Ecclesiastical antiquities of Down, Connor, and Dromore, consisting of a taxation of those dioceses, compiled in the year MCCCVI.; with notes and illustrations

Each story keeps the passage it was read from. Open one to read the passage as the book has it, and, where the companion has written its own telling, that too.

1. Slaying of Shane O'Neill at Ballyteerim

   Ballyteerim · townland · Antrim · 1567

   Norden's Map notes that Shane O'Neill was slain here in 1567 near Cushendun Bay, an event also recorded by the Four Masters, with local tradition placing a single combat between O'Neill and Mac Donnell at a nearby mound called Cruik-na-Dhuine.

   Read the passage

   Papers, this townland is called " Balle Teraine", and it is added " Here Shane ONeale was slayne". — (Vol. ii.) The occurrence alluded to took place in 1567, and the Four Masters have preserved an account of it. The bay is called by them 6un-abann-t)u me, ' the foot, or mouth, of the river Dun', Avhich is now changed to Cop-abann-Oinne, having the same meaning. The river Dun rises on the S. W. side of Trostan, and flows in a direction N. E., giving name to the beautiful valley of Glen-Dun. In the townland Cushendun, which is separated from Ballyteerim by only two A'ery narrow townlands, originally quarter-lands, is a small mound called Cruik-na-Dhmne, where, according to local tradition, O Neill and Mac Donnell fought in single combat. This mound is beside the new church.

   13. Killnacrumbagh A short distance north of the last, in the townland Augh-

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 42

2. Beheading of a Mac Quillin at Loughlynch island

   Loughlynch · townland · Antrim

   Tradition relates that after the battle of Orra a Mac Quillin fled to the island in Loughlynch, was pursued by Owen Gar Magee, an adherent of Mac Donnell, who swam across, overcame him after a violent struggle, and cut off his head; the body was said to be buried on the spot with a cairn raised over it.

   Read the passage

   and a-half, and divided between the townlands Loughlynch and Upper Glassaneeran ; but it is now drained, and the island which was in the middle of it is accessible by dry ground. The Four Masters relate that Inip-loca-leirmnpi in the Route was taken by ODonnell from Mac Quillin in 1544. Hither it is said that one of the Mac Quillins tied after the battle of Orra, and that one Owen Gar Magee, an adherent of Mac Donnell, having pursued him, swam across to the island, and, after a violent struggle, overcame him, and cut oflf his head. Tradition states that the body was buried on the spot, and a earn raised over it.

   In the townland Moycraig there was formerly a little burial-groiind ; and in Lower Ballynarry, over the Bush, one called Killreda.

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 43

3. Massacre at Ardglass during Mass moves parish church into town

   Ardglass · townland · Down

   Woodkerne of McCartan's country attacked the inhabitants of Ardglass while they were at Mass, killing them all; as a result the parish church was subsequently relocated within the town walls for safety.

   Read the passage

   the clear. It appears to have been originally the parish church of Ardglass ; and its name is frequently found as an 'alias' for Ardglass. " Ecclesia de Ardglass alias Artnell. It was changed, for that the woodkern of M'^Cartenes country upon a time when the inhabitants of Ardglass were at Mass, killed them all; thereupon it was brought within the towne ". — Terrier ; Harris, Down, p. 23. A. D. 141 3, Richard Canlan, from the diocese of Meath, was presented to the rectory ' Sancti Nicholai

   former. — Cal. Cane. Hib., vol. i. p. 125.

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

4. Destruction of Dundesert Church in the 1641 Rebellion

   Dundesert · townland · Antrim · 1641

   The ancient church and cashel at Dundesert was destroyed, reputedly burned by the army to drive out rebels who had fortified themselves there during the 1641 rebellion. Excavations later found skeletons in oak coffins, others without coffins scattered in the church and windows, along with a cannon-ball that had struck a stone before entering the building, suggesting the structure was destroyed upon people inside.

   Read the passage

   having got possession in one night of many of them, and having fortified themselves, it was necessary for the army to burn these edifices before they could be driven out"." With this statement agrees, in the main, a description of the premises which was given to the Editor on the spot, in May, 1 845. In a field called the Church- field, which is now as even as if it had never been disturbed by any other instrument than the plough, there was, until about sixty years ago, a space of nearly four Irish acres, enclosed by a large and nearly-circular fosse. This trench was of about the breadth of a moderate road ; and the earth which had been cleared out of it was banked up inside as a ditch, carrying up the slope to about the height of sixteen or twenty feet from the bottom. The whole face of the slope was covered with large stones, embedded in the earth. Concentric with this enclosure, and at about the interval of seven yards, was another fosse, having a rampart on the inner side, similarly constructed; and on the area enclosed by this stood the church, east and west, ninety feet long, and thirty wide. The ruined walls were about six feet high, and five thick. The burial ground was principally at the east end of the building, and the whole space outside the walls was covered with loose stones. The two entrances, as described above, were of about the same breadth as the fosse, and were paved with large flat stones, but they had no remains of a gateway. Pieces of stained glass, coins of the Edwards, oak boards, large iron handles, stone hatchets, a small bell, and three stone basons, one of them perforated, were found within this space. With considerable difficulty all the stones were cleared away, and with them the mill and houses of Dundesert were built, while the trenches were filled up, and every trace of the cashel and church as completely obliterated as the most fastidious ploughman could desire.

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 16

5. Martyrdom of Abbot Blaithmac at Hy

   Iona · island or archipelago · 824

   When the Danes raided Hy (Iona) in 824, they demanded the abbot Blaithmac hand over the precious metal shrine containing St. Columba's bones; he refused and was killed in a violent massacre described in a metrical account by Walafridus Strabo.

   Read the passage

   " Ecce furens maledicta cohors per aperta ruebat Tecta viris minitando pericula sasva beatis Et reliquis rabida sociis feritate peremptis. Ad sanctum venere patrem, pretiosa metalla Reddere cogentes, quels sancta Columbge ■ Ossa jacent, quam quippe suis de sedibus arcam ToUentes tumulo terra posuere cavato, Cespite sub dense gnari jam pestis iniquce.

   Hanc prsedam cupiere Dani".

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

6. Mermaid reportedly caught off Island Magee

   near Island Magee · parish · Antrim

   A local legend held that a mermaid had been taken in the waters off Island Magee, and within living memory of the author a large company travelled all the way from Belfast to see the creature. The author speculates the sighting may have actually been a seal.

   Read the passage

   toris Comgalli Benchorensis". It need not seem strange that a story like this should have found its way into so faithful a record as the Annals of Tigernach, inasmuch as the existence of the mermaid was strongly believed by the ancients. Nay, it is not twenty years since, in this age of light, a large company travelled all the way from Belfast to this neighbourhood, to see a mermaid which was reported to have been taken in Island Magee ! A seal,

   2 M or

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 38

7. St Bernard's damning account of Malachi's barbarous Connor diocese

   Connor · townland · Antrim · 1124–1140

   St Bernard describes the diocese of Connor as being populated by people who were Christian in name only, pagan in reality — failing to pay tithes, marry lawfully, confess sins, or attend church — until Malachi's reforms gradually civilised them.

   Read the passage

   " Vacabat tunc teraporis Episcopalis sedes in una civitatum, et jam diu vacarat, Malachia nolente assentire, siquidem ipsum elegerant. Persistentibus tamen illis tandem aliquando cessit, accedente ad vim faciendam mandate magistri sui, nee non et Metropolitani. Tricesimo ferme a^tatis sua? anno Malachias consecratus Episcopus introducitur Cormereth ; hoc nomen civitatis. Cum autem coepisset pro officio suo agere, tunc intellexit homo Dei non ad homines se, sed ad bestias destinatum. Nusquam adhuc tales expertus fuerat in quantacunquc barbaric. Nusquam repererat sic protervos ad mores, sic feralcs ad ritus, sic ad fidem impios, ad leges barbaros, ccrvicosos ad disciplinam, spurcos ad vitam. Christiani nomine, re pagani. Non decimas, non primitatis dare, non legitima inire conjugia, non facere confessiones : poenitentias nee qui peteret, nee qui daret penitus invcniri. Ministri altaris pauci admodum erant. Sed enim quid opus pluribus, ubi ijisa paucitas inter laicos propemodum otiosa vacaret ? Non erat quod de suis fructificarent officiis in populo nequara. Nee enim in Ecclesiis aut praidicantis vox aut cantantis audiebatur. Quid faceret athleta Domini? Aut cedendum turpiter, aut periculose certandum, sed qui se pastorem non mercenarium agnoscebat, elegit stare quam fugere, paratus et animam suam dare pro ovibus si oportuerit. Et quanquam omnes lupi, et oves nulla3, stetit in medio luporum pastor intrepidus, omnimodis argumentosus quomodo faceret oves de lupis. Movere communiter, secreto arguere, flere per singulos : nunc aspere, nunc leniter convenire, prout cuique expedire videbat. In quibus per hsec minus profecisset, cor contritum et humiliatum offerebat pro eis. Quotiens noctas totes pervigiles duxit, extendens manus in oratione. Et cum venire ad Ecclesiam nollcnt, per vicos et plateas occurrrebat invitis, et circiiiens civitatem pcrquirebat anhelus (|uem Christo acquirerct. Sed et foris rura et oppida nihilominus sa?pius percurrcbat cum sancto illo comitatu discipulorum suoriun, qui nun quam deerant lateri ejus. Ibat et erogabat vel ingratis coelestis tritici mensuram. Ncc vehebatur equo, sed pedes ibat, et in hoc virum se Apostolicum probans, Jesu bone, quanta passus est pro nomine tuo bellator tuus a filiis sceleratis? quanta sustinuit ab iis ipsis, quibus, et pro quibus loquebatur bona tibi ? Quis digne exprimat in quantis vexatus, quibus alFectus sit contumeliis, quibus iujuriislacessitus, quotiens lassatus inedia, quotiens afflictus in frigore et nuditate? Attamen cum iis,

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

8. St. Patrick's burial and death at Saul

   Saul · townland · Down · 493

   St. Patrick died having spent his latter days at Saul, with St. Thassach remaining after him as Bishop of Rathcolpa (Raholp); the tradition of St. Patrick's burial at Downpatrick is discussed as underpinning the church's founding.

   Read the passage

   JEj. C. 493, St. Patrick died, having spent his latter days at Saul. St. Thas-

   sach remained after him, as Bishop of Eath-colpa [Kaholp]. M. C. 496, Mochay, of Nendrum. M. C. 513, Mac Nissi, of Connor. M. C. 537, Lughadh, of Connor. M. C. 540, Colman, of Dromore. M. C. 560, Carbreus, of Cuilrathen [Coleraine]. M. C. 572, Finnian, of Maghbile [Moville]. M. C. 583, Fergus, of Drumlethglas [Down]. yE. C. 590, Conallus, of Cuilrathen [Coleraine]. M. C. 602, Sinell, of Maghbile. M. C. 617, Eogan, of Rath Sithe [Rashee]. ^. C. 618, Sillan, of Maghbile. iE. C. 638, Critan, of Nendrum. jE. C. 642, Cronan Beg, of Nendrum. M. C. 658, Dima Duff, of Connor. M. C. 658, Cummine, of Nendrum. M. C. 673, Morand, of Nendrum. jE. C. 691, O'Dreini, of Maghbile. jE. C. 725, Dochonna, of Connor. M. C. 730, Oegetchar, of Nendrum. M. C. 734, Flann Mac Cellach, of Rechrann [Rathlin]. M. C. 803, Tomas, of Linduachail [Magheralin]. M. C. 810, Bishop of Bangor slain. M. C. 823, Subhne Mac Fergus, of Dunlethglas [Down]. M. C. 865, Oegetchair, of Connor. ^. C. 871, Colman, of Nendrum. ^. C. 927, Celedabhall, of Bangor. ^. C. 951, Duibhinnsi, of Bangor. ^. C. 954, Gaeitheine, of Dunlethglas [Down]. M. C. 962, Finghin, of Dunlethglas [Down]. M. C. 972, Maolbrigid Mac Cathasaigh, of Dromore. M. C. 1016, Dermot 0 Maoiltealcha, of Bangor. ^. C. 1038, Cuinden, of Connor. M. C. 1043, Flaithbertach, of Dunlethglas [Down]. M. C. 1086, Maolcevin, of Ulidia [Down].

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 9

9. Bissets flee to the Glynns after the murder of Patrick of Galloway

   Glens of Antrim · valley · Antrim · 1242

   Patrick, son of Thomas of Galloway, was murdered in his bed-chamber at Haddington in 1242 by the Bissets, who afterwards fled from Scotland and took refuge in the Glynns of Antrim, where they obtained a settlement under the Earl of Ulster.

   Read the passage

   Alan of Galloway died in 1234, and Patrick, son of Thomas of Galloway, was murdered in his bed-chamber at Haddington, in 1242, by the Bissets, who, after this deed, fled from Scotland, and took refuge in the Glynns of Antrim, where they obtained a settlement under the Earl of Ulster". In 1279 i* ^^^ found by Inquisition that John Byset, son and heir of John, held, in capite, of Eichard de Burgo, son of Walter, the following lands in the Glynns: Drouach [Droagh], Villa trium fontium [i. e. 6aile na o-cpi b-cobap, now Ballytobber], Villa Hacket [Ballyhackett], Carlcastel [Carncastle], Carkemachan [Corkermain], in the modern parish of Carncastle ; also Psallor [Solar], Glenharm [Glenarm], Glenclene [Glencloy], Glenarthac [GlenarifF], Catherich [Gary], and Racry [Rathlin]. From the first John the family in aftertimes received the patronymic Mac Eoin, i. e. 'son of John', and the Four Masters style them Mac Eoin Bisset, or simply Mac Eoin. — (A. D. 1383, 1387, 1422, 1495, 15 12.) In the State Papers " FytzJokn Byssede of the Glynnes" is represented as one of the " great Englyshe rebelles of Wolster". — (Vol. ii. p. 7.) In another place his territory is styled the " Baronye of the Glynnes". — (lb., p. 27.)

   But besides the Glynns a considerable portion of the Route was attached to the Earldom of Ulster, as appears from the Inquisition taken on the death of William de Burgo, in 1333, concerning his possessions in the " Comitatus de Coulrath". It was then found that he held the following lands: Loganton [Ballylagan], Erthermoy

   Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 53

10. Bishop of Connor flees to Carrickfergus during Bruce's invasion

    Carrickfergus · townland · Antrim · 1315

    During Edward Bruce's invasion in 1315, Connor was a wealthy episcopal town taken by the Scots. The bishop fled to the castle of Carrickfergus for safety, and as a result his bishopric was placed under an interdict.

    Read the passage

    Grace and Pembridge relate that on this occasion the bishop fled to the castle of Carrickfergus, and his bishopric was put under an interdict. His residence was probably the castle, a portion of the outworks of which remain within the glebe. In 1434 the Bishop of Connor was resident at Carrickfergus (Reg. Swayne, p. 81.)

    u.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 38

11. Burial of Fothadh Airgtheach at the battle of Ollarba

    near Larne · town · Antrim · 285

    Fothadh Airgtheach, a former monarch of Ireland, was slain by Caoilte at the battle of Ollarba in Line. The Leabhar na h-Uidhre describes his burial place in detail: a stone chest in the earth containing his silver rings, bracelets and torque, with a cairn and an inscribed ogham pillar stone marking the grave.

    Read the passage

    TIC, acuf a Di bunne ooac, acup a mum- There is a chest of stone about him in the

    cope apjic pop a compaip ; acup acd earth. There are his two rings of silver,

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 38

12. Liban transformed into a salmon and caught near Larne

    near Larne · town · Antrim

    After a year submerged beneath Lough Neagh, Liban was changed into a salmon and traversed the seas until, three hundred years later, she was caught in a net at Inbher Ollarba (Larne) and baptized by St Comgall as Muirgen.

    Read the passage

    they heard the celebration of angels beneath the boat. Liban, thereupon, addressed them, and stated that she had been 300 years [500 ?] under the sea, adding that she would proceed westward and meet Beoan, that day twelvemonths, at Inhher OUarha [Lame, see p. 264], whitlier the saints of Dala-

    raidhe, with Conighall, were to resort. Beoan, on his return, related what had occurred, and, at the stated time, the nets were set, and she was cauglit in the net of Fergus of Miliuc ; upon which she was brought to land, and crowds came to witness the sight, among whom was the Chief of Vi Conai/icf.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 65

13. Viking earl defeated at Ulfreksfiord near Larne

    near Larne Lough · estuary · Antrim · 1018

    According to the Norse chronicler Snorro, in 1018 Einar Jarl, son of Sigurd, Earl of Orkney, led a piratical expedition to Ireland and engaged a king of Ireland in the bay called Ulfreksfiord, identified with Larne Lough, but was defeated and retreated with heavy losses.

    Read the passage

    The harbour of Larne has had a great variety of names. Snorro relates that in 1 01 8 Einar Jarl, son of Sigurd, Earl of the Orkneys, sailed on a piratical expedition to Ireland, and that having encountered Konofogor [Connor?], King of Ireland, i VIfreksjirdi, 'in the bay Ulfreksfiord', he was defeated, and retired with loss (Johnstone, Ant, Celt. Scan., p. 157.)

    A. D. 1 2 10, July 26, King John being at Carrickfergus granted to Duncan Fitz Gilbert, and his heirs, the town of Widfridiford, and all the land from Wulfrichford to Glynarm, containing fifty plowlands. Witnesses: the Bishop of Norwich, John de Courcy, &c. — (Cal. Cane. Ilib., vol. ii. p. 354.) An Inspeximus of this grant recites that these fifty carucates were in Widvricheford, Inverth [Inver], et Glivarn [Glenarm]. (Rot. CI. 3 Hen. III., Hardy E. C, p. 402 b.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 38

14. Death of Donnell Mac Loughlin, King of Ireland

    Derry · street · Tipperary · 1121

    The Four Masters record the death of Donnell Mac Loughlin, described as the most distinguished of the Irish for personal form and nobility, at Derry-Columbkille. This entry is used to help date the bell-shrine inscription to before 1121.

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    Though undated, the inscription possesses two historical notes by which its age can be ascertained with considerable precision. The Four Masters, at the 3'ear 1121, record the death of the person first named in the above recital, in the following terms : " Donnell, the son of Ardgar Mac Loughlin, monarch of Ireland, the most distinguished of the Irish for personal form, nobility of birth, wisdom, feats of arms, wealth, and prosperity, for bestowing riches and food, died at Derry-Columbkille, in the 38th year of his reign and 77th of his age, &c." This fixes the date between the years 1083 and 1 121, The other note limits the date to a narrower period. A. D. 1091, " Maoiliosa, cowarba of Patrick [i. e. Archbishop of Armagh], died in penitence on the 20th of December, and Domlui all Mac Amhalgadha [MacAuly] w^as immediately chosen to the abbacy in his room". Again, A. D. 1105, " Domhnall Mac Amhalgadha, chief comarba of Patrick, went to Dublin to establish peace between Domhnall Ua Lochlainn and Muircertach O Brian, where he was seized by a deadly disease. He was afterwards conveyed to the cathedral of Armagh, and there he breathed his last, on the 1 2 th of August," &c.

    Thus it is determined that this inscription belongs to one of the fourteen years immediately siicceeding 1091. At that early period Cathalan O Maelchallan was keeper of this bell, agreeably to the custom of the country, which vested the custody of venerated relics in particular families, and associated with the keeping certain emoluments or immunities. In the middle of the fourteenth century, however, this relic, according to the Four Masters, was in the hands of another family. At the year 1356 they have the following entry : —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 62

15. Sorley Boy's flight to Glenconkeine in Ballynascreen

    near Ballynascreen · parish · Derry · 1584

    When Sir John Perrot captured Dunluce Castle in 1584, Somhairle Buidhe (Sorley Boy) Mac Donnell fled with all his valuables to the fastnesses of Glen-Chon-Cadhan in Ballynascreen, County Derry, seeking refuge from the Lord Deputy's forces.

    Read the passage

    the Route, about the year 1554, and even established himself in Mac Quillin's fortress of Dunluce. In the enjoyment of his newly acquired territory he continued till 1584, when, having learned that the new Lord Deputy had received instructions to drive him back to his native land, and restore the Eoute to its lawful proprietor, he invited over to his aid a large body of Scotch, who, on their arrival, commenced to lay the country waste. Whereupon Sir John Perrot, the Lord Deputy, set out upon an expedition against the refractory intruder, and made himself master of Dunluce, the only fortress which Somhairle had left in a posture of defence when he fled with all his valuables to the fastnesses of Glen-Chon-Cadhan, in Ballynascreen*, in the county of Derry. Having subsequently submitted to the Queen", he obtained a pardon in 1586, and received a grant of four tuoghs or districts in the Route; namely, The Tuogli from the Boi/s [River Bush] to the Ban ; Donseverig ; Loghill; andi Balla-mongn, together with the government of Donluse Castle. His wife M^as Mary, daughter of Con ONeill, Earl of Tyrone; and her death is recorded by the Four Masters at 1582. Somhairle died in 1599, and was succeeded by his son Randal, who also married an ONeill, namely, Ellice, sister of Hugh, last Earl of Tyrone'. Having evinced a loyal disposition*, he received from James L, in 1603, a plenary grant of the Route and Glynnes, a tract of country extending, according to the popular expression, " from the Cutts of Coleraine to the Curran of Larne". This vast territory was at the time subdivided

    into

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 53

16. Bangor sacked, shrine broken, clergy slain by Danes

    near Bangor · town · Down · 810

    The Danes wasted Bangor abbey, broke open the shrine of St. Comgall, and put its learned men and bishops to the sword. Keating's account confirms the bishop and learned men were slain and the shrine desecrated.

    Read the passage

    J£i. C. 810, " Inopet) 6enncoip o^encib, 7 pcpm Chomjaill do bpipiuD ooib, 7 a puib, 7 a eppcoip do recc po gin claicib". " Bangor wasted by the Danes, and the shrine of Comgall broken open by them, and its learned men and bishops were smitten with the sword®". The same occurrence is thus related by Keating: — " t)o h-oipgioD 6eanncop Ulao, 7 do mapbao a h-eappoj, 7 a oaoine

    pojlamra leo, amaiUe pe Sjpm Chomjaill do bpipoo ooib"

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

17. Burial of Hugh de Lacy at Carrickfergus Friary

    Carrickfergus · townland · Antrim · 1243

    The Franciscan Friary at Carrickfergus, said to have been founded around 1232, was the burial site of Hugh de Lacy in 1243. The site is now occupied by the county gaol.

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    de Lacy, Avho was buried here in 1243, " apud Cnocfergus in conventu fratrum"

    {Ch-ace, Annal.) The Four Masters, at the year 1497, relate that the monastery of the Friars at Carrickfergus was founded, with consent from Rome, at the request of Niall, son of Con, son of Hugh Buidhe ONeill, for the use of Friars Minor de Observantia, and that sixteen friars of the fraternity of Donegal, with a superior, took possession of it. The site is now occupied by the county gaol. In the Stowe Library is a volume of fifty-two pages, which was transcribed from an ancient MS. belonging to this house; it contains the lives of sixteen saints, and is written in the Irish language ; and at the end is the subscription: " Fr. Bonaventura Mac Dool Guardianus de Carrickfergus, theologia; lector" — (O Conor, Stowe Catalogue, vol. i. p. 158.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 41

18. Cuuladh defeated at Downpatrick by John de Courcy

    near Downpatrick · town · Down · 1178

    Cuuladh, son of Donnsleibhe, was defeated at Downpatrick by the Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy in 1178, marking the beginning of Norman conquest of Ulster.

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    66. Cuuladh, son of Donnsleibhe, defeated at Downpatrick by John de Courcy A. D.

    1178.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 60

19. Death of King Dermot at Rath-beg and burial of his body at Connor

    Connor · townland · Antrim · 558

    Dermot, son of Fergus Cerrbeoll, King of Ireland, was slain by Aodh Dubh, King of Dalaradia, at Rath-beg in Moy-line; his head was taken to Clonmacnois but his body was buried at Connor.

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    a cenD 50 Cluain mic noip 50 jio habnacr innce, 7 po haonacc a colann hi Ccoinoepe". " After that Dermot, son of Fergus Cerrbeoll, had been twentyyears King of Ireland, he was slain by Aodh Dubh, son of Suibhne, King of Dalaradia, of Eath-beg, in Moy-line. His head was conveyed to Clonmacnois, and interred there, and his body was buried at Connor". "Aldus Niger, Cruthinius gente, qui et Diermitium filium Cerbuill, totius Scotice regnatorem, Deo auctore ordinatum, interfecerat". (^Adamnan, i. c. 36, Trias Thaum., p, 349.) M. C. 612 [617], " Conoepe Dolopccaoh".

    "Connor was burned". ^. C. 658 [659], "DlOmQ Dub eppcop Conoepe oej. an vi. lanuapii",

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

20. Destruction of Coleraine's houses and ecclesiastical buildings for castle construction

    near Coleraine · town · Derry · 1213

    In 1213, Thomas MacUchtry and the English of Ulidia pulled down all the houses of the town and all the ecclesiastical buildings of Coleraine in order to build the castle there, likely destroying the ancient abbey.

    Read the passage

    In 12 1 3, according to the Four Masters, Thomas MacUchtry, and the English of Ulidia, pulled down all the houses of the town and all the ecclesiastical buildings, in order to the erection of the castle of Coleraine. On this occasion it is likely that the ancient abbey of Coleraine was demolished. The church, however, escaped, and was probably the bviilding which, in after times, appears under the title of St. Patrick's. — (See above, p. 75.) The site of the abbey is now occupied by the shambles.

    In 1244 a Dominican Friary, called St. Mary's, was founded at Colerane, which subsisted until the general dissolution of religious houses. It is stated to have stood on the west bank of the river. — (Archdall, p. 84.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

21. John de Courcy seizes and rifles the city of Down

    near Downpatrick · town · Down · 1177

    In February 1177 John de Courcy led twenty knights and 300 foot soldiers through Uriel and reached the city of Down, which he took and plundered without resistance.

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    JE. C. 1 177, "In February, 1177, John de Courcy led forth twenty knights and 300 foot soldiers, besides servants, and marching through Uriel [Lowth] in four days (or rather early the fifth), he came to the city of Down, which, without resistance, he took and rifled" (Cox, p. 32.)

    A. D 1226-7, Sixty-two pounds were returned into the Exchequer "de Balliva de LadcatkeV. — (Rot. CI. 1 1 Henry III. m. 24 dors.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 23

22. Legend of the drowning of Eochaidh in the eruption of Lough Neagh

    near Lough Neagh · lake or lakes · Antrim

    According to the legend recorded in the Leabhar na h-Uidhre, Eochaidh, from whom Lough Neagh takes its name, was drowned along with all his children except Liban, Conaing, and Curnan when the lake burst forth. Liban survived beneath the waters in her palace for a year before being transformed into a salmon.

    Read the passage

    " Eochaidh, from whom Lough Neagh derives its name, was drowned in its eruption, together with all

    253

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 65

23. Lough Cowey ford where William de Burgo was assassinated

    near Belfast · city · Antrim · 1333

    William de Burgo, Earl of Ulster, was assassinated at 'the Ford' near Belfast in 1333, at a manor he held there with a fortified castle destroyed in an earlier war.

    Read the passage

    Saxon Ford. St. George's Church, in Belfast, occupies the site of an earlier religious edifice, which is represented in an old map of the town, preserved in the Library of Lambeth. Near this was one of the fords by which the Lagan was commonly crossed, which, being the lowest down on the river, and therefore the most convenient for the inhabitants on either side of Belfast Lough, was called, par excellence, the Ford. Thus, "William de Burgo, Earl of Ulster, who was assassinated at this spot, June 6th, 1333, held, at the time of his death, " apud le Ford, manium in quo est unum castrum prostratum per guerram Johannis de Logan ". — Inquis. P. M., 7 Ed. UL No. 39. Tur. Lond. Another ford lay higher up on the river, at Stranmillis (ppuran-milip), and near to it was one of the six chapels of Belfast, called ' Killpatrick de Maloane'. — Terrier.

    ^ Henry'' s-town There is no part of

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

24. Meriman's slaughter of Sorley Boy's sons and Alexander

    Dunluce · townland · Antrim · 1585

    The deputy sent Meriman, an experienced officer, against Sorley Boy Mac Donnell; Meriman slew the two sons of James Mac Conell and Sorley Boy's own son Alexander, harassing him and driving off his cattle, forcing his eventual surrender of Dunluce.

    Read the passage

    " " Nest year [1585], however, he recovered it by treacherj', having slain the governor Gary, who made a brave defence. But the deputy sending against him Meriman, an experienced otlicer, who slew here the two sons of James Mac Conell [Donell], and Surlej' Boy's son Alexander, so harassed him, and drove off his cattle, which were his only wealth (he having 50,000 cows of his o-wn), that Surley Boy surrendered Donluse, went to Dublin, and in the cathedral made his public submission, presenting an humble petition for mercy" — (Camden's Britannia, vol. iv. p. 431, Ed. Gough, Lond. 1806.)

    " Archdall's Lodge, vol. i. p. 207.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 53

25. St Comgall expelled from Rathlin by armed men

    near Rathlin Island · island or archipelago · Antrim · 550–560

    When St Comgall wished to build a cell on the island of Rechrann (now Rathlin), thirty soldiers seized his hand and forcibly expelled him from the island.

    Read the passage

    -wliich is now called Rathlin. " Cum sanctus Comgallus cellam voluisset a^dificare in insula nomine Reachrain [Reachraynd — Cod. Kilken.'], venerunt triginta milites et tenentes manum ejus, eum inde expulerunt" — (Fleming, Collect., p. 311, col. 2; Cod. Kilken., fol. 93 b, c. i, 1. 44.) The island was also visited by St. Columbkille, but there is no mention of a church having been founded by him: " Alio in tempore cum vir

    sanctus in Rechrea hospitaretur Insula" (Adamnan, lib. ii. c. 41, Trias Thaum.,

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

26. St Patrick's death and last communion at Raholp

    Raholp · townland · Down

    Local tradition credited St Patrick with founding the church of Rathcolpe (Raholp), and held that he received his last communion there at the hands of St Tassach shortly before his death, according to the hymn of St Fiech.

    Read the passage

    ^ Ratkcolpe — Now Raholp, a townland in the west angle of Ballyculter parish. — Ord. Survey, s. 31. In a sub-denomination called 'Banaghen' or ' Benagh', about 100 yards to the right of the road leading from Downpatrick to Ballyculter, stand the ruins of the church, called Chiirchmoyley. They are 33 feet 4 inches long, and 21 feet 4 inches wide. The southwall is overturned ; the east and west walls are about 1 2 feet high. The east window is 4 feet 6 inches high, and i o inches wide, splayed inside to the width of 3 feet 2 inches ; and ends, not in an arch, but in a large flag. In building the walls, yellow clay has been used instead of mortar. The plot of ground which the ruins and cemetery occupy, is about half a rood in extent; and seems, from its elevation above the surrounding field, to have been at one time a 'rath'. The voice of antiquity ascribes the foundation of the church of Rar-colpa to St. Patrick ; and at the hand of St. Tassach, its bishop, according to the hymn of St. Fiech, he received the communion shortly before he died — ^ee Appendix.

    ' Cnokengarre Cnocan geapp (' the

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

27. St Patrick's traditional landing place at Donaghadee

    near Donaghadee · town · Down

    Near Donaghadee, a graveyard by the sea contained the ruins of a small church called Templepatrick, where tradition held that St Patrick first landed in Ireland. A holy well associated with him also existed at the site.

    Read the passage

    *• Dofnackli. — Now Donaghadee. — Ord. Survey, s. 3. The parish church occupies the ancient site. It stands near a large earthen fort, from which some say the name is derived. The spelling in the Taxation looks as if the word was formed from Domnac bir, 'the church of loss'. In a record of the year 1524, it is called ' Donaghdy th '. — Reg. Crom., p. 452. In the seventeenth century, it was generally written ' Donaghdee'. In a graveyard, at the sea side, about a mile south of the town, were " the ruins of a small church, called Templepatrick, where it is said St. Patrick first landed in Ireland; there is his well also, and other traditions among the Irish concerning it". — Montgomery MSS., p. 311. Ord. Survey, s. 7.

    ' Vicarage The rectory was appropriate to the Black Abbey in the Ards. In 1356, it was purchased by Primate Richard Fitz-Ralph, and appended to the See of Armagh, with which it continued to be connected, till the present Lord Primate munificently endowed the vica-

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

28. Translation of the relics of Patrick, Brigid and Columba at Down

    near Downpatrick · town · Down · 1186

    In 1186 a famous ceremony took place at Downpatrick in which the relics of the three patron saints were translated, attended by Cardinal Vivian and John de Courcy. Giraldus Cambrensis records that the three bodies were found together in a triple cave-like tomb with Patrick lying in the middle.

    Read the passage

    quo Dominus Comes Johannes primo in Hiberuiam venit, quasi in spelunca triplici, Patritio in medio jacente, aliis duobus hinc inde. Johanne vero de Curci tunc ibidem prgesidente, et hoc p-ocurante, tres nobiles thesauri divina revelatione inventa sunt et translata. Unde versus

    " In burgo Duno, tumulo tumulantur in uno Brigida, Patritius, atque Columba pius".

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

29. Assassination of William de Burgo near Shankill Castle

    near Belfast · city · Antrim · 1333

    In 1333, William de Burgo, Earl of Ulster, was assassinated near the castle at Belfast, between the castle of Sancles (a corruption of Shankill) and Gregforgus, as recorded by Grace. This event marked a violent episode in the area then known as Vadum or the Ford.

    Read the passage

    Belfast is mentioned so early as the year 667, as the scene of an encounter between the inhabitants of the districts on either side: "6eUuTn F^^P^P' '"^^P ^^^^ *=^ Cpuicne, ubi ceciGic Cacurac TTIac Cupjjein". " The battle of the Ford between the Ulidians and Picts, where fell Catusac, son of Lurggein".& The name appears in the Taxation in the Latin form Vadum ; and again, in 1333, as the place where a castle of the Earl of Ulster stood, and where William de Burgo was assassinated''. Grace says that he was slain " inter castrum de Sancles et Gregforgus"; which name Sancles appears to be a corruption of Shankill (pean-ciU 'old-church'), the parochial name of Belfast. According to the Ulster Inquisitions, the ground occupied by the present town was called BaUyrecoolegalgieK

    At the period of the Reformation the parish contained six chapels, of which the Terrier gives the following recital : —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 17

30. Flaherty son of Conchobhar slain after laying waste Connor

    Connor · townland · Antrim · 960–962

    An army led by Flaherty, son of Conchobhar, King of Ailech, invaded Dalaradia and laid waste Connor, but the Ulidians retaliated, killing Flaherty and his two brothers Teigue and Con along with many others.

    Read the passage

    Oalnapaioe 550 po inDip Conoepe, con apcaiprerap Ulubh co po mapbab pioirbepcac 7 a do bparaip Uaioj 7 Conn, pocaifte oile imaille ppiu". "An army led by Flaherty son of Concbobliar, King of Ailech, into Dalaradia, laid waste Connor, until the Ulidians assailed him and slew him, -with his two brothers, Teigue and Con, and many others with them ". JS,. C. 963 [965], " lopeph comapba mic Neippi 7 Cholmam Gala &ecc".

    "Joseph, cowarba of MacNissi and Colman Ela, died". M. C. 968 [670], " Sloicceo la pi^ n Lllab la h Qprjal mac maouoain 50 ^allaiB

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

31. Golden-Toothed Sea Monster Found in Boirche

    Carlingford · town · Louth · 744

    Tigernach records a wondrous fish cast ashore in the region of the Boirche (Mourne), having three golden teeth in its head, one of which was placed on the altar of Bangor monastery. Giraldus Cambrensis later notes a similar prodigy near Carlingford.

    Read the passage

    Tlie occurrence seems to have been fresh in the memory of the inhabitants, in the twelfth century, as Giraldus Cambrensis takes special notice of it. " In Ultonia apud Karlenfordiam inventus est piscis tarn quantitatis immensae, quam qualitatis inusitatas. Inter alia sui prodigia, tres dentes (ut fertur) aureos habens, quinquaginta unciarum pondus continentes, quos aureos quidem exteriore quadam similitudine, aurique nitore, potius quam natura crediderim". — (Dist. ii. c. lo.)

    The parish of Kilkeel (Cill caol 'narrow church'), called Mocorne in the Taxation, is co-extensive with the barony. The old church lies a little S. W. of the modern church, in the townland Magheramurphy. The following chapels belonged to this extensive rectory : —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 24

32. John de Courcy destroys the fortified abbey of Carrick

    Inch · townland · Down · 1180

    During his conquest of Ulster, John de Courcy utterly destroyed the monastery of Carrick because it was being used as a fortalice and had troubled him greatly; in recompense he refounded the abbey on his island of Inch.

    Read the passage

    Domus ista, fratres inquit, funditus destruetur, et hie erit deinceps habitatio ferarum et latronum. Ibi vero collegium justorum et ascensus animarum sanctarum. Hie vepres et spinae solum desertum operient, ibi virtutum fructus producentur et indueentur in horreiun paradisi ; sed nolite tristari, quia desolationem quse fiet liic, ibi populus bonus superveniens reformabit in statum meliorem. Post cujus abbatis transitum mansit dictum monasterium de Carryke, de ordine Savigneacensi, per tempera trium abbatum; vidz. Odonis, Devincii, et Johannis; in cujus tempore redditum fuit ipsum monasterium ordiui Cisterciensi, siib conditione, quod imperpetmim esset deinceps filia Furnesii : set tempore conquestus Ultoni^ prsefatus dominus Johannes de Curcy penitus illud destruxit quia fortalicium fuit, et multum ilium infestavit ; sed in recompensationem fundavit, seu potus transtulit illud in Insulam suam de Ynescuscre, et dedit domui suae maternse de Furnesio, ad construendum illud, easdem terras quas, in loco priori, habuit ex dono Magnelli regis antedicti ; et sic dicta abbatia de Ynes efFecta est filia Furnesii, sicut ante fuerat in loco priori.

    Anno milleno centeno bis quadrageno Curcy fundavit Ynes, hostes hine superavit".

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 32

33. Mochay of Nendrum's 150-year enchantment legend

    Nendrum · ecclesiastical site · Down · 496–644

    A curious tradition held that St. Mochay, founder of Nendrum, was charmed away by a bird for 150 years, and upon his return the new generation did not recognize him, possibly a conflation with a later abbot of the same name who died 147 years afterward.

    Read the passage

    curiovis tradition of St. Mochay, the founder of Nendrum, that he was charmed by a bird for 150 years, and that, at the expiration of that time, he revisited the church which he had founded, but the new generation did not know him. Could the rationale of this legend be that this Mochua, who died 147 years later, was mistaken for his predecessor, and thus the absurd story be forged? Jocelin calls Mochaoi, the founder of this church, Mochua. M. C. 659, " Cummine eppcop nQenopoma mopcuup epc".

    " Cummine, Bishop of Nendrum, died" {Tigernach). The text of the

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

34. Revelation and disinterment of relics at Saul

    Saul · townland · Down · 1293

    The Four Masters record that in 1293 Primate Nicholas Mac Maolisa, having received a revelation that the relics of Patrick, Columba and Brigid were at Saul, had them disinterred; great miracles were reported before the relics were reburied in a shrine.

    Read the passage

    The Four Masters, however, differ from Giraldus and the Otfice, both as to time and place. They relate that in 1293 Nicholas Mac Maolisa (who was Primate from 1272 to 1303), having had a revelation that the relics of St. Patrick, Columba, and Brigid, were in Saul, caused them to be disinterred, and that, great miracles having been wrought by them, they were solemnly covered, and finally deposited in a shrine. But, previously to this, the Prior and Monks of St. Patrick's of Down had, in 1220, addressed King Henry III. to the following effect: " Excellentia; vestrai transmittimus uonachum nostrum cumferetro Patrononum Hibernice — Fatricii, Columbce, et Brigidce-, et eorum reliquis; quatinus pro eorum revercntia, et pro promisso, quod domiuus noster, Pater vester promisit ; scilicet se benefacturum ecclesise nostras, et pro vobis, qui Domiuus estis totius terra? patronorum Hibernia; et patronus, aliquam mansiunculam in Anglia, ubi, cum opus fuerit, poterimus hospitari, nobis caritative detis".— (Prynne, Rec. iii. p. 49; Rymer, Feed. i. p. 250.)

    How the question was regarded in the year 1372 appears from the following lines of the bard ODugan: —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

35. Skeletons and Relics Unearthed at Dundesert

    Dundesert · townland · Antrim

    During clearing of the trench at Dundesert, an ancient burying place was found containing several human skeletons enclosed in oak coffins, with others found unburied in the church and windows. Various relics including a golden brooch, silver pieces with crosses, marble stones, and stone basins were also discovered.

    Read the passage

    for the Appendix, was briefly noticed at p. 5. The following account of it is given in Dubourdieu's Statistical Survey of Antrim : "In this townland [Dundesert], which lies in the parish of Killead, near Crumlin river, are the ruins of an ancient church or monastery, sixty feet long, and twenty-five feet wide, situated on a large fort, with a double intrenchment, faced in front with stones, and paved over the top, with two complete entrances, one north-west, the other south-east ; in cleaning out the trench was found an iron bow, and an arrow-head of steel, also a golden broach, six inches long, with a swivel on the top ; several pieces of silver were also found, with a cross on one side, and an impression not intelligible on the other ; as were several pieces of marble stones, one in particular shaped like a man's head and neck, and three stone basons (probably fonts), which contained about three pints each, and several pieces of metal of different descriptions. In the interior of this intrenchment was an ancient burying place, wherein were several human skeletons inclosed in oak coffins ; others were found in the church and in the windows without any coffins, which gives reason to suppose that it was levelled on the people in the inside, as there was a cannon-ball found near the house, having first struck a stone before it entered it. A number of houses have been near this place. There is a tradition respecting the destruction of the churches in this barony of Masserene; that, in the rebellion of 1641, the rebels

    having

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 16

36. St. Bridget's leper hospital and burial site

    Carrickfergus · townland · Antrim

    Adjoining the east suburb of Carrickfergus stood the site of St. Bridget's hospital, an ancient monastic foundation said to have been for the reception of lepers. Remains of its chapel survived until recently, and persons were interred there within living memory.

    Read the passage

    VI. St. Bridgefs " Adjoining the east suburb of the town is the site of the hospital of St. Bridget, an ancient monastic foundation, said to have been for the reception of lepers. Some remains of the chapel attached to this hospital remained within the last forty years, and persons were interred in it within memory. The lands adjoining are still called the Spittal Parks, and were, till this year (1823), free of ty the. There is no record when this hospital was founded, or by whom. In the 36th of the reign of Queen Elizabeth this hospital and the lands attached were granted by the Crown to Richard Harding for 30 years. Some silver coins have been found here of Edward III." (M'Skimin, Hist, of Carrickferg., p. 127.)

    VII. Killi/ann About two miles N. W. of the town, in Middle Division, a gable

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 41

37. Fiachna's pilgrimage to Bangor for a stolen cow

    near Bangor · town · Down

    Fiachna, son of Aodh Roin, made a pilgrimage to Beannchair (Bangor) because a single cow had been stolen in his province, showing the seriousness with which such theft was treated.

    Read the passage

    " Aodh Roin had five sons, viz., Fiacha, son of Aodh Roin, u quo Clann Fiachaidh at Dun-da-leathglas. It was he that made Droichead na Feirsi'^ [the Bridge of the Pass], and Droiehed Mona Daimh [Bridge of Moin Daimh], et alios : he got the name of Fiaehna of the black bridges. It was he that got the whale with the three golden teeth; and he gave a tooth of them to the mason, i. e. the mason that built the bridge; and he gave the other two to ornament the reliquaries of the province**. It was he that made a pilgrimage to Beannchair, because one cow had been stolen in his province. This Fiaehna had six sons,

    viz.,

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 60

38. St Donard's relics venerated at his mountain church

    Maghera · parish · Down · 1645

    At the church associated with St Donard, a bell called Glunan and a jewelled shoe once belonging to the saint were preserved and held in great veneration as late as 1645. The ruins and a stump of a Round Tower, destroyed by a storm about 130 years before Reeves wrote, still mark the site.

    Read the passage

    temporibus S.Dominicus [^ rectiusBoman.- gardus'. — Colg.'] nobile monasterium construxerat: mons Dominici jam usitatius nomen habet". — Topog. Hib., Dist. iii. cap. 2. Colgau, at the 24th of March, has collected a number of particulars respecting St. Donard, and states that two churches were consecrated to him (which Colgan incorrectly places in the diocese of Dromore), one, ' in vertice ejusdem altissimi montis, longe ab omni humana habitatione posita', of which some remains exist at this day; and the other, the subject of this note, wherein " asservatur [A. D. 1645.] una nola in magna veneratione, quEe fuit olim hujus sancti, Glunan vulgo dicta, et unus e calceis pretioso tegumento ex auro, et argento coelatus". — Act. SS., p. 743, col. 2. The ruins of the ancient church, 45 feet 9 inches in length, and 2 1 feet 6 inches in breadth, stand in the parish churchyard, outside which, on the N. W., is the stump of a Round Tower, being all that remains of the original structure which suffered in a storm about 130 years ago. — Harris, Down, p. 82. See the Calendar in Appendix, at 24th March.

    XX -s

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

39. Battle of Gleantaoise: Death of James and Engus Mac Donnell

    Glenshesk · valley · Antrim · 1565

    James and Engus Mac Donnell, sons of Alexander, fell in the battle of Gleantaoise (Glenshesk) in 1565, killed by O'Neill. This conflict was part of the ongoing struggle between the Mac Donnells and Irish chieftains for control of the Route.

    Read the passage

    ties the name, which is properly written Mac Uidhe- of the late Sir James Mac Donnel, Baronet; En- Ihi, or Mac Uighelin, appears in English records. gris, SamarJy, and Alexander Oge, coming out of Besides the forms which occur in the above ex- Scotland, possessed themselve.s of old Dalrieda, tracts, we lind M'gwylyn (A. D. 1448. Reg. IMey. i. now the Routh in the county of Antrim ; in defence fol. 40); Fit2-AoJctyw(seep. 72); M'C«27/e« (p. 71): whereof, James and Engus fell in the battle of M'Quoilli/ne (Chancellor Cusacke's Letter, 1552); Gleantaoise [Glenshesk?], A. D. 1565, by ONeill.

    329

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 53

40. Battle of the Ford at Belfast, AD 667

    near Belfast · city · Antrim · 667

    Belfast is mentioned as early as the year 667 as the site of a battle between the Ulidians and the Picts, in which Catusac, son of Lurggein, was slain. This is recorded as the earliest historical reference to the site of Belfast.

    Read the passage

    Belfast is mentioned so early as the year 667, as the scene of an encounter between the inhabitants of the districts on either side: "6eUuTn F^^P^P' '"^^P ^^^^ *=^ Cpuicne, ubi ceciGic Cacurac TTIac Cupjjein". " The battle of the Ford between the Ulidians and Picts, where fell Catusac, son of Lurggein".& The name appears in the Taxation in the Latin form Vadum ; and again, in 1333, as the place where a castle of the Earl of Ulster stood, and where William de Burgo was assassinated''. Grace says that he was slain " inter castrum de Sancles et Gregforgus"; which name Sancles appears to be a corruption of Shankill (pean-ciU 'old-church'), the parochial name of Belfast. According to the Ulster Inquisitions, the ground occupied by the present town was called BaUyrecoolegalgieK

    At the period of the Reformation the parish contained six chapels, of which the Terrier gives the following recital : —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 17

41. Danish sack of the shrine of St. Patrick

    near Armagh · town · Armagh · 830–845

    The Annals of Inisfallen and Ulster record that the Danes broke open and carried away the shrine believed to hold the relics of St. Patrick, with Forinnan, Abbot of Armagh, later carrying relics into Munster. This event is cited as part of the long dispute over the true resting place of St. Patrick.

    Read the passage

    But these authorities which assert that St. Patrick was buried at Down gain a greater weight than even their age or number could confer, from the fact that the claim was in early ages conceded by Armagh. Considering that that church was founded by St. Patrick, and that the primacy was attached to it, it is not likely that it would have permitted another church to enjoy the reputation of being his resting-place without contradiction ; and that a manuscript in which is a tract which is justly pronounced to be " a mere fabrication to support the authority of the church of Armagh", and " all the lives" in it suspected of being "written with a view to serve the same purpose"," should have invented a story for the purpose of conferring the highest honour upon a rival church. The Book of Armagh would scarcely introduce a fiction to shed lustre on Dow7i or Saul. Nor is it likely that in after ages the church of Armagh would have acquiesced in a mock translation without remonstrance, or allowed the fact to pass for granted, if general belief had not given sentence in favour of Down. It is trvie that the Annals of Inisfallen, at the year 830 (which is 844 of the Annals of Ulster, and 845 of the common era), relate that the shrine of St. Patrick was broken open and carried away by the Danes ; which shrine may be supposed to have contained the relics of St. Patrick mentioned by the Annals of Ulster at the year 830, and at 845, as carried by Forinnan, Abbot of Armagh, into Munster. Also that St. Bernard describes Armagh as the place " in qua [S. Patricius] et vivus prgefuit et mortuus requiescit^\ Still, however, it is not certain that these were the relics of the same St. Patrick, or, if they were, that they Avere more than a small portion of them.

    The selection of Down as the depository of the remains of St. Brigid and St. Columba, whether in reality or in fiction, supports the argument for St. Patrick's interment there, inasmuch as Down possessed no title to them, either by historical

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

42. Discovery of an Agnus Dei and mass human bones at Chapel-hill, Downpatrick

    near Downpatrick · town · Down · 1728–1744

    About 1728, Mr Trotter, making a new garden on Chapel-hill (site of the Priory of St John the Baptist), found an Agnus Dei of freestone which an ignorant servant maid ground to powder, and also found vast quantities of human bones which he buried in one large grave.

    Read the passage

    incorrectly called " Domus S. Johannis Jerusalem de Duno". — (Cal. Cane, p. 131, compared with pp. 142 b, 144^.) Its site is now occupied by the Ebenezer Chapel on the south side of Mary-street. The spot is marked on a map of Down, A. D. 1729, by a mound, in the shape of a horseshoe, to which Harris refers, in his History of Down, as on Chappel-hill. — (p. 267.) Near this, on the S. E., is a place marked on the same map, " St. John's Close". " About sixteen Years ago", writes Harris in 1744, " Mr. Trotter, as he was making a new Garden on Chopj)el-hill, found another Agnus Dei, which being also Free-stone, an ignorant Servant Maid brayed it to Powder for domestick Uses. He found vast Quantities of human Bones in the same Place, which he deposited in one large Grave". — (p. 29.)

    III. Monasterium Hibernicorum, a priory of Regular Canons, called also Monaster Gallagh. It is said to have been founded byMalachi OMorgair in 1138. Its site is thus pointed out by the Terrier : " Monasterium Hibernorum, hard by the Cathedral, is the church of Channons". The old gaol, now a barrack, which lies a little north of the cathedral, at the north side of English-street, occupies a site whereon human remains have been found, and which would answer well to the description. Also, on what was formerly called Windmill Hill, where the present county gaol stands, human bones and several early English coins have been dug up. This is farther off from the cathedral on the north, but Bridge-street, which runs beside it, was formerly called Fryer'' s Lane.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

43. King Bresal drowned in Loch Laogh

    near Belfast Lough · estuary · Antrim · 161

    According to Tigernach's annals, Bresal son of Brian, who reigned in Eamania for nineteen years, was drowned in Loch Laogh, the ancient name for what became Belfast Lough.

    Read the passage

    The Irish Annals relate that in the fifth year of the reign of Hercmon, "^och ^.ao^ ino Ulcoib", "Loch Laogh in Ultonia", broke forth. — (Four Mast. JE. M. 3506; Ogyg., p. 187; Keating, vol. i. p. 310.) Tigernach, at the year 161 of the Christian ajra, thus records the reign of a King of Ulster: " 6pepal mac 6piuin pejnac an eamain annip ;ci;c. qui 6och 6015 pubmcpauic", " Bresal son of Brian reigns in Eamania nineteen years, who was drowned in Lough Laigh". The Felire of Aengus the Culdee, already cited, speaks of Killroot church as on the shore of Lough Laogh. (pp. 60, 246.) The same work mentions the name again in connexion with another church, in the following words : —

    « CaiST^eW mOl^ mac l^aSCai. " Laisren the great, Son of Nasca.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 40

44. Monastery of Kells Seen Roofless After 1641 Rebellion

    Kells · townland · Antrim · 1641

    A deposition given in 1808 recorded the testimony of Daniel Monaghan, who recalled his grandfather Murtogh Dillon saying he was eleven years old during the Rebellion of 1641 and had seen the Monastery of Kells after its dissolution but before it was entirely unroofed.

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    vey, ss. 38, 39), enters the parish of Connor, and, leaving its church on the south, winds round the abbey of Kells on the north, and, under the name of Kells Water, falls into the river Main at a place called Ballyandraid. The next instance in which the Editor has met the ancient name of this abbey is in a deed of confirmation from the Primate to the Prior of Neddrum [circ. A. D. 1 190], which is attested by " F. Abbas de DiserV. — Cotton Charters, No. 40. Brit. Mus. Murtogh Mac Annullowe, the last abbot, was seised, in 1542, of eight adjacent townlands in temporals and spirituals, of the tithes of ten other townlands, and the rectories and advowsons of nine churches. In 1808 a bill was filed by Lord Mountcashell for the recovery of the impropriate tithes of Kells, in which was the deposition of Daniel Monaghan, who declared that he recollected to have heard his maternal grandfather Murtogh Dillon say, that he was eleven years old at the wars of Ireland, namely, the Rebellion of 1641, and that he had seen the Monastery of Kells, after its dissolution, and before it was entirely unroofed. Enrolment. The west gable is the only part of the building which remains ; it stands at the entrance of the burial-ground,

    97 (Diocese of Connor.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

45. Monastery of Saul Plundered and Monks Driven Out

    Saul · townland · Down · 1170

    In 1170 the convent of Regular monks at Saul, along with their abbot placed there by Malachi O'Morgair, were violently expelled from the monastery they had built and adorned, and stripped of their books, sacred furniture, and livestock, at the instigation of a disgraced monk named Awlave and King Magnus O'Eochadha of Ulidia.

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    After his death we find little or no notice taken of Saul in the Annals, and it is reserved for Malachi O Morgair to re-introduce into conventual distinction this ancient monastery, which he built entirely anew. His contemporary S. Bernard says: "Eodem visionis genere id quoque quod in Saballino situm est antequam fieret^ prseostensum est illi, non modo oratorium, sed et monasterium totum". — (Vit. S. Malach. Messingham, p. 372.) The Four Masters casually mention it as a church at the year 11 49; but at 1 156 they record the death of Maolmaodhocc mac Dubradin, abbot of Sabhall. At 1170, they relate that the convent of Regular monks with their abbot, whom Malachi O Morgair, Legate of the Vicar of Peter, had placed in Sabhal Pattraic, were driven from the monastery which they had built and adorned, and were spoiled of their books, their sacred furniture, cows, horses, sheep, and all things which they had collected in the time of said Legate. This was done by Magnus O Eochadha, King of Ulidia, at the instigation of Awlave, a monk who had been expelled from Drogheda for his crimes. For the next event in its history see p. 40.

    In the to-\vnland Ballysugagh, a short distance N. E. of the abbey, is a spot called the Saval-bregagh, or pseudo-Saul, where formerly existed a cemetery.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 30

46. Bishop Colman's foundation and burial church at Kilroot

    Kilroot · townland · Antrim · 412

    St. Colman, disciple of St. Ailbe of Emly, landed at Kilroot in the year 412 and built a cell called Chell-ruaid at his master's request; the churchyard with remains of the ancient church still lies close to Belfast Lough (anciently Lough Lee).

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    ^ Kilrothe. — Now Kilroot parish. — Ord. Survey, s. 53. At the Dissolution, the rectory was appropriate to the abbey of Kells. The original name was CiU puaio, which is variously called, in English records, Kilroigh, Kilruaigh, Kilroe. The church was founded by St. Colman, a disciple of St. Ailbe of Emly, who, in the year 41 2, landed here, and, at the desire of his master, built a cell called Chell-ruaid. Ussher, Ind. Chron., Works, vol. vi.p. s^$. Ogygia, par. iii. cap. 87. The Feilire of iEnsrus makes mention of this chvxrch in connexion with the name of Colman, at the 1 6th of October; and the Calendar of the Four Masters, at the same day, in these words : Colman eppcop ChiUe puaib 1 nt)al QpaiD pop bpu Coca Lao\ 1 nUll-

    [ cia • vij • ti • vij • s • ij • d 0I3 q! Ixxiijti-xij -s-iiij -d. — Inde de-

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 5

47. St Columb's Thorn burial ground at Gortfad, last used 1815

    Gortfad · townland · Antrim · 1815

    At Gortfad, near Portglenone, an ancient unenclosed burying-place called 'St. Columb's Thorn' contained a stone vault shaped like a chest made of large flags. The last burial there was of a woman named M'Can around 1815.

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    1. Gortfad, — A townland about a mile N. E. of Portglenone. — (Ord. Survey, s. 31.) It is thus noticed in the Ulster Visitation : " Graungia de Gortfadd, noe church, chappie, nor walls. The 2^ p* of all tithes impropriate to the Abbey of Armagh, possest by Sir Hugh Clatworthy, Knt." In the King's Books it is called Vicaria de Gortfaule, and is rated at 26s. Gortfayd paid 8s. proxies to the bishop. — {Ul. Vis.) There was an ancient burying-place here called " St. Columb's Thorn". It was a piece of ground twenty-two yards long, and eleven broad, no way enclosed, but distinguished from the field, at the side of which it was, by its greater height. The last interment in it was of a woman the name of M'= Can about 18 15. It contained a stone vault, six feet in length, and three feet wide, in the form of a chest, composed of large flags. — (M'Skimin's interleaved Archdall.)

    2. In the townland Ballylummin, at a place called Gilvaltagh, was the site of an ancient church and cemetery. Beside it was a holy well where the Roman Catholics of old held stations at midsummer — (M'^ Skimin, ut supra.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

48. Bishop Colman of Lissan strangled by the Hy-Tuirtre

    Lissan · townland · Fermanagh · 743

    The annals record that in 743 Colman, bishop of Lessan (Lissan), was strangled by the people of Hy-Tuirtre. This act of violence against a churchman is preserved in the Annals of Ulster.

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    ^E. C. 743, " Colman, bishop of Lessan [Lissan], strangled by the Hy-Tuirtre". — {A?i. Ul.)

    M. C. 834, "Eochaidh, son of Cucongoltach, lord of Hy-Tuirtre, died".

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

49. Danes routed after laying waste Connor

    Connor · townland · Antrim · 968–970

    Artgal, son of Madndan, King of Ulidia, led an army against the Danes and laid waste Connor upon them, leaving many slain including some of his own men.

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    50 po oipcc Conoepe poppa, 7 co papccbac ap ceno laip". " An army led by Artgal son of Madndan, King of Ulidia, against the Danes, so that he laid waste Connor upon them, and very many were left slain with him". M. C. 974 [976]. " Conainj mac Pionainabb Conbeipe 7 Cambe 6ala becc".

    " Conang, son of Finan, abbot of Connor and Lan-Ela, died". The parallel passage of the An. Ul. calls him comapba mic Hippi 7 Colmam 6la. M. C. 1038 [1039], " CUINtDGN eppcob 7 abb 7 peaplei^inn Conbepe, comapba

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 35

50. Domhnall Mac Amhalgadha stricken by deadly disease in Dublin, dies at Armagh

    near Armagh · town · Armagh · 1105

    While in Dublin attempting to broker peace between rival Irish leaders, the chief comarba of Patrick was seized by a fatal illness. He was carried to Armagh cathedral, where he died shortly afterward.

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    Though undated, the inscription possesses two historical notes by which its age can be ascertained with considerable precision. The Four Masters, at the 3'ear 1121, record the death of the person first named in the above recital, in the following terms : " Donnell, the son of Ardgar Mac Loughlin, monarch of Ireland, the most distinguished of the Irish for personal form, nobility of birth, wisdom, feats of arms, wealth, and prosperity, for bestowing riches and food, died at Derry-Columbkille, in the 38th year of his reign and 77th of his age, &c." This fixes the date between the years 1083 and 1 121, The other note limits the date to a narrower period. A. D. 1091, " Maoiliosa, cowarba of Patrick [i. e. Archbishop of Armagh], died in penitence on the 20th of December, and Domlui all Mac Amhalgadha [MacAuly] w^as immediately chosen to the abbacy in his room". Again, A. D. 1105, " Domhnall Mac Amhalgadha, chief comarba of Patrick, went to Dublin to establish peace between Domhnall Ua Lochlainn and Muircertach O Brian, where he was seized by a deadly disease. He was afterwards conveyed to the cathedral of Armagh, and there he breathed his last, on the 1 2 th of August," &c.

    Thus it is determined that this inscription belongs to one of the fourteen years immediately siicceeding 1091. At that early period Cathalan O Maelchallan was keeper of this bell, agreeably to the custom of the country, which vested the custody of venerated relics in particular families, and associated with the keeping certain emoluments or immunities. In the middle of the fourteenth century, however, this relic, according to the Four Masters, was in the hands of another family. At the year 1356 they have the following entry : —

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 62

51. Lepers' Hospital of St Peter Near Kilclief

    Kilclief · townland · Down · 1387–1415

    A hospital for lepers dedicated to St Peter stood near Kilclief in the fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, its custody being granted by royal officials to various clerks; its remains were later known as the Spital-field.

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    A. D. 1387, Robert de Vere, Marquis of Dublin, &c., committed to Nicholas Lepyng, clerk, the custody of the Lepers' house of St. Peter, nigh Kylclcth in Ultonia (Cal. Cane. Hib., p. 134.)

    A. D. 1 41 5, The King committed to John Fitz-Richard, chaplain, John Molyn, and Walter Sely, the custody of the hospitals or lepers' houses of St. Nicholas of Down, and St. Peter of Kyicleth, with their lands and appurtenances, to be held while in the King's hands, rent free. — (Ibid., p. 204.)

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 29

52. Prophecy of Abbot Evodius at Carrick concerning desolation

    Inch · townland · Down · 1127

    According to the Furness registry, St Evodius, first abbot of the monastery of Carrick, prophesied on his deathbed that the house would be utterly destroyed and become a habitation of wild beasts and thieves, a prophecy later seen as fulfilled when de Courcy destroyed it.

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    Domus ista, fratres inquit, funditus destruetur, et hie erit deinceps habitatio ferarum et latronum. Ibi vero collegium justorum et ascensus animarum sanctarum. Hie vepres et spinae solum desertum operient, ibi virtutum fructus producentur et indueentur in horreiun paradisi ; sed nolite tristari, quia desolationem quse fiet liic, ibi populus bonus superveniens reformabit in statum meliorem. Post cujus abbatis transitum mansit dictum monasterium de Carryke, de ordine Savigneacensi, per tempera trium abbatum; vidz. Odonis, Devincii, et Johannis; in cujus tempore redditum fuit ipsum monasterium ordiui Cisterciensi, siib conditione, quod imperpetmim esset deinceps filia Furnesii : set tempore conquestus Ultoni^ prsefatus dominus Johannes de Curcy penitus illud destruxit quia fortalicium fuit, et multum ilium infestavit ; sed in recompensationem fundavit, seu potus transtulit illud in Insulam suam de Ynescuscre, et dedit domui suae maternse de Furnesio, ad construendum illud, easdem terras quas, in loco priori, habuit ex dono Magnelli regis antedicti ; et sic dicta abbatia de Ynes efFecta est filia Furnesii, sicut ante fuerat in loco priori.

    Anno milleno centeno bis quadrageno Curcy fundavit Ynes, hostes hine superavit".

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 32

53. Removal of the round tower (cloictheach) at Downpatrick Cathedral

    near Downpatrick · town · Down · 1744–1783

    The ancient round tower or belfry standing near the old Cathedral at Downpatrick, described in detail by Harris in 1744 as 66 feet high with an unusual ground-level entrance, was taken down in 1783 as an unsightly and unserviceable structure.

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    mentandum cultum divinum in ecclesia prsedicta ; etiam propter venerabiles reliquias sanctorum virorum, Sti. Patricii, Sti. Columbse, et Stse. Brigidaj, ibidem in uno tumulo jacentium; de consensu prioris Dunensis et conventus ejusdem; — Monasterium quod olim ab antiquo gubernabatur per Moniales, quod quidem monasterium est liodie devastatum; et Monasterium Sti. JohannisBaptistge; et Monasterium Sti. Thomas Protomartyris ; et Monasterium Ilibernicorum ; et Eectoriam ecclesiaj parochialis de Ardglas ; et Praebendam de Ros; et Pra?bendam de Ballenagallbee (see p. 30); et Capellam Stse. Marise Magdalene (see p. 43); ad justam et laudabilem petitionem domini Gelasii Maganisse, commendatorii de Duno, praemissa omnia et singula, propter causas pra?missas, quod melius est ecclesiam Cathedralem dotare quam quad ambo in forma cadant, univimus annexuimus et incorporizavimus. Dat. in Caregfergus, 20 die Feb. A. D. 15 1 2 ". This union of the endowments of the smaller religious houses in Down to the Cathedral, was confirmed by the Primate, October 12, 1541 ; and the instrument was directed to " Conosius Maganasse, commendatorius de Duno, sede vacante". — (Reg. Dowd., p. 63.) Gelacius Magennis, above spoken of, was Prior of St. John's in Down, as well as of St. Patrick's and other houses. — (Reg. Dowd., p. 483; supra p. 177.) The cloictheach, or belfry of this church, alluded to above at p. 41, "stands", writes Harris in 1744, " about 40 Feet from the old Cathedral, is 66 Feet high, the Thickness of the "Walls three Feet, and the Diameter on the Inside eight Feet. On the West-side of it is an irregular Gap about 10 Feet from the Top, near a Third of the whole Circumference being broken off by the Injury of Time. The Entrance into it is two Feet and a half ■wide, and placed on a Level with the Surface^ of the Ground: in which last Particular it is pretty singular. For in others the Door is placed from eight to 1 2 Feet above the Ground, without any Steps or Stairs; so that there is no getting into the Building without a Ladder, unless it may be judged (which is probable enough) that this Difference has been occasioned from the raising of the Ground by the Rubbish of the old Cathedral near it, fallen into ruinous Heaps".— (Down, p. 2 20.) This appendage of the ancient abbey was taken down during the autumn of 1783, being considered an unsightly as well as unserviceable object !

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 31

54. Sedna O'Deman burned to death in his own house

    Nendrum · ecclesiastical site · Down · 974

    The Abbot of Nendrum, Sedna O'Deman, was consumed by fire in his own house, an event recorded as the last notice of the church in the Annals before it was likely destroyed by Danish raiders.

    Read the passage

    " Sedna ODeman, Abbot of Xendrum, was consumed in his own house ".

    This is the last that we hear of this church in the Annals. Probably it was pillaged and demolished soon after by the Danes, whose ships were continually floating in Strangford Lough. When next the name occurs, it is as belonging to property of the see of Down, with which John de Courcy, in 1 178, takes the liberty of making it over to the monks of an English abbey. It would seem, however, that long ere this it held some tributary relation to the see of Down, for in the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick it is stated " Quia S. Patricius hunc sanctissimum virum [S. Mochaium], primo a subulci officio ad pastoralem dignitatem evexit, hinc prajdicta ejus Ecclesia porcum

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev

55. The unprecedented storming of Dun Sobarky (Dunseverick)

    near Dunseverick · population centre · Antrim · 870

    In 870 AD, Dun Sobarky, the stronghold now known as Dunseverick, was stormed for the first time in its history, an event recorded as unprecedented in the Annals of Ulster.

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    " The storming of Dun Sobarky, a thing which had never been eifected heiore'\— (An. Ul.)

    In a note on this passage Dr. 0 Conor observes: — "Extant in Stowense qutedam Poemata vetusta Hibernica, de expugnatione Duni Sobairche in Ultonia". j^. C. 924, " Opjuin t)uine Sobaipce do ^uUuib Loca Cuan".

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 43

56. Collapse of the Round Tower at Trummery

    Trummery · townland · Antrim · 1828

    In the townland of Trummery, the churchyard held ruins of the ancient church and was formerly notable for its round tower, which was about 60 feet high when complete. The greater part of it fell in 1828, leaving only the base with a few spiral steps.

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    •" Bathmesk Now Magheramesk, a parish in the union of Aghalee. — Ord. Survey, s. 67. Antrim. The Terrier gives the name in the form oi Ramisq, without the modern prefix. In the townland Trummery is the churchyard, with the ruins of the ancient church, measuring 5 1 by 14 feet. This spot was formerly attractive by reason of the Round Tower which belonged to this church. It stood close to the N. E. angle, and is stated, when complete, to have been about 60 feet high. The greater part of it fell in 1828, and all that remains is the base, inside which are a few spiral steps.

    ^Enacha Now Aghagallon, a parish

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 4

57. Human remains displaced during street levelling in Newry

    near Newry · town · Down

    When Boat-street in Newry was opened and the ground levelled at the site of the old abbey chapel, great heaps of human remains were uncovered; many were carried away and reinterred in the Catholic burying-ground.

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    Stuart, this building stood in "Boatstreet, at the place now occupied by a potato market " : and " on opening the street and levelling the ground at this place, great heaps of human remains were displaced, of which large quantities were carried away and deposited in the present Catholic burying-ground " — Ibid., p. 1 7. In the rural parts of the parish there were, at the Reformation, two chapels of ease called Templeigerin and Castcdanagan (Ul. Inq., No. 1 5, Jac. I., Down) ; the former of which, with its cemetery, remains in the townland Derryleckagh, and is marked Templegowran on the Ord. Map (s. 47.) Besides these, Harris mentions the ruin of a nameless chapel in the townland Creeve (Down, p. 88); and the Ord. Survey lays down small grave-yards, at the extremities of the parish, in the townlands of Lisserboy, Ouley, and Greenan (ss. 40, 41,51).

    Hos

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 7

58. Kilbrony and the Crozier of St. Bronach

    Kilbroney · townland · Down

    The parish of Kilbrony took its name from St. Bromana (Bronach), whose crozier (baculus) was preserved as a relic in the church and was attended by an appointed custodian, the 'custos baculi S. Bromanae'. Persons nominated by the Primates held this office over the centuries.

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    1 . In the parish of Kilbrony the bishop had a mensal, consisting of certain lands, tithes, and dues, which were appendant upon the " Officium baculi sanctse Bromanae in ecclesia S. Bromanae", and were farmed by the ecclesiastic who was appointed by the bishop "custos baculi S. Bromanae ". St. Bromana is called Bronach in the Irish Calendar, at the 2nd of April, and from her the parish derived its name. Her baculus or crozier seems to have been a relique which was preserved in this church, and was attended with certain privileges to its custodee. The names of some persons, who were nominated by the Primates, sede vacante^ to this office, have been already given at pp. 115, 116. The rectorial tithes and the townland of Kilfeaghan continued to be held under the bishops, until the annexation of the see in 1842.

    2. The Manor of Dysertmoy. — The name is now obsolete, but it has been conjectured above, at p. 106, that it is the modern Seapatrlck. This was also a mensal.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 50

59. Ancient Cremated Burials Found at Lisnashimmer Fort

    near Ballykinler · parish · Down

    Within an enclosed hilltop trench at Lisnashimmer near Killyglinnie, small stone-lined graves about three feet long were discovered containing human remains showing signs of partial incineration, mixed with charcoal, molar teeth, and adult bone fragments, suggesting a pre-Christian burial site.

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    3. Ganimor {'i^amm mop 'the great sand') is now represented by the Rabbit Warren, which lies at the south of the parish, and forms part of the " Upper Ballykinler" of the Ord. Survey. In Petty's map it is marked " Balligannymore"; and, until aljout thirty years ago, there stood here a high peak of sand, which was locally called Gannymore. In the same townland, north of the Warren, and about a quarter of a mile west of the shore of the inner bay, is an ancient cemetery, in which are the foundations of a church, csWadi Killi/glinnie, measuring 26 by 15 feet. A few yards to the east is a neatly closed spring, called St. Patrick's well. In this townland, which is Ballykinler Proper, a short distance east of Killyglinnie, is a little hill, called Lisnashimmer, or ' the shamrock fort ', the top of which was formerly surrounded by a trench. Within the enclosed space, a discovery was made, some years ago, of several small graves, about three feet in length, and ten inches in width and depth. The cavities were lined and covered with thin stones, and contained human remains, which, from the charcoal found with them, appeared to have undergone partial incineration. Molar teeth and fragments of full-grown bones, which were interspersed, proved that these graves were not, as might at first appear, intended for unbaptized infants. They may reasonably be supposed to date their formation from a period anterior to the introduction of Christianity into Ireland.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 26

60. Bishop of Connor resident at Carrickfergus castle in 1434

    Carrickfergus · townland · Antrim · 1434

    Following the disruption caused by Bruce's invasion, the bishops of Connor came to reside at Carrickfergus castle rather than at Connor itself; records confirm the bishop was resident there as late as 1434.

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    Grace and Pembridge relate that on this occasion the bishop fled to the castle of Carrickfergus, and his bishopric was put under an interdict. His residence was probably the castle, a portion of the outworks of which remain within the glebe. In 1434 the Bishop of Connor was resident at Carrickfergus (Reg. Swayne, p. 81.)

    u.

    Internet Archive ecclesiasticalan00reev, Chapter 38