2 20 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , APRI , 1873L14 .

I. NOTES ON THE HISTORY OF THE RUINS AT . BY W. F. SKENE, ESQ., LL.D., F.S.A. SCOT. ruine Th s whic t presenha islant e consideree existh b lonf y n do o t ama d e remainasth f fouso r distinct ecclesiastical foundations. Ther , firsteis , e chapet Oranth S f o l, wit e cemeteryhth , calle n Gaelicdi , Eeilig Oran, secondly, the church of St Mary, with the cloisters and monastic buildings connected with it; thirdly e Nunneryth , fourthlyd an ; remaine th , f so buildine th g called Teampull Konaig believed an , havo dt e bee parise nth h church. Any one examining these ruins, and desiring to learn something of their history, wil e surprisedb l verw o fint yho d littl s reallei y known concerning them. He will learn generally that an ecclesiastical estab- lishmen founde s sixte islane wa th tth hn n di i d centur t ColumbaS y yb , and that for several centuries it was the chief seat of the early Scottish Church, till the ravages of the Norwegians and Danes destroyed it in the ninth century t non bu f ;thes eo e ruins belon thao gt t periodrefee h f rI . to his guidebook, he will not get much satisfaction there. Murray's Handbook for will tell him, for instance, that St Oran's chapel wora s considerablf i ko e antiquity, though probabl t earlieyno r thae nth twelfth century ; that though much later than the time of St , it was the permanent chapel of the cemetery, and therefore older than the cathedral—reasoning not very easily followed; that the Nunnery was founded in the thirteenth century, and the cathedral of St Mary built e fourteentth n i foundeo hsyllabla wh centuryt o t d no s t themea bu ,r o , to what order of clergy or they belonged. If he turn to Dr Reeves' able and exhaustive edition of Adamnan's Life of St Columba, probably the ablest and most exhaustive work which has appeared in our time, he will find a full and detailed accoun everf o t y event connected with thi s ecclesiastica it islan d an d l history, down to the end of the twelfth century. The last event recorded e yea r th bEeeve ryD n e thei 1203h s i snd addan , s :—"The passage here partine cite th e Iris s dth i hgn t i i Annalsmentios y a H d f o nan , close a lons g lisf noticeo t s running through nearly seven centuriest i , NOTES ON THE HISTORY OF THE EUINS OF IONA. 203

leaves the island, as it found it, in the hands of Irish ecclesiastics, an im- portant out-pos Irise th f ho t Church,. "&c Chapee t Oran S Th perhapd f o an l, e monastisth par f o t c buildings, may reac htwelte bacth o e hmait k th century nn i thes t bu ,e ruine sar not older than the end of the twelfth or beginning of the thirteenth cen- turies r EeevesD . admirablo ,s therefore s ha o y wh conducte, througs du h histore t Columbth S s successors f hi yo d aan , dow thao nt t period, leaves us without his guidance, just as the history of these buildings probably commenced subsequene th f o d an ,t histor islane dars i d th l kan f dy al o uncertain. The object of this paper is to endeavour to restore some part of this forgotten history. Dr Eeeves, before he parts with us, gives us one important fact in connection t calwit t witchurci no e l e guidt hMaryo th h S th d f I heo . books, the Cathedral Church, because it was not a cathedral till shortly before the Eeformation. ' In a note, he says, " On the capital of the south-east column, unde towere th r , nea soute e anglth rth f heo transept and choir, are the remains of the inscription—' Donaldus O'Brolchan fecic opus,ho tn Lombardi i ' c letter n anothe i . s409 "(p d )an ;r part (p. 411), he says, talking of Flaherty O'Brolchan, and of Derry, " Bishop O'Brolchan was busily employed towards the close of e twelftth h century n re-edifyini , ecclesiasticae gth l building f Derryso ; and to a kinsman of his is probably attributable the commencement of e mosth t important structur existinw no e unusua e n Hygi Th . l record capitae otowee nth th f o rl column ' Donaldu, s O'Brolchan opus,fecic ho t ' coincidence th d an thaf eo t record wit obie hDomhnalf th o t Brolchana lU , in the Annals of Ulster at 1203, and of the Four Masters at 1202, are sufficientsatisfo t t e mindyth no f t leasi ,a , afforo t t d materia reasonr fo l - able conjecture as to the builder." In a note, he says " that this capital e mosth s ti ornamented with grotesqu e building,th n i e y relief"an f o s and adds, " could these designs characteristio s , e Iristh hf o cschool e b , opusc f O'Brolchaho o e th n ?" "Without going so far as to limit his work to the capital, it is probable tha onle h t y buil e church parth a t f thesr o t fo , e early churches, whef no considerable size, were usually gradually built in parts, first, the chancel choird an , then transepte th , centrd san e tower finallyd an , navee r th , D . 204 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APEIL 14, 1873. Eeeves thinks that this Donald O'Brolchan was of Derry, but he is not so called in the Annals. The entry as he gives it, is simply " Domhnall Ua Brolchain, prior et excelsus senior, obiit die Aprilis havy xxvii.ema e hel e priorH dth " f lono y s well a . Porduno wh , wrot n 1385i e noticinn i , g Hy Columbkille r lonao , , merely says,"ubi duo monasteria sunt, unum monachorum, aliud monialium, ibidem itaque refugium;" but Bower, who wrote sixty years later, says that two monasteries had been founded there, one " nigrorum monachorum," or of black monks, and the other of holy nuns of the order of Saint Augustine bearin e rochetgth . Bowe s himselrwa f Abbo f Inchcolmo t kned an , w probably what he was talking about when he thus describes them; but he confounds the monastery with the chapel of St Oran, when he adds beed thae placha nth t i tf sepultur o e royad an e l sea f almose o tth l al t Scote king time th d Pict th Malcolf f san eso o o st m Canmore. Maurice Buchanan wroto wh , e some twelve years later, repeat e statementh s f o t Pordim. Now, the first piece of additional information I have to. give you is from the Book of Clanranald, which contains a record kept, from time to time, by the Macvurichs, of the history of the Lords of the Isles and greae th t cla Macdonaldf no . Macvurich say f Eeginaldo s ,e Lorth f o d mose Islesth s t distinguishe, wa that e Gaee "h , r th Galle lfo d th f san do prosperity, sway of generosity, and feats of arms. Three monasteries were founded by him, viz., a monastery of black monks in I, (or lona,) in honour of God and Columchille; a monastery of black nuns in the same place ; and a monastery of grey friars at Sagadal (or Saddle) in Kin- tyre." Somarledf Thio n sso Eeginale regulue th , th f Argylls o s dwa , who was slain at Eenfrew in 1166, and succeeded him in the Lordship of the Isles, which he ruled till the year 1207, when he died. He was thus Lord of the Isles during the greater part of the reign of "William Lione th . "We know fro Paislee mth y chartular foundee th s y tharwa e th of the religious house at Saddle, and there seems no reason to doubt the statement tha foundee h t monastere dth nunnerd yan t lonaya . y blacB k monks e Benedictineth , e meant ar so wer wh e, so-called, and among the documents found by Professor Munch in the Vatican, and printed in his edition of the Chronicle of Man (p. 152), is the confirmatio e foundatioPope th th f ey o b n f thio n s Benedictine monas- NOTES ON THE HISTOEY OF THE EUINS OF IONA. 205

tery. It is dated the 9th December 1203, and is addressed to " Celestinus Abbas Sancti Columbse de Hy insula," aud to the brethren present and future professing a religious,—that is, a monastic life; and he takes under his protection and that of Saint Peter the aforesaid monastery of Saint Columba orden i , r thae monastith t c order whic s beehha n instituten di that place according to God and the rule of Saint Benedict, may be pre- served inviolate in all time to come, and he confirms to them the place itself in which the said monastery is situated, "with its pertinents, consist- ing of churches, island, and lands in the Western Isles. This document throws light upon a charter in the chartulary of Holyrood (p. 41), where King "Willia e Liomth n e grantAbbeth f o t Holyroodo sy , " ecclesias sive capella Galwein si abbatiss a Columcilly ju qn.ee H d a e ed e pertinent, videlicet Kirchecormack, Sancti Andrew, Balincrosd an , Cheletun." These churches are not contained in the Pope's confirma- monastery possessione w th tione f ne o mus d th an f , sto have belonged prioe toth r abbacy, whic falled ha h n into decay d beean , n grantey db "William the Lion to Holyrood when the new monastery was founded. Uow observe how all the dates here accord. The monastery is founded Reginaldy b e reigIsles,e Lorth th f Willia n f o i ,d o e Lionmth , some- time between 1166 and 1207. It is confirmed by the Pope on 9th December 1203, and the church bears an inscription on one of the pillars, which shows that part of it at least had been built by a prior who died in . 1203, and these dates correspond with the architectural character of the buildings. The next point to be determined is, to what particular order of Bene- dictines did this monastery belong ] Spottiswoode accouns religioue hi th n f i ,o t s houses, states thate "th old cloisters, being ruined by the several incursions of the Danes, the monastery becam followine th n ei g year dwelline sth Cluniacensese th f go , reige who th f Kin o nn i , g William, too l theikal r benefice curm acu ' s animarum' in Galloway, which were bestowed upon the canons of Holyrood Hous t Edinburgha e e Benedictineth , t beinsno g allowey b d their constitutions to perform the duties and functions of a curate." The previous detail will have shown that this view of the loss of the Galloway churche t strictlno s si y correct therd serioua an ;s e i s difficulty in supposing thamonastere th t y founde Reginaldy db ,Islese Lorth f ,do 206 .PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APEIL 14, 1873.

was one of Cluniac monks. The Cluniacenses -were a reformed order of Benedictines, so called from the Abbey of Cluny, in Burgundy, where Berno revised the rules of Saint Benedict with some new constitutions, and when dying placed Odo as abbot or superior of this new monastery ; peculiarita s wa t i f thit yo sbu order tha parene th t t hous t Clunea s ywa alone governed by an abbot, and the affiliated houses were priories governed by a prior only. The principal monastery of Cluniacs in Eng- land was Wenloch, but it was a priory only, governed by a prior. Walter Fitzallan e higth , h stewar f Scotlando d , brought Cluniac monks from Wenloc Paisleyo ht , wher foundee eh monasterda 1164n yi t Paisleybu ; , t firsa s toot wa onl, ypriorya . Great efforts were mad o obtait e r fo n Paisley the privilege of electing an abbot, which were strenuously resisted by the abbot of Cluny, and it was not till the year 1245 that the monks of Paisley obtained this privilege, and the priory became an abbacy; but, as we have seen from the Pope's confirmation of the monastery of lona in 1203, it was from the first governed by an abbot. This objection appears claime Cluniacs,—othee fatae th th m o f t lso o t r objections wil notee b l d afterwards,—and I think there is strong reason for concluding that the monastery belonged to another order of reformed Benedictines, viz., those called Tyronenses. They were so called from their first abbey, Tyron, in e diocesth f Chartreso e werd an ,e founde t BernardS y b d , t abboS f o t Cyprian in Poitou, in the year 1109. The Benedictines of Tyron were introduced into Scotland by David the First, who placed them at Selkirk, when earl, and after he became king, removed them to Kelso, and this was their only monaster Scotlann yi d reige prio th f Willia o no t r e mth Lion, but most of the monasteries founded in his reign belonged to this order. The great foundation in his reign was the monastery of Arbroath, founded by himself in 1178, and the monks were Benedictines of Tyron, brought from Kelso. In the same year his brother David, Earl of Hunt- ingdon, founde Abbee th d f Lindoreyo r Benedictinefo s f Tyrono s n I . the following year the Earl of Buchan founded Fyvie, which was affiliated to Arbroath, and belonged to the same order; and in the same reign Eichar e Morevilld e founded Kilwinnuig r Benedictinefo , f Tyrono s . Now I fincloses dthe t resemblance between these monasterie thasand t of lona. 1st, The Benedictines of Tyron, as appears from a list of foundations in HISTORE NOTETH N THSO F YO E 7 RUIN20 IONAF SO .

Scotlan thirteente th f do h century, which comes dow 1272o t n , annexed to Henry of Silgrave's Chronicle, were called black monks. confirmatione 2d, Th thef o mo tw hPope yf th o s e have been preserved —tha Arbroatf to 1182hn i ,Arbroat e inth h chartular . 151)y(p , and thaf o t Lindore 1198n si than ,i t chartular monaster e . 39)y(p Th . y of was confirmed in 1218, but the deed has not been preserved. Now on com- paring the confirmations of Arbroath in 1182 and Lindores in 1198 with that of lona in 1203, I find that they are verbatim the same, and the monasteries are described in exactly the same terms, viz., "ordo monas- ticus, qui in eodem loco secundum Deum et beati Benedict! regulam insti- tutus est," while in the Pope's confirmation of the Monastery of Paisley 1226n i , printe Theiney db . 23)e (p qualifyinr th , g expression "atque institutionen Cluniaeensium fratrum s e addedi "th n i , t whicno s i h others. e monasterie3dTh , e Benedictineth f o s f Tyrone o schurche th r o , s attached to them, were dedicated to St Mary, either alone or along with a local saint. Kelso was dedicated to her. Arbroath to St Thomas the martyr, but an altar in the choir to St Mary, and the monastery is occasionally t Thomast calleS MarS d f do yan . Fyvi s dedicate wa et MaryS o dt . Lindores to St Mary and St Andrew. Kilwinning to St Mary and St Winnin t Columbalond S churce o an at Mary,t I th am S f d .I o ht an ,. righ conjecturinn i t g tha t alsi t o belonge thio dt s orde f Benedictineso r , t throwi s light upon another dee f Kino d g Williae th t Lione a m th r fo , time that he gave the Galloway churches, which had belonged to the older abbacy, to Holyrood, he gave, the church of Forglen with the " Bracbennach standarr "o f Saindo t Columba abbee th f Arbroatho yo t , , the chief monastery of this order, founded by himself. The next point I have to bring before the Society, is the connection of this abbey of lona with the of or Trontheitn in . This connection, of course, arose from the Isles being under the dominion t firs a Islee e Norwegiansd toth th f bees ha d nan Bishope n Th Ma . f so consecrate Archbishoe th y db f Yorkpo , whose suffragans they were con- t whe siderebu metropolitae , nth be o dt Nidaro f o e n se Trontheir so s mwa erecte e bul f n th Pop115i do l y b 4e Anastasius IV.e Sudreyth , r o s "Western Isles were expressly annexed to this province as a suffragan diocese. Accordingly, we find that the Bishop of Man and the Isles at 8 20 PKOCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , APRI , 1873L14 . this time -was a Norwegian, called Eagnald, who appears to have been nominate consecrated an d metropolitae th y b d n Bisho f Mdarospo n I . the Icelandic Annals he is termed the first Bishop of the Sudreys, the previous bishopsbeed ha no consecratewh , Archbishoe th y b d f Yorkpo , being ignored in those annals. After his death, in 1170, the rights of the Bisho Mdarof po s seeme havo dt e fallen into abeyance tilyeae th l r 1210, when the titular was consecrated by him, and during this period of 40 years, the Icelandic Annals declared that the diocese of the Isles was vacant, thus ignoring all not" consecrated Bishoe th y f Trontheimb po e yeath r n I 122 .receive e 5h e palliudth m from the Pope, and thus became vested with the full rights of a metro- politan ; and in the following year (1226) Simon, Bishop of the Isles, was consecrated, along with three Norwegian Bishops Petery b , , Archbishof po Nidaros. In the MS. " Liber Censuum Komanse Ecclesise," compiled by Cen- cius Camerariu 1192n si fine ,w d unde heae rth "Norwegiaf do diocesee "th s comprehended within the province of Nidaros, and among these is the " Episcopatus Sudreiensis alias Manensis," to which is added " Ecclesia Sancti Columb insule d i Sage a th Hf Kin ao d y •"an g Hacon relates that in the autumn of 1226, Simon, Bishop of the Isles, John, Earl of , and the Abbot of lona, met. King Hacon at Bergen, so that the Abbot of lonwits ahwa Bishop Simo n Norwani s consecratedy whewa e nh , and, no doubt d homag Archbishoe di , th o t e f Nidarop o e sam th et a stime . The next notice of the Abbot of lona is in the year 1234, when, in an agreement mad n thai e t year between Andrew, Bisho f Moraypo d an , Walter Comyn e n landregari ,th f Kynkardyo o st d n Strathspeyi n , recorded in the Moray Chartulary (p. 99), we find it was made in presence " Domin fratrid ian , Abbatis AlanHy e d s i monachi," tha, is t e brethreth f accompanieo o e nwh on e abbo oth d f an dt hime Th . probable objec f thio t s journey e learw , n froe nexmth t documenI t hav brino et g befor lettea e s Popi f you ro t I e. Innocent IV. 1247n ,i , preserved in the British Museum, in which, " on a representation by the monastere abboth f e ordeo tth f Sainf o ryo t Benedict diocese th n f i , o e the Isles of the kingdom of Norway that, although a general Chapter was celebrated withi provincs nhi e f Mdaros)(thao , is t , accordin cone th -o gt stitution of the Apostolic See, the of that order within the kingdom HISTORE NOTE9 EUINE TH 20 TH N IONASF O SF O YO .

of Scotland compelle atteno t m ddhi their general councie grounth n o ld of his holding certain possessions in Scotland, the Pope ordered the abbots in future not to molest him" (Orig. Par. II. p. 834). There were t thia s time seven. Benedictine Abbot n Scotland,—oni s f originao e l Benedictines at Dunfermline, one of Cluniacs recently established at Paisley, and five of Benedictines of Tyron, who must be the abbots allude. dto same th en I year, Pope Innocent addresse lettesa abboe e th rth f "o o tt monastery of Saint Columba of the order of Saint Benedict," who had gon Lyono et meeo t se Pope th d personallt an , y represente e greath d t distanc s monasterhi f o e y froe Norwegiath m n provinc o whict e t i h belonged, and grants him the use of the mitre and the ring, and other Episcopal privileges, within certain limitations (Chron. Man. p . 157). t I wil seee b l n from these notices thae abbact th tno f lons o y wa a t thia s time under subjectio e Bishoe Isles th t th appear f o bu t ,no p s aa separats e foundation unde immediate th r e jurisdictio e Archth f o n- bishop of Trontheim, and the abbot seems now to have established his independence, both of Episcopal and of monastic control, and to have become a mitred abbot. When the Western Isles were finally ceded to Scotland, and the Bishopric of the Isles became a Scottish diocese, and all connection with Norwa severeds ywa Abboe t eveth , no f lonn o t d theadi n consider him- sels withia f e e diocesIsles t th th nplace bu f , o e d himself under the jurisdiction of the , as inheriting the fights of St Columba, and representing the old primacy of lona in Scotland, as Kells, and afterwards Derry, did in Ireland. Abbot Mylne tells us that Episcopate th n i Williaf eo Bishos t mwa Clair S Dunkelo f po wh e , th n di reig f Eobero n t Bruce, Dominus Finlaius e monastera mon, th f o k f yo Icolmkill, who had been elected abbot,'came to him to receive confirma- tiorequese thatkingd e nth th t ;confirmean e a ,f ,h to abbots a d m an ,dhi conceded to him some of the Episcopal privileges his predecessor had received from the Pope; and Bower tells us that in 1431 the abbot of the Island of Icolmkill or lona, did manual obeisance to Eobert de Cardeney, Bishop of Dunkeld, as his ordinary diocesan. Between the years 1492 and 1498, John, Abbot of lona, was elected Bishop of the Isles, and in VOL. x, PAKT i. o 210 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APRIL 14, 1873. 1506, the Abbey of lona was permanently annexed to the Bishopric of the. Isles bishoe th , p being ex-officio perpetual commendato Icolmkillf o r . onls t thiywa a t sI period thae abbeth t y churc t Mary'S f ho s became cathedrae th Islese th f .o l Reginald ,e Isles s th alsLore founde e f nunneryth owa ,o d th f o r . Accordin Macvuricho gt foundee h blacr , fo kt i d nuns . Macvurich also states that his sister, Beathog or Beatrice, the daughter of Somarled, waa a religious woman, and a black nun; and the Knock MS, tells us that Somarlee onlon y d daughterdha ,s priores Beatrixwa o f Icolmo s wh , - blace th kill ky B nun. s Benedictine nuns meant e t seemi ar d san , probable that they belonge thao dt t ordefinde w r ,r fro;fo m subsequent notices,

a prior s ( wa ytha t dependeni t t upo e Benedictinth n es abbeywa d an , likewise dedicate t MaryS o dt . Thus n 1509i , , King Jame . grantIV s s a lette f protectioo r e priores e th monaster th o n t f o s e f nunsyth o f o most beloved Virgin Mary, in the Isle of St Columba; and in 1567, Queen Mary grant Mariouo t s n Makclaine e prioressith , nunrid an e f o e the abbe f Ycolmkillyo e otheth n r O hand. , Bower says distinctly that the nuns were Augustinian nuns, wearing the rochet, whose dress was white ; and as he was , which was occupied by Augus- tinian canons e mush , t have know e samf nunni th f eso order wern i e lona. The only explanation of this difference which occurs to me is, that the nuns may originally have been black or Benedictine nuns, hav- Beatriceg in sistee th , f theio r r founder, Reginald ,Islese Lorth r f fo ,do their first prioress t thabu , t Augustinian nunhavy sema been substituted for them before the time of Bower. This may have taken place when e abbeth lonf yo a became connected wit Bishoe hth f Dunkeldpo , under whose jurisdictio abbace nth f Inchcolyo m likewise was. have W e thu sa ver y distinct accoun foundatioe th e f th o t f o no .otw f ecclesiastical establishment e ruinth s f whicso h remain, viz. e abbeyth , , and the nunnery. For the others we must look a little further back in the history. The ecclesiastical foundations in lona seem to have fallen into utter decay after the ravages of the Norwegians and Danes ; and the rule of the Norwegians over the Isles, even after they became Christian, seems not to have been favourable to any revival of them. The monastery of Kells, afterwardd an s tha f Derryto , becam Columbae heae th eth f do n orden ri HISTOEE NOTE1 EUINE TH 21 TH IONAN SF O SF O Y O . Ireland, and frequently held nominally the abbacy of lona, while Dun- keld claimed to be the head of the order in Scotland; and it is only occasionally t rara ed intervalsan , , tha separata t e abbo f lono t a appears Annalse inth . Queen Margare recordes i t Ordericuy db s Vitali havo st e rebuilt the " Huense Coenobium," and repaired it, giving the monks suf- ficient provisions for the work of the Lord. Dr Reeves seems to imply that what she built was the chapel of St Oran, but the word " ccenobium" can I ,think , onl monasteryye refeth o t Irise r Th h. Annals recorn di 1099 (six years afte r death)he r e deatth , Donnchadf ho Duncanr ho n so , of MacMaenaigh, Abbot of lona, the last mentioned in the Annals; and she seems, therefore, to have for the time restored the abbacy; but when the Isles were ceded to Magnus, King of Norway, it soon fell into decay, till the year 1154, when the division of the kingdom of the Isles took < place, and those south of Ardnamurchan were ceded to Somarled, the regulus of Argyll. "Whatever his descent may have been, the relations between his family and Ireland were very close, ane appearh d o havt s t a once e attempte o restort d e abbacyth e , unde e auspice Abboe th r th f f Derry o o tse passag Th . e which shows this also exhibits to us the exact position at the time of the Christian establishment Annaltheree Th Ulste.f so r contai followine nth g passage yeae atth r 1164:— chieffamile e th " Th f so y o flona)r la(o , viz., Augustin the "Sagart Mor" or great priest, and Dubhsidhe the "Ferleighin" or lector, and MacGilladuibh the "Disertach" or superior of the Hermitage, and Mac- Forcelaigh the head of the Culdees, and the chiefs of the family of lona in general, came to meet the Abbot of Derry, Flaherty O'Brolchan, to get him to take the abbacy of lona, by the advice of Somarled and the men of e Abbo th e Isles Argylt f th Armagho tbu d , an l e Kin,th f Irelandgo , anchiefe dth Tyronf o s e prevented it." The " Sagart Mor," or great priest, belonged obviously to the secular clergy, who entered Scotland on the failure of the Columban clergy, and appears mann i y places, holdin independenn ga t position, unde name rth "f e o Sacer - dos." "We should now call him the clergyman. The "Ferleighin," or lector is what we should now call the parish schoolmaster. The " Diser- tach" I may put aside, as I have nothing to add to the account given by Dr Eeeve . 366)Culdeese heae s(p th f Th d o .r ReeveD , shows s shi ha n i Culdeese worth n ko s usualli , y calle priore dth -tha o s , tt thia ther s s ewa 2 21 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , APHI , 1873,L14 '

time no abbacy, "but merely a priory of Culdees. In John of Silgrave's list of religious houses in the thirteenth century, lona appears also as occupied by Culdees. It is clear, therefore, that they were the immediate prede- cessor Benedictine th f so e monastery founde Somarled'y db s son, Beginald. It would, of course, be quite out of place to enter here into any discus- sion as to who the Culdees really were ; but I may state that the opinions I have always held regarding them entirely accord with those expressed by the late Joseph Eobertson, in his masterly introduction to the " Statuta Ecclesiae." He had such a wonderful grasp of the spirit of our old ecclesi- astical establishments, that his instinct.was almost unerring, and he is the only Scottish historian who, according to my apprehension, has at all approached a solution of this intricate question. " There is a mysterious entry in the Irish Annals, the last indeed regard- ing lonas follow a n 1203i s , i st I :—. "monasterA s erecteywa y b d Cellach withou legay an t l despitn i rightfamile th d f f lonaan ,eyo o n i , d considerabldi e h f lona o d o an , eCr middle damage e th th th f eo o t e townclerge e Nortth Th f Ireland)f y.o h (o , assemble paso dt s oveo t r lona—viz., the Bishop of Tyrone, the Bishop of Tirconnell, and the Abbot abbee oth f y churc Pauf ho Peted an lt Armagh a r Aulad an , y O'Ferghail Abbo Derryf o t , with e manfamilth f f Derryygreao a yo d t an ,numbe r of the northern clergy beside. They passed over into lona, and in e Churchth f o obediencw , thela e y th subsequentlo et y pulled down the monastery e aforesaith d an ,d Aula electes wa y d Abboe th f lon o ty b a suffrage f Gallo sNorwegiansr s(o Gael.d an ) " Dr Eeeves thinks that the Ceallach here mentioned may have been a Nicolas, also called Colas s improperl, Bisho wa e Isles o th f wh ,po y inter• fering with the island; but, as we have seen, at that time there was no connection whatever between lona and the Bishop of the Isles, and it is difficult to see why he should have made such an attempt. Dr Eeeves wat existence awarth sno f eo f Celestinuseo e firsth , t abbo f thew o t ne - Benedictine monastery, who appears in the same year, and it appears to me more probable that Ceallace Iristh hs equivalenhwa s namehi d f o tan , that on the death of Donald O'Brolchan, the prior at that time, he had attempted to eject the Culdees, and place them in a separate monastery, which was defeated by the opposition of the Irish. The parties opposed to him were the family of lona, obviously the same ecclesiastics mentioned NOTES ON THE HISTOEY OF THE RUINS OF 10NA. 213 n 1164i , -who precede e Benedictinesdth same th ed Irishan , , clergo ywh supported them tried revivan ,o d t oldee eth r abbacy. That ther exisd e di parochiaa t l churc a seculan lonahi d an , r priest who filled the position of parson or sacerdos, we find from one of the documents discovered by Professor Munch in the Vatican, viz., a presenta- tion by the Pope on 10th September 1372, of Mactyr, son of John the Judge, a " clericus" or clergyman of the diocese of the Isles, to the parish church—parocliialis ecdesia— t ofColumbS f H o r alonay o n rooi , f mo Dominic on f Kennethso , , late recto thaf ro t church(p. 183). This parsonage rectorr o y appears, however havo t , e been soon after acquire abbote th y db , who appointe dutye th r Macvuric do vicaa fo , d o t r h call clergymae sth n of lon possessionrentae e 138n ai th th f n vicar0 a i lo Abbo e d th an f ;s o t of lou n 156i a enumeratee 1ar e "teindidth f Ycolmkillo s , callee dth personiage of Tempill Eonaige." It was probably about the time ttte abbot acquire e parsonagdth e tha buildine th t s erectegwa whicf do e ruinhth s remain, and are known by the name of Tempull Eonaige. It only remains to refer to the chapel of St Oran; but this paper has already extended too far to admit of any inquiry into its history, and I shall conclude wha wity I thavsa h o somet e passages fro Booe mth f o k Clanranald, which throw light upon some of the monuments. These monument e divideb y dsma intclasseo e Celtiotw th s: c slabs, which belong to the period anterior to the foundation of the Benedictine monas- tery, and those more elaborate monuments connected with the subsequent period. It is to these latter alone that the passages refer. The Book of Clanranald contains an account of the burial of some of the Lords of the Isles and chiefs of the Macdonalds, which will enable us to identify some of these monuments; and first, of Eeginald, Lord of the Isles, the founder of the Benedictine monastery, Macvurich says—" that having obtained a cross from Jerusalem, and having received the body of Christ and ex- treme unction buries wa died e t Eeili,h d a an , c Oran, lona A.Dn ,i , 1207." There is a stone of this period, having upon it the sword, which marks the grave of a warrior; in a comer at the upper end a small cross, and belo wtreasura e box, which mark foundea s f somo r e church, whics hi probably his monument. The death of his successor, Donald, is not recorded. His son and suc- cessor, Angus Mor, is said to have died in Isla; but of his son and succes- 4 21 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , APRI , 1873L14 . sor e Isle, e LorAngu th f Kin th sf o , do gsOg Eobert Bruce's times i t ,i said, " This Angus Og died in Isla. His body was interred in lona, A.D. 1306." Of the burial of his son, John, Lord of the Isles, a more particular descriptio castls givenn ni t Ardtornishow ea .s hi diee " n H di , while priestd san s were ove s body hi rd havin an , g receive bode dth f yo Christ and extreme unction, his fair body was" brought to Icolmkill, and the abbot and the monks and vicars came along with him, as it was cus- tomary to accompany the bodies of the Kings of Fingall, and his servic d wakinan e g were honourably performed during eight dayd an s eight nights, and he was laid in the same grave with his father at Teampull Odhran, or the church of St Oran, in the year 1380." He was twice married. By his first wife he had Ranald, ancestor of the Clan Eanald Maryd an , , marrie MacLeao dt s secon f Duarthi o n y dB wif. e Donaldd hha e s successo hi ,it m s .saidi hi e Isless f Lorth a ,rO f d.o " he was an entertainer of^.clerics, priests, and monks in his companion- ship, and he gave lands in Mull and Isla to the monastery of lona, and every immunity whic e monasterth h d from ha ys ancestor hi ' s before him; and he made a covering of gold and silver for the relic of the hand of St ColumcUle, and he himself took the brotherhood of the order. He afterwards died in Isla, and his full noble body was interred on the south side of Teampull Odhran, or the church of St Oran." Eanald, the son by the first marriage, had four sons, Allan, Donald Angus Eeabhach, and Dugall, of all of whom it is said that they were interred in the same grave with their father, in Eeleig Oran; but to one of them, Angus Eeabhach, it is also said that he had taken upon brotherhooe th m ordehi e th churce Marf f o rdth o n ylonaf i h o . Of Mary e daughteth , f Johno r ,e Isles s saii th Lor t df i , o d tha t interres churce nunswa e th e th n df i hsh .o Donald ,Islese a younge Lorth d Bishos f ha ,dAnguso n wa so r o p wh , saids i t Islesi e illustriou,s o died th "f m Hi 1437an ,n d i hi f O s. body was interred, wit s crosiehi h d episcopaan r l e croshabit th thn so n e i , south side of the great choir, which he selected for himself while alive."