deacon, the fon of Potitus a Prieft, his mother was Concheffa, niece of St. Martin, Bifliop of Tours. Baronius and Florilegus tell us he was a native of Ireland : O'Sullivan that he was born in Britanny : the Scholiaft on Joceline that he was from Cornwall, and others make him a Welfliman. See the moft wretched fcnfelefs trafli collected by Uiher as to his parentage, life and adventures, with his genealogy up to Brutus. Primor. c. 17 ; and who tired at laft, fays with Horace, Inceria hac fi tu pojiulcs Rationc certa facere^ nibilo plus agas ^lam fi des operam iit cum ratione infanias. And yet he is a ftickler for St. Patrick ! Now Bede has (50) declared, that the Southern Scots did not receive the fiiith till 412, nor the Northern before 565, fo that Calpurnius and Potitus were Cliriftiau Priefts in Scotland long before it was evangelized. St. Martin was (51) born at Sabaria in Pannonia or Hungary ; how his niece came to marry our Nor'tli Briton, no one has yet explained. It feenis it was fafliionable for miffioners to be related to (49) Wifu's BiQjops by Harris, initio. {i) Apud Marian, c, 1 1, Baron, ad A. C. ui6. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. 67 was concealed and placed in a boat, which at that Inftant miraculoufly offered itfelf j that, after failing far, it landed in Galicia, and the body from thence was tranflated to Compoflella. In virtue of thefe reliques, the Archbifliop of Compodella in 1 215, boldly claimed in the Lateran Council the prerogatives due to his See. The proof of the legend, through a monftrous fiiElion, thus grounded and fandified by time, did not admit of particular exceptions, and therefore Ximencs, Primate of Toledo, took the fliortefl courfe with it, by peremptorily denying the arrival of St. James in Spain ; and in this, after a lapfe of many centuries, he is fupportcd by Baronius againft Pope Leo. The Scots, in an (^6f) Apology to Pope Boniface VIII. give nearly the fame account of the coming of the reliques of St. Andrew, their patron ; this was in the reign of Ungus, and in the ninth century alfo. If the Irifli had no other examples, France was fufficient for their imitation, in conftituting a tutelary deity for their Ifle ; France was the afylum of the learned Hibernians in the 9th age from the Danifli tyranny. This confideration well deferves attention, but I rely more on written evidence, liable to no miftake. It is an undoubted fact, that St. Patrick is not mentioned by any author or in any work of veracity in the jtb, 6th, 7th or 8th centuries. In 858, we find his name and miracles in 3.(64) fragment of Nennius-: this fragment is compofed of the wild- efl: incoherences and exadly in the llyle of the incredible fictions of that age.. It feems to have been compiled from an Irifli Legend, as in fome places it, refers, to _it, About 8 So, Herric of Auxerre, in his life of St. Germnn, calls St.. Patrick, " Hi- bernise peculiaris Apoftolus," the proper apoille of Ireland, and at the fame time he was inferted in Ufuard's JNIartyrology. Thefe, I apprehend, are the fij-ft and cldefl: notices of our Patron Saint, for he was not heard of \yhen Bede died iii 735- In Ufuard's and the Roman Martyrology, Bifliop P^itrick -of (6^) Auvergne h placed at the i6th day of March, and on the fame day the ofRce of the Lateran Canons, approved by Pope Pius V. celebrates the felilvai of a Patrick the apollle of Ireland. The 17th of March is dedicated to Patrick, Bifliop of Nola. Had not Dodor Maurice then the bed reafons for fuppofing that Patrlcius Avernenfis funk a day lower in the Calendar and made for the Irifli a Patricius Ilibernenfis ? This leeras exaftly to be the cafe. It is very extraordinary the i6th and 17th of March fliould (0') UlTcr. p. .^40. According to Rmiis, St. George did not begin his patronajje of EnglsnJ In ii3o. Hift. rcf . Angus', p. 142. Edit. Hcarne. Matt. Wcllm. ail anu. ijoi. Hcit, lioeth. 1. 6. for St. AndVew. •'' ' ! •'■ -i) (64) l-.dit, Beitiam, p. i;2. (6j) llflVr. p. 897. «8 OF THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY, l'»-4 ■« < < ■• * ■* ■* •< •*■■< ■*■■< ■♦^ i fliould have three Patrick's, one of Auvergne, another of Ireland, and a third of Nola! The Antiquities of Glaftonbury record three Patrick's, one of Auvergne, another Archbifhop of Ireland, and a third an Abbat. The laft, according to a Martyrology cited by Ulher, went on the mifTion to Ireland, A. D. 850, but was unfuccefsful ; he returned and died at Glaftonbury. If all that is now advanced be not a fardel of monkifh fictions, which it certainly is, the laft Patrick was the man who was beatified by the bigotted Anglo-Saxons, for his endeavours to bring the Irllh to a conformity with the Romifli Church. Camden remarks, " that as for Patrick's miracles 1 verily think that fabulous writers in fucceeding ages ampli- fied them and forged others, yea and might in that ignorant and credulous age affix upon him thofe of St. Patrick of Bulgaria." This is fairly giving up the le- gend of St. Patrick as a fiftion. I know nothing of Patrick of Bulgaria, but the Bulgarian Prince, Boger, and his people received Chriftianity, A. D. 845. So that every circumftance and inquiry feem to point out the 9th century as the precife time when a Patron Saint was beftowed on Ireland. St. Auguftine, fpeaking of the paffions of Fruduofius and Eulogius, (66) obferves, •' we are taught but only to worfhip God : for we ought not to be (6y) fuch as the Pagans are, whom v.'e lament upon that very account, becaufe they worfhip dead men." In another (68) place he declares, even Angels are not to be adored, and that they would be highly difpleafed at being worfhipped. With fuch fentiments as thefe, and they were thofe of the age afcribbd to St. Patrick, can we be furprifed at Dodor Ryves denying the exiftence of a Saint, whofe hiftory and miracles out- rage credibility ? Not one folid argument can be adduced from Calendars, Martyro- logies or Irifh Hagiography, that fuch a perfon lived in the 5th century ; but there are numberlefs ones drawn from the filence of writers in the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th centuries, as well as dired and pofitive proofs of the docflrine and difcipline of the Irifh church being different from the Roman which he taught. Is it not then to be hoped and earneftly wifhed, from this impartial evidence and the authorities on which it is founded being thus fairly laid before the public, that no fuch prayers as the following may be hereafter addreffed to him or others deified by wretched mor- tals ? *' O God, (69) who vouchfafed to fend St. Patrick, a ConfefTor and Bifhop, to preach thy glory to Gentiles, grant to thofe begotten by him through thy Gofpel in Jefus (66) Scrm. loi. dc Divcrfis. (67) Ncque enim talcs cffe dcbemut qtiale«pagano«dolcmus, & quidem illl mortuos homines colunt. Auguft, fupra. (68) Tunc tibi irafcitur Aiigclus, quando ipfum colore volucris. Auguft. in I'falni. j)6. (6j) OITk-. prop. S. Hibernix, in fcfto S. I'airic. p. 80, A. D. 1769. AND OF SAINT PATRICK. 69 ■ <% -4 ■< * ■<■< ■* ■< ■< < ■i-< ■< ■4"4"< ■<•«•■< ■<■■<■<■■< ■< ■<■•< ■< .<-<■.<-<-< ■<•■< •< ■< •< •< •< •<+>■ >■■>->.>.■>■.>■■>.>..>..] ••>■>■>->..>■>.■>•>•>.■>.>->.. Jefus Chrift, that remaining unmoveably in the doftrine which he delivered, we may be able through him to fulfil what thou commandefl: !" Nor this. (70) " Increafe in us, O Lord, our belief of a refurredlon, thou who worked miracles by the re- liques of thy Saints, Patrick, Bridget and Columba, and make us partakers of im- mortal glory, of which we adore the pledges in their aflies !" Such addreffes to the Almighty and through fuch mediators are profane and (hock, ing mockeries. Where, it may be aflced, is the dodrine delivered by St. Patrick to be found ? Certainly not in the Praftice of the ancient Irifli church. Columba and his Culdees, as I before fhewed, differed widely in religious opinions from the Ro- manifts, and yet he is joined with St. Patrick as if he held the fame belief. St. Bridget is an imaginary Saint like Patrick. The Roman Catholics of Ireland are a liberal and enlightened people, nor is it poffible they will be longer amufed with fic- titious legends, or pay their adoration to ideal perfonages. The night of igno- rance and fuperftition is paffed, and with it the ruftic and undifcerning piety of dark ages. A fcriptural, rational and manly religion is alone calculated for their prefent improvements in fcience and manners : this alone will eftablifh an empire in the heart of every thinking and well difpofed man, which no revolution will be able to fliake. Praterita •veniam dabit ignorantia culpa, (70) OIEc. prop, fupra. d« Invent, SS. Patric. Brigid. & Colnmb. p. itS. ANECDOTES ( 7° ) %#•' '•»»•' •*!• '»«• •<#• '<»• '*•• '/••' **** '<•* •<•» '••• '#•* '*»* '•«* '••* **•' '*•• '•»' '*»* •*«• *<«• •<»« *»»» ••(»* '•*»•' '•«»•"'*«•* ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. WHEN mankind, in the middle ages, deferted the fimple. Intelligible and holy Religion revealed m the infpired writings, and adopted a compound, pagan and fuperflitious polytheifm : when the merits of a redeeming Saviour were thought infufficient without the mediatorial aid of deified mortals to procure falva- tlon, very little couldbe urged In extenuation of fo ominous a dereliftion of chrif- tian principles. But that fomething mufl unavoidably be conceded to human Infir- mity and to converts, Ignorant, barbarous, and emerging from Idolatry, to long habits and ftrong prepofTeffions, Is the voice of reafon, fandloned by facred hiftory. This is a very different cafe from the former : the one was a vicious pruriency, arlfing from too pi-ofperous a ftate of chriftianlty ; the other could not be remedied without the interpofition of miraculous powers. Our firfl miffioners therefore did as little violence as poffible, to the prejudices of our Heathen anceflors, in ellablifliing the Gofpel among them, and by judicious condefcenfions gained their affeftions and attention. It muft be confeffed, they too frequently yielded more than could be juftified : perhaps the cloud that obfcured Chriitianlty In thofe ages prevented their feeing the criminality and danger of fuch a conduct : or they might Imagine they were not injuring Its effentlals, when they admitted fome pagan praftlces as tempo- rary expedients. Let this matter be as It may, when the firfl: preachers of the Gofpel began their labours In this Ifle, they found an heathen Hierarchy every where exercifing their offices In groves, caves, and ftone-clrcles ; at fingle upright pillars, or amid the gloom of ponderous trlHthons. Exifl.ing monuments authenticate this faft, and this fa£l and fimilar ones open new profpefts of our Antiquities, Interefl;- ing, Inft;rudivc and curious. The following, connefted with my fubjeft, may ferve as a fpecimen ; for on this and every other fubjeft much remains for the ingenuity and erudition of others. The firfl chriflian miffioners fucceeding the Druids, confecrated the circuit of the grove anew to religion, and called It Doire, In Irifli the Oak. Thus Columba (i) founded (i) Atchdal'j Monan. Ilib. p. 84. ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. 71 founded in the 6th century, two celebrated monafleries, one in the oaken grove iu the town of Doire, after corrupted to Derry : the other at Doire-magh, or Burrow, the field of oaks, in the King's county. The names of other chriftian churches, as Doire-macaidecain, Doire-mella, Doire-more, Dar-inis, Dar-neagh, Dore-Arda, Dore-Bruchais, Dore-Chaochain, Dore-Chuifcrigh, Dorcrdunchon, have the fame origin. Olivers were named Kil-doire, Kil-derry, kc. literally the oaken church. Kil at firfl: was in Irifh a grave ; but when relicks were introduced, then it expreffed the tomb of the particular Saint, and in this our'miffioners adapted themfelves to the Druidic praftice, and this Kil or tomb fucceeded the — Secretum illud — that holy fpot, the objeO: of veneration. Hence Kildare, Kilabban, Kilbrige, Kilcatain j St. Alban's, St. Bridget's and St. Catain's churches. Though Scythifm had polluted the Celtic ritual, and abolifhed moft of Its purer pradices, it yet retained the greatefl; refpefl: for trees ; they identified (2) them with their deities, and appropriated them to facred and civil purpofes. The adt of cut- .ting or injuring them, incurred a fevere (3) penalty. Some (4) archers, who in the 12th century dcftroyed the facred timber in the church-yard of Finglas near Dublin, were fuppofed to have died of an uncommon peftilence. Thus our firit preachers endeavoured to fupplant the Druids and their grove-worlhip by eredting chriftian edifices in oaken groves. A procedure more effectual than the (5) decrees of coun- cils. The holinefs of Caves was as firmly believed as that of Groves. In thefe the Druids (6) performed divine offices and taught their difciples. Of thefe the Chrif- tian miffioners foon difpofleffed them. At Rofcarbury are fome of thefe (7) ancient Caves, and there St. Fachnan very early founded a See and literary feminary. At (8) Lifmore is a Druidic Cave, and there was alfo a celebrated fchool and Cathedral; and near the latter was the refidence of an Anachoret from the remotefl time. He was the genuine fucceflbr of the Druidic Semnotheift. This name is given by (9) Diogenes Laertius to our Druidic afcetics. Neither Cafaubon or Menage fatis- < faftorily (j) Arborem illam excidi oportere, quia effet dsmoni dedicata, S. Sev. vie. S. Martin, p. 310. Mallet, fup. V. s p. 57. Barthol. fup. p. xao. (3) Taxus SaniSli libram vaiet. Leg. Wall. p. zfia. The Editor's note is: Sanflo alicui dedicata Dubricio, Tclao, quales apud Wallus in coeniiterio ctiamnum, (A. D. 1730) frequcntes vifuntur. (4) Ea tempeftate (about 1170) fagittarii apud t'iiiglas in arbores Samitoruni manibus per coenieterium plantaUi ciuxr- mlter defevicntes, fingulari pefte confumpti. Gir. Camb. p. p. 11 76. (5) Liiidenborg. p. 1557. Cone. Nann. c. i. Burchard. 1. 10. c. i. (6) Mel. 1 3. c. 3. (7) Smith's Cork, V. i. p. 267. (8) Smith's V.'aterford, p. m. (9) In proem. Edit. Menagii. Dickiiilun, Dcip. I'lian. p. 186. Sched. de DisGerm. p. 423. Bruker. T. i. p. 3:0, 72 ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. -t .4 ■< < ■< ■< .< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< < -< .< ■< ■<■< -<■<■< ■< ■< ■< < ■< ■' 1 ■< ■< •< ■< ■<•«■<+>■'>■■>■■>• >■■>■■>•■>•■>■>-: fadorily explain this word, and others are as unfuccefsful. Semnotheus feems to have been a folitary (lo) religionifl:, who in a fecret and devious cell gave himfelf up to the contemplation of heavenly things. The Druids were indebted to their abftradion from the world (clam & diu, are Mela's woras) for the refpeft and reve- rence in which they were held, and fo were the Monks, who fucceeded them. The veneration for the one was eafily transferred to the other. The Druids called their retreats, (ii) Cluain, which the Monks exprefled by an equivalent word, Difert from the Latin Difertuni. We have between feventy and eighty Cluains, Clones and Cloynes in Colgan and Archdall, and a great number of Diferts, both pre- fixed to the names of churches ; at once pointing out and preferving to this day their origin. A very remarkable inftance occurs in France to corroborate what has been ad- vanced. Felibien, (12) fpeaking of the Caves under the church of Chartres, fays: Les grottes qui font fous cette eglife, & qu'on pretend avoir efte commencees dans les temps que les Druydes y dedicerent un autel a une vierge qui devoit en- fanter, ont prefque autant d'efpace que I'eglife haute, &c. The grand affembly of the Gaulifh and Britifli Druids, according to Ceefar, was held " jn finibus (13) Car- nutum," probably at this very place, and over thefe Caves a Chriftian church was ereded. In the compound religion, (as heretofore explained) profeffed by the Druids, ftone pillars, circles, and trilithons were temples : no ftronger inftance can be given of the Chriftian coming diredly into the place of the Pagan clergy than that .of St. Iltut. In Brecknockfhire is Ty Ilhtud, or St. Iltut's cell. This was compofed of three upright ftones and an impoft, forming an oblong fquare of eight feet by. four, and as many high. Here the Saint led an eremetic life. In this cell are nine different forts of crofles, and yet the Editor of Camden very truly obferves, that notwithflanding thefe the cell was made in the time of paganifm, and originally flood in a ftone circle. His other facred ftrudure at Llan Iltut or Llantwit in Gla- morganfliire, as the word (15) Llan imports, ftood within a Druidic grove. The Scythic here added tothe Celtic fuperftition ftone-pyramids, which are in the church- yard, and were after converted into crofles. Here alfo St. Iltut had a ( 1 6) famed fchool (10) Serreta & inacccffa loca vocant Scmna, Rhodog. p. 316. Suid. in 'Sifcnm, Philo fays : ■««(» •<« iixn/ix r.fna ftdcXiirai ffi[iviiov, Dc vie. tbcor. (11) O'Brien in voce. (11) Recucil hiftoriq. p. 189, (1.?) In fniibus Carnutum, confidunt loco conftcrato. Cxi. 1. 6. (I4) C;imdeii in loco. (1^) Rowland's Mon. Ami >■■> >■>>■>-->■■>■ >.>->>->->.>. y..y..y. y. >. >..>.,>.,>..>.>..>..>..>. >.>..>.>. >..>..>.>.>>.» A curious inftance of the union of the Scythic and Druidic rituals occurs in (24) Holftein ; confirming and explaining what has been advanced. " At a place, called the Bride's-field, is a hill furrounded by a grove of oaks, and on it a cave or room made up of five uprights, and fome fmaller (tones, and on them is laid an impoft of great length and thicknefs ; the lower part of which is fmoother than the top, which in its middle has an excavation to ferve as a chanel. The length of the room is feven feet, and its height three and an half. This is evidently our Cromleach. It is plain, fays the writer, that this was formerly a place of worlhip and facrifice, for Wormius teaches us, fuch were the Altars of the Cimbri and northern people. How untruly then does Casfar (25) fay, that the Germans had neither Druids or facriiices, when great numbers of places, fimilar to this now mentioned, occur every where at this day. So that Glareanus, in his notes, had good reafon to cor- reft and charge him with negligence.'* But, continues our author, you will inquire perhaps, what fort of gentile fuper- flition was praflifed in this grove? If any inference can be drawn from the name, Bride's-lield, it is not unlikely but that the newly married reforted there with their offerings, vows and fupplications for future happinefs : for as Servius on Virgil ob- ferves : no marriage, or ploughing of ground was undertaken until the facrifices were firfl: offered. So great-was the veneration for thefe groves, that no one vifited them without leaving a prefent. — Thus far this author, and in other parts of the lafl cited work, Leibnitz, Sperling, and other German antiquaries clearly perceive the difference between Celtic and Scythic praftices, as well as the mixture of both in many exifting monuments. In the early ages of Chriftianity, churches were not common, the Bifhop and Clergy refided together in Cathedra, which was the epifcopal fee, and where after- wards a cathedral church was conltrufled. This was founded on the ruins of fome celebrated pagan temple, as that (26) of Kil-dare in a Druidic grove, that of Derry is the fame, thofe of Rofcarbury and Lifmore near Druidic caves and Cloghar in a Druidic ffone-circlc. The cafe was the fame with every ancient fee in Ireland, but time (14) Nov. liter, maris Baldci. Sep. 1699, p. 287, 288. (15) Quam falfo igitur ufed in facrificing to Thar. Other indances of Scythic monuments in Druidic grovca may be fccn in this work. (16) llanmcr, from the legend, fays : " Bridget huilded a Cell for her abode under a goodly fairc okc, which afttf- waids grew to be a wonafteric of virgins, called Cylldara, in Latin, cclla quercus." Sup. p. 4^. !' 1 r. iMviiS OM fi .s'Td,'^''^ moss at J^ .1, i; \ j.j, •:•> , ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. y^ I •< •<■■<■< ■•< ■< ■<■<■< ■< ■< < < ■< ■< < ■< •<■■< ■<-< •< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■<-^ < ■< ■< ■' time has deprived us of documents to authenticate it. The converts having no (27J fixed chapels or paftors, the latter were fent to inflruft them occafionally, and the place of meeting was always where fuch aflemblies were ufually held in times of paganilm, at upright pyramidal ftones or In ftone-circles. Thefe upright ftones were, by an eafy operation of carving a (28) crofs on them, changed from an hea- then to a chriflian fymbol ; and they ferved for churches among the Saxons in 740, as a (29) Britifii miflioner informs us, and among the Irifli, as is evident from what has been related. We have in this ifland an infinite variety of crofTes, one' of great rudenefs, and another elegantly defigned and executed I fliall now lay before the reader. The firft here given is the (haft of a crofs at old Kilcullen, In the county of Kildare. The ftyle is grotefque and very uncommon In this kingdom, and in a great meafure was confined to the Danilh ages. The nine figures in three compartments, fimilarly dreffed, are ecclefiaftics. They have bonnets, tunics and trowfers, and the fafliion of their beards is fingular. In another compartment a clergyman holds the crofier and part of the epifcopal garments of a prelate who lies dead. The figures In the other compartments are grotefque. On comparing them with thofe at Adderbury church, at Grymbald's crypt, and particularly with the carved ftones in Rosfliire, at Neig, and with others given by the ingenious Mr. Cordiner in his remarkable ruins in Scotland, all of them the work of the Danifh ages, a perfeft refemblance of ftyle will be found between them. I therefore conjedure they are coeval or nearly fo with the round Towe at Kilcullen, and that thefe figures were carved* about the loth century. The other ornamented crofs is at (30) Clonmacnois. The ftone is fifteen feet high, and ftands near the weftern door of TeampuU Mac Diarmuld. Over the Northern door of this church are three figures : the middle St. Patrick in pontifica- libus, the other two St. Francis and St. Dominic In the habits of their Orders. Below thefe are portraits of the fame three Saints and Odo, and on the fillet is this infcrlption : " Dous Odo Decanus Cluanm. fierit" fecit." Mafter Odo, Dean of Clonmacnois caufed this to be made. This infcrlption refers to Dean Odo's re-edi- fying the church, and muft have been about the year 1280, wh-^n the Dominicans- and (17) Stillingfleet's ecc. cafes, paff. (i8) Campbell's polit. Survey, fup. p. 591. Pennant's Tour in Scotland. (29) Sandia crucis Ggnum ad commodam divin.x or.itionis feJulitateirt fok-iit habere. Percg. WllUbal. apiid Cani?. Antiq. Leifl. T. 4. p. i86. Ridley's view of the Civ. and Ecc. Law. p. 177. (30) Ware's Bilhops, in Clonmacnuis. An erroneous account of thcfc remains is given in the laft edition of Cainden. ia King's County, •jC ANECDOTES OF EARLY aiRISTTANITY IN IRELAND. ;..<..<. .<..<4,>-. >..>.>..>.>-.>.->.>>>. > > > >>>->>>.'>• ^-^^ >->.»>->>->' > > > > > 1 and (31) Francifcans were fettled here and held in the higheft efteem, as new Or- ders of extraordinary holinefs. The figures on this Crofs are commemorative of St, Kiaran and this laudable aft of the Dean. Its eaftern fide, like the others, is di- vided into compartments. Its center, or head and arms, exhibit St. Kiaran at full lencrth, being the Patron of Clonmacnois. In one hand he holds an hammer, and in the other a mallet, expreffing his defcent, his father being a Carpenter. Near him are three men and a dog dancing, and in the arms are eight men more, and above the Saint is the portrait of Dean Odo. The men are the artificers employed by Odo, who fliow their joy for the honour done to their patron. On the fhaft are two men, one ftripping the other of his old garments, alluding to the new repairs. Under thefe are two foldiers, with their fwords ready to defend the church and re- ligion. Next are Adam and Eve and the tree of life, and beneath an imperfeft Irifh infcription. On the pedeftal are equeftrian and chariot fports. On the North fide is a pauper carrying a child, indicating the Chrillian virtue. Charity. Below thefe a fhepherd plays on his pipe, and under him is an ecclefiaftic fitting in a chair, holding a teacher's ferula, on the top of which is an owl, the fymbol of Wifdom, and its end refls on a beaft, denoting Ignorance. The other fides are finely adorned with lozenge net-work, nebule mouldings, rofes and flowers. But the accommodating fpirit of our miflioners is no where more apparent that at Kildare, where they eflablifhed a female monkifli order in the place of the heathen Druideffes, who preferved from the remoteft ages the inextinguilhable fire. This (32) element was adored by the Celtes and Scythians, and by the Irifli, as is well known from their celebrated Fefl;ival of (33) Bel-tein. AH fires (34) with us were to be extinguiflied until this was lighted. We are not told how this holy flame was excited in Ireland*, but the manner differed in Scotland and Scandinavia. In the laft, flints were ufed, and they are found about all the old Altars {i^') there. In Scotland they rubbed i^iG) planks together till they blazed. This fire was kept from (;l) Burke. Hib. Dominic, c. %. (jj) Galli, ViriUomaro rcgf, Romans arma Vulcano promiforant, Flor. I. 2, c. 4. Gentilis rcligio eft, five qiils fo- Icm, lunam, igncm culucrit. Leg. Canut. apuJ Liudcnljroij. p. M7j- tiptlnuii. Cone. p. .149 — joo, ct Ckplt. ICaroli. paflim. {^ll) Macplicrfon'i IntroJ. p. 172. (j4) Non accciiJcrctur ncc viJactur ignis donee prius in TJiemoria rogus acccnJerctur : Uflcr. p. 849, Wallh's prof- pea, p. 430. (35) Rarum eft fi hie ignibus cxcuticndis aptos filiees oou iuvciiias. Worm. Mon. Dan. p. 7. (j6j Miitia'sWcasrulflauds, p. 113. ^-^ rr ^ f^ o V ■A ^ :??orcrH do>(])r of temipilie m'^bermiot ^t c]lo:^j^lac:s'oij ^MM/j/MJcn^JPo"/^"^^ y//rd^^>'^'^<' ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. ^y from fcattering by (:?7) iron curbs and was perpetual. Altars, fays the Edda, were made and covered with iron, in which was kept the extinguifhable fire. Ceefar and Taciuis are full on the prediclive and facred qualities of the German women ; Vellcda, a Druidefs, was long looked up to by them as a deity. The Northerns (38) called them Alirunse, and in (39) Irifh Alarunaighe is the wife man acquainted with fecrets. Keyfler, in the work lafl cited, has colleded fome curious particulars refpecling thefe women : they wore a particular drefs and we may readily fuppofe were the predeceffors of the Nuns at Kildare. St. Brigit, we are told, planted the latter there, and entrufled to their care the holy fire. This, as the le- gend informs us, though conftantly fupplied with' fuel yet (40) never increafed ia aflies. The fire was furrounded with a wattled orbicular fence, within which no male prefumed to enter. To keep this fire free from human pollution, it was never to be (41) blown with the mouth, but with Vans or Bellows. The parallel is too exact to leave any doubt of the origin of this holy fire. The ruins of a building- are at prefent fliown at Kildare, and called the Fire-Houfe, where, it is faid, the facred flame was preferved ; but in this inftance, I believe tradition erroneous, for from the foregoing account it would have been a profanation of the holy element to confine it within walls. It is now time to clofe thefe enquiries how curious and amufing foever : this fpecimen is fufficient to prove, that there are views of our An- tiquities hitherto unnoticed, and which merit (42) inveftigation. When Profper (43) in his corrupt and interpolated Chronicle tells us under the year 430, that Palladius was the firfl: Bifliop fent by Pope Celeftine to the believing Scots, he evidently allows there were chriftians in Ireland antecedent to that miffion. If fo, had they no bifhops ? They certainly had, for epifcopacy is coeval with chrif- tianity, but thefe bifhops did not acknowledge the fovereignty of the Roman pontiff, as we fhall foon fee j the believing Irifli were therefore thofe who were attached to X "to (37) Ferro Tupcrne invellitffi, ne I'gni, qui il)! perennis efle deliuit, laJeretur. Worm fupra. Bartliol. p. 173. (3S) Kcyflcr. Antiq. Septen. Selec. p. 371. Sched. p. 430. (39) O'Brien in voc. (40) Cum tanta lignoruin ftrues, tanto in tempore fit hie confumpta, nuntjuam tamen cinis excrevit. Gir. Cambrens. (41) Non oris flatu, fed fuUibus tantum et vtntilabris. Gir. Camb. fupra. (4^) I Willi i had room to enlarge, I can only hint that our oldeft and mod curious Antiquities may be thus explained. At Innis Murray is a (lone pillar, formerly an eminent deity and greatly venerated, and clofe to it Druidic cells. The chriftian Monks furrounded the whole with a wall, and built chapels contiguous to them. See Camden in Sligo, laft cdi. tion, and plate 45. Fig. 13 — r4, (43) Hammond's Vind. of Epifcopacy, p. i6o. Bafnage, ad CanU. Antiq. Lc(!t. V. 1. p. 25*. Uffcr. p. 799. C.tve. Ilia. Lit. p. 248. Vofs. de Hift, Lat. p. iij. 78 ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. ;..< .<-< .<..<..<..<.^-.«.(.y. >..>.>..>..>..>■>.>.>. >.>..>..>.>..>. >.->..>..>.>..>.,>.,>. >..>.->..». ^.>..>. >.>.».*. >r>.^. >..| to the papal fee, for the diffident Irifli had abundance of bifhops among them. What was the fuccefs of Palladius in Ireland ? It is briefly this, as recorded by Uflier. He arrives in Ireland with four affociates, bringing with him the books of the old and new teftament, the reliques of the apoRles Peter and Paul and others : he erefts three wooden churches ; is unfuccefsful, withdraws to Scotland, and there dies. Why were his labours to fo little eftcd and his ftay fo fhort ? Nennius dryly obferves, that no man can receive any thing upon earth, unlefs it be given him from heaven. Probus remarks the Irifli were wild and barbarous, and would not receive the doctrine of Palladius. Joceline fays, becaufe they would not believe his preaching but mod obftlnately oppofed him, he departed their country. Thefe are filly evafions of the truth : Palladius was an intruder into a church which was complete and independent ; it would not liften to his foreign commlffion, or obey an extra-national jurifdltbion, and therefore it (44) rejedled the Pope and his dele- gate, and this is the tenour of our ecclefiaftlcal hiitory to the i zth century. It has before been feen what little neceffity there was for the Pope to fend miffioners to Ireland, where a regular hierarchy had been long fettled. The neceffity was jull the fame for fending Auftin to England, where was a numerous and learned clergy, and fo refpedable as to occupy feats in all the continental councils in the 5th century. This clergy would, after the fird fury of conquell: had fubfided, have eafily con- verted the Anglo-Saxons, but not fubjefted them to papal fupremacy. Hence the uniform language of Romifli writers in every age is, to call th:;t people bar- barous and that nation pagan v/hlch did not implicitly yield to their lull of wealth and power. Thus Blfliop Laurence, inBede tells us. Pope Gregory fent him and Auftin to preach the Gofpel in Britain, as if it never before had there been heard, whereas the latter met feven Britifh Bifliops who nobly oppofed him. In like manner Pope Adrian commiffioned Henry II. to enlarge the bounds of the church, and plant the faith In Ireland, when it had already been evangelized for eight hundred years. The faith to be planted was (45J blind fubmlffion to Rome, and the annual payment of Peter's pence. Until the emiflaries of Rome began to tamper with our ecclefiaftics, very little Is recorded of our church-policy : the few hints fcattcred in authors of various ages, and ( !4) .\n old writer aflures us he was put to death by the pagan Scots of Albany, Ufler. p. 814. It is likely lie fuffereij in his zeal for Runic. , . (45) Ad fubdcndum ilium populum Icgibus, et vitiorum planiarla inde cxtirpindi ct dc fingulis doniibus annuam uniut denarii B. iVtro foWcrepcuConem. Ufler. Syllog. p. no. Vciy rtniaikublc words to fliow tlie chriUiaiiity ol tl atage. ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. 79 and here collected, evince a fcheme very different from the Roman and nearly ap- proaching that of the orientaL But no plan could be devifed that would not in fome meafure be modified by the political conflitufion and municipal laws of each country, and this was particularly fo in Ireland. This ifland in the 6th century was divided into four provinces, over each of which a Bifliop, as Metropolitan but with- out any fuch title, prefided. Thus Adamnan in his life of Columba mentions Co- lumbanus as (46) Bifliop of Leinfter, and in the year 1096, Ferdomnach was Bifliop of (47) the fame. Not a word of Armagh, its Bifliop or primacy appears in this large work of Adamnan, which is the more extraordinary, as he was a powerful in- ftrument in perverting the Irifli from their original faith to that of Rome. " He en- 'deavoured, fays Bede, to bring his own people who were in the Ifle of Hy, or who were fubjecEl to that monaflery, into the way of truth, which he had learned and em- b;-aced with all his heart, but could not prevail. Not fucceeding with the Albanian clergy he failed over into Ireland, and there preaching, modefl:ly declared the legal time of Eaflier-, reduced many of them and almofl: all who were exempt from the do- minion of Hy to the catholic unity. Returning to Hy after celebrating the catholic Eaflier in Ireland, and mofl: earnefl:ly .recommending it to his Monks, yet without being able to prevail, he departed this life." Would a man, fo much in earnefl as Bede here reprefents Adamnan to have been, omit to urge the conduft of St. Patrick and his fucceflbrs at Armagh fu oppofite to that of the heretical Irifli ? Or would Bede himfelf have fo flightly paffed over this matter when reciting the merits of Adamnan, when both of then dwell on the obfcure adions of obfcufe Irifli Monks folely from their devotion to the Roman fee ? It is abfolutely aflerting meridional light to be noc- turnal darknefs to maintain the exiflience, million or primacy of St. Patrick : nor is it lefs incredible and abfurd to afiirm Armagh was the head of the Irifli Church. Where is the evidenqe ? In monkifli legends of late invention and fabrication, which no one believes. In the contefl; between Talbot and Mac Mahon before referred to, the latter in his very fivfl; page, tells us from thefe fabu'ious chronicles, that an angel ordered St. Patrick to betake himfelf to Armagh, and there build a cathedral church: that the fame angelic monitor direfted him to Rome, and there pointed out what reliques he fliould procure and carry back : that he felected a cloih ftained with the blood of Chvifl:, part of the Virgin's hair, the reliques of Peter, Paul, Stephen, Laurence, and others. In virtue of thcfe reliques, Armagh became (46) Vit. SaniSl. Scotix, a rinkerton. p. 167. (47) Ufier. Sjrllog. p. 9j.. •8o ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. ,..<..< .< .< ■<■<■<>< .« .<--<-.< .<..<..<.< .< .<-.< .< -< -< ■< .< -< -<■<■■<■< ■«■<■< -<■■<< ■<-<+>■>■•>■>■ ) • ■>..>■■>■>.>■>■>■■>■>■■>■>■■*. 1 became the Metropolitan church. " The (48) prime fee of Ireland is faid to be at Armagh in honour of the bleffed Patrick and other national Saints, whofe facred reliques reft there." Here an intelligent writer and good fcholar knew nothing of Armagh but from report. The adoration (49) of reliques, gave rife to facred ftruc- tures for their reception, and in Ireland to our cryptical chapels : thefe were the works of the Oflnien in the 9th century, after their converfion to chriftianity. At this very time the name of St. Patrick hrft appeared, and at this time the Oftmen were in pofleffion of Ireland and of Armagh in (50) particular, and now his reliques ■were placed there. Thefe fads and dates moft exaftly agree, and therefore I con- jecture, and I think on good grounds, that the chriftian Oftmen who feized the old (51) Culdean Abbey at Armagh, in imitation of others of that age, procured re- liques and fixt on St. Patrick as their owner, then had a flaming legend compofed, fetting forth the wonderful life, actions, and miracles of the new Saint. To turn this tale to fome profitable account the law of St. Patrick was added and firft promulgated in Munfter in the fame (52) century ; which law was the (53) Caane Phadruig, or penfion claimed by the prelates of Armagh by metropolitical right as fucceflbrs of St. Patrick. The religious tenets of the Oftmen were different from thofe of the Irifli, fo that we need not be furprifed at the deftrudion of our churches and clergy by thefe femi-pagans. To confirm what is ad- ranced, we have no authentic account of the primacy of Armagh before 11 22, when the Clergy and Citizens of Dublin tell Ralph, Archbifliop of Canterbury, that the Bifhop, who (54) refided at Armagh, harboured the greateft refentment and indignation againft them for fending to him Gregory to be confecrated. A new proof this of the attachment of the Irifli Oftmen to the reHgion of their Norman brethren. As for Lanfranc's letter toDomnald, Bifliop of Ireland, in the Collection laft cited, Ufher confelfes it is not in Lanfranc's genuine epiftles, but in the fpurious works of that infamous forger, Ifidore Mercator, another broacher of novelties in the 9th century. By the canons of the (55) Greek church in the 3d century, every province had a prime bilhop invefted with and exercifing metropolitical power. With us they changed (48) Ardcmachis clTc; dicitur prima fcJcsHlbernii, propter honorem B. Patricii alquc aliorum inJIgcnarum Saiidloruia, cjuorum ibidem facra: rcliquix rcijuicfcuiu. Guil. Ncubrig. 1, 3. c. 9. (49) Hofpinian. dc Icniplis, p. 37. (50) War.-ti Difquif. p. 126. (51) Archdall's Mon. Hib. p. 19. (51} Ware's Billiops, p. 44. (j ) Juf. Primal. Armac. p. 166. (54) Maximc illc cpifcopuft qui habitat Ardimach.x, UITtT. Syllog. p, lOO. (ij) L'an. Afoll, c, jj. Julinfon in loco. ANECD01ES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. IS r (^6) changed and multiplied bifliops at pleafure, and not contented with placing a bifiiop ove,r a fee, almofl: every church had its bifhop. Anfelm complains, {^y) that our bifhops were every where eleded, and ordained without a title and by but one bidiop inftead of three. The number of bilhops in the early Irifh church was prodigious, confidering the extent of the Ifle. I fhall fir ft eftablifli the fact, and next endeavour to account for it. No objefliion can be made to what St. Bernard and Anfelm deliver on this head, but the truth of it does not depend on their teftimony alone. Virgil and feven Irifli bifliops emigrated to (58) Germany together in the middle of the 8th century. In the 7th they fwarmed in Britain, as may be feen in Bede : in that kingdom not three could be found to ordain Wilfrid, a Romanift, all the reft being of Irifli confecration, communion and almoft natives of our Ifle. Ill 670, Theodore Archbiihop of Canterbury decreed that they who were confe- crated by Irifti or Britifli bifliops, fhould be confirmed anew by a Catholic one. The 5th canon of the council of Cealc-hythe in 816, requires " that none of Irifli extraftion be permitted to ufurp to himfelf the facred miniftry in any one's diocefe, nor let it be allowed fuch an one to touch any thing which belongs to thofe of the holy order, aor to receive any thing from them in baptifm, or in the celebration of the mafs, or that they adminifter the eucharift to the people, becaufe we are not certain how, or by whom they were ordained. We know how it is enjoined in the canons, that no bifliop or prefljyter invade the parifli of another without the bifliop's confent, fo much the rather fliould we refufe to receive the facred niini- ftrations from other nations, where there is no fuch order as that of metropolitans, nor any regard paid to other ordefs." By metropolitans is here meant an hierarchy on the plan of the Roman, with its incident titles, which we had not. Can there be a more decifive argument againft the exiftence, mifllon and primacy of St. Pa. trick ; or a ftronger proof that his legend was not yet compofed, than this canon ? Would the Anglo-Saxon clergy, the devoted flaves of Rome, have thus abjured the fpiritual children of that fee, had our pretended Apoftle been a Roman miflioner ? they never would. This canon fliews they were acquainted with the conftitution of our church, the number and zeal of our bifliops and the danger that awaited them. The fears of the Saxons were communicated to the continental clergy. The 426. canon of Chalons in 813, forbids certain Iriflimen who gave themfelves out to be Y ' bifliops, (56) Mutabantur et nuiltiplicantur epifcopi pro liliitu Motropolitani, ita ut unus epifcopatus uno non effet contentus, fed Ciigulx pene ecctefix fingulos haberent cpifcopos. S. Bernard, vie. Malach, p. 19.17- (57) Epifcopos in terra vcftra paflim cligi, &■ fine ccrto epifcopatu* loco, S; »b uno epifcopo ordinari. Ufler. Sjrllog. p. 98. (58) UlTcr. Syllog. p. ji. 82 ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. ;-< ■<<<-<-<^.> >■>■>•■>■ >■->•■>■>■■>■ >•■>■>■>•>■•>• >■■>•■>•>■ >■ >">■■>■>■ >■ *■■> > *• >■ V ►■> >■ y >■ > >■• bifliops, to ordain priefls or deacons without the confent of the ordinary. The fame year the council of Aix la Chapelle obferves, that in fome places there were Irifh who called themfelves (59) bifliops, and ordained many improper perfons,. without the confent of their Lords or of the Magiftrates. Thefe alarms could only be excited by the number of Irifh bifliops in every part of Europe in thefe ages. Though we have abundant proofs of this fa£l in foreign literary memorials, I know of but one domeftic document which confirms it and clearly explains to us the na- ture of our ancient epifcopacy. This very curious and authentic record is preferved in Wilkins's councils, and is thus: " A. D. 12 16. Conftitutions made in the cathedral church of St. Peter and St. Paul of Newtown near Athunry by Simon Rochfort, by the Grace of God, BIfhop of Meath. Cardinal Paparo, Legate of the fovereign Pontiff, Eugenius III. having direfted in the third general council held at Kells in Meath, in the year 1152, among other falutary canons, that on the death of a Chorepifcopus or village-bifhop, or of bifliops who pofTefTed fniall fees in Ireland, Archiprefbyters or rural Deans fhould be appointed by the Diocefans to fucceed them, who fliould fuperintend the clergy and laity, in their refpeftive dif- tricts, and that each of their fees fhould be ereded into a rural deanery. We, in obedience to fuch regulation, do conflitute and appoint, that in the churches of Athunry, Kells, Slane, Skrine and Dunfliaghlin, being heretofore bifliop's fees in Meath, fliall hereafter be the heads of rural deaneries, with Archiprefbyters perfo- nally refident therein." Here we have a full and clear developement of the flate of our ancient hierarchy, and a confirmation of what has been delivered. Ireland was full of chorepifcopi, village or rural bifliops. In Meath were (60) Clonard, Duleek, Kells, Trim, Ardbraccan, Dunfliaghlin, Slane, Foure, Skrine, Mullingar, Loughfeedy, Athunry, Ardnurchor and Ballyloughort. In Dublin were Swords, Lufli, Finglas, Newcaftle, Tawney, Salmon-leap, or Leixlip, Bray, Wicklow, Ark- low, Ballymore, Clondalkin, Tallaght and O'Murthy, which included the rural deaneries of Caflledermot and Athy. Thefe were all rural deaneries, and of courfe rural Sees before the year 1152: however the tranfmutation of one into the other proceeded flowly, for by Bifhop Rochfort's conflitutions before, we find it was far from being completed in the •13th century. If the number of r'ural deaneries at their firfl; eredion and afterwards in confequence of Paparo's regulation could be difcovered from records in the Vatican or elfewhcrc, it would give 113 the number of our (59) UfTcr. Syllog. Tupra. Cone. Cabill. c. 43. Cyron and Coiiraki. apud Sarnclli. (60; Ware's biUiopj, p. 138. ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. !^ j •«■< < <<<•<■*< ■ ■•>■•>■■>■>■■> .>■] our rural fees. The rural deaneries in the common diocefan regifters are not cor- red, or I might eafily have adduced them. Our Bifhops, I fuppofe, might have amounted to above three hundred. Our ignorant (6i) legendary writers to account for this number had recourfe to the fable of St. Patrick's ordaining three hundred and fifty, or fixty five. There is not a circumftance In our ecclefiaflical polity more ftrongly indicative of an eaftern origin than that now related. For (62) Salmafius has evinced the apof- tolic prafllce to be, to place bilhops in every rural church, and in cities more than one. Hence the firfl: obtained the name of (63) Chorepifcopus. St. Bafil, in the 4th century had (64) fifty of thefe rural Bifhops in his diocefe, which was probably one for each church. By the ancient difcipline the extention of Chriftianity de- pended on their multiplication, for to them alone' the great offices of religion were (^6^) confined ; they alone could execute them," and they alone preached in the African church to the jth century. As the^epifcopal dignity was leflened in the public efleem by the number of village-Bifliops, their ordination was reftrained by the Antiochian, Ancyran and other canons ; in the Laodicean council their name was Q66') changed from Chorepifcopus to Periodeutes, or Vifitor-itinerant, he was to be a prieft and to have the infpeftion of a certain number of churches and clergymen : thus giving him fome diftindtion to fave appearances and prevent oppofition. The Archiprefbyier in the Roman church was nearly fuch an officer as the Periodeutes. About the time of the Norman (67) conqueft the Archiprelbyter was called a rural dean. At this period, an old writer informs ns, the (68) See of Canterbury had a Chorepifcopus, who dwelt in the church of St. Martin without Canterbury. On the arrival of Lanfranc he waf turned out, as we have heard the others were through- out England. As a municipal law, foon to be noticed, hindered the operation of the canons here ; and as no foreign power had as yet interfered, like the Anglo- Saxons and Normans in England, cither to compel us to fubmiffion or conformity to them, we continued to preferve that plan of epifcopacy delivered to us and fet- tled by our firfl preachers of the Goipel, and which at length was mofl reluttantly •relinquifned. The (61) Nennlu'. Colgan. fup. 432. (62) Apparat. di Primat. 54 — 55. (63) Non rxs ;;;»«; fed T«» ;ij«^«« cpifcopi. Hon regionum fed vicorum, Suicer. Thcf. ccc. in voc. yvfinrmtrn, (5.|) Greg. Naz. car. i. There were above 500 Sees in the fix African provinces. Bingham. B. 9. c. 8. Appendix. (65) Pcfid. vit. Augu.1. c. 8. Teitull. de haptis. c. 17. Cone. Arlet. c. 19. Leonis. Epift. yl. (■)(.) Can. Laod. 57. (67) Srillinyflcefs ecc. caf«. V. u fupra, (63] Ocr. Dorob. liift. pyntif, ecc. Csut. S4 ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. The oriental praftice of hereditary fucceffion \A'as firmly eftabliflied in the Irifti church ; St. Bernard, in his life of Malachy, thus complains of it. " A moil; per- nicious cuftom had gained ftrength by the diabolical ambition of fome men in power, who poffelled themfelves of bilhopricks by hereditary fucGeffion ; nor did they fuffer any to be put in election for them but fuch as were of their own tribe or family. And this kind of execrable fucceffion made no fmall progrefs : for fifteen genera- tions had pafled over in this mifchievous cuftom. And fo far had this wicked and adulterous generation confirmed itfelf in this untoward privilege, that although it fometimes happened, that clergymen of their family failing, yet Bifliops of It never failed. In fine, eight married men and not in orders, though men of learning, were predeceflbrs of Celfus in Armagh." To which I add, that Columba, founder of the celebrated Culdean monaftery of Hy, being of the (69) Tyrconnallian blood, the Abbots his fucceflbrs were of the fame race. The firft twenty feven bilhops of (70) Rofcarbury were of the family of St. Eiichnan, its firft prelate. Hereditary fucceffion became a fixt municipal law, and pervaded church and ftate. And hence the ftruggle in the fee of Armagh, to which Malachy O Morgair was appointed in 1 1 29, to the exclufion of the old family ; which was proving nearly fatal to Ma- lachy, and called forth the warm refentment of St. Bernard his friend. On the whole it may fafely be affirmed, that (71) every mother-church, and there were none others in early ages, had a bifhcp : that inferior toparchs and fmall towns, as Dub- lin confined to a few acres within its walls, erefted fees ; add to thefe the number generated, if I may fo fay, by the exercife of metropolitical power, altogether made fo many of the epifcopal order as would be, if not fo well authenticated, utterly incredible. When once a fee was formed, vanity and ambition perpetuated ir, nor -was any power, not even the papal able to diveft the Sept of the patronage of or to dillblve it. Thus after the confolidation of Glendaloch with Dublin in 1152 and 1179, the Tooles, the original proprietaries, ftill retained the title and prefentation to 1497. Our chorepifcopi or archiprelbyters were married, as the other clerical orders were to the 12th century: about that time the Romanifts called them (72) Corbes, an opprobrious name, as if they indulged in inceft and Icwdnefs, and to this St. Bernard refers, when he fays they were a wicked and adulterous genera- tion. Lanfranc, (69) Uffer. Prim. p. 6S9. Ogy(. vrnd. p. I34. O'Brien's Die. p. 360. (70) ArchJal! In loco. (71) Bingham givo one and fuggcfts other iiittanccs. B. IX. c. 8. ^. and § 6, whcie he ciics Ktnnct and Whaffon. (71) O'JJiici), ill Corla. See fome ridiculous etymologies of tlic name in Harris's Ware, p. aji. ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. 85 Lanfranc, in 1100, remonftrated with our Monarch Mortogh on fome defefts in our ecclefiaftical dicipline ; one was that bifliops were not canonically eleCled by the Metropolitan and his Biiliops, but by the Sept, for that is his meaning, as it is explained by St. Bernard, who tells us, none were permitted to be put in eleflion but one of the fame family. I'his was a confequence of hereditary fucceffion which • admitted no foreign interference. Though I know of no documents to prove how far our provincial bifhops carricjd their rights, I think it. likely they were commen- furate with thofe of our provincial Monarchs, of whofe family they aKvays were. If the life of Kenii^orn deferves credit, we have in it the ancient manner of eleiling and ordaining a bifliop among us. This faint lived in great abftinence, until (yo,) the King, Clergy, and people of Galloway in Scotland eleded him for their bifliop. Sending for a fingle bifltop out of Ireland, they caufed him to be confecrated after the cuftoni then ufual among tlie Britons and Irifii, which was to pour the facred chrifm on his head, with invocation of the holy fpirit, benediiStion and impofition of hands. Thefe aftswere primitive, except the chrifmation, which an (74) emi- nent Roman catholic writer afferts o have been no part of the office in the firft ages. So that we have the greatefl reafon to be on our guard when reading thefe lives of faints, they having been (75) newly dreffed up in the 12th century, by men devoted to Rome. Confecration by but one bifliop was common in the firfl ages of chriflianity, but after forbidden by the 4th Nicene canon. The many inftances already, and here- after to be produced, mufl: eftablifli the veracity of the opinion infifl:ed on in thefe pages, of our reception of the gofpel from eafl:ern miflionevs or their difciples. From what fource arcfe the revenues of our clergy is not eafy to difcover. St. Ber- nard and Giraldus Cambrenfis declare the Irifli did not pay tithes. If the faft was fo, and there are grounds to believe it, then the clergy were fupported by oblations, which for a long time they (76) received in lieu of tithes : thefe were fo large that Agobard obferves, " the devotion of perfons in the firfl ages was fo great, that there was no need to make laws or canons for the fupplies of churches, they being amply ^provided for by the liberality of the people." Included in oblations were firfl:-fruits, which were paid in the early ages of chriflianity : as to altarage, mortuary and obventions they feem to have been at length introduced into the Iriih as into other churches. The whole ecclefiaflical revenue to a late period v.as divided in z . four (73) Rex & Clefus reglonis Cambrenfis cum cxtcris chriftisnis, " licet pcrpauci enbrit." Pinktrton Yr;. i. Scot. p. 11%, Htre though there were very few chriflians they ytt would have a Biihop. <74) Hihert. ohferv. in pontif. graic. p. 386. (75) Boland a^i 17 Manli. fjfi) Tancjuam decimas ci {ruilibui. Cyprian, r.pift. 64. Chryfolloci. horn. 86. in Matt. PoiTid. vit. .4Bguft. e, ty 86 ANLCDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. (77) four parts ; one went to the bifliop, another to the clergy, a third to the poor, and a fourth fupported the fabric of the church and other ufes. This four-fold partition prevailed generally in Ireland, and exifts at this day in the diocefe of (78) Clonfert. Moll of our ancient fees were deambulatory, having neither Ca- thedrals, Deans or Chapters : fuch is Meath at prefent, and fuch is Kilmore, except the addition of a Dean .in 1458. Our pariflies had their beginning with •the fupprefllon of our chorepifcopal Sees in 11 52; as the annihilation of the latter was not ciTeded in the 13th century, as appears by Bifliop Rochfort's con- ftitutions before, the parochial divifion of diocefes was late before it was finally fettled. Whoever will take the trouble to examine the account of our ancient Sees and Bifliops in Harris's edition of Ware's Biftiops, will fee abundant reafon to be dif- fatisfied with it. ■ Theie writers obferve, in fpeaking of Meath, " that there are but flender memoirs remaining of the fucceflbrs of St. Finian in the See of Clonard until the arrival of the Englifli in Ireland." Now Meath was always the moft open, fertile and bell inhabited part of Ireland, and of courfe the people moft civilized j and Clonard was not only the oldeft See, being founded in 520, but continued an epifcopal church to 1152. Under thefe circumftances we might expect accurate ecclefiaftical records of the poflefiions and privileges of this church ; the names and fucceflion of its Bifhops, along with other interefting hiftorical notices : but as nothing of this fort has furvived the ruins of time, we may be certain a fimilar fate attended our other fees. Here then is a darknefs which no induftry, ingenuity or learning can ever enlighten. There was indeed the fhadow but not the reality of a civil and ecclefiaftical government in this ifle, but no public records relative to the adminiftration of either were kept, becaufe no rude people ever had fuch. When men in the prdgrefs of fociety have written laws and fubmit to them, then and not before public documents became neceflary and are preferved. Our Bre- hons, our Seanachies and a few Monkifti annals, of little authority, were almofl; our only vouchers for the hiftory and tranfadions of remote ages. Domeftic dif- fenfions and a petty warfare, not to mention foreign invafions, were perpetually extinguiftiing and creating our Sees. As their revenues were mean and their political confcquence nothing, they fliarcd the viciflitudes of civil affairs without particular obfervation. This concifely and truly was the exad fituation of our ancient bifhopricks, and the unavailing labours of Ware ?iiid' Harris evince it to have (7?) Stillingflcet, fup. p. i;i. (78) Ware's Bifliops, p. 619, ANECDOTES OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN IRELAND. 87 have been fo. Neither of them feems to have entered into the fpirit, or to have even a tolerable idea of our original epifcopacy : nor had Primate Ufher, for if they had, I can conceive no reafon why they fhould have concealed it from public view. It refleded not the. fmalleft difgrace on the firft preachers of chriflianity in Ireland to have promulgated fuch doftrines and eftablifhed fuch difcipline here as prevailed univerfally. To reduce the latter to its prefent ftandard was the work of many revolving centuries : I am neither ignorant of its defeats, or an apologift for its imperfeftions ; but imperfed and erroneous as it was, it vaftly furpaffed that fyftem which fucceeded it, and thofe flaves of intolerance and fuperflition who directed it. Of ( S8 ) *•••, .••'• «••'•, ,«•'•. ,•*•». ,•*'•*,»•*•'. «•**'. f''*'.,»***».,.'*'*.,i'"*» .**•••, t**'**iy*t«»**''», .•"*.,.'***., i'*'*. •'**'. .'**'. ••'*, ,»*'- **•# •••* »•'. ••'. »••. ••'* +++++++++++++++++++++♦+++++++++++++++++++++*+++++♦'> OF THE ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. MONACHISM, a faithful tranfcript from an (i) Egyptian original, was early cultivated in this ifle. " When Athanafius retreated from the fury of the Arians, in 347, he carried with him to Rome the praifes and inftitutions of the Egyptian Monks, and exhaufted his zeal and eloquence in proclaiming the cekflial felicity of the afcetic life. With its progrefs on the continent, I am but little con- cerned : it might be expeded that countries evangelized by Greek miffioners, would eagerly embrace a difcipline fo earneflly recommended by a Greek Father. Accord- ingly in Gaul we find it made fo rapid a progrefs, that in the year of Chrid 400, two thoufand monks from the vicinity of Tours attended the (2) funeral of Saint Martin. Egypt poured out her fwarms to preach a new dodlrine to the chridian world : they particularly fettled in the fmall ifle of (3) Lerins, on the fouthern coaft of Gaul, and from thence propagated their inftitutes over weftern Europe. There were monafteries among the Britons, wherein human learning was well underftood. At Glaftonbury the (4) Egyptian plan was followed. The BarT;orian monks adopted the rule (j) of St. Bafil, as did the (6) feminaries of Dubricius, Congel, and Co- lumba. The Abbe Mac Geoghegan thinks our rules were Oriental. " 11 y (7) a ap- parence que les moines d'lrlande s'etoient choifi des regies particulieres qu'ils avoient apporte'es du Levant des regies de S. Antoine, de S. Pachome ou de S. Bafile, ou peut-etre celies de ces fameux folitaires du mont Carmel ou de la Thebaide, ce qui n'efl. pas fans quelque vraifemblance." In the iafl; century it had been afferted, that all our antient Englifh monks were of the order of St. Equitius, Sir Robert Cot- ton, (1) Thii U proved by La Croze. Hift. du Chrillian, des Iiidcs. p. 43,1. The ingenious Mr. Gibbon did not confult this writer, who would have opened up the origin of monkery better than Helyot or Thoniafin. Roman Hift. c. 37. (2) ■ >•■>• >->■ *' >->->-i •■>■►■>->•♦■>- ton, Sir Henry Spelman, William Camden and John Selden were appealed to, who drew up a certificate, wherein they declared, that previous to the coming of Augufline in 597, the (8) Egyptian rule was only in ufe. As we and the Britons received our faith from the Eafl:, fo we did Monachifm. The latter muft have taken deep root in this ifle in the 5th, for it flouridied greatly in the 6th century in the perfons and monafteries of Columba, Congel and Carthag. In Cumineus's and Adamnan's (9) lives of the firfl: we in vain look for his monaf- tic rule, the names and fituations of his numerous foundations, the peculiarities which dilHnguilhed his from other Orders, and many other interefting particulars which would enable us to afcertain the ftate of monkery at this time. Inftead of thefe we are prefented in Adamnan's three books, with nothing but the common legendary and irreligious abfurdities. In the firft are Columba's prophecies, in the fecond his miracles, and in the third his angelical apparitions. If ever he writ a life of our Coenobiarch, it has been worked up by fome of the infamous forgers of fuch things in the (10) twelfth century, an era fruitful of fuch impoflures. The pre- fent has many internal proofs of being fuppofititious. He never mentions the fenti- ments of Columba or his Culdees on the points difputed between them and Rome, as Bede does, nor his dying command to his difciples to continue Quartadecimans. It is an heap of credulity and fuperftition. The oriental monks were divided into three clafTes, the Coenobites, Anachorets and Sarabaites. The firft conftituted a community, attended ftudy and fpiritual ex- ercifes, laboured for their fupport and were ruled by a prefident named Abbat. Imi- tating the pattern of the Jewifh difcipline, by which all fynagogues had (11) fchools, and in which our Redeemer difputed at twelve years of age, fo our Abbies or Monafteries were places of devotion and letters. Their heads, as among the Jews, were ftiled Abbats. Thus in Samuel it is afked. Who is their Abba or Father ? This the Targum of Jonathan interprets by, Who is their Doctor or Teacher ? Hence moft of our ancient Prelates are called (12) Abbats and Doctors. After a monk had proved his fmcerity, obedience, and prudence, he was permitted to be an Ana- choret, to abftraft himfelf from his fociety to a feparate cell and remote foHtude. Furfeus, fays Bede, had a brother named Ultan, vvho after a long monaflical proba- i A tion (8) Qni ^gyptioriini mores feciiti. Reyrer. Apoft. Bencilic. p. 2C2, (9) S, Scot, a Plhkcrton.'Lond. 1788. (10) Warlon i Hirt.of Englidi poetry. V. £. Sec. i. (11) SdJcn. de Sucaff. Hoonibcck, Mifc. Sac, p. j6o. ( .ij Ware's ll.itup>, faii. 9D ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACIIISM IN IRELAND. < < < < < < < < < '+> tion arrived at an (13) anachoretical life. Thefe hermits retreated to defert ifiands, wild and bleak mountains, and, as at Glendaloch, hollowed living rocks for cells. The fame of their aufterities and miracles attrafted numbers, villages were formed in improbable and unlikely places, and buildings and civility were promoted. The Sarabaites were, as to exterior, monks, but confined to no rules, nor attached to any community. They are noticed in our (14) Canons. If St. Patrick (15) lived at the time it is pretended, and if he founded monafteries as is aflerted, would not the " monks of the order of St. Patrick " have been mentioned by foine ancient ■writer, and would not his rule have been univerfal throughout the iile ? The infe. rior orders of Columba, Congel and Carthag would never have fwallowed up and annihilated every remembrance of that given by our great apoftle had it ever exifled. Very little is recorded of Carthag. It is (16) faid he was abbat of Ratheny in Weflmeath, where he governed more than eight hundred monks, who led a life of great feverity and mortification. He died in 637. Congel was one of Columba's difciples, and had a monaftery and flourilhing fchool at (17) Bangor, on the fouth fide of Carricfergus bay, in the county of Down, " This was a noble foundation," fays St. Bernard, " containing many thou^nd monks. So fruitful was it in holy men, and multiplying fo greatly to the Lord, t'^at Luanus alone, a fcholar of this houfe, founded not lefs than a hundred monafteries." Columbanus was an eleve of this fchool. His rule has been publifhed by lIoHlein, and is divided into ten titles. 1. "Of Obedience." It is aflced what are the bounds of obedience. The an- fwer is, it extends even to fiS) death. The true difciples of Chrift are to refufe nothing, let it be ever fo arduous or difficult. It is evident mental and corporeal bondage was coeval with monachifm, and this is the language of Bafil, Palladius, and Cailian. 2. ••' Of Silence." The (19) Egyptians, and from them the Pythagoreans en- joined five years filence to thofe who were admitted into their facred myfteries. This ' (t)] Bed. I. 3. c. 19. Finanus, tjui vitam muliis aDachoreticaro annis irrcpichenfibilitcr ducebat. Adumiian. viu Columb. p. 9?. (14) Can. S. Pat. c. li. Synod, c. ,t. Opufc. S. Patr. p. 36—42. (It) CrelTy fjieaks of St. Patrick's monadic inftitutcs, but where are they recorded ? If not In the works afcribed to him which I ihall prove arc fuppofititious, they are no where to be found. Thtfc inftitutcs arc, hke their auihoi, ereatureiof imagiuaiion. For Creffy to affirm, p. 356, Coluniba't rule \va« a rivulet from St. Patrick**, >i a fhamcful impuOtion and want of truth. (i5) Ware"« Bilhop., p. 548. (i?) Uffer. p. 441 — 869— 911. S. Bernard fup. p. 1934. (In) Ulque ad mortem dcCnitur, ufque ad mortem ccrtc prircepta eft. (lo) AJmillu- tii'iJ'tx '" contuberniMm quimiucnnii Clenti-jm ut ;(;»Xi»-^t«t« t^xt*^"'/'* 'ijungebant. Holftein, ad vi«, fylig. Cafaub. Excu. in Barun. 16. Brukcr. T. J. p. iOi(,. ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IlC^LAND. 91 ■■t ) < <<<«<<.. < < < <<<<<<■<«•«■«■<•<••<•<■<«■•<••<■•<■<<<■<•<<+.»►•.■.>■>..►.►.>..►.►..».►.»..►..,.,.,>,»>.,.,, >,.>,,.>.,.,,,>..,.,,.,., Thi!) was their celebrated Echemythja, which the chrillian afcetics zealoudy imitated. 3. " Of Meat and Drink." He allows herbs, pulfe, meal, bread baked under embers, in a word, food barely (20) fullicient for fultenance. The ftricfk fads of the Irifli were on Wednefday and Friday, and in this they conformed rather to the Greek than the Roman cuflom, and on thei'e days, Bede teftifies, the Culdees did not eat till three in the afternoon. In fevere abftinence they kept clofe to the (21) Egyptian original, and that to the time of the (22) Norman invafion. 4. " Of Poverty and fubduing Concupifcence." The monks, bidding adieu to the world and all its concerns, gave themfelves up (23) to an holy life, and the con. templation of divine things, and embraced a voluntary poverty. But as it was im- pofllble to eradicate the human paffions, and entirely to take away a languifliing for the defirable things of this world, which is here termed (24) Concupifcence, they are direfted to attend to inward emotions and fubdue them. To be always intent, fay the Egyptian prlefls, on the knowledge and infpiration of God is the certain way to place a man beyond immoderate cupidity, to reftrain mental pallions and to make him intuitive. Nakednefs and a contempt of wealth, fays our rule, are the excellencies of a monk. The focond is the purgation of vices j and the laft and mofl: perfect is the continued love of God. 5. "Of conquering our Vanity." 6. " Of Chaftjty." The Egyptian prlefts would not bear the intercourfe of their (25) neareft friends, during the time of their purification, nor did they ever aflTo- ciate with females. The rigid chaftity of the Egyptian afcetics was introduced into Ireland : let Archbifliop Comyn fpeak for us in 1186. " Since the (26) clergy of Ireland, among other virtues, have been always eminent for their chaftity, and that it would be ignominious if they fliould be corrupted through our negligence, by the foul contagion of ftrangers." The ftrangers here were the debauched Normans, his countrymen. 7, " Of (ao) Vivitur pane, Icguminibus & okrihus, qua folo fale condiuntur, Hicron. ad Eufloch. (21) ^iciirx it y-tfr, Kpt.r.o it(Tii,i liii >iTn o>.ui ^fu/iiici, \nurnr» iTirr^ituftt, &{• Porphyr. de ibftin. Ii 4.p. ZJO^IJ I, of the Egyptian Priefts. , (li) Ware's Bifliops, p. 439. (23) This Porphyry elegantly expreOe!:. AniTa^jni Ji iravat aXXftr i^yxio x«i »j»y( «iS{ut.»»(, o'i$}.X»> rtt fii»> Tt) ram ^tw* ^tv^ia. Sup. p. X49, (X4) Porphyry here ufes HAwBifis as the Stoics did Tlpo-srx!^i, a & Tla^tt- His TiKf >■ > >">■■>♦->■>■ >- >■■>->•■>■>■ >■ >■>■■>■ >■ >■■> > >->■ >■ >■>.■>■ > >■>.►->->■ >..>->. >-V- 7. " Of the courfe of the Pfalms." In thofe times each Abbat gave particular offices of prayers, pfalms and hymns to the religious of his monaftery. Thefe in the Weft were called Curfus, by the Greeks Liturgise. Columbanus prefcribes, that his monks rtiall meet together three times in the night, and as often in the day : that in the office in the day, they fhall fay three pfalms and other prayers : that the night-office is to be fliortened or lengthened according to the feafon of the year : that from 0£tober to February they muft fay in the ordinary office of the night, thirty-fix pfalms and twelve anthems at three feveral times ; and in the reft of the year twenty-four pfalms only with eight anthems, but for Saturday and Sunday nights, the office is to be made up of feventy-tive pfalms and twenty-five anthems in winter which number is to be augmented or leffened as the nights increafe or de- creafe. In (27) Pfalmcdy-ifle, in the diocefe of Nifmes, was a monaftery founded by Corbella, a Syrian monk, about the end of the 4th century, where was obferved a " Laus perennis," a perpetual pfalmody. The great promoters of monkery are quite rapturous and bombaftic in their praifes of fmging. A pfalm, fays (28) St. Bafil, banifties daemons, procures angelic protedion, is a ffiield amid nightly terrors, a fecurity to infants, the ornament of youth, the comfort of old age ; and much more to the fame purpofe. Thus powerfully recommended, it was warmly cultivated by our afcetics. 8. " Of Difcretion." 9. " Of Mortification." 10. " Of the Diverfity of Faults." Thl$ ii> a code of monaftic crimes and pu- nilhments ; and called a Penitential. This ("pecimen of our ancient monkifli difcipline will be fufficient to gratify the reader's curiofity. Of Columbanus I muft obferve, tliat when Theoderic or Theodobcrt il. king of the Franks, Bertefrid Bifliop of Amiens, Hildulph Bifliop of Triers, and Leodobod Abbot of St. Anian, erefted their different abbies, they inferted in their charters that their monks fhould follow the rules of Columbanus and Benedi£t ; not that (29) they were the fame, but as from both an excellent body of monaftic difcipline might be framed. There were in Ireland other celebrated Coenobiarchs, from whofe fchools ifl"ued incredible numbers of monks and hermits : thefe difperfed themfelves over the country, (17) Biirnry'i Hiflory of Mufic. V. i. p. 9. (iR^ Itom t. in pfalm. p. I2J. (19) Noil quod uju cailinnjiie tflet utriufquc regii'.a, fed qiuni C(;!umbani fc(itaioies, majoris profedlus trgo; duu tUas cclcbeirimai afcctic« vils ntnmat conjuoiiflcul. Uflcr. p lojt. ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OV MONACHISM IN IRELAND. 93 country, nor was there an (30) ifle on our furrounding coafts where an afcetic might not be found. This phrenzy in favour of monkery equally afiedecl the Laity, who thought they could perform no acls more meritorious than beflowing on thofe reli- gious large pofleffions. Bede, in his epiftle to Ecgbriht, laments the profufenefs of kings and others in thefe endowments, and wifely forefaw the ill confequences of it. He knew, that when the fervour of piety, which pro-npted to this generofity, fub- fided, lefs liberal motives would induce their defcendants to repoffefs themfelves of eftates thus inconfiderately alienated. This was in the 8th century. He fpoke from experience ; for it (31) appears by the 5th of Wihtred's laws in 692, by the 7th anfwer of Ecgbriht in 734, and by the 5th of Cuthbert's canons, that many opulent monafteries were in the hands of laymen, as being heirs to the donors, or by direOt temporal right, as being founded out of their eftates. About the year 730 Charles Martel convertsd ecclefiaftical into lay fiefs, on which the new poffefTors took the (lyle of (32) Abbacomites. The Oftmen did the fame in (33) Ireland, a few years after.. Thefe Lay-abbots were common in (34) Ireland and Wales in the 12th cen- tury. Giraldus Cambrenfis, who acquaints us with this fact, did not fcrutinize their origin, and therefore miftakes it. The monks, the faithful fatellites of Rome, firfl betrayed our ancient religion, and finally fubjedled our church to a foreign Bifhop. The fuccefs of the Roman miffioners in the 7th century, in eftablifhing papal dodrines among the Anglo- Saxons, and the repeated victories of the latter over the Britons, feemed to counte- nance an opinion zealoufly propagated, that the religion they had embraced was the favourite one of heaven. Similar notions found their way into Ireland. The ad- dreffes of Bifhop Laurence of Canterbury, of Pope Honorius and others, with a fondnefs for innovation always confequent on refinement in learning, with perhaps many unknown caufes, operated ftrongly on our ancient monks and made them too eafily relinquifh their old doSrines. Adamnan, Abbot of Hy, as Bede tells us, by his preaching brought over moft of the fouthern monks to Rome, except thofe under the dominion of Hy. If the latter were, as Cummian confefl'es, the {^^) heads and eyes of the nation, the moft enlightened ecclefiaftics in the kingdom, 2 B Adamnan'i (30) See Martin's Weflern Iflands, pafs. (31) Wilkins. fub Ann. (jl) Du Cange, in voce. (33) Ju* Prim. Armac. p. 166 — 147. (34) Notandum autem, quod hac ecckfia, Ccut & allit per Hibernia.ni & W^alKam plurej, .-ibbatem laicum habet. itiner, Camb. p. 863. , (35} Vo» eoim eftis capita & oculi popuU, fup. p. 48, 94 ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. Adamnan's conquefl over the ignorant and bigotted was not much to be boafted of or envied- Among other fuperflitions we fee that of reliques was introduced, but corruption was powerfully retarded by the firmnefs of the Hierarchy and the Culdees. The latter were looked up to as the depofitories of the original national faith, and were moft highly refpected by the people for their fandity and learning. Add to this the impenetrable barrier in the alliance between the church and ftate to Roman machi- nations. The Irifh princes and their great lords would not furrender willingly to any earthly power the patronage of fees or benefices endowed out of their edates ; nor would any Clan fubmit to the innovation. But the Oilman power and in confe- quence the debilitated ftate of the Irifli monarchy opened new and flattering profpedts to the fovereign Pontiff and his watchful emiflaries. As they were not able by rea- foning to reclaim the diffident Irifh, they quickly reforted to ftronger arguments. Auguftine fhowed how far his papal injunflions extended, when he excited Ethelbert, King of Kent, to (36) flaughter the Britiflr bifliops, who flood up for their ancient liberties. In 684, the fame party urged Egfrid, King of Northumberland, to fend his General Beohrt into Ireland, " who miferably wafted that harmlefs nation," fays (37) Bede, " which had always been moft friendly to the Engliflr ; infomuch that their hoftile rage fpared not even the churches or monafteries. To the utnioft of their power they repelled force with force, and implored the ailiftance of the divine mercy, and prayed continually to be revenged. Nor did they pray in vain, for Egfrid fell the next year by the hands of the Pifts." Bede, as a man of virtue and humanity, does not attempt to apologize for, or palliate this bloody outrage, and as a man of letters he abhorred it, well remembering the hofpitable afylum Ireland afforded to the great numbers of Englifli who flocked thither for inftrudion. At the fame time, Aldhelm (38) prevailed on Ina to make war on Gerontius, King of Cornwall, becaufe his Britifh fubjefls would not embrace the Romifh dodrines. When the Oftmen received the faith in the 9th century, it was not that profef- fed by the Irifli but by the Anglo-Saxons. If they did not arrive here chriftians, which I think probable, they liftened to our apoftate monks alone ; for all others they maflacred or put to flight and erafed the foundations of their religious ftruclures. This { j6) Fx Bfdi & Hfn. Hunt. coHl^cre eft, Aiigulliinim nionachum cxclnfTe Etliilhfrfum advcrfii^ Britontim Eplfropot, <)Uod ill! pru vctcrc libcrutc Britaiiiiica rcnucicni Ic Tuafijuc cccUfias Kuinanu Ic^i^iito fubiicic. IJircr. de lib, ccc. Uiic, fup, p. 1 1 8. (37) Viftavit mircre gciitcm innoxiam & nationi Aiigloruni ftmpiT amicillimani. Lib. 4, c. i6, (3?) Crcffy, fup. p. S'j- ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACliISM IN IRELAND. 95 This cruel condufl of thefe blgotted femi-pagans has never been obferved, though the fa£t is indifputable ; for thefe fame Oilmen would not fuffer their Bifliops to be ordained by the (39) Irilh, but fent them to Canterbury, It was thefe Oftmen who firlt introduced a foreign order, the (40) Benedicline, into this iile : they firft erected flone-roofed crypts and round towers for fupcrftitious ufes, and forced on a reludant people all the corruptions of Rome. Their fubmiflion to Canterbury firfl fuggefted to the Englifh princes the acquifition of Ireland through the donation of the Pope, an event, which however human wifdom might then and for ages after deplore, the infcrutable providence of God defigned for the final happineis of the Ifle. Crowded as flie is at this day with inhabitants, enjoying all the comforts and fecurity of juft laws and mild government, and advancing rapidly in wealth and civil improvement, Ihe has great re^fon to adore the Author of fuch bleflings, and by fteady virtue and loyalty endeavour to preferve them. Another proof of the furious rage of the Oilmen agajnfl our ancient national religion, is the thick cloud of ignorance which immediately followed. We have before feen that the moll enlightened clergy were thofe who adhered to their original faith : when fuch bright flars as Claudius, Sedulius and Johannes Scotus Erigena difappeared, it is no wonder darknefs fucceeded. There were none to oppofe the worfhip of images, or tranfubftantiation, or to give the genuine meaning of holy writ, to teach the learned languages or to cultivate philol'ophy. Our renegade monks found out other and more profitable employment in proclaiming the virtues of reliques, of litanies and proceffions, in prayers for the dead, and in compofing the lives of Saints, in deifying miferable mortals, and dedicating facred edinces to them. The Culdees never placed their (41) churches under the invocation of the Virgin Mary, or any Saint, but of the holy Trinity. Spelman mentions (42) hii having a Pfalter, written about 754, with a prayer annexed to the end of many of the pfalms ; that there were 171 fuch prayers, yet not one of them addreffed to the Virgin Mary, the Apoflles or other inferior Saints. This evinces how late it was before Saint-worfliip was received in England. St. Auilin ufes very llrong exprel"- fions againll fuch (43) dedications, thereby declaring the fentiments of the ciuillian church in his age. For the prefent I muil omit many particulars refpeding the mo- nadic (39) Jus Prim. Armac. p. 10?, (40) Archdall, p, Ijj. t^ij Ualrjnuik's Cullec. fur Sio'.iand. p. 24i>. ConlUmir.e dedicated his churches to God. Sozom. 1. ». c. 3, The Icgciidtt report the lame of St. Paiiick. Haiimer, jj. 43. (4O Co'i<:- V. I. p. ai>;. ^4 ) Nwine, li templum alicui faoilo Argelo exccJlentidiTjo de Hgnls & lipidibus faceremus, anathtmati^irfmiir a v-ri- tatc Chriiti & ab ccclelia Uci ; quoiiiaiu crcatiiiia cam ciUutremus I'^rvicutcm qua: uni tautum delKiur Ucu, Ccu M.^i, Au^uit. Ce. (Jiv. del. 1. 12. c. 10, 96 ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. ; < <■<<■* ■< ■< < < ■< < ■< < •• > > > > > > > >■ > >■ > > >■>>>■>->• ^- > : naflic ftate of Ireland, to lay before the reader a curious old Catalogue of Irilh -Saints preferved by (44) Primate Ufher. It is an ipitome of our ancient hiltory, and extremely valuable. It is to be lamented that he did not take more pains in illudraiing it. " The firft order of catholic Saints," fays that writer, " began in the time of St. Patrick ; all of them illuflrious and holy, and filled with the holy fpirit, the found- ers of many churches, and in number 350. They had one head, who was Chrift, one leader who was St. Patrick, and one tonfure from ear to ear. They had one Mafs, one celebration and one Eafter, the 14th of the month after the vernal equi- nox. Whoever was anathematized by one church was fo by all. They did not re- ject the attendance and company of women, becaufe being founded on Chrift their rock, they did not fear the wind of temptation, all thefe were Roman, French, Britifli and Irifli Bifliops. They continued for four reigns, from the year 433 to 534 : this order was the holiefl." 1. They had one head, who was Chrift, and one leader who was Patrick. Thefe words prove the writer of this catalogue lived about the 12th century, when the legend of St. Patrick was implicitly acquiefced in, and when critical examinations of hagiography were fo far from being common, that the lives of Saints were the favourite compofitions of the age. The writer was one of the old religion, this 1 infer with certainty by his placing Chrift as the head, and St. Patrick as the leader of the Irifli church ; whereas had he been devoted to Rome, the Pope would have been preferred to either. 2. All the Saints of this clafs were bifliops ; their number 350. This, though it alludes to the biftiops confecrated by St. Patrick, confirms what was before ad- vanced of the primitive ftate of our hierarchy. There can be no doubt but thefe firft bifliops were French, Britifti and Irifh ; but I know of no Roman. 3. They had one tonfure from ear to ear. This rite, like the other monkifh ones, was derived from Egypt, the fruitful land of fuperftition and idolatry. St. Jerome, who flouriOied in 380, feverely cenfures thofe whofe heads were ftiaven likci the minifters of Ifis and Serapis. Herodotus (45) tells us, the Egyptian priefts every third day fliaved themfelves as part of their religion. From them the (46) Jews adopted the cuftom. The form and efficacy of tonfure as a facred rite was re- ceived (44) Primord, p. 913. (4j) L:l) c. 30. 'I"hc circular tonfure was ufed by the Arabians in honour of their prime deity. Herod. I. 3. t, %. /nd theriforc forbidden in Levit, 19. 17. Sec a ivniai kablc place in Baruch. 6. jO. Cupcr. Harpuaal. p. ijs. (,t)Nunib. 8. 7. Li«. 10. 6, SI. to. ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. 97 ■■<■<-<+>■ >■>•>■>■> >■ >■ >■■>■> >■ >■>■>->■: >■>>•■>> >■ > >. >. >->.. ceived but a few years (47) prior to the age of Gregory of Tours, who lived A, D. 570. Gregory Nazieuzen about 363 writes thus. " All I have feen brings to my remembrance your watchings, your faftings, your prayers-, your (48) hair cut fliort and neglefted." Directions for trimming the long hair of ecclefiafllcs are to be found in the early Fathers, but this was merely in regard of decency, though after, under the fanftion of the Nazarites, this regulation came to be confidered as an in- difpenfable charaderiftic of the priefthood. St. Jerome never dreamed of its divi- nity, and his words are (49) very remarkable. Even (50) Bede, though an advo- cate for papal ceremonies and rites, acknowledges all were not fhorn alike ; that form adds he, was preferred, which it is reported St. Peter ufed, refembling a crown of thorns. The (51) Britifh and Irifli tonfure, (for thefe nations were weak enough to adopt this filly cuftom) was by their enemies ftyled Simon Magus's ton- fure ; it, as may be collefted from Ceolfrid's letter in Bede, took in the front half orb of the head, going from ear to ear. This was the eaflern mode as is evident by (52) Theodore's waiting four months to let his hair grow for making the Ro- man circular tonfure : coming from Cilicia in Afia it was the oriental tonfure he had. 4. They had one Mafs, one Celebration and one Eafter. By Mafs is meant the liturgy, before fpoken of, delivered by the difciples of the Apoftles to the Gallic converts, and by them to the Britons and Irifh. Our orthodox author faw and- lamented the corruptions of popery in her numberlefs mafles for Saints, the dead, and fuch like. The fcriptural fimplicity of our firft Curfus or Liturgy, and the bleffed Trinity the great objeds adored therein, formed a contrail with the Romifli Mafles very painful to a religious mind. Celebration or rather (53) celebrity, may either refer to the feflivals, in which fenfe telebration is ufed by Cicero, or to the manner of adminiflering the Sacra- ment of the Lord's Supper, which I rather think. For in this there was great di- verfity among Chriftians : fome (54) received the Eucharifl twice a day, at fun-rife and in the evening. At fun-rife they took (^5) water inftead of wine. Some fafled, others did not. In many churches the communicants took the brend from the priefl 2 c in (47) RIcharJfon, fup. 288. (48) Horn. 12. (40) Oper. T. 3, p. J029. EJit. Benecl. (50) Lib. 5. c. 21. Marftiam. propyl, ad Monaft. Anglic. (51) Hi (tjcoti) Afiaticarum ecclefiarum exempla atque ^ithoritJtcm obterdpbant, Langhorn p. iij. (ji) Bed. 1. 4. c. I. (53) Ifid. Orig. 1. 6. t. iS. (5.1) S. Augi.ll. Epin. 118. .:. 4. (55) Cyprian. Epiil. 6j. In EngUiid the fucraaieat wae given fonK-timw iu a!e, and at oihcn m water. Wilkins Cone!.'. c. 6. A. D. ioj6. 98 ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. ..« < < < < < < * < ' ; < < < < < < < < t < < < ■<■<<<■<■<< <■<<■<< < < '+>>■>•»> >■> > >>>•>■> > > > > > > >>•>■>■ > > > > >>>■■>■ t >. » > >■>.>>>. k« in their hands, in others it was put into their mouths. Formerly, fays C56) Ru- pertus Tuitenfis, writing in 1135, Mafs was not celebrated with lb much external pomp and ceremony : nor was it holier than before, when the words of Chrid and the Lord's prayer were only ufed. So late as 1076, ale and water were given in (57) England inflead of wine. Uflier has (58) Ihown that the Iridi manner of ad- miniftering the Eucharifl was fcriptural. 5. Whoever was anathemized by one church was fo by all. This was the cuftom of the pureft ages. Let the excommunicated, fays TertuUian, be banilhed from the communion of prayers, from affemblies and all holy converfe. And in the excerptions of Ecgbriht, in 740, is a cannon of St. Bafil, which makes it unlawful to pray, eat or fpeak with the excommunicated ; a prattice followed by our church. 6. They did not rejeQ: the attendance and company of women. In other words they were married and not fubjed to temptation. Ware will not (59) allow the auVhority of this catalogue, becaufe an old canon of an uncertain age and Joceline intimate that St. Patrick feparated the fexes. Joceline's idea of religion on the 1 2th, was very different from what it really was in the 5th century. The fecond clafs was that of the catholic prelbyters : in this were few bifhops, but the prefbyters 300. They had one head who was our Lord ; they celebrated divers Maffes and had various rules ; they rejefted the fociety of women, feparating them from their monafteries. They received the mafs (60) from Gilla, David and Docus, Britons ; they kept Eafler on the 14th of the month, and had one tonfure from ear to ear, this clafs continued four reigns, from 543 to 598, and was lefs holy. 1 . In this interval ihc eaftern tonfure and Eafter were flill preferved. 2. In this clafs were few bilhops, but 300 prefbyters. Here this writer clearly marks the progrefs of monachifm in the ifle under Columba and the other cele- brated Ccenobiarchs. There were but few bifhops, that is, the fecular were yield- ing to the regular clergy in fanctity, riches and reputation ; the title of bifhop was lefs honourable than that of abbat, to whom the billiop was lomctimes fubordi- nate. They ((6) Lib. 1. c. at. (J7) WilkJns. Cone. c. 5. de WiiichcAcr. (j8) Religion of the ancient IriUi. c. j. (59; 0|)ufc. S. I'atric. p. 124. Sec Oreg.Tur. 1. 1. c. 17. c. ij, and elfewherc Tor married Saints. (60) Cilia wii Gildas, Uffir. p. ♦7J— 473. David as wtll aj the foregoing was an cniincut Ciiiilli Scholar ia the 6th ctntuiy. UlTer. p. ysh ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. 99 They celebrated divers malTes and had various rules. Chrifl: and not the Pope was flill their head, but they had new leaders, thefe were the founders of monafle- ries, who gave new rules to their monks and new offices for their performance. Innovations were admitted ; the ancient liturgy was interpolated and new ones in- troduced. To thefe Mac Geoghegan alludes, when fpeaking of the liturgy of St. Patrick, which never exifted. Cette (6ij liturgie fouftrit quclque changement dans celte e'glife par la fuite. II y avoit dans cette eglife plufieurs autres rits, " comme celui des Grecs ou des Orientaux," & celui des Romalas &; tous ces ditfe'rentes li- turgies y ont e'te long-terns en ufage puifque fur la fin du onzieme fiecle." 4. They rejeded the company of women, feparating thern from their monafleries. That manly religion, founded on fcrlpture and reafon, wanted not meretricious decorations to catch the vulgar, nor did it, under the fhow of fuperior fandity fly from thofe temptations it was unable to refift. When matrimony was interdicted the clergy, to fecure their reputation, it was necelTary to have diltincl dwellings for the fexes. Our author did not entertain great ideas of celibacy, otherwife this and the following clafs would have been exalted to the fkies. No, he thought them very inferior in holinefs to the firft. Among us no female was to enter into the ifle of (62) Inifcatty, nor into the larger one at Monaincha, nor into the monafleries of Clonfert, Lifmore or that of St. Cuthbert, nor into St. Fechin's mill. This ridicu- lous affectation of purity extended even to the grave : at Clonenagh near Montrath are cemeteries for men and women, diflinfl: from each other : fuch were the orders of St. Fintan. It had been a breach of chaftity for monks and nuns to lie interred within the fame inclofure. So firmly did they believe the axioni ; Locus femper pudor abfit in ardis. All this is copied from Egyptian originals and adopted by paganlfm. (63) Sacra bona maribus non adeunda Dea. It is very extraordinary our rigid afcetics did not carry their practice as far as their exemplars, for the latter had the mafculine pictures in their temples covered with vails, as Juvenal records. Ubl velari piBura jubetur^ ^iiscunque alterius /exits imilata jiguram. In (fii) Hift. d'lrlande. fup, p. M4. (6j) Uffi-r. p. 943 — 944, gives many inflances, and fo does Colgan. Ai3. Sjuift. faff, Oir Cimbritns p. JIJ, Sec Martin's Wcftern Iflands. p. 49. (6j; TibuH. 1. I. elcg. 6. Propert. 1. 4. eleg. 16. Ovid. &r. i. loo ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACIIISM IN IRELAND. In the third clafs were holy prefbyters and few bifliops, in number one hundred : they inhabited deferts, fed on herbs, water and alms : poffeffed nothing of their own : had different rules, maffes and tonfures, fome with their crowns fhaven, others with long hair. They celebrated the pafchal feaft, fome on the 14th, others on the 16th of the month with great feverity. This clafs continued for four reigns, from 598 to 658, and was holy. In this order we may trace the aufterities of the nionkifh life fo zealoufly cultivated in this period, corruptions are noticed, but as yet no direft acknowledgement of Rome or her dodtrines. The compofer of this catalogue, with fmgular impartiality and judgment, affixes to each clafs an expref- five epithet. The firft was the holieft, it fhone like the brightnefs of (64) the fun. Like the great luminary, the pure religion of our miffioners illuminated the dark- nefs of heathenifm, and convinced the ignorant and incredulous of its divinity by the lives' of its preachers. The fecond clafs was lefs holy, it flione as the (65) moon. Corruptions began to appear in the church ; the brilliant fun of chriftianity was fhorn by his beams, and poffeffed only the light of an inferior planet : when reli- gion became clouded with fuperftition and human invention the third clafs appeared, this refembled the faint glimmerings of a (66) ftar. In the mofl degenerate times there were always a number of pious men and true believers to adorn the do£trine of Chrift. If our author was a Culdee, as I fufped, he facrificed much by plac- ing Columba in the fecond clafs, but it had been a much greater facrifice to have obfcured the truth, and preferred the folitary to the focial virtues. Here he afted agi'eeably to the charaflicriftic uprightnefs of his order. If he was not a Culdee, it was fcarcely poffible to avoid betraying fome fondnefs for Roman cuftoms. In either cafe, we may obferve, an admirable equilibrium of temper, well becoming a fenfibie, candid and learned man. Thus we fee, that the Irifii who adhered to their ancient faith fllll preferved the do(!itrine and difcipline delivered to them by the firft preachers, and this abhorrence of Romilh innovations made Archbilhop {Cy) Spotiifwood, Hammond, Richardfon, Macpherfon, and others agree in deducing from the Eaft the chriftianity they pro- fcfled. No one has been more explicit on this head than the learned biftiop God- wyn. (64) Primus, Ccut Sol. ardercit. Uffcr. p. 915. (65) .'?ct;undu*, ficut. I.unn. UfTcr fup. (66) 'JVi'tiuc, ficut Aclla. VffcT. fup. (6;) Muck«iiiic'i Antiq. of the royal liqe, p. 6,|. Richardron. PraleiSl. p. m- Macpherfon's Crit. Diff, p. 331. ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF MONACHISM IN IRELAND. lot • i ■< ■< <■•< .< < < < < < <■■< <■•< ■< ■< ■< < ■< ■<■<■■< ■< •< ■< < C < ■< •-< ■< ■< ■< < ■< ■< < -•+>■ >->•■>■■>■ >■ >■ >->■■>■ >■ >. >■ >■ >■ >. > ►■ >. k' > >- > >. > y.y- >. > >. >. > >. > >. >. >. >. >. >,. wyn. " It is very certain, fays (68) he, that at the time Auftin came here, moft of the churches, I might indeed fay all, of Ireland, Scotland and Wales differed in moft things from the Roman practice and difcipline. Even fix hundred years after, as may be feen in Cambrenfis, fome Irifli rites will be found to be more conformable to the Greek than the Latin church." The learned Centuriators of Magdeburg tell us, Auilin, the Englifli Apoftle, " obtruded on the Britilh churches the Romifli rites and cuftoms hitherto unknown to the Britons, who were contented with the (70) Afiatic and Greek ceremonies. I have adduced the fentiments of thefe emi- nent writers to vindicate myfelf from the imputation of novelty in thefe purfuits. Novelty has her charms, but truth many more. EJi quoque aindarum Veritas gratijfima rerum. (68) Certo fiquidem certius crt plerafque ecclefias (cur non dicaiii omnes) Hiberniz, Scotia, ac Wallis, in plun'mis rebus- a praii &difciplina Rotnana difcrepaffe. Bed. 1. 3. c. 1$. qno tempore Auguftinus hue venit. Imo fexcentis poft annis ficut in Giraldo videre eft. Top. 1. 3. c. 1;. Hiberaorum nonnuUa inftatuta reperies, Graecorum (juam Latinorum eccleiiis niagis conformia. Godwin, de pr*ful. p. 14, (65) Cent. 6. fl. 448. 2D OP ( I02 ) .*•, .»•, .t., ,»', •••, J: >': .'•# .•'. •••* ,••'# ,<••*. ,•••;, ••*., .«•'•, ,••'., ,•*•*, ,•••* .•«*# ••'#. •••» .»•», ••», ••', ,*t. «••, ,•., ,•«. * * ■'* •• ' * ' ••• •• 1+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + *++ + + + + *+++ + + + + + + + + + + + + * + * + ++ + + + + + ^ OF THE IRISH CULDEES, WITH THE ANTIQUITIES OF THEIR AUBEY OF MONAINCHA. IT will very much illuftrate and eftablifh uhat has been advanced in the forego- ing effay of the early monaftic ftate in Ireland, to detail at fome length the hif- tory of 'the Culdees. In this remote corner of the world and in the 6th century, this ::clebrated monaftic order commenced. Diftinguiflied for letters and an invio- lable attachment to their religion ; their (i) adverfaries, devoted to the Roman See, have configned their name and tenets to oblivion ; while others of inferior merit are pompoully brought forward, and extolled for virtues which they never poflefled, and for anions which they never performed. Nor have thofe, who (2) colleded memorials of the champions of evangelical truth, recorded their merits : but the writings of Bede, Lhoyd, Ulher, and above all thofe (jj of Sir Robert Sibbald and (4) Sir James Dalrymple have placed their reputation and noble defence of their doftrines and liberties on the moft folid bafis. To reftore them, and the lullre which their adions acquired to their native country, are the objeds of the enfuing ElTay. Their name has given rife to various fanciful conje£lures ; Toland will (5) have it, Ceili-de, the feparated or efpoufed to God. Bilhop Nicolion (6) thinks it de- rived from Coul-du, a black hood, which without authority he fuppofes the prin- cipal part of their drefs ; whereas from a paflage (7) in Bede, it is probable their garments were white. Shaw's (8) opinion is, that Ceil-de, or fervant of God, was Latinized Keledeus and Colideus, and in Englifh Culdees. 'I'he great difficulty in accounting for the name of Culdee, arifes from not knowing the precife time when it was given : if it was late Nicolfon is probably right ; but not fo, if early ; for fan^tity was attacjied to drefs only by the late monaftic orders. Columba, (l) 5o unfriendly were the Columbcan inftitutcs to the caufe of popery, that fhe fcdival of St. ColumI>a was not per- IBiCtcii to be kept in Ireland, till i/4l. I'hie in very remarkable. Burke. Hit). Dumin. p. ij, (i) Catal. teft. verit. Argent. 1561. Mofhcini and others have omitted tu nicniion them, (j) Hiftory of Fife and Kinrofs. (4) Colledions for an Miftory of Scoiland. (j) Toland's NjEaren. p. 51. (6) Irifti Hift. Library, preface, (7) Vit. S. Cuthberti, c. i6. <8j ^;^(^o^y of Moray, p. 251. Buchan. 1. 6. p. J 81. OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQIJITIES OF MONAINCHA. 103 (g) Columba, their founder, was born of illuftrious parents, A. D. 522. The fafliion of the times and his own propenfity led him to the cultivation of afcetic virtues, and their preparatory exercifes. Monachifm had taken root in this king- dom, and was already flourifliing in its numerous profeffors and learned feminaries. The mod remarkable of the latter was that of St. Finian, at Clonard, where, at the age of twenty-fivej we find St. Columba engaged in ftudy, and acquiring the rudi- ments of that knowledge and difcipline, which were afterwards produftive of fuch eminent advantages to chriftianity in Ireland, Scotland and England, Having completed his monaftic education, in 546 he founded the monaftery cf Durrogh, and eltablifhed fuch admirable rules for his Monks, that they foon became as confpicuous for erudition as fanility of (to) manners, and were from thence- forward diftinguilhed by the honourable appellation of Culdees, The Scots, rivals of the Irifh in every branch of antiquities, have claimed thefe Monks as their own, and as fpringing up in their country fo early as the beginning of the 4th century : nor do they want the aid of forged in) charters, or the plaufible tales of elegant (12) writers to fupport this fidion; which is full as probable, as that the idea of Culdeifm had its origin in (13) Greece. Bifliop Nicolfon, no friend of the oider, exprefsly fays; " the Culdees were of the Irifh rule, and carried into Scotland by St. Columba, and from thence difperfed into the northern parts of England." But to remrn to Columba. Brilliant parts, and an unabaing zeal in the fervice of religion, vvith a ftrain of powerful eloquence, exalted his reputation among his countrymen, to a degree fcarcely inferior to that of the moll celebrated Apoille. Such talents were too large to be confined within the narrow pale of a monkifli cell, they were (14) called forth to the regulation of ftate affairs, and in thefe he held as decided a fuperioiity. Amid this fplendor of authority and of parts, it would have been miraculous, if human weaknefs did not fometimes betray him into error, from which his biogra- graphcrs do not attempt to exculpate him. He inltigated a bloody war without jud caufe, of which being made fenfible, he abjured his native Lnd by a voluntary exile, and impofed on himfelf a million to the unconverted pids. Of this event liede thus (15) fpeaks : "In (9) He is commonly called Columhanus, but fee that error corrc >->.>. >,.>..] egg-like fhape. By the (21) Pifts it was called Onas, and from both, was made lonas, or as it at prefent is named, lona. This accidental compound, which in (22) Hebrew fignifies a Dove, as Columba does in Latin, did not efcape the notice of the learned in Ily. Adamnan, one of its abbats, early remarked it, and from Avhat he fays on (23) the occafion, there is reafon to believe, that Greek and Ori- ental Literature was not unknown in that feminary. Mr. Pennant defcribes it, as three miles long and one broad, and details at fome length its antiquities. It was in the genuine fpirit of monkery that Columba felefted an ifland for his retreat : at once a barrier againft the intrufions of curiofity, and the impertinence of vifitors, and he was clofely imitated by his difclples. Bede proceeds : *' Before Columba came into Britain, he formed a noble monaflery in Ireland, called Dearmach, from which and Hy, many others by his difciples have been pro- pagated in Britain and Ireland. Over all, this Ifland-abbey, where he lies interred, has fupreme rule. It is always wont to have a Prefbyter-abbat for its Reftor j and even the BIfliops themfelves, after an unufual or inverted order, ought to be fubje£t, according to the example of that firfl Doctor, who was no Bifliop, but a Prefbyter and Monk." Dearmach, mentioned by Bede, Camden and (24) Walfh, is fuppofed to be Armagh, but improperly ; the word is Doir-magh, commonly written Durrogh, and which Bede and Adamnan rightly interpret — " the oaken field." From Bede's faying, the Bilhops were fubjeft to the Abbats of Hy, and fome ab- furd amplifications of Fordun, Major and Heclor Boethius, affirming the Scottifli Church was originally ruled by Monks, who were only Prefbyters, Selden, Blon- del, SmeQymnus, and the London Minifters Jus Divinum, took occafion to ground arguments in favour of the antiquity of Prefbyterianifm and its precedence of epif- copal church government. Rather the eminence of the writers than the validity of their proofs, made an impreffion on the public. In the warmth of controverfy, the things that would have ended the difpute are pafled over. One inftance will fuffice : Ofwald (25) fends to the Culdees, " ad majores natu Scotorum, petens ut fibi mitteretur Antilles." Upon this, " accepit Aidanum pontificem." Again, 2 E " veniente (21) Baxter. Gloff. voce Sodorin. (22) riD[» (13) Vir erat (Columba) vitE venerabilis & beata memorise, monafterionmi pater & fumlator, cum Jona propheta ho- monymon fonitus iiomen. Nam licet diverfo trium diverfarum fono linguarum, unam tantum eandemijue rem figniiicat ; hoc quod Hebraice dicitur Jona, Gra;citas vero Pcrifteran vocitat, & Latina lingua Columba nuiicupaiur. In exord. fee. jiraf. (24) ProfpeiS, p. 67. Ufftr. p. 69c. (25) Bed. 1. 3. c. 3. io6 OF THE CULDEF.S, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAlNCHA. " venlente ad fe epifcopo." In thefe notices in Bede, the very foundation of Selden's and his brethren's arguments is effeftually Tapped. Bifliop (26) Lhoyd has completely proftrated the adverfaries of his order, and demonftrated epifcopacy to be coeval with Chriftianity in thefe ifles. I fhall take the liberty to add a few ob- fervations which did not occur to him. There were but (27) two epifcopal fees in Scotland in thofe early ages ; one for the Pids at Abernathy, the other for the Scots at lona or Hy. Thtir diocefes were (28) regionary, and like the Irifh Bifliops of thofe times, they exercifed their func- tions at large. Thus, about the year 560, Columbanus is ftiled by Adamnan, *' Epifcopus Laginenfis," or Bifhop of Leinfter. Bede's words imply, that Bifhops were eftabliflied in Scotland immediately on its converfion, otherwife how could they be fubjed to the Abbat's power ? The Ir'iih multiplied Bifhops like the Eaftern church, for the extenfion of Chriftianity depended on them ; confequently the Irifh miflioners eftabliflied epifcopacy wherever they preached ; and hence our annals (29) teftify, that there M^ere a Bifliop and Abbat together at Hy at this time. Before (30) Columba had fixt the feat of his little fpiritual kingdom at lona, his charader had rifen to a great height. The controverfies of Kings were fettled by him : he could therefore eafily procure what places or powers were moft conducive to the convenience and aggrandifement of his inftitutions : a prince at once his debtor and admirer could refufe nothing he afked, or which royalty could beftow. The (31) canons of general and provincial councils, and thefe confirmed by an imperial law, placed abfolutely the diicipline, care and correction of Monks in the hands of the Bifhop. Brideus inverted this Order, and beftowed thofe rights on Columba, to- gether with the (32) alloidiality of Hy, and incidental prerogatives, thereby fubjeft- ing the Bifliop to his temporal power, without however affefting the inherent rights of epifcopacy, as is evident from the refpedl: Columba hirafelf paid to a i^^) Bifliop at the confecration of the euchariftic elements. In (16) On Church Government, thap. 7. (a?) Noil Icvibus momcmis 3c au^oritatilius probarl poffct, halniilTe ollm t»m Pii5los quam Scotos ante regnoriira conjunflioncm unum faltcm pro unoquoque regno epifcopuni proprium, atque fcdem cpifcopalem PiiSorum liiilVc apuJ Abctnethy in Stratherne ; fcdcm vero cpifcopi Scotorum in lona iufula Clam. Wilkins, p. a8. (i8) Spclman, p. 341. Nicholl'on's Scot. Hid. lib. p. aio. {!<)) .Vpud UlTtr. p. 701. (30) Macphcrfon, liipra, p. 354. y (31) Chalccd. can. 4— g. AurcL I. can. »i. Agath. can. 38. Herd- can. 3. CoJ. Juftin. 1. 1. tit, 3. de Epifc. leg. 4c. Nov. 5. c. 9, (3») This appears in Buchan. 1. 1. p. »9. Lc Droit public dc France, par Bouqiici. T. i^\ joj. Lhnyd fup. p. ICO— 180. Vclly, T. I. p. 108. (ij) Adamnan. fupra. OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQIJITIES OF MONAINCIIA. 107 !■<•<*< < < ■< -< ■< A < < -< < t ■<■-<■< •< ■< ■< -< ■< < ■< ■<<■<■< -< + >■ >■>■>- >■>■* k-i- ^- t-t »'»'»>»' ► > ♦- »-» >->' ». »> I In the obfervation of Eafter, Columba was a Quartadeciman : he left It in (34) charge to his religious at Hy, to keep it from the 14th to the 20th of the moon, which they did to the year 716. This eminent millioner, worn out in the fervice of religion, died at Hy, A. D. 597, aged y^ years. To diflingulfli him from others of the fame name, he was (t^^) called Colum-celle, from being the father of above an hundred monafteries. Bede, though clofely attached to the See of Rome, yet with candour and truth confeffes the merits of the Culdees. " Whatever he was himfelf," fays he, *' we know of him for certain, that he left fuccelTors renowned for much continence, the love of God, and regular obfervance. It is true (f) they followed uncertain rules In the obfervation of the great feftlval, as having none to bring them the fynodlcal decrees for the keeping of Eafter, by reafon of their being feated fo far from the reft of the world j therefore only pradlfing fuch works of charity and piety, as they could leara from the prophetical, evangelical and apofto- lical writings." Their warmefl; panegyrifl could not pronounce a finer eulogium on the purity of their faith and integrity of their praftice. It is true, they did not adopt the corruptions of the Anglo-Saxon church, or the fuperlUtions which had contaminated Chriftianity. For centuries they preferved their countrymen from the baleful contagion, and at length fell a facrifice in defence of their ancient faith. The (36) Abbats, who fuceeded Columba in Hy, were Balthen in 597 ; Fergna- nus in 598 ; Seglenus in 623 ; Suibney In 652 ; Cummlneus in 6^j ; Failbeus in 669 ; Adamnan in 679 ; Conain In 704 ; and Dunchad in 710. No fooner had the papal power got footing in England, than it made attempts on our Irifh church, but the Culdees, the mofl celebrated for learning and fanctity, oppofed It, and their vigorous oppofitlon retarded its fuccefs. It was not a doubtful ray of fcience and fuperftition, as the elegant (37) Hlftorlan of the Roman Empire remarks, that thofe Monks diffufed over the northern regions. Superftition on the contrary found them Iier mod determined foes, and of their learning, let the reader judge from Cum- mlan's (38) letter to Seglenus, Abbat of Hy. Cunimian was defirous to bring the Culdees over to the Roman manner of celebrating the pafchal felllval, and (39) addreffes his treatlfe to Segienus, as head of the Columbeau monadcrles, and thd other Regents of ihefe feminaries. He tell» them he does not prcfumptuoufly or in- confiderately <34) Bsd 1. 3. c. 6. (J5) BeJ. I. 5. c. 13. Nolk. B»Jb. id 5. (d Juc. ( t ) " Repair,'" J'ayj the viflon to Egbert, " ad Coiumbw moHatteru, quli «vi:i» tccLtn aoa reAc incedunc." Bed. I, j, c, 10. A very gemle rcjjrcliciiCpii. (36) Uffcr. p. 70!, 702. (37) Gibbon, V. 0. p. 210. (jR) Uflir. :jyHog. Kpift. p. J4. (39) Pominis faaitia ec in CKnfto Tcncrwidis, SJcgicou Abb»ti Col^wba: tioAi & tsetcroram UnAorum fuccofforum. L'ffcr. lupra, *o8 OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. > > >>■>>>■> > > > > > > > >•>■>> >■ >■>->. >■ > >■■>.>..>..>..>■->■->■■>■■>■•>.■ confiderately offer this apology to them : nor was it difrefpeft for their cuftoms, or the pride of worldly wifdom that induced him to undertake the difcuflion of the pafchal controverfy. That after the introdudion of the Cycle of 532 years, he was filent for a year, neither prefuming to praife or blame it. During this inter- val he examined the fcriptures and the hiftory of Cycles. The types of the pafchal ceremonies in Exodus he illuftrates by the comments of Origen and St. Jerome, and adverting to the oriental cuflom, with much acutenefs he endeavours to evince the impropriety of the Irifh manner of keeping Eafter. He infills largely on the unity of the Roman, Jertifalem, Antiochian and Alexandrian churches, on the de- crees of the Nicene council, and on that of Orleans on this fubjed. He cites St. Jerome warning the faithful, of Jews, heretics and conventicles entertaining perverfe opinions. " Do you confider," fays he, " which are the conventicles here fpoken •of, whether thofe who agree in the obfervation of the holy folemnities, or the Bri- tons and Irifli, placed on the extremity of the earth, are as it were a tetter on the globe." " You," addreffing himfelf as before, " are the heads and eyes of the people ; if through your means they continue obftinate in error, the blood of each foul (hall be required of you ! Our elders fimply and faithfully obferved what, in their days, they knew to be belt ; but they left it in command to try all things, and hold fall that which was right." He then proceeds to eflablilh the do£trine of the church's unity on the authority of fcripture, reafon, and on that of St. Auftine, St. Jerome, Cyprian and Gregory. He then enters on an account of the various Cycles, as thofe of Patrick, Anatolius, Theophilus, Dionyfius, Cyril, Morinus, Auflin, Vidlor, Pachomius and the Nicene. Throughout his letter, he every where difcovers great ingenuity and erudition, with much knowledge of the facred writings. The works of Jerome, Origen, Cyril, Cyprian and Gregory are often quoted by him, as are the adts of the Nicene, and other councils. Nor was he inattentive to his flile, for in the conclufion he intreats them to correcl whatever may appear uncouth or villous in his compofition. In this trad, we can difcover Cummian's acquaintance with the doflirine of time, and the chronological charaQers. He is no ftranger to the folar, lunar and biflextile years, to the epadal days and embolifmal months, nor to the names of the Hebrevi^, Ma- cedonian and Egyptian months. To examine the various cyclical fyftems and to point out their conftruction and errors required no mean abilities : a large portion of Greek and Latin literature was alfo indirpenlibly neceilary. Though a man of learning, Cummian apoftatized, and liftencd to Roman emilTaries. Like all new f^onverts, he fees nothing but error and corruption in the religion he left. He up- braids OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. 109 «(-«■<'■<-<"< ■' ;,.<..< .< -4 .4^< ■< .<.<-<..< -4 ■<■■< -<■<"< <■■<■<-< -<-<"4-K ■< -4 ■< + >■ >.■>..>., braids the Irifli with diflenting from the Greek, Hebrew, Scythian and Egyptian churches, and the Roman, in the obfervation of the pafchal feflival : that it was heretical pravity to affirm Rome erred, Jerufalem erred, and that the Britons and Scots were alone wife. He tells them that in the fynod of Lene, or Leighlin, where the Abbats, the fucceflbrs of Ailbe, Kiaran, Brendan, Nelfan, and Lugid were aflembled, it was determined to fend to Rome to know how the feftival was kept, which on their return they reported to be every where the fame, and different from the Irifli : that thereupon it was refolved to conform to the praftice of the univerfal church. Thefe miffioners brought back with them, from the Italian metropolis, holy relicks and facred writings ; " in which," fays Curamian, " was proved to be the power of God : for I faw with mine eyes a blind maiden refl;ored to her fight by them, a paralytic made to walk, and many evil fpirits cafl: out. However," adds he, " there was a whited wall," fuppofed to be St. Munnu, " who recanted, and returned to the traditions of his fathers, whom God, I hope, will flrike in fome fignal manner." Here we perceive the intolerance of Cuminian's new religion. In 6^s, Ofwald, Prince of Northumberland, who had received (40) baptifm among the Irifli, and was no admirer of Roman (41) innovations, fent to Hy for a Culdee Bifliop to inftrud his people in evangelical truths. He took no notice of Pauhnus, the ancient prelate of York, nor of James the Deacon, his companion, for they were devoted to Rome. Aidan, an Irifliman and a Culdee of Hy, was confecrated and fent. " He was a man," fays Bede, " of the greatefl: modefty, piety, and moderation ; having a zeal for God, but not fully according to know- ledge, for he kept the Lord's day of Eafter, according to the cuflom of his coun- try. This abatement of his merit could not be pailed over by an eleve of Rome, but it is conveyed in no rancorous or intolerent language. " The King," continues Bede, " gave the Bifliop the Ifle of Lindisfern on the coafl: of Northumberland, for his epifcopal fee. Gregory had before fixt the fee at York : this nomination Aidan rejefted for two reafons : firft it was not agreeable to the fpirit of Culdeifnv which chofe iflands in preference to the mainland, as its mafler Columba did ; and fecondly, as it would bean acquiefcence in the decifion of the Roman Pontifl", which the Irifli hierarchy, complete and independent in itfelf, never fubmitted to. Ofwald perfonally attended Aiden's minifl:ry. When the latter preached, not perfeclly un- derllanding the Anglo-Saxon tongue, the King was interpreter, for during his exile 2 F in' <4C) Bed. 1. 3. c. 3. <4i) Pfiiitipi haiitutis Scoticis iaibulo, Romaiii forftn minus tordi ellVn: rjtus. I.angliorn. Cnron. .\i)|; p. 187. no OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. in Ireland he had learned the language of the Ifle. Numbers of Culdees daily- arrived from Ireland : thofe who were priefts baptized the converted ; numbers flocked to them, and the church of Chrift was greatly enlarged. Aidan gave a luminous example of charity, piety, and abflinence, and recommended his dodrine by his (42) pradice." Thus far Bede, whofe third book of Ecclefialtical hiftory is principally employed in praife of the Culdees. Wherever he mentions their diflent from Rome, (and this was their only crime,) he does it with great delicacy, and when he fays it was from ignorance of fynodical decrees, we have feen he endan- gers his veracity in framing fuch an excufe. Aidan died in 651, he was fucceeded by Finan (43), an Irifhman and Culdee of Hy : he baptized Peada, prince of the middle Angles, and gave him Diuma, a Culdee, for his Bifhop. After Diuma, Ceolla, another Culdee, was advanced to the epifcopate of Mercia, but he refigned and retired to Hy. To the Apoftolic la- bours of the Culdean miffioners were the Northern Englifli indebted for their con- verfion, and Doftor Innet, in his learned Origines Anglicanaa, records their exer- tions in honorable terms. > Finan departed this life, A. D. 661, and Colman, a ^Iluldee of Hy, came in his room. He was an intrepid oppofer of ;rf« Ancchzt. I. 3. c .1. (43) Jl'.d. 1. 3 <•■ '7. (44) BcJ (""P". (4j) 15 J. 1.4 ;:. 4. ' {.,6) Guil. Mi'iii'IIj. 1. 3. OF THE CUl.DEES, AND ANTIQIJITIES OF MONAINCH.U «n •.«■•<■< •<■< « ■< ■< < < .< ■■ becaufe he was told St. Peter was the author of the Roman manner, and that he was the key-keeper of heaven, from which Ofwy dcfired not to be excluded. The two Irifli Bifliops went away unconvinced ; the King pronounced fentence for hlm- felf only and for his family, for before this he had kept his Eafter fometimes, while his Queen, who was a Kentilh Lady, and followed the Roman manner, was in her Palm Sunday. Ofwy parted fentence, not in confideration of the merits of the caufe, but in honour of St. Peter. Theodore made great exertions for the obferv- ance of this Roman Eafter, yet the Welfl-i continued their old practice till about the year 3oo, and then Elbodeus, a Bifliop of their own brought them into it." The controverfy on this fubject may be feen in Ullier, and other ecclefiaftical writers. .At length Adamnan^ thvj Culdean Abbat of Hy (48), apoftatized, and by the infti- gations of Ceolfred, Abbat of Girwy, Naitan, King of the Pids, expelled the Culdees from Hy. This happened A. D. 717. Thus expired thofe illuftrious femi- naries of Culdees at Hy and Lindisfern, after bravely preferving their tenets for more than a century againft the fecret machinations and open violence of their ene- mies ; at length they fell a facrifice to encroaching ambition and fpiritual intolerance. A great accefs, fays CreflTy in an high tone of exultation, was made to the lull re of this year by the converfion (converfion !) of the Monks of Hy, and all the nionaf- teries and churches fubject to them, to the unity of the catholic church. The monalteries of Columba were the bright conftellations of our hemifphere, en- lightening every part with the brilliant radiance of the gofpel and learning. Theo- dore, Archbifhop of Canterbury, fays Innet, fet up fchools in every place to out-da the Irifli and break the interelt of the CKiartadecimans, for fo the Culdees were called. The Culdees continued, as an excellent (49) writer obferves, until ^ new race of monks arofe, as inferior to them in learning and piety, as they furpalfod them in wealth and ceremonies, by which they captivated the eyes, and infatuated the minds of men. It would be doing injuftice to the fubje£l, and leaving this little hiftory impqfe<^, to omit fome practices of the Culdees, which del'erve notice. They as well a* the (50) Briiiih monks fupported themfelves by the labour of their hands. In this they refembled their Archetypes of the Eaft. The Culdees were ("51; married, but when it came to their turn to officiate they did not cohabit with their wives. By the 28th canon of the African Coilc, fub-deacons who handle the holy myfteries, deacons, prii:tli , {A^) Bed. 1. 5. c. 13. V(( p. 70J. (49) Bnrh.-in, fiipra, p. U7, !>o) Bed. fup. Tolaud, lupra. (_ji) inland, lupra. 112 .OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. priefts and bifhops are direded at their feveral terms to abftain from their wives. By terms, as explained by the 13th of the Trullan canons, are meant the times of their miniftration ; or as the old Scholiaft on the 3d African underftands it, fome time before and after the Eucharift. A practice derived from (52) Egypt to the Jews, and from them adopted by Chriftians. Celibacy was unknown for the firrt: 300 years of the chvirch. Northumberland was converted by Irilh Culdees : in 950, the priefts of that country publifhed canons ; one was, " ifaprieft difmifs one wife and take another let him be an anathema 1" Here the cenfure falls on fe- cond marriages. The Culdees in St. Andrew's were (^t,) married to the year 1 100. The regiftry of St. Andrew's informs us, that the Cu!dc?= relaxing in difcipline were deprived of their poffeffions, but King Alexander reftored them conditionally, that they fhould be more attentive in attending divine fervice, which they negledted, except when the King or Bifliop was prefent, performing however their own office in their own way in a fmall (54) corner of the church. This account is obfcure, merely becaufe the truth is not related. For the regiftry acquaints us, when Ale.x;- ander began the reform in the church of St. Andrew, there was no one to ferve at the altar of the blefled Apoftle St. Andrew, or to celebrate Mafs. This fhews, that the Culdees, who were fettled there, paid no refped to thefe holy relicks or to the Mafs, but chofe rather to forfeit their church and property than defert their princi- ples ; preferring their ancient office with integrity of heart, in a corner, to the pofleffion of the Choir and its fuperftitious pageantry. Their office was Gallican, and very different from the Roman. We are fure it was not the Mafs, which Pope Gregory (^^) confefles was the work of a private perfon, and not of Apoftolic authority. The Anglo-Saxons accepted the Roman office, but the Britons and Irifti retained their primitive forms. The conduft of the Romanift towards the Culdees was uniformly perfecuting in every place. A Charter {s^) of David, King of Scotland, recites, that he had given to the Canons of St. Andrew the Ifle of Lochleven to inftitute there the canonical rule, and that the Culdees, its ancient poffeflbrs, if they thought fit to conform to that rule, live peaceably and in fubjeclion to the Canons, might continue there j (51) Porphyr. de Abft. p. 150. Vino abdlncbant, & in caOo crant icnipore ifr/tifiat fux ^gyptii facerdotcs, pcHode ttt FbrfH. Huet. Dcni. Evang. c. 11. La Croze, Chrift. dcs lndc», p. 4,17. Rhcgiiio, p. 155. iSi) Toland, fupra. (14) Kcledci namquc in angulo ecclefix fuum oflicium fuo more celcbrabant. Dalrymple, fupra. (.'5) Epift. 6j I. 7 (j6) Maillaii'J, V. 1. p. i6». SibbalJ, fupra. OF THE CULDKES, AND AN'n()l.nTIKS OF MONAINCHA. 1.3 there ; but if they rejefled thefe terms, they were to be expelled. This propofal, incompatible with their principles, not being acceded to, they were ejefted. " la the greater churches in Ulfter, as at Cluaninnis and Daminnis, and particularly at Armagh, in our memory," fays Archbifliop (^7) Ulher, " were priefts called Cul- dees, who celebrated divine fervice in the Choir, their prefident was filled Prior of the Culdees, and he afted as Prascentor." It was not eafy to eradicate a reverence founded on folid piety, exemplary charity and fuperior learning ; or to commit fud- den violence on charafters where fuch qualities were found. The Romifh emiffaries were therefore obhged to exert all their cunning to remove thofe favourable prejudice.-;, and U'hcrc force could not, feduclion often prevailed. The alternative of expulfion or acquiefcence mud ever ftrongly operate on human imbecility : in a few indances ihe latter was chofen : thus about the year 1127, Gregory, (58) Abbat of the Cul- dean monaflery of Dunkeld, and Andrew his fuccelfor, were made Bifhops, the firft of Dunktld, the other of Cailhnefs. The lafl: cited intelligent Antiquary confirms the wary manner in which the Culdees were treated, as making their Abbats, Bilhop--, and prefer\'ing to ihofe who had pariflies their benefices during life. The fame policy was followed in Ireland. The prefident of the Culdees was made Prsecentor ; he was to have the moft (59) honourable feat at table, and every refpecl from his corps. JSuch little diltindions, while they flattered and faved appearances, were fatal to the (Culdees ; many breaches were made in their rights, and at lait they (60) loit all their privileges, their old inftitute, and retained barely the name of their priftine celebrity. Such as they were in latter ages, they continued to exift, and fo late as 1625, they had confiderable property in Armagh, as feven townlands, with fmaller parcels ; a great number of Reftories, Vicarages, Tithes, Meffuages, and Houfes. Let us now attend to the Antiquities of one of their ancient feats : this in old records is named Inchenemeo, corrupted from Innifnabeo, or the " Ifland of the liv- ing," but from its fituation molt commonly called Monaincha, or the " Boggy Ifle :" it lies about a mile South from the road leading from Burros-in-OlTory to Rofcrea, and about three miles from the latter. Giraldus Cambrenfis, who came here witii King John in 1 185, thus fpeaks of (61) it : " In (62) North Munfter is a lake con- taining two illes : in the greater is a church of the ancient religionj and in the lelicr, 2 c a chapel, (5;) PilmorJ. p. f>iy. (fS) Dalrymple, fupra, p. :46. (;y) Priuri C"lide.)runi locus priiMu»iii mcufa & a ColiJeis cxieris reverentia congrua djbfatur. tJm.f- fupr*. . {60) Ufhcr may \>e conl'ultcd, p tiy). ((>') Topng 2. c. 4. p, 716. (fii) l"hU wai ThaoiiionJ, which w.is one of the liven iiidcpcnUcni provinces of Ireland, rukd ti/ the O'Biieiie, at (tfce NurniMi ioviljoa. O'Connor, p. 1-4. 114 OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQIHTIES OF MONAINCHA. ,- ». >. >. >.>..>..>.->..>.>. >. >. ^ >..>. y. >. >. >. >..>. >. y. J..J, ^„ a chapel, wherein a few monks, called Culdees, devoutly ferve God. In the greater, no woman or any animal of the feminine gender ever enters, but it immediately dies. This has been proved by many experiments. In the leffer ifle, no one can die, hence it is called, ' Infula Viventum,' or the ifland of the living. Often people are afHitled with difeafes in it, and are almoft in the agonies of death : when all hopes of life are at an end, and that the fick, would rather quit the world than lead longer a life of mifery, they are put into a little boat and wafted over to the larger ifle, where, as foon as they land, they expire." Thus far our Author. This infula vi- ventum is exadly the fame as the Icelandic Udainfaker, or the land of the immor- tals, and of which Bartholine tells us : that this place is fituated in North Iceland: that the natives believe no one can die there, although labouring under a deadly ficknefs, (etiamfi letali morbo infeclum,) until he is carried out of its precimils : that therefore the inhabitants have deferted it, fearing all the terrors of death, with- out enjoying the profpedb of releafe. Monaincha is fituated almoft in the centre of a widely-extended bog, called the bog of Monela, and feems a continuation of the bog of Allen, which runs from Eafl to Weft through the kingdom. Since the age of Cambrenfis, and from the operation of natural caufes, the lefler ifle is now the greater, and Monaincha, which contains about two acres of dry arable ground, is of greater extent than the women's ifland. In the latter is a fmall chapel, and in the former the Culdean Abbey, and an Oratory to the Eall of it. Monaincha is elevated a little above the furrounding bog ; the foil gravel and fmall ftones. We may eafily underftand what Cambrenfis means by the Church here being of the " old religion." The Culdees, its poflTeflbrs, had not even at this period, when the Council of Cafliel had decreed uniformity of faith and practice, conformed to the reigning fuperftition : they devoutly ferved God in this wild and dreary retreat, facrificing all the flattering profpedts of the world for their ancient doctrine and difcipline. Their bittereft enemies bear teftimony to their (63) extraordinary purity and piety. In more places than one of his Topogra- phy, Cambrenfis mentions this ancient religion as exifting in many parts of Ireland : his language breathes the vindidive fpirit of their old perfecutors. " There is," fays (64) he, " a lake in Ulfter, in which is an ifle divided into two parts : in the one, which is pleafant and beautiful, is a church of the orthodox faith ; the other rough and horrible, and^nhabited by Jremons." In the latter the Culdees, no doubt, refided. When (f-i) Ppvotc Drum deferviunt, fay» Cambrcnfit of ;he Monainc!.* CulJccf, aaJ ihe WcUh Culdcci he flyles, MonacJu rcligioGtrmu. Iciiur. Canili. p. 86^, (64) Tortg- F' 717— 7i8- ^'^ ^ K X V Ni\ ^ V ^ ^ r. \ ■ M X^ tia :: .s s. K« •--. f^f V"^'^ >5 K 'V ^^ ^ ^: ,4^ k 'A 5s ■ % ^ H OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQIJITIES OF MONAINCIIA. 1 1 ..<■<-<-.<•<■<■.< ■< ■< ■€■•< < ■<..<■< ■< ■< ■<..< ■<■*<•< ■< < ■<■<■■< ■<■■<■< ■< •< ■< - When Columba feleded iflands above other places for his Monks, he clofely imi- tated the firfl: profeflbrs of the afcetic life. A Latin (65) poet thus writes about the year 417, Proce/fu pelagi javi fe Capraria tollity Squallit lucifugis infula plena viris. Jpfi fe monachos^ Grata cognomifie, dicunt, ^od foil nulla vivere tejle valunt. The monafteries in the ides of (66) Canobus and Lerins were, very early, famous. The Scottifli ifles were filled with Culdees, and their infular eftabiifhments in Wales and Ireland were numerous. Cambrenfis tells us no one ever died or could die in Monaincha, thereby infinu- ating, that death, the only comfort of the wretched and difeafed, was denied to the heretical ifle. But this is a fhameful and mean perverfion of the honourable deno- mination of Innifnabeo, or the ifland of the Living, given from remote ages to Monaincha. Buchanan exprefsly affures us, the (67) cells of the Culdees were con- verted into churches : fo that it was not in the grofs and vulgar fenfe, given by Cambrenfis, the name is to be underftood, of no one ever dying there, but in a refined and fpiritual one, of men acquiring immortality by the exercifes of religion and the cultivation of virtue. In Scotland are many fmall ifles, named the ifland;? of Saints, wherein people have a mofl; fuperftitious defire of being interred, which (68) Mr. Pennant erroneoufly fuppofes to arife from the fear of having their bodies devoured on the mainland by wolves : but the true reafon is, the holinefs of thefe places, fanftified by the refidence of Culdees, and before them by the Druids. The length of our Culdean Abbey in Monaincha is thirty-three feet, the breadth eighteen. The nave is lighted by two windows to the South, and the chancel by one at its Eail end. The former are contrafted arches, the latter fallen down. The height of the portal, or Weftern entrance, is feven feet three inches to the fillet, by four feet fix inches wide. The arch of this, and that of the choir are femicircular. Sculpture feems here to have exhaufled her treafures. A nebule moulding adorns the outward femicircle of the portal, a double nebule with beads the fecond, a chevron the (6.5) Rutil. Itiricr. 1. I. (66) Hicron. jifDlog. ad reg. Picliom. Pavaro. Not. in Sul. Apoll. The Teutonic people held both iflandi and lakn facrcd. Tacit. Gcr. c. 40. Greg. Turiin. deglor. conf. c. 1. Tacitus mentiims a — caftum nemus, — an unpuUuttd DruiJic jcrove in an ifle. The monks adopted the. lolini-fs of fuch places into their ritual. (67) Tanta fanflitatis opiiuone ^.[.ud uini Cs viicrun; ut v-io fiinflorum ctUa in templa conimutarentiir. Lib. 4. p. 1 i6. (6Sj i'uuc in licotiaiid. i 16 OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF RlONAINCIIA. the third, interfperfed with the triangular frette, rofes and other ornaments. It is alio decorated with chalices, artfully made at every fedion of the ftonc, fo as to conceal the joint. The floncs are of a whitifli grit, brought from the neighbour- ing hills of Ballaghmore : being porous, they have fuffcred much from the weather; but the columns of the choir are of an harder texture, (though grits) clofe-grained and receiving a good polifli. Being of a * reddifh colour, they muft have been handfome objects. They were quarried on the fouth-wcfl: fide of the bog, and are a fpccies of lapidum fchillarum, fplltting into lamina, fix feet long, with which moPi of the Abbey is cafed without. By fome accident aflien keys have been drop- ped on the walls of this building, in a number of years they have become large tree.-;.. Their roots have infinuaied into every crevice, burft the walls every where, and threaten the whole with ruin. Such was the ftate of the Roman edifices, after the dtftruc\ion of the capital by the Goths, as is minutely and affcftcdly delcribed by (6g) Cafliodorus. It will readily occur, how great mufl have been the labour and expence of tranf- porting the materials of this and the other Ilruftures in cots of excavated trees to I^lonaincha, and before this was done, the carrying them a great diflance over a deep, miry and fliakiag bog, before they reached the margin of the water. It ap- pears by the tradition. of the old inhabitants, that about a century ago, the ifland was not acccflible but in boats : every drain for the fprings, and every paflage for the river Nore being choked up with mud and fallen trees ; the furface, in confe- quence to a vaft extent was covered with water. Prefcnt appearances fully confirm this account. Adjoining the Abbey on the north fide was the Prior's chamber, which commu- nicated with the church by a door with a Gothic arch, as exhibited in the Plate. There were a good garden and orchard, in the memory of living people, and many heaps of Hones and fome crolTes, were difperfed over the Ille. One of the latter is given in the Plate ; it has perforations, through which various parts of drefs were drawn to aflifl; women in labour, and to protect their wearers. I have been favoured uith fome ancient infcriptions, which I (hall not tranfcribe, as they do not at pre- fent appear, nor am I certain of their auihenticity : the purfuit of truth and ge- nuine antiquities, lb far as I ain able to dillinguifli, arc the fole and invariable ob- jedts ( ♦ ) Garrcli't tour through ihc Highlands. (69) Virgulta quaqiie noiiu importuiiitatc narccntia ewilfis cerjjiiiSiin auffrannir, ne radiciim quijem capIUi paulati'm turgcntes r;ibricarum virccrlbus Infcraiitur, & more vipcrco, prulcm fill f.x■ ^ .1-J 1 ^ -> "■^ V -« - ^^ "^ ^ =^ > ^4 ^ 5=; ^ ^i n; "eT ■\ g^ \^ \ 1 ^ >, f^ r M OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. 117 I ■< ■<•■<■<■<■■< ■< ■' jefts of thefe pages ; and on my beft endeavours to illuftrate thefe, I alone found my hopes of public favour. At what time the prefent Abbey of Monaincha was built is not eafy to determine. The poverty and fewnefs of the Culdees in this ifle in the age of Cambrenfis, and his omifTion of their beautiful fabrick ftrongly incline me to think, that the Abbey was conftrufted after this author wrote. Mr. Bentham (70) defcribes the Norman ftyle of ecclefiaftical architecture in general ufe to the end of the firrt: Henry's reign, A. D. 1135, to be conftituted of circular round-headed doors, maffive pillars, with a kind of regular bafe and capital, and thick walls. The arches were adorned with the various mouldings, like thofe already noticed on the weflern portal of our church. But befides this Saxon or early Norman, we difcover plainly the Gothic flyle mixed with it at Monaincha, which ftyle Doctor Ducarel(7i) fuppofes to have been introduced about the end of the 12th century, and he farther obferves, that this mixture of ftyles was frequently ufed for ornament or beauty. If we acquiefce in the opinion of thefe ingenious and learned Antiquaries, the date of our Abbey will be about the beginning of the 13th century. At which timeC72) Auguftinians were fettled there, and the Culdees removed to (73) Corbally, a fmall didauce from their former refidence, where they erefied a curious little chapel, of a cruciform fliape, the windows long and very narrow : it ftill remains in tolerable prefervation. The Auguftinians did not appear in this kingdom until 1193, for at that time Earl Strongbow brought four from Bodmyn in Cornwall, to his (74) Abbey of Kelts, in the county of Kilkenny, which he had dedicated to this Order, fo that here are circumftances and a coincidence in point of time agreeing very well with the con- jefture refpeiSting the age of our Monaincha Monaftery. As to its being under the invocation of the bleffed Virgin, St. Hilary and St. Donan, the Monks of St. Auftin might have deferted it, and others of different orders poffefs it. Wherever the influence of Rome prevailed, the Culdees were removed, and Coluir.ba himfelf, was not fupplicated in Ireland (75) as a Patron Saint before the year 1741. The compiler of his office has committed fome wilful miftakes, which, for the fuke of our enlightened Roman Catholic brethren, are here noticed. 2 H I. It (70) Antii]uit>cs of Ely, p. 34. (ji) Anglo-Norman Antiquities, p. icl. < 7 1 ) Watai Difquis. p. 140- ( 7 j) Prior & Convcntus loci I'edeni lixerunt Corbiii.*, V.'«t.-, i"aj.i I74J Archda^l'i Men. Uib. ^. 361. (js) Olllcia propria liib, Sanil. p. 9«. n8 OF THE CULDEES, AND ANriQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. ■ ■< < ■< < < ■< < < •< -< -< ■< -< < ■< ■< < < -< < *. < •< < ■< < •< ■< < < < < <<<<<<< ^+> V >■>>»■ »■ >• > > >■ >■->■> >• >■>-■>■ > > > > »■>■»>> >■ > V > > > > >■ >■ >■ > > f- 1. It is faid he went to St. Etchene, a bifliop in Leinfter, to be confecrated to the epifcopal order : but from a particular interpofition of Heaven, this ordination did not take place. From the tenor of Columba's hiftory in Bede, and which alone can be relied on, he never affetted Prelacy. 2. The 5th leflbn of his office informs us, that he refolved to go to Rome, C76) knowing that his preaching would be in vain, unlefs his doftrine was the fame with that delivered by St. Peter. If St. Patrick was ordained and fent by Pope Celeftine to this ifland, and the religion he propagated was conformable to the Roman, could tliere be any reafon for Columba's going [o far as Italy to be allured of what were the faith and pradice of the church there ? There certainly could not, efpecially as Columba was bom but 29 years after the death of St. Patrick. But there is pofitive proof in Bede that the doiStrine and difcipline taught by Columba were diflerent from that of the Romanlfts. " Columba, fays Wilfrid in the conference at Whitby, v/as a devout fervant of God, of pious intention though ruftic funplicity. Shall his authority outweigh that of St. Peter?" This whole (77) cliapter of the ecclefiaitic bidorian demonftrat.es, and fo do many other places, the diftance there was between the belief of Columba, and thofe who profclfed to follow Sr^ Peter. 3. In the 6th leflbn we are (78) told, that being honourably received at Ron-e by St. Gregory the Great, and loaded with apoflolical benediclions, he returned to bis monallery of Hy. This is a palpable fidion, fur the jealuns given before. The Culdees we have feen ftrenuosufly oppofing papal innovations and authority in every age, and that with fo ftubborn a pertinacity as brought on them numberlefs perfe- cutions, and in the end a diflblution of their order, I need not infift on the age of Columba, which was fixty-eight, and which muit have made fo long a journey as to Rome, very irkfome : nor on the difficulty and danger of paffing through fo many barbarous nations before he reached the Italian capital. The deteftion of thefe errors and many more that will, in the courfe of this work, be brought forward, cannot but have an happy influence in opening the eyes of every rational man, who muft fee with concern the unjuftifiable attempts that have been made to enthrall the imderftanding by bold fidions and grofs untruths. In •.<;6) CcrtuR fe in vanum currcre, iiifi idem cum Petro prxdii'aflct evangdium. OfTic. fuiir.i. p. 98. (-7) Lib. 3. £. 25. J; 8; Roroz a Santlo Or'gorio Magno honoriCcc exceptin, f«:. Oflic. fup. p. yS. OF THE CULDEES, AND AN TIQIJITIES OF MONAINCHA. i tq «•« < <■< < * « ■< « < < < <■<<< < ■< < < ■< < < < < < < « < <- In the chief Remembrancer's office Is found a record relative to Monaiucha, of which the following are the contents. It is an Inquifition taken at (79) Lemyvanane in Ely. O'Carrol's country, before Michael Fitz-Wyllyam and Francis Dclahyde, Commiffioners of our Lady the Queen, to inquire for the Queen of all land, tene- ments and hereditaments, and of all and fingular other things that might be in- quired into hy Efcheators and Barons of the Exchequer. Taken th$ 27th of De- cember 1568 on the oaths of thefe good men, the Jury : Thomas O'Flanagan, Dermoyd O'Towgha, Dermoyd oge O'DoIgen, Thomas Mac Donell, Moyell O'Rendall, Malone O'DoIgen, Donogh Mac Owens, Lyfagh Mac Edmond, Donogh O'DoIgen, Owne Mac Kilfoyle, Dough O'Triefte, Thomas Mac Teige. Donogh Mac Kilfoyle, They find that the monaftery of the Virgin Mary in Inchenemo, or ifiand of the liviiig, with all its appurtenances and profits belong to the Queen by virtue of an Acl of Parliament : that the faid ifle contains three acres of moor land, wherein are two chapels, (80) belonging to the Priory ; and near the ifle is the village of Corballi, wherein the (81) Prior and convent dwelt, and where alfo was formerly a church that was Parochial as well as Monaftic. 1 he village confifis of eight wade cottages, and the land of the Priory there, in arable and pafture, 180 acres, of the annual value of thirty-two flilUings and fix-pence : there are alfo one hundred and forty acres of unprofitable, and fixteen acres of wood and underwood, annual va- Jue, two fliillings and eight pence. The village of Kerneyttys, now wafte, and thirty acres of arable and pafture in it, annual value five fliillings. The village of Cowlefliyle, now wafte, and thirty acres of arable and pafture, and twenty-four of wood and underwood, annual value ten fliillings. The village of Tytter, now wafte, and fifty-two acres of arable and pafture in it, annual value nine fliillings. The village of Kylecolman, now wafte, and twenty acres of arable and pafture, wood, underwood and moor, annual value four fliillings. The village of Killenpeifone and feventeen acres of arable and pafture, annual value fourteen fliillings. The village of Ahancon, and twenty-four acres of arable and pafture, wood, underwood, and piQof, annual value four fliillings, all belonged to the faid Monaftery. As alfo the rQcloiies (79) From I.eim, i leap, now the Leap in the King's County. (Fo) But one of thefe chapels now remains, (81) Thib alfo tame into the p^lTciTion ol the An^ufiinians on the fuppreiTion of the Ciili-ej, ISO OF THE CULDEES, AND ANTIQUITIES OF MONAINCHA. : ■* ■<■-< ■« < ■< <-.< < < .< -< .< 4 < .< , ,. <..|. .<..<..<■< .<..<4,>..>..y. . ■ >■>■>■>■ >■ > > > y. ■ reftories of Corballi and Ballyfhenagh, the third part of the reftory of Rofcomroh, the rectories of Kymutze, Towomahone, Lytter, Kylecolman, with the vicarage of Ahancon, the whole, over and above ftipends and incumbrances, of the annual va- lue of forty (hillings, (the villages being all wade) belonging to faid Monaftery. This record exhibits a curious but afteding picture of the Rate of Ireland in the early part of Queen Elizabeth's reign, when five hundred and thirty-three acres of land were worth but four pounds two fhillings and two pence, and ecclefiaftical pof- feflTions were equally fmall. The (82) O'Mores, O'Conors, O'Dempfies and O'Car- rols were, in thofe times, perpetually in arms againfl the Englifli government : the -country about Monaincha was alternately wafted by the Britifli and Irifh forces : the labours of the plough ceafed, and the terrified peafants, almoft iUrved, deferted their miferable cabbins, and withdrew to mountains, bogs and woods, to prolong a wretched exiftence. (Si) SyoDfTi's (late papers by Collins. OF ( 121 ) + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 4.'j OF THE STATE OP THE IRISH CHURCH IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. THE fird fevere fliock received by the Irifh church was from the Ortmen after their converfion to chriftianity in the 9th century. The exiftence of a pri- matial fee founded on the fuperftitious fiftion of St. Patrick's rehques was unknown before that age and the domination of thefe ftrangers : for the religious tenets and ecclefiaftical difcipline of the Irifh were very different from thofe of the Oflmen, as Uflier and thefe pages fully evince. Inflead of uniting in reftoring the purity of our church, or of reviving the fplendour of our inflitutions and Hterary feminaries which their pagan zeal had nearly annihilated, they introduced the Benedidine Order, v/hich fought admiration more from the mummery of external performances than the cultivation of ufeful literature or fubflantial piety. This was in the loth century; in the nth, thefe piratical foreigners had (i) kings in almoft every part of our ifle. Sihtric, one of them, ruled Dublin in 1038, and erefted a See there, making Donat, his countryman, its firft Bifhop. He received confecration, and the (2) epifcopal dignity from the Archbifhop of Canterbury. On the death of Donat, the clergy and people of Dublin elefted Patrick, and recommended him to Lanfranc the Englifh Primate for ordination, and they ff yle DubUn the metropolis of Ireland. Here is abundant evidence of the early attachment of the Oftmen to the Roman See. How, it may be afked, is this to be reconciled with the making Dublin the metropolis, or in other words, the primatial See ; when the fame Oflmen had fixt the fpiritual fovereignty of the Ifle before at Armagh ? One reafon occurs which feems adequate to the folution of the difficulty ; it is, that the Armachian Prelates, rejefting the rules and orders of the canon law, continued the cuftom, common, as I have fliown, with the Irifli and Oflmen, of hereditary fucceflion, which the Dub- linian Oflmen, better fchooled, did not ; the latter firfl accepting the eredion of their city into a Bifhoprick from, and after fubmitting the approbation of their 21 Bidiopi (1) Johnftone's Antiq. Celto-Scand. p. 68 — 69. , (j) Antecefforum enim veftrorum magifierio ftnipcr noflros libenter fubdimiis i quo jfcordatnur nortros aicepifle Jij/c-.~ Utem ccclcOatlLcam. Uffer. SjUog. p, 100. 122 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH Bifliops to the See of Canterbury. This canonical acquiefcence weighed more in the eftimatlon of fo exaS a difciplinarian as Lanfranc ihan the pretended reliques of St. Patrick or his holy legend. And hence Dublin and not Armagh came to be called the metropolis of Ireland. It is not lefs probable, that Armagh endeavoured to edablifh the iiulepcndency of the Irifli church, which the Britifli Primate oppofed, confidering himfelf the fupreme fpiritual head of the Norraen wherever (4) difperfed, for Lanfranc is ftyled, " Primate of the Britifli Ifles." Beiides the foregoing reafons for not acknowledging the- fupremacy of Armagh, the Oltmen had apopted many of the tenets held by the ancient Irlfli church and conirarv to the Roman; fo that a zealous Romanifl: was necelTitated to reprobate both. Thefe tenets appear in Lanfranc's (4) anfwers to queftions propofed by Do- iiat, the Oilman, Bifliop of Dublin. The Primate tells him, it is expedient that all people, living and dying, fliould be fortified with the holy Sacrament ; but if it ihould happen that a perfon baptized, died before he received the Sacrament, God forbid he fliould perifli eternally. That if an Infant not baptized, fo he be in the article of death, fliould be baptized by a Laic in defect of a Priefl: and die imme- diately after, that fuch infant fliould not be excluded from the body of the faithful. From thefe anfwers it is evident, that the Irifli believed the reception of the Eu- charifl: immediately after baptlfiu Indifpenfably necefl'ary to falvation ; and this was the opinion of the (5) primitive church, though not of the Roman in Lanfranc's age. Secondly, the Britifli Primate allows laical baptifin in the article of death, but the (6) Greek church, and the Irifli derived from it, never admitted it : St. Bafil (7) orders thofe to be re-baptized who received baptifm from laics, The Irifli and Britons adminiftered this rite at Ealter, Pentccofl: and Epiphany, the Romanics only atF.afler and Pentecod, The latter ufed chrifm, cxorcjfm and other ceremo- nies which the others did not. It is recorded by (8) Benedict, Abbat of Peterbc rough and Brompton, about the middle of the 1 zih century, that the richer Irifli immerfed their children thrice in milk, the poorer thrice in water. The fiUher or any other was the agent. The early chrlfl:ians, through the blindnefs and perverfe* nefs of their new converts, were obliged to retain praciifes which they abligrred i thus (3) UITcr. Sup p. 118— K.i. (4) Wart's Bifliops, p 3C6. (5) Bingham, I'up. C 12. c. l. p. 529— 53'- (6) A>.>: uri y-ttixiii iTsT(i tMt Ti Tur iifuriKnr ifyut. Conll. Ap'itl. l-it). J C- 10. (0 Ai.i(itv(ar I thus they gave (9) milk and honey after baptifm to infants as euchariftic elements, aa the learned (10) Bingham has proved, though Sahnafius and (u) Suicer fupport tha contrary opinion. But none of them give a probable explanation of the origin of this cuftom, vi^hich prevailed in the church to the 9th, and in Ireland to the 12th century. Initiation into the facred myfteries was looked on as a (12) regeneration, and the beginning of a new life ; and hence, according to Apuleius, the Egyptian priefls, as a fignificant fymbol, gave milk to the initiated. The lafteal circle wa3 alfo fuppofed to be made up of human fouls, and therefore the Greeks in the (13) evocation of them ufed oblations of milk and honey. From this fource our cuf> torn was derived. It was ufual with the Oilmen in the loth and nth ages to give the {14) firltfign" ation, that is the fign of the Crofs, to new converts, whereby, fays the writer, they were put in a fituation to live either with pagans or chriflians : the meaning of which U, that they received the figure of a Crofs on fome part of their body not expofed to view. It is certain, chriflians mult have had private marks whereby to know each other in times of perfecution, and (15) Procopius allures us this was the crofs punc tured on their hands or arms. Lanfranc accompanied the confecration of Bllhop Patrick of Dublin with a letter to (16) Gothric the glorious King of Ireland, and another to (17) Turlogh tha magnificent Jving of Ireland, I have before (18) Ihown why the Oilmen Princea vyere ftyied Kings of Ireland j and how their devotion to Lanfranc's religion intltled them to the epithet of glorious has already been declared. In his epiftle to Gothric, the Primate dates fome cuftoms which he defires him to correct, as the marriage of women too near a-kin by confanguinity and affinity, and the feparation of wives from (^9) their lawful hufbands, and alfo the exchange of wives. O'Conor, in (20) his Diflertations, confeffes, that in ages preceding the fecond century there were abomi* li.atiojis among our Prince?, ^yhich difgraced humanity, and that the Taltioniau regulations (5) Terluil, 37- Can A£fic. (lo) Buok u, o, 4- {n) Tbof. vos. S*»«?i». (li) Warburion on the ilcufinian Mydcriea. Oiv. Legation. ( 1 i) It KXi rirtthiv a^raif t^s -^u-^uyvy^i fitSi KtHfufnui y»>,nHTh Porjihyr, dc ailtro Nyrnph. p. iSj. (14) Johnflone's Antiq. CeUo-Scaiid. p. 3;, Du Cange, voce Signal!, (15) Eti '^df^ut » "fni^uvi » TK c^riiffn r« t«imt»- > ■> >■ >■ > > >>■►•>■■>>•>■»■>>>•>.>•>.».».>>•>■>■>•>•.>■>..>>.>.>.>■>. >. ». regulations permitted polygamy. The Suiones and other (21) northerns, who ar- rived here about that time, had each two, three or more wives ; princes and rich men without number ; nor was illegitimacy attached to the offspring of fuch con- nexions. Nor had they reformed this practice in 1200, when Pope Innocent III, writ to the Archbifhop of (22) Lunden. From the various colonies of thefe north- erns fettled from the earlieft ages in this ifle, it is not to be wondered at if the Iriih had exadtly their cufloms and manners. St, Bernard and Giraldus Cambrenfis affert we had no marriage-contracts, but the — ccnjuges legitime copulatse — of Lanfranc before, mufl remove this afperfion. Camden (23) affures us in his time beyond the precinfts of towns marriage was rarely contraiEted, that the Irifh united and feparated on the moft trifling occafions, and that all had a wonderful propenfity to inceft. Againft this evidence it is ridiculous for (24) Macpherfon to argue, or attempt to extenuate the turpitude of fuch cuftoms. Our municipal laws of gavelkind and taniftry confirmed the evil to a late age. By the flrft an inheritance was provided for the illegitimate, and by the lafl: the clan was kept diftindi; from any other, {o that marriage was C9nftantly among near relations. Lanfranc affured of the attachment of the Oftmen, endeavoured by the moft flat- tering language to infmuate himfelf into the good opinion of the Irifli monarch, Turlogh. He tells him, God beftows no greater mercies upon the earth than when he promotes to the government of fouls and bodies fuch as affeft peace, and love julHce, and efpecially when he commits the kingdom of the world to good kings. From hence peace arifes, difcord is extinguifhed, and to fum up all, the obfervance of chriflian religion is eflabllfhed ; which blefiings every prudent obferver perceives to have been conferred on the people of Ireland, when the omnipotent God granted 10 your Excellency the right of kingly power over the land. He adds, that Bifliop Patrick had declared fo many great and good things of him, that he loved him thou"h unfeen, as if he had known (25) him. All this is polite and handfome but full of infmcerity, for nothing in the Irifli church could pleafe Lanfranc : her hierarchy acknowledged no fubjcdion to him, her clergy were married and her rites and ceremonies not in unifon with his. He artfully touches on matters which could give no great offence to the Irifh clergy, and that in the gentleft manner : he remarks (11) Quifquc fccundum facalutcm virium fiiarum clu35 aut frc« vel atnplius fimiil hat»ct uiores, divhcs & principes abfque numcro; nam tt filios ex tali conjunfiionc genitos habciit Icgitimos. A. Crcm. apuj. Grot. Pj-olwg. in Procep. p. 101. (1:) Grot. flip. p. 139. (13) Britannia, in Irtland. (14) I/iOcrtalion XI. (.j) IJAcr. Sjllug. fuira. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. 125 : < < .< < < ■< < ' remarks their uncanonical marriages ; that Bifhops were confecrated but by one, and children baptized without chrifm, and holy orders conferred for money. Lanfranc defires Turlogh to aflemble a (26^ fynod of his Bifliops and Clergy. This proves our monarchy and hierarchy were complete and independent, not fubjeft to a Le- gate, the Primate of Canterbury or the Pope. This correfpondence with the Englifh Primate was leaven to the Irifli Clergy ; it foured many of them againfl: their old religion and difpofed them to innovation. Dazzled with the recent fuccefs of the Normans in England, and perhaps terrified at the fate of that kingdom and the fpiritual fovereignty claimed by the Britifli Pri- mate over this ifle, they thought it better to fliow fome condefcenfion on this occa- fion than provoke a doubtful conteft, and therefore at the end, or about the be- ginning of the 1 2th century they admitted Gille or Gillebert, or more correftly Gifelbert, an Oilman as his (27) name intimates, as f Legate ; he was at the fame time Bifliop of Limerick, a great Oftman fettlement. The legatine authority could not be in fafer hands or more obfequious to the court of Rome and to Anfelm, who fucceeded Lanfranc, and with whom he was acquainted at (28) Rouen. He was a man of fome ingenuity and learning, as his (29) traft in Uffer evinces. It is a plain fimple outline of the members and difcipline of the Roman church, and ob- vioufly compofed to inftrud the Irifli with what they before were not well acquaint- ed, and to prevail on them to adopt an uniformity in the celebration of divine offices. In the prologue he fays, " at the requefl and even command of many of you, dearly beloved, I have endeavoured to fet down in writing the canonical cuf- tom in faying of hours and performing the office of the whole ecclefiaRical order ; not prefumptuoufly but through defire to ferve your mofl godly command ; to the end that thofe divers and fchifmatical orders wherewith, in a manner, all Ireland is deluded, may give place to one Catholic and Roman office. What can appear more indecent and fchifmatical than that the moft learned in one order fhall be as ignorant as a layman in another ? As the difperfion of tongues arofe from pride, and were again joined in apoftolic humility, fo the confufion of Orders, from nee li- gcnce or corruption, is to be brought by your pious endeavours to the holy rule of 2 K the ('.6) Epifcopos & rcligiofos quofque viros in imum convenire jubetc, ficro eorum conventci prsfentiam veftram cum veftris optimatibus exhibece. Ufler. Syll. fup. p. yz. (27) Kilian & Skinner in voce. 'Ware's Bifliops, p. 504. I St. Bernard does not fpeak pofuively as to the facl, though I think it probable. Q^em aiunt prima funflus Icga- tione. Vit. Malach. 1936. (18) Quoniam autcm oliin uos apud Ruthomagum inviccm cognovimus. tJiTcr. Syli. p. 8S. {29) Uffer. Sjll. p. 77. 126 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH the Roman church. It is plain from many parts of Scripture how carefully the Faiihful fhould preferve unity of profeffion. For all the members of the Church are fubjeft to one Bifliop, who is Chrift, and to his blefled apoftle, Peter, and to his apoftolic reprefentative in his feat, and they ought to be governed by them." This was written in 1090. There are many things in this epiftle deferving notice : I fliall only touch on a few. It is addreiTcd to the diffident Bifhops and Prefbyters of Ireland, for it had been an infult to the Romifh ecclefiaftics to have fent to them, as if novices, an elementary work. Throughout this long letter there is not a tittle of St. Patrick, his archiepifcopal or primatial fee or rights, or the dodrine he delivered to the Irifli church. Thefe would have been flattering topics for Giflebert to enlarge on, and for the eleves of Rome to prefs on the Irifli. Inftead of thefe he explicitly declares their fchifmatical orders differed from the Roman : that is, their ritual and forms of worfliip were quite unlike the Roman, for that is the meaning of the word, Order. This is fupported very ftrongly by the learned Molheim, who tells us, " the (30) form of public worihip eflabliflied at Rome had not in the nth century been uni- verfally received in the well em provinces. This was looked upon by the imperious Pontiffs as an infult upon their authority, and therefore they ufed their utmofl: ef- forts to introduce the Roman ceremonies every where, and to promote a perfeft uniformity of worihip in every part of the Latin world." From this author we farther learn, that about the time Giflebert was endeavouring to fubvert our Orders, Pope Gregory was attempting the fame with the Gothic liturgy, fo that Rome was pufliing on the fame fcheme at the fame moment in every part of Europe : a circum- ilance very curious and confirming powerfully what is advanced in the epiftle under confideration. In 1094, Giflebert fends a (31) prefent of twenty-five pearls to Anfelm, and con- gratulates him on his criminal triumph in the affair of (32) inveflitures. The Pri- mate having, through the favour of our monarch, fent a legate hither, began to tamper with our clergy. In 1095, ^'^ addreffes an (33) epiflle to his reverend fellovv- bifhops in Ireland, and particularly mentions the fenior Domnald and Donat, the laft biCiop of Dublin, the former of Armagh. He endeavours to excite their pity for his fuffcrings in the caufe of the church ; he exhorts them to vigilance and Jevcrlly in ecclcfiaflical dlfcipline, and adds, that if difputes about the confecration of (30) Ecc. Hift. Cent. II. c. 4. (31) Uffcr. Syll. p. 83. (32) Lyttlcton't Hen. ». (J3) Uller. Syll, lufti. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. 127 ..< i < ■< ■< ■< ■< < ■< < ■< ■< ■< <■■<■<■< < ■< ■< ■< ■< .<..<■<-<•■< ■«-<■< ■< < ■<-< .< < <■-< <^.>. > >■>■•>■>■ >■>..>-> >. > of bifliops, or other caufes could not canonicaily be fettled among them, to bring them before him. This aifumption of fupremacy over the Irifh church, and the right of appeal efteiElually deftroyed our ancient independence, and is complete proof, that every thing related of the Armachian primacy is a fitlion. The Odmen, who now poflelfed the fee, either had embraced the tenets of the Irifli, or were married, or held it by hereditary right ; any of thefe fufficient reafons for nullifying in the eyes of a rigid canonifl: their pretenfions to rank and dignity. He therefore ftiles our Bifliop of Armagh, Senior, a term now gone into difufe, but which in the African canons denoted the dignity of Metropolitan, Turlogh, our monarch, had virtually furrendered his regal rights to the Pope, through his delegate the Englifli Primate, when he (34) recommended Donat to fuc- ceed Patrick in Dublin. Mortogh, who mounted the throne after Turlogh, joined his nobility and clergy in a fimilar aft, when they fent (^,5) Malchus to be confe- crated at Canterbury. Mortogh, involved in perpetual broils with his family and provincial kings, hoped to derive no fmall aid from the fplendour, power, and friend- fliip of the Englifh court in awing his rebellious fubjects. Anfelm did not omit to cultivate this good difpofition in our monarch, for he addrefled to him two epiftles, and there we find him firft ftyled (36) the glorious king of Ireland. Anfelm men- tions in general the uncanonical ftate of our church, and fpecifies the inftances noticed by his predecefTor Lanfranc, and advifes him to call a council to correct thefe errors and to regulate ecclefiaflical affairs. This he did in 1 1 1 1, when he convened the nobility and clergy to a place called Fiodh-Aongufa, or Aongus's Grove in the plain of Magh BreafTail in Meath, where there was a wood (37) facred to religion from the remotefl ages, and from ancient prepoffefiion now ufed for greater Iblemni- ty. The number of clergy, according to the (38) Chronicon Scotorum, was fifty- eight bifliops, three hundred and feventeen priefls and fixty deacons, with many of inferior orders. The fame year another council was held in Meath under the prefi- dency of the Pope's legate, when the numerous petty diocefes of that diftrid were reduced to two, Clonmacnois and Clonard. Though (39) Keating from obfcure annals has related the tranfaftions of this council, there is forae probability in what he delivers of the fettlement of diocefes and the afcertaining their boundaries. Every attempt to reduce the number of our fees and augment their revenues, ren- dered the clergy more refpedable, and tlie church more manageable by the Pope and (34) Ware's Birtiops, p. 309. (35) UITer. Syll. fupra. (36) Gloriofe fill & in Deo cliarimme. tJlTor. Syll p. 95. (i?) Antiquities of Ireland, fjp, (38) CoUea. ae reb. Hib. V. i. p. jjj. (39J Hitt. of Ireliiid, p. 100— loi. i:8 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH and his Legates. This required time to accomplifli, and a beginning was now firft made. Some of the regulations faid to have been fubfcribed by the aflembly, were that the clergy in future were to be exempt from taxation and fecular laws ; what, ever they contributed was by way of free gift. The archbifhops refigned the right they received from St. Patrick of confecrating bifliops at pleafure. It was decreed that the number of bifhops was hereafter to be twenty-eight, but without encroach- ing on the rights of the prefent pofleflbrs. It mufl occur to every one, that thefe decrees could not be efteemed the avowed fentiments of the national clergy, for but about a fixth part of the epifcopal order confented to them, they were therefore the production folely of thofe who had embraced the Romifh party, and we fee how few they were, even after all the efforts of our monarch and his aflbciates. The afliivity of the former proceeded partly from a fecret motive. Robert de (40) Montgomery, Earl of Salop, and Arnulph his brother. Earl of Pembroke, rebelled againft Henry I. Arnulph folicited Mortogh for his daughter and afliftance ; the former he obtained, but we are not told what aid he procured. We knov/ he was unfuccefsful and obliged to feek refuge in Ireland. Mortogh writes to Anfelm, and thanks him for interceding for his (41) fon-in-law, and adds, " be affured I will obey your com- mands." This was a fpring that gave motion to Mortogh, and made him perfedly obedient to the Englifh primate and court. " So devoted," fays William of Malmef- bury, " were Mortogh and his fucceflbrs to Henry I. that they writ nothing but what flattered him, nor did any thing but what he directed. " We need not there- fore doubt but Anfelm ufed his own and Henry's influence in urging our monarch to new model his church. Matters however did not proceed fo fmoothly as they expecEted. The Irifh clergy had been hitherto cajoled with fchemes of reformation, which as they could not with decency oppofe, they acquiefced in to a certain degree ; but when they difcovered the unreafonable length to which aflairs were likely to be carried ; that their ecclefi- allical polity was to be diflblved and themfelves and their church to be dependent on the nod of the Roman pontiiF, they could no longer forbear exprefling their rcfentment. 'Ihus the (42) clergy and burgefl'es of Dublin tell Ralph, who fucceed- ed Anfelm in Canterbury, that the bifhops of Ireland and efpeciully he who refided at Armagh, had the greateft indignation toviards them for not accepting their ordination, (40) Hannicr's Chron. p. 99. (41) ; td & gciicro nico Ernulpho auxilio & intcrvcntione fuccurrifli. UIT, SjU, p. 97. (42; Ufler. .'5J^ll. p 100. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURT, AND AFTER. 1^9 ordination, and for defiring to be under his fpirltual dominion. But it was too late: while they were apprehenfive of, they were haftening to their fate. Miilti ad f alum Vcncre Juum^ dum fata thnent. Our princes had lofl their fplrit and their power, and domeftic difcord fuggtlLcd ambitious views to their defigning neighbours. The Armachian bifliop who thus refehted the interference of the Englifli primate was Celfus ; who, though well affected to Rome, could not be prevailed on to fepa- rate during his life from his wife and children: at his death he however was per- fuaded by the Roniifh party to fend his crofier to Malachy O'Morgair, In token of his appointment to the fee j he was a zealous flickler for the new religion, and after fome dangerous ftruggles afcended the archleplfcopal chair. Malachy folicited the Pall for his fee from Pope Innocent II. but this his hollnefs declined, for the Irl/h clergy were as yet very far from yielding obedience to the Roman Vice-deity ; the Pall, fo far from commanding refpeft, might have fubjefted the wearer to infult. Though Malachy fat but three years in Armagh, being driven from thence by the old family, he flill was aQive in advancing the caufe he had efpoufed. In 1140, he introduced the Ciftertian Order into this kingdom by the advice and under the direi^Ions of St. Bernard, and fettled it at Mellifont, Newry, Bectlve, Boyle, BaU inglas, Nenagh, and Cafliel. St. Bernard prided himfelf much on thefe foundations; " the (43) oldefl: man," fays he, " might have heard the name of monk, but before the days of Malachy never faw one." This, like (44) much of Congan's Information to him, wants veracity. Malchus, a monk, was made bifliop of Waterford in 1095; Samuel, bifhop of Dublin, ejected monks from that city in mo, and Donat, a monk, was made bifliop of Dublin, evidences thefe, with others too numerous to recite, fufficlenf to convidt our mellifluous doftor of mifreprefentatlon, and to evince how trifling the mod ferious confiderations were when put in competition with the holinefs and honour of his favourite order. There Is much more of truth in what he remarks of the Irifli, by Malachy's means, conforming to the cufl;oms of the church of Rome and the chaunting the canonical hours. Popery was daily gaining ground from the criminal inattention of and inconfiderate facrifices made by our princes and the unabaring zeal of her fupporters. This encouraged the court of Ronw to fend in 1 152, John Paparo, Cardinal of St. Laurence in Daraafo, into this 2 L ifle, {4a) V;t. Malach. c. ii. Again : Et in terra jam infueta imo & inexperta i«on»ruca; rcligionis. Epift. ad MaUdi, j(.!4) Hanmer's Chronicle, p. 104. Ware's writc-rs, p. 71. 130 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH ifle, to fettle its hierarchy on a new and permanent plan. A council was held in Kells, wherein prefided Chriflian, bifliop of Lifmore, who had been educated at Clarivaux, under St. Bernard, and of courfe had the papal interefl: much at heart. The following are the names of the prelates who were prefent, according to an old MS. cited by (45") Ware : Giolla-Chrill O'Conarchy, Bifliop of Lifmore, Legate ; Giolla Mac-liah, Primate of Ireland ; Domnald O'Lonargain, Archbifliop of MunRer, or Cafliel ; iEda O'Hoflien, Archbifliop of Connaught, or Tuam ; Greri, Bifliop of Athacliath, or Dublin ; Giolla Na-noemh, Bifliop of Glendaloch ; Dungal O'Cellaid, Bifliop of Leighlin ; Tuiftius, Bifliop of Waterford j Domnald O'Fogartaic, Bifliop of Oflbry; Find Mac Tiarcain, Bifliop of Kildare ; Giolla Anchomdheh O'Ardniail, Bifliop of Emly ; Giolla iEda O'Maigin, Bifliop of Cork ; Macronan, Bifliop of Kerry, or Ardfert; Torgefius, Bifliop of Limerick-, Muirchertach O'Melidar, Bifliop of Clonmacnois ; Ma^liofa O'Conachtain, Bifliop of Airthir-conacht ; O'Ruadan, Bifliop of Luigni, or Achonry; Macraith O'Morain, Bifliop of Con- macne, or Ardagh ; Ethru O'Miadachain, Bifliop of Clonard ; Tuthal O'Connach- taig, Bifliop of Huanibruin, or Enaghdune; Muridheach O'Cobthaig, Bifliop of Ceanla-Eogain, or Derry ; Msel Patrick O'Bainan, Bifliop of Dailarid, or Connor ; Maliofa Mac Inclericuir, Bifliop of Ullagh, or Down, I have given this lifl: on the authority of Ware and Keating, but I think it very incorrect and fcarcely authentic : it favours, as all Irifli MSS. do, of modern forgery. Let the reader determine from comparing two other accounts of our Sees, where the names are very different, and by no means coeval, even allowing for the uncer- tain orthography of thefe times. The firfl; is taken from (46) Hovcnden, where he relates the affenibling of all the Archbifliops, Bifliops, and Abbats of Ireland, to fwear allegiance to Henry II. " It is to be known," fays this annalifl, " that there are four Archbifliops and twenty-eight Bifliops in Ireland, and (47) thefe are their names : Gcbfius, Armacenfis Archiep. totius Hib. Primas. Odanus, epifc. Mauritius, Charenfis epifc. Malethias, Tliuenfis epifc. . Neemias, Chonderenfis epifc. Gille- bertus, Ratphpotflenfis epifc. Thabcus, Ceneverfis. Chriitianus, Ardahachdenfis, Eleutherius, Cluencradenfis, cpifcopi. Donatus, Caffelenfis Archiep. Chriitianus, Leifmorenfis epifc. apofl. fed. Legajt. Ingmelleccenfis epifc. Cluanunienfis epifc. Arcinorenfis (j,S) Difquif. p. 87. {46) Adii&I. p, 516. Edit. SaviOe. (47) C^iotum Dumiiia lixc funt. lupra. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. =■31 .-<■-<.<■•<•■<■■<■■< ■<■•<■■*■< -i ■< ■< ■<■ < ■«•<..<■■<■■<■<■<•■<-. "<•'<■'% ■<■■<■■<■■<■■< '4.|.>..>->- >. >..>..>..>..] >>>►>>.>> >. Arcmorenfis epifc. Lucapniarenfis epifc. Kildarenenfis epifc. Waterfordenfis cpifc. Archferdenfis epifc. Rofenfis epifc. Finabrenfis epifc. Laurentius, Dub- linienfis Archiep. Biftagnenfis epifc. Fernenfis epifc. Leghglenfis epifc. Kin- darenfis epifc. Erupolenfis epifc. Catholicus Tuaimenfis Archiep. Kinfernenfis epifc. Kinlathenfis epifc. Maigonenfis epifc. Aelfinenfis epifc. Achatkourenfis cpifc. Here eiglit Sees were fubject to Armagh, ten to Cafhel, five to Dublin, and five to Tuam, making, with the four Metropolitans, thirty-two epifcopates. Roger Hoveden was a domeftic of Henry II. and is in general well informed and accurate. As his catalogue was written but about twenty years after the Council of Kells, it is very extraordinary many of his names fhould differ fo widely from the preced- ing, and that many of the Bifliops are not to be found in Ware and Harris. This •difference will be ftill more apparent from the names of our Sees as they flood in the papal tax-rolls about 1220. Under Armagh were. Conner, Conner. Ardachad, Ardagh, Dun-daleghlaSj Down. Rathboth, Raphoe. Lugid, Louth. Rathlurig, Rathlure. Cluainiard, Clonard. Damliag, Duleek. Conanas, Kells. Darrich, - Derry. Under Dublin were, Clendelachi, Glendaloch. Leghlin, Leighlin. Fern, Ferns. Childar, Kildare. Cainic, Offory. Under Cashel were. Cendaluan, Klllaloe. Waltifordian, Waterford. Limerick, Limerick. Lifmor, Lifmore. Infuia Gathay, Innifcatty. Cluainvanian, Cloyne. Cellumabrach, Kilfenora. Corcaia, Cork. Ole-imlech, Emly. Ros-ailithir, Rofs, Rofcrcen, Rofcrea. Ardfert, Ardfert. Under Tuam were. Mageo, Mayo. Achad, Achonry. Cell-alaiJ, Killala. Cinani, Clonmacnois, Rofcoman, Rofcommon. CeUnun-duac, Kilmacduagh. Cluanfert, Clonfert. Here ?i.a.~ 132 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH ^<<- <<<<■«■*•<■<< V > > > > > >. > > ■ Here are thirty-eight Sees which paid Annates to Rome. In the (48) Roman provincial, compiled later, they ave fifty-feven : the names are indeed fo deformed that I have omitted them, but they may be feen in the author lafl cited and in Bingham. It may gratify the curiofity of many to bring under one view the fitua- tion and names of our ancient .Bifliopricks j and this view will demonflrate that until the arrival of the Englifh, the number of our Sees, the fucceflion of our Bifhops and ecclefiaflical affairs are involved in great obfcurity. Ware's MS. gives us byt twenty-three Billiops who met the Pope's Legate at Kells ; fo many acknow- ledged obedience to the Reman Pontiff, and fubmitted to the Metropolitans then appointed, and it is very probable new Diocefes were then formed for thefe Pre- lates, as the other lifts ftrongly intimate- sBut neither the papal power nor the terror of the Monarch were able to diveft the inferior Princes of their rights, or their Bifhops of their Sees ; if the latter acknowledged the fpiritual dominion of the Pope and paid their Annates, the court of Rome cared little about their number. And this is proved by the number of our Sees In the Roman provincial being fifty- eight, whicli.inthe tax-rolls before were but thirty-eight. The great cbjeft of Paparo's legation was to extlngAiifh oar ancient do£lrines and difcipline, to new model our hierarchy, and above all, lay the foundation of a revenue : none of thefe could be accomplifhed without altering the conftltution of our church, and the firfl ftep towards effecling that was, by reducing the number of our Sees, which Bifhop Rochfort's canons before cited fully declare. Paparo likewife befto.jv^d four Piills on the four Metropolitans, thofe with the Bulls for the other Bifliops brought a (49) large fimi into the Cardinal's coffers. He alfo efta- blifhed the payment of tithes by apoftolic, that is, by papal authority. Omnipo- ,tence was the characteriftic of the Pope at this time. Of Pope Pafchall .II. it was faidj ■Spiriius tff corpus 7nihi fiint fuhjcila patenter. Corpora ierre/ia teneo, ca:lejiia mente. Unde tencndo poltim^ falvo I'lgoquc foltim (50). Without iufifliiig on the divine right of tithes, they are mentioned by Origen in ,the 3d century, by St. Jerome in the 4th, and from the Council of Mafcon, it is plain they were eftabliffied in France in the 5th and 6th, that is, as foon as chrif- tianity obtained in any place a firm footing, tithes became immediately an eccle- ilaftical (48) Csr. a Sanfio ^iiilo Cecprap. Append. (49) Sec Puiicr'! divclcp. of i).-- Gtrniaii tnifire, v. i. p, i"}. Note, c. where is a curious notice to thispurppfe. , (jo) Goi//ui,,„^ I S/^' o/' '//' /i,yM •fAvt /'r»t /"/' //ir -.'*-v/// F a ^^:,/^.;/y/y y^/,. jf^,,^. y.^; /j,,y, . //j^/ C^/,.u„ < IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. ,33 -<■■<■•<-< <-<-4 <..<-<<<.< fiaftical revenue, nor has human wifdom yet difcovered a more equitable and lefs burdenfome provifion for the Clergy. The Council of Kells endeavoured to extirpate Simony. This vice was prevalent in Europe in the middle (51; ages. In France, as with us, the great Lords, who erefted Sees and endowed them out of their eilates, bequeathed them to their wives and children, and publicly fold them to the bell bidder. Abbacies were difpofed of in the fame manner, and fo were benefices of every kind. As this conduft greatly injured the rights of Bilhops and was contrary to ancient difcipline, it was juflly and feverely reprobated. This traffick was more advantageoufly carried on here by thofe Lords who had embraced the Romilh tenets and party, becaufe they found ■ more purchafers than in their own Sept. Even in their own Sept candidates were not wanting for benefices, as in Wales, of which Giraldus Cambrenfis fup- plies (52) inllances. Paparo alfo endeavoured to abolifh ufury. Reafonable interefl for money lent has been permitted by every government ; this is very different from (^^) ufury, which is the pefl of fociety. Without commerce Ireland had only landed gentry, whofe prodigality and expence made a continued demand for borrowing, consequently the lenders were very few and the interefl exorbitant. Before (54) the Council of Nice, Bi(hops>and Priefls were allowed to take intereft for money, but after, the church denounced the feverefl punifliments againft thofe who received it, as excommunica- tion, a rejeftion of their oblations and a prohibition of chriftian burial. To render the Irilh more obedient and fubmiffive an attempt was made to fetter their minds with religious terrors, a pagan tale of purgatory was trumped up with every circumftance that could work on their hopes and fears. The very year after the Council of Kells, A. D. 1153, Matt. Paris relates the vifions of Owen, an Irifli foldier, which he faw in St. Patrick's purgatory. The (lory was taken up by Henry, a Ciflertian Monk, and varnifhed with all the powers of his ingenuity. Chrift, fays he, appeared to St. Patrick, and leading him to a defert place fhowed him a deep hole, and told him, whoever repented and was armed with true faith, 2 M and (51) Monieim. Cent. XT. And Baluze : Quo ficbat, ut qui ecclefias obtinere a patronis vokbant, eas vel numefaU pccunia, vel fsedU obfequiis acquirerenc. Not, ad Regin. p. 544, Wini purchulcd from Wulferc the See of London ia 666. Bed. 1. 3. c. 7. (ii) Wharton. Ang. Sac. p. 530. (j3) Faenus among canonifts is legal intereft, Ufura, is illegal extortion. Regin. p. I33. (5^) Ante banc etiam faniSlionem Nica:nE fynodi, cpifcopi ac Preibyteri fsenerabantur, ficut alii homines, fingtilia cen- tcOmis *ui ^ixnv^evrts ixarcffTai ttrrxiruirt. Salmas, de modo iirurar p. 27%^ Balfanio diferte tradit, uluras laicis permiflJM ciTc, clericis folit vctiiai. Salmaj. de (xn. trapc«ct. p. 7 1. ,34 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH and entering that pit continued there a night and a day, fhould be purged from all his fins ; and alfo, during his abode there, fhou4d not only fee the pains of the damned, but the joys of the blefled. St. Patrick immediately built a church on the fpot, and placed therein regular canons of St. Auflin. This impious fidion, for many ages firmly believed, confutes itfelf by mentioning regular canons, which are well known to have had no exillence, as Mabillion (55) obferves, before the loth century. The ground-work of this flory and many ot the particulars are taken from (56) Bede, and fo is the name, Owen : lefs than ihefe were enough for a monkifh fable. It has been well (^y) remarked, that no account of this purgatory is to be found in Probus or Joceline, or any other writer previous to the 12th century. It has been difcredited by many popifh ecclefiaftics, and on St. Patrick's day in the year 1497, it was demoliflied by order of Pope Alex- ander VI. The place is ftill frequented in the (58) months of May, June, and July; nor is this to be wondered at, when the late Pope Benedid XIV. was an admirer of this purgatory, and preached and (59) publifhed a fermon on its virtues. Such is the infallibility of Popes, and fuch the effefts (60) of fuperftition on weak and cre- dulous minds. Here I Ihould have clofed the account of this celebrated place, was it not neceffary to add a few words in explanation of the plate. This purgatory is in a fmall ifle in Lough Derg, in the fouihern part of Donegal. The ifle is but J 26 yards long by 44 broad, and the cave is fixteen feet and a half by two wide, and fo low that a tall man cannot (land erefl: in it. It holds nine perfons, a tenth could not remain in it without great inconvenience. The floor is the natural rock, and the whole is covered with large ftones and fods. There are feven chapels and circles dedicated to St. Patrick, St. Abage, St. Molafs, St. Brendan, St. Columba, St. Catherine and St. Bridget. The Roman Pontiff, finding the fuccefs of Paparo's legatefhip very problematical, refolved to place Ireland in more powerful hands, and for this end he iflued a (61) Bull, A. D. I 155. In this Pope Adrian claims the fovereignty of our iHands, and bellows Ireland on Henry II. that he might extend the borders of the church and of religion, (55) M^billonin nuper dicilur ignotus ante facculum dccimum. Spanhcmi. Ifag. hift. ccc. T. i. p, 491. Moflicim, fupra, (56) Lib. 5. c. 13. Lib. 4. c. j. (57) Richardfon on ihc folly of pilgrimages, chap. 3. (jfl) Burke, Hibcrn. Unmiii. p. 4. (J9) Dc CO Sctmonem hubuic ad populum, ut mc mcinini Roma; inter fcrnioncs fuos typis vulgatoe ligilTe. Burke, fupra, p. J. (60) No one has noticed liow cxaflly the ccrcnioiiien at the Purgatory, as drfcribed by Meflingliam, agree with Miofe pra£liJcd at the Oiacle and Cave of Truphimui. Paufan. £aet. p. 603 — 604, £dit. Sylburg, Vandale. de Orac. (61) UlTcr. Syll. p. 109. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. 135 ; 4 * < * ■< ■< < <-< ■< ■<-< < ■< <■<■ ■<•*, ■< * ■< ■< ■< •< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< < < < < religion, extirpate vice and reform evil manners, provided he yearly pays to St. Peter a penny for each houfe and preferves the rights of churches. " Voila," exclaims (62) Mac Geoghegan, " un arret prononce contre 1' Irlande, par lequel le droit des gens & les loix les plus les facrees font violees fous le fpecieux pretexte de religion & de reformation des nioeurs. Les Irlandois ne doivent plus avoir une patrie : cette nation qui n'avoit jamais fubi un joug etranger eft condamnee fans etre enten- due a perdre fa liberie'. Mais peut-on foupconner le Vicaire de Je'fus Chrift d'une injuftice fi criante ? Peut-on le croire capable d 'avoir ditte une bulle qui a boule- verfe toute une ijation, qui a de'poflede de leurs patrimoines tant d'anciens propri- etaires, qui a fait repandre tant de fang, & qui a ete caufe enfin de la ruine de la religion dans cette ifle." Our Abbe and (^6^) Lynch endeavour to remove the odium of this papal ad by declaring the Bull a forgery : but the (64) confirmation of it by Pope Alexander in 1 172, and a recital of {65) it by Pope John in 1319, place its authority beyond doubt. Modern Roman Catholics perceive, vi^hat their anceltors did not, fome de- viations from infallible reftitude in the Roman Vice-Deity, and do not fpeak fo (^66) refpeftfully of thefe tranfadions. Furniflied with thefe omnipotent charters, Henry arrived in this kingdom in 1172, and after accepting the allegiance of the Irifh, haftened to Cafliel to regulate ecclefiaftical affairs. The canons made in this council have before been concifely given : the principal of them is that which decrees uni- formity of divine offices in the King's dominions of England and Ireland. This was a wife law ; for the firft ftep towards reconciling the natives of both countries to each other was, to make them of one religion : their fubmiffion to the ecclefiaf- tical naturally led to an acquiefcence in the common law of their new mafters ; and the event would have been anfwerable to the expeclatiou but for the fubfequent weak- nefs of the Englifli government, which then, and almoft ever fince, inftead of apply- ing radical cures to public diforders, contented itfelf with palliatives and temporary expedients, to appeafe fome prefent clamour or get rid of fome prefent inconvenience. Thus have I endeavoured to collect a few fragments, and they are no more, of our ecclefiaftical antiquities : if they fliould add any thing to the general ftock, or iliuftrate obfcure points the labour is amply recompenfed. The orientaiifm of the Irifla and Britifh churches though noticed, as was before obferA'ed, by many learned - , men, (6l) Hift, d' Irlande. T. r. p. 440. (6;) Cambrens. Evers. p. 166 — 193, (64) Uffer. Syllog. fupra. (6j) Wilkiiii. Cone. v. j. p, 431. (66) Jus, Prim»t. Armac. fup. 0'Connoc'< DiUert. itt Edit. 136 OF THE STATE OF THE IRISH CHURCH men, has never been fo far inveftigated as to give a tolerable idea of its particulars, for moft of thefe writers have confined themfelves to that of the pafchal feftival. In the foregoing pages an attempt is made to fupply this defeft, and alfo to confirm the teftimony of (6y') Tertullian and Origen in the 3d, and Chryfoftom and Eufe- bius in the 4th century, of the early propagation of chriftianity in the Britifli iiles by Greek mifTioners. This is a point which could not be pleafing to Roman Catho- lics of former times, who wiflied to refer all our religious obligations to Rome. And hence we need not wonder at (68) O'Flaherty pronouncing our " Greek Church and Greek Eafler imaginary whimfies/' Our author was a good fcholar and anti- quary, and not unlkilled in literary warfare : AJfuetus longo muros dcfendere bello. If therefore fubftantial evidence could be brought to fliew the orientalifm of our church an imaginary vvhimfey, he was as capable as any other to produce it. But inftead of dlre£t and pofitive proofs, his learning and ingenuity could afford him but one, and that fuperficial^ evafive, and illogical. It is this : " St. Patrick," fays he, " living for fome years a canon in the Lateran, knew of no other manner of obferving Eafler but that he faw precifely pradUfed at Rome : the Britons and Pifts ufed the fame, as did the northern Pifts converted by Columba, and this uniformity continued to the time of Dionyfms Exiguus, A. D. 532." Columba, I have fliewn, did not keep the Roman Eafler, nor was Saint Patrick ever in the Lateran. Under what then can ^'Flaherty fhelter himfelf from the im- putation of either grofs ignorance, or grofs mifreprefentation. Simply under this, that there was no Cycle, but the Jewifh of 84 years, for keeping Eafler invented till Dionyfms Exiguus formed one, and therefore the Britifh, Irifh, and Roman churches and indeed every church obferved Eafler in the fame manner. This is luch a firm tone of deception, and fo fhameful an evafion of truth, as could only be found in a defpcrate partizan of a defperate caufe. What brought Polycarp from Afia in the 2d century to Pope Anicetus, but to confer on the time of obferving the (69) pafchal feflival, and to terminate the violent difputes concerning it ? What made Pope Victor, at the end of the fame century, fulminate excommunication againft the Afiatic Bifliops, but that the latter did not keep Eafler like the former ? » ^f (67) TertiiU. ajv. Judaos. c. 7. Origen, ham. 4. in Ezcch. and horn. 6. In Luc. c. 1. Chryfofl. t. 6. p. <3J. Eufcb. dciii, evaiig. I, 3. (tii; Ogyg. viiid. p Mj. (69) Euftb. Hift. ecdci. 1. 4- «• >4- '■ i- c ^^. IN THE ELEVENTH CENTURY, AND AFTER. 137 .., .4. 4"< ■<•<'■<•<•< ■<■<■<-<■■<■<■<■< ■< <■< ■<■<-«-< ■< ■« ■< ■<-<-<■< ■< ■< < -< ■<-<■<-<■< + >->■ >■ > ) >.■>. >.] If there w^s no diverfity, why did the Council of (70) Nice decree the exaft time of celebrating this feflival ? All thefe events happened before the age of St. Patrick. Do they denote an harmonious uniformity in the eaftern and weflern churches on this fubje£t ? No one knew better than O'Flaherty that they do not ; and yet we mufl lament, that no literary eminence, no mental improvement are able totally to prevent a bias to party and opinions to v/hich education and long habits incline men. Our author writ at a time (1687) when religious and civil diffention prevailed, em- bittered the minds of men and left no time for cool inquiry or reflexion. It was fcarcely poffible to efcape the general infe£lion : Uvaque confpe£ld livorem ducit ab uva. But had he lived at the prefent day, and more minutely examined the matter, he would have freely confeffed the propagation of faith in this ifle, to have been nearly, if not exaftly as ftated in thefe pages, and that a Greek church and Greek Eafter here were not imaginary whimfies. (70) If the canon relative to this be genuine. Dupin, Siede 4. Richardfon. Prwleift. ecc, fupra, Johnfon'j Council* in loco. 2 N OF ( 138 ) ^.^. + + + + + + + H. ++ + + + 'i-+ + + + + ++ + + + + + •*•■!• •^ + + + + + + -b -!• + + + ■14' + + + + OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAc's CHAPEL. IF (i) Vitruvius, Strabo, Pliny, Tacitus, Dion CafTius and Herodian, who pro- fefledly or incidently treat of the domeftication of the Irlih in their feveral ages, record nothing but traits of barbarifm, incivility, and total want of architefture, where could the Irifh acquire ideas of the (2) Egyptian and Grecian (lyles of build- ing ? There muft be either a ftrange confpiracy among ancient writers, to mifrepre- fent the truth, and deceive mankind, or what is delivered by Stukeley and Irifh Antiquaries of the wonderful proficiency of the Druids in the Arts and Sciences, is deflitute of reality. The latter had abfurd fyftems to fupport, the former dated Kiatters of fafl and notoriety. Impartiality and truth arc ever found among thofs who have no inducement to fwerve from them. Vix eqiddem credar, fed cum Jint praemia falfi Mulla^ ratani tejiis debet habere Jidem. Mr. O'Conor grants our buildings in the 6th century were mean, and yet he fpeaks of magnificent ones many ages before, without condefcending to explain the occult caufes of this degradation, and at length final extinftion of architecture among us. But this omiffion is not more remarkable than thofe on every fubjed: touched on in his differtations ; where a copious flow of words fupplies the place of information, and the Leavar Gabbala and Codex Lecanus miflead the reader with the fhow of authority. Mr. Lynch (3) thinks we had flone houfes very early, becaufe Teamor or the pa- lace of Tarah, is derived from Tea a houfe and mor a wall. Had any but an Irilh fcholar and feanachie advanced fo foolifh an etymology, how loudly would his igno- rance of the Iberno-Celtic be proclaimed ? Teamor is obvioufly the great houfe or palace. But if Mr. Lynch's authority is to be depended on, Ireland was but flen- derly (l) Vitruv. Archit. 1. a. c. l. Strab. 1. ij. Plln. 1. i6. Tacit. Germ. c. i6. Dio. 1. 39. Herod. 1. 7. c. 4. (Z) Archdall's Mon. Hib. p. 7;i. (3) Cambrens. Evcrs. p. 117. Rowlands remarks that Cacr or Cahir and Mhuir or Mur import an indofej place, p. »9' But that Tea (hould be added to commemorate an Irilh queen, is wild and romantic. OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES. 139 -4 < t ■< < * <■< < < Ki < 4 ■<■<■<.< .< <<■-<.< .<.<-.*..<■<.<■<■<■■<■<■<■< < ■< .*•< ■«4.>- >->->■>■>■>■ >■>■>■> >. > >, >. derly inhabited before the Incarnation ; for he records it of Irialus, as a memorable public acl, that he (4) cleared fixteeu plains covered with wood ; and that Eochad Fibhcrglas and Oengus Ohnucad performed fimilar important fervices : the inference is eafy and certain, that fuch a country and its inhabitants mull be in the rudell ftatt, and that it had more of the ferine than the human fpecies pofTeiling it. In the eyes of reafon and learning then how weak and unfounded are the afler- tions of our natural hiflorians ? They boaft of extenfive buildings and high de- grees of civilization above two thoufand years ago. The conftruclion of Eamania, fays O'Conor, forms a remarkable epoch. Not in hiftory, I am bold to fay, but in Irifh romance, for this was 350 years before our sera, when the Roman ftate was in its infancy, and Europe but thinly peopled by wandering Celtes. To find at this period and in this corner of the world, a nation flourifliin^um & ipfus quoquc parictcs ejus cuopcrire curavit. Scd. 1. 3 «• *i- (10) Archacologia, Vol. 8. p. 168 — 169. (11) Rcgio dicitur natus fanguine in Hibernia, patre Muriardacho, matre vero Sabina. Godwyn, dc pra:ful. p, 9J. (i») Vit. Cudbcrti, p. »43. (13) Rafiiji, c. y p.4.59. I'lcury, Tod). 30. s I 3 • s- ^ v^ 7f' 1- ,,^s ^^ .V ^ > y ^ ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. . 141 ; ■< •<■■<■•<■<■■<■< ■<-<■'€+>• >">-i •■>■ ¥ *- y >-> >■> >.►.*>.>■>-♦.>♦-».■>■►■♦.. ^14) ruled one hundred and fifty Monks, and Sr. Manchene and St. Monenna, as many Nuns. Three hundred Monks obeyed Sr, Tehan ; eight hundred and feventy- fix, St. Carthag; a thoufand, St. Goban ; a thoufand five hundred, St. Laferian; three hundred, St. Brendan ; three thoufand, St. Finan ; as many, St. Congel and St. Gerald; fo that Bifliop Nicholfon might well (15) fay, the fecular and regular clergy were alraoft as numerous as men of every other denomination. In the little ifle of Bute were twelve (16) churches or chapels, and thirty hermitages; and in Unft and the other Hebrides, religious phrenzy equally extended her reign. Hence the Irilh acquired a fondnefs for, and a propenfity to monachifm, which remarkably diftinguifhed them through (17) every age. Though the number of Monks and Nuns now recited is by no means to be depended on, yet it fuggefted to their prefi- dents the neceflity of ftone inclofures or clofes, thefe in the Eaft were called Man- dr^. The word originally (18) imported a flieep-fold, and was applied to thofe monaftic buildings, wherein the Archimandrite prefided over his difciples, as the fliepherd fuperintended his flock in the fold. There are many of thefe Mandraj dif- perfed over this kingdom hitherto unnoticed ; one remarkable is Dun Aengus. This is in the greater ifle of Arran, on the coafl of Galway, fituated on a high cliff over the fea, and is a * circle of monftrous flones, without cement, and capable of containing 200 cows. The tradition f relative to it is, that Aengus, King of Cafliel, about 490, granted this ifle, called Arran Naomh, or Arran of the Saints, to St. Enna or Endeus, to build ten churches on. The 7th and 8th centuries were brilliant periods in the hiftory of Irifli literature. It is therefore furprifing amid fuch a fuperiority, not to find other ufeful branches of human knowledge cultivated in this ifle. However, other people were fimilarly circumflanced. Do£tor Johnfon (19) remarks, " that he knew not whether it was peculiar to the Scots to have attained the liberal without the manual arts, to have excelled in ornamental knowledge, and to have wanted not only the elegancies but the conveniencies of common life. Yet men thus ingenious and inquifitive, are 2 o content ( m) Can-.brtn Evers. p. i j8. Colgan adds much to this catalogue. AA. Sanfl Hib. paflim. (15) Iridi Hiflorical Library, Preface. (16) Campbell's political Survey, V. !. p. J7S. (17) Wharton, Angiia Sacra, par. 2. p. 91. Archdall, fup. Introduflion. (18) Salmas. in Vnpifc. p 460 — 461. Du Cange & Sulcer. in voce. • logeni opus lapidcuni fine coemcnto tamen, quod ductntas vaccas in area contineret, fupra eltidiniaiTi mi'is creijHi- run, e valla! molis rupHius ereduui. ' O'Flah. Ogyg. p. J75. Macpherfou's crit. diff. p, 2^4. t Archdall's Monaft. llib. p. 271. (19) Journey to the Wtftern Iflands. J42 OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE content to live in total ignorance of the trades, by which the human wants are fupplied, and to fupply them by the groffeft means." To the fame purpofe, Doftor Woodward, from Diodorus Siculus, (20) obferves it as a mighty paradox, that the Egyptians (hould take little care of the ftrufture of their houfes, when they wafted fo much time, labour, and expence in adorning their fepulchres. — But the folution of thefe paradoxical appearances is not fo difficult. The climate has fome influence on the architecture of a country, but its political conftitution the greateft. Where this is unfavourable to induftry, to commerce, to arts and manufaftures, there we are not to look for neatnefs or convenience in apparel, in building, or any other ■ inftance of civil improvement. From every evidence fupplied by antiquity it is certain, the Irifli had neither do- meftic edifices nor religious ftructures of lime and ftone, antecedent to the great northern invafion in the 9th century. Some years before the birth of Chrift, Drufus ereded fifty (21) caftles or forts along the Rhine, fo that the calcination of ftone and the preparation of mortar, could not be unknown to the natives, and yet an hundred years after, (22) Tacitus aflures us, the Germans did not ufe cement or mortar. A century later (23) Herodion and Dion Caffius declare the fame. Tacitus does not fay, the Germans were ignorant of mortar and its compofition, that would have been impoffible from their intercourfe with the Romans, he only denies them the ufe of it : their riches, as this writer obferves, were their flocks and herds, their life was paftoral ; a ftate of fociety wherein no one expeds to find durable ftruftures. And yet they had fkill enough to form fubterranean granaries and antrile chambers to fecure (24) their corn, and foften the feverity of the M'inter's cold. Such was exaftly the cafe with the Irifli. Whatever change chriftianity operated in the religi- ous fentiments of the latter, it made no alteration in the political conftitution of the country, of courfe things remained in their ancient ftate as to the arts of civil life. But the doftrinc and difcipline of the Irifli church were averfe from ftone fabrics. Celfus, that bitter enemy of chriftianity, (25) objects to the firft believers, that they had no dedications or confecrations of altars, ftatues, or churches. Four centuries had almoft (2O) elapfed before the ufag? here noticed began. In this interval, the Gofpel (lo) Archalogla, V. 4. p. 130. (ii) Flor. 1. 4. c. i. (xi) Ne cocmcntorum quidcm apud illos ufus Germ. c. 16. (23) Ptliouticr, Aipia. (14) Suflugium hycmi & rcccptaculuni frugihus. Per fubtcrranea occulta, foflafquc niuliifiilas, multi German! latebant. Tac. Gtiiii c. 16. In the follis muUifidis, wc fee the origin of our fubtcrraiR-aii rooms in the numerous cave, in tliis >fle, made l>y the Fitbnlg'i, or Bclgic colonifls. (1.5) Oiigcn. Cont. C'tls. 1. 8. M. F.-cl. Oaav. Arnob. 1. 6. I.ailant. I. ». c. a. {lb) Ccniparc tufcb. vit. Conftant. 1. i. t. 47 Duraod, Rat. Div. Oflic. c. 6. P. Virgil, dt Invent. I, 6. c. ». Al^CIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. 143 Gofpel was propagated in this ifle by Greek miflioners or their difciples. It was in the 6th age, churches were anointed with chrifm, and in 787, reliques (27) were placed in them, and they aflumed the name of fome patron Saint or Martyr. While corruptions were creeping into religion on the continent, ours was pure and primi- tive. Retentive of the faith delivered to us, and precluded from accefs to Rome by the convulfions of the Empire, we were ftrangers to the innovations of foreign church- es ; when time difcovered them to us, we beheld them with horror and deteftation. Such is the tenor of our ecclefiaftical hiftory. Lanfranc (28) complains in 1074, that we did not ufe chrifm in baptifm, and we may conclude, that it was not applied in inferior facred offices, as confecrating a church or altar. By Archbifliop Comyn's (29) canons, made in 11 86, it appears that our altars were of wood, and therefore incapable of chrifmation ; for the councils of Adge in 506, and of Epaon in 517, forbid the C30) holy oil to be applied but to flruclures of flone. Here are proofs of our churches being generally of wood even in the 12th century, and that their confecration was folely by prayer, agreeably to the cuftom of the purefl: ages. The Britons, who fymbolized with the Irifh in religious tenets, had only (31) wattled and wooden churches. The ancient chapel at Glaftonbury, preferved in (32) Spelman, and that of (33) Greefled in the county of Eflex, exhibit fpecimens of the old Irifh and Britifh flyle. On the contrary, the Anglo-Saxon church, founded by an eleve of Rome, early adopted the niaffes, ftations, litanies, fmging, reliques, pilgrimages, and other fuperflitious praftices, flowing in a full tide from that impe- rial city, and with thefe that mode of building peculiarly fuited to them. The Irifh Oflmen being converted in the 9th century, embraced the faith of their countrymen in England. We find them in fubfequent ages correfponding with ^34) Lanfranc, Archbifhop of Canterbury, and fending to the Metropolitans of that fee their (t;) Concil. N!c. i. can 7. Reliques are defended by the Rommifts on the text (Revelations, chap. vi. vcr, 9 ) of a book of very fufpicious authority. Even this text is perverted, fur does the foul and body remain together in the grave ? What is faid by St. AuOin, (Serni. de Sanil.) and by St. Jerome, (in Viligant.)-they are interpolations, and of no weight. (28) UflTer. Syllog. p. 71. On what authority is chrifm or unflion fupported .' On a prophane and ridiculous fuppoC- tion. Spiritualem intelligi volebant facris myllcriis ineffe pinguedinem. Cyprian, c. 14. (19) Ware's Bi(hops, p 316. (,;o) Alturia nifi lapidca infufione chrifmatis no:i facrentur. Cone. Epaon. c. 16. Why? Durandus anfwers : Non dc ligno, quia cum fit porofum et fpoiigiofum corpus I'anguinem abforberet, fup. p. 18. The portable ftonc-altar of the 9th and icth centuries, was ufually a flate. Baluz. in Rbegin. p. 561 — 562. (31) E lapide enim facras adcs efficicre tarn Scotis qiiam Britonibus morem fuiffe infolltum. Uffer, fup. p. 737. Eo quod, ibi eccleCam de lapide, infulito Britonibus more, fecerat. Bed, 1. 3. c. 4. (52) Concil. v. I. p. II. (jj) Ducarrtl'i Anglo-Norman Antiquities, p. 100. (34^ Ulfer. Syll. p 119. 144 OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE their Bifhops for confecration. This predileQion might be reafonably expected among people iffuing from the fame country, and connefted by affinity and language. Accordingly the firfl; ftruftures of the Oflmen in Ireland, and the firfl; buildings with (2s) mortar, were ftone-roofed chapels for reliques. I fhall only add one very remarkable circumflance, and that is the clofe imitation of BritiOi crypts in their fculptures by our Irifli architefts. Let the learned reader compare the fculptural ornaments of (^6) the undercroft at Canterbury, with thofe in fome of our chapels, and he will be convinced of the truth of what is here advanced. As our over-ground cryptical chapels have been hitherto unnoticed by Irilh Antiquaries, and as they are objects extremely curious, I fliall now communicate what authentic information has occurred to me concerning them. Near the Cathedral of Killaloe, is a ftone-roofed chapel, in it were probably de- pofited the reliques of St. Flannan, though after tr^ifiated to the cathedral. This patron Saint is (;^y) faid to have been difciple of St. Molua, the founder of this chapel, which from him was called, Kil da Lua, and the patron himfelf, Mo-Lua, or My Molua, a pronoun added by way of endearment, 'i iiis childilh analyfis is as contemptible as the other elucidations of hagiographers. St. Molua is an ideal per- fonage, and may be added to the other Saints of imagination. (38) Kil-le-lua, is literally the church upon or near the water, the water here is the Shannon : a ra- tional and obvious origin of the name. This place, being but eleven miles from the great Oilman fettlement at Limerick, was perhaps as early built as any other in the ifle. The church of St. Doulach, fituated about four miles to the Eaft of Dublin, on the road to Malahide, is a curious ftrufture. It is forty-eight feet long, by eighteen wide. There is a double ftone roof, the external which covers the building, and that which divides the lower from the upper ftory. You enter this crypt through a fmall door to the South. Juft as you enter, the tomb of St. Doulach prefents itfelf. The tomb proje, coirplicd in the 9th century, dircifts the mnrtar ufcd for inclofinj reliquce within an altar to be maiie wi'h holy water. Tunc facial m aliani cum ij>fa aqua bencdi^a-ad ocdudcndas Saniflorum reliquias in loco altaris, D'i Cang£ in Malta. ^36) Aichacologla, V. 8. (37) Waie'i Bifhopi, p. 590. (38) O'Biieii'f Iiifh Di- 1 St. Douiach's well was the baptiftery, it is at a fmall didance from the chapel. All the old baptifmal fonts were oftagonal. There was fomething myftical in the (45) number eight. Among chriftians the idea of this figure feems to have been taken from the {46) eighth or baptifmal day. Thus (47) St. Ambrofe. Odachorum fanflos templwn fiirrexH in vfus^ Odagonus fans eft munere dlgnus co. Hoc nianero deciiit facri baptifinatis aulatn Surgere, quo populis vera falus rcdiit. The emblematic frefco paintings, with which this baptiflery is adorned, were di- reftly copied from a Roman original. Thus Prudentius (48J fpeaks of the Vatican font. Omnlcohr v'ttreas piBiira fuperne iingit loidas, Mujci relucent y virefcit aurtim. Cyanetifqiie latex unibram trahit immincniis ojlriy Credas moveri jlu£libus lacunar. As a fupplement to what has been faid of St. Doulach and his chapel, I beg leave to add an account of both from an anonymous, though well informed author, who in 1747, publilhed a concife furvey of the ecclefiaflical ftate of Dublin and its diocefe. " In Bove-ftreet, now called Fifliamble-ftreet, ftood formerly a chapel of eafe to St. John's church dedicated to St. Doulach, an anchoret whofe feaft is celebrated on the firft of Augufl: ; on which day and during its oQave, is vifited a famous well in Fingal between Belgriffin and Kinfaly, about five miles from Dublin, contiguous to a church facred to the memory of this venerable folitary, whofe life was formerly prrfcrvcd at Malahide, but now not to be met with. The building of the hermitage is fHll covered, and in it is an altar, which fome look upon to have been the tomb of that holy reclufe ; near which is a hole, where many put in their heads to get rid of the head-ach. Up two pair of ftone-flairs is lliewn his bed, not much larger than a finall oven, fcarce fufficient to contain a perfon of a moderate fize : it is held in great repute by women in pregnancy, who turn thrice in faid bed, hoping thereby they may not die in child-bed. The fleeplc is (lill up, as is alfo the church, which i.s now much fmaller than formerly. Divine fervice is performed there once a fortnight, and the tithes belong to the Chapter of Chrill Church. Near this church (^l) RlioJogin, 1 XX, c. 1.1. (46) Cyprian, epiA. J9, ad FiJiim. (47; Infcrip. ad font. S. Tccls. Du Gauge in 0(5lava. Enrand. fup. 1. 7. c. i. (48) Pcriftepli »')m. Ii. ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. 147 church is a well of mofl; lucid and delightful water, inclofed and arched over, and formerly embelliflied at the expcnce of Peter Fagan, brother of John Fagan of Fel- trim, Efq. with the decorations of gilding and painting. The defcent of the Holy Ghoft on the apoftles was reprefented on the top : the effigies of St. Patrick, St. Columba, and St. Bridget, much after the manner they are engraved in Meffing- ham's title-page to his Florilegium San£torum Hibernia;, as alfo of St. Doulach, in a hermit's habit. On the walls was the following infcription, engraved on a mar- ble ftone. *' Pifc'ma Solymh clara decus cfferat altery Et medicas populus jaBet Hebraus aquas. Grata Deo patrium celebrat Fingallia fontem^ Doulachi precibus munera na£la pits. Morbos tile fugdt promptus, virefqite reponit, JEgris., £5? caufas niille faliitis habet. Scilicet In ev'ry malady to life a flay. J The cherub wond'rous moves his wat'ry fphere. The faint behold who ftirs the fountain here. Hail ! lovely font, if long unfung thy name, It hence fliall rife above the ftarry frame. *' Doftor Patrick RufTel, Archbilhop (titular) of Dublin, granted forty days in- dulgence to thofe who would fay devoutly, on their bare knees, at St. Doulach's well, iive times the Lord's prayer, Ave Maria, and at the end of faid prayers the ApolUes creed, and that a fortnight muft intervene between each time of faying the 148 OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE the aforefaid prayers to gain the indulgence, as appears from an infcription which had been formerly on a (tone which imported the fame. At the back of St. Dou- lach's well, there is another for bathing, which is vaulted, and called after St. Ca- tharine." Thus far our author, who in his account of this little cryptical chapel and its founder, exhibits a pi£l:ure of fuperftition and bigotry as remote from common fenfe as from genuine chriftianlty. Near the (49) church of Portaferry ftands a chapel ; a coarfe building, fays the writer, of an odd contrivance, being a room thirty-feven feet in length, fixteen broad, and twenty high ; covered with a coved arch of ftone, fo clofe and firmly cemented, that it does not appear to admit any water. Adjoining is a fimilar flruc- ture, divided into two apartments. There is a very ancient over-ground crypt in aa ifland in the Shannon not far from Killaloe. Malachy O'Morgair, about 1135, ercfted at the Abbey of Saul, two ftone-roofed crypts, feven feet high, fix long and two and a half wide, with a fmall window at one fide. But that of the greateft magnitude and befl: architedture is Cormac's chapel at (50) Cafhel. Irifh romantic hiftory tells us, that he was defcended from Olliol-Olum, King of Munfter of the Eugenian race, and that he was proclaimed King of Cafliel, A. D. 902, according to the Annals of Innisfallen, exercifing at the fame time the archi- epifcopal fundtions. That in 906, he was fuddenly attacked by Flan, King of Meath, and by Carubhal, King of Leinfter, who plundered his country. That in 907, he defeated thefe enemies on the plains of Moylena in Meath, but in 908, he was again invaded, and fell in battle on the plain of Moyailbhe, not far from Leighlin. 1 rely more on the tefllmony of Caradoc of Lhancarvan, for his exigence than the plaufible fidlions of national writers ; and I think what this Welfh chronicler relates of his being flain by the Danes moft likely, for in his time they were (51) ravaging every part of the kingdom. Irifh writers praife his learning, piety, valour, and magnificence ; after pompoudy detailing thefe, they are not alhamed at confefling their total (52) ignorance of his fucceflbrs in Cafhel for one hundred years. As ufual, they are perfedly acquainted with the minuted: tranfaQions of the remoteft ages, of which there are no annals or documents remaining, but where light might be expefted from the latter in fubfequcnt periods, there nothing but darknefs reigns. Cadicl (49) Hid. or the County of Down, p. 4'). (sc) Caifial, in Irith, is a rock. O'Brien in voce. (ji) Johnftonc, lupra, p. 66. (51) Waic'j Ililhops, p. /.67. I .Mt!llllillillii'-I-^" '■ M 'A ^ en i ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. 149 ..« < < < < < < ««-.,' >.►;•>.>>■>>>>>> >>>>>>> . . > > > . .»v» »>•►>... Cafhel feems to have been dedicated to religion in times of paopnifm ; for on the fite of heathen fanes early chriftianity erecled her churches. Ware relates a tra- dition, that the kings of M under were proclaimed on a large (lone there. This was a Firbolgian cuftom introduced from the North, where the people reared (53) great ftones, or ftone-circles for the eledion and inauguration of their princes, the eledors themfelves alfo (landing on ftones while giving their fuffrages. Formerly in (54) Scotland, when a chief entered on the government of his clan, he was mounted on an heap of ftones in the form of a pyramid, his followers ftanding in a circle round him. Manus Odonnel, Lord of Tyrconnel, was inaugurated on a rock near Kilmacrenan church in 1537, as Cox informs us. And M'Donald, King ot the Ifles, was crowned (landing on a Hone. Our Liaiail or §^) Stone of Fate, is very celebrated in Irifli romantic hiftory ; on it our monarchs were feated for inau- guration, and if he was the true fuccelTor, the ftone groaned in fign of approbation. This ftone was brought into Ireland by the Tuatha de Danans, from the city of {56) Falia in the north of Germany. This tradition, conneded with the acknow- ledged practice of the Northerns, proves the cuftom to be of Scandinavian origin, and very different from the Celtic, which ufed a tree and not a ftone. Thus the (57) Bile Magh Adhair, was a remarkable tree in the plain of Adhair in the county of Clare, under which the Dalcaffian princes were inaugurated. Every folemn and holy office was performed by the Celtes in groves ; by the Firbolgs in ftone circles. Here we have an eminent inftance of the diftinclion between thofe people, in reli- gious rights and civil ufages, fo much infilled on in thefe papers. That Cafliel was an ancient Mandra, the wall furrounding its fummit, its fituation and the monaftic fpirit of chriftianity prevalent in this kingdom, give reafonabie grounds to believe. The ftone-roofed chapel before defcribcd, and denominated from Cormac, 1 think, muft have been conftru£led pofterior to the age of this pre- late. Becaufe, if things were conducted in the common manner, he muft have been firft canonized, and his reliques afterwards be depofited in this crypt. So that unlefs he could have fore-known that he v/as to be dubbed the patron of Caftiel, he hardly would have built this chapel for his own remains. Or if this chapel had been once dedicated to (58) St. Patrick, the leffer would never have difpoffeffed the 2 Q^ greater (53) WDrm. Mo.n. Dan. 1. i. c. II. J. Magn. Hia. Goth, initio. Sax. Gram. 1. i. Krantz. Meurs. et allot. (54) Martin's Wcfterii Ifland--, p. 102 — iji — 384. (5i) O'l'lahcrt Og)'g. p. 19. Harris's Ware, p. 10 — 114. ii6J O'Fiahcrt. fup. p. 11—19. (57) O'JJrieo, upra, voce Bile. (s") Ware's Bilhops, p. 4<>. I 150 OF THE STONE.ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE greater fpiritual hero. It is therefore probable, that fome other perfon erefteJ this fabric to his memory, and enfhrined his bones there, as a martyr who fell in defence of his religion and country againll pagan invaders. Who this perfon was, or the time is not eafy to determine. The dimenfions of this chapel are thus ftated. — Feet. Inches Length of the nave, 30 Breadth, . - . 18 — Length of the choir, - . - »3 — 8 Breadth, - - - II 6 Breadth of the grand arch leading into the choir. 9 — Width of the north door, n 7 Of the fouth door, - . - 3 — 4 Of the weft door, - . - 4 — 6 Mean thicknefs of the walls. 4 — I Length of the fquare tower, 10 Breadth, . - ,. 6 — 8 Height, 62. — Height of the flone roof from the ground. 52 — Slant of the roof. 24 Diameter of the columns of the grand arch. — 6 Height, ... 8 — Height of the intire arch. 12 — 6 Breadth of the archivolt. 3 — 6 Length of the chapel infide, 47 — 8 Length oulfide. - . - Si —- This is certainly one of the mofl curious fabrics in thefe kingdoms. It is a re- gular church, divided into nave and choir, the latter narrowing in breadth, and feparated from the former by a wide arch. Under the altar, tradition places the bones of St. Cormac. There is a Itriking refemblance between this chapel and the church of St. Peter at Oxford, with Grymbald's crypt beneath it. This (59) church is fuppofed to be the oldeft flone church in England, and faid to be built by Grym- bald about the end of the 9th century. It confifls of a nave with a fquare tower at the well end j at the eail is the chancel, and on its extremities ftand two round lowers, (59) CoUiofoD's BfitifliABtiquiiic!, p- ijj. Strutt's chron. V. a. r- 109, SEC'TJO'JT of rOTs3I^CS CHAPIBIL ; . , • • 1 * ' ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. 151 ;■■<■■<+*■ >■>•>■>■ >-i >>■>■> > >- >. ; towers, terminating at top in a cone. The crypt is arched, and the colainns fup- porting it are fhort and maffy. The fquare tower is about eighty feet high, and the round towers from the parapet about twelve. Let thefe (60) particulars be com- pared with fimilar ones at Cormac's chapel, and a ftrong likenefs will be perceived; only our chapel is infinitely more curious, by uniting under its (tone-roof a church and crypt. Notwithflanding this agreement, I think the ornaments in Cormac's chapel fpeak it to be a conllruction later than that of St. Peter's. The grotefques on the capitals in the crypt of the latter are not feen in our chapel. Over a door in- deed is an archer mounted on fome ideal quadruped. High fquare towers were cer- tainly known and in ufe in England when Cormac's chapel was built, becaufe there is one there ; but it could not be placed on the interledion of the crofs, for our chapel is not cruciform ; befides, if there were crofs ailes it would not have anfwered the idea of a crypt. High towers are (61) dated about the reign of Edgar, towards the end of the loth century. So that, on the whole, it is not unreafonable to fuppofe, about this time, or the beginning of the next age, Cormac's chapel was ereded by fome of his fucceffors in Calhel, and thar prior to the introduftion of the Norman or Gothic flyles, for in every refpeft it^ is purely Saxon. Thefe hints may perhaps remove fome difficulties, and lead to fome happier conjedures on this fubjed. The (62) annals of the priory of All Saints inform us, that the church, after the relloration of it, was folemnly confecrated, and a fynod held in it in the year 1 134. About thirty-five years after, Donald O'Brien, King of Limerick, built a new church in Calhel from the foundation, converting Cormac's old church into a chapel or chapter-houfe, on the South fide of the choir. Here the church noticed in the annals feems to be Cormac's, which probably had been defecrated in the. wars of thofe (63) times. Or fhall we fay, that a cathedral was ereded in 11 01, when Morto^h Mor O'Brien folemnly granted and dedicated the town of Cafliel to God and St. Patrick. If fo, Mortogh's fabric muft have been mean and trifling, fince it went to decay in about thirty years ; for it cannot be fuppofed, Donald O'Brien would have conftrucled a new church had his predecelfor'.s continued in good prefervation. I therefore imagine there was no religious edifice of flone on the rock but Cormac's, antecedent to Donald's church. Notwithltauding the former mi^tiit o (60) Views of St. Peter's church and Grymbald's crypt may be feen Ja Archaeologia, Vu\. I. Lcland'i ColkiS. V. ' p, IS>. Edit. Aylofie. {61) Grofc, V. I. (i. III. (6i) Ware's Bidiops, p. 464. (O3) CoUc'iliiDea, No. 4. p. 546, ec fcijuent. 152 OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES OF THE might have been ufed as a chapter-houfe, the builders had the flrongeft reafon for uniting the cathedral with the chapel, and that was the fanftity of the latter. Had the chapel been fmaller, it would have been inclofed in the new building. Thus Edwin, King of Northumberland, made a fmall wooden oratory, afterwards he built a church of ftone, inclofmg the oratory (64) within it. The old chapel at Glaflonbury had a divine odour exhaling from it: Auguftin did not attempt to deraolifli it, but very much (65) adorned it. In all parts the veneration for thefe old chapels and crypts was the fame. Donald O'Brien founded a cathedral at Cafliel about 1169. This was certainly of ftone ; for it did not want any great repairs for two hundred and fifty years, when Archbifliop O'Hedian rebuilt thofe parts which had been injured by age, and modernized the whole, as the long lancet windows and other gothic ornaments teriify. But neither the fame of St. Cormac, nor the curious remains at Cafhel, have made it fo memorable as the (66) Synod held there in the year 1172, when every Archbifliop and Bifliop gave fealed charters to Henry II. conferring on him and his heirs for ever the kingdom of Ireland, which charters were confirmed by Pope Alexander. At the fame time, on the King's part were offered and accepted, the Engliih laws ; thefe the Irifli folemnly fwore to obferve, and for their better execu- tion the kingdom was divided into (hires. Political wifdom was never more emi- nently difplayed than on this occafion. The natives, how attached foever by long habits, could not but feel the heavy, grievous, and arbitrary exaftions of their Lords ; from thefe, by the laws of England, they would be exonerated. For though the feudal incidents were fevere enough, yet they were certain and fixed. Another ftriking advantage would have been the fecuring inheritances. Thefe two objeds, if there were none other, were of the lad importance towards introducing civility among a rude people : and that the Irifti underftood the operation of thefe laws, we may learn from the hillorian's remarking, that they thankfully received them. The canons made in this fynod deferve notice. They forbid marriages within the prohibited degrees : they exempt the church lands from fecular exadions : they releafe the clergy from Eric for murder : they command children to be baptized in the (64) B-d. 1. 2. c. 14. (6-) Eijit nioiirum prxdicibilis viri folertiai ut nihil dccedcrec faniflitati, tt plurimum acccderet ornatui. Guil. Malmclb. t06) War«'8 Biihopj, p. 469. Ljrttleton'» Hen. 2. V, z. p. 89. ANCIENT IRISH, AND OF CORMAC'S CHAPEL. ,5^ t * * < < < t <"< <•<-<-<'<-.<■<.« <-<■<.<. .4 .«-<.-<■■<-<-«<•■<..<■.< .<-<-< -4 -«•<+>.->■>. »>■>■> > >>■»■>■>->>>> > > >■►.-►.>.>..>..>.>.>..>..».>.>.>.».». ^. >.». ^.. the font : fhey order tithes of cattle and corn to be paid to the parifii church : they point out the diltribution of a dying man's property: they decree, that every chrlf- tian be brought to the church and decently buried, and iailly they enjoin an uni- iormity of divine offices with thofe in England. Ltland attempts to exhibit this fynod of Cafliel as a (6y) folemn farce, and to ridicule its proceedings ; in doing fo he proves how little he was acquainted with Irifll ecclefiaflical hiflory. Rome wanted a revenue, as the bulls of Adrian and Alex- ander unequivocally declare ; this could not be procured without eradicating the ancient faith and practice of the Irifh ; to accomplifh which purpofe the interpofuion of a foreign power was indifpenfably necefliiry. To judify the foregoing cenfure, it has been (hewn that the rites and ceremonies of the Irifli totally differed from thofe eftabliflied at Cafliel. Let one inftance fuffice. It has before been feen, that the Irifll and Britons agreed in religious matters. Augufl:ine in Bede objeds to the Britons, that they did not adminifter baptifm according to the cuftom of the Holy Roman and Apofl:olic Church ; which muft mean, that they either did not obferve the ufual feafons for adminift:ering this rite, or they made no ufe of chrifm, exor- cifm or impofition of hands. Befides this, Brompton and Benedid, Abbots of Pe- terborough, who lived at the very time this fynod was held in Cafliel, exprefsly affure us, that the Irifli who were rich baptized their children by immerging them thrice in milk, as thofe who were poor did thrice in water. This was not a bar- barous cuftom as a fuperficial reader may imagine. The authors laft cited tell us, it was the father that dipped the child. Laical baptifm was common in the Eafl in early ages, but was forbidden by the (68) Apoflolic Confl:itutions and alfo by St. Bafd. We know from (69) TertuUian, that after baptifm, milk and honey were given to the infant, and by the 37th canon of the African code, milk and honey were laid on the altar for baptifmal ufe, and they were confecrated by a peculiar form. The Egyptians, according to Apuleius, gave milk to thofe whom they initiated into their myfteries. Without proceeding farther, we may obferve, that the Irifll received from their firft teachers the Oriental cuflioms of lay-baptifm and milk and honey ; the latter, in a courfe of years, was changed for immerfion into milk. 2 R. Thefe (67) Kidory of Ireland, Vol. i. p. 75 — 76. Edit. 8vo. J68) Lib. 3. c. 10. S. Bafil. epill. ad Aniphil. p. 759. (69) Ueiiide egrclTot k<3i$ & mcUis prjEguflue. DcCoron. tail. c. 3. '54 OF THE STONE-ROOFED CHURCHES. t -< -4 <■<■<<■<■< ■<■•< ■< -4 .<•<■<-< ■' -< < -< ■< ■< ■< ■< < -< < -4 ■< 4 -4 ■<+>■>■►■ >■>■>■ >■ >■ >->■■> ■>■■>■ > >"^- >■ > >">■>■ >■►■•>■ >•■>.>■>■•>■>■>■ i. >. >■ i- >■>■>. ■■< -4 Thefe ufages and many others fimilar, fcandalized the Roman Catholic church, nor can I think fo ill of the zeal and fmcerity of its members, as not to per- ceive the reformation of them Avas a principal motive of their attempts on Ireland. However they proceeded too far, inflead of correding abufes and retaining what was blamelefs, they introduced a ritual corrupted in every part, and to force this on a rfluftant people was the objccl of Henry's Irifli crufade. OF ( «55 ) OF THE ROUND TOWERS IH IRELAND. THERE is a very jufl: obfervation in an excellent monthly (i) produftion too applicable, I confefs, to modern antiquaries, and from the truth and feverity of which none of us can claim exemption: It is, " that as the final caufe of the principle of curiofity is the acquifition of knowledge, it is a perverfion much to be lamented, that it fhould fo often be found to fallen moft keenly on thofe objefts about which little or nothing can be known. A mere fcrap of fomething, between knowledge and conjefture, if it be but obtained with fufficient difficulty, appears far more valuable to perfons of this defcripiion than abundance of real information, if eafily acquired, and if as eafily gained by others as themfelves." In the wreck of ages fome materials of ancient ftruftures have furvived : though it is impoffible with them or every adfcititious help to reftore them to their original utility and beauty, yet by putting what remains together, in many inftances, we may form a notion tolerably correft of their proportion and architedure : the fame may be faid of ancient manners, cuftoms, fciences and arts. Thus far the very fenfible •writer now cited will not deny us fome portion of praife. While we proceed on authentic and folid grounds and reject idle hypothefes and conjectures, antiquarian difquifitions become a rational fludy, and iniereft every reader. To apply thefe refledlions to the prefent fubjed, we (hall foon fee ftrong caufe to admire how men eminent in literature fhould be fo miferably defective in judgment as to defpife or neglect the real information refi>eding our Round Towers lying be- fore them, and to feek for it in barren ways and thorny paths vi'here it cannot be found. Their original defignation is too obvious ever to be miflaken ; of this if any doubt could pofTibly cxilt, where fhould we look for its removal but in ancient writers ? If ancient writers are unanimous, and well informed moderns agree with them as to their authors and ufe, will any fay thefe points are not drawn from ob- fcurity, or that we have not gone beyond verifimihtude and arrived at fome degree of '(i) Manihl) Review for Feb. 1790, P' •**• 156 OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. of certainty ? Let the candid and learned reader determine for hiinfelf from the evl- deace now to be fubmitted to him. Giraldus Cambrenfis, about 1185, is the firfl who mentions our Round Towers, He (2) calls them " Ecclefiaflical Towers, which in a flyle or fafliion peculiar to the country, are narrow, high and round." Though this pafl'age has been fre- quently quoted, yet no one has obferved, that from its (3) grammatical conflruction ■we may fairly infer that Cambrenfis faw the ifh in the very at"t of building thefe towers. It was a fingular and ftriking fpeflacle for our author to behold fo great a number of them difperfed over the country; all of the fame figure and fafiiion, contiguous to wooden churches and fupporting bells to fummon the vicinity to reli- gious duties, or to warn them of approaching danger. Surely it mud be efteemed a grofs perverfion of common fenfe to extrad from Cambrenfis's. plain words any other meaning than that now given: he was fully competent to deliver a fimple fadt, nor did the objeds he was defcribing require the microlcopic eyes of fome modem Irifh Antiquaries. John Lynch, in 1662, is the next who fpeaks of our towers. His words are: " (4) the Danes, who entered Ireland according to Giraldus in 838, are reported to be the authors of our orbicular narrow towers. They were called Clochtheach, that is, the houfe of the bell." Peter Walfli, in 1684, obferves : " (5) that it is moft certain thofe high, round narrow towers of (lone, built cylinder-wife, were never known or built in Ireland ('as indeed no more were any caftles, houfes, or even churches of flone, at leaft in the North of Ireland,) before the year of Chrifl: 838, when the heathen Danes, polVefling a great part of the country, built them in feveral places to ferve them- felves as watch-towers againfl: the natives. Though ere long the Danes being ex- pulicd, the chrilUan Iriih turned them to another and much better (becaufe a holy) ufe, that is to Iteeple-houfes or belfries. From which latter ufe made of them it is, that ever finct to the prefent day they are called in Irilh Clochtheachs, that is bel- fries or bell-houies ; cioc or clog, fignify'ing a bell, and theach a houfe in that tan- " It (a) Turrc9 ccdcfiafticat, qu%, more patrio, ariSlx funt & altx, necnon & rotundz, Topog. p. 720, (3) See Vofl". lie Conftruit. Term. ;• 504. Atuf. 1661. (4) Eriguas Uli» ori'icularcs arflarnue luncs, Dani Hibcrniam, Giraldo authore, A. D. 838, primiim irgrcfli, pritni crtxilTe dicuiitur. Clu'litlicaih ciiim pcriiiUc ell ac (Jomui campami:. Canilircns. Evers. p 13J. is) Prufi^a. p. 410—417. OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. 157 It may not be (6) improper to add, fays Do£lor Molyneux in 1727, to thefe re- marks upon Danifli mounts and forts, fome obfervations on the flender, high round towers here in Ireland, though they are lefs ancient, fince they are fo peculiar to the country and feems remains of the fame people, the Oftnien or Danes. Thefe •we find common every where, fpread over all the country, ereded near the oldefl churches founded before the Conqueft ; but I could never learn that any buildinf of this fort is to be met with throughout all (7) England, or in Scotland. That the native Irifh had but little intercourfe with their neighbours, and much lefs com- merce with thofe at greater diflance before the Danes came hither and fettled among them is pretty certain ; and that the Danes were the firft introducers of coin as well as trade, and founders of the chief towns and cities of this kingdom, inclof- ing them with walls for fafer dwelling, is generally agreed on all hands j and it feems no way lefs probable, that the fame nation too muft have introduced at firfl from countries where they trafficked, the art of mafonry, or building with lime and flone. For that there were lime and (tone buildings here before the Conqueft by the Englifh in Henry II's reign is certain, notwithftanding fome, and thefe reputed knowing men in the affairs of Ireland, have haflily aflerted the contrary. For it appears beyond all controverfy, that thefe high round fteeples we are fpeaking of were erefted long before Henry's time from a plain paflage in Giraldus Cambrenfis, who was in Ireland in that Prince's reign, and came over with his fon. King John, whom he ferved as Secretary in his expedition hither : he fpeaks of them in his account of this ifland as (landing then, and I am apt to think few of thefe kind of towers have been built fince that time. And fince we find this kind of church- building, though frequent here, refembling nothing of this fort in Great Britain, from whence the chriftian faith, the fafhion of our churches and all their rites and cuftoms, it is plain, were firft brought hither, the model of thefe towers muft have been taken up fome other way ; and it feems probable the Danes, the earlieft arti- ficers in mafonry, upon their firft converfion to chriftianity, might fancy and affedt to raife thefe fafhicud fteeples in this peculiar form, ftanding at a diftance from their churches, as bearing fome refemblance to the round tapering figure of their old monumental ftones and obelifks, their pyramids, their mounts and forts, of which they were fo fond in time of paganifm. And Sir James Ware, curforily fpeaking of one of thefe round fteeples at Cork, in his Antiquities, chap. 29, 2 s fays (6) Boate's and Molyneux's Nat. HiO. p. aio — ill, (7) This is a miilakc as >vill hereafter aj'jiear. ,58 ' OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. . < ■< •<■•<■■< •< < 4 < ■< ■< ■< •< < ■< < -<. < < < ■< ■< < A '< ' < < < ■< < ■<■■«'■< < < <■* + >>>>■ >• > > >■ > .' > > > > >■ > > *■>• * > » >■ >■ >■ >■ > > > V- > V > > > ^ V ► > >. fays " there prevailed a tradition in that country that afcribed the building of that tower to the Oilmen, who were inhabitants of Cork ; and we might well prcfume, that had the old native Irifii been the authors of this kind of architefture, thty furely would have raifed fuch towers as thefe in feveral parts of Scotland alfo, where they have been planted and fettled many ages pafl:, but there we hear of none of them. Their figure fomewhat refembles thofe flender high round fteeples defcribed by travellersvin Turkey that are called minarets, adjoining to their mofques or temples. Cloghachd, the name by which they are flill called among the native Irifh, gives us a further proof of their original, that they were founded firft by Oilmen : for the Irifli word Cloghachd is taken from a foreign tongue, and being a term of art imports the thing it fignilies mud likewife be derived from foreigners, as were it neceffary might be inade appear by many inftances. Now the Irifh word does plainly owe its etymology to Clugga, a German-Saxon word that fignifies a bell ; from whence we have borrowed our modern word a clock ; this appellation alfo (hews the end for which thefe towers were built, for belfries or fteeples, wherein was hung a bell to call the people to religious worfliip : but the cavity or hollow fpace within being fo narrow, we muft conclude the bell muft needs be fmall, one of a larger fize not having room to ring out or turn round, which argues too they are ancient, for the larger bells are an invention of later times, and were not ufed in the earlier 9ges of the church. 'I'hefe towers, the better to let out the found, and make the bell heard at a greater diftance, have all of them towards the fummit four openings or wipdows, oppofite to one another, that regard the feveral quarters of the hea- vens, and though ihey agree much in their fhape, yet they fo far differ in their ma- del, that fome remarkable diftinftion may eafily be obferved between one tower ^nd another." Thus far Molyneux, in whofe fentimenis we perceive a perfedl coincidence with the plan of this work, and whofe words now given are lich in antiquarian knowledge. Let it now be remarked, that the opinion of every author, who has fpoken of our Round Towers for the fpace of 542 years, that is, from Cambrenfis to Moly- neux, is uniform in pronouncing them Oilman or Danifli works. No filly conjec- tures or abfurd refinements had as yet been introduced into the ftudy of Antiquities j writers only fought after and recorded matters of fad. All thefe authors, it will be faid, follow Cambrenfis, I grant they do, but would any of them adopt his notions was it poffible to i'ubftitute better or more authentic in their room ? The aniwcr is pofitive and direct, that they would not, and here is the proof. In 1584, Stanihurft led OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. 159 kd the way in feverely criticizing many of his pofitions. In 1662, John Lynch, in his Cambrenfis Everfus, entered on a formal examination of his Topography; not a page, fcarcely a paragraph efcaping his morofe and carping pen, and yet Lynch was a good fcholar and antiquary. In his time Irifli MSS. were more numerous and coileded than fince, confequently the means of information more ample, and yet he difcovered nothing in his extenllve reading to contradid what Cambrenfia had dehvered. Walfh's difpofition to tread in the fteps of Giraldus may be judged from thefa words in the Preface to his Profped. " What I would fay on the whole is, that if hatred, enmit)% open profefled hoftility, fpecial interefl; and adual engagement in the deftrudion of the ancient Irifh nation ; if ignorance of their language and wilful paiTing their Hiftory, even the mofl: authentic of their records : if thefe can render Cambrenfis an author of credit, then no writer how idle, unwarrantable, incredible, falfe or injurious, is to be rejeded," From this and much more pafTi- onate language no one will affirm, that our learned Francifcan would have em- braced Cambrenfis's ideas, were thev not founded on the beft grounds. Thefe grounds are partly dated by himfelf and more fully by Molyneux : both fhow the Irifli, previous to the great northern invafion in the 8th and 9th century, had no commerce, no coin, no mechanic arts, particularly that of mafonry. Nothing more, I believe, can or need be added as to the authors and ufe of Round Towers j the Oilmen began them, and they were imitated by the Irilh, But as later writers, led affray by a warm imagination, or the affedation of fm- gularity, have railed many objeftions to, and involved in doubt the plainefl: mat- ter, I am doomed to the irkfome talk of examining and confuting their whimfies. And here I niufl: note an error of Walfli, which he has lapfed into from following Ware : the latter places the converfion of the Oilmen in 948, whereas from a coin of Ivar it appears they were Chriftians in 853. Wallh, not knowing this, imagined from the conftruftion of our Towers in 838 to the evangelizing thefe Oilmen in 948, thefe fteeples mud have been ufed for watch-towers, which their fituation in vallies makes highly improbable. But from the coin before it now appears, there was but an interval of fifteen years, from the date of their ereftion in 838 to the time of Ivar's coin in 853, and this is nothing, if we confider the lofs of ancient memorials, and that if they had furvived, we (hould have found the time of their converfion and of building thefe towers exaftly fynchronized. Though they were not built for watch-towers, they certainly might have occafionally ferved to alarm the vicinity. I By ,6o OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. By the words " turres ecclefiaftics," Cambrenfis precifely determines their fliape and appropriation. A tower, in the (8) middle ages, was a tall, round tapering hgure, and very accurately exprefled that of a Round Tower. He would not call it Campanile, for that was a fquare fabric, and firfl (9) ufed for bells of confiderable magnitude. The Anglo-Saxon fleopyl, ftypel, and the Franco-Gallic (10) bafroy and befroi are equivalent to the Latin turris ; befroi when applied to a bell-tower was corrupted into Belfry ; the lafl: fyllable of which can no otherwife be explained but by its junclion with the firft. The Irifli Clog-teach is an hybrid compound : the firfl word is the Teutonic Klocke, which originally (11) fignified a long fcyphon or cup, in this hung the clapper or tongue: many of thefe ancient bells were in ("12) poffeflion of the celebrated Dutch antiquary, Smetius. So that the Latin Campanile, the Anglo-Saxon Bell-hus, the Teutonic Klock-torre, and the Irifli Clog-teach, feem to be all contemporary names of the fame thing, and all invented and firfl ufed in the 9th century. Though there are numerous pafTages in clafTical writers of the common ufe of bells in civil and religious affairs, I do * not recolleft any direft proof of their fufpenfion in towers except one in Parthenius be efleemed fuch. He lived about the Incarnation, and tells us a bell was placed in 3(13; fortrefs in the city of Heraclea in Italy, which a lover, as an arduous attempt and an evidence of his gallantry, undertook to (14) throw down. The bells in the Dodonsean (15) grove, and over the tomb of Porfenna, king of Hetruria, were certainly fufpended, as were thofe in Baths and Market-places, but not in appropriated buildings. Bells were hung up in Monafteries in the 7th and 8th centuries, and founded by pulling a (16) rope. In the pontificate of Stephen, A. D. 754, Chriftian congregations were colledled by found of trumpets. JIre (8) Turres vocafar, quot! tcretcs Tint & longx : teres enlm tft alltjuid rotundum cum proceritate, ut columna:. IfiJur. Grig. I 15. c. «, {9) Thi» word, I believe, is not older than 870. Anafta^. in Leone IV, (iq) Skinncr'» Eiym. l.acombe, di<5l. du vicux Francois, in befroi. (li) Kilian. Die Teut. in voce. Mag. de tintinab. c. 8. (li) Braun. de Vcftit. Hcb. T. I. p. 570. • I forgot Plin. 1. 36. c. 1 3. wliich correfls what I here advance, as to the fufpenfion of bells. The paffage is cuiioui. (ij) Efu/itm xtfi». Parthcn. Eror. p. 356. £dii. Gale. (14) T» Kuiutu xalaxtfurai. Parthcn. fupra. The Greek Kiu3 is nearly allied to Km^xv, urceolus, a cup or bafon, and at theft were fonorous and a bcll-(hapc, they might have fuggeftcd the idea of the other. Du Cangc. Glufs mcd. & infini. Gratcit^ voce Ktitutm. (15) Vandale. de Orac. p. 476. Plin. I. 36. c. 13. (i5) Perllitit iUc rcllim trahenda campana, fed fonum exprimere non potuit. S. Audoen. vit. S. Elig. I. 1. c. 2. This *ai in 630. In the next age Uedc fays : Audivit fubito in acre notum campanae fonum. About the middle of the 6th century, Columba fays to one of hij attendants— Cioccam pulfa, Pinkcrton. Vit. S. Scot, p, 65, Sec an excellent article in Spe!nian, Glofl". io Can-.paiia, OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. i6t (17) ^Vf tubas fu/o attollit, quibus agmina plebis, Admoncat laudcs, y vota refer re tenant i. , However his fucceflbr, Stephen III. about 780, eredted a tower on the church of St. Peter at Rome, and placed in it (18) three bells ; and in 850, Leo IV. built a belfry, and fet in it a bell with a golden hammer. From the example of thefe Pon- tiffs towers multiplied throughout Europe in the 9th century, and at this time were conftrufted by the Oilmen in this Ifle. A capitular of Charlemagne, A. D, 787, forbids the horrible pra£l:ice of (19) bap- tizing bells. From being conftantly ufed in holy offices, a peculiar fanctity was afcribed to them : they were believed by their found to remove thunder and appeafe tempells, and banifh the evil fpirits who caufed them : in the fame fuperflitious pre- poffeffion they were rung on the death and interment of perfons, and in many parts of the church-fervice. A people juft emerging from idolatry eagerly embraced a corrupt religion fo congenial in many parts to that they formerly profelTed, and hence the Oilmen did not efleem themfelves Chrillians without bells and belfries ; proteded by thefe and the reliques of faints in their crypts, they defied the power of vifible and invifible enemies. The only difficulty attending this inquiry concerning Round Towers Is, fatlsfac- torily to account for their fliape. Molyneux's opinion is, (and it is a very plaufible and ingenious one) that the round figure bore a refemblance to their old monu- mental Hones and obelilks, their pyramids, their mounts and forts, of which they were fo fond in times of paganifm. To do jullice to this idea I muft remark, that it is the fame entertained by a (20) learned Scotch Antiquary, wlro thinks the cir- cular buildings in the north of Scotland were places of religious worfliip and con- ftruded by the Scandinavians. However, confining myfelf, as I ever wilh to do to matters of fad, and knowing that belfries abroad were (2i)di(lin£t from the Church, and that the two Round 'lowers at Grymbald's crypt at Oxford, and the Round Steeple to the Church of Aix la Chapelle, exhibited by Montfaucon in his Monu- ments of the French monarchy belong to the glh century, I conclude the rotund figure of our Towers was adopted from the Continent, between which and Ireland a 2 T conllant (17) Flodoard. in Stephen, j. (iS) Aradas. in Stcph. 3. and Leon. 4. (I9J Ui clcmentum aqusE myfterialiter baptifino conimodum S. Spiritus fui faniSitate reddarur. Ord. Rom. This Ord» was compilid in the 9th century At this day, in the Church of Rome, bells have fponfor*, and are b.npti2cd. Hufpiiiian dc templis. Duran.l Rational. Uiv. Ofiic. paflim. (ic) Mr. AniUrfon A|nid .-Vrchacologia, v. 5. p. 151. (ii) Prope valvas majoris ecdcfe canipaEajium crexit. Dh Cingt. voce campana. xnttrxntfiti mxrt m ay.» >«»». Du Cange. ftipra. ,62 OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. conQant intercourfe was maintained, particularly in that age. " Our writers, fays (22) O'Flaherty, glory in many miffioners of religion, profefTors of learning and piety, bred and born in Ireland, who were famous in France as well in Charles the Great's time, as before and after him." Thefe miflioners, who frequently re-vifited their native country, might have taken the hint of our Round Towers from what they faw abroad. If this was the cafe, as it probably was, fuch flruClures might have become falhionable in Ireland without any neceffity for the fame practice being followed by the ecclefiaftics of other countries, where the art of mafonry was not cultivated. " A local invention, fays Mr. Pinkerton, fpeaking of the circular buildings in Scotland, might have taken place among the Norwegians there, and yet not extend to their other poffeflions." There are in Caithnefs and the Hebudes, according to Dodor Macpherfon, Mr. Cordiner and Mr. Anderfon, thoufands of circular buildings, fhaped like a glafs-houfe, but without cement. If thefe were religious edifices, they (how a different ftyle or fafhion from our Towers, at the fame time they inconteftibly evince the predileftion of the Northerns in favour of rotundity, for Caithnefs where thefe buildings abound, was fo long fubjeft to the Norwegians and other northern rovers, that the language of the people at prefent may be derived from Norwegian roots. It is very remarkable, that the drawing of a Scottifh Sheelin, as given by Mr. Pennant, has the fame glafs-houfe fhape, and fuch were the houfes of the Belgic Gauls, as defcribed by Strabo. I come now to examine the opinion of learned men relative to our Round Towers. Mr. Gordon (23) gives an account of two in Scotland, one at Abernethy, the other at Brechin. The laft has the figure of our Saviour on the Crofs over the door, with two little images or llatues towards the middle, which clearly fliow it to have been the work of a Chriftian architeft. He tells us the vulgar notion is, that they are Pidifli ftruftures, and that he would have believed it, were there not fuch towers in Ireland where the Pi£ts never were fettled. This feems to be an error, for the Picls were Scandinavians and early arrived in Ireland, as has been before ftated. Mr. Harris (24) is certain becaufe no Round Towers are feen in Denmark or England, therefore they could not be of Danifli erection: but this argument is far from being conclufive. Our author therefore propofes a notion darted by a Dean Richardfon as more probable, that they wer-? the refidence of anachorite Monks. (Jl) Ogygii vindicated, p. 271 — 1711. (13) Itincrar. Septcnt. p. 1(4. 34) Hurii't Ware, p. 129. '/ 1'.)/^ ' /'/'ri/zY' /■'/ /■J/'r//"'// ( /////'r// IWk^T^ ^^^'f7^/^ fif'Y//i' t'^/ f >////// t'^/^t/'/'^ ^/uMj/ii/ /yji-/i/i Jf^iej. ^ /;'■>•>■>■ ►•! Monks. In fupport of this idle whimfey he alleges Evagrius's account of Simeon Stylites. " The (25) fabric of Simeon's church, fays the Iliftorian, reprefents the form of a Crofs, beautified with porticos of four fides ; oppofite thefe are placed pillars curioufly made of poliflied ftone, whereon a roof is gracefully raifed to an height. In the midfl: of thefe porticos is an open court, wrought with much art, in which court (lands the pillar forty cubits high, whereon that incarnate angel upon eafh leads a celefiial life." It mud require a warm imagination to point out the fimilarity between this pillar and our tower j the one was folid, the other hollow : the one was fquare, the other circular : the afcetic there was placed without on the pillar, with us inclofed in the tower. He adds, thefe habitations of Anachorites were called Incluforia, or ardi Incluforii ergaftula, but thefe were very different from our Round Towers, for he midakes Raderus on whom he depends, and who (26) fays, the houfe of the Reclufe ought to be of ftone, the length and breadth twelve feet, with three windows ; one facing the Choir, through which he may receive the body of Chrift, the other oppofite, through which food is conveyed to him, and the third for the admiflion of light, the latter to be always covered with glafs or horn. Harris fpeaking of Donchad O'Brien, abbot of Clonmacnois, who fliut himfelf up in one of thefe cells, adds, " I will not take upon me to affirm that it was in one of thefe towers of Clonmacnois he was inclofed." It muft have been the ftrangeft perverfion of words and ideas to have attempted it. Is it not afto- nifhing that a reverie thus deftitute of truth, and founded on wilful miftakes of the plaineft paflages fliould have been attended to and even be, for fome time, believed ? "When Mr. Smith publilhed his Natural and Civil Hiftory of Waterford in 1746, he only tells us, " that there was no doubt but the Round Tower at Ardmore was ufed for a belfry, there being towards the top not only four oppofite windows to let out the found, but alfo three pieces of oak ftill remaining on which the bell was hung ; there were alfo two channels cut in the cill of the door where the rope came out, the ringer ftanding below the door on the outfide." How quickly, in the eye of reafon, does the fineft-fpun hypothefis difappear before this decifivc evi- dence ? Here is a plain and candid ftatement of a matter of fact which fpeaks the original defignation and ufe of thefe towers. This writer at this time was not re- fined enough in antiquarian fpeculations to be whimfical ; however the cafe was otherwife in 1750, when he gave us his Hiftory of Cork, for there he tells us, he formerly (a;) Lib. i. c, 14. Hanmer's TranCation. (16) In Bavaiia SanAa. 164. OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. ,. >.->>. y >..». formerly thought thefe towers were the retreats of Anachorites, (whereas he pofi- tively pronounced them belfries) but that an Irifli MS. informed him they were pe- nitential towers, the Penitent defcending from one floor to the other as his penance became lighter, until he came to the door which always faced the Eaft, where he received abfolution. This was the waking dream of fome ignorant ecclefiaftic, and yet it had its day of fafliion like other abfurdities. Mr. Collinfon, in 1763, drew up a (27) Memoir relative to our Round Towers, it is little more than a tranfcript of Smith. In the fame year Mr. Brereton (28; examined Mr. Collinfon's account, and rejects the penitential ufc of our Towers, and imagines them to be rather Irifli than Piftifh or Danifli flruflures, and deems their antiquity greatly anterior to the ufe of cafl: bells, and from an old trumpet being found in one of them conjeftures fuch infliruments were ufed for aflfembling the faithful to divine worfliip. Thefe forts of gueflfes merit very little regard, becaufe the era of the cafl:ing of bells ought to have been afcertained, and how far the metallurgic fliill of the ancients reached in this refped, and whether the bells ufed in markets, baths and camps were cafl; or not, Thefe points fliould have been elucidated previous to the delivery of any opinion on the fubjeft. We have feen bells of fome magnitude fufpended in the French monafl^eries in the 7th century, and they mufl: have greatly improved in fize in the 8th and 9th, for it could not be for uncafl; bells, if ever fuch there were, that Popes Stephen and Leo erefted belfries in 780 and 850. The diameter of our Towers wi'hin at the bafe are generally nine feet, fuppofe they diminifli at top to four, it will be found that a bell of confiderable fize, but of a rounder fliape than that now ufed, might very well be fufpended and rung fo as to give a loud found. A man with a trumpet would occupy as large a fpace, and I do not deny but trum- pets might have been occafionally ufed, but never I think, for religious but other purpofes in this Ifle. Mr. Gough's iCfemoir follows Mr. Brereton's in the Volume of the Archaeologia lafl: cited : he very judicioufly correds Mr. Gordon's defcription of the Brechin Round Tov\er, which has on its weftern front two arches one within the other in . relief; on the point of the outermoil is a crucifix, and between both towards the middle, are figures of the Virgin Mary and St. John, the latter holding a cup and a Iamb : at the bottom of the outer arch are two beafts couchant. Mr. Pennant (29) thinks this and the other Towers could not be defigned for belfries, becaufe they are placed near the Ileeples of churches, infinitely more commodious for that end. (17) Archieologia, v. i. y. 305. (»8) Archaeologia, v, j. p. 80— 8j. (ay) Tour in Scotland. OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. 165 end. This r.emark might pafs very wJl from an hafty traveller, but is unworthy the pen of our ingenious Tourifl: ; becaufe it fuppolei the fteeples of churches and round tov/ers to be coeval: in this point of v;o\v the latter muft have been con- fhruded for fome other purpofe than that of belfries. But in fact thefe towers v/ere built when churches were of wood, and when the campanile was a diftinct edifice, and long before it was ufual to conne£l the fteeple with the church. Mr. Harmer has (30) given " obfervations on the Round Towers in Ireland," which, as far as I can perceive, have no relation to the fubjecl:. He tells us ci' a fquare tower at the monaftety of St. Sabba, feven miles from Jerufalem, three flo- rins hi;::h and tv/elve vards in diameter, in which two or three herm.its (hut them- fclves up and lead an aaftere life. This was originally a watch-tower, and fo it continues at prefent. I fhaU now clofe this chronological account of learned conjeftures with the reve- ries of a living author, w'bofe wild flights go beyond all his predeceffors, or even thofe of the celebrated Knight of La Mancha. The latter imagined, that mounted on a wooden horfe he v.'as carried through the air to fuccour the injured Doloris. Juft fo our literary (^ixote, mounted on his papyraceous fteed, made up of oric;'.- tal Lexicons, travels in fearch of his long-loft Irifli : fortunately he finds traces" of them in the wilds of Scythia among the Magogians ; then in Indra, among the Hindus; then in Africa among the Shilenfis, and lately he has pofitively (31) dif- covered a very large colony of them in Egypt. Notwithftanding the croifes on the caps of many of our round towers, and chrif- ' ftlan fymbols worked in the body of the ftrufture of others, and thelate Introduc- ' tion of mafonry into this Ifle, our author begins his career by (32) affirming our towers to be the fame as the Perfian Pyratheia, and t'lat merely from Mr. Ilanway's faying there were round towers in the country of the (^;^) Gaurs. Now if ihe Gaurs came hither their monuments would have been fimilar to thofe defcribed by Strabo, which "were £34') inclofures of great compafs, in the mjddle were altars, ajitl on th'em the J^Iagi preferved" much af]?es and a perpetual fire." The Greek words throw not the fmallcfl light on the figure of the Pyratheia, much lefs can irbeinferred' they were of lime and flone, or of the jiltitude of our'TpvCers. Evi?n H);de, from whom he takes the fiiape of ithe moxlcrn P^rfse fire-temples, .would ha^ve infoi-med -.: u ■ li.-., (^o) Archatnlrgin. v. 9."]). i^S. f ■ 1 1 C.->lleiJlal)e3 fle fc^ (:>:) ColIeiSlaBfa, No. p. '.06. (.;j; 'irdVcisJnio Pcrfla, fUi:, .. . ■.^. (,) "ZyKti Tivi; c^'J.cjow, Gspgrapli. 1. ij. i66 OF THE ROUND TOWLRS IN IRELAND. liim, that the ancient Perflans had (35) no temples, nor even a name for them in their language. "What the Parfecs now ufe were taken from Chriflian or Ma- hometan archetypes. Our author next (t,6) afi'ures us that thefe towers were certainly Phenician. I do not recolLe£l in anv ancient writer a defcription of a Phenician temple ; but as the Phcnicians derived much of their religion from the Egyptians, the facred edifices of both people may well be fuppofed to be the fame. Thcfe confiited of (37) four parts, making a figure very different from our Round Towers, but approaching the oblong {hape of our prefent Churches, as the learned reader will fee by calling his eyes on the margin. Every writer who widies to acquire public favour and a literary repu'ation, ought minutely to examine and carefully confider every part of his fubjeft, and even then, with diffidence, give the refult to the world. But the Editor of the Collectanea defpifes fuch vulgar condutl, fpiritedly dafliing into print whatever light fancies are floating in his mind at the time of publication. Thus at one time our Round Towers are (38) fire-temples ; — then they are conftrufted by Connuing, a Carthagi- nian general on Tor-inis, an iile on the coaft of Donegal ; — then they are forcerers' towers, — then the faft is, thefe towers were for celeflial obfervations ; — then Cormac aflures us the approaching fellivals were from them proclaimed ; — and laftly, the Irifh Druids obferved the revolutions of the year by dancing round them. Thus our Author with fportive jocularity dances hi* readers and purchafers through the •Fairy labyrinth of abfurdity, dimpling their cheeks with fmiles at the profundity of his remarlcs and the fecundity of his genius. Thrice happy, J^d quoqv.e materuvn r'lfi'n ]ii\:cnU ad omncs, A List (3j) Nulla erani temj.Iu vtttrum Pcrfarun;, quippe qui omnii fu:i facra fiil> dio peragcbant, ijeoque in fua religione 3c lingua non halicbaiit tt-mpli nomcn. Hyde dc rclig. vet. Pir». p. 359. Edit. Coftard. (36) Colkaanca, Ko. 8. p. 28;. (37) KiS^i^ttrn i^afotf Hfoa-vXir ftiysti Kut N«#f. Strab. 1. 7. (38) CoUeftanea, no, i l. jTcf. p. 70 — 154 — I4J — 48} — 487. I had almoft forgot our Author's Bulgarian round towcri which wat a Turkifli minaret. He (hould have known that the Turks or iMagian colonized Bulgaiin in l&i). Gili- hon's Rom. Hid. v. 6. p. 34. note 2. that then tliey were tolerably iivili7.;d. Forfter's Northern Voyages, p. 39. Note. That Arabic infcription? in TuikiHi mofques are common. ToUii Epiit, Iiincr. p. 130. Ami that tliofc on the Bulgarian tower are not old, h'orUcf fupra. 'Ihe Turks reccivt-d th'.- idea of belfries or their minarets from the Greek* A. D. 784. Sabcllic. Ennead. 9. 1. I. Here arc materials for a dilTer'aiiou to convid our Author of the grolTefl igna- rance, or unpardooablc inattention. OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND, i6: ,.<4<«<4<<-< «<<<(<<<<<<(<<<< ■< < <■*■<■<-*<-<-<■<■<+>•.>.■>->■ 1 "■>■■>■■>->■■►. » .»■« A List of tKe Round Towers that have hitherto been difcovered in Ireland. Names. Counties. Nc ames. Counties. Aghadoe, Kerry. i Kilcullen, Kildare. Aghagower, Mayo. X * Kildare, Kildare. Antrim, Antrim. A Kilkenny, Kilkenny. Ardfert, Kerry. i Killala, Mayo. Ardmore, Waterford. \ Kilmacduagh, Galway. Ballagh, Mayo. I Kineth, Cork. Ball, Sligo. Kilree, Kilkenny. Ballygaddy, Galway. i Limerick, Limerick. Boyle, Rofcommon. A Lufk, Dublin. Brigoon, Cork. * Mahera, Down. Ballywerk, - Cork. \ Melic, Galway. Cailtre-ine, Clare. A A St. Michael, Dublin, Cafhel, Tipperary. - Moat, Sligo. Caftledermot, KilJare. A Monafterboice, - Louth. Clondalkin, Dublin. J Newcaftle, Mayo. Clones, Monaghan. T Nohovel, Cork. Clonmacnois, two, Weftmeath. r Oran, RofcommoH, Cloyne, Cork. y Oughterard, Kildare. Cork, Cork. t Ram lile. Antrim. Devenifli, Fermanagh. 7 Rathmichael, Dublin. Uonoghmore, Meath. V- Rattoo, Kerry. Downpatrick, Down. T Rofcrea, two. J Tipperary. Druniboe, Down. t Scattery, Clare. DrumclifF, Sligo. t Sligo, two, Sligo. Drumiflun, Louth. y Swords, Dublin. Drumlahan, Cavan. r Teghadow, Kildare. Dyfart, Queen's Co, Y Timahoe, Queen's County Ferbene, two. King's County, r Tulloherin, Kilkenny. Fcrtagh, Kilkenny. Y Turlogh, Mayo. Glendaloch, two. Wicklow. » Weft Carbury, - Cork. Kiibennan, Galway. Riuki i68 OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. Round Towers. Height. Fat. Circum- ference. >-->■■>■ >■->- >■ >■>■ ? Thickiicfs of the Walls. ->■ >■■>■■>■ >■■>■ >- >■ > Door from the Grtmnd. Ffit, Inchts, Cloyne, 92 50 3 8 13 Fertagh, 112 4S 3 8 TO 40 44 3 6 7 Kilmacduagh, 1 10 57 24 Teghadow, 71 38 3 8 II 6 Downpatiick, 66 47 3 Devenifli, 76 41 3 6 Monaderboice, I 10 51 3 6 6 Timahoe, - 35 - -> .0 4 4 14 Kildare, 1 10 S-i- 3 6 13 Oughterard, "5 48 3 8 CaOiel, 54 4 1 1 Swords, 55 4 8 2 Abernethy, 57 47 Brechin, S5 Drumiflvin, 13^ Kenith, 70 Kclls, P9 A very ingenious friend remarks, that ahiiofl; all our Round Towers are divided into ftories of difieicnt heights : the floors fiipported ih'fome by projecting ftones, in others by joifts put in the wall at building, and in many they were placed upon rcfts. The iail; are from four to fix inches, carried round and taken oft" the thkk- nefs of the wall in the ftory above. And he very probably conjetSures, thefe refts do not diminifh the thicknefs of the wall as they afcend, becaufc then it wouldinot h;ive OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. 169 have been fufficiently ftrong to bear ftorms or fupport the conical cap. They feem therefore to be fwelliiif^s in the wall which rather add to its thicknefs upwards, and this is coatirmed by the Round Tower at Luflc, whofe wall is three feet thick at top. Cafiiel Tower is divided into five (lories, with holes for joifts. Fertagh has five ftories and one reft. Kilcullen has three ftories and one reft. Kildare has fix ftories and projefting ftones for each. Mc^Tafterboice has fi.x ftories and projecling ftones. Oiighterard has five ftories and projefting ftones. Tfghadow has fix ftories, the upper has projecting ftones, the others refts. 'I'iaiahae has. feveu ftories, the fecond has projeding ftones, the others reft?. The door of Cafliel Tower faces the S. E. thofe of Kildare and Kilkenny the S. and the others vary. Kenith Tower ftands 124 feet, Drumboe 20, Downpatrick 48, Kildare 90, Kil- kenny 8, and Drumifkin 90 feet, from their refpedive churches. Ardmore, Caftle- dermot, Cloyne, and other towers were formerly and at prefent are ufed for belfries. Monaghan tower is fixty feet high, and fifteen in diameter. The door five fet^t high by two wide. Sligo. There is here only a ftump, and two croffes with bafs reliefs. On one is a Scaraboeus. Mayo tower is eighty-four feet high, fifty-one in tircumference, the door plain, and five feet and a half high, by two and a half wide, and eleven from the ground. A hole 'jas made by lightning in the middle of the tower, and the roof damaged. The fcuiptures at Brechin have been before defcribed. The two beafts couchant are well explained by (39) Eufebius in his life of Conftantine. The church of Brechin (40) is fuppofed to be founded, A. D.' 990, its round tower is probably a century earlier ; for in Ireland the latter preceded the ereclion of fees by many ages. The Irifli clergy were the only teachers of religion among the Picts in thofe times : Tuathal Mac Artgufa, being called archbilhop of Piclland in S64, as Tighernac, the Annals of IJliler and Mr. Pinkenon declare. Brechin is in the fame fiiire of Angus with Dunkt-"ld, over which Artgufii prefided, fo that the round tower of Brechin can. be afctibed to no other founders than the Irifli millioners who ccnftrudted fuch A view in their native lanu. {39) Lib. 3, c. 3. Edit. ValeCi, where the leafoii cf this reprefcntatjon is given at fom« length. (4c) Pinkcrioii's Scctland, v, a. j>, 168. 170 OF THE ROUND TOWERS IN IRELAND. : t t ■! < .4-'4"< l--< < ■* < ■< •< -< ■< ■< ■< < ■< ■< < ■*■ < • .< '«4> >->■>. >■ >■■>. ^. >■ »■>■>' >- >■ >. >- > 1 ■ >. > >->■.>■>■■> >>►-►■! A view of the Ivy Church is given to fiiew a mofl: curious and ancient example of the approximation of the round tower belfry to the chiirch, this in St. Kevin's kitchen becomes part of the building. It muft be extremely pleafing to the lover of Antiquities to be able to trace in exifting monuments the infulated belfry gra- dually advancing to a junflion with the body of the church, and that this happened in very remote times the flone-roofed fabrics to which it is attached fufficiently demonflrate. From this origin the round fteeple at Killoffy in the county of Kildare is derived ; thofe at Hailing in Kent, and Little Saxham and many others ^41^ in Suffolk are from Irifh midioners. From the ornaments (42) on the arches of the doors at Timahoe and Kildare we ptrceive our ancient architcfts were no ilrangers to the Saxon llyle of decoration : the arches themfelves are femicircular, and this *circumfl.ance points out their date. J41) Antiquarian Repertory, V. 2. p. 317, (4j) Archaeologia V. 8. p. 191 THR ■']|l|:i||i|||!'^!llllPll"!v'!l'!l|| %M \'^'^ b Vj r,J ^ Ni f^ ^ •^ \ r, - .^ ^ ^ 171 + •!♦ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + * + + + + ++ + + ++i- + -!'l- + + + + -i+1- + + ++ + Tin-: lilSTCRY AND ANTIQJJITIES OF G r.RVO At OCII IN THC COUNTY OF \V( CK t,0\V. FROM the earlieft ages, Glendalocli feems to liavc been a lavourite feat of laper- flition. The tribe of wild and ignorant favages who here firfl fixed their abode, deprived of the light of letters ; utioccupied in any anuifmg or profitable employment, and wandering among human forms as uncivilized and barbarous as themfelves, were a prey to melancholy thoughts and the bafert: paflions. Their fears animated every ruflling leaf and whifpering gale, and invifible beings nuihiplieJ with the objects of their fenfes. .'^lijuid hitmtSy ps'ujgus, cesium nurabtli gignunl,. ]d iluxcre Dcos, colks, frcla, jiurn'oui^ jiammas. Prudrnt. The gloomy vale, ihe dark cave, the thick forefl:, and cloud-capt mountain were the chofen feat of thefe aerial fpirits, and there they celebrated their nodurnal orgies. Thefe fuperftitions and idle fears could only be appeafed by the bold claims of pagan priefls to myftic and fupernatural powers equal to the protection of the terrified ru'.lic and the taming the mod obftinate daemon. The firft chrilliau preachers among thefe barbarians, whatever might have been the purity of their faith or the ardour of their zeal, were forced to adopt the higli pretenfions and conjuring tricks of their heathen predeceffors ; and by thus yield- ing to human prepoffeilions and imbecility, indireclly and imperceptibly introduce the great truths of Revelation. As fuperlHtion had filled Glendaloch with evil fpirits, and its lakes with great and devouring ferpents, the Chriftian miffionaries found it indifpenfably neceiTary to procure fome faint, under whofe proteftion the inhabitants might live fecure from temporal and fpiritual evili'. At a lofs for a Patron, they adopted a practice derived from paganifm, and purfued (i) to great extent in the corrupt ages of chriflianity. Thus (i) And thns defended by Baronius : QmU miruni, fi iiiu'.iras apuJ gent Us conruetiidiiie?, a quihus eos, qiiam\is chrif- liaiii effci-li iffent, pcniius pofli. divtlii imjr.llibi'e vid-.rttur, eafdem ia vcri Jti cul.ii:n traRsferii far.^ifltoii tpifc^)! <:a\.- y 172 HISTORY ^\ND ANtlQTJITIES OF GLENDALOCH. .«•{»->•>'>>>>->'> . > »•>>•»>'»>■>■>■>■>->■>. » ► > ►■ > > > »■► >h>. * * I Thus the Rhine, like oar Shannon, was (?) perfonified and adored ; and Gildas alfures (3) us, the Britons worfhipped mountams, hills, and rivers. Thus of a moun- tain at-Glendaloch, which in the (4) Celtic is Ccvn,' Kt-vn, or Kevin, a faint was made, as of the Shannon, faint Senanus, and of Down, faint Dunus. Juft fuch faints (5) were Sr. Bron, St. Lhygad or Lugad, St. Genocus, St. Brccas, and others. 'J hough it is a pofitive faft, that very hv/ of the faints who adorn our legends ever had exiilence, but are perfonifications of inanimate things, and even of paiTions aiid cjualities, yet the hiftory of Glendaloch would be cHeenied very imperfeiSI: without tranfcribing the monliifli tales concerning St. Co^mgene, the reputed founder of its churches and city. 1 (hall there/ore give them, as handed down to us, firll touching briefly on the name and topography of the place. Glendaloch, or Glendalough in the barony of Ballynacnr in the county of Wick- • low, is twenty- two miles South of Dublin, and eleven North-t/f il of Wicklow. Its name feems to be (6) an Anglo-Saxon compound, referring to its lakes in the val- ley ; a name v.'hich it derived from its firfl Firbolgian poffcflbrs the Totilas, Tua- thals, or Tools,' for in a (7) life of one of this family it is faki to be fituated in a region called Fortualha, in the Eaftern part of LtinHer, which we know was held by the Fertuathals, or the fept of the Tuathals or Tools, the ancient proprietaries of this diftrift. That this is the true origin of the name feems to be confirmed by Hoveden, who was chaplain to Henry II. and who calls it equivalently in Latin-~ " Epifcopatus BUtagnenfis ;" the Billioprick of the two Lakes. Glendaloch is furrounded on all fides, except to the Ealt, by (lupendous moun- tains, whofe vaft perpendicular height throws a gloom on the vale below, well fuited to infpire religious dread and horror. Covered with brown heath or more fable peat, their fummits reflefi: no light. On the South, are the mountains Lug- duff and Derrybawn, feparated only by a fmall cataraft. Oppofite to Lugduff, and on the other fide of the lake is Kemy'derry, between which and Broccagh on the North fide is a road leading from Hollywood to Wicklow, At the Weft end of thj upper lake a cafcade, called Glaneola brook, falls from the hill. St. Kevin's keeve is cfffcrunt. Another P.om»n taijioljc tclU us : RoiUBni poniificcs in tcmploruii dcHcailonc i:i aliciijiis fanfli himorcm ul- plurimum cnnfucvinV quaixlani li.ib'-Te rcgulam, ut .1 SamHi, qui in iiloloruni rnil(atcni. Ihtnc nmilittidihein''al!niiando obfcrvaruiit in uoiiLinibiis, undc fcimuk ApoUiiiiii umpluiu S, ApoUinari* in honorem dicatuia fnifle. Ciampini vet, mon. t. i. p. 55. Ariiighi Rom. fuburr. iiafT. ■ ^2) Rhcni numen fumnii rcligione colebiieur. Ktjfler, fup. (\) Cap 1. (4) Camden in Kadnor. (5) Con-.j-aic I.huyJi.adverB. fub. fin. JJaxtcri Gloff. p. 268. {6J Clcn a Val'ry, and Lu't a Lake. (;) Vit. S. Laurent, apud Surium. HISTORY AND ANTIQITITIES OF GLENDALOCH. 173 is a fmall flream from Glendafan river, which rifmg about three miles from Glen- daloch out of a lake, called Lochnahanfan, runs on the north fide of the Seven Churches to Arklow. In its courfe, it falls into Glendaloch, and is named St. Ke- vin's keeve ; in it weak and fickly children are dipped every Sunday and Thurfday before fun-rife, and on St. Kevin's day, the 3d of June. Glaneola brook, Glen- dafan river, St. Kevin's keeve and other cataratts form a jundion in the valley, and alTume the name of Avonmore, or the great river. This, frequently fwelled by torrents, is rapid and dangerous. The two lakes in the vale are divided from each other by a rich meadow ; the refl: of the foil is fo rocky as to be incapable of tillage by the plough. 7"he crops are rye and oats, which (8) befl: agree with the place. The names Derrybawn, Kemyderry and Kyle, demonftrate that great forefts of oaks and other timber clothed thefe mountains. Between the Cathedral and upper lake is a group of thorns of a great fize, and their plantation is afcribed to St. Kevin. Near the Cathedral is the trunk of an aged Yew, it meafures three yards in dia- meter. About twenty years ago, a gentleman lopped its branches to make furni- ture, fince which it has annually declined. From what can now be difcovered of the ancient City by its walls above, and foundations below the furface of the earth, it probably extended from the Refeart church to the Ivy church, on both fides of the river. The only ftreet appearing, is the road leading from the Market-place into the county of Kildare : it is in good prefervation, being paved with ftones placed edge- wife, and ten feet in breadth. To this dreary and fequeftered Vale our Saint retired. He was (9) born in 498, baptized by St. Cronan, and at the age of feven years put under the tuition of Pe- trocus, a Briton. " St. Coemgenus, fays (10) another Ihall next be fpoken of, in Latin as much as to fay, — Pulchrogenitus — He was ordered by Bilhop Lugidus, and led an heremetical life in a cell, in a place of old called Cluayn Duach, where he was born and brought up : now the place is called Gleandalach, faith mine author — vallis duorum ftagnorum — where one Dymnach, Lord of the foil, founded a church in honour of St. Coemgenus, joined thereunto a fair church-yard, with other edifices and divers buildings, the which, in mine author Legendi Sti Coem- geni, is termed — Civitas de Glandelagh."— — A few remarks on this account are neceflary. 2 Y I. If fS) Stillingfleet's Traas on Nat Hittory. (9) Ware's BiHiops, p. 373. Uffcr. Priroord. p. 9j8. (ic) Haomer's Chiouick, p. 60, 61. 1 174 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. 1. If Coemgene is the name of this imaginary Saint in Irifii, the interpretation is (ii) wrong, for it does not intimate his beauty but diminutive fize. It is evi- dently an hybrid compound formed by the Monks, whereon to found fome pretty (lories and allufions. The pliability of the Irifli language and the uncertainty of its orthography and orthoepy may warrant the melting down Coemgene into Kevin, but the corruption of this tongue (hould warn us againfl acquiefcing too eaiily in fuch anomalous mutations. Befides as one Legend is as good authority as another, in that (12) of St. Berach he is called Koemin, Caymin, &c. 2. As the uncertainty of the name and its erroneous interpretation fuggeft fufpicions unfavourable to the exiftence of our Saint, fo thefe are augmented by the confident, plaufible but fallacious genealogy given of him by his (13) biogra- phers. To believe that a barbarous people, naked and ignorant as American Indians, fliould have preferved the pedigree of St. Kevin, is too much for the moll flupid credulity. 3. When Giraldus Cambrenfis came here in 11 85, St. Kevin was the patron of Glendaloch. He (14) names him St. Keiwin, Keiuin or Keivin, as Brompton (15) does Keywin. In an (16) Icelandic Chronicle of the 12th century, he is called St. KjEvinus, and in an authentic record of the year 1214, he is (17) ftyled St. Keywin. Thcfe names prove, that Coemgene was then unknown, for it was as eafy for thefe authors to have written Coemgene as Kevin, but as they did not, the conclufion is inevitable, that the name Coemgene and his Legend were fabrications poflerior to the 1 3th century ; and that a mountain at Glendaloch was perfonified and made a Saint is highly probable. 4. Neither will the following miracles tend to eflablifii the credibility of St. Kcr vin's legend or his reality. " There was, fays the Icelandic MS. before cited, in Ireland one, among the body of Saints, named Ksevinus, a kind of hermit, inha- biting the town of Glumelhagam (Glendaloch) who when that happened which we are about to relate, had in his houfe a young man, his relation, greatly beloved by him. This young man being attacked by a difeafe which feemed mortal, at that time of the year when difeafes are mofl dangerous, namely in the month of March ; and (11) Coenih little, fmall. O'Brien's Iriflj Die. in Toce. Gein. conception, offspring, plainly from Genus. Cucmgcne in Crcffy is called Kcgnius, p. 123. (12; Colgan. .Ail. Saudi. Tom. i. p. 341. (13) Apud Ware's BiDiops, fupra. (14) Topog. p. ;i6. (ijj Pag. 1077. (16) Aiui<]uari.iii Repertory, V, «. p. 7JS- The fame ftory Is in Gir. Cambrenfis and Erompton, p. 1077. (1;) Ware's Billops, p. 376. HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. 175 ■ •< * < < t .< < .. and taking it into his head that an apple would prove a remedy for his diforder, earneftly bcfought his relation Ksevinus to give him one. At that time no apples were eafily to be had, the trees having juft then began to put forth their leaves. But Kccvinus grieving much at his relation's ficknefs, and particularly at not being able to procure him the remedy required, he, at length, prollrated himfelf in prayer, and befought the Lord to grant him fome relief for his kinfman. After his prayer he went out of the houfe, and looking about him faw a large tree, a fallx or willow, whofe branches he examined, and as if for the expected remedy, when he obferved the tree to be full of a kind of apples juft ripe. Three of thefe he gathered, and carried to the young man : when the youth had eaten part of thefe apples, he felt his diforder gradually abate, and was at length reftored to his former health. The tree feemed to rejoice in this gift of God, and bears every year a fruit like an ap- ple, which from that time have been called St. Ka^vin's apples, and are carried over all Ireland, that thofe labouring under any difeafe may eat them ; and it is noto- rious from various relations, that they are the rnoft wholefome medicine againft all diforders to which mankind are liable ; and it muft be obferved, that it is not lb much for the fweetnefs of their favour as their efficacy in medicine for which they are efteemed, and as at firft for which they are fought. There were many other things which were fuddenly effected by the virtue of this hc!y man." Perhaps this ftory arofe from exhibiting the bark, leaves and catkins of the willow, which the (18) Irifli believed to be efficacious in dyfenteries. Cambrenfis tells us, that in the time of Lent St. Kevin retreated from the com- merce of the world to a little hut in a defert to enjoy meditation, reading and prayer. On a certain time putting his hand out of the window, and lifting it up to heaven according to cultom, a blackbird perched on it, and ufing it as a neft, dropped her eggs there. The Saint pitied the bird, and neither clofed or drew his hand in, but indefatigably kept it ftretched out until (he brought forth her young. In memory of this all the images of St. Kevin have a hand extended and a bird fit- tmg on It. St. Kevin, as tradition reports, going up a neighbouring hill, in time of dearth, met a woman with a fack on her head, containing five loaves. He inquired what flie was carrying, fhe anfwered, (tones; I pray, fays the Saint, they may become flones, (iS) Tl-.rclkcU's SynopCs, voce filii. 176 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. I .< .<..<..< < <..< -< < .< .< .1 ftones, when (19) inftantly five ftones tumbled out. Thefe were kept as facred re- liques for many years in the Refeart church, but are now in the valley, at a conli- derable diilance from it: they weigh about 28 pounds each, are fhaped as loaves, with the marks of their junftion in the oven. Let thefe impious and foolifli tales of ignorant and fuperflitious ecclefiaflics fuffice, and let them warn us of that mife- rable degradation of the human mind, which alone could give them currency and credit. Let us now attend to the remains of ancient art which this celebrated Glen offers to us. On entering it from the Eart, we firfl: reach the Ivy church, fo called from being enveloped in the umbrage of this plant. The belfry is circular, and fliows one of the firft attempts to unite the Round Tower with the body of the church. South- eafl: from this, and on the oppofite fide of the river is the Eaitern church, or the Priory of Saint Saviour. Near this is a (tone -roofed chapel difcovered a few years ago by Samuel Hayes, Efq. About a furlong Well from the Ivy church, and on the fame fide of the river, is a fmall fquare, which was the market place. In its center was a (lone crofs, the pedeflal only remaining. South from the market- place, you pafs Glendafan river on ftepping-flones, where formerly was a bridge, and then you arrive at the Cemetery, which is entered by a gate-way through a femicircular arch, and in this inclofure ftands the Cathedral. The nave is 48 feet long by 20 wide ; a femicircular arch forms the chancel. The Eaftern window is a round arch, ornamented with a chevron moulding. The fculptures of the impoft mouldings are legendary. On one part a dog is devouring a ferpent.' Tradition tells us, that a great ferpent inhabited the lake, and it is at this day called Lochna- piaft, or the fcrpent-loch, and being deftructive of men and cattle was (20) killed by St. Kevin. In another part the Saint appears embracing his favourite Willow, and among the foliage may be difcovered the medicinal apple. The window itfelf is very fingular, running to a narrow fpike-hole: neither it or any other at Glenda- loch feems to have been glazed. Under a window on the South fide of the Choir is a tomb of frce-flone adorned with carving, but without any infcription. Not far from the Cathedral is the Sacrifly,' otherwife called the Priell's houfe. The clofet, in (19) This feems to be tranfcribed from a monkilh tale in Matt. Weftm. Eodetn tempore pauper quidem cum a nautJs tlecmofymam peteret, nee accipcret, dicciitc nauclvto, iion nihil hie prseter lapides habcmus, fubjecit pauper, omnia ergo verlantur in lapides! Q^io di^o, quicquid manducabilc in navi erat in lapides converfum ctt, colore & forma earun- dcm pcrmancnte. (lo) Such notions, in timet of fiiperftition, were common, A fnakc appears on the tomb of Sir John Conycrs, which «a> flaia by ihc falchlaa of that valiant Knight. Blunt't tenuris by Dcckwith, p. 200, /:.i.sT WnvDOw' or ■/■///■■ f'ArH-EIJJiAZ W • 1 V-* If ^i'v, ^- d-^ •MMr. -"*&- j''y;.Mj/y /y X'^" ./>*- • ' >' -^'"^ ^/■j-"' O^.M n A HISTORY AND ANTICVUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. 177 •4 ■<-4 4 4^.4 4 ^-4 .4 ■•4 -4 ■4-4-4 .4 -4"< -< ■<-4-.4 -4 ■4-4-4 -<-4 4 4 -4-4 .4-4-4 .^..4 -4 <>-►->- t in which the veftments and holy utenfils were kept, remains: the vulgar believe it an infallible cure tor the head-ache to turn thrice round in it : a notion arifing from the veneration paid to its facrcd (21) furniture in tiuies of predominant fuper- flition. Among the remnants of crofTes and fculptures is a loofe ftone, fiiowing in relievo three figures. The one in the middle is a Biihop or Prieft fitting in a chair, and holding a (22) Penitential in his hand. On the right a Pilgrim leans on his ftaff, and on the left, a young man holds a purfe of money to commute it for penance. This curious fculpture will be illuftrated by citing a palTagc from Archbifhop Strat- ford's (23) Extravagants. " Becaufe the ofl'ender has no dread of his fault, when money buys off the punilhment, and the Archdeacons and fome of their Su- periors (the Bifliops) do, for the fake of money, remit that corporal penance which (hould be inflitled for a terror to others, inafmuch as the offenders are called by fome, Leffees of Sin : We forbid commutation of corporal penance for money to be made, without great and urgent caufe." Chaucer alludes to this practice in his Sompnour. He would fuffer for a quart of wine, A good fellow to have his Concubine, To fo fhocking an excefs had this cuflom of buying off fms arrived in the Romifli Church, that a number of Leonine verfes, engraven on a ftone tablet in Gothic letters were affixed to a pillar of the High Altar in the church of St. Stephen at Bourges, promifmg pardon of fins and paradife to every generous benefactor to the church and clergy. (24) Hie des devote ., calejltbus ajfocio te. Menies agrota per nninera funt ibi lota. Crede mi hi, crede, cali doviinaberis ade. Nam pro ?nercede Chrijlo dices, mihi cede. Hie datur exponi paradifus venditioni. J^ii fervct hie parce, parce comprendct in arcs. Fro fob nummo gaudebis in athere fummo. 2 z Here ( II ) Ut vafa facrata Deo in magna veneratione habeantur Rhegin. p. 44. Cambrenfis fays of the Kifli : — Sacramenta fuper hic (fc. paftoralesbaculas, campanas, &c.) longe magisquam fuper Evangelia &prsllare vereantiir& pejerare. Top. c. 33. (li) Sulfrter admunenres doclum quemquc facerdotem ChrilH, ut in univerfa, qiix hic adnolarc reptrit, fnimi, astatcm, cor.ditionem, (latum, perfonam cujufque pxnitentiant agere volentis, curiofe difcernat. Bed. remcd. peccat. (23) WUkins. Coucil. fub Ann. 1342. Johiifon's Councils, and fome curious ftatutes of Henning, Dlfhop of Camin, A. D. 1454. in Shoettgen's hift. Vomeran. (24) The wliole is extremely cuiiou», and may be fcen in— L'Apologic pour tttrodote, per II. EflienDc. p 4-1 — 453. 178 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. ■<■<■■< ■<■<■< ■< ■* ■< - Here is alfo a round tower 110 feet high, at the bottom 52 feet in girth, and the walls four feet thick. There was formerly the flump of another not far off.^ St. Kevin's Kitchen is a ftone-roofed oratory, the ridge of the roof is about 30 feet above the ground, and its angle Iharp; at the weft end is around tower of about 45 feet in height. Our Lady's church is the moft weftward of all the others, and nearly oppofite the Cathedral. The Refeart church is literally the fepulchre of Kings, being the burial place of the O'TooIe's ; feven of thefe toparchs lying here interred, accord- ing to tradition. On a tomb is faid to be the following infcription in Irifti : Jiisus Christ Mile dead) fench cort Re Mac Mthu'il. That is. Behold the reding place of thebody of King Mac Toole, who died in JefusChrift, 1010. Thefe letters and words cannot now be made out after the utmoft pains and atten- tion, nor fcarcely a fingle letter with any certainty. Befides if the whole was legi- ble, it would not be in modern Irifli, but in that dialed of it, which from its anti- quity would not at prefent be eafily underftood. In returning from the Refeart church is a circle of ftones piled up conically about three feet high ; at and round thefe pilgrims performed penance. In the recefs of the fouth mountain is Teampall na Skellig, equivalently called in old records, the priory de rupe and the convent de deferto. St. Kevin's bed is above it. There are two rocky projeftions from the mountain, in one is St. Kevin's bed, excavated from the living rock. The path to it Is extremely dangerous and difficult, and returning back more fo from the narrownefs of the path, the leaft flip precipitating the adventurer into the lake below. Nothing in fliort can be more frightful than a pilgrimage to the bed, and Teampall na Skellig church.* Almoft in the middle of the Glen are the ruins of the Abbey or Monaflery, de- dicated to the Apollles Peter and Paul. And north of the Abbey ftands Trinity Church, at the end of which is part of a Round Tower, which was evidently ufed for a belfry. There were many fmaller chapels and oratories. The feven churches for which Glcndaloch was fo celebrated fcem to have been. I. The • This was one of the four principal placci of pilgrimage in IrelaiiJ. Cumulus S. Patricii in Ci)natla ; Purgatorium in Dhnnia; patra S. Michaelisin Momunir: Icflus S. Kaiiii in Lagcnia. O'Ktlly defcrip. Hib. p. 50. Ex uno cnim latere prxcila mortis excclfa ambicbaiitur : una tantum cajemquo ari5ta aJniuJ..Mi via avliri pourat, &c. S. Sever, vit. .S. Mar.'in. HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. 179 •■<■•<•«"<■<•<■■<■•<-< -<<-.4< «<< <<< <.<..<.<.<.<..<■<<-<<<* < < * < < * < . + ^ > >. > > >>>>>>>>; >>>>>>►.>.. I. The Abbey. 2. The Cathedral. 3. St. Kevin's Kitchen. 4. Teampall na Skellig. 5. Our Lady's Church. 6. Trinity Church. 7. The Ivy Church. .The others appear to be later conftruftions. The feven churches when approached by the bridge of Derrybawn form a very pifturefque and pleafing fcene. The bridge is thrown over the Avonmore, and is compofed of three elliptic arches. Derry- bawn, covered to a great extent with an oak. coppice on one fide and the huge Broc- cagh on the other, confines the view up the river to the valley ; at the end of which the great round tower and the other ruins appear to great advantage. A remark- ably fmooth and high mountain makes a no lefs fingular than agreeable back- ground. The numbe'r feven was myflical and facred, and early confecrated to religion. It began with the creation of the world, and all the Jewifh rites were (25) accom- modated to it. It is found among the (26) Brachmans and Egyptians. The Greek fathers extol its power and efficacy, and the Latin, as ufual, apply it to fuperflitious purpofes. The church formed various feptenaries. The following is extradled from Archbilhop Peckham's conftitutions made at Lambeth, A. D. 1281, " The moft high hath created a medicine for the body of man, repofited in feven veflels, that is, the feven facraments of the Church. There are feven articles of faith belong- ing to the myflery of the Trinity. Seven articles belonging to Chrift's humanity. There are feven commandments refpe£ling man ; feven capital fins, and feven prin- cipal virtues." — Much more to the fame purpofe is in Amalarius, Durandus and the Ritualifls. The Irifh entertained a fimilar veneration for this number, witnefs the feven churches at Glendaloch, Clonmacnois, Innifcathy, Inch Derrin, Innifkealtra, and the feven Altars at Clonfert and Ploly Crofs. Crowds were attraded to thefe places to celebrate the profoundeft myfteries ! It is now time to inquire what are the origin and date of the buildings and cele- brity of Glendaloch. And here the antiquities themfelves, (and a richer flore is no where to be found) will belt enable us to determine thefe curious points. From ("27 Bede we learn, that the Irifh and Britons agreed in religious opinions and difcipline, and diflered widely from thofe of Rome, and of this he fupplies ample proofs in the years 604, 630, 639, and 661, and it has been feen that the Irifh church continued feparated from the Romifli to the 12th century, and even later, (15) See the Pentateuch, particularly Leviticus, and the EvaDgflifls. Huct. Dcmors. Evang. p 21?. Edit. 8vo. In the UwB of Hiicl Dda, a perfon fwears on feven altars, c, ii\ f'^iSI Marfliam, Can. Chron. S.tc. 9. p. I?9 — J 90. (17) Lib. 1. t. '.; ^ilil)'. 1 / i8o HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. ■< ■< ■< <■■< ■< ■< < < < < < « •< ■< ■<■■<■ ;.,.<< .< ., .,..< .<.<..,>>>>>. ►.■>..>■>>>■>>>>>..> > >■ V > > > » > , > > > > > > >■ ►■•►>.* >.,^. later, confequently that we did not adopt the ufe of Palls, the Mafs, Purgatory, the unbloody facrifice, prayers for the dead, reliques, pilgrimages, litanies, and num- berlefs other fuperflitious praSices, which the (28) Anglo-Sjxous had embraced. In the fecond Nicene council it was decreed, A. D. 788, that no church fliould be confecrated that had not the reliques of fome faint. It is 29) believed to have beea two centuries before this rule was obferved even by the Anglo-Saxons, and the caufe that prevented its reception was, the. want of (lone, edifices. If there was no other reafon, the operation of the fame caufe was equally powerful in Ireland. The Oftnien of Ireland were converted to Chriftianity about the middle of the 9th cen- tury, but it was fuch chriftianity as their countrymen in England had been taught them by Romilh miffioners, and of which the ufe of reliques was a capital article. To fecure thefe from fire was their fir ft care, and this was efFefted by (30) arching a crypt or fmall oratory with ftone, in this the reliques were pkced, and a tomb raifed over them, which ferved for an altar. It was in a Bilhop's power to canonize as many as he pleafed. This pradice is delivered by the (31) Romilh writers, and hence we need not wonder how Saints were multiplied. As patron Saints were un- known till their (32) reliques were adored and thus depofited, and as this ufage was firft introduced by the Oilmen in the 9th century, fo the date of our buildings of lime and ftone confirms this fad. We had none of the latter, at leaft in. any number, antecedent to the arrival of thefe Northerns in the 9th age, as is generally agreed. In the next eflay the ftyle of this crypt is particularly confidcred. It would exceed our prefent limit to treat of the Round Towers of Glendaloch, or of the ages of thefe ftruftures, but they fliall be noticed hereafter : nor can I ftay but to remark, that the coins here exhibited and others given by Ware, and difcovered at Glendaloch, belong to the early Danifti princes who had embraced Chriftianity. I ftiall now proceed with fome hiftorical colledions relative to this celebrated place, referring the reader to another (33) work. No (28) Hurophrfk ad rat. 5. Campian. p. 626. Inneo's Orig. Anglic, p. S3. Mofheim. V. i. part. 1. c. 4. (19) Balsi Cent. 2. c. 31. (30) Du Cangc, voce Volutio. (31) Aniiquius mos eft in eccleCa reccptus, Sanflorum rcliquiasin cryptis fubtcrraneis (ubtuf altare ccllocandi, ubi fanc- torum cclcbrioruni fcpulchra in antiquis baClicis ctiani nunc vifuntur. Hinc confuetuiio manavit altaria erigendi fuper tumulos virorum piorum, qno« L'pifciipi pro Sanflis liabcri volcbant, hicijue erat olim Sanflos canonizandi lilus. Ruinat. Not. ad Greg. Tur. p. 731. Velli, T. 1. p. 443. Bed. 1. 5. c 12. A cuflom copied from hcathcnifm. Sub Cifari- bus altaria punebant, praiunie tantum Pontificc. Baxter. Glofs. voce Ara. A moft remarkable imitation ! (31) Among Haniographcrs the — Patrocinia Sanflorum — means their rcliquct. Du Cange, voce I'atrociniuin, (33) ArchdaU'e Mooafticoo Hibernicum, in Wicklow. HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCII. i8i "< < i < < < ■< < ■< ■< ■< < .< .< 4 * .< .4 -4 -' ■< < < < ■< < < < ■< ■< * < < < < ■< ■< < ■<+» No fooncr were the rcliques of St. Kevin brought hither than his zealous and bigotted votaries proclaimed their virtues and miracles, and all flocked to the flirine of the new Saint: (34) a naked and barren wildernefs was quickly filled with churches and good houfcs ; a large and beautiful city (35) fprang up, and wealth flowed in from every quarter. A city abounding in riches and votive offerings was an objed of plunder with the piratical freebooters of the North, who, as they fub- fifted folely by depradation, without reludance frequently pillaged their own coun- trymen, fo that the Irifli annals are mofl: probably right in what they relate of the fpoiling of Glendaloch at different times. In 1162, Laurence O'Toole, whofe an- ceftors had founded and endowed the Abbey and the other churches, was (36) eleded Abbot. The (T,y) writer of his life tells us, he was named Laurence O'Tuathal, that his father was Muirchiortach O'Tuathal, Lord of Imaile. That at the age of twenty-five he was chofen Abbot, the revenues of the Abbacy vaflly fur- paffing thofe of the Biflioprick. That every year, at the quadrigefimal feafon, he retired into a moft horrid but holy Wildernefs, St. Kevin's rock, invironed on every fide with dark woods, befides a deep lake on one fide inclofing a perpendicular precipice of 60 cubits ; on the other, one of thirty. In that fide of the rock that hangs over the lake is a hollow made by St. Kevin's own hands, which ferved him for an oratory to pray in, and a repofitory when he would fleep. Here Laurence palTed the forty days of Lent. Thus far our Hagiographer. Laurence was eleded Bifhop of Glendaloch, but this he refufed ; his ambition afpired to an higher dig- nity — the Pall and the See of Dublin, and he foon attained them. In 1 1 73, Richard Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, the King's Deputy, granted to Thomas, nephew of Laurence O'Toole, the Abbey and Parfonage of Glendaloch. The (38) charter is one of the moft valuable and ancient in this kingdom, as it preferves the poffeffions, privileges, and immunities of the Abbey. The names of the fubfcribers and other circumftances enable us to afcertain its date. The fecond witnefs is Eva, daughter of King Dermot Macmurrogh, and wife of Earl Richard. Walter de Ridel or Ridelford and Meyler Fitz Henry, the other witnefles, were companions of Strongbow in his Irifli wars. The Earl ftyles him- felf Viceroy of Ireland. This office he muft have affumed on the departure of 3 A Henry (34) Eremum nudam et hifjjidam affignes, intra paucos annos ron fiilum cctlefjas et ades inCgnes, vcrum ctiitn poflVf- fioniim copias ct opuleiitias n.ulias ibidem invcnie?. Gir. Cambreni. Itiner. Canibrisc. p. 8ji. (55) Clara ft rcllgiofa civitas ill Jionore S. Cociiigeiii crcvit. Uffer. p. 956, (36) Archdall, fiipra. (37) Apud Walfti'i profpeft, p. 294. (38) In libro nig. Arthiep. Dull, tul jj. i82 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. Henry II. which was on Eafter Monday, A. D. 1173. From hence it will appear, that the name of Luke, Archbifliop of Dublin, to this charter is a midake, for the firfl prelate of this name, who fat in the See of Dublin, lived more than 50 years after granting this charter. So that Luke (hould be Lawrence, who filled the archiepifcopal chair from 1162 to 1180. Archbifliop Lawrence went to England foon after the King, and was very little in Ireland during his reign. As he had been Abbot of Glenda'och, and confidered it as belonging to his family, he naturally interelted himfelf in fecuring its pofleflions, and having them confirmed by the new government. Another particular to be learned from the conclufion of the Charter is, the diffidence entertained of the clergy's veracity in fecular concerns. The Earl does not allege their evidence in fupport of their property, but the folemn and regal teftiraony of King Dermod : — " Sicut in verbo veritatis Diarmicus rex teftatus eft." — ."he (39) Normans had been frequently impofed on by fiftitious exemptions and forged charters, and therefore received fuch documents with the uimoft caution. As foon as the Irifli fubmitted to the Normans, the latter began to aft the fame part here which they were daily performing in England. They feized the churches, tithes and manors of the clergy. Cambrenfis, an eye-witnefs, complains (40) in ftrong terms of their rapa- city in this ifland. Robert Fitz Stephen, Hervey de Monte Marifco and John de Courcy having no children, he pronounces a jull judgment on them for (40) de- pauperating the Irifh church. Pope Alexander III. by a Bull, A. D. 1179, confirmed the city of Glendaloch to Malchu- lib liifliop and his fucceffors, faving the rights of the Abbot. In this are mentioned no lefs than 50 denominations of land, and among them Dublin is included. 'J he Pope did not relifh the arbitrary proceedings of the Normans, be- caufe they affected his treafury, and in this inltance he attempted their reftridion. By the following letter the original of which is in Ware's Bifhops, we are informed that Cardinal Paparon's bulinLfs here in 1 152, was to render the Irifli clergy more manageable, by reducing the number oi fees, fixing fome in the belt towns, where hereditary poffcllion was Icfs liable to interrupt papal provifions. J Letter (39) Pet. Bles. cpift. 6(cndimu» vtl abrogare. Hxpugn. I. 2. c. 35. {41 ) Nee mirum: mcndicattnim in Inliila mifcr c'orus : lugcni ccclcfix cathcuraIe^ ten is luis & praidiis amplis, quondam libi Bdeliter & devote coUatis, a pr.xdi*1i» & aliis cum iplis, vel poft ipfos advciHis, fpoliaia;. Et fie ecclefiam cxaltarc vcr- fum cH iQ ccclcGam fpoliarc vel cxpilate Supra, live hft fcniCQCc it a fareallic alluGun to Pope Adrian's Bull. HISTORY AND ANTIQITITIES OF GLENDALOCII. 183 j^ Letter concerning the Palls fent into Ireland. " The tedimony of" the Archbifliop of Tuam and his Suffragans. Mafter John Paparon, Legate of the Roman church, coming into Ireland found a Bifhop dwel- ling in Dublin, who then exercifed his epifcopal fundlion within the walls. He found in the fame diocefe another church in the mountains, which was alfo called a City, and had a certain rural Bifliop : but the fame Legate appointed Dublin, which ■was the befl city, to be the metropolis of that Province ; delivering the Pall to that Bifhop who then governed the church of Dublin, and he appointed that the diocefe in which both cities were, fliould be divided, that one part thereof fhould fall to the metropolis, and the other part fliould remain to him who lived in the moun- tains, to the intent, as we firmly believe, that that part fhould be annexed to the metropolis, upon the death of the Bifhop, who then governed the church in the mountains ; and this immediately he would have carried into execution, had he not been obltruiEted by the infolence of the Irifh, who were then powerful in that territory. " When our Lord, King Henry of England, came to be thoroughly informed of the intention of the Legate, he granted that church in the mountains to the Me- tropolis, adhering to the intention and will of the faid Legate. In like manner, our prefent Lord, John King of England, having received evidence of the faid faft, and of the intention of the faid Legate from the great and worthy men of that territory, granted the faid part to John, the predeceffor of the prefent Bifhop (of Dublin). Befides that holy church in the mountains, although anciently it was held in great veneration on account of St. Keywin, who lived a folitary life in that place- yet now (A. D. 1214) it is fo wafte and defolate, and hath been fo forty years, that of a church it is become a den and nefl: of thieves and robbers ; fo that more murders aie committed in tTiat valley than in any other place in Ireland, occafioned by the wafte and defert folitude thereof." Ihe reafon for adducing this record is to fhew, by an authenticated deJu£lion, fome part of the hiilory of Glendaloch and the changes it has fufFered. From 1152, the time of Paparon's legation, nothing was done to the prejudice of the fee until Pope Alexander made it fuffragan to Dublin in 1179. But we have no proof of Archbifhop Toole's wifhing, or Henry's granting Glendaloch to Dublin, but this teflimony of the Archbifhop of Tuam, though the fad: feems probable. For Dublin pofitfling a good harbour, being built and fortified by the Danes, and lying convcniem for the fchemes of the Normans on this kingdom, a Britifli princt would naturally make it his refidence, and endeavonr its aggrandifement. On the other hand, Glendaloch was held by a fierce and refolute people, and a Sept, who I as ,84 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. , , , .. < « < < .< .< . <^ . < < <• « < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < ■< ' ' < • '+> • > * > » > ■ • > * > ' ' ♦ * ' * * * » > > > » ► > > > » > > V > > > >■ >'■ ss founders prefented both to See and Abbey, and who fo far from fubmitting to the new-comers were, as we (hall fee in the fequel, their moft determined enemies, it is therefore no wonder, if Henry and his fon John fhould, at firft, diflever and at len'Tth finally incorporate the whole bifhoprick of Glendaloch with Dublin. Har- ris's conjeOurc, in his Edition of Ware's Billiops, deferves credit. He fays, Archbilhop Loundres, being Judiciary of Ireland, made ufe of that moment of power to effect this confolidation. The Normans were then gaining ground, and it was his duty to fecond them. Another (42) informs us, that the people of Glen- daloch at firft violently oppofed this union, but being overcome by papal authority, they confented on condition, that another Cathedral, befides that of Chrift Church, fhould be erefted within their ancient diocefe, and that for the future there flioukl be an Archdeacon of Glendaloch as well as of Dublin. This being confented to, another church was begun without the walls, on the ancient fite of the church of St. Nicholas, an Archdeacon was appointed, and the union took place. In 1193, John (43) granted the fee of Glendaloch for ever to Dublin, on the firft vacancy, the Bifhop of the latter providing a Paftor for the former church. This, donation he made with the confent of his Barons folely, without any mention of the Pope's authority or approbation. This charter is dated the 24th of June, and about the end of the enfuing July, John made (44) another grant abfolutely of the Bilhoprick of Glendaloch, without the provifion of vacancy exprefled in the former. Thefe two grants fucceeding each other fo quickly, in the fpace of a month, can no otherwife be accounted for but by fuppofing Malchus, the laft Bifliop but one, to have died ; on which event, Archbifliop Coniyn thought it prudent to have the former donation revived, and a new confirmation made, omitting the conditi- onal claufe, now nugatory. There are grounds for believing this to be the cafe from the documents and their tenor, as well as from Mr. Harris's declaration, who confciTes he does not know when Malchus died, or Piro fucceeded. William Piro or Peryn is faid to have been the laft legal Bifliop of Glendaloch, and this is inferred by fome epifcopal aQs done by him, recounted by Harris, who dates his fitting from 1 192 to 1214, when he died. I fear this is faid without proof; for how came Piro to intrude himfelf into the fee after its final union with Glenda- loch in IJ93? It could not be the defign of King John, or the court of Rome, to '4S) Hibernia Dominicii). p. |85. Not. K. (41) Ex Regift. vocato, Crcdc inihi. fol. 87. '.44) Ex Regift. rupia. HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF Gl.ENDALOCII. 185 ..<.,< .<,,< /,.< < .< .< .< .<.<... '->■>■ >■ ►■ >■ >■ >■ >■ t >■ > >. >■ >..>■»..>. >. >. J to diveil a biflioprick of its poITefllons, and yet ftill keep up the title. The mod probable folution is, that the O'Tooles did not, or would not relinquifli their lights, when they perceived their acquiefcence went to the annihilation of thcfe rights. A. D. 12 r 4. It feenis to have been confidered as a violent flretch of power, the finking the fee of Glendaloch into' that of Dublin, otherwife fo many reafons to vindicate it would never have been fought for. The intentions of Cardinal Pa- paron are firfl; alledged, then the fewnefs of the people in, and the poverty of the diocefe of Dublin, with the propriety of extending the limits, and augmenting the revenues of the metrcpolitical church. But thefe motives, how plaufible foever, did not fatisfy the Irifli, and therefore the teflimony of O'Ruadan was procured. He was uncle of Roderic U'Conor, the Lift monarch of Ireland, and being allied to the Royal family, it was imagined, no native would objefl: to his folemn evi- dence, or litigate a trarifaflion fupported by fuch authority. To give every colour- able pretext for this union, it is afferted in O'Ruadan's letter, that Glendaloch for forty years paft, was a neft of thieves and murderers. This brings the com- mencemeut of nefarious afts there to the year 1173. The argument then turns out a moft unfortunate one, as it direflly proves thofe crimes to be coeval with and derived from the eflablifliment of the Norman power in this ifle. Before this the letter dates, that Glendaloch was held in the utmofl veneration, and of courfe the manners of the inhabitants were honefl: and peaceable. Can it be admired that when the natives beheld the depredations of thefe foreigners on fecular and ecclefi- aftical property, their morals Ihould be debauched, and their fimplicity corrupted by fuch peltilent examples ? In J 2 16, Pope Ilonorius III. confirmed what his predeceflbrs and the Kino-s of England had done refpedling the union of Glendaloch. In Camden's Annals, at the end of his Britannia, we find the Toole's almoft al- ways in arms againll the Englifli, and there is reafon to think they kept the fee of Glendaloch conllantly filled ; for Wadding, in his Francifcan Annals, under the year 1494, informs us, that Pope Alexander VI. on the death of Bifhop John, ad- vanced Ivo Ruili, a Minorite, to the fee. And on the deceafe of Ruili the next year, John or Uj) Junon was made bilhop of Glendaloch. In 1497, '' '^ men- tioned, (46) that Friar Dennis White had long been in pofi'eliion of Glendaloch, 3 B but (15) Biirk. Hiliern. Dominic, p. 479, & Supplcm. 1479. (46) Wjrc's Bilhoi'S, I'upri. , i86 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF GLENDALOCH. ; .4..« ■<■ <4>>»>. >. >. > > > >. >. V ». >. ►■>- >. > >- > >. y- i- > ■> > >■> > >. > >■ > >■ >■ >. >. >■>■■>■ » >•■ but being old and infirm and touched in confcience, on the 30th of May this year, lurrendered his right and claim in the Chapter-houfe of St. Patrick, Dublin, and acknowledged his fee had been united to Dublin fmce the reign of King John. Walter Fitz-Simons was now archbifliop of Dublin, and in fuch favour with Henry VII. that he was made deputy to Jafper, duke of Bedford, governor of Ireland. la this plenitude of power he obliged White to make the foregoing recognition. I do not know how this can be reconciled with what Burk fays, that Francis de Cordubu was appointed to the fee by Pope Alexander. OBSKRVATIONS ( 18; ) + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + ♦ + + + + + + + + + + * + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + "^ OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. WHEN many ingenious and learned men have delivered their fentiinents on a fubjeft, a writer mufl: perceive the difficulty of advancing any thing novel -on the fame topic, as he mufl feel a delicacy in differing from them in opinion. Had there been any thing approaching unanimity in their decifions, very little could be added to their labours : but as the reader will fee from a fuccin£t review of what they have written, that the fubjeft remains involved in its original obfcurity, he will be inclined to receive an attempt to throw new light on it, not unfavourably, while from the review, he may feletl that fyflem which feems beft founded. Sir Chriflopher Wren, (i) thinks what we call the Gothic flyle, ought rather to be termed the Saracenic, refined by the chriflians. This mode began in the Eaft after the fall of the Greek empire, by the prodigious fuccefs of thofe people that adhered to Mahomet's doftrine : who, out of zeal for their religion built Mofques, Cara- vanferas and Sepulchres wherever they came. Thefe they contrived of a round form, becaufe they would not imitate the chriflian figure of a crofs, nor the old Greek manner, deemed by them idolatrous, and for that reafon all fculpture became oft'enfive to them. They thought columns and heavy cornifhes impertinent, and might be omitted, and affeding the round from the Mofques, they elevated Cu- polas, in fome inflances, with grace enough. The holy wars gave the chriflians, who had been there, an idea of the Saracen works, which were afterwards imitated by them in the weft ; and they refined upon it every day, as they proceeded in building churches. "Without extracting more from the Parentalia, we may obferve, that it is a poft- humous performance, and probably never defigned for the public eye, as in every part it is obvioufly imperfecl and incorreft. The Saracen manner, he fays, was round, with Cupolas, and that the Croifees imitated it. Where it may be afked, are Gothic works in this flyle to be feen ? Are all Mofques and Caravanferas round ? The (i) Wren't ParenUlia, p. 309. i88 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOIHIC ARCinTECTURE. - The Saracenic works in the Eafl;, as remarked by Bentham and Grofe, bear no affinity to the Gothic, if they had, fome veftiges would ftill appear. Le Brun, in all his views, gives but one Gothic ruin of a church near Acre, wich pointed arches, and erected by the chriftlans. The Moors, who poflefl'ed Spain from the 8th to the 15th century, left no trace of an architefture, of which they are faid to be the inventors. Mr. Swinburne, in his travels in Spain, fpeaking of the ca- thedral of Burgos, fays — that in all the buildings he had an opportunity of examin- ing in Spain and in Sicily, which are undoubtedly Saracenic, he has never been able to difcover any thing like an original defign, from which the Gothic orna- ments might be fuppofed to be copied. — This opinion is not haftily given, or by a fuperficlal obferver : it is the refult of experience and a mafterly knowledge of the .various ftyles of archite£ture, fupported by ingenious and learned details and comparifons, and fuch as mufl for ever overthrow Wren's notions. Wren tells us, the Italians, French, Germans, Flemings, with fome Greek re- fugees, formed themfelves into focieties of Free-Mafons, and ranged from one na- tion to another, in conflrufling churches. Now we know from Spons and Reine- fius's infcriptions, that there were colleges of Mafons among the Romans, and that they were attached to fome legions. The Free-Mafons were copies of thefe Roman focieties, and not of the date given by Wren. Nor is it true, that they monopolized the building of churches, for the religious communities were equally well fkilled. Thus Ranulph Flambard, a fecular prieft, and bifliop of Durham, in 1100, was a great builder : he raifed his church from its foundation to its covering, and made (2) many other great works. Felibien, (3) mentioning the Ciftertian abbey of Notre Dame des Dunes, and its re-edification in 1262, faj's, — Qu'il n'y eut que les religieux & les gens de monaftere qui y mirent la main ; qu'ils eftoient au nombre de plus de quatre cens perfonnes, tant profez, convers que freres laiques & fcrviteurs ; et que plufieurs d'entre eux s'appliquoient les uns au deflein, a la peinture, et a la fculpture et les autres a la ma^onnerie, la char- penterie, la menuiferie, la ferrurerie et autres arts dependans de I'architetlure. — Mr. Gray (4) thought there was nothing in the Gothic but the flender fteeples^ that might be borrowed from the Saracens, and that if both ftylcs were the fame, then the Gothic wo\)ld have cupolas : he adds, that the buildings in Perfia, 'I'urkey, and other parts of the Eafl, are plainly corruptions of Greek architedure. Mr. Gray (i) Godwyn de praful. (}) Rtcueil hiftoriijuc, p. S14. (4) Works by Mafon. Letter JO, OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 189 Gray forgot, that in our Saviour's time, the temple at Jerufalem had (5) pinnacles, columns, ornamented capitals and much pancarpic decoration, fo that there was no neceffity of deducing thefe from Saracenic works or later inventions. Thefe exifted in the original Jevvifli tabernacle, and in the chriftian Ciboria long before the Sara- cens eftabliflied any (lyle. Bifhop Warburton, accuftomed to weave with a bold hand the flender web of hy- pothefis, difcovers in his notes to Pope's epiftle to Lord Burlington, forae of thofe m^rks of genius and learning, which eminently diftinguiflies the writings of this prelate. He fays, our Saxon anceftors, in their pilgrimages to the Holy land, ac- quired their architedural ideas from the religious edifices there exifting. But the Anglo-Saxons were not entirely converted until the (6) middle of the 7th century, confequently their pilgrimage could not be earlier. In the account of the church of Hexham, built by Wilfred, bifhop of York in 674, there is no intimation of oriental architeds or architedure ; the builders were (7) brought from Rome, Italy, France and other countries. The drawings of churches in the Holy Land, the Bifliop fays, agree with our Saxon remains ; and he particularly refers to the church of the Holy Sepulchre, and thofe of the Knights Templars formed on its plan. Now Eufebius (8) is pretty full in his defcription of this church. It was a Bafilica, and is fo called by him (9) and Sulpicius Severus. Xhere Bafilicas were the Reman courts of juftice, and in every province were (10) changed into chriftian temples. They had their pillars within the walls, as the heathen fanes had thera without. If this be a true account, our anceftors need not feek in tranfmarine nations for models, for they abounded in Britain. The church of Hexham muft be allowed to be a Saxon work : its profound crypts and fubterranean oratories, the arch of the chancel and its decora- tions, its winding ftairs and fecret walks, which could conceal from (11) view a great number of men ; its altars dedicated to the Virgin Mary, St. Michael, and St. John, are thefe fimilar to the church of the Holy Sepulchre ? If not the whim- fey falls to the ground. 3 c The (5) Urtpt/yieu. Matt. 4. J. Lightfoot. defcrip. tenipli. (6) EtheUverd. 1. j, c. 6. Smith, flor. hlft. pi 91. (7) De Roniaet Italia ct Francia ct dealiis terris, &c. Ric. Prior. Haguls. 1. I.e. 5. (8) Vit. Coiiftanl. 1. 3, c. 25. et feq. (9) Mox ula regni viribus BaClicam in loco Dominicae paffiouis, &c. 1. i, c. 33. (10) Aufon. grat. aft. p. 190. (11) Artj6cioflime machinari fecit, ut innumera hoininum multitudo ibi exiil«re, cum a ncmioe infra tideri queat. Ric. Prior. Hag. fupra. 190 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. i ■<-<■<< <-<■<■<■<■«■<«■< << » < ■<• < The Norman ftyle had its origin from the ancient grove-temples, where avenues of tall trees, intermixing their branches overhead, fuggelled the idea of columns, pilafters and ramifications in the vaultings. The Bifhop fhould have previoufly proved, that the forefl-temples of the Goths were parallelograms ; that this figure is befl: calculated for a multitude, and was a favourite one with this people. . The Bifhop fays, when the Goths had conquered Spain, and the genial warmth of the climate had ripened their wits and influenced their miftaken piety, they pro- duced Gothic architefturc in imitation of their grove-temples. But Spain was evan- gelized and had churches antecedent to the Gothic invafion. Is it not more natural to conclude, that with the accuftomed zeal of new converts, they adopted the chrillian churches for divine worfliip, rejefting every idea of their pagan ftate. But granting they did retain their heathen notions, where were architedts to be found to conftruft fo very complicated a building as a Gothic church from a grove arche- type? Could it be accomplifhed without great Ikill and practical experience? The Bifhop winds up this ingenious reverie, and ftamps it as fuch by obferving, that the genial warmth of the climate ripened the wits and inflamed the piety of the Spa- niards, a notion that might ferve to embeliifh an hifloric romance, but inconfiftent with fober reafon or found philofophy. Would this learned prelate perfuade us, that churches had no columns, or the roofs no ornaments till his Goths invented them ? Holy writ, Paulinus and Proco- pius would have otherwife inllruded him. Eufebius mentions the Mofaic and lacu- nary enrichments of the roof and collonadesof the church of the holy fepulchre. Sir Henry Wotton, (12) fpeaking of Goffli^'arches fays: " thofe arches which our artizans call of the third or fourth point, becaufe they always concur in an acute angle, and do fpring from the divifion of the diameter into three, four, or more parts at pleafure, I fay as to thefe, both for the imbecility of the fharp angle itfelf, and likewife for their very ulicomelinefs, ought to be exiled from judicious eyes, and left to their firft inventors, the Goths and Lumbards, amongft other reliques of that barbarous age." This derivation of Gothic architefture was uni- verfally adopted, and was fafliionable for fome ages. The Goths, fays (13) an in- telligent writer, a rough unpolifhed people, of huge flature and dreadful looks, carried into milder climates their monllrous tafte of heavy architedure. , A ftrange fancy ! as if the fize and looks of men gave a bias to their mental exertions. But In] Rcniiins, p. $i, (13) Riou's Grecian Ordfi"; of Architc^ure. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHIIECTURE. 191 But in no refpeft were the Goths the founders of an order of archltefture. For granting that, according to (14) Philoflorgius and Sozomen, the Goths embraced the Chriftian faith about the year 266, and to have built churches under the direc- tion of captive chriflians, we may be affured they were not better than cabins, or extemporaneous huts. Durable flruftures were not to be looked for among a peo- ple, at this period, in perpetual motion. Or fuppofe with the author (14) of the " Ornaments of churches confidered," that on the weftern world being reduced to pofitive fubjeftion in the fixth century, the Gothic princes applied to the cultivation of the mechanical and liberal arts, and that this was the sera of Gothic architefture, we fhall fee that a conclufion quite oppofite to what he deduces arifes fairly from his authority. I recolleQ: but one or two paflages in CafTiodorus, and they make againfl him. Directions are ('15) given about the repairs of the royal palace. The architeO: is ordered to pre- ferve the ancient part of the building in its priltine beauty, and to make the (16) new imitate the old. The better to enable him to perform this, he is defired frequently to read (17) Euclid's geometry, and to have Archimedes and Metrobius as his con- ftant companions : every thing was to be fo executed, that the works fhould be unlike thofe of antiquity only in their (18) newnefs. Here is the mofl decifive proof, that in the Gothic age, A. D. 514, and under a Gothic prince, Theodoric, the Greek and Roman ftyles and their mofl correct modules were admired, and nothing held in eftimation but the antique : an evidence fufficient to fubvert for ever all the wild notions of Gothic architecture being derived from the Goths. " But, fays the fame author, the Italians call the Gothic mode, architettura Tedefca, or Celtic architecture, and it feems to be the fame, in fome refpefts with the barbarous form in temples of which Plato and Strabo fpeak." A writer of fuperficial learning, who either does not underiland or takes at fecond hand ancient authors, is mofl troublefome to encounter and confute, becaufe he impofes by the citation of authors,. who mufl be critically examined to detedt his errors. Thus, not to infift on his miflake of tranflating Tedefca, by Celtic inftead of Teutonic, a inillake evincing ignorance of language and people, he mifreprefents Plato. In the (14) Page 83. (15) Cafljod. Vanar. p. 117—218. (16) Ut antiijua in nitorem priflinam contineas, tt nova fimili antlquitate produce. Cafliod. f^, (1 7J " The mod general forais of archite<5iure may be comprchcrded under the triangle, the f^juarc and the circle; and the feveral parts which conUitute a coniplcie order are of a finular coiiftrucSion witli thufe geometncil ligure«." Kirby'* perfpeiJlive of architedlure. (!«; U: ab orcre -veterum fola diftet novitas fabricarum, Caffiod. fup. 192 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE, ■■< ■< *-<■<■•< ■< ■<■•<■<■« ■<■•< ■' ■< ■<-<■<■< •<•< ■<+>.>..>..>..>..>.->->..>..>..>..>..>..>. >.->.>..>. >..>..>. >..,->. >.>..>. >..>.>.>.+.-►.>. >..>- >. » »..>.. the dialogue of this celebrated ancient, named Critias, he defcribes the climate, foil and produce of the ifle of Atlantis, and the temple of Neptune in it. " A pro- iufion of gold, filver and orichale was difplayed on its columns and pavement ; every part glittered with the precious metals, and Neptune Hood in a chariot drawn by fix winged horfes. The architedure and decorations are Grecian, but there was fomething (19) barbarous in the afpect of the temple : that is, it was not exadt in refpeft of the heavens, or of its parts, and which a perufal of Vitruvius will more fully explain. To have made the architecture even of the Atlantic ille as perfedl as the Grecian, would have been fuch a want of politenefs and refped to- wards his countrymen, as Plato could not be guilty of. What relation has this Atlantic temple with Celtic or Teutonic architefture ? None, but that the author fuppofes the Atlantis of Plato and the vifionary Rudbeck to be the fame. Strabo crives no more countenance to this writer than Plato and Caffiodorus, but I fhall not trouble the reader with the detail. As to the pointed or lancet Gothic arch it was known and ufed many centuries before the Gothic power was eftablilhed, or the romantic expeditions to the Holy Land commenced. About the year of Chrift 132, Antinous, the favourite of the Emperor Adrian, was drowned in the Nile. This prince, to perpetuate his memory, founded a city in Egypt, and called it after his name. Pere Bernat made drawings of its ruins, which are in the third tome of Montfaucon's antiquities. Among them is the pointed arch, not perfeftly Gothic, but that called contrafled. Another con- trafled arch appears in the Syriac MS. hereafter fpoken of. In Horfeley are Roman fepulchral ftones, with pointed arches. One example, and there mufl: have been many now fallen a prey to the ravages of time, would have been fufficient to have proved their exiftence and ufe, and the probability of their ferving as models, after a lapfe of years, for a new ftyle, and this new ftyle feems to have commenced about the year 1000, perhaps earlier. The arches of churches on the coins of Berenga- rius, King of Italy, and Lewis the Pious, and thofe in the Menologium Graecum prove the ftrait arch was in ufe in the 9th and 10th centuries. The fame may be faid of the ftrait 'arches on many round towers in Ireland. In the Menologium, compiled by order of the Greek Emperor Bafilius, in the 9th century, there are many engravings from ancient miniatures : among them are Ciboria with high co- nical roofs ; alfo perfpedive views of churches, whofe arches are round, ftrait and fpreading : the bafes, Ihafts, capitals and ornaments are Saxon. Thefe arches (hew a fludluation (19} Zditf h ri ((tfC'^fiMt ixnrn. Flat, in Crit. (jo) la a torn. Urbioi, 1727. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 193 .■4 .<..<.< -..<..<..< .< < -« < ■< -4 < <..« t ■< 4 4 4 ■'••< -4 ■< 4"4 ■< -4 ■< -4 4 ■< -4 4 4 4 ■4 + >- >■ >• >■■>■>■■>■■>■>' 1 a fluftuation of fade and flyle. Mr. Pennant faw at Chefter two pointed arches within a round one; ar>d Mr. Grofe informs (21) us, that the columns at Kirkflall abbey, in Yorkfliire, fupport pointed arches, and over thefe is a range of windows v.hofe arches are femicircular : thefe circumftances feem to intimate that the round and lancet arches were for a while driving for viflory. On a coin of Edward the ConfefTor, in Camden, is a pointed arch ; the church there is fuppofed to be that of Bury St. Tdmund repaired by him. This is a century earlier than its introduQion according- to Mr. Bentham. As all our ancient hiftorians refent the Confeflbr's attachment to the Normans, among whom he was educated, it is likely he faw this new arch on the continent, and introduced it into his works. Some architeftural novelty feems to have made its appearance in France and Italy at this time, as may be collected from the (22) words of Glaber Rudolph, a Benediftine monk and contemporary, and no doubt our churches took the form of this fafliionable innovation. You fee, fays (23) William of Malmefbury, writing of the Conqueror's time, in cities, towns and villages, churches and mo- nafteries arife in a new flyle of building. Mr. Warton takes this paffage to refer to a more magnificent, but not a different ftyle. The words feem to bear an oppofite conflruftion. What novelty was there, in barely enlarging the fize of a church ? How will magnificence be applicable to the — ecclefig!a, V. 4- r- "9 (■»-') Gibbon'» Roman hid. c. 38. ()6) Archacol. lup. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 1 9^ .« « ■< < < -< < < < .< 4 .< .«..< .4 4 ,« .4 .< .4. <■ 4 -4 -4 ■< 4 ■< 4 ■4-4 ■<-4-4 < ■< * < •< < < < + > >■ *■ >• ►■ »■ >• >■■►■ ►■ >■ ►- >■ >- > >• >■ >■ > t- >• > > p > »- »■ »■ >■ »■ ».>. >>>»>>>* arches and columns were not adorned with the images of Saints and legendary flo- ries ; their fliape was not cruciform ; they had no oratories in the ailes, nor were they glazed. This was the Roman ftyle as precifely delineated by (27) Bede, Ed- dius and Richard Prior of Hexham, and contradiftinguiflied from the Britifli. From the arrival of the Papal niilTionaries in the Idand it was fafliionable to exalt every thing Roman and decry what was native. The Britons with great lirmnefs preferved their hierarchy and faith, and refolutely withftood the adoption of maifes, ftations, litanies, fmging, reliques, pilgrimages and numberlefs other fuperftitions and innovations of popery. l"he Anglo Saxon church (28) founded by a Roman and devoted to that See, could not give a more convincing proof of her llncerity than by embracing thofe favourite ceremonies, and with them that mode of build- ing with which they were intimately conneded. Accordingly thofe, who were the mod adive in forwarding this ftyle, had either their education at Rome, or were remarkably attached to that capital. Thus Ninian, who ereded the ftone-church at Whittern, was regularly iudruded at Rome in her (29) myfteries and tenets. Bifcop, founder of the church of Weremouth after the Roman manner, was urged to the undertaking from his love to the bleffed apoftle (30) St. Peter ; and Naiton, feduced from his hereditary religion by the abbot Ceolfrid, folicits this abbot to fend him architeds to conftruct a church after the Roman C31) fafhion, not to mention Wilfrid who erefted the church at Hexham, and others recorded by Bede. This elucidation clearly points out the dilFerence between the Roman and Britifli architefture in the 7th century, and (hews what the ecclefiaftical hiftorian more par- ticularly means by the Roman manner. It is to foreigners we are indebted for the rudiments of this elegant art, and for thofe fculptures which fo profufeiv adorn our capitals and arches. It is equally certain, that what are called the Saxon orna- ments and the Saxon ftyle have not the moft relation to that people as inventors, but as they were ufed in ages wherein their conquefts and power were very con- fpicuous. The (Z7) Bcii. hift. Ahb. Wirem. p. 295, et ali'ul. EdJ. apud XV. Scrip, p. 61. Ric. Prior. Haguls. p. 290 — 291. (28) It is probable Auguftine was a Rumaii, as he was taken from the monaflery of St. Andrew, at Rome. CrcfTy's church hiftory. (19) Qui trat Rom.x rcpulariter fidcm & myflcria vcritatis edo(9us. Bed. 1. 3. c. 4. (3c! ^iclefiam juxta Romaiiorum, (]uem femper amabat niorem. Et tantum in operando ftudii prx amort bcaii Petri. Bid. hid. Abb. Wir. p. 2>jj. And a rcmarUible pillage to the fame in Pinkerton's Vit. SaixJl. Scot. p. 6. in Nioian. ^31) Bed. 1. 5. c. 21. 196 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. <<<■<<< < ■< < < ■< .< < < . The Roman ftyle, which includes, as is apparent from the preceding account of it, every charafteriftic trait of the Saxon, was the mode of ecclefiaftical architecture prevalent in the 7th century. The fame llile we may reafonably fuppofe exifted in the cliurch of (32) Tours, built A. D. 460. One hundred and twenty columns therein were not without carvipg ; nor walls one hundred and fifty feet in length without mouldinirs or ornaments. Of what fort thefe ornaments were the writer does not inform us. Eddius mentions in general terms, that the capitals of the columns and the arch of the chancel of the Hexham fabric were decorated " hif- toriis — imaginibus — et variis ccelaturarum figuris." 'Ihe firft probably mean hido- rical reprefentations from the Bible and Legends ; the fecond faints and holy men ; and the Ia(t a variety of fculptures in relief. Thefe works were executed by artifts (t,;^) brought from Rome, Italy and France: what reafon then can there be for calling them Saxon ? Many learned antiquaries have lately relinquifiied this appellation, and call them Roman, but they have not explained what they mean by a Roman work. It is not enough that the arch is femicircle, and the form and proportion of the column regular, the feuillage fliould be alfo Roman to en- title it to this diftindion ; the former by chance may be right, but the latter is not lefs characleriHic. Where do we fee the Ovolo, Talon, Cyma, Torus and other regular architedonic mouldings and ornaments in Saxon works ? Or where an en- tire order of the column ? For except the fhaft, the other parts are omitted or indiflinftly marked. The Saxon may poflibly be a corruption of the Roman ftyle, but there are ftrong inducements to think it had a very different origin. In the (34) Mediceo-Laurentian library at Florence is a Syriac MS. of the Evan- gelids, written A. D. 5S6, full of pictures and miniatures, exhibited in twenty-fix leaves. The fecond fliews the Virgin Mary with Jcfus in her arms, under a cibo- rium fupported by four pillars, which are drefled with chevrons, lozenges and eggs. The other plates give every charadteriftic ornament of the Saxon ftyle; as nebules, lozenges, quatrefoils and chevrons, flowers, fruit, birds and a (t,^) rich variety of fcuipture. So early an inllance, as to date, fo authentic and in point, has not, I believe, been produced ; what has been obferved of the church of Tours and that of (31) Oreg. Turon. hift. Friinc. 1. 2. c. 14. (33) Du Roma quoque ct Fiancia ct de aliis tcriis ubicunquf invenire potcrat, ccrmcntarios, &c. fccum retinerat. Ric. Prior Hagiils. 1. 1. c. 5. (.!4) Codex evaogdiorum antiquifltmut, Uteris capitalibw Tcriptus fine pun(5lis vocalibus, anno Alexanklrinn 807, hoc cf(, Chiifii 386, cum harmonia evangelita Ammonii ctEufcbii, ct miiiiiiuris i>i(51urifque velcris & iiovi tcHamcnti. Hie ciiici veic inxdimabilia eH, opiinic tcriftui. BiUiuib. McUic, Lsur. C- I. p. 44- .,3j) See Plate. ' r//r/('.j //-p,M .y^ f y^r/^/y> . .#f /p/^^y ^^'L/idi tf^ . y^^re/i^e ^y -..-.Ji ■, ./ /.v . /i/iii > '/; ,, . ' .}■■ /.!■//. ■ '//••./ __- OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTFIIC ARCHITECTURE. 197 L -<•<•/ + >..>■>■>■>■•>■>■■>•>■> >■■>■>.>..>.>■■> >•>■>■ >->..>■.>..>■>.->■.>. >..>..> >■>.>.■>.>■ >>■'>•>> of Hexham being rather probable conjeflure. Here we have a curious and incon- teftible fad full iu view. That fuch drawings are good authority and authentic evidence, we have the decided opinion of Warton, in his Obfervations on Spenfer, *' I cannot, fliys he, more clearly recapitulate or illuflrate what has been faid, than by obferving that the fealc; of our Engllfli monarchs from Henry III. difplay the tafte of architecture which refpedlvety prevailed under feveral fubfequent reigns ; and confequently convey at one comprehenfive view the feries of its fucccflive revo- lutions : inibmuch, that if no real model remained, they would be fufficient to fliew the mode's and alterations of building in England." Every inquirer into ami- quity knows what ufe Mniufaucon, Strutt, Grainger and others have made of mi- niatures, coins, feals and Iculptures in their various works, and that the dedudions from them rarely are difputed. That we (hould difcover the Saxon ornaments (for I mufl ufe the term to be in- telligible) in the Eafl:, is a phoenomenon little to be expefted. Let us confider that the tabernacle made by the Ifraeliles in the Wildernefs was to reprefent at once an (2,Q oriental temple and palace. As defcribed in Exodus, it was a great pavilion or tent, and in it was the Ark. The latter was concealed from fight by a veil fufpended from four pillars of precious wood, their capitals and bafes of pre- cious metals, and the fhafts overlaid with the fame. Within this the Deity was fuppofed to refidc, Chriliians, in the early ages of the church, imitated many ceremonies and prac- tices of the Jews, and among others they formed fmall portable tabernacles, con- ftructed on the model of the firll. Sozomen (37) tells us, that Conftantine, about the beginning of the 4th ceniury, carried with him in his campaigns a tabernacle, in ihe fliape of a church, that neither he or his army might in the Wildernefs be without a temple for holy ufes. I fay, Conllauiine and the Chriftians might have adopted this idea from the Jews, but it fell alfo in very exaftly with the pagan ufages, and might have been retained not to fcandalize new converts. The carrying gods in portable temples was common among the (38; Egyptians, Cappadocians, Greeks and Romans, and fuch were the filver fhrines fpoken of by St. Luke, in the Ads. Scripture and Sozomen call thefe tabernacles, Scence ; but Chryfoilom, who was contemporary with Sozomen, Ciboria. In his 4zd homily on the Ads, 3 E he (.16) Goguet fur. I'orig. des lolx. t. a. p. iji — zjj. (37) %ett ffKnvKv us ixxXnftav iixasf^iivjiv. I. f. c. 7. (38) Ai.< !»««». Euftath. in llisd. I. Strab, 1. 4. Athtnwi Dcipnoi. 1. li. Cafaub. in !oco. Dio. !. 40. Val. Mar. Kcrodian, Ladanc. £(c. 193 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. ,,.>.>. >..>.->■ fr ♦■ he afks in what form they made thofe filver (hrines, and anfwers they were perhaps like the fmall (39) Cibona. The Ciborium was the fliell, containing the feeds of the (40) Colocafia or Egyp- tian Bean, its furface was flat and heniil'pherical, from which to the bottom it de- chned into a cone: it was ufed as a (41) drinking cup, and reiembied our chalices or goblets. This, inverted and fufpended by its footftalk, was fimilar to the ca- nopy that covered thefe fhrines, and in the beginning of the 5th century, as ap- pears from Chryfoftom, was thus underflood, and at length exprefl'ed the pillars, curtains, canopy, and the whole (42) flirine or tabernacle. 'Before Chriftianity was fully eftabliflied and for fome ages after, the practice of making Ciboria to ferve as domeftic chapels, from the example of Conflantine and the general tinifture of Paganifm ftill remaining, mufl; have been univerfal. We have traced it through the 4th, 5th, and the Syriac MS. evinces what it was in the 6th century. In the fury of religious zeal, Conflantine dcmolilhed the mo- numents of ancient architeflure and fculpture. The porches of the temples, fays (43) Eufebius, were laid open, their doors taken down and their roofs torn oiF. In one place Apollo Pyihius lay expofed to view, in another Sminthius, in the circus the Delphic tripods, and in the palace the Heliconian mufes. A new ftyle of ornament and building commenced, it was a (44) corrupt imitation of Eaftern, Grecian and Roman models. The firft experiments feem to have been made on tabernacles and Ciboria. Catching the flame of religion from their prince, and to compleat their triumph over idolatry, Chrifl;ians would naturally reject thofe orna- ments that decorated heathen temples, and employ whatever they could colleiSl: of the Jewifh and Eaftern feuillage. The Syriac MS. prefents us wirh pillars fpiral, fluted and covered with a lozenge net work, diflferent frettes, chevrons, chalices, flower and angels heads, ornaments certainly prior to the date of that work. They were after transferred to ftone buildings, and feem to be the true origin of thofe called Saxon ornaments. The (39) l;att v{ KXvpia fimfa, (40) i-alinas. PImj cxercit. p. 1310. who fhew Rhodoginu! ii much midiken in the account of tin: Ciborium. (41) I'oculi vicem ct ufum prabcbat. Salmas. Tii]). (41) Li piiture il'Ercohno. t. z. p. »i i. (4j) Vit. Cendant. 1. 1 c. 8. (44) Wren has well obfcrvfd in hit Pareotalia, that Ordert were HebrKan, Phoenician, Ac The acronut of the J«w- ilb tabernacle it a proof. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCUITECTURE. 199 The veneration (45) in which the Ciborian was held, and the niyftic virtue of hi figure, were boundlefs. The Virp;in Mary, Jefus, and tlie apoiUes and holy men are reprcfented within thole of the Syriac MS. but thefe u-ere foon fupplanted by the reliques of Saints and the euchariftic elements. Ciampini tells us, the (46) La- teran Ciborium is made of Parian marble, fupported by four columns of Egyptian marble, with gilt epiftyles of the Corinthian order. Within a gilt iron grating, are preferved^ with fingular veneration, the heads of the apollles Peter and Paul. We may eafily imagine what fuperflitious refpeft was paid to the minuted part of the Ciborium, from a declaration of St. Jerome in the 4th century, who pronounces in the molt decifive manner, that (47) the facred chalices, the holy vails, and what- ever elfe belonged to our Lord's paffion, were not to be efleemed as common and unmeaning things, but from their connexion with the body and blood of Chrift were entitled to the fame implicit and fovereign refpe£l as the very body and blood itfelf. Hence the utmoit profufion was not thought too great for adorning thefe Ciboria. Pope Leo III. according to Anaftafms, made fome of fdver covered with gold, the four pillars were of great heigth of porphyry and white marble, finely carved and enriched with innumerable green and purple gems. The inverted (48) Ciborium was the crowning of the Greek churches called Cupolas, and the covering of their (49) graves. Gregory of Tours, coeval with the Syriac MS. in many-(5o) parts of his work, mentions the cuftom of the Franks to hang tapeftry round the tombs of the deceafed, the top terminating in a ponticulus or arch, in reference to the Ciborium. The fame ideas were attended to by architects, as we find by Gervais's (51) account of the rebuilding of Canterbury. Such (4;) Defcribit prolixa Ciborium Germanus, et diflls prophelicit ita conquadrate opinatur, ut fine illo, quo modo Deus operatur per altaris facraficium falutcm hominum in medio terra; iion prolie intelligi aftirmct. Goar. Eucolog. p. 15. (46) Ciborium ex pario marraort, quatuor columuis .tat marmore .ffigyptio, cum epiftyliii deauratis, ordinis Corinthii, furtentatur, &c. Ciampini de fac. adific. p. ij. ■,,:,., {47) Sacros caliccs et faniSa velamiiia.'ct cxlera qua: ad cultuni Dominica paffionis pertinent, non quafi inanla & fenf'.i f arentia faniSlimoniam non liabere ; fed ex confortio corporis & fanguiiiis Domini, eadcm qua corpui ejus et fanguii majef- tate veneranda. Hieron. epift. ad Theophil 88. This wasaliout A. D. 380. (-iS) Kxi xoisuins. Phot. O/sc Ti xovs. .Silent, apud D» Cangc dcfctip. xa. Soph. p. 50. Ciborium, in immcnfuni, ■veiuti turris attollebitur, qua fenfim in acutum verticem deHnebat, Again. In Ciborii vero forma conoide, qua colum- carum fuflentantur columine. Du Cangc, fup. ' (49) M»>i.ua!, B Tafcy, » usSufit Meurs. GlolT. -voc. Ki?Vfi», KiStfym. (50) Dc gloria C. rf. c. 20, ai, 30. De Mirac. 1. i. c. 71. The I'epulchrum fub analogia compoGtum, of tl.ii writer, and the — Tuniba : modum domunculi of Bede, 1. 4. c. 3. were the types of the Ciborium. (ji) C'lavem pro tcto pono Ciborio—Faflum eft itaque Ciborium inter quatuor pilarios princijales, &c, Ccrv. Dorc- I trn. p. 1298. 200 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. Such then is the evidence of the origin of the Saxon feuillage. It is a fubje£t admitting, very probably, much more copious eUicidatiou than is within the fpherc of my prefent information, a few hints are all I prefume to offer. The ofcillation of human imbecility, ever producing the wildert: and mod inex- plicable appearances in the moral world, in the courfe of a few centuries gave a fignal inftance of its capricious power. What ChrilUans of the 4th and 5th cen- turies beheld with horror and deteftation, Chriftians of the 9th, 10th, and nth centuries embraced as objecls meriting the highed refped and confidence. A new flyle of architettural ornament fucceeded, hitherto either totally unobferved or but flightly noticed, though by no means an incurious fubjed. The mofl perfed inftance of this (lyle is the capitals in the French church at Canterbury. The ingenious editor of the Antiquarian (52) repertory, from w^hom they are copied, feems to coincide with Mr. Golling's opinion, that this chapel was cither conftrufted by Grymbald in the reign of Alfred, or by fome other in that age ; and his arguments are founded on the fimilarity between the Canterbury orna- ments and thofe in Grymbald's crypt in Oxford : there is a refemblance in the fize of the capitals, and at firft glance the grotefques feem the fame ; but a clofer exa- mination will difcover them to be of different ages. At Canterbury they are well drawn, diftinft and expreffive : at Oxford they are confufed and unmeaning ; and in the frizes on the north and fouth parts of Adderbury church, Oxfordshire, •we may trace a degradation of this ftyle in the whimfical mixture of Cyclopfes, Janufes, warriors and Egyptian hieroglyphical figures ; the two former are from Roman originals, the latter betrays the wayward fancy of our rude anceilors. The irruption and fettlement of the Saracens in the fouth, the fierce and bloody conflids of barbarous and pagan nations in the north, and the univerfal corruption of religion, exhibit a difmal pi6lure of the ftate of Europe in the eighth and fucceeding ages. Charlemagne did every thing becoming a great prince to civilize the favage manners of the age, to reflore Chrillianity and revive letters. His capi- tulars are full of decrees for founding and rebuilding churches, and in (53) Mont- faucon he is reprefented holding one, it has a round tower and a fpire rifing from it. This is allufive to his celebrated church of Aix-la-Chapelle. Hofpinian (54; alfo remarks the aftonifliing number of magnificent religious edifices confhuded in liis reign. The Canterbury crypt feems of an earlier date. If (ja) V. I. p. 57. (53) Les monumeni de 1» monarchic Franc, p. 7:76. iSA) Hofpinian. dc tcmplis, p. 36, 37. ^]^B^^mrr wm !Tr m^^?^^ sni^ ■ -nittwv-'s^'' ■;; !:;. .■^'■;:;^-^--'.-i±i=^ i; I 1,1 r If (/////,'',//, //, //f/- ,//y' //{■// f^/f// /'/■// ,// ' /-////^'/'////v/ > ^y'„M^/,:y /,^ )Un '/'„... . ■'',:. /' - ' .//, OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 201 If Olborn's authority is of any weight, the undercroft at Canterbury was founded antecedent to the year 742 ; for that (55) writer informs us, that archbifhop Cuth- bert eredted St. John's chapel in the eallern part of the greater church or cathedral. Archdeacon Batteley, as I collefl: from Mr. Goftling, afcribed it to the believitig Romans. The learned antiquary need not be told, that crypts formed the fub- flruiSture of every great church : he will alfo think it more than probable, that the nietropolitical church of Canterbury was not without them for near three hundred years, that is from the a^e of Auguftine to that of Grymbald ; and more efpecially fo, when it is univerfally allowed, the undercroft amid all the conflagrations and repairs the cathedral underwent, remained unalterably the fame. There are not documents fufficient precifely to determine its age, let that be what it may, I fhall take the liberty of confidering its capitals, and next endeavour to account for the prevalence of Egyptian hieroglyphical figures on them, and fimilar works. No. I. Is the aelurus or cat, one of the (56) aninials generally adored in Egypt, becaufe it was believed to fupply a cure againlt the bite of alps and other venomous creatures. Yet it is not likely the feline race would have been fo honoured even in this fuperllitious country was it not fymbolical of their great deity (^7) Ifis. No. 2. Is obvioufiy another Egyptian grotefque. It is a hawk killing a ferpent. Diodorus Siculus, Strabo and iElian inform us, this bird was worfiiipped in Egypt for freeing the country from fnakes, fcorpions, and other reptiles ; and Plutarch records that a hawk fighting with a ferpent was reprefented Handing on the ftatue of (58) Typhon: the archetype probably of our fculpture. No. 3. Is an ideal quadruped, fuch as the Egyptian (59) gryphon is defcribed, with the beak, talons and wings of an eagle, and the body of a lion. It is here killing fome noxious bird or ferpent- The gryphon was (60) fiicred to Ofiris. No, 4, 5, 6, 7. The fourth feems to be a gladiator or criminal engaged with a lion; the fifth a horfeman with a cap and trowfe; the fixth a fheep, to which the Egyptian Saites and Thebans paid divine honour ; and the feventh an equeftrian fi";ure common on Roman coins. No. 8. Is a pure Egyptian figure, a double-headed Anubis beflriding a double- headed crocodile. In Boiflard's and other colledions Anubis Handing on a crocodile 3F is iSS) ApuJ Wharton Angl S.ic. V. t. p. 75. (56) Strab. 1. 17. Diod. Sic. 1. I. Montfaucon, I. 2. p. 310. (57) Ftlis ob varielatem, &c. IficWm indicabat Pignor. Mens. If. p. 'jl. ( j8) itf«| ofu /i«x'/^ms. Plut. de If. et OCr. p. 371. He trfls us ODris -was depiaed as a hawk. -bii. (59) Plutarch, fymp. 1. 4. qua^ft. 1. j. VoiT. dt idolul. I. 3. c. IQO. (60) Pigiiur. fup. p. 15. -J02 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. ,. ». >, >> ».% , is frequent, nor is a double-headed Anubis lefs fo. We have feen the aelurus, the hawk and the gryphon referred to the great Egyptian gods Ifis and Ofiris ; the fame may be faid of Anubis, who was the (6i) infeparable companion of Ifis. •No. 9. A man fi'ting on the head of another holds in one hand a fifli, and in the other a cup. The fifli named oxyrinchus was (62) generated from the blood of Ofiris, and was facred in Egypt. According to Hyginus, it alluded to fome fa- ble concerning Ifis. No. 10. A double-headed monfter. Tertullian (63) feems to defcribe fuch forms, and fimilar ones may be feen in Montfaucon. No. II. Is a bird deftroying a crocodile, for they are of two (64) fpecies, or perhaps fome ferpent of the lizard kind. No. 12. Is a fatyr refting on two deers. The " aures Satyrorum acutas" and the " capripedes Panes" of the Roman poets are well known. No. 13. Are two birds on a Roman mafque. No. 14. Is a grotefque, with the head and comb of a cock, the body and arms human, the (houlders winged, with the feet and tail of a fatyr : it is playing on a violin with a bow, and behind is a fcalene triangle. Oppofite is another grotefque blowing a trumpet, with the head and herns of a goat, the lower extremities hu- man. That thefe are Egyptian hieroglyphical figures we may appeal to (6j) Porphyry, to Tertullian, Min. Felix, Pignorius, Montfaucon and Chifilet. Whatever occult meaning may be concealed under thefe grotefques, there is one very obvious and agreeable to the genius of the Egyptian fuperftition. Its profeflfors in every age were as negligent of decency in their (66) facred rites as in their pub- lic condud. It was a fatal omen of the decline of the Roman empire, for its princes to be fo devoted to this foreign religion. Suetonius mentions it as an inftance of Otho's effeminacy, that he celebrated the myfteries of Ifis clad in the linen veft- ments of her priefts. In Petronius Egyptian youths attend feafts, and pour fnow water (61) Fult indivIJuus Ifidis come;. Pignor. fun, p. 31. who produces an ancient infcription, wherein Ifis, Serapis Anabis and Harpocrates are called Qia ruitaa. 61) Ko/Ai^i/ffi J» Kflci ■ >->• >■>■>• >->..>->..>■ >■ >..>. >. >■>.■>.■>■ >•> >->■.>■■>. >■>.>- >->•>■>. >■>.>. >. >. >. >« water on the hands of the company. They excelled no lefs in mufic than in the other elegant means of corrupting mariners. Cantica qui Nili, qui Gcidifana fufurrat. Mart. Verus brought many mufical performers to Rome from Syria and Alexandria. Ac- cording to Kircher, the triangle denoted Orus, the fon of Ifis and Ofiris : or it was a {(^j) figure which the Egyptians obferved their favourite Ibis often to make. Sir John Hawkins (68) gives us the Giuftiniani Apollo playing on a violin with a bow : the body of the inftrument is fomewhat rounder than ours. This ftatue Dr. Burney informs us has been proved by Winckelman and Mengs to be modern ; he thinks the violin and bow which appear on an antique ewer and bafon, dug up at Soiffons, the oldell hitherto difcovered. Le Beuf, he adds, fuppofes them to be as ancient as the year 762. To the fentiments of thefe eminent fcholars and antiqua- ries I (hould mofl; readily fubfcribe, and particularly fo, as they would nearly afcer- tain the date of the undercroft, could I reconcile them with Venantius Fortunatus. This writer flourifiied about the middle of the fixth century, and mentions the " Chrotta Britanna or Britifh Crwth." From the drawing of this inftrument, in the third volume of the Archa;ologia, it is plain it was of the fidicinal kind, and the tranflation from this to the violin eafy ; yet I fliould think it an excefs of pa- triotlfm to afcribe the invention of this elegant inftrument to the Britons. They mufl rather have corrupted the violin into the Crwth from a Greek or Roman ori- ginal. Enough has been faid of thefe capitals to found a conjedure that this crypt was an (69) Ifeum or Roman chapel, facred to Ifis, or that it was an early imitation of Roman models. Grotefques are derived from the eccentricity of Egyptian fu- perflition, and which affeded ftriking and monllrous forms rather than thofe that were comely and beautiful ; and the more to infpire (70) religious dread and horror, thofe grotefques were moltly confined to crypts, and hence they got their (71) ap- pellation. The (67) lifrXiufoi ffiyuti. Plutarch, de If. et Of. p. 6;0. Trigonus cum globo infcrlptus fignificat Horum. Kircher. Oedip. ^gypt, Syn. i c. 7. A triangle is a common fepukhral ornamenc in the crypts at Rome ? Aringh. Rom. fubter. pair. (68) Hiftory of MuGc, V. i. p. 446. (69) A Cmilar inftaiicc, are the vaults at Hexham, wherein are many fragments of Roman infcriptlons, grotcfque figures, which are true Sigillatia or SigiUiola, and much carved flone-work. Hexham and Canterbury were Roman fta-. tions. Hucchinfon's ezcurfion to the lakes, p. 303—307, (70) Quorum ftudium in id magis incumbebat, at pidloras miras exprimerent, quam ut veniiftateni affedarent. Pignor. p. 7. Vitruv. 1. 7. c. 5. Li pitture d'ErcoUno. t. 3. p. 296. n. 2. andj). 311. (71) Ualis didas grottefcas credo, quud 13 terra obrutis vscerum Kdificiorum fornicibas, quas grottas, qiiafi crj-ptai vo- cant, priraum inveiieriut. Pignor. fup. :o4 OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AKD GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. . ■< •<■-< •<■■< ■< ■< ■<■-< [ .< .( .< .<••<■•* ■<■■<■■<+>•>■ *■ >■ ►->- > >■■>■ >■ >■>-■>->■ >•>■>.■>.>. >->..>->..►. >.>..>..>.,>. >.>..>-.►.>. >->->■ >■ >. ». The northern nations from vicinity or intercourfe had been long converfant with the fuperflition of (72) Rome, and like her, were addifted to magic and fpells. So exadly did their ideas aflimilate on thefe heads, that Wormius (73) declares one egg does not more clofely refemble another than the Egyptian and Danifli hiero- glyphics. Boetius found numberlefs hieroglyphics in Scotland, which tradition afcribed to the Danifli times ; of thefe he thus fpeaks in Holinflied's tranflation, " that the Scots at firft ufed the rules and manners of the (74) Egyptians from whence they came, and in all their private affairs they did not write with common letters, as other nations did, but rather with cyphers and figures of creatures, made in manner of letters, as their epitaphs on their tombs and fepulchres re- maining amongft us do hitherto declare. Neverthelefs this hieroglyphical manner of writing in our times is periflied and loft." Mr. Pennant met with thefe gro- tefque in his tour in Scotland : he a(ks whence could artifts acquire their ideas of centaurs and animals proper to the torrid zone ? In the year 1665, the tomb of Childeric I. was difcovered atTournai, and in it the (7S) head of an ox with a fun in ais forehead all of gold ; and left the figure ftiould be miftaken, there were about three hundred golden " apes" or bees, to fliew that Childeric's tutelary deity was the Egyptian apis. Montfaucon fays there were (y6) many oval coins found at the fame time with the fcarabceus and frog on them ; and then alks, were thefe derived to the Franks from the Egyptians ? Did the former alfo worftiip them ? Had thefe ingenious writers applied but a fmall portion of their erudition to this fubjeft, they would foon have detefted the obfcurity which over- ■ fhadows the introduftion and ufe of thefe hieroglyphics, and thereby fuperfeded the neceflity of the following obfervations. The Egyptian fuperftition had, by its various adumbrations and (yy) explications, fo confounded the ancient fyftem of Grecian and Roman theology, as to make it a perfedt chaos. This, with the open profligacy of its votaries, made the Romans, in the 696th year of the city, ejeft it. It ftole in again, and was again expelled. So true is it what Macrobius writes, that with difficulty thofe deities were eftablifhed at (7Z) Ten years berore the incarnation, Dnifus conquered and colonized the country of the Anglo-Saxons. 1 acit. 1. 4. c. 12. Camden and Stilllngflcct. (73) Vix ovum ovo Cmiliusdcprchendcj. Faft. Dan. p. 45,46. Muniim. Dan. p. 92. (74) The piipijlar fn5lion of Galhclus and Scota w.is very convenient fur c\plauiing ihcfe Scoltifli hieroglyphics. (75) This is llrong proof, that ilie Franks were then pagans This is confirmed by Greg. Tur. 1. 2. c. 10. Htiet alluding to this difcovcry, fays, Et ne (juis Apim effc nefcirct ailjetla; luciant apes aurcx plul'^uam treccma:, ut ex harum Loinine UUus intelligeretur. Demons. Kvang. p. 147. ed. 8vo. (76) Monum. dc la Monarch. Fran. p. 10— 15. ^7;) Molheim ad Cudworih, c. 4. Brukcr. Hift. Philofoph. t. I. p. a 16. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 205 at Rome. At length they were permitted without the walls, but generally defpifed to the reign of Nero, when Lucan fays, Ncs in Jeinpla tua Romana recipimus Ifim Semidcofque canes. The fingular refpeft fliewn to Egyptian idolatry, and its adoption about this time, may I think with certainty be developed from an anecdote of Nero, preferved by Suetonius. An unknown plebeian prefented the emperor with a little female image, as a proteftrefs againft confpiracies : in a fhort time after, having difcovered fome fecret machinations, he afcribed the difcovery to this image, worfliipped it as a fovereign deity, and facrificed to it thrice a day. Adrian had a little image, ftuck with old iron letters, which he adored with his other chamber divinities. The fucceffors of Auguftus lived in perpetual fear of aflaflinations and Infurrec- tions : the nobility were debauched, the commons wretchedly poor, and the fol- diery feditious and undifciplined. Dr-eadful apprehenfions conftantly haunted the didurbed imagination of the reigning prince ; without vigour or firmnefs to take a judicious or decifive flep to avert danger, he became a prey to the weaknefs of his paffions, and fought information, aid and prote£tion from amulets and fpells. It was here the Egyptian charlatannerie powerfully recommended itfelf to the vain hopes and fears of a debauched people, by the fuperior virtue of its talifmans. The fkill of the orientals in aflrology was confefled, and their fpells and charms efleemed of the moft indifputable efficacy and power. The deities, whofe figures thofe amulets bore, were not lefs cried up. Artemidorus, a contemporary, is full on this head. If, fays he, you dream of Ifis, Anubis and Harpocrates, or of their flatues and myfteries, it portends confufions, dangers, threatenings and mis- fortunes, from which however beyond your hopes they will preferve you ; for thefe gods have ever been (78) faviours, keeping their votaries unhurt in the extremefl: difficulties. In confequence of this prepoffeffion and confidence in the Egyptian fuperfiition, their amulets multiplied to infinity ; from the higheft to the lowell every one pro- cured and carried them : all imitated the prince Componiiur orbis Regis ad exemplum. Now, fays Pliny in the reign of Trajan, they begin to wear Harpocrates and the Egyptian gods on their fingers. Commodus fliaved his head and bore Anubis in 30 his, (78) As; fttf Turrfts, Ooeiroci 1. *, c. 44, I 2g6 observations ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. .< K ■<■■<■< ■*••<■<■< ■< ■< ■<-■<-< .<■<■< ■<-<-<■.<-<-< •<■<-< *.<■-< .<■*■< •<■<■* <•■<-<■•<■<+>- >■■>■ >■■>■>■ >■ >■ »■ >■ >■>->- >..»■ >. >- >- >. >■ >..>. >. >..> >. > >. >- > >. >.>.>.>. >. > >. * * . his arms, when he celebrated the rites of Ifis. Under Adrian, many of thefe Egyptian temples were ereded. Severus repaired the Ifeum and Serapeum. Cara- calla conflruifted a large fane to Ifis ; as Antonius Pius did to Serapis. In a word, Otho, Domitian, Trajan, Marcus Aurelius, Philip and Tetricus were entirely' de- voted to the Egyptian religion, as their coins and the writers of the HilloriiE Au- guflsc teftify. Every part of Europe, Afia and Africa was confequemly deeply iu- fe£led with it. In the fecond century Bafilides, and other herefiarchs of the oriental fchool, taking advantage of the reigning fuperftitions, and to increafe the number of their (79) followers, interwove many heathen notions and practices into their fyflcm of chriflianity ; they formed innumerable amulets engraven with Egyptian hierogly- phics, monftrous letters, and the names of iEons. Thefe were to fecure the poflel- fors longeviiy, opulence, health and fuccefs. Thefe heretics, according to St. Je- rome, difleminated their peftilent notions over France and Spain, where they more particularly folicited and obtained the patronage of the fair fex. The teflimony of this father is Ilrengthened in the highefl degree by the multiplicity of abraxas found in thefe kingdoms, exhibited by Chifllet and Montfaucon, and by the works of ' Irenccus, bilhop of Lyons, who wrote againft them. It is further evident from Lindenbrog's code of barbarian laws, that the Franks and Romans occupied in common the country of Gaul, as the other tribes and Romans did Spain and the reft of the empire : the former accommodated their (80) civil inflitutions as well as their religious opinions to thofe of the latter. Julian, Conftantius, and even the chriftian emperor Conftantine, bore Egyptian fymbols on their coins ; nor need we wonder at a barbarous prince, as Childeric, ambitioufly imitating fuch examples. This reafoning feems conclufive, and at the fame lime gives the folution of the ap- pearance of the Egyptian Scaraboeus in the tomb of a French king, and of hieroglyphics on ancient northern monuments. In like manner, nuinberlefs nuift have been the temples and crypts facred to Egyptian deities difperfed over Europe, whofe feuillage was the fame as that in the. undercroft at Canterbury. Some of them with all their hieroglyphical ornaments were converted to chriftian churches, as that of (81) St. Andrew in Barbara in Rome appears at this day. Some were conftrucled on the fite of fuch temples as the (79) Brukcr anil Molhcim, fup. (80) Miinteftiuieu rcfjirit de« loit. Camden dc ofEc. Marefch, Baxter. Gloff. Aiitiq. Rom. voc. .lurura. (:i|) Ciampiiii dc fac. Kdil'. t. i, p. ly. ^^53^ w. . .JU.^' ■ -_-i.'.^^'- '^^/?^^ ^Tt- ^l3 k"fL OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE, ao; the church of St. Germain was on that of the fane of (82) Ifis. The furious, though pious zeal of believers, and the rage of accommodating every thing to the fafliion- able (lyle have deprived us of many of thefe ancient monuments : enow remain to cftablifli the idea advanced in thefe pages. The decay of learning and the corruption of religion reduced chtiflianity almofl to fcmi-paganifm. From St. Audeon's life of St. Eloi, bidiop of Noyon, we find that the ancient heathen deities were commonly worfliipped in France in the fevent!; century : and in fucceeding ages the Capitulars, Councils and Rhegino demonftrat'.' M'ith what difficulty idolatry was fuppreiTed, though neither fiibdued or eradicated, for it received new vigour, and the eaftern fuperftition particularly, frefli ftrength from the congenial myftic theology of tlie Arabians. It is not unreafonable then to fuppofe, that the fondnefs for hieroglyphics and grotefqucs had not abated in the ninth century, when Grymbald founded his crypt at Oxford, though fliortly after the Danes introduced a new ftyle compofed of ancient grotefques, Greek and Ro- man myihfclogic figures and whimfies of their own, as in Adderbury church. The mod elegant figure there, is on the fouth front, it is a flar or rather mullet of five points, a true Egyptian magical figure, the fame as feen on a canopus in ("83) Montfaucon. A new flyle of fculptural ornament nowfolicits the reader's attention; it Is cer- tainly Danifh ; and the fpecimen is unique in Ireland. A fmall crypt, or ftone- roofed oratory was difcovered by the late Samuel Hayes, Efq. which for ages had been buried amid the rubbifh of a contiguous fallen church, unnoticed and unex- plored. This crypt is about fourteen feet by ten ; the tomb of St. Kevin occupies a great part of the room. The entrance is through a weft door, whofe arch with the capitals and bales of its pillars is adorned with various figures. Here are no traces of Saxon feuillage, no chrlftian fymbols, or allufions to facrcd or legendary ftory : the fculptures are expreffive of a favage and uncultivated ftate of fociety. Had there been a mixture of ftyles, fomething might be allowed for the caprice of the carver, but the defign and execution being uniform, the whole muft be con- figned to a paiticular people and xra. No. I. A ravenous quadruped, a wolf, devours a human head : the head is a living one ; the hair, whilkers and beard give it a favage appearance. The animal is (8i) Le lieu > > > >- >. >. >. > >. >>->». > >. > > >. >. > >. >, >, >. >..>. >. > > >. > >- > >- > > > > V- is eafily difcovered by the following (84) ftory. One of the failors of king Harald dreamed, that a woman of gigantic fize appeared to him, riding on a wolf, who had in his mouth the head of a man, the blood of which flowed from his jaws. When he had fwallovved that head, the woman put another into his mouth, and fo on with many more, all of them he devoured, and then fhc began the fong of death. No. 2. Exhibits the head of a young man and a wolf; the long hair of the former elegantly entwined with the tail of the latter. The hair thus thrown back from the forehead was the genuine Irifli Culan, Cooleen, or Glibb. Wolves, until the year 1710, were not extirpated; the mountains of Glendaloch muft have abounded with them. There was a fingular propriety in joining the tail of this, animal with the young man's glibb, to indicate the fondnefs of the one for the pur- fuit of the other. No. 3. Is a wolf in a rage, with his tail in his mouth. The ferocity of this animal and his delight in human blood are the chief themes of Scaldic poetry. Odin, the ruler of the gods, as he is ftiled in the (85) Edda, is conftantly attended by two, named Geri and Freki, whom he feeds with meat from his own (86) table. No. 4. Are two ravens picking a fkull. This bird was (87) peculiarly facred to Odin : he is called the king of ravens. In the (88) epicedium of Regner Lod- brog is recorded an engagement of the Danes and Irifli at Vedrafiord, or Waterford. " In heaps promifcuous was piled the enemy : Glad was the (89) kindred of the falcon. From The clam'rous fliout they boded an Approaching feafl;. Marllein, Erins's king whelm'd By the irony fleet, allay'd the hunger of the Eagle and the wolf, the flain at Vedra's ford became The raven's booty." 'J'he three daughters of Lodbrog worked a reafan on the flandard of Hingar and Hubba, with many magical incantations, which was to be invincible. This cnfign, common (84) Barthol. p. 426. Johnnonc's Antlq. Celt. Scand. p. 199. (85) Apud Bartlicil. p. 4^4 — 4^5- (86) Cihuiii mcnfx fux impofitam OJinus Juobus lupls diftribuit, qui vocantur Ceri ct Frcki. Itaque cum liipi cada- veribus inipcnfe dclcrtciuur, nil il ufiiatius Scaldis antiquis. liarili'jl. fnp. (87) Corvus Odino peculiaritcr faciatus erat, lit ct dcu« corvorum nominnrctiir. Barihid. p. 4*9—475. Bircherod. fpec. rci. mon. p. 14. They were long wordiipped by the Norwegians. Thorkclin's traiSls, p. 42. (83) Johnftone's I-odbrokf r qiiida, p. 11. Worm, liter, run. p. 196. (89) Gladruard gcra brodcr, i. c. glad was ihc brother of the wolf, the raven. Earth(.l fup. OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. 209 common among the Northerns, was fuppofcd to give omens of vidory or defeat : if it gayly fluttered in the wind, it prcfaged fuccefs, but if it hung down motionlefs, it portended misfortunes. It is plain from many Abraxas in Chifflet, and many paf- fages adduced in Cuper's Harpocrates, that the raven was an Egyptian hieroglyphic, and had a predidtive virtue. Nos. 5. 5. 5. Thefe figures are Runic knots, compofed of the fegments of cir- cles, their arcs and chords interfering each other. There is fcarccly a carved ftone, crofs or other remnant of antiquity, during the time of the Daniih power, but ex- hibits a knot of fome kind. In the middle of the ninth century, it appears on the (9o_) ring of the Anglo-Saxon prince Ethelwolf. Wormius gives but little infor- mation or fatisfaiSlion on this head, but Keyfler fupplies (91) his defefts. From him we learn, that there were fcven kinds of runes, adapted to promote every human adion and wifh, according to the ceremonies ufed in writing them, the materials on which they were written, in the place where they were expofed, and in the manner in which they were drav/n ; whether in the form of a circle, a ferpent, tri- angle, &c. Hickes, in his Thefaurus, tells us of a filver (hield found in the Ifle of Ely ; the convex fide had many knots and gyrations, which he pronounces magical : on the concave was a runic infcription, praying defence and protedion to the wearer. The cyphers, dotted on the breafl:, and between the thumb and forefinger of our common people are the runic cervifrariae of Keyfler. The figure on the Egyptian Canopus, on the frieze at Adderbury, the (92; Scutum Davidis, and our fegments of circles, are magic knots of triangular and oval fhields, which were to fecure the wearer from harm. So late as the year 1504, William Faques, an Englifh printer, took the (93) Scutum Davidis, as a fpell againfl: fire and accidents. Even in the next century, fpells had not loft their credit in the north of England, as Nicolfon, in Camden, records. After having evinced by (perhaps too protraded) a detail that thefe fculptures are agreeable to the fentiments and manners of the Northerns, it will be neceffary to ofler fome hints towards afcertaining their sera. The legendary ftory of St. Kevin affords none. In 880, Alfred obliged Guthrum to embrace chrillianity : but this forced converfion had little influence on his Danifh fubjeds or fuccelibrs, for in 925, Sihtric, 3 H the (90) Archaeologia. V. 7. p. 409. (91) Sunt cnitn Runa viilorialcs, foiitans, cervifiarii, auxiliatrices, coidialc, arborea et Logo ruDX. Antiq. Septen- triun. p. 465. (91) Falric. Cod. pfeudefig. t. j. p. 1007. l>>) Anie*'* tynog Antiq. by Herbert, V. i. p. 309. aio OBSERVATIONS ON SAXON AND GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE. •■< < ■< ■<■•< ■< * ■< ■<-< .< ■<■•< ■< •< ■< ■<..< -< ■< ■< ■< •<■< •< ■<•< ■<■■<-< ■<■*■•<■* ■<■■<■< -'4*>-'>'- >->■>' >- > ■>• >■ >->. >• >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■>•>. >■ >■ >■ >. >■ >■ >- >■ >■ >■ >■ > > >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ ►■ ►•■ the Danifh prince of Northumberland, had Edgitha, fifter of Athelftan, beflowed on hull in marriage on lus renouncing paganifm ; and a crofs appears on his coin in Caniden. In 984, according to Sir James Ware, the Irifli Danes received the faith ; but it was earlier, as marks of chriflianity are feen on a coin of Anlaff, A. D. 030, fo that it is extremely probable the Englifli and Irifli Danes embraced the gof- pel about the fame time. Let us remember that mafonry was not practifed in Ire- land before the eftabliflnnent of the Danifli power in the tenth century. The words of Moflieim, are pertinent on this occafion. — " The flupid (94) veneration paid to the bones and carcafes of departed faints at this time, mufl: convince us, of the deplorable progrefs of fuperflition. This idolatrous devotion was confidered as the mofl: momentous branch of religion. Hence every church had its particular pa- tron among the faii\ts, and this notion rendered it neceffary to multiply prodigi- oufly their number, and to create daily new ones. The clergy fet their invention at work, and peopled at difcretion the invifible world with imaginary proteftors ; they invented the names and hiftories of faints that never exifted ; either phantoms of their own creation, or diftrafted fanatics, whom they fainted." From the foregoing data, I pi;efume, we cannot err much in determining the date of thefe curious fculptures. (94) Ecc, Hid. V. z. p. 104, 105. cent. IX. OF ( 2ri ) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. THE civilization of any country is eafily traced by her coins. While mankind continue in a barbarous ftate they have few wants : food and clothes of the meanefl kind are all nature calls for, and thefe the chafe, or domeflicated animals amply fupply. A people more poliflied, fearching for commoditits neceffary for their fupport, manufactures or luxuries, arrive among thefe barbarians, and offer them many tempting novelties in exchange for peltry, or other produce of their land. Thefe inhabitants of the fcrefl; nov/ feel wants, to which before they were ftrangevs ; a trade commences, and is carried on by permutation ; this is found an uncertain and troublefome mode ; the precious metals are then introduced as repre- fentatives of the value of things : the natives embody in fmall communities and become focial : their friendly intercourfe with merchants wears off the ferocity of rude nature ; foft and agreeable manners fucceed, and at length, an high degree of civility. Thus commerce produces wealth, and the latter fuggeds coin, with all the capricious vanity of its various impreffes. Such is the origin of money, as delivered by every judicious and enlightened writer. If we add, that the (i) date of the ear- liefl Grecian coins is about Soo years before the Incarnation, and that of the Ro- mans five centuries later, we mufl be at a lofs to difcover, by what rules Irifli anti- quaries conduQ their inquiries concerning Irifh money, for they are evidently not thofe of learning and good fenfe, as then they would have produced fomething fober and rational on the fubjed ; whereas we fee nothing but the wildefl whimfies, and all the exoibitance of romantic and licentious aflertion. Our (2) writers, wilh unblufhing confidence, affure us, gold was found and re- fined here a thoufand years before Chrift ; and mints ereded, and filver coined five hundred years before the fame event. The authors of thefe fplendid fidions had certainly pafTed Virgil's ivory gate of fleep : Altera (l) Spanheim. Je praft. & ufu Numlfm. Jobert, Science dcs Mcdaillcsi Tom. i. PinkfrtOB on Medals. Vol. i . (i) Keating. Cambrtns, EviTs. p. 85. O'Halicrt. Ogyg. p. 195— ^^I, 212 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. -«<■<■< < < < < * ■< -« <<<<<<<<( «.<-.<.<<.<-<..<.<■.<.<-<-<-<■■<■<<■<+>->■>■>■■>■>■>■>■>>►.>..>.>--►■>.►■>>■>->>■> ►>*■■>■►■►>">>>>■>■■>■■>■►■>■■ Altera candenti perfe6la nitens elephanto^ Sed fid/j ad cosliim mitiunt ir/omnia manes. In vain we inquire for the coins of thefe ideal mints, and for thofe of Armagh, Cafhel, and Clonmacnois. Even Mr. Harris, who is never nice in receiving Irifli fables, cannot {t^) reconcile himfelf to the palpable abfurdity of our writers, who are perpetually telling us of our coined money, yet producing no fpecimens of it. But we fee a more folid objedion lies to thefe idle dreams than the abfence of coins, and that is, the barbarifm of the natives to a late period. We mud depend on the picture drawn of their manners by Strabo, DIodorus Siculus, Mela, and Solinus, becaufe there is not a fingle authentic circumftance handed down to im- . peach its veracity, except an obfcure notice in * Tacitus, informing us, that the ports and harbours of Ireland were more frequented by merchants than thofe of Britain. The learned (4) Huet cites this paffage, but leaves it in its original dark- nefs. I fay darknefs ; for can it be imagined, that a commercial nation would not have forced itfelf on the obfervation of the Romans, who muH; have looked on it as an ufeful ally, or dangerous enemy. Would not the arts have been cultivated among fuch a people, and their manufadures, as well as the produce of an im- proved foil been defirable objeds of trade ? If they had wealth, which commerce ever generates, or valuable metals or commodities, they never would have efcaped Italian rapacity. It was a third for gold and filver that caufed the Roman invafion of Britain ; and Cicero, (5) In more places than one, exprefles his own and his countrymen's chagrin at their difappointment. Huet fuppofes, from an anecdote in (6) Strabo, that Craflus, one of Julius Ceefar's lieutenants, had explored the coads of Ireland, and finding it pofleffed good harbours, inferred, that they were probably frequented by traders. This ingenious conjedure will fatisfadorily explain to us the reufon of Tacitus's aflertion before. Writing from the bed information he could colleft, he perhaps found Crafl"us's obfervations either as a f minute among the pub- lic records, or as a tradition. Having nothing better, he inferted it in his work, without attending to the infuperable objedions to which it was liable. Whatever may be the general charader of this admired writer for veracity and accuracy, he has (3) Harrii's Ware, p. 204 — 20J. • Tliia ]>airage in Tacitus is corrupted ; fee Oronovius's edition in loco. Nov. comment. Gottiiig. t. 1. p. 6r. (/,) Hiftnire du Commerce, p. 196. Ric. Corincnt. p. 45. (3) In Britannia nihil tfle audio, ncijiic auri neque argenti. Epift. Trebatio. To Atticus, he fays ; Etiam ilUid jam cog- oituin I'Lt, ntque argcnti fcrupulum eflc ullum in ilia infula. Vun*. ad Mel. p. 1J4. (6) Lib. 3. p. HI- Edit. Cafaub. f The Ron;an') muft have known this iflandwcU, from what Mela fays of it, which ii correal. OF IHE ANCIEN^r IRISH COINS. 213 has fallen into unaccountable errors on many occafions. Thus, he fpeaks of tem- ples, porticos, and other large and noble ftruftures erected by the Britons on the encouragement of Agricola, when not a (7) relique of fuch has been found, while numberlefs altars, fepulchral (tones, coins, and more perifliable antiquities are daily met with. Would not one be inclined to think, that in this inftance he facrificed truth to the glory of his father-in-law ? If our ports were refortcd to by forLigners, thefe foreigners were (8) Scandinavians. The tales then of our bards and feanachies of the abundance of gold, fdver, and coined money, are unfounded, and of the fame ftamp with that of Ilcttor Boethius, who tells us, that Donald, whom ail con- fefs to be a fiftitious king of Scotland, minted gold and filver, A. D. 199, with a crofs on one fide, and his own effigies on the other. A ftory rejeded with juft con- tempt by the (9) Antiquaries of that kingdom. That Ireland pofl'efles mines of (10) lead, iron, and copper, is inconteftibly true; and it is probable flie has fome of gold or filver. The relation in (ii)Boate, of gold being taken out of a ftream in Tyrone, is but little regarded by the hiflorlan of the county of Down. The fond wilhes of a riiore (12) learned and Ingenious writer, grounded on the exploded traditions of Irlfli mythologies, are like many other pleafing reveries of that patriotic author. From Mr. Simon, a refident in this country, and not defettive in information, one would have expected fomething well founded. After relating (13) thefe, he frigidly concludes, " that thefe mines feem to have been loft for fome ages paft." Surely it was well worth the pains of inquiring, how mines of valuable metals ever came to be forgotten ; or how they revealed themfelves to our Ampler anceftors, and are now concealed from the perfevering and fiery fcrutiny of modern avarice and chemiftry. Without the fainteft gleam of light then to guide us through the darknefs of ancient times, the utmofl: caution is necefl'ary, and fhail be obfcrved in profccuting this fubjecl:. It has often before been faid, that the Celtes were the primitive pofleflbrs of this ifle. They had not quitted the hunting ftate, when invaded by the Firbolgs. Strangers to the cravings of inordinate appetites and the violence of unruly paflions, they fought no gratifications but fuch as were within their reach, and were in 3 I every (7) As is well remarked by Mr. Eflex. Arcbacolngia, Vol. 4. p. 80. Whitaker fhcws Tacitus to b« carelef* and ur- faithful in liis rcprcltutations. Review of Gibbon, jt. 4 — 5. (8) Antiijuities u( Ireland, fupra. (51) Ruddiman's IntroduJlicn, p. II9. (10) Hia. Of Uown, p. 187. Smith's Waterford, p. 30J. Cork, V. J. p. 390, (11) Natural Hiftory, Chap. 16. (I;) Campbell's Political Survey, Vol. 3. p. 53. Edit. Dublin, (13) On Irifh coiu>, initio. .'14 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. every thing the children of Nature. They had two ftages in fociety to advance, the palloral and agricuhural, before they arrived at the (14) metallurgic. Sinking /hafts, and refining ores, were too ingenious and laborious employments for the ignorance and indolence of rude life. Not to infifl on a matter fo obvious, there is one dccifive proof of the unacquaintance of the Celtes with metals, and that is, the want of terms in their language to exprefs them. The Irifh word, Airgiod, fil- ver, is the Greek Arguros, or Latin Argentum, as tlie Irifh Or, gold, is the Latin Aurum. The Irifii Pras, for brafs, Copar for copper, Luaighe for lead, and Jaranu for iron, demonftrate that a knowledge of thefe was * communicated to them by the Firbolgs, as they are all Teutonic or Anglo-Saxon words. As the Celtes had no names for the precious or bafer metals, fo no remains of fuch, as domel'tic iitenfils, perfonal or military ornaments, have coqie down to us. The heads of their axes, fpears and arrows, are of {tone or flint, and are a full confirmation of what has been advanced. Widely different were the Belgse or Firbolgs, the next colony. A branch of the great Scythian ftem, they cultivated from the earliefl ages the fcience of metallurgy, and in every department of it, obtained celebrity. Homer prailes the Thracian fword, adorned with filver ftuds. The Belgic Gauls, part of our Firbolgs, had their (i^rich gold tiffues, golden chains, collars, bracelets and rings; and the Goths were (16) fl^ilful miners. The knowledge and ufe of metals then in this illc may, very fairly, be afcribed to the Firbolgs, and their terms for them are living evidences at this day of this truth. The Belgae, when they arrived here, beheld a country defigned by Nature for paflurage, and abounding in flocks and herds, ap.d numerous fpecies of wild ani- mals. Whether they explored the bowels of our mountains for ores is not eafy to determine; the probability is, that they did not, but contented themfelves with fuch articles of commerce as the ifland readily offered ; fuch as peltry, cattle, Irifh dogs, and Celtic flaves. Some of thefe they (17) exported to the continent of France, and others to the northern parts of Europe. A tradition reported by Giraldus (l 1) Tliii .-irirtotle lonjj ago oljftrvcJ. Oiconom. 1. t. c. a. .* Tacitus is podtive, tlutlhc Gothini, a people of Silcfia " fcrrum tflocUunt." G-.rm c 4j- rtokmy mentions thefe iron mine". I. 2. <:■ ' I. (i5)Strab. 1. 4. I'olyb. i. 1. And above all, DioJ. Sic. I. 5. (■6) Qjihus accctferi- fcjiicnJarum auri vciiaruni pcriii nnn pauci. .Anim. Marctll. p 447- I-Jit. ValIoct. fci)-ra, p. iijfi. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 215 :<<<<( < ■< < < < <<■<■<< <<<<<<<< < < < < < < < < ■<+> > > >- >. >. >. > >..>->..>.> > >..^. ,.>.>..>.->.>.>. ] ■■>•>■>■>■>>.>>.->. >..>.. Giraldus Cambrenfis, ftrongly countenances what is now advanced. He (18) tells us, the Northerns firfl: introduced themfclves as traders ; this was confidered as a national advantage, as thereby the commodities of. other countries, and of which the Irifli flood in need, were imported. That, though Ireland abounded in various mines, yet being never worked, they availed nothing, fo that it was from merchants, who traverfed the ocean in quell of gain, gold was procured. This tradition is perfectly confident with what has been advanced in the early part of this work, and with the elucidation of the paflage in Tacitus, above cited, that the Scandinavians vifited this iile both in the way of trade, and to acquire ftttlements : And we may further remark, that when the channel of commerce is once opened with any country, fome very extraordinary caufe muft ariie to flop it up. But fuch a caufe did not occur in Ireland for many ages : it was more than twelve hundred years from the firfl appearance of the Northerns here to the time they (19) finally withdrew. During this long period, thefe foreigners were the fole traders with this iile. Mr. Simon is certain the Northerns were allured here by the hopes of money : this fhews he had but little confidered the fubjecl, or the internal evidence arifing from the flate of the kingdom and its inhabitants, or indeed the au- thorities he cites. The Icelandic (20) Sagas tefl:ify, that a-booty of cattle was the great object of thefe rovers, and the only hopes of enjoying their Idol, or brumal feflival, with hilarity and abundance. In thefe expeditions they traded, when not powerful enough to plunder. The gold and filver thus given to the Irilh were not coins, but Tings, necklaces, and fuch garnitures. Even the Roman money acquired by the Irifli in their predatory incurfions into Britain fome centuries before, did not circulate as a medium of trade, but was manufaclured into ornaments, for few Ro- man coins have been difcovered in this iile. That confiderable wealth in trinkets exifled among the natives, there can be no doubt. In the Iliad and Odyffey men- tion is made of goldfmiths, brafieis and fmiths, and ample proofs are exhibited of their ingenuity and execution, and yet there was then no mint in Greece. There is a certain point in the progrels of fociety when coinage begins ; but neither the Greeks, Northerns, or Irifli, had yet attained it. Many have been deceived, and Mr. Simon among others, by not adverting to the double meaning of the word Pecunia. Finding this term in the annalifls of our own and other countries, and forming (18) Topogr3i>h. p. 749—750—759' (19) Jolinftoiic's Aiitiq. Ctlto-Nornian, p. 79. (20} .-ipud JnhuHonc fupra palTim. Banholiue is more farucuhr. Anti^. Dan, p. -jjo. 8i6 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. [■< < <■<■■< <'4 ■<-i~4-*-4 ■<■•<■<•<'<-<■<■•<■■* ' ■ » »■ k » »■> > > >- forming their notions by modern ideas, they fuppofe coined money to be underftood, whereas it Is plain from (21) Du Cange, that cattle, as the word originally im- ported was meant, and alfo property of every kind, and of this he gives numerous inftances in the middle ap-es. There was no mint in Ireland antecedent to the 9th century, and that eroded by the Oilmen : their coins were only current among themfelves, and are therefore found only in their garrifons and fettlements. x\nd however extraordinary it may appear, the ftrlften: enquiry, I believe, will prove it true, that not before the middle of the 14th century, did Englifli money pafs among the Irifli. The following proofs of this curious fact, I hope will fatisfy the inquifi- tive reader. In the Brehon laws, Etics or fines, the drefs of different ranks, and various im- plements are appreciated by heifers and cumals of cattle. In 1331, amerciaments were ordered to be received no longer in heifers but in (22) deniers. EdAvard III. who had eminent talents, faw clearly that the trade of Ireland muft be greatly im- proved by the introduction of coin, and that the revenue in confequence would be more certain and produdive ; he therefore, in the fifth year of his reign, fent hi- ther many judicious ordinances and regulations for the direftion of his officers, and among others, that laft quoted. To render thefe eft'edive, he direded a (23) new coinage for Ireland, as he did for England ; but as there are no fpecimens of the former, it is likely his intentions were never carried into execution. That the Irifh did not adopt money as a ftandard for eflimating the value of things about 70 years after, we have evidence in Mac Murrogh, the prince of Leinfter's horfe being (24^ rated at 400 cows. The relator of this exprefsly adds, " in Ire- land, they barter by exchange, one commodity for another, and not for ready mo- ney." They exchange, fays (25) Campion in 1570, by commutation of wares, for the mofl part, and have utterly no coin ftirring in any great lord's houfes. This brings down the want of circulating fpecie much later than above remarked. The reafon of this flrange appearance is now to be explained. If (ai) Voce PecunJa. (ii) Quod te catero, fines de vaccis pro icdemptione non capiantur fed denarii. Prynne on the 4th Inftllute, p. 276, In 1583, money was fo fcarce, that Sir John Perrot wis dircflcd to receive the fourth part of the rents in beeves, wheat, malt and oats. Defid. Cur. Hi\ p. 41 — 76. (13) Leake's Hidory of Englifli Money. Simon, p. i5 — 17. {24) Harris's Ilibernica, p. 53. The Earl of Eflcx, in 1599, tells Qiicen Elizabeth, " the wealth of this kingdom conlills in cattle, oatmeal, and other vidluaU. Cox, I. p. 428. {1$) Hift. p. 10. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 217 «« ■« <■< ■<■< ■< ■< •< * ■< •< ■< I ■< ■< i ■<■<■< ■< A < * < ■< ■< ■<■•<■■< < * ■< ■< ■<■•<< ■< ■<■<■■<+>>->.>->. >. ; If coin is the criterion of civilization, the Irifli, through every period of their hiftory, mufl have been little removed from barbarifm. Nothing lefs could be expected from a wretched code of laws, made up of Gavelkind, Tanlflry, and Brehonic inditutes. No man endeavoured to acquire property, when his children were not to inherit it. If one became wealthy through induftry, or other means, the (26) arbitrary cuttings, feffings, and cofherings of his lord foon reduced him to a level with his other beggarly {laves. This lord looked no farther than the fup- port of a b'li-barous magnificence and hofpitality : he received his (27J rents in but- ter, oatmeal, porks and beeves. To fuch the Englilh laws and Englifli name car- ried an hated found, becaufe it alarmed their pride and their independence, and they feared, with the lofs of dignity and pofleffions, an emancipation of their vaf- fals. In a word, "their general policy and municipal regulations extinguiflied every inclination and repreffed every motive to induftry, manufa£lures, trade, and wealth. Can we wonder then at their having no coin of their own, or at their not defiring that of others ? It was not before the reign of the elder James, and the (28) year 1607, that the pernicious and fatal fyftem of Brehon laws was abrogated, and a dawn of happinefs firft appeared in this ifle. The fteadinefs and care of a wife and affedionate government has brought us from the vileft obfcurity and mifery to opulence and refinement, and to a refpeftable rank among the nations of the earth ; and the firm fupport of that government can alone perpetuate fuch fignal bleffings. After thefe neceflary and introduflrory remarks, I fhall proceed to collecl fuch numifmatic fragments as lie fcattered in our writers. An Exchequer (29) record informs us, that in the 33 Edward I. A. D. 1305, halfpence, of ancient and unknown money, were dug up in a field near Kilcullen, Were thefe any of King John's (30) halfpence, the Englifli could be no ftrangers to them ; they were probably Anglo-Saxon (31) haelflings or halfpence, refembling the penny in every refped; but fize, and are therefore properly defcribed in the record, as " Minores denarii, quafi oboli," and as injudicioufly (32) tranflated by Harris, " pence and halfpence." Ware gives us a coin of Anlaf, with a legend on the obverfe : •' Anlaf Cyn- ning ;" and on the reverfe, " Farhan moneta;" and concludes it to be minted at 2 K Dublin^ (26) Davib'sl.ctfcr. Colle(^. No. I. p. i6i. (2?) Davis's Relations, p. I19 — 120. (18) In Davis's Report of Taniftry, and iu his Hiftorical Rtlaiions, this fubjeiJl is ably treated, <29) Warsei Difq. p. 154. (30) Simon, p. 11. Ware, fup. p. ijj. (ji) Hickes. Thcfaur. p. i8j, (32) Harris's W^are, p. 106, 2j8 of the ancient IRISH COINS. Dublin, by Aniaf, king of that cit)^. It may be fo ; yet it is not likely that Anlaf had any regal power there, or like his predeceflTors, he would have put — Rex Dyflin — on his coins. Mr. Harris fills up a folio page with his own and the conjeftures of others on this coin ; and after all comes to no determination. I do not recoiled: the word — Cynning, or King — on any Anglo-Saxon or Anglo-Danifh coin, except on this and on another of the fame Prince in Camden, which has on the reverfe the well-known Danifh raven, which Mr. Charleton makes a fpread eagle. From the uniform practice of the Saxon and Danlfli kings in expreffing their titles in the name of the country they ruled, I infer, with fome degree of conlidence, that Anlaf -was a potent independent Danifh earl, probably of Northumberland, who affumed in thofe ages, as others did of the fame rank, the Ityle of kings. Thus (33) moit of the principal lords of Wulfere, king of Mercia, A. D. 658, fubfcribe themfelves kings, and fo did all the great feudatories in England until the year 920, when (34) Alfred changed the title of King to that of Earl. Of the great {t,^) quantity of coins difcovered at Glendaloch in 1639, but fix came to the hands of Sir James Ware, and are here given. Their legends and devices are very obfcure, and not eafily explained. They however are an additional confirmation of the antiquities of that celebrated place, before delivered. As it was built by the Danes, and much reforted to for devotion, we cannot admire at finding much of their money there. The mintage is extremely rude, and befpeaks the infancy of the art, and the unfkilfulnefs of the workmen. Bifhop (36) Nicolfon, in 1724, compofed a chapter on Irifh coins and medals: he produces not the leafl evidence of money being coined by the natives, and gives no fatisfaftion on Danifh coins : the fame inay be faid of Mr. Harris, the Editor of Ware. The fubjed, in this very imperfed flare, was taken up in 1749, by Mr. Si- mon, a naturalized foreigner and an ingenious man, under the patronage of the Phyfico-Hillorical Society, a mofl valuable and refpe£table body. From the Englifh Invafion to the time he writ, our author's work has great merit, and admits of but few additions or improvements. In the ages antecedent, (which thefe pages are de- fjgned to illuftrate) he feems to be much miftaken, and to have lapfed into many errors. Like his predecelfors, he tells us, gold and filvcr were very abundant in the (33) Ego Wulfere, cum fociis regibus, Tays He in his charter to the Abbey of Peterborough. Hearne'l Antiq. Dii- courfcs. V. I. p. 183. (34) Johndone's Antiq. Cello-Scand. p. 33. iiS) Magnara vim numifmatum Hibcriiicorum. Supra, p. 1^3, ;(36) Iriiii Hia«rical Library, chap. 8. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 219 the ifle about the i ith century, and pafled by weight ; but has no proof of money being coined by the native Irifh, or even fuch being current among them, except one, which he borrows from Ware, and thinks decifive. It is this : Lanfranc, arch- bifliop of Canterbury, reciting and condemning, about 10S9, fome Irifh ecclefiaflical cu-ftonls repugnant to the Romifh, ftates, that our Bifhops conferred Holy Orders for (37; money. Pccunia, the word here ufed, and interpreted money, I have be- fore fliewn to fignify property of every kind. Giraldus (38) Cambrenfis relates, that the Welch Bifhops granted benefices for cattle, which were in thofe times termed — Pecunix ; — and as there was no coin among the Irifh, thefe were likewife the money of the Irifli. Immediately after this citation, Mr. Simon, with great complacency, adds, " I have, I fear, been too long in endeavouring to prove the early ufe of mints and money in Ireland," when in reality all his endeavours, fo far from proving, have not advanced one flep towards this point. Mr. Walker, treating of the Saxon coins in Camden, very kindly beRows on Ireland fome that are barbarous and unintelligible, to be fure, wifely concluding, that no people had fuch but the rude natives of this ifle. Thefe Mr. Simon accepts as a great favour, aiid fets about explaining them. His fuccefs is fuch as might be expeded : his reading of Dida Medina, where the letters are tranfpofed and inverted; his making Medini, Meath, and alTigning a coin to Brian Boru, " be- caufe the head is aimed, and he was a great warrior," may excite a fmile at mif- taken patriotifm, but do him no honour as a Medallifi:. His interpreting — Dimn. roex Mneghi, Domnaldus rex Mnegin, — Donald, king of Monaghan, or, of ths Magnatas, in the county of Mayo ; and the jargon he makes of the epigraphe on the reverfe, — Odiulfeoimviri — are truly laughable, and evince, that the firfl quali- fications of a numil'matic connoifTeur is to be able to exhibit legends with the mi- nutefl accuracy. The coin of this prince is common, and may be feen in the Sup- plement to Simon ; the legend the fame as on the coin in Simon, and runs thus : — Dym. roe. Mnegni, or Mnegmi. — This Domnald feems to have been king of the Ifles and of Man; Meneg, by which the latter was (39) anciently known, deviates but little from Mnegni. The reverfe is plainly : — Fcenemn. mo. Dyfli. — Foeneman, or Foereman Moneyer, in Dublin. Mr. Simon amufes us with a very fmgular conjedure, that the ornamental ftrokes or lines round the obverfe ind reverfe of our coins, were Ogham Craobh infcrip- tions. (37) Sacros OrJInes per pccuniam. Ware fupra. (3S) Wharton. Anglia Sacra, p. 530. (3';) Baxter. Gloffar. voce Menn*. '■^-° OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. tions. Had our author looked into Molloy's Irifh Grammar, or HarHs's' Ware, then recently publifhed, he never could have conceived thefe flrokes to be occult characters, as they are not placed on a perpendicular or horizontal raafter-line, and have no flexure in their form. In 1767, was publiflicd a Supplement to Simon, confiding of two additional plates, and one of ancient coins found in Ireland, and in poffeffion of the late Matthew Duane, Efq. They contain fome curious and valuable things, and (hould be mferted in a new edition of Simon, which is much wanted, and from which every coin not minted in Ireland, or not immediately connefted with its hiftorv and antiquities, fliould be (40) excluded. I come now to (4.) Mr. Pinkerton, the laft who has treated of Irilh coins, Un- feduced by the falfe reprefentations and plaufible fidions of our national writers, he clearly faw that the native Irifh never coined money, nor had any current amono- them of other people. He has a few miilakes, which feem to have arifen rather from hurry, than want of information. Thus, he fays, " the old Danifh pennies have no refemblance of the ancient Gaulic, or Briufli coins, or even of the Skeattas, or old j^nghfh pennies, but are mere rude copies of thofe of the 8th and 9th centuries, executed by artifls, who could neither form nor read letters, and there, fore inllead of them, put only ftrokes, 1111 1." On the contrary, let the Num- bers I. and II. of the plate be compared with Camden's Tables of Britilh Coins, and a ftrong fimilitude in the reverfes of the latter, with the obverfes of the former' uiU be perceived. Even the uncouth and ftrange figure on the obverfe of Number II. and which indicates great rudenefs of defign and execution, vet does not betray m the artift, as Mr. Pinkerton aflerts, ignorance of letters, for ^it has two on the rcverfe, and with them the ftrokes which our ingenious author alleges as the crite- rion of unacquaintance with the alphabetic elements. The Danes having, in the (42) ninth century, fubjugated Ireland under Thorgils or Turges, foon after eretled a mint in Dublin, and from thence ilTiied money : this was accepted, and accumulated by the Irifli for either (49) melting into ingots, or the fabrication of perfonal ornaments. Of the truth of this, our domedic annals bear witnefs. For otherwife, how could Brian Boru lay 20 ounces of gold on the altar (40) The writer .f this work has a., edition of Simon, on this plan, under corfidcration, (41) On Mfdals, Vol. II. p. ti'i, and fcq. l.oud. i;8c;. {4»J Harris's Ware, p. 204. (43) This pradice of melting money continued for a long time, and became at lei,i;.!> fu Ocftru.*-,«/ _'v,-m;, OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 221 • .!<<< < .< < < -4 < 4 < 4 < 4 4-< ■4.4 4-4~<-4'4 4 4 ■4-4 44 4-444 4 < < <<■< + > > > > ». > > > » >. > > » >• > > > ► >■ > > »• >■ >•>->> » > >. > >• ,. »■■>.>.>.>■».• altar of Armagh, or 420 ounces of filver be collefted for the Comorhan of Colum- cellc ? Frequent mention is made of fuch prefent;--, and money paid for ranfom, but not a word of Danifa or Irifh coin : if fuch were current, it is impofllble, but on the occafion now ftated, and many more that might be enumerated, thefe coins mull: have been fpecified ; whereas they never occur. I fliall now beg leave to fub- mit to the reader, a feleft colleftion of ancient coins, few indeed in number, but fully fufficient for thofe who do not wifh to go very deep into the fubjeft ; fuch as •will enable him to form fome judgment of fimilar ones, and their legends and devices ; the limits of this work confining me to truth, information, and concife- nefs. No. I. On the obverfe is an horfe, or fome quadruped, with a crofs pattce over it : The reverfe are, fegments of circles, forming- an ingenious, and no inelegant crofs. No. 2. The obverfe, the fame as the foregoing : The reverfe, a deculTated, or St. Andrew's crofs ; in the upper and lower angles, croiTes ; and in the fide ones, letters.- Thefe coins not having the head of a prince, or legend to direft us to whom they belong, feem, with others of the fame kind, either to refer to the wor- fhip of bulls, common in times of paganifm in the (44) Cimbric Cherfonefe, or were talifmans, with fuch animals impreffed on them : or what is full as probable, they were flruck by fome city, town, baron, or magiflrate, with magical or other fymbols ; and this is the opinion of a fenfible Danifh numifmatic (45) writer. O/i almoft all the ancient ftone-monuments in Scotland, we fee figures not unlike thofc on our coins : thefe (46) Mr. Cordiner takes for elephants, (Mr. Harris fuppofes them birds) and that the idea of them was derived from drawings and illuminations in books of devotion brought from the Eafl by the firfl preachers of Chriflianitv. This conjefture is ingenious ; but it is fo far liable to objeftion, that fimilar fi 2,2 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. ., . < <<«.<..■«.< < ,,<..,,<,,<.<<<< < . < < < <<<<+>.>.>». ..,...> ,,..>>»►>»>>. . . » ► > . ► . » » > ' > No. 3. The obverfe, an head heliueted, with a crofs in the neck : the reverfe, a bar dividing the field ; above and below it, a hand and arm couped above the elbow. Mr. Simon calls tliis helmet a crown;, it has every appearance of armour for the head ; it confiRs of a number of rays, (landing like porcupine's quills, and pointed with pearls. A pafljge in LoJbrog's Death-Song will help us to explain this matter : (48; " There while our temper'd fteel " Sung on the high-feam'd helm." If thefe words are to be underftood literally, the helmet was compofcd of thick felt or leather, and this ftrengthened by ftecl plates ; and this is tlic idea fuggefted by our coins. In another (Irophe we find — " I'he temper'd edge divided " Steel-capt fcuUs." Here the (led helmet might have been adorned with plates of gold, andfaid poe- tically to be feamed. The couped arm is on many of Camden's coins, and on mod of thofe minted in Ireland. Doftor Charleton, fpeaking of one of Ethelred with an hand, pioufly remarks, that it is a devout acknowledgment for his being fullained by the hand of the Almi'-hty. Others interpret it as a mark of prowefs or friendfliip ; and as euelTes generally have a ridiculous termination, this hand had been luppofed to be the Irifli harp, or at leail to refer to our ancient fame for playing on that inftru- ment. But a conflitution of EtheKlan, A. D. 928, folves every difficulty on this point. " We ordain but one kind of money to be current through the king's do- minion, and tiiat no one make money out of the following towns. If any coiner adulterate money, let his hand be cut oil", and fixed (49) confpicuouily over the mint. If he be accufed, and will purge himfelf, let him go to the hot iron, and let the hand, with which he is accufed to have committed the crime, make the purgatioiu" Here the crime and punifliment are fully declared ; the latter appears from our coin (very curious in this refpeft) to have been the amputating the arm above the elbow, which rendered the member quite ufelefs : And, No. 7, a coin of Sihtric, found in the Queen's County, and in poffcflion of Mr. Beauford of Athy, abfolutely (48) Lodbrokar Quida, p. 7. (49) Nummarix confiucicnda fsbricat afligitor. Candcntis fcrri qu.-cflione nianum fcelerls puram atqijc immunem oftendito. Spdman Concil, p. 399. Qui foli.los artulteravcrit, circumcidcret vcl raferit. Si (crvis fucrit, cidem dtx- cram nianum abfcindat. Lindenbrog. Cod. LI., p. j_S4. OF llli: ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 22.^ .« . < « n 1 1 <<<<<< <<<<<<<< <<<<.<<<<<•<<<«<•<<<<+■>>■>■>>•►>■»■;■>■■>•>>►»>••►•>■►■»►'•►> ► • ' > * >►►>..►>. abfolutely fhews how the hand was fufpended at the mint-houfe, by driving a nail through the palm. Nos. 4—^. Are not remarkable. No. 6. The obverfe, a head fingularly drefled, with a few letters of the legend , the reverfe, a crofs, with the letters N. C V. and an X, or crofs, in the angles. Ware fiippofes they exprefs the year of Chrift, 1 1 15 ; but Simon very well remarks, that no dates are found on our coins before 1513, but that the letters, with the variation of one, made Crux. The abfurdity of fuppofing the letters to be placed backwards and diagonally, which they mufl: be to make Crux, forbids us to agree with Simon. Thefe fix coins were dug up at Glendaloch, and carry genuine marks of a very early mintage. No. 7. The obverfe, an head helmeted ; the legend not very fair, was — Sihtric Re Din. — Sihtric King of Dublin ; reverfe, a crofs and hand in one angle; the le- gend not intelligible. The rim furrounding the outward femicircle of the helmet is here vifible, nor is it ornamented with pearls. J No. 8. The obverfe an head helmeted ; the legend Ifarus, re Dyflin : — the re- verfe, a crofs, with the fingers and part of the hand in two angles of the crofs, and a legend not eafily explicable. This is the earliefl infcribed coin that has hi- therto occurred. Giraldus Cambrenfis (50) mentions the arrival of Amlave, Syta- ricus and Yvor, which are Anlaf, Sihtric and Ivar, in Ireland : Ware dates this event,. A. D. 853. About this very time, the Saxon Chronicle records three great defeats of the Danes in Weffex, Kent, and at Ocley, in Surrey. Aftsr thefe, it is likely they fleered for Ireland in fearch of better fortune, and thefe three leaders were perhaps part of thofe adventurers. Our annals tell us, they fettled in Dublin, Waterford, and Limerick, and ereded mints in thofe places. In 870, Anlaf and Ivar went with a large fleet to the afTiftance of Hinguar and Hubba, fons of Ragnar Lodbrog, who invaded Northumberland, to revenge on .^Ua the cruel (.51) death of their father. It is probable they fucceeded in their defign, for their defcendants, a century after, were (52) kings there. This coin is valuable for preferving an hiftoric fatl, and for correfting our annal- ifts : the crofs. on it evinces that the Danes were now Chriftians ; whereas Ware dates their converfion an hundred years later. No. (jo) Warai diH). p. 1 19. From a Gmilarlty in the coinage, Keder conje&ures that fonie of the Sihtrics ».-e co-evil with Ethelrcd. Num. in Hib. cul. p. 19. (^i) J'lhnftonc's I.odbrukar QuiJa, paOim. (52) Sim. Duiiclm 324 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. No. 9. The obverfe an head helmcted ; the legend, Sihtric rex Dyfln : the reverfe, a crofs ; the legend, Ciodman mo Luni. "Where Luni va> is dilFicult to difcover. To fuppofe a king of Dublin would mint money in a fmall iile, fuch as (53) Lambay, diltant from his capital, and expofed to every piratical attempt, is too great a facrifice to probability. It is uncertain what place is meant by Lim- neach, or Lumneach. Keder thinks Luni, Luntis or Lundis, London in England or Scania. Murray, that it was Louth, becaufe the See was anciently ftyled Lu- nicenfis ; and Wright fays, there are many Dauilh monuments there. It co.uld not be Limerick, which in Icelandic is Illimreck, as we fee in Thorkelin's trads. The N i\I at the end of Dyfl, is made, and juftly, to fignify Nordmen ; the whole le- gend on the obverfe being, Sihtric, king of the Dublinian Normen. Thus, Anlaf, on one of his coins is ftyled. Rex Anglorum, and the pradice was common among the Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Danilh princes. Sihtric, the fon of Ivar, after bafely murdering his brother Godfrid, reigned in (54) Dublin, A. D. S8S. The annals lafl cited, under this year, tell»us of the return of " Sigtryg Mc. Ivar to Ireland," and place his death in 895. It was thought unnecelTary to multiply fpeciniens of the elder Sihtric, as they are nearly fimilar, and fc are thofe of the (55) fecond Sihtric, prince of Dublin, A. D. 916. All the coins publiflacd by the (56) Royal Iri(h Academy, and many in the Supplement to Simon belong to thefe kings of Dublin. No. 10. On the obverfe is an head helmeted ; the legend, ^thelred rex Angl. on the reverfe, Fseremn. mo. Dyfl. Ethelred, king of the F.nglifli, and Fasreman, ^loneyer at Dublin. " How thefe coins of Ethelred, fays Simon, happened to be flruck in Dublin, fcems furprifmg. To account for it, we mufl hive recourfe to his father king Edgar's charter of Ofwald's law, whereby it appears, he conquered the kingdom and city of Dublin, and a great part of Ireland, confequently that he laid a tribute on the nation, and obliged it to flrike his name and effigies on its coins, in which it paid the tribute." The charter of Ofwald's law, in the (157) opi- nion of many, among whom may be reckoned Primate Ufher, and O'Flaherty, is a forgery; it is indeed countenanced by the Saxon Chronicle, but this is interpolated. The impugners of this charter having omitted one proof, which feeins decifive. In 974, Edgar fummoncd all the kings then fubje<5l: to him, to Chefter, as (58) Kuna- dius, (53) Simon, Tupra. (54) Ware fupra. Johnflonc's Antlq. Cclto-Norm. p. 6j. iSS) ^Varc fupra, p. I30. (j6) Tr.inl'aflioiis, Vt>\. i. iiJ) See fonic valid argiimenls to ihij purpufc iu O'flahcrt. Ogyg. p. 39—40—41. (j8) Cuil. Malnufl). lib. J. c, 8. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 225 dius, king of Scotland ; Malcolm, king of Cumberland ; Macufle, king of Man and the Iflands ; Dufwal, Hewel, Giferth, Jacob, and Judethal, kings of Wales. Certainly the king of Dublin was as near to Chefter as the king of Scotland, wc may therefore conclude, that as no Irifli princes are enumerated, his power did not extend over them. So that Mr. Simon's argument carries no force. Mr. Pinker- ton's conjecture is more to the purpofe, though I do not think it exadly right. He fays, hiftory ix fo defeftive, that it cannot certainly be known whether Edr«d, Ed^ar, or Ethelred had Dubljn fubjecl to them, or if its Danilh princes ftruck thefe coins that they might be received in Englifli commerce. Here is an inflance of Antiquaries obfcuring and puzzling by their erudition the plained: matter. A man of vivacity and learning requires all the magnetifm of good fenfe to direct his inquiries. Ethelred on the coins calls hiinJeif not king of Dub- lin, but of the Englifli. The Norraen of Dublin were never called Engli/li, and therefore this prince lays no claim to the dominion of Dublin or of Ireland. But his mint-mafler, who either coined this money at Dublin, or was a native of that city, by the abfurdefl: fuppofition ever conceived, gives him that dominion which he himfelf never a&rted. Whoever perufes the hiftory of the reign of this unfor-' tunate king in the early Englifh writers, and particularly in the Saxon Chronicle, will fee the perpetual neceffity he had for money to ranfom his country from its Danifli invaders. He might have had bullion minted in Dublin, as the Manks princes had, and tranfmitted to him to anfwer his frequent and preffinp- calls. Without laying much ftrefs on this opinion, it is more likely he employed Ffere- man, a celebrated Dublin moneyer, whofe name appears on many of Sihtric's coins. An ancient moneyer, as Simon well obferves, was pot a common work- man ; he farmed the mint, and was anfwcrable for the weight and finenefs of the coin, and was therefore obliged to ftamp his name on it. If a Ikilful artift was ever ufeful, he was partic\ilarly fo to Ethelred, who, in the fpace of twenty-three years, paid in (59) ranfoms and fubfidies to the Danes, no lefs than 176,000!. of Saxon money, equal in quantity of filver to 469,6871. fterling. No. 1 1, On the obverfe is an head capped and tied with a diadem ; the legend, Sihtrc, rex Dyflnr : the reverfe, a crofs pattee ; the legend, Aelfeln mo Duflimo. This coin, I apprehend, belongs to a Sihtric, king of Dublin, who reigned there (60) about 102Q. The plain unadorned cap agrees very well with that peaceful and humble temper, which induced him to take a pilgrimage to Rome, and, -had he lived, would probably have fent him to the convent. 3 M No. (59) H'.nry's Hiftory, Vol. 1. p. 448— .(49. (60) Ware, fnpra. p. 13S. 226 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. No. 12. Is another coin of this prince, but not fo well exhibited as the fore- going. I cannot agree with the illudraior of Camden's coins, that our Sihtrics were kings of Northumberland, for fuch llyle would have been found on fome of their money. No. 13. The obverfe an head encircled with a crown, adorned with trefoils or fleurs-de-lis ; the legend, Sihtrc rex Dyflmo : The reverfe, a crofs ; the legend, Stelenmonond, or Stelen, nioneyer, in Dublin. As this crown fleurie, in a kind of treffure of four femicircles, refembles that of Canute, A. D. 1018, and alfo that of Edward the Confeffor about twenty years after, I therefore think this coin may belong to Sihtric, who was king of Dublin about 1041, and the fon of Anlaf. No. 14. I'he obverfe an head helmeted, either of a particular form, or tied with a cincture ; with a fceptre ; the legend defaced, but fo much of it legible as to fhew it belongs to Sihtric ; the reverfe a crofs, with flowers in the angles ; the legend not intelligible. I am indebted to Mr. Beauford for this beautiful coin, which, with many more, were dug up in the Queen's County. This fpecimen of our coins, which includes almoft two centuries, leads us from the rude beginnings of the art in this kingdom to a ftate of confiderable refinement. The ftudy is highly pleafing to a cultivated underftanding, and inftrudive when con- fined within proper bounds ; when we tranfcend thefe, and indulge in wild whimfies and groundlefs conjectures, it dwindles into an idle and unprofitable amufement. The Anglo-Saxon penny, and this is the denomination of our Hiberno-Danifii coins, was of filver, and fliould have weighed 22 j Troy grains, being the 240th part of the Saxon pound. They wanted one Troy grain and an half to be equal to our filver three-pences. But from 26 of thefe coins, weighed by Mr. Simon, moft of them pennies and fome haelflings, and fcarcely two of them agreeing in weight, he remarks, there was a confiant necefilty of paying and receiving money in thofe ages (61) per fcalam, by the fcale. This inequality arofe, no doubt, from long cir- culation, as well as the diflionefty of mint-mafters, who could not be reflrained, even by the terror of a fevere law, from coining money below the ftandard. The quantity of Danilh coin, particularly that of the Sihtrics, hitherto difcovered, is very confiderable. It proves how great was the fpoil in filver coUeded by thefe rovers in their (62) predatory expeditions. The fum paid by Ethelred is furprifing ; how (6t) Clarke, fiipra, p. 400. (62) SturUxfon fpcaliing of HaralJ Hardraaiic's trearures, fays, " omne'iqui h.tc vidcbant, admlrati funt in fcptentriona- lilimtcrris tantum auri cnlUflum cflc. IIxc ainetii fccunia rcvcra rigis Cricci.i; fueraf. Earihul, 4jS — 4jp. Birclicrud, fjiec. rei moneC. p. '4. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH COINS. 227 how much greater was the plunder of continental nations ? Ireland feems to have been the only place where thofe pirates could fecurely vidual their numerous fleets, and therefore much of their money centered here, which, pafTmg to the Irifli, ena- bled them to make fuch rich ofl'erings to the church as was before noticed. I do not recoUeft, that our Medallids or Antiquaries fpeak of the Danifii Oras being current in this kingdom, and yet the fact is certain. The Monaftery (6^ of the Holy Crofs, in the county of Mayo, was to pay to the Mother-church of Balli- natobber, " the fum of twenty oras of filver, or thirty (hillings and four-pence, and the fub-prior was to expend a farther fum of three oras, or five fhillings." Ora is derived, or rather corrupted from (64) Aureus, the principal gold coin of the empire. The ora was not introduced into England before the fettlement of the Danes there. Writers have not determined whether it was a real coin, or only a denomination of money. The former feems nearefl the truth. In our record, three oras are equal to five fliillings, or twenty pence each ; fo that twenty oras, inftead of thirty fiiillings and four-pence, fliould be one pound thirteen fhillings and four- pence. Here we have evidence againfl Mr. Clarke, who values them at {6^^ twelve or fixteen pence each, and in favour of Spelman and Somner, who make them worth twenty. The mention of filver oras in our record is fome proof that there were fome gold ones. " It is therefore, fays the (66) Regiam Majeflatem, be the King, that Cro of ane Erie of Scotland is feven tymes twentie kye, or for ilk kow, thrie pieces of gold called ora." That is, the Erie or Weregild of an'Earl is 140 kine, or for each cow, three pieces of gold, called oras. To bring the gold to equal the filver ora, the former was about a third lefs than the Saxon gold mancuSo Thefe hints are here propofed to affifh farther inquiry. (6,?) Arrhdall's Monafl. Hib. p. 501. (64) Clarlte, fupra, p. 311. (65) Clarke, fupra, p 312. See alio Fleetwood's Chron, Precios. p. 33. (66) Pag. 73. fol. 2. Edit. Skene. Bhliop Nicolion throws no light on the ancient Scottiih coins j as nfual, he paffes the fabjeil with haHy Heps. Scot. Hi3, Library, p. 291, OBSERVATIONS ( 228 ) ,..•^«.••^..•••^..•"•.-••'^^•••^..••^...•'•^..•'^..»'^M•'^..'•^"•''^o•'•^.■••^..•''^..••^..••'^..•''^..•''^..■•^>••■.^^ + + + + + + ♦ 'J OBSERVATIONS ON THE HARP, AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC, AVERY learned and ingenious writer (i_) is of opinion, that the Harp was an inftrument ufed by the Gallic Bards, and from its conflruflion, of Barbaric origin: Diodorus Siculus is his authority, who only fays, their inftruments were like Lyres. (2) Such words, in Diodorus' time, might convey a precife idea, but in ours, we know not the figure of the Lyre, the Cithara, or Chelys ; at leaft, Montfau9on, who examined above fix hundred of thefe ancient inftruments, could not venture to affix names to any of them, or afcertain their fpecific (3) differences. On fuch precarious ground then, Voffius feems to have been too precipitate in his inference ; nor can his authority be of wcii^^ht in this cafe. Befides, we fliall here- after fee reafon to believe the Harp derived rather from the Scythic or Teutonic branch that peopled Europe, than the Celtic, of which latter the (4) Gauls were a part. The Harp was xmknovvn to the ancient Greeks and Romans, as its name does not occur in their writings. Martianus Capella, a man of great curiofity and informa- tion, found it among thofe northern nations who poffeffed themiclves of the Roman empire in the 5th century ; he mentions it with other inllruments, whofe (5) deep, grave, and harfh founds were fitted to alarm female timidity. Eucherius, Bifliop of Lyons, in the fame age, informs us, that tiie Nablium was like the barbarian Cithara, and fliaped like the Greek Delta. This is the oi^ly de- fcription we have of the ancient Harp. Venantius Fortunatus, who flo-iriflicd in the 6th century, and refided alfcf in France, makes the Harp a bafrbarian (6; inRr»> ment j (i)Vo(r. De pocmat. caiitu, & viribuB Rythmi. Pag. 1 18. (2) T«itf >.ufuii ouotuv< tAh, T, pag. ic8, (3) See Doifkor Curooy'a coiij3itinj; Gaul were early remarked; by Diod. Sic. particularly, Lib. 5. (5) Ap»d Ou Cange. Voce Harpa. (6) Roniamifque Lyrl plaudet tibi ; barbarus Harpa, Gncus Athilliaca, Crotta Britanna ca-at. Li!). 7. carm. 8. It ii aftonifiiing how Barucs, Prologom. iu Anacriuu. could fay, the Harp and Lyre were the fame : the Romans call- ii)/ DOZSOMS^ HARP, 2 J s^i*tffS OX If rsrrT'ojrzf ^y./ SF, /* Jti'lfi^3 . JRlS/r ,^r;/^r-ft f/ A JW i.J y/rttips. r'^^ y*^^r^. CJTRO T.AZ.IJ^" r,a.6 noMB.WjiiJi ; Mr at.cirnf "^^Jirt^/U/tr,, crrrsz^^.v, ,i„ ,„„j,^ -i^fr^n'/i^. ^y-9 J^£JZ>A^f p>- Cr-i-iittrr . 33^ I OBSERVATIONS ON THE HARP, &c. 229 ment; diftinguifliing it fioni the Greek and Roman Lyres, and from the Britifh Crwth. France was then polTeffed by Romans, Goths, Burgundians, P'ranks, and Armoricans ; fome of them Celtic, but moft Teutonic nations. The national inflru- nient of each is accurately marked ; the Teutonic people had their Harp, the Celtic their Crwth, and the Romans their Lyre. This difcrimination is decifive evidence of the difference between the Harp and the Lyre, and of Voffius being deceived by a warm imagination. The Teutonic tribes were noted for harfh and brutifn voices : Ovid thus fpeaks of the Sarmatians : Omnia barbaricas loca funt, vocifque ferinse, Omnia funt Getici plena timore foni. The affeded hoarfe enunciation of the Germans is mentioned by Tacitus, (7) and the croaking German finging by the Emperor Julian. (8) The Harp, in its primi- tive (9) (late, was not calculated to corred fuch harfli and dlfagreeable notes ; it was incapable of a pleafing fucceffion of founds, or agreeable confonance, fo that it produced neither melody nor harmony. Hence a concert of fuch barbarous, dif- cordant vocal and inftrumental founds powerfully excited horror and terror, and had the effed already noticed by Capella. That the Harp was confined to particular northern tribes, may be inferred from the fiience of Ifidore Hifpalenfis in his Origines, and Suidas in his Lexicon ; had its ufe been general, it would not have been pafTed over by them. From the Teutonic derivation of the Harp, it is eafy to account for its becoming the national inftrument of the Englifh. The Anglo-Saxons were of German race, and introduced the Harp into Britain. Inflamed with a thirft of conqueft, and eager to pofTefs alone that fertile Ifle, they almoft exterminated the natives, and totally erafed every veflige of Roman and Britifh civility. The gentler modulations and fofter harmony of the Crwth were equally defpifed with its p.rformers and admirers: this inflrument was banifiied to Wales, Cornwall, and Armoricaj in the laft county Venantius found it in the 6th century. 3 N The ing it by the latter, the Barbarians by the former name. He has candour enough to add : " Nonnulli putent, Vcrantiunf Fortunaium inter Harjiam & Lyram diftingucrc." Capella and liuchcrius cuuld not be miftakcn, but our modern Editor, loullj' ignorant of the fubje*l, might. (7) Aflcflatur ir.Ticipue afjieritas foni, & fraiaum murmur. Germ cap. 3. Diud. Sic calls the barbarians .C«fi/»jt" xai Tfa^v^uvot. Lib. 5. (8) Ayfia n%>.t! Xi's^ii Tizram/ittit ritfxTsrXmfiit vms xXxyyitif rut Tfxxu foavrai; !>fv:(wt ttSavrxt Mifopog |-56. Eflif. Petavii. Inftead of xXayyee,; lome MSS. read xfeiyiuis, or that found cinifi-d ly cowsj auo it ftems the bell reading. (9) Sola faijie bombitans b^irbaros leudos harjia relidcbat. Fortunat, fujra. 230 OBSERVATIONS ON THE HARP, The Roman mlflloners kept alive and augmented the enmity between the Britons and Anglo-Saxons : the former would not adopt Popery or its fuperftitlons, to which the latter were devoted : every temporal and fplritual motive which theolo- gical malignity could invent, was conjured up to make the refentment of both peo- ple implacable and perpetual, and with too good fuccefs. Hence the triumph of the Harp over the Crwth, and hence its general ufe among all ranks of people until the Normaa invafion. This reafoning may perhaps account for the introduction and praiSlice of the Harp in England, but will not apply, it may be faid, to Ireland. The Irifh, I think, re- ceived it in the 4th and 5th centuries from their clofe connexion with the Saxons, and-other rovers from the Baltic fhores, who conjundlly ravaged the coalls of Bri- tain and Gaul in thofe ages. I know Mr. Macpherfon (10) has ingenioufly combated the opinion of this connection ; but it is impoOible to invalidate all the arguments fupplied by antiquity in its favour. Giraldus Cambrenfis fpeaks of St. Patrick's Harp, which, if any faith is to be placed on Legends, he might have brought from Tours, where he ftudied ; and where, no doubt, it was cultivated by the Barba- rians. The Harp is mentioned by (ii) Ifo, in the 9th century; he was a monk of St. Gall. The founder of this abbey being an (12) Iriihman, and the monks, for the mofl: part, of the fame nation, who fled from the Danifla tyranny, they could be no ftrangers to this inllrument. It may be no improbable conjecture, and will certainly meet the ideas of many, to fay, that the Celtic Crwth was primarily ufed by the Irifli, but gave place to the Harp on the edablifliment of the Danifli power in this kingdom. The Harp was the delight of the northern nations, and their Princes and Scalds eminent performers on it. The monument at Nieg, exhibited by (13) Mr. Cordiner, has every appear- ance of being a Danifli work. The bird at top was their favourite raven, of which their fagas and fcaldic poetry are full, as may be feen in Wormius, BarthoHne, and Mallet. The obliterated figure, taken by Mr. Cordiner for an angel, may or may not be one ; it is obvious, there are no concomitant fymbols to evince the fculpture to be by a chriAian artift. Mr. Cordiner obferves, that this monument, which gives an Irifli Harp, belongs to the nth century j in this I perfeftly agree with him. From (10) In his IntroJuilion to the Hiflnry of Great Britain and Ireland. (11) Du Cange, in Ilarpa. (i«) Ware's. Wiiteri. Cave Hittotia Litcraria. (13) Rcmaikable Ruini ID Scotlaod. Ho, I. 1784. AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC. 231 From fome drawings of the DavIJic Lyre in Montfaucbn, Galmet, and others, which refemble our Harp, it has been fuppofed our inilrumeut is derived. It has been fliewn from Eucherius, that the Barbaric Cithara, or Harp, was a trigonal figure, and fimilar to what was then called the Nablium. What the original Nabliuui, or Jewifli Nebalius, mentioned in the Pfalms was,, or what the Chinnor, Neginot, and other inftrunients occurring in Scripture, were unknown to the Sep- tuagint tranflators, as Bifliop Hare (14) has fully proved. Of what weight then can the dreams of modern Rabbins, or the fanciful drawings of (15) Kircher, their blind follower, be on this fubjefl; ? Eucherius makes the Nablium a triangle, in Kircher it is a fquare. Bilhop Lowth, who has with great elegance and learning treated of Hebrew poetry, never touches oil the mufical initruments of the Jewifli people, nor contefts Bifliop Hare's fentiments, though he criticifes him on other (16) points. An argument much in favour of what has been advanced. Whether the Harp was an imitation of the ancient (17) Lyre, or at what time it aflfumed its prefent form or number of firings, is not eafy to determine. The mo- nument at Nieg, if of the age before allowed it, fliews what it was in the iith century, and therefore I mull decline from the opinion of Lord Pembroke and (18) Bifliop Nicolfon, who imagined the triangles on fome of our old coins, referred to the Irifli Harp. An obfolete figure would fcarcely be revived ; indeed it is moll probable it was buried in total oblivion. The heads of our Kings infcribed in triangles exprefled their attachment to the Church, and its reciprocal fupport of them: this is verified by the French coins of Philip IV. Lewis X. Philip V. Charles IV. and John. * Another objeft of this inquiry is, at what time the Harp became the armorial bearing of Ireland. Though coats armorial were not unknown to mofl of the na- tions of antiquity, yet gentilitial arms undoubtedly were until the middle of the 12th century; the latter were hereditary, the former (19) perfonal or cafual. A learned (20) German writer fays, the romantic expeditions to the Holy Land intro- duced (f4) Prologom. !n Pralmos. pag. 75. They Jid not know how to tranllate tlie titles of the Pfalms, but gave the mod abfurd and incongruous interpretation of them. {is) In his Mufurgia Univerf. torn. 1. lib. 1. cap. i. (16) Pra:le■■>■■>. >..>.■>. >.->.>. >..>>. >->->.>■ >. >..>. >>->>. >->..>- >■ >■ > -> > >■ >. >. >-i >■ V >. >■■ duced the diftindion of armories and the jargon of blazonry ; the falticrs, the fu- fils, the girons, and lozenges of this fcience being parts of the harnefs, armour and ornaments of the ChevaHers. Bifliop Kennet agrees, that armorial bearings were not fo early as the reign of Edward the Confeflbr. (21) The arms, therefore, on the Harp o£ Brien Boiromh, and the Harp itfelf, can neither be of the age, nor belong to the perfon, that an anecdote delivered in the 13th Number of Colleftanea de rebus Hibernicis, would perfuade us. Nothing lefs than pofitive proof will convince the heraldic antiquary, that the Irifli preceded their neighbours in genti- litial armories. Hector Bocthius (22) relates, that on a treaty concluded between Charlemagne and the Scottifli King Achaius, A. D. 791, it was granted, that the latter prince fliould bear a red lion in a counter-charged border of fleurs-de-lis. As the Irifh were equally favourites with that great monarch, he might have conferred the fame honour on our Kings ; though, from what has been advanced, there is not the lead probability of this being fo. Befides, had the tafte for heraldic pageantry been then fafhionable, fome fpecimens would have been difplaye'd on his coins, whereas they exhibit nothing but fmipie monograms. An ancient roll of arms, preferved by (23) Leland, of the age of Henry III. gives the bearings of mofl: of the European princes, and of mod of the Englifh and French nobility. Among thefe we find the arms of Wales, of Scotland, and the little Ifle of Man, but not a word of Ireland. It is a flrong prefumption, that Ire- land then had no arms : Quartering, it may be faid, was not introduced till the (24) reign of Edward III. half a century later; but when it was introduced, no no- tice was taken of Ireland. Harold, King of Man, came to this Henry, did (25) ho- mage, was dubbed a Knight, and received arms, which are recorded in the roll. Maurice Fitzgerald, an anceftor of the Duke of Leinlfer, received Knighthood and arms, and they are alfo in the roll. It was Henry VIII. who, on being proclaimed King of Ireland, firft gave us the Harp. The Englifl^ allowed us eminence in nothing but mufic. He therefore felefted this inftrumcnt as being our favourite one, and to perpetuate the celebrity of our performance on it in former times. Such a bearing was a judicious compliment; it neither reminded us of our prefent dependence, nor upbraided us with our former rebellions. (11) Parothial Antiquitio. pag. 52. (aj) Pag. 188. Nicolfon's Scotiilh Hid. Library, pag. 46, (13) Collc.ui, Kai i/i/ttXui XXI rvfifutui, De Drat. p. 7. (3t) ^*>-/^'i "'"< " °" ''* 'fy" '''■' /""'xv /KiXarJix, Greg iu traft. ad pfalm: M- vcr. 3. (33) Ufher'i Religion of tlie ancient Irilh. chap. 4. (3.t) Concil. Vol. I. Uffcr. I'rimord. p '/16— yi;. AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC. 235 days) was conipofed by St. Mark, and ufed by St. Gregory Naz, St. Bafil, and communicated to the continent by Columbanus. No notice is taken of St. Ambrofe and Pope Gregory but jufl: mentioned. Now, as the monaflic rule of our couniryman, (;^^) Columbanus, has been publifhed, and as this rule made part of the Irifh Curfus, we fhall fee how great a part of it was made up of Pfalmody and Anthems, or alternate finding. The Monks are to aflemhle thrice every night, and as often in the day, to pray and fing. In each office of the day, they were to ufe prayers and fing three pfalms. In each office of the night, from Odtober to February, they are to fin;.'; thirty-fix pfalms and twelve anthems, at three feveral tiuies; in the reft of the year, twenty- one pfalms and eight anthems ; but on Saturday and Sunday nights, twenty-five pfalms and twenty-five anthems. Here was a perpetual pfalmody or /cfi/s pcrennis, like that pradifed in Pfalmody Ifle (36) in the diocefe of Nifmes, founded by Cor- billa, a Syrian monk, about the end of the 4th century. Thefe may be added to the other numerous inftances of the orientalifm of our church, and its fymbolizing with the eadern in moft articles of faith and prattice, and which created fo much uneafinefs to Rome and her emiffaries for many ages ; the feduclions of flattery and the thunders of the Vatican were equally .inefteftual to fliake our principles ; the mellifluous eloquence of St. Bernard might calumniate, but was unable to fubje£t us to the domination of the Roman See. The Canons afcribed to St. Patrick, Auxilius and Iferninus, extant in Corpus Chrifti College, Cambridge, were tranfcribed, according to an (t^J) excellent anti- quary, in the loth century; Dachery (38) fuppofes they were made in the 8th, and I have elfewhere fhewn this to be probable. The fecond directs the readers t^ re- main in the church in which they are appointed to (39) fing ; this feems to be the meaning, but whatever it is, it teaches us that the Reader and Singer had the fame office. Many of our Primates, as may be feen in Ware's Bifliops, and moft of our learned men, among other literary diftindions, are called Readers. On this it is remarked (40) — " that the name, Leclor, is more frequently found among the Irifii hiftorians than that of Scribe ; neverthelefs, to conceal nothing, fome by the ancient Scribes underftand Writers ;" — this throws no light on the Lector. By the 15th (35) Romx, 1661, by Luc. Holftein Dupin, fiecle 7. (36) Burney's Hiftory of MuUc. Vol. i. ji. 9. (37) Aftle's Origin of Writing, p. 120, (j8) Spicileg. torn. 9. Opuf. S F"tric. edit. Wsre p. 42. (39) Leftores denique cogrofcant ii;iufi;i>ifijiie ecdcliam in ^ua pfallaf, (40) Wiiie'» Antiquities, by H.irris, p. 236, c^6 OBSERVATIONS ON THE HARP, •■<<■<■<<■<■<-<.<.<.<..<<■<■<■<■<■■<-■<■.<■<.<■.<■<-<.■<■■<-<■<■•<■■<■<■■<■■<-<•< ■<-<+^ >■>->■>■>>>■>>>■ ► > >•> >->>■>■>■>■>■> >■ ^ > > >■>■>•>■>■> >..>■>•>>■> >" 15th canon of the Laodicean Council, no one is to fint:; in the church but the ca- nonical finpters, who are to afcend the defk and read from the book. In the anfwers of John, bifhop of Citri, to Conftantine Cabafilas, archbifhop of Dyrrachium, we find the Readers were placed on each fide of the (41) "^boir, and like the precentor and fuccentor, led the chorifters. At this day we read each verfe of the pfalm be- fore it is fung ; in this inftance alfo we retained the ufa,8je of the Eaftern church. On the whole, ihe evidence now produced is fufiicient to convid St. Bernard of error, and vindicjrte our praftice of mufic and pfalmody. Giraldus Cambrenfis gives a fplendid account of the perfe*5lions of Irifli Mufic in tlie 12th century, and Caradoc of Lhancarvan agrees with him. They confine their praife to fecular performances, and fpeak nothing .of eeclefiadical. Such ex- cellence was not attainable by any fudden or falhionable application ; it muft have been the effeO. of long praftice and habit. Perhaps the following obfervations may elucidate this point. Caradoc, without any of that illiberal partiality fo common with nai.ional wri- ters, affures us, the Irilh devifed all the inftrumen'^s, tunes, and meafures in ufe among the Welfli, Cambrenfis is even more copious in his praife, when he pe- remptorily declares, that the (42) Irifli, above any other nation, is incomparably {killed in fymphonal mufic. Such unequivocal teltimony of our fuperior tafte and improvement in the mufical art, naturally calls for fome inquiries into fo curious a fad, more efpecially as the perfons, who delivered it, lived in a polifhed (43) age, both in refpeft of literature and manners. The words of Cambrenfis are clearly cxprcfTive of attainments in the fcience of mufic far beyond the minifirelfy of England and France, or any other country he had (44) travelled. The richnefs of our invention ; the vivacity, beauty, and variety of our melodies extorted applaufe from him : I fay extorted, becaufe he takes care to inform us, there was fcarce ("45) any thing elfe to commend among the Irifli. This incomparable ikill could never be predicated of unlearned, extemporaneous Bardic airs : It implies a knowledge of the diagram, and an exad divifion of the harmonic {41) Jifuyfufuv Jl i>p{fixm ravm ita/iiTixif ru JiJ/K x'f' ^'- Here the Domellicus nf the right Cde of the Choir, was a mutcal odiccr ami Jignru.iy. l>a Cm;-!.- in vnce. (4i) PfX omui naiione qUiim vidimu-, iiKumparabillter cA inflruiHa. Topog. cap. 1 1. p. 739. (43) Sec the ii'gfnious Mr. Warto'i'b liift. of fiiglidi poetry. DifTcrtation II. (44) Quam vidimus, fupra. HeicGdcd fome fan on the continent. Biographia Btit. — Article Barrj. (45) In muCcis folum inllrumciiiib comoicndabilcm iiivcuio gQiitit) iAiut dilli^cniiam. Topog. fupra. AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC. 237 harmonic intervals ; a juft expreflion of the tones, and in the quickeft movements, an unity of melody. Cambrenfis (46) obferves thefe particulars of our mufic. He accurately diftinguiflies the Iriih and Englifh ftyles : the latter was the diatonic (47) genus ; flow and made up of concords : heavy; the intervals fpacious, as in ecclefiaftical chant. The former was the enharmonic (48) genus ; full of minute divifions, wi:h every diefis marked: the fuccefllon of our melodies (49J lively and rapid ; our modulations full and fweet. He alone who had the fliarpeft faculties, and was the moft profoundly verfed in the mufical art, felt ineffable (50) pleafure. It is then evident, that all this tranf- cendant excellence in mufic could be derived but from two fources ; a perfefl: know- ledge of it as a fcience and praSice. We are not, it is true, able to produce our ancient tablature, or tunes from MSS. hitherto difcovered ; but as from Caradoc, it appears we communicated both to the WeKh, and as they exift in Mr. Morris's (51) Collections, we may fairly affume them as our own, and derivatives from this Ifle. Thefe coUedions are of the 12th century, the very time in which Caradoc and Cambrenfis flourifhed ; fo that connefting the evidence together, that we had mufic in fcore, can hardly be difputed, and what is more extraordinary, mofl: of the pieces for the Harp are in full harmony and counterpoint. From thefe facis a miftake of Cambrenfis unfolds itfelf to view. The Irifli he informs us, ufed but the Tabor and Harp. Here then could not be a varied combi- nation of founds ; a multiplicity of parts, or fuch an artificial compofition as to conftitute counterpoint : a fingle melody, and that confined within a fmall compafs, was all that could be executed. The Welfn, he tells us, had three inflruments confequently they could play counterpoint; fo that Cambrenfis mufl have been igno- rant of the art he was defcribing, or extremely inadvertent, as no fuch effeds, as he fuggefis, could be produced by fuch inflruments. Nor can any reafon be afligned, why we fhould not have an equal number of mufical inflruments with the 3 I" Wellh, (46) Mirum quoi! in tanta tarn pr^Ecipit! Jlgitorum rapacitate mufica fcrvatur propnrtio, et arte per omnia indtmni inter crifpatos mot'ulos, organaque multipliciter intricata, tarn fuavi vclocitatc, tarn inipari paritatc, tarn difcordi Concordia confona tedditur, & cnmpletur nitlodia. Supra. (47) Tarda & n-.orofa el't niodulatio. Supra. Jones's relicks of the WeKh Bards, p. 35. not. 9. (48) Tarn fubiiliter modulos intrant & exeunt; Ccque fub obtufo groflioris chordx fonitu, gracilium tinnitus licentim ludunt. Supra. (49) Modulatio verum veinx & pr.Tceps, fuavis tamen & jucunda fonoritai. Supra. (50) nine accidit, ut ca qux I'ubtilius iiuucntibus; & ariis arthana acute difccrncntibus, internas & intffitiles comparint animi delicias. Supra. (51) Burney't liiftory of MuCc, Vol. z. p. IC9 — 311. 238 OBSERVATIONS ON THE HARP, ■ >■ > > >-> > ->■ > >. > > ■>• >■ >■ > >■ >. >■ >■>■ >.->. >■ y >■>->■ >■ >■■>■ >->- >«• Wclfli, who confeffcdly adopted them from us. An omillion of a tranfcriber very probably gives rife to the error. The tenor of our eccleflaflioal hiftory very explicitly {hews the propagation of the gofpel among us by Helleniflic Millioners ; our doctrine and difcipline were the fame as practifed in the primitive church during the foui firft centuries. Thefe points are amply detailed in another (52J place. Each Bifliop appointed fuch an order for the celebration of divine offices, as he judged moll eligible and bell fuited to his re- fpeftive diocefe. So various were thefe offices in 1090, that Gillebert, Bifliop of Limerick, prefles the Irifli Clergy to adopt the Roman. " What," (^^) fays he, " can be more indecent, or fchifmatical, than that a Clergyman who is very learned in the offices of one Church, fhould be ignorant and a Laic in thofe of another r" This is a new proof that we were unacquainted with the Roman fervice, as well as with the Ambrofian and Gregorian Chant, and that we retained the forms of the Eaflern church, originally delivered to us. Bifliop Stillingfleet, as cited by Doctor (54) Burney, makes the principal difierence between the Roman and Gallican ritual to confift in their church mufic. St. Paul (ss) defires the Ephefians to fpeak to each other in pfalms and hymns and fpiritual fongs. He here feems to make ufe of a harfli expreffion to avoid introducing a heathen (^6) term. With what propriety could Chrifllans be faid to fpeak to each other in hymns, which celebrated the divine perfedions ? But they might, as in the Pagan Dithyrambics and Poeans, exercife themfelves in anti- phonial fmging, and fucceed or anfwer each other. And this is clearly the Apoflle's meaning. However, (51) Antiquities, fupra, p. 55. (53) Quid cnim magis indecein aut fchifmaticum dici potcrit, quam doftiflimum unius ordinis in nkerius ccclcfia Idi- •tam & laicum fieri.' Uffcr. Syll. Epift. Hib. p. 77. (54) Hiftory of Mufic. Vol. 2. p. 56. ^55) liphcf. chap. 5. vcr, 19. AaXywri; taUTo/j 'Va.Xfj.ot; xai Vf/voi; xat u^an ^vtUjuecTixuis, Colofi*. iii. 16. The apofllc diftinguifties Odes from Pfalms and joins the latter to Hymns. The latter were frequently recited, but the former were accompanied with inflrumcntal mufic. Scalig. Pott. pafs. Gatlkeri Cinn. pag. 124. Lc Clerc will have Odes, Jiymns, and Pfalms to mean the fame thing; but Hammond makes them refer to three ditferent kinds of canticles among the Jews. It is certain they are different ; but would St. Paul have any icfpeift to Jtwifii nuific when writing to the tphefians and Colonians ? (j6) The cUfiical word is — n/mtetrii — which referred to antiphoiiial or ahcrnatc finging of tlie heathen hymns, Muffaa/v i>\ ai atidtjv, afnaZtfUvni oTt Hx>.ri Ht>m. The prafticc is not of Chriftian origin. Suid. & Mears. GkfT, voce AiTif<.'i«. AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC. 239 ••<■■<•« ■< •< <•<■< ■<•< < ■<■< .< -. ,. >. >■>>■>.>■■>.>..> >-i However he difliked the praftice of idolatry, the permiflion he here gives the Ephclians, a gay and luxurious people, of ufing pfalins, hymns, and odes, was abfolutely neceflary for keeping new converts in the faith : I'hey could not eafdy forget the raptures of their feftal and choral hymns ; and it is probable the Apof- tles, (j7j and their difciples, formed fpiritual fongs, on their model, in various metres and melodies : at leaf!:, the early fathers of the church, as Clemens of Alex- andria, Eufebius, Chryfoftom, Bafd, and Gregory Nazienzen did fo. Some of their imitations are poetical, but no merit of this kind could compenfate a Grecian ear for the negligent, injudicious, and offenfive ufe of improper (58) meafures, with which the chriftian compofitionj abounded. Dionyfms HalicarnafEeus, in his beau- tiful treatife lalt (59) cited, gives inftances of the moil favourite performers being hifled on the ftage, for the fmali>j(l want of rythm or accent; fuch were the deli- cacy of Grecian organs, and the correctnefs of Grecian tafle. The more zealous catholics digefted thefe infipid produftions ; but the public were very far from acquiefcing In fuch unlearned and barbarous poetry and mufic. St. Bafd {60) complains that his flock neglefted his pfalms and hymns for their old. pagan fongs. The (61) Arians, Apollinarians, and other heretics taking advantage of the popular difguft formed poems in the true Greek ftyle, and in captivating melodies ; the union and charms of harmony and verfe were too powerful for ortho- doxy ; thcv number of fedaries foon exceeded that of true believers. The church beheld this triumph with terror and amazement, flie favv her danger and endea- voured to avert it. She reformed her hymns and embraced the Greek modes ; nor was John, the cecumenic bifliop of Conftantinople afhamed to urge (62) his peo- ple (6^) to imitate the Arian compofitions. Gildas and Bede agree, that Britain was (57) Eufebius informs us the early Chriftians compnfed and fang — Aefiojx xxi vfivxs tix fxvmwv p-rfat xxi fnXut, fvfficis itiavaTtfois. Hid. Ecc. lib. 2. cap, 17. ValcGus thinks the Tlierapeuts, of whom this is faid, were not Chrif- . tians ; hut confidering the a>jes of the Father and Critic, the latter is more liable to miftake. iS'i) Thefe were the — vi-aXxtnsinfei, jiirfx xai aTaxTxs ^utftn; — of Dionyf. Hal. de Strudl. Orat. p. 224. edit. Upton. (59) Pag. 72. Upton illuftratcs this from Cicero : — Si verfus pronunciatus eft fyllaba una brevior aut longior, eiGbi- latur & exploditur Hiftrio. (60) Serm. de ebriet, & lux. & Vales. Not. in lib. 7. Efcb. Hift. Ecc. p. 153. '(61) For Arius's hymns, fee Philoftorg. lib. i. p. 470. Socrates, the ecclefiaftical hiftorian, confelTcs Apollinariswas fully inftruiled in human learning; and an excellent judge declares: — Sic expreffit pfalraos ut celeritate cum propheta regio ccrtarc videatur. Heinf. Exerc. in Nonnu.ni. p. 256. (6») Ezri Tav irov Tfasrn rrs ■•VxXy.uiiu; rot aurv X ► > > > > > > > *- > fc > > > > > > > > > ► > >. > V- » ♦■ >. V > > ». » > ► > fc, was infeded with Arianifm, and St. Jerom complains, that the chriflian world groaned under this herefy. Thefc notices, hitherto unconnefted, may perhaps throw feme light on the pecu- liar flyle of our ancient mufic. We received the knowledge of the gofpel about the end of the 4th century, and with It the Greek or Eaftern harmony, then uni- verfally in ufe. From an expreflion of St. Auftin, it is evident, the enharmonic genus was then adopted and cultivated, as it alone was calculated to exhilarate the fpirits, revive pleafmg hopes, and banifli melancholy and defpair ; nor can there be any doubt but our primitive millloners firft conciliated the atiections of their hearers by harmony before they opened to them the doftrine of redemption. Bede makes Augufline (64) approach Ethelbert and his court finging litanies. Before the Ambrofian and Gregorian chants were generally introduced, we were grown (Irong in religion and learning, and for a long time (Irangers to, as well as averfe from Romilh innovations. We had an independent hierarchy, which nei- ther in 900 nor in 1090, as has been feen, yielded fubjeftion to St. Ambrofe or Pope Gregory ; it therefore was not poflible for us to have any other mufic but on the Greek model, the charafter of which, as may be collected from St. Aullin •a.Td Cambrenfis, was enharmonic. The ftate of fociety here at our converfion ; a precife and energetic language ; the paucity of our inRruments and the admirable effefts of our harmony, clearly point out the fimple flyle of our melodies ; how exaftiy they coincided with the Greek ; how well adapted to delight our national vivacity and amufe our indo- lence. Topics thefe, capable of much curious and entertaining amplification, but exceeding our limits. As the feeds of chriflianity and learning were coeval in this ifle, notwithftanding the vain and groundlefs pretenfions of fome Antiquaries, fo they found a foil wherein they vegetated with uncommon ftrength and rapidity : monaftic foundations, the fchools of literature in thofe ages, greatly multiplied, and letters foon flourifhed in every corner. I will elfewhere alledge many circumftances to induce a belief that the Greek language was particularly cultivated in thofe feminaries. Can it then feem ftrange that we fliould have the mufical diagram of the Greeks, or that we prac- tifed fcientifically their bed melodies? This notation, it is true, appears corrupted in Mr. Morris's MSS. but it invincibly dcmonllrates that the Welfli had a notation, and that (64) Bed, lib. r, cap, 33. AND ANCIENT IRISH MUSIC. 241 that it muft have exifted prevloufly among the Irifli, The {6^) Northumbrians and Albanian Scots, both converted by the Irifli, excelled in harmony. The EngHfh mufic on the conirary was of the diatonic genus. It was the policy of the church of Rome, from the firft entrance of her miflionaries into Britain, to decry and depreciate the ancient rites and ceremonies of the natives, and to exalt the efficacy and perfedion of her own. Arguments however were in vain, (65) power foon decided the controverfy in favour of the latter. We are informed by Bede, that James, the deacon, inftrudled the clergy of York in fmging after the Roman manner, as Stephen did the Northern ecclefiaftics. Pope Agatho thought the eflablifliment of the Gregorian chant fo important an affair, that he fent John, his precentor, hither for that purpofe. Thefe efforts of the Papal See, feconded by the favour of the Britifli princes, foon extinguilhed every fpark of our ancient mu- fic, and confirmed the flow, fpacious and unifonous melody of plain (6-j^ fong. The perpetual ufe of it to both clergy and laity w^as fecured by canons, and when it became a commutation for fins and (68) fafl;ing, the pradlice of it mufl; have been univerfal. ' Tis then no wonder that the tafte of the nation accommodated itfelf to this chant ; a dull and heavy modulation fucceeded, well fitted to a fl;ate of fpiri- tual thraldom, and to exprefs the difmal tales of minfl:relfy. The foregoing obfervations were printed in 1786, but fortunately for the lovers of Irifli antiquities, the fubjefl: was taken up on a more extenfive plan in the follow- ing effay, by my ingenious and accompliflied friend William Beauford, A. M. whofe fcientific knowledge of mufic has enabled him to illuminate a fubjeft hitherto bu- ried in darknefs. His effay appeared in the firfl: edition of thefe Antiquities in 1790. The candid reader will pardon a fimilarity of remarks and citations in a few in- ftances in both effays, which indeed was unavoidable in treating of the fame fub- jea. (65) Dr. Burne)'. Vol. z. p. io8, 109. (66) Bed. lib. i. cap. a. (67) The (iilUncSion iiififted on of Greek and Roman mufic, receives the higheft conGrmation from CInrlemagne's book againft the Greeks ; and, his gr.indfon, Charles the Bald's Letter to the Clergy of Ravenna : both Princes hefitated long, before they embraced the Greek or Roman harmony. Charles fays : — Cclebrata funt coram nobis fncra miflarum ofSciu, more Hierofolimitano, & more Conllantinopolitano. — But he preferred the Roman : the fevered puniibmciits alone made iiis national clergy relinijuidi the Eaftern manner. (i>i) Johnfou's Sazon Councils. 3 Q> or ( 243 ) ♦ + ♦ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + •» + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + * OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. THE origin of Poetry and Mufic, deduced from the organization of the human frame, has already been elegantly difcuiTed and minutely inveftigated (i) by fome eminent writers. Antiquity records the cultivation of thefe pleafing arts among the rudefl and mofl; favage nations, and modern (2) difcoveries unite their teflimony that no people exilt without them. A learned and ingenious friend has decifively proved, that no genuine remains of Celtic cuftoms and manners, of Celtic arts and fciences exift at this day : that overborne at an early period by the great Scythian fwarm, the Celtes were either exterminated, or adopted the ufages of their conquerors. As this fwarm, which bent its courfe to Ireland, probably iffued from Belgic Gaul, we are there firft to enquire what were the mufic and poetry of that country. On thefe heads Diodorus Siculus offers us fome valuable information. " There are, fays he, among the Gauls, poets, who compofe melical poems ; they call thefe Bards, and they fing the praifes of fome, and the difpraifes of others, to inftruments not unlike Lyres." Our Author here is corred in deno- minating thefe rude fongs melical, becaufe they differed from Lyric, which were always fung to the Lyre, and from Dithyrambic, which were, for the molt part, in honour of Bacchus, and confided of the ftrophe, antiltrophe and epode, whereas the melical were often fung without (4) any inflrument, which mufl have frequently happened among an uncivilized and wandering people. They were therefore fimple melodies executed by a fingle voice, and occafionally fullained by an inllrument. The meafure of this melical poetry was Iambic ; a meafure fo natural to man, that Dionyfius HalicarnafsEus and Demetrius Phalerius, two excellent judges, declare he very commonly exprefles himfelf in it without defign. In ancient languages, the accents • By William Bcauford, A. M. (1) Harri»'« three Trcatifcs. Webb on Poetry and Mufic, an J by many French and Iialian«. (l) Cook's Voyages. (.i) Lib. 5. (4) Pangi mcloi potctl, quod dod ad lyrani canaiur, lauurqtic interdum patcat, Turncb. Adr, p. 5. OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, &c. 243 accents were numerous, confequently the inflexions of the voice were mufical, fell into plcaling intervals and Lyric meafures. And the oldeft fpecimens of Scaldic, German, and Irifh poetry fupply Itrong reafon to believe this to have been the cafe ; though the number or quantity of their verfes, their rhythm and modulation are, in a great part, unknown, as the pronunciation and accentuation of thefe lan- guages are greatly altered, and with them their melodies. Without entering deeper into a fubjeft involved in much obfcurity, we fhall begin with Giraldus Cambrenfis, an ingenious and intelligent writer, who (5) obferves, that the Irifh excelled all other nations in the ufe of mufical inftruments : that mufic, proceeding from founds, naturally divided itfelf into three parts, harmonic, or that performed by the voice : organic, or that by wind-inflruments, and rythmical, or that produced by the pul- faiion of the fingers. Under the heads of vocal and inftrumental mufic will be con- tained all we fliall now lay before the reader. The old inhabitants of Ireland denominated their vocal mufic, or that in which their poems and fongs were fung, Pbeateadh or Peiteadb, that is, narrative mufic. The original mufic of all countries was vocal, and in the early periods, proceeded in a great meafure, from the extemporaneous hymns and fongs fung in praife of their deities, and in honour of ancient heroes. It was in the day of battle and hour of facrifice, that the concerts of our remote and barbarous anceftors were performed. The warrior advanced to the charge, finging the actions of ancient captains ; and the prieft, whilll the bleeding vidim expired on the altar, chaunted in artlefs accents the praife of the Divinity. However harfh and diffonant thefe performances muft originally have been, experience reduced them to order, and time meliorated their cadence. Men, endowed with more folid judgment and more accurate ears than others, would naturally endeavour to reduce the wild effu-. fions of native melody to fome flandard rules, and thereby give birth to the Bardic Order, and the regulation of mufical performances at public Solemnities. Thus, inftruded in fimple melody, the body of the people would join in one general chorus at their public aflemblies, and lay the foundation of harmonic compofition, or, what no writer on the mufical art, has yet attended to, a natural counterpoint. For the different tones of the human voice, finging the fame air in concert, would confequently fall into feparate claffes; the moft grave would murmur in the bafe, the middle tones be fonorous in the tenor, and the moft acute warble in the. treble. Accuftomed (i) Topograph. Hib. p. 73~74». 244 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS «v < < < < ( .< < < < .< < -. •■■>• >•>■>■ *->■ I ! Accuftomed thus through a long feiies of ages, to fing together, the body of the people would gradually be formed into a nation of chorifters ; and the faculty they had thus through fucceflive generations acquired of finging in parts, would remain among them for many ages after the caufe which gave rife to it was re- moved. Such was the ftate in refped to the mufic of ancient Europe in general, we have €very reafon to imagine ; and that it was actually fo, among the inhabitants of Wales and England in the 12th century, we are affured by Cambrenfis before quoted ; who informs us that the Britons did not fing in unifon like the inhabitants of other countries, but in different parts ; it being cuftomary (6) in Wales, when a company of fingers among the common people met, as many different parts were heard, as there were performers ; who all at length united, with organic fweetnefs. And In the northern parts of England, beyond the Humber, the inhabitants ufed the fame kind of fymphonic harmony, except that they only. fang in two parts; nor in either country was a fingle melody ever well fung. And what is IHll more extraordinary, their children, as foon as they attempted to fing, fiing in the fame manner. Here we have a remarkable inftance of native counterpoint, from the ^ft'efts of cuffom, through a feries of ages; a cuitom we may reafonably imagine which was retained much longer (han the time of Cambrenfis, as we may trace, even at this day, fome remains of it in the highlands of Scotland and in this country. Thefe circumflances point out to us, that counterpoint, was neither the produc- tion of any one age or country, nor the invention of an individual, but had its foundation in nature. Nor doth it appear what improvement the native bardic mufic received from the church mufic, during the middle ages, that is, from the 6th to the 9th centuries. It probably continued to iiow in its native channel undif- turbed for ages, receiving only from time to time, fuch additions as experience ma- tured by time might introduce ; and thereby gradually bring it to the ftandard of fcience. — However, there is the greatelt probability, that the Hibernian bards re- ceived much inftruiStion in the melodious part of their mufic from that cultivated by the chriflian clergy. Which mufic was that of ihc Curfus, ufed in the original offices of the chriflian church, and was in the flyle of the ancient Greek mufic of the middle ages. A genus much more brilliant than the diatonic ufed by the La- tin church in fubfcquent times, and in all probability laid the foundation of that fuperiority, (6) Cambrcns. Cambria Dcfcrip. p. 890. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 245 fuperiority, to which the Hibernian bards in later periods attained. (7) In the Iiar- monic divifion no improvements were probably introduced till towards the 12th century, after the introduction of the Latin church mufic by Pt'Ialachy. This mufic was more famed for its harmonic than melodious perfeftion. However, feveral im- portant and ufeful hints were received from it, and thereby greatly improved the oral counterpoint, which, with their native ftyle, they ftill retained ; fmging alter- nately, after the manner of the Greeks, and other heathen nations of antiquity. O'Carrol about 1330, and Cruife, two eminent harpers, were mofl probably the firfl who tuned their harps on the true diatonic harmonic principles. But even this improvement feems to have beL^n confined to thofe refiding in the Englifl-j pale. (8). With the flate of the ancient Irifh melodies of the middle ages, we are not ac- quainted, few having reached our time. The native mufic at prefent found among the defcendants of the aboriginal inhabitants, is extremely characteriftic, and Itrongly expreflive of the language and genius of the people. The ancient Irifli mufic, or as it was denominated by the bards Ceol, or Sound, when confidered as a fclence, may like that of all other countries, be comprized under two heads, that Is, Oirjid or Melody, and Cor or Harmony. The Oirfid, or melodious part, was compofed of a certain number of Fuam or Tones ; of thefe they had two fpecies, confidered relatively, that is, Foghair, or whole Tones, and Foghair-bcg, or Semi-tones. But it doth not appear, what fpe- cific names they gave to the feveral tones rifing and falling in the fcale. It is moft probable they had no difllniElive denominations for them, but entirely depended on the ear ; as it is certain they had no marks or notation to exprefs them in writing, but like mofl of the modern pipers, depended folely on their auditory organs. Time, or the relative duration of the feveral tones, which we dlfliinguifh bv the general name of notes, they exprell'ed by the word Amhar, but by v/hat denomi- nation they diflinguiftied their refpedive lengths, we have no certain information ; probably they never confidered fuch minutias, but depended for the regulation of their meafure on the beating of the drum, or the flriking of the ftrings of the harp. Cor, or Harmony, they, like the moderns, divided into two grand divifions, that is, Chridfich, or Treble, and Croiian, or Bafc. Which parts united, confti- 3 R tuted (7) Hornberk de Pfalmodia. inter Mifcell. fac. cap 2. Walker's Mennir: of Iiifli Bard», (8) Stanihura de rcb. Hib. p. 39. Walker's, Irifli Bards. 246 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS tuted one grand fcale, under the denomination of Arfidcach^ or Airfidcah ; compre- hending the Bafafcancs, or Bale Cliff; the 'leanorchanus, or Tenor Cliff, called alfo Cionar ; and Riimcbanus, or Treble Clifl. As the names of thefe Cliffs, are evidently derived from the Latin, the Bards mud have received them from church mufic; and to which they feem to have been indebted for much of their mufical fcience, during the latter periods. In refpecl to counterpoint, the Cor was diftinguiflied into two fpecies, that is, Fiiaighcl-, or Concords, and EUjighe, or Difcords. The Concords confilled of the Fiiaighcl, or 5th, the Fiiaighelbeg, or 4th. being the leffer fundamental interval, and the. Fuuigbelmor, or Octave, or greater interval, and which was nearly one- eighth of a tone higher than the modern, being compofed of the 4th and 5th equally divided by the ear. The Eijfighc, or Difcords, comprehended the EiJJtgheheg or 2d, the tones of the ancients ; and the Ei/Jtgbemore, any unharmonious interval compounded of others, as the 7th, 9th, &c. (9) Thefe appear, to have comprehended all the com.ponent parts of the ancient Hi- bernian counterpoint ; but of their method of conducting them in compofition, we have no authentic information. They certainly were not acquainted with the rules of modern harmony ; which were probably founded by Guido in the 11th century, and improved by fubfequent performers. But, however, they might regulate the fucceffion of their chords, they feem in refpect to difcant, to have been fuperior to their neighbours, for whilfl the Scotch, Wel(h, Englilh, and even the Ecclcfiaftic Mufic, kept nearly equal time in all their parts, the Irifli at lead, in the 13th century, according to Cambrenfis, ufed great latitude in their mufical performances ; for, fays the writer. It is indeed evident, that the Scotch and Welfh have cultivated this art with commendation, and with an affinity of expreffion, endeavouring with emulation to imitate the (kill of the Irifli in modulation. (10) This fupcriority we fhall have other opportunities of con- fidering, in treating of their inftrumental mufic, to which we fhall now proceed. IRISH (9J For ihcfc technical tcrm», fee Lhujrd's Difl. O'Clcrigh, &«. (ic) Gir. C»mb. Supri, p. 739. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 247 ^ < < « < < < < < < <<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<< <<<<•<<<<+>>>>>>>>•>>■>>>>> >►►>>>>>>•>>•>>>>■►>>> > > > ► ►. IRISH MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, or ADHBHACHIUIL. Barbarous nations, have feldom a variety of mufical inftruments ; and it doth not appear, that the ancient inhabitants of either Britain or Ireland, had any among them, prior to the arrival of the Romans, except the Buglehorn. From Britain, the Roman mufical inftruments might have been introduced into Ireland, though molt probably the principal of them were brought over by the ChriRian clergy, and others by the Northern nations. The original ufe of mufical inftruments was either to fuflain the voice, or to beat time to the feveral performers in their general concerns. Under this idea, they may be reduced to two fpecies, that is, Organico.l and Ryihmiail. ORGANIC. Of the Irifli Organic, or Wind Inftruments, Cambrenfis is entirely filent ; per- haps in his time, they had not any that could with propriety be claffed under that denomination. Yet, the native writers mention feveral under the different names of (i 1) 5/?^/V, Stoc, Adhrac, Com-bean, Gall-trompa, Buabhall, Dudog, Fideog, Lon- loingean, Readan, Adharcaidh-Chiuil^ Cuijleigb-Ciiiil and Piob-7naIa. The Siuic, Sfoc, Buabal, Beann-, and Adluirc, were different names for the fame inftrument, and were only the common Bugle Horn, with a wooden mouth-piece, ftill ufed by the common people. The horns of animals were moft probably the firfl attempt at mufical inftruments, and ufed in common by all the barbarous nations of ancient Europe. They were employed to fuftain the voice in their rude religious concerts, during the times of paganifm ; and for a number of ages after, they were the prin- cipal inftruments in (12) war and in the chace. The Gall-trompa, or Trumpet of the Strangers, was the brazen Horn, ufed by the Danes, Normans and Englifli ; and introduced into this Ifland by thofe people. It was of different forms. The Trompa refembled the modern Trumpet, and was the military mufical in- ftrument of the Saxons, Franks, and Normans. The Corn was a metal Horn, in general refembling the natural horns of animals, efpecially thofe of the Ram and wild Ox, with mouth pieces either at the end or fide j and during the middle and latter (11) Sec I-liuyii's DIflionary for tliefe terms. (ij) The Goths marched to war with the fcunJ of the Horn of the Uruj, or wild Or. Animiin. 31 — 5. — And the Cclte* in general ufcJ them, Lib. 5. 37. 39, 248 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS latter ages, were ufed for various purpofes. A number of thef'e inftruments have at diilerent times been difcovered in Ireland in bogs ; and alfo, in fevcral parts of (13) England; and have occafioned much conjecture among Antiquaries. They, however, are not very ancient, few exceeding the loth century, and none are older than the 6th in this country ; nor are they of Iridi origin, nor can they be confi- dered as mufical indruments. The Adharcaidh-Chiuil., or Mufical Horn, feems to have been the fnfl; attempt at a mufical wind inflrument, and probably the origin of mod of them, as the Horn, pipe. Cornet, Hautboy, Flute, &c. It confifted of a metal or animal Horn, with a mouth-piece, and body perforated with three or four ventages, and is (till retained by (14) the Laplanders. Adharcaidh-Chiuil was alfo a name given by the Irifli to the P'rench Horn, or Corne de Chaffe. The Feadain, Fideog, or Lonloingean, was a wooden Pipe, and the ancient Horn- pipe, frequently denominated by the Iri(h from the acutenefs of its found, Dudog, as it was called Feadain and Lonloingean, or Mufical Stick, from being made of wood. This inftrument is reprefented on an old Stone Crofs at Clonemacnois, and on fome old paintings in England, where it appears to be the fame as the old Cor- nette. The Rcadan, was not a mufical indrument, but only a mouth-piece made of reed, by which the Feadan and other wind inftruments were founded ; and is ftill retained in the modern Bag-pipes. The Piob-mala, or Bagpipes, the Chorus of the Latin- Writers of the middle ages, do not appear of great antiquity in this ifland. Cambrenfis does not mention them among the Irifh mufical inftruments, though he (15) aflcrts, that both the Welfli and Scots had them. The Chorus fo denominated by the Latins, from hav- ing the Bag of Skin, feems to be a very ancient inftrument ; we find it among the Greeks and Romans, and by them probably introduced from the eaft. Among them however, it was of a very fimple conftrudlion, confifting only of a bag of fkin or leather, with two pipes, one blown (16) by the mouth, by which the bag was filled with air, the other emitted the found and had ventages. Under this form it (13) Camden, vol. 3d. Ed. Gough. (14) Walker's Hiftorical Memoirs of the Iridi Bards, p. 84. (Ij) Scotia tri!)us, Cythara, Tynipano, et Clioro. Gwallia vero Cytliara, 'J'ibiis, ct Chore. — Supra, p. 759. (16) Fuit Chorus quoque fimplci, pcUiscum duabus cicutis JEreis, Et per priniam inlpimtur, fccuiida voccm tmitlit. — Walter, fupri. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 249 ..« << < ■< < < < .< . < < .< < < < .< .< < < « < < < < < ■< < < < < < < < <<■<<<■+ . > > >■ > > > > . > > > > . > > >■ > > >. ► >. .. > >. >.*. , ,.>.».,. >.♦. ,. ,. ,. , ». It is reprefented on an (17) ancient marble ftatue found at Croton in Italy ; and on the front of ( 1 8) Adderbury church in Suffolk: and ftill retained by the Spanifli and Italian peafants. It was probably introduced into Britain by the Romans, and among the Saxons by the Britons. In England, it retained its original form and power to the i ith or i2!h centuries. In fubfequenr ages it received feveral improve- ments, a chorus was added, confifting of two fide drones ; in which flate it ftili remains among the highland Scots, and in this ftate it probably was introduced into Ireland fome time prior to the 14th century ; for we find it a martial mufica! inflru- ment of the (19) Irifli Kerns or Infantry, in the reign of Edward III. And as fuch, connnued down to the 16th century. Having obtained this inltrument from Britain, the Irifli retained its original name, and called it Piob-mala, or Bag-pipe ; it had the loud flirill tone of the prefent Highland pipes, being conftruded on the ancient mufical fcale. The Chanter had feven ventages, as at prefent, the lower founded the lower D in the Treble, and the upper C. The firft Drone was in unifon to E, the fecond hole in the Chanter; and the large Drone an oiflave below it. This feems to have been the ftate of the Bag-pipes throughout the Britifli Iflands to the clofe of the i6th century, when confiderable improvements were made, by taking the pipe from the mouth, and caufing the bag to be filled by a fmall pair of bellows on compreffion by the elbow. This form (20) Mr. Walker afferts, they received from the Irifli, by whom they were no longer denominated Piob-mala, or Bag-pipes, but Cuijkan, or Cuijleagh-Cuil, that is, the Elbow-pipes, or Elbow-rnufic. — Under this denomination they fliill remain among the people, and are at prefent much im- proved ; having no longer the loud martial found of the Erfe Piobh-mala, but more refenibling a Flute, and are reduced to the modern fcale. In the prefent Irilh Bag-pipes, the Chanter confifts of feven double holes, the lowefl foundino- D in the Treble, and the upper C or the feventh above it. The chorus confifl:s of four Drones, the fmallell or nrfl. founds unifon to A, the fifth hole in the Chanter; the fecond Drone a third below the firft, and in unifon with F the third hole in the Chanter ; and a fifth below C the upper hole. The third founds an oftave to F, and the fourth an octave below that, or a double o£tave to the key note. 3 s Hence (1;) Walker, fupra. (l8) Grofs's .Antiq. vol. ift. (19) Smith's Hilt, of the County of Corl:, vol. s. p. 43. — Camden. (20) Hill, Mem. of the Irifli Uards, p. 73. 250 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS -<■«<<<<■<<< < < < < <<<.<<<<<<.<<.<<<■«■<■<<<<<••<<<<•< + >>>>>>> V > » > > > > > >>>>>>> >.»>>> > > > > > » > > > > >■ Hence the modern Irifli Bag-pipes, e?:tend to the three Cliffs or principal Keys of F, C and G, and their concords are the 3d, 5th and 8th. Their component parts in the Irifli languapje are, the Bolg or Bag ; the Bollogna CuiJIi or Bellows ; the Feadain or Pipes ; the Dudog or Chanter ; the Readan or Reeds, which give the tone to the Pipes ; and the Anan or Drones, fo denominated from their refemblance to Horns, whence Anan fometimes in Irifh fignifies the Bafe in mulic. By the improvement of double holes in the Chanter, a lliilful performer is ena- bled to play two parts without the Drones ; and the inftrument under the hands of a maftcr, is rendered worthy of being efteemed a mulkal inifrument. Efpecially in thofe inftruments in which a fecond Chanter is inferted, denominated a Regulator. This Regulator founds a fih below the Chanter, and has the fame number of ventages, each of which is clofed by a brafs key iike thofe of a Ger- man Flute. By means of thefe keys, which are ihuck by the wrifts, the performer is better enabled to play in two or more parts, without the Drones ; as the feveral chords of 3ds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths, and 8ths, can be conveniently founded, and the inftrument rendered fufficiently harmonious. But this laH: improvement is at pre- fent not univerfal, few being acquainted with it. Thefe are all the Irifli wind inftruments we have been able to difcover, nor doth it appear they had any more. And even thefe, the ancient Bards during the clofe of the middle and commencement of the latter ages, either were not acquainted with, or did not confider them claflic, and confequently rcjefted them from their concerts. The only bardic inftruments in erteem on the ai rival of the Englifli, were the Rythmical ; which we fliall now confider. IRISH RYTHMICAL INSTRUMENTS. Of this fpecies of Inftruments Cambrenfis mentions only two, which were in efteem among the Irifli in his time, that is, the Drum and Harp ; and Brompton fpeaks of no more. (21) The Drum or Tympanum, called by the Irifli Tiompan, is a very ancient inftru- ment ; the Greeks and Romans were acquainted with it in very remote periods, and all the Gothic nations ufed it as a mufical inftrument to beat time with ; for which purpofe it Is ftill retained by the fouthern Europeans and moft of the Afiatics. Among (ji) Hibeinia quiJcm tantum duobus utitur ct ilclci5latur inftrumcntis; Cythara fcilicct et Tympana, fupra, p. 739. Hibcrnici in duobus mufici gciicrit innrunicniis, Brompton. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 251 W 4 4'< < <-« < 4^.<.4.4'4>4--4-4'4-4-4-4-4"«-4-4-4-4-4-4<<-<'<"<-4-4'4'4"<'-<-}->'>- >■»->■>■>-».»..»■■»->.->.»■».>.>.»■ »-».».>^>. »••>>-»•>■'»>•>-»»->. >■>.>.>., Among the Iridi it was a kind of Tabor, confifling of a fl^in drained over an iron hoop or ring, and beat with the fingers or (ticks. Befides the Tiompan, the Irifh are faid to have had two others, not mentioned by Cambrenfis, that is the Chrotal and Crotalin. The Chrotal feems not to have been a Bardic Inflrument ; but the Bell-Cymbal ufed by the Clergy, and denominated a Crotalum by the Latins ; confifting cf two metallic fpheres, hollow, and containing fome grains of metal to make them found, being connedted by a flexible fliank (22). The Bell Crotalum was alfo ufed by the Roman Pagan Priefts, where the Bellswere hemifpheres, its figure is on a ftone dedicated to the mother of the Gods ; and during the lafl century was in the palace of Cardinal Cajfius in Rome. The Crotalin or Croiha, feems to be the Crepitaculum of the Romans, being a kind of rattle, made of wood, brafs, gold or filver, of different forms. Several of thefe inftruments of brafs, were found in the park of Slane in 1781, confifting of two circular plates of brafs, connected by a wire twifted in a wormlike manner round the Ihank, and jingled when the inftrument was (truck by the fingers. They were only ufed in accompanying a fingle voice, and not peculiar to the Irifh, but common to moit nations of Europe, and with the Crotalum and Tiompan, were probably introduced by the Chriftian Clergy. Of the Irifh Stringed Inftruments, Cambrenfis mentions only one, that is the Harp ; but the native writers fpeak of another, which they denominate a Cruit or Cruit/jf without exprefling ekher its form or power. The word in the prefent ac- ceptation of the language, fignifies either a Harp or Violin, and feems to be a ge- neral name for all Stringed Inftruments. In former times, it probably was the fame as the Welfli Crwih, and negletted on the introduftion of the Harp. The Clarfcch or Harp, the principal mufical inftrument of the Hibernian Bards, does not appear to be of Iri(h origin, nor indigenous to any of the Britifh iflands. The Britons undoubtedly were not acquainted with it, during the refidence of the Romans in their country ; as on all their coins, on which mufical inftruments are reprefented, we fee only the Roman Lyra, and not the Britifh Teylin or Harp. Neither can the Welfh trace their Bards or Mufic, higher than the time of Cadwal- lador, who died in 688. (23) Both the Greeks and Romans were unacquainted with (ai) Crotala quoque dlci fonoras fpherulas, qux quibufdani granis interpontis pro quaiititate fui, et fpecle metalli fono edunt. Joh. Sarifber, I. S. c. lO. (23) Pennant's Tour through N. Waks. tS'i OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Avith fuch an inftrument, as it is not found on their Coins and Sculptures, till towards the decline of the Empire of the latter. The Greeks have it not ; the Mufical Inllruments of the modern Greeks confift of the ancient Lyre, which they play with their fingers and a Bowj they have alfo the Guittar, but no Harp. (24) Eucherius Bifliop of Lyons, who flouriflied in the 5th century, informs us, that the Barbaiic Cithara, was in the form of a Greek Delta, and like the Nablium. But the Nablium and Harp could not be the fame ; for, in (25) Ovid, they are dif- ferent. As to its form refembling the Greek Delta, the Irifli Harp ftill retains the form of that ktter of the 6th century (26) ; and is rudely reprefented on the front of AdJerbury Church Suftblk; but more accurately delineated on the elegant mo- nument at Nieg in Scotland (27) ; which leaves not the leaft doubi of the Irifh Harp being of the fame form as thofe of the Saxons, and other Gothic nations. But as none of the Sculptures reprefent the firings, nor are they exprefled by any vmter of the middle ages, the power of this mufical inflrument ftill remains un- known. To obtain fuch information it will be neceffary to enquire among the Sythic Tribes yet uncivilized, for its prilHne ftate, where it lately has been difcovered. Monfieur Gmelin in his Travels through Weflern Tartary, fays, that " they " have a mufical inllrument, which the Ruffians call a Goujli. This inflrument is " made like a Harp. It has eighteen firings fupported by a very low bridge, fitu- " ated near the place where the firings are fixed. The pins round which they are " turned, and by which they are tuned, are fituated on the other fide of the inflru- " ment. The firfl and fecond firings are jths to each other, the third is a ftmitone " above the fecond ; the fourth a third above the fecond, the fifth a third above the " fourth, the fixth a femitone above the fifth, the feventh a tone above the fixth, *' and fo of the others. The Mufician feated on the ground, plays with the right *' hand the Bafs, and with the other, the Treble." (28) Here we have the real power and number of the firings of the ancient Harp, and probably in the very (tale it was introduced into Britain by fome of the Gothic Tribes in the 5th century. The intire compafs of the three Scales or Syflems of Tones, (14) Voyage Lit. de la Grece 3 Edit. torn. i. par Monfieur Guys. See alfo the figure of a Lyre, to be plapoj on with a Bow. having the bridge curved like a Violin, in plate 109, vol. I. of the Cabinet of the Hon. Sir. William Hamilton, Naples, 1766. il^\ " Difcc ctiam duplici penialia Nablia palma " Pkelcrc, coiiveniunt duKibus ilia modus." Ovid. (s6) Bernard's Ta Its. (J?) Coidncr's Views, &c. No. I. (i?) Voyage en Sibcre, par Monf. Gmelin. torn. i. p. 3c. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 253 Tones, will be a 4th above four oftaves ; the latitude of the modern Welfh Harp, and nearly that of our prefeiit Harpilchords, beginning in the lower E in the Bafs, and afcending by 5ths, 3ds, and 2nds to G G in a't, with the chromatics of the fundamentals marked. The Scales are in E and B, and the Keys in which Tunes could be played, are in V.^ and B^. The inftrument in this ftat;^ was principally calculated for fuftaining the voice ; fome few airs indeed might be played upon ir, but it was inadequate to that lively fymphonic mufic, cultivated bv both the Irifh Bards and Northern Scalds, in fubfequent and more improved periods. (See this Harp, in the annexed plate tiken from the Monument of Nieg.) 1 he Irifh Bards, on receiving the Gothic or Scythic Harp, or as they denominat- ed it in their native tongue Oirpeani, would naturally confider of the mod proper means of adapting it to their vocal mufic, and render it capable of fupporting the voice and performing their fvmphonic airs, for which in fubfequent periods they became fo celebrated. This they eftcfted by filling up the i^ths and 3ds in each Scale, by which, and the afliltance of the Church Mufic, they were enabled to complete their Scale, and increafe the number of firings from 18 to 28 ; in which the original Chromatic Tones were retained, and the whole formed on the oral improved fyftem. Under thefe improvements, though the indrument had increafed in the number of its firings, it was fomewhat reduced in capacity ; for inltead of beginning in the lower E in the Bafs, it commenced in C a fixth above, and termi- nated in G an octave below ; and in confequence became much more melodious, and capable of -accompanying the voice. Thefe improvements were moft probably further enlarged on the introduction of the Latin Church Mufic by (30) Malachy O'Morgair, Archbifhop of Armagh, about the year 1134. From which period the Irifh Poetry ajid Mufic are fuppofed to have (31) feparated, and vocal and inftru- mental Mufic became dillindl. Prior to this century it is probable Symphonic Mufic -was not fo much praftifed, and the inftruments were principally ufed to fuflain the voice by accompanying its accented parts. However they feem to have improved in a few years, far fuperior to their neighbours ; and the Irifh Harp of 28 firings became more capable of true Mufic than any other at that time in ufe- A Harp of this fpecies and 32 inches high, is reprefented in the plate, taken from one in Trinity College, Dublin, and fuppofed to have belonged to Brien Boromh. It is certainly much later than that Prince, and probably not Bardic ; but of that 3 T fpecies {30) Inter S. Btrnardi Opera, cap. i6. (jl) O'Connor's Differtitioni. 254 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS .., -4 .< .( <.«..<-< .< .4 .4 .4..4..4-4 ■<■■< -4 -4 -< .< 4-4 4 -4 ■<-4 .4-4 -4 ■< ■4-4-4-4-<-4 .4 4 ■<-4+>. >■>.>■■>■ >- > >■ >. >. >. >. >. >- >- >- >- >. >•■> >■ >■>•>- »■■>■ >■ >■ V >■ >■* >■>■>■>. >- »■ >.. fpecies denominated Cainthar or Cainthar Criiit, that is, the finging Harp ; being ufed by private perfons to accompany the voice ; efpecially by Ecclefiaflics, who condantly carried one about with them, and to which they fang their Hymns, (32) and in all probability was derived from the Roman Nablium introduced from Italy. This inftrument was nearly of the fame figure as the Harp, but much fmaller, containing only 12 firings, but in fubfcquent periods improved into the fmall Harp cf 28 ftrings. The Bardic Harp derived from the Gothic, was a large inllrument with deep Bafs Tones, generally ufed in concerts or large companies, and dillinguifhed by the Irifli by the name of Cream-Cruiin or Creamtin Cruit, that is, the noify or felHval Harp. This, from 28 firings, was in the latter ages augmented to 33, beginning in C in the Tenor, and extending to D in alt. Which feems to have been the lall improvement in the Irifh Harp, and in which flate it flill remains. A Harp of this kind 5 feet high, is (33) reprefented in the plate, and was made in 1726. Although the Irifli on the decline of the Bardic Order neglecled the Harp, the Welfh, who are faid to have, as well as the Erfe, received the improved Harp from (34) Ireland, continued to augment the power of the inflrument ; and adopting the prefent fyflem, have increafed the number of ftrings to 97, extending their power from C in the Tenor, to double G in alt, divided into three rows ; by which means the Diatonic and Chromatic Syftems are preferved diftind. The right hand row contains the Bafs of 36 ftrings : the (35) left the Treble of 26, and the middle the Semitones of 35. — It will not be neceflary here to defcribe the Harp as improved by Nugent, an Irifh Jefuit, mentioned by Lynch, as it never was ufed either in Ireland or in Britain ; and as it has been fully dilated upon by Mr. Walker, (36) to whom Ireland is indebted for the firfl attempt, to trace the rife and progrefs of her Mufic. In refpeft to the technical terms of the component (37) parts of the Harp in the Irifh language, the wooden frame was denominated C/air or the Board ; the ftrings Tead ox Teadach ; the armor head in which the pins were placed, Clonar ; the front (3i) Hinc accidit, ut Epifcopi tt Abbates, ct fanfli in Hibcrnia viri cytharas circumferre ct in lis moJuIanJo \\'i dc)c(Sari confucvcrint. Cambrcns. fupra. (33) Walkcj'i Memoirs of Irilh Bards, p. i — j■ >■ >■>■ >->->->>>>> > > y *■ > > ► > y > >>>*>■>■>*■ ►•■ This eminence of the Irifii Harpers is not exaggerated, nor is it a compliment paid to the nation, as fome have imagined. Cambrenfis was one of the mod ac- compliflied i'cholars of his time, andperii-ctly underftood both the theory and pracHce of Mufic at that period cultivated in Britain, where the Englifli Minflrels and Welfh Bards, principally applied their inftruments in fupporting the voice in plain fong, and were in a great meafure unacquainted with fymphonic airs, to which in- deed their languages were little adapted ; on the contrary, the varied cadence of the Irilh tongue, and the brilliant fymphonies which naturally arofe from it, mud have greatly delighted and aftoni.lied an ear not accuftomed thereto. Befides, it was not in the full choir nor crowded theatre, that the Irifli muficians were trained in practice, but in the lonely defart, the deep valley and the rugged mountain, where, familiar witli the fighing gale, foftening echo and pealing thunder, they became acquainted with thofe natural graces, which give fo much elegance to modern mufic; and the Forte, Piano, Termente, kc. conftantly adorned their melodious perfor- mances. And in accompanying the vocal mufic with the Harp, they fometimes imitated the modulations of the voice, then quitting it, the Bafs notes only founded; again, whilrt: the voice moved flowly and gravely along, the treble firings delight- fully tinkled above, as it were re-echoing the fong from the furrounding objeds. But it was principally in their fymphonies that their inftrumental mufic was exhibit- ed; for they do not appear to have had pieces entirely compofed for inftruments as in the prefent age. In the harmonic part, the 4th and 5th feem to have been the principal chords, either fingle or Itruck together, and by which the octave was formed in the commencement and clofe of the Key ; whilit the Difcords were fre- quently introduced towards the (^42) middle of the performance. As their fyfleni was founded on the Oral Scale, and the chromatic tones only fuch as naturally arofe therefrom, they mull have frequently been under the neceffity of changing their Keys, and in confequence have recourfe to the refolution of Difcords. But of their difpofition of thefe, and even the general management of their Concords, we are ignorant. They feem in every part of their performances to have ftudied nature, and to have paid little regard to art ; thereby forming a ftyle ftrong and expreflive, but wild and irregn.lar. This wildncfs, however, though deflitute of the truth of compofition, was not deftitute of the power of producing pleafing and extraordinary efie£ts on the minds of the hearers. About (41} Camlirenfit, fapn. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 257 .< < < 4 < 4-4 4-4-<-4-4 4 4 4.4 4-4-4 ■<-< 4 -4 4 4 4 4 4"4-4 4-4-4 ■4-4 4 « 4 -4-f >->•->■ fc- ► ft » ft- ft-ft- >- ft ft- ft- ft- ft >-» ft ft- ft-». ft- ft.ft- ft- ft ft- ft- ft- ft-ft. ft. ft. > ^. ^. ^.. About the commencement of the 14th century, feveral of the Irifli Bards who refided within the Englifli Pale, fuch as O'Carrol and Cruife, becoming acquainted with the modern improvements, tuned their Harps on the Diatonic Syfteni, an J thereby rendered their inftruments more pleafing to an ear accuilomed to the Church and Italian Mufic, at that time (43) cultivated in Britain. But whether fuch improve- ments extended through the kingdom we are not informed. The Irifh Harps every where however feem to have fupported their credit, by agreeable and able perfon.iers, even to the (44) middle of the 16th century. From which period the whole Ifland becoming fubjedl to the laws, and adopting the manners of the Englifli, the Bardic Order became e.Ktinft. Thus have we fpecified the nature and (late of the ancient Irilh Mufic both Vocal and Inftrumental, as far as the materials we have been able to obtain have thrown light upon the fubjecl. It would have been a pleafing circumftance if they had enabled us to have proceeded further, and given the reader fpecimcns of the old Bardic Mufic of this Ifland ; but we are forry to fay this is far from being the cafe, no fuch fpecimens new exift ; as the whole for want of notation mufl have died with the Order. So far from communicating their mufical compofitions to thofe not ini- tiated into their art, they took all poflible care to conceal their principles, confiantly inflrufting their pupils in private, and obliging them to commit their leflbns to me- mory. (45) The fubjecls on which they exerted their genius were various, embracing every fpecies of Poetry and Mufic that could aifect and agitate the human mind. Thefe they diflinguifhed under three fpecies or genera, which they denominated Adbbhan.' trircach, or the three Modes of Mufic, that is, the Goltraigbi, or Sorrowful Mode, the Geanthraighe, or Merry Mode, and the Suaniraighe, or Sleepy Mode. The firfl; comprehended all fongs on plaintive, folemn and grave fubjefts, fuch as funeral lamentations, elegies, he. The fecond thofe appertaining to feftivity, war, the chace, dances, drinking fongs, &:c. And the third to love-ditties, and every kind of foft and effeminate pieces ; and more efpecially to a kind of foft humming mufic, in 3 u which (4,5) Camum O'Karviil, qui etfi non fuerlt chordalis primus inventor, omnium tamen prxdccedorum & prxcedentium ipfc ac cotemporaneoruni Coriei.1or, Doilor & Direiflor extitit. Clynn apud. Walkcr'i Bards, p. I2J, and fome obfcrva* tions on this pafTage of Clynn by the .Author of thefe Antiquities. (44) Camden s Britan:i'i, Cough's Edit, vol jd. p. 66i. (45) " Adhbhanuireach, pun no Ccol as a ttuigthear thri ni " ticauthraighe, Goltraighi agus Suantraighe." Lhuyd ex O'Clerisb. 258 OF THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, kc. which the Bards fung their nocturnal poems in the chambers of their Patrons, (46) or whilft they flept in the fields during military and hunting expeditions. A number cf fongs and tunes on thefe fubjecls are ftill remaining among the people, which are, as we obfervcd before, expreffive and well adapted to the genius of the language ; but none are of ancient date, nor can any of them be properly deemed Bardic. Of thefe Luinmocs, or as the Scots call them, Liinigs, the molt elegant have long been laid before the public, and therefore need not be mentioned here. (47) From this examination of the Mufic of the old inhabitants of Ireland it appears, that their Bards cultivated that art in a flyle equal, if not fuperior to their neigh- bours. But even in this, if compared with the moderns as an Art, candour muft acknowledge that they were nearly barbarians. — Though perhaps it is not juft to compare one with the other, either the ancient with the modern mufic, or the mo- dern with the ancient ; as they were undoubtedly conftruded on different principles. The objeft of the ancients was either to imitate, foothc or excite the paffions. This the moderns pay little attention to ; confined to the rules of art, their princi- pal objeft is to diverfify thofe rules, to produce a variety of compofitions in order to gratify the fluftuating and often depraved tatte of their age, in which the fublime and beautiful are no more found. The feveral arts and fciences cultivated by the human mind are contlantly fluduating, and appear in different periods to have an efflux and reflux, like the waves of the fea. From rude beginnings they gradually rife to a degree of perfedion which nearly approaches the true fublime. But this flage is no fooner obtained, than they immediately decline, and by too great an exaftnefs and minutenefs in their compofition become debilitated and effeminate j preferving neither the gay, wild, or irregular features of youth, nor the fleady, regular and noble appearance of manhood, but covered over with the wrinkles of old age, hobble in a (hort time to the grave of oblivion. Such has conftantly been the fate of the polite arts in general, and of Mufic in particular. Among the Irilh, it probably had attained its utmoil point of perfedion in the time of Cambrenfis, from which period it was on the decline ; and though in fubfcquent ages it was reduced more to a regular art, it ftill continued to decrcafe in vigour, and at length expired with the Bardic Order. or ( |6) Walker's Memoirs of the Iillh BarJ>, p. ;i. (ir) ibia. t 259 ) .**••. •••••. «**•', .»''•. »'**». •'"**,.*'*••,■**'•...•**'.,.**'•* •'*'••, 1****. .•'•'.„••••.,.••••.,.••••.,.•••».,,••'',, t*''*.,«**''»,»**'*t, ••''.,1^'*, ,»"',,,•'*». .»'•». ,»•'•, ,'•'•. ,»•'. + + + + + + + * + +* + ++-l' + + + + + + + + * + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + * + + 4 + + + + + + 't OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. AVERY ingenious (i) friend has favoured the world with an hiftorical effay on this fubjed, wherein tafte and knowledge are happily united. A critical ex- amination of ancient writers has fupplied fonie additional information, and enabled me to make fome additions and correct fome miftakes. Involved in obfcurity, antiquarian topics are not eafily exhaufted, even by the mofl: fedulous inveftlgation, particularly Irilh Antiquities, which, in an enlightened view, are but a new lludy. Ware gives a very flight and imperfect account of the drefs of the ancient Irlfh, and what he advances will be found erroneous ; for the frize mantle reaching to the ankles was not their original, but more modern garb. Very little to be depended on has occurred to me of the ancient Irifli drefs, antecedent to the 8th century ; an Irifli Canon of that age {2) decrees, that every Clerk from the Door-keeper to the Priefl, who fliall be feen without his Tunic, and who does not cover the nakednefa of his belly, fhall be feparated from the Church. The clerical Tunic was at (3) firll a long loofe garment with fleeves, after it was fhortened and came but to the knees ; in either cafe it was a covering fufficiently decent, and therefore the Canon implies that the Irifh ecclefialtlcs wore the fecular drefs which was the (4) Rhcno, a lambfkln or woollen mantle, covering the flioulders, and reaching only to the elbows, leaving the reft of the body naked ; the drefs of the Britons and Germans according to Ceefar and Tacitus. If any reliance is to be placed on the legendary life of St. Cadoc, cited by Ware, the Irilh Coccula, in (5) the (i) Jofcph C. Walker, Efq. Author of the curious and valuaMe Memoirs of the Iri(h Bards, &c. &c. (») S. Patric. Opufc a V\arc, p. 41, 43. Sperling fevcrcly criticifcs Cluvcrius for laying the ancient Germans and Northerns were naked before, as he had no auchorily for fuch an affection. Apud No«. liter. Mar. Bait. 1698. p. 106.. We fee CKiverius was right. (3) Ferrar. de re vefliar. p. iPg. Cafal.de ric. vet, p. 191. (4) Sec Ca:far and Tacituf. Rlienoues velaniina fu;it humerorum. !9dor. 1. 29. t. 13. For the name, Salmas, ID Tcrtuli. de pallio, but more full)', Loctii. Antiq. Suc-Uoth. p. 107, is) Colgan. Aft. Sanfl. Uib. T. i. p. Jjl, 26o OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. the middle of the 6th century was a cloko with a fringed or fhagged border at the neck, ■with an hood to cover the head, this (6) Coccula corrupted from Cucullus demon- flratcs. The Church was frequently obliged by fevere laws, during the (yj middle •ages to renew and enforce the canons refpecling the drefs of the Clergy, who feenied fond of indulging in laical garments. But not one of thefc, as far as I have exa- mined, mention the deplorable excefs to which the Irifli and Anglo-Saxons carried indecency. Some farther explanation is necelfary. The Britons and Northern, from the remoteft ages were accuftomed to mark their fkin with the (8) figures of animals either by way of ornament, or didinction. As it was their greatell pride to have thefe feen, they were confequcntly naked before, the breafl and belly being particularly adorned. In C9) England the praftice conti- nued to the nth century, and even in the 12th it had not gone into difufe ; for William of Malmefbury (10) tells us, the Anglo-Saxons wore Ihort garments, reach- ing only to the knees, their ikins being pundured with ornamental figures. The Irifh defcendcd from the fame (11) (lock with the Anglo-Saxons, and connected by a conflant friendly intercourfe, mufl have acquired the fame cuftoms and manners, and the fads alleged evince the truth of this remark. So that it may fafely be af- firmed, the mod ancient Irifli drefs, of which we have any certain account, was barely a flvin mantle, which the (12) Welfli alfo ufed : this was afterwards changed for a woollen one, the refl: of the body was entirely naked. Doftor Macpherfon properly ("13) obferves that Sagum or Saic was the name of the German ikin mantle, and which it retained when it came to be made of manu- factured wool. Strabo calls the Belgic Gauls, Sagaferi, or wearers of Saga. The word is originally Teutonic, and appears to be fo in all its variations and com- pounds. The ancient Sagum was the fame as the Rheno, with a (14) cowl or hood, covering (6) See the i8th canon of the Council of Clovcdioo, A, D. 747, and 19th canon of Cealchythc, A. D. 7S5, apiid Wilkins and Johnfon. (7) Cone. Mcicns A. D. 88R. Rhcgin. c. 335. Burchard. 1. 2, c. loS. In cone. Lip:iii. and Capit. i. Carloni. Pritfts and Deacons arc inhibited from ufing the Saga of laics. Boniface, Archbifliop of Mtniz docs the fame. £pift. 105. Lindcnbrog. CoJ. 1J73. (8) Pclloutier, Hift. des Ccltes. 'P. I. p. 193. Pinlterton prove* this to be a German cuftoni, and it ftrengthenj what liai been advanced on our colonization. Hift. of Scotland, v. I, p. llB. (9) Pclloutier, fupra. (10) Angli vedibus ad medium genu npcditi, piSuratis ftigmatibus cutem infigniti. De gcll. reg. Anglor. p. 102. (11) Antiquities of Ireland, fupra. (Ilj 'I'hcy called it Yfgin and Yfgacn. Bernard. Etym. Btit. in Sagum. (Ij) Critical UJIT p. IJO. ( 14) Braun. dc vcflit. Mcb. T. 1, p. 583. Spina fagulum infibularc folitoi. Tacit. Germ. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. a6i covering the fhoulders and faflened before with a thorn, ikewer or broche. In the time of Strabo, about the Incarnation, the woollen manufufture was very cxten- five and well underftood in Belgic Gaul. He (15) fays, its wool was coiuTe and fhort, of this they wove Saga, which the Romans (16) called Lsnas. Thofe who lived more to the northward had flocks with very fine wool, which they covered with fkins. It appears from Varro, that the fine woolled flieep of Tarentum and Attica were thus protefted from the weather and dirt, fo precious were their fleeces. The fame excellent geographer goes on to inform us, fo abundant were (he Belgic flocks and herds that they were enabled to fupply, not only Rome with Saga or mantles and fait provifions, but mod other (17) parts of Italy. The Firbolgs or Belgic co- lonies introduced the woollen manufa£lure into this Ifle, and with it the Sagum or mantle. Through every age, the Belgians kept a fuperiority in woollen fabrics. In the 9th century, the Frifons a part of them, made Saga but fo fliort, that infl:ead of covering the whole body, (the fafliion then) they fcarcely came to the thighs, fo that Charlemagne found it necefiary to have them enlarged, by an (18) exprefs law. The Frifon Saga the French called (19) mantles. In the reign of William the Conqueror, thefe Flemings came to (20) England, where they fettled in various places, and improved the natives in the arts of weaving, fulling and dying. Being exceedingly (21) converfant in the working of wool and of trade, and fearlefs of danger, feeking gain by fea and land, there is fl:rong prefumption that numbers of them came to Ireland along with the Welch and other adventurers in the reign of Henry II. particularly as the maritime parts and befl; ports in the Ifle were occu- pied by their countrymen. Thefe notices may be added to the (22) Eflay of the Earl of Charleraont ; here the antiquity of the woollen manufacture is carried much higher than that memoir does. 3 X The {15) Lib. 4 p. 1.55, '3^- Edit. Cafaub. The paffage is difficult and has been mifunderftood, but is clearly eiplained by Ferrar, fup. p. 117, 118. (16) By adhering to thf common pundluation, O'Brien makes Laena a Celtic word. Didlion. in Corplein. (17) AXXa x«j ^01; Tkti^tiii fjctfiri Tn; lra.>-iai. Strab. fup. (18) Pithoci at Karol. M. Capit. p. 76, 77. (19) Mantel ot cher, que teifTirent Frifons. Du Cange in Saga Frefonica. (jO) Lord Lyttlet'in's Hen. li. v. 2, p. 185, 186: Dublin Edit. (ii) Gens lanificiis, gcnsmcrcicmoniis ufitatinima, quocunque labore fine pcriculo terra nurique lucrum quxrcrc. Gir. Canibrens. p. 84S. (iz) Tranfaiiliuns of th:; Royal Irifli Academy. V. 1. p. j3. 262 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. ■ < <•<<<■< *■<■< < * < < < < < i < <<<<■« ■<■-<•<•< ■<-<«-<<-<■■<■<■<■■< <'<4'>->>- >•>■■>■»■■>■■>■>■■>■»■>■■»■>■>■>■>>••* *■>> >■.>■>..>■>■■> >•»'»'>-»>'»•>->>.».. The derivation of Sagum, from the Germaa word ferge cannot be admitted on any ground of analogy or etymology. Serge is an (23; original Teutonic word, and fo is Sack, the latter the Greeks and Romans changed into Sagum, and the (24) French into Sagia, Saiam and Saia. Irilh Sayes or fluH'are thus Ipoken of by an (2j_) Ita- lian poet about 1357. " Similimente pajfamo en Irlanda, " La qital fra noi e degna di fama, " Per le nobile Sale che ci manda." i. e. '■'• In like manner we pafs into Ireland, which among us •' is worthy of renown, for the excellent fluffs flie fends us." From thefe words Lord Charlemont infers, that Ireland at this time was famous for her woollen manufafture. But this conclufion refuUs more from the warmth of patriotifm, than any fubllantial evidence. For had this manufacture been as great, as is pretended. Gilds, as in England, would have been founded, the crown would have looked for a revenue, and the public records in England and Ireland would have preferved traces of it, and our Sayes would probably have been found in the Wardrobe account of Edward I. A.U. 1299, publiilied by the London Society of Antiquaries. Three or four memorials of Irifli cloth, in the records of as many centuries, may evince the exiflence, but never the celebrity of fuch a manufadure. Befides thefe negative proofs, which mufl always carry confiderable weight, I fhall now account for the introduction of our fluffs into Italy, a curious point on which the noble Earl has not touched. A Statute made in Kilkenny, 3 Edward II. AD. 13 10, forbids Irifli Lords to take exorbitant prifages, or heavy duties from merchants, for permilhon of difpofing their commodities within their refpedive territories. This law was enacted in favour of the Frefcobald fociety at Florence, who farmed the king's revenue throughout his dominions, and very (liTnonefHy carried it off, for which Edward (26) applied to the Pope to fecure their perfons and property. Thele merchants imported "Wines, Spices, (13) Killian. DIA. Teat, in Sargic, hence the German Scrg, and the Italian Sa-g!a. Skinner in Serge. (»4) Sail) nihil •'liui e'\ q'lam Sago ; g in i miitato, ^juud in nnftra lingua Gallica trcqucns c!l, in his vocabulis (juai tx Latlnis fun; d.flcia. Salma* in bpartiar. p. iH. (15) TranfailionR, fupra. Seethe 8ih ftatutc of EJward HI. A. D. r376, which feems not favourable to the Italian poet. (i6) Prynne on the 4th Inditutc, p. 143. Andcrfon's Hift. of Commerce, 13th and i.;th ctnturies. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. 263 ••( ( 4 < < < 4 f ( < < 4 < 4 4 < 4 < < < 4- < ■■< -4-4 4 ■< 4 -4 ■« -<-4' 4 -4 4 ■< 4 •<■ 4-' + >- »>>»>■- >■>->■ >• >. >■ >■ >. >.>. >. >■ > »- >- > ^ >■ > >■ >- >. » >. >. >. > >. ^ ,. >. j,^.. Spices, and the Shells of (27) Cocoa-nuts for drinking cups, and took in return our peltry and fayes. The Statute before recited was pafTed to favour this traffic and by thefe means our woollens reached Italy ; they were cheaper and broader than (hofe made there, and from the lafl: circumftance the pott calls them " Nobile faie." As for Ireland being " dcgna di fama," merely for thefe Sayes, or to fuppofc the people polilhed and mercantile, without other concurrent proofs (and there are none) it mult be eneemed only a poetic expreihon. A country over-run with wild animals, and whofe Ikins were its only riches, could be but little advanced in civi- lity and had but few objects of trade. Our noble writer conceives there was a peculiar excellence in Irifh fluffs to induce the Floreniines, who made large quantities of them, to import them. In anfv/er to this, it muft be obferved, that the words, " fra noi," cannot be flrained to mean the Florentines exclufively ; the Italians in general with whom they trafficked, are to be underflood, and for whole fupply the Florentine nianufaclures were inade- quate. In a word, if it was not for the Lombatd merchants, who accidentally opened a trade here, we never fhould have heard of Irifli Sayes in Italy. Giraldus Cambrenfis is the next authentic evidence, of the drefs of the Irifh in the 1 2th century : he (28) tells us they did not manufacture linen or woollen, or exercife any mechanical art. Lynch, who compofed a petulant and illiberal criti- cifm on this refpectable writer, pertly (29) aiks, if the Iriih were fo ignorant, how they came to have mantles with hoods, fallins, lances and axes ? When Cambrenfis- viewed the domeftication, the diet and drefs of the Irilh, and compared them with thofe of the Normans, who were elegantly (30) clad, delicately fed, and inhabiting large vvell built houfes he could not avoid pronouncing the former barbarians, defti- tute of every art aiid fcience , that could adorn or render life comfortable, and as fuch thev would have appeared to every civilized man. That he meant by the fore- going general exprcfiions, the pofitive want of manufactures and mechanic arts can never be I'uppofed, while his writings fupply fo many intimations to the contrary. Take his words as they lie before us, and by mercimonium mufl be underltood, that neither their linens or woollens were objects to invite foreign commerce, and this (37) C'. licit. Je reb. Hlb. No. 5. p. 40. (i'6) Non liiiP, non lanificio, non alitjua mercimoniorum nee ulla mechanicarum zrtium fpecie vitani prrJucunt. Page 7.;9- (■19) Oji brcns. Erers. p. iij. ( 30) Vcllibus ad invidiam culti, cibis delicati, domi ingentia zdiScia. William of Malmfl}. fupra. 264 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. this is what he remarks of the (31) Welfli, his countrymen. Neither the exporta- tion of Saga, the ufe of golden chains, or dyed garments decorated with gold, ijiade Strabo fay the Belgic Gauls were opulent and polifhed ; no, he obferves with all this finery there was fomething (32) barbarous, and uncommon in their nature, and that this was true of all the northern people. But the Editor of the Colleftanea and Lynch affirm the Irifli to have been civilized, becaufe acquainted with weaving and metallurgy ; if fo, then the natives of Africa, America, of Tartary, and all the favages of the new and old world who pradlifed, in fome degree, thefe arts may be faid to be refined: fuch exadly was the refinement of the Iriih, in the 12th century. The Irifh, continues (33) Cambrenfis, are but lightly clad in woollen garments, barbaroufly (haped, and for the mod part black, becaufe the fheep of the country are black. Lynch (34) here remarks, that our author contradifts himfelf, for he elfewhere fays their trowfers were dyed, whereas black will receive no colour. But it is our Hypercritic who errs, for Cambrenfis guardedly makes ufe of an adverb, by which he does not exclude white fheep, and by another (^^) adverb, we learn the trowfe was not invariably dyed. Naturalifts (36) tell us, and with great truth, that the colours of animals are often their greatefl: fecurity from deflrudion : thus the fmaller evade the larger infeds, and thus hares affuming a white colour in winter when fnow abounds, elude their fharp-fighted enemies. What nature thus kindly does for animals, reflection does for man. The Highlanders formerly exercifed in perpetual rapine, the better to conceal themfelves, gave to their clothes an heath-tindure. Thus fings Melville, one of their poets. Verum nunc plurcs fufcum magis amula frondi S^aquc ericina adamant, ut ne lux jlorida vcjiis Splendentis prodat^ rccubantes inque cricctis. The (31) Non mercimoniis, iion navlgiis, non mechanicis artibus, &c, Cambria; dcfcrip. p. 887. Naviglis here juftifies the explanation I have here given. Rymer Fader, v. 3. p. 510. (32) T« hafta'poft ieai rt fx^t;Xei>. l>ib. 4, (33) Lancis eiiini tcruiicr utuniur & his omnibus fcrme nigris, quia terra: iftius oves nigrx funt. Sup. p. 738. Sue- thii);, Scandis populus pellium decora nigrcdinc famofus. Jornandes. (34) Canibrens. Evers. p. 104. ( ,5) Braccis plerunviuc colore fur.ntis p. 738. ( j6) Tarwin's Butunic Garden. Ciir.o l, p, :,5. note Rtbia. Melville apud Tcnnant's tour in Scotland. OF TIIL ANCIENT IRISH DRESS, 25j -^^•< < 4 ■<-< 4-4 -« « •«■« 4 ■< 4 -4 4 -4 ^^.^ 4 -4 -4 4 -4-4-4^-4 4-4 4-» 4 -4.<^+|->.v >-V >>-•-> k-^>->.>.>- >■>-». ►-> >.>■ > >. ) ». ,. > » >. ,-». >-».».>.».,.. " The black, clothing of the IriAi was for the fame purpofe, being the (37) colour of their bogs, their conflant retreats. Cambrenfis next proceeds to an accurate defcription of the Irifli drefs as it was at the arrival of the Engllfh : " They (38) ufually wear moderate clofe capuchins or '* hooded mantles, covering the flioulders and coming down to the elbows, compofed " of various colours and llripes, for the mod part fewed together, under which " they have Fallins or Jackets, and Breeches and Stockings of one piece," This account though very intelligible has as yet been flrangely mifunderftood. The ca- puchin or mantle with its hood covered the head, fhoulders and breafl : the fallin or jacket enclofed the body, and was met by the trowfers, which clothed the thighs and legs and were tied above the hips. It is no lefs extraordinary than true, that this was the drefs of the (39) Belgic Gauls in the age of Strabo. What this author defcribes feems to be the full drefs of one of fuperior rank ; the trowfers loofe and folded, the jacket open before and the (40J fleeves reaching to the fingers, belonged only to the higher clafles. This ancient Teutonic drefs, Strutt has well exprefled in one of his ("41) plates. It would be furprizing indeed to find among the rude Iriih any thing like a pileus or petafus, which the Greeks and Romans long wanted} the (42) Suevi according to Tacitus had only their Cirri, and the Irifh their Coo- ieens. The Birrus, Burrus, and Blretum of the Greek and Roman (43) writers were obvioufly the original of our Birred, the Teutonic Barret. It was (44) a thick, woollen covering for the head and flioulders : it was fynonimous with amphimallus. Juvenal fays : Tempera Santonico z'clas adoperta cuculls. 3 Y . Where {?7) Burlafe's Iriih Ripcllion, p. 75. (58J Capttiis ramquc modicis alTucti funt & arflis, trans hiimeros deorfnni, cubito tenus, protfnCs, »ariifijuc colorum generibus paiir.iciiljn.nnjue pitninqiie cniil'utis : lub quihut plialingis lands qumiue palliorum vice utuntBr, fcii braccis calligatis, feu caliig"» liraccatis. Page 738. Brompton. Chron. p. 1075. Compare this with Sidon. Apollinaris's accoun: of the Gothic drcf!. Epitl. 1. 4, cp. 20. & Savar. in loco. aifuM* xe.i yXuvBiv, .Sirab 1. 4. (40) Xiyj^vTa/ Ultra lirachia & ufque in priniores tnanus ac prope in digltos. Aul. (Jell. I. 7. c. J. (4J) Cluorirli!, V. I. p. J40. It is alfoon the obclitk of Eflie. Cordiner's ruins, No. S. (4t) Madldo rorqucntis cnriiua cirro. Juvenal. (4j) Suid. in Bi/i;ii. Meuts Glofs. in B(ff«. Spelman. Glofs. p 8l. (44) Salmi.!, in Voi ifc. p 39-;— JI4 Tiirncb. Advert I. 18. c. 16. 1. zi. c. 30. 266 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. ; ■< <. ft »m ».-< ' "Where the old Scholiaft interprets this Santonge cowl the Gallic Birrus ; and Mar- tial fhews it was the fame as the BardocucuUus, a fhort travelling mantle. Gallia Santonico veftit ie bardocucuHo, Cercopithecoram panula niiper crat. In latter ages, the Irifli detached the hood from the mantle, and formed it into a conical cap, and gave it the name of Birred. Rational, fober and authenticated inquiries will not fatisfy our Antiquaries ; this cap, common among the Anglo-Sax- ons, and to be feen in Strutt's work before quoted, our Antiquaries make an aca- demic Cap, conferred on the Bards, when they took the degree of Doftors in poetry: a regulation made by Ollamh Fodhla feven or eight centuries before Chrifl:. Such wild and contemptible fictions have long difgraced our Antiquities, and loudly fpeak the want of civility and letters, in thofe who liflen to them. Academies were not incorporated as Univerfities before the 12th or 13th century; antecedent to that, degrees were (45) not conferred. In Ireland there was no Univerfity till 1320. In the Synodic (46) ftatutes of Sodor in the Ifle of Man, A. D. 1239, where the natives were in origin and language Irilh, the Clergyman is direfted to receive as a mortuary, the — Caputium, Pileus or Capella — of the deceafed. The firfl: was the hooded mantle, the fecond the bonnet, and the Lift a (47) fkin or woollen mantle, fhagged on both fides, barely covering the flioulders. The firft was a holy-day drefs, the laft a working garment. Here we perceive an innovation in the drefs, ufed in the age of Cambrenfis, the hood was feparated from the mantle. This diftindion is ftill more vifible in the next century, when the Irifli Chieftains did homage to Richard II, the ('48) relator informs us, " they laid afide their Caps." This Author fays, it was in the reign of the elder James they exchanged the mantle for the long cloke, but it was earlier, as (49) Spenfer teftifies. There is a drawing in (50) Strutt, exhibiting Mac Murrogh the Irifli King and his two attendants, iiluing from a wood to meet Thomas Defpencer Earl of Glocef- ter, in 1399. The king is faid to have a light pink robe over his fhoulders : the figure next to him is in white, with a red Cap, and the third in red, with a white Cap. We fliould be extremely cautious in giving credit to ancient drawings and illuminations, when not fupported by other authority. Tlie prelent inftance is a proof. (4;) Doilor Brcit in the Works of the karncd, No. r. p. 6. Lond. 1711. Robertfon's Charles V. Note %%. (46) Wiikins, fub .Ann. (47) Martin in Capella and Bigerra. Du Cange in voce, (48) Davis's Rclaiions, p. ai — 117. (4^) View, p. ii — 37. (50) Rcg»l and Ecd. Amiq. p. 17. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. 267 proof. The robe never \Aas the national drefs of" the Irllh, befides Froiflart, a co- temporary, tells us, " Ces (51) roys eftoyent bien paris d'jlHuber ua mantel d' Irlande :" thefe kings thought themi'elves well apparelled in an Iri'.h mantle, and Mac Murrogh is named as one of thefe kings. Perhaps the drawing was made after king Richard had ordered, as FroilTart informs us, linen breeches, and gowns of fdk furred with (52) miniver and grey to be provided for them. But furely no one will call this the Irifh drefs, or produce it as fuch. Can\brenfis obferves the Capuchin or hooded mantle had various colours, and patches of cloth, for the mod part fewn together, that is, it was Ihiped either in the loom or with the needle. This was the Gallic (53) Caracalla, a fhort garment compofed of cloth, cut out into parts, and then joined by a taylor. From the words of Cambrcnfis, it is evident thefe Capuchins were not wove whole, but made up of different coloured cloth, a rude fort of foppery, which (54) Strabo found among their anceftors, the Belgic Gauls, and Tacitus among the German*. Lynch, not underdanding Cambrenfis, tell us, inftead of patches and flireds, he ought to have faid the capuchin was (5^) fringed. Cambrenfis put down what he beheld, but his critic had not knowledge enough of our Antiquities, to perceive that the mantle was always rugged within, and that thrums or fringe always appeared round its edge, and that thefe were very different from the flripes of various coloured cloth, in which the ancient Irifh delighted. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, when ruffs were fafhionable, the Irifh imitated them. Inftead of a (^6) cape to their clokes, they had a vaft quantity of thrums or yarn fringe, fo that when the mantle was put up clofe to the nape of the neck, as they ufually wore them, the fringe hung down near a foot long. Having difmiffed Cambrenfis' capuchin, we come next to his Phalang, Falang or Tallin. It is plain from Cambrenfis, Brompton and Camden this was (57) the jacket, Cluverius (58) calls it the doublet, or pourpoint, a habit covering the back, breaft and arms. Lynch, with his ufual ignorance, fays it was the outfide ru'^ cloke : this it could not be, for Cambrenfis defcribes it as worn under the hooded mantle. The name came with the manufadure into this Ifle. Fallen is the Anglo- Saxon (51) Tom. 4. p. 103. {52J See thefe eipbiiied by Skinner, Etjmol. ift voe. (?j) Kerrar. de vcft. p. 6i. (54) Kiir.TX! Bacra, is»i >,»!/;jj-«rr«. Strab. 1. 4. Purpura variant. Tacit. Germ. c. 17. (jj) Supra, p. no. (j6) Cox'i Hift. of IrclariJ. Apparat. V. i. (;') ttWl't. a4Broiuptoa. Skinner in Falang, (58) Summa tellis erat Hibernorum Ixna, fupra, p. no. 26§ \ OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. Saxon (59) Falding, and at firfl: was a fkin mantle like the Sagum, and after a coarfe V'oollen (60) mantle, and equivalent with the amphimallus and birrus. When the Iriih jacket got the name of Fallin. The Braccse, or trowfers were breeches and flockings of one piece. Doflor Mac- pherfon fneeringly remarks, " that if we confult either Lexicographers, or the writers of notes critical and explanatory, we fhall find fome difficulty in fettling the precife meaning of the word Bracca : but every Highlander knows the Bracca was an upper garment of divers colours." This writer as well as every other Antiquary is much indebted to thufe who take the trouble of writing notes, critical or explana- tory, and his own DilTertations are fome proof. Had he confulred thole literary drudges, he v.oulJ not have fo egregiouily blundered in making the Highland breac- can, (the Roman (61) Lacerna) the fame as the ancient Bracca, and that merely from the limilitude of names. The bracca was the favourite drefs of the (62) iS^orth^ns. Pcllibus 'isf /litis arccnt mala frigora braccis. Ovid. With us it only covered the {6'^') thighs and legs, as among the Belgic Gauls, and from the words of Cambrenfis, before given, we learn the Irifh went as (64J com- monly with only the mantle and trowfers, as with the jacket, the latter being proba- bly the full drefs. As the bracca; or trowfers were fometimes coloured (plerunque fucatse) and fometimes not, it is infinitely more likely they were denominated, rather from their firape or figure than from their colour, which was accidental. Hence the name feems to be derived from the Teutonic Broeck, which was Latinized "Bracca, and alluded to the rupture or divifion of the body at the thighs, and fuch is the opinion of the (65) bed critics. In an Icelandic (66) clironicle of the year 1 129, the Irifh drefs is faid to confift of a Skirta, a Ihirt or veft, Broekur, thetrowfe, Mottul, the mantle, and Hotc Irfkan, an Irifh Cap; the trowfers tied with thongs *->a(Ting under the fole of the foot. If there could be any doubt of Cambrenfis* veracity (59) SVInner in vp c, whotkrivfi it from Feald, plica, but il is rather from Fcllc, a (kin. (60) Tyrrwiilt'i C;lofs. to Cluuccr. Voc. Falding. (61) Ferrar ("up. T. j. p. >!. I"or tlic Pcotch drefs, fee Pinkcrton's Scotl.ind. V. 1. p. 7,1. np*r. (62) Totum hraccatum corpus. Mil. I. 2. c. I. Ita liodic Goihi & braccicum nonicn pro fcmoralihjs adhuc plane •:ciiuiiiuni & vcrnnmlum illis eft. Boxliori) hid. univ. I, I. (6^) Thcfc brawca, wire named atssjt/i.oi:. Sec Strab. fupra. riiikcrton's Scotland, V. i. p. ;>;j. for ihc GoibiC drefs. (64) N»itc fupra .19. Such the coiiiii«i51ior, " Scti," implies. {(,<,) Gala ub. in Stut. c. !ii. t>almas. in Tcrtull. dc pallio. c, i. Bravn. fup. p. i)44- Sperrngi^rufri, (66) Johnlloiiv's An:iq. Celto-Scand. p. 24X. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. 2C9 -<-<<<<.<<< « ■« <-<•< < ■< < <-< ■« <•<■■.< « ■< « .«-.< <■<«.< ■«.< < .<.«... I >. ,..►. . ,. ,. ,. ,.,>.,.>..,. , ,. >.,,>. ,.,,. ,,.>..,.,,,.,.,. ,»>►-»•»• >-,»-^M veracity, this account, much earlier than his, diflolves it, both perfectly agree in the ancient drefs of the IriOi. Though Skirta may mean a linen flrirt, yet it was (6j) generally any clol'c under garment, for linen among the northerns was worn only by perfons of (68) rank. In hke manner, the Icelandic hott or hat was any covering for the head, nor is it poflible to determine its form without the aid of drawings. The braccre coming down to the ankles feem to require no latchets, the latter mud have been inconvenient in walking : I therefore think a fort of fandal is to be underftood. Mr. Whitaker imagines the IriOi (69 ) brog or brogue received its name from brae, party-coloured, being variegated like the rell or their drefs. No authority is pro- duced, fo that the conjedure reils on the refemblance between brae, bras; and bro^^. If in remote ages the brogue was made of the (70) dried fkins of beads, and even at prefent of half tanned leather, where (hall we place or find on it that variety of colours Mr. Whitaker fpeaks of? Such allertions gravely and peremptorily made are throwing antiquities again into the dark regions of fable. The old Anglo- Saxon exprcifion " clouted flioen," has been brought to countenance Mr. Whita- ker's explanation, whereas it fimply means " pieced, or as we fay, cobbled fhoes,'* not adorned with patches of various colours, which if ever fafhionable in England^ Avere never in this ifle. And thus the addrefs of the tanner to the king in the baU lad of Edward IV. is to be underdood, " If ever thou corned to merry Tamworth,. " Neate's leather fhall clout thy fhoen." That is, fliall repair thy fiioes, not variegate them with pieces of different colours^. of which fort of finery the tanner could be fuppofed to know very little. Some have believed they favv the origin of brogue in the Irifh brog, an habitation, as if a dioe was the refidence of the foot ; others in broc, a badger, of whofe fkin^ brogues were anciently made. Before I quit this fubject, it has occurred to me, that Cambrenfis's " braccaz caligatje feu caligze braccatas " intimate fomething more than breeches and flockings of one piece: for caligce in (71) ancient and modern writers include the wooden, leathern or (kin fole protecting the foot, as well as th(; 3 z latchets (67) Skinner, in Sliirt. Wliltaker, fup. V. t. p. 230. (68) Pinkerton, Tiipra. (69) Hift. of Manchefler, V. 1. p. ziS. Brog, fays Ihre, is from ihe Sjio-Gotluc Bro, Siratum aljquod. (70) Harris's Ware, p. 17S, (71) Byn.de caic. vet. Nij;rnn. de Calig. Lynch well obferves, " Apud Hibernos, bracca indumentum eft continu- urii non intercifum, foccos, tibialia & ftmoralia coroplcdltns, cjuo uno dut'lu quis pcdibu?, furis ic fcmoribus induat, Sup. p. lit. .70 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. ..<■<-■<-<■<-■««■• ,. >..>. >. >.>..>..>..>. >..>. >. >.», >.>.>. >. >•».>> >..>..) btcheis thnt fecured it round the ankles or inflep : this interpretation perfeftly re- conciles Cambrenfis with the Icelandic chronicle. If ever the Irifii adopted the luxury of long pointed flioes, as (72) Lynch lays they did, it mull have been from the Englifli (yT)) crackovves, about the middle of the 14th century. Or whether the whole foot was covered as at prefent in early ages is not eafy to determine. An ancient Iridi brogue v.-as found in a turf bog in Aghaboe, twelve feet under the furfiicc, refcmbling the North American maugafan, all of one piece, faltened round the inflep by a running ftring. Whether tanned or not could not be afcertained, the leather being coloured and hardened by the water of ferrugineous bog-ore which abounds there. While the Irifli prefcrved their native language and drefs there was no hope of civilizing them, or bringing them to an acquiefcence in Englifii dominion or Englifii laws. Aware of this, the Britifh princes endeavoured early to reduce, by very penal laws, the Irilh to a conformity with their other fubjefts, and for this purpofe were enafted the celebrated (74) (lalute of Kilkenny, A. D. 1395, the 25 Henry VI. 5 Edward IV. and 28 Henry VIII. The lad informs us what was the drefs of the Irifli in 1539, and which the Hiberno-Englifli had adopted ; and hence we find in the aft a inixture of Anglo-Saxon and Irifli names for the diiferent parts and materi- als of which it is compofed. It forbids any to be fliaven or fliorn above the ears, or to wear long locks called j^libbs. At the arrival of the Englifii the Irifli wore long hair and beards, thefe the (75) Normans efleemed barbarous, as they " were (76) all gallant, with coats to the mid knee, head fiiorn, beard fliaved, arms laden with bracelets, and face painted." Henry I. abolilhed long hair with locks and perukes. A very curious (77) inedited ftatule of the 24 Edward I. A. D. 1295, tells us that the Englifli having degenerated in the prcfcnt times clad thenifelvcs in garments like thole of the Irifli, having their (71) Cilccis antcriore parte ill tenucm coiium protcnfis. fup. p. I2j. Mac Geoghafcan's brogue is modern Hill, d' Irlandc. T. i. p. 460. Spclman fays, Vidi juvencs Hibcniicos quofjam ejulmoJi calccis iiidutos, Li curjjides mediocritcr CXtcnd'.-tibiis. Gl'if'). Gallicl.c*. (7) CaniJciis RcTiains, p. 200. (74) Lclaml's Hid. of Ireland, V.I. I. p. j2o. (7() liens h.TC barbara, q lia non ta'tiim batbaro vcUiuni titu, vcrum ccmia & barbis luiuriantibus juxta modernai noviia'€» inculiilTima. Gir Cambrtns p. 7^9. (;6) Camdcn'i Rcmjinj, p 198 — 99 {■)■)) Angtici eiiam quaC dcgeiierc> ni'idcriiis temporibus, hibtrnicalibus fe induuiU vc!limcntis, & habcntcs capita fetui- T»fa, ca:illi>» a rciro cai'i is iiutritunt & alllgant, & l'io» (',ulr.n vocant, Hibcrnicis tar.i babilu quam facie coniiirmantes. C"ncoidanim ell. qimd nmnts .\iiglici i;i hac icrra, fulcim in cs;.i:c r^uod ) !us vilui fe pr;,lciit;ii, mores & tonfuranj jeran'. jVngliii'ruin, ncc anipliusprafumaut avcttete comas in Cvlaiium. Harris's M.SS, apud Dublin Scciciy. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. zji (<.4«4*<44<44<44<<<< <■■< < ■< ■< * < < -<■< + »■ >■ >■ >■>■■»->■ >■ >■ ►■ >■■>■■>■ 1 their heads half fliaven, thtir hair bcliind they let grow, tie up and call it Culan, beiii;j; thus iii drefs and appearance perfectly Irifli. It is therefore agreed, that no EngUniman, at leall fo far as regards the head, (hall any longer prefume to throw back his hair into the coolcn, but obferve the cuftom and tonfure of the Englifii. Mr. Harris's note on this aft or ordinance of flare is, that what is here called Culan, WAS afierwards called Glibb. Thefe Coolecns as they are commonly pronounced, are (78) derived from Culam or Culan to pufii or thrult back, and are well explained by a pailage in (79J Ileftor Boethius, where the Scottidi Cooleen is a twilled lock of hair, the Glibb running from the front to the back of the head, the reft fliaven. This refembled in fome fort the crell of an helmet, and had no inelegant appearance. Spencer remarks how convenient this glibb was for a thief; by cutting it off he became unknown, as well as by bringing it over his face. The aft alfo prohibits letting hnir grow on the upper lip, which is called a Crom- meal. I am unable to analyze this word. A law of the 25th Henry VI. enafts, " that no mancr man, that will be taken for an Englifhman, fliall have no beard above his mouth, that is to fay, that he have no haires on his upper lippe, fo that the faid be once at leall (haven every fortnight, or of equal growth with the ncather lippe." See lilcewife the 5th Edward IV. In the reign of Edward the Confeflbr, the hair of the upper lip was never fliaven unlefs by (80) priefls. The Normans on the contrary, according to this author, let their hair grow and fliaved their faces. Cambreniis, as an old Briton, did not reliili this novelty. Ca:far and Diodorus Si- culus fay, the Gauls, Germans and Britons wore muftaches, fo did the Anglo- Saxons and Iriih, until, in the capricioufnefs of fafliion, the Normans their mailers forbad it. However laws operated no reformation in this ifle, the Irifli had beards to a late period. At a contefled eleftion for Fermanagh, A. D. 1613, Bryan Mac j\Iahon had his beard (81) pulled, but Captain Gower affirmed he only fliook it. The flatute of Henry VIII. goes on to forbid any fliirt, fmock, kerchor, bendel, neckerchor, mocket or linen cap to be dyed with falTron, or to have in a fliirt or fmock above feven flandard yards of cloth. This aft gave rife to various ridiculous notions : the Irifli it was faid, ufed this as it (82) ftrengthened the body and limbs. This (78) O'Brien in voce. (7.;) NuJia Temper opitilnu ii!quc tonfis. rdifl* itiojo in fronte tortula cjpillonjm ac cirro (juodam, nifi xgritudo obftaret, Scoti inccJebant. Pag. II, Tlie Uernian Cirrus was provcrbi.il. Tcrt'j!!. de vel virg. (8.~) Crincs toiiG, barbis in fuperiori labio nunqum rafis, exceptis folis Prefliyteris. Rous, p. Io6. [it) Defidcr. Cur. Hib. p. 344. (8j) Tlirclkcld's SynopCs, toc. Crocus taiivus. 272 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. ■< * ■< *■■< * ■< .< .< ■< .< ■< •< .< < < ■< < < < < .« < < < -« < < < ■< -4 « -4 -4 4 4 4 4 4 ' + > >■ »- » » > . >. ,- >■ >. >■ >■ >- >. >. >. >. >. > >. >. > >. ». ». >. >>.>.» ►^ >->. y »..>. > >,. This was on the fuppofition that faflVon was the tincturing fubftance, which from its Icarcity and dcarnefs it was not : there were abundance of other vegetables known (83) that gave a fine yellow colour. A Portuguefe (84) phyfician alferted that faf- fron was felcfted as a vermifuge, and that the Irifli as well as the Icelanders, wear- ing their fnirts fix months without changing them, ufed it as fuch. The faculty, whofe decifions are always accepted as oracular, gave an extenfive circulation to this idle tale, which was eagerly caught up by Moryfon (S5) and others ; whereas had thefe learned writers confulted Vopifcus, they would have feen the caufe of this predilection in favour of yellow, from the fondnefs of the Belgic Gauls for it. The Emperor Tetricus is reprefented as drelTed after the manner of thefe people : he has his (8C) mantle of imperial purple, his tunic or veR yellow, and he wore the trowfe. Bendel in the flatutc is the Ancflo-Saxon or Teutonic Bendelen, from bende a fwathe or bandage, and exprelfed very well the Irifli word, Bannlamh, fimilar to it in fenfe and found, and fignifying a narrow cloth of a cubit or eighteen inches in breadth, though little at prefent is fo wide. This is vulgarly called handle or bendel linen. Two bandies and an half, or fix yards and three quarters in length of this narrow linen make now a fliirt for a common labourer. The a£t allows feven yards, which is equal to about three yards and an half of yard-wide linen, which is the allowance for the fineft fliirt. (87) The Irifli, fays Moryfon writing in 1588, had in their fliirts twenty or thirty ells, folded in wrinkles and coloured with falfron. Campion makes the quantity thirty yards. We are not certain whether the firil means. Englifli or Flemifli ells, there being between them a difference of eighteen inches in each ell. If we take the thirty yards of the lafl:, there were in an Irifli fliirt or fmock, fix bandies or fifteen yards of yard-wide linen. No one has attempted to explain how fo much linen could (8.?) Sambucinit liaccis ad lana^ Ilavas inficlcnjas. Ramis, cortice & foliis populi arhoris contufis, indiifia iila crocca cfliciunt. Elciu'« At Lis. T. 6. p. 47. Oiher vegctablcj are enumerated by Rutty, Nat. Hid. of Dublin, V. i. (84) Porro apiid Hibcrniam & Iflandium fcimus nos homines femiferos fubiinculis croco infix'tis vcdiri, lit pctllciiloi fugent, quas per fex mcnfct & amplius geftare folcnt. Amit. Lus. cur. morb. ctnt. 7. p. 311. '1 his was written in 1554. Ste Silmas Exerc. Plin. p. 1063, I064. (85) Moryfon's Travcli, p. lUo. Spenfcr, p. 43. I.aurcmbcrp, npuil ThrclkfUi fun. (86) ChlamyJc coccina, tunica galbana, braccis Gallit. Vopifc. in .-Vurcl. St Sahnas. in loco, p. 371. Maniu'.s Wedcm JflanJs f<'r the l.eni Croich. p. jo6. (87) In 154Z, it WIS proclaimed, that noblemen fliouM Iiave but twenty cu'iitu or I'andles of Hnen in ihcJr (birtj; horrcmcii 18; fnoinicn ;6 ; garfons 12; and clowns ten : and that none of their (hirts fliould be dyed with fafTron, on pain of twenty fhillin^'s. Coi, i. p. J7J. I OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. 27^ < 4 •<<<-<<<<< 4 <■<(■■<■< <■*■«■<■< <<<■<< < « < <<<<■<■< -<<<■< ■<+>. could conveniently be difpofcJ of. Cotemporary writers fupply foine hints. Cam- den (88) defcribing the appearance made by Shane O'Neil at the Court of Eliza- beth, A.D. 1562, attended by his GalloglafTes, fays, " the latter bore battle-axes, their heads were bare with locks curled and hanging down, their fliirts ftained with fatfron or human urine, and the fleeves of them large, their vdh rather fliort and their cloaks fhagged." There are fome wretched tranflations of this excellent author, noticed by (Sg) Nicholfon, which convey not only an imperfedl idea of the original but fometimes entirely mifreprefent it. ^Such is that of this padlige which tells us of " yellow furpllces, fh )rt coats, and thrum jackets," not a word of which is in Camden. Spenfer is more explicit, the men, fays he, wear fliirts exceedingly large, flained with fafFron, the fleeves wide and hanging to their knees. He fpeaks elfewhere ol their thick-folded linen fhirts, their long-fleeved fmocks, and. their half fleeveJ coats. This ftatute of Henry Vlll. mentions the mantle and the cote and hood, and Baron Finglas, about the fame time, calls it the Irilh over-flip cote and hood. From hence it is evident that the ancient Fallin, which at firfl had no fleeves, now was half-fleeved and had an hood attached to it, and over all was thrown a long rugged lacerna or cloke, which is ftill in the act called a mantle though it had changed its length. A vefl fcarcely reaching the elbows was well calculated to difplay the barbarous finery of monftrous fleeves, which Spenfer afl^ures VIS hung down to the knees. Though the neck was bare, great folds of this yellow linen adorned the breafl and belly. Spenfer mentions (trait and fhort trufl*es plaited thick in the flcirts above the breeches. Thefe I apprehend (for no notice has been taken of them) were great folds of linen furrounding the waift, and ferving inftead of a veft, of which he gives no account. According to Spenfer, the women wrapped great wreaths of linen round their heads, and brought their hair over them, which, as he remarks, was rather nnfightly. Moryfon refembles this head-drels to a Turkifli turban, but that the latter is round at top, whereas the former is flat and broader in the fides. This is nearly the fame as the (qo) Ofl'an prcaflagh, or the great plaited (locking of enormous length worn about the head by the women of Breadalbane. Lynch declares it was a genuine (91) ^ . 4 A German (SS) Cum fec'.irigero GalloglalTorum (atcUitin, capltiliiis inijis, crifpatis cincmnis cIcpen(fentil)iH, camiCis flavis croco vcl humana urina infcAis, manicis largioribus, luiiiculis brcvioribus & Uceniis villofis. Hill. huz. p. 69. (S9) Englifh Hift. Library, p. 87. (go) Peniiaiu''5 Tour in Scotland. j\nd Lynch : Quid mcmorem vulgaria ilia e lino pcpla, qtionim pluribus fpirij mulicres capila obvolvcbant, aut ricas aiiquaruni eliam laminaruni operinicnta. Sup. p. Hi, (91) Gerniano Ocrmanaram imilicrani mere. Sup. p. 125. And Spenfer, fupra. 274 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. .< <<<■<< •< .« < -4 <• < ■« < < .< < < < < ■<<<<<<< < < « < < < < « « <■<<< + •>> > > > . > > > > > . > » > > > > > >■ >■ >■ ►■ > »• >■ > ► > > ► >■ >■ ► >• > ► ♦■», German cuilom. The fame was the adorning their necks with chains and carknets, and their arms with bracelets. The fuppreflion of monafteries, and the reformation of religion in ths reigns of Henry VIII. and Elizabeth had more powerful operation in reclaiming the Irifli from barbarifm and evil morals than the fevered: laws. The fettlement of Englifh colonics in different parts of the kingdom, their domeflic and perfonal neatnefs ; their active induftry, fupplying them with all the conveniencies and comforts of life, their rati- onal religion, looking for happinefs from their own exertions, inftead of blindly repofing on the merits of imaginary Saints, all confpired to awaken in the minds of the natives, a lively fenfe of their own wretchednefs, groaning beneath the op- preflion of temporal and fpiritual tyranny, from which however they were not com- pletely emancipated, but by the abolition of the Brehon law in the Sixth year of the elder James. Submitting to the laws of England, and appealing to their deci- fions at AiFizes and Seffions, their intercourfe with the Englifh in thofe great affem- blies became frequent and neceflary ; their fondnefs for their ancient cuftoms and drefs diminiflied, and the better fort laid afide their trowfers, their fallins and glibbs. Sir John Davis adds, that now they changed their mantles for clokes, but from Spenfer's account of the mantle, which from covering the whole body mufl: have been a cloke, this change began many years before the reign of James. After this fafhions multiplied prodigioufly, fcarcely a fliip or palTenger that arrived here from (92) Cheftcr but introduced a new one. Retentive of their old habits, the common country people dill preferved the mantle, but Elurd being deputy-governor of Gal- way under Colonel Peter Stubber, iilucd an order to prohibit the wearing of it, which he enforced, (as was ufual with all Cromwell's officers; with fuch feveri^ty, that it came to be every where laid afide. Lynch, who was probably in Galway at this time, gives a very (93) laughable account of the appearance of the people there, who, having nothing but the mantle to cover their upper parts, ran half naked about the town, Ihrouded in table cloths, pieces of tapeftry, and rags of all colours and forms, fo that they looked as if they had juft efcaped from Bedlam. The Plate, which is curious, refers to the following tranfaftion recorded in the Pacata Hibernica. On the loth of April 1600, Sir George Carew, Lord Prefidcnt of Munfter, and the Earl of Thomond accompanied the Earl of Ormond to a parley (9z) Vix enim vcflor u'l ii Ceflru Dublinium tranfmitt, ijui non fit itc fituuJ, ut novum iuJumcnti morc.T. virii ac firminis gcftanduni rcftrat. Cambrcnt. liven, p. i;. (jj) CumbicDs. Evert, fupr*. OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. 275 parley with Owny Mac Rory O'More, the chieftain of Leix. They raer at a place fomewhcre near Cadlecomer, on the borders of Ormond's and O'More's countries. The former was adviled to bring his troop of two hundred horfe and one hundred of the Prefident's as a guard, and to prevent a furprize. This was rejefted as un- neceffary, for Orniond, who had frequently reduced the O'Mores to obedience, and obliged them to fue for peace, imagined his prefence was fufficient to intimidate him from any treacherous defign, and therefore he proceeded to the conference with only feventeen armed horfemen, with about as many more of lawyers, merchants and others upon hacknies, with only their fwords, whofe curiofity led them from Kilkenny, the place of meeting being but eight miles from that city. The fpot where both parties aflembled, was an heath ground, of no great extent, furrounded by a low flirubby boggy wood. O'More was attended by a troop of choice pikemen, and behind him the wood clofed to a narrow pafs ; beyond which he had five hundred men, the bed appointed and furniflied for war of any in the kingdom. Thefe were concealed from view. The Earl of Ormond difcourfed with O'More for more than an hour, and after defired to fee James Archer a Jefuit, who had been an adive inflrument in fomenting rebellion, and in bringing afterwards the Spaniards to this Ifle, on whofe defeat he fled to Spain. While Ormond was upbraiding Archer for his conduft, 0'More*s men were forming an ambufcade, creeping into the wood, and concealing themfelves and arms: others were carelefly mixing, and talking with Ormond's party, and increafing in numbers formed a croud about them. The Earl of Thomond on looking round ■was alarmed, and requefted O'More to order his men to retire. The Prefident on turning his horfe about, was inftantly feized by O'More, but extricated by Lord Thomond who rid on the rebel. Melaghlin O'More laid hold on Ormond, who having a weak horfe, was unable to difcngage himfelf, which the Prefident and Thomond did by the flrength and goodnefs of theirs : the latter was wounded in the back by a pike, and the Irifli threw their (keins and pikes in fhowers at the Englifli party, all of whom mufl have been made prifoners as well as Ormond, had . O'More communicated his defigns to his forces ; but he was afraid to Intrufl more than four Bonaughts and two Leinfter men left it fliould be difcovered to Ormond, who had much interefl and many fpies. Ormond continued a prifoner with O'More, until the icth of June following, when he was liberated on delivering hollages for the payment of ;^3ooo. On the 17th of the enfuing Augufl O'Mort; himfelf was flain in a Ikirmilh in Leix, with the Lord Deputy Mountjoy. T'.jre ■xo» 2;6 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH DRESS. There are two drawings of the taking of the Earl of Ormond, which belong to two diftinft points of time. That In the Pacata Hibernia refers to the moment of meeting, when both parties were ranged oppofite to each other and the parley begin- ning. The iketch in Trinity College Dublin, here engraved, fliows the taking of the Earl after the conference : both fully confirm what has been here advanced on ■Irifli drefs in the preceding pages. The Irifli appear with the conical cap, the remains of their caputium or capuchin. That on O'More is blue. He has on the fallin and trowfe, which are yellow, the ancient and favourite national colour : his cloke is fliort and rugged about his neck, the colour red. Archer, who Hands near him, as an ecclefiaftic has a broad-brim- med hat, and long black cloke, his trowfe is pink, and what is very remarkable his fallin is yellow. This prefervation of the coRume in the fketch inclines me to think it was made by a perfon who was on the fpot, perhaps by Sir George Carew himfelf, afterwards Earl of Totnefs, an accompliflied nobleman. The Irifli, fays Moryfon," delighted in fmiple light colours, as red and yellow. ON I N 9 s s ? .^ r ■ i c ^ s \ ^ ^ \ \ V s< n: ^ $ i V "^ i ^ ^' L< Si • 3 . V r-rmtl/il p. 2 I . /,;. % m.i.p~>7- ( 277 ) ;J + + + + + + + + + + + * + + + ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++*++/ o ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. NE of the Rrongeft proofs that can be alleged of the uncivilized (late of the . ^ IriiTi to a la.-e period, is our little knowledge of their military aftairs. ^ Ante- cedent to thcfe coUeaions, a conncfted account of this branch oF our antiquities would fcarcely fill two p.ges. The novelty of the fubjeft, it is therefore hoped, will excufe the multiplicity of citations, which feem indifpenfably necelTary to give au- thenticity to the detail. TheCeltes, the primseval Inhabitants of the Ifle, were a timid and unwavhke race. Few in number and difperfed, they wandered over the country without infringing the bounds, or exciting the jcaloufy of neighbours. As ihey increafed, contentions arofe, ac^is of violence fucceeded, places of refuge were fought for, and oftenfive weapons and defenfive armour became interefting objeds. In treating of Irini coins It has been fliewn, that there are not any original Celtic names for metals ; confequently the Celtic weapons and fortreffes were fimilar to ihofe of every rude people: any improvement in either is clearly derived from the Bel'^'Ic and Northern colonids. The Irifli, fays (i) Giraldus Cambrenfis, in 1185, have no caftles, their woods ferve them 'for 'camps, and their marOies for ditches. Lhuyd, in his Synonymes for caltellum, gives us Tonnach, Babhun, Daingean, all denoting earth-defences, furmounted with ftakes. It was Turgefms, according to Cambrenfis, and his Oilmen who formed that infinite (2) number of earthen forts, and caWes made of lime and ftone, fimilar to thofe exiiling in their (3) native country. By caftlcs, Cambrenfis means the Keep, the Citadel or higheft part of thcfe lofty forts. So that, according 4B to f,) Hibernicusenlm populus cattella non curant. Sylvls namque pro caQris, paludibus mitur pro foffatls. Page 748. He has a cu.L.us chapter - CL'aliter Hibernka Ren. ,ic eipug.ianda.- p. 809, coufirming what h her. advanced. For ihe Wclfh callles of the ftmc period, fee page 809. • 1 !t (1) Und- & foffata infi.iita, alta nmiis, rot>[iiJd .pioque ac pleraque trip'.icia. Gir. CamJrcns. p. 74B. (;,) Rudera t^lium caftellorum a Scandinavii* .«truaa, quara plu'rima, turn in Scotia turn in H.berma extant. John- aoneai Lodbrokar quida, p. 51. 278 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. to this author, the Irifh had no fortreffes, but flieltcred themfelves in woods and bo^-s. Perched aloft on thefe eminences, thefe Firbolgian forts rcfemblcd the ayries of ravenous birds, and were properly termed (4) " nids de tyrannic ;" and in Cam- brenfis we find Turgefius recommending to the King of Meath, who afked him how he could rid his kingdom of thefe peftilent birds, the Oftnun, (5) deftroy thtir nefls every where, anfwered the Uanift prince. In relating thefe things no one will be fo weak and prejudiced as to affirm, that Canibrenfis had any defign or motive to fwerve from truth ; he fairly reprefents what he faw, nor was he inattentive to tradition, or the literary 'documents of the natives, for he frequently refers to both. Walfh (6) complains, " that being en- franchifed from the tyranny of Turgefius, we refigned ourfelves to eafe and unmaf- culine lazinefs ; neglected navigation and fleets, which alone could fecure us from frefh attacks ; and were fo far blinded as to flight all the Danifh fortifications, making none in their ftead, not even in the fea-ports." I cannot think therefore (7) with Mr. Harris, who inconfiderately argues for the Celtic original of thefe forts from their Irifii appellation of Rath, v.'hich though it figuratively imports a fortrefs, primarily fignified fecurity. It is probable Rath is a Teutonic word, for we find in (S) Ger- many, Junker-raht, Immer-raht, Raht-Vorwald, and applied to artificial mounts and places of defence as in Ireland, " Rath," fays (9) Hanmer, " whereof there are many in Ireland made by the Danes, if Bede had not faid it was a Saxon word. I would have faid it had been Britifh." Tradition gives them to the Northerns, and calls them (10) Danes' Raths. Ware rightly believes them to be (he fame as the Brigantian caflles mentioned by Juvenal : Dime Maurorum attegias, caJleUa Brigantium. Thefe raths, always on high ground, are of different (11) dimenfions ; fome not meafuring more than ten or fifteen yards in diameter ; others contain eighteen or twenty Englifh acres. They were always proportioned (12) to the property and power of the Toparch. Round thefe the clan refided, and within thefe they retreated from danger. Many of them are artificial, with fubterraneous chambers and fally- ports. (4) Hearne's Amiq. difcourfes, p. Ijt. (5) Nidoscnrum ubiquc deftnienilos, de caftcltii Norwagienfium hoc interpretantej. Gir. Camb. p. 749, f6) Profpca, p. 51. (7) Ware's Antiq. p. 137. (8) Rmi, mon.vcE. Germ. p. 118, (9) Chronicle, p. Ii. (10) Waraidifq. p iJJ. , (l I ) Hid. County Down, p. 114, (12) Pctt)i'» pol, anaiomy, p. lOj. i" 1 . A X ofth. M O T t. 2kf oiia c o fHil Jill ■ ^C^,W,^/y /y X^^ *~v,. I y/ />r,y^ .y^:^,^ _/WrfA ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. 279 ports. Spenfer informs (13) us " it was a great ufe among the Irifli to make aflem- blles upon a rath or hill, there to parley about matters and wrongs between town- fliip and town/hip." From this circumflance of its being a place of judicature^ as well as the refidence of the chieftain. It obtained another name, that of (14) Lios, or the Court. Hence Lis and Leafa, the names of many places, as Lifmore, Lif- towel, Lifbigny, Lifanure, and Leas or Leix, a diflricl in the Queen's County. Thefe raths or hills were, according to the diale£t of the foreign tribe that pofTefTed them, named Motes. Mota, in the (15) Icelandic, is a place of meeting. The Mote of Monacoghlan, in the parifh of Aghaboe, is an high artificial hill, furrounded by entrenchments, and defended by outworks, the refidence of a toparch fubordi- nate to Mac guil Phadruig, or Fitz Patrick, Prince of OlTory. Thefe raths and motes were likewife named Talk-motes, Mute-hills, and Laws. The Mote of Mo- nacoghlan is alfo by the common people called Larah, a word which does not appear in Lhuyd's or O'Brien's Diftionaries, but is feen in the Perth Agricultural Survey, page 5:8, where Larach iy an ri, is — the ruins of the King's houfe. Here, as in- numberlefs other inflances, we perceive the imperfeftion of the Irifh language. The (16) Dun or Din was another fort of fort, and the fame as the Welfii Dinas. This originally was an infulated rock, as is proved by the application of it to Dun- amafe, (17) Dundunolf, and others. (18) Smith and (19) O'Conor confound the Dun with the next kind of Irifli fortrefs called (20) Daingean, exprefling a clofe, fecure place. This the Englifli ftyled a Bawn, from the Teutonic Bawen, to con- ftruft and fecure with branches of trees : a defence praftifed in the (21) Homeric as well as in every other age, and by every people. In this way the firft Englifli adventurers fecured their pods at (22) Ferns and Idrone. When King Dermod entered OjTory, he found that its prince, Donald, had ''23) plafhed a pace. Plafliing, from the Franco-Gallic plefler, is to intwine, and equivalent to the Teutonic bawen ; fo (13) View, p. 54— SS- (14) O'Brien in Lios. Baxter in Duronrnum. Hanmer, p. II. Rowland's Mona Antiqu. p. n6. Leg, Wa'J, .577- C15) Lodbrokar quida, p. 6i — 63. {i5) O'Brien in voce. (17) Subrupe quadam marina quae Dundunolf dicitur. Oir. Cambrens. p. 767. (18) Hift. Water»'ord, p. 353. (19) Diff. p. 81. (zo) O'Brien i,i voce. Qittiv nprfii, Horn. U. Iz. ' Non te folTa patens, nee hifpidarum Objedlu fudium corouat agger. Sid. Apol. ad Karb. lit) GIr. Cambrens. p. 764— 774. (13) Regan, apud Harris's Hibcrnic*. 2 So ON THE MILITARY ANTIC)UITIES OF IRELAND. fo that plafliing a pace was to flrengthen the top of the valhini \vith flakes, inter- lacing fhem with branches. Four hundred years after the Irifh had the fame praclice. " Within (24) half a mile of fhe entrance of the Moiry, the Engiifii found that pace by which they were to pafs, being naturally one of the moft difficult paflages in Ireland, fortified with good art and admirable indudry ; the enemy having raifed from mountain to mountain, and from wood to wood, and bog to bog, long tra- •verfes, with huge and high flankers of great flones, mingled with turf, and flaked down on both fides with palifadcs wattled." Such feems to be the principal warlike conflruftlon.; and defences of the Irifli previous to the arrival of the Englifh in 1169, when large and flrong caflles of lime and flone were erected. Let us next confider the military weapons of this period- Keating (25) amufes us with the bardic tale of the Fine Eirion, or national mili- tia ; which in time of peace amounted to 9000 men, but was increafed in time of war. It is not the leafl furprizing part of this fabulous narration that they had colonels, captains, lieutenants, and ferjeants : that no foldier was to be received who had not a poetical genius, and was well acquainted with the twelve books of poetry : that he was to be fo fwift and light of foot, as not to break a rotten flick by treading on it ; that he wa? to leap over a tree as high as his forehead, and to ftoop under one as low as his knees, and that he was to take an oath of fidelity and allegiance. " Thefe (to ufe Shakefpeare's phrafe,) were like Pharoah's foldiers in the reechy painting." Thefi^ wild and ridiculous tales ferved to amufe an ignorant, credulous, and barbarous age, and to the difgrace of common fenfe, find admirers and advocates in modern times. Where were the Fine Eirion, fo famous under the Irifh monarch Gcadhna, feven centuries before our xra, to prevent the defolation of the ifland by perpetual internal commotions ? Were there no remains of them in the 7th and 8th centuries, when the Oilmen over-ran the country, or in the 12th, when fixteen hundred Welfljmen marched triumphant through every part, and laid the foundation of the Britifh dominstion? Antecedent to the coming of the Belgic colonies, and probably during fome fub- fcqueni ages, ftone hatchets and fpears and arrows headed with flints or flones were only in ufe. In the age of Tacitus, ihc Fenns or Finns armed t! '.r (26) arrows with bones. It can never be conceived, how barbarous and ignorant foever the Celtes (14) Moryfoii'shift. (15) Hlft. p: 133. (lO) Fcnnorum, fob in fagittii fpes, quas inopii fcrri oflibus afperant. Tac. Germ. c. 46. .-^r'^*•r♦ V-j|iM***i V*. . V h'lG. J Tie. s yj (i. i- VIS. JTJG. i , [^5\A FIG S _ . W no. I li... f '/■//.>. ' ///f/t/- AfV//r.i t^/' '^/M.V,i^/^jUn^^,u^j, )f}«/Ay^ ,/r C/'^M'?c:7 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. 281 ■■* <■<■<■< 4 < -« < ■<■< ■<..< .* .< ■<■<■<■< -4 .< .< '<.<<.<<.'<■<■■< <■« ■<■<-<■<■< ■<■<■< + » >■■>■>■>.>■>■ >->. > >> h >. ►■>.>. 1 >">'•>'*"»' >'>'>' >' 1 Celtes were, that they would have made their battle-axes and fpear heads of ftone, and this with great difficulty and labour in the execution, if they were acquainted with metals. The Britons had fcythed chariots when CtEfar writ, fo that the fabri- cation and ufe of thefe (tone weapons muft have been much earlier. It is (27) a groundlefs fuggcRion, that thefe ftone implements might have ferved domeftic rather than warlike purpofes. We know that the North American tomihawk is frequently applied to cutting branches of trees to form wigwams, and is alfo ufed as a pipe for fmoking, and yet it is a dangerous and principal military inftrument of favages. In Normandy, ftone hatchets were found placed under the fculls of ikelctons, and near lay fpears and lances made of bone, and arrow-heads of bone and ftone. Surely thefe were military (28) weapons, and as fuch interred with this warrior. The Celtes, from praftice, having acquired a dexterity in ufmg the ftone hatchet, the Firbolgs made brafs ones of the fame fhape. Dodor Lort (29) was ftruck with the exaft fimilarity of both, and declares that the ftone furniftied the idea of the metal one. Many of thefe brazen Celts, as they are called, have a loop or ear on their fides, and annular mouldings, which ftrengthencd the inftrument, of thefe ftone ones were not fufceptible. Thefe ears have puzzled antiquaries, v/ho imagined they were for a thong, which facilitated the ufe of the weapon : but examining the fockets, which all thefe celts have, it is incredible to fuppofe thefe ears could be for any other purpofe but that of a more eafy carriage, when a number could be tied together without handles : the latter eafdy procured in a country almoft a foreft : or they might have been flung acrofs their ftioulder with their handles, or fufpended at their fides as has (30) been conjedured. Moft of thefe celts are from eight to twelve inches long, and of various thicknefies : fome refemble ftone-hammers, others have obtufe points like a pick-axe, and many are fliaped like a fmall hatchet, fome have perforations for an helve, and others are fmoothed, to be held in the hand : they are generally of clofe grit or granite. When fuch inftruments as brazen celts were fabricated, it was not difficult to' make brazen fv/ords, and they have been difcovered, at diflerent times, in great numbers in this ifle. Solinus, in the third century, fays the Iriih poliftied the teeth of fea animals to adorn the hilts of their fwords, and that their greateft glory was 4 c in (a;) ArcliafoloKia, V. I. p. lU. (18) Archieolog. V. 2. Ploit's Stafford, p, 396. Lewis's ifle of Thanct, p. 19. A curious celr, pale green and Ttell poliilied w3< found in a grave in Holftcin. Nov. lit. maris Bait. Nov. 1700, p. 342. (29) Archaeologia, V. 5 p. 118. (30; Whitaker's Mancheftcr, V. i. p. ij. 2S2 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. -4-<~4-4 4 -A-K 4-4 -4 -4 -4 -4 ■4--4-4-<-4-<-< •<-><-4'4~4-4 '4-4"4 4-4 -4-< ■4'<'-4 -<.^<4'f ^-•>-->- >->">">^»'>">->->- »- X-k- ►■>-»■ >■ >■>■>->-»■■■» >■>■>->->■>■>>•►■> *-►■>- in the (31) brightnefs of their arms. He does not mention of what mcial they were compofed, it is probable it was of mixt brafs, which did not eafily ruft, and was very refplcndent. To beheve the (32) brafs fwords found in the bog of CuUen in the county of Tipperary were of the fame manufacture as the Carthaginian ones met with at Cannce in Italy, is an antiquarian reverie, branching from the ridiculous Phsenician fyltem of fome authors. The compofition of the metal may be the fame, but the fhape demonllrates them to belong to a very different people. It would be no eafy matter to prove that tlie Cannae fwords were real Carthaginian ones, dropt there 2000 years ago ; for hiflorians fay, but 1500 Africans and Spaniards fell, and more than 45,000 Romans. Is it not therefore a fhameful perverfion of common fenfc to fay, that the Cannss fwords are more likely to be African than Roman : befides Canna; was noted for being the theatre of other great battles in after ages, as well as for that betv/een Hannibal and the Romans. Now it is well known (33) from ancient writers that it muft be the celebrated Spanifh fwords with which Han- nibal's army was furniflied, and as well known that they were fliort. Cantaber exiguis Sff longis Tcutomts annis. Whereas the Roman were, like thofe found in Ireland, long and (34) heavy, by which they penetrated the armour to the very body. The Carthaginians never vifit- ed the frozen regions of the North, and yet brazen fwords, arrow-heads, fpurs, copper daggers, golden fepulchral urns, a mund harp of gilt copper, and other metallic implements have been (35) difcovered there. Giraidus Cambrenfis, who with his countrymen bore a part In the Irifh wars towards the end of the twelfth century, is our beft authority for the military weapons of the ancient Irifli. He (36) tells us, they had long lances, two darts, broad axes, and threw Hones with great quicknefs, force, and eflefl:. Diodorus SIculus lays, the (37) Gauls throw fpears, which they call lances. The (38J Suevi ufed them. The lance was of various lengths, for throwing, or clofe engagement ; but as the Irifli were furnifhed with darts for throwing, their lances muft have been long. The (jl) Pr.xcipui viris gloria eft in arraorum nittela. Solin. Kilit, Salmas. p. 42, (32) Arcliacologia, V. 3. p. 358. (33) Lipf. lie milit. Roman. I. 3. (34) Mcc^aipott ixf/wv aT« ^aftlt xctt zaroi^ofetf ita Tettrat «:rXv ;^aipi/(arj tri ra ta/uuTa. Plutarch in ^mil. (3c) Cypra:i ai:n. ccc. t 1. Worm. Mon. Dan. p. 47. Pliil. Tranl". for 170J, &c. (36) l.anccis loiigis & jacuHs binis, fccuribus > ' > ' " '■ '■ '■ » ' ' ' ' >.>...>...>>>>>..»>. Mr. Pennant (59) mentions the Scotch Earnangh and Gilli-glafics, and Hamilton's letters (60) conctrning the coaft of Autruut throw feme light on this fubjcd. Stanihurd's (61) account of the morals and conuucl of the Gallo-glaifes is fimilar to that of Spenfer's of the Kerns, The Bonoughts were foldiers hired by one chief from another to increafe his force, and they were fupported by a cefs called after their name. To meet the Englifh with any degree of equality in the field the Irifli were obliged to make alterations in their ancient arms, and they foon became almolt the fame. The Hobillers had lances, bows, arrows, and fwords. Few at firfl: wore mail, but in Spenfer's age the Irifli horfeman had his long hofe, his riding (hoes of cofllv cordovan, his hacqueton or doublet (luffed with wool or cotton, and his hau- bertreon or fliort coat of mail. Spenfer remarks the ridiculous military foppery of the Irifli, who wore the hacqueton under a fliirt of mail ; it was framed, fays he, to be worn in war only, but to ufe it daily at home in towns and civil places is a rude habit and mofl: uncomely, feeming like a player's (62) painted coat. Imitating the cuHom of the Englifli, our Hobillers feldom (Gt,) rid on geldings ; to be feen on a mare was highly difgraceful. In 1596 the IriOi were accoutred exadly like the (64) Englifii cavalry : the flrong brafs bit, the Aiding reins, the fliank pillion, the manner of mounting, the fafhion of riding, the charging of the fpear over the head, the form of the fpear, and the whole horfe-furniture were common among the Irifli and introduced by the Britifli colonifl:s. Spenfer defcribes the Galloglafs as dreffed in a long fliirt of mail down to the calf of his leg, with a broad axe in his hand : Stanihurfl adds, that the axe was double edged and as fliarp as a razor, and Ware informs us, he had a bacinct or iron hehnet and a long fword. I do not recolle(5l to have feen any military weapon which exaftly anfwers the defcription of thefe Irifli axes, and yet they were the ufual arms of the C65J Oilmen. Camden (66) fays, O'Neil's Galloglalles, in 1562, bore battle-axes, their heads were bare, with locks curled and hanging down, their fliirts flained (59) Tour in Scotland, V. j. p. 227. Ed. Dublin. Thcfe were our Kerns and Galloglaflcs. (60) Page 120. (61) Supra, p. 41 — 42. (62) He forgot tliat it was a continuation of the Irith cuHom of conOantly going armed, before noticed. (6j) Canteriis raro advehuntur. Nil turpiuj quam in equa fedcrc. Stanihurll, p. 41. Grofe, fup. V. i. p. 10?. (64) Spcnfcr, p. 49. (6;) Bipcnnibui fccurihufque frequenter armaii cruni majorei noftri, qux Danis familiaria crant arnu. Barthul.p, 58a. (66) Hift. Eliz. p. 69. ON THE MILITARY ANTIQITITIES OF IRELAND. 287 - < < < < ■< •< ■< ■< * ■« ■<<■<< -*. < < A ■< ■< ■« ■< i A ■< ■< ■< ■< ■<■< ■<**<<■<*■< *-i-- >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ > >■ >■■>■ *■ >■>■>■ >■ >■ >■ > >■ >■ >■ > > >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >• y >■ y> > >■ > ►- ftained with fafFron or human urine, the fleeves of them large, their veils rather fliort, and their clokes fhagged. The Kerns were the light armed infantry and had fwords and javelins to which a (67) thong was faftencd ; the latter they (68) twirled violently and fent with amazing force and execution ; in the Roman times they exceeded the diflance of an arrow by a fourth. .^ale quater jaculo fpatium-, ter ariindine vincas. Statius. The late ingenious Mr. Grofe, I think, does not mention this pradice in his curious work on ancient armour and weapons. It was (69) faid to be invented by the iEtolians and adopted by the Romans. The thong or cord was tied round the dart, and that faflened to the fore fingers. Amentum digiiis tetide prioribus, Et totis jaculum dirigc viribus. Senfxa Hypol. "When the air was (70) moift, or they received wet, the cords loft their elafticity., I fhould imagine this weapon was derived to us through the medium of our Firbol- gian anceftors from the Romans, the former having probably felt its force and effea. Our Skene is evidently (71) a contraftion of the Anglo-Saxon Segene, a fhort fword. The fkene was fometimes a foot and a half long, fometimes fhorter, and was a Firbolgian inftrument. When the Irifh did homage to Richard II. they laid afide, as Davis tells us, their caps, fkenes, and girdles. This alfo was (72) a German pradice when a vafl'al approached his lord. In the poem of Robin Hood, in the ingenious Bifliop of Dromore's Reliques, the Irilh (kene and Irilh decapita- tion arc mentioned. Robin pull'd forth an Irifh knife And nick'd Sir Guy in the face. That he was ne'er on woman born Could know whofe head it was : He (67) Stanihui-ft, p. 41. The Daltin? uTed the fame. Warxi difq. p. 6j. (68) Ifti Kami hauas amcntatas toris viribufque ajco viriliter torquent, ut eas, inftar circuli, inorbitulatum gyrum compelli exiflimares. Stanihurft, p. 42. (69) Pliii. 1. 7. c. 56. Heyfch. in MaxyKuXst. Xenophon. Anab. 1. 5. (70) (Tuod humor amenta jaculoruni moliverat. Liy. 1. 37. (71) Skinner, in Skene. (7i) Antcquam vafjllus accedat ad Dominunj, gladiuin, cultellum & calculwia dcponat. quia fi in hij fe ccglexeric* rent ell poena. Jus feud. Sax. c. 31. f. j. i8S ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUIHES OF IRELAND. •< A < < •< ■< < ■< i < -< -4 < * 4 4 4 .< ' > > ►->■>>■•>■»■►• He toolc Sir Guy's hcatl by the hair, And ftuck it upon his bow's end, " Thou hafl been a traitor all thy life " Which things mud have an end." Whether Robin Hood came to Ireland and became fo expert at beheading and the tife of the Ikene is doubtful, but it is certain, the Irifli wei-e as remarkable as their ¥irbulgian anceltors for (73) decapitation. When our (74) Hobillers rid over and proltrated the enemy our Kerns immediately deprived them of their heads. The Irifli had (75) iron gauntlets, which were fubilitutes for the fliield. Of their bows and arrows, Spenfor fays, " the Irifli fliort bows and little quivers with fiiort bearded arrows are very Scythian, as you may read in Olaus Magnus. Thefe boM's are not above three quarters of a yard long, with a firing of wreathed hemp, flackly bent, and their arrows not above half an ell long, tipped with fteel heads made like common broad arrow heads, but much more fharp and {lender, that they enter into a man or horfe mod cruelly, notwithdanding that they are Ihot forth weakly. Their going to battle without armour on their bodies or heads, but truding to the thicknefs of their glibbs, the which they fay will rometimes bear off a good droke, is mere Scythian, as you may fee in the images of the old Scythes and Scots, as fet forth by Herodian and others. Befides their confufed kind of march in heaps, without any order or array, their clafliing of fwords together, thtir fierce running upon their enemies, and manner of flight refembleth altogether that which is rea i in hidories to have been ufed by the Scythians ; by which it might almod infallibly be gathered, that the Irifli are very Scots or Scythians originally, though fmce inter- mingled with many other nations repairing and joining unto them." William the Conqueror fird encouraged archery, it foon became the drength of the Britifli army. The ancient bow was fix feet long, and the arrow two feet three inches, fo that the fmall Irifli bow and arrows which feem to me lately introduced by the Scots, were very inferior to the others. Spenfer likewife acquaints us with the wretched date of the native, as well as of the degenerate Englifli fokiiery ; and of their manner of Iraining them to arms. " The Bards," fays he, " cafily trace an Irifliman from the head of fome great fept, he is then a gentleman and fcorns to work, thinking that only fit for a peafant or churl. He then becomes either a horfe- boy (73) T«f KifmT'.af a^uiftrn. Diod. Sic. [>. 306. The northern people continued the prailice long. Barthol. 1. I, c. ,;. (74) CJuos cqucftris turma in tcrram dcjiciunt, capitihus flatim fccurl'oiis dtftiuuint. Gir. Cambrcns. p. 763. (7J.J Stanihuifl, fupra. ON THE MILIfxiRY ANTiqUITIES OF IRELAND. 289 boy or flocach, inuring himfelf to Iiis weapon and the gentlemanly trade of dealing. He then joins himfelf to three or four ftragglers or kern like himfelf, when he commits forae outrageous acl he is then looked on as a man of courage, and foon after runs into open rebellion, and this is the courfe not only of Gentlemen's but Noblemen's fons." To thefe practices the flatute of the year 1331 refers, when it prohibits the maintaining kerns or idlemen unlefs in the marches. Idlemen here are the Teutonic Edelmcn or noblemen. Thefe gentlemen plunderers for the mofl part took refuge from public juftice in bogs as their beft fecurity ; and hence they are fly led by Henry of Marleborough about 1420, Turbiculi, by (y6) others Tur- barii, and by the Englifh Bogtrotters. In obedience to Henry's commands, his great feudatories ereded caftles in their refpeSive pofleflions. About 11 So, Lacy caftellated (77) Leinller and Meath. Giraldus Cambrenfis and (78) Hanmcr give the following lift of caftles conftruded about this time. Leighlin, Kilkea, Leix, Tullow, Clonard, Carlow, Killeen, Athboy, Sureport,. Norragh, Delvin, Derwath, Fethard, and Caftledermot, Trim. Cox (79) is more copious ; he fays, Ardfinnan, Nenagh, Lifmore, Tyrbrack within two miles of Carrick, and Limerick were built by King John. Caftleder- mot, Caftlederwagh, Kilkea, and Leighlin by the Lacies. Ferns (So), Sligo (8i), Tralee (82), Geafliill (83J, Adare, and Alkeaton by the Fitzgeralds. The Grey Friars at Leighlin, Ballymurter, ArdtuUy, Lixnaw, and Macrome by the Carews. Philipftown and Maryborough by Bellingham. Athenry by Bermingham. Green 4 E Caftle, (76) Du Catige, in Ttirba. (77) Tain I.ageniam quam Mediam caftelli'! egregie communlvit. Gir. Camb, p. 797. Cox, p. 37.. (78) Chronicle, p. 160 — 161. (79) Apparatus to his Hiilory of Ireland. (80) And Wicklow, about II76. Archdall's Pceia;^e, V. I. p. j3, (Si) About i<48. Archdall, fup. p. (>;. At thij time he had the caAbs of A'dleek, Rorcommon, and Randon. Ibid. Rofcommon was built by Ufford, I.urd Juftice, A. D. ll6S. Hanmer. (8l) About 1160. Archda'l, fup. p. 61. He had D'jngarvan c a (Ik at this tinie. Ibid. (83) About 1307, the caftle was rsjed. Archda'.l, fopra. 290 ON THE MILITx\RY ANTIQIJITIES OF IRELAND. CaRle, Caftle Carbery, Athaflel, Carlingford, Caftle Connel, Loughrea, and Por- tumny by the De Burgos. Kilkenny by Ranulph Earl of Chefler. Caflle of Kil- kenny by the Earl of Ormond. Thomaftown by Thomas Fitz Anthony. Rofs and Carlow by Ifabel, daughter of Strongbow. Carrickfergus by Sir Henry Sydney. Caflle Ifland in Kerry by GeofFry de Marifco. Timoleague by Barret. Trim by "William Peppard. Sir John Davis (84) thinks it was very ill judged of the Englirti to ereft their calUes in the plains, by which the Trill, were driven to n-.ountains and forefts, where themfelves and cattle were not aflallable. This is a political reverie of our Knight ; for had the Englifh retired to mountains and woods, they muft have left the plains to the Irifh, being not iiuinerous enough to expel the latter and at the fame time defend their caftles. Whereas by eflablifliing a chain of garrifons round the Pale, and fecuring paffes by flight forts, they enjoyed the richeft lands in the king- dom, and received an advantage and profit to be procured in no other way. A record (85) of the 1 Edw. 1. A.D. 1272, informs us, that theie caftles being at firfl built for the common fafety againft enemies and rebels, and whereof the king had the fupreme cultody, difpofal, and command in time of war, a female, being inca- pable of feudal tenure, could not be entrufled with them. A petition of the Lords and Commons in the laft cited author, dated the 16 Edw. III. A. D. 1342, ftates the decay of Ireland to proceed from the neglecl and lofs of its caftles and forts : fo that in every age they were confidered as of the laft importance to the Englifti interefl. A licence from the crown was always a ftep previous to their ereclion : their number in Stephen's reign had, in England, created infinite trouble, nor was it ever forgotten. The fame political jcaloufy was necefTiiry here ; our great Barons frequently rcfifted government, nor was it eafy to fubdue their great caftles and hir^e garrifons. However we cannot but fmile nt peaceful ecclefiaftics fuing for a licence (86) to crenellate and battlement their belfry : a fpecimen of clerical foppery, expreflive of the fentiments of the age, but inconfiftent with the rofary and ton- fure. The wild and rude manner of life of the Irifh made them look on caftles and (84) Hiftorical Relations, p. 71. (Sj) Prynne on the 4th Inftltute, p. 256. (86) The Convent and I'rior of the Holy Trinity, Diihlin, apply to KJward 111. through the Earl of Hldtr, for thii licence : Record! of Chrlll Church, Dublin. The late Doftor Lyon, who tranfcrihcd theft-, hus committed a flij-ht error, probaijly from tlic original being nearly obliterated. It concludes, " telle I, Daicy, le-Ofyn, juftic, noftro." Le- Ofyn (liould be Roger Outlaw, for he wai Jufticiary at that time. ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. 291 and the confinement within them with abhorrence. Sir John de Courcy (87) con- iiructed two in Mac Mahon's country : thefe awed the latter, he became coinplaifant, fwore fidelity, and made Courcy his goffip. Courcy at length bellowed on him the calUcs and their appendant lands. Within a n onth Mac Mahon demolillied both. Being alked the reafon for doing fo, he anfwered, that he did not promife to hold ftones but land ; that it was contrary to his nature to live within cold walls whilft the woods were fo nigh. It was late before the hiih, in imitation of the En-;iifh, raifcd a few (88) Piles for the Captains of the country : " I uare boldly fay," adds Davis, " that never any particular perfon from the conquefl to the rei^n of James I. did build any (tone or brick houfe for his private habitation, but fuch as have lately obtained edatcs according to the courfe of the law of England." The reafon of this he explains in his report of TanKlry. Baron Finglas in 1534 affirmed it to be eafy to fecure Ireland from the number of forts and caltles in it 5 but Fynes Mory- fon and Spenfer thought more were necelfary, as the Irifli had poflefled themfelves of many, and according to Stanihurfl;, even built fome. The latter (89) tells us O'Neal, O'Carrol, and the other great Irifh Princes had large ftrong caftles, and well furniftied with military ftores, and (po) watchmen on their tops conftantly cal- ling out to alarm robbers. The colonization of this ifle by Englifli fettlers was a fcheme fleadily purfued for many centuries, and particularly by the (91) minifters of Queen Elizabeth, who obliged every grantee to conrtrud a caRle, fort, or bawn, for the protection of his family and tenanrs. On tli-^ efcheating of UlRer by the flight of Tyrone and Tyr- connel in 1606, King James, treading in the Reps of his predecefibrs, bound each undertaker to the performance of thefe (92) conditions. If he had 2000 acres he was, within two years, to build a ftrong caftle with a court or bawn about it : if 1500 acres, he was to erecl a ftone or brick houfe, with a court or bawn ; if lefs a bawn. Thus Lord Aubigny had 3000 acres, on thefe he made a ftrontr caftle of lime and ftone five ftories high, with four round towers for flankers : the body of the caftle was fifty feet long, twenty-eight broad, and the roof flated. Adjoining it was a bawn of lime and ftone, eighty feet fquare, with two flankers fifteen feet high. The caftle ftood on the meeting of five public highways, and kept the neigh- bouring (87) Cm, p. 33- (B8) Davis, p. 7;. (P9) Hi igltur princlpts callclla podidcnt, munitione ac mole lapidum fortiter extrufla. (90) This was the Scandinavian Gockman. Martin's Wefterii Iflands, p. lOj. Macphcrfon'l Crit. Diff. p. 279, (91) See Defiderat. Curios. Hib. Vol I. pafTim. Cox, V. i.p. 391. (92) Harris's Ilibcrnica, p. 115— 140. P/nnar's Survey 292 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. * < < ■< < <■<■<■< < < < < < < < ■<-< * .< * ■* < < * * < < ■< <■■< < < ■< < ' < <■ <4-' >- > > > >>■>■>. > > t > > >. > > >. > > >. > >. > >, > > » > > > > > v> > >-. bouring country in fubjeclion. William Hamilton had looo acres, on thefe was a bawn of lime and (lone eighty fett fquare, with two round towers for flankers, and two flories high vaulted, the wall itfelf being thirteen feet high. Within the bawn was an houfe of lime and ftone thirty-fix feet long and twenty feet broad. Many other curious particulars may be found in the author lift quoted. In confequence of thefe rcfolutions of Government, there were condrucled in the fix efcheated Northern counties in the fpace of a few years, one hundred aij,d feven caftles with bawns, nineteen caftlcs without bawns, and forty^two bawns without caftles or houf- es. The grantees of efcheated land in every o:her part of the kingdom were bound to build in like manner. Borlafe ('93") fpeaking of Lord Strafford's adminiftration obferves that " multitudes of Britifti were brought in and planted even in the moft barbarous places : many corporate towns were erefted and fome walled towns built, and caftles, ftone houfes, and villages daily made in every part in great abundance." By thefe means caftles multiplied prodigioufly, there were more in this iiland than perhaps on an equal furface in any other part of the world. I can reckon the re- mains of eighty in the Queen's County, and am fure there were more ; fo that there were probably not lefs than three or four thoufand in the kingdom. By a minute furvey of the half barony of Rathdown, in the County of Dublin, A. D. 1655, it appears there were in it twenty three caftles in good prefervation, befides the remains of others, and fortified houfes. The moft decifive evidence of the rude manners and bad policy of the times. The reader has already anticipated me in remarking, that all our caftles till the time of lames I. were built by Englifti mafons and on EngliOi plans : to defcribe therefore their various parts after the curious and very circumftantial account already given by Mr. King of the Englifti ones in the Archaeologia, would be but to tran- fcribe what he has written. Many of our Anglo-Hibernian caftles, as they were in 1599, may be feen in the Pacata Hibernia 5 a work, when to be had complete, extremely valuable for its curious maps and engravings. Thefe caftles appear to have been large and well fortified, fo as to bear a long fiege and the afl'ault of artillery, and mcft of thefe remain though in ruins. As for the battlemented houfes and bawns, increafing civility has levelled moft of them. The common fmall fquare caftles, by far the moft numerous, were the refidence of Englifti undertakers. All thefe are exifting monuments of the infelicity of former ages, when cruel and do- meftic (93) Hiflory cf the Irith Rebellion. ON THE MILITARY ANTiqUITIES OF IRELAND. 293 : ■< ■< -<■■< ■<■< * •< ■«■■< ■< ■< -<■<.<■■< .<■■< .< < •< •< ■<■<■< ■< ■< ■< ■«•<■■<■-<+>■ >• >■ >■■►- >. > >- 1 medic wars cnnvulfed and defolated the illand, leaving little (94) more than one million of wretched miferable beings to occupy this beautiful and fertile country. The final fettlement of the kingdom at the Revolution, and the cheri flung care of the iiluftrious Houfe of Brunfwic, gave us a regular government and jufl and equal laws ; emancipated us from commercial reftraints, and promoted a fpirit of induf- try. Four millions of fouls now gratefully acknowledge fuch fignal bleffings, and devoutly pray for a continuance of them. I fliall defcribe two of our old caftles, Dunamafe and Ley. Before I proceed to the account of Dunamafe, it may not be improper to notice an opinion of an (95) ingenious writer, who thinks the Anglo-Saxon, Danifh, and Norman forts and keeps had a fort of Celtic original, and that the firft idea of them was brought from Media and the Eaft. The error of confounding the Celtes with fubfequent colonies, and thereby the antiquities of every European nation, has been largely infilled on in the courfe of this work ; on the prefent occafion it is very apparent. The heppahs or forts of the (96) new difcovered iflanders are thus defcribed : a fmall rock detached from the main, and fixty feet above the fea, is fenced round, the areaat_top will contain but five or fix houfes, and could be approached but by one narrov/ fteep path. Another heppah is fituated on a rocky promontory, two of its fides are waflied by the fea, and are altogether inacceflible, the other fides are defended by firong palifades about ten feet high, tied together with withes, thefe were protefted by ditches, twenty-four feet deep, the vallum is palifaded. The firft is exadly the fame as our Dun Dunolf, Dun Aengus, and others, and the latter is a compound of our Dun and Daingean. What was the medium of conveyance of thefe ideas from the old to the new world? In literary records or tradition it cannot be found, it muft therefore exift folely in the warm imagination of writers. Such hypothefes delerve not the fmalleft attention, how refpeclable or celebrated foever the authors of them may be. The energies of the human mind called forth into adion by particular circumftances will, in every part of the world, produce fimilar eft'edls. Imitation may very well be allowed where the colonization of one country by another can with certainty be traced. Thus I have endeavoured to fliew from the mode of life among the Celtes, that they pro- bably adopted from their Firbolgian invaders, a warlike race, the ufe of infulated 4 F rocks (94) Petty's Political Anatomy. (95) Mr King. Archeaologia, V. 6. p. 194— 37j' (96) Hswkefwortli's Voyages, V. }. p. 164. £dit. Dublin. ?54 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. rocks as places of fafety : but I am not fo wedded to this or any other notion, as net inftantly to relinquifh it on better evidence and information. Dunamafe is fituated in the Queen's County, about four miles cart: from Marybo- rough. In records in Bermingham tower, it is written Dunemafke ; by Sir John Davis, Duamafe ; by Ware, Dunemaufe ; by Baron Finglas, Dunnemaufe. Its name, which imports — the fort of the plain — evinces it to have been confidercd and ufcd as a place of ftrength in the earlieft ages : the plain is what is called the Great Heath, nearly furrounding it. Ware (97) following Ptolemy, makes the Dunum of the latter Dunamafe, but Camden more \ruly Downpatric : Ptolemy's information was but imperfed as to the interior of our ifland, but tolerably correft as to what refpe£ls the fea-coaft. This rock is an eliptical conoid, and inacceffible on all fides, except to the Eaft, which in its improved ftate was defended by the Barbican. On each fide of the Barbican were ditches, and where they could not be continued for the rock, walls began ; to the S. and S. E. were two towers, the latter protefting the Barbican. From the Barbican you advance to the gate of the lower balliuni ; it is feven feet wide, and the walls fix thick, it had a parapet, cre- nelles, and embrafures. The lower ballium is three hundred and twelve feet from North to South, and one hundred and fixty from Eafl: to Well. You then arrive at the gate of the upper ballium, which is placed in a tower, and from this begin the walls which divided the upper and lower ballium. The former is a plain of one hundred and eleven feet from Eafl to Weft, and two hundred and two feet from North to South where broadeft. On the higheft part was the keep, and the apartments for the officers : there was a fally-port and a prifon. Dermod, King of Leinfler, marrying his daughter Eva to Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, made him his univerfal heir, whereby he poflefled the province of Lein- fler, of which he was (98) after enfeoifed by Henry II. To his followers he affigned large portions, and particularly to Walter de Rideliord, that (99) part held by the Irilh Chief, O'Morethic. 'J'his O'Morethie is alfo called O'Mordha, O'Morgha, O'Morchoe, O'Mordris, and laflly O'More, as may be feen in Camden's Annals and other writers. His property extended from Abbyleix, where it joined the MacGuil Phadruigs, or Fitzpatricks, to Dunamafe, and from that to (100) Mullagh- maft, and took in part of the barony of Slieumargah : his caftle and refidence were at Leix or Leas, called Abbeyleix, from a Ciftcrtian abbey founded there A.D. (j7) Difquis, p. jl. {98) Davis, p. 85—96. (99) Regan, p. 41. (loj) Walth, p. 113. E g Q^. U ■^ v \ ^/. * Ss -^- N \ t- Jl ^ ^< ^ i-' C ttH •^ ^ " h 1 ON THE I\ULITARY ANTiqUITIES OF IRfXAND. 295 A. D. 1183, by one oi the (1) O'More's. Here alfo Hugh Lacy conftrufted (2) a caftle to curb this powerful I'ept in 1174. The Earl of Pembroke dying in 1176, left an only daughur, Ifabrl, who efpoufed William P.Iarfhal, Earl of Pembroke, by whom fhe had five fons who fucceeded to his great eflates in Lcinfter. Upon the death of the lail in 1245, ^'^ poffelTions gavelled among his filters. She who married, fays Finglas, William de Bruce, Lord of Brecknock, had the manor of Dunamafe in Leix, with other lands in the county of Kildare. Dunamafe was now ereiEted into a lord (hip, barony, or manor, by Bruce. This was to be his refidence; here he held a domeftic or court-baron, and to it the (3) tenants reforted for fuit and fervice. Accordingly Sir John Davis tells us, Dunamafe was the principal houfe of Lord Mortimer in Leix. A caftle was conftrudled on the rock, and a military tenantry formed round it, ready (4) to appear in arms for the defence of the realm, or the fervice of their Lord. Thus the caftles of Dyfart, Pallis, Shean, Coolbanagher, Morel, B;illynianus, Kilmarter, Ballyicnockin, and others, were held as of the caftle of Dunamafe. The fame (5) tenure was univerfal in France. In 1264, Maurice Fitzgerald took Richard de Rupella the Lord Juftice, Theobald le Butler, and John de Cogan prifoners, and committed them to the prifons in Leix and Donemus or Dunamafe. (6) A wide wafte, the conftant concomitant of baronial grandeur, lay about the caftle, this is now called the Great Heath, and was common to the tenantry : the caftle was crow^ded with armed men, the terror of the neighbourhood and the bul- wark of the pale. Such was the ftate of Dunamafe, when it was made a manor by Lord Brecknock, and fo it remained for fome years. While the Britifti fettlers preferved their original manners, the ficklenefs of the Irifli, and their pronenefs to rebellion were efiictually reftrained ; but when the pride of power without any of the- (1) Archdall'sMon. Hlb. p. 5S5. (i) Girai. Cam reus, fupra. Hannier, p. i6r. Giralduj Camhrcnfisearly recommended a chain of caftles and forts, and his advice was followed. Sutius cnim eft, & longe fatius paulaiim primo locis idoncjis caftra coiiferere, & quaf; peden- tim ill eonindeni conftruAioneni procedere, quam intervallis diftantia magnis variis paffim bcis multa confiruere j r.ec invicem fib! vel cohireiiti ye\ neceffitatis articuiis opitulantia. Expugnac. c. 36. (•:) Poterit etiam eftt per ft manerlura capitalc, & pliires villas & plures hamletas quafi fub uno capite aut domiiiio. BraiSon's Definition of a manor. Lib. 4 fiaronio de Caftro ij men hab.t. I.iiider.brcg. Cod, LL. Antiq. p. 1363 (4) Debent univerfi iiberi homiiies fecundum fuum fa'dom & fecumlum teneiiieiita .fua atria habere, & ilia fcmper prcmp:a confervare, ad tuiliuncm regni & fervicia dominorum fuorum. Laniojrde, i_^j. (jj E', cum cunilis villis & forliis qua; erant fub ejufJcm caftri dominio, in quibis crant Tiginti fortia. Calf 11. Hift, Franc. Tom. 5. (6) Hannicr, p. 101 — ioi. 295 ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. ■■< * ■< < ■< ■< ■< <■< < ■< .< .< < i < .< <..f -» -< <<<■.-< < < < < « ■< •< < •< ■< ■< -<-< ■< ■<+>- >■■»■>->■ >■ >->■•>■ > > > > »- > > >■ >■ > > >■ >- >• >■■>• >-»• >■ >■ >• >■ >■■>->■ V. > V >. •- \irtue that acquired it was only found among them ; when conuptior.s had degrad- ed the national charader, they then were looked on with contempt by thofe who formerly dreaded them, and inftead of mafters became fuitovs for prote(^ion. " Taking advantage, (fays Davis,) of thofe weak rimes, the Irifli ufurped thofe feignories that were in poffeflion of the Englifli, fetting up a perpetual claim to thofe great lordfliips, they were employed by the Englifh noblemen for protection, but feized them as their inheritance when opportunity offered. Thus about the end of Edward 11. 's reign, Lyfagh O'More, the ancient proprietary of Leix, being intrud- ed by Lord Mortimer, who had married Lord Brecknock's only daughter, wirh the care and proieftion of his eflates, affumed the name of O'More, took eight cafUes in one evening, deflroyed Dunamafe, and recovered the whole country. " De fervo ijominus, de fubjecto princeps," faith Friar Clynn in his Annals. In a (7) patent roll of the i7lh of Edward II. we find O'More fummoned as a poweiful Irifli chief to oppofe Bruce and his Scots: here we fee he held his land by feudal tenure, but he performed the conditions no longer than lie was coerced by fuperior power. For in 1346, throwing off all fubjedion. Lord Walter Berming- ham and the Earl of Kildare collefted their forces, deflroyed his country with fire and fvvord, and obliged him to acknowledge at Athy, th;jt he held his manor (8) of Bellet, and his other lands in Leix, of Roger Mortimer, as of his manor of Donmafke (Dunamafe). For two centuries very little is recorded of Dunamafe, the Englifh during this interval frequently lofing this old fortrefs, and as often re- covering it from the O'Mores. In the beginning of the Irifl: Rebellion, 1642, the infurgents fecured Maryborough, Dunamafe, Carlow, and other flrong cailles and holds. The F.arl of Ormond arriving at Athy from Dublin, detached parties to the relief of thefe. On the retreat of Ormond, the caftles in the Queen's County fubmitted to Gene- ral Preflcn, but were retaken by the King's forces. In 164O, Owen Roe O'Neil appeared, and committing every aft of outrage and cruelty in the county, feized Dyfart, (9) Maryborough, Cullenbrack, Shf ehcn or Shean, Bealaroyn or Ballyrone, Cafllereban, &c. Dunamafe, within a mile of Shean and Dyfart caflles, did not efcape. In July 1650, Maryborough, Dunamafe, and other places of ftrength fur- rendered to Colonels Hewfon and Reynolds, and were difmantled, in which ftate they have continued to the prefcnt time. I (liall now conclude with fomc remarks on (7) Pat. 17. Edw. a. m, 7. (6) Harrit's llibcrnica, p. 74. (9) Dclliicr. Cur. Hil) p. joS. ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. 297 on the Cadle of Ley, near l\irtailinQ;'on, one of the oMeft flruftures made by the Englifli in this kingdom, and of which the ground-plan is civen In the plate. About 1 176, Henry II. beltowed on (loj Maurice Fitz Gerald the barony of Ophaley, in which Ley is fituatcd ; the latter was the patrimony of the 0'Dcmpfi.es. From what has been before obft-rved of Lary and he othtr great captains who made conquefls here, we may conclude that Titz Gerald ereiled this callle with many more to protect the property he had acquired. 1 he I rifli beheld thefe with jealous eyes, and watched every opportunity to de(!i- ■ them. In i28|., the O' Dempfies, O'Dunnes, and O'Ciarrols united and (11) iu.p'.iz.d and burnt the caflls of Ley : Verdun attempting to revenge the injury, and tf '•ecover the fortrefs, lofl both his men and horfes. However the Irifs, were loon difpolfeired. In 1292, fiiys Davis, (12) " John Fitz Thomas Fitz Gerald having, by contention with the Lord Velci gotten a goodly inheritance in Kildare, grew to that height of imagina- tion as he fell info a difference with divtrs great noblemen, among others with Richard De Burgo, the red Earl, whom he took prifoner and detained in his callle of Ley." On the eve of the tranflation of St. Thomas a Becket, the Irifh fepts beforenien- tioned burnt the town of Ley, and belieged the caflle, but it was foon raifed by John Fitz Thomas and Edmond Botiller. This was in 1307. In 1329, O'Demp- fey took this caflle, but the next year it was furrendered to bir John Darcy. Sieges, furrenders, and recaptures compofe the the uninterelling hiltory of ancient fortreffes in rude and turbulent ages. The callle of Ley was erefted on an hill or gently rifing ground. Its length ex- ternally is fixty feet, its breadth forty-fix. The walls are eight feet thick, and in fome places ten. It was three ilories high : the arches are all circular, except one pointed leading from the cauleway into the bawn, probably a later conflruction. On the North ran the river Barrow, the other fides were i^ cured by a ditch twenty- five feet broad, which could occafionally be filled ^vitli v/ater from the river. Within the ditch was a wall, the fouiidations of wiiich orly remain, i'hc approach to this fortrefs was by a caufeway one hundred feet in iengtli ; the outer ballium from Eait to Well is four hundred and ten feet, and from North to South, including the bawn, three hundred and fifty in diameter. The inner ballium irorn North to South is one hundred and forty, and from Eafl to Weft one hundred and thirty feet. The 4 G ' hd\\'n (10) Loilgr's Peerage, Vol. I, initio. (il) Camden's .Aunals. Cox, p. '6. (ti) RcUtijiis, p. 6=. I 09S ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. ;■.< -<..< ■< ■< <-<-<■' [ ,< ,< .<..< .< < .<^>. >■.,..>.■>. >. >. >>->>>> >.*-*. >• >. y. >. >. >. > >..>■>> >- >. >. >. >. >••>■>■>■ >..> V.^ bawn was a common appendage to caRles. Stanihurfl: (13) defcribes it as connefted with calUes, and being a large area furrounded with great ditches and ramparts j within thefe cattle were driven and protefted from an enemy or thieves. The following notices will give fome idea of the art military in Ireland in later times. By (14) inltruflions fent to the Lord Prefident and Council of Munller, places of defence are there diflinguiflied into forts, calUes, piles, or houfes. By the firfl are meant old Danilh forts, furrounded with earthen works, and in the centre a keep of lime and ftone : thefe forts had often circular walls of mafonry, as that at Maryborough. By (15) piles, I underftand a colleclion of buildings, encompaflcd with a rampart impaled ; thefe were our bawns : and by houfes, are intended thofe for defence, with battlements and flankers. A good inilance of fuch a houfe is at Morett, near Maryborough. Thefe caftles and defences while they encouraged murder and rapine, and made the natives ferocious and fanguinary, were fufficient to protecl them before the introduftign of artillery and fire-arms. It was in 14S9, that the (16) latter were brought hither from Germany ; fix mufquets being pre- fented to the Earl of Kildare, which he gave to his guard. This, (17) according to Anderfon, was thirty-two years before they were known in England. Before this, it was enacted by the 5 Edward IV. that every EngliOiman and Irifii- man, who dwell together, and are between the ages of fixteen and fixtj, fhall have an Englifli bow of his own length, and one fiflmale, at the leaft, between the necks, with twelve fliafts of the length of three quarters of the ilandard : yet not prohibit- in'T rrentlemen on horfeback to r'de, according to their difpofiiion, with fpear. The Conftables to fee a pair of butts provided in every town, and archery pradifed. By the 10 Henry VII. every fubject, according to his property, to have an Englifh bow and flieaf of arrows, a jack and fallet, and butts to be in every town. No one to keep in his houfc or garrifon ordnance or artillery, that is to fay, great gun or hand gun, except only long bows, arrows, and bills, It is alfo enafted, that no foldier ou his journey fliall pay mofe than five farthings for one meal, and four for his fervant ; and for every horfe a penny, with fix flieaves and litttr. The following (18) {lores were provided agaiafl the Spanifli invafion of Ireland, A. U. 160J. 5Laft (13) Habent item areas magnis aj:^cribus & fofTis circnmilata«, dumftii & vlrguUis ciicumfcptas. In hU. quntlti an- guftiis urgcntur, armcnta dctruaunc, uci melius a grafl'atorum liiciirfioiiibus & a wjacium funis obvallata incliilioiic viiidi- ceniur. Ue reb. Hib. p. i^. (14) Dcfidcr. Cur. Hib. V. i. p. 14. (15) Skinner, in voce. (16) Ibiris's llift. of Dublin, p. j8j. (17) Ililt. of Commerce, V. 2. p. 53. Ed. Dublin, (r) Sydney's ilalc papers, p. 18; 1 ON THE Military ANTiquniEs of Ireland. 299 < < < < .< .< ■< ■< .< ■< < .< -< ■<■<■<■<.<■■*■<■< ■< -< .*-.< < ■<-<-<-<-<-.4 -1 ■< + > >. >. >■ >■ >. >. >. >. >. - ■>■>■>•>>-»■>■> >>>>>>»>>>; 5 Laft of corn powder, 500 Black Bills, 1 Lad of ferpentine powder, 200 Halberts, 6 Fodder of lead, 200 Turkey morrions, 33000 weight of Match, 200 Pick-axes, 400 Bows, 100 Sledging Bills, 1 200 Arrows, 200 Reaping hooks, 50 Grofs of Strings, 1000 Coils of hand-rope, 300 Pikes, 200 weight of gun-rope, 500 Corflet complete, of bed mould, 20 Dozen of fpades and fliovels. It was not before 1584, that the Iiifh became (19) reconciled to the fire and ex- plofion of guns. In the Irifli wars of 1600, the army was badly furnifhed with ordnance, having feldom any whole cannon, but demy cannon, fakers, and light pieces. In i6i6, every grantee ("20) oi efcheated land was bound by tenure, if he had 500 acres, to have for his own defence and the king's fervice, three mufquets and calivers, and three hand weapons, to furnifli fix men, and fo in proportion to the number of acres. In fome pamphlets publiflied in London, A. D. 1642, con- cerning the Irilh rebellion, we find halberts and double battle-axes were ufed, which latter was the Danilh hatchet : alfo pertuifannes ; a heavy fword, called a faulchion, with which an Irilh foldier cut through Lord Inchiquin's armour ; they had alfo their old weapons, flicnes and hand-flones. In 1649, the (21) artillery taken by Jones, the Parliament's General, from the Earl of Ormond, were two whole cannon, three lemy cannon, one long fquare gun, carrying a ball of twelve pounds, one faker drake, and one mortar piece, all of brafs. In the laft cited author we read of an army of 3700 cavalry and 14500 infantry with but four pieces of ordnance. It is remarkable, that in the demolition of our caflles and forts, and in the improvement of their demefnes very few iron bullets have been difcovered, but much round ftones, with which they charged the cannon. Iron bullets were (22) unknown in England and France in 15 14. The C23) Earl of Effex, in 1599, tells Queen Elizabeth, that the Irifli were unable to force any walled town, caftle, or houfe of ftrength : but they ufed a military engine, called a (24) Sow, which was ufed at the fiegc of Sligo, A.D. 1689, and is thus (I9) Ferrcaruni fifliihnim jam tan Jem apud eos ufus increbult ; etfi ciiim prmiis tcmpori'.us harum fonituin iiiflammtre aililtliaiit. .Staiiihurd, p. 41. (:o) Defid. Cur. Ilib. V. z p. 41. {11) BorUfe, p. III. (ij) Andcrfon, flip. |V. 1, p. 38. (13} Cox, V. 1 p. 419. (24) HarrU'j I-ifc of King William. 5CO ON THE MILITARY ANTIQUITIES OF IRELAND. thus defcrlbed : " It was made hollow to contain men, and was compofed of very ftrong whole timbers bound with iron hoops, and covered with two rows of hides, and as many of flieep fkins, which rendered it proof againft mulket-ball or fleel arrows. The back part was left open for the men to go in and out at pleafure, and in the front were doors to be opened, when the fow was forced under the wall ; which was done with little labour, the engine being fixt on an iron axle-tree." " The IrilL, (fays (25) Stafford, ) befieged Lifl'iaghan caRle in 1600, and placed an engine well known in this country, called a Sow, to the walls thereof, to fap the fame : but the defendants did fo well acquit themfelves in a fally, that they tore the fow in pieces, made her call her pigs, and flew twenty-feven of them dead in the place." I had almoft forgot to notice a very remarkable particular recorded (26) by Strada. He tells us, that Sir William Pelham, who had been Lord Judice of Ireland, led into the Low Countries, in 1586, fourteen hundred wild Irifh, clad only below the navel and mounted on ililts, which they ufed in paffing rivers : they were armed with bows and arrows. Having never met with this ufe of flilts among any other people, it feemed a matter of curiofity to notice it here. The glorious Revolution, and the accefTion of the illuflrious Houfe of Brunfwic to the throne, fixed the liberty of the Britiih Ifles on the firmeft bafis : and may our caflles and forts peaceably moulder to decay, and the labours of the plough and aftive induflry fucceed military tyranny and the din of arms. Every lover of his King and of Ireland will join with me in the words of the Poet, and fay ; Dii iibi, qiidcunquc prcccrisy Commoda dent. (15) Pacata Hil). p. 68. (26) Hibcrni mcccc, c fylviftri omnes gcncre atque fcrino, medio tnntum Cfirpcirc fnbrcr iinibilicum vclati, coetera nudi, grallis feu pcrticis, > >-■>■> > >■ > > >■ >■ > > >■ >■ 1 j)arch!nent, and though he confulted O'FIaherty, one of the chief IriHi critics, and I'everal others they could fcarcely interpret one page. Here the fecret is revealed why Lynch and O'Flaherty declined the Brehon laws and their interpretation: they were inexplicable by them. 4. The Editor of the Collectanea de rebus Hibernicis, in 1774 and 1782, gave two fpecimans of Brehon laws, the originals with tranflations. It may eafily be imagined, that the thus difpelling an obfcurity which had bafiled the learning of Lynch, O'Flaherty, and Lhuyd niuft have excited the attention of antiquaries and every lover of Irifli anuquities in particular. Mr. Charles O'Conor, author of dif- fertations on the hiftory of Ireland, and confeffedly the befl Irilh fcholar then in the kingdom, was applied to for his fentiments on the occafion, which he candidly delivered in a letter to a friend, of which the following is an extraft. " Our Irilh juri!"prudence was almoll entirely confined to the Phanian dialecV, ?i dialed underftood only by the Brehons, the law-advocates, and. a few who had curiofity to ftudy our law-language. I have feen and polfcired fome of our Phjenian trads ; and having an opportunity in my youth of converfmg with fome of the mod learned Irifh fcholars in our ifiand, they freely confeffed to me, that to then. both the text and glofs were equally unintelligiDle. The key for expoundiug both was fo late as the reign of pharles I. pofTefied by the Mac Egans, who kept their law-fchool in Tipperary, and I dread that fince that time it has been loft. But I have been informed, that Duald M'Firbis, the ablefl fcholar inftrufted by thefc Mac Egans, was employed on a Law-Lexicon, in which, it has been faJd, he made a good progrefs. PoilefTed of fuch an expoiitor, our law-learning, the produft oi" many ages, might be difcovered, and become a valuable acquilition." Roufed, as others were, by thtle literary phenomena, I confulted Dodor Youn^, the late Bifliop of Clonfert, and the itavned (11) irauilutor of Offian, who allured me that he had fpent fome time In endeavouring to decipher thefe laws, and that he found it impoffible without a key. The fame aiiurance I received from other good Irifh fcholars, whom I furnifhed with Lhuyd's, Macurtin's, O'Clcrv's, and O'Brien's didlionaries, and with fome MS vocabularies in my polfeHion. They tried firlt the diretS; interpretaiion of the words, and then relorted to etymology and anal- ogy, but all in vain, fully eftabli filing this trush, that vMthout a gloiTary or key thefe laws were not to be explained. The tranflations therefore in the CoUeclanea mufl (11) IJi thtTranf. of th» Royal Irilb AcaJ. V, r. 304 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION .»-*^-< 4 -4*4-«-4-4 4 -4 i-4-4..<..<.4.4.«.<^..4 .4.-4 .4,.4-<..4-4-4 .4 .4 .4*4 -4 ■4"4-4f >-►->• *•■>■>-►"»•>■»■>■>■>■►■ >■ >•>•>■ y~k- >• y » >-V ►-> V->. -►.>■+■ ►-> y »- »•>. mull be efleemed a literary impofition on the public, until the author produces fuch gloflary or key. The author himfelf feems to have felt fome qualms on this head, when he (12) confefles that he does not pretend to determine when the Brehon laws were enaded, and in (13) another place he begins his preface to his fecond fpe- cimen with thefe words : " I prefume not to think that I have given a proper tranf- lation of the laws of the ancient Irifh." This is giving up the point, I have there- fore pafled over thefe fictitious tranflations as totally undeferving notice. The next thing to be confidered is, what has given rife to this obfcurity, and wherein it confifts. Perhaps the following opinion is not far from the truth. When the Normanno-Anglic princes acquired the dominion c)f Ireland, they eflabUfhed their laws co-extenfively with their power, and with thefe laws, a jargon intelligible only to profeflbrs and their eleves. This anfwered the double purpofe of making the fcience refpedable and profitable : objeflis too interefting to native Irifh lawyer* not inftantly to adopt. To prove what has been advanced, take the following inftance of Norman Law-Latin. " Albinus jeftatus, namatus erat pro abrocamentis, pri- mo in mifericordia deinde infine, quanquam in aberflierfing per munimenta." That is, the ftranger being cited, was diftrained for felling goods before they were brought to the public market, firft in a fmall, then in a larger mulct, though he was freed from amerciaments by charters. It is fuperfluous to remark, how unintelh'gible this language mud be to the beft claffical fcholar without the aid of Spelman's, Du Cange's, and Cowel's glofiaries. Of fuch gibberifii, I believe, the Brehon laws will be found to be compofed, when- ever a key to unlock them is difcovcred. I had therefore reafon for faying, that at prefent it is impoITible to derive any advantage from MS Brehon laws ; whether a juft idea of thefe and of the ancient political conltitution of the Irifii are here given without their aid, mult depend on the authorities cited, and the judgment of the reader. There is a flriking analogy in the primitive political inftitutions of mod nations. Plato, who traces the origin and progrefs of fociety, calls that fuperiority or power uhich enforces peace and order (14) Dynafty. This was tiril exercized by the heads (IJ) Collet. V. I. p. (. Whnt thif author fin publiflied od the Erehoii lawi, and other branches of Irifli Antiquities trc the waking dreami of a ilerangcd inecllcfi. (13) Collca. V. 3. pref. f 14) iiixii fici "ritiTU »"» ir TUT* Xf"" W'^IT"*'!' Ai/««ij«» xirXinr. Tlit. ik leg !. J. I AND LAWS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 305 heads of fcXiuiiies, and was found even among the favage Cyclopes, who ("15) dictated Taws to their wives and children. As families multiplied tribes were formed, over whom, thofe who in their youth were difUnguiflied for valour, as in their old age for wifdom, held rule, yet ftill fubjeft to a fuprcme head, (16) the centre and union of the whole. Thefe Dynafts were exalted into Kings, and vanity and ambition enlarged their number. lu the Trojan times, there were ten kings in Theffaly, according to Homer : fix in Peloponnefus, and almofl every corner of Greece was parcelled out into regal diftricls. Though kings were believed to be defcended from the (17) Gods, and educated by (18) them, yet refpeft was not carried fo far, as not to require from them a conformity to laws and eftabliflied cufloms. And hence Homer diftinguiflies the (19) fceptre, that is, the indefeafible right of regal fucceffion from the laws, by which the prince was to conduft himfelf. TulTius, the Roman king, f divided his land among his citizens, and clafied them into tribes. The chief of every tribe was the Phularcos, who chofe an elevated fpot, ftrong by nature and eafily defenfible, whither the tribe reforted for juflice and protection. Let us come nearer home and take a view of the political ftate of the Highlands of Scotland, inhabited by a people defcended from the fame ftock, and fpeaking nearly the fame language with the Irifh. There the country was (20) divided into a number of diftricts or territories, called counties, and feparated from each other by rivers, lakes, or mountains, and frequently by ideal and arbitrary boundaries. Each diftridl was the refidence of the Cean Cine, or head of the tribe, he waa here- ditary magiftrate, judge, and general of the clan, and his firname was the name of the clan. Often the clan was fo numerous that it branched out into different tribes, the head of each was the reprefentative of the tribe, he was defcended from the Cean Cine ; his patronymic denominated the tribe of which he was chieftain : he had lands which were let to his relations and fri-nds. It was a fpecies of treafon to appeal to any court from the decifion of the Cean. Inveterate quarrels and deadly 4 r feuds, (15) @t/illTtVH it IXCCSTX Uai^wv viT «>.rt;^a/i». Homer, GdylT, 9, (16) Ovx ayxiav it' lit xaifarts itr0, Zis Sxsikiut Horn. II. i. ('?) Ai«7i«s5. Konier. pafl'. ('") Aicy^i'piii. Horn. Cliara dtrum foles, magnum Jovis ineremcntuai, Virgil. (19) 'SxnTTfai tiii li/iiirx,. Horn. 11. J. t Dionys. Hal. Antiq. Rom. 1. 4. (to) Heme's hift. of the Rebellion in 1745, p. 7 & feq. 3o6 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION feuds, and rapine conflamly harraflcd the country ; and it is recorded that Lochiel, a Cameron, and Macintofli carried on war and law for 360 years. The Highland- ers went always armed, and at the end ol the laft century it was not uncommon to fee a clergyman go to church with his broad fword, and a fervant attending him with his bow and quiver of arrows. Thus far Home, whofe account is defedive in many particulars, which a view of our ancient political flate may, in fome fort, fupply. Davis (21) is fo full and clear in his account of the flate of landed property among the old Irifli, that it cannot be reprefented better than by giving his own words. " It is to be known, that the lands poffeffed by the mere Irifh were divided into feveral territories or countries,, and the inhabitants of every Irifh country were divided into feveral fepts or lineages. In every Irifli territory there was a Lord or Chieftain, and a Tanifl, who was his fucceflbr appai:ent ; and of every Irifli fept or lineage there was alfo a chief, who was called a Canfinny, (Cean Fine,) or caput cognationisi All the pofleflions within thefe Irifli territories ran always, either in courfe of Taniftry, or in courfe of Gavelkind. Every feignory or chiefry, with the portion of land which pafled with it, went without partition to the Tanifl ; who always came in by eledion or flrong hand, and not by defcent ; but all the inferior tenancies were partible between the males in Gavelkind. Yet the eflate which the Lord had in the chiefry, or the inferior tenants had in Gavelkind, was not an eflate of inhe- ritance, but a temporary or tranfitory poffeffion. For as the next heir of the Lord or Chieftain was not to inherit the chiefry, but the oldefl and worthiefl of the fept, who was often removed or expelled by another, who was more active and flrong than he, fo the lands of the nature of Gavelkind were not partible among the next heirs male of him who died feized, but among all the males of his fept, in this manner. The Canfinny, or chief of a fept (who was commonly the mofl ancient of the fept) made all the partitions at his difcretion ; and after the death of any ter-tenant who had a competent portion of land, affembled ail the fept, and having thrown all their pofleflions into hotchpot, made a new partition of all j in which partition he did not aflign to the fon of him who died the portion which his father had, but he allotted to each of the fept, according to his feniority, the better or greater portion. I'hefe (il) Davia'tReforti, p. 134, Ed, Dublia, AND LAWS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 307 Thefe portions or purparties, being fo allotted and afligned, were pofleffed and enjoyed accordingly, until a new partition was made, which at the difcretion or will of the Canfinny was to be made on the death of each inferior tenant. And fo by reafon of thefe frequent partitions and removals or tranflations of the tenants from one portion to another, all the pofleflions were uncertain ; and the uncertainty of the pofleflions was the very caufe that no civil habitations were ereded, no in- clofure or improvement was made in the lands in the Irifh countries, where this cufliom of Gavelkind was in ufe, efpecially in Ulfter, which feemed to be all one wildernefs, before the new plantation made by the Englifli undertakers there. Alfo by this Irifli cuilom of Gavelkind, baftards had their portions with the legitimate ; the wives were utterly excluded of dower, and the daughters were not inheritable, although their father had died without male ifl'ue." Thefe general notices of Mr. Home and Sir John Davis are extremely valuable fo far as they go, but they are not fufficient to convey difl.in£): ideas of the different ranks in fociety, of what are called the Brehon laws, or of the political confl.itution of the ancient Irifli : thefe I ftiall now confider in their order. The Irifh monarchs derived themfelves from Milefius, the great Hero of Irlih fable, as the northern Kings did from Odin. The pofterity of Milefms was the feed- plot out of which future fovereigns were (22) chofen. The (23) Swedes, fays Adam of Bremen, have Kings defcended from ancient anceftors. It was one of the laws of this people, that whatever native, efpecially the fons of kings, if fuch exifl:ed, was elefted by univerfal fuffrage, he Ihould be king. And the author lafl; cited gives inft^ances of fuch regal races in the Amali of Oftrogothia, the Balthi of Weftrogo- thia, and the pofterity of St. Eric, who ruled Sweden for 200 years. Whatever the power of the Ard-riagh, or fupreme monarch was in idea, it was nothing in reality. Even with the appanage of Meathj it was not Ilrong enough to curb the exceffes of inferior princes, or command obedience ; nor were they at any time fecure of their lives or throne : of this perhaps no ftronger proof will be required than what Walfli tells (25) us, that out of 200 monarchs, 170 died prema- ture (42) Regia materiesapta ad redriendam regiam formam fus familii, O'FIah. p. 58. See 1 curioui account of royil races in Pinkerton's Scotland. V. I. p, z6l. (13) Populi Suenonum rcges habent ex generc antiquos. Hlft. ecc. c. 13. (24) Quicunque ex iudigcnii, pracipuc regum filiU, fi tales fuperftites iunt, oronibns omnium, aot plerumque fuflrajiii eleiflus luerit, ilium pro rege hahebunt. Apud Loccen. p. 38. (»5) Profpeia, p. i. Gir. Caubr. 3. c. 4j. O'FIah. p. 410, J 3o8 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION ture and violent deaths. The remote hiftory of fuch a nation cannot be more inte- refting than that of the Chodaws or Hurons. The (26) fucceffion to the monarchy was eledive, and they received invefliture, 'fitting on the Liafail or ftone of fate. O'Flaherty conjectures that this ftone was fent (27) by Aid Finliath, in the year 850, to Kineth, King of the Scots, his father-in-law : that Edward I. in 1300, brought it to London: that it was difufed for 300 years, when Jlimes I. the 25th day of July, 1603, was anointed King of G t Britain on it, as was his fon in 1625, and his grandfon the 23d of April, 1661. In Sweden (28) the eleflion of a king was in an open plain near Upfal : there was a Moraiteen, or large (lone on which he was inaugurated, and fmaller ones for in- ferior chiefs. In an (29) Irilh MS, called the book of rights, there is a detailed account of the fubfidiary and tributary payments made by and to the Monarch. There might have been laws which defined the prefents to be given to his fubordinate kinglets, and the tributes which he was to receive from them ; the latter were his principal reve- nue. I am inclined to think this was the cafe, as like every other particular in the antiquities of Ireland, it agrees with the (30) practice of the northern nations. Though Tacitus notices the prefents of provifions made to chiefs, yet Dithmar, on the place, remarks, that thefe were not tributes, or for the fupport of an array, be- caufe each foldier warred at his own expence : nor were they any of the feudal incidents, becaufe as yet the Germans had no fixt habitation, but removed annually. In return for thefe prefents and for their bravery, the German princes bellowed horfes, arms, chains, bracelets, and other military ornaments on their warriors. At what time the feudal policy was introduced into Ireland, there are not docu- ments to determine : from our northern colonization, it is probable it was little later here than on the continent. A learned writer (31) has proved, that feuds were adopted from the Romans fome time between the age of Tacitus and the promul- gation of the Salic law, in the 5th century. I once imagined there was an allufion to feuds in a (32) pafTage of Diodorous Siculus, but I found it did not apply. The (26) O'Flah. p. 57. (17) r.xtat hodie in thorno regio Weftmonaftcrii lapis fupc» hoc monumento Hibernix regea invefticurx fuz aufpici* •lim folcnnitcr recipicbant. O'Flah. p. 45. (28) Loccen. p. 41. See more iiillanccs in thcfc Antiquities before, p. 149. (19) Colled, de rcb. Hib. No. 3, (.^o) Tacit. Germ. c. 14— 15. (31) Clarke on Saxon coins, p. 437. Ilcincccius flicwt the origin of feuds may be found in Tacitus. Hill, jur, Ctrni. p. 5. (j») I3ji(. 18. c. i. (35) Cambr. evers. p. 314. Macpherfon's Crit. DifT. p. 166. Stewart on the Englifh c'onft. p. 153. riiikirtoR's Scotl. V. I. p. j6i. (36) Warai difq. p. 41. (37) Davis's reports, p. 7?. ed. Dublin. Hume's clTa) j, V. i. p. .(Sj. (38) O'Conor's diff. p, 171. (39) Colled, de reb. Hib. Ko. 3. p. 375. 3IO ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION fter, and they were equally numerous in the other Provinces. Thefe great feudatories poiTefled (40) every regal power and dominion : if they acknowledged a fuperior, it was on very extraordinary occafions, and not as allowing any jurifdiftion over their fubjefts, or permittihg any appeal from them. Thefe were flyled Riagh or Kings ; their prerogatives and revenues will be feen in confidering the fourth rank in the ftate. Thefe were called Tiarna, Tofche, and Toifeach, and were feudatories to the Riagh. O'Flaherty fays, the Toifche or Tafius was the fame as the Saxon Thane, but does not inform us whether he alludes to the greater or leffer Thanes : indeed fcarcely a ray of light is thrown on this fubjeft by any native hiftorian or antiquary, fo wretchedly defective and trifling are Irifh MSS. Thefe Tiarnas were what Davis calls Cannnnies, the heads of Clans. We had our Clanbreafil, Ciancarty, Clanaboy, Clancolman, Clanfergal, and many more. In mofl cafes the Tiarna's firname was that of his clan. Macarthy was Riagh, or King of Definond, his Tiarnas were (41) the Clans O'Keefe, O'Donoughue, O'Cal- laghan, O'Sullivan, &c. The la(t, by his tenure, was obliged I. To aid Macarthy with all his ftrength, and to be Marflial of his army. II. 'He was to pay for every arable plowiand five Galloglaffes or Kern, or fix {hillings and eight pence, or a beef for each, at the option of Macarthy. III. Macarthy was to receive half a crown for every fliip that came to filh or trade in O'SuUivan's harbours. IV. O'Sullivan was to give Macarthy merchandize at the rate he purchafed it. V. O'Sullivan was to entertain Macarthy and all his train two nights at Dunboy, and whenever he travelled that way: VI. O'Sullivan was to fend horfe-meat to Paillice for Macarthy's faddle-horfes, and pay the groom three {hillings and four pence out of every arable plow land. VII. O'Sullivan was to find hounds, grey-hounds, and fpaniels for Macarthy, whenever he came, and one fiiilling and eight pence annually to his huntfraan out of every plow land. Before we examine this policy it will be necefiary to mention, that a fifth rank was the focage and vilitnage tenants, and a fixth were Haves, both fimilariy circum- llunced as perfon^ of the lame condition in England. From this fketch of the dilFtrent ranks in focicty among the ancient Irifli and the Mature of their tenures, the exiRcnce and pradice of the feudal fyftem is very evi- dent, Uo) Duck ik u!u & auiflor, jur. civ. p aiC. (41) Smlth't Kerry, p. i?- I ■•4.-* *K< * ( <•'<<>< It ■*-*<•* ■* - AND LAWS OF TVV^ ANClilNT IRISH. i x i sj , , ., , .< ., . , 4 < < < ,<..<..*.<..<<..«-«.<, + ...>.»». >. > > >. > >. >. > >. , >. >..>. > >. >. >. >..>..>. >.,.,. >. ,..>. ,.,,.> » > > > , >. dent. It may be faid, that this was adopted after the arrival of the Englini : by no means ; this policy is found in the Alamannic and Anglo-Saxon laws ; it m;iy be traced in Giraldus Cambrenfis, and in the Canons made at Calhel, and was intro- duced by the foreign tribes who fettled here at different times. The tirft head of O'Sullivan's tenure prOves that a military affociation and fubor- dination univerfally prevailed^ and thefe were the eflentials of the feudal fyftem. His being Marfhal of Macarthy clearly evinces that (42) grand ferjeantry was in ufe, as this is a tenure in capite, and could only be held from a fovereign prince. If this was a feudal tenure, as it mult be allowed it was, then there can be ro doubt but the other fervices v/ere likewife feudal. Through all the fubinfeudations there was the fame (43) obligation of military duty. If any from neglect or perfidy difobeyed the call of their Lord, he compelled them by force of arms, or expelled them from their poffeffions, for they owed military fervice by their tenures. An ancient poet thus exprefTes the feudal call and penalty ; i^) Ugno fufpencjlitur tilte Erc&o clypeus ; tunc prcEco rcgii^if omnc^ Convocat a domiHis feudaUa jvra tfus.ntes. At quiciinque domi (domino nakilU) reiiiius Defuerit ; foedo privari curia ccrjf^p. Every branch of our political inflitutions evince the principles of feudality and agree with the definition of a feud. Land was the property of the prince ; King Malcolm, fays the (45) Regiam niajeftatem, gvive and diftributed all his lands in the realm of Scotland among his men ; and in (46) the Welfh laws, the king is declared Lord of the whole kingdom. Which lands, according to the definition, being the (47) property of the Prince he befl owed for military and certain fervices. From (4i) Serjantia major eft ferviti 'in militare, qupquis pridia.tensj a r.egc in capite. Spclflnanj p.,;^^/^ Wf ^^(^ 9.'^'' J^S" reditary Falconers, Huntfmen, Hillorians, Poets, &c. (43) IQi tyranni infcrioris o.dinis pnfcflos » >->■> >■>>>■>. >■ > > > ■> >■ >--fc >>>>>»>>• 1 difperfed in Dachcry's Spicilegium, in Martene and Durandus's Anecdotes, in Bur- cliard's Decrees, and other compilers. In fucli a colleftion v;e might trace the cuftoms and municipal regulations of the different tribes that colonized Ireland : fome of them very contradidory to each other. •» 1 wifli, (fays Agobard, (i;8) writing in 8.^o,) that it would pleafe Almighty God, that the Franks were ruled by one law, which might be a ftandard for the Prince and his people. In Sweden (59) almoft every province had its peculiar laws. This variety, in the Saxon times in England, made Alfred compile his Dom-boc for general ufe. Cufloms were at firft (60J unwritten laws ; after, the written laws of each people. Lynch informs us, that about 686, three (61) learned men coUeded the fcattered laws of the Irifh and reduced them into a body, calling them Breathe Nimhe, or celellia! judgments. The reafon for adducing the precedent inftances is to fhew, that the Irifli were fimilarly circumflanced as to laws with other rude nations in the middle ao-es. However paradoxical it may appear the fad- is indifputable, that notwithftandinf the mod fcrupulous attention was paid to property and its minuted fubdivifions, that the punifliments for public and private injuries were proportioned with affected nicety, yet the ruft of barbarifm was with difficul;y removed, and the advancement in civilization extremely flow. What retarded the improvement of ctlier people, we leave to their antiquaries and hiftorians to explain, and fiiall nov/ confider the laws that operated to the injury of Ireland. The law of Taniftry, which by eledion, gave a monarch to the Ifle, kings to provinces, and rulers to inferior toparchies was the fVuitful fourc-^ of domslUc dlf- fention and commotion. There were (62) various political divifions of Ireland, ac- cording to the pieafure and power of its princes. O'Flaherty enumerates five under one dynafty. King Achy made a new partition of the ifle into five provinces, and eftabliflied a pentarchy in each. A conftitution fo formed was not calculated fur the peace and happinefs of fociety : it called forth the fiercer paffions by offering power (j8) Advers. leg. Gundob. Lindenbrog. L. L p. I4!.(. Franci fua lege vivcbant, Longohardi fua, ijiirguudioncs item & Saxones fua, ac fua Gothi, & fic de aliis. Balua. in Rtgin. p. 652. (59) Quamlibet provinciam fuas fibi leges & peculiares legujn codices habiiilTe. Stiernhook, p. I:>. About IJ47, Magnus Smeck endeavoured, ■' ut univerfale quoddam jus n-gnuni Irjiicret, fed non obtinuit, quo minui, ut ante, fingulz provincix fuo fibi arbitrio & jure peculiari viverent S:itr[jh. fup. p. /.^ (60) tie/ios ir/j" iyypx^t;^ iunriSltX el Kyypaipoi nfiof. Scliol in Aj.ic S' phol, (61) E jurifperitorum fcripiorum iciiitis, Ici^um undeque deccrptarum acceflione cumulatis, unum opus coriflarunt. Cambrens. Evers. p 1^7. (62) Variae fucrunt Hiberniae divifiones poliiicx juxta priiiclpura voluntates k jurifdi(rtioii<». In Scutcruai dyDiftia quiiique tnemoranlur. Ogyg. p. 16S, 3i6 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION power and property as their rewards. No prince was fafe on his throne, or toparch in his rath. *' No man, (fays Davis,) could enjoy his life, his wife, his lands, or goods if a mightier than hiinfelf had .'♦a app.,tite to take (6t^) them from him. Wherein they were little better than canibals, who hunt one another ; he that hath mod ftrength and fwiftnefs doth eat and devours all his fellows." Thefe two cuftoms of Taniftry and Gavelkind, by length of time confirmed into laws, were the true caufes of the defolation and barbarifm which prevailed in Ire- land, " as the like, (adds Davis emphatically,) was never (64) feen in any country that profeffed the name of Chrift." O'Conor's apology for thefe (65) odious old Irifli cultoms demonftrates a weak, bigotted, and perverfe mind. As well might he apologi;5e for " the (66) common repudiation of their wives, their promifcuous generation of children, their negledi: of lawful matrimony, their uncleannefs in ap- parel, diet, and lodging, and their contempt and fcorn of all things neceflary for the civil life cf man." If his arguments are valid in one cafe they are equally fo in the other ; for taniftry and gavelkind originated the latter. As by our (6y) cuftom of Gavelkind every man was^born to land, and derived himfelf from fome princely Clan, they held themfelves' for gentlemen, and fcorned to defcend to the praftice of hufbandry, merchandife, or any mechanical art or fcience. Hence neither trade, manufaftures, nor corporate towns were to be feen : what little mercantile bufinefs was tranfafted, foreigners did it. One diftinguifhing property of the tenure by Gavelkind was, that it (68) did not efcheat in cafe of attainder and execution for felony. " Hence the Englifli, to de- fend their (69) pofleilions againft the Irifli, retained fuch of the natives as claimed title to their poffeflions. For after a thoufand conqueds and attainders by our law, they would in thofe days, pretend a title ftill, becaufe by the Iriih law no man could forfeit his land. 'J"o the fame purpofe (70) O'Conor : — The head of a Clan, or the faftious infurgent was alone anfwerable for his own, or his people's delin- quency ; the innocent fucceffor was free from the guilt and enjoyed his property. — Though Taniftry and Gavelkind (71) may have exifted in other countries, yet as now defcribed they feem to be peculiar to Ireland, and they entailed niifery on it. The (63) Hift. Rclatioiu, p. 7.?. (64) Relation!, p. 74. (6.0 DitT. p. 130. (56) Mfiitioned hy Davis, fup p. 80. (67) Davis, fup. p. 75. Spcnfcr, fup. p. loi. (68) Hxc hitreUitas fcuilalibus legibus not! cocrcitur, iicc fdonia niuliilii eft obiioxia. Spclm.m in Gavrlftum. Black- Uone, V. i. p. 84. Rc-tvcs (hews land did not efcheat among the Anglo-Saxons. Hift. of Engl. Law. V. i. p. 10, (69) The words of Davis, fup. p. 97. (70) Diir. p. 6j. ift Edit, (71) Ste note before 35. AND LAWS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. ^-.y I- < «•■<■•« .< 4 >< < 4 ■( < 4 ■» < .< <..< .< .< .< < .< -J < .« .< .4..< .< .< .< . The king or chieftain of every diftrlct, being only tenant for life, exerciied every fpecies of extortion for the fupport of barbaric pride and ftate. The feudal policy gave them rights over their feudatories ; thefe rights they carried to the nioft deftruc- tive excefs, and to the utter impoverifliinent of their tenantry. The (72) petty kings paid to their monarch, cows, fheep, cloaks, horfes, fliips, hounds, and fwords. The fcarcity of money obliged tenants to pay in kind. Thus in the (73) laws of Ina, the Anglo-Saxon king, he who held ten hydes of land, fupplied his Lord with honey, bread, beer, oxen, (heep, geefe, hens, cheefe, butter, falmon, eels, and fuel. In thefe Irifh and Saxon duties, the quantity and quality of which each arti- cle confided was exadly afcertained, and fo they continued for fome ages, but at length they degenerated into fuch oppreffion of the fubjeft, that the Englifh princes, Henry I. John, and Henry III. were (74) compelled to remove fuch grievances by charters. Where no fuch controuling power could be exercifed, as was the cafe in Ireland, and every kinglet and toparch Shared in the plunder of a wretched com- monalty, ingenuity was racked to invent tallages, of which the following is a fpeci- men. Bonaght-borr was free quarters at difcrction, or in fpecie : bonaght-beg waj a commutation for money, or provlfions. This exaftion was generally for the pay of Kerns and GalloglaiTes, and hence in our writers, a body of fuch troops were called BoKaghts. Sorohen was a tax paid four times a year. Cillycone, an impo- fition for the Lord's hounds and huntfman. Cuddy, a fupper and entertainment for a night. " But the moft (y^) wicked and mifchievous cuftom of all others was that of Coigne and Livery ; which confifted in taking man's-meat, horfe-meat, and money at the will and pleafure of the foldier. This extortion was originally Irilh, and did draw down as great, or greater plagues upon Ireland than thofe of Egypt; for the latter though heavy were but of Ihort continuance, but the plagues of Ireland lalled four hundred years together. And hence the depopulation, banifiiment, and extirpation of the better fort cf fubjecls. This extortion of Coigne and Livery was for the fupport of their men of war ; but the Irifli tallages extorted by their chief- tains and tanills, by colour of their barbarous feigaory were almoft as grievous m. burden as the other, namely Coflierings, which were vifitations and progrefles made by the Lord and his followers among his tenants. Sellings of the Kern, of his family called Kernety, of his horfes and horfeboys. And laftly cuttings, tallages, 4 u and (7J) Coll. Je reb. Hib. p. 38a. (73) Spciman, p. »l«. (74) Wilkint, L. L. Hen. 1. (7^) Datu, fup. 3i8 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION and fpendings,-high andlcw at his pleafure : all which made the Lord an abfolute tyrant, and the tenant a very flave and villein, and in fome refpeft more miferable than bond flayes." In another place, Davis, who favv the diitrefied condition of the natives, and was iaftrumental in removing it, makes ufe of thefe ftrong ex- preffions, " Thefe extortions were called in the old ftatutes of Ireland — damnable cudoms — and the impofing and taking them made high treafon. And it is faid in an ancient difcourfe of the decay of Ireland, that though they were firft invented in hell, yet if they had been ufed and praftifed there, as they have been in Ireland, they would have long fince deftroyed the kingdom of Beelzebub." Befides the foregoing there were other exaftions called (76) Mufterowne, South, AfTaut, Bode, Garty, Caan, Byenge, Saults, Slaunciaghs, Shragh, Mart, Re- fection, and many more whofe names are not come down to us, all thefe were taken as feudal duties. Thus (77) in Doomfday book are duties of one night, half a night, three nights, ten nigh's, one day, and a month ; that is provifions, or a commu- tation in money, were to be fupplled for thefe periods. Enough has been faid to evince the feudality of our laws, and that where they differ from thofe of other people it was principally in their abufe. The Englilh colonifts ftyled them Brehon laws, becaufe Brehon was the title of the Judge who adminiftered them. Campion (79) in 1571 thus fpeaks of them, " Other lawyers they have, liable to certain families, which after the cuftom of the country determine and judge caufes. Thefe confider of wrongs offered and received among their neighbours, be it murder, or felony or treffpafs, all is redeemed by compofition. The Breighoon, (Brehon) fo they call this kind of lawyer, Sitteth him down on a bank, the Lords and Gentlt- men at variance, round about him, and then they proceed." Spenfer's (80) account of the Brehon law is this, " It is a rule of right unwritten, but delivered by tradition from one to another, in which often times there appeareth great fliew of equity, in determining the right between party and party, but in many things repugning quite to God's law and man's. As for example in the cafe of murder, the Brehon, that is their Judge, will compound between the murderer and the friends of the party murdered, which profecute the adion, that the malefador fliall give unto them, or to the child or wife of him that is flain, a recompence, which they call an Eriach (Eric). By which vilde law of theirs, many murders ■ amongft (76) Ware by Harris, p. 74. (77) Spelman, p. 1:0. (78) Brndaii is — fciitcnti.im diccre. Sec Wall. praf. Brcith in Irilh i> judgement ; !n Wclfli it it Brawd, (79) Hilh Ireland, p. 19. (Ho) View, p. 4. AND LAWS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 319 amongfl: them are made up and fmothered. And this judge being, as he is called the Lord's Brehon, adjudgeth for the moft part, a better {hare unto his Lord, that is the Lord of the foil, or the head of that Sept, and alfo unto himfelf for his judgement, a greater portion than unto the plaintiff's or parties grieved." In invefligating the Antiquities of Ireland, I have had frequent opportunities of admiring the profound erudition of Spenfer, and his extenfive knowledge of clafilcal writers : thefe are traits in the charadter of this eminent Poet but little attended to, yet admitting the ftrongeft proof. However the citation now given be- trays falfe affertions and want of information, very probably from his application to more pleafing ftudies. . 1. He fays, " the Brehon law is a rule of right unwritten, but delivered by tradition." This is abfolutely falfe, and the great number of MSS in Dublin College library, in the Mahon, Seabright and other colledions evince it to be fo. In 1606, when it was necellary to afcertain what were (81) the duties, fervices and rents paid to M'Guire out of Fermanagh, O'Briflan, his Brehon, was fent for, and they appeared in a parchment roll. So that though tradition might be authority for fome cuftoms, the principal laws of the Sept were conftantly committed to writing. 2. Spenfer fpeaks of compofition for murder as peculiar to the Irifli, which it was not, being exaftly the fame as the Anglo-Saxon, Were and Weregild. Hume fays, the f Irifh, who never had any connexion with the German nations, adopted compofuions for murder and robbery very lately. How ignorant of our Antiquities ! 3. Spenfer accufes the Brehon of partiality to his Lord and himfelf in apportion- ing the Eric. In the barbaric codes, if homicide was committed it was redeemed by three compofitions ; Megbote, which went to the family ; Manbote to the Lord of the Vaffal, and Fredum to the treafury or judge. The Salic and Ripuarian judges had their fredum or perquifites for hearing and determining caules : The Brehon (83) had the eleventh part. We (81) Confuctudinum Hibernix, fermone Hibernico conreripiarrm, plnrima apudeot adhuc extare Tolumiiia, mihi retulit Rev. D. Ufferius, cujus eximia divini humaniquc juris omris fcieiuia, niagiiam KibcrnicK ^«nci gloriiim aliulit. Duck. p. 413. (8») Colledl. de rcb. Hcb. V. I. p, s6o. f Uill. of Iri£laad, V. I. Appttid. i. (83) Spclmao ia Freda, p, nj. 320 ON THE POLITICAL CONSTITUTION ••4 •4-< ■<■•< ■< < < < ■< ■< < < ■< ■< ^■•<-4 <■■*.•■<■■< <■■<■■< ■< ■<■<■< ■<•■<•<■<■■< ■<■■< ■<■<.<'«'> >->•>">->■ >■>..> >■>. >■>■>■ >. y >. >. >. >■ >..>. > y..>. >..>■ >.>.-►. >■ k >•>■>■>• ►■■♦- We have feen how little the Brehon law was underftood by Campion and Spenfer, but we might expe£l: to have their defers fiipplied by Stanihurft, who was bred a lawyer, and was Recorder of Dublin. Yet he, if poflible, is more incorrect than the others. He fays the Brehons are unacquainted with the (84) Englifh law, and totally ignorant of the canon and civil : that they have certain decifions, confirmed by ufe and time, which they keep fecret to increafe their credit among the vulgar. On the contrary, Davis informs us, that the Brehons gave judgement with the afliftance of certain fcholars, who had learned many rules of the civil and canon law, rather by tradition than by reading. It is really aftonifliing, that none of the learned men now mentioned, particularly Stanihurft and Davis, lawyers, fhould not have preceived that the Irifli conftltution and laws were feudal, and refembled thofe of England unlefs in their abufe. The evidence I have alleged feems decifive that this was the cafe, and yet I feel a delicacy in being pofitive in an attempt, where men of very fuperior talents have been filent. I have (hewn, that the Irifh very early had written laws. When Malachy O'Mor- gan, the Pope's legate was feated in the archiepifcopal chair of Armagh in 1134, a clofe intimacy was eftablifhed between Rome and Ireland ; this introduced a know- ledge of the Roman civil law, difcovered at Amalphi in 1127. This was every ■where eagerly embraced, as it foftened the rigour and tempered the feverity of the feudal code. Vacarius, in 1149, read Tedures on the Pandeds at Oxford, and fo increafing- was the avidity for this ftudy, that about 1184 Giraldus Cambrenfis (85) complains, that it had ftifled all the other fciences. As the Irifh became atfached to the Roman See, and as the latter, notwith- ftanding the (86) refiflance of our Princes, filled almoft all our bifhopricks and eclefiaitical dignities when vacant ; and as the property and rights of the clergy were matters of very great concern, the canon and civil law became a neceflary part of education. They difcovered a great propenfity, fays (87) Duck, for the cultivation of the canon and civil law, and obtained the reputation of being the belt canonift's, and he (Sit) In:clligi:niiaiii juris El iluintiici non IiabcDt. civilit etiam ac pontificaliiimpcr!t!rrmii Stanihurft dc rcb. Hib. p. 37. In 1644, Lord CuLc's knowledge of Irilh Brehon laws was nothing more than a few terms. 4th InlUt. p. 3j$. And Blockflorc's is as irifilng in 1765. Commen, Inirod. {85) C^od leges impcrialcs reliquu fcientiai om«e» fufTocaTerant, 1. I. apud Duck Tup. p. 363. (Ii6) Pryiine'6 record!, paffim. (!i7) Quod plcrique fcriptorei traduot, Hiberoicor»m Ingenii valje propenfa elTc ad jui civile A canonifum. Rofellm »}>£ ,'-C ^^ "Fa O d -<■ ^' ^\^ \ :^ ^' ^^, AND LAWS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 321 he mentions a celebrated profeflbr at Oxford, in the time of Edward III. named William of Drogheda. Hence Polydore Virgil, who addrefled his hillory of Eno-. land to Henry VIII. and from collefting the Pope's revenue muft have had good information, tells us, the Irifli in 1533, were not (88) unacquainted with learnintr, for from their youth they applied to the ftudy of grammar and the canon and civil law; and Campion, ia 1570, fays, " without either precepts or obfervation of con- congruity, the Irilh fpeak Latin like a vulgar language, learned in their common fchools of leachcraft(phyfic) and law ; whereat they begin children, and hold on fixteen or twenty years, conning by rote the aphorifms of Hippocrates, the civil inflitutions, and a few other parings of the two faculties." In thefe citations we learn, that the Brehons confulted occafionally canon and civil lawyers to aflifl: their decifions : that civil and criminal caufes were their fole provinces, and pure ecclefiaflical matters were left to the Clergy. It is probable the Brehonic inftitutes were not unlike thofe of the (89) Welfii. The latter were tripar- tite : one related to the King's court, another to the laws of the country, and the third were the cuftoms appertaining to both. But as no ancient document has been deciphered to illuminate this fubjeft, conjeftures are idle, Macpherfon (go) reckons the Brehon among the nobility, though he afligns no reafon for this, yet as he held of the prince by grand ferjeantry he might be accounted noble. His office and property were hereditary. He fat on the (91) furamit of a hill or its acclivity, front- ing the eaftj.to hear caufes. This practice was copied from the northerns. Stephanius (92) fuppofes fuch places were chofen, becaufe ancient fuperflition adored hills as well as groves and fountains, and it was (93) believed the influence of ma;j,ic ■was lefs in the open air than in confined places. It was common in Wales tj throw up an earthen mount, whereon the judges fat, and this was called a (94) Gorfedde. One of thefe ancient judgment-feats is on the hill of Kyle, in the Queen's County : a view of which with the chief in coflume is given in the plate. 4 N 0^f (f.S) Liccnr-jm non''e5pcfni^Rm a puerii grammttica & j;iri tarn pontificio quanj civile cpsram datt. L 13. p. Jyf. Id. Thyfii. (89) Leg. Wall. (90) Dili. p. lyo. (91) Stanlhurft, |>, 33. Spenler, p. 54. (94) Conluevetat autem in eHiti montis vertice cunfiilcnti populo picblfcita (iepromert. Six. Gram. Stcphan, in loc«, f. 93. This was ihe Lscgbcrgis of the Icelanders. Thorkclio'j trails, p. 54. Olim in <:ollibu».rub dig. Loccen. p. 47. Sub dio veterura judicia hibebaiuur. Sternhook. p. z6. (93) Bed. 1. 1. e. 15. (94) Hcarne'i Antifj.,
  • > > > >■ V » > > >•■>■>•>■ >•■ barifm ; and a (13) native writer, about the year 700, calls it a vile tongue. As no genuine fpecimcn of old Celtic has been" produced, or poffibjy can, to warrant the praifes beftowed on it, it clearly follows, that to fpeak it in fuch panegyrical terms mull be to deceive the unlearned reader, while at the fame time it betrays the v/riter's profound ignorance. But to evince how eafy it is to indulge in the praife of any tongue, even the moft barbarous and unpolifhed, take the following inftance from an admirer of the Gothic. " Les Goths (14) n'e'toient pas une nation fi grolfiere que 1' on imagine : ce qu' il prouve par la politeil'e & par a regularite de leur langue. C'eft ce que 1' on peut voir, 1. par les genres mafculin, feminin, & neutre des noms, &c. Ce qu'il y a de plus remarquable dans la langue Gothique, c'eft qu' elle ne fe fert point due verbe auxiliaire avoir, non plus que les Grecs & les Latins, pour ne point parlcr des langues orientafes, ce qui eft une preuve inconteftable de fa grande antiquite." That any natjon, particularly the Gothic, wrapt in Cimmerian darkneis, ftiould rival the Irifli in politenefs, regularity and antiquity of language, is enough to ftir the bile of the moft ftoical Hibernian, nor is it lefs irritating for (15) Rudbeck to make his Gotho-Runic the fountain from whence flowed the Greek and PhiEnician letters, whence all the world knows the Irifh bethluifnion of the ogma can alone afpire to that diftinguiflied honor ; and that the (16) Celtic is the true parent of the Hebrew, Arabic, Perfic, Japonefe, Mungallic, Greek, Latin, Sclavonian, Ofcan, Showiah, Tamzeght, Algonkin, and a thoufand more. The author of this moft eccentric whimfy cannot be ferious : if he only meant to banter the unprofita- ble ftudies of fome Antiquaries, he has fucceeded admirably : for " Non potuit melius litem fmire jocofam. The ■}■ aid of etymology is called in to demonftrate the eaftern complexion of the Irifh tongue, by the Author laft cited. If he defigned to prove the Celtic to be originally the fame as the Hebrew or any other Oriental language, he ought, as a fcholar, to have fliown their agreement in (17) matter and form ; for it is from thefe, and not from refemblances in found, the affinity of languages is to be inferred. The Celtic, ,.". ia (13) Adamnan. apud Uffcr. .Syllog. p. 42. (14) Biblioth^que Chos. p.ir Ic Clcrc. T. zS. p. 307. (1.5) AtUnt. c. 38. (16) Colltflanea rcb. Hih and Irifli Or^mmar, fup. paflim. f Scis ciiim quam (iroclive fit quidvis ex qiiavis lingua cxculpcrf, fi i.'riiin indulgcaniiis, Gorcipii & Rudbcckii & ejus txemplo, qui nuper dc origiiic Huiigaronim fcripfit. Primus iu Bilg;ca, i.llcr iu Succica, tcrtius en lluiigarica Vetera Jcorum Vdcabul nullo ntgntici invtnii. Lcilmiix. Oficr, T. 8. p, ijS. (17; Wutlon. dc conf. l.ing. apud Chambcrlayiie, p. 46. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 337 1 «■«♦■<■<< <■< « 4 <■< 4 ■<■< <-<■■< 4 -4 ■<■'<•< •l"< <-4 <■< ■4-4 ■<-4 ■<-4-<-<"4 4 •+* > >■ >■ » >■ > > >■ >-»■>. >■>■>■>> >>>>■».>>>>.>> > » ». > > >. >- > i » >.-> >.. in its ftruilure, varies from every other tongue. In it, (18) words are declined by changing not the terminations but the initial letters in the oblique cafes. Its pro- nouns alter the beginning of nouns, and its grammar cancels every rule of language. Not to infift on the (19) uncertainty of etymology from the vicious orthography of words by Lexicographers, and the vicious orthoepy of founds by the natives themlelves, the Irifli leavar for liber, litur for litera, and fcriptuir for fcriptura, abundantly demonflrate, that we had neither letters, writing or books, until received through a Roman intercourfe. This Innes has long fince obferved. The corrupt ftate of ancient tongues has, at all times, been a fine field for literary trilling, and a rich foil for fciolifts and alphabetarians to flourifli in. On the whole, the preten- fions of the Irifn to an eAftern origin is a vain and groundlefs notion, generated in ignorance and miftaken patriotifm, difgraceful to the good fenfe of the nation, and not to be fupported by reafon, hiftory, or learning. The part we have now been travelling over is defcribed by Virgil : Umbrarum hie locus eji fomni no^ifque fopora. Hie £3° lucifuga pojuire cuhilia blatta. Something of light and certainty breaks in upon us as we advance in this inquiry. The voice of antiquity is filent as to Druidic letters, which are faid to have been ufed in this iile. Cisfar (20) fays they exiftcd, but that paffage has been long fufpeded as the interpolation of Julius Celfus ; who, I believe, had (21) Strabo in view when he inferted it. The want of native Britifh letters is Itrongly (22) inferred from the legends on the coins of Cunobeline, for if the Druids had a peculiar alphabet, or ufed the Greek letters, as Casfar aflerts, fuper intending religion and learning as they did, and obflinately retentive of their opinions and cuftoms, they alTuredly would have put their own and not Roman letters on the coins of their princes. Mabillon (23) is more than doubtful about the exiftence of the Gaulifli letters, nor does (18) Mallet, V. I. pref. p. 4:. Pinkerton's Diff. p. 113, and Scotland paff. (19) Mr. Pinlicrtoa can fcarcely keep his temper when fpeakiiig of our ablurd and ridiculous Irilh etymologies; he con- jiders themasinftances of the grolTeft infults ever offered to ihe feiife iud reafon of mankind. Scotland fup. V. 1. initic. (^o) Cxfaris hie locus eft & alii apud eundem de Grjecoruni litcrarum ufu, fuo tempore ajud Gallos; longe fufpeiSiis fuperioris setatis viris fummis. Burton. Hi.t. Gnc. ling. p. i<). Hoioman. Franco-Gail. c. a. Lips. tleiS. 1. 2. c. 7. Bayle. Article Ccfar. (11) The words are : fiXiXX>i»«,-, 415s *«; rit ivfiStXnia s^kKust yfifut. Lib. Csfar's words are : publicis privatifque rationibus Grxcis Uteris utuntur. Lib. 6. (li) By Whitaker, fup. p. 374 — 373. Aftle's Orisin of Writing, p. 56. ' (23) De re Diplom. 1. i. c. 11. L«ibnit2 is of the fame opinion.^ Totn. 8. p 195. Edit. Duttns. 323 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND does he feem to lay much ftrefs on the alphabet coUefted by Boterue from fepulchral infcriptions. It is above fifteen hundred years ago fince Celfus oppofed the antiquity of the Druids and their wifdom to thofe of the Jews. What was Origen's anfwer ? I do not know, fays (24) the Father, that they have left us any writings. It was in- cumbent on Celfus then as on our Druids now, to fupport the extraordinary things they have advanced concerning thefe fages by other arguments than confident aflertions. But the boldefl: attempt to filence the oppofers of ancient Irifh literature is the (25) produQion of an infcrlption on Callan mountain, in the county of Clare, its date A. D. 295. Here the Gauntlet is thrown down, and the literary world chal- lenged to an invefiigation of thefe extraordinary Irifh elements. The article in the Archaeologia informs us, that the Irifli Seanachies and Antiquaries ferioufly aflert the ufe of a charader called Ogham, not ufed as a cipher but as an uniform alphabet, wherein all matters relating to the ftate and religion were recorded. But in the next page, the modern bards are charged with inventing Ogums, and changing 150 circular fcales of Profodia into right-lined Ogums, and impofing them on the world for fo many different alphabets. How this author will reconcile the pofitive ac- cufation of invention and miflake in the (26) writers below cited, with their ferious alTertion of an uniform alphabet, will require fome ingenuity to explain. He con- feffes he erroneoufly faid, the Ogum charafliers were marked by certain flrokes ftanding perpendicularly on an horizontal mafler-line, but from ancient MSS he found the mafler-line was drawn perpendicular, and the charafters marked by Ilrokes perpendicular to it, on the right and left. Such are the author's words in the Archaeologia. Notwithftanding all the new lights he received, he gives in page 281, another manner of writing the Ogum, which is with horizontal Itrokes on each fide of a perpendicular line. It appears then, that neither the circular mode of drawing the Ogum, nor the horizontal mafter-line with perpendicular flrokes, nor the perpendicular mafter-line with perpendicular flrokes, are right, but the perpendi- cular line with horizontal flrokes. So that here Seanachies contradid MSS snd MSS oppofe infcriptions. Does not this jargon approach very near Perfius's (i4) flv HK tiSK. ti ^ifircti ivvypBLfjifiiirK.. Contra Ccb. 1, i. (15) Inferted in the Archacrlogia, V. 7. p. 276. {16) The writers here dilguilcd under the name of modern bards are, I apprehend, Mac Firbls and O'Flaherfy. Let S% 'the reader judge. Ex his aliquaa inter antiquitat im monum'Mita apud fc {Mac Firhis) luperfuilTe, ut ci diveifas charac- tcrum formulas, quas ter cjuinquagcnas a.Fcnicii ufque xtate numero, & croahb oghain, i. c. virgeas charatlercs nomine rccenftt, non ill priJem ad mc fcripCt Dualdus rirblCus. O'Flah. Ogyg. p. i^ii. Ogyg. vind, p. 9. r . '///f/fff/r^j ^s ^^^/amo • # Oou 1 iix CroaJjJi 1 « • :? SuQbtuis Ooum Biitifli ()ouiii Boljeloth j 1 BethliJifirioii ^ (7m /vfrt. J^lf/y C/buractf Au'iy r/wrf Pi? I.: J\^t7f?te' a.-,,, y?' ^"a//ie. r^ia/acf!" /^//^ t Tii/f/e — /- +/^ # # z 7irrr//t A Ji J^niM ^ iViJ jr A <" O/r/ J_ L Zot/j z Zujs ^ ■ .7' s e \ F Ff^/an/t T JV ^\^Tr/i = 7) ffN/i S Sfrlta F' S fM/tt Sail //(it/b M 1X1 h T r a 1 /■ / A7/.W 4- D T C Z)rr/ff//f//fft Tf/7/fi('// C T C T/rf//f (W/ H- ^ ^ /' re (7 i p M r— 1 'I cb 'I il//it/f V 0' (^///i P r .Petihlm- ^1 ,^6 C^ r' \ / /^rrt /^ ^^ . \^r////frr /^^ R H/zis — I — •4^ A. JS <1 r s T/Y/fM A'/// if/ T J /f7n/ A1<^.U.£J J AyJ/n « S A rf nr vO 7i Jiu/if/i i si (J 7M = >-r- 11/ t/f ^ A .J" Q/r i .A Jm6 liv, r n- E ■/ ^.9 < z Z>//r J /I/// £/fifii// X 7^ -^.r/- /7^/ 1 I X/ er/ \^//>tl i| 3 F. Fvr/ ^ b' ,/?(' ^ t/U Af// • H^ ptr/ ^K ft £///() * ^ i/tf/r •////?/ >^:*- f/-// 7 2 /Cf/tr .. LNJ ;drconxaini ic l\iiii - s. A. / n ^. ,/. f. t'. '/. /// ,7 //^^ ,,.,/ /. f^/trt/wtr^. r.^. _J //'///^ ^'A.ir. /i?u{\ 1 1'a/ftr 1 II III . t/O I 4 . isr I J /lis a 1' u f r . rtr or - | - 5 B /i /Ivn/// >K K 7V>i/./> 1 :;| 1 1 1 Jv U J ^^ _ ^ \ i--i-i- ••! --v^r^ V J)■// Frr/.> A Lai/t/ 1/' J/V,., y Mr!--- ■■' --A--U C.-.JIr , ':-v-i;.t; i It F /Wy 1 : tmmHrmr%dm''"«M'''''^/r\^ '--f^ 'P '■7/ X. ''KI^HHHHH y ^ 1- // //ir,/,t/^ 1 1 ■''^,M. /(,//_ ,?^/// f„r.,. f y<,/J,y,4: .//,r., '/,.//„. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISIL v^.; JF.gr cti vcleris 7nedttantis fcmnia : Gigni De !ti/ji!o nihil, in nihiluni nil pojf: neverti ? I believe the reader will be apt to credit Mr. Pinkerton, uho yffirms this fame Celtic has the flrange effed to obnubilating the mind, and this he Jemonflrates, by numerous examples, has been unhappily the cafe with this writer. Our author in the Archaeolgia grants, that he has never been able to difcover Ogum infcriptions on flones, altars or croml"ecc, and yet in a (2^) former work he a(ks with ftrong emphafis — '" lliall we doubt the authority of Sir James Ware, fliall we difuelieve our eyes, when we behold Ogum infcriptions on many remains of antiquity ?" In four pages after he fays : " we are forry it is not in our power to quote any paffages of our Druidic Ogum, fuch books having not fallen into our hands." This fort of contradidory writing goes to the fubverfion of all fober in- quiry ; it refembles this author's Ogum, which, like the charadlers of the Montcheou Tartars, are legible up and down, backwards and forwards : it is a fort of literary conjuring, where the reader, Ohjiupuity varia confufus imagine rerum. To refcue therefore a fubjefl: thus in danger of being irretrievably loft, we mull recur to the old Irifli antiquaries, who, after all their vagarees, give the only rational information. Ware is the firft, I think, who mentions the Ogum, and that in a way not to afford matter of triumph as to its ufefulnefs or antiquity. He defcribes it as made up of various occult forms, or artificial modes of writing for fecrecy. The 150 notes mentioned by Mac Firbis, O'Flaherty calls " different forms of charaiElers." Thefe expreffions indicate ftenographic as well as fteganographic notes, referring to fome ticlitious charafters or ciphers. If 1669, O'MoUoy, in his Irilh Grammar, enters more fully into this fubjed, and is literally copied by every writer fince. He informs us the Ogum was divided into three kinds : i. Ogum beith, when bh, or the Irilh letter beith being part of the firft confonant, is placed inftead of the vowel a. This Ogum is alfo called Ogum confoine, or the Ogum made out of confonants. Here is an (2S) example: a e i o u bh. fc. ng. dl. ft. The fame method may be obferved in fubftituting confonants for dipthongs. Thus, 4 p ac (27) Ir!& Grammar, p. 7. («8} Httrii't Ware, p. 19. 330 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND ae ia ua io oi mm. 11. bb. cc. pp. The fecond fort is Ogum coll, or the Ogum compofed out of the letter c : v.'hen for all the vowels, dipthongs and tripthongs the letter c is fubflituted, varioufly repeated, doubled and turned, as thus : a e i o u c. cccc. cccc. cc. ccc. ea ia oi io ua • The third fort is the Ogum croabh, or the virgular Ogum ; it has an horizontal mafter-line, through which and on each fide are perpendicular ftrokes which ftand in the place of vowels, confonants, dipthongs and tripthongs. This is exhibited in the Plate No. i. as the perpendicular mafter-line with horizontal flrokes is feen in No. 2. and the Callan infcription in No. 3. What is now pro- duced from Molloy is rational and intelligible, nor can there be any doubt but all thefe (29) cryptographic modes were praftifed in all the northern countries of Europe: for in the celebrated (30) Icelandic Edda at Upfal is an inftance of the Ogum confoine, where inftead of the vowel, that confonant which followed next in the alphabet is placed. As Dfxtfrt fcrkptprks bfnfdkth skt pmnkbxs hprks. inflead of a, e, i, o, u, y, the letters b, f, k, p, x and z were put, foithat it reads thus : Dextera fcriptoris benedicla fit omnibus horis. Von Troil remarks, that a fimilar Ogum may be fcen in Rabanus Maurus's traft, De ufu liierarum, written about the middle of the 9th century. Verelius, Wormius, with many exifling monuments prove, that the Northerns writ their runes in every poflible form ; in circles, in angles, from right to left, and vice verfa. Wormius (31) enumerates twelve different ways of making runic infcriptions. 'I'he German (32) Buchflab or runes were drawn fometime in horizontal, and fome- times m perpendicular lines. Here we have, if not the original of our Ogum Croabh, ^^'20) Tlie aocien^s difpoftd lettcri varioully for fccrccy and araufcmetit For i]k fcytale of the Greeks fee Schol. Tluicyd. Ul>. 1. I'lutarch in Lyfaiid. A. CJcU. I. 17. c. 9. For Roiiijn contrivances, fee Suit, in Aug. c. 88. in J. Ca;f. c, 56. Dio. 1 39 MiirholF. Polyhifl. T. 1. p. 62.1. Salmuch in Pain^pal. tit. 14. ijo) Von Troil't Lctteis on Ici-laiid, p. -.^y. (J)) Litcrot. Run. p. ijP, l\y. Ui) Ptllouticr, hilt, dcs Ctltcs. T. I. p. 401. Mallet, V. J. p. J^A. 1 ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 331 Croabh, a praftice exactly fimilar. In a word, thefe wonderful Irifh Ogums were nothing, as we fee, but a Henographic and fteganographic contrivance, common to the femibarbarians of Europe in the middle of ages, and very probably derived from the Romans. Mr. Macpherfon, after ably (33) ftating the great improbability of the early ufc of letters in Ireland, remarks that Ogum is a word which has no affinity with any other in the Irilh language, and feems therefore to be a cant name impofed upon a fpecies of ftenography or cipher, in which the old Irifh, like many other nations, write their fecrets. This opinion is ^bt quite correft. As to Ogum being a cant name and not found in didionaries, that is partly true and partly falfe. The word is prefcrved in the (34) Welfh, where Oganis augaury, divination. Keyzleralfo tells C35) us, that Oga, Ogum and Ogma are old Celtic words, implying letters written in cipher, and indire(E\ly an occult fcience. Thus its true import is afcertained. Innumerable words, in the lapfe of time, have been loft in the Irifli as well as every other language. The moft poliflied nations of the world have beheld with aftonifiiment the art, whereby can be comprehended the thoughts, word and adtions of men, paft and prefent, and that by the combination of a few letters. The Indians could not con- ceive how paper marked with black ftrokes could communicate intelligence, unlefs It was animated. When (36) Leri wrote down fome fentences of the Brazilian language, and the next day repeated them to the natives, they inftantly concluded he did it by fome magical or furpernatural means. I'he North America Indians thought (37) Carver's book a fpirit, when he told them the number of leaves by looking at the figure&ar the top of the page. The eaflern and weftern Runes and Ogums were all poUerior to the invention of letters, fur barbarians, as. we have feen, afcribed occult qualities to the former, from diicovering the power of the letter. And this is the opinion of (38) Arngrini Jonas, a molt ikilful northern Antiquary, who thinks the northern Runer or conjurers had fome little common learning, but that they greatly corrupted the alphabetic elements by virgular ciphers and points, which he fuppofes invented by them, the more to excite admiration of their (;.^) IntroJudion. triiles, i. p 44^. Aftle. p. 122. (,M) P owland's Mora .Anliqua p. 2^''. 5J Edition. (35) Antiq. re|tcnt. kktt. p. j8. (j6) Navlg. !n ISraz. i. 16. Ecuzuiii. lull. iiov. Orbis. (37) Travels, p. 24t. (3R) Ii»iltimo verifmiile elTe ma-ros illos lileratiira alltjua ufos, & (HiidiDi \iilgari, niajori ex parte, fed virguli* &.. y'.i|)Cii« fuo matte eicrgi;ati» ccrrupia. Worm. Lit. Uun. ji. 34. y^z ON THE OGHAM CIL\.RACTERS, AND their wifilom and knowledge amoTig a rude people. Letters themfelves, fays (39) Mallet, were more frequently employed among the Danes for the foolifli purpofe of working prodigies than to afllft the memory, or render words fixed and permanent. And no wonder, when Odin taught, that the art of writing was to be regarded as the art of working all forts of miriacles. The perfons in the North, who thus affecced fupcrior flull ifi learning, in magic, aflrology aftd other branches of ancient lore, were, according to Wormius, ftylcd Runer and Adelruner : fo that f Rune and Ogam are perfetlly equivolent in fenfe, and had the fame origin. One Angularly r&iarkable facb here offers itfelf, which has hitherto efcaped notice, and that is, the exiflence of the word " Run," in the Irifh language and diclioaaries, fignifying a fecret or myftery. The word and its meaning mult have been adopted from the Northerns, for it could not co-exirt in the Teutonic or Gothic and Celtic in fimilar letters and import, unlefs we affert thefe tongues to be the fame. As all know they were not, then we muft have had it from the Northern invaders of this ifle, and to them is to be attributed the lofs of the old Celtic name, Ogum, for that of Run, introduced by them. O'Brien (40) treating of this word, without any defign of doing fo, confirms the truth of what is aflerted by fhewing, that in five dialects of the Teutonic it is preferved, in its original fignification. It is very likely the Northerns had the firft notions of thefe Runes from an eaftern connection, when they dwelt on the weftern fide of the Euxine ; particularly from the (41) Greeks. To omit the oriental (42) Cabbala, the Greeks had their Ephefian letters, which not only proteded (43) from harm, but infured fafety and fuccefs. The early ages of chriftianity were infected with this error, as we learn from Irensus, TertuUian and Philaftrius : nor were even fome of the mod learned fathers, as Origen, free from it. There is a paffage in Euftathius upon Homer on the power of thefe Ephefian letters, too long for infertion here, but its fpirit is well expreffed in thefe fentences of the (44) Edda. " Do you, fay fays Odin, know how to engrave Runic characters, how to explain them, how to prove their (39) Supra. V. I. p. 116. The Cliamans of Silicria, and the Hottentot pried? are fqually addidlcd to magic con - juracicnt. See Gmclinand Sparman'i travels. f Cum liters inter barbiros initio arcanz clTcnt, arcjnarum notarum sjipellutio litcri'i manfic, etiam cum publicx efTe cctfhe. Leibnitz, apud Chambcrl. p. i8. (40) Irifh Die. voce Run. (41) Clarke on Saxon Coirt, p. s3- (41) Holm di: fcript. apud Crenii Analedl. p. 41:. (4}) Hng.de orig. fcribend. p. 515. Ed. Trotz. (44) Mallet and Wormius, fupra. Barthol. p. 649. L»cccn. p. flj. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. -^^ ••<■■<■<■<■■<■<■<•<■<■<■<■.<■<■<-<-<<..<.<-<<< < .i.-<-.< <■< < .<■■<-.<■* .<-<--4-^ ■< < «4'> ■ ■ > >■ »■ V- > >■ > I their virtue ? If we fee a man dead, and hanging aloft upon a tree, I engrave runic charafters fo wonderful, that the man immediately defcends and converfes with me, kc." They were believed to have a phyfical innate quality, which made them noxious, favourable, medicinal and fitted for every wi(h, aftion or un- dertaking. As foon as the Germans had learned the ufe of letters from the Romans, their Runer, Adelruner, necromancers or priefls adopted the Roman (45) divinatory notes for magic purpofes. It would have been very difficult to have determined the figure of thefe notes, were we not told by (46) Cicero and Suetonius that they refembled old obfolete letters. U n'y a rien fi vrai, que rentctement desfcavans feptenrti- onaux pourles Runes : les fuedois y tiennent le premier rang ; mais Mr. Sperling m'a ecrit autrfois qu'il ne les croit pas fi ancienne?. C'efl: pourtant une chofe affez remarquabie, que beaucoup de ces lettres font femblables a celles qui fe trouvent fur les medailles d' Efpagne, dont j'a beau coup de copiec tires du cabinet de Mr. de Barry, et fur les piedeftaux des ftatues Etruriennes publics par Bellori, & je n' ai encore trouve perfonne, quoique j' ay e confuire divers I'taliens qui peut me don- ner quelque cclaircifTement la deffus. This is part of a letter from Cuper to La Croze. The ancient notes are comprized under three (46) heads : i. hierogly- phical, where the thing to be underftood is exprefied by a fymbol, as a circle for the fun. Where a cipher or charader has the power of many letters, as in the Tyronian notes. Ennius, it is (48) faid, invented e!e 'en hundred of the latter, but in reality he took them from Eaftern and Grecian archetypes. Tiro and others added many to thofe of Ennius, and Seneca augmented and digefted the whole, and they are to be found at the end of Gruter's Infcriptlons. In thefe and in the fecond fort or Sigia were the Roman laws and proceedings written, which of courfe became fo obfcure. that Tribonianus, who compiled the JulHnlan Code, v.'as frequently at a lofs to develope their fignification. This induced the Emperor in ^^;^ to (49) forbid their ufe. From their forms they were called (50) puncta, iinex, flexura:, catena- tiones, fignorum capitones and compendiofa senigmata ; terms not eafi!y rendered 4 Q. into (4J) Virgam fruiSiferje arbori decifam, in furculos amputant, eofque Notis quilnifdam difcixtos, &c. Tacit. Germ. Sed niai'.ciidum, turn ifta aui i>o|^ulina furs aut abicgina ell lua. Plauc. Ca^. Ac, J. Taubman- in loco. For t]ic enipljynient of the Aiielruni. W^orm. Fad. Dan. 1. I. p. 124, (46J In rolore inlculptas prikarum iiietarum nolas. Cic. de divin. \ 2, c. 41. NaOlns pucrikm iconculam eju ancani vcterera fcircis ac fere jam exolcfccntibus liieris infcripiam. Suet, in Ocl. c. 7. (47) Afile, ri.|,ra fub fin. (48) Uidor. Orig. 1. 1. c. jl. (49) 1. Cod. lit. J 7. leg. I. (ji) Lips tfill. ad Bclg. cent. 1. ep. 17. 334 ON THE OGHAM CHARx\CTERS, AND into Engli(h, yet conveying to us an iJeaof tlie multiplied nicdes of ancient brachy- graphy and cryptography. Befides thefe there were notse ferviles, pecuariae, juri^ dicre. &c. and many m^^rein common and daily ufe, all taken from the great body of Tiro's and Seneca's notes. Wherever a Roman ftation or colony was, there not s were neceffary, and we have feen to what purpofes they were applied by the fiirrounding barbarians. In the 6th century, VenantiusFortunatus mentions the old German cuftom of carving or painting Runes to have been common among the Franks. Barbara frax'ineis pingatur Runa tabelUs. About the year ijbo, Trithemius difcovered, that the ancient Norman and Francic iilphabets were niixt with thefe (51) notes. He met wiih them in a Davidic Pfalter in the Stralburgh library. The Francs had (53) letters before they received chrillianity. Here then is an extraordinary authentication of the exiftence and ufe of thefe notes in Germany for more than a thoufand years, and this proves, that the Northerns (^contrary to what is generally believed) were acquainted with the alphabetic elements io early at leait as their intercourfe with the Romans. There is no part of literary hiftory more obfcure than the formation of alphabets ; nor is there any part of it more curious. Writers (53) have contented them- felves with deducing the Francic and Saxon from the Latin, and the Runic frbni the Gothic, which in the improved ftate of thefe alphabets is, in fome degree true ; but they have not accounted for the llrange and barbarous charafteis found in all, nor afcertained the time and caufe of their infertions : I prefume to offer but a few hints, introduftory to an invefligation of our Irifh elements. The complete eluci- dation of this fubjeft requires uncommon philological and critical learning, and would very properly have made a part of Mr. A'lle's ingenious work on the Origin of writing. On the arrival of letters in the North, the various cryptic and fteno- graphic modes of writing pradifed by the Romans were immediately known. The latter the barbarian priefts adopted and (ludied, and that, in preference to the former, as being better calculated for magical purpofes, and to make the vulgar ftare. Such was the degradation of Religion in thofe ages, that it had funk into inchantment and the groifcfl: fuperflition ; and fuch the corruption of letters, that they were become Tironian or Runic ciphers. '1 he iaft particular every diplomatic vriter, and every table of alphabets will confirm. During the time uf the Gothic power (51) Trilhem. de Polygraiih p. 599. (52) Ilickes Thcfaur. Franco. Thcotifc. {<,i) Bcrnatd's tabks iiiiprovcJ by Morton. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 3^5 .,4 ■*<■■< < <■< <•> power in Italy, tlie Roman elements fuffered a (54) remarkable change. A greater deviation enfued under the Longobards, and in the 8th century Roman letters were only found in the titles of MSS. Alphabets were compofed of letters and Roman notes, uncouth in their figure, confufed in their order, and barbarous in their name. The annexed plate demonftrates this. Thcfe alphabets feem to have been a national and even provincial concern. For as each country and tribe was diftinguKhed by fome particular enfign, as a Dragon, Raven, &c. fo were they by a peculiar alpha- bet, which, while preferved, was fuppofed to contribute by its magic and occult qualities to the power and permanence of the flate. Let us now attend to the proof. " It appears, (fays a rnoft learned (^£) Antiquary,) that the various foreigners in- habiting Britain, in the Saxon times, framed each an alphabet for themfelves. From whence otherwife could fpring fuch a diverfity of Letters and Alphabets unknown elfewhere, and greatly furpaffing in number thofe found in the MSS of any other country ?" And as evidence he adduces a rubric prefixed to one of thefe fictitious alphabets, which runs thus : " Nemnmus being upbraided by a Saxon fcholar, as if the Britons were ignorant of the rudiments of learning, invented thefe letters, fuddenly forming them from his own conceptions, to wipe away from his nation the imputation of dulncfs and ignorance." This was placed before the Britifli Ogum in the Plate. Neither Langbaine, who I believe firlt communicated this rubric to Archbifliop (56) Ufher ; nor (57) Hickes, who found it in the Bodleian Library, nor La Croze feem to underfland its meaning : the laft obferves, if it be not a jeu d'efprit, the Britons mufl: have lolt all memory of their antiquities, for it fuggeits, that before this they had not letters. This however is a thcugiitlefs guels, becaufe the Britons had letters at lealt four centuries before the ariival of th* Saxons ; and if they had not, this extempore alphabet was not likely to reader them general. The rubric records a conteft between two literary men, one a Briton, the other an Anglo-Saxon. The latter was well acquainted with Renography and fleganography, which in reality required much application and lludy, and therefore he prized very highly, calling them " Rudim-jutum," as the Schoolmen did their Quiddities, the only folid foun'^;;t?on of learning. In thcfe he believed the Briton eminently defediive, but by producing an extemporaneous alphabet, the latter fliewed the (?,!) Mdliilliin, fuira. (55) La Crcre. Vindic. Vet. p. 89. (j6j Ulhei's Icticrs by Parr, p. 5^1, (57) Catalog. Lib. fcpLent.p. I.19. ^;^6 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND the Saxon he was miftaken- It was not with ignorance of letters the Briton was ■upbraided, but of this rudimentum. That each people had peculiar and appropriated alphabets, I need but cite Arngrim Jonas, who writing to Wormius tells him, there were Greenland, Opland, Greek, and Ira f letur or Irifli runes. And from the fame (58) work we learn, that the Malruntewere proper to fome people and invariably ufed by them. All the northern alphabets were originally made up of letters and Tironian notes, the latter feem to have been the Malrunee. Wormius has (59) tortured his ingenuity to explain the confonants and vowels in thefe ciphers, but in vain ; as well might he reduce to an alphabet the fcrawling of an infant. Ufed in (60) diabolical exorcifms and con- jurations, the zealous Roman miffionaries endeavoured to deftroy thefe notes or Runes. Mallet (61) a) fo remarks, that as foon as the Gofpel was preached in the North, an intermixture of the Roman letters appeared with the Runic, and that the latter continued to give way till finally abollllied. Here he intimates what was nearly the truth, that the Runic like the other barbarous alphabets, was at firft almofl entirely made up of notes or magic Runes. The (62) Marcomannic Runes, in the plate, have out of fifteen but four letters refembling the Roman. And Wormius declares they agreed v/ith the Runic, in the ftrangenefs of their fliape and names. The Norman alphabet in Bede is another inltance. The Gothic, im- properly afcribed to Uiphilas, has many characters, as given by Johannes Magnus and Bernard in his tables, quite unlike the Greek and Roman, and taken from the notes. The prefent Runic, without reafon faid to be derived from the Gothic, exhibits but three or four letters fimilar to the Greek and Roman. Hickes explicitly declares, (63) the prefent Anglo-Saxonic elements are not the entire old ones, but a more modern compound of Latin letters ; and a very good (64) judge obferves, the old Saxon letters refembled the Runic, that is, the notes. Here is a variety of teRimonies (j8) LIteri!. Run. p. 37 — 40. Ut litfras confiiigercnt, quafi pripria? gtnris furc. I,a Croze, fupra, p. 89. I The Ira I.etur, or Irifti Ogum charadlers did not differ greatly from the other Runic ones. Worm. Literat Rii». c. I. Rowlands never faw the Ira Letur, and docs not know whether they were tlic lame as the Bcthluifnion. Miua Ar.tiq. p. 1 10. They were all the fame. (59) Worm, fupra. p. 40. {60) Nii'h)lfon's Iridi Hid. Library, Preface. (61) Supra, p. .?78. (61) Rab. Maurun fays, they were ufed in incantations and divinations. De invent, liter. Tarn q'load figuram, quam quoad nomina cum nortratilius tonvtnire Worm, fupra, p. 47. (63) Ali'habctum Aiiglo-Saxonicum nnn ell integrum illud velus, cujus muhi defideran ur clarjiTlcrcs. l.'ram. Angli- Sa>. p. 2. (64) Walker on Saxon Coins, apud CaniJcn. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 337 teftimonies all uniting in proof of the fame h& : that the Northern priefls and necioniancers, on their acquaintance with the Roman letters, adopted the Roman divinatory and other notes : that thefe being ufed in conjurations, and known only to their Runer and Adelruner, acquired the name of Runes : that whole alphabets ■were formed from them, or with bur a few letters fcattered through them : that thefe magical alphabets multiplied in the dark ages, and fpread over Weflern and Northern Europe, and that fuch were the ancient Irilli elements we fliall now fee. The oldelt Irifli alphabet is faid to be the Bobeloth, fo called from the names of certain (65) mafters, who aflided in forming the Japhetian language. So idle a tale one would not expefl: to find in a modern Grammar : it is obvious this alphabet was denominated from Bobel, Loth, its two firfl: letters. The other names and the figure of the letters are exaftly in the ftyle of the Britifli, Runic, and Marcomannic Runes, as an infpedion of the plate will evince. As might be expecled, they re- femble the Roman notes and Northern Runes. The learned Mr. Pinkerton (66) remarks, that the Bobeloth was a contrafted mode of writing, well known by the name of Notze Longobardicae. If he had added " fecret " to contracted, he W'ould have been perfettly right ; for according to Mabillon, thefe Longobardic notes were the fame as the other northern alphabets before fpoken of. Kinfaolidh, an author of the 7th century, is (6y) faid to have tranfcribed and illuftrated the Irifh Grammar. This notice would have been pafTed over, but that what it records happened in other countries. Thus the Runic, Anglo-Saxon, Go- thic, and other alphabets were gradually purged of their Runes, and in their place Roman letters fubftituted. The fame thing probably happened in Ireland in the feventh age : fo that by tranfcribing and illuflrating, I underftand the compofition of a new alphabet, perhaps the prefent Bethluifnion, which fllll preferves ftrong marks of a barbarous period. The two (68) characters given in the plate as varie- ties of the letter N j one as H, two as M, one as A, and one as E, being feven, and not to be feen as capitals or currents, as far as I have examined, in the com- mon tables, but all of them in the Roman notes, prove they are the remains of the old Ogum or magical alphabet ; even were this not the cafe, its name fufficiently verifies this curious fa£t : it is called Bethluifnion na Ogma, or the alphabet of magic or myfterious letters ; a title exprefling the true form of its original ciphers, 4 R and (65) Irifti Orammar, p. 14. Harris's Ware, p. it. (66) ScoilanJ, V. », p. 17. (67) Irifh Grammar, p. 13. (68) O'Conor'a Diff. p. 3-. 338 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND -< ■< < < < < < < < 4 ■<■■<•■< ■< ■< <■<-< <<■<■■< •< ■< ■< ■< • >>■>»>. >■ »■ > > > . ■> > > >■ >• >■>■ > > > >■ > > >■■>■>•>■>>■ >->■■>■>->■ V >^ and the ufe they were applied to, and fuch were O'Sullivan's and all other Ogums, being derivatives from the Roman notes. At firft they were (lenographic, then fteganographic, then magical, and laftly alphabetic. Kvery circumdance relative to our letters confirms the truth of what has been advanced. They were (69) called Feadha or Woods, becaufe like the conjuring rods of Tacitus's old Germans and the old tablets of the Franks, thefe Runes or Ogums were carved on them^ and thefe are the genuine virgular charafters, noticed by O'Flaherty. In the Barbarian alphabets the order was not conformable to the Roman, but arbitrary and capricious : nothing lefs could be expeded from the manner of compo- fmg them. " Thofe, (favs (yo) Wormius,) who would accomodate the Runic to the Roman order err egregioufly." Mr. Aftle (71 J cannot be exact as to the time when the order of the Runic letters was confounded : it was in its firft formation, and continued fo to the reign of (72) Woldemar, A. D. 1185, when the Roman order was eftablifhed. The Irilh Bethluifnion is a living monvnnent of a barbarous age. It begins with B, L, N ; but N was anciently the fifth letter : A is its four- teenth, and all the confonants are placed before the vowels, fo that In want of order as in every other particular, it entirely agrees with the Runic and other ancient northern alphabets. The rudenefs and fuperftition of the Iriih, through every age, invincibly attached them to their Bethluifnion na Ogma, as Runes are, at this day, ufcd In the (73) mountains of Sweden. We may recoiled, that our hiftorlcal romancers aflerted the derivation of our letters from the Phoenicians. The learned Mr. Aftle (74) fpeaking of the " Textus Sancti Cuthberti," written in the feventh century, remarks, that " it is in capitals, which were ufcd by the Greeks, Etrufcans, Romans, Vifigoths, Saxons, French, and Germans ; and that its alphabet bears ftrong teftimony, that the letters ufed by our Saxon anceftors are derived from the Phjenician, the Greek, and Etrufcan, through the medium of thofe of the Roman letters." If I underftand this para- graph, it means that the Saxon alphabet is taken from the Romans, as the latter is from the Phasnician, the Greek, and Etrufcan, which no one denies, and which Bernard's (69) O'Conor, fupri. O'Flahtrt. Ogyg. p. 213. The Runic Biark.nn was tlic fame. (JO)- A fcopo & inflitotA ifla'iorum iioftroruhi longiffime exorbitarc vMco. Sup. p. 86, S7. (jl) Origin of writing, p. 89. (71) Ulas (Runa-.) a principio ntc onirics cadctn (]ua nunc alplialietaria fchcmata pr.tfcruiit forma fxtitlflTc dixit, ncc fcrie collocata> eadem. Vulgariuin ordincm numerumiiuc a Voldtmarc ad furmulaiu alplubcli Runiani inllilutuni cfle aicbat. Worm. fup. p. 4*. (73) Mallet, fupra, p. 378. (74) Supra, p. 97. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 339 Bernard's tables make evident. But, according to Mr. Aftle, this text of t?ie Gofpels is written in letters ufed by the Greeks, Etrufcans, Romans, Vifigoths, Saxons, French, and Germans. The fird queflion here to be afked is, did all thefe people ufe the fame alphabet? The anfwer is dire£l and pofitive, that they did not. The Romans had their "• literse unciales, cubitales, grandes, & quadratse." The Franks, befides a mixture of Tironian notes, had their " litera: Francogallics & Merovin- gica;," and the Saxons had a very old alphabet and a more recent one. The fame may be faid of the other people. Where then did Ealfrith rhe monk, who fo beau- tifully (75) wrote this MS for St. Cuthbert, find thefe capital letters of fo many nations ? The faft is, he neither found them nor fought for them, but he ufed the Roman notes, which in reality do approximate to the letters of every people, and were originally old obfolete letters, and were adopted by the nations Mr. Aftle mentions, firfl: as a contracted, then a fecret, then a magical mode of writing, and laftly, as alphabetic elements, or mixt with them. Our learned and ingenious author, not aware of this progrefs, has neceffarily expreffed himfelf obfcurely, and taken a pofition not tenable. Here is an additional confirmation of the idea purfued in thefe pages. It is probable the ufe of brachygraphic and cryptographic notes was known in Ireland, at the Very time St. Cuthbert's text was written, and the numerous caprici- ous alphabets were invented, and this may be inferred from an (76) epiftlc of Aldhelm to Eahfrid, who was juft returned from our ifle, after a refidence of fix years. — It is thus : Digna Jiiit fante g}ingio gifrgo fugax fambulo. The glofs fubjoined, which is by no means intelligible, however fhews, that it was written in ciphers, each exprefling one or more words, as did the Tironian and other notes. It was thrown out by the petulant but ingenious Aldhelm to puzzle Eahfrid, and try the extent of his fcholarlhip and Hibernian education. Perhaps the reader may confider the following inftance alfo in point. Adamnan, an Irilh- man and x^bbat of Hy, in the year 700, compofed the life of St. Columba, whofe fucceffor he was. In the Preface to this performance he fays, " he has {jy) cy- phered but a few things to avoid tiring the reader." Though the verb caraxarc is often ufed for fcribcre, or exarare, yet, from the numerous inftances that might be colleded {7O Smut's Chronicle, V. i. p. 346. (76) Uffer. SjUog. p, 41. (77) Pauca fmt carasata. UITtr. SjIIog. p. 42, !4o ON THE OGHAM CirARACTERS, AND 'J < < <■<•<-< i -A-'i <<■< <■< i < < t'r. > >•> > » # > > » >. .<>>.> >.>..>..v. ».>..>. >.>.>..» >.>..v.>->.i colleded, fome of which are given (jS) below, it is efpecially applicable to fleno- graphic notes, and the Gloilliry of IfiJore calls the Short hand writer, " Charaxarius." So that Adamnan talking of the brevity of his work, ufes this word with fingular propriety. As to the Callan infcripiion, which firft give rife to this enquiry, the mode of cryptography there ufed, is the finiplefl: that could be devifed, that of llrokes on each fide of a mafter-line. ^I'hefe could never be the " uncouth virgular characters," fpoken of by O'Conor, for uncouth can only be applied to the ftrange forms of the other Ogums, taken from the Roman notes. This was of all the worll calculated to promote literature, or, preferve the memory of events : For it requires 1 5 lines or (Irokes to exprefs the five firft letters of the alphabet, or fifty-one, for the eigh- teen elements of the Iriflr language. And is this the Ogum which C79) we are told, " the Irifli Antiquaries preferved as a piece of the greateft value, and that it was penal for any but the Driiids, to ftudy or ufe it ?" Indeed it is honouring fuch reveries too much, to inention them. Scr'tpta pudet recitare, b° }iugh addere pondus. However, as fome men of learning think favourably of this infcription, it is neceflary to add a few remarks more on the fubjed. The infcription in the Archaeologia is : " Beneath lies Conal-Colgac, the long-footed." It is alfo (So") read thus : " Beneath this fepulchral monument is laid Conan the fierce, the nimble-footed." Thefe different interpretations by the fame perfon look fufpicious, but what fhali we fay, when we are given three other various readings by this writer? This was a fatal flep ; the Gentleman fcjrgot, that the argument that proves too much, proves nothing : applied to the prefent cafe, it mufl. demonftrate to every man of fenfe, that the different explications are grounded on no certain principles, and made out by different fcales ef Ogum, and Ly reading it then from right to left, and vice verfa. Such childifli manoeuvres are really ridiculous, and have juftly difgraced our Antiquities. If (78) Ubi tft fufus in hanc luccni, mirabile diflu totum eju« corpufculum inveritur charaxafum, quafi crucicularum ^ Aigmatibus. Charaxat ambas ungulis fcribentibus, Geoai, crucmis et fecat facicm noiis. Prudent. Barch. Advcrs. 1. 13. 18. 1. 45. 19. Turncb. Advers. 1. 14. c. 14. (79) Irifli Grammar, fupra. p, 8. (So) Tranf. Royal Irilb Academy, v. i, p. 9. II ALPHABETIC ELEI\IENT3 OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 341 t t-t t < <..<.<.'<< <<..<..<..<..<,,<..<..<.■<.<-<■. <.<..4..4 .<.<-<■< .1 '4. ■<■<-<■<<■<■< ■<4.>- >■>■■>. >> 1 If two interpretations give the name of Conal, and three confcflcJly do not, is there not more than an equal chance that the latter is right ? And if fo, what be- comes of the veracity of the Bardic Tale by which this wonderfid Sepulchre was difcovered ? A fmgle erafure or omiffion of a (Iroke was fuflicient to alter, or bury the meaning in perpetual oblivion. Was accuracy to be cxpefted from rude and barbarous Irifli engravers in the 3d century ? Or can it be imagined, that the Callavi infcription has (lood almoft 1500 years in a naked and wild iltuation, uninjured by the tooth of time, and all the viciilitudes of a variable climate? That the great Atlantic Ocean and its briny atmofpherc, have had no influence on this rock, and fo far from pulverizing its fufface, have rendered it unfit for vegetation ? Thtfeare wonderful things ! Perhaps the venerable Druid who performed the funeral rites to the names of Conal-Colgach, (and who has not heard of Conal-Colgach ?) not only pronounced the " fit terra levis," but wafhed the ilone witli a magic compofi- tiou of Mifcltoe, Samolus and Selago, and in a fine prophetic phrenzy, predicled the amazing difcoveries of Irifli Antiquaries in the 18th century. Great reafon have we then to deplore that eafy credulity, which could entertain favourable fcntiments of one of the boldelt, molt artlefs and groundlefs figments offered to the learned world, fince the days of Annius of Viterbo and Curtius Inghiramus : a figment arifing from that too common weaknefs of mankind, of advancing on every occafion fomething furprifing and marvellous. It was thus (the cafe is exaftly fimilar) that the (81) fiffures on a rock at Deighton, in North America, were taken for Phoenician infcriptions, when even a fuperficial obferver, on viewing them, would inftantly pronounce them the efi'efts of froft and of the climate. 13ut an Antiquary would blulh at fuch a vulgar decifion : the face of nature and reality of things, fl.ubborn in every other hands, become plalfic in his. His inge- nuity and literature have not only the magic power of moulding them into auv form, but he can fafcinate every eye within the fphere of his operations. The intercourfe fubfifting between the Britifh ifles naturally (82) introduced a knowledge of the Roman elements into Ireland at an early period. Wanley mud therefore be much miftaken when he (83) aflcrted our Irifli letters were communi- cated to us and the Britons by Augun;ine, the Englifli Apoftle, about the conclufion of the 6th century. Lhuyd fhews this opinion to be ill founded fo far as regards the 4 s Britons : (Si) .Ardiaeologia, v. 8. p. 190. (82) Ware, chap. i. Whitaker thinks it one or two centuries Ixrforc St. PatriiJt. Sup. v I p. J7j. ^8;) ApuU Uijyd's ktttr to the Wclth in Malcolm's irafls. p. 6. 342 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND -< < < < ■< ■< < ■< <.< < < < < < < •< < < < < < < < < < < < < •< ■< < < < < < < < <<+>••>>■>■•>>■»>>>>•>•>■ >>■>■> > >..>. >>■►■> > »■ V ►•> ►• - ► • > ►-» > v-v Britons ; as to the Irifli, fays he, " the Roman arms never reached them, fo that if is evident, of the three nations, the Britons, the baxon and Irifh, the firft had a learned education and civilised manners, aiid whence fliould the others have had their letters but from their neighbours ? I know the Iiifli will anfwer, that Avergin, the fon of Mil Efpaine, v/ho was the (84) firfl: of the nation of the Scots, who ar- rived in Ireland in the time of Solomon, wrote the fame characters which are ftill in life amono- them ; but every one knows it is impollibie to be aflured oi that, and ali learned men agree, that we have no certain knowledge concerning the inhabitants of thefe itonds, nor of the other barbarians of Europe, older than fhe writings of the Greeks and Romans. This muft be granted by the Saxons and Irlfii, as well as by the WelOi, that fome two of ihem received their alphabet from the third, be- caufe each of them not only retains the fame letters, but the fame pronunciation- of 'them : I fay the fame letters, becaufe the Saxons did not write any of the letters K, O and X, no more than we ; nor do the Irifh make ufe of them to this day. So that either the Britons taught the Saxons and Irifh, or the Irifh taught the former. If the Irifh taught the Britons, then they muft have had Latin letters before the coming of the Romans into Britain, which it is impofuble to prove. As the Britons had letters before the time of Juvenal and Tacitus, I fee no reafon to doubt, but that the Irifh received their ancient alphabet, firfl from the Britons, and the Saxons, three of the four ages after, learned them from the Britons and Irifh." 'Jhus far Lhuyd, whofe fentiments on every point regarding the ancient literature of thefe kingdoms merit the greateft attention. The oldefl remains of a Britifli alphabet are ffeen on the coins of Cunobeline, who ruled a part of Britain in the reign of Auguflus. Chriflianity, which was cajly introduced, extended the ufe of letters among the provincial Britons : they were neceiTary for their intercourfe with the Romans. But it was to be expected, that the Latin language and letters would have been corrupted in pailmg through the hands and mouths of rude people. The Spanilh poets of Corduba, who coinpofed in Latin, though highly accomplifhed, had notwithflanding, according to (''5) Cicero, fomething " pingue atque peregri- num," inelegant and foreign to an Italian ear, and which detrafted frbm their ex- cellence (fij) This i« from (Icfplcablc Irilli romance, for F.uroiic was then iliinly inhabited by wandering tribes of barbariam. Solomon lived above a thoufand year* before our .-era. (Sj) Poctis Cordub.x natis, piiiijue quiddam fon.in'ibus .itqiie pcregrlnmn. Cic. pro Archia. Hoc eft, fays CcUarius, aliquid folotci vol Grxcis vcl Laliuis tarniinibus mifccrcnt. DUs. Acadcm. p. 367. Cicero probably means fomething more , ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 343 :*<*-<<<■<<<<* <<<<<<<(<<.. ■<■< < < <<■«•« • cellence. The fame was obferved of all the (86j municipal fchools. The Roman foldiery in Britain Avere moflly of German Latinized cities, and tlie auxiliaries, German and French, confequently the purity of the Latin tongue and the fliape of its letters were foon changed : barbarifni was perceived in the enunciation of the one and in the form of the ether. Through this medium the Roman divinatory and other notes, and the notion oi their magic powers were communicated to the Britons. But the corrupt Roman elements, which the Irifli adopted, were inadequate to a notation of the founds of their language. O'MoUoy, our oldefl grammarian, (87") allows but feventeen letters, excluding h, k, q, w, x, y and z : O'Conor reckons eighteen, taking in h ; p he fays is not found in tlie more ancient gloffaries. Lhuyd makes them eighteen, with thirteen dipthongs, five tripthongs and five vowels, fo that there are forty-one founds expreffed by but eighteen letters. This number of founds mufl not appear incredible, for the prefent Ruffian (88) has forty-one, the Sanfcrit fifty, the Malabarian and Cafhmirian many more; ours arofe from the cor- ruption of the Cehic by the fwarms of barbarians who over-ran the country at different times ; for in the ifiand of St. Kilda, remote from human intercourfe, the fimple founds of the Celtic were but few, and the natives did (89) not ufe the letters D, G. and R. Confufion and uncertainty in writing and pronouncing the Irifh, unavoidably re- fulted from this want of notation. Thus b, e, d, f, g, m, p, r, and f, with h, or a point added, totally changed their founds, and they became other confonants. The pronunciation of the dipthongs and tripthongs are quite unintelligible from their notations, and can only be learned by (90) the ear ; and O'Conor confeflcs, the com- pounds gn, oi and io have no equivalent found in any language he knew. The remarks of a (91) judicious grammarian and lexicographer are to the prefent purpofe, and not undeferving the reader's notice. " The French language has feventeen vowels, though there is a notation but for five : there are twenty-one confonants, but a notation only for eighteen, and there are four (S6) Aufon. grit. aifl. p. 256. (87) Habet literas in rigor feptendecim. Gram. p. 5. (88) Aftle, p. 20. (89^ Malcolm's trails, p. 35. (90) Qualiter dipihnngi ve! tripthorgi apud Hibernos dcbeat prmiunciari rts eft fc'itu diffici'iis : hoc opus Mc labor : mto judicio, vix iillus pcrfciftc difcet qualittr efferantur, nifi atteiite aufcultet peritum iu bac J-.ngu* tas {toiiunciinttui. O'MoUoy, flip. p. 47. (91) Chambaud'i elements of ihe French lang. preface. 344 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, AND four confon;int5, ch, gn, ill, and y, of which the alphabet gives no manner of knowledge. Both vowels and confonants are reprefentcd different ways : fome can- not be reprefented for want of proper fimple characters, but by feveral letters. Now each of the letters which make up thefe diverfe combinations has not the found or articulation which it has when pronounced by itfelf ; and thofe letters blended together, reprefent a found which has no affinity with thofe which each of them rc- prefents fuigly. If therefore a teacher makes his pupils name each of the letters which make up thefe combinations, he will make them pronounce falfe founds. As the prefent French alphabet does not contain all the founds and articulations of the language, nor all the ways of reprefenting them, a more rational and eafy method juufl; be thought of to facilitate a knowledge of them. Spelling words will never give them the founds, they mufl be pronounced after a mafter," The faft is therefore, as might be expefted, that the fpeech of the Irifh became a riucfuating jargon, full of ftrange dialefts ; it had no analogy in its founds ; its anomalous (92) verbs are fo varioully formed as to depend eniirtly on the pradice of writers ; there are no (93) rules for its cafes ; it pofleffes neither alphabetical founds, words for ideas, orthography, or fyntax. The effay on the colonization of Ireland will fatisfactorily account for thefe particulars. The Welfli is (94) equally disfigured, mutilated, and corrupted. To confirm what is advanced, Lombard, titular Archbiihop of Armagh in 1632, /hews (95) how widely the dialetts of the four provinces differed, and that Leinfter was defcdive in juft phrafeology and pronunciation : and O'Conor (96) informs us, that it is little more than an hundred years fince the fchools wherein the Irilh lan- guage had been taught in its purity have failed ; and yet anomalies and folscifir.s have multiplied, and the growing ignorance in the true oithocpy has already thrown many words out of their radical ftrudfure. " Did we read a paffage, (adds he,) of claffical Irifh to the common people of Ireland, the greater part would be abfo- lutely unintelligible to them." The interval between the time Lombard and O'Conor writ, was more than a century, and yet the latter talks of Irillr behig taught in its purity at lime the former declared it to be corrupted. Ahnofl a century before Lom- bard's (92) Vcrborom alia varianur ralJe apud Hibtrno!, vclut hetcroclita & divcrfimoJc, ita ul uiiiverfalis regub t>-'o i^ .^!re r?gno Hib p. 7. (?6) 0g;g. viiid. p. 10. ALPHABETIC ELEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT IRISH. 345 "* ■<■ < .<■ 4 .<.<■.<-■<..<..< .<-.<..< .<..<..<.<.<.< .<•■< .<..<.<..<..<..<..< .<..<.< .< .< ■< .<■.<•<•«+».■>.>.■>■■♦..>. >. >. >..>. > 1 '■ >■ >■ >■ »■ > >■ 1 bard's age, Stanihuift in Hollinfliead writes thus, " the true Irifli diftercth fo much from that they commonlie fpeak, that fcarce one in five hundrcth can cither rede, write, or underftonde it ; therefore it is preferved among certeine of their poets and antiquaries." So that as foon as the language came to be examined by Icholars and grammarians they found it a jargon not reducible in orthography, orthoepy, or fyntax to any ftandard. This is the language which the very eccentric author of the Colleftanea de rebus Hibernicis aflerts to be the parent of every other on the globe. tribiis Anticyris Caput Infanabik ! " I fliall not determine, (fays (97) Leibnitz) whether the Anglo-Saxons broughr their letters into England, or whether they learned them from the Britons." Thai the Saxons and Irifli had their original elements from thofe of the Romans, is the opinion of the befl: antiquaries : and fo fimilar were they, that formerly they wore indifferently called Saxcn or Irifli. The reafon for afcribing the Anglo-Saxon alpha- bet to the Irifli was, their having converted, according to Bede, almoll the whole, nation, and communicating to them together the (98) light of the gofpel and oi letters. In the (99) Bodleian library is Mac Reguil's, or Regol's gofpels in Irifli, ol the feventh century, and Fareman's and Oen's copy of St. Jerome's tranflation of the gofpels, with an interlineary Dano-Saxon verfion of the tenth century. In the iame library is Ovid's Art of Love in Latin, but in Irifli characters. In the front or title-page is Chrifl: painted, and at his feet St. Dunftan, with iufcriptions, all executed by St. Dunrt.an himfelf. Now it is well known that this faint was (100) an Anglo-Saxon, born in Somerfetfliire and educated at Glaftonbury ; fo that thefc Irifli letters mufl: have been Anglo-Saxon. Doftor Langbaine, in (i) a letter to Archbilhop Uiher, fays ; " what chara^ers the ancient Britons uled, whether that which the Saxons after, as your Lordfliip if I remember well is of opinion : or the fame with your ancient Irifli, which I conceive to be not much difl'erent from the 4 T Saxon, f97^ An .\ngli irel Paxonei fuas Uteris in Britanniam I'ecuia attulcrint, an a Brilannls didiccrint, iion dijserira. Leib- niii. apud Cliamhcrlayue. Orat. Domin. (9S) Nihil haflcrus iiivciiire potui, qiiod ante fidcm a Saxonibus fufccp'.am litciit ifiis exaratuni fit. Slicringham dc "lig Aiigl p. 293. Boll.-.iid. Ai51a f.«i^. 17 mart. p. J17, (99) nickc5. catal. Septent. p. 149. AlUc, p^ 99, (100) Cave. Hid. Liter. V. 1, p. 109. (1) I'iri'j Ictlcts, p .;5 I 346 ON THE OGHAM CHARACTERS, &c, ■ < < < < ■< <-< ■<"< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< ■< -< ■* ■< •< ■< ■< ■< < < < < < ■< ■< * < * •< * ■< ■< < ■« ■<+> > > > > > > f > » > >■ > > > > > > >■ > > -> >■*■> ■>■ *■>■>■*■>■>>•*■•>•■»■>■ •->■■ Saxon, to which the monument of (2) Corcenn, both as to form of ferae letters and the ligatures of them feem to come nearer than to the Saxon, I dare not take upon me to determine." If then we can rely on thofe excellent judges, Ufher, Langbaine, Hickes, and Aflle, there can be no doubt of the ahnoft perfeft identity of the Anglo-Saxon and Irifh elements about the year 830. To conclude, I am very fenfible how much I ftand in need of the learned diplo- matic reader's indulgence for the hints advanced in this Eflay ; if they urge a farther inveftigation of the fubjeft, I fliall think my labour fully compenfated. Non quifquain fruitur veris odoribiis, HybliEos lalcbris nee fpoliat favos ; Si fronii caveat , ft timeat rubos. Claudian. (i) He was prince of Powis in Wales. The infcriptlon is in the abbey of Langholen in Denbighlhire, and is of the year 830. Lhuyd, p. ai6 — isji. A REVIEW ( 347 ) •'■i-'i- + 'i-'f+ + + + + 'i- + +-i-4-++ + + + -l--i-'l- + + + + -l-'i-'f + + +'l-'l- + 4-'l--l- + 4-'f-'l- + + + +4. A REVIEW OF IRISH LITERATURC IN THE MIDDLE AGES. FIFTH CENTURY. IN the foregoing Effay, the pretenfions of the Irifli to an original alphabet have been examined and rejected ; and it has there been fnown what were the probable introduftion and date of letters in this Ifle. It has been (i) proved, that Irifh lite- rature in pagan times is ideal, and that after the mofl: confident ,aflertions of our being a civilized people in thofe ages, the want of literary and other monuments, with the united voice of ancient writers, proclaims our ignorance and rudenefs. A? I confine myfelf folely to the ftate of learning in the middle and dark ages, I am the better able to pay an undivided attention to this interefting fubjeft, yet without prefuming to think I have exhaufled or even exhibited it in the extent, or with the erudition that others might have done. The lives and miracles of faints, monaf- tic rules, and all the fuppofititious and apocryphal trafh that croud the paces of Ware's writers and Harris's additions, I leave to the credulity and illuftration of others, dwelling only on thofe parts of folid learning worthy of rational inquiry, and which form the only true grounds of national fame and honour. The invafion of England by the Anglo-Saxons, in the middle of this ccnturv, was an event extremely calamitous to that country, but produdive of the happicit confequences in this, by driving hither many (2) pious and learned men, who pro- moted the ftudy of letters and ftrengthened infant chriftianity among us. I can difcover no other adequate caufe of the quick advances we made in literature, but the emigration of the Britilh clergy in this and the next age. Here they found a fecure afylum from the din of war, and thofe broils fo hated by peaceful and lludi- ous men. Rome and her Pontiffs are held out by our writers as the fource from whence (1) Striflures on the EccleCadical and Liicrary Hiftorjr of Ireland, by, Dr. CampbcU. (i) UlTcr, Primord f. 363 — 564. \ 348 A REVIEW OF IRISH LITERATURE -« < < < < < < <<■< < » •<• < < < < *<<■<•< ■< < •< ■<••< < ■< < ■< <• < ■< <■■< <•<<+>■>•>■ >,■>■►•►> >■■>■ >■ ► >■ >■ > >■ > > > > > >>>>>> > ►■ ►■> >•>■►>>>>» whence flowed (3) religion and letters to us, and St. Patrick is made the perfon who conducled them hither. After what has before been advanced concerning the age and exiitence of this faint, I fl)all only now remark, that his whole flory is a fidion invented long after the time in which he is fuppofed to live, and that the works afcribed to him are palpable forgeries, and carry numberlefs internal marks of being fuch. They were colleded and publilhed in London by Sir James Ware in the year 1656. I fliall fiightly run theni over, as they fcarcely merit notice. His Confeflion is a rhapfody of his travels, miracles, deliverances, and revelations. Can we but wonder at that ftrange infatuation which could make Uflier and Ware, for a moment, entertain favourable notions of the authenticity of this work, wherein no notice is taken of the education of our apoflle under St. Martin, Bifliop of Tours, or his relationlhip to him, of his journies on the continent, and his advancement to the epifcopate of Ireland by Pope Celeftine ? The omiffion of thefe and many other important particulars, with the legendary ftyle of the whole, evince it to be the juvenile exercife of fome monk of the eleventh or twelfth century. His Kpiftle to Coroiicus, a Welch prince, is of the fame flamp with the Confeilion. It fpeaks of the Roman and Gallic chriftians fending many thoufand folidi to redeem captives from the Franks, Whoever writ this was but little acquainted with the Hate of Italy under the Gothic princes, or of the French under the Merovingians. Ware fays the texts of fcripture cited in thefe tradts are tranilations from the Septuagint and not the Vulgate, and that this determines tlicm to the age of St. Patrick. But this argument carries no weight with it ; for the old Italic verfion, which is that iiere alluded to, was ufed by the (4) Irifli fo late as 815, and probably later; nor can the biblical (5) critics afcertain when, if ever, it went into difufe, for it is allowed to have made a confiderable part of the prefent Vulgate. The next treatifc, De Tribus Ilabitaculis, is better written, and evidently difcovers a different pen. It defcants on the joys of heaven and torments of hell. Bolton of Bury gives it to St. Aullin, others to St. Bernard. St. Patrick's charter has been proved by (6) Stil- lingileet to be a forgery, for it computes by the year of our Lord ; a cuflom not begun till 525, nor praclifed in England till 816. It nientions' indulgences as relax- ations of penance, which were unknown before the eleventh century. The trael, de duodecim abufiouibus fajculi, is faid to be compofed by St. Cyprian or St. Aullin. In ( i) Bollimlaj U angry with Colsan tor ni.iUing tlicfc older in Ireland than the time of St. Pstrick. 17 AH. SanCl. M^ri But Bollandus wa« devoted to Rome I*) Ulhvi's religion of the Irim. (t) Simon, Hiaoirc Crit. (6) Briiifti Ciiiitchfs, c. 1. p. 14 IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 349 In a book of Saxon homilies, in Lambeth Library, is a treatife, de oclo vitiis & duodecim abufionibus fa:culi, which Is perhaps the fame as ours, and which Hickcs thinks (7) was written after the Norman times. Whoever will perufe an (8") account of the fpurious pieces fathered on the patriarchs, prophets, the apodies, and even on our blefl'ed Redeemer himfelf, who it feems condefcended to write an epifllc to the Council of Conftance, will not be furprized at thofe afcribed to our apoflle. Sedulius is faid by Uilier, Ware, and Harris, to be the mod learned Ilibcrniau of this age. Certainly we mud think highly of his theological and critical acquire- ments, was he the author of the works paffing under his name. But this is an error; Bayle (9) has proved there were two Seduliufes ; Ca-lius Sedulius, a ccle- \brated poet, who flouriflied about 434, and from a poetical epifUe to Iheodofius I. feems to have been an Italian. The other, our countryman, compofed commenta- ries on St. Paul's epiftles, and lived about 818. The principal litera:i of the dark ages being Iriflimen, had the words Scoti and Scotigence joined to their names, and ignorant copyifts added them, as in the prefent indance, to others v.ithout reafon. Colgan has given a tranflation of a poem faid to be the work of Feich, Bifiiop of Sletty, near Carlow, A. D. 434. It is a metrical verfion of the legend of St. Patrick. It begins thus : Naitls ejl Pairicius Neinturri, Ut rfferlur in hijloriis ; Fuit annorum feJccim £>uando dudus in captivitaie. We are (10) told this Feich was a difciple of our apodle, and advanced by hi 111 to the epifcopal dignity, he could therefore be no dranger to his origin, whereas the fecond line above intimates that this poem was compiled from old hidorics. This and an (11) alphabetical hymn are the wretched productions of fome cloidered ecclefiadic. I acknowledge the infinite obligations the Irifh Antiquary is under to Uflier, Ware, and others, and that there is abundant utility in their farraginous compilations ; yet I know as well, that they did not believe to be genuine all that 4 u they (7) Gram. Anglo-Sax. p. 171. It Is alfo afcribed to St. C\piian. Hickes, p 14). (i!) Fabric. Cod. Apocryp. & I'ftujepig. 4 Tom. a vciy curious culltdion of heretical and literary impoHures. (9) Did. Article, Sedulius. KUbiUun. Analeft. t. i. p. 363. (10) Ware's Writer?, p. 6. (ii) S. Patric, Opufc. p, 146, 350 A REVIEW OF THE IRISH LITERATURE ■ ■< < < '< ■<■■< <■< t .<■<■<.<■■<•< :-l ■<■■<-< ■< ■<-<-<4'>' >- >■ >■■>■>- >■ >■ ►■■>-.>..>->..>->.->. >->..>..>. >■ >.->..>..>.>. y. >.>,>, v.>. \..\ they fet down: Arcbbifhop Ufher (12) confefTes his antiquities of the Britifh and Irilh Churches contain many things frivolous, doubtful and falle ; even from thefe he remarks an hiflorian may reap confiderable advantages. But vi^hen, in his other writings, he alleges thefe as direct and pofitive proofs of tranfaftions and dodtrines in early times, he betrays a want of recollection, if not of prudence : E/i quoddam prodire tenui,, fi non datur ultra. SIXTH CENTURY. The Anglo-Saxon power daily increafmg, the Briilfli clergy every where fled from its (13) exterminating fury : many retiring to this ifle (14) opened fchools. Letters now greatly flouriflied in Wales in the (15) perfon of Dubricius, Iltutus, Sampfon, Paternus and many more. When we remember the agreement of the Britons and Irifh in religious fentiments, and the recent obligations of the latter to the former, there can be no doubt but we received thefe terrified and expatriated ecclefiaftics with open arms. St Jerome mentions the refort of Britiih Chrillians to the Eafl, and we (16) know that Paternus, David, and Teliau went thither to receive epifcopal ordination, thereby recognizing the fountain of their faith. As thefe men were celebrated fcholars, and well furnifhed with human learning for their high office, it is reafonable to believe their knowledge was much improved and augmented by their journey, and that they were accompanied back by Greeks and other foreigners of the clerical order, whofe zeal or curiofity prompted them to vifit thefe Ifles. "Whatever learning the Britons acquired was communicated to the Irifh. The indif- criminate admiillon of eminent men of either nation to the government of monaderies and fchools was common in this age. Thus (17) St. Brendan, an Iriflimaii, ruled the Abbey of Lhancarvon in Wales. Kentigern, a Scot, was ordained by an Irilh Bifliop, and founded a fee and abbey in Wales. Gildas, a Briton, taught in Armagh. Other inftances may be feen in Uflier. Following tlieir C18) Eaftern architypes, (11) Frivola ctiam nonnulla, dutiia multa, & Wfa quoqiie non pauca. fiipra, Prafat. (13) Uffcr. fupra, p. 416—417- (M) Ufl'cr. luiira, ad Ann. 4j;S. (15) Stillingncet, fupra, p. 201 — 346. (16) UlTcr. p. 474— i^S. Syllfg. Ki'ill. r- >3I. anJ tl"-f<^^ amiiiukiis, p. 55. (ij) UtTcr. 35.!— 53»— 955- (18) Elf Ba(jXi»M», i» > >■ > >■ >■ >■ >■■>■•>■ > > V >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >. »..». ». >. >. fc.> >- >. » V- > ► » >■ ». >■ >.. archetype?, our churches and monafteries were fchools for the inflruction of youth. 'I'hu8 the feminaiics of Dubricius and Iltutus were ("19) famous among the Britons, and that of I'aulinus, fays Leland, flouiifhed like an univerfity. On the contrary the (20) Bcnediclines and other Roman monks defpifed learning, laid more (Irefs in their rules on abflinence and manual labour than on letters. In our Abbies (21) j)rophane and facred literature was cultivated : in that of Rofcarbery, in the county of Cork, St Brendan taught the liberal arts. The (22) Encyclopedia of the Greeks, and the liberal arts of the Romans varied in number, but were at length iixed to thefe feven, (23) Grammar, Rhetoric, Logic, Arithmetic, Mafic, Geometry and Aflronomy : each of thefe was formed into an elementary treatife, more or lefs per- fcd according to the abilities of the compofer. A very curious work, comprehend- ing all the foregoing arts, and written (24) about the year 466, by Martianus Capella, has come dov/n to us. In the prefent ftate of knowledge it is not an edifying book, but it is very valuable, as it points out what were the education and fludy of the clergy and higher ranks in the middle ages. In this century it was ufed in the French monafteries, as we learn from (25) Gregory of Tours, and a thorough maftery of it was believed to give the (26) lad polifh to the (Indent. In Grolius's edition of Capella, which I ufe, the feven liberal arts occupy about 300 fmall odavo pages, too few a number unlefs for a text book, and as fuch it was adopted. From the retreat of the Britons to (27) Bas Bretagne in 453, a conflant intercourfe was maintained between them and their brethren in thefe illes, for Iltutus, Sampfon, Gildas, and the other learned Britons frequently vifited their tranfmarine countrymen : one of whom the latter raifed to the fee of Dole, and another was made Bilhop of the Oxifmii, the mod nortliern people of Bretagne. France was alfo frequented by the Irilh, as we find by the authors cited by Ufher. So that when (19) Siillingfleet, p. 402. (io) Stillingfleet, p. 2o; — 2C(J. (ii) Ufler. p. 910 — 907- Stillinpflect, fupra. (;s) Wower. de Polymathia. c. 14. p. 508. (23) Ordo autemifte fepiem a philofophis ufque adaflra perduilus eil, &c. IDdor. Orfg. p. 914. (14) Fabric. BiMloth. lat. p. ,638. Earth. Advtrs. 1. g. (25) Q^iod fi te faccrdos Dei, quicunque cs, Martianus roller crudrit, I'd eti, fi te in granimaticis dcii'iiit, kgcrc ; in dialeilicis alercationum propofiiinne'! advertere, &c. Hid. fol. loi. Edit. Paris, ijz:. There wire lew mmiafteric.'. in England in 641, if Bedc isto be credited, nam eo tempore, necdum multis in regione ."inglorum munafieriis conllriictis. muiti de Britannia, monadics coDverfationis gratia, Francorum vil Gailiaiuni nioiiafleria ;iii!refnlcbani, fed ct lilia> Tuai tifuein erudicndas mittcbant. Bed. 1. 3. c. 8. (26) Si in his omnibus ita fueris exercitatus, ut tibi ftylus noHer fit ruHlcus; ne fit qiioque dcprccor ut ayell.is q'jx icripfi, &c. Greg. Tur. fupra. ^ (27) UlTcr. p. mo. 352 A REVIEW OF THE IRISH LITERATURE ! ■< -< ■< < ■< ■< ■< ■< ■<■■<■*•<■■< < ■*. -<•<■■<■* + > >■■> >. >->. >. > >..>..>..>. >..>. >,.>. >. >. >..>. >. > >. >■>■.>■>■ >. > > > 1 ■when it is laid that vSt. Patrick (ludled at Tours, to which Dole was fufFragan, we can only undcrltand fome obfcure remembrance of this conneclion with the Continent. From all which I infer, that Capella was now known and taught in our Irilh fchools as a claffic, and in this I am confirmed when I find him commented on by Johan- nes Scotus Frigena, and Duncant, an Iriili Bifliop, the latter delivering his ledures on him in the monaftery of St. Remigius in Down. Both of which works are (28) extant. If ihe reader will credit the evidence now fubmitted to him, he will perceive how learning was originally derived to the Irifli, and with what avidity and fuccefs they iludied thcie, foreign writers fliall foon declare. Their religion kept them from mental degradation, the fure confequence of fuperilition. Inftead of compiling pious fictions and lying miracles of imaginary faints, they were exercifing their genius in acquiring languages, ecclefiailical hillory and the liberal arts. I have infided the longer on thefe points, as they are extremely curious, though hitherto unnoticed. I now return to the very difagreeable talk of detecting a forgery. The Life of St. Bridget by (29) Cogitorfus is fuppofed to be genuine. We are (2,0) told he lived before 590. This cannot be true : for he calls the firfl; prelates of Kildare, archbifhops, a dignity not known in Britian before 673, and much later here. After Bifiiop Conlccth, who died in 519, we meet with no other prelate of Kildare for 119 years, though he informs us the fucceflion was uninterrupted : as he was a monk of Kildare, he might have eafily filled up the chafm. Thefe are fufpicious circumftances ; but, what evinces this work of Cogitofus to be fuppofititous, is hlsDtfcription of the Monuments of St. Bridget and Conloeth on the right and left of the altar at Kildare. They were not only highly finifned with gold and filver ornaments, with gems and precious ftones, fufpended gold and filver crowns, but the wall of the chanc-el was painted with portraits. Thefe latter, fays Bafnage, the editor of Canifius, (31) fmell flrongly of later ages. The architetlure of the church is the work of fancy, and could not exift earlier here than the twelfth cen- tury, for the Irifli, as I have already fliown, had no ftone edifice in the fixth. The great number of filly and impious miracles with which this work is ftufl'td, totally deftroys its credit. St. Bridget commits a pious murder to preferve the reputation of a nun by diflipating her pregnancy. The Vefl:al Claudia vindicates her chaiiity in a different manner. Si (18) Fabric, fupra, p. 640. WartQn's Hid. of Englifli Poetr)'. V. j. p. 7j — 76. (19) Canis. Lcifl. Antiq t. 5. p. 625. Moflicim. V. I. p. 471. (30) W»rc'» Writers,, p. 14. And Uifliopi, p. ^St. (31) riiCciiora redolent facula Canis. fiipra. I IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 353 -* ■< < < < < < < <<<<■<-<<■<<<<■<■<«<■<<< <■<■«■<<<■<.•«+.>>>>>.>>>■>.>>.<,.>.>.>►>.>>.>.>.>.)..>>,.,,,., > ,., > .>>>., Si vofcrum nullo violatum ejl crimine corpus^ Tejlis Diva veiii, iS facili me abfolve carina. Turn fccura capit funem. SEVENTH CENTURY. THE religious eflabliihments in this and the preceding century, with the fccurity that letters enjoyed in our Ifle from the convulfions of furrounding nations, made her the fchool of learning to the Weflern world. Bui a caufe, hitherto unobferved and equally powerful in its operations, tended to fill Ireland with learned men, and that was the difcouragement of literature by the Roman Pontiffs. From the time of St. Auguftine, fays (32) Rous, the Bifliops of Rome interdicled fchools and teachino- in England, on account of the herefies conftantly fpringing up there, and this con- tinued to the time of Alfred. Pope Gregory I. difcountenanced prophane the more to advance {^i) facred learning, and with this intent burnt the Palatine library and works of Livy. Gregory followed Arnobius, whofe work againft gentile fuperfti- tion clearly inculcated the corruption of chriflianity by heathen writers. The learned Bruker, in his critical hiftory of philofophy, againft Bayle and Barbayrac fliews Gregory's conduct to be highly probable, if not 'certain. Thefe fafts are recorded by zealous Romanifts. Hence the liberal and ingenious were neceffarily driven to this ide to acquire the rudiments of knowledge, as papal injunctions had no force here. And hence the fuperiority of the Britifh and Irifh clergy in all their dif- putes with their antagonifts about baptifm, eafter, the tonfure and other ceremonies and rites. A fuperiority which fo feverely galled the Romifh party and retarded their influence and innovations, that Theodore, Archbifliop of Canterbury, even againft the fpirit of his religion and the order of his fuperiors, was (34) forced to fct up fchools and promote the ftudy of letters. Having unfolded the caufes of our ce- lebrity 33 a literary fchool in this age, I fliali now mention fome of the ornaments of it. ' 4 X Columbanus (ji) Hid. Tcg. Ang, p. 68 — 72 — 73. Edit, llcarne. (33) Quid JivinK paginae gratior efftt locus. Joh. Satifbur. dc Nug. Curial, 1. 8. c. 19, IL'tron. ad Ejhes. I. ;. !CJor. de fumm. bono 1. 3. Can. i. dillin^l. 37, (34) Inaci'5 Grig. Anglic, p. 76. 354 A REVIEW OF IRISH LITERATURE Columbanus (T,t;) was educated at Bangor under St. Congel. The reputation of the Irirti ecclefiailics in diftant countries feduced them hov.- home, and in moll cafes prepared for them an eafy and kind reception. Our miilloner went to France, and founded the monallery of Luxeuil and Fontaines in Burgundy. Cave and Dupin fpeak of him as a man of primitive fimplicity and ancient virtue, which led him to cenfure with fliarpnefs and freedom the higheft characters in the church. In his letter to Pope Boniface III. he charges him with herefy, and fufpecls his church to be in error. In another letter he tells the Pope, that he had written to his predeceflbr Gregory concerning the difference between the Irifh and Roman churches, and entreats him to be permitted to retain his national cuftoms, for that Polycarp and Anicelus did not break communion on this account, and he cites a canon of the firft Condantinopolitan Council for this indulgence. But clerical refentment is not foon appeafed ; our miffioner was expelled his abbey : after which he retired to Bobbio in Italy, and eredted a monallery there. Dupin, who carefully examined, and with ability epitomized his works, declares they are written with much wifdom and elegance, and with a profound knowledge of ecclefiaftical hiftory : that they are judicious, witty and learned. Cummian's letters to Segienus, Abbot of Hy, has before been noticed. He is ilyled by Adamnan, Comraineus Albus, and was advanced to the abbacy of Hy in 6^y. He fcems to have been (36) defcended from the fame family with Columba, and in virtue of hereditary right to have fucceeded him. That he was a Culdee and apoftatized may be colleftcd from his Epiflle, which was written many years before he attained the al)batial chair. During this interval he probably re- canted, or qualified his fentiments fo as to make them palatable to tlie monks of Hy. His trad would at any time be elteemed argumentative and learned, and the num- ber of books he poffeiTed, or mud have prrufed, are confiderable. He cites Jerome, Oiigen, Cyril, Cyprian, Gregory and AuguRine. He adduces (37) Anatoiius's cycle of nineteen years ; Theophilus's of ninety-five ; Cyril's of the fame ; Diony- fms's octaetris ; Vidorius's of five hundred and thirty-two years, with thofe of Augultine, (is) Doflor Smith, in lils ancient Scottifli Poems, confounds Columba with Columbanus : it was the former who iti- flituted the nipmcroui rtligious cdabliflimcntii, and hence i iinitd Columccllc; and it was the latter who gave the moiiallic rule publidied hy Miflinjiliam and Holllein. (j6) Conif-art O'liricn's Die. p. 360. Ogyg. vlnd. p. 1.^3. — 134. (37) Fragnienia of it arc found in iiurcbius; but it vtm more completely publilbed by Bucher. de Dui5lrin. tem^. Etrautb. Bicv. Chron. D. j c. 6. IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 355 Auguftine, Morinus and Pachomius. The Irifli adopted the (38) JewiHi cycle oF eighty-four years, which was followed by the Eadern Chridians, and througii St. John's difciples communicated to the Irifli, as Colman affirmed in ih'^ conference at Whitby. Cummian quotes the canons of the church, which fliows he was well ac- quainted with ecclefiadical difcipline. This treatife, fliort as it is, comprehends a variety of learning, and clearly points out the lludics of the Irifli and their advances in literature at this period. " It was now, (fays Bede,) that many noble Englifii, and others of inferior rank, leaving their native country, withdrew to Ireland, to cultivate letters or lead a life of greater purity. Some became monks, others attended the ledures of celebrated teachers ; thefe the Irifh moil chearfully received, and fupplied without any recompence with food, books, and inftruCtion." So zea- lous and difmterelted a love of learning is unparalleled in the annals of the world. May we not apply to them thefe lines of Claudian ? Hie non diviiins nigranbus abdiJit ant 1 is. Nee tencbris damnavit opes ; fed largior imbre Sueverat iitniimcras hominum ditere catcrvas. It was in this remote ille, as Bede goes on to relate, that Agilbert, Bifliop of the Weft-Saxons and after of Paris, fpent much time in ftudying the holy feriptures ; and that ^dilvinus, after being inllrufted here, returned home and was promoted to the epifcopate of Lindisfern. Of Alfred, King of Northumberland, Bede thus fpeaks in his life of St. Cuthbert : Scottoriim qui turn verfatus finibus bofpesy Cczlejiem intento fpiribat corde Sopbiam. Nam patria fines $sf dulcia liqtierat arva, Sedulus ut Domini myjleria difceret exul. It was our unrivalled literary fame that excited the jealoufy of Aldhelm, and made him write that gibing farcaftic (39) letter to Eahfrid, who was juft returned to England after a refidence of fix years here, being made Bilhop of Lindisfern. " Why fhould Ireland, (fays he,) whither troops of ftudents are daily tranfported, hoafl of fuch unfpeakable excellence, as if in the rich foil of England, Greek and Roman mafters were not to be had to unlock the treafures of divine knowledge. Though Ireland, rich and blooming in fcholars, is adorned like the poles of the world ( S) Nam qiiia per omnia Apoflolos hxc in r« imitarentur, & permulti ex illis ex JuJaifmo ati chriflianirnium tranfifTciK, non obfcurum eft eoriim cyclum mcrum Judaicum & Chaldaicum fuifle. Scalig, t"c EmcuJ. Temp, ( 39) Uffcr. Sjllug. p. 37. 356 A REVIEW OF IRISH LITERATURE -4 ■< ■< ■< ■<..<■■ ;■<■■< .< < ■< + > > >■ >■ > >■ >■ > >■ >■>■ >■ >■■>>■ >■ > > > > > V- >. >..>>- > > > >■ > >.y > V > >-► >.. world with innumerable bright ftars, it is Britain has her radiant fun, her fovereign Pontiff Theodore, nurtured from the earlieft age in the fchool of philofophy : it is Ihe poffeffes Adrian his companion, graced with every virtue. This is that Theodore, who, though he (hould be furrounded by a circle of Hibernian fcholars, as a boar in the midft of fnarling dogs, yet as foon as he bares his grammatical tooth, he quickly puts to flight the rebel phalanxes." For this and more invidious bombaft he apologizes to his friend, who loved the Irifli, by declaring he was but in jeft. This, however, was a falfehood, for he was extremely ufeful to Theodore, and active in reclaiming the Cornifh Britons from their ancient faith, for which he was appointed Bifliop of Sherborne. This Aldhelm had fplendid parts and much learning, the latter he acquired under our countryman (40) Maidulph, who indrucled him in the liberal arts ; for except the Irifli Culdees difperfed over Britain, there were no other mafters : he alfo (41) ftudied at Lindis- fern. He affirms he was the firfl: Anglo-Saxon who compofed in Latin : this ac- knowledgment evinces the low ftate of letters in England, while they were flourifhing in Ireland. Hence he praifes no Britifli fcholar, but Theodore and Adrian, both foreigners, who after all their acquirements were not more than a match for our Hibernian dogs. EIGHTH CENTURY. WILLIBRORD, a Northumbrian by (42) birth, and after Archbifliop of Utrecht, was an eminent miffiontr among the Frifians in the beginning of this century. Hear what his biographer fays of his preparatory ftudies : " When he arrived at tlie twentieth year of his age, he was inflamed with the defire of a ftricter life, and a love of vifiting foreign parts. And becaufe he heard that learning flourilhed greatly in Ireland he intended to go there, moved principally thereto by the fame of its holy men, particularly of the blefTtd father Egbert and the venerable prieft Wigbert, (40) Tnforniatus aJ (lixlium, liberates arte* plcn!tuiUi>i fcicrtis adjrcit. Gull. Malmtfb. vlt. Aldhclmi. Aldhelmus plus 4Uam fatis prciJcns, Itmcl huic Hibcrnorum fcllcitati iDviiilll'e. Murray. Nov. Com. Ciottiiigtii. Tom. I. p. 110. 'J'he EiiKkifti cnvifd our pro!_;rcft» in letters, IVotterco Scoio^, turn niaxime lioiSos — Hie quicquid litcrarix artis clabora- bant (quod non adco oiile cratj Aldhclmi conimittcbant arbiirio, uc petfjifli iugcnii lima craderctur ^cabrcdo Sculica. Oi, . Muliiufb. Aldhclm't work\,wcrc pul)liflicd by lirlrio at Mtr.tz, A D. 1601. (41) Bed. 1. 5. c. 19. Biographia Britan. Article, AUIhcIm. (t») /^.Itu i'..vitrWilliLrordi. Moflieiiii, V. 1. p. 491 — 4>j%. IN THE MIDDLE AGES, 3-7 Wigbert, who both for the love of a celeftial country had forfaken their houfes and kindred, and reiired to Ireland. The blelTed Willibrord, emulating the fandity of thefe two holy men, embarked for this ifland, where he joined himfelf to their fociety, like a diligent bee, that he might, by means of their vicinity, fuck the mellifluous flowers of piety, and build up in the hive of his own brcafl, fweet honey- combs of virtue. There for the fpace of twelve years under thofe illulrious mafters. he treafured up knowledge and virtue, that he might be enabled to become the teacher of many nations." Thefe are the words of Alcuin, the moft univerfal and celebrated fcholar of the age, as Dupin, Blunt, Cave, and othtrs^ teftify,. Virgil (43) was one of eight Irilh Bifhops, who, according to the cuftom of the times, took a journey to the Holy Land. He was promoted by- Pope Stephen and King Pepin to the See of Saltzburg, but was detained for two years by Pepin to profit by his uncommon erudition and piety. After this he was honourably received by (^tilo, Duke of Bavaria, and accepted the Biiboprick from his hands. For fome time he deferred his confecration, all epifcopal ads being performed by Dobdan, a Greek, who followed him from Ireland. Ulher tells us, he Ihould wonder at the mention of a Greek's leaving Ireland, did he not know that at Trim, in Meath, is a church called the Greek church. But how does the exiitence of this church re- move our furprize or account for its name? Ihe Primate gives no explanation. I have before remarked that the fame of our learning and the excellence of our difcipline brought many foreigners hither from diftant parts, and Dobdan was one of them. The dreadful Saracenic irruption into the Greek empire in this and the preceding century put to flight letters and their admirers. An anecdote preferved by (44) "William of Malmefbury is very much to our purpofe. A Greek monk, named Conftantine, came to Malmefbury and planted a vine-yard near the abbey. He led a life of ftrid temperance and virtue. When he came to die and was near expiring, he fuddenly raifed himfelf up, and taking from his fcrip, which lay near him, an archiepifcopal pall, put it on and inltantly breathed his lalt : every one •wondered why he left his country or concealed his dignity ; the latter, if known, would have created him much trouble, and the former has been accounted for. lie fixed particularly at Malmefbury, becaufe there our Maidulph had founded an emi- nent feminary for Greek and Roman learning. If the reader will pay any regard to Aengus's Martyrology, he will fee there Romans, Saxons, and Egyptians noticed, as refidents here, and whofe piety procured them a place in our old Litanies. It was 4 Y from (4j) Uffer. Syllog. p. I31, Canis. fup torn. 3, (44) Afud Wharton, Angl, S^ic. p. 37. 558 A REVIEW OF IRISH LITERATURE from Dobdan and the other lettered Greeks and Orientals that Virgil learned the dotarine (45) of the antipodes and the eartii's fphericity. This being the Pythagorean fydein, a new one fprang up of the earth's being a plane, which was defended by Lucretius, Pliny, Ptolemey, Ladantius, and St. Auguftine, and continued to prevail till Copernicus revived the old one. Virgil mud have read Plutarch, Diogenes Laertlus, Proclus, and Stobneus, and probably other writers not nowf extant, to be convinced of the reafonablenefs and truth of the Pythagorean notion. This, while it fliews the philcfophical ftudies of the Irifli, demonflrates their attachment to the Greek fchool and fathers above the Roman. Virgil's fuperior accomplilhments dazzled (46) the eyes and roufed the jealoufy of Bonif;ice, Archbilhop of Mentz, who with all the rancour of ignorance perfecuted our countryman. That it was for his mathematical opinions, the modern Romanifts deny. " Could Boniface," fays the (47) Cardinal Du Perron, " an Archbifliop and martyr, and who crowned Pepin King of France, know fo little of mathematici? as to believe the earth a plane and as flat as a trencher ?" Ridiculous ! as if it required (kill in the fciences to be an archbifliop and martyr, or to perform the office of coronation ! The following extraft from Doftor Langbaine's letter to Primate Uflier, throws additional light on this curious fubject. (48) " What I have faid of an Irifli Saxon charader, I am bold to call it fo, becaufe I find it ufed in a-n old Irifli chronicle, and fome other Latin pieces of good note and antiquity, writ, if not in Ireland, ytt by an Irifli hand. In which kind I have met with Chalcidius's tranflation of Plato's Timttus, and I think a dialogue of his own, on the ftate of the foul after death, both for the matter and fl;yle fomewhat remarkable, but imperfeft." Chal- cidius (49) goes deep into Platonic metaphyfics, and exhibits no mean mathematical abilities, which he illuflrates by diagrams. This purfuit of the Irifli is confirmed by IVloflieim. (50) " That the Hibernians were lovers of learning, and diflinguiflied tliemfelves ia thofe times of ignorance, by the culture of the fciences beyond all other European nations, travelling the mofl: diftant lands, with a view to improve and (4j) Diog. Latrt. I 3. c. 14. I S c. i6. ■ (46) l.a jilDiifie liia pctiti>, & ad niyltciia cuuiii .xl^. ^iuiii* adplic»tia cuufi.nsi turn. Mufiay. Nuv. C-otiitn G,!tingcn. T.l. p. 117, IN THE MIDDLE AGES. .^ and to communicate thdr knowledge, is a faft with which I have been long ac- quainted, as we fee them in the moft authentic records of antiquity, difcharging with the highcil reputation and applaufe, the funftion of Do£l:ors in France, Ger- many and Italy, both during this and the following century. But that thefe Hibernians were the firft teachers of Scholaftic theology in Europe, and fo early as the 8th century illuflrated the dodrines of religion by the principles of philofophy, I learned but lately from the teftimony of Benedid, Abbot of Aniane, in t!«; pro- vince of Languedoc, who lived in this period, and fome of whofe produftions are publifhed by Baluzius, in the 5th tome of his mifcellanea. This learned Abbot in his letter to Guarnanius, expreffes himltlf thus : — Apud modernos fcholadicos (maxime apud Scotos) ell fyllogifmus delufionis, ut dicant, trinitatem ficut perfo- narum, ita elTe fubftamlarum. By this it appears, that the Irifli divines made ufe of a certain fyllogifm, which Benedift calls delufive, i. e. fallacious acd fopliillical, to demonftrate that the perfons in the Godhead were fubflances : a captious 1) ilogifni this, as we may fee from what follows, and alfo every way proper fo throw the ignorant into the greatefl: perplexity : quatenus fi adfsnferit illedus auditor, tiinltatem cife trium fubftantiarum deum, trium derogetur cultor deorum : fm autein abiiuerit, perfonaruni dencgator culpetur. From hence it appears, that tlie philofophical or fcholaftic theology among the Latins, is of more ancient date than is commonly imagined." Thus far Mofhiem. The fact here Rated had elcaped he dilligence of the indefatigable author or the critical hldoiy of philofophy, who (51) joins in the common opinion, that fcholaftic theology began about the iith century. Moiheini' adds, " that the Irilh, who in the 8th century were known by the name cf Scots, were the only Divines who refufed to diflionour their reafon by fubmittiag it impli- citly to the diQates of authority; naturally fubtile and fagacious, they applied their philofophy to the illuftration of the truths and dodrines of religion ; a method which was almoft generally abhorred and exploded in all other nations. This fuLtlety and fagacity enabled them to comprehend with facility the Diale£li?art, and their pro- fnmd knowledge of the Greek language contributed materially to the fame end. This made them view with contempt, the pitiful compenJiums ol theology extraded from the Fathers, and which the unlearned ecclefialtics of other countries accepted as oracles. In the next age, we fliall fee logical and metaphyfical refinement carried to the hi ghell degree, in the perfon uf our country man, ■ Johannes Scotus Erigena. (;i) Bruk-r, T 3. p. 7^1. I!ob' ts. l.cvijili. e. 46, 36o A REVIEW OF THE IRISH LITERATURE 1 <.<.<.4..4 -4 < <■< <■<«<< <■<•<■•<■<■<■< ■< ■*■■<■< < < < ■< -4 ■<■<•< <■<■<<■< + >■ That illuflrious ornament of the imperial purple, Charles, juflly furnamed the Great, warmed with the moft ardent zeal ro promote literature in hh extenfive domi- nion?, drew from aliparts, but efpecially from Ireland, by the mofl alluring offers, men of the greate{t reputation to fecond his views. It was not the glories of the Hy Nial princes, as '52) O'Conor tells us, that made him turn his eyes to Ireland, for he might have had 500 more potent Dynalts than Hy Nial to draw his carriage, but the learning cultivated here ; and this O'Flaherty (^^) places as the grounds of his friendfliip. The abfurd tale told by Notkerus Balbulus of Clemens and Albin, Bruker fliows to be (54) deftitute of truth, though he does not deny the exidence of thofe men ; the former, as we learn from Alcuin, Mabillon and Launoy, was very inllrumental in forwarding letters in France and Italy. NINTH CENTURY THE Mufes began to defert their ancient feat, and feek prote6lion in foreign climates from the Oilman invafion. ' Why fhould I mention Ireland, fays Eric of Auxerre, almoft the whole nation, defpifing the dangers of the fea, refort to our coafts with a numerous train of philofophers, of whom the mofl; learned enjoin them- felves a voluntary banifhment, to be in the fervice of our mofl; wife Solomon." The Prince here meant was Charles the Bald, who, like his predeceflbr, flattered the Hibernian Literati to his Court. Among thefe diflinguiflied emigrants, was Johannes Scotus Erigena. Mr. Warton (^^) makes him a'native of Aire in Scot- land ; Gale, his Editor, fays he was called Erigena from Ergene, a diftrict in Here- fordfhire. By Pithaeus and (56} Voflius, he is (tyled Heruligena, inftead of Hiber- nigena, and Bale is pofitive he was born at St. David's in Wales. To thefe I oppufe Anaftafius, Librarian of the Roman fee, his rival and contemporary, who exprefsly (57) calls him Scotigena, and with all the infolence of affeded fuperiority, defcribes (52) Diffcrt. p. 1J5. (S') Ogyp. vind p. 171 — 172. UfTcr. .''yllog. p. 51. (54) In cercbro otiofi monach! enatam ut fimijlicitalt lui temporis abuicrctur, quo non facile ctedebatur quicqiiam nifi r» tauficcin Imul rcfcrret. Hill. Crit Philofop. T. j. p. 387. (}S) Hift. of in^lifh pi)ctry DifT. z. In his I think he follows Derapfttr. (56) I'ibric. Bib. Lat p. -97. , (57) Vir ille barbarus, t >. : > > >■ > >■ y. >■■> > >. >• >■ >■ »■■>•■ retreats. The poetry and mufic of the Irifli foon caught the attention of the rude Northern Scalds. The moft ftrocious favagcs feel the operation of agreeable founds and the union of found and motion with fentimenr, confequently no nation is without foine lort of nuific and poetry. According to Saxo-Gram. the Danes con- ferred the regal crown on liiarn for a tetraflich of no great merit. Thus letters found advocates in the breads of thefe piratical invaders, which infcnfibly influenced them to embrace the mild dofirines of chriftianity. We (64) read of Macbeth, Dufsian, and Magilmum, whofe names intimate a Danifh or Norwegian extraftion, as cele- brated Irifn fcholars in this century, whofe fame reaching the ears of Alfred, the great reftorer of learning in England, he fent for them, as he before did for Grym- bald from Flanders, to propagate letters in his kingdom. In the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries Ireland Hill preferved her literary reputation, though ihe could not efcape the contagion and infelicity of the times. Ofbern, a monk of Canterbury, (65) cbferves that learning feems to have been natu- ral to the Irifh from long habit, and that there were many and illuftrious men among them admirably inftrucled in facred and prophane literature. We fliall be the belter able to eftimate the value of this eiilogium by knowing, that Ofbern is praifed, by an (66) excellent judge, for the beamy and eloquence of his Latin Ifyle, and for his matchlefs fkiil in munc. In Ufher (67) is a fmall traft by Gillebert, Bifliop of Limerick, on the ftate of the Church. It was compofed for the ufe of the Irifh, to give them fome knowledge of, and tafte for the Roman Hierarchy. An allegorical drawing accompanied it, formed of three arches. The higheft was covered with birds, reprefenting the angels in heaven; the middle, or this world, was filled with men, and the lowed, or in- fernal region, was crouded with animals and reptiles, types of its inhabitants. He likewife defcribes the Church under the form of a pyramid. The laity is the bafe, then fucceed monks and the lowed clerical orders, their head is the prielt. Above him are bifliops, archbiftiops, and primates ; the pope is feated on the apex. By this work, we may perceive the Irifh had not adopted the difcipline of the Church of Rome ; and there are many proofs that the latter was not eftablifhed till the Council of Cafliel in the twelfth century. About the year 1076, Suigenus (63) or Sul- (64) Uffer. Prim. p. 732, (65) Hibernos, quia qnod aliis hora voluntas in confuetiidinem, hoc illis confuetuclo veriii in iiaturam. Quorum mul:i atque illuftres viri divinis ac Ixciilaribus Uteris nobililcr crudi'i. Wharton. Aug. Sac. far. ;. p. 91 — y.. (60) Guil. Malm, de rcg. Ang. c. 8. (67) Sjllog. p. 78. 364 A REVIEW OF THE IRISH LITERATURE, &c. Sulgheim, Bifliop of St. David's, moved by the love of learning, and following the footfteps of his anceftors, fought Ireland, renowrned for wifdom. Exempio patrum commotus amore legendi, Ivit ad Hibernos, Sophia, niirablie, daros. After paffing many ftudious years here, and collecting much literary treafure, he returned home. jlji ibi per denos trinos jam placidus annos Congregat immenfam pretiofo pondere majfam. Thus we fee the viclffitudes of human affairs had not, for many ages, obfcured our literature, or drawn over this favoured ifle the dark veil of ignorance or illiteracy. But what neither domeftic convulfions, the cruel ravages of barbarians or all-devour- ing time could effett, was quickly accomplilhed by the eftablifhment of a corrupt religion. We no fooner embraced that of Rome than we loft our genius and fu- periority. Rien (69) de plus funefte pour les progres de I'efprit humain, que la religion mal-entendue & pouffee jufqu' a la fuperftition, au fanatifme & a la tyran- nie. My limits now warn me of a conclufion. In this brief flvetch, (and it is no more) of Irilh literature, I have purfued an uncommon mode of illuftrating it j not by giving a long catalogue of writers, but by inveftigating the traces of found learn- ing and extenfive erudition in the different ages among our Literati. Aware of how little credit is due to vague affertions and pompous reprefentations when unfup- ported by indifputable fads, I have endeavoured to fubflitute the latter in the place of the former : convinced that the curious and learned reader will feel himfelf more indebted for the difcovery of one unknown valuable truth, than for many pages of well-written declaration, {()%] GoJw;n de Prsful. p. 604. Uffer. Syllog. Prief. (69) Bielfeld, renidit. comp. t. 3. p. 334. OIRALDUS ( 3^5 ) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++*+++++++++++++ GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. THE (i) Topography of Ireland by cur Author is perhaps as curious a literary monument as any where to be found ; difplaying the natural hiltory and philofophy of the age in which it was written. Giraldus Cambrenfis, or Girald Barry was a Welfn ecclefiaftic, who (2) twice vifited this Ifle : firft, with his brother Philip Barry and his uncle Fitz-Stephen, and fecondly with King John, A. D. 1 iSq. He was a man of genius, ambition and vanity; thefe urged him to the purfuit of literature, and to fuch fuperiority in its various departments as would leave him without a rival. Defpairing of attaining the enviable rank in England, he withdrew to the Univerfity of Paris, there to give the lafl. polifh to his ftudies. His talents were fo confpicuous, that they placed him at the head of that feat of learning, where he fupported the higheft charader for el6quence and fcience. On his return to England, fame had prepared for him a favourable reception at the Court of Henry II ; •he was felefted as ('3") Privy Counfellor and Secretary to King John, who v/as en- tering on a journey to Ireland. In this appointment Henry difcovered his ufual political wifdom (and no Englifli Prince ever had more) by the uiiffion of our Author, and the inftruflions given him ; which were, to inquire into the ''4) fituation of the country, its nature, the origin of the people, their manners, how often, by whom and the ways in which they were fubdued and conquered, and what new and preternatural fubjefts were to be found. This tafk he executed in his Topography. He added to this another Avork, which he entitled the Conquett of Iieland by the firft adven- turers, and important chapters on the government of the nation, and how it was to be retained in fubjedion. This he defigned for the ufe of (5) John, then Earl 5 A "^ of (1) F'ancfurt, l6'->3, at the end of Camden's Anglica, Norman, &c. (2) Cimhreni evcrs. p. 31. (3) Me cum diledo filio vtllro, Johanne, in Hiberniam a latere veilro traufmittere, Gir. Cam. p. 698. (4,^ Quis terra; litns. qus Datura, qua gtiuia origo, &c. p. fij/'. (5) Proturavi, tua:quc cclfuudiiii (l'i(5lavienfiutii comes Inclyte, Normannorum Dux) digcllam hirtoriam dcftinavi. Pag 7j9. C,66 GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. >>>>>>>>> >■ of Poiftou, Duke of Normandy, and future King of England. Confidcring the novelty and difficulty of the commiffion with which he was charged, he accompliOied its objects with uncommon ability. With no illaudable ambition he confefles, that his prime motive in this undertaking was to leave an (6) everlafting memorial of him- felf ; this preceded his duly and gratitude. Ireland had been but (7) curforily mentioned by others, as Solinus, Orofius, Ifidore and Bede, but by none of them thoroughly examined. He knew the curiofity of the Engliih was raifed very high by ftrange relations of the Welfli adventurers ; by the recent expedition of King Henry, and by the flattering profpefts held out of int- menfe poiTeflions. The arrangement of his work, if not perfedly confiftent with the philofophical fyftem of modern times, is yet neither mean or injudicious. He divides it into three diftinclions : (8) the firfl; treats of the natural hillory, the fecond of the wonders of nature and miracles of faints, and the lafl is a flcetch of the civil hiftory of the country. In the two firft parts he pofitively denies having received the fmalleft (9) light or aid from Irifli works, except what was acquired by his own induftry and refearches. In the laft part, which dif- eouri'es of the origin of the Irifh and the primeval inhabitation of the Ifle, he drew fomtthing from ancient chronicles, but it was lax and diffufive, fuperfluous and frivolous; the (10) labour here was fimilur to that of fearching for gems among the fands of the fea-fhore. Such being the origin and plan of his performance, it may not be improper to remark, that he has been fi i) accufed by Irifli antiquaries with grofs falfehoods and fiftions, and reprefented as totally undeferving credit. I defire to appear neither his apologifl or pancgyrift, but candour certainly demands of us not raflily to condemn a man, who folemnly addrtfles a work to a wife fovereign, and who for three days read it before the Univerfity of Oxford. Such an one muft be regardlefs of every moral fenfe and attention to charafter, premedita'^ely to be guilty of forgery and lies : this would hardly apply to an ignorant, bigotted and cloyflered monk, much lefs to an ecclefiaftic ^6) Operx prsctium fuit et cur.x, egregium aliquoil mundo mcmorahile rtrllnqiierc. Altera vero, nee minus quam nuniiio Iccuniia, noliilium priiicipuiii ( Hriiry ami John) tarn riinliiuio, reniiint-ratio, quam exhortatis. I'ag. 692, "He wafcciciSed Arch Bllhnp of St. David's, but at Rumc he wasoutbid by him wlio had more money, and miffed the Cufhion, He departed this life when he was about four fcote ycai- old, and reded at St. David's." Hanmcr. p. 168. (7) Angulus iHc ncc oninino intaftus, nulhus tamen liadcnus llylo ablolute comprehenfus. Pag. 69J. (8) hit itaiiue trin)eml)rib opens ) anitio pag -^93. (9) Ixis txpritTions aic llrong. In duabus primis nullam prorfus ex frriptis llihcrnieis cvidcntiam, nullam penitus inveiii cxirinfeci juvaniinis adminicuium. pag. 693, (10) Non al)fque laloreplurimo, tanquam marinas inter arena' genimas cligeiu. pag 293. See Cox,V. 1. apparatus. (tl) £iographia Brit, aitidc, Barry. GIR ALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. 367 ecclefiaflic of diflingulflied liberality and eminence, the favourite and confidant of an enlightened Court. A paffage in his (12) Retra(5tations is triumphantly brought as tacitly acknowledging his literary delinquency, but the fenfe of that paffage is perverted. He there obferves, that he did fet forth many wonderful things to be feen in Ireland ; that he learned them after- much enquiry from thofe of the highefl rank, and that on other fubjects he followed common fame. Is there any thing felf- condemning in this ? If the Irilh drew an unfaithful portrait of themfelves and of their hiflory, is Giraldus to blame ? He (13) allows that he introduces fome wonder- ful tales, as a wolf fpeaking to a prieft ; a man with the extremities of an ox, &c. are thefe more extraordinary, fays he, than many things recorded in Scripture, the fathers and pagan-writers, to whom he accurately refers ? But who are his accufers ? Richard (14) Stanihurft, John Lynch and Abbe' Mac Geoghegan, and other Roman catholic writers, who detefled the Englilh name and nation, and who efteemed it the crueleft difpenfation of providence to be fubjed to them. And yet thefe very men, thus fqueamifh with the vagaries of Cambrenfis, make no difficulty of believing all the outrageous and blafphemous miracles related by Colgan and Meffingham. 'If there were no other arguments to vindicate Giraldus, the befotied fuperttition of the 12th century, with the low (late of every branch of human knowledge is abundant- ly fufficient for the purpofe. Cambrenfis tells (15) us, that he came to Ireland in 1 1S2, with his relations and other Wellh adventurers ; and that being of a literary turn, he fet about makino- colle£Hons. He continued in the ifland for (16) two years, and on his return to England communicated his obfervations to King Henry, who efleemed them fo high- ly, that in 1185, he fent our author with his fon, John, to ihe ifie. Cambrenfis carried back with him, and completed what he had before fkttched out, and dedi- cated his topography to the King. His zoology confifts of Pifa's. (12) Nicholfon's Irith h!ft. Lib. p. 3. (13) Parte mcndacii nitens, fumiiiam univerfam decolorare, pag. 755. .^14) Stanihurft. de reb. Hib. fub fin. Camb evers. paffim, Mac Geoghegan hid. d' trlandc, dlfcours prellmin. (15) Vcnit eoJcm navigio & alius Stephanids nepotes et tam inlula: fitum et naturam, quam prim.i;vam gcntis originem (liligenter cxplorans. Pag. 796. (16) Per biennium tunc in iiifula ct ante morain faciens, tancjaam prxtiuiu laboris et prs;i)ium, ficum rcportavit. Pag. 806. 368 GIR ALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. •■» t-S-S -1 •^••« 'VV% -v*"* -VV'S-V-^ •<■■< ■« .t.-*"<-4-<-« •*>•■ •<■•«■•< ■<■•« ■< ■<■•«■< •<"<'<*>">- >->■>-»->■ >•■>■>■>..>- >■>■>. ►•> >. >. >.->..>.>■>■ >■ >• >■ >■>■>■ >.»•■>• >■■►■»■ »"»'».^ Salmones, Murenas, Cati, Truttaj, Lochiae, Britii, Anguillas, Tymalli vel Umbr^, Gradiones, Alofas, Glaffani, Aves. Gobiones, &c. Accipitres, Querqueduls, Bernaces, Falcones, Milvi, Halieti, Nifi, Ululs, Martineta:, Meruli, Gallinas fylveftres. Cygni, Obeli, Acetae vel Kardioli, Ciconias, Aqullse, Coturnices, Croerii, Grues, Ratulae, Aiicas vel Gantes, Pavones fyh 'edus, Alaudae, Fera. Byfise vel Grifeae, &c. Cervi, MatricEe, Talpas, Apri, Vulpes, Mures, Lepores, Taxi, Glires, Cuniculli, Muftelas, Vermes. &c. Ranse, Sanguifugae, Aranea:, Lacertae, &c • Orniihology is the largert of Cambrenfis's clafies. We had falcons, hawks, and others of that fpecies. An acl of 20th Edward IV. recites, that, gofhawks, tiercells and falcons were formerly in great plenty, but had become fcarce from the number carried away by merchants : it therefore diredts, that 13s. 4d. be paid for every gofhawk, and 6s. 8d. for every tiercell, and 10s. for every falcon exported. As he does not mention the Ardea or Heron, which differs but little from the Crane, I think he confounds the one with the other. Cranes were (17) feen here in the great froft of 1739. The Pavo fylveftres of our author is to be met with only in the Highlands of Scotland. There were abundance of Swans in the northern parts : Storks were rare, and alfo Grous, this probably is a miftake, as to the lafl. There were many white crows. This has been fneered at by the ignorant as one of Cam- brenfis's (17) Smith's Iiift. of Cork, A', p 3J7. Archaeolog. V. 2. p. 171. -,! GIR ALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. 369 brenfis's fables : but white crows are not uncommon in the (18) Orkneys, Zetland and elfowhere. He fays we had no partridge, pheafants, nightingales or magpies. The lail; was driven here about the end of King John's reign : others fay (19) much later. He relates the idle tale of the barnicle growing from fir-wood, and tliat Bifliops and religious men ufed them as being fifti and not fowl. The French eat the macreufe, or fea-duck for the fame reafon. It is a remark of the honeft Quaker, (20) Doftor Rutty, that they who can believe bread to be flefli, may well be excufed for believing flelh to be fifh. Moryfon faw fixty pheafants ferved at one feafl. Our rivers and fliores, according to Cambrenfis, fupplied us with falmon, trout, eel, pike, perch, barbel, umber, &c. and our coafts fwarmed with fifh, nor were we ignorant of the art of preferving them with fait. The Spaniards, in 1567, took great quantities of fifli from the Iriih, and on our coalts, as others did much earlier ; for an aft (21) was made in 1465 to prevent foreigners from fifliing on our fliores. However it was (22) late before we began to make train oil. Cambrenfis gives us no reafon to believe, that what we call moofe deer exifled here in his time; the cervine fpecies, (23) noticed by him, were fmall, and evi- dently the dama, or fallow deer. I once imagined thefe moofe deer, whofe (24) remains we behold with wonder, were common, and that the Firbolgs, who delighted in hunting ; and who befides training deer (25) to hunt had dogs proper for every fpecies of game, had early deftroyed them. This opinion, unfupported by tradition or hiftoric proof, I now relinquifii, becaufe the teeth of (26; elephants have alfo been found in this illand, an animal we arefure who was not a native, 'i'hat excellent natu- ralift, Pallas, (27) mentions our moofe horns, and that elephants teeth, the Rhinoceros, Hippotamus and other animals of warm climates are met with in Siberia, and, ufque ad ipfa Decani glacialis liitora. He modelUy fays, he will not indulge conjeftures, but thinks thefe animals not only lived but propagated in thde frozen 5 B countries (j8) Brand's Orkneys, p 77. Scalig. lie Subtilit. Ex .59. p. 102. (19) Smith, fup p. 32;. (io) Rutty's Nat. Hift. of Dublin. V. I. p. 308. See a remark fumewliat (Imiliar in Canibrcufis, p. 709, where he fpoaks of ihe tall of the Carter. (ii) Bolton's Stat. p. 38 — 59. (21) Cfptuni eft non iia prideni genus quoddara olei in in niajin.i quantitate conlici. Lombard, dc reg. Hih. p. 8r. (13) Quanto que minorcs fuut corporis quaiiillatc, tanto pia;cclleiilius efftiUDtur, capitis ct lornuuni >!ij;niiatc. Gir. Camb. p. 709. (14) Loutliiana, part p. 2. Boate. p. 137. Camden. Ed. Cough. (2j) Licdciibrog. 1375 Du Cunge, in Canis. The Giaius Hcbcrnicus is valued I i^):ly in llie Welfli laws, p. 15;. Mr. Pennant thinks our Itjlh greyhound, or wolf dogs were brouglit hither by the Danes Brit Zool 1 p. 54, (26) Boate and Molyncui's nat. hift. p. j 251. (27) Comment. Acad. Peiro;ol V. 13 p .)C.8. 370 GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. ■ > > ■>■ >.■>.>■>..>>..»■>■ >..v.. countries. However the (2S) Prcfideiit of our Royal Irifli Academy, whofe miner- alogical, chemical and philoibphical knowledge is admired in every part ot" Europe, and whofe talents and accomplifhments reflefl: the higheH: honour on his native country, has, by folid reafoning from fcripture and geology, (29) demonftrated that this appearance of the fcuihern animals was in conftquence of the Deluge. Cambrenfis declares he never (30) faw fuch abundance of boars and wild fwine. The Northerns efteemed this meat the highelt luxury, and called it Soehrimni. (31) Monoheroes Cervcfiam cum Dis potant, Vefcuntur Sahrimni lardo. The Irifti in the fixfeenfh century were (32) infatiably fond of this food. The writer laft cited informs us, that a gueft of O'Neil afked one of his guards, whether veal was not more delicate than pork ? That, anlwered the other, is as if you afked me was you more honourable than O'Neil. As they did not (33) much boil or roaft their meat, it was full of crude juices, and produced the (34) leprofy, a difeafe very common, and for which leper-houfes were every where to be found. They were taught that the bad effefts of this and other grofs aliments were (^2)S) correded by Aqua vitas. For fome time it was ufed only as a medicine, and its operation in pre- ferving health, diffipating humours, ftrengthening the heart, curing cholic, dropfy, palfy, quartan fever, (tone, and prolonging life was firmly believed on the faith of phyficians, and made it eagerly and univerfally fought lor. At what time this liquor reached Ireland is not afcertained. It was about the middle of the twelfth century, the diflillation of ardent fpirits vs'as (36) introduced. It was called Aqua vitre, eau de vie, in Irilh Llifge-beatha, Ufquebah, and now V/hifkey. Morylon fays, the Irifli preferred their ufquebah to the Englifli aqua vitae ; becaufe by mingling raifins, fennel feeds, and other things they mitigated its heat, made it move plcafant, Icfs inflaming, and more refrefliing to a weak flomach. The Irifli themfelves diftillcd fpirits from malt in 159c, and imitated foreign liqueurs, by adding aromatic feeds and (2") Richard Kirwan, Elq. LI..D. F R S. (29) Tranfaifl. of the Royal Irllh Acad. V. 6. p ijj.&ftq. (xo) Aprorum quidcm & f) Iveftrium pnrcorum nufquam terraruni laniam copiain vidimus. Pag. 709. (jl) lidda Soemund p. ij. Malitt. V. a. y. no. Barthol. p. 560. (ji) lllud genus cibi inlalurabili avidiiaio rapiuntur. Stauih. p .18. (ij) Nt>n admodum codli«, nee plus faiis airis dctedlantur. Stanih. p. :8. (S4) Boate, p. 101. Barriiigtoii ou ihe Stat, p lij. Ulloa's voyag. i. p. 47. (35) Utuntur pro panchrcllo medicaniiiie, ignito qundaiii vino, uullo alio liquore pcrmixto, quoj conintuniter a. > ». >..>- > >. y.y. >, >. >, > >-,. >. > >..>. ^.y^y..y >. y, ►■►►.> f- ►,» ^ r-* infotms us the country was (sq) quite wild and uncultivated : there was but little tillage ; there were many herdfmen, but few ploughmen. The Irifli Orna, the fame «s the Latin hordeum, and our Hiegol the fame as fecale, prove the Irifli had not originally barley nor rye. Ricfe was fown here (6)) in i5^S' ^ fuppofed, at firft, jhis Vfas a miftake for rye } but on looking into Gervaife Markham's farewel to hiifbandry, 1 faw lice was raifed in England about a century ago, but not commonly. At the very time \Ve find it in Ireland, the (6i) French fowcd much of it, but through prejudice and improper management it did not fucceed. As it is an aquatic plant, •it might haVe grown very well in this moiit country. The Odyh of Ov«n is not an Irifli invention, it is the Teutonic Ofen, the Danlfh Own, the Belgic Oven, and the Anglo-Saxon Ofae. We baked our bread under (62) ehibers. The Belgic colonifts brought us alio the gradell or gridle. The rule t)f Columbanus mentions herbs, legumes, and meal mi.\t with water. The Irilh ecclefiaftics, who had a condant intercourfe with France, could not be ignorant of the capitulars of Charlemagne, full of dire^ions for the care of herbs, fruits, and flowers. Legumes were peas, beans, and podded fruits, and culinary and medicinal herbs the monks had conftantly in their gardens. About 1632, artichokes, colly- fiowers, pompions, and hops feeni to have (6j) been firft introduced, and grew very well. As Ireland abounded vvith animals of almoft every genus and fpecies, it may feem ftrange that the natives fliould be charged with devouring human flefli. The i2i& is delivered by (64) Diodorus Siculus and Strabo. Pelloutier, who (6^) examined the queftion concerning the exiilence of Anthrophagi, cannot deny the evidence of antiquity of the Scythians being fuch : but he finds whenever the pradice is men- tioned, it was oh fome folenin occafion, as previous to a battle, or after a bloody Vidory, for otherwife had it been common, the extirpation of the human race muft inevitably have cnfued. The moft diretS reftimony is that of St. Jerome, who de- clares he faw the Scots, or Attacott; (for MSS have both) when (66) a youth eating human fiefh. Pelloutier believes the Father was impofed on, being then a child : but this learned man forgot that the age of adokfcence was either from the four- teenth (59) Agrcflis f(l ilia provincia, & ab homiiium culiura fere dcfcrts, &c. p. »6. (60) Defid. Cur. Hib. V. i. p. 59. {61) Le Grand, fupra. (62) Cum parvo pane paxima;^. Rtg. Columbani apud MclTuighum. p, 403. (63) Lombard, fup. p. 88. (64) Digd. Sic. 1. 5, Strub. 1. 4, (65) Hitl. dcs Cclces. I'. I. p. 246. Hawkcfworih'e voyag. V, 2. p. IJI. (06) Cttni ipfc adolcfccntulm, &c Adv. Juviii. 1, 1. p. jj. 1 GIRALDUS CAMBRF.NSIS TM.USTRATED. 375 .< 4 -« < ■< -4. < -4 4 .4 .4 4 4 4 4 ■4"4 -4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 ■» 4 4 -4 4 4-4 4 -4 4 4 ■4-4 -.^.H- >. >->.->..>. ». >.>..>. >..>. > ^,. ..>,,>> >. >,>,,> > > > > >>->>->->>.», » ►. teenth to the twenty-fifth year, (67) or from the fifteenth to the thirtieth, when fuch a fpeftacle could neither be mifapprehended or forgotten. But as if dillriiflin'^ the force of this objeftion, Pelloutier remarks, that the Scots or Irifli became canibals through rage, for being tranfported from their own country. This is quite futile. 'Jhere is no proof that the Celtic ritual was ftained with blood, but many that llie Scythic was ; the latter the Druids had adopted, when known to the Greeks and Romans. The northerns were the immediate defcendants of the Scythians, Human (68) facrafices ; tafling each others blood, as the feal of leagues and compafts were veRiges of their tnore horrible feafts. 'I'he Irifli, the offspring of the Scythic fwams, were not lefs barbarous, even fo late as 1596. " At the execution of a notable traitor, fays (69) Spenfer, at Limerick, called Murrogh O'Brien, I faw an old woman, who was his foller mother, take up his head whilft he was quartered, and fucking all the blood that ran tnereout, faying that the earth was not worthy to drink if, and therewith alfo (teeped her face and breaft." An (70) Irifli canon of the 8th or gth century does not forbid eating horfe-flefli, though it obferves, it was not cu ftomary. The (71) Scythians, Vndals and particularly the Danes of Northumberland indulged in fuch repafts : it would liave been ex. traordinary, if the Irifh part of thefe people, did not the fame. The great northern feaft, called lol, which lafted three days, derived its name from the (72) eating of mare's fiefli at fuch feafons. The foregoing particulars are not brought forward to calumniate the ancient Irilh, for every people, at fome period, had the fame cufloms- and manners, but to demonftrate the incredibility of ihe falfe, exaggerated and hyper- bolical reprefentations of fome Irifh antiquaries and hiftorians, who hold up their countrymen as miracles ot learning and civilization, when they were in reality funk in grofs ignorance and favage barbaiifin. The progrefs of refinement, in every country, bears pace with the improvement of its laws, the advancement of its in- duftry, ,and its increafe in wealth. The Irifh were in a barbarous flate at the end of the ii5th century, according to Spenfer, Moryfon and many other writers. Their fole (6;) Rhodogin. I, 19. c. ll. SJionbr.rti . pclit. p. .?0. ' (68) Wurni. mon. Dan. p. jp. bhtriogham. de org. Aagl. p. 354. Sai. Gram. 1. i. Stephan in Sat. Gram. ji. 5:. Archaeolog. V. 8. p. 315. (69) View, p. 44. (70) Equam noa prohibent, (amen confuetiido non eft conicdert. Dacher. Kpicil. torn. I. p. 505 Moryfon p. 161. Pinkerton. Vit. Sanct. Scot. p. 74. Johnfon's Councils, Ann. 785. (71) Strab. 1. 7. Rhodog. iiRt>. Sieph. in Sax. Gram. p. jt. Wilkins. Contll. i. p. 14;— rjl. (7») 16-61. f. 61 ab equina: carnis cfu. Edd. Sa:mund. p. ^99. £cc Smith'* Kerry, p. i?i. 376 GIR ALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. fole employment was keeping cattle, and pafturing on mountains and wild waRe places. This was called to creete, Creaglit or Keyriaght, or Boolying, from Bol, a Cow. Thefe Boolies were extemporary hats of clay and twigs, much the fame as the Highland Sheelins or Indian wigwams. In thefe they ailociated with their cattle. Spenfer thus fpeaks of them which Ihews the Rate of the country. " By the cuRom of boolying there grow many great enormities unto the commonwealth. If there be any outlaws or loofe people (as they are never without fome) which live upon Rtalths and fpoils, they are evermore fuccoured and find relief only in thefe boolies, being upon the waRe places ; whereas elfe they fljould be driven fliortly to Rarve, or come down to the towns to fe(;k relief, where, by one means or other, they would ioon be caught. Befides fuch Realths of cattle as they make, they bring com- monly to thei'e boolies, where they are readily received, and the thief harboured from danger of kuv, or fuch oRicers as might light upon him. Moreover the peo- ple that live in thofe boolies grow thereby more barbarous, and live more licentioufly than they could in towns, ufing what manners they lilt, and practifing what mifchiefs and vallianies they will, either againR the government there by their combinations, or againR private men, whom they maligne, by Realing their goods, or murder- ing themfelves. For there they think themfelves half exempted from law and obedience, and having once taReJ of freedom, do, like a Rcer, that huth been long out of the yoke, grudge and repine ever after to come under the rule again." After this picture of IriRi manners, can we avoid fmiling with contempt on the pompous (73) account of the banquetting hall at Tar-a, given by the author of the Colleiflanea de rebus Plibernicis ? Its various divifions ; numerous gucRs ; the quantities cf meat and butter daily confumed ; its twenty-ftvcn kitchens, and its nine water-cilterns for wafliing feet and hands ? After the firlt emotions of wondei; have fubfided, we inquire after the literary memorial that records thefe extraordinary things, and wiRi to be fatislled of its authenticity : but how much are v.'e difappointed and chagrined on being told, " that is but the fragment of a fragment" in the Sea- bright coiltclion, without date and without author 5 only it is conjectured, that this was the Ryle of living at the IriRi Court from the year 150 of the incarnation to the middle of the 5th century. 'I'he Editor of this romantic and childilh fragment would have obliged the public, and difcovered one inRance, at IcaR, of antiquariau '73) Coil;£lan. No, li. p. r '- GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. ' 37; antiquarian tafle and judgement, had he endeavoured to elucidate the fubjeft by other helps than Arabic, Perfic, Hebrew and Greek lexicons and vocabularies. Occupied for ever in the purfuit of phantoms mocking his fight and eluding his grafp, he feems to poffefs an innate centrifugal force, which always keeps him from approxi- mating the objedt of his inquiry. He confidered this anonymous fragment of more authority than Froiffart, an (74) eye-witnefs, who defcribes the wretched appearance of four Irifh kings; who attended Richard II. and who had every thing in com- mon with their fervants. Nor is it an ill founded opinion of an excellent (y^) Antiquary, that the Irifh, in 1377, were as uncivilized as the favages of North America. Pofidonius of Apamzea, who (76) writ before our asra, has left us a (yy) rela- tion of, what he call calls, a Celtic entertainment. On a floor fpread with hay they fet tables, on which they pour out libations to the Gods. 1 hey had but little bread, but plenty of meat boiled, broiled or roafted ; this, in the moft favage manner they tore with their teeth : and what they could not thus fubdue they cut with (7S) a knife. Both river and fea-fifli were ufed, with fait, vinegar and cummin ; part of the latter they mixt with their drink. Their potation was Italian or Mafiylian wine, ferved in filver or earthen cups. Here we fee an elegance and refinement incompatible with Celtic manners, and yet this account has been unguardidly adopted by INIacpherfon, Henry and others. It appears, that Pofidonius refers to a people inhabiting the S. E. part of Narbonne Gaul, (79) probably the Allobroges, from the mention of BIruitus, who was their king. Thefehad been reduced by the Romans, and their country made a province ; fo that they were early acquainted with, and pradifcd the arts and luxuries of their, conquerors. The Allobroges are acknowledged to be a Tuetonic tribe, fo that Pofi- donius defcribes not a Celtic, but a German feaft. Thus from want of attention and difcrimination the antiquities of countries are confounded. Cambrenfis (80) reprefents Ireland as unequal, alternately mountain and vale; the foil foft and marfliy, covered with wood, and truly a defert. This he confirms by an ample enumeration of the great number of eagles, hawks and other birds of 5 D prey J (74) Cook 1. p. 204. (7j) Barri'iigton, ArchSco!ogia V. 3. p. 7;, (76) Vol's, lie Hift. Graec. p 1^3. Mcurfii Rhoil. 1. i. c. 12. (77) .Athen.-ei dcipnos p. iji.E.IJt Cafaub. (7X) Uayjcifai uixfu xa.fxrtfivmTts. Machxra here clots not mean a knife, for the ancients had properly none fuch, but a fniall miliiary weapon, (.ccafionally ufed at table. 'I he Machsra Ccliica was famous for its form and temper. Pftlflcr. Antiq. Gr.^c. p. 5C9. Polluc. Onom. 1. i. c. ig. n. 13, (78) Apfian. in Celt. (80) Hihernia quidem terra insqiialii ell, mollis & aquofa, fylvcftris c!l p aludofa, et vcrc Itrra deferta. p. 700. 378 GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. prey ; of the different kinds of wild fowl ; of the abundance of animals producing valuable peltry, all indications of a thinly peopled country. Sir Willliam Petty, a man of uncommon abilities, who furveycd the kingdom, minutely examined every part, and was perfectly acquainted with its hiflory, (81) declares, that " at this day no monument or real argument evinces that the Irifh, when firll: invaded, had any Itone-houfuig at all, any money, any foreign trade, or any learning but the legend of faints, pfalters, millals, rituals, &c. or geometry, aflronomy, anatomy, archl- tedure, enginery, painting, carving, or any kind of manufacture, or the lead ufe of navigation or the a' t military." A people thus circumdanced could not be numerous, and therefore he eftimates the inhabitants of the ifle to have been but three hundred thoufand at the Englilh invafion, which by the ordinary courfe of generation would, in 500 years, increafe to (82) twelve hundred thoufand, allowing for epidemics, famines, wars, &c. and this he fays was the population of Ireland A. 1). 1641. It is very truly and philofophically obferved by Cambrenfis, (83) that the pro- grefs of man is from woods to fields, and from fields to towns, but that the Irilh had fcarcely emerged from the paftoral life ; they defpifed the labours of agriculture, they declined civil wealth and focial connexion, palhng their lives in woods and paftures in a brutifh, manner and in company of their cattle. The paftoral life is net (84) favourable to the multiplication of mankind. Cambrenfis writ the foregoing about 1185; that the Irifii were but little changed in 462 years after, the fol- lowing (d'^) record will demonftrate. " Orders by the General Aflembly of confederate Catholics, at Kilkenny, the 12th of November, 1647. " Whrreas feveral perfons of the province of Ulfter, and other parts of this " kingdom, with their cattle and families, go in great multitudes through " feveral parts of the feveral provinces of this kingdom, being, as they allege, " necefTitated for the fafety of their lives and fortunes to leave their former dwel- " lings and habitations, and where by their daily ra?iging, they have very much " prejudiced feveral counties, in deflroying the grafs, corn and other goods of " the (Ti) Prllt. Arilliniftic, p. .^18. (8;) Petty, fup. p. 317. (83) Cum tiiim a fylvis ad agios, ab agris ad villas, civiumque conviiiius, luimani Generis ordo proceffcrit : genbh.te agricultura: kborcs af|.criii', a prinio (laftoralis \kx vivcndi nmdo iinn rcccileiis &c. p ■/•!9. (°4) Malihus Oil the priiRiplcs of population, initio. (85) Harris's Collet, penes Socict. UuMin. GIRALDUS CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. 379 '• the Inha,lpitants there, which hath occafioned, that feveral counties and places, *' are quite deferted and waded ; and the faid Keyriaghts avoid the contribu- " tion which falls due upon them. It is therefore for the future redrefs of fuch " mifchiefs thought fit, that the Lord General of Ulfler, calling to his afTiilance " fuch other perfons of the faid province as fliall be fit, fhall inquire and find out, " and return to the fupreme council now to be eftabliflied, the head Keyriaghts " of the faid province of Ulfter, within the feveral provinces of Leinfter, " Munfter and Connaught, and what number of cattle each of them hath. " Upon return whereof, and examination by the Council of the lands wafted " in the feveral counties, which are fet for county charges only, or which are " wafted and yield no- county charges, to afiign unto the faid Keyriaghts, or " unto feveral of them together, fo much of the wafte lands in the feveral " provinces for their habitations, and their paying county charges for the fame " as others of the faid counties will do, where they are to refide, till they " may return to their former habitations, and not to annoy their neighbours, " or any of the quarters of the confederate catholics at their peril. " Printed at Kilkenny, 1647." The Scythians, according to (86) Herodotus and Juliin, had neither houfes or fixt habitations ; they wandered through the country with their flocks and herds-. Their wives, their children and a few domeftic utenfils they carried in carts or waggons, covered with fkins. They were ftrangers to agriculture. Thefe manners were realized in our Creaghts, as the foregoing curious document affures us, about a century and a half ago. That the Irifli were, from the earlieft ages, a pafloral nation, few In number and but li'tle advanced in civility, fome proofs have been alleged ; more (hall now be fub- mitted to the reader. Cambrenfis (87) mentions an ancient divifion of Ireland into five provinces, Mun-- fter, Connaught, Leinfter, Ulfter, and INIeath, each contained thirty-two Cantreds, except Meath which had but fixteen. Two MSS are noticed, relating to this fubject; one was written about the beginning of the reign of Edward I. 1272, and depofited in the Abbey of Multifernan, the other, which agrees with it, except in one inllance, was in the Abbey of Duilk, which was (88; founded in 1202. The Multifernan MS (J6) Herod. 1. 4. Juflln. 1. 2. c. ». (!(7) Qu»libet iil»rum cjuinquc partium triginta duos cantrcJos continu«rit, S:r, p. 737. (US) Archaail's Moiiaflicon. 38o GIR ALDUS CAMBRENSI3 ILLUSTRATED. MS appears in Cufack's (89) colleftions, A. D. 151 1, and in the Commiffioners' book of Indentures for fettling Connaught, A. D. 1584. According to the Muhi- fernan MS, which feems to have been adopted by Henry II. for fifcal purpofes, each Cantred contained thirty town-lands, every town-land could paflure three hun- dred cows, and every town-land had eight Carrucates. This then was the divifion of the Ifland, Provinces. Caiitreds. Town-lands. Carrucates, Munfler, 70 2100 16800 Leinfter, 31 930 7440 Connaught, 30 900 7200 Ullter, 2>5 1050 8400 Meath, 18 540 4320 184 5520 44160 Or five millions, two hundred, ninety-nine thoufand, two hundred acres, at one hundred and twenty acres to each carrucate, and feeding one million, fix hundred and fifty-fix thoufand cows, being three hundred for each town-land; this was allow- ing four acres and a half for the maintenance of each cow. Under the name cows muft be comprehended black cattle of every kind and age. In 1 177, Roderic, the monarch, agreed to (90J pay annually one hide, faleable for the merchant, of all the cattle killed in his province with exception as to the king's demefnes, and thofe of his barons. Lord Lyttleton (91) obferves this tribute was accepted in lieu of thofe fruits of feudal tenure which were paid by the vaflals of the crown in England, but which could not lb eafily be levied in Ireland, until the Englifli government was better eftablifhed. The number of cows in Connaught, accord- ing to the above fcheme, was 270,000, allowing one tenth to be killed annually, the number was 27,000, one tfei>th of which was 2700. 'Ihe value of a hide may be thus afcertained. Finglas, in 1534, recommends that the (92) liatutes of the Spanifh wines be put in execution, that is, that " no hides be gyven for any manner of wares, except it be for wheat, fait, iron, or fmall wines, upon pain of forfeitur of the fame, or the value. And all men fending any" hidc» {89) Harris's Warf, p. 2? 5. . . {<)o) BfncO. Abb. t. 2. p. 123. Brompton. col. \if>f>. Hovcden. ad Ann. 11 73. (91) Hid. of Hen. 2. V. 3. p. 86. Matt. Paris, p. 481. (93) Breviatc apud Harris's Hibtrn. p. 99. GIRALDU3 CAMBRENSIS ILLUSTRATED. 381 hides out of this lond fliall find fureties to the cuftomers, that the retorn of the hides (hall come in fuch wares as is aforefaid. And that no man buy any hide above the value of fixteen pence, upon pain of forfeitur of the fame hide, or the value of the fame," Thus far Baron Finglas in his Breviate. Suppofing the value of a hide faleable for the merchant to be one fhilling and four pence, when Finglas writ in 1534, and that in J 177 when Roderic agreed for the tribute of his country to be but half, or eight pence, the value of 2700 would then be ;C9°o PC'' Annum. Or faying, that the prince of Connaught paid in fifty-feveu years, that is from 1177 to 1234, five thoufand marks, that would be eighty-feven marks annually, or ^^^7° PC year, a fmall difference in tribute confidered either way. There are many other topics in Cambrenfis deferving illuflration : this fpecimen is given to excite others to a more minute and accurate inquiry into the flate of Ire- land at the arrival of the Englifh than has hitherto appeared : it was an intereftiog. period, and never has been fufficiently attended to. 5E ^N ( 382 ) .."•...'•••n.— •.^•■••.■.•"••..•"■...•"••.••'•••.••"•— •• ••■•• ••••' '•••' ••••• •— • ••••• ••••■ ••••• ••••• '•••' •••• •••' '•••' ••••' •••• '•••• '•^ AN EfiSAY TOWARDS THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OP IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. IRISHTOWN. KILKENNY is fituated in the province of Leinfler, fifty-feven miles S.W. of Dublin ; and whether we confider its ancient or prefent ftate will be found not undeferving the notice of the hiftorian or antiquary. It confifts of two diftind towns, Kilkenny and Irifhtown : each is a feparate corporation ; the firfl governed by a Mayor, the other by a Portrieve. Irifhtown claims precedence of mofl: of the towns in the kingdom. In the fecond century, it is mentioned by Ptolemy among (i) the mediterranean cities. In the common copies of this geographer, it is called lournis, but in the Palatine it is properly lernis. As far as the obfcurity of ancient topogra- phy will allow, we may almofl with certainty pronounce the Ibernia of (2) Richard of Cirencefter to be lernis or our Iriflitown. But the prefent name, as ufed by the natives, is an additional and decifive proof of what is advanced, they call Iriflitown, Bally-gael-loch, or the town of the (3) Gael on the Lake ; where the river Nore overflows the low grounds, it is at this day by every inhabitant called the lake. The firfl feltlement of the Gael was along (4) the margin of the Nore, the higher land extending from the fite of the Cathedral to the Caflle, was covered with wood, and from ttiis circuniflance had a Celtic name, Coil or (5) Kyle-ken-ui, or the wooded head, or hill near the river ; and by the natives Cilcanuigh, or Kil- kenny. The (1) UtXus ii (/.>.>>,>. >.,.>>>>,, >.,>,, The (6) charter of William Marflial, Earl of Pembroke, to the Auguftinian abbey in Kilkenny, exhibits internal evidence of the antiquity of Irifhtown, as a long fettled community, whereas the new town appears to be but recently founded. Irifhtown always enjoyed very ancient prefcriptive rights : its holding markets and fending members to parliaments were among its other privileges. A (7) clofc roll of the 51 Edward III A. D. 1376, forbids the fovereign, provoft, and commonalty of Kilkenny to obftruft the fale of viduals in the market of Iriflitown, or within the Biihop's crofs, under pretence of cullom for murage. And left the ample grants made to Kilkenny might be interpreted fo as to include Irilhtown, the corporate body of the latter fecured their ancient rights by letters-patent of the 15 Edward IV. A.D. 1474. Thefe renew to them the privilege of holding a market ; and provide that a Portrieve be chofen every tvventy-firft of September, or St. Matthew's day, and be fworn into office on the eleventh of Odlober following, being St. Canice's dav. The Portrieve's prifon was at Troy's gate. Whenever the Mayor of Kilkenny came within Water gate he dropt down the point of the City fvvord, to flicw he claimed no jurifdidlion within the borough. Birtiop Cantwell (8) obtained from Henry VII. a confirmaiion of the former grants to Irifhtown. The ftyle of Portrieve was after changed ; for on the tvvefih of Odober 161 8, the following entry appears in the corporation-books : " Thomas Tobin de Legerath, alias Leyrath, eledus k juratus prspofitus." But the old title was again revived, and continues at prefent. At the fame time porters were appointed for Green's gate, Troy's gate, and Dean's gate to collecl the tolls, and alfo appraifers for meat. The Portrieve was to feize provifions brought to market, and expofed to fale on Sundays, A feafl was folemnly held in the borough on St. John the Baptift's day. The adventurers and foldiers of 1649, deprived the corporation of a large eftate, which they never recovered. 1 he following extracts, perhaps, merit notice. " Corporation of Irifhtown, fifteenth December, 1557. " By an order of the Court made by the Portrieve, Burgeifes, and Commons of Irifhtown, the feventh of January 1537, it was ordered, that the following prices fliould be paid within the faid corporation, for making the underneath particulars. A quilted doublet with a new-fafhioncd Bellire to be cut, to be made for one fhilling fterling. The pair of (9) gally-enifhes to be made for eight pence. The pair of new (6) Append. I. (7) Append. II. (8; Ware's Bilhops, p. nJS- •V) Collcft. dc rcb. Hib. V. 1. 384 niSTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF 5iew fafiiioncd clofe hofe, fix pence. The woman's Irifli coat, doublc-feamed, being not wrought with filk, feven pence. Every ounce of fiik to be wraught upon a woman's coat for nine pence. The offender to forfeit two fliillings. Anno 1564. 'Ihis year happened the great flood, when divers men and women were drowned, and St. John's bridge and caille fell down. Anno I^6'5. A bye law in the corporation of Iriihtown. That no inhabitant dwelling within the Mitre-land, being a free ma.i or woman, wear no apparel but after the Engliili fafliion : nor no woman wear caps upon pain of forfeiture ; and that every burgefs fliall go in his cloak, excepting W. Dullany, Teig Lowry, R. Wale. " At a Doer hundred held the 8th of January, 1579. " It is enafted by the afl'ent of the Portrieve, Burgeffes and Commons. That whereas great inconveniences have happened, and walle and fcarcity of victuals, to the great impoverifhrnent of many of this corporation ; who, though their ability could not afford the like charge, yet pride and comparifon, who (hould make the greateft cheer at the churching of women after childbirth, hath been the utter un- doin" of many, as we daily fee. For to avoid the like grofs enormity and harm, be it enafted, that no man or woman (liall come hereafter to any chrftining of children, or churching of women brought a bed, but the goflips for the time being, fathers and mothers, brothers and fifters, upon pain of forty fhillings Irifli, to be levied and talcen of the owner of the houfe, fo making the feafl toties quoties ; to be divided one half to the Portrieve and fpy. And it fhall be lawful for any that fpieth fuch men and women, coming from the feafl, to take away their hats rolls and mantles, and the fame to forfeit : and to take away the mid- wife's roll and mantle, that goeth to warn the people. And the pariih priefl: fhall have none in his company but his clerk. " Sergeants appointed to execute this Statute. Thomas Poore, Rowry Dooly." Sianihurfl:, writing In 1577, fays ; " the Iriflitown clalmeth a corporation apart] from the high town, whereby great factions grew daily between the inhabitants.? True it is, that the Iriflitown is the ancienter, and was called the old Kilkenny,] being under the Bi.Oiop his beck, as they are or ought to be at this prefent." The Butts are a part of Iriflitown, where the inhabitants exercifed themfelves at the long bow, to which they were obliged by feveral Irifli Statutes. That of the 5 Edward IV. A. D. 1464, recites, " that every Englifliman and Irifliman that dwell with IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 385 ■•< ■< ■* ■< ■< <-K ■<■<<< ■< ■<■<•■<■<■■< ■< ■* <■■< -<•< ■< ■< -< ■<■< * < ■< ■< < ■< <■<■<< ■< + • > >• » > ► >■ ►•» >■ >■ ►■ >■■>■ >. >- >-■! with Englifliman, and fpcak Englifli, that be betwixt fixteen and fi.vty in age, fliall have an Englifn bow of his own length, and one fiflmele at the leaft, betwixt the necks, with twelve fiiafts of the length of three quarters of the ftandard : the bows of ewe, wyche-hafel, awburne or other reafonable tree, according to their power : the fliafts in the fame manner, on pain of two-pence per month." Again, " In every Englifh town in this land, the Conftable fhall ordain on pair of butts for fliooting ; and that every man between fixteen and fixty fliall mufter at the butts, and fl-scot up and down three times every feafl; day, under pain of an half-penny per day." The poetry of the times is full of thefe ideas. ( I o^ T/je buffs are /cf, the Jhootings made And there ivill be great rcyalaltie. And I am fworn into my bille. Thither to bring my Lord Percy. The Butts were fet up near where the Butts crofs now (lands. The pedeflal and Hiaft of this crofs only now remain. Not far from the Crofs was the Bull-ring, where our anceftors diverted themfelves with another favourite amufement. By the red book of Kilkenny we are informed, that in that City, as well a-; in Iriflitown there was a Lord of Bull-Ring, and there are ftatutes for leflcning the expences of his banquet, and an order for John Fitz-Lewis to pay thirteen pounds for being difcharged from tliis office. This Lord was after called the ]Mayor ot Bull-ring. The dirtftion of this fport was, in moft towns, committed to the care of fome reputable bachelor, who was able to contribute to the expences attendant on it, the Guild fupplied the reft. A certain fum was allowed for his banquet, and he had his Sheriffs ; his election was annual by the citizens, and during his ofTice he 'was guardian the batchelors, and on their marriage was entertained by them, fo that he pafi'ed his time in feftivity and good cheer. As commerce and manufadures increafed, this amufement was difcontinued ; time became too valua- ble to be walled on fuch paftimes, and after the Revolution they ceafed every where. Harris (11) and Uflier acquiefce in the popular opinion, which deduces the name Kilkenny from St. Canice or Kenny, an imaginary perfonage, to whom the Cathedral is dedicated. The following h the (12) Legend relating to this Saint : 5 F '^ I (ic) Percy's religiics. (il) Ware's Antiq. p. 41. Uflcr. primorJ. p. 9J7. (1.) Suuihurd spud HoUiolhad. p, 2;, ,86 HISTORY AND ANTiqiJIIIES OF < <■■< ■< ■< ■< ■< * ■< ■< •< < < ■< <+>■>■■>■+■•>•■►■>■'>•-»••>••>">•'•>*■>•■>">••>• >■ »•>"■■> > > > >■ >■ ; It fpeaks more powerfully than any argument the (13) weaknefs and abfurdity of lierivin;'- from fvich materials any hiftoric facl. " This towne is named Kilkennie, from an holic and learned Abbat, called Kanicus, born in the Couniie of Kilk'cnnie, or as it is in fome books recorded, in Connaght. This prelat being in his fuckling yeres, fodered through the providence of God with the milk of a cow, and baptized and biflioped by one Luracus, thereto by God's efpecial appointment deputed, grew in traft of time to fuch devotion and learning, as he was reputed of ail men to be, as well a mirrour of the one, as a paragon of the other, v^fhereof he gave fufficient conjefture in his minoritie. For being turned to the keepinge of fheepe, and his fellow {heapherds whoUie yeildinge themfelves, like lufkifli vagabonds, to- flough and flougifhneffe, yet ftill would he finde himfelf occupied in framing, with ofiars and twigs, little wooden churches, and in fafhining the furnitures thereto appertyninge. Being fiept farther in yeres, he made his repair into England, when cloiflering himfelf in an Abbaie, whereof one named Doftus (Uncus) was abbat, he was wholie wedded to his booke and to devotion. Wherein he continued fo painfull and diligent, as being on a certaine time penning a ferious matter, and not having drawne the fourthe vocale, the ahbaie bell tinged to alTemble the Covent to fome fpiritual exercife, to which he haflencd, as he left the letter femi- circle wife unfinifhed, untill he returned back to his booke. Soon after being promoted to ecclefiaftical orders, he travelled by the confenl of Iiis monks to Rome, and in Italie he gave fuch manifelte proofe of his piety, as to this dale, in fome parts thereof he is highlie renowned." I have (14) before reprobated thcfe wretched flupid figments of dark ages, and fupported what I advanced by folid authorities. How does a late (15) writer evade their force ? Not by fhewing their weaknefs or irrelevancy, or by confronting them ■with others of a contrary tendency, but by faying, " a charge of this nature, conveying a contemptuous idea of the Irifh clergy in the earlier ages of the Irilh church, fliould furely come fupported with the proper proofs : certain I am, that"' thofe produced, are moll unhappily fcleded, they ftand in coiitradiftion to hiilory] and chronology." It not this to infult our underllanding, to talk of proper proofs,' and give us bare alTcrtion ? According ^ (t.i) Cave rfmarks of fuch works : Ccrte rnigis riiparifrimis ficSis, incpilTiniirquc narrationihus riftrtldinium, qux non fine immcniu ChnftianK rcligiouib fcaiidalo Icjn, multo mimi? dtfciuii polIuiK. llill lit. f.tc. Ij. p. 6j4. See Melchior, C»n. de loc. thcolog. 1. Il.c. i6. Marian, de advent, f. Jacob, c. i (14) Thcfe anliquitice fup. p. 172. (15) O'Coiior apud CoUiiJl. V. 1. p. ij.j. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 387 According to the Legend, Kilkenny received its name from the removal of the rtirine of St. Canice to that city, A. I). 1200, from Aghaboe. Antecedent to -.his Kilkenny mufl have had fome appellation : what it was, we are not tolJ. From the primjeval inhabitation of the Ifle, it was always called Kilkenny, and that this was the cafe before the removal of the flirine, here are the proofs. A. D. 1085 and 1 1 14. Cillcannigh or Kilkenny was (i6) burnt. A. D. 1172. Donald O'Brien, King of Thomond, proclaimed a holting at Kilkenny ; he was joined by Conor Mac Raghry and the forces of Weft Connaught. The Galls or Normans hearing of this, retreated to Waterford, leaving the Caftle of Kilkenny. After their departure, the town was demoliflied, and the country waded. By the Galls here, we are to nnderfland the Danes and other Northerns fettled in Water- ford and the maratime towns. Thefe obtained, either by force or permifiion, eftabliHiments in the interior country, for the puvpofe of trade. Kilkenny feems to have been very early one of their itations, and where they erecled a caflle and other works for their fecurity. A. D. 1192, the Engiifli were fettled in Kilkenny, and the foundation of the ("17) caftle then laid. From this document, as well as from Maurice Regan's account of the Englilh invafion, we find the new adventurers fecured their conquelts by caftles. Among others built at this time, was that of Kilkenny, but by whom is not recorded, probably by Strongllow, and on the fite of the Danifli fortrefs. On the arrival of Henry IL A. D. 1172, the Irifn princes were intimidated, they fubmitted and fwore allegiance ;■ but on his return to England, they refumed courage and rebelled. Hence in (18) other annals, under the year 1173, Donald O'Brien retracted his obedience to Henry, broke down the Caflle of Kilkenny, and deflroyed the Em-^- lifli fettlements. The great ornament of Iriflitown is the Cathedral. About the year 1233, Hugh Mapihon, whofe See was then at Aghaboe in Upper Olfory, began the foun- dation of a cathedral church in Iritlitown. Such is the account in the annals at the end of the Englifh edition of Ware. However this writer in treaiing of the Bifhops of OfTory mentions, hut as a report, of which, it is fuppofed he could procure no evidence, that Felix O'Duilany, or Delany, laid the foundation of this church in 11 So. It is very extraordinary, if the church was at all begun by DuUany, that no progrcfs fhould be made in it for feventy-eight years after. On the (16) Coif an Trias p. 6-.?. (r;) Annal at theend of Ware. Englilh edition. (l£) Apud KingS Cull. p. j8; j-cncs Scciet. Dulilin. 3S8 HISTORY AND ANTIQIHTIES OF the other hand, we cannot confidently with truth and hiitory place the rudiments of the church fo kite as Mapilton, becaufe there are indifputable proofs of there being bi(hops of this fee during the above interval. The fad then is probably this : Dullany ereded an oratory near the Round tower, as the foundation of an epifcopal church : Hugh Rufus more vigoroufly purfued the fame idea, being' an Tngli/li inonk, and elcfted probably through the interelt of the Earl of Pembroke, and Mapilton and St. Leger might have perfected thefe begin- nings. St. Leger died towards the end of Edv^ard I's reign, when the (19) charac- ter of ecclefiailical architecture was the immoderate length of the Eadern and Welt- ein windows, taking up the breadth of the nave, and rifmg as high as the vaulting, and thefe ornamented with coloured glafs. The windows of our cathedral are in this ilyle, but at prefent Ihortened ; however the eye quickly difcovers and traces the barbarous change. A large pile like this, and where every exertion w^as clogged with innumerable diificulties amid the turbulence of conquelt and infurredion, could not foon be completed. We have no memorials of its progrefs, and are therefore left to form an opinion from circumftances. Bilhop Ledred, in 1318, fitted up the windows, and particularly the eaftern one in fo elegant a manner, and adorned with fuch elegant workmandiip, as left it without a rival in the kingdom. This will appear by no means exaggerated, when we are (20J informed, that Rinucini, who came from the natal foil of the fine arts, was fo much (Iruck with its beauty, that he offered the large fum of ,C-~oo for it^ and efteemed it to be no mean ornament for Rome itfelf, whither he defigned to fend it. But neither the high rank of the (21) prince of Finno, nor the plenitude of power with which he was invefled, nor the diltreffes of the times, could pre- vail on the titular prelate, David Roth, or the chapter to comply with the rtuncio's wirties. The eaftern window contained the hiftory of Chrid from his birth to his afcenfion. Ihe other windows were enriched with feveral emblems. In 1650, this cxquifite piece of art was demoliflied, with other curious monuments of former times. (19) Briitham'* Antiq. of Ely. (lo) Ware's hlfliops of OfTory. (il) JohaiiiifH Bjplifti Rinucini, was arcliliifhop and prince of Tirmo in Italy. The hiflnry of hU Iri(h legation, replete with intercfiiiig particulars, i« at prefent in MS in ihe library of the marquis Rinucini, at [■"lurence, from which Burke has cutrade'i much rcfptitinj; the tranfadions of the confedcritc caihollci at Kilkenny, fupplem. Hih. Domin. pafs. Sir Thomas Coke, earl of l.ticefler, brought a tranfcript of this valuable manufcript Irom Florence, which was in hia elegant library at Holkham in Norfolk. See an inquiry into the (hare which king Charles I. had in the tranfadiuua of the I arl of Glamorgan. By ilKraai Birch, D.D. l'.cl..cc, p. 4, London 1 ;jO. 8vo. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 389 times. What fragments remained were carefully colleded by bifiiop Pococke, and placed In two ovals over the weflern door. The (22) fabrick is conflrucled in the Gothic tafte, and in the form of a crofs. The length from Eafl; to Weft, in the clear, is 226 feet, and the breadth of the crofs from North to South is 1 23, being perhaps the largeft church in the kingdom, except St. Patrick's and Chrift's church, Dublin, and in the beauty of its nave it excels both. It has two lateral and a centre aile, which yield an admirable prof- ped. The roof of the nave is fupported by five pillars and a pilafter of black mar- ble on each fide, upon which are formed five neat arches. Each lateral aile is enlightened by four windows below, and the centre aile by five above ; they are in the fhape of quaterfoils. The fteeple is low but broad, taking up the fpace of thirty-feven feet ; it is fupported by four maffy columns of black marble, and its floor refts on a great number of fpringers, arifing from the columns ; they fpread over the vaulting, and are each divided into a fmall moulding like beads. The pillars in this church were about fixty or feventy years fince whitened by an abfurd and ignorant a'conomift. There are four entrances : one at the Weft end, two in the nave oppofite each other, and one at the end of the North tranfept. The feats of the choir and gallery are of oak, varniflted, the whole plain but remarkably neat. The compafs-ceiling is adorned with fret-work, and has many modillions, and in the centre a groupe of foliage, feftoons, and cherubims ; nor is it deftitute of an elegant fet of organs. At the end of the South tranfept and fronting the North door, is a very neat confiftory court, erected by biftiop Pococke ; to the Eaft of which is the chapter houfe, it is neat and lightfome ; over the chimney is the follow- ing elegant and modeft infcription : HANC BASILICAM VETUSTATE LABASCENTEM RESTITUERUNT ORNARUNT OSSORltNSES ANNO MDCCLXIU. 5 G In III) Ware's bifliops, fopra. " 390 HISTORY AND ANTiqUITIES OF In the North tranfept is St. Mary's chapel : here ihe parochial vicar of St. Canice formerly officiated. Near this chapel was another apartment, wherein were heaped many flone monuments : thefe were refixed in the nave and the lateral ailes by the care of bifhop Pococke, who to his other excellent qualifications added that of a learned antiquary. On the outfide, round the church, runs a regular battlement, and at the Weft end are two fmall fpires. The towers and turrets, (23) fays Mr. Bentham, built by the Normans in the firft century after their arrival, were covered with platforms, with battlements, or plain parapet walls. One of the earHeft fpires, that of old St. Paul's, was finifhed in the year 1222, with timber and covered with lead. The tower of St. Canice is not finifhed : it has no fpire, though fufficiently ftrong to bear one ; and it continues in much the fame ftate it was left in at its firft erec- tion. V/e fliall now mention fuch bifhops as were benefaftors to the cathedral. Bifhop Ledred, let his conduft be what it may in other matters, zealoufly promot- ed the intereft of his church. His predecelfors lived remote from the cathedral, which at the fame time that it was improper, was the caufe of many exceifes among the numerous clergy attached to it : he therefore refolved to build an epifcopal houfe. King Edward III. granted him ("24) the fite of three churches, St. Nicholas, St. James, and St. Bridget, near the cathedral, on paying twenty ftiillings for this purpofe ; he alfo ufed the ftones and materials in them, 'i'o appeafe thefe tutelar laints, and to atone for his facrilege, he founded an altar in his palace and dedicat- ed it to them. He alfo granted to the dean and chapter of St. Canice the church of Drumdelgy, alias Thornback. Bilhop Snell beftowed on his church fome rich prefents, as gloves, pontifical fandals, a filken caphin, interwoven v\ith gold fpots, and a mitre adorned with pre- cious ftones. Such donations were then highly meritorious, and the (25) virtues of them efteemcd very greaT. Billiop Barry, in 1428, built a large caftle and hall at his manor of Biflwp's lough. He endowed the vicars of the common hall near St. Canice with four marks of filvcr, chief rent, out of the lands of Marfhall's in the parifli of St. Maul. Bifhop Baron, in 1527, rebuilt and repaired the bifliop's manor houfe, at New- court, and gave the vicars choral all the lythes and oblations of the Black or Do- minican (ij) Supra, page 40. (14) Ware, fuprs, (jj) Durand Ration. Divin. OfTic. Lib. 3. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 391 minican abbey, then lately diflblved, a pafloral ftaff of filver, and a marble table for the altar. Bifliop Hacket built the arch of the belfry of fquared marble. Bifhop W^illiams, a prelate of didinguiflied piety and fufferings, expended £1400 in repairing the cathedral. The bells being carried away in the rebellion, he put up one that coil him 144/. He laid out on the chancel 300/. and on the belfry 40/. In 1675, bifliop Parry gave a ring of bells, fix in number, weighing feventy hundred, two quarters and five pounds; they coil 246/. 13J. lod.; befides he gave 10/. to buy plate. Bifliop Otway railed in the communion table, and covered it with a rich cloth. On the twenty-fourth of July, 1604, he prefented to the dean and chapter 363 ounces of plate gilt, for which he paid 116/. 13^-. 4c/. It formerly belonged to Chrift church, Dublin. Dodor Pooley, dean of OflTory, and after bifliop of Raphoe, gave 120/. towards raifing the fteeple, and to repair the towers. He alfo bellowed a large fdver gilt bafon, weighing fixty-one ounces. But this cathedral owes its prefervation to bifliop Pococke. When he came to the fee of OfTory the church was in the molt ruinous condition, being totally ne- glected by his predecefTors. Its galleries were decaying : its roof tumbling down : its monuments broken and fcattered about ; and a few years niufl have beheld this venerable fabric with fcarcely one (tone upon another. With that love of religion and decency, which ftrongly marked his character, he zealoufly fct about its repa- ration : he warmly folicited fubfcriptions : purchafed every necefl'ary material at the bed rate : in perfon fuperintended the workmen, and that often from four o'clock in the morning : beautified and adorned it throughout, and left a memorial of Iiis piety and regard for his epifcopal church, which the city of Kilkenny and the dio- cefe of Offory ftill gratefully remember. The names of the fubfcribers are on a marble tablet in the North tranfcpt ; a copy of it immediately follows the account of the monuments. The epifcopal refidence which adjoins the cathedral being originally very fmall, was much improved by bifliop John Parry, at the expence of 400/. The bifliops Vefey and Hartftonge further improved the palace ; but bifliop ERe made it a much more commodious habitation, by the addition of four apartments and a noble flair-cafe, expending on it in buildings and other improvements 1956/. though 392 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF though his fucceffor was charged only with the fum of 1400/. In the ftudy, over the chimney-piece, are the arms of primate Boulter, his patron. Biihop Dodgfon very laudably began the praftice of clothing and inftruding the choirifters, at the bifliop's expence. MONUMENTS and INSCRIPTIONS in the CATHEDRAL. On the South fide of the high altar. D. O. M. Sacrum, llludriflimus ac nobiliflimus dominus Ricardus Butler, Vifcomes de Mountgarret, baro de Kells, &c. Ex antiquifTimis primariae in Hibernia nobilitatis familiis oriundus j utpotc Petri Butler, Ormonige & Oflbriae comltis, ac Margaretss Fitz Gerald filise comitis de Kil- daria, pronepos. Vir religione in Deum, pietate in pa- triam,fidelitate in regem,pace belloque con- fpicuus, de rege, regno ^ecclefiadei, pro qui- bus fortiter periculofis et maxime turbatis temporibus fletit, optime meritus : felicis ac fascundae prolis parens : fibi, majoribus ac pofleris hoc monumentum pie pofuit, memoriam fui nunquam morituram reliquit. (26) Obiit ille . . . Anno 16 . . Defundlae ac nobiliflimae vicecomitum de Mountgarret familiae bene precare, viator! On the right of the door going into the chancel. Sacred to the memory of Richard Pococke, LL.D. Who, from the archdeaconry of Dublin, Was promoted to this See mdcclvi. And tranflated to that of Meath mdcclxv. Wiiere f 16) He died \a 1651. Lodge, v. i, pag. 261. IRISH rOWN AND KILKENNV. 393 I < < < 4 < <•< i< 1 < < < < « 4 < 4 4 ■< < . , 4 <•(-<'<<■( -4 '4 ■< < 4 4'4 + «» >. 1 ■->■>• >■ >• >•■ >■ > ■> >■>. ». »■ >. fc. > ». >. >. , "Where he died Sept. 15th in the farme year, lie difcharged every duty of the paftoral and epifcopal oflice AVith prudence, vigilance, and iidclity ; Adorning his flation With unfliaken integrity of heart and of conduft ; Attentive to the interell of religion, He caufed feveral parochial churches to be rebuilt. Within his diocefs. He promoted and liberally contributed to the repair And embeliifliment of this cathedral church. Then unhappily falling into decay. A zealous encourager of every ufeful public work, Lfpecially the linen manufaduie, He bequeathed a very confiderable legacy. To the governors of the incorporated fociety, For promoting the united interefls of the induftry and. charity. Within this borough of St. Canice. (17J On the left cf the door goi??g into the chancel. Sub hoc marmore ClaudituT Annre Cox quod mortale fuit, Jacobi O Brien, filii comitis nuperi de Inchequin, filiae : qure Michaeli Cox, epifcopo Offorienfi, anno 1745, matrimonio junda, eodem anno, aetatls fujE 23, fatali puerperio abrepta eft, prius enixa fdiuni. C>uant£e jafturae \ quantilluni Soiamen ! Ilia nempe tarn corporis quam animi dotibus a natura ditata dignaque iifdem difciplina liberaliter inflituta, non minus fandte quam eleganter vitam exegit. Ingens defiderium pareniibus, coguntis, amicis ; infandu conjugi m^rorem, fingulifque fingularum virtutum exemplar opimum, reliquit. Contemplare, Icftor, humans ffclicitatis caducam foitem, et adverfus inopinos ct miferrimos cafus (^nullabi prsclarius monendus) animum bene munitum et erei^um para. 5 H This (17) Bilhop Pocccke is burled at Ardbraccan In the county of Meath. 39+ HIST ORY AND ANTIQTJITIES OF ;■•<■< <-< <-< ■<■■< .» + »■ >■>■>■>■•>■ >■ >■ >■>')(■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■ >■>■>■ >■ > >■ > > ► >■ >■ >■ >■ > > >■ >• V- ►■ >"i This elegant monument is of white marble, from which rifes a fiiafc, on which is the arms of the deceafeJ. Piety, a whole length, holds a b">ok in one hand, and reclines her head on the other, which leans on an urn. The whole is well conceived and executed by Scheemaker. — .^ — Hie jacet Adam Cottrel, Jacob'. Cottrel, Richards Lavvles et^Walters. Lawles cii ejs uxore Letltia Courcy, quoJa burges\ ville Kilkenie ac domi de Talbot's inche. (^Walter', obiit 2 die mes^. decbr'. a°. d- 1550, quoru aiab^ ppiciet, De». ae. Hie jacet Richard' Lawles, fili' et hasres di£i:i Walteri, q', obiit 6 die mes' Oftob. a° dni 1506. Hie jacet Jacobus Lawles, frater et hceres Richardi Lawles, filil et hieredis Walteri Lawles, qui obiit ultimo die Julii A. D, 1562. cuj' ale ppiciet. Deus. et Adam Lawles. qui obiit 20 die Oft. 1600, et Laetitia Shee uxor ejus, qu£e obiit 5 die Od. 1576. Credo qd redef mes vivit, et i noviffi" die de tra furredlur*. fCi, et i carne meo ■videbo Deu, falvatorem meum, que vifur* fum ego ipfe, et non alius, et oculi mei fpecturi fCit. Hie jacet Patricius Kerin, quoda ville Kilkenie burgefis, qui obiit 5 die mefis Feb. 1581. Et Joanna Nowlan uxor ej' qua; obiit 5 die menfis Dv;c\ 1575. — <^ — Hie jacet „i Petrus Graunt — canonicus, Oxonias alumnus et vicari* de Balletarfne, q' obiit die 91 2?° menfis I'ebruarii a'' d' 1509. Cuj' aiss piciet Deus. Amen. . — 4l Hic jacet Jacobs Sentleger de Ballefennon, q' obiit primo die Feb. 1597, et Egidia Toben cj* uxor, q obiit 2° die, menfis Novembris 1570. Et Patricius Sentleger, fili° feciidus eorum, qui obiit 21 die menlis Feb. 1G07, ct Margaret Shee cj'« uxor qua; obiit. . . die menfis L 11. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 395 I. H. S. Hie jacet Thomas Power, qui obllt anno diii 1519, et Margeria Pynfon uxor ejus, et Johannes Power, filius et heres difti Thomx, cu fua uxore Joanna Sawadge, q' obierunt A. D. 1550. Ricardus Power, ej. Johals filius et heres, quondam burgenfis ville Hibernice Kilkenie, qui Ricardus obiit 27 die menfis Maii, A. D. 1583. Et Ifabella Roth, uxor illius, que obiit . . . die . . . menfis .... anno domini 15 Here lyeth The body of cap. Robert Barton, late of the honourable col. Henry Harrlfon's regiment, who departed this life the 5th day of November, 1723, in the 63 year of his age. — ^ — Hie fepultus efl: Standiuus Hartflonge, Armiger, filius natu tertius Standifii Hartftonge, baronettl, et Scaccarii regis baronis. In agro Norfolcienfi oriundus, qui in hac civitate re- cordatoris, et in palatinatu Tipparerienfi cuflodis rotulorum muneribus diu et prasclare funclus, obiit primo calendarum Junii, anno MDCCIV. Chariffimo fratri pofuit Johannes epifeopus Oflbrienfis, fselicem et ipfc refur- reClionem fub hoc olim marmore expeflaturus. — •^ — Here lyeth The body of Mr. Richard Duigin, who departed this life April 4th, 1703. — «e. — Hie jacet Thomas Otway, OfTorienfis epifeopus, qui obiit fexto die rslartii 1622-3, ostatli fuae 77. He lies near the weft door. — «* — Here Ivcth The body C.harles Sandford of Sandfordfcourt, efquire, wlio departed this life the 4th of Dec. 1701. —^ — Hie jacet Johannes March, quddam civitatis Kilkennia; burgefis, q' obiit 23 die Dccbris tC>oi. Et Margaretea Rianc uxor ejus, que obiit 9 die Jan'' 1609. Qui 396 HISTORY AND AN'liqUITIES OF , .<.«.< .< .< .<-< '4 -t < ■*• < ■■ '■>■>■> >-»•> > » >•>>»•> > Qui clari fuerant filii, fperque alrna parentum Bcucheii Carolup, Fredericufque Philippus. OiTa in.matura fimul fiebilis nunc continet urna, JNlorte puer juvenis, virque fenexque cadit. C)uorum alter obiit 17 die Septembris, 1574. Alter vili die Martii, a° 1587. Hie iacet Edraudus Purfell Capitaneus turbariaru. comtis Ormonie, q' obiit 4 die Novebrls, ano Doni, 1509. Et Ellena Gras uxor ejus a° dni 1500. — 3^ — . Hie jacet Magr. JoheTCoughlande, quoda cancellarius Ofs' ecclie ; q' obiit 19^^ die mefis Martii, a^ dni 1508. .Pro cujus anima cuilbet dicenti Pater et Ave, ceduntur a vcnerando patre, David, epii'copo Offorienfi, 40 dies indulg. Quifquis eris qui tranfieris, fta, perlege, plora ^ Sum quod eris, fueramque quod es, pro me, precor ora. . . . 1566, et Letitia Walche uxor ej* q obiit. . . die . . . mefis . . a°. d'. 1560. — «& — aa Rofiae Ruu, animas propicietur Ds. — ^f — Here lyeth The body of the Rev, Henry Des Myniers, A. M. prebendary of Killamory, &c. who departed this life the 28th day of November, in the year of our Lord 1759, aged 68 years. Here lyeth The body of Richard Longe, who departed this life the i8th of April 1690. ■ O S Edmond Brenan, Robert Rinighan, Edward Rinighan, 1615. — .s> Hie jacet Dorns Willms Carleirqoda archidiacon". Mid^ et rcGor dc Yochil, ac ecclefiar. Dubl. Oafs'. Ofs, Ferm. Clon^ ct Corkag'. canonicus cujus aic ppicietur Dcus. Amen. *i* Hie IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 397 , * *■<•< •< ■<-<■< <-<.<■<■<■■< i < •<■<-< < < < ■< < 4 < < < .< -< ■< < ■< < •< ■< < -<■(.>■ » > > >■>->. > >. >. > >■ >■ ►■ >■ ►■ > > > > > »■ >• > >- » » k' »' > > k- k » » > » 1 > . ►fi Hie jacet Helena, filia Edvardi, cujus aitE propicietur Deus in vitam asternaua. Amen. — "^ — , . . . here lies John Sprice, burgcs, qui obiit die .... and his wife Joane Kenede, quae obiit ... die Hie jacet Petrus Butteler, Comes Ormonle et OfsS q' obiit 26 die Augufli, A. D. 1539. Et Margareta Fitz-gerald, comitiila, uxor ej' q obiit 9 dio Auguili. — .s> Hie jaeet Corpus Thomas Hill, hujus eeclefiae decani, et S. S. theologlse apud Cantabrigienfes dodoris. Obiit primo die Nov. 1673. ►I* Hie jacet Dns. Simon Dunyng, quonda precentor iftius eccle. qui obiit in feRo bcatje Marias Magdalene, ano dnini 1434. Here lyeth William O Dowly. Hie jacet Thomas Pembroek, quoda. burges villa Kilkennie q' obiit 10 die Septembris A. D. .... brock fills. di£li. Thome, qui obiit 14 die octobris a. d. 1591. . . . . ck filius difti David una cum .... a Ragget et Catharina Archer .... omas obiit 25 januarii 1616 .... unus primorum viceeomitum . . . unice Alicia Ragget q obiit a i ... 85 Katharina Archer obiit ... us filius didi Thome Pembroek . . Joanna Ragget uxor di£ti 51 D. O. M. 393 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF D. O. M. Revdus Jacobus Shee, Gulielmi fenatoris in hac Kilkennienfi civitate, bene, pru- denter et feliciter defunfti, ter pra^toris officio, filius. Diviui cultus et aniinarum zelo, reliquifque quae varum Dei facerdotem decent, virtutibus confpicuus. Prae- bendaiiiis de Tafcoffin, vicariusde Claragh, ecclefiEC cathedralis Sti L'anici providus procurator et vicariorum communis aula; induflrius provifor : inter alia pietatis opera, monumentum hoc fibi, fuoque gerraano fratri R. D. Joanni Shee, prasben- dario de Mayne, parochiae Sti Joannis evangeliflse Kilkennias vicario, fieri fecit. Obiit D. Jacobus die 29 menfis Aprilis anno Dni 1648. Obiit etiani D.Joannes die . . . menfis . . . anno Dni iEternam iliis requiem, ecclefias Dei pacem, Et tranquillitatem precare, viator ! Una parens faufta fratres quos protulit alvo, Una facerdotes continet urna duos. Hie jacet Jacob' Schortals dns de Balylarkan et de Balykif qi hac tuba fieri fecit a", dm. 1507. et Katharina Whyte uxor ej' p. q°. u. et parctum aibs cuilibet diccti oraoe dnic"V et fale age 'cedut. 80 dies idulg. Hie jacet Hcneflus ac difcretus vir dominus Nicholaus Motyng quondam cancellarius iftius ecclefias et reclor de Kilderienfi, qui obiit 13 die menfis februarii 1563. Cujus anima; propitietur Deus, Amen Jefus. Hie jacet Gulielm'. Donoghou quoda burges ville de Irifhtowne juxta Kilkenii. q' obiit 13 jdie novebris a", d;. 1597. Kl Catharina Moni ejs. uxor, q obiit Hie jacet Uluftris. & nobilis. Da. Ellana Butler, nobililTimi DI Petri Butler, Ormonitc comiiis filia, et uxor quda pia clariflimi Domini Donaldi O Brien, Tumundii^ comitis, "q obiit 2 die Julii, 1597. D. ~o7 M. || Patricius Murphy, civis, fenaiov, & quondam praetor Kilkenienfis : vir prudens, "' prcbus, pius : pauprrum et pupillorum merilo parens j niortalitatis duin viveret memor. Sibi, charillima: uxori iux, Anal^ati* Phclan, niatronse leflifTunje & opti- ma; : nunierofa. necuou crudita; piolis matri : filio ac hseredi fuo Ricardo Murphy, cnv IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 399 ..< -A-A .4 4 *-*■< <■■< ■< t <■■<■<<■< .< ■< < ■< .<■■< .< .4 .4 .4 .4 .4 -4 •4-4 -4 .4 -4 -4 -4 -4 ■4 + » >. >■ >■>- >■ >. »■ > >. >. >. >. >. >. >. > > > > >. > » > >. >. > > > >. >, ». >. >. >. ». > ,. > »., omnibus multum charo, vicecomitis munere Kilkeni^, fumma cum laude fundo, astatis flore prasrepto : ejus uxori Elifas Rothe, iiberis ac pofteris monumentum hoc pofuit. Obiit Patricias 3 die menfis Martii 1648. Anaftatia; 6 die Fcbruarii, 1646. Ricardus 8 die Junii, 1640. Elifa die menfis Exaitans humiles Deus, hie extoUe fepultos, Qui fuerant humiles Temper amore tui. Qui requiem, vitam', folamen, dona, falutem Pauperibus dederant : his miferere, Deus, Amen ! Epitaphium. Junxit amor vivos, uno mors jungit am antes Marmore, non moritur qui bene vixit amor. Chrifli verus, amor, poft mortem vivit et addit, iEternae vitae gaudia connubii. Requiefcant in pace Joannes Murphy; filius prasdifti Ricardi, i6 Nov. A. D. 1690. Maria Tobiii uxor Joannis 17 Jan. 1690-1. Barnabas Murphy filius Joannis, 28 Junii 1741- Maria Shee, ejus uxor obiit 3 Nov. 1737. D. O. M. Ad pietatis & mortalitatis memoriam clariffimus & nobiliflimus dominus D^ Edmundus Bianchville, eques auratus, D. de Blanchvillftovvne, Kihnodemucke, &c. ac nobilif- fima D. Elizabetha Butlera, uxor pientiflinia, periluftri domino Giraldo Bianchville filio chariiFmio primogenito, viro optimo, immatura morte prcerepto, libi, Iiberis pofterifque fuis monumentum hoc erexerunt, menfe Augufti, 1647. Giraldus obnt 21 Feb. 1646. Edmundus Elizabetha .... Requiefcant in pace. Amen. Epitaphium. Qui patri in terris fuccedere debuit hoeres. In tumulo huic hteres cogitur efle pater. Eft oriens primus, moriens poftremus et idem eft, Ortu pofterior, interituque prior. Mors hjec mira facit, mutat quadrata rotundis, Mors fera quze ! quantum ! fie rapit ante patreiu, Et gnatum virtute fencm, juvenemque diebus Gnatum Blanchveliai fpem columemque domus. Sed quoniam fera mors, vitam fine iube caducam Abftulit, a;ternum dat diadcuia Deus. 400 _ l.>. >•>■>■>>>■>■ > t > >■>•»•• ; < < < ■< « .< •< < - ' ■ HISTORY AND ANTIQIJITIES OF Eclmud' Butler q'. . . . die mes Julii, A". Dni. . . . ej^ uxor q obiit lo . . . Wills Vak quodl . . . ecclefise, qui obiit 21 die me' 1571. Hie jacet Jacob'* Purcell, filius Philippi de Foukerath, qi obiit 11 die mefis efts. a", di. 1552. Ft Joanna Shortals uxor ej'. que obiit ." . die . . . me^. ao. d'. 15. . . Quor. alabs ppicietur Deus. Amc. Jefu. Letatus funi iii his quas difta iunt mlhi, in domain Domini ibimus. Credo q^. redeptor meus vivit, et i no-i iffimo die de terra furredur* fu, et 1 carne mea vidcbo dtu, falvatore mcu, que vilurus fu ego ipfe et no ali% et oculi mei 'fpeduri iut. Sufcepic dtii Ifri^el puerum fuum recordatus mifericordije fuse. — .^ — Hie jacet Corpus DiancE Woodlefe, quEe obiit 13 die Jan. A^. D'. 1604. D. O. M. Et Memoriae Davidis epifcopi Offbrienfis, qui banc ecclefiam cathedralem Sto Canico facram " priftino decori reftituit, haerefini exinde vapulans*" Anno Dni 1642. Ortus cundta fuos repetunt, matremque requirunt, Et redit ad nihilum quod iuit ante nihil. This monument is near the confiftorial court, and was defaced through the ill- judged zeal of bifhop Parry, for fome words in the infcription reflefling on pro- teflantifm : the words are between inverted commas, and fupplied from tradition. 'I'he monument is of black marble ; a ledger, confilting of a cavetto and ovolo with their liils, ferve for the bafe of the whole ; upon which is a frieze adorned with foliage. At each end is a plain field, defigned for coats of arms, but they are left blank. Over each end of the frieze fprings an abutment, upon which ftood origi- nally two columns of the Corinthian order, but now taken away, and the entablature is at prefcnt fupported by two plain pilaflers, which ftood behind the columns. Between thefe pilafters are two imports, on which an arch refts in form of a gate, or flat niche, and that which rcprefents the gate is the table, upon which is the infcription. Over 1 IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 40, ■■<-«•< <•< <■■<■*■<■<•< <■■< <•<■<.*.<■<■<■<-<-<■<•■<■<•■<■<■<■■<■<•<■■<■<■■<■■<■■<■<■■<■■< + >>> > > >■>■>■>>■»■> »■> > > I Over the corner of the left impoft is cut the effigies of St. Kiaran, with a mitre on his head, a crozier in his hand and his name underneath. He is the principal patron of the diocefe of OflTory, and its firfl bifliop, according to the legends. The pilaftcis fupport an entablature, compofed of an architrave, frieze, and cornice : the frieze is adorned with rofes. Over the entablature is another table, on which is cut the reprefentation of our Saviour on the crofs, and on each fide a woman weeping. From each fide of this table fprings a fcroll, which refts upon the extremities of the entablature, and over the table is a large ovolo, which ferves for a cornice to it : on each fide of ihe ovolo is a block or cube, adorned with flowers ; between which is another table archwife, and upon this is fixed the paternal coat of arms of the Roths, being a flag trippant gules, leaning againll a tree vert. Over this coat hangs a canopy wi*h firing* pendant, terminating with fringed knots. Upon the top of the arch (lands a fmall pedeftal, which crowns the whole monument, upon the die of which is — I. H. S. The arms and images fliew the remains of gilding and painting, and the whole was executed with uncommon abilities by an Italian ecclefiaftic, as tradition reports. In pi am Memoriam Johannis Bufliop quondam regidri hujus diascefeos, avi fui, et Edvardi Bufhop, prsebendarii de Killamery, patris fui, in hsec ecclefia cathedrali fibi iuL^q ; pofleris hoc pofuit Walttrus Bufliop, 12 Junii, 1677. Hie jacet Nob"^ d\ Edmund'' Butler, vicecomes de Mountgarrct, q' cilit 20 die Dec^"' 11^71. — ■^ — JE. S. Eeverendus Stephanus Vaughan, hujus ecclefise thefaurarius, in agro Avonenfi natus, Oxonige educatus, vitam banc tranfitoriam Kilkeniee finivit, sao^prilis 1711, ac gloriofam expedans refurre<51ionem, fubtus jacet tumultatus. Alicia Vaughan ah Lloyd, uxor ejus chariflima pofuit. — «» — Here lyeth The body of Mrs. Frnnces Foulkes, alias White, daughter to Gr\fl th White of Ilenlhm in Ptmbrocktfliirc, efquire ; v.ho being twice married, fnli to major Fran- cis Bolton, afteiwards to Bartholomew Foulkes, cfq ; died the J5ih day cf Kcvcm- bcr 1685, in the year of her age 52. 5 K Here 402 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF .,.■<..<■.< .< .<.<.< <-« * * ■< ■< < ■( .<-<■■< .<.« .<■<■■<■*■*■■< -< ■< ■< ■< <■-<•<-< -<-<-«"<-<+>->->->->- >■ >- >■>•>• >■ >■>->■>•>■ >■ > ■>»■>■>■>•■>■>■>■ ►■•>■>■>■>■ >•>■■>■>■>■>■•> > > ■ Here lyeth The body of Mrs. Mary Stoiighton, wife to Mr. Anthony Stoughton of the city of Dublin, gentleman, and daughter to the right worfhipful Henry Maynwaringe, of the city of Kilkenny, efquire, and one of the mafters of his majedy's high court of Chancery in Ireland ; who died in childbed of her third child, named Henry, the 3d day of January, 1634, and are both here intombed together. Epitaph. A vertuous mother and her new-born fon, Parted here meet, and end where they begun. She from her bearing bed, he from the womb, Exchang'd their living graves for this dead tomb. This pile and epitaph feem vainly fpent, Goodnefs rears her a furer monument. No curious hand can cut, no lab'ring head Bring more to praife her than the life fhe led. Bemoan that readeft, and live as well as flie, So fhalt thou want nor tomb nor elogy. Mole fub hac tegitur, leGor, digniflima conjux, Dans proli vitam, perdidit ipfa fuum. Ouam fi forma, favor populi, ftirps, res, fatis ampla, Si pudor, ingenium, fi juvenile decus. Si quid in humanis quanquam fervaret in asvuni. Mortis ab incurfu, fofpes et ilia foret. Parte tamen meliore fui famaque fuperfles, Qua licet geterno nomine viva viget. Venerabili viro Gulielmo Johnfon, decano ecclefiie Sti Canici, avo materno fuo et patri fuo Thoma: Wale, ejufdem ecclefias thefaurario, necnon fihi fuifque pofleris, monunientum hoc pofuit Robertas Wale, thefaurarius. Oft. 14, A. D. 1624. Q^ia; pigra cadavera pridem Tumulis putrefafta jacebant, Volucres rapientur in auras, Animas comitata priores. Hinc IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 4^3 ■♦ <-4 « « * »■«.«■* 4 < <( < < 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 ■< nine maxima cura fepulchris Inipenditur, hinc refolutos Honor ultimus accepit artas, Et funeris ambitus ornat. Sint ut fua prcemia laudi ; Jonfoni gloria fplendet Omnem vulgata per orbem ; Candore nitentia claro. Prsetendere lintea, mos eft Afperfa mvrrha Sabeeo, Corpus medicamine fervat. Quidnam tibi faxa cavata ? (^id pulchra volunt monumenta ? Res, qu3S, nifi creditur illis Non niortua fed data fomno. Jam fex luftra fubinde Prudens, gravis, integer sevo Divina volumina pandit. Gulielmus Johnfon, decanus ecciefias cathedralis Sti Canici Kilkenia:, qui Wigornii natus, CantabrigiES educatus, obiit Kilkenias ... die idus Oftobris 1681. Hie pietate pares claufaConduntur in urna, Chrifticolce, Chrifti munere, forte pares : Sorte pari fie morte mori conceflit Jefus, Aftrigeroque polo vivere forte pari. Hie jaeent Anton' Boue et Maria Gale. Hie jaeet Gulielmus Kyvane, Roberti filius, quondam eivitatis Kilkenia3, vir dlfcretus, qui fibi, ehariffimse uxori fuas Ellzabethae Bray, liberis ac pofteris hoe monumentum fieri fecit. 1647. Obiit Gulielmus .... Obiit etiani uxor ejus Elizabetha . . . die menfis .... anno .... . . . nie burges. q'. obiit . . .die mes'. . . et Elina . ." . uxor ej'. "qT obiit 30 die mefis marcii 1579. 404 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF .... ouli quod, mercator burgenfis ville Hibernicane Kilkenie q'. obiit 8 die . . . In obitum Probje ac modeflse admodum mulieris Margaretas Wale, uxoris Johannis Namoy y Kelly, generofi Conachtenfis, obiit 2° Maii, a", d'. 1623. Ipfius mariti funebre hexaflicon. Grata Deo, delecta toio, dilefta marito, Moribus et vita hie culta, fepulta jacet. Illius ingeniutn ingenuum, pietafque fidefque Dona fuere fuo dos fatis ampla viro. Qj-ianquam jure fue fua corpora terra repofcnt, Tanta vix digna efl hofpite terra tamen. ^ Hie jacet Johes Talbot, cuj' aije ppicet 'Ds. — ^ — Hie jacet Georgi' Savadge f;li« Georgii Savadge, qJ ville Kilkenie burgcs' qui obiit a", d'. J5C0. Hie jacet Margareta Savadge, — «.— Eloquio clarus, virtute fideque Jacobus, Ccelum mente habitans, hoc habet od'a folum. Jacobus Clarus. Protonotarius et redor ecclefie D, Johannis, dia:cefis Offorienfis Vir bonus et benignus, verecundus vifu, moribus modeltus, eloquio decorus, a puero in virtutibus exercitus, Deo devotus, hominibus amabiiis, et omnibus bonorum operum exemplis preeclarus. Obiit anno 1643, 14N0V. fub aurorain cum niaxiino piorum hominum luctu. Hie jacent Johannes Gras, miles ac baro de Courtiflown, et Onorina Brenach ux"" ej^ a", di. 1568, die mcs« ... — ^ — Hie jacet Reverend' pater Nicholaus Walflic, quondam Ofs" i.i>us, qui obiit die mes* Dec. 17, A". D'. 15B5. He is interred on the fouth fide ot" ihe grtut aile. X Tunis 6 "V' V IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 405 -« ■« ■« •«■<■«■< •« •« •< •» •< '4 '< '4 .4 ■4"«-4 '4 '4 ■« •« 4 ■4.» .«..4 .»..4-.4 .4-« ■4-«-4 '4 •4'4'.4+»-.>..». >..>.>>. >. >..>.>..>.».».».> >' »• »••»■ »• ».'>'>.».«..> t (..» f k. »,>. »..,. ,. ,., ^. Turris fortls mihi Deus. ^ Splritus amborum cceli vcrfatur in aula, Infra nunc quorum corpora terra capit : Hie jacet Gulielmus Kelly, quondam civitatis Kilkenias burgenfis, qui obiit 27 menfis Mali, anno dom. 1644. Et uxor ejus chara Margareta Phelan, quae obiit 2 die 0£t'. anno dom. 1635. Miftremini mei, miferemini mei, faltem vos amici, quia manus Domini tetigit nie. Job. 19. — ^ — »J< Hie jacet Petrus Bolger, qui obiit 8 die feptebr' 1601, et uxor ej' Joanna Walfhe, qux obiit 29 die Januarii 1608. Hie jacet Ricardus Clovan quondam burgenfis ville Kilkenie, qui obiit 10. die Jan. 1609, et Elena Rothe, ejus uxor que obiit .... Hie jacet Gulielmus Hollechan de civitate Kilkenie burgenfis qui obiit i die Januarii i6og. Et Morona Macher ejus uxor que obiit .... — ■■>.■>■>■■>■■>■>■ > >.>.>..>..>.>..>,.>.->..>..>. y.y ^.«..>. «•«-»'> »•■». »• ».-».«. >. »■>■ V »•• 0« ^ marble tablet in the north tranfept. Benefadors For adorning the cathedral of St. Canice, 1756. Dr. Pococke, bifhop of Offory Dean and Chapter of St. Canice John Lewis, dean Dr. Dawfon, chantor R. Cocking, chancellor J. Stannard, treafurer R. Stewart, preb. W. Connel, preb. Dr. Sandford, preb. AVm. Cockburn, preb. R. Watts, preb. J. Alcock, preb. Karl of Offory Earl of Wandesford Lord Vifcount Mount-garret Lord Vifcount Charle-mount Lord Vifcount Aflibrook Friendly Brothers, Kilkenny Sir William Evans IVIorres, Bart. Eland Moffom, efq. Thomas Waite, efq ; Clergy of the Diocefe. M. Vefey, A. M. Ralph Hawtry, A. M. J. Pric^, A. M. Mervyn Archdall, A. M. Arthur Webb, A. M. J. Millca, A. M. John Warring, A. M. W. Watts, A. M. W. Auflin, L. L. B. T. Collier, A. M. GuiQcas 100 252 30 15 ID 10 10 10 15 20 10 10 20 12 20 14 20 10 10 10 10 ID ID ID 20 ID 5 10 9 5 5 R. Lloyd H. Candler, A. M. C. Jackfon, A. M. R. Connel, L. L. B. D. Cuffe, A. M. Dr. Fell T. Pack, A. M. P. Sone, A. M. J. Vefey, A. M. T. Candler, A. B. Patrick Wemys, efq. J. Agar, efq ; Gowran Hercules Langrilhe, efq. T. A. efq; G. Bifliopp, efq. Ro. Vicars, efq ; C. Doyle, efq ; Redmond Morres, efq; Tho. Tennifon, efq ; Mrs. Archbold Mrs. Pococke, fen. Mrs. Pococke, jun. Edw. Brereton, efq ; Dr. Macaulay, vicar general R. Dawfon, efqj Dr. Hewetfon E. Moffom Anthony Blunt, efq j N. Marten, A. M. T. Burton, A. M. Hugh Waring, efq; Cui neu 5 10 10 3 S 5 5 5 5 lo 10 10 5 14 5 2 5 5 5 5 10 5 5 5 to 10 i(> 10 20 20 5 The IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 409 >'4"^'4--^i ■<■<■< t 4«i 4 <« • l-<-<+- >■>•■>■■>>•>. >- ] The names of the bifhops of Oflbry, with the dates of their fucceffiun. A.D. 4 5 6 1 Donald O Fogarty fucceeded 1152 2 Felix O Dullany - - 1178 3 Hugh Rufus - - , 1202 Peter Manefin - 12 18 William of Killeny - 1229 Walter de Brackell - 1232 7 GefFry of Turvill - 1244 8 Hugh de Mapilton - 1251 9 Hugh 3d. - - 1257 IG Geffry St. Ledger - 1260 II Roger of Wexford - 1287 J2 Michael of Exeter - 1289 13 William Fitz John - 1302 Richard Ledred - - 13 18 John of Tatenale - 1360 Alexander Balfcot -. 1371 Richard Northalis - 1386 Thomas Pevertll - ^397 John Griffin - 1398 20 John Waltham - ^399 21 Roger of Appleby - 1400 22 John Volcan - - 1404 23 Thomas Snell - J 405 24 Patrick Ragged - I4'7 25 Dennis O Dea - - 1421 26 Thomas Barry - 1428 27 David Hacket - - 1460 28 John O Hedian - 1479 14 16 17 18 19 29 Oliver Cantwell 30 Milo Baron 31 John Bale 32 John Thonery 33 Chriflopher Gafney 34 Nicholas Walfli ^S John Horsfall 36 Richard Deane 37 Jonas Wheeler 38 Griffith Williams 39 John Parry 40 Benjamin Parry 41 Michael Ward 42 Thomas Otvvay 43 John Hartftonge 44 Sir Thomas Vefey, Ba;rt. 45 Edward Tennifon 46 Charles Efte 47 Anthony Dopping 48 Michael Cox 49 Edward Mam-ice 50 Richard Pococke 51 Charles Dogfon 52 William Newcome ^^ John Hotham 54 William Beresford 55 Thomas Lewis O'Beirne 56 Hugh Hamilton A. I>. 1488 1527 1552 1553 ^5(^5 ^577 1586 1609 1613 1 64 1 1672 1677 1678 1679 1693 1714 »73i ^735 1741 1742 '754 »75<^ 1765 ^775 ^779 1782 »795 1796 For the honour of the fee of OlTory we muft obferve, that two of its biffiops were lords Juftices ; four lords chancellors ; three lord treafurers ; three tranflated to arch- bilhoprics ; one an arabaftador ; and one chancellor of the exchequer. The chapter of St. Canice is compofed of twelve mem.beri : the dean, chantor, chancellor, treafurer, archdeacon, and the prebendaries of Blackrath, Aghour, Mayne, 5 M Killaniery, 393 lilSTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF :4-.<-<-<-<. ■<-<•< 4. ■<■<■■{ ■< <<*■<< <■<■< <••< <■<■.<■<■<.<■■<■<■■<■<■<•<■•<■<■<■< ■<4'>' >■■>■■>■>■>■■►■■>•■>•■>■>■>•■>■.>■>■>.>■ >.■>. Killamery, Tafcoffin, Kllmanagh and Cloneamary ; one moiety ofTafcoffin belongs to the chanter, and the other to the archdeacon, by a definitive fentence of archbi- Hiop Margetfon, the 19th day of Nov. 1662. The (28J dean for the time being, was anciently 1-ord of the manor of the glebe, ■which contained all the inhabitants round the cathedral ; and before 1640, had a fe- nefchal who held courts leet and courts baron. The deanery is at the S. E. fide of the cathedral. Dean Hill, about 1671, expended 160/. upon it ; but it becoming quite ruinous, dean Lewis rebuilt it and made it a neat and commodious habitation, with a handfome garden adjoining. la the houfe is a half length of the beautiful un- fortunate Mary, with this infcription : " Maria Scotorura regina aetatis fuse, 18. Johannes Medina, eques, pinxit." A head of cardinal Wolfely. The chantor had a manfe houfe and garden, ruined in the wars, on the fouth fide of the cathedral, mearing on the eaft with the dean's garden and houfe. The chancellor had formerly an houfe in Irifh-town, built on his orchard. The orchard mears on the W. with the ftreet leading to Troy's gate -, on the E. with the Nore ; on the N. with the lands of the vicar's choral, and on the S. with the lands of TafcofEn and the river Bregagh, running by the city walls. A ftone tan- houfe by the Nore fide belonged to the chancellor, and James Toovey, malfter, pof- fefled part of the orchard, ruined in the wars. The treafurer's manfe houfe mears on the W. with the river Nore, on the S. with the. vicars choral's houfe, and the chancellor's tan-houfe on the E. with the ftreet leading from the Butts to Troy's gate, on the N. with the houfe that was aldermaa Connel's. • . The archdeacon's manfe houfe is S. of St. Canice, together with a fmall garden S, of the houfe, ruinous The archdeacon vifits the dioceUe from the ^oih Sept. to tJie 3d Feb. The houfe of the prebendary of Killamery is now converted into an alms-houfe, on the W. of the cathedral, adjoining to the ancient fchool-houfe of the diocefe ; the garden to it ftill belongs to the prebendary. The manfe houfe of the prebendary of Tafcoffin meared on the E. with the chan- cellor's orchard, on the W. with King-ilreet, on the N. wi:h the chancellor's orchard, and on the S. with the vicar'^s houfe. The i£i8) From bifbop Otvray't viGtatiou buuk, MS. io the palace, dittd i6;z. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. ^ ^i i -< I « t -t ■<■« t \i < .<-< < < .< < '< ■< ■<-< < * ■<<-<■•* •< ■< < •< < ■< •< ■< ■< ■< ■< K**- > >>•»->■> >■>.>■>- > >. >. »' >- ^. >-> >•> »»/»>» y > ^ >>' ^- ^- »»> > ►"- The dean and fix of the chapter make a quorum. Thus far from bifliop Otway's vifitation book. To this valuable document we are alfo indebted for the lollowing account of the VICARS CHORAL. They are a very ancient corporation, by the ftyle of the vicars choral and pcrpe- tnals of the common hall, near the cathedral. They were liberally endowed by bifliop Si. Leger, who gave them his manfe and lodging, the reclory of Kilcafli, and a revenue de manubrinnio or manubrennio, which feems to have been a portion ot ground corn, and one mark annually, payable by the abbot of Doulke, out of the lands of Scomberloway or Stromkcrlavin. The manfe and lodging here mentioned were the common hall and dependant buildings, and the palace and place of refi- dence of the bilhops of OfTory before the palaces of Aghour and Dorogh were erected. Bifliop Hacket beftcwed on them the church of Ballybur, and bifliop Cantwell that of St. Mai, and bifhop Thonery appointed four choirifters. In 1540, John Allen (29) lord chancellor, George Browne arcbbifliop of Dublin, and William Brabazon treafurer of Ireland, were nominated by Henry VIII. com- mifl"ioners for ecclefiaflical caules throughout the kingdom. Some difl'erences having arifen between dean Cleere and the vicar.o, the commiflloners vifiied the houfe, when its ancient conftitution and rules were reviewed, and fome new regulations eft.abliflied. From a perufal of the record we may obferve, that the inftitution was originally monaftic, or favoured very much of it. Their different cells or apartments; their common hall ; their reading after meals ; their filence at oiher times ; their not fuffering any man or maid fervant in the college ; their attending each other, with no mention of matrimony or families, are ftrong proofs of monkifli difcipline ; nor did Henry's commiflloners make alterations in thefe p^irticulars ; they are re- tained in the ancient fl^atutes of our univerfity and other collegiate bodies, as befl; calculated for feminaries of learning. Before the rebellion of 1641, the corporation of vicars confiflied of the dean's, chanter's, chancellor's, and treafurer's vicars, and the archdeacon's and prebendaries of Aghour, Mayne and Blackrath's fliipendiaries, and four choirifters ; two of the latter were ftipendiaries of the dean and chapter, and two were maintained by the houfe. On {»9) MS. Otway, fupra. Appendix VIU, 412 HISTORY AND ANTiqUITIES OF On a vacancy of a'ftall in the common Iiall, the dignitaries and prebendaries made their prelentation to the dean of a perfon for the place. He was examined by the dean as to his life and morals, by the chantor as to his fkill in fmging, and by the chancellor as to his learning ; and being approved of, he was inflituted by the dean or fub-dean as vicar choral. None were the vicars of the hall before they were priefls, though they adually lived in the hall and were maintained by the houfe. On a vacancy, the fenlor choirifter was prefented by the patron of the ftall, and was thereupon made and called, ftipendiary of fuch a ftall, until fit to be ordained prieft, and then he was inflalled vicar : but during his being flipendiary, he had as large a ftipend as any of the vicars ; fo that the difference between a vicar and a ftipendiary was this ; the vicar was a prieft and was beneficed in the diocefe at large, but the ftipendiary was a layman, and had a fupport from the houfe. By the ancient foundation, the dean, biihop and archbifhop, for juft caufes, might remove a vicar. The vicars were to attend the choir, and ferve the offices of the houfe alternately. The fficonomift was to be chofen by the vicars, and to ftate his accounts to them weekly, and to the dean twice a year. The church of Kilkefy was annexed to the treafurerfhip of the houfe. Whatever this parifh might have formerly produced, we (30) are told bifliop Tennifon left 40/. per annum to one Michael Stephenfon, a deacon, during his life, to catechife the children of papifts in that parifh, it being a wild and mountainous part of the diocefe of OfTory. In 1630, the vicars and flipendiaries had the following fums divided among them, as their annual ftipends ; , /. s. d. ' Dean's vicar - - 3 ^ 3i Chantor's vicar - - 367'. Chancellor's vicar - 340 Treafurer's vicar - 3 3° Archdeacon's ftipendiary 3 3 74 Prebendary's of Blackrath 2180 of Aghour 3 o 6|- ' ■ of Mayne - 3^3 £•^4 17 4^ Befides {3c) Warc't BiJhojt, pag. 43 j. IRISIITO\\^ AND KILKENNY. ^,3 ■ » < < < < < < 4 < < < <<<.<.<<<<'<< <<<<■<•<<<<<<<<<•<•<<<■<+,..>.>..>.>.>.,>.>,>.>.,,.,.,,.,>.,.,.,.,.,,, ,., >,,.».,>., J.,. > , ,., Befides the foregoing, they had 65/. 2/. expended by their purveyor for their table ; and they kept for their own ufe, the tythe corn of the parifh of St. Canicc, which amounted to 297 barrels. From this ftate of their revenue, with their o:hcr endowments, we may judge how well able they were to keep hofpitality ; but the enfaing troubles deprived them of their income, and left but a fcanty fupport for three vicars. In 1677, the duke of Ormond took frona them the town and lands of Park, as part of his forty-nine arrears ; and which in 1 679, were worth 40/. per annum. His grace alfo withheld the chiefries of many houfes in and about Kil- kenny, their property ; and in the town of Callan, they had houfes worth 61. 7s.. a year. Bifhop Parry paflTed paetnts for the lands of Racanigan and St. Maul's, part of their eftate, and worth annually 8/. referving to them, only fifteen fhiliings. THE LIBRARY Is Gtuated at the N. W, end of the church-yard. The following account of it, and of bifliop Willianis's alms houfe is extracted from a memorial of the dean and chapter of St. Canice, prefented to Dr. King, archbifhop of Dublin,, and Dr. Hartilonge, bifhop of Oflbry, 31(1 May 1712, and is in MS. in the palace. " We, the dean and chapter, being appointed by your lordfliips' order and the Gonfent of the Rev. Mr. W. to infped the cafe of the widows' alms-houfe, founded by bifhop Williams, as alfo the cafe of the library founded by blHiop Williams, and to receive and examine the furvivlng executors' accounts, and to report what was neceffary to be done to preferve thefe charities and benefadions, from being intirely funk and defeated, do reprefent the following ftate of fads. " Bifhop Williams, by his will, left the lands of Fermoy, then fet to colpncl Wheeler for 40/. per annum, for the maintenance of eight poor widows in an alms- houfe that he had built in his life time. He made Mr. W, and archdeacon Dryfdale his executors, who fold faid land to Jonah Wheeler of Grenan, Efq; for 400/. which is now worth 100/. per ann. though they had, in our opinion, no power fo to do. The faid 400/. is fo far from being fecured, that there is great hazard of its being loft. Mr. W. endeavours to clear himfelf by faying, that Mr. Dryfdale fold the land without his knowledge, and that bifhop Williams promifed colonel Oliver Wheeler, father of Jonah, on the payment of 400/. to make over the fee fimple of the eftate to him. To this we anfwer, that Mr. W. cannot be ignorant of the tranfaction, unjuftly afcribed as the fole act of Mr. Dryfdale, as Mr. W. has 200/. of the money in his hands j and if the bifhop confidered himfelf as under 5 N obhgatioa 414 , HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF -.* -t i.< ■< ■<■<■■<■■< ■*-.« < ■< -< < < .< .<«.<-.< .< -<.<<..*..< ^ <-<..(..< ■<•<-< ■<.-<-.«-.<- ■►■ > >. >->■ »■ >•>■>■ >■■>■>- >■■>■ >■ >■ >■>■>■ >■>■■>■ fc- >■■>■ >. >. >. >•>. >■ »■ >■ >■ >' >•> > >*■ obligation to col. Wheeler, he never would have made an abfolute devife to- the poot widows. " Bifhop Otway, by his 'will, made Dr. Ryder, bifiiop of Killaloe, and faid Mr. W. his executors, and left all his efleds, except 947/. in legacies, to be difpofed of in charitable ufes, and particularly makes this bequefl: and devife : — " Item, I give my books and 200/. in money, and more if needful, for the beginning a library for the cathedral church of St. Canice, for the ufe of the clergy about it ; defiring the dean and chapter of St. Canice to grant for that ufe, the upper ftory of the old fchool-houfe, joining the alms-houfe throughout, for the flooring of which with fubftantial timber and boards ; rooting and flating it ; for defies and (helves and chains for every particular book ; for windows, window fhuts, doors, and chimney to be built in it, I appoint 100/. owing me by bill by Agmond. Cufte of Caftleinch, Efq; as likewife 97/. loj-. of Spanifli and other foreign gold, be it more or lefs, now in the hands of George Thornton, as by his notes now in my cuftody appeareth. And if the two faid fums fhall not be fufficient to the aforefaid purpofes, that the executor (liall take fo much of the cafii in his hands, as fliall finifh it. This I would have done as foon as poflible after my deceafe. Item, I will that the fum of 100/. be laid out to purchafe 10/. a year in houfes or lands : 5/. thereof fhall be for the library-keeper, whom I would have to be one of the vicars of St. Canice, (but always chofen by the prefent bifhop,) and the other 5/. to be laid out in coals for weekly fires to be made in the library to preferve the books." *' We find that the executors built the library as it now flands, with an upper and lower ftory, whereas they were obliged to build only an upper ftory, but having a difcretionary power in difpofmg of the blfhop's efFefts to public benefaftions, and pious ufes, they found it convenient fo to do ; in order that the lower flory fliould be a convenient habitation for the library-keeper, and a chamber for the preaching dignitaries and prebendaries to lodge in, in the week of their attendance in the cathedral : nor can Mr. W. apply the reft of the bifliop's effefts, as he give.^ out he will, to his private ufe, as he is but under executor, and can reap no benefif but by his legacy of 50/. •' We obferve further, that Mr. W. hath net yet chained the books, nor made the purchafe of 10/. nor hath he ]->aid the library-keeper.^ who was at great expences, as appears by the following award : — " Whereas there did arife feveral controverfies and differences between the Rev. Gyles Clarke and the Rev, Mr. W. on which there is a fuit now dr-pending in the chancery IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 415 chancery of her majefty's court of exchequer commenced by faid Clarke againft faid W, as furviving executor of the late bifhop of Oflbry. And whereas by mutual confent of both parties, all the matters and claims in difpute are referred to the final arbitrement of Richard Connel of the city of Kilkenny, Efq; on behalf ot Clarke, and to Richard Uniacke, of the fame, F.fq; on behalf of W. and that J^hn Waring fhould be umpire. Said Connel and Uniacke not agreeing, now I, John Waring, as umpire, do order faid W. by the firll of February next, to pay faid Clarke the fum of 45/. for nine years' falary, due from the 26th of July 1694. I do lurcher order the faid W. to pay the faid Clarke the fum of 30/. for fix years' coals. I do order the faid W. to pay the faid Clarke the fum of 10/. annually, the firfl pay- ment to be made the 26th of July, 1703 ; and I do order 100/. to be placed in the hands of John, lord bi(hop of OlTory, in truft, to purchafe 10/. per annum." " Mr. W. denied complying, becaufe the umpirage was not made according to the niceties of law. The dean and chapter fet forth, that at the triennial vifitation, 17th July, 1706, he promifed the archbiftiop to account on oath, which however he did not." What further was done, the writer, at prefent, knows not. The room Is hand- fome, and the books are in preffes and on fhelves, and under it is a comfortable dwelling for the librarian. Bifhop Maurice, by his will, dated the 6th of January, 1756, makes the following bequeifs : — " I leave my printed books to the library founded by bifliop Otway, at Kilkenny ; M that are now at Dunmore, as well as thofe that are now at Kilkenny, together with ten double cafes of one form, made of Dantzick oak, now in my library at Dunmore. Provided a fair catalogue be made of the books, and fecurity given by the librarian to exhibit them once a year, or offener if occafion, to two perfons appointed by the bifhop, in his own prefence if convenient. Provided likewife, that an oath be taken by the librarian, not to embezzle, deface, or lend any book out of the library, but to give due attendance to fuch clergymen and gentlemen as may be difpofed to read there, from fix o'clock in the morning to the tolling of the bell for morning prayers at the cathedral of St. Canice, Kilkenny. " And for his attendance and care of thofe books, 1 bequeath to the llbrariati and his fuccefTors, appointed by the biftiop, 20/. a year to be paid out of my eftate at Miltovvn in the county of Kilkenny. And if it fliall happen that this legacy fliall be found not to anfwer the purpofe intended, I impower the billiop of Olfory for the 4i6 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF the time being, with the confent of the dean and chapter of St. Canice, to fell th« books, ana apply their price together with the faid falary of the librarian towards raifing or adorning the imperfed fteeple of their cathedral. And whereas a knov/. iedge and praftice of books is requifite to range them fo as they may be readily found, I defire my good friend, doflior Lawfcn, fenior fellow and firit librarian of Trinity college near Dublin, to lend his hand, to tranfport, lodge and place them to advan- tage : for which trouble I bequeath to him the filver candleftick, now in my ftudy, and 20/. to buy him a mourning ring." They were accordingly placed in the libra- ry : but their utility is very little, if any, as there is no catalogue at prefent. The following- refieftions on the origin of public and diocefan libraries may, per- haps, amufe the reader^ after the foregoing tedious details: they are conneded with the fubjecl now under confideration, and have therefore fome claim to the reader's indulgence. The refinement of manners : the progrefs of literature, and the mod interefting circumftances in the rife and fall of empires are intimately united with an inquiry into the antiquity and ufe of public libraries. Scarcely had a nation emerged from baibarifm and joined in civil fociety, but letters became necelTary. The rudiments- of pofitive laws were to be colleded -, alliances with neighbouring powers to be afcer- tained, and the experience, the improvements and tranfadions of every year to be recorded. In coUeftions of national archieves are to be traced the earliefl veltiges of public libraries. The fculptured rock and rude fong ferved the erratic inhabitants of the foreft to keep alive the remembrance of their atchievements ; to urge them to heroic deeds and animate them in the conflift : to define the limits of their property, and the ex- tent of their conquefls. But, in more cultivated periods, tradition was found a pre- carious arbiter of human affairs : authentic documents were to be recurred to : public treaties were to be produced, and war or peace awaited their evidence. If learning had not been of divine origin, it was confecrateU by the hands that firft polUhed and improved it. The facerdotal order (31) among the Jews, the Chal- deans and Egyptians devoted their time to its cultivation, it was the employment of their lives. Precluded by public munificence from every attention to fecular con- cerns, it wr.s then their indefpenfable duty : their labours abundantly recompenfed their fellow-citizens, and did honour to themfelves. The Babylonians ereded the nobleft (ji) J.-ffjih. contra Afion. Malacb. chap. i. 7. Dcut,' 31, 16. i Mace. ii. 13. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 417 noblelt monument the world ever faw, in a (32) body of celeftial obfervations for .700 years. With fuch matured geniuffes, and with fuch aftonifliing perfeverance, to what perfedion mufl: they not have brought every other fcience ; and what ad- mirable trcalures of eaftern wifdom mufl not their libraries have contained ? Theic are the ages called fabulous and heroic : — heroic they certainly were, if the nobleft produdious of the human underltanding merit that epithet : and they are no farther fabulous, than being involved in the dark veil of antiquity, and (33) rendered con- temptible by the abortive fuperfetations of numerous Greek fciolifts. It was at the period of their grcatefl glory and empire that thofe exertions of genius and of induf- try are recorded. " When (34) the arts and fciences, fays an elegant writer, come to perfedion in any ftate, from that moment they naturally, or rather neceffarily decline." At this moment of perfection, public libraries were eftabliflied in Egypt, in Greece and Rome. The obfervation is, perhaps, new ; the fad is indifputable and the de- tail curious. Read the account of the fepulchre of Ofmandyas, king of Egypt, which for dcfigH, magnificence and execution, required, in the opinion of an excellent (35) judge, the combined efforts of human ingenuity : and yet its principle ornament was the i"|ih. lib. I. (41) ' n.!Vir>yiii> tuv ft-l>.irrx»l('vfitv, Ac. a moil Iw.mtifu] fiinik', cjiniiarinj; the alTi luity aiil filcclinn (if a man of learning, to the fame nualiiics in rhc lice Orat. ad. DrnLMi. fiib. fincni. (42) Aniiing oih'r fine oliforvatiuns of Vcllcmt I'Ancculus thii i'* ti> our piirpofc : " F.f ut primo ad cnnlcqiicmlos, quos priores ducimu?, acccndim«r : ita, u'.ii aut prxteriri, ant xquari co^ .polTii defpcravinius, (ludinnt cum ipc Icnckii ; ct I'Hui aflVnui lion protcft, ffj'ii dcfiiiit, ct, vtl occupatani rcliiujucns niatcriam, cju.erit novum.'* l.ih. 1 IRISH rOV,^ AND KILKENNY. 4,9 a-d -^ * i 1 «-'4 ■ pofitions appeared, which depended on penetration, on induflry, much readinj^, ma- ture reflection and pradical obfervations : each a fruitful fource for multiplyin■ ■ >■ > >■ > >■ >■ > >■>- >- > V- > V > • I > >■ >■•> -V V '. The appointment of a perfon to the office of librarian is often not well confidered. In the ancient Koman church he was called (50) chancellor, and his (51) flation vas- mofl important and refpectable. On the ereilion of cathedrals he was the fird or fecond dignitary of the chapter: examined the candidates for orders : took care of the library, the ftrvice books, and did all the literary bufinefs of his body. The flatutes of the churches of Litchfield and London, in the (ija) aionaPiicon, are full to thefe points. We may afcend to much earlier times, and mention men of the highelt accomplifliments, who were librarians : (53) as Demetrius Phalereus, Callimachus, Apollonius and Varro. An ignorant librarian is a contradiction in^ terms : he fliould be a perfon of abilities, who could direft the younger clergy in their ftudies, and afllft poflibly the more mature : he would be beloved as a parent and reverenced as a mafler : the timidity of infant genius would receive coun- tenance and aid from him, and the mofl; poliflied productions would be improved by his perufal. It would exceed the limits of this little excurfion to be more minute : the cieating a fund by a fma!l annual fubfcription for puichafing books : the lendin"- books under certain regulations, and the exciting emulation among the clergy, were objefts which engaged the attention of the bifliop and clergy of Offbry, wheri' this was written, but from want of vigour and perfeverance produced no good cffe^s. We fliall now pvoceed v.'ith a lift of the deans of St. Caaice, and the dates of their fuccefTion. DEANS. 1 Henry Pembroke 2 Roger de Wexford 3 Adam Trillock 4 Thomas Archer _5 John Strange 6 P".dmund Comerford 7 James Cleere 8 Thomas Lancafter (54) (jo) Du Carpe, In voce. (51) Ur vix vci boiiuni judicetur, qiiod Roniani canccllarii prius non fuerk examioatum judicio, mi'Jcrarum coiifiliu' {lud!o roboratum et cimfirmatuni njuroriu. St. Bcrnardi cpill. 313. (51) Tom 3. pag. 14. 339. (j3) Houiiigcr. Biblioth. quodripart. pag 79. (H) Mt ht:ld this deanery with the Le of Kildare. A. D. A. D. 1245 9 William Johnfon 1559 1 2 69 10 David Cleere 1582 1347 1 1 Richard Deane 1603 J 469 12 John Tod 1610 1472 13 Abfalom Gethinge 1616 1502 14 Jenkin Mayos 1620 1504 1 5 Barnabas Boulger - ^55° 16 Edward Warren i6^o- 5 p ly Thomas HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ;<<<■< < <<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<< ' >■■>•■>■■>■■>'■>■ I ,. >.,>. >.■>.-►.■►■>->- >•>■>■ »• >•>->■>■ I 17 Thomas Ledfliame 18 Daniel Neylan, D. D. 19 Jofeph Teate 20 Thomas Hill 21 Benjamin Parry Z2 John Pcoley 23 Robert Moffom, D. D. 24 Robert Watts, D. D. 25 John Lewis, A. M. 26 Thomas Pack, A. M. 27 Jofeph Bourke, A. M. 1702 1747 1784 1796 1661 1666 1667 1670 1673 ROUND TOWER. There is a beautiful one and of great height (landing at the fouth fide of the cathedral. Thefe curious ftruftures have before been confidered. SCHOOL HOUSE. " In the we.T:e of the church-yard of the late, (55) fays Stanihurft, has been founded a granimar-fchoole by the right honorable Peirce or Peter Butler, erle of Ormond and OiTorie, and by his wife the countefl'e of Ormond, the lady Margaret Fitz Gerald, fifter to Gerald Fitz Gerald, the erle of Kildare that lafl was. Out of which fchooie have fprouted fuch proper impes, through the painfull diligence and labourfome induftrie of that famous lettered man, Mr. Peter White, fometime fellow of Oriel college in Oxford, and fchoolemalter in Kilkennie as generallie the whole weale publicke of Ireland, and efpeciallie the fouthern parts of that ifland, are greatly thereby furthered. This gentleman's method of training up youth was rare and fingular ; framing the education according to the fcholar's veine : if he found him free, he would bridle him like a wife Hocrates from his booke ; if he perceived him to be dull, he would fpur him forward ; if he underftood he was the worfe for beating, he would T^in him with rewards. Finallie, by interlafmg ftudie with recreation, furrow with mirth, pain with pleafure, ibwerneffe with fweetneffe, roughnefle with mildnelTe, he had fo good fuccefle in fchooling his pupils, as in good footh, I may boldlie bide by it, that in the realme of Ireland was no grammar fchool fo good, in England, 1 am alTured, none better. And becaufe it was my happie hap (God and my parents be thanked) to have been one of his crue, I idkc it to (tande witli my dutie, iith (55) Apud Holliiijfflicd, fupra. In another work he fay« : Ent.ii in hue opi'id') fcliola ejctriifla opilius dariflimi viri, Vetri Butlcii, Orniondi.e ct Oilocia: comitis, ct iixi>iis ejus qu.i; Marjiriia Giralda vncaliaicir. F.i-miiu luit l'()ciilat:(Tiriia; lion uiodo lunmia generis nnl)ilir,itc, ^niupe coinirii Kdtlar:^ filia, itd rcruni t'tiain prudcntia fupra ntuijciircni captuni, pix.>.lita. Hk luduni apciuit nulira xute, Pctruy VVhiii.a, cujus in tolam ri inpuWiiam (vmma coiillsut .nurita. £.« illiuK ctinni fcho.'a, tanqiiuiii tx equo 1 mjiiio, hiiniiiies liteiaiilliini riipuMic* in luctm fn.dicrunt. Qi^ios ena hie Whitcon, quos Q^enurfordos, Stronger, quiw I.unibardos cxctlienres ir.)!cniu et duA'irina viru^ rontt.cinurafe po- tuiir<.ni ; qui piiuiib icinpL>i;bu3 U'lacis in <.ju> JilVipUnam tc (railitcraiic. S'.aniliurO. dc rcb, in Hib. gi.ltit, pjg. i^. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. ^23 fith I may not ftretch mine abilitie in requiting his good turns, yet to manifeft mv good will in remembering his pains. And certes, I will acknowledge myfelf lo much bound, and beholden to him and his, as for his fake I reverence the meanefl: ftonc cemented in the walls of that famous fchoole." In 1670, Dr. Edward Jones, afterwards bifiiop of Cloyne, was mailer of this fchoo! ; as was Dr. Henry Ryder in 1680, who was promoted to the fee of Killaloe. The I 8th of March, 1684, the duke of Ormond granted a new charter to the college in Kilkenny, of a certain houfe in John's ftreet, with the adjacent park, f..r a ichool-houfe : and the rectories and tythes of Donoghmore, Kells, Wollengrangc, Jerpoint and Kilmocar, in the county of Kilkenny ; and the parilhes of Bruor and Templemore, and Relilhmurry in the county of '1 ipperary. Thefc were given in iruft to Richard Coote, Efq. and Sir Henry Wemyes, knt. to pay the mailer 140/. per annum. The following are the llatutes from the original record in the college. " Statutes, orders and conRitutions made, appointed and ordained by the ri"-ht noble James duke, marquis and earl of Ormond, earl of Ollory and Brecknock, baron of Arklow and Lanthony, lord of the lordfiiip and liberties of Tipperarv, chancellor of the univerfuies of Oxford and Dublin, chief butler of Ireland, lord lieutenant general and general governor of Ireland, lord lieutenant of the counties of Somerfet, the cities of Bath, Briflol and Wells, one of the lords of his majefty's kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ire'and, (leward of his majefty's houfehold, and WeftminiRer, and knight of the molt noble order of the gai ter, foundef of the grammar fchoo! at Kilkenny in the kingdom of Ireland, for the due government, man.iging and itnprovement of the faid fchool ; March the i!^tli, in the year of our Lord, 1684. Imprimis, it is conflituted and ordained, that there fliall be for ever a maPrer refident, who fhall be at leafl a mailer of arts here in Ireland, or of one the univer- fitits in England : alio of good life and reputation, well ikilled in humanity and grammar learning; loyal and orthodox; who fliall take the oaths of allej^iance and fupremacy, and conform to the dodrine and difcipline of the church of Ireland, as it is by law, now eitabliihed ; and that Edward llinron, doctor in divinity, be hereby confirmed in the place and office of mailer of the laid i'chool. 11. That the mailer (hall be nominated and chofen'by the duke of Ormond, his grace, patron and governor, and the heirs male of his body that fliall fuccelllvcly be dukes of Ormond, patrons and governors of the faid fchool, within the fpace r or 424 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ..,.<< . . < .<<<<<<<<< < < < < < < <><<<<< . < < <<<<.<<<<+>>»>>>>»•>»>>>>>>>>>>>►>>>»>>>>>>>>> ► » > > • of three months next after every vacancy : who by writing under the hand and fcal of the refpeftive governor, being recommended to the vifitors, and by them • examined and approved, as able and fufficient both for reh'gion, learning and man- ners ; upon certificate of fuch examination and approbation of the vifitors to the governor fiiown, the faid perfon fo approved, fhall by a deed under the hand and jeal of the governor be fettled and confirmed as mailer of the fchool. But if the governor fhall negleft to nominate according to the time prefixed, or fliall chufe fuch as are not qualified fuitably to thefe ftatutes, that then it fliall be lawful for the vifitors, after notice firft given to the governor, and no redrefs within three months after fuch no ice, to elecl and prefent pro ilia vice, any other perfon, whom in their confcicnces, they (liall judge to be well qualified for the place. And alfo that upoii f;nUne of iiiue male of the body of the faid James duke of Ormond, the provofV, fclIovNs and fchol.irs of Trinity college Dublin, and their fucceffors fhall from tlienceforth for ever afterwards be patrons and governors of the faid fchool. HI. That the mafier fliatl confiantly inhabit and refide at the houfe belonging to the faid fchool, and in perfon attend the duties of his place : which are to inftruft the fcholars in religion, virtue and learning : in the Latin, Greek and Hebrew lant^uages; r.s alfo in oratory and poetry ; according to the beff method which he and the vifitors fliall judge moll eltciftual to promote knowledge and learning : and that being in health he (liall never be abfent for above thirty fchool days in one whole year, which fliall begin on the c 5th of March ; nor above a fortnight at any one time, unlefs upon emergencies the vifitors fhall give him leave, being firft falisficd, that his place fhall be well and fufficiently difcharged in his abfence. IV. '1 hat there fiiall always be an ufher belonging to the faid fchool, to be nominated, chofen and removed by the mafler : who fliall have his diet, lodging :,nd mair.ttnarice in the fchool houfe, at his allowance. A fingle man well-fkiiled in grammar learning, of good credit for parts and manners, a batchclor of arts at the kail in one of the univerfities of England or Irehmd : and he (hall conflantly attend and allift in the duties of the fchool, in fuch manner and method, as the mafler fliall appoint. V. Tli;it U'.ither nvifier nor ufiier fliall take upon them any other charge, ofSce or employment, which the vifitors fhall judge inconfillent with, or prejudicial to the due nrina'^ing and improvement of the faid fchool : but fhall confiantly attend and difcharge their rerpeclive duties, and never be both of them out of the fchool at fchool times. VI. That f IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 425 VI. That the fcholars to be admitted into thi faid fchool fliall be plainly and decently habited, and fuch as fliall have firfl: read their accidence, and are fit to enter upon grammar learning ; and fiiall fubmit to the order, method and correc- tion of the Hud fchool. VII. That the children of all fuch as are attending in the fervice of the duke of Ormond, fliall at all times bfe admitted to the privileges and benefits of faid fchool gratis. VIII. That if any well-difpofed perfons fiiall out of charity pay for the tabling of fuch ingenious and orderly lads, as (hall by the vifitors be recommended to th:: mailer, as objefts of charity, he fliall admit, and as they continue modeft and diligent, teach them gratis. IX. That if his grace the duke, or any other pious benefaclors fhall here- after make any grants or allowances for the maintenance of any number of fcholars, they Iliall be taught and entered afterwards in Trinity college, Dublin, it they prove fit. The mafter fliall then be exprefsly obliged to teach thofe under the name of Ormond fcholars, according to his bed flcill and induflry, gratis. X. That it fliall be lawful for the mafl;er to demand and receive of all other fcholars according to the rates and ufages of the mofl remarkable fchools in Dublin, for boarding and fchooling ; thofe children excepted, whofe parents are, or at the time of their birth were inhabitants of the city of Kilkenny, or iu the liberties thereof ; who fliall pay but half price. XI. That if the mafler knows any of the fcholars to be under any infedious or ollenfive difeafe or diftemper: or that any infedious difcafe be in the houfe where they table, he Ihall, for fecurity of the refi, difcharge fuch from fchool till the danger be over. XII. That every flubborn and refradory lad, who fliall refufe to fubmit to the orders and corredion of the faid fchool, fliall by the mafter be forthwith difmilled from the faid fchool, not to be re-admitted without due fubmifllon to exemplary punifliment : and upon his fecond offence of the fame kind, to be difcharged and expelled for ever. And in this number are reckoned fuch as fliall ofi'er to fliut cut the mafter or uflier : but the mafl;er fliall give them leave to break up eight days before Chrillmas, and three days before Eaflcr and AVhitfuntide. ' XIII. That the mafler fliall make dHigent inquiry after fuch as fliail break, cut, deface or any way abufe the delks, forms, walls and windows of the fchool } or 5 Q_ any HISTORY AND ANIIQUITIES OF ;..<..<.<.<..<..<. .<-.<4.>.-> >'>•>->■>'>->>.>.>->>->■>■>■>■ >.>.>.>.>■>.> > ►>>>>> > > »»>.-> ft f any parts of the Iioufc, or trees in the meadows, and fliall always inflid open and exemplary punilhinent on all fuch olFenders. XIV. That from the bc_t;inning of March to the middle of September, thefcholars fhall le and continue in fchool from fix of the clock in the morning till eleven, and all the rell of the year from feven, or as'foon as the gates of the city are open : and in the a'tvjrnoon from one to five : the afternoons of Thurfdays and Saturdays excepted, which fliall be always allowed for recreation : and that the mailer flrall grant no play days, except to fuch as Ihall pay down ten fhillings into the mailer's hands, to be by him immediately difpofed cf to the mofl; indigent and deferving lads of iiis fchool. XV. That the mafler fiiall take fpccial care of the fcholars of his ovi'n family, to inflrucl them by his good example at all times, as well as by occafional diredions : and fliall have the prayers of the church of England and Ireland read to them both morning and evening in fome convenient place of the houfe: and in the fchool, the prayers feen and approved, by the lord bifliop of Offory, fhall conflantly and duly be ufed in the fame manner and form, as tney are at the date of thefe prefents. XVI. 'I'hat from the beginning of March to the middle of September, all the fcholars fliall be in the fchool upon Sundays, by eight in the morning, to be inflrucl- ed in the Church Catechifm ; and afterwards fhall attend the mailer and uflier to the church, in a comely and decent manner. And from the middle of September to March, they fliall flay at fchool until half an hour pail eleven upon Saturdays, that ihey may be taught the fame Catechifm. XVII. That Edward Hinton, mailer of the faid fchool, and the mafler for the time being, fhall inhabit, pofTefs, and enjoy to his own proper ufe and emolument, the fchool-houfe, with the court, out-houfes, and gardens thereunto belonging; as alfo the meadow adjoining, commonly called the pigeon-houfe meadow : provided the fcholars be allowed at leifure times to take their recreatioii#therein ; and that the trees in faid meadow be carefully preferved and improved. XVIII. That the mafler fliall provide a large regifler, wherein the names, quali- ties, and ages of all fuch children as fliall, from time to time, be admitled into the faid fchool, fliall be regiflcred and entered: as alfo the time of thtir departure; ■what clafs they were in, and to what place or employment they go. Eikewife a ca- talogue of all fuch goods, ftandards, and utenfils, as do or fhall belong to the faid fchool-houfe, out-houfes, garden, and meadow. XIX. That IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 427 XIX. That ihe inafler fliall receive for his falary the fum of 140/. per annum, of good and lawud money of and In England, by even and equal pv^ticas ; one moiety of it at the 25th of March, and the other September the a^tli, or within a fort- night of each of thefe fealls ; to be paid conltantly in the fchool-houfe, without any defalcation, out of tythes fettled by the laid duke for payment thereof: except his grace or his heirs fhall fettle fome particular lands for the payment of the faid falary, and which (hall be of a full value to difcharge it yearly. And upon the mafler's death, or removal, his falary pro rata (hall become due to him to be paid till that very Jay. XX. That the mailer fliall keep and maintain the fchool-houfe, fchool, and out- offices in conftant good and fufficient repair : nor fhall it be lawful to make any alterations therein without the approbation of the vifitors. XXI. Tliat Thomas, lord bifliop of OfToiy, Karciflus, lord bifliop of Leighlin and Ferns, and Robert Huntingdon, D. D. provoft of Trinity College, Dublin, while ihey live in this kingdom ; and the bifhops of Offory, Leigiilin and Ferns, and :he pro i oil of the College for the time being, be nominated and appointed vifitors of the faid fchool : and that they, or the majority of them (for it is the greater number of them (till that are n-iCaiit by the vifitors) fliall yearly at, or upon the ia(l Thurfday in June or cftener if they fliall fee occafion, publicly vifit faid fchool, between the hours of eight and twelve in the morning : where and when they (hall firfl caufe the (tatutes to be read, audibly and diftlnftly by one of the fcholars ; and afterwards proceed to examine the proficiency of the fcholars, and inquire after any breach of the flatutes, and after the behaviour of the mafter } the futEciency and manners of the ufher ; the authors that are read; the methods, ufages, and cuftoms of the fchool ; and If they (hall judge any alterations or amend- meiiis requifite in any of thefe, they fliall exprefs it to the mafter under their hands and feals : who by \irlue of thefe Ifaiutes is required to comply with their advice, for the better improvement of the faid fchool. And when there fhall be foundation fcholars, they fliall by the vifitors be chofen, according to their merits for the unlverfity. XXII. That on the faid vifitation day after dinner, which the mafter is to pro- vide foberly and decently, and towards it fliall have freely given him a fat buck yearly out of his grace's next park: the vifitors then prefent, (hall take a view of the fchool-houfe and out-houfes, the garden, meadow, and trees therein ; and if they find occafion, fliall fpecify in writing all thofe repairs and amendments, with the 428 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ■•<■<■■<■•<■■<■<< ■< ■< •<■< < ■<■■< < I ■< < < -< < ■*■■< < ■< ■<■<■■<■■< ■<■■<■< ■<■<■■<■•«■<■<■■< ■<+>■ >■■>->-: ■ ►■>■♦■■>■>■>*>■.►■ *■>■>. »■• the manner how, and the time when they judge them expedient to be made. It" the mafter fliall be negligent herein, the vifitors fhall fignify the Ai^ne to the gover- nor of the faid fchool, who forthwith fliall order thofe things to be done by able workmen, and that they be paid out of the falary next due to the mailer. XXIII. That if it fliall appear to the vifitors, that the uflier is infufficient or fcan- dalous, and fo is fignified to the mafter under their hands and feal-;, if the mafl:er fliall refufe to remove the faid uflitr, and chufe another ftatutably qualified : or if the niafler fliall negleft fuch alterations and amendments as the vifitors fliall have judged fit to be made, either in the manners of himfelf or his uflier, the authors to be read, or the method, cuftoms, or management of the faid fchool : or if the mafl:er fliould forbear to difcharge himfelf or his uflier from fuch offices or employ- ments, as the \'ifitors have judged inconfiftent or prejudicial to the due management of the faid fchool : or fliall alter their houfe without their confcnt ; the vifitors fliall, under their hands and feals, admonifli the mailer a fccond time of his faid neglects : and if for the fpace of three months after fuch fecond admonition the mafl^er fliall be convided, either by notoriety of the fad, or the tedimony of two of the niofl: credible witnefl"es of fuch obfl:in?te neglevTt-, upon information thereof by the vifitors, under their hands and feals given to the patron or governor, he fliall ■expel and remove the faid maft;er from all duties and benefits of the faid fchool, fchool-houfe, &c. and fliall nominate and chufe another in his flead, according to the qualifications aforefaid. XXIV. That if any doubt or objcftion fliall happen concerning the true purport^ intent, and meaning of thefc flatutes, or any thing in them contained, fuch inter- pretation as the vifitors fliall agree in, and fignify under their hands and feals, fliall be binding and decifive to all parties concerned. Laflly, in teflimony tha? all and Angular the above flatutes, orders, and confli- tutions were ratified, efl.ibliflied, and confirmed to commence and be in force from the 25th day of March in the year of our Lord, 1685, the fiiid James, duke of Ormond the founder of the faid fchool, has this prefent i8th of March, in the year of our Lord, 1684, hereto fet his hand and feal at his majefly's caflle of Dublin." But this foundation foon went to decay for the reafons contained in the follow ing account of the college of Kilkenny, extradcd from Mr. Harris's fj-ft) life of kin;; William. " King (^6) Pag. ZJJ. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 4:^9 *' King James, after his arrival in Diblln, profecuteJ his fchenis (the ellabUili- ment of pop-ry) to a fuller effecl. An inflancc of which may be given in his pro- ccedin;^s in rchition to the public fchool of Kilkenny, founded and endowed by the piety of the firit duke of Ormond ; who fettled there a proteilant fchool-marter. Dr. Mdward Hinton, a learned and confcientious En^lilhinan, who officiated in it with great indui'try and fuccefs : which I mention with gratitude, becaufe to him I am indebted for my early education. " As the aDnreheniions of Tvrconnel's fevere trovernment had driven numbers of proteftants out of the kingdom, fo Dr. llinton, among the relt, fled for fafety to his native country. King James laid hold nf the opportunity to pervert that ichool from its primitive infUtution. The grandfon and heir of the founder had early joined king William, and was attainted in the parliament held this year in Dublin, and confequent-ly the eftate among others, out of which the revenues of this fchool i lined, was declared forfeited. The fchool-inalter was gone, and though not men- tioned in the aft of attainder, yet one fcratch of the attorney-general's (Nanglc) pen uipplied that defeiEf, and in the charter declared him attainted. " King James therefore by a charter dated the 2ilt of February, 1689, ujion the ruins of this fchool ereded and endowed a royal college; confilling of a reclor, eight ptofeffors, and two fcholars in the name of more; to be called the royal col- lege of St. Canice, Kilkenny, of the foundation of king James. " It appears by the charter, that William Daton, I). D. and others in cnnjunclion with him, had for feveral years, taught fchool in Kilkenny, with great diligence ; for it was the policy of Tyrconnel to ereft fchools of Jefuits, as was done through England, in oppofition to the proteflant legal fchool-nialters, whom by aflVontb arid i!l-ufage, and under the countenance of a cruel adminiftration, they foon drave away. And this was the caufe of Dr. lliirton's abdication, which king James now laid hold on to erect his royal college ; and it was done as the faid charter alleges, at the petition of the faid Daton and his fellow labourers, of tlie catholic hifliop of Offory, and all the clergy of that diocefe, as wtU as of the ma;, or, aidermen, and burgelfes of the faid city. After Dr. Hinton was driven away, Tyrconnel co iverted the fchool-houfe into an hofpital ; and fo it continued until the new foundation." • This account given by ?Jr. Harris is very well illultrated by Mr. LaUhn's valuable papers. One of them contains ; " Articles conclus du confentement unanime d.;s regents des ecoles de Kilkenny, fous le proteftion de I'illuftriirime et reverendillime Tcvcfque d'Oflbry ;" and figned ^ R « Edvardus 430 HISTORY AND ANHqiJlTlES OF " Edvardus Tonnery, phllofophifc profelTor. Jacobus CIcary, vhetorices profedbr. Guilielinus Felan, lit. human, profelVor. Fran. Barmvall, tertii ordinis profeiT.)r. Johannes Meagher, quarta: claflis proteilbr." The catholic bidiop oF Offory, at this time, was doctor James Phelan, who gave the following rules to this college. " Rules to be obferved by the profelTors of my lord biiliop of Oflbry's college. In Kilkenny; given by his lordfhip. The teachers of colleges are to know, that pl<;t;.' is the chief thing they ou;ht to teach ; and all other things that are taught are nothing but means ro attain that end ; and therefore piety is to be taught by word and example oi\ all occafions in general, and particularly in the following exercifes. I. The teachers are to get up half an hour, at lealT:, before the boarders ; and fpend at leaft half an hour in mental prayer together in the room where the boarders come to vocal prayer ; and to remain there until the boarders come, that they may fee fo good an -exan:ple to imitate. This being very eafy and beneficial no one ought to forego it, or be cold or negligent to appear wl h the reft, if he were not very fick. And to ]>e notably remifs in this exercife is a fault whereof the ordinary is to be informed. When the boarders come, thofe that have not the breviary to fay, ought to fay the prayers with the fcholars ; and give them good example, by often going to confefTion and communion. The mental prayer may be omitted the play-days, and made an hour h.tcr on holydays and Sundays. II. The teachers are to fliew all exaftnefs and regularity in their exercifes ; going cxaclly to their feveral fchools at the fame moment ; and alfo precifely together from fchool ; to be gentle and courteous to the fcholars ; efpecially when they propofe any difficulties : but they are to keep always their diftance ; never fliewing any weak- iiefs, lightnefs, paifion, fcurrllity, or any incivility that the fcholars may take notice of. To afteft gravity before them, more than if the teachers were apart ; for there they may give themfelves full latitude ; but never to make them their comrades by familiarity that denotes equality and makes fellows, as laughing, chatting, playing together, and fuch other familiarities wherein the fcholars may difcover any weak- iiefs in the mafters, or diminifli their efleem for them : no man being fitCtr to teach and pcrfuade than he who is well pclTelTed of his auditors' elleem. III. Thofe 1 IRISH rOWN AND KILKENNY. 43, .^ 4 '4 4-< 4 4 ' »■>-■>• ►.>..».->->..>. •4k >■>■>->•>■>• V- »»- V »' V"> >• »- » V »'»'>->■>•»>->■»-»•• III, Thole that prefide at the fcholars* ftqdies, are to be careful and exaiEl therein, left the fcholars fliould lofe their time If any of the mafters be obliged to abfent himfelf when his turn is to be prefent, he mufl pray forne other teacher to fupply his place : for no teacher ought to pretend to be exempt, upon the account of havinj^ much to ftudy, from what is common to all the teachers : whereas there is none but may take that pretext ; and if the fcholars be neglefted but one hour a day, it will give them an occafion of idlenefs, and taking of liberty. IV. As for the teachers* converfation, it ought to be very fraternal and lovetv ; confuting and advifing one another : and though we think fit, that for the equality of the pains and endeavours of the teachers, the profit alfo ought to be equally participated ; yet we think it mod expedient that the younger teachers fliould be very fubmiflive to the elder ones, efpecially to the Prefect, who reprefents our pcrfon tlieve in the curate's abfence ; for it were very imprudent, that every teacher flioulJ be mader of every thing, and no order or fubordination obferved contrary to the repeated cuftom in all colleges in the world, where there are feveral degrees of dignity, or at leaft, one th;!t rules all the refl. Neither ought the Prefeft to be over imperious to the teachers, but advife fraternally with them, and ftrive to pleafc them, as far as reafon and th.- comdion good fuffer it. To be impartial in anv com- petition or difference that may arife among the teachers themfelves, or amonglt them and the fcholars : and to accommodate without noife all thofe little debates, with prudence and juflice ; driving always publicly to turn the blame on the fcholars ; but blaming with authority, and advifing privately any of the teachers that may do an ifs. Neither ought any teacher to take it ill, or pretend, or give out tha? he will not faffer fnch reprimaiids upon account of all the teachers being equal for matter of gain : for that is another matter. Nay, it is not to be expected but there may be lome teachers, 'aIio in procefs of time, though not now, that may deferve net only to be kept in fubmiffion, but alfo to be turned out for litigious humours, cabals, or extravagant fcandalous ways ; which may bring more prejudice to the place, than their prefence can bring profit. And the Prefecl's confcicnce, as alfo the other members, who tender God's fervice and the good of the College, are rcTponfible before God for fuch diforders, if they drive not to hinder them by their own autho- rity, (U if need be, by giving us timely notice. So every one ought to to be watch- ful en all occafions of the fcholars, ftrvants, and hcufehold affair^, ^c. when they fee 432 HISlOilY AND ANriqUiriES OF fee any tiling aniifs, or that may be reformed, to give notice tliereof to him, whofe charge it is to look after it." Bat the glorious viiSlory of the Boyue dirperfed thofe vaia conceits and reinftated everv thing. By the attainder of the dnke of Orniond, the 24th of Jnns 1715, the right of pre- fentation to the fcho'jl lapfod tu the provofl and fellows of Triaiiy college, Dabliu ; and is flill veiled in them. This fchool has had a fucceinon of eminent maftevs ; has produced men of great learning, and is juftly efteeined the firfl: fchool for the edac.itioa of yoath in this kingdom. By a return of the fchool-mafter, Mr. Lewis, November the 16th, 1716, thctythes appropriated to the fchool were fet and produced as follows : Parilhes of Bruor and Templemore fet to Mr. John Cat den for Parifhes of Kells, Donoghmore and. Kilmocar, co. Kilkenny, to Mr. Richard Power for - Parifh of Kells to Mr. Patrick Walfh, Mr. William Belcher, Toby Den, James Archdekin, Arthur Izard j Thomas Dyer and VViliiini 'I'ucker, for - - - Pariih of Donoghmore to Toby Purcell, for Parifh of Kilmacor to Mark Rudkins, for In Marlh's library; Dublin, was a book of poems, iocitled Siicri Ltfus, by the young gentlemen of the college of Kilkenny : l>ut not now to be found there. In the fame library were, " Conflitutions made in a provincial meeting at Kilken- ny, A. D. 1614." This MS. alfo is lloleh from its place . 76 72 28 6 »7 10 iS 10 KILKENNY. THE following IhUcuKnt of the population of Kilkenny is given by Tig-c, in his (tatiftical account ol this County. " The city of Kilkenny including St. Canice or Liflilown, extends from north to fouth, as far as there is any continuation of houfes, about 1300 yards; from call to welt hy John's bridge about 1470 yards, by Green's biiuge about 1000 yards: IRISIIT0V;N and KIl.iaNNY. 433 incliicilng between thefe extremities an irregular fqiiare of about 1 852500 fnuare yards, or 235 acres, one rood plantation nieafure, of which about two thirds is cultivated ground. It contains 2870 inhabited houfes : of thefe there are 404 of three ftories liigh and upwaids, at 8 per houfe are 3232 inhabitants: 431 one of two ftories, at 6 per houfe, are 2586, and 2035 cabins at 4> per houfe are 9157 fouls, lloufes 2870, inhabitants 14975. Of thefe the corporation of St. Canice contains 26 houl'es of three ftories, 80 of two and 909 Cabins, total 1015. Four hundred and four houfes in Kilkenny, and 50 in St. Canice paid hearth-money in 1799. Three hun- dred and fixty-eighf in Kilkenny and 51 in St. Canice in 1800, and 353 in Kilken- ny, and 46 in St. Canice paid window-tax in 1800. The population of the cabins was eftimated from that of 306 taken down in differ- ent quarters of the City, producing 1409, or little more than 45 to each : houfes of two flories are fuppofed, with the addition of one fervant to each, and lodgers to fonie, to amount to fix each : thofe three (lories high and upwards, to have eight per houfe. 'Ihe number of houfes in 1788 was 2689, increafe fince that time 181. In 1689, Kilkenny contained but 507 houfes, and in 1777 the number \va* 2174. The corporation of Kilkenny are poflefled of a large property : their rental in 1688 was 313/. i8j. SJ. in 1794 it was 1567/. taking the tolls and cuftoms at an average of 500/. Of this 700/. a year is paid in falaries to its officers: 300/. in paving, and 300/. in penfions and other purpofes. It is afferted in the (i) life of Hugh Rufus, fecond bifiiop of OiTory, that he grant- ed a great part of the city of Kilkenny to William Earl Marflial, referving to himfelf and his fucceflbrs a chiefry of an ounce of gold. Notwithftanding the authority now- cited, there are certainly fome miftakes in this account. It fuppofes two things ; ei- ther that the bifhop had a paramount right to the foil prior to the Englifli invafioii which however does not appear, or there was fome diflind exemp'ion in his favour when thofe conquerors feized and colonized the country ; which is equally deditute of foundation. For Richard Strongbow had all his acquifitions in Leinfter given in (2) perpetuity to him by Henry II. with the refervation of the maritime towns. Thefe grants of his father were confirmed by king John to William Earl Marlhal, who married Ifa- bella, Strongbow's daughter. Both held Leinfter in capite, inverted with, and exer- 5 s cifing (I) Ware's Bilh' ps, pjg. 403. (») Danis'i hiftorictl RcJttiont, pag. 61. 434 rilSTORY AND ANTlQIJITiES OF cifing abfolute regal jurifJitlion and prerogative. Was he not enfeoffed himfelf ill this ample manner, '.ViUiam could never make the grants he did to St. John's pri*' ory ; the (3) renor of" which exprelles a fiiperiority but little favouring of epifcopai deiivation. Stanihiirft indeed has fomething which feems to countenance what is here contePied : "The hig'he tovvne was builded by the inglifn after the conquefl, and had a parcel of the IriOitowne thereto united by the bifiiop his grant, made unto the founders upon their earneft requeft." From the inaccurate and unfupported manner in which this tradition (for it is no more) is exprclfed, we may rank it with thofe numerous monkifii fictions, which aim at exalting the fpiritual above the civil power. The original charter of incorporation given by William Earl Marflial probably does not exift : Cox (4) fays it was granted in 1 223 ; but an amplification of it appears in an infpeximus of the 3 Edw. III. A. D. 1328. It (5) recites, that the earl who was lord of all Leinfter, had in his life time granted to the fovereign, burgeflesand commonalty of Kilkenny, for the time being, various liberties and immunities, which they were to enjoy for ever throughout Leinller, as well as in the town. Particularly, that they iliould be free from toll, laflage, or payment for weighing goods, from pontage, and all other cuftoms whatfoever. Thefe exemptions were powerful inducements for people to fettle in a city fo much favoured ; and the earl by thus depriving himfelf of confiderable revenues, evinced his wiflies to aggrandii:e it. No wonder if we fhall find it increafing rapidly in extent, in population and riches ; and felcfted by the great affemblies of the nation, above any other place, for its hap- py temperature, its ample conveniences and undillurbed fecurity, and as the properefl place (3) Hahesnt rt ttncant omiies lioiiationes, conceffioncs et coi)6rmsti(ir.cs pradiiflj', in liherani, purani ct fcrpcluam tlyniofinam. Appendix I (4) Hid. of Ireland. Hanmcr fays it was dated the fixth of April. ai>d wirivtlTcd hy Thninas VUz Artriiy, Waller Purccll, William Grace, Human Grace, Ainnar Grace and Dthcts. Chionidr, pag. 17;,. 'i he Waidics and Cauiwells came over with Tit?. Stephen, and li-tiled iilwut Kilktnny. (j) rdvardus Dei grati.i, rc.t Anglir, Donyinm Hilicrni.'E, dux Atluitar.iaE, cumihiis ballivis e! miniOris (ininiimi vlllarum rt vilbtorutn Ijginiac, el cztcris quiburcunquc de iirdcm partibu», falutcm .Supplieavit nobis Aifwrloret coniniunitas de Kilkenny, quod cum Willielmus, nupet comes marcfcallnsct Pemhroehia (leniptirc quo idem cumes cxtiierat dominustctius lerrse l.agcirix) concelTcrit hurgenfibus et coninuinit.iii tiIIw pr.cdifl.t, qui pro tempore fuerint,' diverfks lilienates, inter nuas, vidclitit, quo ipio in pcrpctuum per tutam l,ap(n).im tciram et prot«lt»ie;i! fuani, ta:n in villa quam alilii, cflVnt qui- I ti dc iheuloiiio, lafa^io, pontapio, ct de omni>)u« alii> conructuilinibu'i qiiihufcunque ; quam quidcm cl;utraiti inljeximus, fee. tefle Johanoc Darcy, jufliciario noftro Hibcrui*, apud Kilkciiiiy , H die julii, ai.noque legiu noUii tciiio. Fcr biUam ipDuj julliciaiii. Kaumerluita. IRISHTOVvN AND KILKENNY. 4,^. place for holJing their meetings. This exceilcnt nobleman, equally accompiiflieJ ill the aiti of peace and war, Redburn (6) thus characleri/ces in his e;;itaph ; Sum quciu ScUurnumJibiferiJit Hibernia, So/em Jtigl'ui, Mercurhm Normanma, Gallia Martem. In 1195, a fpaclous and noble callie was begun in Kilkenny on the fite of ihat def- troyed by the Irilh in 1 173. The fituation, in a military view was mod eligible ; the ground was originally a conoid ; the elliptical fide abrupt and ^ecipitous, with the rapid Nore running at its bafe; there the natural rampait was laced with a wall of folid mafonry, forty feet high ; the other parts were defended by baitions, courtins, towers and out-works; and on the fummit the,ca(lle was erected. The area thus inclofcd, befides furnifliing accomodations for the earl and his domeflics, contained calerns for a flrong garrifon with their equipments. 'J'he earl, in his charter to St.- John's priory, provides, that if he be abfent the monks of that houfe fliali ferve hi 3 caitle-chapel, and receive the emoluments from thence arifing ; but if he be refidtnt, then his own domeftic chaplains iliall attend. In the fame record, his barns ))in'- beyond the bridge, are mentioned, with every other circumflance indicating a reiiu- lar houfhold and court, Gilbert Clare, earl of Glocefter and Hereford, marrying Ifabclla, one of thc- daughters and coheireiTcs of William, earl marflial, received as herdower the county of Kilkenny. He extended the privileges of the corporation by the following charter recited (7) by Hanmer. "To our fenefchal of Kilkenny, and lo our treafurer of the fame, greeting. Kngw ye, that for the common profit of the town of Kilkenny, of our fpecial favour, we have granted lo our loving burgeffes of the faid town, that none fliall fell victuals there, but fuch as fhall be prized by the olTicers of faid town, &.C." Prifage, by (&) Bluckllone, is mentioned as equivalent to butlerage, or a duty on wine ; befides this, it had a more general acceptation, and meant thofe duties •which every CaftLllan had a right to receive for commodities brought for fale to fairs and markets within th« precInQs of his caftle. Of this our ancient regal charters, our old hiftorians and the monaiticon fupply many proofs. Thefe duties the earl of Gloceiler transferred to the citizens. By marriage, Kilkenny came into the ancient and noble family of Le Defpencer ; Hugh Le Defpencer marrying Eleanor, filler and coheir of Gilbert, earl of Gloceflcr. Hugh le Defpcnftr, a defcendant of the preceding, poffcffed great properties in dif- ferent (6) Camden, in PcrabrokeOilre. (7) ''"£• J 7^' C^) ConimcnUrics, toI. i. pag. JI4. 436 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ferent counties in England, conferred on his anceflor by the conqueror, immediately after the battle of Ilaftings. This Hugh (9) by deeds dated the fourth and twelfth of September, 1391, being the 15 Rich. II. conveyed the caltle of Kilkenny and its (10) dependencies to James, earl of Ormond ; which earl, ia 1386, had built the caftle of Dunfert, now called Danesfort. Among the families attached to the earl marfhal, and early planted in Kilkenny, that of Grace feems^o have been very refpecliable. William, Hamen and Amnar Grace fubfcribe as witneffes to his charter to the city ; and three years before, Wil- liam and Haman a'tefl; his charter to St. John's. William eredted a caftle in the city ; this old building, fome years ago, was pulled down, and a court-houfe and prifon ereiSlcd on its fite at the expence of the county ; here are held the afTizes and feffions for the county ; it is in Coal-market, and flill called Grace's old cadle. The earl gave them large poffeilions, and an extenfive tratl of country, known by the name of Grace's parifh. Haman Grace'e pofterity fettled in the county (11) of Wex- ford, and other branches (12) at Ballylinch, at Carney and Leighan in the county of Tipperary. In 1560, one of them was baron of Courtiftown, and lies interred in the cathedral. The internal police of Kilkenny being fixed on a folid bafis by the preceding grants and charters, and the profperity of its citizens fecured and extended by many privi- leges and immunities, it foon attained a prime eminence among the ceniral towns of the kingdom. In 1294, Richard, (13) earl of Ullter was taken prifoner by lord John Fitz Thomas, and kept in hold until the feafl of pope Gregory ; he was then fet at liberty by the king's council alTembled in parlianent at Kilkenny. The jealoufies •lind competitions among the Irifh nobility perpetually excited violent feuds and do- meftic diflentions. The ruling power of government was weak, and inadequate to reftrain their enormities and exceffes. Lord Fitz Thomas Fitz Gerald laying claim to fome lands belonging to the earl of Ulfter in Conaught, endeavoured to poifefs himfelf of them by an armed force : the earl oppofed him, but with ill fuccefs, far he (9) Cane's life of Ormond, introdudion, pag. 36. (iO) Thcfc comi'rchcndcd ; the calllc of Kilkenny, with the mills; the borough of Kofbargon, with the- mills ; the manors af Dunfert and Kildcriiioy ; the ferjLMiicy of Overk ; all his leiiemcms in Kalltii le Hill ; jj/ i;j. ^J. in KalUn and the advowlmi of the cliiirch ; with all the lands, tenenienrs, advo\% fans and knight's fits in Noveik, Rolb;irgon, l.ogheran, Killagh, Rofinan, lUid, Knoftofre, the uc»v town of Jcrpoint, Killamery, Ardertdon, Lyfdonfy, Kilfeckaniaduff and Thullenabrogc. Carte fupra. (11) Annals at the end of CaniJtn, under the year 1 305 (u) Hibern. Doniiuic. pag. 270. (13) Annals fupra. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 437 •4 < ' ■# 4 < 4 < < .< < .<..t 4 .< .4 < .4 4 4. 4.. 4 .4 .4..4 .4 .4..4..4..4..4..4..4 4 .4 4 .4 .4 - ' + »- > >. >. >..>. >. >. >. > >. >. >.>.->..>. y.y ,. >>>>>>.>.»>>>»>>,>>,,,, ^. h€ was taken and imprifoned, as above hinted, in the baron's ftrong cuflle of Ley, on the banks of the Barrow, in the Qiieen's county. Mr. Sclden and Mr. Pryne alfert that parliaments did not exift at the time here mentioned, but the contrary feems well eftabli'hsd from (14) what o'hers have col- leded on this fubjeft. They were, as to conftituent members, not numerous ; be- caufe the great lords were enfeoffed of the whole kingdom ; alienations were then unknown, and the boroughs but few, fo that the reprefentatives were neceflHirily con- fined to a fmall number ; and fuch aflemblies were in reality rather Polifli diets than Britiflf parliaments. Multitudes of retainers followed their lords to thofe meetings • turbulence and faftion dillurbed their deliberations, and the public were rather amu- fed than benefited by them ; however, the magnificence, prodigah'ty and numbers difplayed on thofe occafions could not but very much enrich the inhabitants of Kilkenny. The next parliament held in Kilkenny was in the 3 Edw. 11. 1309 ; its a£bs are to be found in the feveral (15) editions of our ftatutes ; but there ar,e others fiili ex- tant in the black book of Chriit church, Dublin, and given to the public by ( 1 6) Dr. Leland. One claufe ordains, " that the Engliili here (hall conform in garb and in the cut of their hair to the fafliion of their countrymen in England ; whoever affecVed that of the Irifli was to be' treated as fuch ; their lands and chatties to be feized and their perfons imprifoned." Here is clearly difclufed the beginning de- generacy of the Britifh colonies. Unreftrained by the whoifome feveriiy of wile laws, and plunged in a perpetual round of violence and rapine, they foon loft that manlinefs of fentiment and propriety of condud which they brought with them into the ifland ; they infenfibly contracted a familiarity with, and a fondnefs for the difiipated manners of the natives ; they adopted their vices, and degenerated fo lar as to adume their drefs, and looked on the long glibbs of this uncivilized people as their boaft and ornament. Sir John Wogan, a Welf^mian, animated with a love of ancient Biitifii virtue, beheld with grief and indignation the falling off of his countrymen, and extrted Ids utmoft efforts to prevent the contagion from fpreading. To give the hi^heltfanclion to thefe laws, and to imprefs them on the people, Maurice Maccarwell, archbifliop 5 T of (14) Ware's Antiquities by Harris, vol, I. pag. 79, ct ftq. (ij) Sututcsof ItcLind by Bulton, Dublin 1621. Vclly's Statutes. Harris's MSS. ptncs Societ. Dublin, vol. 1. jiag. 311. (c6) Hift. of IreUnd, toI. I. pog. 253, 254. Cgnipar* Ware's Bllhops, pag. j,-6. where we may obfcrvc great inaccuracy in dates. 438 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF of Cafliel, aflifted by other prelates, denounced anathemas againfl the infringers ot them in the cathedral church of St. Canice, in the prefence of Wogan, and many of the nobility. In 1317, lord Roger Mortimer, jufticiary of Ireland, and the Irifli nobility met at Kilkenny to confider how they might oppofe Edward Bruce. The annals before quoted, under the year 1326, tell us of parliament held in Kilkenny at Whitfontide, at which the earl of Ulfter and other lords aflilled, who were fumptuoufly entertained by the faid earl ; but that he foon after died. Cox C 17) fays it doth not appear what was then done, except cideriug five thoufand quarters of wheat into Aqultain for the king's ufe. To throw fome light on the ob- fcurity of the annalifl we may obferve, that Edward Bruce, towards the end of Edward tlie Second's reign, headed the Scottifli invafion of this kingdom, and fpread terror and defolation wherever he came ; the northern and middle counties were over-ran, and he penetrated through (18) OfTory in his way to Munfter ; piivate animofities were forgotten in the general dirtrefs, and the rancour of rivalry gave way to the more imminent terrors of public danger ; foreign enemies and domeftic infurreftions called for unanimity and vigorous exertions. A fubjugation to Scottifli powfer or Irifh tyranny was equally alarming to, and dreaded by the Englifli ; if the latter fucceeded, difpofleffion and expulfion were the gentlefl treatment to be expefted ; if the former, every thing was to be dreaded from the cruelty of ferocious conquerors. Conne£ted by one common interefl, and eager to make one effort to check the career of a triumphant enemy, an army of thirty thoufand nitn was collected, and a piodigious number of irregulars, who cluftered together on the general alarm. The carl of Ulrttr, though married to the fifttr of Robert, king of Scotland, faw the danger that awaited him if his relation was victorious ; and therefore came to the parliament ; was the foremofl: in urging vigorous meafures, and made his hofpi- 1 taliiy the inftrument of his patriotifm. The next year, 1327, prefents us with relations of broils among the nobility. Lord Arnold Poer, lord Maurice Fiiz Thomas and lord Maurice Butler, with armed forces, plundered and wafted each others lands. The earl of Kildare, the lord juftice, and others of the king's council, at a parliament in Kilkenny, appointed a day for all parties to anfwcr thefe outrages. Butler and Fitz Thomas demanded the king's charter. of peace, and the council took until the month of Eafter to confider of it. The (17) Hin. <.f Ireland, vr.l. i. (ih) Some velligcs of ihis inv.iCon yet remain. Near Aghaboe is an old fortification, vulgarly called Scotfrjth, but propcrljr Scottifwaith, or the Stuis walls or fonnfj. IRISMTOWN AND KILKENNY. . 439 The fullowini; year (19) gives us a frightful pidure of the elTefts of fuperPudon and ecclefuiflical tyranny. Take the narration in the words of the author : " Richard Ledrede, bllhop of Offory, cited dame Alice Kctyli to anfvver for her heretical opinions, and forced her to appear in perfon before him ; and being ex- amined for forcery, it was found, that fhe had ufed it. Among other inflances this was difcovered, that a certain fpirit (Daemon Incubus) called Robin Artyflbn, lay with her, and that fhe ofl'ered nine red cocks at a certain flone bridge where four highways met ; alfo, that (he fwept the flreets of Kilkenny with beefoms, between complin and corfcw ; and in fweeping the filth towards the houfe of William Utlaw her fon, flie was hear to wifli by way of conjuring — Let all the wealth of Kilkenny flow to this houfe. " The accomplices of this Alice, in wretched praftices, were Penel of Meth, and Bafilia the daughter of this Penel. Alice was found guilty, and fined by the bifhop, and forced to abjure her forcery and witchcraft ; but being again con- vifted of the fame pra£lices, fhe made her efcape with the faid Bafilia; but Penel was burnt at Kilkenny, and at her death declared, that William abovefaid deferved death as well as fhe, and that for a year and a day he wore the devii's girdle about his bare body, " Hereupon the faid bifliop ordered William to be apprehended and imprifoned in the callle of Kilkenny for eight or nine weeks ; and gave orders, that two men fliould attend him, but that they fhould not eat or drink vi'ith liim, and that they fliould not fpeak to him above once a day. At length he was fet at iibertv by the lord Arnold Poer, fenefchal of the county of Kilkenny ; and he gave a great fum of money to the faid Arnold to imprifon the biihop j according^ly he kept the biihou in prifon about three months. " Among the goods of Alice, they found a wafer (hoRia) wiih the devil's name upon it, and a certain box of ointment, with which fhe ufed to daub a certain piece of wood, called a cowltree, after which fiie and her accomplices rid upon it round the world, without hurt or hindrance. Thefe things being notorious, Alice was cited again to appear at Dublin before the dean of St. Patrick's, hav. ing fome hopes of favour given her. She made her appearance and demanded a day to anfwer, having given fufticient bail as was thought ; but (he appeared nor, for by the advice of her fon and others unknown, fhe hid henelf in a certain village until the wind would ferve for England, and then fhe failed over ; but it is not known whi.Jier flie went. '' William (19) Camden faj» it wan in J;ij, bat Prynne in 1328. ^^o HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF I .<■<-<< < <.<■<■<<<<<■<•< • -<.<-.< .<■<■■< ■<-<■< .<-.«-'<■■<■<■•<-<+>•■>■■> >•■>•■>■>■>■>■■>■■>■>->->■>■■>■>■>■ ^->->>- >■•>■ >■ >-> >■ >.■> >..>■>->•>>■■>■ >->..>-- " William Utiaw being found on the trial and confeflion of Penel (who was condemned to be burnt) to have been confenting to his mother in her forcery and vatchcrsfts, the Infliop caufed him to be arrefted by the king's writ, and put in piifon ; yet he was iei at liberty again by the interceflion of the lords, upon con- dition, that he fliould cover St. Mary's church in Kilkenny with lead, and do other acts of charity within a certain day ; and that if he did not perform them punftually, he fhould be in the fame ftate as when firft taken by the king's writ." Further particulars may be feen in Ware's life of bilTiop Ledred. A. D. 1329. (20) The lord Thomas Botiller marched from Kilkenny with a great army into the country of (21) Ardnorwith ; where he fought with the lord 'I'homas and William Mageoghagan, and was there killed, to the great lol's of Ireland and with him the lord John de Ledewich, Roger and Thomas Ledewich. In I'^so, Roger Utlaw, prior of Kilmainham, and lieutenant of the kingdom under Darcy, held a parliament in Kilkenny, in which were prefent Alexander archbilhop of Dublin, James earl of Ormond, Walter Bermingham and Walter de Burgo. An army was collefted, and it marched to drive Brien O'Biien out of Urkufls near Cafliel. Ihis O'Brien was chieftain of Thomond, and was ap- pointed leader of a violent infurreftion of the natives at this time. Anthonv Lucy (22) in 1331, appointed a parliament to meet at Dublin on the Utas of St. John the baptifl. ?vlany of 'he principal nobility abfented themfelves ; a pradice but too common. '1 he paucity of members obliged Lucy to adjourn to Kilkenny. In the interim, Lucy hud eitht;r threatened the abfentees on the fcore of llieir allegiance, or had abfolutely taken fome lleps to vindicate his own and his mailer's authority ; for we find that the lord Thomas Fitz Maurice and the earl of Kildare appeared, and fubmitted to the king's grace and mercy ; they were par- doned, but the lall; was obliged to fwear on the holy evangelifts and the relics of the faints to ohfeive his allegiance and to keep the peace. Dclmond, Mandeville, Walter de Burgo and his brother, William and Walter Bermingham were fei zed, and William Bermingham executed for fccretly favouring the Irifli rebels. The (lo) Camiten's .^nna1^. I.iiitwick, Luitwich, Lutwyche, l.utwi.'ge, I nlwith, Ledewich, and I.cilwicli, fuch is the various orth''graphy of itn- na»iie in anctcnt writings, was a German fj;iiily, originaliy feiilctl in the hundred of Muriflow j Shrppthire. They removed to Chelhire and came over with di: Burgo in i too wlio gave tlum large poflVlfions in J.iiiieford and \Ve(!itie:iih, and created tliem Pahtinaic Banms, as in the text. They iiitcimanicd with the de liurgos, , Kuecnis, l.acies, &c, rrnni thin family the writer of thcic jiapes '\s defcinded. (; ) Ardimrther in the county of Weltnicach. (ii) Cux, pag XI. IRI.^iri'OWN AND KILKENNY. . 441 ..4 .< 4 ■< ■< ■< ■4-4 ■* 'i-t-t •< ■<•< ■<■■* ■< •* ■<■ 4 ■<■■< .4-4 4'4 ■« ■< < ■<-«-<■<■■<■■< ■•+•- > »■ > > >■■>■ »' >■>■>. > ». »- »■ >. >■>.>>.>•> >>■ >■>> >■ ► > > »■> »■•> » >■ > >>■•»■ »■- 1 he city, in 1334, had certain (23) tolls granted it, forpavage, for feven years. The ann;.ls of Ireland, 'under the year 1341, inform lis of the precarious flate of the kingdom, and the danger of its being dilfcvered from England. The king (24) rc%'oked all thofe gifts and grants that by him or his father had been con- ferred, by any means, upon any perfons whatfoever in Ireland, were they liberties, lands or other goods. For which revocation great drfcontent and difpleafure arofe in the land of Ireland, which was at the point to be lofl for ever out of the king of England's hands. Hereupon, by the king's council, there was ordained a general parliament in the month of Odober ; before which time there never was known fo notable a divlfion between tho'"e that were Englifh by birth and Englifh by blood. The mayors of the king's cities in the fame land, together wiih all the belter fort of the nobilitv and gentry, with one confent, upon mature deliberation and council had, among other their conclufions, decreed and appointed a common parliament at Kilkenny in November, to the utility and profit of both the king and the land, with- out afkiiig any council r.t all of Sir John Morris, the lord juftice, or the king's officers aforefald in that behalf; neither the lord juitlce or the king's minilters in any wife prefumed to come to the fame parliament in Kilkenny. 1"he elders therefore of the land, together with the ancients and mayors of the cities agreed and ordained, as touching folemn ambaffadors to be fcnt with all fpeed to the king of England, and to complain of his mmiders in Ireland, as touching their unequal and unjull regiment of the fame ; and that from thenceforth they neither could, nor would endure the realm of Ireland to be ruled by his miniflers, as it had wont to be ; and paitlcularly they made complaint of the aforefald minlfters by way of thefe quellions. Imprimis, how a land full of wars could be governed by him that was unfkilful in war ? Secondly, how a minifler or offictr of the king (hould in a fiiort time grow to fo much wealth ? Thirdly, how It came to pafs, that the king was never the richer for Ireland ? The title of thefe petitions, with the king's anfwer, appears thus In a clofe roll of the 16 Edw. Ill: " Les peticlons, quenfeunt feurent balllez a noHre feigneur le roy de France et Dengleterre, par frere Johan Larch, priour del hofpital feint Johan de Jerufalem en Irlande, et Mons. Thomas Wogan envoiez au roy en meflage, par les prelatz, ^ u countes,. (ijj Appendix IV. (14) Pijnne on the 4th inftitute. 442 HISTORY AND ANTiqiJITIF.S OF cpuntes, barons et la commune de la terre Diri^unJe, ove autres articles queur le rcy par lavifemcnt de fon confeil ad ordeine. Que les peftcions feurent diligealment examinez et rerpondus par !e confeil de roy, et les refponfes efcriptes feveralment apres chefcun petition. Et puis le roy oyz et etendutz les dites peticions et refponfes ii facorda, et commanda que les dites refponfes ove les dites articles feifent tenus et meintenuz en touz pointz fur les peines contenuz en ycelles." The petitioners complained of the mal-adminiflration of the governors and other officers ; but the capital grievance was the refumption of their lands. The kinj^'s anfwers were mild and fatisfaftory, and a ftorm, that portended the convulfion and difunion of the kingdom, blew over, without any material injury but th« alarm it created. At a ("25) parliament held in Kilkenny in i347> it was agreed to grant a fubfidy for the Irifh wars, of two (hillings fur every carrucate of land, and of two (hillings in the pound to be paid by every perfon whofe fortune amounted to fix pounds. Ralph Kelly, (26) archblfhop of Cafliel, conceiving this to be an infrigement of the immunities of the church, fummoned his fuftVagans and clergy to meet a? Tipperary to deliberate on this new law ; when they decreed it unlawful as to them ; that every beneficed clergyman fubmitting to it, and contributing to the fubfidy, fhouid be rendered incapable of promotion within the province. This aft did not go un- noticed ; an information, at the fuit of the king, was exhibited againfl: the archbifliop, and he was mulfted in the fum of a thoufand pounds. In (27) 1349, the county of Kilkenny raifed twelve horfes and men, both completely covered with mail, thefe were heavy cavalry, at tv.-elve pence a day : fixty hobellers, or Hght horfe, at four pence a day ; and two hundred infantry at three farthings a day, amounting in the whole to two hundred and feventy-two men. For fupport of thefe a fubfidy was granted and levied. In 1356, Sir Thomas Rokeby, (28) lord jultice, convened a parliament to Kil- kenny, wherein many good laws pafled for fettling the internal government of the kingdom, and reclaiming the degenerate Englifh. And in 1367, the celebrated ftatute of Kilkenny was enafted by a parliament in that city, held before Lionel duke of Clarence. This affembly was the mofl: fplendid and numerous that ever before met hereon fuch an occafion. (29) Befides domcftic regulations, the principal objeft (15) l.cbnd, vol. I. pag. 310. (x6) Wjrc't Bilhopt, pag. 478. (17) Ciix, p»g. 114. (i^) Appendix IV. (iy) LcUnd, fuprt, givci a iLnim.iry u( ihis ftaiule, to which we refer the retd»r. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 443 objcdi of this fiimous law was, to prevent the Englifhfrom degenerating into Irifh ; and therefore every intercourfe between them was interdicted ; the Brehon law was forbidden, and that of England alone allowed. It is remarkable, that this ftatute an- nexes thehigheil (30,' penalties to the adoption of the Irifh apparel, which certainly was an inferior fpecies of criminality, and could arife only from an inordinate predi- lection of the Englilh in favour of their own drefs, which is thus defcribcd : (31) " The commons were befotted in excefs of apparel, in wide furcoats reaching to theirjoins ; fome in a garment reaching to their heels, clofe before and ftrutting out on the fide, fo that on the back they make men feem women, and this they call by a ridiculous name, goiutt; their hoods are little, tied under the chin, and buttoned like the wo- men's ; their lirripioes reach to their heels, all jagged ; they hyve another weed of filk which they call a paltock ; their hofe are pied, or of two colours or more, with latchets, which they call harlots, and tie -to their paltocks without any breeches ; their girdles are of gold and filver, fome worth twenty marks ; their fhoes and pattens are fuouted and peeked more than a finger long, crooking upwards, which they call crarkowes, refembling the devil's claws, which are fattened to the knees with chains of gold and filver." Thus gaudily attired, we need not wonder if the Englilh beheld the Irilh mantles, their trowfers, gibbs, crommeals, their barreds and brogues, not only with contempt but abhorrence ; but when they confidered the fourteen yards ot yellow linen worn by the natives, by way of Ibirts and fmocks, they execrated fuch anti-chriftian cuftoms, and conceived it impoffible for a fmgle good quality to fubfill under fuch clo- thing. A. D. 1365. By (32) a deed dated the 40 Edw. III. Adam Cantwell grants to Robert le Marchal and Ifabella Cantwell his wife, all his melfuages, rciit^ and tene- ments in his holdings in Ireflon (Irilhtown), in the Green near Kilkenny. The witnelTes are Thomas Lynan, provoft of Irilhtown, and others. Ata parliament held in (33) Kilkenny in 1370, afubfidy of three thoufand pounds was granted for the Irilh wars, and in a fubfequent feflion two thoufand more. On the fourth of May, 1374 (34), Sir William Windlbr, lord lieutenant, was fworn into the government, in Kilkenny. He undertook the charge of the kingdom for the (.^o) The biftiops of Dul.Iiii, Calhel, Tuam, Lifmore, Waterford, OITorjf, KiUalof, Leighlin and Clnynt were frefcnr, and fulminated anatliemas againft the tranfgreflbrs of tliis law. 3 1} Tlie author ot Eulogium ajiud Camden's remains, pag, lO- See tliis eitrail tiplaiued in Struit's Antiquities, Tol. a. pag. 14. &c. (32; King's Cullcift. pag m. (33) Clauf. 47 Edw. tIJ. memb. 3, (34} Cox, p»j. 131. ^44 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF - >■ >>■>■■>■>■ > >- >■ > >. >. >■ >. y. > .>. >■•>.■>. >.,>..>..>■■>■■>• >.■>..>.■>.■>.>.. the annual fum of;^.ii2i3 6s. 8i. and obtained an order from the king and coun- cil, that abfentees fliould repair home, or find fuiFicient men in their room to defend their eflates. The next parliament in Kilkenny was in the year 1376, for the purpofe of granting the king a fubfidy for his foreign wars ; but this not proving efteftual, writs were if- fued in the 49th and 50th of Edvv. 111. for fending rcprefentatives to England, from each county and town. That to the county of Kilkenny is thus : (^c^) " Confnnile breve dirigitur fenefcallo libertatis Kilkennise et vicecomiti crocea^ ibidem, fub eadem data. Tenor retorni brcvis prssdifti fequitur in hac verba : Alexander epifcopus Offorienfis, et Galfridus Forftal, elecli funt per fenefcallum libertatis Kilkennics ct vicecomitem croceas ibidem, ac magnates et communes ejufdem comitatus." But this return being of one ecclufiaftical perfon, contrary to the king's orders, and the county giving no powers to ailL-nt to a fubfidy, or the impofition of tixes, a new writ was fent, and William Cotterell of Kenlis or Kells was joined with Forflal. Here the fenefchal of the county and the Iheriff of the crofs or church-lands made the return ; who thefe officers were will belf appear from the words of Sir John Davis. " Thefe abfolute palatines (fpeaking of the nobility) who had whole counties, made barons and knights, did exercife high juftice in all points within their territories ; creded courts for criminal and civil caufes and for their own revenues, in the fame form as the king's courts were eftablifiied in Dublin ; made their own judges, fenef- chals, flieriffs, coroners and efcheators. So the king's writ did not run in thofe counties, but only in tiie church-lands belonging to the fan^e, which were called the Crofs, wherein the king made a (heriff ; and fo in each of thefe counties palatines there were two {heriffs, one of the Libeity and another of the Crofs." Let us now attend the writ to the ciiy : " Confimile breve dirigitur fuperiori et pra;pofito villae de Kilkenny, &c. And the return w?s: Robertus Fiode et Johannes Ledred e\e€ti funt per fuperiorem, praspofitum et burgenfis villa; Kilkennis;, ad tranf- fretandum verfus dominum regem in Anglia, &c." Here the writ exprefsly mentions the officers of the corporation to be the fovereign and provoft. The powers of each were anciently dilHnd ; the firft (36) was judge, in the lall refort, of matters within his jurifdidion ; he defended the rights of the city and its inhabitants, and executed other official acts. The provolt was an inferi- or judge ; he infpeded the markets and farmed the tolls. Kilkenny, in this record is called (35) Lelanil, »ol. l. a- penJIx. fj6) Dii Cangc, voce pr»pufiiu». IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 445 called villa, a town ; at this time, 1376, there were but four cities in Ireland, Dublin, Waterfcrd, Cork, and Limerick ; and five towns, Droghcda, Kilkenny, Rofs, Wex- ford, ^and Youghall ; nor doth it appear from this document, that the reprefentativea exceeded one hundred, which, confidering the narrownefs of the pale, were fufiicient for the Englifh colonics. The year before, that is in 1375, (2,7) letters patent ifflied, granting to the cor- poration, for the fpace of feven years, very confiderable tolls, for the repairs of the walls', bridges and pavements belonging tT it ; they were drawn up in Kilkenny, as the date of them proves ; and as they feem to include the whole trade of the city at this time, it may be pleafing to the inquifitive to take notice of a few curious particu- lars. We ftiall arrange them under the following heads : MEASURES AND WEIGHTS. The Cranocus, or (38) Cronnog in Irifh, was a baflcet or hamper for holding corn, lined with the (kin of a bead;, and luppofed to hold the produce of feventeen flieaves of corn, and to be equal to a Brillol barrel. 'Ihis was a remnant of remote ages, and an effort of unpolifhed fociety towards a jufl determination of their rights. A ftandard for meafuring different kinds of grain, and thereby eflimating their value in permutation, would naturally be among the firft contrivances of mankind, and a bafket of twigs lined with a (kin was the moft obvious and ready expedient for this purpofe. Such is the attachment of rude people to their ancient cuftoms and manners, that it is after a long lapfe of years they can be induced to lay them afide, and adopt thofe that are more convenient and ufeful. From what is now faid, we are not to conclude, that the citizens of Kilkenny were in a more uncivilized llate than their cotemporaries -, they were equal to any of theni in the luxuries of living and drefs. The dolium, chane and lagena were uncertain meafures, and the weights ufed were pounds and Hones. Summagium, or fagmcgium, or fauma (39) feems to have been a car or cart load, and in this record is contradiRinguiflied from onus, wnich was an horfc load. GRAIN. Mod fpecies are enumerated, as wheat, malt, corcyr, coir or oat?, and fymalj fcmalum, feagol or rye. 5 X MEAT, l\y) Appendix. (.-^S) Ware's Antiq, pag. 1:3. (39) Du Ca:igc in voce. Kcuiiii'e parochical Antiquiiic", gloITary. 446 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF MEAT, FISH, &c. Good living and an attention to perfonal ornaments were the prevailipo; pafiions of this reign. A law (40) was made to prohibit fervants from eating flefh meat and fifh but once a day ; nor was any man, under one hundred pounds a year, to wear gold, filver or filk in his clothes. In a place abounding with ai! the luxuries and fu- perfluities of life, and unawed by fumptuary reflridions, the inhabitants of Kilkenny, no doubt, indulged themfelves to the utmoil of their defires. Accordingly the tolls on flieep, gcats, pigs and bacon are low ; and thofe on herrings, fca-fifli, falmon and lampreys but a farthing. , Leek feed and onions are rated as articles of confiderable confumption; the Norman families had not forgotten the porreda, porree, or leek foup of their countrymen, nor did they want fpecies, or fpices to improve it. No ■place in Europe affords accommodations for the table fuperior to Kilkenny at this day. Wooden diflies and plates are 'mentioned ; it is extraordinary if any others were ufed that they were not fet down. A toll was paid on ore and copper ; the former mufl: have been pewter, and both were, not improbably, for making domellic utenfils. HOUSES In Kilkenny belonging to people of better fafhion were fhingled and clap-boarded, as is now the cafe in America and the Wefl-Indies ; both forts of covering are fpecified. The windows were fitted up with coloured or white glafs ; the glafs was in fmall panes, as they are here eflimated by the hundred ; ftaining glafs was an art long known and practifed, as was glazing with (41) lead ; with this glafs bifliop Ledred, about fixty years before, adorned the eafl: window of the cathedral. The common people ufed ru(h candles, but others had lamps, as the oil for them is here mentioned. Tapif- try (42) or chaluns adorned their rooms. DRESS, As we before obferved, was ftudioufly cultivated in thofe times. It here confifls of various articles. The gentry had their Englifh, or foreign linens. The quantity fufficient for an Irifh fliirt or fmock, by the record, was twenty ells, or twenty five yards ; this feems incredible, and yet no fa£l is better afcertained. Fynes Moryfon, who (43) writ in 1588, fays : " Iheirlhirts in our memory, before the laft rebellion, were (40) ,?7 EJw. III. Englilh (latute. (41) Fcnellras — fimul plumbo ac N'itro conipaflis taubnlU ferroque connexis induCt. I.co. Oflitn*. lib. 3. cap. iji He writ about 1 1 ti. (4i) Du Cangc, in voce. (43) Itinerary, fol, p. iSo. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 447 -4'<-4-4-< *-4 <•< <<-4*4 < i -4 .< 4 ■< ■< ■< ■<•■' were made of fome twenty or thirty ells, folded in wrinkles, and coloured with iktFron." To the fame purpofe (44) Campion : " Linen fliirts the rich do wear for wantonnefs and bravery, with wide hanging fleeves plaited ; thirty yards are little enough for one them :" and the 28 Hen. VIIL forbids above fcvcn yards of cloth to be in any fhirt or fmocli. There is a warm difpute in the red book (45) of Kilkenny, in the 6 Hen. VH. between the glovers and flioemakers, about the right of making girdles and all manner of girdles ; which is at once a collateral proof of the loofe garments worn in this age, and how protitable in confequence was the employment here contended for. The rich had alfo their whole cloth, extremely fine, that had paf- fed the alnage ; for fo pannuni integrum de Affifa may be inter|>reted ; alfo their cloth of gold, their bodkins or tifTues, their filks and taffeties. Very few would expedl to find, even in this century, fuch mercery in an Irifh town, it being more fuited to fome regal city or the imperial refidence. We are not to forget, that the frequent concourfe of the nobility to this place, befides the tafte of the times, was the obvious caufe for introducing thefe commodities. The poorer fort had their Irifh ffufls, called falewyche and wyrfted, their canvas linen, their phallangs and mantles ; felt caps are alfo mentioned. This detail would have been fuller, and the reader fhould have been prefented w-ith a tranflation of the record itfelf, were there not fome articles which the writer did not underftand, nor were they to be found in any gloffary he had any opportunity of confultintr. In 1365, Lionel duke of Clarence landed in Ireland. During his government a parliament was held at Kilkenny, where the ancient Brehon laws are faid to have been annulled. (46) We have remarked, that about 1390, the earl of Ormond purchafed the caftle of Kilkenny from the heirs of Earl Marflial, from which time he moflly refided in it. In the reign of Richard II. being lord juflice, he and the council made in Kilkenny an order for the repair and ward of cafUes by their owners ; the neglect of which was among the other reafons that induced the Irifh to revolt, and brought many inconveniencies and dangers on the Englifh. In 1399, king Richard made an expedition into Ireland ; he was attended by a powerful army, and a numerous body of the Britifh nobility. He landed at Wa- terford, and marched to Kilkenny, where he halted for fourteen days. In (44) Hid. pag. li(. (45) Apud Laffaa's MS3, (45) ColleiJlanea, vol, i. pag. 40, 448 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF " In the yere 1400, (fays Stanihurft,) Robert Talbot, a worthie gentleman inclofed with walls the better part of the towne, by which it was greatly fortified." This fhort notice, with the year (47) of his death, 1435, is all that is handed down of this eminent benefador to the city ; neither his motives for fuch an expenfive un- dertaking, nor the particular inducements for fo well-judged a liberality are hinted at. The following remarks may perhaps tend to elucidate this tranfadion. Petronilla, filler of James the fecond earl of Ormond, in 1340 married Gilbert Talbot, anceftor to the earl of Shrewfbury. This Gilbert and his fon Richard remarkably fignallzed themfelves in the wars of Edward III. Richard (48) feemg how open and defencelefs Kilkenny was on every fide, and willing to fhew his refpecl for his uncle, who a few years before had purchafed it, and the more to attach the townfmen to the family, furrounded the city with a ftrong wall. It began (49) at the earl's old ftablcs, not far from the caflle gate, and making a femicircular fweep, or neaily fo, ran acrofs the end of Coal market, and took in the Francifcan abbey j the Nore fecured it to the northward, fo that the new town was quite inclofed. Thomas earl of Lancafler in 1408, after the feaft of St. Hilary, fummoned(5o) a. parliament to Kilkenny, in order to have a tallage granted. A.D. 1419- "I he citizens were granted tolls for murage, pavage, &c. In 1420, the clergy of (51) Oflory paid afubfuly of 2/. oj. iia^. and the commons »f Kilkenny 18/. 5J. iici. During the unhappy feuds "between the houfes of York and Lar.caRer, the Or- mond family fuffered very feverely ; in 1462, an earl of this houfe was executed for bein"- a Yorkirt, and Kilkenny was {hortly after taken and plundered by Defmond who efpoufed the other party. Tirla^h O'Brien, (52) lord of Thoraond had, in 1499, great conteds with Sir Piers Butler about preys and the bounds of lands, which according to the cuftoin of the times ended in a battle. The inhabitants of Kilkenny marched out in aid of the Butlers, but they weie defeated and their fovereign ilain. Ware, under the year 1528, mentions a baron of Kilkenny, who he was we have not difcovered ; the great pahtlnes granted this and inferior dignities, but they conferred none of the privileges of the peerage. A.D. i.f) A. D. I4'5- Oliiit Roll. T;iU)ot nr>1>;iis qui fubiirbias KilktmM,v muro circurmlfdit. Ex Rot. turr. Bernilngham. (18) He is called Richard by liurLcj ililjLrii. Dominic, jiag. loj, and i.oi Robirt as by Suiiihurll. Caiiidcii faU» into the fame raifkakc. (49) Carte, fujira. (col Amials, fupra. Appendix, where libcny it allowed the ciliztnt to trade with the re' ch. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 44^ t 4 i ■>-»■».>■] A. D. 1536, t'ie lord deputy Grey came {^^) to Kilkenny, and the next day the parliament fat there ; from thence it adjourned to Cafliel, Piers or Peter, earl of Ormond, who died the twenty-fixth of Augufl 1539, married (54") Margaret Fitz Gerald, daughter of the earl of Kildare, a lady of mod •imiable qualities ; this noble and excellent pair endeavoured to enrich Kilkenny by introducing manufactures into it. For this purpofe, they brought out of Flanders and the neighbouring provinces, artificers who-m they employed and encouraged at Kilkenny, (55) in working tapeftry, diaper, turkey carpets, cufliions, &c. fome of which, for many years, remained in the family ; nor is it improbable, but that the tapeftry at prefent in the caltle may be the work of thok Flemings. If the ftory of Decius be theirs, we mud conceive very highly of their ingenuity, tafte, and execution. But the times were too unfettled, and the nation not civilized enough to give encouragement to the elegant arts and works of fancy. This earl, (56) every year for the lafl fortnight in Lent, retired to a chamber in St. Canice's church-yard, called (57) Paradife, and there devoted himfelf to prayer and almfgiving, and returned to his own Iioufe on Eafter eve. He was not afliamed of the duties of religion ; he was confcious that from the pradiice of them new fplendour was derived to his family and high rank. A, D. 1540. Sir William Brereton, marflial of Ireland, died at Kilkenny, as Cox tells us. In 1552, (58) John Bale, the celebrated catalogue writer, was bifnop of Oflbrv ; he compofod many religious dramatic pieces j two of which, a tragedy called God's promifes, and a comedy, intitled the preaching of John Baptift, were aded by young men at the Market-crofs in Kilkenny, on a Sunday. Baron Finglas, reporting the (late of Ireland in his Breviate, at this time, bears honourable tedimony of the cultivated manners of the county of Kilkenny : " "1 he counties of PCilkenny and Tipperary, (fays he) wear the Englilh habit, and keep the Englifli order and rule, and the king's laws were obeyed here within tliefe fifty-one 5 Y years J (J3) Cox, paj. 195. (54) Cor, pag. 147. (55) Carte, I'upra Ware lays, thi; carl by his coiintifs's advice hired and placed i he polyniltary, and other tkilful actiBccrs in Kilkenny, Anuals 1539. Pulymitit, vellis muliit vaiiifijue culuribus lilis el liciis coauxta et varicg^u. Da 'Cange in voce, (j6) Caite, fupra. (5;) Atrium ante ecclefiim, qiiod nos, Romana coafuetudine, Paradifum dicimus, Lio. Marfic. lib 3. cag. t£i. aptul LirJenbrog. Cod. leg. aiitjq. ct Du Cange in voce. ($8) Biograpliia Briunnica, Article Bale, HISTORY AND ANTIQTJITIES OF 1 .< .< < < < < <•< < •< ■<■<■<<< ■<•<<•< •••<■< < (..<..<..<■ ^.. <■■< + >■ >->'>>'i »>->•■>■►>» ►>■>■* * » >- years ; au4 there dwelled divers kmg^.ts, efqulrts, and gentlemen, who ufe the Englifli habit." . The Butlers and Dcfmonds, ofTended at fome proceedings of the deputy. Sir Henry Sydney flew to arms in , 568, and committed nuiny ou<:rages. Sir P-ter Cayew was fent to oppofe them, which he did with iuccefs, and poaeiled hin.felf of i^^^- Fitzmaurice, brother to Defmond, inverted the town, but the fpirlted conduft of the earrifon and citizens foon obliged him to withdraw ; however (59) m refentment he plundered the fmaller towns and villages, and particularly robbed old Fulco OLiiverford (Comerford) of Callan of 2000I. m money, plate, houfhold ftuft, corn, and cattle ; Ouiverfurd had been fervant to three earls of Ormond. Rory Oge O More, in 1576, made his fubmifllon in the clmrch of Kilkenny, before thelord deputy and the earl of Ormond. The following year the lord deputy (60) held a ftffions in Kilkenny, when feveral perrons, both of the city and county, were difcovered to be abetters of Rory Oge, but the popilh juries could not be induced to fmd the bills uf indidment, although the parties confelTed the faft ; they were therefore bound in recognizance to appear in the caRle chamber in Dublin, to anfwer the contempt. ^ Sir William Drury, lord prefident of Munfter, came to the deputy at Kilkenny, and complained, that Defmond kept together an unruly rabble, and being fent for, refufed to attend the prefident. Defmond, being cited before the deputy, immediately appeared, and excufed his not waiting on the prefidenf, becaufe he was his inveterate cnemv. Thirtv-fix criminals were executed in Kilkenny this year. In 1579, Sir William Pelham, lord juflice, made his progrefs towards MunRer, and coming to Kilkenny he there kept feffions, and ordered (61) Edinoud Mac Nial, an arch-traitor and other malefadors to be executed ; after which he reconciled the earl of Ormond and the lord of Upper Offory, each giving bonds for the relh- tution of preys. Fynes Moryfon, writing about the year 1588, fays ; " Kilkenny, giving name to a county, is a pleafant town, the chief of the towns within land, memorable for the civility of the inhabitants, fur the hufbandman's labour and the pleafant (62) orchards." Camden, in the old edition of 1590, repeats part of this account: " Municipium eft nitidum, elegans, copiofum, et inter mediterranea hujus iniula; facile primum. Dividitur in oppidum Hibernicum et Anglicum." What he fays '^ of (59) Cor, p,g. 334. (6°) Co., p.g. J5.. (6.) V/arc'. Anna!,. Cox. pg. iCo. (61) TheaccouHiof the city's clUtc, iu i6j8, fully confirm, (h.. f»a. IRISH rOWN AND KILKENNY. 45, of its name from St. Canice, of the Englilh town being conflrufled by Ralpli, the third earl of Chefler, and its caflle by the Butlers, are, as we have fecn, aflertions without proof and contradifted by hiftory. Queen Elizabeth, in the fixieenth year of her reign, A. D. 157^, granted a char- ter to Kilkenny, which as it and that of her fuccellbr king James art in the hands of many perfons, I fhall but touch on. -By this the ftylo of the corporation is, 'I'he Sovereign, Burgesses, and Commonalty. All their ancient privileges are confirmed. They may have a merchant gild and other gilds. The burgelfes are permitted to difpofe of their tenements or alter their fituation. The fovereign took cognizance of breaches of the peace, and the (^63) provoit prelided in the hundred court, and tried civil actions. To draw a fword, or ikein, (cultellum) in a quarrel, was punifliable by the fine of half a mark. There was to be a pillory (collilhigium) and tumbrel, for the punifiiment of offenders. The burgelfes were exempted from military duty, and free from cuftoms through- out the Q^ieeu's dominions, as the burgefles of Gloucefter were. Thofe wlio fuifered their tenements to go to decay in the town, were to be dif- trained until they rebuilt or repaired them. A clerk was to be chofen from the burgefles ; he was to receive of the lord of Kilkenny twenty (hillings, and of the town ten (hillings. The laudable and faithful fervices of the citizens, and thofe lately performed are mentioned as juft real'ons for particular favours. This alludes to their condufl: under Sir Peter Carew in 1568. They were to have a common feal, and the fovereign to be a juflice of peace, coroner and efcheator in the town, in the fame ample manner as the fovereign of Roflpont, or New Rofs. A. D. 1594, on St. George's day, there was a great cavalcade in Kilkenny, when the lords rode in their places, as Cox informs us. A. D. lOoo. The earl of Ormond forced the great rebel Redmond Burk and his followers into the Nore, where feventy of them were drowned, and particularly John Burk. Redmond was foon after taken and executed (64) at Kilkenny. Mr. (6j) This will cxpUin page 444, before. (64J Coi, pjg. 4.;3. 452 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF Mr. Nicholas Langton was appointed by the city their agent to folicit a new charter in Dublin, (65) in 1608. The charter of James I. was made in, 1609. It recites that Kilkenny was well fituated to repel the Irifh rebels, and had performed eminent fervices in this refpeft, and therefore he creates it a CITY by the ftyle of the Mayor, Aldermen, Common Council, &c. The Mayor to be chofen yearly, on the Monday after the feaft of St. John the Baptift ; and Thomas Ley to be firfl Mayor. Ihe Aldermen not to exceed eighteen, and Robert Rothe, afterwards Sir Robert Rothe, Luke Shee, Thomas Ley, Arthur Shee, Edward Rothe, David Rothe, Richard Ragget, • John Rothe Fitz Pierce, Walter Archer, Elias Shee, Nicholas Langton, Michael Cowley, Thomas Archer, Edward Shee, Thomas Shee, and Patrick Archer, Walter Lawlefs, William Shee, to be the firll Aldermen, and Robert Rothe to be Recorder. The burgeffes and commons of Kilkenny to be accounted as citizens, and to admit others to their freedom. Two citizens to be flieriffs, Walter Ryan and Thomas Pembrock, the firfl: ; thefc to be annually chofen the Monday next after Midfummer ; their cle£tion to be certi- fied into the Exchequer, and they to hold courts. Four or five ferjeants are allowed, and a fword permitted to be borne before the mayor. The mayor and recorder may have deputies, who are to be juflices of the peace, and clerks of the market. Half the forfeitures of treafons and felonies is given to the city ; they were allowed three fairs annually, and thr^^e markets weekly. The gild permitted to be eftablifhed in Kilkenny receives fome illuflration from Mr. Laffan's papers, from whence we fhall extrad feme curious particulars ; previ- oufly obferving, that gilds or fraternities were very early eftabtiflied in corpora* towns for the advantage of the citizens. They were to purchafe every foreign oom-i modity from the maker and importer at an under rate, and their own they were 1 ftll at the highcfl; prices. Each perfon was contineJ to his own trade, and heavj pcnakit (6j) LaflBU% MSS. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. 4^6 I < ■<■< <■<■<■<■<■.<■<■*<■<■<■■«•<■< <■<•' penalties were annexed to the violation of thefe rules. The red and gild books, wherever extant, are full of thefe impolitic reftrittions j a few inltances may fuffice : 1. Whoever fliall buy goods for foreign merchants, or employ foreigners' money for little or no g:iin, fliall be fined 5/. currency, totics quoties. 2. No ftrange merchant to open any ware in any houfc within the franchifes, under pain of 40.1-. 3. No inhabitant or freeman to receive any money beforehand, to buy hides, fells, frize mantles, or wool, under the penalty of 3/. 4. A pewierer of Briftol permitted, on paying five fliillings, to fell his pewter to free- men of Kilkenny, he having made the gild the firfl offer. 5. The fame to a glafs-bottle man. Thefe and numberlefs other examples (hew us, what narrow views men then enter- tained of traffic, and how imperfeQly the principles of it were underflood. \Vere the noLlefl rivers confined to their native dreams, and precluded from admixture with other waters, we (hould be deprived of all the ufeful and ornamental advantages at- tendant on fuch conjunctions. In like manner a free and difencumbered commerce carries with it wealth wherever it flows, but clogged with reftrictions, is of little importance. Befides the foregoing, the gild of merchants had monopolized the providing for fu- nerals, as appears by the report of John Gernon, of the city of Kilkenny, alderman ; John Archdekin fenior, and James Roane of the faid city, merchants, and freemen of the merchant-gild, appointed to regulate the future difpofal of the wax tapers, black hangings, and hearfe cloth belonging to faid gild. 1. They find that in former times when the gild wanted wax, tv¥0 of the body were nominated by the hall to affefs on the members, as equally as they could, what fums were neceffary ; two colledors were inipowered to diltrain defaulters ; the mo- ney, when levied, was laid out in the purchafe of wax for the ufe of the gild. 2. One or two of the gild were affigned to be keeper or keepers of the tapers, wax, candleRicks, hearfe cloth and hangings ; thefe were not to be given out without the coiifent of the mader, or three or four members of the gild. 3. That at the funeral of every alderman, or mailer of the gild, there was fpent ufu- ally three pounds ; the fame when any alderman's or maftcr's wife died ; on ever? freeman, two pounds ten fhillings ; what was e.xpendeJ OTcr and above was to be re- turned in wax, and payment for making the tapers. 5 z 4- Vv^hoever 454 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ■< ./4.>- >.>■>.->■>> > >>.>>.>.>.> >.>..>.>..*.^»..V- >>.>.> >.%■> ¥.>->>■»' >-> >>■>•»» 4. Whoever got the tapers, hearfe cloth, candleRicks or hangings were to leave Aifucient pledges uiuil they were reftored, and payment mude for the tapers, and for the overplus wax confumed. 5. From fuch as Avere not free of the gild, the keepers were to receive fatif. faction for tapers, &c. as in their difcretion they thought fit; a regular account was to be kept ; the receipts to be dated thrice annually, and three pounds per centum to be deducted for making faid tapers. From thefe particulars we may conclude, that funeral obfequies were performed inoftly in the night. It was certainly the pracirice of the early ('66j. Chriftians to prepare entertainments before the interment of the deceafed, and to conduft the corpfe to the grave with wax tapers ; it is flill retained in Roman Catholic coun- tries. In 1601, Kilkenny (67) was the refidence of the lord prefident Mountjoy. On (68) the acceffion of the elder James, the Roman catholics rofe every where, and endeavoured to (liake off thofe coercive laws with which parliament had thought pro- per to fnackle (69) them. In 1603, the religious of lliis communion were not lefs precipitate and violent in Kilkenny than their brethren in other places. Edmond Raughter, a Dominican, headed a fedition in that city ; broke open the Black Abbey, which had for fome time been ufed as a court-houfe ; pulled down the feats, erected an altar, forced the keys of his houfe from one Mr. Bifliop, who lived in part of the abbey, and gave pofielfion of the whole to the friars ; though by a£t of parliament it was turned to a lay-fee, and by legal conveyances became the property of other men ; but thofe difturbances were foon quelled by the aftivity of lord Mountjoy, who writ the following letter to the chief magillrate of Kilkenny. It is preferved in Fynes Moryfon. "To (66) Tranflata ell epifcopf rum maiiilnts, et cervicem feretro fulij iceniilnis, cum alii pnntificcs hmp3■>■>• 1 " To the Sovereign of Kilk( uny." " After my hearty, commendations; I have received your letters of the 2Kth and iGth of this monlh, ami am gh)d to underflarul thereby, thar^ou are fomewhiit conformable to my dirtctions ; being willing to have caufc to interpret your actions to the hcil. But though! mean not to fearch into your confciences, yet I mud needs take knowledge of the public breach of his raajefty's laus ; and whereas you let nie underhand, that the inhabitants are willing to withdraw themfelves for tfjeir fpiritual exercife to privity, contented only with the ufe of the Minors (the Francifcan) abbey ; 'Ihat being a public place, 1 cannot but lake notice thereof, and marvel how you dare prefume to difpofe at your pleafure of the abbey, or any thing belonging tO' his njajefty ; and therefore again charge you upon your -lUegiance to forbear any pub- lic exercife of that religion, prohibited by the laws of this realm ; and fully to reform thefe diforders, according to my direttions, upon your e.Mrenie peril. From Dublin, this 27th of April, 1603." The (70) Rent charge of the antient common revenue of the city of Kilkenny by the year. A. D. i6;8, Mr. Richard Lawlefs, for the room over the High Town gate, three fnil lings Irilh - - - The caflle over the Freren (Friars) gate Edir.ond Archer, for the vault over Kilberry tower Robert Archer, for the rooms over St. James's gate Mr. David Roth, for the rooms over Walkin's gate IMr. Richard Roth for the rooms over St. Patrick's gate Mr. William Shcc, for the callle near Caftle gate James Brinn, fcr he rooms over the call gate of St. John's Mr. Michael Archer, for two bayes near the (iiid Eall gate Edmond Loghnan's afTigns for two bayes there Walter Cantwell, afugnee to Stephen Daniel, for four bayes J ohn Shee, for four bayes Walter Ryan's afligns, for two bayes there (7c) LafTan's MSS. This curious document will point out the extent of the city at iliis lime, jmi ihu fiiuaiioti of aaany buildings cow ro more. /. .f. cl. 3 I 8 8 13 4 8 lO 6 8 4 ° 5 ° 5 10 10 3 Mr. David 455 HISTORY AND ANTIQIIITIES OF £. J. d. ; ■<■<-<■<•■<..<■.<..*.< •<•<■'<.•« '<<■<■.< .< .<.<<■■<■<•< .<■■<<<■<■< ■< ■< ■<-*+> > > > > > > >>>>>->•>>'>>>> > > > > > > > > ► > > > ► > > > » > The incroaclimcnt upon the town ditch at St. John's, and the rent due for the fame. Robert Courfey's afllgns, for an incroachment upon the town ditch in his garden ..----. Walter Leix, for ditto .... Mr. Michael Cowley, for a houfe, late Edmond Daniel's ■Walter Leix, for a flip over the water near his hcufe The heirs of Edmond Grace, for a houfe in St. John's-flreet- Robert Langton's afligus, for a houfe Michael Archer, for rhe rooms over St. John's caflle Patrick Shee, for the rooms over St. John's flip Peter Roth Fitz John, for a houfe and garden near the great orchard in the Eafl; fide thereof - Mr. Patrick Archer, for the kill-houfe and garden by the Caflle gate o Peirce Archer, for the corner houfe at Caflle flreet The faid Peirce for the next houfe to the fame Henry Archer for a houfe at Crocker's crofs Mic. Archer, aflignee to John Brenan, for four cooples, parcel of David Pembrock's farm in Walkin flreet Beale Barkly, for a meffuage north fide Walkin flreet Patrick fiychan, his affigns, for four cooples John Deneagh, his afTigns, for a coople William Fitz Thomas, his afligns, for two cooples Tho. St. Leger, aflignee to Walter Ragget, for four cooples Kate Fitzharries afligns, for two cooples Richard Roth, for two cocples - > Thomas Archer's afligns, for a meflliage in Walkin flreet Walter Cantwell, for Geoffry Roth's houfe William Kelly, for a fhop under the Thofcl John Hacket, for a flone houfe at the entry of St. James's ftreet Edward Cleer, for a meffuage at the Arkwell Peter Shee, for the corner fliop James Shee's afligns, for the flip at John Barry's new houfe Thomas Archer's afligns, for land at the north end of the old Tholfol o 2 o o 8 o 1 1 o 3 I 9 I 4 o 5 o o 4 o 2 o 2 o 4 1 2 o 4 o J" o 8 o lO 8 o 2 8 o 8 8 o 17 2 o 8 8 o 8 8 1 o 12 o 10 o 13 4 o 8 o 6 o o 2 Richard IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 457 Richard Roth, for the rooms over the flip in his houfe \Vi;;i:un Shee, lor his h.oiife in Low lane Richard Brophy's afligns, for a nieffuage near Jenkin's mill To the mafler and company of flioemakers, for licence for tanning Patrick Archer, for half the tythes of Querryboy Thomas Archer, for half the tythes of Querryboy Richard Troy, for a garden near the Green Thomas Archer's alligns, for the Standart Garden Walter Shee, for Downing's Inch Michael Marfhall, for a garden at the Lake - James Archer, for a garden at Mill flreet John Byrn's afligns, for an acre of land Patrick Synnott, for Gibb's Inch John Roth Fitz Edward, for four acres of land near Loughboy Thomas Ley's aifigns, for the North caftle at the Magdalens Thomas Archer's affigns, for the next houfe to the faid caftle Edward Roth's afTigns, for a houfe next the fame, a parcel of the town ditch, and an acre of land - - 080 John Cullen, for a houfe and acre of land, rent free during his life Edmond Tehan, for the next hoiife - - 040 Edward Langton's afligns, for a void place near the Poor-houfe 020 Adam Shee's afligns, for a void room near the Poor-houfe - 050 Thomas Ley's afligns, for a houfe and land near the fame - 050 Walter Cleer and James Cleer's children, for a houfe and land 016 o David Mery, for a mefluage and land in the Magdalens - 0134 Patrick Morres, for a mefliiage and land where Patrick Lannon dwelt 104 Lucas Shee's afligns, for the next mclTuage - - o 16 o Edward Shee's afligns, for a melfuage next the Port, and for land on 8 Lucas Shee's afligns, for the Black cafl:le of the Magdalens - 0184 Edward Shee's afligns, for the next farm, formerly Seix's - o S o Gillopatrick Sychan, for the next houfe and land' - 0120 Nicholas Langton, for the next farm and land - 0100 Patrick Gormell's afljgns, for a meflfuage and land - 010 £.s. d. I 13 6 8 3 4 I 4 I 4 2 6 I 4 3 2 I 2 I 17 14 11 o 6 A Patrick ^jS HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF £' s. d. i'atrick Fitz Jatnes's afligns, for Patrick Mery and William Reardon's mefluage - - - 078 Edward Langton's afligns, for two acres of the Magdalen's land - 030 Nicholas Langton, for Ann Walfli's mefTuage - 080 Patrick Synnor, for the (hop under the Old tholfel - o 10 o Afligns of Patrick Murphy and John Archer, for licence for tanning 068 Richard Roth, for licence for tanning - - 014 James Shee, for licence for tanning - - 014 Jafper Shee's afligns, for a garden near the houfe - 050 The bailiff, receiver of the revenues belonging to St. John's Abbey, his charge. James Langton's heirs, for a mefluage near St. John's bridge - o 16 a Heirs cf Walter Daniel, for the next houfe and garden - o 16 o James Shee, for the next houfe and garden - 0160 Executors of Pat. Fitz James, for the next houfe and garden - 0134 Walter Shee, for two mefluages and two gardens there - 154 Tho. Shee Fitz Edmond, for next houfe and garden at Tomyn hill 010 o John Hoen, for a houfe next the hofpital, and garden of the common, without St. John's gate - - i 6 3 Edmond Ryan, for the prior's chambers - ' 020 Peirce Roth Fitz Edward, for the vault, the great kitchen and garden 068 Nicholas Aflekin, for two chambers in the cloylter of St. John's, and an orchard near the cloyfter - - 100 Nicholas Wall's afligns, for Sir David's orchard - o 18 o William Shee, for a houfe in John flreet, formerly David Kearney's 210 o Walter Cleer, for the cart gate, cafUe, and out flail in St. John's cloyfter 020 Pat. Fitz James's afligns, for two meifuages next the hofpital - 000 George Langton's afligns, for the bake-houfe at St. John's and the Prior's fires - - - 020 The faid afligns, for the chapter-houfe within the cloyflcr - 070 The rooms from the entry of St. John's Abbey towards the outer St. John's gate. John Hoen, for the corner fhop near the entry, and four other cooples 010 o Wat. Cantwell, aflignee to Stephen Daniel, ^-.r four baycs there - o 10 o Edmond 3 IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 459 13 4 o o o EdinonJ Laghnan, for two baycs there - <. 050 Walter Ryan, aflignee, for two bayes there - . o ;^ 6 Michael Archer, for a houfe, turret and clofe in St. John's ftreet - o 13 4 The fouth fide of the Abbey. Afligns of James Birne, for a houfe and garden - 168 Edmond Ryan, for a houfe - - . o Nicholas Adckin, for his houfe in St. John's - o i Affigns of Patrick. Fitz James, for a mefluage - o 16 Simon Seix, for a mcffuage and garden - . o 16 Thomas Shco, aflignee of Sir Richard Shee, for a houfe in St. John flreet 200 Iloufts in the High Town. Thomas Ley's afligns, for a houfe near the Old iholfel - o 6 & Thomas St. Legcr's executors, for his houfe « 0120 James Archer Fitz Martin, for his houfe - - 070 Edmond Ryan, for the Prior's orchard - - 160 George Shee, for the upper orchard - - 0140 The gardens beginning at St, Michael's gate, and thence to Tomyn's hill round to St. John's gate. Robert Shee, for the clover houfe and garden 068 Walter Cieer, for the great croft - - 0138 Pat. Morchan's afligns, for a garden north of the fame - 040 GeofTry Roth's j-ffTen!;, for a garden - - 0160 Edm. liyan, for a garden ut Tomyn hill . . 040 Pat. Morchan's afligns, for two gardens - - 040 John Stix, for the corner in the S. W. end of St. John's gate 068 George Comerford's afTigns, for the corner - 010 Nic. Aflekin, for a garden called Syrman's hayes - 0160 The quarter South the way leading from St. John's gate to the Green. Nicholas Loghnan's affigns, for a garden - - 028 Owner Mc. Donaghoe's afligns, for a garden * 068 Patrick Mory, for David Kearney's garden - - o John Ro:h Fitz John, for a garden - - c 3 8 From the Magdalen's to St. John's gate. Tho. Ley's affigns for the Magdalen's mills - - - 60 o o Richard ^oo HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF l„4 4'<-4 <-.A-4-«-4 -< •*-<-4"<'*'*-<"*"*"*-*-*'-*- .,^..4. .<-<..< ■< .4_<-<-4-«-<+>->- > » >■ >->■ ►■ >■> >■ > y r >■ *■ >••»'>•■>■ > > > ►■-> >••>■ >-*■•»•>■»• *■ ►-■>- > Rich. Langton, for a garden befide the mills 'J he infirmary garden, being 13^. 4«'- allowed by the corporation to the hcfpital, Richard Troy tenant Pat. Morchan's afligns, for the next garden Edmond Archer, for ihree gardens in the High haves Said Edmcnd, for Sinnet's church yard, garden, and croft Henry Shee's afligns, for two gardens Edward Cleer, for a garden at the Black mill Walter Daniel, for a garden Richard Lawlefs, for the fweet pond Chrillopher Shee, for the Prior's meadow Edm. Archer, for the third part of the demefne of St. John Robert Cleer, for a quarter of faid demeine William Shee, for a third part of the demefnes Geo. Langton's afligns, for the Prior's wood, Roaflifciian, Bannagh- carragh, and the cherry crott James Kivan, for the parfon's manfe land of Comer Michael Cowley, for his third part of Brownftown Michael Ragget, for two acres of land at Ardfl^reddan Mr. David Roth, for three parts of Drakeland John Roth Fitz Edward, for the fourth part of Drakeland David Roih, for the round meadow Richard Cleer, for a meadow befide Robert's hill Simon Whytc's afligns, for the lands of Tromer, county Wexford Walter Talbot, for the lands of Briitas, Polring alias Melring, Bal- lygarum, and five acres in Ballyfampfon Nicholas Roth's afligns, for a melluage in Rofs James Filzharrits, ior the parfonage of Rofs Marcus Shee, for land in Ccttrell's boly Patrick Murphy, for the parfon's part of Moycully 'lliomas Gariet, for the parfon's part of the manfe land of Skirk John Dooley and Robert Murphy, for ihe manfe land of Jerpoint George St. Legcr, for the parfon's part of the manfe land of Tabbrit £. s. d. ■-> 8 2 8 '3 6 c 9 4 4 8 4 c 8 2 I 2 I 12 13 4 3 8 9 3 4 2 8 14 4 . 16 8 1 4 20 4 4 13 rt 13 4 I ^ Edward IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY, 461 ■■< ■< '< ■< < •< ■< < I ■<<■•< ■<■<■<■< ■< <■< ■<■.<-< .< ■< ■<■<■< ■< ■<.<■<■<■<■<.<■<-.< .< -i^* >..>..>■■». >. >. > ► >• > > >• > >• > > > > » > > > > >>>>>>>, > > >• £• s. cl. 1 I 6 4 2 « J 4 I 6 8 6 8 3 6 8 16 Edward Langton's afligns, for the Levyacre Robert Ilacket, for a garden near St. John's gate Courfey's heirs, for the houfe next the end of St. John's bridge John Bafkerville, for the parfonage of Skirk, except the nianfe land David Roth, for Rathleigh John Kivan, for the manfe land of Dunfart John Seix, for the parfonage of Jenkinftown Richard Langton, for a part of the demefnes The charge of the Fryer-bailiff for Michaelmas 1633, and Eafter 1634, Robert Shee, Efq; mayor, Edmond Mc. Ireyne, bailiff', beginning at the Black freren gate, and about the precinct of the Black fryars. Patrick Murphy, for the orchard near the Black freren gate 068 Henry Manyvvaring, for the room in the north fide of the Black freren fteeple, and the upper rooms of the fteeple 034 Ditto, for the houfe called the king's chamber, the cloyfter, tlie kill-houfe. Sir Richard Cantwell's chamber, &c. - 244 Ditto, for the room near the chop-houfe - - 030 Edward Clinton's afligns to Mr. Lucas Shee, fur an orchard within the Freren, and a meffuage and garden in the old Freren ftreet 017 o Ditto, aflignee to Anne Walfh, for a houfe and garden in the Fre- ren (Ireet . . o 13 4 Pat. Dowly, for a melTuage, garden, and orchard near the wall 012 o Richard Roth, for four bayes of a houfe, eafl: fide of Freren If reet o 16 o Peter Roth, for the kill-houfe and garden near the choir 016 S Edward Clinton, for the two next houfes - 080 The inner Freren flreet. John Loghnan, for his houfe - - i i o John Loghnan, the houfe ne.\t the bridge - 0100 James Dobbin, for his houfe - - 060 Peter Roth, for a room in Freren ftreet and moiety of ilie garden at Black freren gate - . '^ . 0100 ' F.dmond 'J'reny, for a houfe, inner Freren ftr'cct, - 080 ». liver Roth, for half an orcliard and half a intiTua'rc there o 1 ■? o 6 B Robert o o 462 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF Robert Roth, for the fame - - o »3 Patrick GafFney, for half a raefruage 8. fide of Freren ftreet i o o Peter Roth, for a houfe and garden there - o 13 Mic. Power, for a houfe on the north fide - 0140 John Hoen Fitz Robert, for a houfe and garden next to Troy's gate 010 o Redmond Savadge, for the corner houfe before Troy's gate 080 William Kelly, for a houfe fouth fide - 100 Robert Murpy, for two meffuages next the fame - 100 Pat. Gaffney, for a houfe and garden near the High Town gate 013 o Within the High Town gate. Walter Shee, for the houfe next the High Town gate on the weft fide o 8 o Richard Lawlefs, his houfe - - 060 Jenkin Roth, for a houfe in a lane leading to the Gray Friars 074 Patrick Gaifney, for a meffuage - - 054 Peter Ro:h, for a void room in the Gray Freren park 013 4 Richard Roth, for a chamber and void room in the cloiftcr there 100 Peter Roth, for the kill-houfe and meffuage next the choir o 16 o Patrick Murphy, for a houfe in the Gray Frerea park i 2 8 Patrick Murphy, for a (lone houfe near the Freren gate o 17 4 Robert Archer, for the rooms over the chapter houfe, fteeple, and body of the abbey there - - 034 Margaret Murphy, for the Gray Freren park - i o Henry i\rcher, for a houfe and orchard W. St. Francis's wall 100 Richard Savadge, his houfe - 030 George Shee, his houfe - - 0184 Thomaf Ley, for the houfe and flip near the New Chiay 068 Robert Archer, for a houfe and garden N. of St. James's ftreet 012 o Thomas Shee Fitz Michael, for a houfe at the Mnvket Crofs 068 David Roth, for two houfes near our Lady's church yard ftile o i 8 loan Power, for a houfe and garden in Bowce's lane 068 William Archer, for a houfe at Crocker's crofs, weft of Patrick ftreet 060 Heirs of Lettice Walfti, for a houfe E. fide of Patrick ftreet 060 Richard Fitz Nicholas, for a meifuage - o 10 o Thomas Ragget, for a meffuage there - 080 Gardens o IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 463 Gardens and OutlanJs. George Shee, for a parcel of hmd called Bifliop's lane Said Shee, for a garden called Ilay-hlll Peter Roth, for the Gray Freren Inches Peter Roth Fitz Edward, for gardens near Black Freren gate Said Roth, for two or three gardens Henry Maynwaring, for a garden at Klllberry tower Sir Cyprian Horsfal, for a parcel of meadow near St. Canice's well Edniond Grace's affigns, for a garden, corner St. Roch's churchyard Robert Murphy, aflignee to Thomas Geat, for a garden Peter Roth, aflignee to William Roth, for a garden Daniel Martin, affignee to Clement Shee, for a garden Phillip Roth, for a garden there - - ' Walter Ryan's affigns, for three acres of furze at the Booths John Hoyne, for two acres of land and two acres of meadow at Kildriffe Richard Roth, for a meadow at Coulrifli John Shee, for Farren-brock, Chepple, and LIfnafunfy Robert Shee, for the moity of Ardragh Henry Archer, for the moity James Shortal, for Ballynolan Robert Shee, for two acres of meadov/ at Aldernwood James Aftekin, for two acres of meadow at Coolboycan Richard Roth, for an acre of wood and certain lands at Keatlrigftown The rent ifluing out of Boothftown Nicholas Aftekin, for a meadow at CoolifliiU The total of the City's annual revenue /^ IN 1619, bifhop Wheeler prefented a Rale of the bilLoprick of Oflbry to the king, in which he fets forth, that the manor and lordfhip of Kilkenny was before and at theconquefl: belonging to the biftiops of Oflbry, with large liberties both of freedoms and 8 4 2 13 6 8 7 16 6 6 8 I 6 8 4 6 8 7 4 6 I 6 13 6 3 I 1 10 I 4 10 iS 4 5 4 •=J' »7 1 1 < 464 HISTORY AKD ANTIQUITIES OF <+. > > -. >..>•>>. >.►■ >■■>■■>■ >. > ». > >■ ►■ > >>■>>> >■>>>• >■ >; >■»•>• >■ ►■ >■ > ►■ ► ■ and other privileges thereunto belonging, all which in the ficknefs of the late bi- fliop were by a new charter granted unto Kilkenny (whereby it was incorporated a city) united and made of the county of the faid city, to the great prejudice of the prefent and future bifliops. (71) In id-e, the lord deputy Wentworth, afterwards earl of Strafford, vifited Kilken- ny, when (72) the mayor of the city thus addreffed him : " Right noble Lord, The peneral applaufe of heaven, the joyful acclamations cf Ireland, and pleafant paftimes of the multitudes of Kilkenny, the true ancient feat of Engtilli warriors, loyal always to their kings and crowns, fuit with the dignity of you her renowned viceroy, lord Thomas Wentworth. Bepleafed then amldft: your triumphs, to vouch- fafe her and me leave to feed our unfatisfied eyes with the longed for afpeft of Ire- land's parent, protector and reliever ; to run this day upon forne of the pleafmg effects of your government, with admiration of thofe natural and intellectual parts of yours, which like fo many ftars in conjunction, with the glorious fun of England, fit inflruments and fortunate organs ! to illuminate vi'ith their influences the breath of a faithful people. Wilneis your wifdom. prompt to overllip no way, no means to reform the abufes, root out the vices and remove the annoyances ; witnefs your induftry, watchful not only of the common, but of the piivate welfare of each deferving fubjeft. His ma- jefty bellowing you on us as a good, neceffary for all ; and arming your defigns with fuch means, as bell conduce to the maintenance of the eltates in ft-curity, againfl all wrongful intruders. The king of kings intruding into your hands, for our behoof, the heart and bounty of the great Charles, to incrcafe more the flourifliing flate of this kingdom, in ftrength, wealth and civility. Thefe were the fcope of fo many wholefome laws and flatutes, voted in the laft par- liament ; of fo many provifions of ilate, regulating the diforders of human fociety, dailv ifluing irom your Solomon-like prcfcience ; in which and by which, we, in this >our garden of Ireland, fmell the gracious flowers of your government, tnjoy the fe- licity of your plantations, and feed our hearts with the fatiety of prefent, and hope of future improvement"; fo that no place, no degree, no fex over all this pleafant laradife, but is partaker of your comfortable influence ; even thofe choaked up in the (;i) Ware's MSS. vol. 75. ("-) LalTauS MSS, IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 4^5 the niidfl of the darkcfi prirons, acknowledge the fun-f!iine of your provident care, and receiving new life and relief from ^-our hands, cry out — Long live oui life, our relief, noble Wentworth ! — The widows and orphans opprefled find you a propitious patron ; -the nobility, a mirror of honour and worth; the warlike, a town of arms, and (lower of martial djfcipline ; the ecclefiaflical dignitaries, their reformer, their advancer ; and ail acknowledge you to be the true receptacle of virtue, and other the bcft attributes of perfc«Ilion. To abbreviate my difcourfe, left ofienfive to your much honoured ears, deign me the favour, that while the fuffrages of fo many provinces and cities ; the acclamati- ons of the common people; the general applaufe of Ireland, and approbation ofvour gracious leige and fovereign fo concentric meet with the celebratioji of rhofe your matchlcfs endowments, 1 may, right honourable, revolve into our firft principles of your honour and worth, and rlfing on the wings of adorned eloquence, to force to the mount and zenith of your beft meiits, to flutter after you with the beft wiflies of all my citizens, by redoubling in your prefence and abfence the oracle of God, my king and country, that we have juft caufe, and that we muft honour iHOMAS WENTWORTH." But h'ttle worth recording happened in Kilkenny until that memorable sera in the annals of Ireland, the breaking out of the Grand Rebellion in 1641. The caufes leading to this dire event, and the tranfaftions confequent thereon, have been mi- nutely detailed by many writers. In 1641, and for a few years fucceeding, tliis city was alternately the feat of hufinefs and tumult ; in 1641, lord Mountgarret (73) with the mayor and aldermen flood by, with three hundred citizens armed, while every protectant was plundered ; and in 1642, the Confederate Catholics, as they ftyled themfelves, met in Kilkennv. It was abfolutely (74) necedary, that the rebels fhould have the form of an au- thority eftablifhed among them, to make the orders of fuperiors obeyed, and prevent that confufion and thofe mifchiefs which always attend competitions for power, and uncertainty in the right to command ; this was done in the general afl'embly of de- puties from all the provinces in the kingdom, which met the 24th of October 1642 at Kilkenny. The firfl aft, after their meeting, was to proteft, that they did not mean that aflfembly to be a parliament ; confeiline, that the calling, proroguing and diiToIving 6 c il'at (73) Cox log. 73. (74) Carte, fuyra. 4^6 HISTORY AND AN-IIQIJITIES OF that great body was an infeparable incident to the crown, upon, which they would not encroach : but it was only a meeting to confult of an order for their own aiTairsj until his niajefty's vvifJom had fettled the prefent troubles. They formed it, however, according to the plan of a parliament, confining of two houfes ; in the one of which fat the eRate fpiritual, compofed of bilhops and prelates, together with the temporal lords, and in the other the deputies of the counties and towns, as the eftate of the commons, by themfelves. '1 he meeting was at the houfe of Mr. Robert Shee, fon of Sir Richard Shee, now Mr. Langford's in Coal market ; the lords, prelates and commons all in one room ; Mr. Patrick Darcy, bare-headed upon a llool, reprefenting all or fome of the judges and maflers of chancery that ufed to fit in parliauicnt upon wool-facks ; Mr. Nicholas riunket reprefented the fpeaker of the houfe of couimons, and both lords and com- mons addrelTed their fpeech to him ; the lords had an upper room, which ferved them as a place of recefs, for private confultation, and when they had taken their refolutions, the fanie were delivered to the commons by Mr. Darcy. This chamber forms part of a houfe, now inhabited by Mr. Trelham, an apothe- cary, it confilted of one large hall, forty-nine feet by forty-fevcn, with a dungeon under-neath, twen'-y feet fquare ; with which the hall communicated by a trap door, and ftone ftairs. Part of the benches with high backs, and the carved oak frame of a table remain. An iron door formerly led out of the dungeon into the yard : the windows have iron bars, and are fmall high and arched. This hall is now fub- divideJ into a kitchen, fliop and three or four rooms. The upper floor is low, wl h l.irge beams, and above is a modern building. The cL-rgy, who were not quarlified by their titular fees or abbies to fit in the houfe of lords, met in a houfe called the convocation, where it was reported among the laity, that they only handled matters of tythe and fettling church polfeffions ; in which points fo little di.ference was paid to their debates, and their proceedings were treated with fo much contempt by the lay-impropriators and gentlemen, that (he provincial of the Augullinians was hilled out of the houfe, for threatning to wipe off the dufl: from his feet and thofe of his friars, and to bend his courfe beyond the feas, if the polTcirions of his order were not reftord. For the rule of their governm'jnt they profelTed to receive Magna Charta, and the common and ftatutc law of England, in all points, not contrary to the Roman Catholic religion, or inconfiflent with the liberty of Ireland. Several judicatories were cilablilhtd for the adminiftration of jnftice, and the regulation of all aflairs ; each IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 467 I * ■< .« * < •< * ■< * < « < < <■<.■< ■< .< ■< .< .< .<.<..< .< .4 .<..< ., .4 .4 .4 .< .4 .< .<.!.>..>..>. >. >..>. >. >. >..>. >..>,. >. >>.>..>•>..> >. V. > , > y. >..j , >'>»>>>. >-»■>■».»..». .4 each county had its council, confifting of one or two deputies out of each barony, and where there was no barony, of twelve perfons chofen by the county in genera!, with powers to decide all matters cognizable by juRices of the peace, pleas of the crown, fuits for debts and perfonal aftions, and to reftore pofleiTions ufurped fince the war ; to name ail the county officers, except the high-flieriff, who was to be chofen by the fupreme council out of three, which the council of the county were to recommend. From thefe lay an appeal to the provincial councils, which confided of two deputies out of each county, and were to meet four times a year, or oftcncr, if there was occafion, to examine the judgments of the county councils, to decide all fuits like judges of aflize, to eflablifh recent pofleffions, but not to meddle with other fuits about lands, except in cafes of dower. From thefe there lay a further appeal to the fupreme council of twenty-four perfons, chofen by the general aflembly, of which twelve were to be conflantly refident in Kilkenny, or wherever elfe they fhould judge it to be mod expedient, with equal voices, but two-thirds to conclude the reft; never fewer than nine to fit in council, and feven to concur in the fame opinion ; out of thefe twenty-four a prefident was to be named by the affembly, and was to be always one of the twelve refident, and in cafe of death, ficknefs or abfence, the other rcfidents, out of the twenty-four, were to chufe a prefident. The council was verted with power over all generals, military oflicers and civil magiftrates, who were to obey their orders, and fend duly an account of their ailions and proceedings ; to determine all matters left undecided by the general aflembly, their ati'ls to be of force until refcinded by the next allembly : to com- mand and punirti all commanders of forces, magiltrates and all others, of what rank and condition foever ; to hear and judge all capital and criminal caufes (except titles to lands) and to do all kind of ads for promoting the common caufe of the confederacy, and the good of the kingdom, .and rehiiing to the fup- port and management of the war. (y^) On the firft of November, they appointed Lord Caftlehaven, Richard Martin, Lord Gormandown, Feigh O'Flin, Doctor Fennell, Richard Beling, Col. Dermot O'Brien, Adam Cufack, Sir Lucas Dillon, James Mc Donel, Sir Phelim O'Neil, Patrick Crelley, '1 homas Burke, Rory Maguire, irs) ^""». pg- '»'5. 468 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF Patrick Darcy, and the lawyers, a committee, who drew up the preceding form of government ; and on the fourth, the prelates enjoined the priefls to adminifler an oath of aflbciation to their parifhioners, and take their fubfcriptions ; and on the fourteenth they named their fupreme council. Lord Viscount Mountgarret, Prefident. For Leinfter. For Connaught. Archbifliop of Dublin, Archbifhop of Tuam, Lord Vif. Gormanftown, Lord Vilcount Mayo, Lord Vif. Mountgarret, Bifliop of Clonfert, Nicholas Plunket, Sir Lucas Dillon, Richard Beling, Patrick Darcy, James CuHick. Jeffrey Brown. For Munfler. For Ulfter. Lord Vifcount Roche, Archbifhop of Armagh. Sir Daniel O'Brien, Bifliop of Down, Edmond Fitzmorres, Phillip O'Reilly, Doaur Fennel, Col. Mac Mahon, Robert Lambert, Ever Magennis, George Comyn. Tirlagh O'Neil. They ufed a feal, (76) which is thus defcribed ; it had a long crofs in the center, on the right lide of it was a crown, and on the left an harp, with a dove above the crofs, and a flaming heart under it ; and round it was this infcription, " Pro Deo, pro Rege et patria Hibernia, unanimis. The condud of the war h no part of our prefent concern, but we niuft remark, that the Francifcans, Dominicans, Carmelites and Jefuits now claimed their ancient pofleffions, and were generally reinftated ; for one of the principal objeds of this war was, the re-eftablifliment of thofe orders, and the Romifli hierarchy ; that this point was accomplilhed, we learn from a letter written by the confederates in 1644 to the pope ; wherein among other enumerations of their good fortune, (yy) they exultingly obferve : "Jam Deus optimus maximus catholico ritu palam colitur ; dum cathedrales ple^acqu fuis antiflibus ; parochiales parochis 5 religioforum niulta ca^nobia propriis gaudent alumnis." And (76) Borlafc's Iridi Rcbtllior, pag. 97. They coineJ mone^. (/;; burke, Hilern, Doniiiiic. Apjend. pag. HjO. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNV. 469 And ill 1645, when the catholics had pofleflcd themlelves of ahnofl: all the churches in the kingdom, one of their articles with the earl of Glamorgan was, that they ihould retain the churches, which they, de facto, held. A printing prefs was fet upvin Kilkenny, at which all the Itate papers were printed : Dotlor Burke, in his hiftory of the Dominican order, refers to many of them ; and it feems large colle<::Hons of them exifl in the Irifli feminaries at Rome. The kingdom, after more than three years of anarchy and defolation, exhibiteda difmal fpectacle cf religious tyranny and confufion, and gladly repofed itfelf in the arms of peace. Articles for this purpofe were figned by the marquis of Ormond and the confederates ; but the happy profpect of concord was diilurbed by that refllefs and ambitious ecclefiaftic, Rinuccini, the pope's nuncio ; he came in a frigate of 22 guns, and landed in Kerry the twenty-fecond of Odlober 1645, with twenty-fix Italians in his cortege ; he brought 2000 niuikets, 4000 bandaleers, 2000 fwords, 500 pair of piltols, io,ooo pounds of gunpowder; and from another frigate were landed fix defks and trunks of Spanifh gold ; wi:h thefe he haltened t■■>"►•' .■>■■►•■»->■•►■■>■ >■■>■ I ->• >-V >->"». >"V >.-> >"> .»•■>-»■ ».»>..>■>. Gerald Fennell of BallygrifTin, John Finglafs of Wal'pcinn\Vn, Chriftophf r I'i:zgerald nf Coyiielunan, Edmond Fitzgerald of Ballymartyr, Edmond Fitzgerald of Brounsford, Gerald Fitzgerald of Clonyad, Gerald Fitzgerald of Tiniogue, Henry FiizgeraU of Ticroglian, Luke Fitzgerald of Ticroghan, Mathew Fitzgerald of Gobinftown, Maurice Fitzgerald of Allone, Nicholas Fitzgerald of Marniayne, Pierce Fitzgerald of IJaHydiannoii, Thomas Fitzgerald of Boneysford, Mark Fitzharris of Cloghinotfoy, Nicholas Fitzharris of Rofs, Edmond Fitzmaurice of Tyoburry, Gerald Fitzmaurice of Goby, Floretice Fitzpatrick of Lifdunvearney, Philip Fiattitbury of Drenianftown, Thomas Fleming of Cabragh, Fiagher Flin of Ballilagha, Cbriftopher French of Galway, James French of Galway, Mark Furlong of Wexford, John Garvey of Lehons, Charles Gilmnre, John Goold of Cork, Patrick G lugh of Kilminihane, John Hadfor of Kcppett, J )h.i Haly of Limerick, Nicholas Haly "f Towrync, Robert Haripole, Nicholas Hay of Wei^r.d, Charles Hciitffy of Catergyn, Thomas Ilcynes of Fcatliard, Daniel Higgins of Limerick, William Hoare of Cork, William Hoarc of Harrillown, Chriftopher Hollywood oTTartane, Akxander Hope of Ballymacfcaragh, John Hope of Martinliown, Matthew Hore of Dungarven, Maurice Hi.rly of KildufTc, Ltlmond Kealy of Gowran, William Kca'y of Gowran, Dai.iil KtJc iii DroDiagh, Eneas Kinlly of Ballyntcarrigy, Patrick Kerwan of Galway, John Lacy of Eruff, Denis Lalor of Ballywoy, William Langton of Kilkenny, Martin Lynch of Galway, Nicholas Lynch of Galway, Robuck Lynch of Galway, Nicholas Mac Alpin of Moy, Hugh Mac Cartan of Lorgline, Charles Mc. Carthy Riagh, Dermot Mc. Carthy of Cantwyrk, Thady Mac Carthy of Kilfally way, James Mac Donncll of Muff, Charles Mc. Geoghegun of Dromore, Conly Mc. Geoglugan of Donore, Edward Mc. Geoghehan, Tyrotorine, Richard Mc. Geoghegan of Moycafhell, Daniel Macnemara of Downe, John Macnemara of Moyriorfky, Arthur Magennis of Ballynafcmey, Connell Magennis of Lifnatierny, Daniel Magennis of Glafca, Ever Magennis of Caftlewellan, Hugh Magennis of Illanimoyle, Anthony Martin of Galway, Roger More of Ballynakill, Roger Nangle of Glynmore, Patrick Netterville of Belgart; Richard Nettervillc, Pierce Nugent of Ballynecurr, Thady O Body, Tirlogh O Boyle of Ballymore, Connor O Bryen of Ballynacody, Dermot O Bryen of Dromore, Callaghan O Callaghan of Callle Mc. Auliff, Donat O CalLighan of Clonmecne, Daniel O Cavanagh of Cloynn»ulbin, ^ Murtagh O Cavanagh of Garryhill, Daniel O Connor of Quelleanc, Thady O Connor Roe of Baliynafad, Thady O Connor Sligo, Hugh O Donncll of Rumal.'nn, Edward O Dowdc of Pnrterftown, Thady O Dowde of R(.n3ur, Philip O Dwycr of Dundruni, Daniel O FarrcU of Ennifcorthy, Fergus O FarrcU of Eleanvohir, Francii O Farrell of Moaie, Thady O Hanly of Colt lane, Jam ! Kearney of Ballylulkey, Djintel O Kelly ol Coiengeere, John O Kelly of Corbeg, Pairiii^ O Komelty of Dungannon, Henry ONcil of Kilbeg, Phelim O Neil of Motley, Turlogh O Neil of Ardgonell Francis O Ronane of Kilkenny, Hugh O Rourke of Coonerena, Thon\as O Ryan of Doone, Dermot O Shaughnecy of Gort, O Sullevan-More of Dovvnekyr?ne, Daniel O SuUevan of Culmagort, Nicholas Plunket of Belrath, David Pnwre of Clonemore, John Power of Kilmacdan, James Prendcrgall of Tollovellane, James Prcflon of Gormanftown, Robert PreCnn of Gormanftown, Thomas Prefton, Robert Purcell of Curry, Charles Reynolde of Janicftown, Edward Rice 01 Dingle, David Roche of Glanore, John Roche of Caftletcwn, Redmond Roche of Cahirdowgan, Hugh Rochfort ofTagonan, John Rochfort of Kilbride, George RofTel of Rathnuilin, Chridopher St. Lawrence ol Crucetown 'Nicholas Sankcy of Ball)tavkin, Edward Shee of Kilkenny, Robert Shee Fitz William of Kilkenny, Walter Shee of Trim, Bartholemcw Stackpole of Limerick, Richard Stafford Fitz Richard ol V\'cx- for.l, Richard Strange of Rockfwell caftle, William Sutton of Ballcmgc, Robert Talbot ofCalile Talbot, 'I'homas Tyrrtl of Kilbride, Richatd Wadding of Ballycogly, Thomas Wadding of Watcrford, John IRIbllTOWN AND KILKENNY. 473 ■■I -4 .4 -4..« .4 ., 4.4 <-<.4'4 4-4 < 4 4 << 4 •■V<'4 ^ 4 4 T- >>>>>>.>.>> > > >>>.>>>>> >>>.,, , , »,.,.,.,,,., , John W.illh of D.illybcdi.iync, William Warren of Cilheltown, Nicholas Wogan of Raihc-ofTy, John Walfli of Watciford, Jan.cs Wcldon of N'ewry, Francis Wolverdowii of Newtown, .Alexander Warren of Cliurchtown, J ihii While of CionnKl, William Young of Calh..l, EuniuiiJ Warren laie of Dublin, Spiritual Peers - - j ,. 'Jemporal Peers - . i ,, Commons - , 22O Total 251 Notwithftanding the efforts of the wiferand more moderate part, the confederates found it impofiible to eflablifli a permanent form x)f government ; diforder reigned in their councils, the people caught the contagion, and every day was marked \vi:h fome dangerous tumult. The friars took an adive part. In 1648, Paul King (81}, a Francilcan and a zealous nuncionifl, formed a party among the deluded inhabitants of Kilkenny to betrr.y the city and the Supreme council into the hands of Rinuccini and O Neil, which however did not fucceed. The (82) next year Redmond Carron, commiirary general of the Recolleds, being at Kilkenny and fiding with the loyal catholics againfl the nuncio and his adherents, and endeavouring to remove one Brennen and other feditious friars from the city, was put in danger of his life, had not the earl of Cafllehaven arrived with fome friends, in the very inftant of time to fave him. On this (83) occaTien, thoufands of men and woaien in the di;.'k of the evening, being coHecled by feven or eight furious Francifcans of the nuncio'* party, and being worked up to madnefs by their lies, altiuipted to force into St. Francis's abbey, and to murder Caron, JohnBarnwall reader of divinity, Anthony Gearnon guardian of Dundalk, James Filzfimon guardian of Multiternan, Patrick Plunket confelVor to the poor Clares of Athlone, and Peter Walfli reader of divini- ty in that convent, although this Walfh, in 1646, had faved both mayor and al- dermen from being hanged, and the city from being plundered by Owen O Neil. The parliament of England, turning their attention to the diltracled (fate of Ire- land, fent over, in the perfon of Oliver Cromwell, a lord lieutenant who was able to correct its diforders. On the twenty-third of March 1650, Cromwell came before Kilkenny, on the fide of the black quarry, and fent this fummons that evening (84) : 6 E " Gentlemen, (81) Ware's writers, pag. 141. (5l) Ware's f'lpra, pag. T4S. (S,;^ Walfli't hift. of the rcinon'lrance, pag 5'57. ('i4i Bjrlafc"» Irifh RebellioB. 474 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF *'Gentlemen, My coming hither is to endeavour, if God pleafcth, the reduclion of the city of Kilkenny and your obedience to the Hate of England. For the unheard of maflacre of the innocent EngUfh, God halh begun to judge you with his fore plague, fo will he follow you until he deRroy you, if you repent not. Your caufe hath been already judged in England upon them who did abett your evils, what may the principals then exped ? By this free dealing, you fee I entice you to a compliance ; you may have terms ; may fave your lives, liberties and eftates, according to what will be fittin'^ for me to grant, and you to receive. If you chufe for the \^^rfe, blame your- felves. In confidence of the gracious bkfiings and prefence of God with his own caufe, which this is by many teftimonies, I fhall hope for a good itlue upon nay en- deavours ; expecting a return from you, I reft your fervant, O. CROMWELL." To the Governor, Mayor, &c. To this Sir Walter Butler anfwered : " Sir, Your letter 1 have received, and in anfwer thereof, I am commanded to main- tain this city for his majefty, which, by the power of God, I ani refolved to do, fo I reft, Sir, Your fervant, WALTER BUTLER." Kilkenny, 23d March, 1650. Lord Caltlehaven had appointed Sir Walter Butler, governor of the city, with two hundred horfe and a thoufand foot, but they were reduced by the plague to three hundred. This circumltance Cromwell hints at. On the 24rh, he furround- ed the place, and in the evening attempted to pofl'efs himfelf of Irifhtown, but was beaten ofl' and forced to retire ; his cannon began between five and fix o'clock on the 25th, to batter the end of the marquis of Ormond's ftables, between the caftle gate and the rampart, and having continued firing until twelve, he affaulted the breach ; his men were twice beaten oif, and could not be perfuaded to make a third attack ; the breach was repaired- and Cromwell was on the point of raifing the fiege, when the mayor and townfmen invited him to (lay, and aifured him they would receive him into the city ; upon this he appointed a party to fet upon Irifhtown in the evening, which was manned by fome of the citizens, the beft part of the gar- rifons IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 475 rifons being employed about the breach ; the citizens immediately deferted their pofts, without ftriking a ftroke, and Croniwell taking pofleflion of the cathedral and the other parts of Iriditown, lodged there that night. On the 27th he began to break the wall of the Francifcan abbey, near the river fide, with pick-axes, to make way for his horfe and foot to enter ; that poft being alfo guarded by townfmen only, they began to forfake it, when they governor gave orders to a party of horfe to alight and leading them on, beat off the enemy, and killed moll of thofe that were near the wall, and put an end to their efforts there ; at the fame time an attempt was made to burn the gate on St. John's bridge, but there the enemy were likewife repulfed with the lofs of many officers and foldiers. Next day Cromwell was joined by Ireton with 1500 frefli men, and Sir Walter Butler, confidering the weaknefs of the garrifon, few in number and thofe worn out for want of reft by continual watching, and hcpelefs of relief, determined to execute lord CaHlehaven's orders ; which were, that if they were not relieved by feven o'clock the day before, he fhould not, for any pudilio of honour, expol'e the townfmen to be maffacred, but make as good conditions as he could, by a. timely furrender. A parley was beaten, a ceffation agreed on at twelve o'clock the next day, when the town and caflle were delivered up on the following conditions : ARTICLES Of agreement between the commiffioners appointed by his excellency, the lord Cromwell, lord lieutenant general of Ireland, for and on behalf of his excellency of the one part, and thofe appointed commiffioners by the refpeclive governor of the city and caftle of Kilkenny, of the other part, March 28th, 1650. I. That the refpedive governor of the city of Kilkenny fliall deliver up to his excellency the lord Cromwell, lord lieutenant of Ireland, for the ufe of the Itate of England, the faid city and caflle, with all arms, animuniiion and provifions of public florcs therein, without embezzlement, except what i^ h;-reafter excepted, at or before nine of the clock to-morrow morning. II. That all the inhabitants of the faid city of Kilkenny, and all others therein, lliall be defended in their perfons, goods and eftates from the violence of the foldie/s j and that fuch as fliall defire to remove thence elfev.here, Oiall have liberty fo to do, with their goods, within three months after the date of thefe articles. IK. That the faid governor with all the oflicers and folJiers under his command in faid city and caflle, and all others, who fhall be fo pleafed, (hall march away at, or before nine of the clock to-morrow morning, witii their bag and baggage : the officers 476 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF officers apd their attendants with their horfes and ayms, not exceeding one hundred and fifty horfes ; and their foot foldiers to march out of the town, two miles diftant ' with their arms, and with their drums beating, colours flying, matches lighted ; and then and there to deliver up the faid arms to fuch as fhall be appointed for receiving them, except an hundred raulkets and an hundred pikes allowed them for their defence againft the tories. IV. That the faid officers and foldiers fhall have from his excellency a fafe con- duct, fix miles from the city of Kilkenny ; and from thence a pafs, to be in force for fix days, they marching at Itafl; ten miles each day, and doing no prejudice to quarters. V. That the city of Kilkenny Hiall pay 2ooc/. as a gratuity to his excellency's army: whereof icoo/. to be paid on the 30th of this month, and the other on tiie firfl day of May, to fuch as fliall be by his excellency appointed. That major Comerford and Mr. Edward Roih fliall remain hofiages, under the power of his ex- cellency for the performance of fiiid articles, on the part of the faid city and garrifon of Kilkenny. And lafl;ly, for the performance of all and fingular the faid articles, both parties, J have hereunto interchangeably put their hands, the day and year above written. O. Cromw£ll. Edward Cowly, John Comerford, ' | Edward Roth, David Turnball, i> Sir Walter Butler and the officers when they marched out were complimented by Cromwell, who faid : " That they were gallant fellows : that he had loft more men in florming that place, than he had in taking Drogheda, and that he ihould have gone viithout it, had it not been for the treachery of the townfmen." ^ Cromwell appointed col. Axtel (85) governor, with a confiderable garrifon. The plague raging in Dublin, Ireton, in 1651, wintered in (86) Kilkenny; and the next year, Eleetwood, on his arrival, (87; took up his. refidence in this city, for the fame reafon. ■ ^ On the 4th Odober, 1652, a high commifTion court was held in Kilkenny before -, iuftice Donellan, jullice Cooke and commiirary Reynolds. S On the reftoration of Chailes II. Kilkenny relumed and exercifed its chartered lights, and every thing wore a tranquil appearance. In 1666, England being en_; j* gaged ™ IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 47; gaged in a war with Holland, there were fixty-nine Dutch prifoners fent to Kilkenny from (88) Waterford and other fea-ports, for greater fecurity. In 1672, Nicholas (89; Loghnan petitioned the privy council of Ireland in be- half of himfelf and other citizens of Kilkenny, and ftated, that in a fmall afTembly of aldermen and common-councilmen, a refolution was made of charging each per-fon who ftood in the market with commodities, three half pence every time, for murage, pavage, &c. The petitioner alledged, that the cufloms and duties of the market, amounting to above one hundred pounds per annum, were aporopriated to thefe ufes, and were fufficient to repair the ftreets, walls and bridges. iieuJcs, that the corporation was endowed by royal grants, with three intire abbies, with their lands and livings, and feveral rich impropriations, to the value of four or five hundred pounds yearly, but that thefe revenues were funk very much by embezzle- ment. He therefore prayed that the diftreffes taken in purfuance of the above refolution may be reflored. On this petition, the lord lieutenant and council made this order : " 3d Jan. 1672. We require the mayor and aldermen of Kilkenny within mentioned, by themfelves or their agents fufficiently inftrufted and authorized, to appear and anfwer the within complaint. Eflex, Ja, Armachanus, Mich. Dublin. Can. Donegall, O'Bryen, Thomond, Herbert, Cha. Meredyth, Hen. Ford." This put an end to this illegal impofition. King James II. when he was new chartering the different corporate towns In the kingdom, to anfwer his wretched views, did not forget Kilkenny. The corpora- tion, before the year 1687, confifted of feven companies, but by the new charter they were reduced to five. 'J'he (90) expence of this charter was 260/. but 305/. were raifed. There were now to be twenty-four aldermen, befides the mayor, two flierifts and a chamberlain with thirty-fix burgefles, a recorder and town clerk, who was alfo prothonotary and clerk of the peace and crown. 6 F The (8S) Laffaii'i MSS. (E9) Laffan's MSS. (90) Laffan's MSS, 478 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF .., .^..< < < .< < * < -< < <■ « < < < .< < .< .< .<..<. ■<.■<.<■■< -<-.< ■<.-<■■<.■<■■<■<■<■■< <<■■<+>>-> >■>■■>> >->->. >. >• >>>■>.>..>.>->..>->..>..>.>■.>..>.>..»..>. >..> >,.>, >..>„>.,»..>.>.. The revennes payable to the corporation of Kilkenny for the year 1688, amounted to X-S^S '^■^* ^^'" In 1689 a militia Tgi) was formed in Kilkenny. The Mayor, John Archdekin, Captain. ■ Lieutenant. Serjeants, Nicholas Cranifborough, Corporals, Edward Fitzgerald, John Lee, Michael Langton, Thomas Mayher, Patrick Condon. Patrick Hickey. With one hundred and twenty one private men. The fubfidies (92) levied off the inhabitants were very confiderable. The num- ber of houfes now in the city and fuburbs according to the collector's return : In St. Mary's parifh - 241 In St. John's - - 94 In St. Patrick's - 20 In St. Canice's - 152 Total 507 Allowing eight perfons to a houfe, there were then but 4056 fouls in Kilkenny. By the hearth-books of 1777, an interval of but eighty-eight years, it appears there were then 2274 houfes, which eflimating as before, makes 18,192 fouls, or an in- creafe of 14,136 perfons. Such are the happy effects of domeflic peace, the regular adminiftration of juftice, and the eftabliihment of trade and manufactures. This year, 1689, (93) the corporation petitioned king James, that by his procla- mation having ordered coals to be fold at nine pence per barrel, lieutenant Walfii and James Meigh in difobedience thereof, being overfeers of Idough colliery, prevented coals from coming to the city, and thereby enhanced their price, although the city was obliged to find fewel for colonel Thomas Butler's regiment of foot, and two troops ot lord Galmoy's horfe, and therefore prayed redrefs. From Mr. Laffan's colieiftion of MSB. we learn, that John Archdekin was elected mayor of Kilkenny in 1689, but was difplaced the feventeenth of July 1690, after the glorious vidory at the Boyne. He petitioned the corporation for his year's fala- ry, which was 100/. and that for nine months and twenty-four days he had received but 75/. 18/. Gil. Among his diPourfements the following are remarkable. For '51) l.»ffun'i iMM. (9a) Laffan'i MS5. (93) Laflan'» MSS.. . IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 479 For fait to the militia of Dublin, by confent of an aflTcmbly at the /^. s. d. Old Thofel - - - 030 Foi candles to lord Tyrconnel and the French general after the route of the Boyne - - 080 Paid Patrick Mc. Moran for flioeing Colonel Sheldon's horfes, he helping to keep the city from plunder after the route 050 For iron for fhoeing lord Tyrconnel's horfe- i 14 o Paid men and women for carrying corn to the mill for want of horfes, to get fome ground to make bread for the running army after the route - - - 030 Paid Nicholas Murphy for feven carcaffes of mutton, given to the guards that came, with lord Tyrconnel - 301 For iron delivered to Thomas Barry, for mending the locks of the city gate, after the route of the Boyne - i 16 o He alfo charges the board of ordnance . 25 14 " for mounting feven iron fakers, the diameter of each three inches and a half, their length from the bafe ring to the muzzle feven feet and a half; three were mounted on field carriages, and four on truckles ; four were placed on the half moons of the city walls, and three about tTie caflle of Kilkenny. 1690. In July king James's army on quitting the town extorted a good fum of money from the inhabitants, to preferve the town from plunder. On the nineteenth of the fame month, king William was fplendidly entertained by the duke at his caflle, which had been preferved by count Lauzun from being (94) pillaged. July 24, 1690, the (95) following juflices of the peace were appointed to receive their arms and fubmiffion from fuch as fubmitted to his majefly's declaration, in the city and county of Kilkenny. Sheriff, for the time being, Richard Coote, Efq; Sir Henry Wemys, Knight ; Sir William Evans, Knight ; Balthazar Cramer, Samuel Booth, John Baxter, /.gmond. Cufl'c, Chriflopher Hewetfon, Efqrs. CASTLEof KILKENNY Has lately been much improved. The entrance into it is from the parade, and leads to the back of the houfe, the front facing the river. In the court-yard are the foundations of buildings, and oppofite the door of the houfr, is a clock placed iu an old tower. On (94) Harrii'b life of King William, pjg. aSi, (95) Ibid, App. fag. Ijt. 4So HISTORY AND ANTiqUlTIES OF ■< < ■<■■< <-* <-< ■< < ■< ■< ■< ■<■■< *-<-.<■■<-.<■<■<■.<■< ■< ■< ■< < ■<■<■■< •<■■< ■<■< <+> >■>..>•■>.■>. >. )..-l-».> V > -I On entering the houfe, v,e turn on the left hand into the imht^ partaiBf.j it Is ill-proportioned, as are all the other rooms.; convenience and ele:;ance are confulted in none of them. That the duke of Ornioiid did not build the whole, the difFerent additions and improvements demonftrate. It is impoluble to conceive fo meanly of his grace's tafte and judgment, as to imagine he could adopt fuch irregularities and difproportions in any plan offered to him, much lefs would he have negledted fuitable bed chambers, which are abfolutely not to hi found here. To'compenfate for thefe defects, the curious vifitant may contemplate many portraits of the various branches of this truly ancient and noble family. Led (96) by no very intelligent Ciceroni and unfurnilhed with a catalogue, the reader rauft pardon whatever errors . he may find in the following detail of the piftures. Dining Parlour. F.arl of Arran, by Sir Peter Lely. r.arl of Oflbrv, father of lord Arran. Emilia de Naffau, countefs of Oflbry. Dutchefs of Richmond, by Sir Godfrey Kneller. Two beauties of the court of king Charles II. Dutchefs of Devonfliire, daughter to the firll duke of Ormond, Countefs of Chefterfield, her filler. Dutchefs of Beaufort and Somerfet. Tv/o young children of the family. Breakfast or Tapistry Room. From the dark and irregular figure of this room, it appears to have been one of the old towers : and we difcover the thicknefs of the wall$, which is very great. The tapiflry, admirably executed, contains the hiltory of Decius, the colours frelh and lively. In this room are The firfl: duke of Ormond, a full length. The fccond dutchefs of Ormond. Over the chimney, A flicpherd and two lambs. A handfome glafs luflre and gilt mouldings and bafes adorn this room. The Alcove or Presence Chamber. This room is alfo hung with tapiflry, reprefenting the four feafons, but inferior in defign and execution to the foregoing. The paintings are The lad duke of Ormond. Lady (96; This account was written in the life time of Mr. Butler, the itcfcnt Earl of Ormonde's Granafather. IRISIITOWN Ai^JD KILKENNY. 481 ■■ > >■ > > > > > t »■ ►■ > > > ■►■ > >. > >' > » » >.. Latly Thurles. Herodias with the heiid of Sr. Jolm in a charger. A madona and child, from Corregio, by Carlo Dolci. Lord Arrnn. Royal family, by Vandyke. Charles lid's cjucery, by ihe fame, A portrait unknown, A Landfcape. In this cBaniber is a chefl finely japanned, faid to be the duke of Ormond's iravcl- liog chert J and a pier glafs, and under it a table inlaid with various marbles. Ball Room or Gallcky. This gallery is of gvc;it ^n.eth, but nnfmilhed, nor docs proper care fcem to be taken of the valuable worRs it conuiias. In it arc tiie Head of lord Straff'onl. King Charles L and his queen. King Charles II. King James IL ^een Mary. Queen Anne. Firil duke of Ormond, Earl of OlTory, his fon. Dutchefs of Kent, all whole kngtiis. Admiral Jenkin, in black. Lord Clanricarde. Mary Magdalen, almoft naked. Fourteen portraits unknown. Six battle-pieces, reprefeniing the engagements in the Dutch war^ in which lord Oflbry was prefent. Mrs. Butler's Dressing Room Is fmall, but handfomely fitted up. There are a japanned cabinet, and a commode of olive inlaid and divided at top with lines of hclly. The paimings are, Ceres and Autumnus. Two of the beauties of king Charles's-court. Two flower pieces. Laft Dutchefs of Ormond. T.ad> I 482 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF Lady Amelia Butler. A very fmall clofet called a boudei".r, with a library in it. Lady Annk's Dressing Room, Is a fmall odagon, in one of the towers. Here are fome miniature paintings, par- ticularly one of the earl of Wandesford, lady Anne's father, and his countefs, A fmall chamber organ. Two Chinefe mandarins, &o. Wc pafs throuL^h a long corridore to the bed chambers, wliich are but indifferent. Lady Annl's Bed Chambkr Is hung with tapiftry, made by nuns ; the figures are Chinefe and grotefque, the bed curtains the fame, but neither figures or colours good. The Chapel. ^ Mr. and Mrs. Butler continue Roman catholics, 'and have this fmall room for a chapel. The altar is of wood, and in the centre is a ilone covered with a coarfe canvas, and called the holy (tone ; it is an oblong of about eight inches by four, with an inlcription in old Gothic letters, of fome text. At firft fight it was judged a relique, but on fiirther confideration, it was found, that by the firfl: canon made by (96) archhiihop Coniyn in 1186, it is ordered, " that altars be made of ftone ; and if a flone of fufficient fize cannot be got, then a fquare, iutire and polifhtd one be fixed in the middle of the altar, where Chrifl's body is confecrated ; of a compafs broad enough to contain five crolles, and to bear the foot of the largeft chalice." This fufficiently explains the reafon of the Hone being inlaid in the altar. There is a tabernacle for the elements, with a niadoua over it ; and in an inner room, a confelliDn chair. Evidence chamber. Contains a great number of family papers. Mr. Carte, while he was employed in compiling the life of the great duke of Ormond, had an order from the earl of Arran, to examine and take away whatever papers were ufeful to him ; and accordingly he felectcd a great many, and brought them on — three Irilh cars — as he exprefles it, to Dublin, Mr. Butler informed the wrirer, that they were fent back, and repofited in this chamber. Mr. Carte moreover mentions a number of Hewards accounts ; thcfe if carefully examined might give us as good a view ot ancient manners, as the earl of Northumberland's houftiold book, communicated to the public by the ingenuous Dr. Percy, Biihop of Diomore. It would be worthy the noble poffelTor to have (j6) Warc'o Bifliops pag. y.f>. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. ^q , '. i ^ i < t ^ AA <■< <<<*•<■<■<< -< ■<■ < * ■< ■<••«•<-< ■<■•< * -«■. + .•>■>■■>■ >■ >- »- >. > ,. »..>.> , ,- fc. >. >, >. J. J, >. >. >, J. > ^. J ^ »>.>»►» 1 li;iv£ thofe ancient documents arranged, titled, and their contents tsprefled : valiu- bfe materials mi^hc be found to illuflrate the hiitory of the kingdom, in which the houfe of Orniond bore fo illuflrious a part, and in particular of the city and county of Kilkenny. The front of the houfe lies nearly S. W. looking towards St. John's brid '^^ '^'^o appears that St. John's bridge fell down by a great flood in the year 1564. On Sunday the fecond of Oftober 1763, about eight o'clock in the mornlnfr a mod unulual flood and inundation poured down upon the city and county of Kilkenny, from twenty-four hours of inceffant rain. Green's brid"-e near the cathedral fell, but no life was loft. On St. John's bridge about an hundred perfoni were (landing ; but it being reported, that a cibbin was failing down the river without fmking, moft of them haftened to behold the fight ; fourteen men and women however unfortunately remained, the bridge fell, and they were inftantlv fwallowed up in the torrent. For two days there was no communication between the people on each fide the river ; boats cou'.d not ply : In molt low fituations th* water role to eleven and in fome to fifteen feet in height. HOSPITALS, &c. WILLIAM St. Leger (97) granted the church of St. Nicholas, of TuUachbrock iw called TuUaghanbroge, in the diocefeof OflTory, with all the lands there which lat ith ...V. - , , .v...w^iiii^ unc mark of filver for all fervices, at the feaft of St. Hichatl j (g^) which grant his fon con- firmed. Of this grant there are no traces. '1 Near (97) From Tighe. (g6) Archdal'* Peerigf, VI, p. j-. no 484 HISTORY AND ANTIQITITIES OF Near the cathedral is an Ahns-houfe in a tottering condition ; it was founded by Bifhop Williams: Bifliop Otway, who died 1692, left an eftate called Fermoy, worth then 40/. a year, to this inftitution ; but by the fraud of his executors, and perhaps the inattention of his fuccefTors, it was conveyed away, and never recovered : its value now would be confiderable. Eight old women inhabit this houfe ; they receive trifling annuities from different eftates of the family of Waring : three have 40J. a piece; four 15J.; and one 3/. 5^. per annum, from the eliate of Mr. Waring of Springfield. '1 here was a Poor-houfe, called an hofpital, founded in the coal market, purfuant to the will of Thomas, the tenth Earl of Ormonde ; he left to it the impropriate reiEtories cf Drominberran and Bewly : his fon procured an incorporation by charter, in i6''o, under the name of the Mafter, Brothers, and Sillers of our moft holy Saviour Jefus Chrift. Another charitable appropriation of the tithes of Inch and Drumboth, in the diocefe of Cafliel, was made by an Earl of Ormonde, who obtain- ed an incorporation from Charles U. for a mailer, brethren, and fillers, of a large houfe in Kilkenny. The houfe wi\s fuffered to go to decay ; but a fmaller one was afterwards built by the prefent branch of the family, upon one-third cf the ground; both the former endowments were loft ; thefe latter tithes are fuppofed to produce between 200/. and 300/. a year. ITie prefent houfe, or Ormonde poor-houfe is under the fuperintendance of the mayor ; it was repaired about eighteen years ago, by the prefent Countefs of Ormonde: it confifts of two ftories, four rooms on each floor and contains eight widows, fome pf whom have families living with them : they muft be natives of the city of Kilkenny, and are allowed 5/. a year each, toge- ther with the ground rent of two houfifs adjoining, amounting to 1/. 6j-. to each widow : the houfe is kept in a dirty Rate, but in tolerable repair, and contains at prefent twenty fouls. bhce's Hofpital. — The armorial bearii^s of the founder in the front, with eight quarterings, have this infcription, which (hews the date of the foundation, " hifignia Ricardi Shee Kilkennienfis armigeri, qui hocxenodochium fieri fecit, 1581." The building is in Rofe-inn ftreet; the .'amily arms at the front and back are kept in repair by the defcendants of the lounler. Sir Richard Shee built the hofife in his lifetime, and endowed it at his death ; Ihefe are the words of his will Ind codicil ; " Item, for that I have great defire and Ipeciall care of the hofpitall' built by myfclfe and iny wyfe alt Kilkenny, that the pooremen and women there' and ilieir fuccefl^or^, flial! be well mayntayned from tyme IRISIITOWN i\ND KILKENNY. A^S .< < .4 -4 < ■< < * t * i ■<.<.< •»•<■< € t < ■< ■< < I .. ,..>. >..>.>.> 1 ».,>..>. >^>->..>..>.^.,>..». ».>,.,.,>.>..>.,».., tyme to (yme, I will and bequeath unto the faide poorc, nnd their fuccefTors the parfonadge of Butler's woodes and Kilmocahill, in the counties of Kilkenny and Catherloc^be. And for as muche as I cannot as yctt mukc a pcrfccl: ellate unto them thereof, for that tlieyc are not incorporated, and want a mortmayne ; my will is, and doe chardge my fonne Lucas upon my bleflinge, or curfe in doeinge the con- trarie, to ufe his belt endover, to obtayne a charter to make them a corporation, by the name of " Fratres et Sorores liofpitalis Jefu Chrilii in Killkennifi," and to procure a mortmayne and corporation for ihem and tlieir fuccelTors accordinglie for ever. And doe defire and requefl my faid fonne Luc;is, and iiis heirs, upcn inv bleflinge, and my feoffees and their heirs, and the furvivwr of them, from tyiue to tyme, to perfect a fure eftate thereof to the faid hofpitall, accordint'-e to niv meau- inge herein. And doe will, that my feoffees and their heires, and the furvivor ot" them, fliall ftand and be feiffed uf the profytte of the faid parfonadge yearlie, t ) the ufe of ihe faide poor men and women, and ilieir fucteffors of the f.iid hofpitall : and pay the niafter and his fucceffors of the faid hofpitail, viz. five pounds fterlin'^ of the profytte of the faid parfonadge, to the mafter and his fucceffors yearlie who (hall have care of my newe chappel and monument buyltin our Ladies Ouvre and fhall order and difpofe the faide poore men and women in the feare of God, as be- cometh, and the reft of the profytte'of the faid parfonaJg; to be converted yearlie to the ufe of the faide poor men and woomen of the faid hoJ^itall, and theire fuccef- fors for ever, prjfyinge my wyfe for the love fliee beartth unia me, to give compe- tent meate and driniie att her ©wn table to the faid made.'; and after her death my fonne and heire doe the lyke, prayinge my wyfe, my fonne, James Walflie my brother Matthew Shee, Thomas Browne, and my fonnt John, to have care of the execution hereof. Item, I will alfo that from tyme to fme, the houfe of the faide hofpitall and theire fucceffors for ever, and my newe clappell to be buylded to be repayred and kept upp upon the profytte of the tyths of Kilmacahill and Butler's woodes afforefaide ; the reft thereof being converted tcthc ufcs as before." Codicil. — " Item, and whereas by my laft will 1 have appoyited my wyfe to hav« a fpeciall care of my hofpitall, mayntayne a mafter that fliall at'md the poore there buyld and make up a chappel ; my will is, and I doe require ny fonne and heirc as he will looke to avoyde my curfe, to looke carefullie to my lofpitall, and mayn- tayne a mafter to attende them and praye for me, buylde and n^ke upp a chappell, and to doe all other good works, which I appointed my faide Vyffe and others to doe. Item, forafmuche as with fpeciall truft and affiance repofeS, I have infeoffed 6 H 1 and 486 HISTORY AND ANTIQtJITIES OF ., , , . , <., , / . <-<■.< . - -.<.<■< ..,^. ... .,.<.,.., -^.. .■.<■<<+.•...•>■>>.■»■>»•>■> >^^^^ and made eftate of all my land to fuche of my friends as accompted and reputed triiftie unto me, with fuche limitations and to fuche ufes as thereupon is exprefled and declared, I therefore heartily defire my faid feoffees, as theye will difchsrdge ihe faide truft and anfwer the fame before the tribunall ieate of God, not to giTfi confent to anye of my fonnes, to fell, alien, difpofe, or doe awaye anye of the faid land foe paft unto them, other than as ray intent has byn and is declared." I.ucas Shee executed the frufts, and obtained the charter : but the founder's cnrfes did not preferve the bequefl ; akhough he provided, that " if the allocated revenue was by any means flopped, an equivalent fhould be dilliurfed from his eftate." At firlt twelve pocr perfons, male and female, were, fupported in it, and each had an annuity of 40J, befides which, a chaplain was kept, and mafs regularly faid at an altar which ilill remains. In 1685, the poor petitioned Dr. Phelan, titu- lar bifliop, againfl: Edmund Shee, whom they faid defrauded the community. The bifhop wrote to the mailer, warned him of the horrible fin of cheating the poor, but recommended at the fame time a kinfwoman of his to a place in the hofpital. The mafter returned an anfwei, which is here given, and is curious for the reafoning and particulars it contains. " Rev. Lord, Kilkenny, 8th June, 1685. " I received yours of this inffant, and am very fory that I cannot comply with your requift this tyme. as concerning your kinfwoman ; for I doe affure you the howfe is full, and noe place vaquent ; and as for Fra. Theobald Archer, there is noe place from him, hit a chamber that belongs to the mafter, where no pintion belongs, and which I have turned to other ufes which is ufefali to the howfe. And if there been anny conplaynt made of me unto your lordfhip, it is more than I de- ferve, for I doe affure you, I have payd them all, in generall. thou':h 1 am not as yet repaid. It is tru^ there was one of them that dyed lately before her pention was dew, and bequeaed it to her dougter, and as I humbly conceave, it is neytlier contionable nor equinble, that anny boddie, who depends upon the chariiie of pious ufes fliout have thepowcr to reft it to worldly ufts, and this 1 leave to anny religi- ous order to judge tf, that your lordfhip thinks fit ; and as for my fowls favetie i prefer' it before all tie trefieurs in the world, and doe hope I fhall take as great care towards my fowle, is any of my predecefTors ever did. This being all, 1 reft your Icrdfliip's faithfuUand obedient fervant, EDMOND SHEE." The JRISHTOWN AND KltJCENNY. ^^^ The chaplain was paid for a long time, but no mafs has been faiJ thefe fc;lt^ year.-. The tithes allocated to this liofpital, haxe long fince been detained by lav hand^. An attempt v.a« made to fell them in 1752, when the following caution was idtied from the ecclefiallicHl court of Offory. " "Whereas Edniund Shee of Cloran, in the county of Tipperary, Efqiiire, has declared his intention of felling the houfe or tenement in the city of Kilkenny, commonly called Sir Richard Shee's Hofpital, as alfo the parfonage of Butler's woods and Kilmacahill in the counties of Carlow and Kilkenny ; and whereas the faid Sir Richard Shee, by his laft will, bearing date December 241b, 1603, a;nd by a codicil to the faid will, datod Decmber 31 ft, 1604, (which will and codicil were proved in the Prerogative Court of this kingdom, in 1608,) did devife the faid hofpital and parfonage to and for the ufe and maintenance of the poor men and women of the' faid hofpital, and their fuccefl'ors for ever, and did thereby enjoin his fon and heir. Lucas Shee, Efquire, to ufe his bell endeavours to obtain a mortmain and charter to make them a corporation ; and whereas at the requefl of the faid Lucas Shee, and in purfuance of the faid will, a mortmain and charter bearing date the feventh dav of November, in the fixth year of hi.s reign, was granted by King James L to mako the faid poor and their fuccelTors a corporation, and to veft the faid hofpital and parfonage wirh the glebe, tithes, kc. thereof in them for ever; v/hich will, codicil, mortmain, and charter, arc on record in the proper offices ; this is therefore to cau- tion all purchafers bow thty treat for, or purchafe the faid hofpiial or parfonage. Doited this day of JJay, 1752." The property, however, was never recovered for the hofpital, or compenfated out of (he eitaJe of Sir Richard. This hofpital had fome property veiled in the French funds, bequeathed by General St. Ruth ; it produced about 20/. a year, which fun was paid through the bands of the titular blfliop ; when there were eleven women, they received about 30J. a year each, and lefs when the houfe was repaired : fince the beginning of the revolution the interelt has ceafed, but the property may now be reftored. The houfe con'ains thirteen poor women ; fix live in the lower ftorv, where there Is alfo a kitchen j and feven in the upper, which is on a level with the lane at the back, and where there is a plain altir and a ciucifix. They receive no mo;iey, ex- cept occafional gratuities from the family of Shee, by whom the women are nomina- ted to.fupply the vacancies ; and '*hat is colkded at St. Mary's Chapel, on the day of the exaltation of the crofs. Tl,^ ^83 IlISTORT Al.'D ANTiqUITIES OP .<.<-<<< < * < <■■< -< t <■< ■< < < ■< ■< ■*-* < ■< '* ■• •■■■*■ >■>■>■•>■>■.>■>■>>->■>• >-i The tiihes of the parifn of KHmacahill, afe at prefent divided into three parts ; one part is paid to an alms-houfe in Waterford, another part is in lay hands, and a third is received by the niiniller of the parifli : it appears that the rent of thefe tithes was paid for the ufe of the poor to the firfl; of November, 1741. • Not only the heirs of Sir Richard Shee are appointed truftees to this charity, but the mayor of Kilkenny for the time being : but it has been neglefted by civil, as well as ecckfiaflical authorities. 1 he cckbra(ed general St. Ruth left a houfe in Patrick-ftreet to Thady O'Dunn, to pay 1 2/. a year in charity. The profits have never been accounted for, and the boufe was littly a barrack. k-hn Cramer made a charitable bequefl: for apprenticing two or more boys was tn proteftant niaflers, and diltributing weekly bread to poor people, but this loU by the chicane of law. Edward Cramer, a baker in Kilkenny, left turnpike debentures, the interefl: to buy brf ad for the poor lift of St. Mary's, This continues to be well applied, as does Mr. NichoUii's bequeft to the fame poor. Mr. Lewis Chapelier bequeathed 520/. the interefl: of which, every fecond year, is to be a marriage portion for the daughter of a refpedable tradefnian, apioteftant, nnd to be married to a proteftant. The charity is well attended to. The late Sir William Fownes bequeathed 32/. a year : 3/. is given to the county infirmary, and the reft in penfions. There are bcfides a charitable fociety for tavlors, a benevolent fociety for bed-ridden objects, a charitable loan for lending money, and a focitty for bettering the condition of the poor. There is no diocefanfchool, the name exifts with a falary of t,6!. a year. The charter fchool contains fixty boys, and is well conduded. MONASTERIES. AuGUSTiNiAN Abbey. — The oldeft monaftic foundation in Kilkenny is the priorv, hofpital or abbey of St. John the evangelift, wliofe charter, in the Monaf- ticon, is dated A. 1). 1220. It recites, that William Marftiall the elder, earl of Pembroke, for the falvation of his foul and thofe of his predeceftbrs, gives to God ;ind St. John, a piece of ground at the head of the fmall bridge of Kilkenny, between the fmall ilream of water and the road that leads to Loughmederan. From this fituation we may conclude, that the monks defigned to ereft their build- ing nearer the bridge than it now is : the place was infulated by the ftream before mentioned, as the ground at the back of the King's Arms is at this day, and which feems a remnant of this ancient aquedud, as it is called. ■ The IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 489 The earl grants them the parifli beyond the bridge to the cad, and bordering on the bridge, which was St. Mails ; ;iiid the ecclefiadical revenue ot' his land of Dunfert ; this is now called Danesfort, but improperiv, for .the name Donfert or Dunlert, appears in very ancient records. He bellows on them the tenths of his mills, flflicries, orchards and dovecotes in Kilkenny, and alfo land at the liead of the greater bridge, where they formerly began their convent. lie gives the rents of his burgage-tenements in the new town, the church of the new town, which miilh be St. Mary's and that of Hagaman, and the intire benefice of the old town, in tenths, oblations and obventions. Do not thefe words clearly imply a (Irong doubt of the cathedral not having as yet made any confiderable progrefs from its lounda- tion, or if it had, that its chapter, revenues and jurifdidion were not fettled ? the grant of totius beneficii veteris villa; admits of no qualification, it is decifive in its import. Had there been a cathedral in Irifiuown endowed with ancient revenues, he never would have wrefted them from it for his new priory. The words alfo militate ftrongly againft the claim of Hugh Rufus, as if he cas lord paramount of Irifiitown, when the contrary is here evident. Biihop Fitz John appropriated to them the church of Claragh, referving an annual penfion of twenty fliillings to the vicars choral. In 1 645, when the monadic orders were every where repairing their houfes, the Auguftinians, to whom this abbey originally belonged, endeavoured to polfefs themfelves of it ; but the Jefuits interpofed a claim, and it was confirmed to them by Rinuccini, the nuncio. From a MS. of Mr. Lafian we have this tranfadio« authenticated. " Whereas we the mayor, aldermen and burgefles of the city of Kilkenny have of late granted our certificate to the rev. fathers the Jefuits, confirming unto them, as much as in us, and as law permits, a certain grant or donation palled unto them in the year 1645, of the monaltery of St. John the evangelill in this city, by the rev. father Thomas Roth, prior in commendam thereof; and having fincc confidered the manifelt inconveniencies the laid city, and the fcveral tenants deriv- ing under a late leafe from our predecell'ors are like to lie under, have for that reafon entered into a further fcrutiny of the faid Jefuits' title, and we find, that they can produce neither grant, leafe or any thing like from us or our predeceflbrs of the faid monaftery, either in 1641, or fince, but the faid grant from the faid father Roth, confirmed by the pope's nuncio, then rirfiding in this city. 6 I "We 490 HISTORY AND AN'ilQUiriES OF ■ >>■>>>> > >■ > » >■> >■ V > >■ > >•>■>>> » " We therefore confidering the invalidity of the faid grant, fo as to diveft us of our light, and the obligation on us to maintain the leafe made by our predecef- for?, do hereby revoke and annul the faid certificate, until the faid Jefuits do produce a lethal title from us of our predecelTors : on fight whereof we will freely and . unanimoufly join in ihe chapel and garden of the poor Capuchins, which they have improved on the meanefl and craggieft fpot about this city, to our admira- tion and edification. Befides which fpot, we humbly conceive, that there are luffiJent room and apartments for the Jefuits. In witnefs that this is our lafl refolution and pleafure, we have hereunto fubfcribed our names this i8th day of March, 1689." From this document v.e find, that the Jefuits had prevailed on Roth to fur- render the abbey to them : that the city, though they had made leafes of it, yet diveded themfelves of their right, and that in 1645, the nuncio confirmed thefe illegal proceedings. On his return to Italy, he wrote to the general of the Jefuits, and mofl uncli ricaliy mentions this a£b of injulHce done through predi- leSion of the order. " fi) Si contenti voftra paternita reverendiflima, che jo fi affecuri di non aver mai veduto, e forfe non letto una fimile novita, la quale accrefe la fua forfa dal faperfi per tutto il regno, che jo nel medefimo punto per fervire alia compagnia avevo terminate I'acquiflo della chiefa abbaziale di S. Giovanni di Kilkennia per nuei padri, non oflanti tutte le oppofizioni dei canonici regolari." — (2) None need wonder, fays Walfh, to fee among thofe approvers of th? nuncio, the whole college, or profeffed houfe of the Jefuits then at Kilkenny. The members of this fociety refident in the city, were (3) Henry Plunket, William St. Leger, Robert Bath, William Dillon, Chriftopher Maurice, JohnUflier. Whereas the Augullinians in the kingdom, according to this author, did not exceed fixty or eighty : the Jefuits were more numerous ; being bufy, enterprizing and of great influence. In 1432, (4) John Fleming, bifliop of Leighlin, was canon of St. John's, and in 1500, (5) James Shortal was prior of it. The annals of it are frequently men- tioned, * (1) Hibtrn. Dominic, fupra, App, 915. (i) Supia. Prcf. pag. 45- (j) Wallh, pag. ». (4) Ware's Bifliopi, pag. 4^5. {$) Ware, fupra, pag. 415. IRISIITOWN AND KILKENNY. ^91 ••4 4 < 4 < ^ < « i < 4 f 4. < « 4 4 4 « ( < < « 4 4 4 •< •< '« < -4 -4 ■< •< ■< -«'4 ■< ■< « -4 ■• + ^. > >• > »- >. > ».>. >. ». >, >. ». > ] tloneJ, and were in the Chandois (6) colleQion. The codex Kilkennienfis fo frequently cited by Colgan, and reprobated by BoUandus, was the produflion of this monailery. Great part of this abbey was demoUnied to make room for a foot barrack j however its ruins declare its former fplendour. For about fifty-four feet of the fouth fide of the choir itfeems to b.e almoft one window. The eaflern window is about fixteen feet wide and forty high ; it is divided by delicate ftone mullions. The following monumental infcriptions ftill Fgmain amid the ruins. D. Michael Cowley Irenarcha et jurifconfvltus, &c. et uxor ejus D. Honoria Roth, hie requiefcunt in seternam, ut fperamus, hinc requiem transferendi ubi quod corruptibile eft in- corruptionem -induet ; uterque mortis fiibdidit leg-i ; uterque mortuus commune folvit debitum naturae. Heec vlvere orbi defiit anno die meufis . . . coelo ille csepit vivere anno Epitaphium > Hie virtute aiiimi et generafo flemmate clarus^ Coulcum triftis qua; capit urna tegit. F.iUor, ca'lefles, melior pars incolit arces, Hoc tantum cineres flebrie marmor hubet. Hie potuit juris difcordes folvere nodos, Sed nequiit durae folvere jura nects. O homo vive Deo coeloque operare, fepultus,. Sola manet virtus, ca?tera mortis erunt. Quod alii, ledor, tibi mortuo obfcquium, Rependent nobis, impende ateanam Requiem prccare et vale» — ^ — F. Johannes Purcell Abb. Ecc qui obiu He lies recumbent at full length, in the habit of a regular canon, with a mitre on his head ; the wiiole is of black marble. Clofe by is another figure, one of the fame family as the word Purcell fliews ; he is in armour ; a belt comes over his fhoulder, from which depends a Avord. Ihe frame of this monument is ornamented with baffo relievoi of Chrifl and his apoftles, each with their different emblems. Hie. (6) Nicholfou'o Iri.1i Hid Library, pag. 36 gvo. 492 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF -« -< 4-4 4 ■4-4 4-«-4 ■< -4 -< •< •4-<"4^ -4 -4 ■4"4-4 .4-4 ■« .4-<.-<-<-4 -4 -^ •4-4-4 -4 -4-4 + >•■>•■>- »'■> -►■■►.•».■>..>.■> >■■>. >■>- >-»-»•>•»■ »•■>-> »•* !•'>-»'>■>>-> V »••>■ »■;>■ > ■ Hie jacet Edvardus Langton, hiijus civltatis major et burgenfis, et Superior villae Killkennise ; et Belena Archer, ejus uxor, qui obierunt 50 die Maii, 157 1, et Richardus Langton. IMemento Homo quod pufio es, et in pufionem reverteris. Neale Cullen, citizen of Kilkenny, built this monument for his dear beloved wife Rofe Langton deceafed, the 4th of OiElober 1646, his father John Cullen, his mother Ellen Seix, himfelf and family. My virtue death feems to overfway My virtue's fruit by deed will ne'er decay. There are a few other monuments here, but all defaced and illegible. DOMINICAN ABBEY, Otherwife called the Black abbey, from the colour of the garments worn by the monks of the order, wa.-: founded in Irifhtown, by William earl JSIarfhal the younger, about 1225, and dedicated to the blefled Trinity. Biiliop Hugh a Dominican, and who died in 1259, made many donations to the monaflery ; among others, he be- ftowed on it St. Canice's well an aquedufl: and releafed a chief rent arifmg' from two meffuages in Friar-flreet ; and was interred in the high church near the altar. Bilhop Cant well was alio of this order ; and on his proniotion he ftill wore the ha- bit, agreeable to the decree of the 8th Conftantincpolitan {-/) council, and was bu- ried jn this abbey. The fite of this monaflery was granted at the reformation to the corporation of the city. Part of the building was made a (hire-houfe, as is mentioned in the char- ter of the elder James. Some chapters of the order were held here in 1643, when ^he wliole was repaired. Jt had a (8) houfe for novices, fituated to the north- wefl, on llje liver Nore, about two miles above the ciry, and called now Thorn- b;;ck. 1 he windows and arches are rather fuperior to thofe of St. John's ; the various mouldings that adorn them are beautiful fpecimens of the Gothic tafte, and fbt elegance and Hghtnefs nothing can exceed its two towers. it mud occur to every one, that this is a very indifferent account of this founda- tion. Dr. Burke, a learned Dominican, and titular bifhop of Oflbry, and for many years (7) Praterea moiisch! qui vita «f dodtrina ut epirco|;i cnentur tnerucrint, n«n niutent liabitut tedifquc ra;Ionem ob BuVam djgiiiiBiciQ. Caruiiz.f; Summ, Cuiuil. pag. 767. (8) Uibcin. Domimt. pag. 106. IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. ^.^j years refideiit in Kilkenny, and who was particularly interefled in the inquiry, declares, that except the few foregoing notices, (g) he could procure nothing more from printed books, MSS. monuments, or the information of the members, after the utmofl: diligence and application. This ingenuous confefiion at once detects the impofitions of writers, who have obtruded on the world, as memorials carried out of Ireland in times of confufion, the lives of faints, and other hidorical collections; when, in reality, they are the genuine manufacture of the feminary clergy of Douay, Ghent, Lovain and other places ; and if we may form an opinion of them from Bollandus, they are of no greater eftimation than the dreams of Annius of Viterbo, and fimilar impoftors. The Dominicans in i437> obtained two parts of the tythes of (lo) Mothil, as appears by the record. FRANCISCAN ABBEY. We have every reafon to place the foundation of this abbey, previous to the year 1230. " For in the chore of the friers-preachers, fays Stanihurft, William Marflial, earl of Pembroke, was bur'ed, who departed this life in the yere 1231. Richard, brother to William, to whom the inheritance defcended, within three yeres after- deceafed at Kilkennie, beinge wounded to death in a field in the heath of Kildare, in the year 1234, the twelfe of April, and was intomed with his brother, according to the old epitaph here mentioned :— • Hie comes ej} pofjus, Ricardus vulnere fojftis : Cujui fub foffa Kilkcnnia ctntinct ojfa. Hanmer fays, he was killed by the O Connors, and buried in the Black abbey. He adds, that his tomb with thofe of eighteen knights that came over at the conquefl, were at the fupcreflron of the monaftery, defaced, and by the inhabitants turned to their private ufes, making fwine-troughs of fomc ; fo that there remained but one on which the pifture of a knight was pourtrayed, bearing a fliield about his neck with the Cantwell's arms infculpted : this the people call Ryddir in Curry (11), or the Knight on the Curragh. John Glynn of this convent, writes Pcfl incarnatum lapfis de virgine natum Annis millenis tribus triginta ducentis, (9) !upr«, pag. ao6. (lo) .Appendii. (11) I'roperly, Ridirt in Curr»ch, eques in Piano, mining carl Richard who wai ilain on the «urragh or plaJi). 494 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF < < 4 < < '4 < -< < 4 < 4 4 4 < < < < -4 ■< 4 4 4 * 4 4 -4 4 4 * -4 4 -4 4 4 4 4 <^■.. > » >■ > > > > >■ > >• »■ >■ >■>.>■ >..>..,..>.>..>■>..>..>..>..>>. >. >..>. y >■>■■>■>. >-» >• >■• In primo menfis Aprilis, Kildarienfis Pugna die fabbati fuit in trillitia facti, ' Acciderant ftallo pugnje comiti marifcallo. Speed, fpeaking of this tranfaftion, informs us, " his body was buried in Kilken- ny, (which pleafantly fituated towne our foveraigne king James erefted into a city) where himftlf in his life had appointed. Some fmall tokens of this great name are yet (i6i i) remaining. For in the eaft window of the abbey church of St. John the Baptift, and in the abbey of St. Dominick, the antient armories of Mareflial, lord of Kilkenny, are yet extant. Luke Wadding Ihews (12), that Matt. Paris and Du Chefne (13) agree in making him to have been interred in the Francifcan abbey. ^ This monaftery foon grew fo confiderable, that in the year 1267, a provincial chapter was held there, as Glynn informs us. In 132 1 the great altar was confe- crated ; it was a marble table of prodigious length and breadth. In 1331, Nicholas Welifed, bilTiop of Watcrford, confecrated the new cemetry without the church, on a friday, being the feaft of St. Cecilia. In 1247? on the firfl: funday in Advent, a fraternity or gild was inflituted for building a belfry and repairing the church. In the fame year on Palm funday, being the annunciation of the Virgin Mary, Ifabella Palmer was buried in this con- vent. She had rebuilt the forepart of the choir. Thus far Clynn. The monaftery and its offices were of great extent, reaching from the ftreet and city walls to the river. The windows and towers are inferiour to none. Part is made a horfe barrack. Near the margin of the river and within the precinds of the abbey is a fpring of pure limpid water, called St. Francis' well, and was heretofore famous lor miraculous cures ; it is inclofed, and ftill preferves fome degree of credit. About a mile from the town was a grange belonging to the fathers : in Wadding's time it was in the pofleiTion of John, fon of Sir Richard Shee. A century befoie on the fuppreflion of religious houfes, the corporation purchafcd from the crowi> this abbey and its demefnes. ST. M.'\RY'3 CHURCH. In the ciiarter to St. John's priory, this church feems to be defcribed by " The church in the new town." We have feen under the year 1328, that William Utlaw was fentenced to cover its rocf with .lead. And in Clynn's annals is the following notice ; (li) /iiinalcs Minorum, ad anp 123J, pag. 4"r. . -■. (13) I'ag. 40J. Du Cliefiic Ilitt. ail Anglct. pag- S-^j- ^'^y^M.xy^y H"J-- /.v/^"^-^-^^^^'' " IRISHTOWN AND KILKENNY. 495 notice : " A.D. 1343. A new belfry was ereded for the church of St. Mary, Kilken- ny." 'i'he following claufe in Queen Elizabeth's charter to the city, relates to the provifion of wax lights for the church and image of the Virgin Mary. " Item, quia diverfa tenementa in ilia villa de Kilkenny ab antiquo tempore onc- rentur, tani illuminare coram imagine virginis gloriofa: Marias praedicta, quam ad emendandam ecclefiam prscdiclam ; procuratorcs feu clientes ad redditus illos, et jura Icvcnda fi negligentes fuerint, quod fervientes vel burgenfes villse namiare poffint pro redditus &; jura prsedifta, fine calumpnia." The old church was much larger than the prefcnt one, which is contraded on the ancient fite. It is in the form of a crofs, neat and elegant ; with a good organ. In 1689, Marcus Stafford, (14) clerk, and one of the vicars choral of Chrift church Dublin, made oath before a magiilrate, that he was credibly informed, and did, from a knowledge of the fad for eighteen years before, believe, that the curacy of St. Mary's was in the prefentation of the mayor and citizens of Kilkenny. The motives for this affidavit we are not told, or the fleps taken in coufequence. At prefent the church is in the patronage of the bilhop. The following are the molt remarkable monuments. Spiculum mortis. Ortus ad interituin eredis progrefiibu?, urget Mortalefque rapit mollis vis nefcia vinci, Nefcia confilio, voto, vel voce moveri. Imperii, eloquii, rationis, acuminis, artis, Et fophite tranfcendit opem, eredoque lacerto Splcuia contorquet gravis inclementia lethi. Cujus ad imperium quicquid fpirabile mundi Muchina complexu fovet, expirare neceffe eft. Speculum mortalium. Side gradum, qui tranfgredeiis, cordate viator ; Inque fcpulchrali hoc fpeculo circumfpice clari Ora viri, genio ingenioque, ct moribus orbi Brittanico lumen ; cujus facundia vocis Et facundia gravi fcniu, cenfuque facultas : Non coatemnenda pictas, doctriiia favorcjuc : Magnus (14) .^f uJ Lafta's Miii, 496 HISTORY AND ANTIQUiriES OF Magnus turn mentifque vigor, dum vita vigeret^ Nunc tenet orbatum cultu brevi urna cadaver. Johannes Nalhus Huraaua fragilltatis confcius, chariffimae uxori, Eleonorae Roths et liberis, adhuc vivens pcfuit. A. X. 1617. Quibus ut ceternam requiem preceris, turn finis memor enixe rogat. Obiit honeftus hie & cordatus civis, 31 die Maii menfis, falutis hu- manse. A. 1643. Jacobus Archdeacon Mercator, et hujus urbis Kilkennicnfis burgenfis, hoc fibl et uxori Catharinx Wood- loke, et pofteris fuis vivus monunientura pofuit. Fato ceffit ille obiit h£EC .... die menfis Epitaphium. Haec mihi, qua condar, feralis conditur urna ; Et tibi quern parili forte fepulchra inanent. Ouifquis es, extinftos vermis pra^dabitur artus ; Et quse me primum tc quoque fata prement. Ut rede vivas mortis memor eilo ; fepultus Sternum ut poffis vivere : difce mori. 1636. Hie jacct Johannes Rothus, Petri filius, civis prsetorius civitatis Kilkenia;, qui facellum hoc cum mormmento fepukhrali pro fe, uxore liberifque ac pofteris fuis fieri fecit, anno falutis 1612. Ipfe vero non tarn obiit quam abiit, 31 die, menfis Januarii, A. D. 1620. Necnon Rofa Archera charifiima ejus conjux, qua viceffit magis quam d#- eeffir, die menfis 8°. anno Dom. 16 . . . C^uorum animabus propitietur Deus. ^ Symbolum falutis. Ortus qu£eque fuos redolent animantia primos. Et redit in cinerem quod fuit ante cinis. Mens fuperas nunc avet opes . . . imas Nempe fui memorem ftruftilis urna faclt. Aft rediviva olim quando urna refuderit offa Junda animis, Deus O faxit, ut aftra petant. ST. f \ IRISIITvOWN AND KILKENNY, 407 ■ > >■ > >• k- > »■ > >■ > ► » >■ k -» y > »«k k > k I ST. MiEL OR MAULA. The church detlicated to this faint is of great antiquity, and pointed out in St. John's charter, as lying on the eafl fide of the river. It is a fufficicnt apology for introducing legendary narrations in accounts of ancient foundations to fay, that fre- quently none others are to be found ; this is the cafe at prefent. The fex of this Aunt is doubtful : if it was dedicated to St. Mael, we (15) are told he was nephew and difciple of St. Patrick, and by him placed over the fee of Ardagh in 456, where he prefided for more than thirty years and died the 5th of February, 487. The profeffed writers of the lives of the faints ftretch the belief of the credulous very far, when they relate with fuch minute exadnefs unauthenti- cated events. The following tale deferves as little credit. " About (16) the fame rime that St. Kennie's church was built, a church was ereded over againft the eafl fide of the Nore, in honour of St. Maala, the mother of St. Kenny, whofe niciHOTy is continued in Kilkenny by her plague that felt upon them thus : there was u piague in the towne, and fuch as died thereof, being bound with wythes upon the btere, were buried in St. Maula's church-yard ; after that the infeftion ceafed, women and maids went thither to dance, and inftead of napkins and handkerchiefs to keep them together in their round, it is faid, they took thofe wythes to ferve their purpofe. " It is generally conceived that Maula was angry for profaning her church-yard, and with the wythes infeaed the dancers fo, thatlhortly after man, woman, and child died in Kilkenny^' — "We here fee a natural effcvift fuperflitiouflv and ianorantlv afcribed to another cuuft. {IS) Warc'b Bil>io[H. (iA) }!aiinicr's chronicle- 6 L At-PEN'DiX. ( 4')8 ) "••. + + + + + + + + + ♦ + + + + + * + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + * + + + + ATPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. No. I. — Page 383. Prioratus five hofpital. Sti. Johannis evang. de Kilkenn. fundat. circa ann. 1220. WILL. Marefchallus, comes Pembrochise, &c. concefli B. Johanni evang, locuin quendam ad caput parvi pontis de Kilken. fc. inter duftuni minoris aquse & viam quai ducit ad Loghmaderan ab horreis meis, & 16 acras de terra libera ex eadem parte aquas illius, cum pertinentiis, ad conftruendum ibidem domum reli- gionis, in honorem Dei & Sti. Johannis, & ad fuftentationem pauperum & indigen- tiuni. Concefli etiam, totam parochiam ultra pontem de Kilkenn. verfus orientem & adjacentemi eidem ponto cum pertinentiis, abfque omni retinemento. Etiam bencficium ecckTiaflicum totius terra: meas de Donfert, quantum fc. inde ad patro- num pertinet ; & beneficium ecclefiafticum totius terrac me de Loghmadheran eodem modo cum omnibus pertinentiis, tarn in decimis, quam oblationibus & obventionibus. r.t omnes decimas molendinorum, pifcariarum, pomariorum, & columbariorum nieorum de Kilkenn. Volo etiam k concede, quod preedidi fratres defervianf capella caftri mei de Kil- kenn. et inde habeant omnes obventiones et oblationes fi ego abfens fuero vel hasredes mei : fin autem, tunc dominici capellani mei oblationes ex ea provenientes preci- pient. Concefli etiam locum quendam ad caput magni pontis, ubi primitus domus eorum inchoata luit, reddendo de eodem loco niihi & haredibus meis annuatim tres folidos pro omnibus fervitiis. Et quod habeant et poffideant pacifice omnes redditus bur- gagiorum quae eis in villa de Kilkenn. data fuerunt et danda, falvo fervitio meo, et lalvis omnibus qu;t juiis mei I'unt. Pratterea conceifi ecclefiam de Haghamon et ecclefiam de Nova villa, & totum beneficium Vttcris villa; cum omnibus pertinentiis :■{{ eaJdem ecclefias Ipedantibus. Piceterea, decimas mulendinorum raeorum & fen-^ cTum mecrum in parochlis pradittarum ecclefiarum. Iiifuper, APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. 49,^ Infuper, triginta marcas argenti de decima redditus mei affifi in Ilibernia preci- p'lendas in perpetuutn ad fcaccarium meum de Kilkennia. Et prster hax, unam carrucatam terree cum pertinentiis, viz. illatn quam Thomas Drake confuevit teiiere juxta Kilkcnniam, quietam ab omnibus fervitiis, 5cc. Monaflicon Anglic, vol. 2 pag. 1042. No. 11.— Page 383. REX fuperiori & prsepofito & communitati vill« de Kilkenny, falutem. Mondra- vit nobis venerabilis pater, Alexander epifcopus OfTorienfis, ut cum ipfe omnia temporalia fua tcneat denobis in capite ; ipfeque quoddam mercatum in villa fua del Irifliton juxta Kilkeniam, quae elb parcella diclorum temporalium, viz. die Mercurii fingulis feptimanis, obtineat. Et licet idem epifcopus & pia;deceflores fui nuper epifcopi loci prasdi£li, mercatum fuum prssdidum, ut priedictura ell, & libertatem I'uam infra Croceam epifcopatus praedidi, libere &; abfque cullumis aliquibus pro muragio didse villa; de Kilkennia, de rebus venalibus ad diftum mercatum, vel in!ia libertatem preedidam venientibus, abfque alTenfu Sc voluntate pr^didi epifcopi ^ prsedeceflbrum fuorum folvendis a tempore fundationis ecclefise ipfius epifcopi Sii. Canici de Kilkennia habere confueverunt. Vos tamen quafdam litcras noftras patentes ad certas cultumas pro muragio diiStas villse de Kilkennia, de rebus venalibus ad eandem villam de Kilkennia et infra Croceam prasdidlam venientibus, percipiendas abfque confenfu five notitia didi epifcopi impetrailis, <^ cuftumas hujufmodi de rebus venalibus ad dictum mercatum 6c infra libertatem ipfius epifcopi pra;didam venien- tibus prstextu dictarum literarum noftrarum minus julie percepillis, et indies percipere non defillis, in ipfius epifcopi ac ecclefia; fuae prsedicta; grave prsejudicium, didique mercati ac libertatis fuse prsdidse perturbationem k retraciioneni manifellas, ut dicitur ; fuper quo nobis fupplicavit fibi remedium adhibere ; & quia per quen- dam inqaifitionem coram fratre AVillielmo Tany, priore hofpitalis Sti. Johannis Jerufalem in Hibernia, cancellario noflro, ibidem captam, et in cancellarium nof- tram Hibernise remanentem eft compertum, quod dida villa del Irilhtou eft parcella didorum temporalium : & quod idem epifcopus & pr^edecelfores fui praediclii merca- tum prffididkim una cum libertate praedida in forma pra^Jida habere confueverunt. Nolentes proinde, quod pra^fato epifcopo in ea parte praetextu didarum literarum noftrarum aliqualitur praejudicetur, vobis et cuilibet veilrunx mandamus, quod prae- textu didarum noftrarum literarum de dicta villa del Irifliton, mercatu aut libertate prsedictis. 5C0 APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. prsdiftis, vel de cuf^umis aliquibus pro muraggio diftje villas tie Kilkennia de rebus venallibus addiftuni mercatum, vel infra libertatem pra;di£iam venientibus, abfque airenfu et voluntate ipfius epifcopi de cetero capiendis. Vos autem aliquein vcftrum nullatenus inironiittatis fub periculo incumbente, Tefte Jacobo de Botiller, comite de, Ormond jufticiario noftro apud Dublin 28 die Januarii, anno regni no(L:i 51. Rot. cancell. Hiber. 51. Edvr, III. 1376. No. 76 in dorfo. No. III.— Page 441. PR^EFOSITUS, ballivi et probi homines villas de Kilkennia habent pavagium ad villam fuam pavicndam per feptem annos fub data, apud Dublin, 25 die Novembris, anno i Edw. III. 1334. Ex rotul. turr. Bermingh. pat. 8. E. III. p. No. 106. No. IV. — Page 442. REX omnibus ad quos, &c. falutem. Cum communitas comitatus noftri de Kil- kennia nobis in fubfidium guerrae fuper Hibernicos partium Lagenire hoftes noftros, Dei adjutorio, expugnandos, fua fpontanea voluntate nobis concefferint duodecim homines ad arma, cum tot equis coopertis, quolibet eorum capiente per diem duodecim denarios ; et fexaginta hobelarios, quolibet eorum capiente per diem, quatuor denarios ; et ducentes pedltes, quolibes eorum capiente per diem tres obolos, vadiis ipfius communitatis fuRineri per quoddam certum tempus in comitiva jufliciarii noflri Hibernize, dida guerra durante, moraturos, prout inter ipfos jufliciarium et communitatuni erat concordatum. Ailignavimus dileclos ndtis Willielmuin Lye et Thomam Moygne in cantrcdas de Ofgellan et Ognen- toy : Ricardum Foreftal et Walterum Sillame in cantreda de Sylerchir : Adamum Tonibrige, Gilbertum Synnichc et Johannem Herberd in cantredis de Odoch et Galmoy, ad didum fubfidium conjun^lim et dilefto confanguineo noflro Jacobo de Botiller, comiti de Ormond, et homir.ibus quos idem comes retineat in guerra prscdifta (diim tamen ad numerum hominum ad arma, hobelariorum et peditum pradidorum attingat eofdem hoRes guerrando) per indenturam inter eos, modo debito conficiendam, liberandum. Et ideo vobis mandamus, quod iifdem Willielmo, Thomse, Ricardo, Waltero, Ad^e, Gilbcrto et Johanni, tanquam aiTeilbribus et coUeftoribus fubfidii prasdidi, pareatis et intendatis. Damus autem affefToribus et APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. 501 et coUedoribus prsediftis, tenore prajfcntium in mandatis, quod circa prfeinilTa cum omni fellinatione et diligentia faciant et exequantur iuforma praeJida. in cujus, SiC. tefte Alniarico jufticiario apad TiiRlederinot, 26° die Novem. Per ipfum jufticiarium et concilium. Ex rot. Turr. Berm. pat. 23 Edw. III. No. 53. A. D. 1349- No. V. — Page 445. REX diledis fibi fuperiori et communitati villas deKilkennia, kc. falutem. Sciatis quod nos fortificationem et reparationem villye veflra; veftiis exigentibus meriiis, affedtuofe defiderantes, de gratia noftrafpeciali concenimus, et licentiam dediinus vobis, in auxilium murorum, paviamenti et pontifejufdeni villae reparandorum, quod vos et pofleri veftri per vofmet aut deputandos a vobis capere poffitis, et habere a decimo die Decembris jam proxime future, ufque ad finem feptem annorum extunce proxime fequentium plenarie complendorum, de rebus venalibus ad eandem viliam venien- tibus, feu de eadem caufa veniendi tranfientibus, five per eandem viliam per unani lucam circumquaque, tam in Crocea quam in libertate ibidem venientibus, con- fuetudines fubfcriptas. Vir de quolibet cranoco cujufcunque generis, bladi, brafei, farinae et falls venali, unum obolum. De quolibet cranoco u^aide venali duos denarios. De quolibet cranoco de corcyr et fymal venali, unum denarium. Da quolibet cranoco tanni venali, unum quadrantem. De duodecim cranocis quorumcunque carbonum venali- bus, unum denarium. De duodecim cranocis calcis venalibus, unum obolum. De quolibet cquo, vel equa, hobino, bove vel vacca venali, unum denarium. De decern ovibus, capris vel porcis venalibus, unum denarium. De quinque venalibus baconibus unum obolum. De duodecim velleribus lanitis venalibus, unum obolum. De quolibet corio equi vel equte, hobini, bovis, vel vaccts, frifco, falito vel tan- nato venali, unum quadrantem. De qualibet centena pellium agnorum, capriolorum leporum, vulpium, catarorum et fquirrellorum, venali, unum obolum. De quali- be centena pellium omnium lanetarum, caprarum, leporum, biilarum, damorum vel damarum venali, unum denarium. De duabus molis manualibus venalibus, unum denarium. De duabus molis manualibus, unum quadrantem. De quolibet magno facco lanae venali, quatuor denarios. De qualibet mafa allecis venali, unum quadrantem. De viginti groflis pifcilnis venalibus, unum obolum. De quolibet fummagio squi pifcium maris venali, unum quadrantem. De centum anguillis 6 M grolJi 502 APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. ..,..<..<..< .<..<..<.<..< .<.<..< .< < .<^ .<-< .<.<..,..<..,..<■■<.<■.<■■<•■< .<..<•<■<..«.<•■< .<■<.<+> >. >. , >. >. >. >. >. >. >. > > .> > >. > > . > > >. > >• > >• >• >■ >■ » > > >■>■ >■ > > >■■ groffis aquse dulcis venalibus, unum denarium. De quolibet falmone venali, unuin quadrantem. De quolibet doHo vini et cinerum venali, quatuor denarios. De quolibet fummagio mellis venali, unum denarium. De quolibet fummagio cinerum venali, unum denarium. De quolibet fummagio pannorum venalium, unum obolum. De quolibet panno intcgro de affifla venali, unum denarium. De viginti uinis panni Hibernici, falewyche et wyrftede, venalibus, unum obolum. De Tiginti ulnis linei teli Anglici vel tranfmarini, venalibus, unum obolum. De viginti ulnis de canenis venalibus, unum quadrantem. De decem capellis de feltro venali- bus, unum obolum. De quolibe tapeto vel chalon venali, unum quadrantem. De quolibet panno aureo venali, unum denarium. De quolibet panno de ferico vel baudikino venali, unum obolum. De quolibet capite findonis venali, unum obolum. De quolibet fallinga Hibernica venali, unum quadrantem. De quolibet fummagio pannorum, vel aliarum rerum venalium, unum obolum. De qualibet benda ferri venali unum obolum. De centum gaddis afceris venalibus, unum obolum. De centum libris de pice, vel rofmo venalibus, unum obolora. De centum libri feminis porri venalibus, unum denarium. De duabus milliaribus ceparum venali- bus, unam quadrantem. De 0Q.0 chane falls venalibus, unum quadrantem. Dc centum magnis bordis venalibus, unum denarium. De quolibet milliari fcinrularum oroffarum venali, unum denarium. De quolibet milliari fcindularum minutarura unum obolum. De quolibet milliari chvorum venalium, unum obolum. De quoli- bet centena ferrorum adequos, et clutorum ad careftas venali, unum obolum. De qualibet nova cifta, vel archavenali, unum quadrantem. De quolibet milliari dif- corum et platellorum ligneorum venali unum quadrantem. De qualibet duodena de cordwane, corney, et bafyne venali, unun obolum. De qualibet centena oris et cupri venali, duos denarios. De qualibet centena de fcalpyn et pifcis auri venali, unum denarium. De decem petris cannabi et lini venalibus, unum denarium. De decem lagenis olei lampadarum venalibus, unum obolum. De qualibet centena de vitro colorato venali, unum denarium. De qualibet centena de vitro albo venali, unum obolum. De duabus folidatis cujufcunque generis fpecierum venalibus, unnm obolum. De qualibet centena de amero de pondere venali, unum denarium. De qualibet duodena panni Anglici vel tranfmarini venali. unum denarium. Et de quolibet mercimonio valoris diiorum folidorum, unde hie non fit mentio venali unum quadrantem. Et ideo vobis mandamus, quod confuetudines prcediftas de rebus venalibus prsedidis capiatis et habcalis, ufquc ad finem termini prtcdidi j complete autem termino APPE>a:)IX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS ■< ■<■■< .< •< \ ■< * < < < < ■<■< < ■< *+» > > > >..>. >. >. >. > > ,,,>. >,.>>..> »..>. ^. ,. ] > > > > > >. ; termino illo, confuetudlnes prsdida: penitus ccficnt et deleantur. Ita ftmper quod denarii indc provenieiKes circa mura;^iuni, pavagium et pontagium villx pracdicl:^; et nori alibi, fideliter expendantur. Volutnus enim quod in fine cujuflibet anni, durante rermino prsedicto, computus inde coram venerabili patre epifcopo Oilbrienfi, qui pro tempore fait et Roberto de la Ffrei'^ne niillte vel altero eorum, et non ad fcaccariuin noflruni liibernias, de anno in annum fide- liter per vos reddatur. In cujus, kc. tefte Gullielmo Tanny, Gubernatore, apud Kilkenniam, prinio die Juiii, anno regni 49. Per petitioneni de conciiio. Ex rot. turr. Berm. pat. 49 Edw. III. No. 125, intus. A. D. 1375. No. VI.— Page 448. REX, &c. omnibus ad quos, &c, falutem. Supplicarunt nobis fupcrior, mx- pofitus et communitas vllls de Kiikennia, ut cum villa prccdida in marchiis fuerit affeiTa, et diverfis Hibernicis inimicis noftris, ac aliis rebellibus, malefaclori- bus, felonibus et utlagatis Lagenije, Momoniae et Conacise undiquc circumvallata : idemque fuperior, pr;«pofitus et communitas non habeant unde venire valeant fecure omnimodo excmprione et venditione vidualium, et aliarum parvarum rerum et mercandizarum fuarum, quje prssfatis inimicis et rebellibus ad evitanduni eorum malitiam neceffario vendere et dare oportebit ; et adhuc indies, vi compel- lantibus aut alias dida villa foret per didos inimicos et rebelles fpoliata, doftructa et omnino defolata el reiida, quod abfit. VelimuSj'pr^miffis confideratis, et quod cadem villa major extat relevamen et confortamen quorumcunque miniflrorum, foldariorum et aliorum fidelium noftroruni, per terram noftram Ilibernite labo- rantium, quod ipfi vidualia et mercandizas cum diclis inimicis et rebellibus, tempore pacis et trugarum, emere, vendere et nfercandizare tarn infra villam praedidam quam extra in partibus vicinis, abfque impetitione noftra hsredum leu miniflrorum noflrorum quorumcunque, licentiam gratiofe concedere. Nos de avifamento et affenfi; charifiimi filil noRri, Thomie de Lancaftre fenef- challi Anglia;, locnm noflrum tenentis in terra noflra Hibernia;, ac aliorum de conciiio noflro prsmifla advertantium, de gratia noftra fpeciaii conceflimus ct licentiam delimus praefato luperiori, prasepofito et communitati, quod ipfi e: coruoi quilibtt de catero, ufque ad finem trium annoruni ex nunc proxime ftquentium, plcnaris 504 APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. plenarie complendonun, oniintnoda hujusmodi victualia et inerchandizas fuas (equis ct armatuiis liuntaxat exceptis) tarn tempore pacis quam trugarum, diebus mercatl, tarn in villa pr.cdicta quam in aliis viilis Anglicis niercatoriis comitatus Kilkcnnix, cidem vicinis, didis inimicis ei rebellious noftris vendere ; et de eis emere et cum eis mercandizare, abfque impetitione aut occafione noftri, aut miniftrorum noftro- rum quorumcunque, aliquo flatuto, five ordinatione inde in contrarium faclis non cbllantibus- Ita femper, quod hujiifmodi vitlualia et mercandizsc in foris diftarum villarum, et diebus foralibus et non alibi, emantur et vendantur. In cujus rei, &c. tefte prjefato locum noftrum tenente, apud Trym, 20° die Feb. anno regni noflri quarto. Per petitionem, &c. Ex rot. turr. Berm. pat. 4 Hen. IV. No. 128, intus. A. D. 1402. No. VII. Page .,48. REX omnibus ad quos, S:c. falutem. Sciatis quod nos confiderantes grandes cullus, quod diledi legei noftri fuperior et communes villse de Kilkennia habent et i'uftinent, necnon roberias, extortiones et oppreffiones, qu^ iis per Hibernicos inimicos et Anglicos rebelles noftros fa£t exiftunt ; ac etiam alia onera impofita, quas dicta villa et patria circumquaque foldariis noftris ibidem, que exfendunt ad ducentas marcas quolibet quaterno anni in refiftentiam fuperbise et malitiam diSo- rum inimicorum et rebellium de die in diem fupportant ; et quod didla villa auxilium et confortamem comitatus Kilkennis, et aliorum ligeorum noflrorum diftsc villas leparantium in omnibus agendis fuis contra eofdem Hibernicos et rebelles exiftat : Ob quod prsefati fuperior et communes in tantum depauperati funt, quod non pof- fait reparare vel emandare defedus muroruin, pontium et pavimentorum didas villae abfque relevamine noftro ; qui vero nuircs, pontes et paviamenta pro majori parte prollernantur, et pro defedu cufluum, in periculum cadendi ad terram exiftunr. Nos de gratia noftra fpeciali, de aifenfu venerabilis in Chriflo patris Richardi archiepifcopi Dublin, deputati, diledi et fidelis noftri Johannis Talbot de Holomfliire Chivaler, locum noflrum teneniis terrse noftrae Hiberiae, et concilii noftri in eadem terra, in falvationem didas villa: ct patriae circumquaque, dedimus et concefiimus eideni fuperiori et communibus, certas cuftumas de quibufcunque merchandilis venalibus ad didam villam venientibus, fecundum formam et eftedum literatum patemium chariflimi ilomini ct patris noftri, Henrici quarli nuper regis Angliae eis data. APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS- 505 data, viceffimi oQavi Januarii, anno regni ejufdem patris noflri fccundo, ut diciturj faftarum : Habendum et percipiendum cuflumas praedictas hucufque ad finemci annorum plenarie complendorum. Volentes infuper, quod compotus inde coram nobis et hasredlbus noflris ct minillris, duobus burgenfibus ejufdem villa:, per fupcriorem et communes ejufdem villiE, pro tempore e-^iftentes, ad hoc fingulis annis eligendis, et non coram nobis, feu hreredibus nofiris, aut miniftris quibufcunque deanno in annum fidcliter reddatur. Provifo femper, quod cuftuiii;^; pra:ul£ta£ circa reparationem et en:endationem mu- rorum, pontium et paviamentorum preediftorum expendantur, et completo tcrmino prcedido penitus ipfa; ceffent et deleantur. In cujus, &c. tefte prEcfato deputato apud Trym, 200 die Septembris* Per petitionem, &c. Ex rot. turr. Berm. pat. 7 Hen. V. No. 12, intus. A. D. 1419.. No. YIII. Page 411. Johannes Allen armiger, canccllarius domini regis terrse fuae Hibernite, Georgius, miferatione divina Dublin, archiepifcopus, Hiberniss primas, et "Will. Brabafon Arm. fub-thefaurarius fupremi domini regis in terra fua Hybernia prsedicla (et ejufdem inviftiflimi in Chrilto principis et domini noflii dom. Henrici Svi, Dei gratia, An;/. et Franciae regis, fidei defenforis et domini Hybernije, et fupremi capitis ecclefiarum Anglicanarum et Hibernicarum pod Deum in terris) commilTarii et legati fpeciales e^ generates in ecclefiaflicis caufis et fu33 ecclefias jurifdiflione, per totam Hiberniam legitime conflituti et deputati. Univerfis et fingulis Chrifti fidelibus ad quorum notitiam prasfentes litene per- venerint, et illi vel illis, quae feu potius infra fcriptum tangit, feu tangere potuit quomodolibet in futurum, falutem in domino fempiterno, atque preefentibus fidem adhibeamus Indubiam. Cupientes finem imponi ne plus ultra modum graventur hboribus et expenfis ; prsefertim nunc de juribus ecclefiafiicis aut ecclefiafticarum perfonarum flacu, aut etiam ecclefiaflica jurifdidione contenditur : de quibus diutius abfque animarum et rerum periculo et jactura decertari non poteft ; ea propter in caufa, et quajftjone aiiquamdiu ventilata, inter difcretum virum dom. Jacob^m Cleere, dec. ecc. OJ. et vicarios perpetuos et chorales communis aulas collegii cathcdralis ecclefuc- Sti Canici, villas Kilkenn. et prjsiertim propter eorundem vicarioruin de et fuper 6 N ~ Jurifditlione 5o6 APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. jurisdictione decani, et ftatu vicarlorum iplbrum, auditis allegationibus juris et fa£ti (faltem quibus uti valebant in hac parte) cordi fit nobis lites minuere et a laboribus relevare fubjeiStos, tain de confenfu prsdidi in Chrifto patris dorn. Milonis epif. Oflbr. quani fubjeclorum, diiximus ftatuere et ordinare in hunc, qui fequitur, mo- duni, perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturuni. Imprimis, qnod vacante ftallo, aliquis vicarius choralis, cujas nominatio ad aliqueni de dignatoribus et pra;bendaviis dicla; ecclefiie cathed. de jure feu confuc- tudine fpeclat, prsfentatur decano examinandum, fi moribus et Iioneftate approbatus fucrit, ipfum commendabit priEcentori, de fua peritia in cantu, et cancellario de fua liieratura examinandum : quibus omnibus fufficientur imbutus admittetur per decanum, in vicarium choralem, juxta rnodum in antiqua fundatione, traditum. Eo fcmper falvo, quod perpetui vicarii communis aulse legitimas exceptior.es coram decano opponant, quas fi viderlt verifimiles, admittet, eifque diiTerat, quantum de jure poterit et debebit. Et cafu quo hujusmodi exceptiones coram decano per do- lum vel excogitatam nialiciam opponuntur (ipfis fpretis et negatis) nominatus et prtefentatus, fi habilis moribus, cantu ct literatura, ut praemititur, expertus fuerit, r.ihilominus admittatur. Item., quod dccanus, epifcopus vel archiepifcopus juxta formam prsnominatam culpis, ■ ►- > ►■ >■ >. >• >■ >■ > V » ►- >. >. >. >. >.> ». , fitnifiunus officiorum, et iftc non inducat vel conducat fervum, ancillam vel muli- erem, fine licentia vicarii decani et ejus confratruni. Item, quod eorum aliquis fit perfonaliter parochialis ut Inolevit. Item, quod i(te procurator five officiarius domus eligatur de cominuni confenfu et afienfu ipforum vicariorum, et quod fit unus illorum vicariorum prtedicta: communis aulcc, et quod quolibet anno ab illis vicariis eligatur, et ob negligentiam ipforum, potcftas ipfum eligendi devolvatur ad decanum, cum afllRcntia faltem fcnioruni de capitulo. Item, quod nullus eligatur nifi unus vicariorum prsedifto officio, et quod ifie procurator five officiarius teneatur reddere rationem leu computum ipfis vicariis finguiis hebdomadis, et decano bis in anno. Item, quod fi aliquis diciorum vicariorum in fuo minifterio feu divino officio ad quod, de fundatione tenetur, negligens et culpabllis repertus fuerit, pro parva offenfa mulclatur in quatuor denarlis, et fi tunc monitus fecundo deliquerit in 8 denarili, et tertio monitus fi denuo deliquerit in 12 denariis :medietatam mulctorum ImjufmodI ad ufus decani, et allam, medietatem in communem utilitatem dicli collegii converti volumus. Item, ordinamus, quod fundatio et alia fcripta et munimenta didi colle'^ii con- fervanda una cum eorundem figillo communi, ponentar et confiodientur falya et fecura, infra dlclum collegium didse ecc. cathed. in una cifta five fcrino fub tribus feris, et una clavis ejufdem cifias vel fcrinii remaneat fub cuftodia decani vicarii alia in cuftodia vicarii pra;centoris, et tertia in cuftodia vicarii cancellaril didre ecc. et difta cifta five fcrinium nunquam aperietur nifi de confenfu et afltf'nfu dictorum vicariorum et partis majoris cseteroruin vicariorum. Et quod nulla pars redituum concedatur allcui pcrfona; ultra quinque annos, nifi ad hoc accefferit aifenfus decani. El interea pracmlffis non obftantibus, ex certis rationabilibus caufis nos moventi- bus, et prfeferlini pro utilitate dicti collegii, volumus quod Nicholaus Brytton dittx ecc. thefaur. pro terniino trium annorum fequentium erit tanquam procurator et fupervifor et provifor didi collegii, ita quod reddit computum didis vicariis de fua adminiftratione femel qualibet feptimana, et decano bis in anno, ut fupra dictum eft. Ordinamus infuper, quod frudus, redditus et preventus ecc. de Kilkefy remane- ant firjgulis annis ad thefaurarium ditti collegii, et reparationes a;dificiorum ejufdem, aliaque comniunia onera pro utilitate collegii fupportanda do ncrario in cilia feu fcrin 5o3 APPENDIX OF ORIGINAL RECORDS. fciinio preeditto ; ita quod nulla pars pecuniae exinde proveniens diftribuatur, nifi de confenfu decani vicarii, & majoris partis vicariorum ejul'dem collegli pro tempore exiflentium. In quorum omnium et fingulorum prasmifTorum fidera & teftimonium figillum quo utimur ad caufas ecc. prtefentibus duximus apponendum. Datum Kilkenniee 80 die Aprilis didi dom. regis triceffimo primo. A. D. 1540. No. IX. Pag. 493. REX omnibus ad quos. Sec. falutem. Supplicarunt nobis dilecli nobis prior et conventus fratrum prjedicatorum Kilkennias, ut cum ipfi continuo fint oratores pro flatu nofho, et pro animabus nobilium progenitorum noftrorum, quondam regum Anglix, &c. Et feipfos non poffunt fuflinere ex eleemofynis villie Kilkenniee, neque comitatus Kilkenniic, eo quod didus comitatus eft tam per rebelles noftros quam Hibernicos inimicos deltructus & devaftatus. Volumus, prasmiflis confideratis, eo prastextu cum eis agere gratiofe, nos fuppli- cationi fuac praedidx annuentes, de afl'enfu venerabilis in Chrifto patris, Ricardi archiepifcopi Dublin jufticiarii noftri terrje noftra; Hibernise, et confilii noftri in eadem terra noftra per manucaptionem Johannis Nauyler de 'J rym & Thomse Clop- ham de Navane, conceffimus iifdem priori k conventui, duas partes, omnium com- moditatum, & proficiorum quorumcunque reftorice ecclefia: de Mothil in comitatu praediflio, in manibus noftris, certis de caufis, exiftentes. Habendum et tenendum diftas duas partes, quandiu in manibus noftris prsediftis contigerint remanere. Reddendo inde per annum ad fcaccarium noftrum Hibernis 0Q.0 denarios ad fefta Sti. Michaelis & Pafchre per squales portiones. In cujus, &c. tefte prasfato jufticiario noftro apud Dublin 250 die Julii. Ex turr. Berm. pat. 15 Hen. VI. No. 1 1. intus. A. D. 1437. CHURCH C\ - ^ ~ N^ ( 5^9 ) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++*+++++++++++++++++++++++ CHURCH OF AGHABOE. ADAMNAN, Abbat of the Culdean monaftery of Hy or lona, flourilhed about the year 680, and (i) writ the life of St. Columba. In this work our parilli is named Achet-boUy very little deviating from its true orthography, Achad-bho, in Irifli the field of a Cow, an appellation derived from the uncommon richncfs of the pallure furrounding the church. St.Canice, probably the fame as the St. Canocus mentioned by Giraldus Cam- brenfis in his Welfh Itinerary, was the intimate friend of St. Columba, fixt (2) his refidence here at the end of the fixth century, and formed an ecclefiaftical eftablifli- ment. On their converHon to cliriftianity, the great feudatories, who were ftyled Kings and Princes, endowed the Church with ample pofTcflions. Aghaboe is fituated in the principality of Oifory, which included the (3) whole county of Kilkenny, called Lower OiTory, and a great part of the Queen's county, named Upper Oflbry, being co-extenfive with the Bilhop's jurifdicT;ion at this day. The Princes of Oflbry early embraced the faith, and were bountiful in an emi- nent degree to the clergy, founding above two hundred churches ; and hence they obtained the name of Mac-giolia-phadruic, or the fon of the fervant of Patrick, which was changed by the Englifh into Fitz Patrick. This name expreffed their devotion to him, whom the legends fuppofed to be the firfl preacher of the gofpel here. Wahh and Keating give inflances of the confpicuous piety of Scanlan and Donogh, Kings of Oflbry in the tenth century: and Lynch, in his Cambrcnfis everfus, ob- fervcs that our national writers pay particular attention to this race of princes ; for they give a catalogue of the Kings of Oflbry, and they pafs over the lefler princes. When the Englilh adventurers landed here in 1170, Donald Mac-giolla- phadruic was King of Oflbry : they found the country full of defiles, woods, and marflies, and a (4; brave people prepared to defend their country. As founders of the fee and churches, thefe princes, for many ages, prefentcd to both. 'I'he noble 6 o reprcfentative (I) I'inkcrtcn, Vlt S. Scot. 1. i. c. .(. (i) UtTcr. PrimorJ. p. 957. (.;) W«rc\ Billioi'S, in OlTory. (4) In primis igiiur OfTyricc j-artes ncn longe icnetran'.es, quafi in ipfo terror liinKo, locis in ariSis, et t.vii f)lvlj qnam paludibucs inviis, Offyricnfcs in palriw (Isfcnfioiic non inral;d!jj invtiKTunt. Gir. Cambren*. p. 761. .An «ye ■witucft. 510 .. , .; • CHURCH OF AGHABOE. reprefentative of this family, the prefent Earl of Upper OfTory, poffeffes the advowfon of the churches of Aghmacart, Cahir, Kiileen, Killermogh and Coolkerry and a large eflate in Upper OfTory ; patrimonies defcended to him through a long line of noble progenitors for more than a thoufand years : an inftance not, perhaps, to be paralleled in Europe. The (5J Provinciale Romanum, a catalogue of uncertain date, preferves the names of fifty-three bifliop's fees, among thefe we perceive that of Aghaboe under its appropriate title of OJjmciifs for OJforicnfis : this is diflinftly mentioned from that of Gainich or Canich which was Kilkenny ; and it proves that the princes of Offory had not relinquiflied their ancient biihopric, but refilled the encroachment of papal power. This circumftance evinces this catalogue to have been compiled after the year 1102, for at (6) that time, "Felix O Dullany died, whofe cathedral church ■was then at Aghaboe in Upper Oflbry." It was not until the legatefhip of Cardinal Paparo in 11 52, that the old See of Aghaboe was exlinguifhed and funk in that of Kilkenny ; fo that reckoning from the age of St. Canice to that of Paparo, it enjoy- ed the epifcopal dignity for more than feven hundred years. As fome compenfation for this lofs^ it was made the head of a (7) rural Deanery, and had under its (S) infpedion the churches of Ofterkn, Bordvvell, Rathfaran, Rathdowny, Kildelgy St. Nicholas, Killahy, Clomantigh, Aghmacart, Donamore, Killermogh, Skirk, Tubrid, Caher, Kiileen and Eirk. As a matter of curiofity, Sir William Petty's fur vey of the parifh is here introdu- ced with the names of the proprietors in 1 640, the denominations, the quality of -the land, number of acres, &c. This furvey is called the Down furvey, a tech- nical exprcflion, as Petty (9) explains it, of meafuring by the chain and needle of the mile in length, and not by the thoufand acres of fuperficial content. ' Or in other words, the bafe of downs or hills were only furveyed ; a method which he feems- firft to have ufed. This down furvey of the Kingdom, which is in Dublin Caftle and reforted to as a legal record, receives fome obfcure light, if I may fo fay, from Petty's work laft cited. This the late Lord Chancellor Clare had re- printed at his own expence by Grueber in Dame-ftreet, but unaccompanied with notes or illuftrations : the confequence is, it is almofl unintelligible to a common reader ; for it requires an extenfive and accurate knowledge of the civil and political affairs at the time, and of Petty's perfonal hiRory to fupply cither i.ntci taining or ufeful information. The numbers refer to thofe in the Map. No. (s) Gcigrnph. fac. a Car. a S. Paulo in Appcnii. (6) Uflcr. fup. p- 957. (7) Antinuitjes fupra p. 8». (8) From Biflicp Otway'b Vifitation-book. (9) Refljdious upou fome pcrfoos and things io lrtl.ind. Lor.il. 1666, p»s. 7<. ''.^/..:.'.//,, fU^ /.;«, . » -;„ ii< .'. . >' ,^ fi.-u CHURCH OF AGHABOi:. 5' * ■« < <■<■< * ■« < ■«-« -i ^.. <■.».* «.<. « i'< 4 -4 •<<-<-< .< .4 .«.<..<..«,< ^ ■< ■<'<-<-. .>..>. >..>.>>.>.». ►--» " >'>'k' >->•»• >■>■»■>-> t k' »■>..«- t'1 No. I PioprletorjA. D. t6.io. Duke of Bucltinghim — The fame — — The fame — ■ — The fame — — The fame — — The fiime — — T5ie lame — The fame — — The fame — — The fame — — The fame — The fame — The fame — . — The faire — Mr*. Pigoit — — Terence Tiiz Patrick — Duke of Buckin;;ham — The fame — — Mrs. Pigott — — Duke iif Buckingham — The famo — — Moigan Cafhin — ^ ParCon of Aghaboe — Mr. Carpenier — — F. Fitz Patrick & Ant. Cafliin Barnaby Fi'.z Patrick — Parfon of Aghaboe — Anthony Cafhin — — Mr. Carpentcri part — Thomas Hovendcn — Morgan Cafljiii — — Sir Charles Coote — — Theoliald Butler — — Florence 1-ilz Patrick — M.irgan Calhen — — Thomas Hovenden — Oeffry Fitz Patrick — John Fitz P.Uri'jk — Morgan Cafhcn — — Daniel Fitz Patrick — The fame — — The fame — — The fame — — Florence Fitz Patrick — The fame — — The fame — — Denominations Shanhogh -^ Burris — Dcrreeniftantigh Munic»ltipci:.in Dermeflougli — Ballydeemoderjr Rood — Derryl orgin — Bardnafallngh Balluorgin — Balh'kevaQ — Cappagh — Kilheg - Knockroe — Maghcrinftart Lifmore Ardijarny — Grangemort — Gangebeg — Bally broghy — Kilrotioa — Carran — Ktallagh — Aghaboe — KnockmuUen — Gurtncbooke — Farranagh — Crofs — Friar's Land — Boherard — Coolbally — Palmer', Hill Bilhcgicbane — 'I'owrooc — Ballygoudanbcg Qallygoudanmure Kihnuliuyie — Ballygihcn — l.arah — Knockfin — Kilencfcare —— The fame — Cliinkinahanbeg Clonkinahaiiniijre Kilcieloga — OUglafs — Quality of the Land. Arable, pafture and flirnb — Arable and i afturc — Arabic, pafture and moor — Arable, paftiire and moor — Arable, pafture and moor — Arable,' pafture and moor — Arable and pafl arc — — Arabic and paftme — — .\rable, pafture and ihrub — — Arable and pafture ^- — •Arable, paSure and llirub — — .•Viable, pafture and I'nrub — . — Arable, pafture and flirub — Arable and pafture — — Arable, pafture and nicor — — Arabic and pafture — • — Arable and pafture — — Arable and pafture — — Arable and pafture — — Arable, pafture and ftiruS — — -Uab'c, pafture, mour and (hrub — .■Arable and pafture — — Arable and pafiurc — — Arable, pafture and moor — — Arable and pafture — — Arable, pafture, wood, moor and meadow •\rable and pafture '— — Arable and psf-i-re — — -Vrable and pafture — — Arable, pafture, moor and ftinib — Arable, pafture, moor and (hrub — Arable and pa!>ure — . — .\ra! le, pafture, moor and flirui> '— Arable, pafture, mooraud Ihrub — Arable, pailurc and moor — — Arable, pafture, moor and ihrub — Arabic and pafture — — AraMe, pafture, wood, nio,r and meadow Arable and pafture — — Arable, pafture, mour and wood — Arable, pafture, wood and nnor — A Wood _ _ _ Aralle, pafture and moor — — Arable, pafture and moor — — Arable, pafture and moor — — .\rablc, pafture, rawr and Cirub — Number of Acre». — ; t^A. A bog, — j 6So. — I ».5 4. — 2J,;- — 6.;, o, zo. 37. J, o. 'OOi 3, 20. 8o. 80, 2, 2. 7'i J, o. 114- >7'. 49- IZA, 1, 29. 69. A bog, S9, 2^ o. 3'. 3. o. 183. A bog, 118, o, o. 304« A bog. iI9, 1, i. 689. fsn *95. 96. 4S7. 69, 2,10, Half the Chapter '47. 50. 34'« 260. II 3. A bog. '35- I:. 88. 266. 1450, IJ4. A bo^. It, :, o. 250. 248. A bog, 25, O, o. »9> '^ ^S> »9. °> °- 119, 3. o- ig^. joj. The 5'2 CHURCH OF ACHABOE. .4-4 * * < * «'«<•<-«"< 4-4 ■< '«-4^4.-ff^-<-4 <-.4-4 4-<..4 .<.4-< -4 4-4 -4-4--4-< + ^->- ►.V->- >.■>..»->■■>.>■>>.►•>■►■>■>■ ^. >.>■>->->-•*■ fcH- »■ *->.>-»-V»-»->' 1 The Denominations in the Veftry-book, the Number of Acres and the prefent Proprietors, A. D. 1796. Shanbogh -— — 264 Chandos family. Burros — — 600 The fame. Derreenfhinagh — 257 The fame. Dunmunnu and Monefat — 237 The fame. Curraghmore — — 8 The fame. Barnafallagh — — 80 The fame. Cappagh — • — 123 The fame. Kilebeg and Derreen Oliver — 171 The fame. Knockaroe — — 49 The fame. Mahernafkagh — — 125 Sir Erafmus Burrowes, Bart, Lifmore — — 60 Richard Grace, Efq. Ardvarny — — 34 The Chandos family. Grangemore — — 1 1 1 The fame. Grangebeg and two Ballyrilies — 270 The fame. Ballybrophy — — 276 The fame. Kilcotton — — 219 The fame. Carran and Carroreigh — 680 Carran, Thos. Carr, Efq. Carrorcig, Robert Stubber, Efq. Keilagh Glebe — — 157 The Vicar of Aghaboe. Aghaboe and Frier's-land — 445 Thomas Carr, Efq. Knockamullcn — — 96 Lord Upper Oilory. Gurtneclea and its Members — 487 Lord Mountmorres. Farran Eglifli Glebe — 65 Part the Dean of Offory, part the Vicar. Crofs — — 148 Thomas Carr, Efq. Boherard — — 2>5 John Rotton, Efq. Coolbally — — 260 Earl Annefley. Palmer's Hill — — 106 Lord Mountrath. Deligibawn — — 66 Robert Stubber, Efq, 'looreigh and Tereragh — 37 Peter La Touche, Efq. Ballygowdenmore — — 188 Henry Grattan, Efq. Kilmunfoyle — — 103 Lo-rd Upper Odbry. Ballygihcn CHURCH OF AGHABOE. 513 1 -«<■<■<--< < <-<-. ;-'i4-»'>">->-'>->. >■>•>•>' >■>■>-> >>>•»">■>•>'»'>■>■>.>■>. k' *■>■■>- > ) >■ V > I Ballygihen and its Members Larah — — Baunoge — — Knockfin — — Kilenefeer and Clonkinahanbeg Oldglas and Clonkinahanmore Park — — Ballycolla — — Newtown — — Ballygarvin — — Ballyhenode — — Garrydufte — — Uerreeufollogh — — Kiletelatrue — — o Coolfm — — 1430 Part Henry Grattan, Draoght 50 Defpard, Efq, 70 Peter La Touche, Efq. 179 Lord Portarlington, 249 Gerald Fitz Gerald, Efq. 250 Lord Upper Offory. 50 The fame. 50 The Aime. y/ The fame. 8 ) I'lie Parfon of Killermogh. 50 Lord Upper Offory. 125 Defpard, Efq. 60 Cliandos family, 160 Lord Upper Offory. 2,6 Omitted fmce 1768. Efq. part Dr. It has been underffood, that the prefent parifli church of Aghaboe was the chancel of the cathedral. There are fome reafons to induce this belief, for there is no weft window ; but a gothic arch of red grit, now filled up with mafonry, clearly marks a chancel or fome fuch divifion of the church. The foundations of walls point out a continuation of tht church to the weft. The belfry, a fmall hexagonal building, is without 'the church, and on a line with the channel. It is. • cloied with a circular cap of mafonry. The bell is placed diftincl from it: the top of the belfry is not as high as the roof of the church. When you enter the church a few paces, to the fouth is feen a door, imitating a tranfept. It is of ftone, the arches concentric, and beautifully enriched with carving and ioiiage. The church is about forty feet long, and lighted by three windows ; two to the foiuh and one to the eaii : the latter divided by ftone muUions, and branched cut into trefoils. The norrhcm wall is adorned with niches, cano- pies, and concentric mouldings, and has a curious conieflioa-box in the thicknefs of the wall, not fiir from the altar. On this account, I fiiall only remark, the whole has the appearance of an old jural cathedra!, but the pointed arches and other decorations favour of more 6 p recent. ^i4 CiraRCH OF z\GHABOfc. ■ ■«■■<■■<■■<■•<■■<*■<■■* ■<■■<■<■■<■■<■■<■■< -<■ < +v >■ >■■>■ > > > > > > >■ > >•■*■>■>■> > >■>►■> > >■ > V >• > y recent aoes. There are ' no fepulchral momunents wiihia or without the church defer ving notice. The Dominican abbey \ra's (lo) founded in 1382, by Florence Fitz Patrick, prince of Oflory. It {lands but a few yards from the parifh church. It is one hundred fec;t lon;^» uoiififf, Tr,t t^jp ti fitnfun' ^ ?55 .$ --: ^ c . ^ ^. N. •s . \ § V. ?!: * ^ 5C ^ ^ k ,^ w» ^^ ^ 1 (> , f' I ( 5'7 ) + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + * + + + + <. + + <. + + + + + + <. + ^.<. ^.^.j. "^^"^^■_j^';i;^'i.. PRFORY OF DEVENISH, IN THE COUNTY OF Ff.RMANAGH. DEVENISH, corrupted from (i) Dav-inis, or the Ox's Ifle, is an ifland in Lough Erne, a few miles from Enni(killen. There (2) St, Laferian in ^6^ founded a monaflcry. We learn with more certainty from Uilier and Waie, that it originally was a Culdean eftablifhment, where the celebrated difciples of St. Columba conti- nued to exercife their piety and virtue till overborne by fuperllition and an intolerant religion. In the interpolations of the Ulder Annals, at the year 1 130, it is faid the Abbey of Daminis, for fo it is named, was founded that year. Ware fuppofes this refers either to repairing the ancient monaRery, or erecting a priory of Culdees there. But Ware knew very little of the hiftory of this monadic order, or he would have perceived, that what the writer of the Annals underftands by founding was, the building a new flone fabric on the Roman model, with ailes, oratories, and altars, and the whole under the invocation of feme legendary faint ; practices which the Culdees never adopted, and fome of which they abhorred. The Auguflinians, who feized every where the Culdean churches, began an Abbey here, but not fo early as ftated in the Annals. The Culdees were not expelled, but lived for fome ages in fubjedion to their new maflcrs. The latter procured large poiTefrions, which en- abled them to beautify their church and conftruct many other buildings. The oldeft eredions here are St. Molaife's houfe, and a fine round tower, both probably coeval. The former contained the reliques of St. Laferian or Molalfe, and is an additional proof of what has heretofore been advanced refpefting thefe over-ground crypts. St. Molaife's houfe is a vaulted building of hewn itone ; it and the round tower have every appearance of being built by the fame architects. 6 'j_ H01.T (i) Llv.iyds ccmpar. crvmol, in Eos. (i) ArchJ«U'» Mon. Kib. p 2;^. ( 5^8 ) + + + + + +++ + + ++ + + ♦ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +* + + + + 4-+ + * + + + + +++ + + +. • HOLY CROSS, COUNTY OF TIPFERARY. THIS Abbey is fituated In the County of Tipperary, about two miles from' Thurles. Donagh Carbragh O'Brien, King of Limerick, founded it in ii69> in honour of the Holy Crofs, St. Mary, and St. Benedift, for monks of the Cifter- tian order. It is faid, that Murtagh, a former monarch, received irom Pope Pafchal II. in 1110, a piece of the Crofs covered with gold, and ornamented with precious (tones, which was depofited in this Abbey, and the devotion to it, as we learn from Sydney's ftate papers, was almofl univerfal throughout the ifland. O'Neil, the great Ulfter rebel, mad^ a pilgrimage to it in 1559. It is at once furprizing and deplorable to obferve the fuperftitious ufe made of the crofs in the dark ages. Oecu- menius, a Greek writer, at the end of the tenth century tells us, *' it is the fliield, armour, and trophy againft the devil, a fign he dare not touch, it raifes the fallen, fupports the (landing, helps the infirm, the (laff of paflors, the leader of the devout, the perfeftion of the virtuous, the preferver of foul and body, the abhorrence of the bad, the love of the good, the deftruclion of fin, the root of the refurrection, the wood of life." Such hyperbolical expreffions operated ftrongly on the minds of rude and ignorant people : they were underflood not figuratively but literally, and hence thofe religii-r.s communities that wifhed to uttvaft numerous vifitors were fure of attaining that end by pretending to have a relique of the real crofs. What fliews the weaknefs and abfiirdity of fuch encomiums is, that the greateft admirers of the crofs cannot determine of what wood it was compofed : fome aflirm it was of oak, others of cedar, palm, cyprefs, and olive, (fee Lipfius de Cruce,) fo that the ador- ation of bigotted and belbtted creatures was paid to the molt worthlefs tree, as it was to the bones of the greateft malefactors in thofe unhappy times. The charms of beautiful architedure contributed not a little to the fame of the holy relique. The building confifts of an high (teeple, fupported on each fide by a beautiful Gothic arch, and in the centre a great variety of ogives pafllng diagonally from each angle. On the Ealt fide is a fmall chapel, and on the-South the tomb of the 1 fe "X. i( HOLY CROSS. 519 ■ ■<.4 4 < <■< 4 < * < <■< ■< t-< < < t-i i > : ■ > > > » > > > > > ) > > >■>>.» > > > >. > > > >>>.». I the founder. The nave is forty-nine feet broad, and fifty-eight feet long ; on each fide is an arcade of four arches, with lateral ailes, which pafTing on each fide of that part we conclude to have been the Choir. On the South fide of the Choir are two chapels, between thefe are a double row of Gothic arches, fapported by twifted pillars ; here the monks were waked. On the North fide are two other chapels. The whole building, when perfed, was not inferior in defign and execution to any in the kingdom. KNOCKMO' ( 520 ) •*+j. + i.J.+ + *.+ * + + + ++ + *♦ + + ++ + + + + + + •>++ + + + *•!- + • + + * + + + + ++♦ + + "•.••'**%«»"**'»«»0'jf#-»* ••»• '•#••' *'•»« ''«••' *•»»•' *••»•' '••••' '•»«•' '*.,*' '<»** •••• *' '•»' '-•* '•»' '«•' '•« ••* ^ '••' '••* *••* *•«• ••»•* . , ... »*-,T .1 . : n:"i - KNOCKMGV. TriE Abbey cf Knockmoy is in the County of Galway, fix miles from Tuatn. It -was founded in 1189 by Cathal O'Conor, fufnamcd Crove-derg, or the red hand. He was king of Connaught, and like the other Irifli princes, beheld with a jealous eye the progrefs of the Englifli in the fubjugation of the ifle, and watched every opportunity to expel them. A favourable one /eemed to pfter itfelf on the removal of John De Courcy from the lieutenancy of Ireland and the appointment of Hugh De Lacy. The latter carried his honours imperioufly, which excited the re- fentment and refiflence of the former. Taking advantage of this divifion, and of comie the wcaknefs of the Engllfh intereft, O'Conor fummoned all the IriOi chief- tains, who quickly affembled in great force to 'attack the Englilh in every quarter. De Courcy underltanding this, difpatched letters fo Almeric St. Laurence apprizing him of his danger, and reque(tirig his aid, St. Laurence inflantly marched to Ulfter with thirty knights and two hundred infantry. O'Conor intercepted him, an en- gagement enfued and St. Laurence and his company were cut off, after having ilain above a thoufand of the Iiifli. In the height of the battle, O'Conor vowed to build an Abbey in his own country if he was crowned with fuccefs, and he ereded Xnocknioy, in Ivilh Cnoc-mugha, the hill of {laughter, and in monkifli writers (lyled *' Monaflcrium de colle vidoria;," to perpetuate the remembrance of O'Conor's vidory. It was bellowed on the Ciflertians, the, habit of which order the founder took on him, and dying in 1224, was interred in his own abbey; The mofl: curious remains at Knockmoy are the frefco paintings which adorn the monument of O'Conor. One compartment reprefents ChriO on the crofs : another cxii-j-^itj fix king."!, three deceafcd and three living ; of the latter, he in the middle is lvodeiw,<)»Conor, monarch of Ireland. He holds in his hand the feamaroge or fhamroc, a pl^t-greally regarded by the Irilh, from a legendary tradition that St. Patrick emblematicJly fet forth to them the myPtery of the Trinity by this three- leaved grafsr This alfo ^jt^j-gfled his bung Lord proprietor of the foil of the king- ~ "" doin. .-/' '/>.'.. -f,\, ^ . '.U. .T 1 . ^^^ ^^.< < < <•< < <■<•< < <•< < < < i -4 '€<■<< KNOCKMOY. 521 !dom. The princes on each fide are his vaffals ; he with the hawk on his fift is his grand falconer, the other with the fword, his grand marlhal : thefe held their lands by grand ferjeantry. Below them fits a Brehon with his roll of laws, having pronounced fentence of death on Mac Murrogh's fon, for the crime of his father for having joined the Englifli. See Giraldus Cambrenfis, page 770. The boy is tied to a tree, and two archers are executing the fentence, his body being transfixed with arrows. This fupplied a good hint to fuch Irifn chiefs as deferted their natural prince. I do not believe thefe paintings are as old as the age of O'Conor ; they feem rather to have been executed in the feventeenth century, when the Confederate Catholics poffefled themfelves of the abbies, which they every where repaired, and in manv inftances, adorned with elegant fculptures. g j^ LEIGHUN. ( 5^2 ) * + ** + -H--f+.H.i.^i.^^. ^^^_^_^ LEIGHLIN-. + + + + + + + ♦ + + +. J. ••*• ••»• •.,• •,,«• ••,,•• '•.»••*'•„»•' .■ TEIGHLIN or rather Leth-glen, the half-enclofed valley, Is fituated In the f^rf L I'm '; t'T"'^ ""^"'^ '""^ '°""^^^^°" °^^=- 'Church andepifco'pal tne n^er Barrow. Burchard, a Norwegian, is reckoned among the principal bene factors to this church, he was interred in St. Stephen's priory, under a nTbenu nument, fupporting his effigies, with this infcription : H/V >r£-/ bumatus, dux fundator Lenia : InTb ' !;T "i'f I"' °" ''' """^' °' '"^"--^^ "• -b-'^ ^he cathedral, which B Ln Sn 'f "^'' J^>: '^^^^ ^'«'°P Th°-- beftowed prebends on his canon Bjfhop Saunders erefted and glazed the South window- and Bifl.ops Meredith and Vigors were great henefadors to the See. ^vieieaitn and The fame of St. Laferian, patron of the church, and the attention of his fuccef- fois to us improvement, colleded numbers from everv part .nd n..A.l ur ;nciently a confiderable town. It continued a diflin.. i^l i Uhe yea^t o ;? ^ It was united to Ferns. ^ ' ^^"^" Lw.i6, Bifl^opIIarlewin had the town incorporated, and obtained for the bur- gefi-es privileges fun lar to thofe enjoyed by the people of Briftol, with iberties xtending about a nu e and a half round the town. Large flones defined th ext of rhefe liberties, and on them were thefe words; "Terminus Burgens Lechlin'n a^d :Th- d 1'"^ '''-' "°"" '^"'^ "^'"'^ ^^^S^''" ^"^S^' anofher near .^I, • and a third m the mountains. ' During , he con.ini,.! lri», wars, ,he town nnd diocefe of Lcighlln e^riencej marry fevere v,c,ffi,udes offorrnne. In ,389 .l,e , own was laid waL, b7ZZ:l Deancry.lroufe, a Monadery, and other buildings, none of which at prefen, rerna'in I* H 1=3 - N. I i « LEIGHLIN. 523 In 1320, Maurice lakis, a canon of Kildare, conftriidled a bridge over the Barrow : this gave the great fouthern road a new dircdion, and Old Leighlin went rapidly to decay. Except the Cathedral, kept in tolerable repair and ufed as a parochial church, no veflige remains of this old city : even the well, dedicated to St. Laforian, and famous for miracles, is nearly filled up. It lies on the Weft fide of the church, under fome trees, and near it is a rude (tone crofs. ^'fi MISCEM.AXEOUS ( 524 ) \ + + + + * -t * + -i- * * i- * * ■! •i- + + -r -x- * + - + + + + + + + + + < I' +•;+ + + •;• + + + MISCELLANEOUS ANTIQUITIES. IN plate XXIX, are exhibited fpecimens of fpear heads of flint, and flone hatchets or Celts, aifo a bracelet ; Bifhop Pccocke prefented one to the London Society of (i) Antiquaries. It was compofed of three hoops foldered together, with a nar- row rim or border fomewhat ornamented, and it was about an inch and three quar- ters high ; its longefl diameter within, three inches and a half, v fliortefl two inches and three quarters, and the fwell or bulge one quarter of an inch : it weig;hed three ounces and a half and twelve grains. This ornament, according to Diouoras Siculus, was common among the Beigic Gauls, and with it they (2; adorned both arms. Each of Godwyn's rowers wore on his arms two golden bracelets, each (3;-weighing fixteeen ounces. It was the mofc diflinguiflied privilege of kings and generals to beftow them as rewards of valour, and hence they were called in the (4) Icelandic Sagas, " the beilowers of bracelets and the givers of rings." Perhaps the Northerns in this, as in many other inftances, imitated the (5J Romans. ' Broches, curioufly elaborated, have been found in various parts of Ireland. Of all the antiquities none have created more trouble to the antiquaries to determine their ufc, iliun the fcmicircular implements terminniing in circular cups. Bifliop Pococke, from ihe great liker.efs between them and the tibultc or broches, believes they were for fimiiar purpofes : the cups being inferted into the garment, and refiing on the brealt. There is given by (6) Cafal'us a broche dug up at Rome very much refembling thofe in the plate, and Ilrengthening the Bifliop's opinion. Many (l) Archaeologia, Vol. V. p. J9. (1) Barditilia. de arniillis vet. j). 8 — IZ. (3) Habcrenl in Inachiis fingulis arniillas duas iJiiani<|i:,Tn\nue fcdccim uiicianim auri. Will. Malmclb. p. 77. (4) Chron. Sax- of Ethtlllan. Jolinftonc': cxpeil. .,t Haco, and Anecdotes of Olavc the l:hck. (5) Arniillas ex auro, iniperat >ribus donati, gerunt. Fcllus. Arniillas ex virorum foitium doiiis Terifull. The Danes fwoie on ihem. AlTcr. vit. iEIfiid. A. D. 876. (6) Cafal. de profan. Rom. lit. p. 107, J ^t//,.iA,/ /;/ ^An /^y»/-.. . ) '^a. /Itt^^ . Orr,/ Cj «M'n . MISCELLANEOUS ANTiqUITIES. 525 s Many golden rings of confid-erable fize and weight have been difcovered in our bogs, which were too large for bracelets ; they f^em therefore that neck ornament dt'fcribed (7) by Diodorus SicuUis and worn by the Belgic Gauls. The word Krikois ufually tranflated chains, does not here mean links conneded with each other, but collars, for that is its proper (8) force. When we reflect that though the Britons were quite nakv'd, yet they adorned their bodies with an iron girdle and their necks with an iron collar, we need not wonder at their exchanging ihefe for golden ones, when the latter could be obtained. Rude people feldoin relinquifh what they have been accuilomed to. Aiul let it be remembered, that the Anglo-Saxons, part of the fame Northern fwarm, wore neck-collars, which weighed more than (9) eighty mancufes, or above eight ounces of pure gold. Upon the lands of Cairn, about feven miles from Mullingar, Bifhop Pococke informs us, that a plough, cutting through a fandy hillock, turned up a flag ftone feven feet long and three broad ; beneath was a grave covered with this Hag, the bottom, fides, and ends compofed of a fingle flab, and within were human bones of an unufual fize. On each fide were two fmaller graves ; with the bones was au urn of yellow clay, and befide the urn lay a very valuable ring, having twenty-five table diamonds, well difpofed and fet in gold. (See the plate.) The.Bifliop, in a vein of pleafant irony, banters the mythologic fictions of Irifh antiquaries, who afcribe to every remnant an age utterly incredible. He thinks the ring in this grave could not be of a very early date, becaufe the Swedes had no articles of jewellery among them in the fifteenth century, and he fuppofes the fame of the other Northerns. However the learned prelate had not examined the mat- ter attentively, for Mr. Pegge has Tio) proved that the golufmiths' and lapidaries' arts had arrived at great perfedion during the Heptarchy. To thefc the Irifh' Oft- nien could be no ftrangers. As the bones in this grave had not pafled the fire it is probable the interment took place after their reception of chrifUanlty in the tenth century. Diodorus Siculus mentions exprefsly the golden breaft-plates of the Belgic Gauls: thefe alfo were common among the ancient Irifh, as is evident from the numbers of them found. They are of a lunular or crcfcent-like fliape, their borders and extremities adorned with chequer work. One exhibited by Bifhop Pococke was of 6 s an (7') nifi fti» yf T"i xafxw ««/ Tj.s (mx'"*i ri!>.>-'Oi ?»?"•■' "'='■'''•»" ««"*«J'<"'". •" ^' Kf"" i^fi"*!- Lib. j- (t) n«vT« TB irixa/iTK. Hel'ych. Kf,K,ts, i»'or Jit», xf«A.»i. PoUuc. Ot.omift. I i- c. 9. (9) HickcsDiff. ejiift. p. Jl. Struti\s chron. V. j, p. 141. (i^) Archaeologia, V. 4 p JI4. 526 MISCELLANEOUS ANTIQUITIES. : < < < ■< .< ■< < < ' :■<■<'< ■<■<+>->■>•>■■>■: . >..>. >..>,,>..>.>.->. >. >. >..>..>. >..>■>..>->..>■>. y >..>■>■■>• >■ v-i an extended depth snd fize, and yet weighed but one ounce feventeen penny-weights. Mr. Bury's, difcovered in the County of Limerick, is of excellent worknianfiiip, and'contains more than half a pound of gold. I fliall not walfe my own or the reader's time in retailing and confuting the (i i) wild and abfurd notion^ entertained of fhefe gorgets, one of which is given in the laft plate. There are two brafs images in the fame plate. One about four inches high was found in the bog of CuUen, in the County of Tipperary, and is obvioufly a Cupi^ Handing on a globe ; fuch as may be feen in Gorleeus, Stoch, and others. The fecond image is about five inches and a half high, and feems to be the work of the fam.e artift and age. Thev are both Abraxas or Talifmans, the magical power of which was believed to be fo great, as to fecure the poffeffor from harm, and promote the fuccefs of his undertakings. Bircherod, a learned Danifli antiquary, affures us, they were nearly the fame as the Roman Lares ; that they were denomi- nated Dwerg, and commonly joined with Thor and Odin, and were appended to the neck : nor had the (12) pradice ceafed in Denmark when he writ, A. D. 1701, Such idols have been (13) found in England ; and that of Bufterichus, a deity of this clafs, may be feen in (14) ToUius's travels. (11) CoUea . lie rcb. nib. No. 13. (li) Nee liodie a cliriftianorum nomiullis omittitur. Spec, rei man. Dan. p. a8. (■>) Archacologia. V, 61-' 243. (14) TuUii itincrar. p. 34. INDEX, A. A. Pat:e. 93 89 79 So lBBACOMITES, or lay Abbats, who Abbats, their origin .... Adaninan, a powerful advocate of the church of Rome ..... — — — 's books, tlieir contents Aciharcaidh-ChiiiiljOr mufici! horn, defcribed 248 Adelruner, v.'ho . . . . 53 Adrian, Po^e, be.Qows Ireland on Henry 2 134! Agricoladrftroys the Druids . . 40' Aofs of interinent defcribed . 42 — 43 Aghviboe church, .'\ntiquifies of . . 500 ■ , Sir William Petty's furvey of " 512 Agriculture of the Irifli . . ^y^ — 374 Alininie, or wife women of the Germans 77' Alfred changestlie title of King to that of Earl 218 . King of N'orthumberland fi udics in Ireland .... Alice Ketyll, her hiflcry Alexandria founded A..Iphabets, their origin obfcure , feveral invented Aldhcim envies the learning of the Iriflj Ancirnt hiftory of the Briillh Ifles, dubious made up of popular talcs Ancient notices refpe£ling Ireland Anecdo'.es of early Chriftianity in Ireland Anachorets, who .... Amulets, uCed by the Roman Emperors and old Cliriftians .... Anglo-i'axons, their drefs — — clergy, retired to Itudy in Ireland ..... Annals of thi four Millers Ara'oians introduce literature into the weft of Europe ..... Anthropophagi, w)\o __ in Ireland Page. 12 70 ' 89 205 260 356 6 255 439 '5 334 33S 355 1 3 39 • 374 Au'ipodes known to the ancient Irilh 358 Antiquities, Irifli, from whence to be derived 7 , only from auth.n c records 9 Antiquaries want difcrimination rclpccling the C-lfes 40 Appendix of records to the antiquities of Kilkenny .... 498 Archbiihops, the title when eftabillhed 65 'irchprvlbyters or rur... Tk ms . . 82 Archue£lure, difference bcUvcen the Roman and r.ritilh . • • • I'vj Ard ri.igh, or monarch of Ireland . 30; Ardmartf INDEX, ( <.c<'^ <■■'■■<■■<-*-<■<•<-< ■<■<■■<■ < ■' ; 4 <• « < •< < < "t'' •■>>■>>> »•■> >■*■> >■>■>>■> >>-v- Pa^e. I Ardmore, rouiul tower defcribed . 163 Armagh, its primacy, when firft noted . 80 Armorial bearings, origin of Arms of Ireland Armachiau bifliops Aqua vitK, Iridi Apples in Ireland, few Athanafius introduces Monachifni into Rome 88 Athaflel priory defcribed . . ■ 5'^ Auftin, St. his opinion of the lives of faints 61 jBifhopricks numerous in the Irilh church Auguilinian abbey Kilkenny, antiquities of 4y2 , anc!enr,-of Ireland 130—131 27 2 ibid 129 37' Birds, which not natives of Ireland in the twelfth century Birrus, what .... Birred, Irilh .... Bifhops, ancient Irifli elected by the fept or clan ■ their confecr'ati(>a ex^rcife their fundtions at large — of Ollory Page. 265 266 81 ibitl 106 81 B. Bag- pipes, ancient, defcribed . . 248 , origin of in Ireland . 249 — — — , modern IriQi defcribed . ibid Balbus's commentary . . . 21 Ballymacfcanlan, rath at, defcribed . 47 , monuments at .51 Ballynahatne, flone monuments at . 50 Bangor, fchool at .... 90 Bards, Armoric, Wclfli, and Irifii, eminent in romantic fabling Boars, v/ild, in Ireland Bobeloth, Irifh alphabet, its origin Books, Irifli, carried to the continent Booli^'S, Irifli, wiiat BorUfe, his account of Druidifm I'his millakes relative to the Celtic 3 42 283 279 and Gothic antiquities Bonaj^ht bor and bonaghtbeg s, who .y' Barrows, to whom erefled Battle-axe defcribed Bawn, what .... Beauford on the ancient Irifli mufical in- ftruments ..... 242 Bede, pafTages in, mifunde'rftood . 194 Belgse fettle in Ireland . . . 21 — , the firft miners in Ireland . 214 , fubdue the Celtcs ■ . . 40 Bells, ancient ufe of . . 161 — 164 Bendel, Irifli 272 Benefaiftors to -the Cathedral of St. Canice 408 Bethluifnion, an ancient Irilh alphabet origin of 322—338 Beohrt invades Ireland ... 94 Bracelet, antique, drfcribed Bracc£e, Irilh Bridget, St. Brende-tiid, not ceafed in Gerniany in -89 Britain, flaves procured from Britiih and Irifh churcises religion of,the fame, 55 .. ' - priefts refufe to aflociate with thofe 3/0 337 362 376 3(5 52 3'7 2Srt 524 266 352 46 35 of the Anglo-Saxons Britons eat human flefii had wooden churches and Northerns mark their Ikins 6^ 39 143 263 162 301 Brechin, round tower defcribed Brehon laws ..... — — — — not be explained without a GloiTary .... 303 — 304 Brehons, their falaries . . • 3'9 confulted the canon and civil law 321 Brog, (or brogue,) Irilh, Jcfrribed . 269 Bruker, I N D F, X. -<•< < ii < < <<•<•<■<. : A i <<-4 ■<«<■< < <■< < <*-<*<■< <■«•<■<<■<< ^+' ■•> ►■>">'>->-l->' >■■>•>■ >■>■>■>..> > ^■>->>->->-><>->>i->- >■»■>->■■>•■>.>» 1 Pi^e Brukcr, his iniilakes relative to die ancient people cf li'irope BuilJinjjs of the Irilh, mean IBakann Irilh, what Bulgariaii Round rower Biirlcc EJmutiJ, his thoughts on iri.'h M3St lo Buits ereileii in irulitown, Kilkeimy 3S4 C. 5' 371 166 ii.'td lombs and tc.Tiplej — — tlieir i/eapois Ccliic niaiiiiers t^.lcribeJ l.'ihuntition, changed fo; cremation and Gothic Religions did'erent tribes no know'; Jg; of niLials could noi form ftone temples Celodius, companion of PeLgius C'.iauci fettk in Ireland ufed itone monuments . Cxfar's account of th? races of men in Gaul 32 — -■ on the dodlrine of th? Druids 33 Chartres, cave» under its church Callen mountain, InCcription on 338, 34a Charlemagne invites the Iriih Iherati Cambreiifis on tlie Irilh Rouiiii Towers — — — — on the Irilh IMufic — — ^ on the manners of the Irifli — — — — - on the Irilii Drefs — illultratcd liiitory of him '5<5 Chriftians, at the firll, ha I no churches or 236 iiltars 37*^ Chriftianity, in Ireland, introdu£lion of llourillied iu Ireland before — accufed of faiiehooJs Camden thinks Ireland peopled from Bri- tain .... — — his opinion of the names of Ireland Canterbury, Crypt origin of - its capitals defcribed Lad a Chorepifcopus Canhnny, who, his office and pjwtr Canons Irilh .... Canice, St. bis hiftory Cantrcds, number of. in Ireland Caracalla, Gallic .... Carthag, who .... Carta nemora, what Calhel, antKjuitles of ... Calii'.erides liles, where placed Cal'tles in Ireland Callle of Kilkenny . . 435, 265 365 ib, 3O15 21 '7 201 ib. P»ge 49 28r 377 49 S3 41 ib. 54 23 42 72 360 142 54 64 St. I'atrick .... Iriili ancient, agrees with the nd Britilh . 55, 56, 57 57 Greek .. I, (abalous account of — ■— ditfcrent from the Roman Churches, ancient Irilh, of wood • numerous in Ireland Cirarch firft at Lindibfern 8 3 I Churches firlt dwelling-houfcs 306 312 50y 3bo 267 Church, Inlh, not Roman . Chii.lcric's tomb Chorepilcopus, or Viila;5e Bilhops . their ollice married, called Corbes 90 Chndiiation Citnbri, German Celtes. . iheir altars 41 J 48 13 289 479 CathtUral oi Kilicea;iy, its origin Cows in Coiinaught, their nuuber Celtes the real Gauls '.^. boriuui, what Ciftertian Order introduced into Ireland Clergy, Britilh, relbrt to Ireland 387 Cloghcr .... 3bo Clonmacnois, ftone crofs at 35 Clone, its origin T 126 140 141 140 48 180 204 82 S3 «4 «5 74 129 54 7J 75 7' Clerks INDEX. < < <..<..<..<^..<..<..<..<..<.< . >-►>■>>■>■ i >>•>•>■>■>■>■ Clerks, ancient Irifti, wore a tunic Cocula, Jrllh . . . • Coenobites, wlio .... Collecl-.inea de rebus Ilib. its charafler 8 — 9' College of Kilkenny, its hlftory Colman attends the council at Whitby Colonization, northern, of Ireland Coins, ancient Irilli found ill New Grange not current among the Irifli Roman, w!iy found in Ireland Columba, Bede's account of hiin . preached to the Pidls his death his feftival . • . mil\akes about him Ills family Columbanus, his hiftory -_^_— _ rules . • Coign and livery deCcribeJ Coenigene, St. his hifiory Catholic Corfetlerates meet at Kilkenny • their ui^per houfe - . fupreme council ■ lift of tlieir members Conge!, who Ccoleen, Irifli Corbally, chapel of Cormac's chapel defcribed . 149 — Coflierings defcribed Creathts, Irifli, who . 376 — Crommcal, Itifli, delcribed Cronnog, Iriflj, what Crofs, the private mark of the primitive chriitians . . • , Culdees retard the corruption of the church 94 _ • dedicate their churches to the Trinity only .,. .. — married 259 ibid 89 — 12 428 55 22 21 1 45 216 46 104 ibid J07 102 118 84 354 90 317 •73 465 467 468 470 90 '271 119 150 3' 7 :i77 27 I 445 Culdees, origin of th.e r.ame . retain their faith long . — ^ convert the Nortl'umbrians . ■ expelled from Hy in Armagh to the 17th century Capella, his work Cuillean, or uiodern bag-pipes, defcribed Counterpoint, native, its origin Chorus, the ancient bag pipes Crotal, a mufical inlfrunient Crotalin, a mufical'inrtrument Cruit, a mufical inftrument rage. 102 107 1 10 1 1 1 i'3 35' 249 244 24S 251 ibid ibid D. Danes, called in Irifli Mss. Dacians — - infefl the weftern.coafts of Europe callellate Ireland — — - ereft round towers in Ireland Danifh fculptures at Glendaloch coins found at Glendaloch defcribed , their weight — - forts — - battle-axes 123 •107 95 102 Davis's ftate of property in Ireland Dearmach, where, Devenifli Priory, defcribed Divihon of Ireland into five provinces Divifions, ancient, of Ireland Diodorus Siculus preferves the true name of Ireland .... Dobdan, a Greek, probably in Ireland Doire, its fignification Dominican Abbey Kilkenny Doulach, St. his church defcribed : well Drefs of the ancient Irifh ■ — people in Kilkenny 29 30 3' 156 07 — 208 218 221 226 278 283 306 105 379 380 '9 358 71 492 146 156 259 446 Druids, INDEX. < < < <-< .<.'.<.-<..<<.,, i..<..< o.<-<"<-.<-.<"<"<"<<" 1 ■<•< + ►■ >->>>>>>»»> y ) V ; Druids, their religion ' doctrine ■ magical rites facritkes — — — philolophy . philolbpliy mifreprefented '. liuman facrifices — — — ioaie in Girrmaiiy had not letters : Druidifm profelTed by all the Celtes little noticed in Ii'ilh MSS. Druidic groves and fanes converted into Chriftian churches Drum, an Irifh muiTcal inflrur.-.ent Dublin made the metropolis of IreLmd ltd n.\me exj^lained Dun, Din, and Daingran defcribed Duiiamafe defcribed . . 293 — Dungai, r.n Irifh monk, his hiflory Daltins, Irifl), who ... Drinks, Irifli . . . 371 — Dwergh, what P.ge :>- 33 3« 37 35 7-38 38 4' 3'7 40 41 ibid 72 250 121 26 279 '94 362 284 j72 41 Eafter, difputes about it Ecclefiaftic records, few in Ireland of an ancient dale .... Egfrid, King of Northiimberland, at the infligation of the Saxon monks invades Ireland ..... Egyptians took little care of their houfes fculptures explained , fuperftition of the 20i|- in Ireland Englifli money net current before the fourteenth century coloniib obliged to build caflles nobles feiit to Audy ia Ireland 55 19 94 142 202 -206 357 216 291 357 Eri, or Iii, the name of Ireland, from whence derived Ethelred.his money coined in Dublin Epifcopal fees, two in Scotland F. Fabulous Iliftory, origin of Foereman, a famous moneyer of Dublin F.illin, IrilL, delcribed Feadain, a mufical inftrument Fenns, their arn.s Finns, who Fine Eirion, ideal Irilli militia Fiodh Aongus, council of Fir-bolgs, tlie I'elgo: Fiech, Bifliop of irlctty Fire, holy, at Kildare Fomora of the Irifli, Finlar.d^rs Feuds, Irilli, re/emble thufc of En^^Lnd Fifli of ancient Ireland Franks hung tapeftry round their tou.bs Francifcan abbey, Kilktiiny Flemimgs fettle m Enjiand Frefcobald. fociety in Ireland 225, 106 2 2. Frif on Saga Galloglaffes, Irifli defcribed Gall-Trompa, a n>ulical inllrument Gauls, the tirll inhabitants of Britain and Ireland . . . • . Gavelkind, Irilh .... Giraldus Cambrenlis illuurated Giflebcrt, an Oilman, firll legate in Ireland Giants, no part of Celtic mythology Gicndaloch, aiitiquities of — churches defcribet! untied to the fee of Dublin . . . I I. » , — iepulchres their date GKiiv' 267 243 280 24 2S0 1:7 -23 349 77 24 3"^ 309 "99 49J 26 ( 26 i 261 235 247 21 J2S 5' 171 176 >^'4 2.0 duel* INDEX. ;■«-<■.<■<..< •<-.<-4--< <■•<■■. Glendaloch crypt defcribed Gllbb, Irifh Gorfedd, Wellli, what . • Goshav.ks, Iiidi, much in requeft Gold-mines in Ireh^.nd Goths introduce a new fuperftition into Europe . ... their various modes of interment Gothic and Celtic Religions, their cha- rafteridics Gothic Chiefs had their treafure buried with them the mode of placing them in their tombs Gothic Architedure, obfervations on Arch, oripjn of Grace, fome account of that family Greek mode of mufic ufed in Ireland — ^ — taught in Ireland in the ninth century Encyclopedia, what 207 271 321 368 213 42 ib. 52 44 45 187 192 43<5 234 362 351 14 15 357 207 252 452 if.>- >■ >■ >■ >■>■>■>■ y-y >.>.>. y >. >. >. >. > y > .>. > >. >..>..>..>.>. ►..>. >. >.->-v- >■ >- * k Pa2« Irifli, of 28 firings . . 253 — — Bardic .... 254 Welfli . . . ib. Irifli, i;s component parts . ib. Harpers, Iriih, their fliiU . . 255 Hettian among the Saxons, what , 313 Hierarchy eftablifhed early in England 54 Hieroglyphics in Scotland . - 204 Higliianders of Scotland, their ancient government . . liiftory, romantic, of Ireland made up of popular tales Greeks of Marfeilles introduce Letters into Gaul knew Ireland fome retire to Irebnd Grynibald's crypt at Oxford Gcufli of the Ruffians defcribed Guild of Merchants at Kilkenny, their regiikiions .... II Hair, Iridi mode of wearing it Haifagre, Harald, his name and family 3c Harmer, Mr. his defcription of a round tower . . . . . 165 Harmony of Iri(h mufic defcribed . 246 Harp, ancient origin of . 228, 251 of Brian Boiromh . 232, 253 Teutonic, defcribed . . 25 2 27 1 Hoelft tiid, a mode of interment Hofi^odar, who Holftein, Danifli Antiquities in Holy water ufed by the Goths Iloly Crofs Abbey, account of Honey plentiful in Ireland Horfc-flefli eaten by the Irilh Hofpitals of Kilkenny defcribed Houfes in Kilkenny Hy, Iflc of, defcribed llyde, his account of the Perfian Pyratheia 165 305 I 2 43 53 74 47 S'S 372 375 485 432, 446 104 Hypogea, of the Irifli Human Sacrifices HobilUrs, v\!io Hv, abbats of I. Jar, how it fignifies the Weft Icelandic Annals contain fome IriOi names of kings .... Imports in Ireland in 1 3 20 (mpodures literary, the age of Ina's council aiuhentic Iiii'criptions found in New Grange in the C.-.thedr.il of Kilkenny lucheriemo Ille delcribed Johannes Scotus, his hiflory 49 39 284 107 iS 263 5 29 45 392 103 306 John, INDEX. ^..<..<^ «.*.<..< .< .<..< .<..< .<,.<..<..<..< .. ..< .< .<..<^>..>. y, >■>■>.>.>.■>.>.>..>..! , ^.>. !..».>.»..». p. >..>.>>. >-. John St. bis Ritual Irenscus compUiiis of the corruptions of the Churcii of Rome Ireland, northern invalion of polTtiled literary reputation du- riag the middle ages ■ ■ her ancient conftitutioii, &c. not favourable to letters mentioned by Eratofthenes ■ . icnown by the Greeks (lenderly inhabited before the in- carnation .... the School of the weftern World precarious llate of a Map of, by the Romans its various names Iris, what .... Irilta originally from Gaul — — - originally were Celtx — - not delcended from the Welfti — - Manner.-, a mixture of C;Uic and Scythic in early ages Troglodytes Language, ancient different from the modern .... why derive their orij^in from Spain. Legends, romaatic Church, its liturgy oriental . the lame as the ancient Britilh Roman — in what different from tlie fabulous account of Iriih Clergy, tlieir revenues, whence .. I the only teachers amongft thcPias Irilh Religion the fame as the Britilh lonjj retained their ancient religious tenets .... Page 55 56 29 ib 14 16 139 353 ^41 16 19 39 21 22 22 21 48 4 55 ib. 122 57 San.lology, the work of fabui'.ils received Monachifm from the Eaft not pleafed with the interference of the Englilh primate Irifli m.'aners exchange the'r wives ii'.cefluous no houfes of lime and ftone fonJ of fwine's flelh eat herbs burn their corn out cf the ear, not threfli it ... car human fielh tlieir meals ' . drew the plough by horfss tails traffic by barter Iriih kings, whence derived military we:\pons Soldiery, of whom co:npofed Drefs ' . . ■ . fame as the Belg'c forbid to be worn defcribed in Icelandic Chronicles h-iih Sayes Woollen Manufactures dye their cioth yellow Irifh Laws and Conftitution Inheritance -^- Feuds, fpecimens of Canons acquainted with the Civil L.\w Irifli Letters the fame as ilie Saxon and Welih — JNIjnks and Clergy teach in France, Germariy, and Britain . 169 I frequented France in the fixth ccn- 6i j tury Irifh wlufic, obfcrvations on I'age 61 88 123 21 123 124 14s 370 371 373 374 37' 373 216 3-7 280 2S4 260 263- 270 268 262 261 JO I 506 ,10 112 3.'^ ICO, 6 V J rid 1 :rX'.lh INDEX. .,< < <.«./.<■<■< .< ■< •< •< < ■< < « < ■< < < < < < < < < 4 <<«■<■«■< < Irifti MuGc, derived from the ancient Greek niufic — — had no notation . ufed great latitude in their mufic — — organic mufical inftruments rythmical mufical inftruments Iriditown and Kilkenny, antiquities of Irilh, Cambreniis' account of them ' ■■ fees reduced Ifidore, his definition of philofophy Ivy-church at Glendaloch defcribed K. Keating's hiftory of Ireland Kells, council of Kerns, Irifl), who Kevin, St. his bed defcribed his legend . his ton'ib ■ • Kings, Irifli Provincial Kil, its figniScation Kilkenny, antiquities of its population - beficged by Cromwell Killaloe oratory defcribed KilcuUen, ftone crofs at Knockmoy defcribed L. Laws, ancient , remarks on Law of Taniftry .... Language, Irifli, its corrupt (late Laniranc lliled primate of the Britifh ifles Ladleal circle, what the ancient chriltians thought of it .... Lea callle defcribed Ltflor, in the ancient chriflian church,who Lecan, book of .... Lcai n, an Irilh drink < ■< <■<■<+>■ Page. I 238 240 246 j 247 250 382 263 128 36 176 >.->■ >■■>■ fc-->. >■■>•>■ >■ ^■.^■■v•.>•■^■>. >. >.>■.>■>■ >■■>■>■■>. >■■>■ v- fc-v.^-v.-v. v- >'■>■ v-v>'- 22 130 284 178 207 75 382 473 144 75 520 315 ibid 344 122 123 297 235 324 371 Legends, Irifli, when fabricated Lerin ifle, the firft feat of Monachifm in Europe ..... Letter concerning the palls lent into Ireland Letters, Irifli, derived from the Roman i their power and number Leighlin, old, antiquities of Leprofy in Ireland Lhuyd and Lynch did not underftand the Brehon laws Liafail, its hiftory Libraries, Diocefan, refleiSlions on — — founded by Bifliops Lios, what Lindisfern ille given to a Culdee its Bifliops Lifmore, antiquities of Literature of the fifth century — fixtli century — — feventh century I ■ .. ■ eighth century . .- ninth century Literati tied from Britain to Ireland , Irifl), fled from the Oftmen or Danes ..... Literature, Irifli, prcferved in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries Lives of faints, how written LongobarJs, whence their name Lord of the Bull-ring in Kilkenny M. Mc. Murrough, his drefs Macarius, his opinion of the foul Mac^iolla Phadruic, whence the name Manners of the ancient Irifh MarfeiUes, ancient trade of Mary, St. her church in Kilkenny Page 4 88 183 342 343 522 370 302 308 416 420 279 109 ItO 71 347 3S<^ 353 356 360 347 360 363 61 283 385 266 362 509 375 '5 494 Malachy, ,^ t < < •< < .< .< ., < .< .( < < < ., ., .<<.<.< .< .< .< ., .< .< .< .< .< .< ., ., .< „ Malachy, Archbifhop of Armagh, intro- duces the Ciftertian order into Ireland Mead ufed by the Irifh Meafures and weights in Kilkenny Melody of the ancient Irifh Mufic Menapii, fettle in Ireland ■ called by the Iiifli Germans Martyrologies in general rufpicious Military Anticjuities of Ireland Aiilefius, Iriili kings derive froni — — known to Neiinius Mifeltoe facred among the Druids day on which it was gathered its virtues Miflionaries, Chriftian, yield to fome Pa- gan rites . ... Monachifm, origin of in Ireland of Fgyptian origin Monaincha, Ifle of , ^ Antiquities of -I I . . Abbey defcribed • Record . . Monacoghlan, Mote defcribed Monarchy, Irifli, ekclive Monafteries, Kilkenny Monks fucceed the Druids numerous in Ireland in the fixth century their dalles fubje<5t the Irifh to the Church of Rome Moofe Deer in Ireland Morafteen defcribed . ; Monuments in .the Cathedral of Kilkenny Mufic of the IriHi fecular its native technical terms M ufical Inftiumcnts of the IriQi INDEX, ♦•♦♦■►■♦■»•> I Page 129 445 245 23 ib. 60 277 307 3 38 ib. ib. 70 88 ib. i'3 1 14 lis 119 279 308 488 72 89 ib. 9S 5' 392 228 236 245 242 N. Naharvall, Grove of the Nani, inhabit Tombs Native counterpoint, its origin Neig Monument, Harp on Neclar Irilh New Grange, a Djnifli work - conjcdlures when erefted Normans depauperating the Irifli Church - their drefs on arriving in Ireland Law Latin, a fpecimen of Normans, their modes of Interment, ori- gin of • . . . Notation of the ancient Irifli MuJlc Names of Kildarc O. Oaks tall, the only D^.'ity among the Celtes ..... Odin, directs the funeral rights of the Goths ..... O'Connor Charles, his opinio-".! of the Brehon Laws Ogham Characl.:rs Oirpeam, the ancient Irifli Harp O'Flaherty, his opinion of Irifli MSS. and romantic Hiftory Orientalilhi of the Irifli Church Origin and progrefs of Monachifm in Ireland ..... Organic Mufical Inflruments of the Irifli Ornithology ancient, of Ireland Ormond, Earl of, taken prifoner OfTan IVeamigh Oflbry Prince?, account of tlie Oilmen, in Ireland receive the Rom.m tenets .... Page 40 49 244 232 371 43 46 304 48 24P 77 42 42 3-3 522 353 6 83 247 353 27; 273 502 94 Ortn '.en INDEX. l..<.-4 ,«■<■< ■<■*■<■■«■< ."ii <■<■<■< ■< ' ;.,< .<.<..< ■< .< .<<.<< .< + >■ >..r>.>..>r.>..>. >•>..>.>.>, >.>. V. ►.>. ►■>.>.>.>. ►-►.>■ »■ >. y. ►, >. >>-.>►- >. > > »- y» Oftmen ordained th-ir Bifhops in Can- terbury . . . • introduce the Benedictine order into Ireland - erect round towers and ftone- roofed crypts . , . . pcrfecute the clergy drive the leaned out of Ireland — —- their attachment to the Jloman See introduce ftone buildings in Ireland Ofwald, prince of Northumberland, fent for the Culdees to preach to his people O^Tuathal, Bifliop of Glendaloch Page 95 lb. ib. ib. ib. 121 144 109 181 Patrick, Saint, his name when it firll ap- peared his works forgeries Saints, three of the name Pafcal controverfy Pelagius, an account of him Pelluticr, not correcl: in his account of the Celtes Philoibphy among the Romans, &c. what Phoenician ancient voyages not credited — — — — -'s did not coiiie to Ireland P. Pagan ftate of Ireland . . 4a Paintings in the Deanery of Kilkenny 410 in the Caftle of Kilkenny 480 . — . at Knockmoy . . 520 i'alladius fent to Ireland ♦ . 75 Palls fcnt to Irefjud . . 183 Pap r > his legation to Ireland . 132 I'arliaments held in Kilkenny 437, .140, 442 Fariaies Iiifli, their origin 443, 444, 447 Patrick, Saint, an account of . 54 . his exiitence doubtful 58 , . his miracles , ib. ,. his travels . . 65 ■ — ■ how and when made a Phalung, an Irifli Drefs Pheateadh, what Pidls i'ettle in Ireland Pillar ftones (ynibols of the Deity Fora, ufed as ■ prelcrved by the firlt Chrif- tiiui Clergy — .■ -- uled as Chriftlan Churches Saint . his feftival honoured with the title of Archbilhop, Primate, &c. diredted by an angel to chool'e Relics at Rome 66 67 /V Piiikerton, his jufl remarks on the Goths Piob-mala, or ancient Bag-pipes Plato fond of etymology . Plaihiiig, wiiat Plowing by the tall Popes fend Miffionaries to Ireland Poitou wiiic common in Ireland Portafcrry Chapel Political Conftitutjon of the ancient Irilh Population of Ireland at the Euglilli In- vaiiun Pfalter of CaOiel, its character Pi'aluiody ufed early in the Church — ancient llate among the Iri.Oi Pi'alms and ILymns Crft ufed in Churches Ptolemy's information wlience obtainsd names not Celtic Paje 80 68 540 35 36 13 14 267 243 23 46 ib. 73 75 52 248 17 279 373 77.78 372 -148 301 37S 7 92 ^35 234 21 rb. R. INDEX. _<..<'<-if <<■<'<'<'<*'<'<'<'<"<< << ;■»■<<•<•<<■< <•<■<•<•<■<<■<■■<■<<•<•<+.>■>■»•►■•>■■»■►■)>•>>■> >■» > > I > >■>»•> > > >>►■►•>► ►.»■►■>►->■♦ »•»■» II Rabbins Jewlfh, their fii\!onis on the colonization of Europe . . Rath, what, ..... Recordi ecclefiiftical ancisnt, noii: in Ireland R:*.k1i:i, a mufical initruneiit, difcrib.-d Rsflcctions on public Libraries Review of Iridi Literature, in the middle a^es Rheno, part of ancient Irith dreTs Romans had feparate Mips of countries - coins found in Ireland Romantic hiftory of Ireland . origin of Romi(h Church how citablifhed in Ireland Church perfecute the Culdees doctrine not in Ireland before the twelfth century Round Towers in Ireland ■ the Authors who treat of them defcribed ■ introduced by the Danes ferved as watch towers ■ of their rotundity — their various fuppofed ufes — — lift of them in Ireland ■ dimenfions Round tower of Kilkenny Ro:nan ftyle of ArchiteiTture Rowlands, his account of the philofophy of the Druids Rules of Monachifm in Ireland, oriental Run, what among the Irifli Runes northern, their origin and fpecics Runic infcriptions Rural Deaneries ere(5led in Ireland Rythmical nHifical inftruments of 'Ryves Doctor, his doubts of St. Patrick P»g« 12 273 86 248 4 16 347 259 21 46 I 2 Page s Saints, their numbers ... 60 — Irilh orders and reli.jious ten-fs . p6 Saint worlliip, late in Ireland and England 95 Sagum of the Irilli, Germans and Uelgians 260 — — - its derivation .... 262 Sarabdites, who .... 89, 90 Saracenic Architecture, obfervations on 187, 196 Saxon and Gotliic Architeflure, obfervations on .... . 187, 195 Scottifli Church not governed by Monks 10; Scots fettle in Ireland . - ^ . • ^j ■ part of the Saxon nation . Scots eat human flefli 93 Saronides, a i'tii of Druids 102 '55 156 158 159 »59 162 164 167 168 422 196 88 ."532 333 45 82 250 ?8 Sciences introduced into the weft of Europe by the Arabians Scythians fettle in Ireland Seven churches at Glendaloch, defcribed a myftical number Sculptures at Glendaloch defcribed 207, Shins Irifli, not to be dyed with fafTron SIghe, who Simeon Stylites, his Pillar defcribed Simon, his account of Irifli coins Simony prevalent . . School-houfe at Kilkenny, its hiftory and ftatntes Sihtric Danifli Prince of Dublin, his coins Shirk, antiquities there Spencer thinks Ireland peopled from Gaul . his account of the Brehcn laws . 23 39 25 Skene Irifli defcribed Soder and man, ftatutes of relating to drcfi . ■ • • Sorohen a tax, ivhat 3 21 .76 «79 , 2gS 271 '63 218 133 422 22(5 73 21 3»9 287 266 3'7 6 x Stone DIRECTIONS FOR PLACING THE PLATES, Froiitii I'kcc, St, Juhii'i, Kilkennj . Title-page, Caftledcrmot Abbey. No. I. New Grange — — II. ScdioH of the Gallory New Grange III. Skirfc _ _ _ IV. Ciofs at Kilcullen — — V. Cmfs at Clonmaciuiis — VI. Teaipla M'Dtr rot. at Clonmacnois VII. IflaDds at Monaincbi ■ — Vni. Choir Arch at Motialiicha — IX. Wcftcrii Portal at Moiiainchi — - X. Kt. Patiick's Purgatory — XI. Infill Aeiigiis — — XII. Klllaloe and St. Doulagh's — XIII. View of the Rock of Cafliel — XIV. Scdliiin of Corniac's Chapel — XV. Round Towers • — •— XVI. Round Tower at Ijrechin — XVII. Gkndaloch fiom ihe Norih — XVIII. Antiquities at Glcndaloch — XIX. Glendaloch from the Weft — XX. Arches from a Syriac MS — XXI. Capitals in the Irench Church, Canterbury XXII. Ancient Sculptures at Glentialoch — . XXII I. Ancient Irifli Coinj — XXIV. .Irilh Mufical Inftrumenti — XXV. Taking of the Karl of Ormonde — XXVI. Mote of Monacoghlan — — XXVII. Celts, Spear-heads, &c. — - XXVIII. Caftle of Dunaniafe — >~ XXIX. Ground-plan of Dunaniafe — XXX. Brehoii's Chair — — XXXI. Alphabets and Ogums — XXXII. Abbey and Chuich of Aghaboe — XXXIII. Map of .-Ighaboc, from tlic Down Surirey XXXIV. Abbey of Athaffcl — _ XXXV. Ille and AhWy "fDe,jni(h — XXXVI. Chapel at Uoljcrofs ' — — XXXVII. Frcfco Paintings at Knockmoy — XXXVIII. Paintings ai Knockmoy — XXXIX. Old Lcighlin — — XI.. Mifcellancous Antltiuities — 181 Pa9C. 45 4i /3 7« 76 76 "i "5 n6 X4t . 14* 14S IJO »55 i6i «7» 177 17S 19S icr S07 SII a^S 476 S79 -5^4 594 296 3^' 319 509 50 5t4 5'7 J18 510 511 5:1 Si ^5- The Binder will be careful not to pl»ce i!ie Plates I ffore l!:e Work is beat j and to fix Silver Psptr btfort rack. 8 ?.;3 - ■ • UNIVERSrTY OF CAUFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. :S94 1^I\ »— )k in ^nv- or "'e last rtat» -'amped below D 000 446 034 i UNIVEP-Sir- M'ORNUk i.OS ANGKUSa «RARY