County Louth Archaeological and History Society St. Patrick and Louth Author(s): Lorcán P. Ua Muireadhaigh Source: Journal of the County Louth Archaeological Society, Vol. 2, No. 3 (Oct., 1910), pp. 213-236 Published by: County Louth Archaeological and History Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27727893 . Accessed: 14/06/2014 07:59 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. County Louth Archaeological and History Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Journal of the County Louth Archaeological Society. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 195.78.108.51 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 07:59:18 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 213 JOURNAL OF THE COUNTY LOUTH ARCH^OLOGICAL SOCIETY. No. 3. OCTOBER, 1910. Vol. II. g*t, Patrick cmfr goutty* 1. O thoroughly understand the different visits made by St. Patrick to Louth, a short sketch of the Saint's mission in Ireland is necessary. After landing in Strangford Lough in 432, Patrick preached for a while in Down and Antrim. In he sailed southwards, 433 " landed at the mouth of the Boyne, called at that time Inver Colpa/' and immediately directed his course towards Tara. When his mission to the royal court was finished he preached in South Meath, and probably, as we shall see, in Louth. During the years 434 and 435 he evangelised parts of Longford, Westmeath and Leitrim. Towards the end of the latter year he went into Connaught, where he or spent seven years. In 442 443 he crossed into Ulster, about Ballyshannon. It is not clear how long he spent in LTlster upon this occasion, but we know that he preached through Deny, Tyrone, Down and Monaghan. Touching the Louth border for the second time, he passed into Meath, thence to Kildare and down along the south-eastern coast into Munster. He went through all the southern counties with one exception, and leaving Munster in 453 or 454 he came back north to Saul. On this journey from Munster to Ulidia, Patrick, for the third time, passed through Louth. Entering it at Coll?n, he traversed it from North to South, through Ardee, Dundalk and the Moira Pass. After spending a short time in Lecale, he again journeyed southwards and paid his fourth visit to County Louth. From the time when, on his second visit, he had first seen the western part of our County, he had formed the intention of establishing his own church in that district, and the object of this fourth visit was to put his project into execution. Providence, however, had ordained otherwise, and, warned by an angel, Patrick left Louth to Mochta and built his Primatial See at Armagh. Very probably, during his old age, Patrick B This content downloaded from 195.78.108.51 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 07:59:18 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 214 ST. PATRICK AND LOUTH. often visited Louth, for he and Mochta were very close friends, but we have record of only one such visit. Thus Patrick is stated to have visited Louth five times altogether. To tell in detail the time, place, and circumstances of each of these visits is the object of this paper. II.?Patrick's First Visit. If, as the Tripartite would have us believe, Patrick entered Louth during -his first preaching in eastern B regia, that visit must be ascribed to the year 433. It is difficult to come to any safe judgment about this visit. While the Tripartite is very explicit on the point, none of the other lives mention it. The Tripartite tells us that after Tara Patrick founded Trim, in which he placed St. Loman, leaving " and many other churches. The narrative then says : He also built the church called Druiminiscleann, which afterwards became celebrated and in which now lie two of his disciples?Dalruanus and Lugadius son of Aengus King of Cashel." That the reference in this passage is to Dromiskin in County Louth there cannot be any doubt. Not only is Druiminiscleann the Irish name for Dromiskin, but from the Martyrology of Donegal and the Martyrology of Marianus 0} Gorman, as well as from other reliable sources, we know that St. Lugadius son of Aengus King of Cashel died at Dromiskin, and that his feast was kept there on the 2nd November. There are, however, difficulties in the way of accepting the story told by the Tripartite author. In the list of churches, among which Druiminiscleann is mentioned, the ones are nearest them is remaining all in County Meath, and the of almost twenty miles from Dromiskin. All the other churches are within a short distance from Tara, which was St. Patrick's headquarters for the time. If St. Patrick took upon himself this extra journey of twenty miles it seems likely that he would have founded more churches than one. For these reasons many writers think that St. Patrick did not enter Louth at this time, and that the Tripartite author mistook Dromiskin for some place in County Meath with a similar name?possibly Dunshaughlin. Professor Bury, the latest writer on St. Patrick, is of this opinion. On the other content to hand, Whitley Stokes, whose judgment is rarely at fault, is accept Drom iskin in County Louth. Dr. Healy, although he almost invariably follows the not the matter. Tripartite narrative, does mention Lanigan suggests Drumshallon in County Louth instead of Dromiskin. This suggestion would get us over the never was difficulty concerning the distance, but Drumshallon called Druiminiscleann, nor would it answer the description given in the Tripartite. Colgan, whom diffi culties of time and place never disturbed, accepts the Tripartite narrative without any comment. After a careful consideration of both sides, I feel inclined to believe that St. Patrick did come to Dromiskin. The Tripartite narrative, at the first point, is concerned with events which happened during the first year of Patrick's preaching, when helpers were few and when there was no thought of writing a life of the Saint. an In after years, when the time did come for writing account of Patrick's works, were few, if any, eye-witnesses of the early labours living. This may be given as a reason for the confused account found, in the Tripartite, of this part of St. Patrick's This content downloaded from 195.78.108.51 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 07:59:18 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions COUNTY LOUTH ARCHAEOLOGICAL JOURNAL. 215 labour, so unlike the more orderly accounts of the missions in Connaught and Lister. Many of the Meath churches mentioned in the list have remained unidentified. was account was Dromiskin probably remembered, because, when the Tripartite on written, it had grown into a flourishing monastery, and the monks had carried the tradition of Patrick's visit ; but the other places in County Louth through which were of he had passed forgotten. We must remember, too, that the territory Magh Breagh or Bregia extended as far as Dromiskin, and it is to be expected that when Patrick took up the work of preaching in the territory, he visited each part of it. Furthermore, the Vita Tripartite is the most complete and most valuable of the than the Lives, and, although in its present form it cannot have been written earlier twelfth century, still it is certain that an old life written in the sixth century by St. Evin, of Monastereven, was used extensively in its compilation. Some of the details of this visit to County Louth can be filled in from other sources. same the The Tripartite account explains, and is at the time confirmed by description given in the life of St. Dachonna of the founding of the monastery of Doire Disirt Dachonna, now known as Dysart in the Barony of Ferrard. Of St. Patrick's connection with this monastery no mention is made in any of the Lives, but in the Life of St. Dachonna it is stated that, early in his missionary career, St. over Patrick founded Dysart. Dachonna, whom he afterwards placed the monastery, was a native of County Louth, and was formerly honoured on the 12th April. Unless we admit the truth of St. Patrick's visit to Dromiskin we cannot explain the founding of Dysart by him. This was Patrick's only visit to East Louth ; never afterwards did he come east of the great road of Midluachair, which ran from Slane, west of Coll?n, through Ardee and on to Dundalk. The Tripartite narrative receives further confirmation from the strong tradition, formerly existing, that Patrick, early in his career, visited Drogheda and founded a no monastery there. In the Lives there is mention of Patrick having visited Drogheda, except perhaps on his way to Slane, and he certainly did not found a monastery there at that time. The tradition, however, that the mediaeval August inian Abbey on the bank of the Boyne near the West Gate was built on the ground upon which formerly a Patrician Monastery had stood, is too strong to be lightly set aside. If we admit the visit to Dromiskin, we can easily explain the founding of the Drogheda monastery.