FINGAL AND ITS CHUECHES. F I M G A L. 'i'.CHuRCHES IN Use ^Churches in Ruins 1 ' f I f f T J FINGAL AND ITS CHURCHES: ' a Ibietorical SFietcb/v- ( FtBi;n9I5 THE FOUNDATION AND STRUGGLES Of' CHUECH OF lEELAND IN THAT PART OF THE COUNTY DUBLIN WHICH LIES TO THE NORTH OF THE RRTIR TOLKA. ROBERT WALSH, M.A., Rtctor of Malahide, with Portinarnock, Diocese of Dublin. DUBLIN : WILLIAM McGEE, 18 NASSAU STREET. LONDON : SIMPKIN, MAESHALL, AND CO., PATEKNOSTER ROW. 1888. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/fingalitschurcheOOwals TO THE MEMBERS OF Zbc ffingal Clerical Society, IN GRATEFUL RECOLLECTION OF MANY HAPPY AND PROFITABLE MEETINGS THROUGH PAST YEARS ; AND IN THE EARNEST HOPE THAT MEETINGS AS HAPPY AND AS PROFITABLE MAY BE GRANTED THROUGH YEARS TO COME, trble Iblstors OF THE DISTRICT IN WHICH HE AND THEY MINISTER IS DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. PREFACE. tN the early part of this year I read some papers at meetings of the Fingal Clerical Society on the past history of the Church in the district. Many of those who heard the papers expressed a hope that they should be printed. Partly encouraged by these kindly critics of my papers, and partly induced by an opinion, which I have long entertained, that many members of the Church of Ireland know too little of her past won- derful history in their own neighbourhood, I have expanded my papers into the story told in this volume. My aim has been to write for the many whose knowledge of the subject is limited, but who may be interested in learning something more of the leading facts of a history of fourteen hundred years—not for the learned few, who will doubtless be disappointed if they expect in this volume evidences Vlll Preface. of extensive antiquarian research or of profound anti- quarian knowledge. With the above object mainly in view, I have endeavoured to write, in as popular a style and manner as I could, this historical sketch of Fingal. I have had much valuable help from old friends, for which I cannot express myself too gratefully. The Rev. Canon Twigg, Vicar of Swords, and the Rev. G. T. Stokes, D.D., Professor of Ecclesiastical History in the University of Dublin, have ungrudg- ingly given me the benefit of their assistance. The extensive local antiquarian knowledge of Canon Twigg has been freely placed at my service ; and to Professor Stokes I am indebted for many valuable hints, and references to sources of information, which, from his historical knowledge and research, were of great use to me. I have been very fortunate in the materials at my disposal. Bishop Reeves has published a " Memoir of the Church of St. Duilech," 1859. There was also published by him " A Lecture on the Antiquities of Swords," 1860. Both of these works are long since out of print. Like every other work Bishop Reeves has written, they abound in accurate information and in antiquarian knowledge, and are full of interest. I have not hesitated to quote largely from both. The Preface. IX late Kev. B. W. Adams published a " History and Description of Santry and Clogbran Parishes," 1883. This book must have cost its learned author much time and labour. He has entered with great minute- ness of detail into the past history of his two parishes. I have obtained many useful hints from his book. Mr. Henry Alexander Hamilton has published "A Lecture upon the History of the Parish of Bal- rothery," which he delivered at Balbriggan in 1876. The long and intimate connection of Mr. Hamilton and his family with Balrothery and Balbriggan has given him peculiar opportunities of acquiring infor- mation about these places, which he has put together in a most attractive form in his learned and interest- ing lecture. Some of this information was new to me, and when I have made use of information thus acquired, I have acknowledged it. I may add, that I can make some claim myself, from past family con- nection with Fingal, to some personal knowledge of its history. In addition to local sources of information, there are now at hand sources of information which were scarcely accessible a generation ago. The student of Irish Church history has his path made very easy for him in the many records of the past, carefully printed and edited, which have been published under X Preface. the able editorship of such men as Bishop Reeves, Dr. J. H. Todd, Dr. O'Donovan, Mr. Plenuessy, Mr. Gilbert, Mr. Hardiman, and others. Instead of having to work one's weary way through MSS. scarcely legible, we now have, thanks to the learned authors whom I have named, the original texts clearly printed, learnedly annotated, and carefully in- dexed. The following works of this kind have con- tributed many facts to this History of Fingal : —The " Annals of the Four Masters," " The Chartularies of St. Mary's Abbey," " Chronicum Scotorum ;" such publications of the Irish Archteological Society as " The Charter and Grants to All Hallows Priory," " The Book of Obits of Christ Church Cathedral," " The Statute of Kilkenny," and others. Of the same nature is " The Wars of the Gaedhil with the Gaill," carefully translated and annotated by the late Eev. J. H. Todd, which, with his learned work on " The Life of St. Patrick," abound with information respecting many localities in Ireland. Belonging to a later date are the documents brought to light by the discriminating researches of Miss Hickson in her book entitled " Ireland in the Seventeenth Century," of Mr. Prendergast, in his work on "The Crom- wellian Settlement," and of others. From these books, and others of the kind referred to in the text, Preface. XI I have collected many interesting contributions to this History of Fingal. Mr. Monck-Mason's " History of St. Patrick's Cathedral," and Archdeacon Cotton's " Fasti Ecclesiae HibernicsB," are full of information about all places and persons connected with the subjects they re- spectively deal with. I have been much indebted to both for information. It is to be regretted that Mr. Monck-Mason's MS. " History of Christ Church Cathedral " is practically inaccessible. It may be presumed that it would throw much light upon the history of Fingal parishes connected with Christ Church Cathedral, judging from the amount of light which the " History of St. Patrick's Cathedral," by the same author, throws upon the past story of Fingal parishes connected with the latter cathedral. I have also frequently obtained valuable help from Mr. D' Alton's "History of the County Dublin;" but, from the nature of the case, rather with respect to secular than to ecclesiastical affairs. In the case of local nomenclature, I have invariably reproduced the spelling of the names of places as it is given in the document from which I quote. For this reason the names of many places in Fingal will be found spelled in very different ways at different times. This fact has an interest of its own, and is Xll Preface. sometimes a help in tracing the history and meaning of a name. The meanings of the local names are generally taken from two volumes entitled "Irish Names of Places," by Mr. P. W. Joyce—volumes full of interest and information for all who desire to investigate that large part of the past history of Ire- land which is buried in names. Occasionally Dr. J. H. Todd, in his two books already referred to, has given a somewhat different spelling or meaning of a name from Dr. Joyce. Where this is so, I have followed Dr. Todd. With regard to some names, Mr. W. M. Hennessy, of the Public Kecord Office, has most kindly lent me the aid of his knowledge of the Irish language in suggesting the most pro- bable meaning. The difficulty of securing accuracy in the spelling or signification of some Irish names of places has more than once been brought home to me by the varieties in both to be found in the writings of acknowledged authorities on the subject. I must therefore claim some fox'bearance in criticism if I do not always come up to the standard in this matter of any given authority. The documents from which Appendices I., III., IV., and VI. are taken, have never been before pub- lished, as far as I am aware. They contain very Preface. xiii iuteresting informatiou about the parishes of Fingal at the respective periods with which they deal. I have commenced with the earliest known diocesan parochial record, and have selected six characteristic diocesan returns, prepared during a time when such returns were few and far between, so as to enable those interested in any particular parish, with the help of the Index, to follow its history for them- selves. Some pains have been taken with this Index, so as to secure facility of reference. I have not added any diocesan return of later date than that given in Appendix VI., for this reason, that it would be difficult to select from the immense number of such documents any diocesan return of very special interest. From the middle of the seventeenth century visitation returns become numerous, and from the close of the century they become regular. As they become numerous and regular, they lose their indi- vidual interest. Appendices VII. and VIII. are my own work. Appendix VII. was suggested to me by the perusal of an interesting MS. account of some few of the churches of Fingal in the year 1783, by Mr. Austin Cooper, F.S.A,, of Abbeyville House, St.