NORTHWESTERN
UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
Franklyn Bliss Snyder
Fund in
English and American
Literature
MEMORIALS
OF
^Dare iHanor.
1^"^.
' ,»E
MEMORIALS
of
^bare M^noxy
by
CAROLINE, COUNTESS OE DUNRAVEN.
WITH HISTORICAL NOTICES
of
»
^ b a r e.
BY HER SON,
THE EARL OE D U N R A V E N./
|Prhtf^!tr f0r txrritklba,
-- ^
By Messrs. Parker, Oxford.
m dccc lxv.
,r
I
%
THIS FAINT TRIBUTE IS OFFERED TO
0f pirn
WHOSE BENEVOLENCE SUGGESTED, AND WHOSE TASTE DIRECTED
THE BUILDING OF THIS ' GOODLY HOUSE,'
BY HIS WIDOW,
CAROLINE DUNRAVEN.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
ADAEE.
The Demesne, 1; tlie Euins, 3; Desmond Castle, 3; the Augustinian Abbey, 4; the
Trinitarian Abbey, 5; the Yillage, 5; Memorial Fountain, 5; Manor House, 6; Armorial
bearings of the Quins and "Wyndhams, 9; Historical notice of Dunraven Castle, 9; the
Hall, Adare Manor, 15; the Organ, 15, 16; the Great Gallery, 17; the Stained Glass
Windows and Pedigrees of the Wyndham family, 17; general account of the House and
Gardens, 27.
HISTORICAL NOTICES.
Inteodtjctoet Notice . . . . . .33
I. The Monasteeies of Abaee . . . . .35
The House of the Hospitallers—the Preaching Eriars—the House of St. James 35
The Trinitarian Priory . . . . .36
The Augustinian Priory ^ . . . . .68
The Franciscan Priory . . . . .74
II. The Paeish Chuech . . . . . .94
III. The Town ....... 101
The Ancient Bridge . . . . . .104
IV. Castle of the Eaels of Kildaee, pophlaelt called Desmond Castle . 105
V. Manoe of Adaee . . . . . • 137
YI. Manoe House . . . • • .147
Museum 148
Demesne . • • • • . . 158
YII. O'Quin of Inchiquin . . . . • .161
Quin of Adare . . • ■ . . 178
YIII. Castle and Chuech of Dunnaman . • • .198
Dunnaman Castle . . • ■ • .198
Dunnaman Church . . . • • • 203
IX.- Chuech and Round Towee of Dyseet . . , • . 205
X. Ancient Topogeapht of Adaee ..... 232
b2
• « •
vlll table of coktents.
PAGE
XI. Addenda . . . . . . . 236
referring to
(p. 9.) Coity Castle ..... 236
(p. 54.) Xotices of the Trinitarian Priory . . . 236
(p. 94.) The Parish. . . . . . 237
(p. 94.) The Liber Niger, or Black Book of Limerick . . 239
(p. 95.) The Xunnery of Monaster-na-calliagh . . . 240
(p. 101.) The Town . . . . . .241
(p. 102.) Position of the Ancient Town of Adare . . .241
(p. 114.) Clonlis and Kilqueeg . . . . 242
(p. 136.) Antiquities found at Desmond Castle . . . 242
(p. 142.) Lease of the Manors and Castle of Adare to the Earl of Desmond 245
(p. 146.) Manor and Manor Courts of Adare . . . 246
(p. 146.) Advowson of Effin ..... 247
(p. 150.) Silver-gilt dish ..... 247
(p. 163.) Inghean Baith, who founded Kilnahoy . . . 250
(p. 186.) Bequests of Thady Q,uin, Esq. .... 250
(p. 195.) History of the Palatines . . . . 251
Ebuata . . . . . . . 303
APPENDICES.
PAGE
A. x^. 62 ^ Geant of the Abbey Lands oe Adake, &c. to Sie Heney "Wallop, Knt. 253
B. p. 63. Geants oe Abbey Lands at Adaee to E^icholas Lylles, Esq. . , 255
C. p. 64. Constat oe the Civil Sdeyey oe paet oe the Paeish oe Adaee . 256
D. p. 64. Geant oe lands eeom the Ceown to Thady Qdin, Esq. . . 257
E. p. 94 and 211. Ecclesiastical Taxations . . . .261
I. Extract from Taxation of the Province of Cashel, made about a.d. 1291 . 261
II. Extract from Taxation of the Province of Cashel, made a.d. 1302 . 261
III. Taxation of the Diocese of Limerick .... 263
E. p. 95. Deaneey oe Athdaee ..... 265
G. p. 95. Identification oe names oe Chdeches in the Deaneey oe Adaee . 268
H. p. 96 and 211. Exteact eeom the Liber Eegalis Yisitationis Hibeenije . 272
I. p. 96. Exteact eeom a Teeriee oe Tythes, &c. oe the Parish oe Adaee . 273
J. p. 146. Table eeom the Down Suevey oe the eoefeited Lands about Adaee, 1642 274
E. p. 150. Eall oe Meteoeic Stones at Adaee .... 275
L. p. 211. Extracts eeom the "Libee I^igee" relative to Diseet-Enghssa . 277
kl. p. 246. Manors oe Adaee and Tobornea .... 280
N. p. 247. The Manor Courts oe Adaee . . . .281
0. p. 247. Documents relating to the Prebend oe Efein . . . 285
Explanation oe the Plates . . . . .291
Index ....... 297
• This column of figures refers to the pages in which the subject of each of the Appendices will be found.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
1. The Memorial Pountain in the Tillage . . . .6
2. The Vtstibnle ....... 8
3. North Gallery in the Hall . . . . .13
4. Battlement, Abbey of Jerpoint . . . . .66
5. Corbels in the Tower of the Trinitarian Priory . . .67
6. "West "Window, South Aisle, Augustinian Priory . . .70
7. Sedilia, ditto . . . . . . . 71
8. Gateway, ditto . . . . . .73
9. Dove-cot, ditto . . . . . .73
10. Paten and portion of Chalice found in the Pranciscan Priory . . 78
11. Small Bell found in ditto . . . . .79
12. Consecration Crosses, ditto . . . . .81
13. Altar Slabs, ditto . . . . . .82
14. Sedilia, ditto . . . ... . .83
15. Boom built over the South "Walk of the Cloisters, ditto . . .85
16. South side of the Cloisters, ditto . . . . .87
17. Pireplace in the Prior's Booms, ditto . . . .89"
18. Pireplace in the Upper Story of the Prior's Booms, ditto . . 90
19. Gateway, ditto . . . . . . .92
20. Old Parish Church . . . . . . 97
21. Window of small Chapel in the Churchyard .... 100
22. Sections of String-course and Moulding of Window, Desmond Castle . 122
23. Window in Norman Apartment, ditto . . . .123
24. Section of Inner Arch of Window, ditto . . . .124
25. Iron Implement and Loophole, ditto . . . .126
26. Spear-head, Sword-blade, and Battle-axe, found at ditto . .130
27. Wooden Sword found in the Moat of ditto . . . .131
28. Bone Implement found in ditto . . . . .132
29. Beam found in the river . . . . . .135
30. Bronze Bell, Adare Museum . . . . .152
31. Stone Hammer, ditto . . . . . .153
32. 33, 34. Inscribed Stones, ditto, Nos. 1, 2, 3 . . . . 154
35. Ditto, No. 4 . . . . . . .155
36. Ditto, No. 5 . . . . . . . 156
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
xi
37.
Ogham Stones in the Pleasure-gronnds, Adare Manor
PAGE
157
38.
Arms of O'Dea and O'Quin
164
39.
Inscribed Stone from Inis-Cealtra
164
40.
Arms of the Earl of Dunraven
197
41.
Plans of Dunnaman Castle
199
42.
Upper and Lower "Windows, ditto
201
43.
East Eront of ditto ....
202
44.
Church and Tower of Dysert
212
45.
Section of the Eoimd Tower, ditto .
214
46.
Door, with Section of its Mouldings, ditto
216
47.
Windows, ditto ....
217
48.
Lanterne des Morts, at Ciron, Erance
219
49.
Campanile of S. G-iovanni Pattista, Eavenna
222
50.
Eound Tower, Devenish, Eermanagh
222
51.
Eound Tower, Ardmore, co. of Waterford
223
52.
Eound Tower, Epinal, Erance
224
53.
Keys found at Desmond Castle
242
54.
Horn Implement, ditto ....
243
55.
Tower and Transept, Eranciscan Priory
290
LIST OF VIEWS OF ADAEE AT THE END OF THE VOLUME.'
1. Adare Manor, West Eront.
2. The Euins at Adare from Ardshanbally Hill.
3. Tillage of Adare and Euins of the Trinitarian Abbey prior to the year 1810.
4. Tillage of Adare and Catholic Church.
5. Augustinian Abbey and Ancient Bridge.
6. Adare Manor in the eighteenth century.
7. Adare Manor about a.d. 1815.
8. Adare Manor, Horih-west view.
9. Adare Manor, South-east view.
10. Plan of Adare Manor.
11. The Hall.
12. The Grallery.
13. Plan of the Trinitarian Abbey at Adare, now the Catholic Church.
14. Trinitarian Abbey from the Convent Garden.
15. Plan of the Augustinian Abbey at Adare, now the Protestant Church.
16. Augustinian Abbey, East and West view.
17. Cloisters of the Augustinian Abbey, Adare.
18. Plan of the Eranciscan Abbey, Adare.
19. Eranciscan Abbey from the South.
20. Eranciscan Abbey, with the Manor House in the distance.
21. Eranciscan Abbey, Church, and Tower Arch.
22. Cloister of the Eranciscan Abbey.
23. Plan of the old Parish Church aud adjoining Chapel.
24. Small Chapel in Adare Churchyard.
25. Desmond Castle, and Eranciscan Abbey, from the Bridge.
26.. Plan of Desmond Castle.
27. Exterior of Desmond Castle, with the Ancient Bridge.
28. Interior view of Desmond Castle, shewing Entrance Gateways to the Outer and
Inner Wards.
29. Plan of Adare, from the Down Survey Maps.
30. Church of Dunnaman, Plan, and Details.
31. Eragments of Pottery, &c., found at Desmond Custle.
ADAEE.
r
" Oh sweet Adare! Oh lovely vale!
Oh soft retreat of sylvan splendour!
H'or summer sun, nor morning gale,
E'er hailed a scene so softly tender."
Geeald Geieeiit.
HE picturesque village of Adare® has long been celebrated for its
ancient and various ruins, as also for the beautiful scenery in
the demesne adjoining it, for ages the residence of the ancient
family of O'Quin of Incbiquin, of which the present Earl of Dun-
raven is the representative
The beauty of the demesne is greatly enhanced by the river Maigue,
■ " Adare is derived from Ath-dara, 'the ford of the oak.' {0'Donovan.) The following version
of the derivation of the name was related to me by a peasant, who shewed us the ruins of Carrig-o-
Gunnell Castle, [The Eock of the O'Gunnells—G"Donovan^ about thirty years since, and was written
down by one of the party; and althongh incorrect as to the derivation, it is curious as a legend:—
" The ruins of Carrigogunnel have long been celebrated as the scene of supernatural appearances ;
but more especially of an extraordinary blaze of light, which occasionally appears over or among
the ruins at night.' In former times this light was followed by the most baneful consequences, for
whosoever first looked upon it instantly dropped down dead. However, it so happened that
St. Patrick was once journeying in these parts upon his little pony, and as he came near the castle of
Carrigogunnel, the light appeared as usual, and fortunately his pony saw it first, and, as might be
expected, dropped down dead under him. But St. Patrick blessed the animal, and he came to life
again. And the good Saint wishing to discover the cause of the light, and to deliver the country
from its disastrous effects, went up straight towards the castle; and there appeared to him a bull,
raging and furious; but St. Patrick immediately attacked the spectre, which, not being able to resist
a personage of such holiness and power, betook himself to fiight: upon which the holy man instantly
pursued him, but was not able to overtake him untd he reached the river Maigne, at Adare; and
there bemg at that time no bridge over the river, he came up with him at the ford, seized him by
the tail, and slew him there with his crooked staff; and from that circumstance the place was called
Ath-tarb, ' the ford of the bull.'"
Por a more detailed account of the history of Adare, of its Euins, and of the O'Quins, see
Supplement.
B
2 ADAEE.
whicli flows througli it from south to north. This charming river seems
to have been a constant source of amusement to the different proprietors
of the place: one generation, for instance, found recreation in converting
it into a straight canal, while the succeeding one took an equal pleasure
in " restoring it to its own sweet will." As for ourselves, it would be
impossible to describe the many and happy hours we have passed fishing
from its banks or boating on its placid waters; and the present Lord
Adare, who is an ardent and most successful disciple of Izaak "Walton,
seems thoroughly to enjoy the various amusements it affords :
"Eor men may come, and men may go,
But I go on for ever."—TENNXsoiir's Bkook.
The various ruins on the banks of this " shining river" form beautiful
and picturesque scenes, while extensive vistas through aged trees and
shaded walks, amongst spots "where many a saint and many a hero
trod," give a peculiar interest to the whole place.
The demesne of Adare was remarkable for the number and magnifi¬
cence of its elms. In November, 1814, the whole avenue in front of
the house, shewn in the first view of Adare Manor, was blown down.
The memorable storm of January 6, 1839, uprooted nearly 700 trees;
and that in January, 1842, between 600 and 700 more^ sadly mutilating
the noble avenues, and destroying the finest specimens of single trees.
The following mention of Adare is from Derrick's "Letters from
Ireland," vol. ii. p. 2, Dullin^ a.d, 1767 :—
" In our ride to Limerick we chanced to peep into a deer park, where
the country people were spreading toils to catch a doe for the chace;
but we were not permitted to depart till we promised to dine with
the lord of the manor. Your Lordship must know something of him—
Mr. Wyndham Quin, of Adair. His house is small but elegant, and
pleasantly situated on the banks of a delightful river. There we were
entertained with an excellent dinner, and treated with such politeness
and care as greatly enhanced the favour of the invitation."
AD AEE.
3
Arthur Young, in his " Tour in Ireland," a.d. 1776-7-8, says :—
" Few places have so much wood about them as Adare: Mr. Quin has
above 1000 acres in his hands, in which a large proportion is under wood.
The deer park of 400 acres is almost full of old oak and very fine thorns,
of a great size; and about the house the plantations are very extensive,
of elm and other wood, but that thrives better than any other sort. I
have nowhere seen finer than vast numbers here. There is a fine river,
which runs under the house, and within view are no less than three
ruins of Friaries, two of them remarkably beautiful, and one has most
of the parts perfect except the roof."
, The ruins consist of a Castle, a Trinitarian Friary, an Augustinian
Friary, a Franciscan or Grey Friary, which last is situated within thes
demesne, and two small churches in the parish churchyard.
A castle is said to have been built at Adare by the 0'Donovans, and
afterwards to have passed into the possession of the Kildare branch of
the Fitzgeralds. It is popularly called "Desmond Castle:" its walls are
bathed by the river. The Keep can be safely ascended by a flight of
stone steps, and from the summit a fine view of the demesne is ob¬
tained. The feeling of repose which seems to pervade the whole scene
when wandering among its ruins is well described by Gerald Griffin:—
" Peaceful it stands, the mighty pile,
By many a heart's hlood once defended,
Yet silent now as cloistered aisle
"Where rung the sounds of banquet splendid;
Age holds its undivided state
"Where youth and beauty once were cherished.
And leverets pass the wardless gate
Where heroes once essayed and perished."
In the year 1807 the church of the Augustinian Abbey was given
to the Protestants as their parish church, the old one being out of
repair, and too small; and in 1814 the refectory was roofed and con¬
verted into a school-house. The family mausoleum was erected in another
part of the ruins. Over the entrance is the following text,—" My son,
B 2
4 ADAEE.
remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth." On the west front
are the family arms, and underneath,—
"This' mausoleum was constructed in the year of our Lord 1826, by
"Windham Henry, Earl of Dunraven, for the remains of his dear father,
Eichard, first Earl of Dunraven, and for the family of Quiri of Adare."
Small mural tablets in memory of servants who had lived many years
in the family are placed round the walls of the cloisters, which were
restored in 1831. A second restoration of the church took place in 1852;
and it has been much embellished by the erection of several fine stained-
glass windows, by Hard man of Birmingham, as memorials to menibers of
the Quin family who have since that time departed this life. Under
the west window in the south aisle is a brass-plate with the following
inscription:—
" This church was restored in honour of God, and in pious memory
of Windham Henry, Earl of Dunraven, by Caroline his widow, 1854."
And on the east window are these words :—
" Windham Henry, Earl of Dunraven, died 1850."
Under the east window of the side aisle :—
" This window is erected in honour of God, and as a token of grateful
affection to Caroline Countess of Dunraven, by the parishioners of Adare,
and many attached friends, 1855."
The subject of this window is the Eour Acts of Mercy.
Underneath one of the chancel windows is the following inscription
on a brass plate :—
" This window is erected by Edwin and Augusta, Earl and Countess
of Dunraven, in honour of God and in pious memory of her brother,
Wyndham Goold, Esq., M.P."
Under the west window of the nave is the following inscription:—
" In honour of God and in pious memory of Caroline Adelaide
Wyndham Quin, this window is erected by her parents.
Obiit M nccc liii., JEtate xv."
ADABE. 5
About the year 1811 the Trinitarian Abbey was restored and given by
the first Earl of Dnnraven to the Eoman Catholics, but has been enlarged
and partly rebuilt by the present Earl. A portion of the ruins has
been very skilfully converted into a convent for Sisters of Mercy, to
which are attached two handsome schoolrooms. These late restorations
were made under the direction of Mr. P. C. Hard wick.
The east window is of rich stained glass by Hardman of Birmingham,
and represents the Offering of the Magi, with the following inscription
on a brass-plate:—
" In honour of God and to commemorate the pious munificence of
Edwin, third Earl of Dunraven, who restored this church and built
schools for the Christian instruction of 600 children, this east window
is erected as a memorial by the parishioners of Adare, 1854."
There are four other windows filled with stained glass, three of them
by Hardman, also put in by the parishioners.
Lord Dunraven has built another large schoolroom and oratory for
the Christian Brothers, who have nearly 200 boys under their instruc¬
tion; they have a considerable and well-selected lending-library in ex¬
tensive circulation through the parish. These buildings are attached to
the late Eever Hospital, which affords a second school-room, a class-room,
and a dwelling-house for the community. The Hospital was originally
purposed as a thank-offering after a long and dangerous illness sub¬
sequent to the birth of my second son in the year 1829, and the words
Deo et Pauperibus" are engraved over the entrance. A change in
the medical laws of Ireland having rendered this building unavailing
as a Eever Hospital, it was enlarged and appropriately converted to its
present purpose in the year 1853.
The attention which Lord and Lady Dunraven pay to the comfort of
those around them is clearly manifested in the appearance of the village.
The cottages look neat and cleanly, and being partly interspersed with
fine old trees and flower-gardens, have a most picturesque appearance.
The village is also ornamented with a fountain, a parting gift- to the
6
ADABE.
people of A dare on my leaving Ireland in 1851: it is amply supplied
with delicious water brought from a distance of nearly a mile. It was,
THE rOUOTAIB".
1 believe, the first memorial cross erected in Ireland, serving also as
a drinking-fountain. The following inscription is cut on the stone:—
''Erected by Caroline, Countess of Dunraven. In grateful memory of
the zeal shewn by the people of this village in quenching a fire at
the offices of Adare Manor on the 15th April, 1844, this supply of
water was brought and fountain erected.
" Lord, prosper Thou our handy-work! 1855."
The accompanying engraving of the Eountain exhibits also a view
of a portion of the Convent which has been previously referred to.
ADAEE.
7
THE MAHOE-HOIJSE.
HE modern mansion was begun a.d. 1832. Some of tbe walls of
the old house still remain, but are so amalgamated with the
new that they could only be recognised by one who had watched
the progress of the alterations. The building was still unfinished at
Lord Dunraven's death, and in 1850 Mr. P. C. Hardwick was con¬
sulted, and with much talent and judgment completed the south and
west fronts, after his own designs, following the general plan as in¬
tended by the late Earl. The old house consisted of a very ancient
square tower, to which had been added a modern front, forming in
shape a X. The new house is built of large blocks of hammer-dressed
limestone of different colours, grey predominating, but relieved by oc¬
casional blocks of red and brown, all found in quarries of this county
The gurgoyles and carvings are of grey limestone, a material very diffi¬
cult to work, but most durable. On the parapet of the south front is
the following text in old English characters:—CExctpt HorU butlJj
j^ousE labour is but lost tbat builb it." Part of this front consists
of an open colonnade, over which are the following texts: — "Love
God onely;" "Honour and obey the Queen*" "Eschew evil and do
good." This cloister forms a charming place to sit in, being sheltered
from winds and dews at night, while it has the enjoyment of open-air
life; the murmuring of the river, the singing of the birds, and the but¬
tering of the numerous water-fowl being the only sounds that break upon
the silence. On this front there is also the following inscription:—
Names of the quarries which supplied the stone for the walls, chimney-pieces, &c.:—The grey
stone, principally from Tuogh; the red and yellowish red, Donoman, and various localities ; brownish
red, Cloonagh, beyond Eathkeale; interior of colonnade, yellowish red, 'ehieily Kdbreedy; columns
and arches in the hall, Thomond Gate, Limerick; columns in the hbrary, near Crattloe, co. Clare;
entrance doorway. Limerick; the bay windows of the library. Limerick; chimney-pieces in the gal¬
lery, near Ballingarry; in the hall, Tuogh; in the library, (Pugin,) commons of Eathkealc; do.,
(Hardwick,) co. Clare; dining-room, Eynana, co. Clare; saloon, Donoman; Lord Dunraven's sitting-
room, Clorane; Lady Dunraven's sitting-room, commons of Eathkealc.
8
wA. !Bj !E>
" This goodly house was erected by Windham Henry, Earl of Dunraven,
and Caroline his Countess, without borrowing, selling, or leaving a debt.
a.d. 1850." The style of the building is Tudor, and the details are
carefully taken from the best examples of the period in England and the
Continent. The works, both stone and timber, were entirely executed
by the mechanics and labourers of the village and neighbourhood, and
proved an inestimable blessing during the years of famine, at which
time provisions were given out to them at the ordinary prices. On
the east front is the following inscription:—"In memory of James
Conolly of Adare, mason and faithful servant of the Earl of Dunraven,
and builder of this house from a.d. 1831 till his death in 1852."
tee vestibule.
On arriving at the entrance you ascend a few steps into a recessed
porch containing two massive carved oak chairs. The roof is groined.
ADABE.
9
the ribs springing from shields shewing the alliances of the last four
generations of the Quins and the "Wtndhams; viz.—
The entrance-door opens into a vestibule with a small inner room formed
by one of the towers—a receptacle for cloaks, fishing-rods, &c. This
vestibule has four round-arched doorways with jambs of polished mar¬
ble, elaborately moulded and ornamented with Eomanesque details: the
largest has spandrils containing scrolls with these words in illuminated
letters: [^11 pjUlTirSi;" the favourite motto
of the late Lord Dunraven, and on which all his actions were based.
Between the corbels supporting the beams of the oak ceiling of this
room are two rows of shields bearing the arms of the seven latest genera¬
tions of the Quins and the Wyndhams. Those on the east side are:—
I. WxifDBrAM;, with Davt on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Sir George "Wyndham, Knt., of Offords, near Cromer, co. Norfolk, son of Sir
John Wyndham, Knt., of Orchard Wyndham, by Joan Portman, his wife, married
Frances, daughter and co-heir of James Davy, Esq., of Suffield, in the same county.]
II. Wyndham impaling Dayeell.
[Francis Wyndham, Esq., of Cromer, married Sarah, daughter of Sir Thomas Dayrell
of Shudy Camps, co. Cambridge, by Sarah his wife, daughter and co-heir of Sir Hugh
Wyndham, Bart., of Pilsden, co. Dorset.]
III. Wyndham, with Edwin on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Thomas Wyndham, of Clearwell, married, first, Jane, daughter and heiress of John
Wyndham, of Dunraven Castle^ co. Glamorgan, Serjeant-at-Law; secondly, Anne,
This ancient residence is situated on a remarkable promontory, washed on two sides by the waters
of the Bristol Channel, and strongly fortified on the third, or land side, by a fine triple entrenchment
of earthworks, a large portion of which still remains. According to the late William Williams, Esq.,
of Aberpergwm, a first-rate Welsh scholar, the true spelliag was Dyndryvan, Anglice, 'the triangular
fortress.'. The same derivation is given in the " Cambrian Journal," vol. iv. 1857, in a paper taken
from Welsh historical MSS., compiled by Edward Wilhams in the year ISli. According to Dr.
O'Donovan, triveann in Irish signifies ' of the three corners, or pinnacles.' It is singular that the
word Dunraven, as now spelled, is more Irish than Welsh. By a letter received some time ago from
the same eminent topographist, it appears that "Biaihan (pronounced Bevan) means 'a swarthy
Moeony.
"Wyndham.
Dawson.
Steangways.
Edwin.
Eggke.
Ashby.
Dayeell.
c
10
ADAHE.
daughter of Samuel Edwin, of Llanmihangle, eo. Glamorgan. Her brother, who married
Lady Charlotte Hamilton, dying without issue, she succeeded to the large estates of
Llanmihangle® and Coity^]
personhence Bunriabhain, arx fusci, Anglice, Dunrevan, a townland in the county, of Tyrone.
The word Riabhdn, anghcised Revan, Raven, enters largely into Irish topographical names."
According to the paper from the " Cambrian Journal" quoted above, the princes of Siluria are stated
to have had their principal residence here, and they were called the tribe of Dindryvan.
The earliest notice of Dunraveri, resting on what may be considered a firmer basis of authenticity,
which I have been able to find, occurs in the Brut-y-Tywysagion, or Chronicle of the Princes, compiled
by Caradog of Llancarvan, in the twelfth century. (Yid. ArchcBologia Cambrensis, Third Series, Jan.
1864.) Under the year 1050, (page 53,) we read:—"And while the sons of Rhydderch, son of Jestin,
were engaged in that expedition, the Saxons from the summer country came and burnt Dindryvan and
Trevovered in Glamorgan, the castles of Caradoe, son of Rhydderch, son of Jestin, and took a vast
spoil of corn, cattle, sheep, and goods of every description they could find, and burnt and destroyed
houses, and made dreadful devastation, against the peace firmly made on oath between the Prince of
Glamorgan and the King and Earls of the Saxons."
Again, in 1080, (page 67,) it is said:—"In the same year the men of Rhys, son of Tewdwr, came
upon Jestin, son of Gwrgan, and demolished the castle of Denis Powis, the castle of LlaniUtud, and
the castle of Dindryvan, which were the castles of Jestin, son of Gwrgan."
The writer of the papers in the " Cambrian Journal" before quoted, states that " Sir William de
Londres granted the castle and lordship of Dindryvan to Arnold Butler, by tenure of presenting
three cups of wine to Sir William and his heirs, whenever they should visit Dindryvan j" and gives
as the arms of the Butlers, " Between three cups or a chevron argent in a field gules." According
to the compiler of the valuable " Glamorgan Pedigrees" which have appeared lately in the " Merthyr
Guardian," Dunraven was granted by Meyric, son of Sir William de Londres of Ogmore, to Sir Arnold
Butler. The tenth in descent from Sir Arnold, Ann or Eva Butler, heiress of Dunraven, married
Sir Richard Yaughan, of Bradwardine, Herefordshire, head of a wealthy family of numerous and
wide-spread connections: he was Sheriff of Hereford in 1530. Dunraven remained in the family
of the Yaughans for six generations. The last proprietor, Thomas, is said by local tradition to have
had three sons, all of whom were drowned: the two eldest on the Tuskers, a rock situated about
three miles from Dunraven, covered at half-tide, their boat having drifted away; and the third,
a mere boy, by falling into a well. The story adds, that these calamities were a judgment of Provi¬
dence consequent on the practice of exhibiting false lights to allure vessels to destruction on this
dangerous coast. On the extinction of his family Thomas Yaughan sold Dunraven in 1642 to
Humphrey Wyndham, (vid. p. 19, note k). In Grose's "Antiquities" a view is given of the old
manor-house as it appeared in 1775. The building of the present house was commenced in 1803,
during the progress of which aU external vestiges of the old manor-house disappeared. Of the
medieval Nonnan castle no traces remain.
® The curious old manor-house of Llanmihangle dates from about the sixteenth century. The very
pretty angle window in the east front of Adare manor-house is taken from Llanmihangle. Previous to its
purchase by Sir Humphrey Edwin, this estate belonged to the ancient family of the Thomas's, Barts.
Sir Humphrey Edwin, who was Lord Mayor of London in 1698, was descended from the ancient
family of the Edwins of Hereford and Holmer. It appears (vide Duncumb's Herefordshire, vol. ii.
p. 92,) that in early times the family name was Zeddefen or Edwin. In the reign of Edward 111. the
arms were,—^Argent, a cross flory, between four Cornish choughs. Sir Humphrey's arms were,—
Argent, a saltire sable between four Cornish choughs proper. (Yide Burke's General Armory.) The
annexed pedigree traces the line down to the marriage with the Wyndhams:—
ADAEE.
11
IV. "Wtstdham impaling Eooke.
[Charles Wyndham, who took the name of Edwin, married Eleanor, daughter of
General Rooke, of Eigswear, co. Gloucester.]
V. Wyndham, with Ashbt on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Thomas Wyndham, Esq., of Dunraven Castle, married Anna Maria, daughter of
Thomas Ashby, Esq., by Charlotte his wife, daughter of Robert Jones, Esq., of Fonmon
Castle, CO. Glamorgan.]
VI. Qiriiir, with Wyndham on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Windham Henry, second Earl of Dunraven and Mount Earl, married Caroline,
daughter and sole heiress of Thomas Wyndham, Esq., of Dunraven Castle.]
X
VII. Q,hin of Adare, (modern,) and O'Qdin of Inchiquin, (ancient).
[The latter resumed and confirmed by patent, bearing date, Ulster's Ofiice, Dublin
Castle, Dec. 20, 1862.]
Those on the west side are —
I. Q,din, with O'Rioedan on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Donogh Quin, or O'Quin, of co. Clare, (whose ancestors, the O'Quins of Inchiquin,
Sir Humphrey Edwin, born 1642 ; = Elizabeth Samhrooke, died 22 Nov.,
died 14 Dec., 1707; buried at
Llanmihangle.
1714; buried at Llanmihangle.
Samuel Edwin, died 1722. = Lady Catherine, dan. of Robert,
3rd Earl of Manchester, died
1731; buried at Llanmihangle.
Charles Edwin, nephew and = Charlotte, dan. of Catherine, died Thomas Wyndham of = Anne,
heir of Thomas Edwin, of James, 4th Duke unmarried Cromer, co. Nor-
Headley, CO. Surrey; was of Hamilton; died before folk, and of Clear-
M.P. for Glamorganshire 1777, aged 74. 1777. well.
1747, 1754; died s.p. 29
June, 1756.
Eor the continuation of this pedigree, vide p. 22.
Anne's sister, Catherine, was betrothed to Sir Thomas Stradling, Bart., of St. Donat's, by whose
untimely death at Montpellier, in 1738, the ancient family of Stradling, descended from one of the
twelve knights who conquered Glamorgan under EitzHamon in 1091, became extinct; and the vener¬
able castle, which had been in their xminterrupted possession for nearly 700 years, passed to the family
of the Drakes of Shardeloes.
^ Coity (formerly spelt Coyty) Castle was erected by Sir Payne de Turberville, called by the Welsh
Fayn Cythrawl, or the Devil, one of the twelve knights who were engaged in the " winrdng of Gla¬
morgan" under Robert EitzHamon in the year 1091. In the fifteenth century, Sarah, daughter and
co-heiress of Sir Richard Turberville, married Gamage of Rogiad, a Monmouthshire family of Norman
origin, who became possessed of Coyty. Their main line terminated in an heiress, Barbara, who mar¬
ried Sir Henry Sydney of Penshurst, brother of Sir Phihp Sydney, and afterwards Earl of Leicester.
Their mother Mary was sister of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. Jocelyn Sydney, the seventh Earl,
died in 1743. His natural daughter obtained the estates, from whom they passed to the Wyndhams.
The picturesque and extensive ruins of the castle still remain to attest its former importance.—^D.
12 ADARE.
were chiefs of Hy-Ifearnan, and descendants of Cormac Cas, son of Olioll Olium, Monarch
of Ireland,) married a co-heiress of the old Celtic family of O'Rioedan, which derived
its descent from Eiordan, the son of Dungal, ancestor also of the Mac Carthys, Kings
of Munster and Princes of Desmond. Eiordan was so called from the " firmness" of
his decision and the " vigour" of his action—Eioji, ' decision,' ban,' undaunted.']
II. Q,tji]sr impaling Merony.
[Thady Quin, Esq., of Adare, co. Limerick, married Catherine, youngest daughter of
Pierce Merony, Esq., of Clounmeagh, co. Clare, by Margaret his wife, daughter of
Theobald Eutler, Esq. The O'Meronys, or Moronys, claimed descent from Dermot
Eoe, and were an old Celtic family of Clare.]
III. Qniisr, with Widenham on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Valentine Quin, Esq., of Adare, married Mary, elder daughter and co-heiress (with
her sister Alice, wife of Price Hartstronge, esq., eldest son of Sir Standish Hartstronge,
Bart.) of Henry "Widenham, Esq., of Court, co. Limerick, and Mary his wife.]
IV. Quin impaling Dawson.
[Windham Quin, Esq., of Adare, married Frances Dawson, sister of Thomas, first
Lord Cremorne, and third daughter of Eichard Dawson, Esq., M.P., of Dawson's Grrove,
co. Monaghan, by Elizabeth his wife, daughter of John Vesey, Archbishop of Tuam.]
V. Qitin impaling Strangewats.
[Sir Valentine Eichard Quin, Bart., of Adare, afterwards first Earl of Dunraven and
Mount Earl, married Lady Frances Muriel Strangeways, daughter of Stephen, first Earl
of Ilchester. Through this alliance the subsequent Earls of Dunraven derived a Eoyal
descent from King Edward III., through the families of Manners and St. Leger; Henry
Strangwayes, Esq., the direct ancestor of Lady Frances, having married Margaret,
daughter of George Lord Eos, son of Sir George Manners, Lord Eos, by Anne his
wife, daughter and heir of Sir Thomas St. Leger, Knt., by Anne Plantagenet his wife,
sister of King Edward IV.]
VI. Qtjin, with "Wtnbham on an escutcheon of pretence.
[Windham Henry Quin, second Earl of Dunraven and Mount Earl, married Caroline,
daughter and sole heiress of Thomas Wyndham, Esq., of Dunraven Castle, co. Gla¬
morgan, a lineal descendant of Sir John Wyndham, Knt., of Orchard Wyndham, an¬
cestor, through his eldest son, of the Earls of Egremont.]
VII. QiriN impaling Gooin.
[Edwin Eichard Windham Wyndham-Quin, third Earl of Dunraven and Mount
Earl, married Augusta, third daughter of Thomas Goold, esq., a Master in Chancery,
son of John Goold, Esq., (of the family of Goold of Old Court, Barts.,) by Mary his
wife, daughter and eventually heiress of Valentine Quin, Esq., of Eosbrien, the repre¬
sentative of a junior branch of the Quins of Adare.]
The folding-doors in this archway are covered with ancient richly
embossed stamped leather, and lead into the great hall. The first feeling
on entering this striking apartment is one of surprise at finding yourself
NOETH GALLEET IE THE HALL.
AD AEE.
15
in a place totally unlike what you had ever seen before, and apparently
more of an ecclesiastical than domestic character, but which is never¬
theless peculiarly adapted to every purpose for which it may be required.
It has been frequently used with equal appropriateness as a dining-
room, concert-room, ball-room; for private theatricals, tableaux vivants^
and other amusements. At the same time, when only one person is
seated at the ample fireplace, where on medieval fire-dogs huge logs
of wood are blazing, the coup d?oeil is so perfect, and the whole aspect
of the room so comfortable, that one could not wish it in any way
changed or diminished, notwithstanding its great size. It is most ditficult
to describe: three lofty arches of grey stone cross it in one direction,
while two others at right angles make a partial division of the stairs
from the rest of the hall. The dimensions of this most picturesque room
are :—length 53 ft., breadth 37 ft., and height 30 ft. A very fine organ,
built by Telford of Dublin, occupies a position over two small arches im¬
mediately opposite the entrance: it is of great compass, having 44 stops
and 2,353 pipes, (see p. 16); the stops were selected with great care
by the present Earl of Dunraven, several of them having been procured
from Monsieur Cavaille Coll, the celebrated organ-builder in Paris; and
when played by his Countess, who is a perfect mistress of the instrument,
the effect is indescribably beautiful. The hall is lighted by eight windows
of different sizes, placed high up in the walls, some of them containing
coloured glass. The walls are decorated with armour, and with horns of
the old Irish deer, several of which are of remarkable size, the pair over
the fireplace measuring II ft. 4 in. across from tip to tip, and another
measures 10 ft. 4 in. The carved chimney-piece, of grey stone, was
designed by the late Mr. Pugin; as was also the staircase of carved
oak, (vide plate,) the organ-case, minstrels' gallery, and ceiling. From
the first landing of the staircase you turn into an arched passage, appa¬
rently formed in the thickness of the walls; this, and the steps leading
from it, were suggested by a similar arrangement in a curious old castle
on the banks of the E'ecker, in Germany, and the effect is singularly
16
ADAUE.
DESCRIPTION OF THE ORGAN ERECTED AT ADARE MANOR BY TELFORD
AND TELFORD, DHBLIN.
Great Organ. 00 to P in
Alt.
Ohoir Organ. 00 to F in Alt.
o S
«»-• •
o ^
Name of Stop.
bo
o.g<
Name of Stop.
60
• 2
o ^
<1>
o
1
Bordoon ....
16
12
1
Hold Flute
8
54
2
Teneroon ....
16
42
2
Stopped Diapason (bass)
8
12
3
Great ^en Diapason .
8
42
3
Ditto ditto (treble)
8
42
4
Flute Harmonique
8
42
4
Flute-a-PaviUen .
8
42
5
Stopped Diapason (bass)
8
12
5
Flute Harmonique
8
42
6
Yiol de Gamba .
8
54
6
Dulciana principal
4
42
7
Clarabel ....
8
42
7
Flute Gedacht
4
42
8
Principal ....
4.
54
8
Piccolo ....
2
54
9
Wald. Flute
4-
54
9
Cor Anglais
8
54
10
Twelfth ....
3
54
11
Fifteenth ....
2
54
384
12
Doublette ....
1
48
Coupling Stops.
13
Furnitune (4: ranks) .
204
14.
Cymbale (3 ranks)
—
160
1
Great to Pedals.
15
Bornbarde ....
16
42
2
Swell to Pedals.
16
Trumpet ....
8
54
3
Swell to Great.
17
Clarion ....
4
54
4
Swell to ditto, octave below.
5
Swell to Choir.
1024
6
Choir to Great.
7
Tremolo to the Swell.
Swell Organ. CO to F in
Alt.
d
Q QQ
Name of Stop.
bo
ti
a>
^ Pi
1
Bordoon ....
16
54
2
Open Diapason .
8
54
3
Dulciana ....
8
54
4
Principal ....
4
54
5
Dulciana Principal
4
54
6
Flute Harmonique
4
54
7
Fifteenth ....
2
54
8
Doublette ....
1
48
9
Comet (Dulciana) (3 ranks)
—
162
10
Bassoon ....
8
16
11
Oboe
8
38
12
Yox Humana
8
42
684
Composition Pedals.
These are seven in number, fonniag various
combinations.
Pedal Orgaai. 000 to E.
Name of Stop-
Open Diapason .
Yiolon
Open Diapason .
Furnitune (Franks)
Trombone .
Trumpet
Great Organ
Choir
Swell
Pedals
Couplers
Composition Pedals
Total
&D
§
o S
16
16
8
16
8
29
29
29
116
29
29
261
p<
O
oft
17
9
12
6
7
7
1024.
384.
684;
261
58
2353
ADAE,E.
17
quaint and picturesque : it leads to a gallery, projected out with bold
corbels over the north side of the hall, and ornamented with richly carved
oak panels. A most beautiful and curiously carved oak door, the panels
of which are partly pierced, and comprise groups of figures, the subjects
from the life of the Blessed Virgin and of St. Nicholas, of the best period
of the fifteenth century, opens into the great gallery, which is the fa¬
vourite sitting-room of the family. The dimensions of this magnificent
room, the effect of which would be most difficult adequately to convey,
are—in length 132 ft. 6 in., in breadth 21 ft., in height 26 ft. 6 in. It has
five very large bay windows, partly filled with stained glass: the central
part of the western contains the following explanatory inscription:—
" The stained glass of these windows, illustrating the pedigree of
the ancient and noble family of Wyndham, was designed and executed
by Thomas Willement of London, B.S.A., in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight, and erected by Windham
Henry Wyndham, second Earl of Dunraven, in the love and honour of
Caroline Wyndham his Countess."
"West Window.
Ailwardus de "WymondamS, 1139. j Thomas de Wymondam, 1197.
Hugo de "Wymondam, 1152. | John de Wj-mondam, 1223.
Edricus de Wymondam, 1170. I Eodolph de Wymondam, 1250.
E^oeth Window, (No. 1).
William de Wymondam, J
Johanna de Castell, )
John de Wymondam, 1335.
John de Wymondam,")
Katherine Eedshaw,
Thomas Wyndham,")
Margery Walcot,
Noeth Window, (No. 2).
Full length figures of
John Howard, Duke of Norfolk,
in his robes of state.
Sir John Wyndham, in complete
armour.
s Ailwardus, a noble Saxon, assumed soon after the Conquest the name of de Wymondham, from
his property in the county of Norfolk.
■ " ' " ' ■ " ' —
D
18
ADARE.
[North "Window, (No. 3).
John Wyndham, 1415.
Elizabeth Sherrington.
John Wyndham,
Margaret Segrave
J
1440.
Sir Thomas Wyndham',
Eleanor Scrope,
Sir John Wyndhamj,
Ellen Sydenham,
John Wyndham'',
Elorence Wadham
1
1535.
J
1574.
1572.
John Wyndham,
Margaret Clifton, )
Sir John Wyndham''
Margaret Howard,
ll456.
■}
1502.
East Window.
■]
1645.
Sir John Wyndham',
Joan Portman,
Sir George Wyndham,
Elorence Davy,
Erancis Wyndham,") .
Sarah Dayrell, ,
]
1671.
'' Sir John Wyndham was in the battle of Stoke, anno 1487, against the Earl of Lincoln, Lam¬
bert Shnnel, and their adherents, and was knighted immediately after the victory, hnt being afterwards
engaged in the interests of the Honse of York, he was condemned for high treason, and beheaded by
Henry YII. on Tower-hill, May 6, 1502.
' Sir Thomas Wyndham, son of (this) Sir John Wyndham, redeemed all the forfeited estates in the
33rd year of King Henry YIII. Sir Edmund, eldest son of Sir Thomas, having struck one Chase,
a gentleman of Norfolk, in the King's Tennis Court, within the verge of the Court, was thereof
arraigned in the Great Hall at Greenwich, before Master Gage, Comptroller of the King's household,
and being found guilty, had judgment to lose his right hand; and being brought to solemn execution
before Sir William Pickering, Knt., Marshal, he desired the King would spare his right and take his
left, for therewith he might he able hereafter to do the King service. The King, informed of this
petition, granted him his hberty and pardon.
j Colonel Wyndham, of Trent-house, who was great-grandson to this Sir John, was instrumental in
King Charles's escape after Worcester fight, the King continuing three weeks at his house at Trent,
and after several attempts to get beyond sea, returned thither again.
The following anecdote was at that time related to the King by tliis Colonel Wyndham, son of
Sir Thomas:—
" Sir Thomas Wyndham not long before his death, in the year 1636, called unto him his five sons,
(having not seen them together in some years before,) and discoursed unto us of the loving peace and
prosperity this kingdom had enjoyed under its three last glorions monarchs; of the many miseries and
calamities which lay sore upon our ancestors by the several invasions and conquests of foreign nations,
and likewise by intestine insurrections and rebellions. And notwithstandiag the strange mutations
and changes in England, he shewed how it pleased God, in love to our nation, to preserve an undoubted
succession of kings to sit on the regal throne. He mentioned the healing conjunction of the two
houses of York and Lancaster, and the blessed union of the two crowns of England and Scotland,
stopping up those fountains of blood which, by national feuds and quarrels kept open, had like to have
drowned the whole island. He said he feared the beautiful garment of peace would shortly be torn in
pieces through the neglect of magistrates, the general corruption of manners, and the prevalence of
a puritanical faction, which (if not prevented) would undermine the very pillars of government. ' My
sons! we have hitherto seen serene and quiet times, but now prepare yourselves for cloudy and
troublesome. I command you to honour and obey our gracious sovereign, and in all times to adhere
to the Crown; and though the Crown should hang upon a bush, I charge you forsake it not.' These
ADAEE.
19
Thomas "Wyndham,
Catherine Edwin"
:■}
"West Window.
1751.
Charles Wyndham. |
Eleanor Eooke,
1
1801.
(Second Series.)
Thomas Wyndham,")
Anna Maria Ashhy, j ^
Windham Henry-v Earl and
Wyndham, VConntessof
Caroline Wyndham,; Dunraven.
words being spoken with much earnestness, both in gesture and manner extraordinary, he rose from
his chair, and left us in a deep consultation what the meaning should be of ' the Crown hanging upon
a hush.' These words. Sir, (said the Colonel,) made so firm an impression in all our breasts, that the
many afflictions of these sad times cannot raze out their iudelible characters. Certainly, these are the
days which my father pointed out in that expression, and I doubt not, God hath brought me through
so many dangers, that I might shew myself both a dutiful son and a loyal subject, in faithfully en¬
deavouring to serve your sacred Majesty in this your greatest distress."
Three of the sons mentioned in this anecdote, and a grandson, feU. on the field of battle in the
Royal cause.
'' John Wyndham, of Orchard, married Florence, sister and co-heir of Nicholas Wadham, Founder
of Wadham College, Oxford. She died 26th February, 1596, and was buried at St. Edmunds. It is
credibly reported at St. Edmunds that this Florence was brought into St. Edmund's Church to be
buried, but life being found in her she was carried into the Vicarage-house, and recovered, and
afterwards brought forth Sir John Wyndham: and many thanks to her, as from Sir J. Wyndliam all
the Wyndhams are descended.
Sir John Wyndham of Orchard = Joan Portman.
1. John of Orch¬
ard, ancestor of
the Earls of
Egremont.
Thorn as of Felbrigg,
co.Norfolk,ancestor
of the distinguished
statesman "William
Windham, with
whom the line ex¬
pired.
4. Humfrey, an¬
cestor of the
Wyndhams of
Dunraven Cas¬
tle.
5. Wadliam, Jus¬
tice of the
King's Bench,
ancestor of the
Wyndliams of
Dinton.
6. George, ances¬
tor of the
Wyndhams of
Cromer and
of Clearwell.
Humphrey Wyndham, = Joan, dau of Sir John G^ewe,
of Dunraven. of Ewenny.
John Wyndham, Serjeant-= Jane, dau. of William Strode,
at-Law.
of Barrington.
)C J J Fraaeis Wyndham. = Mary, dau. of Edward Strode,
of Downside.
Thomas Wyndham, of Clear-= Jane, heiress of Dunraven,
well, (vid. p. 22). died 1696.
' The portrait at Petworth is probably the wife of this Sir John, who married " Joan, daughter of
Sir Henry Portman, of Orchard Portman, co. Somerset, Knt." She died 10th September, 1633, and
was also buried at St. Edmunds.
" This is a mistake: it should be Anne.
D 2
20
ADAEE.
In the central compartments of these windows are the following shields
of arms, illustrative of the Eoyal descent of the Wyndhams, as well as
of their Scrope ancestry:—
"West Window.
I. King Edward I., encircled by the legend " Le E-oy Eduard Premier."
II. England impaling Castile, with the legend " La Peine Eleanore."
III. England impaling Eeance, with the legend " La Peine Margarite."
IV, Thomas de Beotherton impaling De Halts, with the legend " Thomas Comte de
Norfolke."
Korth Window, (JSTo. 1).
V. Baron Segraye, with the legend " John Baron de Segrave."
YI. Segrave impaling Brotherton, with the legend " Margaret Duchesse de Korfolke."
YII. Mowbray impaling Segrave, with the legend "John Baron de Mowbray."
VIII. Mowbray impaling Eitzalan, with the legend " Thomas Duke de Norfolke."
North Window, (No. 2).
IX. Howard impaling Mowbray, with the legend " Sir Pobert Howard Eques."
X. Howard impaling Molines, with the legend " John Duke de Norfolke."
XI. Wyndham impaling Howard, with the legend " Sir John Wyndham Eques."
XII. Scrope, with the legend " Sir William le Scrope."
North Window, (No. 3).
XIII. Scrope impaling De Poos, with the legend " Sir Henrye Scrope."
XIV. Scrope impaling De la Pole, with the legend " Pycharde Baron Scrope."
XV. Scrope quartered with Tiptoft, with the legend " William Comte de Wilts."
XVI. Scrope impaling Nevill, (Earls of Westmoreland,) with the legend " Roger
t Baron Scrope."
East Window.
XVII. Scrope impaling Scrope, with the legend " Henrye Baron Scrope."
XVIII- Scrope impaling Fitz Hhgh of Eavenscroft, with the legend " Pycharde Baron
Scrope."
XIX. Scrope impaling Washbohrne, with the legend " Syr Pj'charde Scrope."
XX. Wyndham with Scrope on an escutcheon of pretence, with the legend " Syr
Thomas Wyndham."
The annexed pedigrees give the alliances of the Eoyal descent, as •well
as the direct line of the Scropes of Bolton:—
ADAUE.
21
L
lEDfoarl) I., King of England. Eorn 1239, = Margaret, 2nd dau. of Philip III., King of
ascended the throne 1272, and died
1307.
France, (2nd wife) ; died 1317,
Thomas Plantagenet, surnamed de Pro- = Alice, dan. of Koger Hal3'S, of Harwich,
therton, (5th son of Edward I.,) Earl of
Norfolk. Born 1st June, 1300; diedl338.
Knt.
John, Lord Segrave, died 1353. = Margaret Plantagenet, Duchess of Norfolk.
John Lord Mowbray, born 1326 ; killed = Elizabeth Segraye, died before her mother,
42 Edward III., (1369). whose heir she was.
Thomas Mowbray, Earl of Nottingham,;
created Duke of Norfolk 29th Sept.
1397, K.G., died 1 Henry IV., (1399).
Sir Kobert Howard, Knt., died in the;
lifetime of his father.
Elizabeth, dau. of Richard Fitz-Alan, Earl
of Arundel,
I.
Sir John Howard, K.G., summoned to par- :
liament as a baron from 15th Oct. 1470,
to 15th Nov. 1482; created, 28th June,
1483, Duke of Norfolk, and Earl Mar¬
shal : killed at Bosworth Field 22nd
Aug. 1485.
Sir John Wyndham, Knt., of Felbrigg,;
CO. Norfolk, beheaded 6th May, 1503.
Margaret, only dau. of Thomas Mowbraj%
Duke of Norfolk, K.G.
Catharine, dau. of William Lord Molines.
Died 1452.
Margaret, dau. of John Duke of Norfolk,
K.G.
Sir Thomas Wyndham, of Felbrigg. Will = Eleanor, dau. and co-heir of Sir Richard
dated 22nd Oct. 1521.
Scrope, of Upsall, co. York.
Sir John Wyndham, of Melton Constable, = Elizabeth, dau. and co-heir of John Syden-
Norfolk,died 16 Queen Elizabeth, (1573). ham, of Orchard.
John Wyndham, Esq., died vita patris, 25th = Florence, dau. of John Wadham, Esq., of
Merrefield, and co-heir of her brother
Nicholas Wadham, founder of Wadham
College, Oxford.
Aug. 1572.
Sir John Wyndham, Knt., died 1645. = Joan, dau. of Sir Henry Portman, Knt.,
1 of Orchard.
A
22
ADARE.
A
Sir George Wyndham, of Uffords, near
Cromer, Norfolk, died 1663.
Francis Wyndham, Esq., of Cromer,
died 1694.
Frances, dau. and co-heir of James Davy,
Esq., of Suffield, co. Norfolk.
Sarah, dau. of Sir Thomas Dayrell, of
Shudy Camps, co. Cambridge, by Sarah
his wife, dau. and co-heir of Sir Hugh
Wyndham, Bart., of Pilsden, co. Dorset.
Thomas Wyndham, Esq.; (first wife, Jane, = Anne, dau. and eventual heiress of Sa-
dau. of William Wyndham, Esq., of
Dunraven.) Died 17^.
muel Edwin, Esq., of Llanmihangle, co.
Glamorgan, (2nd wife).
I
Charles Wyndham, Esq., of Clowerwall, = Eleanor, dau. of General Eooke, of Bigs-
took the name of Edwin ; died 1801. wear, co. Gloucester.
Thomas Wyndham, Esq., of = Anna Maria Charlotte, dau. = John Wick Bennet, Esq., of
of Thqmas Ashby, Esq. Laleston, co. Glamorgan,
(2nd husband).
Dunraven Castle, died in
1814.
Windham Henry, 2nd Earl of Dunraven, = Caroline, dau. and sole heir of Thomas
died 6th Aug. 1850. Wyndham, Esq., of Dunraven Castle.
lEbtoin 3^ltc6art) 22ainb|^am Mgnhj^am ^^uin, = Augusta, third dau. of Thomas Goold, Esq.,
Earl of Dunraven and Mount Earl. I Master in Chancery.
11.
Hugh Le Sceope, living 15 Stephen, (1149).
Robert Le Scrope, 6 Richard I., (1198).
Simon Le Scrope, of Flotmanby, living = Ingoliana
9 Henry III., (1225). Buried at Wens-
lay, co. York.
Henry Le Scrope, of full age in 1205.
•i
A
Julian, dau. of Roger Brune, of Thornton,
co. York, by Isabel his wife.
AD ARE.
23
A
William Le Scrope, son and heir. Buried at Wenslay.
Sir William Le Scrope, Knt., held the = Constance, dau. and heir of Thomas, son
manor of West Bolton, co. York, 1286.
Living 31 Edward I., (1308).
of Gillo of Neusam-upon-Tees.
Sir Henry Scrope, Knt., Lord of Croft, = Margaret, dan. of Lord Boos, of Kendal.
CO. York, died 7th Sept. 1336. Buried
at St. Agatha, co. York.
Died 27th Oct. 1357.
Sir Bichard Scrope, 1st Baron Scrope of =Blanch, dan. of Sir William De la Pole,
Bolton, 3rd son. Born 1328 ; died 30th
May, 1403, set. 75. Will dated 2nd Aug.
1400; proved 3l8t May, 1403. Buried
at St. Agatha.
Knt., and sister
Suffolk, K.G.
of Michael Earl of
Sir Boger, 2nd Baron Scrope. Born circa = Margaret, eldest dau. and co-heir of Robert
1348 ; died 3rd Dec. 1403. Will dated
23rd Sept. 1403; proved 17th Jan.
1403-4.
Lord Tiptoft. Born 1366; married ante
1381. Will dated 13th April, and proved
14th May, 1431. Buried in Christ
Church, London.
Sir Bichard Scrope, 3rd Baron. Born 3 lst= Margaret, dau. of Balph Neville, 1st Earl
May, 1393; died 29th Aug. 1420. Will
dated 24th Jan. 1420-1; proved 8th
Nov. following.
of Westmoreland, K.G. Died 1463.
Buried in the Convent of the Augustines
at Clare, co. Suffolk.
Sir Henry Scrope, 4th Baron. Born at=:Elizabeth, dau. of John, 4th Baron Scrope
Bolton 4th June, 1418; died 14th Jan.
1459, eet. 41.
ofMasham. Living Aug. 1498.
Sir Richard Scrope, Knt., 2nd son, of Up-
sall, CO. York.
Eleanor, dau. of Norman Washbourne, of
Worcester. Buried in the Austin Friars,
Norwich. Will dated 11th Dec. 1505;
proved Jan. 1505-6.
Sir Thomas Wyndham, of Felbrigg, co. = Eleanor, dau. and co-heir. Living Dec.
1505.
Norfolk. Will dated 21st Oct. 1521;
proved 4th March, 1522.
See ante, ^.21.
24i ADAEE.
The ceiling is coved with oak beams, pendants, and bosses; cross
arches divide it transversely into seven compartments, which are con¬
nected at right angles by side arches; much lightness is given to the
ceiling by the spandrils of some of the arches being pierced. The cornice
is ornamented with oak shields, emblazoned alternately with the Wynd-
ham and Quin arms, each surmounted by a knight's head with helmet
and mantling. The oak panellings on the north side of the room are
copied from prints in Froissart's Chronicles, London, 1806, and exe¬
cuted by Adare workmen. Some fine stalls bought at Antwerp are
placed at the west end; they have been so successfully copied by local
carvers that a second row is placed opposite to them which cannot be
distinguished from the original. There are also misereres of carved oak
at both sides of the room, some of the patterns taken from the cathe¬
dral of Cologne. Four large garderobes of walnut wood are placed
against the south wall, the subjects chiefly scriptural, (one, the Judgment
of Solomon, is peculiarly fine). There are three fireplaces: the chimney-
pieces are composed of the marble of the neighbourhood. The shields
represent the arms of the Kings of England from William the Conqueror
to Edward L, whose descendant, Lady Margaret Howard, married Sir
John Wyndham.
On the first chimney-piece are the coats of arms of
1. William I.
2. Matilda of Flanders.
Second chimney-piece:—
1. Geoffiy Plantagenet.
2. Eichard I.
3. Henry II. and Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Third chimney-piece:—
1. Thomas of Brotherton, Earl of Norfolk.
2. Mowbray.
3. Henry I.
4. Matilda of Scotland.
4. John and Isabella of Angouleme.
5. Henry III. and Eleanor of Provence.
6. Edward I. and Margaret of France.
3. Howard.
4. Wyndham and Howard.
The floor is parquet-work, and before each chimney-piece is a Turkey
carpet. Musical instruments and games of different kinds are scattered
throughout the room, a constant supply of rare and beautiful plants is
ADARE. 25
brouglit in from the conservatory, and their perfume, added to the de¬
licious tones of the organ, and the beauty of all that the eye rests
upon, forms a most perfect combination of refined enjoyment.
The walls are covered with pictures, many of them brought from
Clear well Court in Gloucestershire, principally portraits of the Wyndham
family and their connections.
LIST OE PICTURES.
Dog and Cat. Snyders.
Bishop Ridley.
Dog and Dead Game. Ditto.
Portrait of Sohieski.
Deer-stalking in tlie Highlands. Mac]cen%ie.
Marguerite of Austria—Governess of the
Miniature copy of Titian's Descent from
Netherlands.
the Cross. Angeli.
Queen Elizabeth when a child.
Landscape,
Philip of Spain, husband to Queen Mary.
Ditto.
Ponibus.
Portrait of Andrea Hofer; copy of picture
Unknown.
at Innspruck.
Elizabeth of Austria.
Portrait of Countess of Richmond and Derby,
Sir Reginald and Lady Mohun, painted in
mother of Henry YII.
time of Elizabeth.
Portrait of Viscount Cremorne. Pompeo
The Wife of Grotius, a.d. 1396.
Batoni.
Pere Jaques de Paris.
Ditto of Colonel Quin, father to the first
Marie Touchet la dame D'Autragne.
Earl of Dunraven.
Le Chevalier de Sully, a.d. 1664.
Ditto of Mrs. Quin, mother to ditto.
Sir Kenelm Digby.
Ditto of Mr. Dawson.
Portrait of Mrs. Edwin and Mrs. "Wyndham.
Ditto, unknown.
Sir Edward O'Brien.
Ditto, Mareschal de Turenne.
Lady Barker.
Ditto, L'Ahhe de St. Cyron, precepteur de
Portrait of Lady Harriet Gallwey.
Jansenius.
Crazy Kate. Barlcer.
Ditto, A Cavalier.
Landscape.
Ditto, Benedict XIV.
Eox and Poultry. Snyders.
Ditto, Jean Barneveldt.
Colonel Quin and his Dog.
Ditto, Maurice, Prince of Orange.
Dead Badger. Snyders.
Ditto, Rubens,
Dutch piece. Sneyers.
Ditto, unknown.
The Annunciation. DomenicJiino.
Ditto, Marquis de SiUery.
Emit piece.
Portrait of the first Earl of Dunraven. P.
Two Views in the Black Eorest.
Batoni.
Eour Dutch pieces. Sneyers.
James I.
Castle Angelo on the Lago Maggiore. Stan-
Charles II.
field.
E
26 ADAEE.
The Earl and Countess of Dunraven. T. Phi-
Large Emit piece.
Segers.
Upps.
Portrait of Lady Eachel Eussel. Sir Godfrey
View of the Island of Ischia.
Kneller.
Island of Ischia and Bay of IS'aples.
Lord Southampton, her father. Sir Peter Lely.
Piazza of St, Mark, Venice. Canaletf/i.
Portrait of Hell GWynne.
Ditto.
Copy of Eaphael's Madonna. Angeli.
Ditto, Col. Wyndham of Trent House. Ditto.
Bridge and Castle of St. Angelo at Eome.
Ditto, Mrs. Wyndham.
Canahtti.
Ditto, A Lady.
Hon. Eichard Quin in Suliot-dress. Angeli.
Ditto, Mr. Wyndham.
Bournahiska, village in the plain of Smyrna.
Ditto, A Gentleman.
Magdalen and Angels. Guido.
Ditto, A Gentlemanw
St. Erancis. Mmillo.
Subject from Eoman History.
P. Panini.
Infant Christ. Alexander Patrini.
Daedalus and Icams,
Panini.
View in Venice. Angeli.
Morpheus.
Ditto.
Sea piece. J. W~hitecombe.
Italian Landscape.
Van Drist.
Canal and Bridge.
Dutch Landscape.
Ruysdael.
Portrait of Valentine Quin.
Shipwreck.
Vandervelde.
Henry Qum, j of Val.
Jacob's Dream.
Salvator Rosa.
George Qum,
Eome from the Pamfili Gardens. Van Lint.
Mary Quin, 1
Portrait of a Lady.
Mrs. Quin, their mother.
Ditto of a Gentleman.
Portrait of the Earl of Ilchester. Bir J.
View of Eome, with the Ponte Eotto. Gas-
Reynolds.
pard Ashiole.
Children of Charles I.
Ditto, Campo Vicino.
Ditto.
Brigand and his Wife. Copied from one 'at
Portrait of John Wyndham, Esq.
Terraeina.
Ditto of a Lady.
Landscape.
Principal Euins of Eome brought into one
Dead Pheasant. Fraser,
picture.
Panini.
Holy Eamily.
Carlo Maratti.
CLEAEWELL PICTDEES.
Magdalen.
Rafael Mengs.
Portrait of Edward VI.
St. Erancis.
Ditto, Charles Edward.
Coliseum.
Panini.
Ditto, A Lady. Sir Peter Lely.
Portrait of a Mr. Wyndham. Marie Ganardo.
Ditto, The Earl of Macclesfield. Sir God¬
Ditto of a Lady.
Ditto.
frey Kneller.
Portrait of a Bishop.
Ditto, A Gentleman. Clostermann.
Ditto.
Portrait of the Duke of Hamilton, who
Ditto of a Lady.
Marie Ganardo.
was beheaded on Tower-hill.
Henry VIII.
Portrait of a Lady.
Duke of Marlborough's Battles—Eamillies,
Adoration of the Wise Men. Joseph Chiari.
Hochstedt, Hochstedt, Taniers.
ADAEE. 27
A library of ancient and modern works occupies large bookcases at the
east end^ and the garderobes contain a collection of scarce and valuable
prints and illustrated works. The following busts on pedestals occupy
positions round the room, viz., the first and second Earls of Dunraven;
Edmund Burke; Henry Grattan; Dean Swift; Napoleon Bonaparte; the
Duke of Wellington; Sir William Hamilton; Sir Walter Scott; Lord
Monteagle;. William Pitt; and a Gladiator. The furniture is covered
with tapestry worked by the village and school girls, who, during a
time of great distress, were trained to execute a variety of useful and
ornamental fabrics.
The dining-room is not yet decorated according to the beautiful plans
of the late Mr. Pugin; they consist of panelled walls and ceiling, a lofty
and highly ornamented mantelpiece, and a carved oak screen of rich
design supporting a minstrels' gallery.
The billiard-room and library are also still unfinished. The latter
was opened at a series of entertainments given to celebrate the coming
of age'of Lord Adare, Eebruary, 1862This noble room measures 66 ft.
long, 21 wide, and 18 high; and is partially divided by a lofty arch
resting on red marble columns. The great bay window in the eastern
division is 18 ft. wide. The ceiling is divided into square panels formed
of moulded oak ribs, at the intersection of which are carved pendants;
the panels themselves being filled with plaster decorations in low relief.
There are two magnificent chimney-pieces, the eastern one designed by
Mr. Pugin, the other by Mr. Hardwick, both made of the red marble
of the neighbourhood, the carvings of which are elaborate and beauti¬
fully executed.
° The Lord Lieutenant (the Earl of Carlisle) and a large circle of friends assembled for the occa¬
sion. The first day's festivity commenced with a dinner to the tenants, to which upwards of four
hundred sat down. A presentation of plate to Lord Adare from the Irish and Welsh tenantry followed,
and in the evening a ball, attended by more than a thousand of the tenantry, took place. The next day
there was a concert of the Adare Village Choral Society, and on the following evening a large county
baU, when the great capabilities for picturesque effect of the hall and gallery were for the first time
exhibited and fuUy brought out. The festivities closed with a ball to the servants, and the tradesmen
of the village; and thus all classes participated in the happiness of the family on this occasion.
E 2
28 ADAEE.
The sitting-room I occupied deserves notice as being quite peculiar in
itself, and endeared to me individually by the proofs of atfection -which
pervade every part of it:—
" There's not a strain to Memory dear,
Nor flower in classic grove,
There's not a sweet note warbled here,
But minds us of Thy love."—Keble.
The initials C. D. are carved on the chimney-piece and over the door, and
the "Wyndham crest is repeated everywhere, even to the chairs. Three
large windows facing the river, and commanding different views of it,
give it a cheerful character. In the centre of the room there is a massive
arch supporting the end wall of the gallery, and made ornamental by
the way its soffit is designed. The division of the oak ceiling between
the door and the arch is beautifully carved, the beams being supported
by angels, bearing in their hands shields charged alternately with
a red and a white cross. The beams form large squares, divided into
four compartments; those nearest the wall and round the arch are richly
emblazoned. The "Wyndham crest and motto, with the rose of England
in every variety of red and white, enlivened by sufficient gilding to give
them a brilliant effect, alternate with each other; the cornice round the
room is composed of the arms of England and Erance. The shields in
the centre, and the mottoes, are disposed in scrolls of a peculiarly grace¬
ful character, which we took from the tomb of Charles the Bold and
Mary of Burgundy, at Bruges. The motto of England is blue with gilt
letters—"Dieu et mon droit:" that of Erance in gilt letters on a pink
ground—"Mon joye Saint Denis." The fireplace is in the arch; the
hearth-stone in mosaic, formed of marbles found in the neighbourhood.
The space between the chimney-piece and arch is covered by a looking-
glass ; the frame has a pattern of roses, shamrock and thistle, surmounted
by a scroll with the mottoes—" Sub sole vanitas," " Supra solem Veritas."
The arch itself is ornamented with a simple pattern in pure white.
Opposite the fireplace is a very rich panelling of looking-glass with black
ADAEE. 29
oak carving, eifectively relieved with red and gold colouring. The
panelling of the ceiling between the arch and the windows is much
less ornamented than the other side; it consists of very massive oak
beams, with pale blue ceiling enriched with a pattern of blue and gold:
the cornice a repetition of the angels, with arms of England and Erance.
The dimensions of this room are 26 ft. long, 20 wide, and 14, high.
Lord Dunraven's sitting-room, immediately facing the entrance door,
is handsomely fitted up with carved oak bookcases, and over the red
marble massive chimney-piece is a series of subjects in deep relief, richly
coloured and gilded, representing the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
brought by the late Lord Dunraven from France.
The Wyndham Tower, which is 82 ft. high to the battlements, and
103 ft. to the top of its high-pitched roof, is occupied by a stone stair¬
case running the whole height of the house, over which are small rooms.
At the head of the principal staircase, on the second floor, is a wide
corridor, which at present is being fitted up as a museum, and contains
a collection of objects of interest, comprising antiquities, geological
specimens, and miscellaneous curiosities of various kinds. In the centre
will be placed a magnificent and perfect specimen of the great extinct
Irish deer, which was recently dug up in the vicinity of Limerick.
The servants' hall is quite peculiar, somewhat resembling the crypt
of a church; the piers, supporting massive arches of the twelfth century
type, forming the base of those in the great hall.
The kitchen, 26ft. long by 28ft. wide, and 30ft. high, is a striking
room, of much architectural beauty.
On the south side of the house is a large geometrical garden, designed
by Mr. Hardwick, enclosing a bowling-green and croquet-ground, bounded
on the east by handsome cut stone terrace walls, surmounted with vases,
containing a broad flight of steps leading down to the river; from whence
a gravel walk, under a row of majestic elms, extends along the banks
of the stream to a picturesque bridge in the vicinity of the Abbey.
In the extensive and beautiful pleasure-grounds which surround the
30
ADARE.
house are to be found a great variety of shrubs, and numerous specimens
of the new and rare conifers, destined hereafter to supply the place of
the noble elms which now form so prominent a feature in the graceful
slopes which rise on the western side of the manor.
Among these old trees is an inscribed stone, commemorative of an
aged ash under which the family plate is said to have been deposited
during the troubled times of the Eevolution of 1688. This tree, which
survived the hurricane of January 6, 1839, was blown down on Christ¬
mas Day, 1856.
This charming spot was my home of unclouded happiness for forty
years : may Heaven's choicest blessings be poured with equal abundance
on its present and future possessors !
HISTOEICAL NOTICES
OF
ADAEE.
INTEODUCTOET NOTICE.
N the foregoing pages a cursory notice only having been given of
the Euins, and other objects of interest at Adare, the Author was
desirous of rendering the account of the place more full and
»complete; and at her request all available information has been sought
for, bearing upon the history of the Town and Manor, and of the different
ecclesiastical and other ancient buildings, which combine to impart to
Adare its peculiar character. The enquiry has involved more trouble,
and has been accompanied by greater difficulties, than could at first have
been expected. Such researches, however, can be considered in no other
light than as a labour of love, where^ as in the present case, the main
object of the work is to honour his memory, by whose rare architectural
skill and beautiful taste the house and demesne of Adare have become
what they are; and more especially, as the desire that the work might
be rendered as complete as possible, has emanated from one whose name
is never mentioned in the vicinity of that ''happy home of forty years"
without calling forth expressions of genuine affection from its warm¬
hearted and grateful inhabitants.
If undue prominence appears to be given in the following pages to
places or incidents which have no pretensions to historic importance, it
should be borne in mind that this book is scarcely expected to interest
many beyond those who are acquainted with Adare and the family of its
proprietor. Should it, however, stimulate some, whose ancestors have
taken a prominent part in the history of their country, and whose
baronial castles have been the scenes of important events, to contribute
works on Irish family topography, of more general interest than the
present can lay claim to, the Book of Adare will have achieved an object
F
M
AD ARE.
of wider utility and greater importance than that for which it was ori¬
ginally compiled.
The illustrations are taken partly from photographs, partly from some
admirable drawings by Miss Gallwey, which she has kindly lent, but
mainly from sketches made expressly by Mr. G. Y. Du hloyer, who has
also contributed a portion of the description of the Abbeys and Castle.
To several friends who have rendered material assistance we would
here offer our cordial thanks. To the Marquis of Kildare and the Hon.
Eobert O'Brien (representatives of two of the families who have acted so
conspicuous a part in the history of Ireland) we are indebted for various
extracts from family documents and other sources. Our acknowledgments
are also due to Sir Bernard Burke (Ulster) for his kind and valuable
co-operation in the completion of the genealogical lists, and in supplying
some important extracts : also to J. T. Gilbert, Esq., the Librarian of the
Eoyal Irish Academy, for several translations and transcripts.
To those distinguished antiquarian scholars whose researches have
thrown so much light on the early history and literature of Ireland, the
Eev. Dr. Todd and the Eev. Dr. Eeeves, the thanks of the compiler of
the following pages are especially due, and are gratefully tendered, for
the trouble taken, and the time bestowed by them in pointing out sources
of information, and in making and verifying numerous extracts and
translations.
One valued friend still remains to be mentioned, whose cordial co¬
operation in our work is duly appreciated,—George Petrie, the founder
of the modern school of Irish archaeology; by whose zeal and labours
during a long and honoured career, not only has the liveliest interest
been created in our national antiquities, but also a true appreciation has
been attained of the almost unequalled beauty of some of our ancient
works of art, and of the previously unsuspected interest which attaches
to our very early and remarkable historic monuments.
I. THE MOHASTEEIES OE ADARE.
HE ecclesiastical ruins at Adare consist of three Priories, popularly
called Abbeys, the Trinitarian, the Augustinian, and the Fran¬
ciscan ; and of two Churches, one of them the old parish church,
dedicated to St. Mcholas, the other a small church, or chapel, within the
churchyard.
In an extract of some ancient rolls engrossed about the year 1658,
made by Dr. Jasper "White in 1685, for which I am indebted to the
Eev. Dr. Cussen, of Bruff, after enumerating the three Abbeys as existing,
it is stated: "In the same town (Adare) there is, or was, a house of
the Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem."
The Taxation of about the year 1302® mentions the Hospitallers as
having ten marks of yearly and free rent in the church of Adare, which
proves the existence of this house: and on the Down Survey map of
Adare (plate 29) there are the words "Spitle Gate" and "Spitle lands,"
referring evidently to this foundation.
In the Epistolce of Pope Innocent III. published by Baluzius (Paris,
1682), there is one to the brethren of the Hospital of St. John of Jeru¬
salem in Ireland. There is a long recital of names of lands which be¬
longed to this Order: among them is the denomination "de Addar^"
This agrees with the mention of the " Hospitalarii" in the old Taxation.
There is also " de Kilguban," now Kilgobbin, near Adare.
Mention is made in Archdall's Monasticwm Hibernicum of a house of
the Preaching or Dominican Friars at Adare; and the possessions of the
Preaching Friars of Adare are alluded to in an extract in the same work,
marked "Auditor General," relative to the grants to Sir Henry Wallop;
Vide Appendix E. Vol. ii. p. 655.
F 2
36 ADAEE.
but probably this was a mistake, arising from the Trinitarians being
called Preaching Eriars in one of the records of the Polls, alluded to in
the Appendix.
A religious house at Adare, under the title "domus beati Jacobi,"
appears in the Taxation of 1302. E'o traces of this monastery remain,
and but for the name being found in this and another Taxation, all
knowledge of its having ever existed would be lost.
THE TRINITAPIAH PEIOEY.
The most ancient of the Monasteries belonged to the Trinitarian Eriars.
This noble Order, for the redemption of Christian captives, was founded
in 1198 by S. John de Matha and Eelix de Yalois, in the pontificate of
Innocent III. Their habit was white, with a red and blue cross. There
is a very detailed and curious account of the foundation and history of
the Priory of Adare, which was the mother house of the Order in Ireland,
in a Spanish work entitled Noticias Historicas del Orden de la Santissima
Trinidad redempcion de Cautivos en Inglaterra, Escocia^ y Hyhernia. Per e
M. E. P. M. Er. D. Lopez, D.D. Madrid, 1714. This work contains a list
of eminent men who belonged to the Order in the three provinces of
England, Scotland, and Ireland, including twelve Cardinals, three Patri¬
archs, thirteen Archbishops, and seventy-two Bishops; among whom
two Cardinals, five Archbishops, and three Bishops came from the con¬
vent of Adare. This statement appeared so extraordinary, that I en¬
deavoured to verify some of the Irish names; but scarcely any of
them are to be found in Sir James "Ware's, or other accessible lists.
To have entered upon an examination of the authenticity of the whole
number would have occupied too much space, and besides, would be
foreign to the objects of this work; nor is it necessary, since a partial
enquiry has given the following sufficiently perplexing result.
Neither of the two Cardinals of the Adare Convent can be identified.
Of the Archbishops, the first, James D'Arcy, of Adare, is not to be
found.
TEINITAB,IAN PEIOET.
37
The third, Stephen de Felburne, Archbishop of Tuam, is stated to have
died in 1281. According to "Ware, he was Archbishop of Tuam from
1286 to 1288.
The fourth, Edward O'Brien, Archbishop of Cashel, is not to be
found.
The seventh, Eobert Hervey of Aberdeen, Archbishop of Dublin, suc¬
ceeded Eichard de Ferings, who died in 1306. Hervey is stated to have
died in 1309. It appears from Ware, that there was an interregnum
from 1306 to 1310, and Figueras, as quoted by Lopez, asks, "Why has
Ware suppressed this bishop ?"
The eighth. Friar James of Adare, Archbishop of Armagh, is not to
be found.
Hor the ninth, Walter of Offaly, of Adare, Archbishop of Tuam.
Hor the eleventh. Brother Eedmund of Adare, Archbishop of York.
The thirteenth, Peter Butler, Archbishop of Cashel, died 1480. Ac¬
cording to Ware, he was Archbishop of Cashel from 1527 to 1550.
Of the Bishops connected with Ireland nine were examined, only two
of whom were identified, Eichard Eocomb, or Borlam, Bishop of Leighlin
in 1420, and Daniel, Bishop of Killaloe from 1277 to 1289. Thus only
four out of eighteen names have been verified, and one is doubtful
Lopez quotes a variety of books, but unfortunately few of them are to
be procured in England or Ireland. It so happens that his references
are both numerous and minute for the lives of the Archbishops and
' The Eev. Dr. Todd, of Trinity College, Dublin, has taken great trouble in attempting to elucidate
the discrepancies of Lopez's History, which work he viewed with great suspicion; hut in a letter
dated June 9, he states : " It seems impossible that he (Lopez) could have written so minutely, with
dates and all particulars, and yet be inventing out of his own head. Besides, every now and again
a fact crops out which squares well with our history, and shews that there was at least an under¬
current of truth in his authorities. . . . What if it should turn out that Ware has recorded only the
series of Bishops recognised by the English government, and that there was another line carried
on by the old Irish Church, of which the English records have not preserved the memory ? There
cannot be a doubt that from the beginning of the thirteenth century to the Eeformation our lists
of Bishops outside of the Pale, including Armagh, are very imperfect. This may possibly arise from
the neglected state of the Irish records; and we ought not perhaps to blame Lopez, when the fault
may be nearer home."
38
ADAE,E.
Bishops, and, were the hooks at hand, it would he a very curious en¬
quiry to endeavour to trace out the origin of these mistakes or exaggera¬
tions. To insert all that relates to Adare would take up many pages,
nor, under the circumstances above stated, would it probably repay in
interest for the space so occupied; a summary only will therefore he
given, with extracts from the most interesting portions.
The earliest mention of Adare occurs in the Life of Father John
Comyn, who was its first Prior, or Minister as the head of the House
was designated in the Trinitarian Order.
By way of introducing Father Comyn, the account of the foundation
of the Convent of Dunbar is given, p. 14. It appears that Gregory of
Dunbar Earl of March, had two nephews, Patrick and James, who on
a voyage were taken by Turkish pirates. They appeared to the Earl
in a dream, and entreated him to rescue them from their miserable
captivity. He was so strongly persuaded of the truth of what he had
dreamed, that he immediately went to the Convent of the Holy Trinity
at Aberdeen, taking with him much wealth, by which he expected that
the Father Eedemptorists at Algiers would be able to redeem his
nephews: this he ofi'ered, adding that if his wishes were accomplished
he would himself found a Convent of their Order.
The narrative proceeds to state, that when the EarPs business was laid
before the community, Father Cummins, who was present, undertook the
mission. Eeceiving leave from his Superior, he with certain of his brethren
set out for the city of Algiers, and was successful in redeeming from
captivity the EarPs nephews, and many others. On his return, after an
absence of eight months, the Earl of March invited him and his com¬
panions to Dunbar, treated them hospitably, and in fufilment of his
promise gave them one of his seats outside the town for a convent, and
Father John Cummins was made the first Prior.
The foregoing account of the foundation of the Trinitarian Friars at
'* The marginal note refers to Dempster's Apparatus ad Historiam Scoticam, who says, p. 77,
" Dumbar fundat Georgius de Dumbar pater Comes Marchige."
TRINITARIAN PRIORY.
39
Dunbar is corroborated by the following extract from Wood's edition
of Douglas's "Peerage of Scotland®:"—"Patrick, fifth Earl of Dunbar,
founded a Monastery of Eed Friars at Dunbar in 1218." Butler says,
" The Trinitarians were sometimes called in England Eed Friars, for
though their habit is white, they wear a red and blue cross patee upon
their scapularDouglas also states that "Patrick, the eighth Earl,
in 1290, is called in a record ' Comes de Marchia,' being the first de¬
signated by that title."
We next come to chap. vii. p. 18, where the introduction of the Order
into Ireland, and the history of the foundation of the Convent of Adare
in 1230, are narrated at considerable length. A very full account of these
transactions, almost the same as the preceding, is to be found in book vi.
chap. xvii. p. 340, from which the following passages have been extracted,
with a view of giving a specimen of the circumstantial character of Lopez's
history; at the same time it is impossible to avoid feeling that a certain
air of unreality runs through the details of the description :—
"It happened in this said year (1227) that the Earl of March (el Conde
de las Marchias) crossed over to Ireland on a matter about some ships,
and the person with whom he had to treat was at the time in Adare,
a town in the province of Desmond, in the diocese of Limerick. The
Earls of Kildare held their residence there, and as soon as they heard
that the Earl of March, of Scotland, was in the town, the Earls, father
and son, called upon him, and asked him to make their Castle his
residence. The Earl of March thanked them courteously for their offer,
but not to give them trouble declined it. When, however, the Earls of
Kildare had ascertained that the inn at which the Earl of March was
staying was not such as was suitable for a person of his distinction,
they pressed him in most earnest, kind, and courteous terms to accept
the proffered hospitality; and so it came to pass that the Earl took up
his abode in their castle (palacio) until the conclusion of the business for
which he had undertaken his journey. They treated him with that dis-
® Vol. ii. p. 168.
^ Lives of the Saints, note on Life of St. I'elix of Valois, Nov. 20.
%
40
ADARE.
tinguisTied and friendly courtesy which, befitted their respective ranks,
and as the common talk of people who have but little occupation is apt
to turn upon news of the day, entertaining anecdotes, and adventures, so
it happened that one day, among other topics, the conversation fell upon
the history of the captivity of the nephews of the Earl of March, and
of their rescue by the brethren of the new religious Order which had
been recently established in Scotland, with the title of the Most Holy
Trinity ; which institution (revealed by Heaven to its founder St. John
of Matha, and to the Pontiff Innocent III.) devoted itself to the redeem¬
ing of persons from <?aptivity. They discoursed also of the noble pre¬
sence and of the strict observance of these brethren, and made particular
mention of him, who with such ardent and charitable zeal had aided the
Earl in redemption from captivity of his nephews. The name of this
brother was John Comyn (Camino), of the family of the Earls of Buchan,
a religious of great virtue, and pronounced to be a saint by all who
knew him.
" The Earls of Kildare listened with marked attention to this narration,
and having expressed a desire to know in what manner the Earl of March
had testified his gratitude for the service rendered, he went on to say that
so high a value had he placed upon the benefit received, that he gave up
his country-seat (palacio de recreacion) to found a Convent, which was
now completed and inhabited by the brethren, and by their Prior, the
saintly brother John Comyn.
" The Earls of Kildare said to him in reply,—' Gladly would we too,
fair Sir, embrace in our island this Order which has borne such good fruit.
Yea, more, (added the father Earl,) should it find an entrance among us
here, I also will found a Convent in Adare.' "
It is difficult to conceive what could have occasioned the Earl of
March's visit to Adare on the affairs of some ships, as it is not situated
on or near the sea; and it is curious that Lopez always uses the ex¬
pression Earls of Kildare, as applied to both father and son.
The narrative goes on to state how delighted the Earl of March was
at the Earl of Kildare's offer, and both Earls having applied themselves
TRINITAEIAI^" PEIOEY. 41
diligently to the business, only three years "elapsed until all arrangements
were completed. After describing how the Earl of March persuaded the
Superiors of the Order to send Father Gomyn to Ireland, Lopez proceeds:—
''The blessed Father, with three other monks, proceeded to Ireland,
and. having arrived at Adare, he presented letters and despatches to the
Farls of Kildare; who immediately pointing out the site, the Convent
which was the principal one of this province was founded, to which the
said Farls gave many lands^ There the blessed Father Comyn remained
as minister, by the command of his Superiors, as I have above mentioned
in c. vi. of Notic, I. The Convent being completed, the Farls of Kildare
continued to express their thanks to the Farl of March, not only for the
introduction of the Order, but for having sent them the blessed Father
Cummins, whom they respected and venerated for his heroic virtues and
great sanctity, even more than for his high birth and rank.
" The blessed Father John remained five years in Adare: two of them
were spent in completing the fabric of the Convent, and the remaining
three in the office of the ministry, laying down rules for future Priors
{prelades) ; subsequently, the Friars always spoke to his successors of the
good works of the holy founder of their Convent, and all who followed
reaped the benefit of his exertions^."
Father Comyn is described as having practised great austerities, and
as having had a serious illness at Adare. The Convent of Dunbar,
finding his absence prejudicial to the interests of their House, recalled
him, to the great sorrow of the Farls of Kildare and the people of Adare.
He restored the Convent of Dunbar to its former splendour, was shortly
afterwards appointed Prior of Aberdeen, and there died May 4, 1237.
The whole account of the foundation of the Adare Monastery is^ in¬
volved in some obscurity. There is a discrepancy even in the dates,
some authorities making it as late as 1272. De 'Burgo^ describes this
Priory as founded by Thomas Fitzgerald, seventh Baron of Ofialy, father
of the first Farl of Kildare, but it is more probable that the date assigned
s Lopez, cap. xvii. p. 340. Hibernia Doniinieana, p. 740.
G
42 ADAHE.
by Lopez, Baron, and other historians of the Order, namely 1230, is the
true one; in which case it must have been founded by Maurice, the
second Baron of Offaly, who also introduced into Ireland the Franciscan
and Dominican Orders. Possibly the buildings were restored or en¬
larged in 1272. The title Earl of March may be antedated by Lopez,
just as is the title Earl of Kildare, the Earldom not having been created
till 1816. It is strange how little is narrated of the Trinitarian Order
either by English or Irish writers: even as to the number of their Houses
there is the greatest discrepancy; Sir James "Ware stating that Adare
was the only House; De Burgo says there were fourteen; while Eigueras,
a writer very extensively referred to by Lopez, gives fifty-four as the
number. If the " Book of the Monastery of Adare," mentioned several
times by Baron, could be found, these difficulties would probably be
cleared up, and many interesting particulars rescued from oblivion:
Eigueras perhaps had access to this book, and may have quoted from
it in his " Annals."
We next pass to the list of Eriars who held high positions in the
Church^, and we find, connected with Adare, two Cardinals, five Arch¬
bishops, and three Bishops. The first Cardinal, William Goold (Goldeo),
is described as a native of Ireland: he took the habit of the Order at
Adare; he afterwards studied at Oxford, where he obtained a Doctor's
degree with much distinction. On returning to Ireland he founded the
Convent of the Holy Cross in Limerick, and was appointed its first Prior.
Whilst there, he defended the authority of the Pope most successfully
against some persons who impugned it. He was sent to Pome on the
occasion of some disputes which had broken out, and by his admirable
management peace was restored to the whole province.
Pope Innocent lY. being at that time about to open the General
Council of Lyons, appointed Dr. Goold as his theologian, and after¬
wards, to shew his high esteem for his learning and merits, he made him
* Book vii. cliap. i. p. 411.
TRINITARIAN PRIORY. 43
Cardinal Priest of St. Clement in the creation {creacion) which took place
in Advent, 1245. He was afterwards appointed Archbishop of Dublin
by Gregory X., which see he governed with great zeal and charity. He
died February 21, in the year 1276.
The, other Cardinal from Adare^, Zacharias Patrick, was Irish by birth,
of the Monastery of Drogheda, ( Vadi;pontanense), He studied at Oxford,
became Prior of the House of Adare, and afterwards was appointed to
other Priories, and obtained such distinction that he was appointed to the
Bishopric of Meath. He performed many services to the Church, which
caused Pope John XXII. to create him Cardinal, in the Priday of the Ember-
days of Advent, with the title of S. Eustachius, in the third creation. He
governed his diocese for ten years, and died on the ninth of January, and
was buried in his cathedral. Authors differ about the year of his death.
Eriar Zachary is also mentioned in a Spanish work by Calvo. P. Er.
Silvestre, entitled " Summary of the Prerogatives of the Order of the
Most Holy Trinity for the redemption of Captives, and of the illustrious
men who have flourished therein." Pampluna, 1791.
Chapter xii. of this work contains an account of the religious of the
Order who were created Cardinals of the holy Eoman Church. Eriar
Zachary is here stated to have taken the habit in the Convent of Adare:
the rest of the account agrees with Lopez. Eigneras is quoted
I have had enquiries made at Eome, but no traces can be found of such
a Cardinal among those created by John XXII., neither in the copious
dictionary of Moreri, nor in other authors, Latin or Spanish, who speak
of the Order of the Trinitarians, or of John XXII. and of his Cardinals.
The following notices are condensed from Lopez.
Of the Archbishops the first on the list is Brother James Dirse, (perhaps
Darsey). He is described as very learned, and as practising great aus¬
terities : he was, against his will, made Prior of several Convents, and
afterwards Archbishop of Armagh. He died February 11, 1239. His
j Lopez, p. 415. MS. Annals, ad ann. 1329, fol. 670.
g2
44
AI) AilE.
body is said to bave remained incorrupt till the time of Henry YIII.,
when it was burned with the relics of many other saints
Brother James (eighth Archbishop), an Irishman, was educated in the
Convent of Adare. He took a Doctor's degree at Oxford, and was versed
in the Hebrew and Greek languages. He was so learned and devout
that he was made Provincial in Ireland, and governed his province with
much address and religious observance. "While at Eome on the business
of his Order, he gave such satisfaction to Boniface YIII., that he made
him Archbishop of Armagh {Adamarehano), He returned to his arch¬
bishopric, and governed it with great credit to himself. He died in July,
1329, and was buried in the Cathedral Church, where his ashes were
held in veneration until the Anglican persecution
It would almost appear as if two Archbishops had here been manu¬
factured out of one. When brought into juxtaposition, their lives have
a suspicious resemblance. The dates of their deaths are worth observing,
one being 1239, and the other 1329. Neither of them, however, are to
be found in Ware's lists of the Archbishops of Armagh.
The third Archbishop connected with the Convent of Adare was Walter
of Offaly (^Failghia). He received the religious habit when fifteen years
old; then he went to Oxford: and afterwards, returning to Ireland, was
made Prior of several Convents, and subsequently Provincial of the
Order. He was created Archbishop of Tuam in the province of Ultonia
(sic). He founded a Convent at Louth, which became celebrated, and
forty-two religious were martyred there in the reign of Henry YIII.
Walter died in 1362.
Brother Eedmond was a native of Adare. He entered a Convent of
the Order in London, obtained a Doctor's degree at Oxford, was after¬
wards made Preacher to the Court, and eventually, at the King's.request,
appointed by Clement Y. to the Archbishopric of York. The year of his
death is unknown
' Lopez, p. 420. " Ibid., p. 426.
° The diocese of Tuam is in tbe province of Connaught. ° Lopez, p. 428.
TEINITAEIAN PEIORY. 45
Peter, or as some call him, Edmund Butler, entered the Convent of
Adare in his eighteenth year, and afterwards took a Doctor's degree at
Oxford. He was. of the family of the Earls of Ormond, By his zeal in the
confessional and the pulpit he gained many souls to God. . He was Prior
of several Convents, then Provincial, and finally was appointed Archbishop
of Cashel. God honoured him with many miracles, both during life and
after death. He died in September, 1480 p. There is som,e mistake about
this date. Edmund Butler was a natural son of Peter, Earl of Ormond,
and was consecrated Archbishop of Cashel in 1527 : he died in 1550.
Daniel of Killaloe [Laonense). After spending his noviciate in the
Convent of Adare, he obtained a Doctor's degree at Cambridge, and
subsequently became Prior of Adare, and then Provincial in Ireland.
Clement lY. made him Bishop of Killaloe: he was consecrated in 1277,
and died in January, 1287
Bona Ventura Baron says that two Bishops, alumni of the Order, at that
time held bishoprics in Ireland, viz. Hicholaus of Cork, and Daniel of
Killaloe.
Edmund Arthur, or Arthur Edmund, was a celebrated preacher: he
became Provincial of Ireland. Pope Martin lY. appointed him Bishop
of Lincoln. He died January 19, but in what year is uncertain'".
Cornelius IJvlopp; went from Adare to Oxford, where he obtained
a Doctor's degree. He proceeded to Eome, where he was made Pro¬
curator-General of the Order. Pope John XXII. made him Bishop of
Kildaire (^Darense). He wrote many learned commentaries on Holy Scrip¬
ture, and died in 1336.
We next come to the celebrated writers of the Convent of Adare.
Their works are all enumerated in detail.
Gregory of Adare: he flourished about 1271.
Jerome of Adare: spent four years studying under John Duns Scotus.
He appears to have written numerous works, and to have flourished about
1323. He died in the Convent of Drogheda.
p Lopez, p.'431. •• Ibid., p. 440. " Ibid., p. 444.
46 ADAEE.
Hugh of Adare: died in 1309.
Laurence of Adare : died in 1277.
♦
Patrick of Adare: was a celebrated Doctor at Oxford. He was made
Prior of Adare. He died in 1284.
Eudolph Walton: was Prior for eighteen years. He died at Adare,
December, 1283.
Walter, whom some place among the saints, others among the learned
men of the Order, took a Doctor's degree at Oxford. Many details are
given of his zeal, piety, and learning. He is said to have performed
many miracles; among others, restoring sight to a blind man, and raising
a dead man to life. He flourished probably about 1348.
Lopez ® gives a very long and curious account of the suppression of the
Monastery in the year 1639, in the reign of Henry YIII., which would
be well worth inserting in full, could entire reliance be placed on its
accuracy. As a summary, it may be stated, that when called on to
take the oath of supremacy, the Prior Eobert at first dissembled, to gain
time to hide all the Convent property, relics, pictures, &c. After this he
agreed to submit on one condition, viz., that a disputation should take
place between himself and the preachers of the new religion, oflering,
that if vanquished, he should be burned alive. The King's officers and
the magistrates held a consultation with the preachers on this proposal;
but the preachers appealed to the people and to some of the nobility,
and inflamed their minds against the monks, calling this proposal a de¬
vice of Satan to excite the people to murder officials, magistrates, and
preachers.
So they returned to the Monastery and summoned the Prior, who,
refusing to take the oath of supremacy, was beheaded on the spot.
They then entered the buildings, made all the monks prisoners, to the
number of forty-two, and caused them to suffer horrible cruelties. Some
were put to death at that time, and the remainder were shortly after-
» p. 450.
TEINITAMAN PEIOHT.
47
wards hanged. The date of these martyrdoms is described as being
February 12th and 13th, 1689.
There is something suspicious about this number forty-two, for precisely
the same number is mentioned as having suffered death in the Monastery
at Louth. Figueras gives fifty as the number executed at Adare.
A curious story is narrated in two places by Lopez, in one with very
circumstantial detail, in the other in a condensed form. The following
is a translation of the latter, taken from Noticias II., hook ii. p. 62 :—
^'The blood of these glorious Irish martyrs did not cool so rapidly
as not to leave its warmth until the present age, since in the year of
our Lord 1644 according to some, or in 1648 according to others, bro¬
ther Cornelius O'Connor, and brother Eobert Eugenius Daly, Irishmen,
gained the crown of martyrdom: the first was born of Catholic parents
in the county of Cork; the other born in the same island, in what
county is not said, nor is it stated whether he was of heretical parents.
" Eichard Arthur, Bishop of Limerick, gave Cornelius the sacred habit,
with the licence of the Most Eev. Father General, and he proceeded to
Spain, where he made his profession. Of Eobert it is not said where he
took the sacred habit, but most probably it was in Spain. The superiors
having directed them to return to Ireland, they took their passage on
board an English vessel; and we may conclude that they safely reached
their destination, and resided there for some time, since brother Cornelius
held several controversies with the heretics in the Convent of Adare.
" They returned to Spain to establish an English College in Seville,
or wherever the superiors might direct; and having arranged that Irish
youths should be received into the Convents and Colleges of the pro¬
vinces of Arragon, Castile, and Andalusia, they re-embarked, and the
ship falling into the hands of a cruel pirate named John Plunkett, who
recognised them as Catholics and monks, he being a most obstinate
heretic, cast ropes about their necks with heavy weights, and threw
them into the sea, where through his hatred of the Catholic faith they
gained the crown of glorious martyrdom. This triumph was on the
26th of March, in one of the years already mentioned.
48
A D AH E.
" I have prints of these two martyrs (and one is in my own possession)
which represent the martyrdom, with a fine illumination, and clearly
engraved; and at the foot is the following inscription:—PP. Fr.
Cornelius d Conor, & eius socius Fr. Eugenius Daly, Hyherni, Ordinis
Sanctissimae Trinitatis de Eedemptione Captivorum, in odium Fidei
Orthodoxae, a Pyrata haeretico loanne Plvnket in mari suhmersi ann.
1644.'"
Christopher Purgatt, an Irishman, of the Order of Preachers, in a Latin
attestation quoted by Lopez states that he saw Cornelius O'Conpor
receive the habit from Eichard Arthur, Bishop of Limerick; that he
went afterwards to Spain, and that on returning to Ireland he fell into
the hands of heretical pirates, along with a brother of the same Order,
named Robert of Adare (de Attar), and that they were cast into the sea
by the pirate Plunkett, a.d. 1643. This attestation is dated from the
Convent of S. Dominions Malacitani, Jan. 26, 1648. Father Eichard
Urceolo, in a Spanish letter, says that the event took place in 1643 or
1644. Both these documents appear to be original. Lopez states that
there is another letter from Father -Eichard Urceolo, still preserved, ad¬
dressed to the Eev. Fernando de Torquemada, Provincial Minister, in
which both these martyrs are described as of Adare.
The other account ^ gives some additional interesting information
relative to Cornelius O'Connor. He is stated to have been a native of
Adare, and was ordained priest at Bordeaux, and celebrated his first
Mass in the presence of the Duchess of Guillon, who paid all the expenses
of his studies. He went to Paris, and conceiving the design of recovering
the Convent of the Order of the Trinity of Adare, he begged to be ad¬
mitted to the Order, in an interview with the General, Father Louis
Petit, who sent him to Eichard Arthur, Bishop of Limerick. On his
way through London he was discovered and cast into prison, and having
narrowly escaped death, he was at length set free. After receiving the
' Book ix. chap. vii. p. 584.
TEINITAEIAN PEIOET. 49
religious habit from the Bishop of Limerick, to whom Father Louis Petit
had given the necessary faculties, he went to Adare, where he spent some
time, hut could not succeed in obtaining the Convent from its Protestant
possessors. He was joined by Eugene O'Daly, a native of Adare, and
they proceeded to France, and both made their solemn profession in Paris
in November, 1643. The rest of the account agrees with the one pre¬
viously quoted. Just as they were about to be thrown into the sea, Plun-
kett is reported to have said, " You, who believe in purgatory, imagine
that you must go to heaven through fire; if, however, you hope to see
heaven to-day, you may believe me, you will go thither through water."
From the recent date of these transactions, and the circumstantial
manner in which they are attested, there is a strong probability that the
story is true. Eichard Arthur, the Bishop alluded to, was the Catholic
Bishop of Limerick at that time
Among the numerous works referred to by Lopez, are two by Figueras,
one designated as Annal. MS.^ the other entitled Cronicum Or dims
S. Trinitatis de Redemptione Capiivorum. Auctore Fr. Joanne de Figueras
Carpi, &c. Yerona, 1645.
Where the MS. Annals are now preserved is unknown; but the
Chronicle has been examined in Eome, and I am informed that the only
notices it contains relative to Adare are—that there were fifty-four
houses of the Order in Ireland; that Adare was founded in the year
1230"^; and the following relating to the expulsion of the Friars in the
reign of Henry YIII., a condensed description of which event, extracted
from Lopez, has been already given:—
" JFor the following particulars relating to him I am indebted to the Eight Eev. Dr. Butler, the
present Coadjutor-Bishop of Limerick. Eichard Arthnr was consecrated in 1623, and died the 23rd
of May, IGIB, His family had given a bishop to Limerick as early as the close of the fifteenth
century. When the Nunzio Einuccini made his public entry into Limerick, he was received at the
doors of the cathedral by Eichard Arthur, whose splendid mitre and crazier astonished him, accustomed
as he was to all that was gorgeous in Church costume. The same mitre and crozier are used at the
consecration of the Catholic Bishops of Limerick at the present day. Eichard Arthur conferred
priest's orders on the celebrated John Lynch, author of Cambrensis Eversus.
^ Cronicum, p. 351,
H
50
^X)
"The inmates of the Monastery of Adare seeing their approaching
death, early in the morning on Sunday, going round the cloisters in
a regular procession for the propagation of the Divine Faith and safety
of Holy Church, pour forth prayers to God. The minister of the afore¬
said Convent, Friar Eobert Burley, in a set sermon exhorts the rest not
to refuse, if it became necessary, to suffer death for the defence of Christ's
law; and not long afterwards being besieged by three English regiments,
fifty religious in one minute of an hour were subjected to the extreme
punishment of death. Eobert and the greater part are struck with an
axe; some are stabbed with daggers, some are carried out upon a fork;
and when the martyrs of the Christian law and of the Catholic Church in
their dying moment cried out 'Victory!' 'You will see,' said the English,
' what your Pope will now avail you, whom you call your lord and
prince^.'"
Another book frequently quoted by Lopez, is one entitled Annates
Ordinis SS. Trinitatis Redemptionis Captivorum^ ^c. Tom. i., Eomae,
1686, by Bonaventura Baron, a native of Clonmell, and a Franciscan
Friar of St. Isidore's, Eome. He was nephew to Luke "Wadding, the
well-known historian of the Franciscan Order. The family of Baron was
a branch of the Geraldines. They were titular barons of Burnchurch,
in the county of Kilkenny. The barony was created by the Counts
Palatine, in virtue of the seignory granted by the Crown; and hence
this branch was popularly called Baron.
From his book I have made the following extracts in extenso^ which
have been carefully translated from the Latin. Baron's account is not
free from a certain appearance of unreality, and contains anachronisms;
as, for example, where he says that the Earl of Desmond contributed to
the first redemption of six very notable persons. The Earldom of
Desmond was not created until nearly one hundred years after the
foundation of the house at Adare.
"lY. The event peculiar to the Order, and to the present year, affects also
^ Cronicum, pp. 216, 217.
TEINITAEIAN PEIORT. 51
the author of these annals; for at the close of the year the Trinitarian
Order was introduced into Ireland by certain fathers of Albion or
Scotland, and especially by Friar John Comyn, Minister of Dunbar. It
began at Atharia, or Atarra, commonly called by our countrymen Atharah,
in the diocese of Limerick, for there a remarkable monastery was built
by the fathers, and endowed by the Earls of Kildare, with possessions
and revenues.
"Y. There they laboured vigorously in the object of their Order,
namely, the redemption of captives, with great applause for their piety,
so that some paid over to them the price of lands, silver vessels, and also
chalices, which they sold. IToblemen and commoners subscribed a great
quantity of money. The Earl of Desmond, of whose race I am descended,
contributed to the first redemption of six very notable persons, the whole
plate of his table, a good part of which was of gold, and the greater part
silver, but some of it only gilt; and the Countess gave her gold neck¬
laces adorned with jewels, ear-rings inlaid with precious stones, golden
bracelets set with pearls, and other female ornaments.
From that monastery of Athare, moreover, proceeded many lights
of this Order and ornaments of their country, as also from other houses
of the same in the said kingdom, the enumeration of whom I think fit
to reserve for the next year, seeing there is nothing to compel us to place
them under the present year.
" lY. That the year may end in this^, although content almost with
silence, I will add here on the faith of others, some events of an uncertain
year, but certainly near this time, from documents sent to me from
my country, namely, that in this year, or certainly some year near this.
Convents of this Order were built at Dublin, which is now the metropolis
of the kingdom, at Limerick, at Cork, at Pontanum (commonly called
Drihidaghand at Galway, in which houses a great number of religious
beyond a doubt resided, and many of them remarkable both for skill in
letters and for probity of life. Certainly the archives of Athara, a manu-
y i.e. in tlie death of two brethren of the Order, cast into the sea by the Moors at Algiers.
^ i.e. Drogheda, in Irish Droichet-atha, ' bridge of the ford;' hence the Latinized name Pontanum.
h2
52 ADAEE.
script book, as the fathers to whom it belongs inform me, mention Daniel
Leonensis®, a man of the purest life; Gregory, a celebrated preacher of
the Divine "Word, (who lies buried in his own monastery of Atharia, near
the greater altar); JamesArchbishop of Armagh, Primate of Ireland,
an inexorable castigator of his own body, renowned both as an ornament
of many sciences, and as well skilled in Hebrew and Greek; Peter Butler,
otherwise Edmund®, Archbishop of Cashel, a worker of miracles both
living and dead,—all of them venerable, of wonderful integrity of morals,
zeal for the worship of God, and sanctity.
"V. Beyond many, however, the Trinitarians of our country, that is
to say the Irish, are found zealous for procuring liberty for the bound.
In that province alone, it is believed that sixty-four redemptions were
perfected, to each of which, if we ascribe at least ninety, (for we would
make the number usual with others, too low rather than too great,) there
will result 6,300^ captives redeemed by the Irish Trinitarians,- if we
credit those who assert it.
"VI. But what is of greatest moment in the acts and examples of
these fathers, ought justly to be mentioned, their constancy in the pro¬
fession of the faith, and patience under tortures even unto death, which
they submitted to not only with fortitude, but even with eagerness.
A certain MS. book of the Convent I have mentioned of Atharra, diocese
of Limerick, mentions forty of them by their proper names. Some of
them (says a recent author ®) must be rescued by our pen from oblivion;
and beginning to do so, he adds. Blessed' Arthur ® O'Heill, son of the
Chieftain O'Heill, by his very name exhibits the great glory of his race,
but was still more glorious by the sanctity of his life, his honourable
religion, and his death. He never spared his body, subduing it by
* Eead Laonensis, i.e. of Killaloe,
This James must be one or other of the Archbishops of Armagh mentioned pp. 43, 44.
' His real Christian name was Edmund, but he was the natural son of Peter, Earl of Ormond. He
was Archbishop of Cashel from 1527 to 1550.
0 But 64 X 90 = 5,760.
® Eiguer., fol. 65.
' Beams in orig.
« Art. was a common Christian name with the O'NeiU. family.
TRINITAEIAN PRIORY.
53
fasting and flagellations; in his mind he was devoted to prayers and
literary studies. A man of great wisdom, he easily obtained the rank
of a Doctor in Theology, and in both Laws; he twice, with incredible
joy of all men, governed the province of his religion^ in Ireland. In
Albion, or the modern Scotland, he built some monasteries. He was
already about sixty years old, but of vigorous strength, and with few
white hairs, when the desire of preaching the Gospel to the heathen
seized his mind. He called to him, as fellow soldiers in this danger,
Eergan ainm ^ and Patrick, alumni of his religion, both excellent preachers
of the Divine law; the one thirty, the other six-and-thirty years old,
both of wonderfully well-regulated minds. For some years they recom¬
mended the faith to the heathen, viva voce^ and by the example of an
austere life. When they had traversed long districts of lands, they
arrived at the palace Amara, of the great monarch, Prester John.
There they remained two months for the sake of preaching, and were
received by that prince with the greatest honour; being called the White
Apostles, on account of the whiteness of their life and garments, (if I mis¬
take not). When they were about to leave, the Prince offered them great
gifts of gold and silver. The religious beg to be allowed to receive nothing,
excusing themselves on the ground that they ought to imitate Christ,
both God and Man, and His holy disciples, who lived poor and taught the
truth. In.a few years afterwards they went to the royal Babylon, and
whilst they were there preaching Christ, they were seized and crowned
with the laurel of martyrdom. The blessed Arthur was committed to
the flames; the other two were impaled on spits, Cal. of Sept.-, 1282.
"YIII. Gerald Hubert, burning with zeal for spreading the worship
of the Lord, set out from Ireland, and piously lived some years at
Jerusalem, where he also built a Monastery of the Order of the most
Holy Trinity. He had there the greatest intimacy with Morogh his
countryman, who quitting his country, for the same reason, to spread
** i.e. of his Order.
^ Pear-gan-anim is a common name among the Irish. It signifies Vir sine nomine, and is often
rendered Innominatus.
s
54
AD ABiE.
Christian piety, distinguished at Jerusalem for sanctity and learning,
chastened his body with flagellation and fasting, and spread the faith
with great labour, in which office Gerald was by no means inferior to
him; until in Judsea he fearlessly gave up the ghost for the faith, having
been beheaded in the year 1291, on the 6th day of May.
" Besides these, the book of Atharia has committed to memory Gregory
Cormac, John Lensis Dr. Eedmond, Thaddseus O'Higgin, and seven and
' twenty others, all martyrs. All these, before the English came with the
fury of barbarians, perished in foreign .parts, to redeem captives from
their power, as I have said. Thus far he^; which things find with me
the greater credit, because he mentions names used only, and very com¬
monly, by our countrymen. Let these facts suffice for this year."
Of the Adare Priory, which was, according to Lopez, the most flour¬
ishing and best endowed at the period of the Dissolution, but scanty
records are to be found in our native annals or histories. The earliest
notice I have been able to discover is the following, in Archdall's
Monasticum Hibernicum^ the reference there being "King, p. 256 —
" A.D. 1319. Peter was Prior, for in the same year we find that Eriar
John Seys and Eriar Gilbert de Clare, together with Master John Croyne,
were accused of taking, by force and violence, goods and chattels of the
said Prior Peter, to the amount and value of 100 shillings; and they
gave bail for their appearance to answer to the said charge
The next is from the Patent Polls, 20 Edw. II., 1329
" To all to whom [these] present letters shall come, Greeting. Know
ye, that we have learned by the inquisition which we have caused to be
made by our beloved and faithful Waton de la Pulle [s/c], our escheator
of Ireland, that it is neither to our loss or prejudice, nor to that of any
other, if Friar Peter, minister, of the Order of the Holy Trinity of Adare,
and the Convent of the said place, should purchase from William Korshyn
Lensis is in the original, but is a mistake perhaps for Laonensis, or Limericensis.
' i.e., as I suppose, Figueras. " p. 414.
TEINITAEIAN PEIOEY.
55
three acres of land with the appurtenances in Adare, which are held in
chief from Thomas Fitz-John, the Earl of Kildare, to have and to hold
to the minister of the Order aforesaid of Adare, and the Convent of the
said place and their successors, the Friars of the said place, in pure and
perpetual alms, for ever. "We desiring to do a special favour to the said
minister and Convent, have granted to them and given permission for us
and our heirs that they may purchase the aforesaid three acres of land
with the appurtenances from the aforesaid "William, to have and to hold
to them and their successors in pure and perpetual alms, as is aforesaid;
the Statute against setting lands and tenements to Mortmain notwith¬
standing. Being unwilling that the aforesaid minister and convent or
their successors, or the aforesaid William or his successors, should, by
reason of the sale and purchase of the aforesaid [lands], be occasioned
molestation or be grieved in any way by us, our heirs or servants. In
testimony of which thing, &c. Witness John de Arcy, our Justice of
Ireland, at Xilkenny, the 12th day of July, in the year aforesaid."
The Patent Eolls 32 Edw. III., p. I, m. II, contain a grant to this
Monastery"^, of which the following is a translation; (twenty pounds
a-year at that date would be equivalent to between two and three
hundred at the present day):—
"The King to all to whom, &c. greeting. Know that we of our
" "Rex omnibus ad quos &c. salutem. Sciatis quod de gratia nostra speciali concessimus et
licenciam dedimus pro nobis et beredibns nostris quantum iu nobis est ddectis nobis in Christo
ministro et conventui sanctse Trinitatis de Addara in Hibernia quod ipsi terras tenementa et redditus
cum pertinentibus ad valorem viginti librarum per annum juxta verum valorem eorundem vel advo-
caciones ecclesiarum quae quidem ecclesise ejusdem valoris existant, tam de feodo suo proprio quam
aUeno, exceptis terris tenementis redditibus et advocacionibus, quae de nobis tenentur in capite sibi
et successoribus suis adquirere, dictasque ecclesias appropriare possint babendam et tenendam
videlicet easdem ecclesias cum appropriatae fuerint in proprios usus et terras tenementa et redditus
praedicta cum pertinentibus sibi et successoribus suis praedictis in auxiUum sustentacionis suae imper-
petuum Statuto de terris et tenementis ad manum mortuam non ponendum edito non obstantej dum"
tamen per inquisiciones inde in forma debita faciendas et in canceHariam nostram Hiberniae vel beredum
nostrorum rite retornandas compertum sit quod id fieri poterit, absque dampno et praejudicio nostri
et beredum nostrorum ac alterius cujuscumque. In cujus &c. Teste Rege apud Haverynge atte
Boure xix. die Maij per breve de private sigiUo."—Patent Boll 32 Edw. III., p. 1, m. 11, from the
PvMic Record Office.
56
ADARE.
special grace have granted and given licence for ourselves and our heirs,
as far as in us lies, to our beloved in Christ, the minister and Convent of
the Holy Trinity of Addare in Ireland, to become possessed of, for them¬
selves and their successors, lands, tenements, and rents, with the appur¬
tenances, to the amount of twenty pounds a-year, according to the true
value of the same; or the advowsons of churches, so far as the churches are
of the same value, as well of their own proper fee as another's, excepting
the lands, tenements, rents, and advowsons which are held of us in capite ;
and the said churches appropriately to have and to hold, to wit, the
said churches, as soon as they shall have been appropriated, to their
proper use; ■ and the lands, tenements, and rents aforesaid, with their
appurtenances, to them and their successors aforesaid, in aid of their
maintenance for ever, the Statute enacted against granting lands and
tenements to Mortmain notwithstanding. Provided, however, that it
be found by inquisitions, to be made thereof in due form, and to be duly
returned to the Chancery of Ireland, of ourselves or our heirs, that it may
be done without injury and prejudice to us and to our heirs, and any
person whatsoever. In testimony whereof, &c. Witness the King at
Haveryng by Boore °, 19th day of May. By letter of Privy Seal."
In the Black Book of Limerick, p. 98, is a deed executed 27 Edw.^L / •
(1399), by John Pitzthomas de Clare, giving the advowson of Corco-
moyde to the Dean and Chapter of Limerick. One of the witnesses
was Hicholas Sanford, Prior of the Trinitarian Abbey, Adare.
In the Patent Eolls Eich. II., p. 2, Ho. 40, is one for the Minister
and Convent of the Holy Trinity of Addar' in Ireland. This is an
exemplification of the previous Letters Patent. From this date, until
the suppression in the reign of Henry YIII., we lose all trace of
this House; and after that occurrence, until, the reign of Elizabeth,
no account of these Priories is at present to be found. When the
State Papers of Edward YI. and Mary's reigns are fully calendared,
it is to be hoped that this gap may be filled up, for it would be
"Near Romford in Essex.
TEINITARIAN PEIOET.
57
interesting to ascertain what became of these Monasteries at that criti¬
cal period.
" At the general suppression the Prior of this House was found seized
of the same, with a pigeon-house, seventy acres of land within the
precinctsalso of the tithes thereof, and two ploughlands adjoining the
Friary, one called Upland, or Bernard, and the other the Castle and half
ploughland of Eohertstown; the village and half ploughland of Kilkerely,
alias Kilcoyle, alias Kilbride; the field of Gormon near Adaire, and
sixteen acres adjoining; the meadow or marsh of Corkinminister, lying
on the south side of the Friary; the mill and water-course of Castle
Eoberts; a mill and water-course in Adaire; two salmon-weirs on the
river Mage, and an eel-weir in the parish of Adaire; the meadow of
Konynshaghragherees, situated on the south of the Friary, and a garden-
plot near to the same; the rectory and vicarage of the town and parish
of Adaire, together with all the tithes issuing from the following towns,
viz. Adaire, Finittstown, Lissemarry, Chore, Toagh, Kilnockane, Lisk-
calla, Graige, Derryvenane, Knockane, Ballylingford, Currowe, Kilrogan,
Comyns, Boalbally, Castle Eoberts, Eeynroe, Cloghrane, Killivaraghe,
Eower, Faningstown, Liscollybehy, Gowlane, Ballymacclery, Glanenoe,
half of Ballygeill, and from all the lands in the parish of Adaire."
The subsequent history of the lands belonging to this and the other
two Priories is curious as illustrating the number of hands through which
they passed. In the interleaved copy of Archdall, in the Eoyal Irish
Academy, is the following memorandum in MS.:—
" Inquisition taken on the morrow of S. Martin, 20 Elizabeth, finds
that 4th of October, 9 of her reign, she demised to Sir Warham St. Leger
this House, (the Trinitarian Priory). Also the Abbey of Kenaugh, and
the nunnery of S. Katherine, both in the same county, with all their
possessions, at the annual rent of £22 17s. 8d. Irish money. It also
appears by another inquisition that the rectory of Adare, appropriated
to the Prior of this Friary, was of the annual value of 20s.
p Archdall, p. 414.
I
58
AD A-BiE.
We next find that in 1583 ''j the Black Abbey, the White Abbey called
the Redemptio Captivorum^ and the ISTunnery of Ballanegillagbformerly
in the possession of Sir John Desmond, bad been granted in lease to John
Zoucb® for twenty-one years, and bad been conveyed by bim to James
Gold, Attorney-General for Munster, to whom a lease for forty years was
granted by the Crown, 25 Eliz., (afterwards forfeited).
In the Irish Correspondence, Eecord Office, London, July 23, 1585,
a full description is given of the lands of the Trinitarian and Angus-
tinian Friars at Adare, together with those of the Abbey of N^enagh,
and the N"unnery of St. Katberine, as leased to Sir Henry Wallop,
July 20, 1585, for twenty years; and the possessions of the Franciscan
Friars as leased to the same, on July 23, 1585, for twenty-one years.
This paper is nearly a duplicate of one which will be quoted presently,
and which is to be found in full in Appendix A. It contains, however,
some additional information; as, for example, after describing the lands
of the Trinitarian Priory, it adds the following words, " which are all
parcels of the possessions of the aforesaid House of the Friars Preachers
of the Holy Trinity of Adare." The word preachers^ employed in this
record, may have given rise to the idea alluded to p. 35, of there having
been a Dominican Priory at Adare, as the usual name for that Order is
the Preaching Friars.
The following letters are interesting as relating to these leases, and
also as illustrating the character and position of one of the leading men
connected with the government of Ireland during the reign of Elizabeth.
PuhUc Record Office^ London^ Irish Correspondence^ 1585, Aug. 19.
Sir Henry Wallop to Sir Francis Walsingham.
" May it please your Honor. A few days before the Lord Deputy's ^
departure northwards, it pleased his Lordship in lieu of the ward and
'' Pat. Rot., 25 Eliz., Mem. 6. Designated also as KayUaghe, or Negeilaghe, or
St. Katlierine. Baile-na-caillecha, ' town of the nuns.'
' This Zouch is mentioned in the history of the Castle. ' Sir John Perrot.
TRINITAEIAN PEIOET. 59
house of Athlone, (which shortly after his Lordship's arrival. I was
content at his earnest instance to resign unto him,) to grant unto me
a lease of three little abbeys and a friary in Adare, and near unto the
same, (all amounting to ten ploughlands, and withal a custodiam of the
Castle,) and lands of Corgrage and Island of Foynes, which was the Earl
of Desmond's, containing four ploughlands, and lying not far from those
other things in Adare; which things altogether, albeit they are not by
much to he valued with Athlone, and the commodities thereunto belong¬
ing, yet seeing no great hope of obtaining any better recompence at his
Lordship's hands, I thought good not to refuse the same, being offered.
And therefore am humbly to beseech your Honor that it may please you
to take notice of the forenamed things, Corgrage and Foynes, (which yet
I hold, hut by way of custodiam,) to the end that when time shall serve
for a lease thereof to be granted, I may not be prevented therein by the
suit of any other there; whereof, if it please your Honor on my behalf to
have some care, I shall have cause to account myself therein (as already
many other ways I am) bounden unto your Honor. Those things in and
near unto Adare, I have by lease under seal for twenty-one years; they
are all waste in effect and no rent answered for them these many years,
and the houses all spoiled and decayed, yet will <J> (if he may) get the
reversion or fee-farm of them to spite me withal. If I may have a fee
'ferme' or long lease of them, I will repair them and cause them to he
inhabited, &c.
" Your Honor's always at commandment,
H. Wallop.
From Dublin, this 19th of August, 1585.
^'The particular names of my things at Adare, Fantleroy, my man,
shall deliver unto Mr. Francis Mills."
The following letter being very long and containing much that is
irrelevant to the Abbeys of Adare, those portions only are given which
bear directly upon Sir Henry's connection with them.
I 2
60 ADAEE.
Pnhlic Record Office^ London^ Irish Correspondence^ April 18.
Sir Henry Wallop to Lord Burghley.
''Eight Hon. and my very good Lord,—I received lately by Gregory
Eigges' a letter from the Lords of the Council there, concerning the
Monasteries of Adare, which their Honors do think strange that I should
accept or take any state therein, considering that the said Eigges had
formerly brought over hither direction from Her Majesty to have the
sRme pass by lease to him. And as nothing may or doth more grieve
me, than that I should incur anyway Her Highness' offence or their
Honors' mislike, so for the better satisfying of them and of Her Majesty,
I have thought good to declare unto your Lordship in few words in what
sort I have come to have any title or interest in the said monasteries. . . .
After his (the Lord Deputy) coming hither, alleging special opportunities
of service, and for that purpose a full intent to make his chief abode at
Athlone, and to wall the town forthwith, he dealt very earnestly with me
to have the said Castle, of Athlone, which was before passed unto me upon
the death of Sir Hicholas Malbey, under the broad seal of this realm.
And I finding his Lordship's desire therein to be so extreme, was content
to yield unto him the benefit of the House with the appurtenances during
his government, which he hath accordingly enjoyed ever since. In con¬
sideration whereof his Lordship promised and assured me that I should
have anything of the like value that I could find being in his gift or
disposition. . . , And thereupon he proposing to me the Abbeys of Adare,
and I perceiving that his .Lordship meant not to pass them to Mr Eigges,
whose long absence also gave me cause to think he made no great
accompt or further suit for them, I was content to accept of a lease
of twenty-two years thereof, supposing that in time they might grow to
be of further commodity. ... I hope your Lordship with the rest of that
honourable board weighing with your grave wisdoms and accustomed
favour the premises, you will not only clear me of any sinister opinion,
which raay have been conceived of me by Her Majesty or their Honors,
but also that they will think it reasonable that the House of Athlone,
with the appurtenances, be restored to my possession, having so lawful
TRINITARIAN PRIORY.
61
and just a title thereto by Her Highness' letters patents, remaining with
me; as you have adjudged it agreeable to equity that Mr. Bigges should
have the Abbeys of Adare, having no estate perfected unto him of the
same, and mine being already perfect; whereas my Lord Deputy hath
of Athlone none at all, but his own will and my sufferance. The rather
also for that I never have had or have anything of Her Majesty's gift
since my coming hither towards * the sustaining of the exceeding charges
and expense which I live at here, all upon the penny in so troublesome
times as have been since my coming over, and of such extreme dearth
as hath been and is now universally throughout this realm,' and so shall
I have cause to think their Honors as much my good Lords, as I am
willing to fulfil any their commandments. Thus I humbly take leave,
the 18th of April, 1586.
" Your Lordship's humbly at commandment,
The following summaries are taken from letters in the Becord Office,
which carry on the negociations relating to these Abbey lands.
" Irkh Correspondence^ 1586, April 18—Is a petition of Gregory
Bigges to Lord Burghley for Her Majesty's letters to the Lord Deputy
to pass him the lease of Adare, termed ' A lease which James Golde had
forfeited to Her Majesty.' "
" 1586, April 26, Dublin-—Is a letter from Sir H. Wallop to Lord
Burghley, in which he states that he has purchased Mr. Bigges' interest
in waste lands, of the Abbeys of Henaghe, Hegeilange, and friaries of
Adare, and makes suit for the same."
' Sir Henry "Wallop, of Farley Wallop, in Hampshire, the representative of an ancient family, was
distinguished for his eminent abilities. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth, and exercised a leading
influence in the House of Commons. He raised one hundred men, and went over to Ireland in 1580.
In the same year he was made Treasurer of War; in 1582 he was constituted one of the Lords Justices.
In-1587 he was appointed one,of the.Commissioners to dispose of the forfeited estates; and in 1595
was made one of the Commissioners for the plantation of Munster with English inhabitants. He was
Vice-Treasurer, and Treasurer of War, tiU his death in 1599. Subsequently to the grants mentioned
in connection with Adare, he obtained leases of abbeys and church lands in the county of Wexford, and
he purchased the Abbey, Castle, and Manor of Enniscorthy in the same county, which is still possessed
by his descendant, the Earl of Portsmouth.
62 ADAEE.
"1586, Aug. 12—We find a petition of Gregory Eigges to the Privy
Council for a grant of £30 a-year, in reversion, in Munster, instead
of the Abbey of Adare."
" 1586, Aug, 12, Dublin—Is a letter from Sir Henry Wallop to
Lord Burghley, suing for fee-farms of the Friaries of Adare, Abbey
of Henagb, the lease be bought of Eigges," &c.
" 1586, Aug. 12—We find a similar petition to that addressed to
Lord Burghley, to Sir Francis Walsingbam, stating that the Lord
Deputy will not suffer him to enjoy a lease of certain lands, which was
granted to him. He prays for the fee-farm of £10 per annum."
"1586, Dec. 13, Dublin—Sir Henry Wallop to Lord Burghley: suing
for the fee-farm of the Friaries, of Adare," &c.
" 1586-7, Feh. 20, Dublin—Sir Henry Wallop to Lord Burghley.
Thanks for Burghley's kind remembrance of his suits for the Abbeys
of Adare," &c.
"1587, Sept. 12—Sir Henry Wallop to Sir Francis Walsingbam.
That he may have the fee-farms of the Abbeys of Adare."
Sir Henry's wishes as to the fee-farms were not carried out, as we
find^ that these Abbey lands had been demised in reversion by the
Queen to Eobert Collam, of Dublin, December 24, 1587, to be held for
fifty years after Sir Henry's leases were determined; Sir Henry imme¬
diately brought up this reversionary interest, and the Queen then,—
" In consideration of Sir Henry's services and the great expenses he
had been at in building upon the premises for the better fortification and
defence of her faithful subjects in these parts, .... 22nd May, 1595,
granted the said premises, and all the possessions, spiritual and temporal
thereto belonging, to Sir Henry and his heirs, to hold as of the Castle
of Limerick, by fealty only, .... and to perform the conditions of plan¬
tation of the province of Munster. The aforesaid premises containing
2,000 acres; liberty to impark 120 acres, with free warren and park y."
* Records of the Rolls (Ireland)^ vol. i. p. 270—November 4, 1595.
y For this paper, containiag a list of the lands, tithes, &c., vide Appendix A.
TEINITAEIAN PEIOEY.
63
Sir Henry Wallop does not appear to have exercised this power of
imparking, nnless indeed the present deer-park at Adare be as old as his
time; but he probably, on becoming possessed of Enniseorthy, abandoned
Adare.
By the following document^ it appears that these lands somehow
passed into the hands of the widow of Sir Thomas Horreis :—
"Sir Thomas iJ^'orreis, Lord President of the province of Munster,
being slain in the service of Queen Elizabeth against the rebels in the
said province. King James, on that account, and because the lands
of his daughter and heir Elizabeth Korreis were waste during the
time of the late rebellion, remitted to her all the arrears of rent due
to the Crown, viz.:—
" The Friery of the Holy Trinity in Adaire, called the Friery for the
Eedemption of Captives, out of the Friery of St. Augustin of Adaire, the
Abbey or Monastery of Kenawghe, and the Monastery of St. Catharine
of Killagh, £22 175. Sd.
" Out of the Friery of Franciscan Minorites of Adaire, £4 Irish.
"All remitted from Michaelmas 39 Eliz. to Michaelmas 1 James I.,
and in consideration of a certain decrease of £600, by the alteration of
money, the King allowed her the rent of the premises for seven years
from the said feast of St. Michael." Privy seal dated at Winchester,
September 28.
We next find a grant of a considerable portion of these lands to
Kicholas LyHis,'Esq., July 17, 1638 ^
Thirty years afterwards a part of these lands was in the possession
of George Evans, of Ballyphilip, co. Cork, as appears by a deed dated
December 8, 1669^, in which he conveys his estate to trustees for the
use of his children; and amongst other lands he enumerates,—
"The moiety of the castle, abbey, town, and lands of White Abbey,
^ Eecords of tlie EoUs, vol. ii. p. 15. In Ulster's office, Dorso E. 22, Patent, Jan. 26, 1603.
" Vide Appendix B. Eecords of the EoUs (Ireland), vol. vii. p. 312.
64 ADAEE.
with the mill seat and precincts thereof, &c. All the corkass or marsh
lands and fishing weare thereto belonging. The moiety of y® poor abbey,
alias the Franciscan Abbey, and of y® rights and precincts thereof,:with
y® salmon and eel weare. The moiety of the castle, town, and land of
Eowrebeg, Eowremore, and Glannanore. The moiety of the castle,
town, and lands of Castle Eobert begg, with the impropriate, tithes to
them belonging."
No trace of the Castle of Eower remains, but it is marked upon the
Down Survey map.
Castle Eoberts was situated near the bridge of that name, adjoining
the south-east boundary of Adare demesne: a small house has been in
modern times erected on its site, incorporating within its walls what
remained of the old Castle, of which no features are now externally
visible. - '
In the Eecords of the Eolls, vol. xi. p. 245, there is a grant under the
Act of Settlement, 1662, to Sir Edward Ormsby, Knt., of numerous
lands amounting to upwards of 4,000 acres, (whether English or Irish
is not stated); among them are, Mondellihy, Black Abbey, various lands
in Adare, including Spittle lands, five acres; a moiety of White Abbey,
a moiety of Poor Abbey, a moiety of Eower and of Beabus, Shanacloon,
Croom-gardens, Liskilly, &c.
Among the papers at Adare is a copy of a constat of the civil survey,
taken out of the Surveyor General's ofiice in June, 1678, giving an
account of certain lands in the parish of Adare, by ^hich it appears
that Black Abbey belonged to John Lisaght, of Eillenelly, Irish papist;
Poor Abbey, with its tithes, mills, &c., and White Abbey with the same,
belonged to Nicholas Lillies ®.
The last grant is to Thady Quin, Esq., of Adare, December 16, 1684,
to hold the lands for a thousand years from May,'1680, paying to
Gilbert Ormsby and his heirs the rent of £230 \ In this grant is con-
® Vide Appendix C, ^ Vide Appendix D.
TEINITARIAN PEIOET. 65
tained Black Abbey and gardens, ninety-four acres; a moiety of White
Abbey and of Poor Abbey, and of the weirs thereof. ^ The fee simple
of these lands.was subsequently purchased by the Quins.
The history of the Trinitarian Priory has been now traced from its
foundation in 1230, to its coming into possession of the present pro¬
prietors of Adare, with the exception of the short interval between the
expulsion of the Priars in the reign of Henry VIII. and the grant in
the ninth year of Elizabeth.
Plate III. gives a view of the ruined Church of this Priory as it
appeared about the end of the last century. Within the memory of the
present generation there was an old gabled ruin standing on the south
side of the road, which formed part of the conventual buildings; a large
well-built passage or sewer, still to be seen in the garden of one of the
cottages near where this tower stood, leads towards the Church. At
the beginning of this century the ruined Church was used as a ball-
court, and subsequently the intention was to fit it up as a market-house;
and connected with this plan the following anecdote is related among the
townspeople. One day the late Earl went into the old ruin, and as he
stood looking up at the ceiling of the tower, he was heard to say, " I
never will allow it to be a den of thieves;" and he immediately sent
for the Eev. Mr. Lee, the venerable parish priest, and announced his
intention of giving it to the people for their Church; which was soon
after carried into effect.
The present remains of the Trinitarian Priory consist of the Church,
one wall of the buildings which formed the north side of the cloister,
a tower with gabled roof at the western end of this wall, and a smaller
tower at the other extremity
The Church consists of a nave, massive central tower, chancel, and
north transept. The latter was many years ago lengthened by the
present parish priest, the Eev, T. S. Q'Grady, since which it has been
^ Vide Ground-plan, Plate XIII.
K
66 ADARE.
converted into one of the schoolrooms attached to the Convent of the
Sisters of Mercy.
The architectural features of this Church are very simple. The window
in the south side of the tower, and those in the nave, are of two lights,
with intersecting tracery and dripstones. The wall of the nave is
battlemented, as at Askeaton. The low and massive tower bears more
of a military than of an ecclesiastical character, indicative of the
necessity for a strong place of defence which existed when this Priory
was founded. The dimensions are, externally, 34 ft. by 31 ft., and
63 ft. high.
This tower is approached by a narrow flight of steps constructed in
the north wall, the door to which is in the north-west pier, twelve feet
above the floor of the Church, and is reached by a ladder. In the belfry
there are three doors, which lead by narrow staircases to four small and
curious cells. Two of them are formed in the thickness of the east
and west walls, and are marked in the plan. These two cells have
square apertures at either side, affording an east and west view into
the Church; through the for¬
mer the high altar can be
seen. The south-east angle of
the tower, is prolonged into
a small turret, looped at three
sides. The battlements are
lofty and well proportioned,
giving an air of lightness to
the structure. They are pre¬
cisely similar to those of Jer-
point Abbey, of which a view
is here given.
These Irish battlements, according to Mr. Pergusson "are identical
' Handbook of Architecture, p. 926.
Battlement, Ahley of Jerpoint.
TRINITAHIAN PEIOET.
67
with many found in the north of Italy, but very unlike anything either
in England or Scotland. They give a foreign look to the whole building,
which is very striking."
The apertures to the bell-chamber are all narrow and square-headed.
An opening on this floor conducts by a few steps to a low vacant space
extending beneath the floor for the distance of some feet, and which
appears to have been covered by a trap door. The tower is simply
groined, the ribs having chamfered angles, springing from massive
corbels with moulded capitals, terminating in a hexagonal point, resting
on a rudely carved head, one of which is here shewn. In the south wall
of the nave are three plain recessed arches, about 12 ft.
high, II ft. wide, and I ft. 6 in. deep.
"When this church was repaired and enlarged in the year
1852, the chancel required to be rebuilt. It had a plain
east window of three lights, of somewhat similar design to
the present one. The nave has been lengthened 12 ft.,
a Lady-chapel added, and a porch erected. Plate lY.
shows the east end of the church in its present state.
In the necessary alterations and enlargement care was
taken to preserve as far as possible the ancient character
of the buildings.
The square tower before mentioned has recently been
converted into the kitchen of the Convent, with an oratory over it. The
north wall of the cloister forms the south wall of the large schoolroom.
In the garden of the nuns is the dovecot belonging to the Monastery,
of low circular form, the conical stone perforated roof of which is still
perfect. Plate XIY. represents this group of building as seen from the
Convent garden.
CorM in tlie Tower,
K 2
68
ADARE.
AUGUSTmiAlSr PEIOEY.
This House was founded by John Earl of Kildare, 1315, as appears by
the following Patent granted in tbe eleventh year of the reign of King
Edward II.:—
. A Charter for the Brothers of the Order of Augustine^.
" The King to all whom it may concern.
Be it known to you that by an act of our special grace, and from
motives of charity, we have granted to the brothers of the hermits of the
Order of St. Augustine of Adare, for the benefit of our own soul and of
the souls of our predecessors, which those brothers can retain for them¬
selves and their successors, for a pure and perpetual charity, one piece
of ground of two burgages in the manor of Adare, (which John, the son
of Thomas Earl of Kildare, formerly granted to those brothers, and which
Thomas, the son of John, present Earl of Kildare, confirmed for them,)
and also one piece of half a burgage which belonged to Eichard of Adare,
chaplain; in the same town one piece of ground of half a burgage which
belonged to John Madak, also in the said town; two acres of land which
belonged to Eobert le Blound, and his son John in the same town, and
^ " Carta pro fratribus Sancti Augusiini..
" Rex omnibus, &c. Sciatis quod de gratia nostra speciali & caritatis intuitu concessimus fratribus
Eremitarum de Ordine Sancti Augustini de Addare pro aniraa nostra & animabus antecessorUm nos-
trorum quod iidem fratres tenere possint sibi & suecessoribus in puram & perpetuam eleemosynam
unam placeam duorum burgagiorum et dimidium in villa de Addare (quam Jobannes fil. Thoinge
quondam Comes Kildarise concessit eisdem fratribus), et Thomas fil. Johannis nunc Comes Kildarise eis
confirmavit. Et eciam unam placeam dimidii burgagii quae fait Ricardi de Addare Capellani in eadem
villa unam placeam dimidii burgagii quse fuit Johannis Madok in eadem villa duas acras terrse quae
fuerunt Roberti le Blound & Johannis filii sui in eadem villa contiguas prsedictse placese duorum
burgagiorum & dimidii et unam placeam unius burgagii quse fuit Willelmi de Burne hi eadem villa.
Quia compertum est per inquisitionem factam ad mandatum nostrum quod prsedicta concessio non est
ad dampnum vel prsejudicium nostrum nee aliorum nisi in tantum quod tempore custodise post mortem
prsedicti Comitis Kildarise nos amittere possemus quinque solidos & sex denarios redditus nobis
debiti de prsedictis tenementis. Teste Rogero de mortuo mari locum tenente, &c. xiii. die Decembris,
anno regni nostri undecimo" (1317). (Rot. Pat., 11 Edw. II., Dublin.)
AUGUSTINIAN PEIOEY.
69
adjoining tlie above-mentioned one piece of ground of two burgages
and a half. And one piece of ground of one burgage which belonged to
William de Burne in the same town. For we have discovered by in¬
quiries made at our desire that this concession does not redound to the
injury or prejudice of ourselves or of others, except merely inasmuch as
thereby we may be deprived after the death of the above-mentioned
Earl of Kildare of five shillings and sixpence of revenue due to us out
of the aforesaid tenements.
" Witness^ Eoger de Mortimer, deputy. Dated the 13th day of
December, 1817, in the year of our reign 11."
Sir Eoger Mortimer, afterwards Earl of March, was Lord Justiciary
of Ireland in 1317 and 1319.
Unfortunately, not a single notice connected with the history of this
Priory can be found, from its foundation till after the general suppression
of these Houses in the reign of Henry VIII.
In the year 1599 the Earl of Essex slept within its ruined walls; the
occasion of his being there is given in the history of the Castle. The
account of the appropriation of its lands has been already detailed, with
those of the Trinitarian Priory. It appears to have possessed about
fifty-six acres and their tithes.
The group of conventual buildings forming what remains of this Friary
consists of the Church, the cloisters, the refectory with rooms under,
a gateway, and a long building extending to the north The Church
consists of the nave, with a south' side-aisle, the chancel, and a lofty
s(j^uare .central tower. The west doorway of the nave was plain, but
above it are corbels apparently to support the beams of a wooden porch.
The western buttresses are without plinths. The south aisle is of later
date than the nave; it has a cornice moulding both external and internal;
that on the outside is a hollow ornamented with carvings of foliage—
human heads and animals of fourteenth-century character. The east and
Vide Ground-plan, Plate XV.
70
ADAEE.
west windows are surmounted by dripstones springing from foliated
carvings with a square return. The western one is shewn in the ac¬
companying view of that window. The mul-
lions in the south windows have a round head
on the edge externally. The east window is
surmounted by a deeply cut drip-moulding
springing from slender engaged semicircular
shafts with caps and bases. The present en¬
trance to the Church is by a small door near
the western angle of the south aisle, the west
door being blocked up. The aisle was sepa¬
rated from the nave by four pointed arches
without chamfers or mouldings, and resting
on rectangular piers without caps or bases.
Only one of these piers now remains, as three
of these arches have been recently thrown into
twm, which are supported by a circular column with a capital in the
ll^'orman style. Nothing could be contrived more out of character with
the ancient building than this alteration, carried out apparently to enable
a few of the congregation to see the clergyman, who were previously de¬
barred from doing so by the more massive square piers. This is not the
only instance of barbarism in architecture perpetrated under the sanction
of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The south wall of the chancel is
pierced by windows of three lights, with chamfered mullions terminating
»
in simple interlacing tracery. The east window of the south aisle, of fohr
lights, is well proportioned, and is enriched along the edge of the splay
by a fine moulding springing from corbels supported by angels. In the
south wall is a recessed tomb similar to those in the Franciscan Priory,
and having the same mouldings. The west window of the nave is of
three lights, with the usual intersecting tracery. The corbels which
supported the ancient roodloft still remain. The central tower, which is
ATJGUSTINIAN PEIOEY.
71
square, and seventy-eiglit feet high, is of later date than the chancel,
being attached to the old wall and partly blocking up the westernmost
of the south windows. Beneath this window are three sedilia of a similar
character to those in the Franciscan Abbey, remarkable from the pecu¬
liarity of their position. They may have belonged to an altar at the
screen or junction between the nave and chancel previous to the erection
of the tower. The chancel is lighted on the south side by two windows
of thr^e and one of two lights, of rather unusual width' for their height.
Sedilia, Augustinian Priory.
The angle of the splay of their inner arch has a hollow moulding. The
east window is of five lights and of very large dimensions, the mullions
72
-A.D A KiE.
and tracery of wliioli are identical with, those already described. The
foregoing sketch shews the chancel sedilia. Opposite to them are two
recessed tombs, with elliptical arches of similar type to those above men¬
tioned. The cloisters were entered from the Church by a door in the tower,
(now blocked up by the organ). A semicircular-headed doorway in the
north wall of the chancel leads to a vestry which has recently been added.
About ten feet from the vestry is the entrance to the cloisters, of which
Plate XYII. gives a view as seen just within the doorway. The interior
of the cloister-garth is a square of thirty-three feet, each side consisting
of three bays, which contain a window of three lights, with cinque-
foiled heads. The ambulatories on the south and west side are plain
vaulted, while those on the east and north are groined. The bays on
the east side are elliptical, while those on the remaining sides have the
depressed pointed arch. The side of the bays faeing the east ambulatory
are well carved in hollow and ogee mouldings. On this side the spandrils
in the three bays contain shields, bearing, in the southern bay, the cross,
in the centre the cross saltire, and in the northern, the cross saltire on
a field ermine: the two latter are the arms of the Kildare and Desmond
branches of the Geraldines. In the north ambulatory the arms on the
shield are the cross and cross saltire, and opposite the central bay is
the lavatory.
The north side of the cloisters is bounded by a range of building,
the gi:ound-fioor consisting of several vaulted rooms, and above a long
apartment, which may have been the refectory, or perhaps the dormitory.
This room measures 82 ft. by 22 ft., and is lighted by several windows,
no two of which are alike. It is now converted into a schoolroom, in
which also the concerts of the Adare Choral Society are held. Xo trace
of the buildings on the east or west side of the cloisters remains, but on
the site of the latter the mausoleum, already described, has been erected.
Attached to the north-east angle of the buildings on the north side of
the cloisters is the gateway, of which a view is here given. Over the
AUGUSTIlSriAN PEIOUT.
73
Dovecot, Aurustinian Priory.
L
74
ABAEE.
arch, are two shields, hearing the Desmond and Kildare arms. "Why the
Desmond arms should be here and in the cloisters it is difficult to con¬
jecture, unless these portions of the Monastery and the south aisle were
erected by the Earl of Kildare, who married a daughter of the Earl of
Desmond, the same who founded the Franciscan Priory j a date which
the style of the architecture would well bear out.
Plate XYI. shews the east and west view of this group of buildings
in their present state. About three hundred yards south of the church,
just within the demesne wall, stands the ancient Dovecot of this Priory,
as shewn in the woodcut on p. 73. Adjoining it the mill is said to have
been erected.
EEAXCISCAX PEIOEY.
Of the history of this House we know, fortunately, many particulars.
The following account of its foundation is derived from Wadding':—
" The Convent of Adare was partly built in the year 1464 for the
Observant Prothers, by Thomas, Earl of Kildare, and Joanna his wife,
daughter of James, Earl of Desmond, in honour of St. Michael the Arch¬
angel. The Convent was received in the Chapter of Moigh, which was
held this year on the Eeast of the Apostles SS. Peter and Paul, and the
Brothers entered it on the Eeast of All Saints. The dedication of the
Church took place in the same year, Kovember 19; the consecration of
the Church, as well as the two chapels and the cemetery, in the year
1466, on St. Michael's Day * The names of the benefactors, the
grants made to the Brothers, and the days on which they died, are noted
in the chapter-book of the Convent, which is still extant, and from which
we have derived this information. There lived here in the great odour
of sanctity Curca, a Brother, a layman; he died on the 13th of De¬
cember, 1532."
' Annul. Minor., ad ann. 14!64.
#
PEANCISCAN PEIOEY. 75
"Wadding then mentions various details which are here omitted, he-
cause they are substantially the same, but not quite so full, as those
which follow, taken from an interesting MS. existing at the Fran¬
ciscan Monastery, Louvain, entitled History of the Franciscan Convents
in Ireland, compiled by E. P. F. Donatus Mooney, at the command of
the Eev. Father Purcell, Provincial of the Order in the Monastery of
Louvain, a.d. 1617." Father Mooney travelled over Ireland, and ob¬
tained all the information which could then be procured relative to the
state of the different Houses of his Order. Copious extracts from this
MS. appeared in Duffy's " Hibernian Magazine the following, relating
to Adare, is from the number for October, 1860:—
^'Of all our Munster Monasteries there was none more celebrated
than that of Adare, whose ruins look down on the silvery Mague. This
venerable edifice stands twelve miles south-west of Limerick, and within
eight of the Shannon, where the Mague pours its tributary waters into
that mighty river. The Franciscans are mainly indebted for this Monas¬
tery to Thomas, seventh Earl of Kildare, and Joanna his wife, daughter
of James, Earl of Desmond, who laid its first stone in 1464, and erected
the Church and a fourth part of the cloister within the same year.
Kildare and his Countess were munificent benefactors to our brotherhood;
for, not satisfied with furnishing the Church with glass windows, they
also bestowed upon it a bell of great value, and two silver chalices. The
Church was consecrated in honour of Michael the Archangel, on the
Saint's festival in 1466, precisely one year before the decease of lames'^.
Earl of Desmond, who was executed in Drogheda for having counselled
King Edward lY. to dismiss his wife Elizabeth "Woodville, widow of Sir
John Grey.
^'The places consecrated as cemeteries outside the Church, were the
cloister, within and without, and both sacristies, together with a field
which was destined for public sepulture; south of this a small patch of
^ He was attainted in a Parliament held at Drogheda, and put to death for " fosterage, alliance, and
alterage with the Irish."
L 2
76 ADAHE.
ground was left unconsecrated, in order that it might be reserved for
those who were deprived of Christian burial. The remaining portions
of the building were completed by different persons, whose names are
inscribed in an ancient register which I saw in the hands of Father
James Hickey, formerly guardian of the Convent, and which was read
in the chapter-room on all Fridays of the year, when it was customary
to pray for the health of our benefactors' souls. Cornelius O'Sullivan
erected the belfry, and made an offering of a silver chalice washed with
gold. Margaret Fitzgibbon, wife of Cornelius O'Dea, built the great
chapeP; and John, son of the Earl of Desmond already mentioned, erected
a second one of minor dimensions, to which Margaret, wife of Thomas
FitzMaurice, added another, small indeed, but exquisitely beautiful.
O'Drien of Ara and his wife built the dormitory, while Eory O'Dea
completed a portion of the cloister, and presented a silver chalice.
Marianus O'Hickey, who subsequently took our habit and died in Adare
Convent, built the refectory, and it was he who furnished the northern
side of the choir with its beautiful panellings and stalls. Donald O'Dea
and Sabina his wife finished another portion of the cloister, and Edmond
Thomas, Knight of the Glens, and his wife Honora Fitzgibbon, built the
infirmary: the latter died May, 1503. Another lady, the wife of Fitz¬
gibbon, added ten feet to the length of the chancel, in order that the
priests might have ampler space about the great altar; and she likewise
caused a vault to be constructed for herself under the choir. O'Sullivan,
who erected the belfry, died in 1492; and Margaret Fitzgibbon, who
built the chapel under the invocation of the Blessed Virgin, deceased
January, 1483. Donough, son of Bernard O'Brien, who built the dormi¬
tory, died on the vigil of the feast of St. Francis, 1502; and our founder,
Thomas, Earl of Kildare, departed March 25, 1478. Joanna, his wife,
died on the feast of St. Antony of Padua, 1486, and was interred in the
sacred edifice that owed so much to her munificence. Among the other
' In Wadding the words used to designate Margaret Gibbon's cbapel are "majns sacellum," and
for the two others " primam" and " secundam capellam minorem." There are bnt two small chapels:
can the " majus sacellum " refer to the long south transept ?
rRANCISCAN PEIOET. 77
illustrious personages buried in our Convent of Adare was Eaymond de
Burgh, a friar of our Order, and Bishop of Emly, who died July 29,1562.
He is said to have been the last Bishop of Emly, for the see was united
to that of Cashel in the time of his successor.
"When I was in Cork I saw a considerable portion of the sacred
furniture of this Convent in possession of Father Thomas Fitzgerald, who
shewed me a very beautiful silver-gilt ciborium for the Most Holy Sacra¬
ment, a silver cross used in processions, and six or seven chalices, nearly
all of which were washed with gold. He also had the register of the
Convent, and various suits of sumptuous vestments, which were seriously
injured by time.
"During the wars of the great Earl of Desmond, our Friars were
ejected from the Convent of Adare; and when Queen Elizabeth bestowed
the desecrated edifice on one Wallop, a soldier of fortune, he allowed
it to go to ruin. When I visited it the roof had fallen in, but the walls
were still standing."
The Earl also made a grant of ground whereon the Friary stood, and
erected a garden and orchard, together with eight messuages, seven acres
of small measure, and convenient pasturage.
Ho account has been found of the suppression of this Priory in the
reign of Henry YIII. By the grants in Elizabeth's reign, alluded to in
p. 58, the buildings are described as consisting, in 1585, of a church,
a cloister, a hall, a dormitory, a library, three chambers, a kitchen,
a bakehouse, a large park or close on the western side, surrounded with
stone walls, two other parks surrounded with walls, moat, and foss; in
which parks are many trees, a water-mill, and an eel and a salmon weir
on the Maigue. Of these walls, moat, and foss not a vestige remains,
excepting the gateway and a portion of the wall on the south side; the
boundaries of the parks are obliterated, and the trees have all disappeared.
The subsequent history of the Abbey lands has been already given with
those of the other Priories.
After the suppression, but at what precise period is not known, this
78
AD ABjE.
Priory became again tenanted by the Monks, as appears by a letter from
Justice Walsh to Burghley, giving an account of the disordered state
of Munster owing to Lord Desmond's rising: it begins, The Abbaye
of Adare stoared again with friers
During the civil wars in the reign of Charles I. this Abbey is said to
have been burnt by the Earl of Inchiquin, called " Murrogh of the con¬
flagrations." During the excavations and repairs which were carried on
Patea and Portion of Chalice, found in the Franciscan Priory.
" Public Record Office, London. Ireland—^Elizabeth—^vol. xlii., No. 88, 1573, Nov. 30—Cork.
Justice Walshe to Burghley.
Extract of the above, entitled " Justice Walshe to my L, of y® state of Mo'nster altered by y® Erie
of Desmond's actions
"The Abbaye of Adare stoared againe w"* friers. The chief holdes of the countrie fortefied by
the Erie, diners of the subiects enforced to combyne w*'' him, and in respect of suche combynaco'ns an
attonement made betwixt him and his ennemies, w®** w"* a nomber of oth® evill shewes, do not onely
give hope vnto the disordered sorte: but also put certen feare in the good subiects of his revolte.
And many do thinck when in this sorte his deedes do strive w"® his woordes or letters, there is no
faithe to be given to them, &c.
"Prom Cork, this xxx*"* of November, 1573.
" Yo® L. most humblie to co'mauirde,
" Nicholas Walshe." .
PEANCISCAN PEIOET. 79
about the year 1829, some cliarred wood was found among tbe ruins,
and the marks of fire were plainly visible, thus corroborating this
tradition.
While clearing away the rubbish which had accumulated to the height
of several feet, particularly in the small rooms on the east side of the
cloister, a variety of articles were discovered: among which may be
mentioned nearly a hundred coins, from the reign of Edward II. to
the eighteenth century; a watch case, two small bells, pins, amber
beads, small candlesticks, pipes, combs, and a silver ring, with the
legend "Love God onely;" also a paten and a portion of a chalice,
made of tin, and much worn: they are given in the accompanying
woodcuts, (see p. 78).
A few years ago the small bell here shewn was found during some
excavations which were made to clear out the founda¬
tions of the rooms lying to the north of the cloisters.
It is 3 in. long, and 5 in. round. Two Franciscan
Monks from Limerick, who happened to be looking
on when the bell turned up, claimed it; pleading very
hard that, as representing the ancient possessors of
the Monastery, they might be allowed to take it away
with them, and appealed strongly to the religious
sympathies of the steward, who was a strict Catholic:
he, however, resolutely refused, declaring that "the
Abbey and all it contained belonged to his Lordship,
and to him the bell must be given."
This Priory, while inferior in size to many of our Abbeys, as for
example Manister or Xilmallock, both within a drive of Adare, is so
complete from the variety and number of its buildings, the walls of which
still remain, that it affords a characteristic example of the Monasteries
erected in Ireland during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Although
not enriched by some of those beautiful architectural details which are
80 , ADAEE.
occasionally to be found in our ecclesiastical buildings, it is remarkable
for the general elegance of its outlines, arising partly from the excellent
proportion of the gables, so many of which remain in a perfect state, and
more especially from the graceful form of its simple yet beautiful tower,
which is well seen in Plate XX. The ruins consist of the Church and
cloister, and the usual conventual buildings, some of which are easily
identifiableThey are in an excellent state of preservation, owing to
the late Lord Dunraven's care, who most skilfully repaired those portions
in danger of further dilapidation, and placed them beyond the reach, it is
hoped for many years, of destruction by ordinary causes. The entrance
to the nave of the Church is on the south side near the west gable, by
a small plain doorway. There are indications of a wooden porch having
been erected outside this door. The west window, of three lancet lights
with an external label moulding, is simple, but well proportioned: the
mullions are plain, the heads of the lights without cusps. The central
tower, which is narrower than the body of the Church, springs from
a lofty equilateral pointed arch, 24 ft. high, and only 9 ft. wide °; it is
72 ft. in height, and divided externally into two courses, surmounted
by a high and embattled parapet of triple steps, the terminal stones of
which are coped at an unusually high angle, giving them a peculiar air
of lightness. The form of the tower is rectangular, the proportion of the
north and south sides to the east and west being about 11 ft. to 14 ft. 6 in.
This adds materially to its effect, as seen from different points of view.
The upper story on the east and west sides is pierced by small loops,
while in the north and south the loop is doubled, forming a narrow
square-headed window. On the north side of the nave, and close to its
junction with the tower, is a series of three blank arches, recessed to the
depth of 1 ft. from the surface of the wall, and commencing about 2 J ft.
above the level of the ground. Beneath them are small arched vaults.
° Vide ground-plan, Plate XVIII. ° Vide Plate XXI.
>
PEANCISCAN PEIOET.
81
They are obviously momimental recesses. There are altogether fifteen in
this Church, all of the same general character, and of rather late date.
The arches of some are semicircular, of others elliptical. They are
divided by small buttresses of several stages, and are surmounted by
ogee drip-mouldings, with carved and crocheted finials. Their sepulchral
character has been questioned, but they may be seen in different Abbeys,
from the shallow dimensions they display at Adare, through an inter¬
mediate state, when inscriptions and crosses are occasionally found on
the slab, to a depth capable of containing, as they sometimes do, monu-
ground. On the south side of the nave is a wide transept, access to
which is through two pointed arches of unequal width and height,
springing from an octagonal column. The transept has a west aisle,
separated from it by three pointed arches resting on rectangular piers
without caps or bases. This aisle had a lean-to roof, the west wall being
only 9 ft. high. . The south window of the transept is finely proportioned.
and of four lights, with the mullions crossing in the heads and not
cuspated, beneath which is one of the recessed tombs. At the south
end of the aisle is a two-light window, with ogee heads. On the eastern
side of the transept are two Chantry Chapels, the first, or northern one,
containing four recessed tombs j the second, two. In these chapels are
now preserved two altar slabs, which were found in the Augustinian
Priory (now the Protestant Church) during the alterations made a few
years ago in that building by the Dowager Lady Dunraven. They are
here represented, (see next page). At the southern end of the west wall
of the aisle is a small building with a west gable, about 11 ft. long by
mental effigies. In the west wall are two
consecration crosses, which are here re¬
presented : there is one of similar design
in the north wall. They are scratched
in the plaster, and are about 10 in. in
diameter, and at about 5 ft. from the
M
82
ADAEE.
10 ft. wide, lighted by two semicircular-beaded windows. It seems to
bave been enclosed or screened off, and to bave communicated witb tbe
© ©
Altar SMs, Franciscan Priory.
transept by tbe doorway opposite: beyond wbicb in tbe east wall of tbe
transept was an altar, (see Plan). Tbis building was probably a sacristy
for priests saying Mass in tbe transept and cbapels.
Tbe east window of tbe cbancel is large and of four lights, tbe tracery
being tbe same as that in tbe transept, and in tbe south wall are four
windows of two lights, with the beads obtusely pointed. On tbe south
wall are three sedilia between two of tbe arched recesses: tbe rectangular
apertures in tbe divisions, (see next page,) are remarkable for tbe pecu¬
liarity of their position, one being close to tbe seat, and tbe other near
tbe springing of tbe arches. Tbe piscina, wbicb is within tbe eastern
recess, is quite plain and round-beaded. In tbe north wall are three
more of these recesses, of tbe same general character as those already
described.
That pictorial decorations were extensively used in tbis Church, is
PEANCISCAN PEIOEY. 83
clear from the traces remaining on the soiEt of the semicircular arches
surmounting these tombs, and on the surface of the revep-led wall; a few
Sedilia, Franciscan Priory.
of the patterns and patches of pale green and red being still visible.
The following extract from a work entitled " A Tour through Ireland,"
Dublin, 1780, relating to one or other of the Abbeys, most probably
refers to the Franciscan:—
" From Limerick we went to Adare, which is a little village pleasantly
situated, and embellished with ruins of several Churches and Convents,
rendered elegant by ivy, which almost covers them. In this stately ruin
are some remains of ancient painting yet to be seen, particularly a bishop
with his crozier and mitre giving his benediction. St. Patrick, St. Bridget,
and St. Columba are very conspicuous."
M 2
84 ADAEE.
Beneath the tower on its northern side is the entrance to the cloisters.
A small room has been here added, (see sketch on the opposite page,)
the floor of which is on a level with the top of the cloister wall, the
side walls resting on semicircular arches, which span the walk, and
the end blocking up a portion of the arcades, as is shewn in the wood¬
cut, p. 87. At the south-east corner is a staircase leading to the
rooms which were probably dormitories. The arcades are divided into
hays of three lights, (see p. 87): those on the north, east, and south
sides are of a similar pattern, but the western side, evidently of
later date, is different, and is shewn in Plate XXII. In the centre
of the garth stands a venerable yew of considerable size, but by no
means rivalling the magnificent one at Muckross Abbey. From the
north-west angle of the ambulatory, near the doorway leading into the
kitchen, the beautifully proportioned small building already described is
well seen, giving a peculiar and picturesque character to these cloisters.
This view is represented in the woodcut on p. 87. In the western
wall is a small figure of a Franciscan Monk, carved in low relief on
a stone about 20 in. by 8 in. in size: this figure is popularly called
St. Bridget, and does duty as a wishing stone; the popular belief being
that when kissed, whatever is wished for will be granted. It bears evi¬
dent marks of having been long subjected to this usage. These cloisters
have a very foreign character about them: Mr. Fergusson has noticed this
feature in other Irish cloisters; he says p, " The cloisters have so foreign
an aspect as to be almost startling: Kilconnel looks more like a cloister
in Sicily or Spain than anything in these Islands." This peculiarity is
also mentioned by Mr. Blake in his papers on Kilconnel Abbey in the
Proceedings of the Eoyal Institute of British Architects, 1858. The
cloister walk was covered by a lean-to roof. On the west side is a building
which formed the Prior's rooms and kitchen. The lower room is 71 ft.
p Handbook of Architecture, p. 914.
TRANCISCAN PEIOEY.
85
FRANCISCAN PRIORY.
89
long, and has a large fireplace in its north gable, and one in the east wall
near the south end on the ground fioor, of which a view is here given.
Fireplace In the Prior's Rooms, Frandsoan Priory.
A door in the north gable leads to a paved yard, and another in the
south wall gives access by a passage to the cloisters. This room was
at one time divided into two parts, one half of which perhaps was the
refectory, hut the division has been removed. The northern half of this
room is of a later date than the southern. The fioor above was divided
into two or three rooms. About sixteen feet of the southern end formed
one, in which is the handsome fireplace here shewn, (see p. 90,) con¬
structed in a peculiar manner: a portion of the kitchen has been walled
ofi", forming a passage (see Plan); this passage has been arched over in
the central portion, and on this arch the great fireplace has been built,
thus projecting boldly into the room. The vaults over the splay arch of
the round-headed windows are of cut stone. The rest of this fioor had an
N
90 ADAEE.
attic story above it, the north end being apparently at a higher level;
it contains a large fireplace in the east wall. The windows in these
Fireplace in upper part of tlie Prior's Rooms, Franciscan Priory.
rooms are most irregular in form and size, none of them having
pointed arches.
On the east side of the cloister was the sacristy, and four other rooms,
the walls of which are now but a few feet high, except the portion
adjoining the cloister. Over these rooms were probably the dormitories.
In the west wall of the kitchen, or Prior's house, a doorway leads to a de¬
tached building, the dimensions of which are 40 ft. by 19, marked 0,
which was perhaps the infirmary mentioned by Father Purcell, as erected
by Honora FitzOibbon. It contained however no fireplace, and was
but dimly lighted by a few narrow loops. It has three doors, one
of which is nearly a foot lower in level than the other two. This
PEANCISCAN PEIOET.
91
apartmexit contains several square recesses, about three feet from the
ground.
The north side of the cloisters is bounded by the large room marked
E on the plan, and containing a spacious fireplace; its dimensions are
39 ft. by 24: this was probably the refectory. Over this room was
another of the same size, also with a fireplace.
To the north is a paved yard, beyond which is the building marked
H on the plan, entered by a flat-headed doorway, and having a fireplace
in the west gable considerably out of the centre: this was probably the
guest-chamber. E'ear it is a detached room 28 ft. by 20, of which
scarcely more than the foundations of the walls and of a fireplace re¬
main ; apparently this was the kitchen of the guest-chamber. On the east
side of the yard is the building marked F, with a large opening in the
centre, 14 ft. long and 3 ft. 6 in. wide, through which was a watercourse
of the same width. At one end and at right angles is a small cell with
oval terminations, equally communicating with the water-channel. These
were evidently the garderobes of the Friary. This building has been
encased by a rectangular gabled tower. In the first floor the windows
are narrow, square-headed, and of one light; the upper story forms
a long, narrow room, lighted by four two-light round-headed windows in
the south wall; the north wall is destroyed. On the west side of the
courtyard are the foundations of two rooms, nearly square, one of which
appears to have been a bakehouse. To the north of these rooms there
are the remains of steps leading to a platform about six feet square: can
this have been the base of the cross ?
In consequence of the complete and unusual absence of vaulting
in this Monastery, the whole of the first floors are destroyed: whereas
at Askeaton, also a Franciscan Priory, built nearly at the same time, the
vaulting has preserved the upper floor: this is also the case at Muckross,
another Franciscan Priory of about the same date; likewise in the Adare
Augustinian Priory. The ruin marked I was pointed out lately, by
N 2
92 ADAEE.
a very old man, as the site of the mill; the foundations were covered
with rubbish, but excavations being immediately made, the whole plan
of the structure was ascertained. The place where the water entered,
and where the wheel and the machinery were placed, remain perfect;
parts of the grinding-stone were found, and several pieces of charred
wood, and marks of fire plainly visible on the stones, thus corroborating
the tradition of the Monastery having been, at least partially, destroyed
by fire.
The gateway on the south side, in the direction of Groom and Castle
Eoberts, is still tolerably perfect; a por¬
tion of it is here represented, shewing
a shield bearing the Kildare arms. From
this gate a road, formed of the roughest
pavement, still nearly entire, leads to
the Abbey. The principal entrance was
probably on the north side towards Lime¬
rick, or the west towards the castle and
bridge: but of the gateway or wall not
a trace remains.
These ruins cover about two acres of
ground; they are beautifully clothed
with ivy, which here grows with ex¬
traordinary rapidity and luxuriance, and
Gateway, Franciscan Priory. . • /-mi -i
attains to a great size. Close to the
east end of the Church is an ancient ash-tree, under which John Wesley
is said to have preached. The Wesleyans hold an annual meeting and
preaching at this spot. Many years ago, one of the proprietors of Adare
was repairing a long line of wall, and running short of stones, he gave
directions to pull down a portion of the Abbey, pointing out the par¬
ticular gable at which he wished to commence, but the masons, bearing
a greater reverence for the building consecrated to religion than their
rEANCISCAN PEIOEY. , 93
master, positively refused to remove a stone, or to use one if removed;
and after some ineffectual attempts to shake their resolution, the scheme
was fortunately abandoned, and the Poor Abbey of Adare, (the popular
name for a Tranciscan Mohastery,) was saved by the poor from the fate
which has attended so many of even the noblest and most sumptuous '
buildings, that of being converted into a quarry.
11. THE PAEISH CHUECH.
HE earliest notices yet discovered of the Parish and Church of
Adare are to he found in two ancient Taxations, extracts from
which have been kindly furnished me by the Eev. Dr. Eeeves, .
who considers them to have been made about the years 1291 and 1302 ^
They were formerly among the Eecords at Carlton Eide, in a bag which
was sent over from Ireland to the English Exchequer in 1823. That of
1291 is probably the taxation ordered by Pope Nicholas lY. The second
is from a Taxation of the province of Cashel; the roll is undated, but the
diocese of Emly bears the date of 1302. In the first document we find
'Hhe Church of Adare with its appurtinencies," also "the Churches of
Dissert and Croom." The other mentions "the Deanery of Adare, in¬
cluding among others the Church and Yicarage of Croom; the Church
of Disertand " the Church of Adare, with the chapels of Kilcurly and
Castle Eoberts," which is set down at "11 marks, 4 shillings, and
5| pence, excepting 10 marks of annual and free rent, which the Hos¬
pitallers have in the same Churchand the Yicarage of the same set
down at " 5 marks, 8 shillings, and 10 pence, excepting 4 marks to the
Hospitallers^." The list contains also " the house of St. James of Adare,"
alluded to at p. 36, and the name occurs again in another Taxation,
which will be given further on.
The next notice of Adare is to be found in the first part of the little
Liber Niger of Limerick, which MS. is preserved in the Eegistry Office
of the diocese. This is stated by Bernard Adams, Bishop of Limerick,
to have been copied verbatim from the Liber Niger^ which had become
consumed with age, and to have been completed December 23, 1616.
" Yide Appendix E, '' The HospitaUers and Templars were specially exempt
from these taxations, on account of their services and losses in the Holy Land.
THE PARISH CHIJECn. 95
The name occurs in a list of procuration or visitation fees or proxies. The
amount of the proxies is said to agree with that of the fees of this period,
hut the list is certainly older, as it recognises the rights of religious
houses®. Among the names are the following:—"The Church itself of
Adare, the Eectory of which belongs to the Monastery and Convent of
the Order of the Holy Trinity: the Church of Villa-Trostany, (now Dun-
naman): the Prebend of Dissert Engussa." The importance of the word
Engussa^ as here attached to Dissert, is shewn in the chapter on the
Church and Tower of Disert. The full list of the Churches comprising
the Deanery of Adare is given in Appendix F. In the second part of
the Liber Niger is found the Taxation, first of the benefices belonging
to the dignitaries and prebendaries, and then of the non - prebendal
Churches. It contains also a list of the religious houses, from which
the following extract is taken:—
" Taxacio bonorum religiosorum eiusdem diocesis.
" Bona Monasterii de Magio ^ taxantur ad Ix^ xiij® iiij*^—inde decima
•1 M
VI xvr.
"Bona domus Haterinm in O'Conyll custos exced sed in redditu
annuali taxantur ad xP iiij^—inde decima iiij® ob.®
" Bona domus beatm Mariee de Eathgell iiij marc— inde decima iiij®.
"Bona domus beati Jacobi de Adare, viz^ in redditu annuali xP—
decima iiij®."
The names connected with Adare in the list of non-prebendal Churches
is given in Appendix Gr. This list agrees with that in the Taxation of
1302, already referred to, except that here all mention of the Hospitallers
is omitted.
By the Eoyal Yisitation Book of 1610, it appears that the Yicar of
" The list of procurations is a transcript from the Liber Niger of Limerick, now at Maynooth, and
which is probably the identical hook from which Bishop Adams made his copy.
^ The Abbey of Monaster Nenagh.
® I cannot identify this House. The Nunnery of Monaster-na-calliagh was dedicated to St. Catherine,
but it was in the Barony of Small County, not in O'Conyll or Connello,
96 ADAEE.
Adare was a layman, Eugenius Kelly, and the Curate, Odo or Hugh
Tueth. At this visitation it was found that a great number of laymen
were in possession of the benefices; they were turned out, and clergymen
put in.
An interesting extract from the Liber Regalis Visitationis Hyberniw^
1615^, contains, under the Deanery of Adare, a list of the Churches and
of the clergymen attached to them. Of Adare, Sir John Jepson was the
lay Eector, Eichard Hare the resident Yicar; of Croome, Hicholaus Leiles
was the Eector. Dunuaman belonged to the rectory of Croom, William
Meriton was the Yicar; of Disert, Eichard Fuller was the Curate, and
Philip Jenkins was the minister leg ens.
Among the Adare papers is a curious terrier of the glebe lands, tithes,
&c., of the vicarage of Adare, dated August 1, 1697^. This terrier is
signed by Edward Ingram, Yicar, and seven other names. The first is
Henry Widenham; his daughter, an heiress, married Yalentine Quin,
grandfather to the first Earl of Dunraven. Another, Henry Fosbery,
is represented at present by George Fosbery, of Clorane, in the parish
of Adare. Speerin, the name of another, still exists among the Adare
tenantry.
Of the state of the Church during the eighteenth century no parti¬
cular information is to be obtained. There is a story current among the
Palatines that the first clergyman who came in recent times to Adare
was a Mr. Eoberts, who had lived at Kilgobbin; he was a Welshman,
and some books in that language are said to be still in the hands of the
Palatines. Perhaps this happened at the time they first settled here,
about 1710, when the Protestants, previously very few, must have had
a considerable increase to their numbers.
The old parish Church, of which a view is here given, adjoins the
churchyard, and is situated a little north of the Castle; it formerly stood
within the churchyard, but the small portion to the west and south
' Vide Appendix H. « Vide Appendix I.
THE PARISH CHURCH.
97
Old Parish Church,
O
THE PAEISH CHURCH.
99
of the building was taken into the demesne about the year 1820. The
service was performed in this Church till about the year 1806. The build¬
ing consists of a nave and chancel, and a third division west of the nave,
which contains a low rude pointed arch, and is surmounted by a gable;
this was probably formed by dividing the nave, but for what purpose
it is difficult to determine. It is said that this western portion was at
•
one time used as a Meeting-house. The building is quite devoid of any
ornamental features. The gable of the eastern wall of the nave is sur¬
mounted by a bell-cot of two openings, which is peculiar, as usually in
Ireland these bell-cots are erected in the western gable; but there are
many examples in England of their being placed over the chancel-arch.
Judging by the only original window left, the nave appears to be of the
fifteenth century.
The chancel-arch is rude and very low, and the chancel unusually
square. The east window is long, narrow, and semicircular-headed, the
dressings of sandstone; and there are also three other similar windows,
one in the north and two in the south walls This chancel has not been
used within the memory of the oldest living Protestant: it was appro¬
priated by the Quin family for their burying-place, as is recorded by
an inscription placed over the family vault, where the high altar once
stood. The two south windows are of sandstone rather roughly worked,
and small; they are much dilapidated. Between them is a small door,
having a rough segmental-arched head; it is 5 ft. 6 in. high, and the
width is 2 ft. 9 in. at the top of the jamb, and 2 ft. 11 in. at the bottom.
This doorway, and also the window to the west of it, have only very
recently been rendered visible, as they were walled up, and the wall
covered with ivy on both sides; they are therefore not shewn on the
ground-plan.
Erom the character of the chancel windows, that part of the Church is probably as old as the
end of the twelfth or the beginning of the thirteenth century, and must therefore be the original
Church erected by the first Norman settlers.
0 2
100 ADAUE.
About seventy feet to the north of the Parish Church, and standing
in the churchyard, is a small and well-proportioned Chapel, apparently of
the fourteenth century, exhibiting in its arrangements features of some
interest. The Walls are deeply battered to the height of six or seven feet.
The door is on the south side, and of unusual width, with an equilateral-
headed arch formed of two stones. The east gable is pierced by a long,
narrow, trefoiled window; there is one of the same character in the
north, and another in the south wall. The piscina is trefoil-headed and
rather rude. The most remarkable feature of this building is the west
gable, pierced at the height of twelve
feet from the level of the ground by
a narrow trefoiled window, the sides
of which are deeply splayed. In the
sill of this window lateral seats have
been constructed, as shewn in the
subjoined woodcut, from which it
would appear that this portion of the
Church was set aside as a parvise, or
dwelling for the priests: this idea is
further confirmed by the fact that
over the doors are three corbels with
apertures near them, and in the op¬
posite wall corresponding hole^ to receive joists for the floor. Underneath
the eastern part of this building there is a vault, with three openings still
visible in the base of the north, east, and south walls. Plate XXIY.
represents this chapel as seen from the north-east, backed by the keep of
the Castle. Of its history, or for what purpose it was built, nothing is
known; the old people call it the Earl of Desmond's Chapel-of-Ease.
Window of small Cliapel in tlie Chnrcliyard.
III. THE TOWH.
HE earliest mention of the Town of Adare is in the year 1310,
in a grant from Edward II. "to the bailiffs and good men of
Adare, to levy tolls during the three ensuing years, off goods
coming for sale to their Town, to be applied to enclosing the Town with
a stone walH."
By the following grant from Edward III. in 1376, it would appear
that Adare must have been about that time utterly destroyed by the
Irish:—
"^The King to our Sheriff of Limerick, keeper of our peace there,
our Bailiffs, Ministers, Servants, and Collectors of our Subsidies and
other Talliages, which now are or at any time were in said County,
greeting. "Whereas We, considering after what manner the Town of
Adare was burned, destroyed, and laid waste by our Irish enemies,
that said Town may be better and more quickly rebuilt and repaired,
hence granted to the Provost and Commonalty of said Town, that they
should be acquitted from all Subsidies, Talliages and other services,
Customs and other impositions whatsoever arising within the County
aforesaid, until said Town should be fully repaired and rebuilt. And
We, willing to give effect to this our grant, at the request of Maurice
EitzThomas, Earl of Kildare, the Lord of said Town, firmly command
you and each of you, under penalty of our displeasure, that ^aid Provost
and Commonalty should not be compelled or distrained upon to con¬
tribute to or pay these Subsidies or Talliages by you imposed or here¬
after to be imposed upon them, or to contribute to or pay any other
services or customs to be imposed in said County, until said Town be
® Pat. Hot. 3 and 4 Edward 11. Close RoUsj 51 Edward III., a.d. 1376.
102 ADAEE.
fully repaired and rebuilt, but that they should be altogether exonerated
and discharged therefrom, and from distress should there be occasion.
" Witness, James le Botelee, Eael of Oemond,
Our Justice of Ireland at Dublin the 20th February.
" By Petition of the Council."
Of its subsequent history but little is known. Camden {Britannia)^
in his description of the county of Limerick, mentions but three towns.
Limerick, Kilmallock, and Adare; of the last he says, " Likewise Adare,
anciently a little fortified Town, situate upon the same river," &c.;
thence the conclusion must be drawn, that the walls or fortifications
were at that time, towards the close of the sixteenth century, in a
ruined state, probably destroyed during the Desmond wars: were
this not so, the Town could hardly have escaped mention at the time
of Lord Essex's spending a night at Adare in 1599, which occurrence
is noticed further on. Plate XXIX. represents the Town as it existed
when the Down Survey was made in 1654. The lands of the different
Abbeys are curiously interniingled; for the references, vide Appendix I.
Some of the divisions are traceable, and the line of old elms, still
standing, is exactly along the road marked from the Bridge to the
Market-place. A small portion of an old wall, said, and probably with
truth, to be part of the Town wall, is to be seen close to the long
avenue leading to the Deer Park ; but of the Spitle Gate, forming^b
prominent a feature in the map, no trace remains.
In Lewis's "Topographical Dictionary" the ancient Town of Adare
is said to have been on the east side of the river, but no authority is
given for this statement. A map of the year 1567, in the State Papers,
copied among the Ordnance Survey letters at the Boyal Irish Academy,
marks Adare on the west side of the river. There is also a map of
Munster in the State Papers, of the year 1587, with notes in Lord Bur¬
leigh's handwriting, in which appear the Black Abbey, White Abbey,
Poor Abbey, and Adare, the latter name evidently referring to the Castle.
THE TOWN. 103
It is certainly curious, and very unusual, that the Town should be on
one side of the river, and the Castle and Parish Church on the other.
In the " extract from the Survey of the Manor of Adare," which will
be given further on, in the history of the Manor, it is stated, "There
standeth in the said towne towards the court, a Parish Church," &c.
This might give countenance to the statement in Lewis that the Town
was on the east side of the river, but the word 'towne' is often used
for the townland, and sometimes the houses with the lands adjoining, for
in another paragraph it is stated, " There is in the east part of the said
towne an Abby of Grey Fryersbut the Franciscan Friary clearly never
was included in the Town.
At the commencement of the present century, Adare had dwindled
down to a collection of less than a dozen thatched cottages where the
present Town is situated, and about the same number on the other
side of the river, near the Castle. The names of the families living
at that time were:—James Conolly; Conolly the cabinet-maker, father
of the remarkable old carver; James Saxmyth, the shoemaker; Philip
Mills, the parish sexton; Mat. Hannon, the blacksmith; Charles Daly,
the tailor; Jack Hayes, the butcher; Morgan Williams, linen-weaver;
George Door was schoolmaster, and kept a public-house; Thomas Gleeson
also kept a public-house. Besides these cottages there was a thatched
house, which is seen in the view of Adare, Plate III.: this was kept
as the County of Limerick Fox-hunting Club-house, it was called the
" Adare Inn or Club-house." It gave to the fields opposite to the Trini¬
tarian Church the name of the Inn Fields, as they are called in the
old rental-books. In the first ten years of the present century, the late
Earl of Dunraven conceived the idea of creating a new town: building
leases were given, and the present little town rapidly grew up, which
previous to the year 1848 had numbered 1,000 inhabitants.'
104
adaee.
THE ANCIENT BEIHGE OF ADABE.
According to Lewis's Dictionary, the Bridge of Adare was built by
Gerald, fifth Earl of Kildare, consequently between 1390 and 1410 ; but
this statement X have unfortunately been unable to verify. The Bridge
has all the appearance of considerable age; and was originally scarcely
wide enough for one cart to pass over; many years ago its width was
nearly doubled. The arches are very irregular in size, and in distance
from each other. Eichly mantled with ivy, this ancient Bridge is very
picturesque, blending as it were with the ivy-clad walls of the Castle;
and at full tide the river assumes the character of a calm lake, refiecting
the ancient towers and varied arches on the clear surface of its tranquil
waters, forming a scene of considerable beauty and peculiar interest.
A tradition exists among the people that the Maigue was crossed
by a wooden bridge, previous to the erection of the present stone
structure; and some years ago, while the foundations of the arches
were being examined and repaired, a large pile or post was visible
under one of them.
CASTLE OE THE EARLS OF KILDARB,
POPULARLY CALLED
DESMOND CASTLE.
0 clue has as yet been found to the date when the present Castle
was erected, nor even is it certain by what family it was ori¬
ginally built, for it will be seen in the sequel that the manor
of Adare, in the year 1226, belonged to "Geoffroi de Morreis," who
most probably had a Castle there; while, if Lopez's account of the
foundation of the Trinitarian Priory be accurate, which there seems no
good reason to doubt, in the subsequent year the Pitzgeralds must have
possessed a Castle at Adare, and therefore we may assume that the
oldest part of the buildings was erected before that time, and most likely
by Geoffroi de Morreis, or Morisco. The exact similarity of mouldings,
both as to form and size, in the west window of Manister Abbey, and
in a window of the Castle at Adare, would point to the same date for
their erection; these mouldings in England would indicate the close of
the twelfth century: it may therefore be concluded that the room with
the Norman windows was built not later than the commencement of the
following century, and the keep bears every mark of belonging at least
to as early a period. It will be shewn, in the description of the ruins
of this Castle, that there is good reason to suppose that the present keep
was erected within an ancient Irish rath; to what tribe or clan this
belonged is uncertain; perhaps to the O'Donovans: their territory was
in the barony of Coshma, along the Maigue, and included Bruree and
Croom, and it may have extended to the bounds of the barony which
would take in Adare.
p
I
106 ADAEE.
In Clyn and Dowling's Annals, p. 11, at the year 1312, we find, "The
following Christmas Baron John FitzThomas held a great, sumptuous,
and festive entertainment at Adare, and knighted Nicholas FitzMaurice
and two others." Camden in his Britannia^ in the Irish Annals, gives
the name of Eobert Clonhul in conjunction with FitzMaurice.
The earliest description of the Castle at present known is in an
Inquisition of Adare, taken in 1329 or 13 31, which will be found in
the history of the Manor, given hereafter.
This Inquisition mentions the Castle as consisting of—a hall, a chapel
with stone walls covered with thatch, a chamber covered with thatch
(or shingle), a tower covered with planks, a kitchen covered with slates,
a chamber near the stone part covered with thatch; and states that the
whole property was waste, on account of the war. I cannot trace to
what particular wars these devastations are to be attributed, but the local
history of that period is most imperfectly known.
The Castle must have been soon after repaired, as we find by the
following grant from King Edward III. in 1334, to Sir John Darcy,
guardian to the young Earl of Kildare:—
" Eex concessit Johanni Darcy, custodi terrarum qum fuere Eichardi,
filii Thomse, nuper Comitis Kildarise, (in manibus Eegis existencium,
ratione minoris etatis Mauricii, fratris et heredis ejus) in Momonia et
Lagenia, (quandam summam pecunise) pro reparacione castrorum de Kil¬
dare, Adare, Cromythe, Esgrene, et domus et aliorum edificiorum," &c. ^
The Earls of Kildare do not appear to have resided much at Adare
during the fourteenth and fifteenth century: at least no notices are to
be found of their having done so. Lewis, indeed, in his Topographical
Dictionary, states that Gerald, ninth Earl of Kildare, set out from this
Castle in 1519, to meet the charges brought against him by the influence
of Cardinal Wolsey; but I have not been able to verify this statement.
® Eot. Pat. Edward III., anno 8; and Calendar Pat. and Close Rolls, 1829, p. 37, No. 85.
DESMOND CASTLE.
107
The family had acquired large possessions in Kildare and Carlow, and
Maynooth naturally became their chief place of abode. The foundation,
however, of the Franciscan Abbey in the year 1464, shews that at that
period they must have taken an interest in Adare.'
In the rebellion of Thomas, the tenth Earl, all his Castles were taken
in succession, and last among them, Groom and Adare, as appears by the
following extract of a letter from Lord Ossory to Walter Cowley, written
in 1635:—And besides we entende to attayne the Erie of Kildare's
Lordship and Castels in the countie of Lymeryk
This attainder took place in 1586, and the Earl of Desmond, in the
same year, entered into the Castles of Adare, Croom, &c.: he afterwards
obtained a lease of these Castles and Manors: and it appears that they,
or at least Adare, remained in his possession until his death in 1583.
The following extract implies that Adare Castle was so in 1570 :—
About this time the celebrated Leverus, who had been Dean of
St. Patrick's, Dublin, and was deprived of his Deanery and Bishopric,
and all his preferments and promotions, for not taking the oath of
supremacy, retired to the Castle of the Earl of Desmond, by whom
he was hospitably received. His piety, modestjq and temperance were
by them much extolled, nor was he less an object of admiration for his
adherence to the doctrine and interest of the Church of Eome. In his
latter years he kept a Grammar School in this town (Adare), whence he
subsequently removed to Limerick, where Eichard Creagh (who had
been Archbishop of Armagh after Dowdal) served him in the capacity
of usher ®."
In the wars which terminated in the death of the unfortunate Earl
of Desmond, Adare is frequently mentioned as the scene of various
attacks, skirmishes, and incidents, but in some cases it is impossible to
distinguish whether the notice refers to the Castle or the Town. I have
'' State Papers, Henry YIII., vol. ii. p. 254.
® Mason's History of St. Patrick's Cathedral, p. 164.
p 2
108
ADAEE
arranged them in chronological order, and they afford a curious picture
of the state of the country during the half century preceding the com¬
plete submission of Ireland to the English Crown, which may be dated
from the beginning of the reign of James I.
A.D. 1578. "The Castle of Adare is said to have been taken by the
English after a siege of eleven days
A.D. 1579. "This year after the defeat of the Geraldines at Manis-
teranena® by Captain Malby^, where Dr. Allen, the Papal Legate, was
slain, the Captain marched to Askeaton, where, after destroying the
Monastery, he proceeded to Adare, where he remained subjugating the
people of that neighbourhood. The plan which the English adopted
was to station their warders in Desmond's Castles, namely. Loch Gair
(now Lough-gur), Eathmore^, Caislen Muirisin (now called Castle Morris-
son), Adare, and Kilmallock, and depart themselves for their homes^."
According to Hooker's continuation of Hollinshed (p. 420), the Irish
agreed to watch the English garrisons, appointed at this time by Sir
Nicholas Malby to occupy the different towns and villages in the
Lewis's Dictionary, under " Adare."
® Manisteranena, now spelt Monasteranenagh, a very fine Cistercian Abbey situated about two
miles east of Croom. It was founded by Donald O'Brien in 1151, (according to Sir James Ware) in
fulfilment of a vow made in connexion with bis defeat of tbe Danes at Batbmore in 1118. In 1307,
Gerald, (afterwards) Earl of Desmond, when on a visit to tbe Abbot, was surprised and taken prisoner
by tbe O'Briens of Tbomond, and part of tbe Abbey was destroyed. In tbe battle alluded to in tbe
text tbe Abbey was much injured by tbe cannon of tbe Engbsb, and tbe refectory and cloisters were
destroyed. (Lewis's Dictionary, under bead of Manister.)
' Sir Nicholas Malby, Governor of Munster.
« Batbmore. This Castle, situated near Manister, was built in 1306 by tbe Earl of Desmond, on
tbe site of tbe old Irish rath. It was garrisoned in 1579 by tbe Irish and Spaniards, at tbe date of
tbe battle of Manister. Upon Malby's retiring, it was again occupied by Desmond's forces, who were
subsequently driven out by Sir George Carew. {Lewis, ibid.) Batbmore is situated upon an eminence,
and its lofty ruined tower is a conspicuous feature in tbe landscape of tbe surrounding district.
Abridged from tbe Annals of tbe Eour Masters, a.d. 1579, p. 1721. Tbe'following passage
(p. 1722) wiU give an idea of tbe style of warfare which was then carried on between tbe contending
parties:—" Tbe sons of tbe Earl (Desmond) proceeded to destroy, demobsb, burn, and completely
consume every fortress, town, corn-field, and habitation between those places to which they came, lest
tbe English might dwell in them; and tbe English consigned to a bke destruction every bouse and
every stack of corn to which they came, to injure tbe Geraldines, so that between them the country
was left one levelled plam, without com or edifices."
DESMOND CASTLE. 109
district : some were appointed at Kilmalocke, some at Carigofoile,
some at Asketten, &c.; and some at Adare, where a powerful body
of troops was stationed under Captain Carew and Sir William Stanlie.
Hooker proceeds to give a curious account of the exploits of the garrison
as follows:— '
" And at Adare, where these two gentlemen Sir William Stanleie and
George Carew laie, Sir James of Desmond, brother to the Earle, with
foure hundred kerns and fiftie horsses, was appointed to serue and
watch; which he did so carefullie and narrowlie, that none durst to
peepe nor looke out but in danger of some perill. But when vittels
waxed short within doores, the souldiors, who could nor would be pined,
gaue the aduenture to fetch that which was without doores: and as want
of vittels did increase, so did their issuings out vpon the enimies grow
and increase. And so often were their sallies and incountrings with
the enimies, that in the end they finding and feeling the courage of
the Englishmen, they had alwaies the worst side; and at euerie bickering
euer lost some of their companie. Wherevpon they raised their siege,
gave place to the garrisons, and Teturned to the Earle of Desmond.
For albeit as yet they wanted a generall gouernor to rule above all, yet
the Captens were not to seeke, nor yet failed to doo the seruice which
vnto them did apperteine, either for seruice or safetie. And among
all the rest Sir William Stanleie and Capteiue George Carew (as is
before said) lieng in garrison at Adare, and vpon an occasion minding
to doo a peece of seruice, verie earlie, and before the breake of the
daie, they took a bote or a cote trough, which could not hold aboue
eight or ten persons at a time, and passed oner their soldiers vnto the
other side of the riuer, which lieth between Adare and the Kerrie,
minding to haue burned and wasted all the lands and countrie belonging
and apperteining to the Knight of the Yalleie, who then was in actuall
rebellion against his maiestie, with the Earle of Desmond and his
brethren, where they then laie at a Castell named Balliloghan, the
chiefest and strongest place, which the enimie had in that place and
countrie, and this was furnished with a strong ward of the Spaniards.
110 ADAEE.
After that these two Capteins had burned and spoiled the countrie, and
put to the sword whomsoeuer they thought good: in their returne,
before they could recouer the riuer, Sir James of Desmond, the Knight
of the Yalleie, and the foresaid Spaniards with all their forces, to the
number of foure hundred footmen and thirtie horssemen, gaue the
charge vpon these two ensignes verie fiercelie, they hauing not in their
companie aboue six score persons to the vttermost. These two Capteins
answered the charge, and most valiantly skirmished with them at the
push of the pike without intermission aboue eight hours, and killed
of them aboue fiftie shot and kernes; and Sir James himselfe, with
others, grievouslie hurt and wounded, without the loss of anie one of
their owne men, sauing sundrie were shrewdlie hurt and wounded.
At length these two Capteins recoured their bote, and caused all the
sQuldiors to be transported; they themselves being the verie last that
passed ouer, and the enimies doubting of the safetie, stood afterwards
vpon a better force
This appears a marvellous proceeding as narrated by the English
historian: one hundred and twenty men engaging four hundred and
thirty, including forty horsemen, for eight hours, killing more than fifty
of the enemy without losing one man !
In October, 1579, Sir William Pelham was appointed Lord Justice
in the place of Sir William Drury, lately deceased: who, having made
the Earl of Ormond Grovernor of Munster, and Sir Warham Sentleger
Provost Marshal, proceeded to that province, and summoned the Earl
of Desmond to meet him: this summons Desmond declined, but his
Countess met the Lord Justice at Fanningstown From hence Ormond
was despatched to Desmond, who, in a letter dated from Croagh\ re¬
turning only evasive answers, the Lord Justice proceeded to Eathkeale
and there, November 2, published articles of treason against the Earl
' Chron., p. 420. A Castle two miles east of Adare, lately added to, and
fitted up as a dweUing-house. ' A Castle and village three miles west of Adare.
• " A Castle and town six miles west of Adare.
DESMOND CASTLE. Ill
of Desmond. Immediately after this proclamation " all his countrie was
consumed with fire, and nothing was spared which fire and sword could
consume." After this Sir "William Stanley and Captain George Carew
returned to Adare. Sometime afterwards we find the Earl of Ormond
there, for, continues Hooker,—
" When he (the Lord Governor, Ormond) laie at Adare, and vnder-
standing that the Erie of Desmond was abrode, the garrison minding
to doo some seruice vpon him, they issued out. Whereof he having
some intelligence, notwithstanding his companie was but small in com¬
parison of the others, yet he laie in an ambush to meet them in their
returne; and vpon an aduantage he gaue the onset vpon them, and gaue
a verie hot charge, in which the souldiers of the garrison were so
hardlie assailed, that they brake the most part of their pikes, and were
inforced with their swords and with the stumps of their staues to stand
to their defenses; which they did so valiantlie, that the Earle in the
end, with the losse of his men, was driuen to giue oner and to fiee
The following inclosure (dated November 24, Limerick) in a letter
from James Golde, Attorney-General in Munster, to Sir Nicholas Malby,
November 27, 1579, alludes most probably to the skirmish just de¬
scribed :—
"News from Adare that Stanley and Carew killed forty traitors
yesterday"."
The Earl of Ormonde appears to have been pretty active in the pursuit
of his hereditary enemy. Hooker says,—
"Yet the Lord Governour never slept his time, but was alwaies in
readinesse, being the first with the foremost, and the last with the
hindermost p."
" In the moneth of August, 1580, he remooued and dislodged himselfe
from Adare, and marched to Boteuant, a house of the Lord Barries,
" Chron., p. 426. ° Irish Correspondence, vol. Ixx. No. 32 I. ^ Chron., p. 426.
112
ADAEE.
where a peece of seruice was appointed them to be doone: but suddenlie
such a sicknes came among the soldiers which tooke them in the head,
that at one instant there were aboue three hundred of them sicke, and
for three daies they laie as dead stockes, looking still where they should
die, but yet such was the good will of God, that few died; for they all
recouered. This sickenesse not long after came into England, and was
called the gentle correction
In April, 1580, the Castle of Askeaton surrendered, the last which
had held out for Desmond. Having placed a garrison in the Castle,
and another in the Abbey, the Lord Justice proceeded to Limerick,
commanding the Captains to cut down the woods on both sides of the
river, " that the botes might pass freely to and fro." Soon afterwards,—
''The lord iustice himselfe taking an occasion to visit the ward at
Adare, he passed by water, and Captiene Case went by land, and after
a time spent in searching the woods, they returned with a price of one
thousand and two hundred kine, and verie good store of sheepe, besides
the slaughter of manie traitors'^."
1581. Adare was still in the hands of the English, as we find (Annals
of the Four Masters, 1581) that the receiver (treasurer) of the Geral-
dines was slain by the soldiers of Adare. Their performances are thus
described:—
"Upon one occasion a bold and merciless body of the soldiers of
Adare, having been divided into two parties, went forth, one by water,
the other by land, to traverse Kenry and (the lands lying) along the
side of the Maigue, to seek for fight or booty from some of the
plunderers. These two parties met together near the Castle of Dally-
' cahlane. They were encountered by David Oge Purcell and his people,
who fell upon them with such fury, and surrounded and charged them
with such bravery, that he soon left them but a heap of bloody trunks,
and hacked and mutilated carcasses. A few, however, escaped by fiight.
« Chron., p. 426.
' Ibid., p. 432.
DESMOND CASTLE. 113
who carried the news of the slaughter of their companions to Adare.
When the news of this reached Adare, the Captain of that town
assembled the soldiers of Kilmallock, and set out at the head of a
vigorous and merciless body of troops to traverse Kenry, in order to
see whether he could find man or men upon whom to wreak his ven¬
geance for the slaughter of his people. He arrived at Baile-IJi-Chathlain®,
one of the castles of Purcell, who had assisted the Crown from the very
commencement of the war between the English and the Geraldines to
that time. The Captain slew one hundred and fifty women and children,
and of every sort of persons that he met with inside and outside of
that castle h"
The following notes from the Irish Correspondence in the Eecord Office
shew the detail in which every circumstance was forwarded to London.
The wards in Adare, &c., were the parties who figured in the foregoing
extracts:—
Irish Correspondence, vol. Ixxxviii. Ho. 40 !.■—Enclosure in a letter
of the Lord Deputy to Secretary Walsingham, dated " 1582, Jan. 27,
Dublin," entitled "Book of the discharge of soldiers in November and
December, 1581; and January, 1582; being 3,296 menunder the
head, " Names of the Captains, viz.:—In Munster. Horse: (now follow
their names.) Horsemen: in wards in Munster, Adare Castle," &c.
Irish Correspondence, vol. Ixxxviii. No. 40 II.—Enclosure in a letter
of the Lord Deputy to Secretary Walsingham, dated "1582, Jan. 27,
Dublin," entitled " Book of the numbers of horse and foot remaining
in pay." The Lord Deputy and chief officers not particularly named.
" Mijnster : Foot in forts and wards, viz. in Adare, Edmund Eltofts," &c.
The following nearly verbatim account, taken from Cox, gives a melan¬
choly picture of the state of the Earl of Desmond at this time :—
® The same as Ballycahlane, mentioned before. The ruins of this stronghold of the Purcells, near
Court Bridge, in the barony of Kenry, stdi remain.
* Annals of the Eour Masters, p. 1759.
Q
114
ADAEE.
A.D. 1582. In this year Sandars the JSfuneio, after two years wander¬
ing through woods and bogs, died miserably at Clonlis of an ague and
flux. After his death, the Lords Justices Loftus and Wallop, to pre¬
serve the peace of the kingdom, offered the Earl of Desmond terms,
which he refused, and continued to spoil the country, but not daring
to, turn to any house he camped in bogs and fastnesses; keeping his
Christmas in the woods of Kilqueeg, near Kilmallock, where about the
4th of January, at day-break, that garrison very suddenly came to his
cabin; but the Earl, hearing the noise, ran out of his bed, and in his
shirt ran into the river; and standing up to his chin, concealed himself
under the bank, by which means he and his wife escaped. The soldiers
not being able to find him, put as many as they could find there to the
sword, and carried off his goods to Kilmallock''.
The following notices from Ware and Hooker refer to this period;
but on comparing their accounts with the "Annals of the Eonr Masters,"
1 am inclined to think that Ware, Hooker, and other historians, have
mistaken Adare for Ardfert in Kerry; but I have thought it best to
insert them as they stand:—
" After the Lord Deputy had disbanded his army. Lord Lixnaw and
his son flew out into rebellion, and made themselves masters of Adare,
killing Captain Achen and the garrison. Zouch marches into Kerry,
where he finds Adare forsaken of the enemv, thence advanced towards
•/ /
Lisconnell. This insurrection scarce over, when Desmond, supposed to
be dead or beyond the seas, appeared again, and encountered the garrison
of Adare so fiercely, that with the loss of many men and two officers
they were glad to retreat to their fortress
This was about July or August, 1682. The same events are thus
described by Hooker:—
" This new baron of Lexna, the first thing that he tooke in hand,
was to cleanse and to rid his owne countrie from all Englishmen and
^ Cox, Hist, of Ireland, vol. i. p. 366.
Ware, Ann. Elizabetli, p. 30.
DESMOND CASTLE. 115
their garrisons; and in the end, taking capteine Achin at an adnantage,
slue him, and reconered the ward of Adare''."
Upon hearing of these events the Governor, Captain Zonch, marched
from Cork, but " the baron being aduertised of their comming forsooke
his castell at Adare."—" When the gouernor was come to Adare he
found the towne burnt, and the few Englishmen (which were in the
abbeie) greatlie distressed."
Capteine Dowdall, leaning the gouernors, sonldiors, and companie at
Adare, Amder the leading of capteine Smith, he marcheth towards Corke,
where he rested and laie in garrison. E"ow when all these broils Avere
ended, and verelie supposed that all things had beene at rest, and the
whole prouince of Mounster at peace; behold the earle of Desmond, who
was thought to be either dead or fled, beginneth to appeare and to shew
himselfe; and haning assembled a great companie, came to Adare, where
the garrison issued out vpon him; betweene whom the fight was hot,
and manie slaine on both sides. Among whom. Smith, Serjeant of the
band, and Morgan the lieutenant, were both slaine: but yet the English
sonldiors reconered the Abbie
The result of this attempt of Eitz Maurice, Baron of Lixnow, was,
according to the " Annals of the Four Masters ®'," that his people were
cut off, his corn destroyed, his mansions demolished, and his treasures,
though secreted in the hollows of trees or rocks, or in subterraneous
caverns, or under the roots of trees, were all lost.
In the meantime the Earl of Desmond remained from the autumn
of the preceding to the end of this year, caring neither for tillage or
reaping, except the reaping of the Butlers by day and night in revenge
for the injuries committed by the Earl of Ormonde on the Geraldines."
''At this period it was commonly said that the lowing of a cow
or the voice of a ploughman could scarcely be heard from Dun-caoin
to Cashel."
y Hooker's Holinshed, p. M7. ^ lb., pp. 448, 449. ^ pp. 1783—1785.
Q 2
116 ADABE.
To such a state was this district, extending above one hundred miles,
chiefly the territory of the mighty Earl of Desmond, reduced during
these wretched wars: and to complete the picture, in the next year,
1583, the unfortunate Earl, after being deserted by his friends and fol¬
lowers, and hunted from one miserable place of concealment to another,
was slain near Castle Island.
Hooker, after giving a detailed account of this event, says:—
"As soone as they came to Castelmange, they sent the said earle's
head vnto the Lord generall, who foorthwith sent the same into England
for a present to hir Majestie; which foorthwith was put vpon a pole,
and set on London bridge. "When this his death was noised and
knowne, there was no more seruice to be doone: for euerie rebell cast
awaie his weapon, and sought all the waies they could to humble them-
selues and to become good subiects: sauing one John Bourke, who
stood vpon his protection, and yet neuerthelesse he and his companie
went to Adare, there to haue taken a price. But as he passed by the
Castell, a boie therein discharged his peece vpon the said Bourke, and
strake him in the head, whereof he died. The common people, who had
felt the great smart of this troublesome time, reioised and were glad
of the death of the erle, being in a good hope that the long troubles
should haue an end, and they to be the more at rest V
Erom this it appears that the last person engaged in these unfortunate
wars was killed at Adare. The Eour Masters gave a slightly different
version of the same event, ending more ignominiously for poor Burke:—
" John Carragh, the son of William, son of Theobald Burke, heir to
Cois-Siuire, who had been hitherto in treason (i.e. in rebellion), came in
under protection. After the death of the Earl of Desmond, he went into
the country of the Gleraldines in search of a prey, and made no delay
until he arrived at Adare, where he seized on all the cattle of the town.
The warders of the town rose out at the shouts and pursued him. John,
with his small body of horsemen, turned round upon the warders, but
'• Hooker, p. 454!.
DESMOND CASTLE. 117
he was shot with a straight aim in the head with a hall, which pierced
his helmet, so that he was thrown from his horse. His people (however)
carried off the prey, but left John behind. He was afterwards taken to
Limerick, where he was hanged by the Commissioners of Limerick'."
This account, probably the most correct, mentions the Town, while
the other states that Burke was shot from the Castle.
The next notices we have of Adare are in the year 1599, when Essex
was sent over to Ireland with a large army to subdue the Irish, every¬
where in arms under the great O'Heil, Earl of Tyrone. Essex was met at
Limerick by the Earls of Thomond and Ormond. The following account
of their proceedings is from the " Annals of the Four Masters—
" The Earls of Essex, Ormond, and Thomond, proceeded into Munster
to see whether they could get an opportunity of invading the Geraldines.
On the first night after they had left Limerick in the month of
June, they encamped on the banks of the river of Adare, (and) as they
advanced westwards on the next day, Saturday, through the bog of
Eobhar (Eower), the soldiers and warriors of the Earl of Desmond and
the Geraldine host shewed them their faces. Fierce and morose was the
salute and welcome which they gave to the representative of their Sove¬
reign on his first visit to them (and to his army); for they discharged
into their eyes the fire and smoke of their black powder, and showers
of balls from straightly aimed guns; and he heard the uproar, clamour,
and exulting shouts of their champions and common soldiers, instead of
the submission, honour (that should have been shewn him), and of the
mild and courteous words that should have been spoken to him. How-
beit, the result of this confiict was that great numbers of the Earl of
Essex's men were cut off, and that he was not suffered to make any re¬
markable progress on that day; so that he pitched his camp a short
distance to the east of Askeaton^"
The following version of the same events is by an eye-witness on the
English side:—
" Annals of the Eour Masters, p. 1801. Ibid., p. 2117.
118
ADASE.
'•'■The thirde Journall from the ^th of June to the 22nd of the same^ 1699.
"Our departure from Lymericke was on Friday the 8th June, after
his Lo^^ had dispatched thence the Governor of Connaught and the
Earl of Clanrichard to their chardges, with directions howe they shoulde
for the p'sent dispose of such troopes, as they had for the prosecution
of the warres in Connaughe. Wee overtook the armye, as it was newly
rysen and marched that daye to Adare^ a toun in the possession of the
Earles of Kildare, standing uppon the ryver of May, haueing on the south
syde of it a fayer country called Coshmaye, heinge also of the inheritance
of the said Earles, on the north and west sydes, woodes and bogges, and
a great fastnes. Att this toune and at the passage of the ryver the
pretended Eesmonde, with all his Connaught men, and other hyerlings
(w"^ in their language they generally tearme bonaughts), presented
himself, shewing between two thousand and 3000 men, w^^ fine or six
Ensignes flyinge, as though he meant to stay us from furthur proceedinge.
But that night their shewe was far greater than their valloure: for
his men, whoe by his appoyntment begann to break the bridge, as
soone as one of them was shooten down w^^ a bullett, p'sently left their
worke, and the Lord Lieutenante w^'^out any other ympeachm*® passed
ouer T companyes of foote, and lodged them in an ould Abbye, seated
at the west ende of the bridge, and on the same side of the ryver on
w®^ the rebells forces were; the rest of the armye was lodged on the
east side of the ryver neere the bridge, and stronge guardes placed on
the bridge that night. The next morninge the residu of the armye
being drawne ouer, and advanced to the same place where ouernight
the rebells had shewne themselues, his Lo^^ exactly informed him-
selfe by his guydes of the whole waye, and accordingly ordered his
march®," &c.
The Earl of Essex proceeded no further than Askeaton, and the next
day, on their return eastwards, when they arrived near Einneterstown
® Harl. MSS., 35, fol. 283, British Museum.
' A Castle between two and three miles south-west of Adare.
DESMOND CASTLE. 119
^Hhey received a furious and formidable battle from the Geraldines;-
and many of the Earl of Essex's people were slain, among the rest
a noble knight of great name and honour, i.e. Sir Henry Horris®^."
a.d. 1600. In the beginning of this year we find that the Earl of
Kildare's Castles of Groom and Adare were occupied by the Sugan
(pretended) Earl of Desmond, but were recovered in July by the Pre¬
sident, Sir George Carew'". During this occupation the following curious
letter was written by the Earl of Desmond to Florence MacCartie.
James Fitz TJiamas his letter unto him.
"Mt good Loed and Cosen,—Your letters of the 18th of May re¬
ceived the fiue and twentieth of the same, wherein you relate the
manner of your proceedings with the President at Corke, and also of
his determination towards the west of my countrey. 1 thanke God that
I prevented that which hee expected here, for all the good pledges of
the countrey are committed to Castlemange for their constant behaviour
in this our action. The President, with his force, is come to Limerick,
and intended presently to draw towards Askeaton, where I purpose with
my armie to resist him. 1 prey you the better to further the service,
and the more to coole the bloody desire of our enemy—let mee entreat
you to put in effect the meaning of my last letters, by drawing your
forces to joyne with me here, which being done, I doubt not under
God to performe service, that shall redound to the generall quiet of
our countrey, and so referring the due consideration hereof (to your
Lordships carefull vsage), 1 commit you to the Most Mighty.
''From the campe at Adare, this first of June, 1600,
"Your very loving Cosen,
" James Desmond^"
Lewis (Top. Die.) mentions that during a siege in this year, the
garrison of the Castle suffered greatly, being without food for many
s Annals of the Eonr Masters, p. 2119.
Pacata Hibernia, pp. 108, 123. ' Ibid., p. 290.
120 ADAEE.
days, and that they only obtained a supply of water by excavating a sub¬
terraneous passage to the bed of the river.
For some reason or other the Castle was deserted by Desmond's
followers, as appears by the following account of the Lord President's
progress in July:—
" The next day the armie marched twelve miles into Adare, a Manor
House belonging to the Earls of Kildare, wholly ruined by Pierce Lacy.
Prom thence the President sent seven hundred foote and seventie-five
horse to Askeaton, there to remain in garrison^."
The two following notices are taken from Lewis's Topographical
Dictiopary, but I have not been able to find from whence they are de¬
rived :■—
A.D. 1641. ^^This year the Castle was seized by the insurgents, who
held it for some time, till they were driven from it at last by the
Earl of Castlehaven."
A.D. 1657. "The Castle was at length dismantled by order of the
Lord Protector Cromwell."
The local tradition is, that the portion of the walls now wholly ruined,
at the south-eastern angle of the river front, was destroyed during a siege
at this period, by cannon placed on the opposite hill.
The question may naturally be raised, why this fortress, the property
of the Kildares, should be called Desmond Castle. The only explanation
is, that as it was occupied by the Earls of Desmond for nearly fifty years
(vide p. 107), including the most eventful period of its history, it was
naturally called their Castle, which tradition has ever since handed down.
Having given the history of the Castle to the time of its demolition
as a residence, a description of its present state may be suitably added.
The ruins, situated on the brink of the river, are of considerable extent,
and although simple in their architectural features, they form a pic-
Pacata Ribernia, p. 123.
DESMOND CASTLE.
121
turesque group of buildings \ The Castle consists of an outer and inner
ward, and within the latter a massive square keep. There are three gate¬
ways in the outer ward: the principal one is in a square tower placed in
the western wall, and is defended by a portcullis; the second is a plain
gateway on the northern side of the ward; and the third, a smaller
one, in the eastern wall; there was also a doorway of some sort, com¬
municating with the river. The principal buildings extend along the
water's side. hTear the eastern end is the great hall, the dimensions
of which are *76ft. by 37ft.: its southern wall contains three two-light
windows of simple character and rough masonry; the western one has
ogee heads of cut stone, evidently of the fifteenth century, but apparently
inserted in earlier work: near the east end of this wall a small doorway
opens to the river. The northern wall is now too low to shew any traces
of windows: in it was the principal doorway and porch; a large moulded
base of one of the jambs, of sandstone^ still remains—testifying by its
character and material that this hall w^as of early thirteenth century date.
The walls of the hall are about 3 ft. thick, with massive square buttresses
of rough stone, and are 16 ft. in height, while the gable reaches to the
additional height of 20 ft. This great roof was supported by four pillars,
the foundations of which are still visible. At the eastern end are the
buttery and other offices connected with the kitchen, but where this
important building was, cannot now with certainty be determined.
To the east of these rooms, and separated from them by a passage, are
the foundations of a room 46 ft. long by 19 ft. wide, the south wall of
which is washed by the water: it contains the remains of an oven or
boiler, and may have been the kitchen: and within it is a small round
well for obtaining water from the river. A curtain wall, extending 46 ft.
to the west of the hall, connects it with an oblong building. Kear the
curtain the ancient well was recently discovered, which is descended into
by a few steps, and was supplied from the river. There is a gap here
' Vide Plates XXV., XXVI., X^VII., XXVIII.
K
Ik
122
ADAEE.
in the wall, one side of which has a clean face like the jamb of a small
door or window, but it may be only a modern restoration.
The oblong building consists of two stories: the lower contained pro¬
bably a stable, and other offices; the upper was one large apartment,
measuring internally 56 ft. by 31 ft. The walls of the former are
upwards of 4 ft. thick, and batter considerably on the exterior of the
south or river front. On this side are three plain loopholes, of early
character, square-topped and widely splayed—apparently constructed for
the use of archers as well as for giving light. The walls of the upper
room are 9 or 10 inches thicker than those of the lower, which addi¬
tional breadth is supported by a row of projecting stones; the purpose
being obviously that of affording room for walking on the top of the
wall. The holes for the beam's of the floor are of remarkable size. It
is observable that the lower story was not vaulted. The large upper
room was approached by an external stone staircase, the foundations of
which are still visible: it rose along the side of the wall, and the
landing was supported by an archway, under which is the door into the
rooms on the ground-floor.
The upper room has five windows—two in each side wall, and one in
the east end. In the west wall is a square-headed window of more
recent construction, close to the angle
of the wall. For more than half the
breadth of the room, the western end
has fallen, in which there may have
been a fireplace, or a window. The win¬
dows are round-headed, of two lights,
enclosed in a vaulted head, and are all
nearly of the same size. The mould¬
ings of only one remain, which is in
the north side; they are, as will be seen by the woodcut, of late Norman
character, as is also the horizontal string underneath, which is continued
Window Jamh.
Sections of String and Moulding of WindoTV,
Desmond Castle.
DESMOND CASTLE. 123
along the wall between the two> windows. This window and the mould¬
ings are shewn in the accompanying illustration. It has been suggested
Winiow, Desmond Castle.
on very competent authority that there is a great similarity in character
between these mouldings and some which are to be seen in Scotch castles
of late date, as late as the sixteenth century; and that this building, in
some respects unlike what one would expect the first Norman settlers
to have erected, may he the most recent portion of the Castle: however,
besides the authority of Dr. Petrie and Mr. Parker, who both pronounced
%
it to be Norman, I find that the moulding of the window is identical not
only in form hut in actual size with that of the west windows of the fine
Abbey Church of Manister-nenagh, in this neighbourhood One of tlie
™ This very interesting ruin, of one of the large Abbey Churches in Ireland, is a remarkable
example of the transition style; the round-headed clerestory windows having been built over the
pointed nave-arches. It deserves to be better known.
E 2*
124
ADAEE.
Section of Inner Arch of Window,
Desmond Castle.
windows of the south side has a curious moulding on its inner arch,
in sandstone, which is carried down to the sill. Although partly de¬
cayed, a correct section can be obtained, which
is here given. [N'one of these windows are
splayed, and the mullions are plain and flat.
What was the use of this room, is not easy to
ascertain; but if, as there is every reason to
believe, it dates from the end of the twelfth or
beginning of the thirteenth century, it becomes
exceedingly interesting as being a portion of the
original castle of the first jN'orman settlers; and
the more so, since there are few specimens of
domestic architecture of that age remaining in Ireland. Plate XXYIII.
shews the east end of this building.
Adjoining this building, and projected into the water, are the pic¬
turesque ruins of a tower, only two sides of which retain their full
height; the water flows through the basement by an arched passage;
two small fifteenth-century windows remain in the upper story, of single
lights, with cinquefoil heads. This tower forms the south-west angle of
the castle; and running at right angles a curtain wall connects these
buildings with the gate-tower already described. The lower portion of
the water tower is of a different masonry from the upper, and contains
loopholes similar to those previously described
In Turner's "Domestic Architecture of the Middle Ages," vol. i. p. 38,
there is an account and view of the ruins of a Xorman house at Christ
Church, in Hampshire, to which this bears a most striking resemblance.
The following extracts would almost serve for a description of the build¬
ing at Adare:—
"The windows are of two lights, . . . the plan a simple oblong, and the
principal room on the first floor. It is situated on the bank of the river,
° Vide Plates XXV. and XXVII.
DESMOND CASTLE.
125
near to the church, and still more close to the mound, said to have been
the keep of the castle On the ground-floor are a number of loop¬
holes : . . . . the ground-floor was divided by a wall, but the upper story
seems to have been all one room, lighted by three double windows on
each side There is a small projecting tower calculated for a flank,
under which the water runs By the ruins of several walls there
were some ancient buildings at right angles to this hall, stretching away
towards the keep."
The inner ward is entered through a square gate-tower by a draw¬
bridge, and is connected with the south-eastern angle of the keep by
a thick curvilinear curtain wall, the parapet of which is embrasured and
looped. In the western wall is a semicircular projecting tower which
had no roof, and was divided into two stages by a wooden floor, with
loops for the defenders to shoot through.
The wall to the north of this tower extends in a semicircular form
to the eastward, enclosing and protecting the keep on its northern and
western sides, to which it is attached at the north-east angle by a short
wall, thus completing the boundary of the inner ward. From the gate-
tower a curtain wall, containing a doorway, extends to the south-west
angle of the keep, enclosing a small courtyard, in which is a low massive
wall with steps, which rise from the floor to the height of a few feet.
The meaning of this structure is not very obvious, it was probably con¬
nected with the mode of access to the keep by means of a drawbridge,
let down from its principal door; but as this side of the tower has been
broken down to the level of the first floor, no trace of the door remains.
This explanation, however, receives support from the fact that the keep
of Eaglan Castle is entered in a similar way: and the access to the
keeps of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries appears generally to have
been by a door placed on the first floor The dimensions of the tower
° Vide Yiollet-le-Duc on "The Military Architecture of the Middle Ages;" and De Caumont,
Ahecedaire d'Archeologie.
126 ADAEE.
are 41 ft. by 40, and its height is 67 ft. The north and south walls
project 3 ft. at their east and west ends, as shewn in the plan: this is
rather characteristic of a Norman keep. On the west side is a circular-
headed doorway leading to the vaults, which was evidently an insertion,
and did not form part of the original construction. Under this doorway
an arch was recently discovered, below which is a hole 4 ft. deep, appa¬
rently made for the purpose of holding water, which even now drains
or flows into it. One of the vaults seems to have been used as a dungeon,
in which was found the iron instrument here represented, probably
a manacle or pedicle. It is IJ in. between the ends.
Iron Implement, and Loopliole, Desmond Castle.
This gloomy cell measures 9 ft. by 7 ft., and was dimly lighted by
a single loop, of a peculiar form, shewn in the accompanying woodcut.
From the vaults a staircase conducted to the principal apartments.
The keep was originally only about two-thirds of its present height, as
is apparent by the old weather-tabling for the roof, in the north wall.
The present tower was divided into three stories above the vaults. The
staircase was constructed in the thickness of the west wall, in a similar
manner to that in the tower of the Trinitarian Priory. There were
small cells in the projecting portion of the wall already alluded to. No
further' details of the internal arrangement of the keep can now be ascer¬
tained, as, unfortunately, only the north side and a few feet of the east
DESMOND CASTLE.
127
and west retain their full height. The ground floor alone seems to have
been vaulted. The northern wall of the keep terminates at either angle
by small looped turrets, access to which was from the roof by a flight
of steps formed on the curve of narrow semi-arches. In the north wall
at the level of the first floor is a doorway opposite to a turret in the
outer wall, formed at the angle, connecting the inner and outer wards;
this turret commands the walls of the outer ward, both externally and
internally. In case the defenders of this important point were over¬
powered, this door afforded ready means of retreat into the keep.
The masonry of this Castle, particularly of the keep, is of a rude
character, much inferior to that of Askeaton or Carrigogunnel, both in
this neighbourhood, but both erected in the fourteenth or fifteenth
century.
At the distance of about sixty yards from the northern entrance are
the remains of a strong gateway, from which the traces of walls ex¬
tending some feet on either side were, until recently, visible : it was
probably an outwork belonging to the Castle. A tradition still exists
that this was a gateway of the old town of Adare, and that no person
was allowed to pass through it after six o'clock in the evening. It is,
however, improbable that the town extended to the eastern side of the
river; the Down Survey and other maps represent it as on the western
side, as has been already mentioned.
About twenty-five years ago Desmond Castle underwent considerable
repairs, but nothing in the way of restoration was attempted beyond
that for which there was competent authority. At the same time
a portion of the moat was cleaned out, in which some interesting
antique articles were found. Piles of rubbish had accumulated in the
inner ward to the height of several feet above the proper level of the
court, chiefly formed by the debris of the fallen walls of the keep; these
were removed, and all decaying portions of the crumbling walls made
good. This year, other portions of the walls have been repaired which
128 ADAEE.
had been injured by the too luxuriant ivy, and the rest of the moat has
been excavated, the bottom of which consisted of black mud to a depth
of from 1 to 3 ft. In it were found large numbers of bones, a very few
of which are human, old shoes, some weapons, various pieces of wood,
most of them shewing marks of the action of fire, and several being
pointed at the end, as if they were portions of stakes or palisades. The
moat passed under the walls which forni its present termination; pro¬
bably it originally surrounded the keep, but when the Castle was en¬
larged, and the walls of the outer ward were built, the external or
northern portion of the moat was obliterated, in place of which there
is now a deep dry fosse following the curve of the wall of the inner
ward, as shewn on the plan.
On the western side of the Castle there is a shallow cut or moat,
reaching from the river to the part of the wall where the inner moat
ends; near this spot are the remains of the old manor mill, quite lately
discovered, in which one of the mill-stones was found. Until recent
times the tenants were bound to get their corn ground at this mill.
The stream was probably the same that supplied the Abbey mill; and
the remains of a shallow trench still exist close to the outer wall of the
Castle, which has been traced in the direction of the Abbey,
In the Inquisition taken in the year I33I (p. 106), the Castle of Adare,
then in a ruined state, is described as a " Castle in which is a hall;
a chapel with stone walls covered with thatch; a chamber covered with
thatch (or shingle); a tower covered with planks; a kitchen covered
with slates; a chamber near the stone part covered with thatch, which
is not surveyed at any price on account of the cost of keeping them up."
This account is rather puzzling. Where was the chapel ? The only portion
of the Castle now remaining which could have been one is the room with
Norman windows, but there is no appearance of its having been a chapel,
and so large a one would have been very unusual. Why should the tower
be roofed with planks ? and why only the kitchen covered with slates ?
DESMOND CASTLE. 129
What, again, can be meant by a chamber near the stone part? This
account, at all events, is curious and interesting, by shewing of what
the Castle consisted in the middle of the fourteenth century, since it
is unlikely that any important part would have been omitted in the
description.
The buildings contain so little of architectural features, that it is very
difficult to determine the dates of the different portions. To hazard
a conjecture, probably the original ISTorman castle consisted of the keep
surrounded by water, outside of which was the bouse with the l^orman
windows, and perhaps the great ball. The tower has much the character
of a l^"orman keep, of very rude masonry, with square-beaded windows,
erected, probably, on the site of an earlier fort, defended by wooden
palisades, and surrounded by a moat. The large apartment with the
ISTorman windows being so far from the keep and outside the moat,
causes the whole to bear a strong resemblance to the Norman bouse
near Christ Church, already mentioned. At a later date, perhaps about
the middle of the fourteenth century, the northern half of the moat was
filled up, to enable the walls of the inner ward to be erected, and the
whole castle was considerably enlarged by the circuit of the outer ward,
which may be of the same period.
We may conclude that Adare ceased to be a principal residence of the
Earls of Kildare after the first half of the fourteenth century, otherwise so
great a family would have most probably erected buildings containing
features of higher architectural pretensions, or more ornamental character,
than this Castle possesses; such as are to be seen in the beautifully built
keep and noble banqueting-hall of the Earl of Desmond's Castle at Ask-
eaton, or at Carrigogunnel, both in the neighbourhood of Adare, and both
erected between the middle of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
Among the objects found in the moat, when it was partially cleared
out some years ago, a spear-head, a sword-blade, and a small hatchet
are here represented; they are all of iron, and are good specimens of
s
t
130
A-X) A.
their kind. Dr. Petrie considers them to belong to a period anterior to
the date of the Castle. They are similar in form and character to the
weapons found in the Saxon cemeteries of England and the Prankish
Spear-lifiad, Sword-Wade, and Battle-axe, found at Desmond Castle.
in France, and such as are also found in our own crannoges or artifi¬
cial lake-islands, which are usually of an age contemporary with these
Saxon and Prankish cemeteries.
The spear-head is 9 in. long and 2 in. wide; the sword is 1 ft. 4 in.
long in the blade, and 3 in. in the part which fits into the handle; the
blade is in. wide, and f in. thick at the back. The small iron axe is
7 J in. long, 4| in. wide at the blade end, and 8 in. at the handle end.
It is rather an uncommon example. Dr. Petrie has a similar one in
his collection found in a crannoge, and probably of the ninth or tenth
century.
DESMOND CASTLE.
131
f
. In the recent excavations at the Castle already referred to, two very
curious objects were found in the mud bottom of the moat. The first is
a wooden sword, of which a drawing is here subjoined. The wood is,
Wooden Sword, found in the Moat of Desmond Castle.
I believe, oak, and quite black. It is 1 ft. 6 in. long in the blade, and
4 in. in the handle, and 1J in. broad. !N"ot having seen anything similar
to this implement, I referred to Dr. Petrie, who in reply says:—
" The wooden sword is very old, say about the eighth or ninth
century. I have the blade of one which was found in the wooden
house at Donegal, described by Capt. Mudge in the Archceologia. This
must be very old indeed, for the stone celt used for shaping the wood
of the house was found with it. There is also a wooden sword in the
Museum of the Academy, smaller than yours, and I think somewhat
leaf-shaped. Wooden spears have also been found in Ireland, and the
use of such wooden weapons in St. Patrick's time is curiously illustrated
by the following passage in the anonymous notices of his life in the book
of Armagh:—' Patrick came from the plain of Airthia to Drummut Che-
rigi^ and to Namniu Toisciert and to Ailich Esrachtw; and had with him
eight or nine men, with tablets in their hands, written after the Mosaic
manner, whom the Gentiles seeing exclaimed that, as they had swords
in their hands, they would slay the holy men. Wooden weapons were
seen with them, but we think the swords were iron.'"
In the British Museum I found a wooden sword somewhat similar to
the one here represented, but much shorter, having more the character
of a dagger; the handle is 6 in. long, and the blade only 7J in. It is
also narrower, not exceeding 1 in. in breadth in the blade, and less than
J in. in the handle; the end of the handle is nearly 2 in. wide, and the
T
132 ADARE.
blade is separated from the handle by a portion of similar width. This
dagger was found some years ago in London, and was formerly in the
Eoach Smith collection, No. 381; it is placed among the Anglo-Eoman
• ♦ 56 • *
Antiquities, and is numbered The wooden sword in the Eoyal Irish
^ ' 1397 •'
Academy Museum, alluded to by Dr. Petrie, is described, with an illus¬
tration, in Wilde's Catalogue, vol. i. p. 452. It is I ft. Sin. in length,
of which the blade occupies I ft. 3 in.; the breadth is 2 in. On one
side, near the end of the blade, is a projecting knob, from which cir¬
cumstance it is supposed to have served as a model for a mould for
a bronze sword.
The following singular object was also dug out of the moat, near
where the wooden sword was found. As will be seen from the illus¬
tration, it is but a fragment, both ends being broken off. The present
length is I ft. 4 in., and the breadth at the cusp IJ in. It is composed
Bone Implement, found in tlie Moat of Desmond Castle.
of two layers of some bony-looking substance, slightly curved on the
external surface, riveted together by small iron rivets. N"ear one end
is a small hole, which evidently was not a rivet hole. At this end one
of the layers becomes very thin, and a third has been introduced between
the other two, which reaches as far as the point, where the breadth
is suddenly narrowed. A slender incised line runs along both sides and
edges, giving rather an ornamental finish to this strange implement.
Being anxious to make out exactly the material of which it is composed,
which puzzled every one who had seen it, I requested my friend Pro¬
fessor Owen to give me his opinion, which he kindly did in the fol¬
lowing letter:—
DESMOND CASTLE. 133
'"'•British Museum^ June 11^ 1864.
''Deae Loed Deneaven,
"I tave determined by microscopical examination of the substance
of the portion of the ancient instrument which you submitted to me,
that it is the outer compact layer, with part of the cancellous structure,
of a deer's antler. Now, there is no other species from which a straight
piece of the extent of your Lordship's specimen (1 ft, 4 in.), including an
average breadth of an inch of the outer layer of antler, could be taken
(in Ireland) except the extinct ' great deer' (Megaceros hibernicus).
1 have examined the texture of the antler of this species in a specimen,
from beneath turbary, in shell-marl, in the county of Clare, and it
closely agrees with the texture of the antler of which the instrument
has been formed.
" It seems to me most probable that the specimen is part of the
frame of a simple stringed musical instrument; but on this point 1 should
defer to the opinion of the professed antiquary.
Believe me,
" Your Lordship's very truly,
" Eichaed Owen."
The next question is, of what is this curious fragment a portion; to
this enquiry no satisfactory answer has as yet been given. There is
nothing like it in the Museum of the Eoyal Irish Academy, nor in the
British Museum: neither Dr. Petrie nor Sir William Wilde are able to
offer more than a mere guess as to its use. It was exhibited and dis¬
cussed at a meeting of the Archseological Institute, and the prevailing
impression seems to have been that it was probably part of an ancient
lyre or other musical instrument. Mr. Hewitt pronounced against its
being a portion of any weapon. On the other hand, at the Archaeo¬
logical Association some members maintained that it was a portion of
some sort of cross-bow; and in favour of this view Mr. Cuming says:—
'•^The cusp in the relic bears a strong resemblance to that found on
the stock of a latch of the time of James I., in Skelton's Meyrick, PL xcv.
134
ADAEE.
fig. 10, whilst the depressed surface suggests the probability of its being
a portion of a prodd of the seventeenth century. In Skelton, PL xcviii,
fig. 7, is a prodd of the time of William III., the stock of which is quite
as thin as the bone fragment."
A third suggestion is made in the following extract of a letter by
a gentleman distinguished for his various archaeological researches
"I think the instrument, a sketch of which you were good enough
to enclose to me, was not part of a musical instrument, still less does it
appear to have been connected with a cross-bow. 1 could understand
many purposes which it would serve in the manufacture of cloth. It is
just such an instrument as the end of a primitive web would be attached
to, fastened at seven or eight intervals of its length, the edges of cloth
moving forward, or the beginning of the web moving backward, as in
the Oriental loom of the present hour. The ancient Irish spun and wove
the wool of their sheep; and this no doubt belonged to one of the ladies
in the Castle, whose labours consisted of spinning and weaving."
It certainly seems singular that an object such as this, of so marked
a character, should bafile the skill of the numerous antiquaries who have
examined it, and should remain undeciphered as to its age or purpose.
While these sheets were passing through the press, the opportunity
was taken, in consequence of the unusually low state of the water, to
excavate along the bank of the river just under the Castle walls. For
several feet from the wall the bed was partly above water, being about
2 ft. higher than the general bottom of the stream, indicating the pro¬
bability of a considerable artificial deposit. On breaking through the
stones and gravel, less than 1 ft. in thickness, a deposit was found, ex¬
tending about 120 ft., and being from 10 to 18 ft. wide, and from
3 ft. 6 in. to 4 ft. deep, made up of oyster-shells, decomposed bones,
timber, and black mud, mixed with vegetable matter. It was thickest
and most rich to the east of the hall, near where the kitchen most
probably was placed. This great mass must be the accumulation of
DESMOND CASTLE.
135
what was thrown out from the kitchen for a period extending over
several centuries, and it would probably have remained indefinitely
unnoticed but for the breaking through the crust of gravel which
effectually concealed the black deposit. Oyster-shells were also found
in the moat: it is singular that the inhabitants of the Castle should have
used an article of food in such quantities, which must have been brought
from the sea coast, a distance of more than fifty miles from Adare.
The first object which was discovered was an immense beam of oak,
lying along and close to the bank of the river where the wall has been
f W f
Beam found in the River, Desmond Castle.
destroyed. The upper side was about 1 ft. 6 in. below the surface of the
river bed. The wood is quite black and very soft, and full of longitu¬
dinal slits or shakes. The extreme length of the beam is 28 ft. 6 in.
Figure 1, in the accompanying woodcut, represents a horizontal view
of the upper surface; figure 2 gives the vertical or side view; figure 3
is an enlarged view of the end A, shewing the curious mortices and
incisions. The breadth at A is 1 ft. 5 in.^; at B, 1 ft. 2 in.; the depth at
C, 1 ft. 5 in.; at D, 11 in.
Four transverse incisions marked / will be observed, which are 8 in.,
11 in., 7 in., and 11 in. respectively in breadth; 3 in., 9 in., 6 in., and
6 in. deep. There are three mortices, at equal distances from each other,
about 9 in. long, by from 4 to 5 in. wide, and from 6 to 8 in. deep.
Another mortice, e, near the centre, has been purposely filled up with
wood. There are holes through these mortices, one of which is shewn
136
ADARE.
in the woodcut. Three small holes may be seen between the third
transverse incision and the middle mortice; they are about 1 in. in
diameter, and about 2 in. deep: two similar holes exist near the last
mortice. Perhaps the most curious features are the inclined incisions at
the two ends: one is well shewn in the woodcut; that at the other end
is now but slightly traceable; they incline outwards towards the under
surface. IS^ear the middle may be perceived two shallow incisions; these
also slope, and a hole runs through them, for a pin. This beam, or
drawings of it, have been examined by practical builders and engineers
as well as antiquaries, but no satisfactory explanation has been arrived
at, as to its use. Suggestions have been made that it formed part of
a mill, or of a wooden house, or of a bridge. Its unusual size, great
antiquity, and curious construction, may be considered a sufficient reason
for the detail with which it has been here described.
About 1 ft. lower than the bottom of the beam three pieces of oak
like piles were found lying, pointing towards the Castle. They are re¬
spectively about 8ft., lift., and 7 ft. in length; the first is 1ft. 10 in.,
and each of the other two about 1 ft., in circumference.
Among the objects which were dug out, subsequent to the beam, are
three ancient iron keys, some pieces of pottery, and other articles worth
notice: unfortunately, they could not be engraved in time for insertion
in this place, but a detailed description of them will be given in the
Addenda.
"While these excavations were being carried on, an examination was
made of the narrow strip of ground between the Castle walls and the
water p, by which it plainly appeared that this was merely an artificial
deposit; it has therefore been removed, and the water now flows up
to the base of the walls nearly along the whole length of the buildings,
thus giving them additional height, while the picturesque effect of the
south front of the Castle is materially enhanced.
p Vide Plan, Plate XXVI., and Plate XXVII.
V. MAKOE OF ADAEB.
DAT?,"Pi is not mentioned in any historical document prior to the
Norman invasion in the twelfth century. The earliest notice
connected with it as yet discovered relates to the Manor, being
a grant in the year 1226 from King Henry III. to Jeffroi de Morreis,
Justiciary of Ireland, to hold a fair annually at his Manor of Adare,
during the eight days following the Feast of St. James; the grant to
expire on the coming of age of the king This mention of the Feast of
St. James would point to some connexion with the " Domus Beati Jacohi
By the foregoing account it would appear that- the Geraldines were
not the first Norman settlers at Adare, but they already possessed Groom,
in the immediate neighbourhood, for in the "Earl of Kildare's Eed
Book," under the year I2I6, it is stated that "Maurice Fitzgerald,
second Baron of Offaly, received from King John a grant of the Castle
of Groom." This Baron, in 1215 and I2I6, introduced into Ireland the
Franciscan and Dominican Orders and we may also include the Trini¬
tarian, as the Priory at Adare was founded during his life.
The Earl of Kildare has furnished me with the following interesting
Charter, which is not dated, hut is probably of about the year 1293.
It is from the "Earl of Kildare's Eed Book," compiled in I60I, for
Gerald, ninth Earl of Kildare:—
" Charter of Juliana de Cogan.
"Know all men present and to come that I, Juliana de Cogan, the
daughter of Gerald Fitz Maurice, have given, granted, and confirmed by
Rot. Claus., anno 10 Henry III. m. 11. '' Vide p. 36. ® "Earls of Kildare," vol. i. p. 11.
138
ADAEE.
this my present charter, to the Lord John Fitz Thomas, son of Maurice,
the whole manor of Adare with all its appurtenances, the manor of Castle
Eobert with its appurtenances, the manor of Cromoth with all its
appurtenances, the manor of Achlectath with all its appurtenances,
Werged with all its appurtenances, the manor of Grene and Eastgrene
with all its appurtenances, the manor of Eathmore with all its appur¬
tenances, the manor of Geyssill [Geshil] with all its appurtenances,
the lordship of Schenreynath with all its appurtenances, the manor del
Eyle with all and the manor of Port Lechan with all its appur¬
tenances, to have and to hold to the said Lord John, his heirs or their
assigns in chief from the lords of the fees, all the aforesaid manors,
lands, and lordships, with all their appurtenances in lordships, demesnes,
churches, chapels, and their advowsons in castles and forts, water-mills,
lakes, water-courses, fish-ponds, preserves, fords, courts of the hundred,
markets, parks, defences, moors, marshes, waters, m^eadows, pastures,
roads, footpaths, wards, marriages, and escheats, and all other liberties
and free customs belonging to the aforesaid manors, lords, and lordships,
as freely as Maurice Fitz Gerald, my grandfather, or Maurice Fitz
Gerald, my brother, did more freely, better, more fully and quietly
hold them at any time, for ever; the said Lord John and his heirs or
their assigns paying thereout annually, and performing to the aforesaid
lords in chief of the fees the rents and services therefrom due and
accustomed. And to me and my heirs one sparrow-hawk or three pence
in silver, only at the Feast of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist for
all service, exaction, and demand.
"And I, Juliana, and my heirs will warrant against all men the
aforesaid manors, lands, and lordships to the aforesaid John and his heirs
or their assigns for ever, as is well and fully stated above. And that
this my donation, grant, and confirmation of my present charter may
obtain the force of lasting security, I have fortified [my] present charter
with the impression of my seal. These being witnesses,—The Lord
Geoffrey de Genevile, Thomas Fitz Maurice, John de la Marc, Thomas
Fitz Alured, Walter Lenfant, junior, William Cadell, Nicholas de Carrew,
MANOR OR ADARE. 139
Eoger de Lynet, John de Panchart, Knt., John de Barry, William de
Lundon, Eichard Pitz John, John Herald, Thomas le Engles, Gerald
Tirrell, and others."
Among the witnesses we find the names of some of the principal families
who figured in the Herman inYasion of Ireland. Juliana de Cogan was
sister to Maurice, fifth Baron of Offaly; she succeeded to the above
manors as heiress of her brother, and made these grants on condition
of having the manor of Maynooth for her life \ The deed by which this
was settled on her is dated 21 Edw. I.
The next document relating to the Eitz Geralds at Adare, is a grant
to John Eitz Thomas of Eree-Warren, in the county of Limerick, in the
year 1301, ''Of Adar, Croimuth (Groom), Castr' Eoberti, Athletagh,
Wirgedy, Grene, Esgrene, and Cork moighhid ®."
In 1329 Maurice, the fourth Earl of Kildare, being under age when
he succeeded his brother, Edward III., as his guardian, granted his lands
of Kildare, Maynooth, Crom, Adare, and Est-grene, to Sir John Darcy,
his step-father, during his minority ^
The following Inquisition, from the "Earl of Kildare's Eed Book,"
is interesting as giving an account of the state of Adare about the
year 1331:—
t
^^Inquisition of Adar ^c.
" Concerning two parts of the two parts (sic) and tenements, which
belonged to Eichard Eitz-Thomas, late Earl of Kildare, on the day on
which he died, in the manors of Adare, Castle-Eobert, in the County
of Limerick, who died on the 7th day of July, in the 6th® year of
the reign of King Edward III. after the Conquest, made before John
Morice, Escheator of Ireland, at Limerick, on the 12 th ^ day of August
^ " Earls of Kildare," p. 19.
* Cal. Rot. Chart., 1803, p. 132, n. 31. ' "Earls of Kildare," p. 32.
^ This must be an error for 3rd year, as he died in 1329. Qn. 20th.
T 2
140
AD ARE.
in the aforesaid year, except the dowries of Blanche and Joan, late
Countess of Kildare, by the undersigned, viz.:—
Which Jury say upon their oath that there is there a castle in which
is a hall—a chapel with stone walls covered with thatch—a chamber
covered with thatch—a tower covered with planks—a kitchen covered
with slates—a chamber near the stone part covered with thatch, the
easement of which is not surveyed at any price, because no one is
willing to hire them on account of the cost of keeping them up. And
they say that there are there in demesne xiii. score and xix. acres of
arable land, meadow and pasture in demesne, which used to be under
the plough of the lord there, each acre of which used to be worth in
times recently past 12\ per annum, but they now lie waste and un¬
cultivated, on account of the war, for want of tenants, except four score
and six acres and a half and one shed, which are now cultivated by
four English men, tenants there, paying for them for each acre at the
Feast of the blessed Michael next following, 4*^.; and after that Feast
of the blessed Michael to be levied for each acre of all the aforesaid
lands at 4*^. per annum in case of peace, but if war, nothing.
'^Approved total xxxii®. iiF."
The document then continues at some length with reference to other
lands, and ends with the following notice:—
'^And they say that there is Castle Eobert, which is a member of
Adare, and near Ad are, six score and six acres and a half of land,
and two divisions of two parts of one ('poncerium'). And two parts
of two parts of one mill, which produce per annum £9. 6s. 8d. Where-
Eoger, Jun.,
John Pant,
John Fitz-Eynald,
Geoffrey Fitz-Henry,
Thomas White,
Eoger White,
Michael Fitz-John,
William Mynour,
Laurence Fitz-Eichard,
John Fitz-Hugh,
Henry Crenagh,
Eichard Burford,
Thomas Walene.
MANOR or ADARE.
141
fore there is periodically in the hand of the farmer at the terms of
Easter and Michaelmas, the approved sum of £9. 6s. 8d."
The foregoing Inquisition describes the Earl of Kildare's lands as
waste and uncultivated on account of the war: what particular war
is here alluded to cannot easily be ascertained, owing to the scantiness
of the records of that epoch. On this subject, the late Professor O'Curry,
in a letter to a friend, observes:—
''It is strange, but it is true, there is no county in the south of
Ireland that has less of ancient and middle-age history than Limerick.
The Geraldines drove out, no one knows how, the Eugenian race, in¬
cluding the Hy Eigeinte', in a way of which there is scarcely any
record; and from 1300 down to the time of Elizabeth there is, I fear,
very little of local history to be found."
Accordingly, an interval of about two centuries elapses without any
historical records of Adare, until the year 1536, when the act of
attainder was passed against Thomas, tenth Earl of Kildare (called
"silken Thomas"); all of whose castles and manors, including Adare,
were forfeited to the Crown. In the following year this unfortunate
nobleman was, along with his five uncles, executed at Tyburn; the
English Government hoping thus to extirpate the race of the Kildare
Geraldines: but such was not to be. Gerald, the eleventh Earl, then
in his twelfth year, was given in charge to Thomas Leverous, a priest,
and foster-brother of his father, and conveyed in a large basket to his
sister. Lady Mary O'Connor ^ His early life, full of escapes, adven¬
tures, and travels in foreign countries, would form quite an interesting
chapter of historical romance.
The English Government does not appear to have retained possession
of the Earl's castles and manors in the county of Limerick, for Eobert
Cowley, in a letter to Lord Cromwell, says:—
' The tribe name of the O'Donovans.
"Earls of Kildare," p. 179.
142
ADAUE.
''Item, where the pretensid Erie of Dessmond hath lately, as a con¬
queror, entered into all the hinge's castelles, garysons, manours, and
landes in the countie of Lymerik, which apperteyned to the late Erie
of Kildare," .... the Lord Deputy should " recover the said landes
and garysons, to the Kynge's possession h"
In the articles of submission of James, Earl of Desmond, October,
1537, he agrees—
"Having the preferment to have the lesse of Crom and Adare, and
other the late Earl of Kildare's landes in the countie of Lymeric, shall
pay to the kynge's offycers the rentes and profettes of the same &c.
The object of this arrangement on the part of Desmond, appears
to have been to enable Gerald to obtain possession of his father's castles
and manors, as on the 30th of December Sir W. Brahazon wrote to
Cromwell, as follows :—
"And to advertise youre Lordship of young Garret, who as I am
informed lieth aboute Crome and, Adare, my Lord Deputie .... haith
done the best he can to atteyne hym ®."
By one of the extracts made in 1540 for the purpose of surveying
and valuing the lands forfeited for high treason, it appears that in
the county of Limerick the manors of Adare, Crome, Eachanan, and
Toborney were then in the King's hands
In a dispatch from Sentleger to King Henry YIII., Eebruary 21,
1541, there is a long and curious inclosure containing the submission
of the Earl of Desmond, from which the following extract is taken:—
" 1541. Item. If it shall be His Majesties pleasure, that I, the saide
Erie [of Desmond] have the preferment to have the leasse of Crom
and Adar, and other the late Erie of Kyldare's landes, in the countie
of Lymerike, shall pay to the Kinges officers the rentes and profites
' State Papers, Henry VIII., vol ii. p. 366.
p. 182, o State Papers, vol. ii. p. 528.
" Ibid., p. 519.
p Ibid., p. 254, note.
" " Earls of Kildare,"
A.
MAIfOH OP ADAEE.
143
of the same; or els I shall suffer the Kinges officers to lette, as well
the same, as all other the Kinges landes and profites in Mounster in
ferme to others at their pleasure, the fermers whereof I shall defende
agenste all men, &e.
The following extract, from a dispatch of J. Alen to King Henry YIII.,
relates to the Earl of Desmond, and to Adare :■—
" But as I perceyve he wol aske thinges of Your Majesties gyfte,
wherein, like as I thynke it mete, under Your Highnes pardon, for
thincoragement of him to percevere in obedience, that Your Grace sholde
departe with some thinges to hym; so it is goode that Your Highnes be
informed, wherwith ye departe; and not, under clowdes, departe with
gret thinges by the name of small ; as the lordship of Crom and Athdare,
whiche I understande shulde be one of his desyres to passe to hym,
under the name of twenty merkes yerely, which is worth two hundred
merkes by the yere (if he do his dutie); and the same, adjoyneng to
your cittie of Lymericke, is most mete to be in Your Graces awne
handes, especyally if Your Highnes sholde have any Counsell lyeng ther.
But myne advise sholde be raither to gyve hym Abbay lands, in frontures
of his rule next to Irishmen, or nigh to Dublin, which ther lyeng were
a goode pledge alway upon him
A survey of the Manor of Adare was made about the beginning of
Elizabeth's reign, in 1559, of which an extract, alluded to by Archdall
in his Monasticumj is to be found among the Ware MSS. in the British
Museum. The original survey, which has been kindly searched for
among the family documents of the Duke of Devonshire and the Earl
of Cork, unfortunately cannot be found. The extract is here given,
which refers chiefly to the ecclesiastical buildings at Adare, and should
have been more properly inserted in p. 57, as affording some account
of the state of the abbeys between the suppression in the reign of
^ State Papers, Henry VIII., vol. iii. p. 286, note.
' Ibid., p. 392.
U4i
ADAEE.
Henry YIII. and the grant to St. Leger in 1566. The Parish Church
was apparently already disused and partly ruined. Prom the language
used in describing the Trinitarian Abbey, it would seem that the Priars
were in possession of their buildings at the time this survey was made;
but in the account of the Pranciscan Abbey, the use of the past tense
enjoyed " would imply that their Monastery had not been re-occupied
by its former possessors.
[19 I>ee., 1632, lent ly the JEarle of Corhe.
" Out of a Purvey of the Manore of Adare made ly Simon
Barnwell^ 6*" Nov.^ 1559.
" Pirst there standeth by the river of Mage an old broken castle, &c.
"There standeth in the said towne towards the court a parish church,
the body thereof uncovered, the chancell covered w'^ thatch, the parsonage
wherpof the mynister of Adare hath, and the vicarage is of the presen-
tacion, w®^ vicarage hath a manse thear, w^'^ iiij acres of smale mesure
XX
p'cell of the said iiij acres. The sayd mynister as p'son of Adare hath
XX
vj acres of smale measure p'cell of the said iiij acres as William Lacy
Cunstable theare affirmeth, yet wee thinke by leingh and bredth of the
XX
said iiij acres of great measure arrable land may be had besides fre-
dome of parsonage or vicarage.
" There standeth one the sowth syde of the said towne an Abbay
of Priers of the order of the Trynety w''^ hath a crosse of blew and redd
vppon ther brests, of the foundacion of the earles Auncestors as the
XX
minister therof did show, w®^ hath in Castle Pobb iij smale acres w^'^
a messuage, a castle w®^ was lawles lands, and paieth to the yearly
viij® viij^, the sayd mynister hath in Adare a great acre w*'^ certen
gardens, a water mill, a salmon weare, and payeth by the year xviij® viij^.
" There standeth in the said South sid of the water of Mage an other
Abbay of Augustin Pryers, fownded by John, earle of Kildare, sone to
Thomas, w®^ died in an° 1315, and the said earle gaue to the said abby
the village of Modolehy, and certen lands in the towne of Athdare.
\
MANOE OE ADAEE.
145
" Thear is in the east parte of the said towne an Ahhy of Gray fryers,
founded by Thomas late Earle of Kildare, and Johan, Daughter to the
Earle of Desmond his wiffe, aboute the yeare of oure lord 1465, whoe
made the church of the said abby vppon ther owne costs, and gaue two
challeses of sylver, and bought a greate bell for 10", w''" he gaue to the
sayd Abbay, and buylt alsoe the fourth part of the cloister: w®" countes,
daughter to James Earle of Desmond, was buried in the said church,
in a tombe of Stone, vnder a stone that lyeth between the quier, w®"
Countess died 1486.
" The said Earle gaue to the said Abbay the place where it was made,
w^" garden and ouchard place and a certayn bigg close there about and
viij messuages vij acres of smale measure w^" convenient pasture w®" the
officers of the said abbay enioyed ®."
Subsequent to the printing of the history of the Abbey lands, p. 63,
&c., I found the following in the Calendar of Patent Polls, Ireland,
p. 562, in the reign of Charles I. *, by which an additional possessor
of the Abbeys of Adare is brought to light:—
"The King to Loftus,'Chancellor, and the Earl of Cork, Justices,
directing letters patent to Sir J. Jephson, confirming his title to the
Manor of Mallow, the Black and White Abbey of Adare, and Monaster
Gilliagh."
It is observable that the Poor or Franciscan Abbey is not included
in this grant. Thus it appears that some of these lands passed into the
possession of ten different families in one hundred and fifty years after
the suppression in the reign of Henry YIII. The names are, St. Leger,
Zouch, Gold, Eigges, Wallop, Korreis, Jephson, Evans, Ormesby, Quin.
Kotwithstanding that the Desmond branch held Adare during their
wars against the English, it was not forfeited after the Earl's death
in 1583; for, in an inquisition taken after the death of Gerald, the
Add. MSS., Britist Museum, No. 4,821, folio 141, &c. ♦ 6 Charles I., m. 2 dorso.
U
146 ADAEE.
eleventli Earl of Kildare, it appears that he possessed, in the county
of Limerick, the Manors of Croom and Adare^
Appendix I. contains a table, extracted from the books of the Down
Survey made in 1642, shewing the distribution of the forfeited and
other lands about Adare, now forming part of the Quin estates. It is
interesting as indicating the various divisions of the land, and the
persons who held them. The greater portion were granted to Sir Edward
Ormesbey. The Earls of Kildare having previously become Protestants,
their lands were not sequestered. The numbers and figures in the first
column of the table refer to the ancient map of Adare, Plate XXIX.
In a rent-roll of the Earls of Kildare's estate, made March 3, 1656, is
the following entry, for which I am indebted to the present Marquis:—
''County of Limerick, the Manors of Crum, Tubornea% and Adare'',
sett to yerle {sic\ Sir Percy Smith and others at 321", but worth
much more."
In the year 1683, Mr. Thady Quin, of Adare, obtained a lease from
the Earl of Kildare of a portion of his estate about Adare, including
the " Manor mills, and the old bawn (castle), fairs and markets in the
town of Adare, with the customs and tolls of said mills, fairs, and
markets." In 1721, the fee-simple of these lands and manorial rights
was purchased from the Trustees of the Earl of Kildare by Mr. Yalen-
tine Quin, who also bought several additional townlands of the same
estate in the years 1724 and 1726: these purchases included "the
chief rents of the Lordship of Adare; the Court Barony of the said
Manor, with the Eoyalties; and the Advowson of Effin."
The Manor Courts existed down to the establishment of the Petty
Sessions Courts about forty years ago.
" "Earls of Kildare," vol. i. p. 225.
The Manor of Tubornea was in the parish of EfBn. Its extent cannot be now traced,
y The Manor of Adare, according to a paper formerly belonging to the last Seneschal of the Manor,
comprised the parishes of Adare and Drehidtarsna, and part of Kildrino.
VI. MANOR HOUSE.
|IIE earliest portion of the Manor House seems to have been a square
or oblong tower: it formed the room marked Study in the old
house ^ Plate VI. represents the house about one hundred years
ago, or perhaps earlier. There is no record to shew by whom it was erected,
but most probably by Mr. Thady Quin, at the close of the seventeenth
century. About seventy or eighty years ago the walls were raised, a bow-
window was thrown out from the drawing-room, and other alterations
were effected, of which the most important was the change of the entrance
from the south front to the north-west side. Plate VII. gives a view of
the south side of the house, with these alterations, taken about the year
1815. When the present mansion was commenced, a few of the old walls
were preserved and encased in the new work—the north and south walls
of the dining-room, for example, and that between the hall and gallery:
the latter is one of the walls of the old tower, and when it was broken
through to form the door between these two rooms—no easy matter,
for it was as hard as solid rock—a silver coin of considerable antiquity
was found, but unluckily it cannot now be identified. The two plans,
Plate X., are drawn to the same scale, shewing the difference of size in
the two houses, but they are placed on the paper at right angles to each
other, the north point on the smaller being the east on the larger.
The new Manor House has been so fully described that nothing need
here be added; but it may be remarked as an interesting fact, and one
as rare as it is curious, that the greater portion of the building, and that
the boldest in conception and most picturesque in effect, was designed
by an amateur, not a single drawing having been furnished by an
® Vide small plan, Plate X.
U 2
*
148 ADARE,
architect; and a still larger portion was erected without the employment
of either builder or clerk of the works; everything was carried on for
twenty-one years solely under the superintendence of that remarkable
man who was picked out from among the masons by the sagacious eye
of his employer: and well did he justify the confidence reposed in him;
not a single mistake having been made, nor a crack or settlement having
occurred in the work which he executed. His name is chronicled on
the walls of the noble house he built, but none, save those who knew
him well, can be aware of what rare qualities he was possessed; how
strong an intellect, what refined natural taste, how pure a heart,
and what thorough truthfulness of character were combined with a
steadiness, a thoughtfulness, and an unflagging zeal for the undertaking
to which he devoted his life. Bequiescat in pace. May his memory long
be honoured, as assuredly it ought, by the possessors of Adare I
In the hall are to be seen the colours of the Adare corps of the
celebrated Yolunteers of 1782; an interesting relic of one of the rare
occasions when the people of Ireland were united for the promotion
of truly patriotic objects.
MUSEUM.
In page 29 mention is made of a small museum, at present in process
of arrangement; it is of a miscellaneous character, but chiefly composed
of specimens of natural history, including geology, and antiquarian ob¬
jects. Some of its contents are sufficiently interesting to justify their
being described in this work. In the first class may be mentioned a fine
and nearly perfect specimen of the Cervus Megaceros, the celebrated
Irish deer of pre-historic, though probably not of pre-human times.
This skeleton was discovered in the year 1862, in the bog of Cullan, near
Tipperary. It was imbedded in a yellowish marl, underlying the cut¬
out bog. The deepest position of the antlers was from 3 to 3| ft. under
the surface. One of them was broken off close by the head, and was
nearly in its natural position, but one of the jaw-bones lay at a distance
MUSEUM. 149
of 6 ft. from the head. The rest of the skeleton was nearly in its natural
position with reference to the head; but all the hones seemed to have
been detached from each other to distances varying from 2 or 3 in. to
nearly 1 ft., and the legs were crossed one over the other. All the
bones were from 1J to 2 ft. under the surface. The dimensions of the
horns of this animal are—Extreme length from tip to tip, following the
curve of the antlers, 12 ft.; span between the tips, 8 ft. 2 in.; cir¬
cumference of the beam close to the burr, 9 in.; width of the palm,
1 ft. 2 in. This specimen is remarkable as having the incisor teeth
perfect. There were eight pairs of the horns of this gigantic deer in
the hall and vestibule, the finest of which was recently broken to pieces
by falling from its place on the wall. The dimensions of the largest
now remaining are—Extreme length, following the curve, 12 ft. 2 in.;
span between the tips, lift. 4in.; girth of the beam, lljin.; breadth
of the palm, 1 ft. 5 in.; and length of the longest antler, 2 ft. 7 in. The
next in size measures—Extreme length, 12 ft. 6 in. ; span across,
10 ft. 4 in.; girth of the beam, 1 ft.; breadth of the palm, 1 ft. 6 J in.
There is also a reindeer's horn, with a very fine brow antler, which
was found a few years ago at a place called the Inney Ferry, in the
Earony of Iveragh, county of Kerry. Some men were excavating for
the foundation of a lime-kiln; after removing drifted sand to the depth
of 7 ft., they dug through 5 ft. of bog, when the horn was found on
the gravelly bottom. A portion of the skull was attached to it, which
was sawn off by one of the workmen.
In the museum are three meteoric stones, part of a shower of these
singular bodies which passed over Adare in September 10, 1813: they
were picked up in the street of the town. They weigh IO^qOZ., 8^0 oz.,
and 2i^oz. respectively. The largest which was found fell at Faha,
about five miles north-east of Adare; it weighed 54lbs. The course
of the aerolites was from north-east to south-west. A loud rumbling
noise occurred, passing in the same direction, and an unusual lurid
150
AD AEE.
appearance of the sky was noticed shortly before the stones fell, but
this may have been an accidental coincidence
Among the objects of antiquarian interest may be mentioned, 1. the
coins, &c. found at the Abbey; 2. the weapons, &c. found at the Castle;
3. the Mungret coins; 4. the Newcastle spinctrise; 5. the bell of Cashel;
6. the incised stones. The Abbey coins consist of about one hundred
and fifty English, Scotch, and Irish silver pieces, from the reign of John
to that of Charles II., and some of the brass money of James II. About
fifty of them are of Elizabeth's reign, nineteen of Edward I., and sixteen
of Edward III. Some of the other objects found at the Abbey are enu¬
merated in page 79. The most curious of the Castle finds have been de¬
scribed and figured, pp. 126—132; only three coins were dug up in the
moat, all of them late, being, a four-pesata piece of Philip lY., an. 1654;
a Belgian dollar, 1670; and a small coin of Louis XIY., 1676.
Some years ago a considerable number of Anglo-Saxon coins and small
ingots of silver were discovered by some workmen in opening a quarry
in a field near the old churches of Mungret. This place was celebrated
as one of the ancient Irish colleges and monastic establishments.
According to the "Annals," Anglo-Saxon youths frequently came over
to be educated by the Irish monks, and Mungret is mentioned as one
of the colleges to which they resorted. Seven of the ingots of silver,
and nine of the coins, in beautiful preservation, came into my possession:
the weight of the former varies from 19J dwt. to 4J dwt. Dr. Aquila
Smith kindly furnished me with the following description of these
coins:—
Eadwewrd the Elder, a.d. 901—924.
1. •^•eadweaed . eex. Head to the left. Eeverse, Blundered. This variety is men¬
tioned in Ending's " Annals of the Coinage."
2. 4* EADWEAED . EEX. Eeverse, -etheeed . M:o(netarius).
3. 4" eadweaed. Broken. Eeverse, A church. A perfect coin of this type, &c., is en¬
graved in Ending, Elate XYI. fig. 18.
4. (Ead)vrEAED. Broken. Eeverse, eeithe(herht).
^ For further information concerning this remarkable fall of meteorites, vide Appendix K.
MUSEUM. 151
Regnald, King of Korthumbria, a,d. 912—944.
5. (Eegn)ald . cTif(ul). Eeverse, 4* atba. A perfect specimen of this type, which is
of the highest rarity, is engraved in Ending, Plate II.
^thelstan, a.d. 924—940.
6. "J" .aithelstan' . eex. Eeverse, galhstaet . MO (monetarius). This moneyer is un¬
published.
7. 4" (^t^6ls)TAK . EEx . TO . (Br), (i.e. Totius Britanniae).
> Kadred, a.d. 946—955.
8. •J-eadhed . bex. Eeverse, hvnbed . mo (monetarius).
9. A fragment.
In the collection of coins is a Hyberno-Danish one, of the tenth or
eleventh century, but where found 1 cannot at present make out.
At l^ewcastle, a town twelve miles west of Adare, there is an old
castle which belonged to the Knights Templars, now fitted up as the
residence of the agent of the Earl of Devon. At the beginning of the
present century a tradition prevailed among the people, which may
perhaps still exist, that a body of knights lived there, against whom the
inhabitants rose up on account of their immoral practices. About sixty
years ago, in digging somewhere in or about the castle, a number of
extraordinary medalets were found, of which five were given to the late
Lord Dunraven by Mr. Locke, the agent of the Devon estates. These
are clearly the spinctrise of Tiberius's reign®; they are supposed to be
bath-tickets. . On one side is a Eoman numeral, and on the reverse
a representation which will not bear description.
In Pinkerton's Essay on Medals they are thus noticed:—
" The last pieces I shall mention are those with the heads of emperors
on one side, reverse only numerals, iii., iv., v., viii., &c., and the noted
spinctriati of Tiberius. Both of these kinds appear tickets for the baths,
as the number seems to denote the particular bath The spinctriati
In Ainsworth's dictionary the word " spinctrise " is explained " repertores monstrosi eoncnbitus."
153
ADAEE.
are so immodest that few will bear mention. But some are merely
ludicrous, as," &c.
At the British Museum there are several specimens of both classes,
but it is not known how or whence they were obtained; some of them
are identical with those in the Museum at Adare. The Newcastle find
is, I believe, unique in Ireland, and I am not aware whether any such
medalets have been discovered in England. How they came into pos¬
session of the Templars at Newcastle, must remain a mystery; but the
fact of their turning up at that spot is most remarkable as connected
with, and illustrative of, the tradition above mentioned.
The accompanying woodcut represents a very fine ancient bronze
ecclesiastical bell, found at Cashel in 1849. It is 1 ft. high, 9| in. wide,
and in. deep. The cross and orna¬
mentation are more delicate and less
prominent than they appear in the
drawing.
Dr. Petrie, in a letter to me, says
of this bell:—
"A few words about your fine an¬
cient quadrangular bell. This clog^ for
its superior size, weight, and incised
ornamented cross, is almost a unique
example of what we might well be¬
lieve to have been a round-tower bell;
for I have seen but one other simi¬
lar, and in every respect equal to it: I allude to the bell of Bangor,
which is now in the possession of Dr. Stevenson, of Belfast. These
bells are obviously of contemporaneous age, and, as I believe, both
of the seventh century: they are certainly not of an age later than
the eighth."
The following specimen of an ancient Irish stone hammer is inserted,
n. J.-.'Vn
Bronze Bell, Adare.
MUSEIJM
153
as being a good example of its rare class. It is 4J in. long, in. wide
at the sharp end, and If in. thick.
The inscribed stones, marked ITo. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, are among the most
curious which have yet been observed in Ireland. They were all found in
the western portion of the Dingle promontory, in Kerry, a district replete
with objects of archeeological interest, and were brought to Adare about
ten years ago. They were not in situ^ otherwise they would not have
been removed, but were lying in ditches, or open fields, liable to be
broken or obliterated. The following extract from a letter of Dr. Petrie's,
states all that at present is known concerning these remarkable objects:—
" "With reference to the antiquity of your incised Kerry crosses, I do
not know what I can add to the simple expression of my opinion that
I consider them unquestionably of the fifth, or at the latest sixth,
century; and perhaps I should add that such cross-inscriptions, as
well as the letters dnp, dni, dno; or dnp, dni, dno, which so often
accompany them—abbreviations of Dominus^ Domini^ Domino—are almost
peculiar to the ancient territory of Kerry and its Islands, in which such
remains, like its Ogham inscriptions, are so common, and in which
I cannot but believe that Christianity was first planted."
Kos. 1 and 2 are the opposite sides of the same stone, which was
stone Hammer.
X
154 ADAEE.
obtained from, the townland of Eeask. The length of the stone is
Inscribed Stone, Ho. 1. Inscribed Stone, Ho. 2.
3 ft. 9 in. The letters on No. 1 are dnp, Domims. The inscription on
the opposite side is perhaps dno, Domino.
No. 3. A very singular stone, which was found near an old fort, in
the vicinity of''Ballydavid, about the year 1816, and was dug out of
MUSEUM. 155
the ground from a depth of -4 ft. below the surface, and afterwards built
into a ditch by the man who found it, but not shewn to any one, as~
he considered its possession an omen of good luck. This account was
received from Eennedy, a respectable Coastguard man stationed at Bally-
da vid. It is 3 ft. 6 in. in length, and 2 ft. 3 in. in breadth. I know
of no inscription similar to this upon any Irish or British stone.
No. 4. This stone measures I ft. 4 in. across, at what may be called
the base of the triangle, and I ft. 6 in.
on the right - hand side, as viewed
on the paper, and is 3 in. thick.
Dr. Petrie observes:—
"I think your triangular stone a
unique specimen; I have never seen
or heard of anything like it, and I
believe it, from the style of ornamen¬
tation, to be very ancient."
Some have imagined that it formed
one limb of a cross; but to those who
have seen the stone, such a supposition
is inadmissible. Dean Graves has suggested that it may have been
a portable altar. It was picked up at Kilvichadownig, near Pahan, where
the very remarkable collection of cloghans or beehive-houses exists,
first noticed by Dean Graves and myself, and afterwards so well de¬
scribed in an interesting paper by Mr. G. Y. DuUoyer, in the Journal
of the Archaeological Institute, vol. xv., 1858. On the side opposite
to that shewn in the drawing are the indistinct marks of a somewhat
similar cross, as if the design had been begun on this side, and then
abandoned.
I^'o. 5. This most curiously inscribed stone was discovered lying near
the burial-ground at Beask, in a very precarious position. It measures
2 ft. 10 in. in length, by I ft. II in. in breadth. It is a flagstone not
156
ADAEE.
2 in. thick, and liable to have been easily broken. There is another
stone at Eeask of a somewhat similar character, but without the inter-
Inscribed Stone, Ko. 5.
laced work. By very careful rubbings, the whole design, except the
bottom of the cross, has been brought out, as shewn in the woodcut.
Dr. Petrie is of opinion that this stone is sepulchral, and that its inter¬
laced ornaments are probably symbolical of the Holy Trinity.
These stones are all of the hard sandstone of the district, and the
incised work is executed by a sort of punch, not by a chisel.
OGHAM STONES.
Although not, strictly speaking, belonging to the Museum, the col¬
lection of stones, bearing the celebrated Ogham characters, which have
been erected in the pleasure-grounds, may fitly be described in this place.
1
OGHAM STONES.
157
They are five in number, and were all brought from the county of Kerry.
Ko. 1 was lying on the ground on the southern slope of Mangerton
mountain, broken into two pieces. Ko. 2 was found in a ditch near
Kilgarvan. Kos. 3, 4, 5, are from the townland of Laharan, parish of
Kilbonane, near Killarney, the property of D. Shine Lawler, Esq.
Kos. 3 and 4 were built into the wall of a farm-house in the occupation
of P. Quirk, Ko. 3 forming a lintel over one of the windows; Ko. 6
was used as one of the covering-stones of a gullet across the road
close by. Eepresentations are here given of Kos. 3 and 4 as they now
are erected. The first stands 5 ft. 3 in. above ground. Dean Graves
has kindly sent me his reading of the inscription;—Macui (the son of)
ritte^ macui colabot. And he adds: " I am disposed to identify the name
'Macui Eitte' with Mac Eethe, which occurs more than once in the
pedigrees collected by M" Eirbis. Ko. 4 stands about 7 ft. high. The
inscription, reading as usual from the bottom upwards on each side,
Ogkam Stones in tlie Pleasure-grounds, Adaxe Manor.
158 ADARE.
is by the same authority, coillalhotas macui corhi macui mocoicmrai; con¬
cerning which Dean Graves says:—
" Colabot or Coillabotas is equivalent to Caolbad, a name not rare in
ancient pedigrees, and occurring in the Book of Armagh as that ef a pierson
contemporary with St. Patrick. Gorb is one of the most remarkable
early Pagan names occurring in the southern pedigrees."
The inscription on No. 5 is, in English letters, corhagni macui hififi;
to this inscription the Dean attaches particular interest, as will appear
whenever his too long deferred work on the Ogham character is published.
There is a fort in the vicinity of this farm-house at Laharan, from
which these stones are said to have been taken about twenty-five years
ago. Mr. Drew, the proprietor, from whom this information was derived,
permitted us to make excavations in the fort; we found a portion of one
of the chambers which exist in almost all these Kerry forts, but no
more Oghams. These, like the stones in the well-known fort at Dunloe,
may have been brought from their original site, and employed, as they
are there, for side and covering stones in the narrow passage or chamber
of the fort. Mr. Shine Lawler very kindly offered me these fine speci¬
mens of the Ogham character, and as none of them, were in their original
locality, I willingly accepted his offer.
The cedars, close to which these stones are placed, were planted by
the Dowager Lady Dunraven, on her first arrival at Adare in 1812, and
are growing most luxuriantly.
DEMESNE.
The Demesne of Adare dates probably from Mr. Donough Quin's time,
or that of his son Thady, who appears to have gone from Beabush to
reside at Adare about two hundred years ago.
The, line of trees shewn in Plate YI. on the sides of the broad walk
have entirely disappeared. Just outside the gate the road ran at right
DEMESNE.
159
angles up to the present stable-yard, with a double row of elms on each
side; from this point the two avenues extend, one to the town, and the
other to the Deer Park. What trees remained of the avenues between
the stable-yard and the house all blown down in IS'oyember, 1814.
An old man, who died nine years ago, in his eightieth year, told me
that some little time after. he came to Adare as a boy, he remembered
seeing the fine row of beech-trees, west of the house planted; he also
recollects the house being raised, and the bow-window added to the drawing-
room, and the stables and kennel being near the row of great elms by
the river; also a very fine yew hedge cut into arches, running froni north
to south, along the edge of the roadway close to the house. According
to him, the wall bounding the north and east sides of the Demesne was
built between seventy and eighty years ago, and the Limerick approach
and bridge date from about the same time. He remembered an old road
called the Friars' road leading from the Abbey, through the gateway on
the south side, and then joining the Croom road, which, he added, was
reckoned one of the oldest.in the. county. There .Were formerly some
very fine lime and ash-trees, forming a portion of the avenue leading
to the Deer Park; they were cut down about the beginning of .this
century, probably from being decayed and mutilated by storms.
At the south end of the Demesne are the ruins of a house, built in
connexion with an old square tower, but never finished; which, family
tradition says, was intended for a younger son, of either Thady Quin or
his son Valentine, but fortunately he died before it was alienated from the
family place. It is surrounded by rows of old elms, which are fast de¬
caying. About ninety years ago, Mrs, Edwin, grandmother of the present
Dowager Lady Dunraven, went over to Ireland to visit some friends,
and on her way to Killarney was received at Adare: she returned there
after the marriage of her granddaughter, and mentioned among other
things, how struck she and her party had been on her former visit, by
the magnificence of the elm avenues: this coiToborates Arthur Young's
testimony, mentioned in the beginning of this book.
160
ADARE.
The Deer Park, containing about 250 acres, is separated from the
Demesne by the high road to Eathkeale. It was formerly filled with
old oaks and thorns, the greater portion of which were cut down about
sixty or seventy years ago: there are still some fine specimens of these
trees remaining, the representatives of the native woods, which once
probably reached to and fringed the banks of the Maigue, giving to the
place the name of Athdara, ' the ford of the oak.' The wood of the Irish
oak is, as is well known, of great durability, and the grain very beautiful,
but liable to warp, and therefore scarcely fit for carving; some of the
Deer Park oaks are said to have been worked up for the mills at Carass,
of which portions were bought by the late Lord Dunraven, and are
now made into the hall wainscoting. There is a beam of Irish oak
in the staircase, taken from the foundations of old Thomond Bridge,
which must have been many centuries old at the time of its removal.
Lord Dunraven enlarged and replanted the Deer Park, and laid out
drives through it with the same rare combination of taste and skill as
is so strikingly exhibited in the design and execution of the Manor
House.
In the year 1850 the Demesne contained between 800 and 900 acres.
When the various improvements, which have been for some time in
progress, including considerable plantations, are completed, it will be
very largely increased: the outlying woods, which skirt the Demesne,
one-third of which are recently planted, will extend to about 200 acres,
forming, with the Deer Park, a total of above 1,600 acres. The river
Maigue runs for upwards of two miles through these grounds, into the
lower end of which the spring-tides flow; and as high water then occurs
from six to nine o'clock, every facility is afforded for rowing down to the
Shannon, fourteen miles, and returning the same evening.
VII. O'QUIN OF INCHIQUIN.
HE O'Quins of Inchiquin, in the county of Clare, chiefs of Muinter ^
Iffernain, one of the clans of the Dalcassian race, so renowned in
Irish history for their warlike propensities, were settled in very
early times at Corofin, near the lake of Inchiquin, and from them the
Barony of Inchiquin, or O'Quin's Island, is derived. Among the vols,
published by the Irish Archseological Society, is one on the battle of
Magh-Eath (pronounced Moira): this work contains a genealogical table
compiled by the late Dr. O'Donovan; it is taken from those truly valu¬
able repertories of Irish history and genealogy, the Books of Leccan and
Mac Eirbis, and the authentic Irish Annalists. This table shews the de¬
scent of the principal Munster tribes from Olioll Olum, who was king of
that province towards the middle of the third century of our era. Erom
his eldest son Eoghan-more, spring the leading tribes of Desmond, or
South Munster, including the Mac Carthys, frequently kings of Desmond,
the O'Callaghans, O'Donovans, &c.; while from Cormac Cas, the second
son, descend the royal race of the O'Briens, hereditary kings of Thomond
and alternate kings of Munster, the Mac Namaras, &c., &c., including
the kindred septs of O'Dea and O'Quin.
The fifteenth in descent of th6 O'Quins from Cormac Cas was Ifernan,
Anglice Hell-hound; from him the clan name was taken. Erom the
twentieth. Conn, the surname O'Cuinn (now spelt Quin) is derived. His
son, Hiall O'Cuinn, was slain in the great battle of Clontarf, a.d. 1014.
The event is thus described in Mageoghegan's translation of the "Annals
of Clonmacnoise—
"And of the other side were slain King Brian Borowe, then greatest
® Muinter signifies ' tribe or family/
y
163
ADAEE.
monarch in these parts of Europe, then of the age of eighty-eight
years; his nephew, Conyng Mac Doncwoane; Prince Murrough, his
(Brian's) son, then of the age of sixty-three years; Terence, the
king's grandchild, then about the age of fifteen years, who was found
drowned near the fishing weare of Clontarfe, with both his hands fast
bound in the hair of a Dane's head, whom he pursued to the sea at
the time of the flight of the Danes; Mothia Mac Donell, Mac Foylan,
Prince of the Desies of Munster; Eochy Mac Downie, Neale O'Coyn,
and Cowdoylye Mac Kynnedy, three noblemen of the king's bed¬
chamber," &c., &c., &c.
The account in the "Annals of Innisfallen," translated by O'Elanagan,
describes these three as "Brians, three companions or aide-de-camps,"
and spells the name " Niall O'Cuinn." In this justly celebrated battle
three generations of the reigning house were slain; the heroic old
monarch, the heir-apparent to the throne, and his son. Hiall O'Quin's
grandson, Core, was tutor to Muirchertach O'Brian, King or Prince of
Thomond in 1142.
The "Annals of Innisfallen," a.d. 1171, record the death of Dermot
O'Quin, by Eoderic 0'Conor, King of Connaught.
In the "Annals of the Four Masters," at the year 1188, it is recorded
that " Edaoin, daughter of O'Quin, Queen of Munster, died on her pil¬
grimage at Derry, victorious over the world and the devil." She appears
to have been the widow of Murtogh O'Brien, who died without issue in
1168, and was succeeded by his brother, Donald More, the last king
of all Munster.
In 1197 the " Annals of Innisfallen" have the following entry:—
"Connor Eoe, son of Donell More O'Brien, turned against his own
brother Donogh Cairbreach, and brought the English with him into
Thomond, and Cumea Mac Kamara, Conor O'Quin, and a great many
more were slain by them."
This was the commencement of the celebrated wars of Thomond,
o'quin oe inchiquin. 163
between the great family of De Clare, aided by a few of the O'Briens
and other Dalcassians on one side, and the O'Briens and the principal
tribes of Thomond on the other; which, after lasting about a century,
terminated in the final overthrow of the De Clares and their allies. It
seems to have been at that time, or perhaps rather later, that the
O'Quins, O'Gradys, and other clans were driven out of Clare, and
settled in Limerick, placing the broad waters of the Shannon between
them and their ancient patrimonies.
The following extract from a letter dated January, 1850, which I re¬
ceived from my lamented friend, the late Professor O'Curry, contains an
interesting, and, as coming from so high an authority, a valuable notice
relative to the O'Quins:—
Cas had thirteen sons, from whom the Dalcassian tribes descend.
Of these sons, Aengus-Cenn-Kathrach (Aengus of the Serpent Hill or
Head), and Aengus-Cenn-Aitinn (Aengus of the Furze Hill), were two.
From the former descends O'Dea and other tribes of the now Barony
of Inchiquin, (Insi-ui-Chuinn, or O'Quinn's Island); and from the other
descend the O'Cuinn (or O'Quin) and Inghean Baith (the daughter of
Baith), who founded Kilnaboy, and was the patroness of the O'Quinn and
his co-relatives.
" Mac Firbis appears to think that Aengus of the Serpent Head, and
Aengus of the Furze Head, were but one person. There is little doubt
that the Serpent Head was remembered in the banners of the tribe in
after times, and was not an invention of Dermod O'Conor's, nor of
Terry; and, excepting the Eed Hand of Mac Enis, which the O'^N^eills
usurp, it is perhaps the oldest and most historical coat of arms or clan
emblem in Ireland. Motto,— Cenn Nathrach Aboo ! The Serpent Hill
was one of the royal residences of the kings of Munster. See the
' Book of Eights.' "
The arms of the O'Quins and the O'Deas are registered in an old MS.
authority in the Herald's Ofiice, Dublin, entitled, " Smith's Ordinary of
y2
164 ADAEE.
Arms, Ulster's Office." The subjoined sketches of the same arms are
copied from O'Connor's edition of Keating.
Arms of O'Dea. Arms of O'duin.
The following drawing of an inscribed stone, now in the museum at
Adare, is subjoined here as containing the name of Quin. It was brought,
Inscrilied Stone. Ko. 5.
some years ago, from Inis-cealtra, or Holy Island, in Lough Derg.
The stone is 2 ft. long, by 1 ft. 6 in. broad. The inscription in English
is, ' A prayer for Conn;' and Dr. Petrie considers the date to be of the
ninth or tenth century.
o'quin op inchiquin.
165
In the celebrated Irish topographical poems of O'Dugain and O'Heerin,
translated and edited for the Archaeological Society in 1862, by Dr.
O'Donovan, a short notice of O'Quin is to be found. This edition
contains a most curious and valuable treatise on ancient Irish names,
and their various transformations into their English equivalents. It
was the last contribution to our early literature by one of the greatest
topographical scholars that Ireland ever produced. These poems were
written in the fourteenth century, and describe the localities of the
different Irish tribes, clans, &c., at the time of the English invasion:—
" To O'Cuinn of the candid heart
Belongs the extensive Mnintir-Ifearnain,
The fruitful land of the fine youth
Lies round the festive Cora-Finne
The following letter from Dr. Petrie, written as far back as 1841,
is interesting in connection with the 0'Quins:—
" 21, Great Charles-street^ Dvhlin^
" September 28, 1841.
" My dear Lord,
" The notice of the family sepulchre of the 0'Quins of Inchiquin, in
the old church of Xilnaboy, of which I was speaking to you is, as written
on the spot, as follows:—
"No part of this church (Kilnaboy) appears to be older than the
fourteenth century, except the west gable, which appears to be as old
as the eleventh century j and there is a tradition here that the whole
of this church, excepting the west gable, was battered down by Crom¬
well's soldiers, and subsequently rebuilt by the O'Briens of Inchiquin.
" There is a circular low archway of cut stone in the north wall (at
the ground) near the east gable, which tradition says was the entrance
to the family sepulchral vault of O'Quin, which vault was within the
choir, but no vestiges of it now remain.
•> p. 125.
166
ADAEE.
" If tradition be correct as to the owners of this family sepulchre, and
there is no reason to doubt its truth, it would follow that the O'Quins
must have been the builders or rebuilders of the church in the eleventh
century, and very possibly the builders of the Bound tower also, which
it is most probable was erected at the same period.
" Of this tow^er only a fragment now remains. It is 13 ft. in height,
and 52 ft. 6 in. in circumference at its base, and stands 52 ft. north of
the centre of the north wall of the church. It is built very roughly
of oblong squared stones laid in irregular courses; has no vestige of
doorway or other aperture, and on its south side appears to have been
battered by cannon, a circumstance very likely to have occurred during
Ireton's sojourn in Clare.
"Believe me always,
" My dear Lord, with true respect,
"Yours faithfully,
" Geoege Peteie."
Dr. Petrie, some years ago, contributed to the " Irish Penny Jour¬
nal" a paper containing a description of the lake of Inchiquin, and
a curious legend connected with the expulsion or removal of the
O'Quius from their ancient patrimony, from which the following ex¬
tracts are taken:—
"The lake of Inchiquin is situated in the parish of Kilnaboy, barony
of Inchiquin, and is about two miles and a-half in circumference. It is
bounded on its western side by a range of hills rugged but richly wooded,
and rising abruptly from its margin. One solitary island alone appears
on its surface, unless that be ranked as one on which the ancient castle
is situated, and which may originally have been insulated, though no
longer so. The castle, which is situated at the northern side of the
lake, though greatly dilapidated, is still a picturesque and interesting
ruin, consisting of the remains of a barbican tower, keep, and old
mansion-house attached to it; and its situation on a rocky island or
peninsula standing out in the smooth water, with its grey walls relieved
O'QUIN OE INCHIQTJIN. 167
by the dark masses of the wooded hills behind, is eminently striking
and imposing.
It is from this island or peninsula that the barony takes its name;
and from this also the chief of the O'Briens, the Marquis of Thomond,
derives his more ancient title of Earl of Inchiquin. For a long period
it was the principal residence of the chiefs of this great family, to one
of whom it unquestionably owes its origin; but we have not been able
to ascertain with certainty the name of its founder, or date of its erection.
There is, however, every reason to ascribe its foundation to Tiege O'Brien,
king or lord of Thomond, who died, according to the " Annals of the Four
Masters," in 1466, as he is the first of his name on record who made it
his residence, and as its architectural features are most strictly cha¬
racteristic of the style of the age in which he fiourished.
" The locality, as its name indicates, and as history and tradition
assures us, was the ancient residence of the 0'Quins, a family of equal
antiquity with the O'Briens, and of the same stock,—namely, the Dal
Gas, or descendants of Cormac Gas, the son of Ollioll Oluim, who was
monarch of Ireland in the beginning of the third century. The 0'Quins
were chiefs of the clan called Hy-Ifearnan, and their possessions were
bounded by those of the O'Deas on the east, the O'Loughlins and
O'Gonnors (Gorcomroe) on the west and north-west, the O'Hynes on
the north, and the O'Hehirs on the south. At what period and from
what circumstance the O'Quins lost their ancient patrimony, we have
not been able to discover; but it would appear to have been about the
middle or perhaps close of the fourteenth century, to which time their
genealogy as chiefs is recorded in that invaluable repository of Irish
family history, the book of Mac Firbis; and it would seem most probable
that they were transplanted by the O'Briens about this period to the
county of Limerick, in which they are subsequently found. Their
removal is indeed differently accounted for in a popular legend still
current in the barony, and which, according to our recollections of it,
is to the following effect:—
"In the youth of the last O'Quin, of Inchiquin, he saw from his
168
AD A !R)E.
residence a number of swans of singular beauty frequenting the west
side of the lake, and wandering along its shore. Wishing, if possible,
to possess himself of one of them, he was in the habit of concealing
himself among the rocks and woods in its vicinity, hoping that he might
take them by surprise, and he was at length successful; one of them
became his captive, and was secretly carried to his residence, when, to
his amazement and delight, throwing off her downy covering, she as¬
sumed the form of a beautiful woman, and shortly after became his wife.
Previous to the marriage, however, she imposed certain conditions on
her lover as the price of her consent, to which he willingly agreed.
These were—first, that their union should be kept secret; secondly,
that he should not receive any visitors at his mansion, particularly these
of the O'Briens; and lastly, that he should wholly abstain from gambling.
For some years these conditions were strictly adhered to; they lived in
happiness together, and two children blessed their union. But'it hap¬
pened unfortunately at length that at the neighbouring races of Good
he fell in with the O'Briens, by whom he was hospitably treated; and
being induced to indulge in too much wine, he forgot his engagements
to his wife, and invited them to his residence on a certain day to repay
their kindness to him. His wife heard of this invitation with sadness,
but proceeded without remonstrance to prepare the feast for his guests.
But she did not grace it with her presence; and when the company had
assembled, and were engaged in merriment, she withdrew to her own
apartment, to which she called her children, and after embracing them
in a paroxysm of grief, which they could not account for, she took her
original feathery covering from a press in which it had been kept,
arrayed herself in it, and assuming her pristine shape, plunged into the
lake, and was never seen afterwards. On the same night, O'Quin, again
forgetful of the promises he had made her, engaged in play with Tiege-an-
Cood O'Brien, the most distinguished of his guests, and lost the whole
of his property.
" The reader is at liberty to believe as much or as little of this story
as he pleases; but at all events the legend is valuable in a historical
o'quin oe inchiquin. 169
point of view, as indicating the period when the lands of Inchiquin
passed into the hands of the O'Brien family; nor is it wholly improbable
that under the guise of a wild legend may be concealed some indistinct
tradition of such a real occurrence as that O'Quin made a union long
kept hidden, with a person of inferior station, and that its discovery—
as in case of Thomas, the sixth Earl of Desmond—drew upon his head
the vengeance of his proud compeers, and led to their removal to another
district of the chiefs of the clan Hy-Ifearnan.
''Be this, however, as it may, the ancient family of O'Quin—more
fortunate than most other Irish families of noble origin—has never sunk
into obscurity, or been without a representative of aristocratic rank;
and it can at present boast of a representative among the nobility of the
empire in the person of its justly presumed chief, the noble Earl of
Dunraven, and Mount Earl."
Another legend relating to the same event, written by a gentleman
well versed in the legendary lore of these wild but strikingly picturesque
districts, is taken from the "Illustrated Dublin Journal." It is called
" The Golden Butterfly—
"After visiting the stupendous cliffs of Moher, the tourist who pro¬
ceeds inland and climbs to the summit of a certain steep mountain in
the parish of Kilnaboy, county Clare, will see shining beneath him in
the summer sunlight the beautiful lake of Inchiquin, with its solitary
island and its ruined castle.
" Like many another Irish lake, the waters of Inchiquin are said to
roll over the domes and palaces of a submerged city. The solitary
fisherman who rows his light skiff or curragh over its smooth expanse
on a calm summer evening, still believes that he can see
" The rotmd towers of other days
In the waves beneath him shining"—
and will tell you a tale of a remote ancestor of the 0'Quins, in which
that hero is represented in the act of being overwhelmed by the raging
waters, castle, town, and all, on account of some offence against one
z
170 ADABE.
of the fairy potentates of the locality. Be this as it may, we will now
come to the last O'Quin who ruled over the wild and romantic territory
of Hy-Ifearnan, his ancient patrimony, and relate the cause of his
expulsion from that region of mountain and moor, lake and tumbling
river, together with his migration at the head of his broken clan across
the Shannon, and his settlement in the county Limerick, where his
descendants remain to the present day, still holding a considerable
portion of the rich lands of which they originally , took possession.
" In the castle of Inchiquin dwelt Donal, an aged chief, whose youth
and manhood had been spent in battle and turmoil, but who now in
his old age determined to throw aside targe and spear and iron glove,
and spend the remainder of his days governing his broad lands in peace
and equity. Of all Donal's children none remained to cheer his heart
as he trod the final stages of life's troublous journey, save his youngest
s on, Eory the Black, a youth of whom the old chief was very proud, and
who was already renowned for both his personal beauty and for his many
knightly accomplishments. At the period to which we allude, young
Eory the Black was just after leaving the ancient monastery of Kilfenora,
in which he had been educated from his childhood, and from which he
had never been allowed to come forth, save on such times as he was sent
to the wars to learn the profession of arms, or during the great days of
festival held by his clan in their merry principality of Hy-Ifearnan.
" One day, after his departure from Eilfenora and final settlement
in his father's castle of Inchiquin, young Eory went out to hunt.
Unattended by either headsman or horse-varlet, he crossed the rugged
chain of mountains that overhung the lake, and rode down into a deep
glen, through the bosom of which a murmuring brown stream rolled
down sparkling in the sunlight. After traversing several miles of this
glen with his four gray stag-hounds behind him, the green forest beneath
which he rode gradually became more stunted, and at length disappeared
altogether, when before him opened a wide, stern, and solitary valley,
without a single shrub or tree to hide its grim rocks and barren hollows.
On making the circuit round the base of a huge crag that towered over
O'QIJIN OE INCHIQTJIN. 171
the turbulent stream, he looked up the valley and saw a huge red stag
rushing down its eastern slope, with a man who ran with extraordinary
swiftness in close pursuit behind him. This strange hunter was clad in
the skins of beasts, and held a short bright spear in his hand, which he
cast at the stag as the latter with a bound cleared the broad bed of the
torrent. He missed his aim, however, and the spear stuck quivering deep
in the green sward on the further bank, while the stag bounded swiftly
up the other slope of the valley. And now the hunter, also with a single
bound, cleared the stream, snatched up his weapon, and with chest bent
forward and head erect darted up the hill at a speed that soon brought
him within his original distance of the panting stag. But beyond that
distance he seemed unable to advance as both swept up the hill, till at
last they disappeared from the view of Eory the Black beyond its verge.
''The young chief now rode farther up the valley, expecting to see
no more of the hunter and the stag; but after a short time they appeared
retracing their headlong course, and enacting over again what had oc¬
curred at the crossing of the torrent. Six times was all this repeated,
during which Eory had great difficulty in preventing his hounds from
darting forward and joining in the marvellous chace. At the seventh
time, just as the hunter had thrown his spear, and was in the act of
springing across the glen, his foot caught in a looped ivy stem that
stretched along the edge, and he was thrown headlong into the deep
pool of water beneath. Eory knew that such a hunter had but little
to fear from the narrow pool of a mountain torrent, and seeing the stag
rush up the hill, he found himself unable to resist the temptation any
longer, so, throwing the bridle loose and touching his steed with the
spur, he called merrily to his hounds and dashed in pursuit. The stag
had got a good start, and as Eory gained the ridge or spine of the hill,
was half way down the slope at the other side. But now both steed and
hounds went bravely downward, and began to gain upon the deer, till
the latter, coming to the base of an immense wall of rock at the bottom,
turned upward in a circular course, and went back again in full career
for the first valley, where, instead of directly crossing the stream as he
172
ADAEE.
did previously, he now rushed obliquely along the slopes and rocks
towards the extreme end, and there turning, came down at a thundering
pace on the opposite side, with Eory and his baying hounds still close
upon his track. Another round of the immense valley, and again the
stag came down, now on the very brink of the roaring stream. Just
as he had gained the spot where his first pursuer fell, however. Bran,
Eory's best hound, seized him by the haunch, and after a violent struggle,
during which the other dogs had come up, all rolled over the abrupt edge
into the stream. Eory, on coming to the spot, dismounted and looked
down. The huge stag was stretched dead beneath upon the sand, and
the hounds were quietly lapping the cool water beside him. The strange
hunter, however, was nowhere to be seen, till Eory, after descending the
steep side of the glen and making a close search, at last found him lying
npon a damp bank, apparently dead from the effects of his fall.
''After a copious sprinkling of water from the stream, the stranger
at length began to revive, and was soon able to stand and account
for himself.
"'Young future Chief of Inchiquin,' he said, 'thou hast done me
a service, for which I will repay thee well.'
" 'Who art thou?' returned Eory; 'for I never saw a man in thy
strange guise amid these mountains before.'
" ' I am Merulan the Wizard,' answered the stranger.
"'Take thy stag, then,' said Eory. 'Wert thou another hunter
I might claim him for myself, seeing that my hounds have killed him;
but, by my knightly faith, it were pity to deprive hunter like thee
of such spoil. Take him;—or, stay; come to my father's house, and
thou shalt have good cheer during many a merry moon.'
" ' I cannot go,' answered Merulan, ' but I thank thee none the less.
Thou and thine wert ever bountiful to the poor and friendless from gene¬
ration to generation, since the day that the mighty Olliol Oluim put his
sword in the scabbard, and made the wise laws for the sons of Inisfail.'
" ' Why canst thou not come ?' said Eory, looking kindly on Merulan.
' Thou hast nought to bind thee to one spot, so come with me, and we
o'qtjin op inchiqijin. 173
shall have feasting and merry revel for many a day in the old halls
of Inchiquin.'
" ' It cannot he,' returned Merulan. ^ I mnst spend a year and a day
in the cave that lies beneath yonder crag. The stag the hounds have
killed will give me food for a long time; and,' continued he, with
a smile of strange sweetness and benevolence, 'when I want another,
thou hast seen enough of me to-day to shew thee that I cannot die with
hunger whilst a single deer bides,within these mountains. However,
for the service thou hast done me, take this,' and putting his hand into
his leathern pouch he drew therefrom the semblance of a butterfly,
carved in flashing gold, and handed it to Rory. One of the legs of
the glittering little image was pointed like the pin of a brooch. ' Take
this,' continued he, ' and place it as a clasp for thy plume. As yet thy
heart is kind and full of equity, but when thou growest older, the world
may change thee, as it changeth every mortal man. Wear this, however,
above thy forehead, and as long as thou doest right it will continue to
shine brightly as thou seest it now; hut the moment the doing of a bad
deed enters into thy heart, it will cease to shine, and become dull and
dark as the damp sod beneath our feet.'
" Eory, after looking with delight on the strange gift, placed it as
a clasp to the plume of his light-barred cap. Merulan, with another
smile, bade him farewell, and then both left the glen, Eory riding across
the ridge into another valley, and the wizard bearing the body of the
stag towards his solitary cave.
" When Eory had crossed the range of mountains, the mighty and
rugged spurs of which shot out into a wide plain, a great forest extended
itself before him, within the mazes of which he, wound his horn merrily
and hunted all day long, till the sun seemed resting beyond upon the
far glittering waves of the boundless ocean. He then bethought himself
of returning, but before he did so dismounted and sat down upon a green
bank, in a flowery dell surrounded by many a silver birch and waving
rowan-tree. At last the sun set, and the dim shadows of twilight began
to steal upon the resting-place of the young hunter. He now took off his
174
AD AEE.
barred-cap, and looked again upon the golden butterfly. Its two minute
eyes seemed of diamonds, and as the dark shadows gathered down faster
and faster, and made a gloom upon all the forest around, the wonderful
image emitted a light that seemed to fill the whole glade, and enabled
him to distinguish the smallest leaf or blade of grass, even to a point far
in between the trunks of the encircling trees. After gazing and wonder¬
ing for some time, he again mounted his steed, and calling his hounds,
proceeded through the forest homeward, the magic plume-clasp lighting
his way through dark recesses and tangled paths with a brilliancy far
transcending that of the brightest star or the yellow moon of autumn.
" On the farthest verge of the forest ran a broadj swift river, to which
the turbulent stream of the desert valley was a tributary. As Eory
came towards the bank of this river, he heard a wild and piteous scream,
which seemed to proceed from some one struggling for life in the water.
Down he rode to the bank, the magic butterfly still lighting his way, and
looking out upon the stream, beheld in the midst the figure of a young
girl as she floated helplessly with the tide, still, however, faintly endea¬
vouring to keep herself upon the surface. In an instant Eory dashed
his horse into the river, at a point below that where the girl was still
struggling, and as she floated downward, caught her in his strong grasp,
and carried her safe to the.~other shore. For a time she lay insensible
on the bank, but she soon recovered and thanked her deliverer in a voice
of exceeding sweetness. She said that she was the only daughter of
a kern, or foot-soldier, who lived hard by, and who served the lord
of Inchiquin, and that as she was crossing the ford, a little distance
above, she had lost her footing and fallen into the river.
" Eory, by the light of the golden image, had time to examine the
features and form of the young girl, as she stood up and prepared to
depart for her father's cot. He had never before beheld a being so
beautiful. She seemed at first frightened at the strange light emitted
by the image, and began to think that she owed her deliverance to some
forest sprite, but when again she looked upon the smiling, noble face
of the young chieftain, and heard his kind words, she knew he was
o'quin op inchiqtjin.
175
mortal, and invited him to partake of the hospitality of her father's cot
beside the river. This invitation Eory thankfully accepted, and when
they arrived at the wood-kern's cottage, the surprise of the young girl
knew no bounds when she saw her father welcoming Eory as the son
of the brave lord of Inchiquin.
The more Eory saw of the beautiful young girl, the more he admired
her, and when he took his departure in the morning, it is not to be
wondered at that he resolved to return frequently to the cottage. And
he did return, and who will marvel when they hear that he was at last
in love with the beautiful Enna, the daughter of the wood-kern, and
that he swore, come what would, to make her his wife ? All this, how¬
ever, he kept secret from his father, for he knew that the latter, though
just and wise, would sooner see him dead than the husband of a low¬
born maiden such as Enna.
" And thus a year passed away, at the end of which the old lord of
Inchiquin, finding his health failing, and wishing to see his affairs
settled before his.death, began to negotiate a match between his son
and the daughter of O'Brien, lord of Thomond. It was now that Eory
found himself sorely beset, between his duty to his father and his love
for the young peasant girl. In those times the wishes of children were
not consulted, particularly by their parents, and so after a few meetings
between the lord of Thomond and his vassal chief, old Donal of Inchiquin,
the match was made, and the day was appointed for the marriage of Eory
the Black and the haughty Maud O'Brien.
" The important day came, and Eory, who had secretly married the
lovely Enna in the interim, refused of course the hand of the princess
of Thomond, for which rebellious act, at the instigation of O'Brien,
he was lodged in one of the strongest dungeons of Inchiquin by his
incensed father.
" Day after day the old chief visited Eory in his prison, expecting the
latter to be brought to reason, and thus matters went on for nearly half
a-year, at the end of which time Eory grew tired of his confinement,
and began to think in his misery of repudiating his low-born wife, and
176 ADAEE.
marrying the young princess of Thomond. The father, noticing the
change, now worked upon his mind untiringly, until at length Eory gave
his consent, though he knew that in the far-off cottage by the forest
river, his rightful wife would die when she heard the woeful news. It
was now all rejoicing in Inchiquin, Eory was liberated, and another
day was appointed for the bridal that had caused so much trouble. The
lord of Thomond's castle was situated a considerable distance away from
Inchiquin, beyond the mountains, and that they might reach it about
noon, Eory and his father, and their gallant train, set out on their journey
before the dawn of day. On they went, and now some glamour seemed
to influence Eory, for never a thought came into his mind of the golden
butterfly, and the kindly warning of Merulan, in connection with it.
At the crossing of a glen his horse stumbled, but there was now no light
to guide his way—nothing but darkness before and around him. During
the passage of a quagmire, again his horse stumbled, and almost fell
forward into a treacherous pool of water; still he thought not of the
golden gift of Merulan.
" And now upon the plain smooth road, the horse for the third time
stumbled and fell forward, bringing Eory down with him.
" ' I would to heaven,' exclaimed the young chief, as he extricated
himself from his horse, and then helped the animal to rise—Hhat it
was on the road to the far-off forest I was, where dwells my loved and
lawful wife I'
"At that moment the golden butterfly cast a faint glitter upon the
dark road.
" ' She will die, poor thing,' resumed Eory, ' when she hears of the
base act I am about to do. I have half a mind to refuse once more, be
the consequence what it may !'
"The gleam from the golden image became brighter.
"' Yes!' exclaimed Eory as he now noticed the change suddenly,
^ come what will I will not advance a step further towards the consum¬
mation of this bad deed. I will return and proclaim my wife to my
father's vassals, and die if necessary to defend her!'
o'quin OI' inchiqtjin.
177
And now the light became like the rising sun, brightening all a-near.
Eery sprang to his saddle, wheeled his horse around, and in a moment
dashed away on the backward track, pursued by his father and the train
of gallants who attended him. It was still dark, and the rays from the
magic butterfly lit Eory's path as he fled fast and far towards the cottage
of his young wife. His father was soon left behind, and the pursuit at
length entirely ceased.
Eory reached his wife before the hot noontide, and lived concealed
in her little cot beside the river for a month. At the end of that time
his father died, and he was proclaimed chief of Inchiquin. He then
avowed his marriage, when a fierce war followed between himself and
the prince of Thomond, who swore that he would never rest night or
day, till the clan O'Quin was swept, root and branch, from the prin¬
cipality of Clare. And he kept his vow, for he never ceased till he
had driven Eory the Black to such extremities, that the latter, with his
young wife and his broken clan, was at length forced to bid farewell
to his ancient patrimony of Inchiquin, and cross the Shannon into the
county Limerick, where his line, as we have said, is still represented
by the Earl of Dunraven."
One branch of the 0'Quins remained in the neighbourhoed of Inchi¬
quin : the autograph Yisitation of Bishop Worth, the first Bishop after
the Eestoration, contains several notices connected with them, furnished
to me by the late Professor O'Curry. "John O'Quin released" certain
lands "about Eilnaboy, to the Bishop (Eider) in 1617." Part of the
Commons of Kilnaboy are set by the Bishop to Eoger O'Quin (same
date), &c. Some of the family can be traced in the neighbourhood down
to the present century, and there is a pedigree among the Adare papers,
connected apparently with these O'Quins, which narrates some curious
anecdotes, and seems to come down to the latter part of last century;
but a portion is missing, and unfortunately that part which was probably
explanatory of the whole, and might have furnished the means of con¬
necting the different branches of the family. The senior branch, after
A a
178
ADARE.
having left the county of Clare, appears to have settled at Kilmallock,
and to have rather sunk into obscurity. James Quin, of Kilmallock, had
a brother John, a Pominican Friar, who was Bishop of Limerick, ac¬
cording to Ware, in the reign of Henry YIII., hut being blind and
infirm, he resigned in April,. 1551.
James Quin's great grandson, Donough, married the heiress of the
O'Eiordans, "who had possessed for five centuries an estate running
for three or four miles along the banks of the Maigue®." He appears
to have been the first of the family who resided at Adare, but whether
on the site of the present manor-house, cannot be ascertained. He died
in 1671, and was buried in the Abbey (Franciscan) of Adare. His son,
Mr. Thady (or Theodore) Quin, born in 1645, may justly be esteemed as
the second founder or restorer of his family. A valuable and curious
letter from him to Sir John Kirwan, of Castle Hackett, (ancestor of the
present Lady Cloncurry,) written in 1714, is extant among the Adare
papers, and contains many interesting particulars about the Quins.
In the beginning of this letter Mr. Quin announces the marriage of his
son John to Sir John Kirwan's grandchild, daughter of Sir Walter Blake.
He then goes on to mention that some malicious person, in order to pre¬
vent the match and breed discord, had endeavoured to throw aspersions
upon his family, which, however. Sir Walter Blake did not believe:—
" The reflection is that my father was a piper, that my name and
family was mean and obscure, that in my younger days I was a solicitor,
and that I am not able to perform with Sir Walter Blake half what
I promise; and not knowing but this might reach your ears and pass
for truth with you, 1 think it proper to give in vindication of my credit,
the same answer I gave Sir Walter."
In his explanation Mr. Quin enters into a sketch of the history of his
® Quoted from Thady Quin's letter. The only notices of the O'Eiordans I have been able to find,
are two, among the Inquisitions in the Chief Eemembrancer's Office; " William O'Ryardane taken
at Kilmalloch, 2nd of James I.," and " Mauricius O Eeirdan at KilmaUoch, 1605."
QIJIN OP AD ARE. 179
family, and points out the origin of the curious story of the piper, which
he satisfactorily disposes of. He mentions that the O'Eiordan property
was much encumbered, and a great part of it ran in gayelkind, which ex¬
plains his inheriting so small an estate. He goes on to give an account
of his three marriages. The first was with the daughter and heiress of
Mr. Andrew Eice, of Dingle, whose estate was forfeited, and in lieu
Mr. Eice obtained five hundred acres in the county of Clare, which pro¬
perty was in possession of Yalentine, Thady Quin's eldest son, at the
date of the letter. This must be the estate mentioned in King Charles's
grant to Mr. Quin, (vide Appendix D.) After describing his second and
third marriages, he goes on to state that he was left by his father
"a piece of freehold estate and a beneficial farm worth above £100
a-year, besides his stock of cows, sheep, and horses." He then mentions
the various branches of the O'Quins in Ireland, to shew their importance
in ancient times, and thus concludes:—
My father, designing to make me a lawyer, was advised I should by
soliciting, as others did, first learn the practicle part of the law. I did
so, and studied hard Coke upon Littleton, and other books for three
years, but it being reported Eoman Catholick lawyers would be sus¬
pended, I betook to country affairs and to my industry, and £100 a-year,
and the stock I had by my father's death, and to my portions God gave
that blessing that I am now like others envyed."
Mr. Quin appears to have resided at Beabush previous to his removal
to Adare. He purchased the moiety of that townland, with the mill,
in 1669. Of his house not a stone above ground remains, nor is there
any tradition of the Quins having lived at Beabush. Eecently the foun¬
dations of a house near the mill were discovered, which doubtless was
Mr. Quin's residence; it is said, by the old people in the neighbourhood,
to have belonged to the Keatings, into which family one of his daugh¬
ters married. In 1674 and 1675, Mr. Quin made additional purchases
in the neighbourhood of Adare, and in 1678 he obtained a lease of 1,000
A a 2
' 180 ADAEE.
years of the forfeited lands about Adare, which had been granted to the
Ormsbys ^; this included the Abbeys, Abbey lands, &c.: the lease con¬
tains a clause that Mr. Quin was to improve and reside on the premises.
In the same year he bought the family property about Croom, and
in 1683 obtained a long lease from the Earl of Kildare of a portion of
his estates at Adare, including the old castle, manor mills, markets,
fairs, &c. Next year Mr. Quin procured a patent from Charles II. for
all the lands he had purchased, including Clonlehard, a hilly property
in the west of the county, containing about 5,000 acres, which was sold
by his grandson, Mr. Windham Quin. At this period, when such a mul¬
titude of new titles were being taken from the Crown under the Acts
of Settlement, many of the smaller proprietors adopted this practice
of getting some gentleman of position to include their land in his own
patent in order to escape the expenses of a separate grant. It appears
that Mr. Quin performed these friendly offices for more than one; but,
if the traditions are to be relied on, trusts of the kind were not always
discharged with equal faithfulness. Mr. Quin's last purchase seems to
have been Ballinvoher, on the banks of the Shannon, in 1702.
D'Alton's Xing James's Army List^ contains an account of the com¬
mission issued by the Xing in 1690, for applotting a tax on personal
estates, " according to the ancient custom of this kingdom, and in time
of danger." Persons of local influence were appointed to assess this tax
for three months. In the county of Limerick ^ are the following names.
The High Sheriff fro temp.^ Sir John Eitz Gerald, Dominick Poche,
John Eourk, of Cahirmoyle, John Eice, of Hospital, Edward Eice, John
Eaggott, sen., Henry Wray, Thaddeus Quinn, and George Evans, Esqrs."
This list probably indicates the leading Catholic gentry of the district.
At p. 369 of the same vol., the name of Thady Quin appears in the list
of officers of Xing James's army, as in Lord Clare's regiment of horse.
In a MS. book of attainders in Trinity College Library, not classed.
^ Vide p. 64, and Appendix I. ® Second Edition, vol. i. p. 33, &c. ^ p. 35.
QUIN OP ADARE.
181
p. 124, Thady Quin is adjudged not within the articles of Limerick,
February 6, 1698; but at p. 170 he is said to have been within them.
The foregoing statements sufficiently account for the political difficulties
in which Mr. Quin appears to have been entangled; indeed it must have
been no easy matter for a Catholic to have avoided them in those days;
but that he extricated himself most successfully, is clear from the fol¬
lowing curious Eeport, made in June, 1699, by Eobert Eochford, then
Attorney-General:—
" To their the Lords Justices of Ireland.
May it please your Exc'''®.
In obedience to your Excellen® ord'" of Eefference to me directed,
bearing Date the 9th Day of May last, on the Petition of Thady Quin,
of Adare, in the County of Limerick, Esq''., presented to his Majesty and
Transmitted to your Exc'^®, I have Examined the matters thereof and find
That the PeP in his said Petition .... hath Set forth that upon
hearing his Claim e for the benefitt of the Articles of Limerick before
the Commissioners appointed for adjudication of Claims, it appeared that
the PetiP was within the City of Limerick at the time of making the
said Articles, and for some months before, that the said Comm''® woud
have Adjudged him to be Comprehended within the said Articles, but
that the Kings Managers gave some Evidence that the PeP was During
the 1®* Seige of Limerick seen in the Company of sev^ Protestant gentP,
from whence it being inferrd that the PetiP had the benefitt of pro¬
tection was therefore adjudged out of the said Articles; the PetiP also
set forth that altho the Jurys in 2 sev^ Counties returned Ignoram® upon
Indictments ag^ the PeP, yet the PetiP is indicted in another County,
but not Outlawed or otherwise Convicted of any Crime. That the PetiP
during the late Eebellion in this Kingdom was highly Serviceable to
many of his Majestys Protestant Subjects, and that the PeP® Title
to a small Estate, of which he is still in poss'ion, is grounded upon
the Acts of Settlement and Explanation, and it is his Interest as well
as his inclination to be for an English Government.
182
AD ASE.
" For Prooffs of the said Alligations the PetiP has produced unto me
a Certificate bearing date the 6*'' of March, 1698, signed by Pobert
Doyne, Esq''., Lord Chief Baron of his Majestys Court of Excheq'",
S'' Eich^ Cox, Knight, one of the Justices of the Comon Pleas, S'' John
Lyndon, Kn\, one of the Justices of the .... Kings bench, Henry
Cohlin, Kn^, one of the Barons of the Court of Excheq'', and S' John
Jeffrey son, one of the Judges of the Court of Comon Pleas, being the
five of the said Comm""® that heard the said Claime, wherein they Set forth
that it appear'd to them upon hearing his Claime that the Petif^ was in
the City of Limerick, an Inhabitant at the time of makeing the said
Articles, and for some months before, and that they woud have adjudgd
him within the s^ Articles, but that the managers for his Majesty gave
Evidince that he was at the time of the first Seige of Lim'' at Adare,
within seaven miles of the English Camp, and that he Enjoyed the Benefitt
of Protection. They further Certifie that it appeard to them by the Certi¬
ficates of sev^ Credible persons, and by particular information of sev^ gen¬
tlemen of good note to some of them who were Judges of Assize in the
s^ County of Limerick, that the said Thady Qvin has in a particular man'^
distinguished himself in being very Kind and Serviceable to his Protestant
Neighbours During the late Eebellion, and that he did not appear in Arms
or Take any Military Employment und'" the Late King James.
" The PetiP hath alsoe produced unto me another Certificate of the
1®^ of Aprill, 1692, Subscribed by sev^ Clergymen and Aldermen being
Protestant Inhabitants of the City of Limerick, wherein they Certifie
that Thady Quin, of Adare, Esq""., lived with his Family in his own
House in Limerick long before the last Seige, during the Seige and
since the Seige, and that he was Esteemed as a faithfull friend to the
Protestants, Charitable to such of them as were in distress. Especially
to those of his Majestys Army as were in Prison, and contributed
weekly to their reliefe Equal with the Protestants.
" I find by another Certificate of several Protestant Gentlem. in the
said County of Limerick, dated the 20^^ of Augb, 1690, Setting forth
that They have been for many Years past acquainted with Thady
QUIN OE ADARE. 183
Quin, Esq^, he having lived a long time in their ISreighbourhood in the
said County, that he all along heheaved himself very peaceably and
quietly, no way injuring or molesting any of his Neighbours, nor Con¬
cerned in any military Imployment under the late King James. They
further Certifie that he has been for 2 years past in particular very kind
to all his Protestant Neighbours, protecting and Defending them from
injuries to the utmost of his power, not only to the hazard of his person
and substance, but even unto the gaining himself the ill Will and hatred
of most of the Eoman Catholick Gentry of the said County, and the loss
of a great part of his Stock.
" The Petit' hath produced unto me an Address of the High Sherriffe,
Grand Jury, and others of the protestant Gentry and Clergy of the
County of Limerick, directed to S'^ Eich^ Eeynell, Barn^, Late Lord
Chief Justice of his Majesties Court of King Bench, and then Justice
of Assize for the Province of Munster, setting forth that Mr. Thady
Quin, of A dare, hath to their Knowledge been before these late Wars
a peaceable and quiet Inhabitant of the said County, no way offending
his neighbours, and a great Improver as well of his farms under English
men as a small Estate he purchased. To which his Title is the same with
their's depending of the Acts of Settlement and Explanation, and since
the Wars never plundered or oppressed any English man or Protestant,
but did to the best of his power protect all his protesP Neighbours, and
with all was very charitable to such of them as were Imprisoned or
otherwise distressd, whereby he gained to himself so much ill Will of
several of the Irish, that he lost his Stock and Goods to a very great
Yalue, and was in hazard of his life, and see made it their Eequest that
he might recommend the PetW to the Chief Governours of this Kingdom
to Extend their favour towards him suitable to the inclination that they
were satisfied he had to be peaceable under an English government.
The PetiP has produced unto me a Lere dated the 22^ of December,
1698, Directed to S'' Thomas Southwell, BaP., and S"" W^ King? kff.,
both Knights of the Shire for the County of Limerick, and signed by
sev^ Justices of Peace and other Protestant Inhabitants of that County,
184
ADARE.
wherein they write y^ having to their great Trouble been informed that
M"". Thady Quin, of Adare, is not like to have that Success in his Claime
which they wish him, & being Sencible of the great Service and Kind¬
ness he hath in generall Done to the Protest^® in the s"^ County, by pro¬
tecting and relieiving them in the last War, and in particular to many
of themselves, & therefore earnestly begg the s^ S^ The® Southwell, &
Sr Xing, being their Eepresentatives in Parliament to intercede
with the Government to recommend his Case to his Majesty, if it be
necessary, that see he may be Distinguished from those that were
Enemies to the English Interest,
" He hath also produced unto me another Lere signed by the Pev"^
Tho® Lord Bis'p of Limerick, and Directed to the above ment^ S'' W"
King, dated the 30*^^ of December, 1698, wherein he mentions that being
informed that M^' Thady Quin is like to be a sufferer on account of the
late Pebellion, unless releiv*^ by the Charitable interposition of the House
of Commons, and further offers that altho he was no Eye witness of his
beheaviour During the late King James's Peign, yet the very good Cha¬
racter he bears in this Country, and the many assurances he has had
from persons of undoubted Credit of his affectionate Concern for Pro¬
testants during the late Pebellion, which he Expressed by many good
offices which he did them to the hazard of his own person and fortune,
prevailed on him to Joyne with the rest of the gentP of the said County
in requesting the s^ S"" King to move the Honble house of Commons
to shew him all the favour they in their great Wisdom shou'd think fit,
or his Kindness to Protestants did deserve, see that a distinction be made
between moderat and bigotted Papists.
I find by Two Certificates of Charles Baldwin, Deputy Cl'ke of the
Crown for the Counties of Limerick and Waterford, both of the 13^^ of May
last, that Search being made amongst the Pleas of the Crown in the said
Counties, he finds that 2 sev^ Bills of Indictment were Exhibitted against
Thady Quin, of Adare, for high Treason, by him Committed ag^ his
present Majesty and the late Queen, the which bills of Indictment were
returned ignoram® by the Grand juries of Each County. I also find by
QUIN OP ADAEE. 185
a Certificate of Dan^ Wybrants, Esq''., Eep'y Cl'ke of the Crown, bear'g
date the vP of May last, that search being made amongst the Pleas
of the Crown in his Majestys Court, Kings bench, He finds that Thady
Quin, of Adare, in the County of Limerick, Esq'"., stands indicted of
High Treason, To which he appeard in the said C^ and remains upon
Baile, but finds the said Quin not outlawed or Convict of any Crime
that appears of Eecord in the s*^ Court.
I further Take leave to inform your Excell® that the Pet" was by the
s^ Comm"® appointed for Hearing and Determining the Claims of such
p'sons who pretended to the benefitt of the Articles made for the sur¬
render of Lim^, adjudged not be Comprehended within the said Articles,
because he had Enjoyed the benefitt of protection before the Capitulation
of the surrender of Limerick, but the Pet" is not as yet Convicted of any
Crime on acc^ of the Eebellion.
Upon the whole matter I am humbly of Oppinion that the gen'll
good beheav" and Demean" of the Pet" during the late Eebellion in this
Kingdom to his Protest^ neighbours, and the faire Character he bears in
the Country where he Lives, the Truth whereof appears by the sev^ orig^
Testimonialls and Certificates aforesaid produced unto me, the Copies
whereof are ment^ in the s^ Petition to be annexed thereunto, distinguish
him from others Concerned in the late Eebellion, that he is an object
of his Majestys grace & mercy for a Pardon as is desired, To which
y" Excelh'®® may recomend him if y" ExcelT'®® shall so think fitt, All
which is Kevertheless most humbly Submitted to y" Excelb'®® prudent
Consideration this 16^^ day of June, 1699.
"Eob" Eochfoet.
A True Copy taken from the Book of Eeports Made by Eob^
Eochfort, Esq"., when AtP-Gen'll, afterwards Lord Chief Baron
Eochfort.
" K.B. Upon this Eeport the said Pet" Quin obtained a Kol' pros', &c.,
and no prosecution ever afterwards ag^ him, but he afterwards prosecuted
the Informers ag^ him, & had them Indicted for perjury, Convicted and
pillord," &c.
B b
186
AD ARE.
Of the certificates alluded to in the above Eeport, two are among the
Adare papers, namely, that from the Judges, dated March 6, 1689, and
that of the 20th of August, 1690, both of which state that Mr. Quin
did not appear to have taken any military employment under the late
King James. Hence we must conclude, that although Mr. Quin may
have been enrolled in one of King James's regiments, (unless indeed there
was another Thady Quin, of whose existence, however, there is no trace,)
he, fortunately for himself, never actually served in the field, in that
disastrous war. The signatures to the document of August are here
given ® as exhibiting the names of the Protestant gentry of this part of
the county nearly two centuries ago, some of whom have their repre¬
sentatives at the present day: one of them, Henrie Widenham^ was
Mr. Quin's future son-in-law.
As has been already mentioned, Mr. Thady Quin most probably built
the family house at Adare, and laid out the fine avenues which were
so much admired by Arthur Young and others. He died Jan. 1, 1725,
having raised his family from the obscurity into which, as in the case
of so many of the ancient Irish chieftains, it had fallen; but there does
not appear at that time to have been any desire to revive the proper
prefix, 0 or Mac, which belonged to every Irish family name.
Mr. Quin had three sons,—1. Yalentine, who succeeded him; 2. John
of Eosbrien, who married Miss Blake; his granddaughter Mary married
Mr. John Goold, who was grandfather to the present Countess of Dun-
raven ; 3. James, who died unmarried.
By a family settlement made in 1708, Mr. Quin assigned his lease¬
hold properties absolutely to his eldest son, who resided at Adare
for many years before his father's death. In his will he calls him-
^ M. O'Bryen, Thomas Blackall, John Murdoch, William Wooding, George Evans, Christo. Heath,
George Gough, John Upton, Ralph Conyers, Ralph Wilson, Jo. Bentley, Symon Evans, Arth. Ormshy,
Z. Ormshy, Archdeacon of Ardfert, Robert Jayes, George Evans, Jun'., John Odell, WiUiam Cox,
Henrie Widenham, Rich. Harte, Mich. Serle.
QriN OE ADAEE.
187
self of Lymerick," and in other papers he is styled " of the city
of Limerick."
Mr. Yalentine Quin inherited his father's taste for acquiring property.
He married in 1709, Mary, co-heiress of Henry Widenham, Esq., of the
Court and by her brought into the family several townlands, which
Mr. "Widenham had himself bought from the Trustees of Eorfeited
Estates. He purchased the great tithes of Adare, and the fee-simple
of the Ormsby lease; also in 1721, and at subsequent sales, the whole
of the Eildare property about Adare \ These acquisitions and arrange¬
ments were all made during his father's life. In 1728 he obtained
a lease of Carigeen from the See of Limerick, in which townland the
ancient round-tower of Dysert stands. Like the representatives of many
an old Irish family, while the penal laws were in full force, Mr. Quin,
in 1739, abandoned the ancient faith, and declared himself a member
of the Established Church
Among the family papers at Adare are the printed schedules of the
Eildare estates, as for sale in the years 1721, 1724, 1725. By com¬
paring the rents contained in these lists with those now received, the
value of the good lands is about four times, and of the inferior lands
about three times, what it was at that period. The farms are described
Some obscurity exists regarding these Widenhams of the Court, as to whether they were con¬
nected with, or were a branch of the Wyndhams. The name was variously spelt. Mr, Henry
Widenham signs his name with one d, whereas in the probate of his will it has two d's. In the
same document the second son of his brother is called Thomas Widnam. Mr. Valentine's son is
called Windham Quin, and the seal to his signature in his marriage settlement, dated July, 1748,
bears the Wyndham arms; also the seal on his will, September, 1785, contains the Quin and
Wyndham arms quarterly. On the other hand, the arms of Henry Widenham, as appears by his
patent, in Ulster's Office, March 19,1714-15 are,—Argent, two bendlets gules; on a chief azure
a lion passant of the first ducally crowned or; Crest, a lion's head erased proper. Motto, Cle-
meniia in potentia,
' In the schedule of 1725, among the names of the Commissioners stated as authorized and
appointed to dispose of the Kddarp estates, is tliat of "John Crooker, of Bally Nagarr, co. of
Limerick." His family purchased the three livings of Adare, Croom, and Dromin: Croom was
formerly worth £1,200 a-year. Adare was sold to the late Earl of Dunraven by the late John
Croker, of Ballynagard.
British Museum, Egerton MSS. 77, pp.127 and 215.
Bb2
188 ADAEE.
as well provided with orchards, and the Corcasses are defined as lands
overflowed every spring-tide ^ Turf-hog and firing are mentioned as
very valuable and scarce in the neighbourhood of Adare.
Mr. Quin died in 1744, and was buried in the chancel of the old
parish church. His will, dated March, 1743, contains a clause, for¬
bidding his successor ''to destroy the ornamental trees, plantations,
avenuesons, hedgerows, made by me, my father, or grandfather, about
my mansion-house of Adare and demesne, which demesne contains
upwards of 200 plantation (Irish) acres (equal to 320 statute), besides
the Deer Park." He left three sons"": Windham his successor, George,
and Henry. To George he bequeathed estates both in the counties of
Clare and Limerick, and houses in the city of Limerick. To Henry,
Beabus and Derryvinane were left, and failing him to George. Henry
died young. George left an only daughter, who married the second
Earl of Headfort, whose second son. Lord George, took the name of
Quin, and inherits the properties left by Mr. Yalentine Quin to his sons
George and Henry. George settled at Quinpool or Quinsborough, in the
county of Clare: he gave a lease for ever of Beabus, &c., to a Mr.
Hewitson, which was purchased by the late Lord Dunraven.
Mr. Windham Quin succeeded his father in 1744. The only purchase
he made, as indicated by the family papers, was of the White Abbey
lands and some houses in Adare, from Lord Carbery, the representative
of George Evans, who held these lands in 1669, (vide p. 63). But, on the
contrary, he sold and mortgaged portions of the estate. Clonlehard he
parted with for ^£4,000 ! Some years since it was purchased for £26,000.
^ This would indicate that the banks which now defend the Corcase lands from the tides and floods
were not at that period formed.
" There is a curious discrepancy concerning Valentine's sons, arising from the will of Henry
Wideuham, the probate of which is at Adare. It is dated August, 1719; and he leaves certain lands
to his daughter, Mary Quin, for her eldest son, Henry; and next, to her second son, Valentine, and
after to any other sons who may be born. Did this Henry afterwards drop his name and assume that
of Windham ? Valentine must have been born in 1718, and have died young.
QTJIN OP ADAEE.
189
In 1748, Mr. Qnin married Frances, daughter of Eichard Dawson,
of Dawson's Grove (now Dartrey), from whom the present Lord Cremorne
is fourth in descent. This lady appears to have possessed an energetic
nature, and some curious anecdotes of her doings have been traditionally
handed down. She introduced several Protestant families of weavers
from Dartrey, among whom are the Alfords and others, at present
tenants on the estate. In 1768, Mr. Windham Quin represented the
borough of Kilmallock in the Irish Parliament".
It was during Mr. Quin's residence at Adare, 1776, that Arthur Young
made his Irish tour. His visit to Adare is briefly noticed, p. 3, but the
observations of so accurate an observer, made nearly a century ago,
are sufficiently interesting to deserve transcription. Vol. ii. p. 184,
he says:—
Kept the road to Adair, where Mrs. Quin, with a politeness equalled
only by her understanding, procured me every intelligence I wished for.
Land lets about Adair from 10® to 40® an acre, average 20®. The
richest in the county is the Corcasses on the Maag, which lets at 30®.
to 36®, a tract of five miles long, and two broad, down to the Shannon,
which are better than those on that river; the soil is a kind of yellow
and blue clay, of which they make bricks, but there is a surface of blue
mould. The grass of them is applied to fattening bullocks, from seven
to eight cwt. each, and an acre fats one, and gives some winter and
spring food for sheep. When they break this land up, they sow first
oats, and get 20 barrels an acre, or 40 common barrels, and do not
reckon that an extra crop; they take ten or twelve in succession, upon
one ploughing, till the crops grow poor, and then they sow one of horse
beans, which refreshes the land enough to take ten crops of oats more:
the beans are very good. Wheat' sometimes sown, and the crops very
great. Were such barbarians ever heard of? ... .
''Farms rise from 40 acres to .£2,000 a year; some few of the little
° Lib, Mun. Eib., part i., Parliamentary Register.
190
ADABE.
ones are taken by cottars, in partnership, but not common; the large
farms are all stock ones. Turnips have been sown many years, but by
few; a little on pared and burnt land in the bottoms, instead of rape;
the crops very large; they give them all to fat sheep, in order to keep
their flesh for a better market after Christmas; it is found to be a very
advantageous practice, but not increasing. 'No hoeing. Hemp is sown
a little by the Palatines, but by few others. Plax, by every cabbin, in
order for a little spinning for their own use.
"The system of the stock farmers is in general dairying, but upon the
best lands they fatten bullocks, cows being only kept on lands which
they think will not do for bullocks. The cows are all let, and paid for
principally b}?" butter, one cwt. to a cow, and 25® horn money. The
dairyman's privilege is a cabbin, a garden of an acre, and the grass
of a cow or horse to every twenty cows, and may rear half the calves,
and keep them to Hovember or Christmas. To 60 acres, 24 cows,
1 horse, 30 sheep; this is just two acres a head, and it is about the
average of the country. The dairymen are not in good circum¬
stances, making a mere living. The swine here are of a large white
sort, and rise to two cwt.; they are mostly fattened on potatoes, but
have some oats at last to harden the fat. A good many sheep; the
system is to keep the lambs till three-year-old wethers, and sell them
fat at 20® each, the fleeces 7 lbs. Tythes, wheat 6®, barley 5®,
oats 4®. Eape no tythe. Potatoes 8*^ to 10^. Mowing ground 1® to 8®.
Sheep 2*^ each.
" The poor people do not all keep cow^s, but all have milk; all have
pigs and poultry; are not better off than 20 years ago. Have a potato
garden, of which one half to three quarters of an acre carries a family
through the year; they live entirely upon them, selling their pigs. They
pay a guinea for a cabbin, and 10 perch; if half an acre, £2, 2s. A
whole acre, and a cabbin on poor ground, £8. 8s., but not so cheap if
near a village. Labour paid in land in general. Grass of a collop
£2. 2s., if a cow hayed, 50®,
" Palatines were settled here by the late Lord Southwell, about
QTJIN OP ADAEE. 191
seventy years ago". They have in general leases for three lives or
31 years, and are not cottars to any farmer, bnt if they work for them,
are paid in money. The quantities of land are small, and some of them
have their feeding land in common by agreement. They are different
from the Irish in several particulars; they put their potatoes in with
the plough, in drills, horse-hoe them while growing, and plough them
out. One third of the dung does in this method, for they put it only
in the furrows, but the crops are not so large as in the common method.
They plough without a driver; a boy of twelve has been known to
plough and drive four horses, and some of them have a hopper in the
body of their ploughs which sows the land at the same time it is
ploughed. Their course of crops is,—
^'1. Potatoes. 2. Wheat. 3. Wheat. 4. Oats.
1. Potatoes. 2. Barley. 3. Wheat. 4. Oats.
In which management they keep their land many years, never laying
it out as their neighbours do. They preserve some of their German
customs—sleep between two beds. They appoint a burgomaster, to
whom they appeal in case of all disputes; and they yet preserve* their
language, but that is declining. They are very industrious, and in conse¬
quence are much happier and better fed, cloathed, and lodged, than the
Irish peasants. We must not, however, conclude from hence that all is
owing to this; their being independent of farmers, and having leases,
are circumstances which will create industry. Their crops are much
better than those of their neighbours. There are three villages ^ of them,
about seventy families in all. For some time after they settled they fed
upon sour crout, but by degrees left it off, apd took to potatoes; but now
subsist upon them and butter and milk, but with a great deal of oat
bread, and some of wheat, some meat and fowls, of which they raise
many. They have all offices to their houses, that is, stables and cow-
° This is a mistake: they were settled at that time near Eathkeale by the Southwell family,
but were not introduced upon the Adare estate until about the time of Arthur Young's visit,
and principally afterwards, by Sir Eichard Quin.
p This must allude to the settlements near Eathkeale.
192
AD ABE.
houses, and a lodge for their ploughs, &c. They keep their cows in the
house in winter, feeding them on hay and oat straw. They are remark¬
able for the goodness and cleanliness of their houses. The women are
very industrious, reap the corn, plough the ground sometimes, and do
whatever work may be going on; they also spin, and make their
children do the same. Their wheat is much better than any in the
country, insomuch that they get a better price than any body else.
Their industry goes so far, that jocular reports of its excess are spread;
in a very pinching season, one of them yoked his wife against a horse,
and went in that manner to work, and finished a journey at plough.
The industry of the women is a perfect contrast to the Irish ladies in
the cabbins, who cannot be persuaded, on any consideration, even to
make hay, it not being the custom of the country; yet they bind corn,
and do other works more laborious. Mrs. Quin, who is ever attentive
to introduce whatever can contribute to their welfare and happiness,
offered many premiums, to induce them to make hay, of hats, cloaks,
stockings, &c., &c., but all would not do."
The next paragraph has been already quoted, p. 3, after which
Mr. Young mentions several of the pictures, among others a piece
in an uncommon stile, done on oak, of Esther and Ahasuerus; the
colours tawdry, but the grouping attitudes an effect pleasing." This
picture is interesting, on account of its having been, according to family
tradition, taken from the old house at Bay bush, where Mr. Thady Quin
resided previous to his settling at Adare.
The following remarks, illustrative of Arthur Young's observations
on the Corcase^ lands, &c., were drawn up by my late friend and
agent, Thomas Ball, Esq., of Mondellihy:—
The Corcases along'the Maigue are now but rarely used in fattening
bullocks: the general use of these lands is in raising large crops of
1 The Corcases are alluvial and very rich lands along the banks of the Shannon and its tributaries;
the exact derivation of the word is, I believe, unknown.
QUIN OT' ADAHE. 193
meadowing. In Arthur Young's time it is probable that few of the
interior trenches of each townland which exist at present, were formed,
and that the land was grazed in large tracts of eighty or one hundred
acres. 'No one now thinks of breaking up these lands; and it is highly
probable that the inferior quality of certain spots at the present day,
may be attributed to a more than usually severe course of the cropping
which he so justly describes as barbarous Sheep appear to have
been much more extensively kept and bred at that period than at
present; and it is remarkable that no mention is made of what now
constitutes the principal obstacle to the more general extension of this
most useful stock, namely, the risk of their becoming tainted with the
disease called the rot.
" Many of Mr. Arthur Young's observations on the superior manage¬
ment and thriftiness of the Palatines are applicable to the present day,
and attributable to the same causes as in his time; but, on the whole, the
distinction is probably not so marked, the Palatines having lost some¬
thing of their original German character, and the Irish peasants having,
on the other hand, adopted some of the improved agricultural practice
of their neighbours."
The following extracts from the Journal of the celebrated John Wesley,
vols. iii. and iv. (Dublin, 1809,) contain some interesting remarks con¬
nected with these Palatines, and among them is a short notice of
Adare:—
''June 16, 1766. In the afternoon I rode to Ballygarrane, a town'^
of Palatines, which came over in Queen Anne's time. They retain
much of the temper and manner of their own country, having a resem¬
blance of those among whom they live. I found much life amongst this
plain, artless, serious people.
"June 18, 1756. I rode back through Adare, once a strong and
flourishing town, well walled and full of people; now without walls
and almost without inhabitants: only a few poor huts remain. At
"■ By town, is here meant townland.
C C
194 ADAEE.
a small distance from these are the ample ruins of three or four con¬
vents, delightfully situated by the river, which runs through a most
fruitful vale.
June 23,1758. I rode over to Court Mattress, a colony of Germans,
whose parents came out of the Palatinate about fifty years ago. Twenty
families of them settled here, twenty more at Xilliheen, a mile off, fifty
at Ballygarane about two miles eastward, and twenty at Pallas, four
miles farther. Each family had a few acres of ground, on which they
built as many little houses. They are since considerably increased in
number of souls, though decreased in number of families. Having no
minister, they were become eminent for drunkenness, cursing, swearing,
and utter neglect of religion. But they are washed; since they heard
and received the truth, which is able to save their souls. An oath is
now rarely heard among them, or a drunkard seen in their borders.
Court Mattress is built in the form of a square, in the middle of which
they have placed a pretty large meeting-house. But it would not contain
one half of the congregation, so I stood in a lard-yard. The wind kept
off the rain while I was preaching. As soon as I ended it began.
"July 9, 1760. I rode over to Killiheen, a German settlement, near
twenty miles south of Limerick. It rained all the way, but the earnest¬
ness of the poor people made us quite forget it. In the evening I
preached to another colony of Germans at Ballygarane. The third is at
Court Mattrass, a mile from Killiheen, I suppose three such towns are
scarce to be found again in England or Ireland. There is no cursing
or swearing, no Sabbath-breaking, no drunkenness, no ale-house in any
of them. How will these poor foreigners rise up in the judgement
against those that are round about them.
"June 19, 1765. About noon I preached at Ballygarane, to the small
remains of the poor Palatines. As they could not get food and raiment
here, with all their diligence and frugality, part are scattered up and
down the kingdom, and part gone to America. I stand amazed ! Have
' These three places are in the neighbourhood of Eathkeale.
QUIN OP ADASE.
195
landlords no common sense, (whether they have common humanity or
no,) that they will suffer such tenants as these to he starved away
from them ?"
Before the perusal of "Wesley's Journal, I was not at all aware that
the condition of the Palatines had undergone such vicissitudes since they
settled in the county of Limerick. An account of their first appearance
in this district will be found among the Addenda.
Mr. Windham Quin died in April, 1789, and was buried in the family
vault in the old parish church. He left three sons, 1. "Valentine Eichard;
2. Windham, a Colonel in the Army; and 3. John, in Holy Orders: the
two latter died without issue. To Colonel Quin was left Carigeen and
other lands, which at his death reverted to the family estate.
Mr. Yalentine Eichard Quin married, August 24, 1777, Lady Francis
Strangwayes, daughter of the first Earl of Ilchester. He was created
a Baronet March 24, 1781, and raised to the Irish Peerage as Baron
Adare July 31, 1800, previous to which he, like his father, represented
the borough of Kilmallock. Jan. 22, 1816, he was created Viscount
Mountearl; and Jan. 22, 1822, Viscount Adare, and Earl of Dunraven.
He died Aug. 24, 1824, leaving two sons, Windham Henry, and Eichard,
and a daughter, Harriett, who married Sir William Payne Gallwey, Bart.
Early in the present century he relinquished the family estate to his
eldest son, and ceased to reside at Adare.
Mr. Windham Quin, second Earl of Dunraven, was born Sept. 24,
1782, at Kilgobbin, then called Adare farm, a house in which Sir
Eichard Quin resided during the closing years of his father's life,
now occupied by Thomas Fosbery, Esq. On coming into possession
of his paternal estate, Mr. Quin found it reduced and encumbered;
however, he not only paid off the debts, but subsequently added
very considerably to its extent and value. He also raised Adare
from being a poor decayed village, consisting of a few thatched cabins,
into a small but neat and thriving town. By his marriage with the
0 c 2
196
AX) A!B)!Ei«
heiress of Dunraven and Clear well he brought into the family, estates of
far greater extent than those which he inherited; these were also en¬
cumbered, hut by a consistent course of prudence and good management,
not only were these additional charges paid off, but he was enabled out
of his income to give, for a long series of years, most extensive and
constant employment to the poor of Adare, which was expended in
improving the Estate, in enlarging and beautifying the Demesne and
Deer Park, as well as in erecting that "goodly house," the most en¬
during monument of his refined taste and architectural genius. The late
Earl of Dunraven died at Adare, Aug. 6, 1850, and was interred in the
new mausoleum erected by him in 1826 for the remains of his father.
Since the year 1850, among the purchases that have been effected,
is the last portion of the Abbey lands, bought from Sir Matthew Bar-
rington, who represented a branch of the Evans's; this was called the
" moiety of Poor Abbey," and it included in its limits eel and salmon
weirs, both long since destroyed.
Several circumstances connected with the place and estate of Adare,
as well as the history of the 0'Quins, may appear to have been treated
in this and the preceding chapter with unnecessary detail; but it was
thought that they might prove interesting hereafter when viewed in
the light of a family record, and they may probably be deemed not un¬
suitable to a work chiefiy compiled for presentation to the members
and friends of the family.
As some misconception exists relative to the connection between the
different families of O'Quin or Quin, it may be well to explain that
there were three distinct families of that name of chieftain dignity in
Ireland, namely, I. O'Quin of Moy-ith, in the plains of Eaphoe, in
Ulster, (this O'Quin is of the race of Eoghan, the fourth son of Mall
of the Mne Hostages); 2. O'Quin of Muinter Oillagan, in the county
of Longford, in Leinster; and 3. O'Quin of Muinter Iffearnain, in the
county of Clare, in Munster.
QUI^f OE ADARE. 197
Sir Richard Carney, TJlster King of Arms, granted Kovember 29,
1688, the coat of " Yert, a pegasus passant ermine, a chief or," to Thady
Quin, Esq., of Adare, under the misconception that he derived his
descent from the northern O'Quins, who had the pegasus for arms. To
rectify this error, and to perpetuate the ancient arms of O'Quin of
Inchiquin, chief of Munster Iffearnain, the family from which the Quins
of Adare really descend, the present Ulster King of Arms has issued
a patent, giving authority to the Earl of Dunraven and his descendants
to bear quarterly, with the arms assigned by Carney, the coat of the
✓
O'Quins of Inchiquin, as is exhibited in the accompanying woodcut.
Arms of the Earl of Eunraven.
Quarterly: 1st and 4tli, grand quarters; quarterly, 1st and 4tli, Yert, a pegasus passant
ermine, a chief or—Quin; 2nd and 3rd, Gules, a hand couped below the wrist grasping
a sword proper, on each side a serpent, tail nowed, the heads respecting each other; or, in
chief two crescents argent—O'Quin of Inchiquin: 2nd and 3rd,"grand quarters; Azure
a chevron, between three lion's heads erased or, with a mullet for difference—for "Wyndham.
nil. CASTLE AND OHUBCH OE BUNNAMAN.
ITH the account of the O'Quins, contained in the last chapter, the
historical notices of Adare, properly so called, may be considered
to have been terminated; but the following ruins, namely, the
Castle and small but ancient Church of Dunnaman, and the still earlier
Church and Eound Tower of Dysert, being on the estate and in the
immediate neighbourhood of Adare, and the Eound Tower visible from
the gallery windows, some account of them may form a natural and not
inappropriate conclusion to this work. The Castle, or rather—for it can
scarcely be dignified by the name of Castle—the tower of Dunnaman is
situated about two miles due south of Adare Manor. Of its history
nothing can be satisfactorily determined. According to Dr. O'Donovan's
notes in the collections of the Ordnance Survey, Dunnaman is derived
from Dm-na-m-heann^ ' the fort of the gables or pinnaclesand in the
index to the same author's edition of the " Annals of the Four Masters,"
under the name Dunnaman, in the county of Limerick, reference is made
to Dun-na-m-beann, concerning which place is the following entry,
A.D. 1506, p. 1289: " Catherine, daughter of the Earl of Desmond,
i.e. Tho®, son of James, Lady of Hy-Carbury, a charitable and truly
hospitable woman, died. It was by her that Beann-dubh and Dun-
na-m-beann were erected.
The Castle of Dunnaman consists of a massive oblong tower, sur¬
rounded by a wall now nearly destroyed. The tower is 46 ft. in length
by 33 ft. in width, and is only 31 ft. in height to the present summit of
the wall, which clearly was never much higher; but there may have
been apartments in the roof, as can be seen in the much more lofty
tower of Annadown.
CASTLE AND CHURCH OE DUNNAMAN.
199
The peculiarities of the building, among which may be reckoned the
immense thickness of the walls in proportion to the size of the tower,
are well seen in the two accompanying ground-plans. The walls are
Ground-plan, and Plan of Upper Story, Dunnaman Castle.
8 ft. in diameter, or about double the thickness of those which are
generally to be found in Irish mediseval castles, such as Adare, Askeaton,
and others. The entrance door leads into a narrow passage, in the roof
of which is a square hole from 2 to 3 ft. in diameter communicating with
the room above. This is popularly called the murdering hole, and was
evidently used for pouring or flinging down missiles on the heads of
assailants. There are two round holes in the door; one in the moulding
of the jamb, and another at the top of the arch, which would serve,
either for shooting through, or as a spy-hole. The jambs are orna¬
mented with punched work, the pattern on one side being in squares
like a chess-board.
To the right of the passage is a small room, 8 ft. long by 5 ft. 6 in.
wide, which was probably used as a guard-room: on the left is a-spiral
staircase. The principal chamber on the ground-floor is 32 ft. long, by
17 ft. wide; lighted merely by three loopholes very widely splayed, and
contains no flreplace. It is covered by a vault, which, up to about one-
third of its height from the springing, is constructed of wrought stones
200
%
ADARE.
laid horizontally, corbelling out one over the other, and of which the
soffits are cut to the form of the arch. The vault above these wrought
stones is composed of rubble thrown in from above on to the centre,
which was afterwards removed. There are corbels in the walls for
supporting the beams of a floor, and additional loop-holes above this
level, so that there were two stories beneath the vault. Over the
entrance passage and guard-room, and on a level with the floor just
»
described, is a small room 14 ft. by 8 ft. 6 in., entered from the staircase -
in a peculiar way, which cannot well he shewn on either of the ground-
plans. Above the door opening to this room, the staircase leads to the
principal apartment of the Castle. It is of the same size as the vaulted
room underneath, and contains a large fireplace, (the only one in the
entire building,) and is lighted by three narrow windows. Erom this
room a passage communicates, in the thickness of the wall, with a garde-
robe. l^ear the fireplace, a short and narrow passage leads to a small
room of the same dimensions as, and immediately over the one already
described. This room is lighted by a window 1 ft. in width, the largest
in the Castle, the splay or inner arch of which is formed of finely cut
stone, similar to the splay arches in the Prior's house of the Fran¬
ciscan Priory, Adare. No traces of the construction of the roof remain;
but there is a square hole on the summit of the western wall, in the
centre of its breadth, which communicates with the garderobe shaft
below, and was apparently constructed for the purpose of flushing it
from above.
Among the windows are examples of round, square, and ogee heads;
the dripstones over those in the two small rooms are very singular, and
characteristic of Irish buildings of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
The woodcuts in the following page exhibit these peculiar mouldings
and ornaments.
Inserted in the wall near one of these windows is an example of that
class of sculptured stones, so strange in their character, representing the
CASTLE AND CHUECH OE DUNNAIVIAN. 201
female figure in the most repulsive way. They are not of extreme
rarity in Ireland, and are found in the walls both of churches and
Upper and Lower Windows, Dnnnaman Castle.
castles J their date seems to range from the twelfth to the sixteenth
century. Ko plausible explanation has been given of the object or mean¬
ing of such extraordinary representations. A figure of a similar kind is
to be seen in the crypt of Glasgow Cathedral; and I found at Como,
in the very remarkable straight-sided arched doorway of the church
of St. Fedele, two or three figures somewhat resembling those which are
to be seen in Ireland, but much smaller. In the woodcut of the eastern
front of the tower (vide next page), the position of the figure just noticed,
and the two windows are shewn. Those on the other sides are mere loops.
It is difficult to imagine the object of walls so very thick in proportion
to the height and size of the tower, unless to resist the rude cannon of
the period. Such a building—containing, moreover, only one fireplace,
which, I should suppose, is a very uncommon feature—indicates a state
of undeveloped civilization in Ireland, such as one would more naturally
ascribe to the twelfth than to the sixteenth century. Immense strength
D d
202
ABAHE.
and security seem to have been the main ohjects of such an edifice,
which would have well suited the life and habits of a border chief
East Front of Dunnaman Castle.
of the debateable land between England and Scotland, but it is difficult
to fancy the erection of such a structure, as the residence of a Countess
of Desmond.
Unfortunately, neither through documentary evidence nor by means of
local tradition can any clue be obtained to the history of this curious old
tower; beyond Dr. O'Donovan's note connected with the Countess of
Desmond, all is a blank. ISTot even the names of its last possessors, nor
the date when the Castle was abandoned, can now be ascertained.
Its appearance in this work arises from the circumstance of its being
a tolerably perfect and very characteristic example, although rather
a small and plain one, of a class of buildings widely spread throughout
Ireland, often, as in this case, affording few features of architectural
beauty or of picturesque effect, but exhibiting certain details interesting
CASTLE AND CHEECH OE DIJNNAMAN. 203
from their peculiarity, and therefore deserving of being recorded and
described.
DUmAMAI^ CHUECH.
The ruined Church of Dunnaman stands a few hundred yards east of
the Castle. Of its history but few traces can be found.
Dunnaman is not its ancient name. The Taxation, which is to be
found in the Liber Niger of Limerick (Appendix F) contains the following
passage:—" The Church of Yilla Trostany belongs to the same Eectory
(Croom), and hath a Yicar." And in the extracts from the Liber Regalis
Visitationis Hibernice^ 1615, is mentioned,—''Trustanny alias Dunaman,
residens, ad rectoriam de Croome spectat," &c.
In the Taxations of 1291 and 1305 neither name occurs, and the only
one in connection with Croom is Dunkepihy.
Dunnaman Church is stated by the people of the vicinity to have been
dedicated to the Trinity, and is called Teampull na Trionoid.
Plate XXX. exhibits the plan and details of this little Church,
which consists of a nave and chancel; the dimensions of the nave in¬
ternally are 48 ft. by 21 ft.; those of the chancel 23 ft. by 16 ft. The
walls are of rough masonry of rounded or boulder "stones, there being
apparently no quarried stone employed in the building, except quoins,
or those in the doors or windows, which are of nicely dressed sandstone.
The doors are segmental arched, inside and outside. The external jamb
of the north door is 2 ft. 5 in. wide at the springing of the arch, and
2 ft. 7 in. at the bottom; the dimensions of the corresponding internal
jamb are 3 ft. 1 in., and 3 ft. 4 in. The south door is quite similar, but
larger. The windows are deeply splayed, and very small. Those in the
nave have circular heads, and the splay arches are pointed; while
those in the chancel are pointed, with the splay arches circular. In
Plate XXX. a sketch is given of one of the chancel windows, the height
of which is 2 ft. 3 in. The others are of about the same size, except
the east window, which is 4 ft. 2 in. high. The jambs of the windows
D d 2
204
AD AHE.
as well as of the doors, slightly incline. There is one window in the
chancel of later date, and mnch ruder workmanship—of limestone. The
sills of the nave windows are from 7 to 8 ft. above the ground; those in
the chancel are much lower. The chancel-arch was pointed, and had
dressings of the same sandstone as the windows, without either mould¬
ings or chamfers. There are two square recesses for aumbries. The old
quadrangular font remains: externally it is 2 ft. square; intern ally, its
depth is 8 in.^
Between the doors and the west end of the nave, are corbels for
supporting a floor, somewhat similar to those already described in the
small Church at Adare, and, as there, indicating the existence of a room
or residence for the priest.
From the mixture of round and pointed arches, the date of this
Church would, in England, be fixed at about the latter part of the
twelfth century, but it may be rather later in Ireland.
Vide Plate XXX.
CHTJECH AND BOUND TOWER OF DYSERT.
HE ecclesiastical establishment of Dysert, formerly called Disert
Aengus, situated between one and two miles west of the small
town of Croom, and four miles from Adare, derives an interest
beyond its mere architectural features, from the probability of its having
been founded by Aengus Ceile-De in the eighth century.
For the following account of this remarkable man, and of the Culdees,
I am indebted to my distinguished friend, the late Professor Eugene
0'Curry, whose death all who value the ancient history of Ireland have
the deepest reason to deplore:—
"Aengus Ceile De^ vulgarly called Aengus the Culdee, author of the
celebrated metrical Festilogiumj was a priest, at first attached to no
particular community. He was an Ulster man by birth and descent.
He travelled into Munster, and built the church and tower of Disert
Aengus, near Ballingarry, in the county of Limerick, about the year
780. He proceeded to Leinster, spent some time with St. Maelruain,
of Tamlacht, now Tallagh or Tallaght, near Dublin, and finally built
a church at Disert Bithec\ or the BircJiy desert^ near Mountrath, in
the Queen's County, where he died about the year 815."
Mr. O'Curry goes on to observe:—
" The oldest reference to the Ceili-De (Servi Dei), vulgarly called
Culdees, that occurs in Irish manuscripts, is found in the Tripartite Life
of St.Patrick; and the Ceile-De there mentioned appears to have been
a Briton, one of those who accompanied our apostle on his mission. The
Ceili-De appear to have been at first mendicant religious, either lay or
ecclesiastical. They do not appear to have formed communities, or to have
206 ADABE.
had a rule of discipline, until the time of St. Maelruain, of Tamlaght,
who died a.d. 787. Of St. Maelruain's rule, the only copy hitherto
known is one discovered by me in the great book of Dun Doighre^
commonly called the ' Speckled Book,' in the Eoyal Irish Academy.
They never appear to have had regular monasteries of their own, but
always to have occupied houses in connection with other monasteries or
churches. The Order consisted of ecclesiastics and laymen, literate and
illiterate; and perhaps the best illustration of its character that I could
give is a quotation from an Irish poem, the authorship of which is as¬
cribed to St. Carthagus, commonly called St. Mochuda, of Lismore, who
died in 636, at a time that they were the mere servants of other
churches:—
"If we be serving the Priestly Office,
It is a high calling,
"We frequent the Holy Church
At canonical hours perpetually.
When we hear the bell
(The practice is indispensable,)
We raise our hearts quickly up,
We cast down our faces.
We say a Pater and a Gloria,
That we meet no curse.
We consecrate our breasts and faces,
With the sign of the cross of Christ.
When we reach the church,
We kneel down three times.
We bend not the knee only,
In the church of the living God.
We celebrate, we instruct.
Without labour, without sorrow.
Illustrious is He whom we address.
The Lord of the heaven of clouds.
We keep vigils, we read prayers,
Every one according to his strength;
According to your time, you contemplate,
At gloria until tierce.
Let each order proceed as becomes it.
According as propriety shall dictate,
As to each it is appointed
From tierce to none.
CHrECH AND EOUND TOWEE OE DTSEET. 207
The men of holy orders at prayers,
To celebrate the sacrifice with propriety,
The Students to instruction
According as their strength permits.
The youth for humility,
As is in the law,
For the property of the Devil
Is a hody that hath pride.
Occupation for the illiterate parties.
As a worthy priest shall direct;
The wise man! s worh is in his mouth.
The ignorant man's worh is in his hands.
Celebration of each canonical hour
By each order we perform;
Three genuflexions before celebration,
Three more after it.
Silence and fervor,
Tranquillity without guile,
"Without murmur, without contention,
Is due of every one®."
The prose tract contaming St. Maelruain's Eule is of considerable
length, and was prepared from a translation by O'Curry, for publication,
with other monastic Eules, by the late Professor Kelly, of Maynooth.
It is printed in the Appendix to Dr. Eeeves's paper on the Culdees, in
the Transactions of the Eoyal Irish Academy^. This valuable treatise
sets all the questions connected with this much misunderstood class of
monks at rest, and displays the same erudition and breadth of view
which characterizes all the works of this distinguished author:—
"The greatest ignorance," continues Professor O'Curry, "has prevailed
with respect to the Ceile-De Order until the discovery of St. Maelruain's
Eule, and other facts concerning them, within the last sixteen years.
® The original of this poem is in the MS. H. ii, 16, Trinity College, Dublin, cols. 221, 275. See
O'Curry's Lectures, p. 375. The words in italics are from the poem as it appears in Dr. Eeeves's
" Culdeeshe obtained translations from Professor O'Curry, Dr. O'Donovan, and Mr. Whitley Stokes;
and in the lines thus marked the spirit of the original does not seem to be as accurately conveyed in
Mr. O'Curry's translation, as in that derived from the other two distinguished Celtic scholars.
•• Vol. xxiv. part ii. p. 202.
208
ADABE.
It has been asserted, and is so still, that they were a married native
clergy, independent of Eome, &c. The clerical Ceile-De was not married
any more than the secular members of the Order, or the clergy at large.
The lay Ceile-De might be a married man, living in the world like the
lay members of the Scapular, the third Order of Francis, &c. at the pre¬
sent time, into which married men and women living in the world enter;
but the lay Ceile-De who entered into a community attached to a church,
lived continent, and worked as a labourer, artizan, &c., even down to the
seventeenth century."
Of the origin of the word Culdee, Dr. Beeves says ®:—
"In Scotland Hector Boece, followed by George Buchanan, gave
currency to the term Culdeus, out of which grew, in that country, the
vulgar form, Culdee^ which has come into general acceptance, and has been
the subject of so much speculative error and historical mystification."
Treating of the Ceili-De in general. Dr. Beeves remarks ^:—
" In fact, during the range of time in which the term is of record, we
discover the greatest diversity in its application,—sometimes borne by
hermits, sometimes by conventuals; in one situation implying the con¬
dition of celibacy, in another understood of married men; here denoting
regulars, there seculars; some of the name bound by obligations of
poverty, others free to accumulate property; at one period high in
honour as implying self-denial, at another regarded with contempt as
the designation of the loose and worldly-minded."
"With respect to the title Cele-de^ as peculiarly applied to Aengus,
Dr. Beeves says®:—
"A better view to take of it is to suppose that it was a received term
denoting rigid monastic observance, especially in the order of divine
service, and to have been applied to him as one who both contributed
to the devotional compositions of the church, and lived also according
to the straitest sect of his religion."
« p. 123.
" p. 120.
« p. 127.
CHUECH AND EODND TOWEE OE DYSEET.
209
It is a remarkable circumstance, as stated by Dr. Eeeves in bis essay,
that nothing is known of this celebrated ecclesiastic from the general
historical records of Ireland; his name even does not occur in the
Annals; all that can be learnt about him is gathered from the Adver¬
tisement or Preface which, in some manuscripts, accompanies his chief
composition, the Felire^ or Calendar of the Saints of Ireland," of which
a Latin translation is given by Colgan in his Acta Sanctorum Hihernice^
under the Saint's day, the 11th of March It is there stated that he
flourished about the beginning of the ninth century, and that he sprung
from the Dalaradii, a powerful northern race, who occupied the present
counties of Down and Antrim. He is represented as entering the
monastic life, and devoting himself to the most rigid austerities; and
after having been attached to the monastery of Cluain-eidhnech (the
Ivy-lawn), now known as the parish of Clonenagh in the Queen's County,
he retired to a short distance, and occupied a cell in a wild spot, called
in Irish a Disert^ which was afterwards, when a church was built there,
called Disert-Aenguis, deriving this title from him as the founder. The
name is still borne under the form of Dysartenos, a parish in the neigh¬
bourhood of Maryborough. This preface, as translated by Colgan, does
not record the name of any church founded by Aengus in Munster; but
in the preface of the Felire^ which is preserved in a manuscript belonging
to Dr. Petrie, a valuable statement exists, which supplies a link in his
history. It is there mentioned, with reference to the cause of his writing
the FelirCj that " he happened to be coming from Disert, in Munster^
to Cuil-Bennchair in the country of Ui-Pailghe (now OfPaly), for the
purpose of taking Maelruain, of Tamlachta, as soul-friend," (i.e. spiritual
director,) &c. This Disert, like that near Clonenagh, was a retired spot,
where he had probably founded a church; and his peculiar habits of
seclusion led to the fact of a second Dysert being connected with his
' Ada SS. Hib., p. 579. ^ Now Coolbanaglier, near Portarlington, in the Queen's County.
E e
210
AD ABE.
name, which in all probability is the Dysert near Croom. On this
subject Dr. Petrie writes:—
" There were often churches called after their founders in different
localities, and if the Limerick Dysert could, like that in the Queen's
County, be shewn by any old evidence to have been called Dysert
Engus, it would be sufficient to settle the question."
This link, as will be seen, can be satisfactorily supplied, although
the place is now called simply Dysert, and tradition does not couple the
name with the memory of any saint to serve as a distinctive mark for it,
among the numerous Dyserts which appear on the map of Ireland; yet
from a passage in the Annals of the "Four Masters," the addition of
Aengus may be suggested as applicable to this Church. At the year
1083, these Annalists record that " Conn, son of Maelpadraig, Archinnech
(or Superior) of Mungairit and Disert-Oenghusa, died." Dr. O'Donovan,
in his note, identifies the latter place with Dysartenos in the Queen's
County, which he might fairly do, as the word is a modernized form of the
compound, and there being evidence that Aengus was connected with it.
Also, as Dr. Peeves informs me, it was frequently the case, that the
same ecclesiastic was Superior of two or more monasteries situated in
different provinces, which owed their connection to the fact of their
having been founded by a common saint, though geographically far
apart. Mr. 0'Curry, however, did not adopt this identification, and as
Mungairit, now known as Mungret, is in the county of Limerick, he
concluded that the other Church mentioned in the passage of the
" Annals" must be somewhere in the same district; and Dysert so far
suited his view, as bearing the traces of an ancient foundation in its
venerable Church and Pound Tower. This identification may have been
conjectural, for Mr. 0'Curry probably knew of no authority for calling
this Dysert Aengus, except the presumption that it might be the Mun-
ster Dysert, with which one document shewed Aengus to be connected.
Pecent research, however, fully substantiates the learned Professor's
CHURCH AND ROUND TOWER OE DYSERT. 211
conjecture, and leaves little doubt that this Dysert was a Church of
Aengus CeU-De, For although in the two ancient Taxations, com¬
piled about the close of the thirteenth century, the name appears simply
under the same form as that which it now bears, yet it has been re¬
cently discovered, that in the Liher Niger of Limerick, a venerable
manuscript consisting of charters, taxations, and other documents con¬
nected with that See, this parish is mentioned about a century earlier,
under the year 1201, as Dissert Enguss^ and between 1250 and 1270, as
Dysert-enegus shewing that at that very early period this was the local
appellation of the Church, and which was carried on to a much later
time, as will be seen in the next paragraph. Thus an important piece
of information is supplied, leaving little room for questioning the cor¬
rectness of Mr. 0'Curry's identification; and it is satisfactory that this
conclusion is shared in by Dr. Petrie, and also by Dr. Eeeves.
The following historical notices of Dysert are all that I have been
able to discover, besides those already quoted. The name occurs in
both the Taxations of 1291 and 1302 \ Kext, in the little Liher Niger
of Limerick^, in the list of churches in the deanery of Adare, occurs
" Preebenda de Dissert Engussa." In a visitation of the diocese of
Limerick (James I.)^, it is described as " Preb. de Dysert sie, 0^. 135. 4c?."
Eie is probably a fragment of the word Aengusa, [Aengu]sie. In the
Eoyal Yisitation-book of 1610 is the following entry: "Prebenda de
Disert, Georgius Sexton, Laicus, Johannes Fitz Derbie, Cur.and by
that of 1615^ it appears that Eichard Fuller was curate of Disert, and '
Philip Jenkins reader {minister legens).
The Church and Tower of Dysert, as seen from the north-east, are
represented in the following woodcut. The Church possesses little in¬
terest, with the exception of the doorway. It is built of limestone, and
^ The extracts from the Liber Niger which mention Disert Engnssa are given in Appendix L.
' Yide Appendix E. •> p. 136. Lib., Trim Coll. Dublin, E. iii. 15. ' Vide Appendix H.
E e 2
212
ADARE.
has been much repaired; but a portion of the walls, together with the
doorway, appear to be part of the original structure. This portion
Cliureli and Tower of Dysert.
contains some large stones, their dimensions being from 2 to 3 ft. in
length and width; they do not run through the wall, but are used as
facings on each side, and are filled in with grouting in the centre. The
length of the Church internally is 54 ft., the breadth 18 ft., and the
thickness of the walls about 8 J ft. These dimensions are in accordance
with what appears to have been a general rule in the erection of the most
ancient churches in Ireland. The doorway is in the south side, 21 ft.
from the west end, and it may be worthy of remark that this is a very
uncommon circumstance in the early churches, I have only heard of two
CHUECH AND EOUND TO WEE OE DYSEET. 213
other instances, the almost inyariable position being in the west end.
Only one of the jambs remains, which, as is usual in early Irish churches,
is slightly inclined, and but one half of the great lintel-stone 1 ft, 4 in.
thick, which was probably broken by the superincumbent pressure, when
the western jamb was removed. This doorway has a flat, slightly
projecting band or architrave, 11 in. wide, which is not an unusual
feature in the old churches. On the lintel the line of architrave is
nearly 4 in. to the west of its true position, the result most probably
of the pressure of ivy, affording a striking instance of the power of this
agent in moving so large a stone. The height of the door is 6 ft. 5 in.
A few years ago, during a gale of wind, the western gable fell down,
in consequence apparently of the heavy mass of ivy which had been
allowed to remain upon it.
The eastern gable has also been rebuilt at some time, comparatively
recent, and contains no window. Amongst the Limerick letters of the
Ordnance Survey is one written by the late Dr. O'Donovan, in the year
1840, in which he mentions that this place was called Diseart Muirdeabh-
raigh; but he gives no authority for this statement, nor can I flnd any
trace of such name locally recognized \ Dr. O'Donovan does not appear
to have been aware that the Church was in ancient times called Dysert
Engussa. He goes on to state:—
" At the distance of 11 ft. from the north wall of the Church stands
an ecclesiastical Eound Tower, called by the old people " clogas a disirt,"
that is, the belfry of Dysert."
After describing the door, windows, &c. ho continues:—
"The people believe that this tower never was finished, and that it
was built by a woman, who intended to raise it up to the sky! See
a similar legend in my letter on S. Tierney's ClacTcer at Clones."
Vol. i. p. 89, under Dysert.
" Dr. Eeeves has discovered where Diseart Muirdeabhraigh was situated: vide Appendix L, notes.
214 ADARE.
In this letter he says, " S. Tierney's Clacker—so those who do not
speak Irish call the belfry." Clacker is evidently a corruption of Clogus,
which again is a debased form of Clogtheach^ or ^ bell-house.'
For the accompanying illustrations I am indebted to Mr. Gordon Hills,
who kindly placed his sketches at my disposal The Tower of Dysert
is built of limestone, well and strongly put together; the masonry being
different from and superior to that of the Church. Hear the base, the
stones are rather large, but not so much so as some of those forming
a portion of the walls of the Church. It stands upon a rock, which
here slightly rises above the level of the surrounding ground, and
which would appear to have given origin to the name of the Townland,
Carigeen, or the Little Eock.
The Tower at present is 67 ft. high; no trace remains of the windows,
usually several in number, which occur in the upper story; judging
indeed by the present dimensions of the Tower
probably two stories are wanting. The accom¬
panying section, drawn to scale, shews the position
of the floors, windows, &c.
Dysert is on the farm of Carrigeen, now in the
occupation of Mr. Christy, so well known as one
of the most successful breeders of short-horns in
Ireland. Some years ago, he covered the Tower
with a flat roof, and placed floors in the different
stages, resting them on the offsets where the ori¬
ginal floors stood; so that the summit can now
Section, Round Tower, Dysert. . ,
be easily attained. In the year 1849, Mr. Christy
made a careful examination below the level of the doorway, of which
the following is the result. There was first a floor of hard clay, about
° Mr. Gordon Hills has made accurate drawings of all the Irish Round Towers, and their
accompanying churches; and it is to be hoped that he will ere long publish them as a complete
work, which would form an interesting and highly valuable contribution to Irish Archseology,
CHUECH AND BOUND TOWEE OE DTSEET.
215
1 ft. thick, then about 7 ft. of rubbish, in whieb were some bones, but
no skulls; under which was another floor of clay 1 ft. thick; below
this, common red clay; then clay similar to the first floor, extending to
the rock, in which a few bones were found and one clinker.
The diameter at bottom is externally 17 ft. 6 in., at the top about
13 ft. The sill of the doorway is 15 ft. above the rock. At this level
the walls are 4 ft. 3 in. thick, and at the top about 3 ft. 6 in.
The doorway faces the east, and is 6 ft. 10 in. in height, 2 ft. 9 in.
wide at the bottom, and 2 ft. 5 in. at the springing of the arch. It is
built of well-dressed sandstone, the stones being slightly bonded into the
masonry of the Tower walls. This is one of the few Bound Tower door¬
ways presenting ornamental features, and the only one in Ireland having
the pellet or ball-moulding; but the same ornament is to be seen, with
the pellets closer, on the doorway of the Tower of Brechin in Scotland.
At Dysert it is not carried below the spring of the arch.
The pellet is by some considered to be a distinctive feature of buildings
erected after the middle of the eleventh century. In Dr. Petrie's opinion
there are very strong grounds for believing that it existed in Ireland at
a considerably earlier date. A very similar design is to be seen on the
ornamentation of early Irish manuscripts, as for example those given
in a paper by the Eev. Dr. Beeves in the "Ulster Journal of Archae¬
ology," vol. viii. p. 210, the date of which is the close of the eighth
century. Dr. Petrie has, in his museum, a quern found at Clonmacnoise,
on which a name and various ornaments are inscribed, and amongst them
are flat pellets; the simple name seems to indicate a date prior to the
introduction of surnames, at the close of the tenth or beginning of
the eleventh century. "When, however, the pellet, accompanied by
mouldings such as those shewn in the drawings of Dysert doorway, first
came in, is not so easy to determine. To give Dr. Petrie's arguments
would cause too long a digression, but enough has been stated to
indicate that it cannot be safely concluded, that the existence of the
216
ADAEE.
pellet in architecture proves the building to be of the date which is
usually called Iforinan.
The accompanying woodcuts exhibit the features of this doorway, but
I should remark that they do not appear at present nearly so sharp as is
Door, Eound Tower, Dysert.
Section of Moulding, Door of Round Tower, Dysert.
here represented, the sandstone being much worn away. The section
is one-eighth of the full size. The moulding where dotted is too de¬
cayed to distinguish whether it had the form of beads or fillets. In the
jambs, both near the centre of the wall, and towards the edges, there are
round holes, but no indication how the door was hung. In a letter re¬
specting this Tower, from the late William Morrison, the architect, quoted
by Dr. Petrie in his Essay, p. 366, it is suggested that as the ope nar¬
rows towards the exterior, a frame may have been inserted and wedged
to the inside; however, I find that the breadth of the doorway is on
the contrary 3 ft. at the bottom on the outside, and only 2 ft. 9 in. on
the inside; which would more successfully secure the door-frame from
pressure inwards. About 5 ft. under the level of the door is an ofiset,
below which the walls are internally composed of very rough stones;
among them is one smoothly punched, evidently taken from some other
building: it is not an insertion, but part of the original wall.
The internal diameter of the first floor, measuring at the level of the
CHUECH AND EODND TOWEE OE DTSEET.
217
door, is 8 ft. 3 in., and its height 12 ft. 10 in. Close to the level of the
floor in the second story is the triangular-headed window, the jambs
and arch of which are of well-chiselled sandstone. They are parallel,
consequently not splayed. The breadth at the bottom is 1 ft. 4| in.,
at the top 1 ft. 1 in., height 3 ft. 8 in. This window faces west. The
wall is here 4 ft. thick, and this story 13 ft. 2 in. high. The third story
is 12 ft. 2 in. high. !N'ear its level is the circular-headed window facing
the south, 1 ft. 5 in. wide at the bottom, and 1 ft. 4 in. at the springing
of the arch, and 3 ft. 2 in. high; the wall 3 ft. 8 in., thick. These two
windows are represented in the annexed woodcuts. They possess the
Windo-ws, Round Tower, Dysert.
peculiarity, not very uncommon in the windows of the Eound Towers,
that the external form of their tops is not carried through the wall, but
at two-thirds of the thickness, from the outside, the aperture is lower
and square-headed, as is shewn in the woodcuts. The fourth story,
reaching to the present top, is 13 ft. 10 in. high. This is lighted by
a square-headed window facing north-east, about the same width, but
shorter than the others, and without splay. The wall is 3 ft. 8 in. thick.
The internal diameter of the Tower at the summit is 6 ft. 10 in. In the
second story a number of small holes may be observed, placed irregularly,
and on the third story a row of them, at a uniform height of about
5 ft. above the floor; and also others irregularly placed. They are from
2 to 3 in. wide, and a few inches deep, and were probably made for the
F f
218
AD ARE.
purpose of holding pegs on which to hang the valuables of the monastery,
which were commonly lodged in the Tower for safety p.
"With respect to the question whether doorways enriched with sculp¬
tured or other 'ornaments are insertions, and not part of the original
building, the affirmative of which is stoutly maintained by the advocates
of the very early pagan origin of the Eound Towers, it may be well to
mention that such is clearly not the case in the present instance; for it is
most curious, that two of the courses on the right-hand side of the door,
as viewed externally, actually bend down for the length of several stones
to meet the line of courses of the jamb, thus shewing that the wall was
in course of erection when the doorway was in progress., Unfortunately,
this was not perceived when the sketch (p. 216) was taken; but no one
whose attention is called to it can fail to notice that such is the fact.
This illustrates the great value of photographs for architectural details.
To describe an Irish Eound Tower without expressing any opinion
as to the uses, the origin, or the date of these remarkable structures,
would require an unusual amount of self-restraint. With respect to
their use or uses, the archaeological world, always excepting a very
limited school of Irish antiquaries, may be said to consider the question
virtually settled, since the appearance of Dr. Petrie's learned and charm¬
ing essay on the Ancient Ecclesiastical Architecture of Ireland."
He has most clearly shewn that these Towers were belfries, and that
they were also used as castles, or places of refuge. Since the publication
of his work. Dr. Petrie has observed that, in several instances, the open¬
ings which are near the summit of the Tower face the ancient lines of
thoroughfare, which, in some remarkable cases, converge from different
directions to the ecclesiastical establishments in which the Towers occur;
thus strengthening his third conclusion, which from want of facts to
p Vide Reeves's Adamnani vita S. Columbve, p..359, and also the notes to p. 116, where will be found
an extract from Curzon's " Monasteries of the Levant," p. 93, in which he states that the books in
the libraries of the monasteries of Abyssinia are kept in cases, to which are attached straps, and by
these straps the books are hung to wooden pegs.
CHUECH AND EOTJND TOWEE OE DYSEET. 219
substantiate it, he only ventured to assign as a probability, that they
served as beacons to guide travellers at night to the religious houses.
Attention has recently been called to a class of monuments entitled
Lanternes des Morts^ or Famux, which are to be found in considerable
numbers in the centre and west of France; and it has been urged
that the Irish Towers were erected for the same purpose as that for
which these curious pillars were designed. A slight examination will
serve to shew clearly that this novel hypothesis is hardly deserving
of the consideration it has received. In M. Yiollet-le-Duc's truly valu¬
able Dictionmire de VArchitecture^ &c. an article is devoted to the Lanterne
des Marts, which contains some interesting remarks upon this curious
class of mediaeval structures. Their existence, in some shape, is trace¬
able to very early times, but those at present remaining—none of which
are older than the twelfth century, according to Yiollet-le-Duc—were
intended to indicate to a considerable distance at night, the position of
a monastery or cemetery. He also considers they may have served for
funeral purposes, and quotes M. de Caumont, Cours d'Antiquites, t. vi.,
who maintains this view. Monsieur Le-Duc thinks that these columns
were connected, by tradition, with customs and superstitions of very
great antiquity. Plans and drawings, with descriptions, are given of
three of these pillars, selected as specimens
of the class. The first is square in out¬
line, with the angles rounded off, formed
of eight nearly semicircular shafts; its
total height is 34 ft., of which a very
steep conical roof occupies 11 ft., and it
is 6 ft. in external diameter. The third is
square, with four slender attached shafts
at the angles: this pillar is 26 ft. high,
with an additional 5 ft. for the roof, and its external diameter is about
8 ft. These have not the least resemblance to an Irish Pound Tower.
F f 2
220
AD ABjE.
Of the second, as affording considerable likeness in form, an illustration
is here given; and when it is stated that the scale is half as large again
as the Eavenna Campanile^, the great difference in size between them
becomes obvious. This little pillar is only 18 ft. high, exclusive of its
conical roof, which make a total of 22 ft., and its diameter is externally
less than 3 ft.; a section is given of the interior, shewing the mode in
which the lamp was drawn up and down. This Lanterne is in the village
of Ciron (Indre), and dates from the end of the twelfth century. The
projection which may be seen just below the hole for admitting the
hand to work the lamp, is an altar: one of the other two, already de¬
scribed, has a similar altar. These Lanternes des Morts lost their char¬
acter of isolated pillars during the fourteenth century, and were super¬
seded by small open chapels, sometimes of very beautiful construction ^
It will be thus seen that one of the objects of these pillars—which, it
may be observed, are never called towers—is identical with Dr. Petrie's
third use of the Irish Towers. But to suppose that the latter were imi¬
tations of these diminutive structures, and built primarily for a similar
purpose, is an hypothesis destitute of any probability, or solid foundation.
Dr. Petrie has not entered upon the, question of the origin of these
towers, or by whom they were introduced into Ireland, having reserved
these important topics for his second volume; but he has long since
abandoned all intention of completing his great work, a circumstance
most deeply to be lamented.
In Scotland two fine Towers remain, at Brechin and at Abernethy,
precisely similar to the Irish, and it is observable that both are con¬
nected with establishments founded by Irish ecclesiastics.
In Egilsha, one of the Orkney Islands, there is a Bound Tower
attached to the west end of St. Magnus's Church, and of coevM erection,
namely, the twelfth century. This Tower is still, or was a few years
ago, between 70 and 80 ft. high. Dr. Petrie possesses a sketch of it,
Vide p. 222. ■" Vide Dictionnaire de VArchitecture, t. ii. p. 44:9.
CHUECH AND EOUND TOWEE OE DTSEET.
221
made in 1775, by the Eev. G. Low, in which the conical roof is repre¬
sented as perfect. The thickness of the walls was nearly 4 ft., and the
internal diameter of the Tower 7 ft. 6 in. The Church of Deerness, in
the Orkneys, which was also sketched by Mr. Low in 1774, was re¬
markable as having two circular Towers with conical roofs at its west
end. In a letter to Dr. Petrie in 1836, Dr. Hibbert Ware states that on
a visit to Deerness in 1882, he found that "the proprietor had levelled to
the ground the whole of this ancient structure."
At Peel Castle, in the Isle of Man, there is a Eonnd Tower close to
the ancient Church of St. Germain, and the still more ancient little
Church of St. Patrick. In the " Archseological Journal" of 1848, will
be found a description of this Tower by Mr. Petit. It is 44 ft. in cir¬
cumference ; the internal diameter at the level of the door is 5 ft. 9 in.;
height of the sill of the door from the ground, 7 ft.; height of the door,
5 ft. 6 in.; width at bottom, 2 ft. 3 in.; at the spring of the arch, 1 ft. 8 in.
This Tower has four square-headed windows near the top: • the conical
cap is gone, being replaced by a kind of embattled parapet, like the
Towers of Xildare and Xilmallock. The elevation of the door above
the ground, its sloping jambs, and the windows near the summit, stamp
this Tower to be of Irish origin, which is confirmed by its connection
with the very early Church of St. Patrick.
In England no structures similar to these exist, but in the Eastern
counties many circular belfries are to be found. Mr. Hudson Gurney
has described more than fifty: they are chiefly Eomanesque in character,
but only one appears to be older than the twelfth century. They are
always attached to the Churches, are larger in diameter than the Irish,
and generally do not exceed 60 ft. in height.
During a tour in Italy, a few years ago, hearing that Eound Towers
were to be seen at Eavenna ®, I made a point of visiting • that most
® To the archseologist and the architect, Eavenna oifers the highest attractions. It contains the
most striking combination of ancient churches, exquisite mosaics, sarcophagi, tombs, and inscriptions,
which is to be found in Italy.
222
AD ARE.
remarkable and interesting city; and altbongh I was nnable to remain
more than one day, I was amply rewarded by finding ten Campaniles,
no less than six of which are round, and by obtaining sketches and
measurements of as many as the limited time at my disposal would
permit. Some of the churches to which they belong are of great
antiquity, having been founded in the fifth and sixth centuries.
In the accompanying woodcuts a Eavenna circular Campanile and an
Irish Bound Tower, that of Devenish, are placed side by side. The
dimensions of. the latter are, height 81 ft., circumference 49ft. 8 in.;
therefore if drawn to the same scale, the Irish Bound Tower should have
been represented about three-quarters of the height of the Italian.
The Campanile at Bavenna which has been selected, belongs to the
Church of S. Giovanni Battista. It is attached to the north-west corner
of the aisle, which is, however, of a much later date than the tower.
There are four windows in each tier. The internal diameter at the
Campanile of S. (rioTaimi Sattista, Bayenna.
CHUECH AND EODND TOWEE OE DTSEET.
223
bottom is 10 ft., and the height of the tower by estimation about 100 ft.
The base is hidden in the sketch by the modern facade of the Church.
This Church is said to have been built by the Empress Galla Placidia
in the year 438, and consecrated by S. Peter Chrysologus. The conical
roof is of shingles. The Campanile of S. Apollinare in Classis is the
finest at Eavenna. It stands on the north-east side of the Church, from
which it is 26 ft. distant. The wall is 6 ft. 6 in. thick, and the internal
diameter of the tower 19 ft. Its height I should judge by estimation to
be from 140 to 150 ft.
A view of the Eound Tower of Ardmore, in the county of Waterford,
Kound Tower, Ardmore, co. "Waterford.
is here subjoined, for which I am indebted to Mr. Parker; this is the
only Tower in Ireland possessing external stringcourses, thus affording
224^
ABASE.
an additional feature of resemblance to the Campanile at Eayenna. The
height of the Ardmore Tower is 96 ft., and its circumference 51 ft. 6 in.
Circular Campaniles are said to exist in the northern parts of Lomhardy,
among the secluded Alpine valleys, but I was not fortunate enough to
find any of them. In the Dictionary of Architecture, issued by the Archi¬
tectural Publication Society, article Campanile^ written by Mr. E. I'Anson,
mention is made of two out of Italy—one at the Cathedral of Uzes, in
France, with the ordinary two-light windows, with slender columns and deep
capitals; the other at the Cathedral of Worms, of very similar character.
Perhaps the most striking resemblance to an Irish Pound Tower
hitherto discovered, is to be found in the accompanying woodcut, taken
Bound Tower, Epinal.
from a sketch made by the accomplished antiquary Samuel Fergusson,
Esq., which he kindly placed at my disposal. The Church to which
this Tower is attached is that of St. Maurice, at Epinal, in Lorraine.
CHURCH AND ROUND TOWER OE DTSERT.
225
Throiigli an arcliseological friend, Monsieur Carre, of Meaux, Mr. Fer¬
guson obtained the following details of this very interesting Church
and Tower. The nave and transepts date from the tenth century. At
the end of each transept is a circular tower, that on the north side partly
ruined, with probably only about one-half of its original height standing;
it is 10 ft. in internal diameter, and the walls are about 3 ft. thick. The
southern tower, which was rebuilt in the thirteenth century, is about
112 ft. in height, and nearly 7 ft. in internal diameter, the walls being
3 ft. 6 in. in thickness. A winding staircase extends to the height
of about 50 ft. In the old tower the stairs appear to have reached
higher. The windows of the southern tower are square-headed and
small. The door is on the level of the ground, the entrance being from
the transept. This tower seems never to have been furnished with
bells, which may be accounted for by the fact that the western square
tower, erected in the eleventh century, has always been used as a belfry.
It would be interesting to trace out the history of this Church, which,
from its being dedicated to St. Maurice, is probably of early foundation.
Another and most remarkable example of the existence in early times
of Eound Towers attached to Churches, may be here adduced, indicating,
too, an additional and very curious purpose for which these circular
buildings were employed. This was at the great ecclesiastical establish¬
ment of St. Gall, where a plan on parchment is still preserved of the
monastery as rebuilt in the ninth century. In 1814, this plan, with
a descriptive memoir, was produced by Dr. Ferdinand Keller, of Zurich,
under the title Bauriss des Klosters St. Gallen vom Jahr^ 820. From this,
and from an older work, Professor "Willis published in the "Archaeo¬
logical Journal," June, 1848, a very interesting article, with reduced
plans, giving full details of this most valuable architectural record.
At the west end of the Church, and equi-distant from the semicircular
atrium, are two circular towers, that on the north called the tower of
St. Michael, that on the south the tower of St. Gabriel, having spiral
226
AD AHiD*
stairs. These towers appear to have been between 25 and 30 ft. in
external diameter. Professor Willis observes:—
" On the two sides of the eastern (recte western) semicircular atrium
of the minster stand two towers, which, like those of most of the ancient
basilicas of Italy, are not connected with the principal building. The
access to them is by short passages from the atrium. They are probably
divided into stories, and, what is seldom the case with belfries, are of
a round form. Their height is not given. It is not said whether they
were to receive bells, which doubtless was their principal destination.
It is merely remarked that the ascent to tjie summit of the towers and
to their chapels was (as is also shewn in the drawing) by a winding
staircase, and that the whole building could be overlooked from them,
* ascensus per cocleam^ ad universa super inspieienda^ Above, in the
northern tower, there is an altar in a chapel dedicated to the archangel
Michael, ^ altare sancti Miehaelis in summitate and at the summit of
the southern tower a similar altar is raised to the archangel Gabriel,
'• altare sancti Gahrielis in summitate^ Campaniles or bell-towers, as is
known, had not been brought into frequent use in the construction of
churches very long before this plan was made,—perhaps first under the
reign of Charlemagne. Then followed the various, and in part unsuccess¬
ful, efforts to bring them into harmonious connection with the rest of the
building, to which, by their nature, they were not suited. The floral
ornament in the plan, which is also often seen in manuscripts of the
ninth century, has no precise signification
At Eavenna most of the towers are attached to the Churches, while in
Ireland they are almost always detached. I believe the only examples
known of the former arrangement are to be found at Clonmacnoise,
Killashee, Ireland's Eye, Dungiven, Trummery, Tamlaght-Finlagan,
Killevy, Ferns, and two at Glendalough. The majority of these cases,
if not all, are as late as the twelfth, or even the thirteenth century.
There is no instance of one of the ancient towers being connected with
* "It probably indicates the conical roof of the building or its ornamental finial."
CHTJECH AND BOUND TOWER OE DTSERT
227
its Churcli. At St. Fineen's Church, Clonmacnoise, which is probably
the earliest example of this arrangement, the tower is at the south-east
corner of the nave, and its door opens into the chancel. At Dungiven
and at Killevy the tower was placed at the south-west angle of the nave;
at Tamlaght-Einlagan, at the north-west; while at Trummery it was
situated at the north side of the small chancel. This tower was about
60 ft. high, and had a low conical roof. It had two doors, one at the
level of the ground, leading into the Church, the other at the height
of 6 ft. above the ground.
Several of the Italian Campaniles offer peculiarities of shape. The
one attached to the Church of S. Giovanni e Paulo, at Eavenna, is
rectangular in the lower half, and round in the upper. The internal
diameter of the rectangular part is 5 ft., by 3 ft. 9 in.; of the circular
part, 6 ft. I in. The height by estimation may be between 70 and 75 ft.
The church connected with this tower is the single example I met with
in Italy possessing a square east end instead of the apse.
At Yenice I found, connected with the Church of S. Paternian, a very
curious Campanile, externally an irregular hexagon, internally round;
the internal diameter is about 8 ft.
The Campanile of the Benedictine Abbey of S. Mcholo, at Pisa, of
the thirteenth century, has the lower story circular, the next two
octagonal, and the fourth or upper story hexagonal.
In Ireland a few cases are known in which the lower part of the tower
was square, viz., Killashee, Glendalough, Dungiven, Tamlaght-Pinlagan,
Trummery, and Killevy. Glendalough has disappeared: at Dungiven
the square portion reached as high as the roof of the Church; this tower
fell about the beginning of the present century ^ Only a few feet of that
at Tamlaght-Pinlagan remain: it is internally round, the diameter being
5 ft. 4 in. ^ Trummery, which was still smaller, fell in 1828 and the
Vol. I. of Mason's Parochial Survey of Ireland, p. 302. Prom a sketch and description
by Dr. Petrie. ^ Ulster Journal of Archaeology, vol. iii. p. 295.
Gg2
i ~~ ^
!
228 ADAEE.
Tower of Killeyy about eighty-nine years ago. The Tower of Kinnegh,
in the county of Cork, has an hexagonal base, and is round above; the
door is placed near the top of the hexagonal portion. These varieties
of shape afford an additional feature of resemblance between the Irish
Towers and the Italian Campaniles.
Among the examples which have been classed under the head of
attached Towers, the following peculiarities deserve to be mentioned.
One of the Towers at Glendalough rested on the stone roof of the
church, called Cro- Caoimhgin^ or Kevin's House, and that on the island of
Ireland's Eye rested on the stone roof of the chancel of the church,
called Tempull mac Nessain^ or the Church of the sons of Hessan.
Since there are but these two cases in Ireland of circular belfries placed
on the churches, it would be very interesting could the age of these
towers or turrets be clearly ascertained. That such an arrangement
was not unknown to the Irish in the ninth century, we may infer by
a passage in Fleming's Collectanea Sacra^ p. 245, relative to the erection
of the Church of St. Columbanus, at Bobbio, by the Abbot Agilulphus,
who flourished at the close of that century. ^'Ipsam denique eandem
Ecclesiam venerabilis Abbas Agilulfus ex lapidibus struxit, turrimque
super eam mdificavit, et campanas in ea fecit pendere, sicut nunc
cernitur
One of the most important problems connected with the early Italian
Campaniles, is the determination of their age. Mr. I'Anson, in the
article above referred to, considers those at Eavenna to be not later
than the middle of the eighth century, and he adds, that they may be
as early as the sixth.
The beautiful Campanile (square) of S. Giorgio, in Yelabro, at Eome,
is stated in ""Wood's Letters" to have been built about 750. Ho author¬
ities are given for this assertion. It is indeed surprising how little
* Quoted in Dr. Petrie's Essay, &c., p. 391.
CHURCH AND ROUND TOWER OE DYSERT. 229
is known of the origin of the hell-tower, which was developed into one
of the most beantiful features of ecclesiastical architecture. Where and
when were they first erected ? and what was their original form ?—these
are questions worthy of occupying the attention of the most skilful and
learned ecclesiastical archeeologists.
In the foregoing sketch, it is to be hoped that at least a plausible
indication has been afforded of the country, and perhaps the very quarter
from whence the Irish Eound Tower may have been derived; but even
could this be proved, it would not materially assist towards the solution
of several questions connected with these remarkable structures, which
at present seem surrounded with difficulties. In various countries we
can trace the change of belfries, whether in the form of towers or spires,
from the simplest types and smallest dimensions, until they culminate in
the noblest features of Gothic architecture; but it is a most curious cir¬
cumstance that in the extreme west of Europe Towers should be found,
of a form strongly resembling those at Eavenna, and a few other places,
and which seems to have received scarcely any modification or develop¬
ment from its earliest appearance, down to the period when the latest
were erected—a range of probably from six to seven centuries. This con¬
tinuity of type is certainly a very striking and uncommon phenomenon.
Were it not for the appearance of certain ornamental details, and a better
kind of masonry, there is but little or no difference between the earliest
and most recent of the genuine Towers. As to the small class already de¬
scribed, of attached Towers with square bases, they were certainly no
development, but, on the contrary, appear to have been on a smaller
scale, and of inferior construction to the older Towers, judging by the
circumstance of nearly all of them having fallen.
There still remain two additional and very important questions,—by
whom, and at what period, were these most peculiar buildings intro¬
duced into Ireland? As to the first, we are totally in the dark; and"
with respect to the second, we are without any authentic evidence.
230
AD AI^!E•
The earliest notice contained in the Annals relative to the burning of
a cloig4heac\ or bell-house, is in the year 950, and the earliest authentic
record of the erection of one' is in 965*. However, Dr. Petrie gives
reasons, which are not without weight, for supposing that these Towers
existed as early as the seventh, or even the sixth century. Among
others, he brings forward the curious popular tradition which ascribes
the erection of some of them to the celebrated builder Goban Saer,
who flourished in the seventh century, and goes on to say,—
"It is remarkable that such a tradition never exists in connexion
with any Towers but those in which the architecture is in perfect har¬
mony with the Churches of that period, as in the Towers of Kilmacduach,
Killala, and Antrim. And it is further remarkable, that the age as¬
signed to the first buildings at Kilmacduagh, about the year 620, is
exactly that in which this celebrated Irish architect flourished
Goban appears to have been of foreign origin, if not himself a foreigner.
The very ancient life of S. Aid, or Maidoc, published by Colgan in his
Acta Sanctorum^ contains two interesting notices of the Goban. S. Maidoc
was Abbot and Bishop of Ferns, and chief Bishop of Leinster; he
flourished in the sixth century. His biographer, who, according to
Colgan, was a Priest or Monk of Ferns, or of some Church of which
S. Maidoc was patron, writes thus:—
" Quodam tempore cum Beatus Moedoc basilicam sibi sedificare volu-
isset, non potuit artificem tunc invenire. Confidens in Deo benedixit
manus cujusdam ineruditi nomine Gobbanus; et statim subtilissimus
artifex est factus. Postea in summa arte illam basilicam mdificavit
Goban is mentioned again with reference to another Church: " Postea
autem Cobbanus artifex illam Ecclesiam sedificavit The cognomen
saer or saoir applied to his name, signifies a carpenter and a mason—in
fact a building artificer.
® Petrie's Essay oe Ecclesiastical Architecture, p. 375. ** Ibid. 880, ® Vita S. Maidoci,
eap. 51, in Acta SS., p. 211. ^ Ibid., cap. 53.
CHTJECH AND EOIJND TOWER OE DTSERT.
231
In the ancient life of S. Abban, who also flourished in the sixth
century, published by Colgan, occurs the following notice of Goban :—
" Quidam famosissimus in omni arte lignorum et lapidum erat in
Hibernia nomine Gobbanus, cujus artis fama usque in finem ssdcuH
erit in ea
For a historical proof of the existence of Eound Towers in the sixth
century, Dr. Petrie adduces a remarkable passage in St. Adamnan's Life
of St. Columba, written about the year 680. It is the fifteenth chapter
of the third book; and the chapter is thus headed \ De Angelo Domini
qui alicui fratri lapso de momstern culmine rotmdi in Eoboreti Campo
(now Durrow) opportune tam cito subvenerat." The author then pro¬
ceeds to describe how St. Columba suddenly sent an angel who was
standing near him, "ut alicui ex fratribus de summo culmine magnce
domus lapso tam cito subveniret, quae his in diebus Eoboreti Gampo
fabricatur." In book i., chapter 29, the same building seems to be
alluded to again, where it is mentioned as '^alicujus majoris domus
fabrica." Dr. Petrie fairly argues, that no part of an ancient Irish
monastery will serve to explain the object of the miracle, except the
Eound Tower. The Churches were square, the monks' cells, although
generally round, were very low, and with sloping walls: there could
be no such danger in sliding down one of the sides of these beehive
houses as to call forth the miraculous interference of an angel to save
a man's life. The miracle, to be a miracle, requires that the summit
must be that of a building of great altitude, and this condition the
Eound Tower alone fulfils.
After quoting the passage from Dr. Petrie in full. Dr. Eeeves
remarks ^:—
^'The present chapter of Adamnan supplies a most valuable link in
' Cap. 39, in Acta SS., p. 619, as quoted iu Dr. Petrie's Essay, p. 343.
Adamnan, p. 215. e Ibid., p. 216, note f.
* Vide Reeves's
232
ADAEE.
the history of the Eound Towers; it points to their primary use as
monastic abodes, known by the name Monasterium Rotundum^ and re¬
garded as belonging to a class of building called magna or major domus^
as contradistinguished from the humble cells of the same form; ante¬
cedently to the time when lells^ like other reliques, acquired from age
such an amount of veneration as to confer upon the buildings in which
they were preserved the name of cloig-theach^ or Bell-housed
This opens out an additional use to which these Towers were applied;
for assuming the above description to refer, as Dr. Petrie and Dr. Eeeves,
not without good reason, consider that it does, to a Eound Tower, these
structures were more than mere temporary places of refuge; they were
also monastic dwellings.
Indirectly connected with these Towers, and with the mystery which
still hangs over their introduction into this country, another problem
remains, equally curious, and at present still less capable of solution,
namely this,—How does it happen that the Irish Churches are invariably
square-ended, while those in Italy, France, England, and other countries
are almost invariably apsidal? and from whence is the square end
derived ? The coincidence is at least singular that the only square-ended
early Church which I detected in Italy, should happen to be at Eavenna,
the very place from whence one may, at all events, with some proba¬
bility, conceive that the Eound Towers are derived. Unfortunately,
there appears at present no clue, either through documentary evidence
or otherwise, by which even a plausible conjecture might be hazarded
in answer to these most interesting questions.
X. ANCIENT TOPOGEAPHY OF ADAEE AND
ITS NEIGHBOUEHOOD.
■ » I
the foregoing chapters scarcely a passing allusion has been
made to the ancient condition of the district in which Adare
is situated, or any account given of the Irish clans who occupied
the territory prior to the Herman invasion in the twelfth century; some
reference therefore to the early topography of this part of the country
is required, in order to render the historical notices" of Adare
complete. This information can now be most satisfactorily supplied
through the kindness of the Eev. Dr. Eeeves, who has placed at my
disposal a short but valuable paper drawn up by him on the topography
of a portion of the county of Limerick, containing an account of the
^Hy-Figeinte' and their component clans, from which the following
brief sketch is mainly taken.
The present diocese of Limerick is nearly identical with the ancient
territory of the Hy-Figeinte, a numeTous and powerful tribe, who derived
their name from Fiacha Figinti, the senior representative of Eoghan
Mor, eldest son of Oilill Olum, King of Munster in the third century.
Fiacha flourished in the following century; and among the different
clans who sprang from him, and occupied the territory above mentioned,
the most important were the descendants of his eldest son Brian, whose
eldest son Cairbre was surnamed Aebhda (Eva), or * the beautiful.'
His posterity grouped themselves into a clan called the VHy-Cairbre
Aebhda,' who were seated for the most part in the present baronies
of Kenry, Coshma % and Kilmallock, in the fertile plains along the river
• «
' Coshma, the barony in which Adare is situated, is in Irish, according to Dr. O'Donovan, ' along
the Maigue.' ("Four Masters," a.d. 1501, p. 1262.) The Maigue, on the same authority, is inter-
H h
234
ANCIENT TOPOGEAPHT OP ADAEE
Maigue, and occupied the greater portion of the subsequent rural
deanery of Adare. Towards the close of the ninth century, Cathal,
the representative of the tribe, was married to a daughter of Amlaf,
king of the Danes of Munster, and in consequence of this alliance the
race of Cairbre Aebhda became closely associated with the Danish settlers
at Limerick, Donndubhan (or Donovan), the issue of this marriage,
enjoyed the chieftaincy of the Hy-Cairbre by hereditary right. His
abode was at Brugh-righ, now Bruree, on the Maigue, to the south-east
of Adare, where, at the instigation of Maelmhuaidh, lord of Desmond,
he seized the person of Mahon, son of Ceinedigh, of the Dalcassian race,
and king of Munster, whom he delivered over to his enemy to be slain.
This act of treachery was avenged by Mahon's brother, the celebrated
Brian Borumha, in two battles, in the latter of which Donovan and his
father-in-law Amlaf were slain. From this Donovan the family name
of O'Donovan was derived, being assumed by his grandson Amlaf.
notwithstanding the aid of their Danish connexions, the O'Donovans
were unable to make head against the power of the Dalcassians, as
wielded by the O'Briens, so that they gradually declined in importance,
and were finally dispossessed by the Anglo-Horman lords. The O'Dono¬
vans migrated .southwards to Cork and Kerry, and their tribe name
still remains in the form of Carbery, an extensive barony in the southern
part of the county of Cork. "With their departure the Hy-Figeinte and
their subordinate clans disappear from history. It is singular that
a portion of the O'Donovan territory should now be possessed by two
families descended from the Dalcassian race who, in the person of their
great monarch Brian, avenged the death of his brother, namely, the
O'Gradys and the O'Quins. Both these clans, as has been mentioned
(p. 161), were dispossessed of their ancient patrimonies during the wars
preted an maig, 'river of the plain.' (O'Heerin, "Topog. Poems," p. Ixxvi.) It bore the several
epithets of maigreach, ' salmon full,' (" Pour Masters," p. 1730); mkall, ' sluggish,' (O'Heerin, " Top.
Poems," p. 118); and na-mart, 'of the beeves,' (J. O'Tuama, apud "Four Masters," p. 1730.)
AND ITS NEIGHBOUEHOOD. 235 i
of Thomond in the fourteenth century, and shifted their habitation to
the county of Limerick.
Soon after the Anglo-lN"orman invasion, the county was divided into
Cantreds, on which the rural deaneries were founded. These deaneries
were Limerick, Killocia or Kilmallock, Adare, Garth or Ballingarry,
Ardagh*, and Eathgel or Eathkeale, Now ainohg these there is not
a name which represents an ancient territory, and only one which is
of ecclesiastical origin; they all find a counterpart in the early feudal
partitions of the Anglo-!N'orman lords, and opposite each you may set,
not a church but a castle. This correspondence of the Cantreds with
the rural deaneries is clearly seen by referring to the Patent Eolls of
Chancery. For example, in 1346, among the Cantreds was Adare and
Cromyth; in 1877, the same; 1381, Dominium Comitis Kyldarim^;
now, Adare and Croom, which pretty nearly coincided with the rural
deanery of Adare,
•» Cal. Cane. Hib., p. 52 a, No. 50; Ibid., p. 102 a, No. 73; Ibid., p. 113 b, No. 117,
Hh2
XL' ADDEXDA.
ITBING the printing of the foregoing pages, additional infor¬
mation has been collected upon various points, which is here
subjoined, references being given to the pages to which the
different notices refer.
Tage 9, Note. Coity Castle.
One event of historic' interest may be mentioned in connexion with
this Castle, namely, its having been besieged by Owen Glendowr in
1405. The siege lasted a considerable^ time, and during its progress
several prelates and nobleiiien offered to raise a loan to levy troops for
its relief®.
Page 64-. Notices of the Teinitarian Priory.
The two following documents are earlier than the first of those men¬
tioned in p. 64. I. The deed erroneously described (p. 66) as executed
in the twenty-seventh year of Edward III. (1399); this should be
Edward I. (1299). In the same deed John Fitz Thomas is incorrectly
styled de Clare ; whereas he was the first Earl of Eildare, and was the
founder of the Augustinian Priory, Adare.
II. A.D. 1318. From the Pat. Kolls, Edw. II., an. 11:—
" Bex, (accepto quod non est ad dampnum, &c.) concessit Bicardo
quod ipse dare possit priori et fratribus domus sancte
Trinitatis de Athdare 1 messuagium et 48 acras terrae in
que Willelmus le Deyere dudum in curia Edwardi I. recuperavit coram
justiciariis versus dictum priorem, et quod dictus prior messuagium
® " Pour le rescous du Sire du Coytif q'est et de long temps ad estee assegez en son cliastel de
Coitif par les Enemys rebels en Gales."—Rot. Pari., vol. iii. p. 547, 6 Henry IV. 1404, and Cobbett's
Pari. Hist., 1. p. 295.
ADDENDA. 237
illud, &c., perquirere possit a dicto Eicardo, habendum ipsi et fratribus
et ecclesie sue imperpetuum, Thomastoun, 28 Jan.^"
Eeference having been recently made to the original roll, it was found
so defaced and torn, that it was not possible to give the document
. in externa.
Page 9If,, The Parish.
- Previous to the dissolution of religious houses, the Eectory of Adare
was appropriate to the Trinitarian Priory, but there was an endowed
Yicarage, the presentation to which was vested in the Earls of Eildare
For some time after this event the Crown exercised the right, but even¬
tually it was restored to the original possessors, who continued to enjoy
it till 1721, when the advowson of the Vicarage was purchased by John
Croker, of Ballinaguard, Esq., from the trustees of the Earl of Kildare's
estate, for the sum of £2,059 12s.: it was sold by his descendant, the
late John Croker, of Ballinaguard, to the late Earl of Bunraven.
In 1302, the Yicarage of Adare was estimated at 5 marks 8 shillings
and 1 Of pence, or £3 15s. 6|d. According to a valuation made in 1629,
it was rated in the King's books at £5 5s. In the Eeport of the Com-
missioners on Ecclesiastical Eevenue and Patronage in Ireland, 1837,
the gross amount of the annual income was stated to be £301 16s. lid.;
and- the nett income £284' Os. 7d. The Eectorial tithes, which were
impropriate, were compounded for £506 17s. 6d. ^
A list of the Yicars of Adare is appended, so far as the names can at
present be obtained from'different sources; '
I 1543. William Chaysse, clerk, presented to the Yicarage of St. Kicholas
of Adare, in the King's presentation, plena jure^ April 20
i:
Calend. Rot. Cancell. Hib., p. 25 a, No, 177.
, « The Liber P'iger of Limerick, p. 46, contains a grant made to Bishop Hubert de, Burgh, before
j fhe year 1250, of the, ecclesiastical benefices of Kilgoban and other .churches to the community
i of the Cathedral: Kilgoban is on the Adare estate, and the tithes belong to the vicars choral of
' Limerick to:this day. ' This grant is witnessed amongst others by Magister TyrreU, Vicar of Adare.
^ Eourth Report, p. 386. ® Pat. Roll, 34 Hen. VIII., Morrin's Calend. of Pat. and CI.
Rolls, vol. i. p. 95. « \ ^ . , -
238
ADDEITDA.
1561, . John Helly, chaplain, presented to theYicarage of St.Mcholas
of Athare, in the donation of the King, July 17 ^
1610. Eugenius Kelly, a layman^ was Vicar
1615. Eichard Harte or Hare, was Yicar ^
1662. John Lillas, clerk, instituted and admitted to the Vicarages
of Adare and Cloncarr, August 12 \
1686. Edward Ingram, clerk, instituted and inducted into the Eectory
of Kilmurry, the Eectory and Vicarage of Croom, and the Vicarage
of Adare, March 3
1715. Stackpoole Perry, clerk, instituted into the Eectory and Vicarage
of Croom, and the Vicarage of Adare, May 10 ^
1739. "William Bucknor, clerk, M.A., instituted into the Eectory and
Vicarage of Croom, and the Vicarages of Adare and Dunaman, yacant
by the death of the Eev. Stackpoole Perry, Sept. 21
1783. James Graves, clerk, collated to the Eectory and Vicarage of
Croom, and the Vicarage of Adare, August 13°,
1784. Eichard Croker, clerk, instituted into the Eectory and Vicarage
of Croom, and the Vicarage of Adare, Jan. 28 °.
1824. Edward Croker, clerk, instituted to the Vicarage of Adare,
including the chapelries of Kilkerville (Kilcurly) and Castle-Eobert,
of which Edward Croker, Esq., is Patron, vacant by the death of
Eev. Eichard Croker, who held the same for upwards of twenty years,
and died in July, 1823,—April 9 p,
1828. Thomas Croker, clerk, admitted to the Vicarage of Adare, on
the presentation of Edward Croker, Esq., Kov, 1
* Pat. Poll, 5 Edw. VI. 5 Ibid., p. 243. » Reg. Visit., 1610. See p. 95, su^ra, Ibid.,
1615. See p. 96, supra. * Eirst-Pruits Returns, Easter 1665, vol. iii. 47.—^Record Office,
Custom House, Dublin. Ibid., Easter, 1687, vol. iv. 47 d. . * Ibid., Grig. Return,
Easter, 1715. Ibid., Michaelmas, 1741. » Ibid., Michaelmas, 1783. ® Ibid.,
Michaelmas, 1784.
P Ibid., Easter, 1824. By this entry it would appear that the Richard Croker here mentioned
was probably not the Richard Croker appointed in 1784,
1 Pourth Rep, of Com. of Eccl. Rev, and Patr., p. 887,
ADDENDA.
239
"No data exist by which a list of the Catholic Priests of the parish can
he ascertained. The following curious extract was furnished me by Dr*
Eeeves, taken from a volume in the library at Armagh, containing under
each county a list of the Popish Parish Priests as they were returned to
the Council Office in Dublin.
Com. LimericTc.
''A List of the Kames of the Popish Parish Priests as they were re¬
turned to the Council- Office in Duhlin^ as register'd at a General Sessions
of the Peace held at St. Francis Abby near LimericTc^ in and for the said
County, the Eleventh Day of July^ 1704, pursuant to a Clause in the late
Act of Parliament, Intituled, An Act for ^Registering the Popish ClergyF
Among the parishes mentioned are—
Popish Priests
Names.
Places of
Abode.
Age.
Parishes of which
they pretend to be
Popish Priests,
Time of their
receiving
Popish Orders.
Places where
they received
Orders.
Prom whom
they received
them.
3
John Cantillon
Anhid, in
the Barony
of Closhma
Forty-
seven
years.
Croome,
Dunnamaune,
Anhid,
Killonehane, and
Disert.
In the Year
1680.
At Bazas,
in the king¬
dom of
France.
From
Thomas,
then Bishop
of Bazas.
31
Daniel Conry
Adare, in
the County
of Limerick.
Thirty-
eight
years.
Adare,
Clamshier, and
Kilkeedy.
In the year
1691
At Poitiers
in France.
From John,
then Bishop
of Poitiers.
" Dublin: printed by Andrew Crook, Printer to the Queen's most
Excellent Majesty, on the Blind-Key, 1705."
In 1814 the Eev. Michael O'Elynn was appointed Parish Priest in the
place of the Eev. John Lee, translated to Eathkeale.
1824. Eev. Tim. Foley, who was translated to Stonehall in 1827.
1827. Eev. D. Hogan, who died in 1833.
1833. Eev. Mich. Culhane, who died in 1834.
1834. Eev. Maurice Fitzgibbon, translated to Parteen in 1835.
1835. Eev. T. S. O'Grady, the present P.P., 1865.
Page 9^-5. The Libek Niger, or Black Book or Limerick.
As frequent mention is made, and several extracts inserted in the
present work, from this ancient and valuable MS., now in the possession
240
ADDENDA.
of the College of ;MayhoothJ a short descriptioE of its contents may prove
interesting. " The contains seventy-six. leaves on vellum and
parchment." The table of contents and collection of documents, occupying
seventy leaves, are in the same hand, beautifully ahd plainly written in
the style of the end of the reign of Edward III. The earliest document
transcribed into the collection is of the date 1194, and the latest 1362.
The additional portion, containing'the Procuration table and Eental, is
in a later and different style of hand, being annexed by Bishop Cor¬
nelius O'Dea in 1418. ~
Among the documents contained in the Liber Niger^ one of the most
valuable is an Inquisition taken in the year 1201, by order of Meyler
Eitz-Henry, Justiciary of Ireland, by William de Burgo and a jury of
twelve Englishmen (Normans), twelve Ostmen or Danes, and twelve
Irishmen, of the property, &c., belonging to the Bishop of Limerick.
(Nos. 22, 23, pp. 14, 16.) This record recites the names of the See pos¬
sessions, but as it only gives the list of the parishes which had Bishop's
land, or were in his or the Chapter's donation, many churches, among
others Adare, are omitted,
The little or new Liber Niger^ mentioned in this and subsequent pages,
is merely a transcript of the tables and taxations at the end of the original
book; and the list of procuration fees or proxies from which extracts are
made p. 95, is an exact copy which was made by Bishop Adams, in the
beginning of the sixteenth century, of the table drawn up by Bishop
Cornelius O'Dea in 1418,
Fage 95y Note, On the Nunnery of Monaster-na-calliagh.
Dr. Eeeves has recently identified this house. It is now called
Monaster-na-galliagh'duffy and the ruins are at Old Abbey, in the
townland of the same name, parish of Eobertstown, barony of Shanid,
which was formerly part of the territory of 0'Cony 11, (now Connello).
(Ord. Survey, co. Limerick, sheet 19.) ArchdalD errs in placing this
' Monasticon Hibernicum, p. 433,
i
ADDENDA. 241
monastery near Longh Gur, in the barony of Smallcounty, which was
anciently called Deis-beg, and was never in the territory of O'Conyll, or
in the diocese of Limerick. It may be added that the rectories of Dun-
moylan and New Grange (Grange), which were appropriate to this house,
are situate in the same barony (Shanid), or a contiguous part of the
adjoining one.
Page 101. The Town.
The Liber Niger of Limerick, p. 23, contains a charter of the Abbot
and Convent of May (i.e. Magio, or Monasternenagh), granting the
lands of Polmanach. Witnessed by Symon Herward, Mayor of Limerick,
and by Maurice Blund and Walterus de Adare, Provosts of the same.
Undated.
To note a in the same page should be added, ^'printed in the un¬
published ChartcB Privilegia et Immunitates Hih.^ p. 42." To note add,
''printed ibid. p. 72."
Page 102. Position of the Ancient Town of Adare.
The following maps place Adare on the east side of the river:—Speed's
Kingdom of Ireland, 1610; Speed's Province of Munster; Blaen's Map
of Momonia; and the Map of the Kingdom of Ireland, by Eobert
Morden, in Gibson's Camden's Britannia^ (vol. ii. p. 1310).
These maps are, with one exception, of the seventeenth century, on
a small scale, and very inaccurate; moreover, two at least are really the
same map. Mercator's Hybernice pars Australis^ 1636, and his Irlandice
Regnum of the same date, place the town on the west side. The Down
Survey map of 1656 is quite conclusive as to the position of the town
in the seventeenth century, so that if it ever was situated on the
eastern side, it must have been in very early times. A much stronger
argument in favour of the town having been at some period on the east
side of the river than that afforded by these inaccurate maps, is derived
from the circumstance that the townland, which comes close up to the
Castle and the old parish Church, is called Ardshanbally, the derivation
I i
242 ADDENDA.
and meaning of wMcli appear to be, Ard-sean-laile^ * height of the old
town.* From this height, the view, Plate II., is taken.
Page lH. Clonlis and Kilqueeg.
Clonlis is now Cleenglass in Killeedy. Xilqueeg is Coill-an-choigidh^
("Four Masters," a.d. 1582), probably now Kilcruaig in the parish
of Kilflyn.
Page 136. Antiquities found at Desmond Castle.
Among the objects dug out, which are alluded to p. 136, are three
iron keys, found in different parts of the black deposit, pretty deep
down, representations of which are here given. 'No. 1 is exceedingly
rude; it is 6| in. long, | in. broad, and nearly as thick. I^o. 2 is also
No. 1. No. 2. No. 3.
Keys found at Desmond Castle.
6| in. long, about f in. broad, and J in. thick. No. 3, unlike the others,
is rather an elegantly shaped key: it is 5Jin. long. For about an inch
from the handle it is square, with the edges notched; from this point to
the wards the edges are bevelled off. The key is much coated over with
a blue colour, probably a deposit of sulphate of iron. I have not been
able to obtain satisfactory information as to the age of these old keys.
Two or three with spikes may be seen in the Museum of the Eoyal
Irish Academy, but none like fig. 3: nor are there any similar at South
ADDENDA. 243
Kensington or in the British Museum; but as far as I can ascertain from
the best authorities they are probably of the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries. Ko. 2 was dug up from near the very lowest part of the
deposit, among oyster shells and bones.
Close to this key was found a small tool or weapon of horn, here
figured; it is 6 in. long, and seems to
be formed of the antler of a deer;
2 in. of one end have been shaped to
. , Horn Implement.
fit into a handle, the other 4 in. taper
to a fine point. It is 2 J in. round in the thickest part. A portion of
a chain was dug out, 3 ft. 6 in. long, with flat links from 4 to 5 in.
in length. Also a small skein or knife about 6 in. long, like those found
in the crannoges. This specimen was hafted in wood. These skeins
probably came down to a comparatively recent period in Ireland.
A number of pieces of broken pottery were dug out of the moat, and
a few in these recent excavations. In order to ascertain their age, they
were exhibited to Mr. Franks and other persons competent to form an
opinion on the subject, but it seems very dilficult to arrive at even the
century to which this sort of rude mediaeval pottery belonged; it was
probably in use during the greater part of the period of occupation of
the Castle by the Fitzgeralds, from the thirteenth to the sixteenth
century. Plate XXXI. contains sketches of the fragments of pottery
described in the following memorandum, which has been drawn up by
G. Wallis, Esq., Keeper of Art Division, South Kensington Museum.
They are here noticed chiefly in consequence of the curious circum¬
stance that so little of early pottery has been discovered in Irish
domestic habitations ®.
" The fragments of pottery are too small to permit of any very decisive
opinion. The handles Xos. 1, 2, 3, are of a rude and no doubt compar-
' Yide "Lecture on Ireland, Past and Present," by Sir W. Wilde, p. 24. Dublin, 1864.
ii2
244 ADDENDA.
atively early character, No. 2 being the most primitive. The fragments
Nos. 4, 5, 6, are evidently of later date. Pottery of this kind, even so
late as the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, is generally very rude.
There is, however, a certain character about Nos, 1, 2, and 3, which
would indicate an earlier date, as the method of decoration is very primi¬
tive. The under or inside of these handles have the indentations pro¬
duced by the fingers of the potter while sustaining them during the
operation of decoration, which has been effected at once with a rude
modelling tool, or suitable pointed piece of wood, the incisions being
made in a free manner, and although rude, shew dexterity in the
workman.
" There is a wave line, a rude imitation of a common decoration found
on antique water vessels, around No. 5, which has been evidently pro¬
duced by scratching the surface of the wet clay with the jagged end of
a flat stick, in which the grain of the wood has been very prominent.
"No, 6 is a portion of the bottom of a vessel, and the decorations around
the edge have been produced by the mere pressure of a finger at regular
intervals while the clay was wet, but after it was removed from its fixed
position in the wheel on which the body of the vessel was being turned.
" The stick required to produce the fluted effect in No. 4, suggests the
probability that this is the most modern example.
" The rude glaze which is found more or less complete in all the speci¬
mens, except No. 6, has been apparently produced by throwing salt into
the kiln while the vessels were being fired."
"The Art Journal" for Nov., 1864, p. 387, contains an interesting
paper on the Early Potteries of Staffordshire, by Llewellyn Jewitt, F.S.A.,
in which the author states that the ancient British pottery included
drinking cups and food vessels, as well as cinerary urns. The drinking
cups have no handles. The Anglo-Saxon pottery is confined almost
entirely to cinerary urns. There are no authenticated examples of Nor¬
man Staffordshire pottery, but the author has made an interesting dis¬
covery of Norman pottery in Derbyshire, described in the "Eeliquary,"
ADDENDA.
245
vol. ii. p. 216. The jugs appear of the same form as that in Plate XXXI.
These pitchers have the peculiarity of being covered with a green glaze,
the colour being of a reddish brown, sometimes nearly black. The
mediaeval vessels are chiefly pitchers and jugs of the same general form
as the Xorman.
In the description of the Anglo-Saxon pottery Mr. Jewitt mentions
that the pottery of that period is marked by the frequency of small
punctured ornaments produced by the end of a stick. The Xorman is
usually devoid of ornament, except having the ends of the handles
foliated by the pressure of the workmen's fingers. In one vessel a kind
of herring-bone ornament was scratched into the soft clay.
In a work "On Marks and Monograms on Pottery, &c.," by W.
Chaffers, Esq., there is a representation of a water pitcher, of a mottled
green glaze, the general form of which is like those found at Desmond
Castle, and it has the thumb-marks round the bottom. This is stated to
be of the same form as one drawn in a MS. of the eleventh century.
Among the drawings from Xorman and Early English MSS., Xo. 17 is of
a jug of similar form, of reddish-brown earth, with a dark-green glaze
and touches of yellow, partially applied in a wavy or festoon pattern.
Plate XXXI. Xo. 7 is a drawing of a piece of leather, of which Sir
W. Wilde says, " The piece of leather you forwarded to me is most
curious and interesting, and so far as I know, the pattern is unique in
this country. The holes were evidently effected with a punch or series
of punches, but not with one blow, for the inter-spaces are quite un¬
equal : whether it belonged to man or beast is now difiicult to decide,
but I am inclined to think it was a piece of horse-trapping."
Page UfS, Lease of the Manors and Castle of Adare to the
Earls of Desmond.
It appears that the lease alluded to in this and the preceding pages,
was not granted until the year 1547, for in a letter from King
Edward YI. to Sir Eichard Eede, Chancellor, he instructs him (inter
246
ADDENDA.
alia) to grant to the Earls of Desmond the manors and dominions of
Groom and Adare, in the county of Limerick, to hold for life. March 24,
1 Edw. YI.»
Page llfi. Manor, and Manor Courts of Adare.
It has been mentioned that Mr. Valentine Quin's purchases from the
trustees of the Earl of Kildare included the chief rents of the Lordship
of Adare, the Court Baron of the said Manor, and the advowson of
Effin.
The deed of conveyance of these estates to Mr. Valentine Quin, hear¬
ing date Eeb. 23, 1721, contains a list of chief rents and quit rents
amounting to £20 17s. 6d., payable for several lands, &c., situate in
the manors of Adare and Tubornea; this list, with identifications of the
names as far as they can be made out, will be found in Appendix M.
The same deed mentions, amongst other things, that the Sergeant or
Seneschal of the Manor is to have P. Comba's tenement and garden, and
the same plot for fishing for Luages in Adare ^
The Manor of Adare extended northwards nearly to the Shannon, and
comprehended a considerable portion of the parishes of Xildimo and
Chapelrussell, and the north-western section of Adare situate in the
barony of Coshma, with a portion of Drehidtarsna, and parts of Kilkeedy
and Groom, lying in the barony of Pubblebrien. The bulk of it is re¬
presented by the lands contained in sheets 12 and 21 of the Ordnance
Survey. The Manor of Tubornea was situate in the south-eastern part
of the county, embracing the extreme southern portion of the barony of
Goshma, with the adjacent part of Goshlea, and contained a considerable
part of the parishes of Efiin, Ballingaddy, and Kilbreedy Minor.
Amongst the Adare documents are two books of the Manor Courts, the
earliest of which ranges from the year 1779 to 1786; the other contains
t Morrin's Calendar of the Pat. and Close Polls, vol. i. p. 95.
" Images, an anglicism of the Irish for a 'flounder,' or 'fluke.' A small flat fresh water-fish called
a fluke, is common in the river at Adare. The Irish word leathog, leitheac, leitheog, signifies ' flounder'
or ' plaice.' In aU these terms the root is leathad, ' breadth,' in reference to the flatness of the fish.
ADDENDA*
247
the proceedings merely of the last few years that these courts were held,
about fifty years ago. Some extracts illustrative of their forms, juris¬
diction, &c., are given in Appendix IN", taken from the older book, as
being the fullest and most curious, and as shewing the customs of these
courts nearly a century ago. This book contains the denominations of
lands in the Manor, residents, juries, proceedings in the Court, and
sundry regulations as to trespass, fines, &c. During this period the
Seneschalls of the Manor were Pryce Peacock and Stephen Dickson.
Page IJfi, Advowson of Effin.
Together with the Court Baron and Eoyalties of the Manor of Adare,
the advowson and presentation of the prebend of Effin, in the Cathedral
of St. Mary's, Limerick, passed from the family of Pitz Gerald to that of
Quin. The Liber Niger of Limerick contains two curious instruments in
connection with the prebendation of this parish, which will he found, with
a translation, in Appendix 0. They are of the date 1287, and are not
only venerable for their antiquity, but interesting as shewing how the
jus patronatus happened to be outside the Bishop and Chapter, the pre¬
sentation to a prebend by a patron other than an ecclesiastic being of
rather rare occurrence.
Page 150. Silver-gilt Dish. ,
The principal objects of antiquarian interest preserved at Adare, are
described at p. 150, seq.; one article, however, a fine silver-gilt dish,
was accidentally unnoticed. This dish, according to the family tradition,
belonged once to the Franciscan Abbey, but I have not been able to
discover upon what grounds the story rested. In order to obtain from
the highest authority an opinion as to the age and purpose of this rare
and curious specimen of mediaeval art, I forwarded it to A. "W. Franks,
Esq., by whom the following notice was drawn up, and read at one of
the meetings of the Society of Antiquaries:—
" The Earl of Dunraven has been good enough to allow me to exhibit
to the Society this evening a very interesting dish of silver-gilt, which
248
ADDENDA.
has been for many years in his Lordship's family, and which is said to
have belonged anciently to the Abbey of Adare. Be this as it may, the
dish is a very interesting specimen of metal-work, although I feel some
doubts as to its ecclesiastical origin.
" It measures lljin. in diameter, and does not exceed IJ in. in height.
The whole is repousse work in unusually high relief; the centre rises
into a boss, which presents the form of a double rose. Bound the broad
margin are representations of the seven deadly vices or sins, each of
which forms a subject of three or more figures, with the names of the
vices inscribed on labels above. The names on these labels appear to
be in Portuguese. In each subject one or more human beings are repre¬
sented between an angel and a demon, the spaces between the figures
being often ornamented with stiff foliage of a somewhat Gothic design.
"The subjects are as follows:—1. Avaeeza (Avarice). A man seated
on a bench near an iron-bound chest, and holding in his left hand
a purse; before him is an angel leaning forward and presenting to his
notice a cripple whose right leg is tied up, while his left hand rests
on a staff. The rich man is, however, looking back away from the
cripple towards a demon with long ears and tail who is bringing a sack
of money on his shoulders. 2. Sobeba (Pride). A man in armour
holding up a sword in his right hand: to his right is an angel holding
a skull to warn him of the end of all human pride; he is looking, how¬
ever, to his left, where is a demon holding up what appears to be
a convex mirror or shield. 3. Lvsveya (Wantonness). In the centre,
a young man and maiden are embracing; an angel is looking away in
despair, while on the other side a devil is encouraging them. 4. Yea
(Anger). A man in a short dress and cloak appears to be tearing open
his dress in rage ; to his right is an angel addressing him, to his left
a demon with animal's head and wings. 6. Emvega (Envy). A man
appears to be draining a deep flagon; an angel is addressing him, while
behind him is a demon. The connection between this representation
* It may be noticed that the same action is given by Giotto to his representation of this vice in
the Arena Chapel at Padua.
ADDENDA. 249
and the vice is not clear. 6. Peegica (Sloth). A man is lying down;
an angel is raising his head, hut a demon is pressing him down again,
and placing his leg, which is partly drawn up, into an attitude of repose.
7. Gvla (Gluttony). A richly dressed man is seated in a chair of state
at a table with dishes of various kinds; an angel is calling his notice to
a poor man on crutches, while a devil is bringing in a dish with a fowl
of some sort, and a large ring-shaped object, perhaps some kind of cake
or bread.
" The middle of the dish rises gradually towards the boss, and has on
it representations of the Last Judgment. The good are being conducted
into a walled city representing Paradise by St. Peter, who holds the key
of the gate; they are represented by seven figures, followed by an angel
blowing a horn. Hell has the usual figure of a gaping mouth, into
which various human beings are being forced by three demons.
"A double rose forming the central boss has round it a double band
twisted together.
" There are three plate-marks, a ship, [ia], and [eg]. I have not been
able as yet to ascertain to what town these hall-marks belong.
^'The date of this fine specimen of silversmith's work appears to be
about 1480, judging from the costume of the man in armour and the
general character of the design. The inscriptions might belong to an
earlier time as far as the form of the letters is concerned.
'^It appears to me probable that the dish was intended to serve as a
basin to hold under the hands when sprinkled with rose-water after meals.
" In the British Museum is a shallow basin or dish of bronze, probably
of the twelfth or thirteenth century, which has unquestionably been
used for washing hands. It is ornamented with engraving only, repre¬
senting seven circular medallions; in each of them is a female figure
holding some conical substance, perhaps a representation of hemlock;
round the side medallions are inscribed the names of various vices,
about three names to each figure. Eound the central one hag eadice
mala nascitve omne malvm.
Eepresentations of the Virtues and Vices are, as it is well known.
250
ADDENDA,
not uncommon, but to enter on these allegorical subjects would extend
beyond the limits of this notice."
Page 163. Inghean Baith who pounded Ktlnaboy.
An ancient chapel and cemetery of this saint, called TempuU na
h'lngine Baoith (Church of the daughter of Baith), exists near Glenquin
Castle, in the parish of Killeedy, barony of GlenquinThe following
account of Kilnaboy is taken from O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four
Masters," a.d. 1573, note, p. 1669:—
" Cill-inghine-Baoith, i.e. the Church of the daughter of Baeth, now
Killinaboy or Kilnaboy, an old church, at which is a part of a round
tower, near Corofin, in the barony of Inchiquin. The patroness of this
church is still held in great veneration in the counties of Clare and Lime¬
rick, where several churches and wells are dedicated to her. The name
is now corrupted to Innywee in the country. Her father, Baeth, was of
the royal line of Cas, the ancestor of Dal-Cais."
Page 186. Bequests of Thady Quin, Esq.
Two interesting memorials of Mr. Quin's charity have been handed
down to the present day. One is a chalice presented to the Catholic
parish of Adare, and bears the following inscription: " Ex dono Thadsci
Quin armigeri de Adare in perpetuum usum parochiee Sancti Mcholai
de Adare anno Domini 1726. Orate pro eo."
The other is a remonstrance preserved in the parish of St. John's,
Limerick, and now belonging to the Catholic cathedral of the diocese.
The inscription runs, " Ex dono Thadsei Quin armigeri de Adare ad usum
parochim S*' Johannis Limericensis in honorem venerabilis sacramenti.
a.d. 1725. Orate pro eo."
How little could the venerable donor, when on his death-bed at the
ripe age of eighty years—quitting this world, too, at the very period that
y Ord. Survey, eo. Limerick, sheet 44.
ADDENDA.
251
his country was most heavily oppressed by the iniquitous penal laws—
have imagined that this bequest would one day be deposited in a noble
church®', worthy to compete with those which had adorned his native
land in the by-gone ages of religious unity!
Page 195, History of the Palatines.
While this and the next sheet were being printed, I met with the
following interesting account of the introduction of the Palatines into
Ireland, in a Dublin monthly newspaper called " The Irish Evangelist,"
vol. i. Is'o. 9, June, 1860, which professes to be drawn up with great care,
and from it the following extracts have been taken. The writer states
that—
" In the year 1709, seven thousand ^ Protestant Lutherans' were driven
from their homes in the Palatinate by the French, under Louis XIY. On
hearing the intelligence. Queen Anne sent ships for them, and conveyed
them to England. Grants were given by the Crown to permit of their
settling in these countries, but about half the number proceeded to Xorth
America. Probably a few families stayed in England, and the rest came
to Ireland, and were chiefly located on the Southwell property, near
Eathkeale. Each man, woman, and child was allowed eight acres of
land, for which was to be paid flve shillings an acre yearly, for ever.
The Government agreed to pay their rent for twenty years, in order to
encourage the Protestant interest in Ireland, and make them all free¬
holders. They supplied every man with a good musket (called a Queen
Anne piece) to protect himself and his family. They were embodied in
the free yeomanry of the country, and were styled the True Blues, or
German Fusileers, and were commanded by one Captain Brown."
#
The following list is given of the names of the families that settled
in Ireland, " as found in the original document." Those in italics are
borne by tenants on the Adare estate:—
"Baker, BarJcman^ Barrobier, Benner, Bethel, Bowen, Bowman, Bovi-
The new Catholic Cathedral in St. John's parish, designed by Mr. P. C. Hardwick.
X k 2
252 ' ADDENDA.
nizer (now Bobanizer)^ Brethower, Cole, Coacti, Cornell^ Cronsberry, Dobe,
Dulmage^ Embury, Figgle^ Grunse, Gruer, Heek, Hoffman, Heave-
ner^ Glozier (probably now Legeur\ Lawrence, Lowes, Ledwick, Long,
Millar, Mich, Modler, Heizer, Piper, Ehinebeart, Eose, Eodenbucher,
Buckle, Switzer, Sparling, Stark, St. John, St. Ledger, Straugh, Sleeper,
Shoemaker, Shier, Sweltzer, Shoultare, Shunewire, Tesley (now Teskey),
Tettler, TJrsburlbaugh, Williams, Young."
This opportunity may be taken of correcting an error of date in
page 96, where, near the bottom of the page, it is stated that the
Palatines settled at Adare about 1706, whereas it appears that they
were not introduced upon the Adare property till just about the time
of Arthur Young's visit, namely, 1777-8.
APPENDICES.
APPENDIX A.
Grant of the Abbey lands of Adare, &c., to Sir Henry
Wallop, Knt., May 22, 1595 \
The Queen having by Patent, dated 24 December, 1587 (30°), demised in
« n 11 Reversion to Robert Collam of Dublin, Gt.,—
Robert Onllani ^ ^ ....
and Sir Henry Wal- The Scite and Precinct of the late House of Priers Trinitarians
of Adare, called the House of Friers for the Redemption of Cap¬
tives, with all the Buildings & Hereditaments therein.
In or near the Burgage of Adare, 7 Cottages, and certain Gardens containing
about 40 A.
In the Town and Fields of Adare, 16 a. arable, 4 a. pasture, a small Park,
& a Pigeon House, 20 a., &c.
In Adare I Plowland lying among the Burgesses Lands.
In Castle-Robert, 2 Messuages, 12 a. arable, a ruinous Castle, & other Lands,
containing^ a Plowland.
In Kilcoill, alias Kill Kryle, 3 Messuages, 2 Cottages, 24 a. arable, 6 a. pas¬
ture, & underwood, and the foundation of a Watermill, & other lands containing
J a Plowland.
The. Tythes of the Rectory, Church, or Chapel of Adare, with all other its
Tythes and Profits collected in the Towns and Fields of Adare, Choro, Ballynfinter,
Cloghrane, Twothe, Curraghe, Kilvag-Roer [or Kilvag-Boer], Kilcull, Ballyrobert,
Ballyfannyng, and half of Ballygoell [or Ballygell], & in all of the Towns within
said Parish (the Alterages & 2 Couples of Corn to the Curate excepted).
A Salmon Weare on the River Maye, the Estate of said Friery.
The Scite & Precinct of the late Friery of St. Augustine's Order of Adare,
containing 2 a., 16 Cottages & 7 Gardens, with all its Buildings and Lands,
containing 35 a.
In the Town of Adare 18 a. arable, and 3 a. pasture—21 a.
® Lodge's Abstracts of the Eolls of the Chancery of Ireland, kept at the Birmingham Tower, vol. i.
p. 270; also Hot. Cancellar. Hih. Elizabeth, anno 37, pars 1, facie j and Cal. Pat. Rolls of Chancery of
Ireland, vol. ii. p. 318.
254i APPENDIX A.
Modullie, alias Modallagliie \ Plowland & the Tythes thereof, with the Tythes
of said 21 a. & of the said "Weare.
The Estate of the said Friery of St. Augustine.
The Scite & Precint of the late Abbey of Newnaghe or JJ^^enagh [recte Monas-
ternenagh], with all its Possessions.
The late Monastery of St. Catharine, called Kaylagh [or Coylagh], alias Negay-
lagh [or Caylagh], with all its Tythes & Possessions.
All which Sir Henry "Walloppe, Knt., Vice-Treasurer & Treasurer at "Wars,
then held in Possession by Lease from the Queen, dated 20 July, 1585 (27®), for
21 years from Easter preceeding, at the Pent of £22 17s. 8d. Irish. And the
Queen having demised in Reversion by the aforesaid Patent to the said Robert
Collam,—
The Scite & Precinct of the late House of Friers Minors of the Order of
St. Francis in Adare, containing 16 a., in which were a Church, a Cloyster,
a Hall, a Dorture, a Library, 3 Chambers, a Kitchen, a Bakehouse, a large
Park, or Close on the W. side of the House, 2 other Parks, a Watermill, an Eel
& Salmon Weave on the River Maye, with all other the Estate of said Friery.
Which the said Sir Henry Walloppe then held in Possession by Lease, dated
23 July, 1585, for 21 years from Easter preceeding, at the Rent of £4 Irish.
To Hold to said Robert Collam in Reversion for 50 years after Sir Henry's Leases
were determined at the said Rents, making £26 17s. 8d., maintaining two able
Horsemen thereon for the Defence of the Kingdom; paying Proxies, Curates
Stipends, & all other Services & Charges thereout.
Which reversionary Leases the said Robert Collam by Deed dated 30 December,
1587, sold to Sir Henry Walloppe; & the Queen hereby (in consideration of Sir
Henry's Services, & the great Expences he had been at in building upon the
Premisses, for the better Fortification & Defence of her faithful Subjects in those
Parts; & pursuant to Privy Seal, dated at Greenwich 22 May, 1595, 37°), Inrolled
36®, 37®, 38® facie, R. 12, granted all the said Premisses, & all the Possessions
spiritual and temporal thereto belonging, to Sir Henry and his Heirs, to hold
as of the Castle of Limerick, by Fealty only, at the aforesaid Rents & Services,
& to perform the Conditions of Plantation of the Province of Munster. The
Nov. 4,1595. said Premisses containing 2,000 a. Liberty to impark 120 a., with
free Warren & Park.
APPENDIX B.
255
APPENDIX B.
Grants of Abbey lands at Adare to Nicholas Lylles, Esq.,
July 17, 1638 ^
A Grant (in virtue of the said Commission ®, & for the Fine of £10 8s. Od.)
48. Nicholas to Nicholas Lylles, Esq*"®, of
Lylles, Esq. Abbey, Monastery or House of Friers of the Holy
Trinity for the Redemption of Captives, called the White Abbey, with the Scite
thereof, the Tythes great & small within the said Scite, a Pidgeon House & Tucking
Mill, in or near the Town of Adare.
Half a Carucate, or Plowland next said Abby in or near Adare.
B. Oosma, The Castle & J Plowland of Robertstowne, alias Castle-Robert.
0. Limerick. Parcel of Land called Gortmore.
The Rectory and Tythes great & smaU within the Parish of Adare and
said Lands.
The Abbey, Monastery, or House of Friers Minors Franciscans in Adare, called
the Poor Abbey, with the Scite &c. thereof, 2 small Parks & a Piece of Ground
adjoining said Abbey, containing 16a. Arable; a Water mill near said Abbey,
with the Tythes &c. of the Premisses.
The Towns and Lands of Rowermore, Rowerbeg, Bewbuish, alias Beabuish,
& Glannannore, & all the rectorial Tythes, great & small of Rowermore, Rower-
begg & Glannanore.
The moiety or half of the Abby, Cell, or Chapel of Nephellagh^, alias Feale,
B. Ooimelloe, Scite, &c. thereof, & the half of the two Plowlands of
CO. Limerick. Abby of Neaphellagh & Knockbrear Kenemanragh, alias
Knocknemannagh.
Half of the intire impropriate Rectory or Parish Church of Feale, parcel of
the said Abbey. One Footman and one Horseman, £12 19s. 3d.
50. 17 July, 1638. To enjoy all Waifes & Strayes & free Warren.
Lodge's Abstracts, vol. vi. p. 135; and Hot. Cane. Hib., Car. I. anno 14, pars 7, dorso.
® The Commission of Defective Titles.
^ These and the following Abbey lands have no connexion with Adare.
256
APPENDIX C.
APPENDIX C.
Constat of the Civil Survey of part of the Parish of Adare, June 17, 1678.
Black Abby : one Quarter Meere or 4^^ part of a plowland^ together with the
,, ,. , „ said Abby & Impropriacione thereunto belonging, with sixteen
John Lisaght, of . . , « . . o o'
Eillonally, Irish gardins in the town of Adare, intermix't with the Burgess &
Papist. "WThite Abby Lands of Adare, together with Ardbane More, being
MeaPd on the East, South, & North, with part of the Burgess lands, and on the
west with the lands call'd commons; alsoe the said John hath there othr parcells
of lands (vid^), Gortdirably upon the Inches two accres, Gortamurragh, Gorthna-
vamsher, all being Intermixt with Burgess & White Abby lands; the said Black Abby
house is repaired at the states charges, and hath a Meadow adjoyning unto con¬
taining three accres, due to the Earl of Kildare thereout 3s. 6d. per annum Cheefrie.
The abby commonly call'd the Poor Abby, and the tythes great and small there¬
of, and a Mill now ruin'd, one Salmon Weare and one Ele weare, with
severall gardens thereunto belonging, and three Stone houses unre-
pair'd, Meareing with the Castle plow land of Adare, West, North, and East, & with
the River of Maige on the South, cheefree to the Earl of Kildare 4s. 6d. per annum.
The Abby call'd the White Abby, together with a Castle, Beuone, Pigeon-house,
Garden, a tucking Mill out of repaire, and the Impropriations
Eicliolass LillieSi . .
thereunto belonging, & the lands with fifteen gardens and tenne-
ments interlac'd with the Burgesses and Black Abby lands, oweing per annum
to the Earl of Kildare, one pound three shillings and three pence.
Rower More, Rower begg, and Glananoy, halfe a plowland, together with the
Impropriations thereof, the River call'd Grinagh runing throng
JNlCilOlRSS
the same Meare on the North, with the Lands of Twough and Kil-
lenockane; the Lands of Riding on the West, the plowland of commons on the
South, and the lands of Copanamrahar on the East.
Mondelihy, Eight accres of Great Measure, and the Impropriations thereof,
Jo. Lissagh, haveing on it a thatcht house, Meereing with Lismorryn and Burgess
propritL plowland on the North, the River Maige on the West and Killgob-
bane on the North and East.
This a true copy of a constat of the Civil Survey of part of the parishe of Adare,
taken out of the Surveyor Generalls office the 17^^ day of June, 1678, which constat
I have to shew.
Thady Quin.
(Endorsed.) Civil Survey of part parish of Adare about the Abby lands and
impropriacions.
APPENDIX D.
257
APPENDIX D.
Grant of Lands from the Crown to Thady Quin, Esq., December 15, 1684. ®
29. Thady Qtdn, Esq. A Grant (for the Fine of £362) to Thady Quin, Esq., of
The Town and Lands of Gortfada, alias Longfield, being part of Lower Balli-
folin, 96 a. . . . Ss. 4d,
Garranard, alias Granard, 76 a. ... £l 8s. Ofd.
B. Oonelloe. A Right of Comonage on the Comons adjacent between the said
0. Limerick. Towns, called the Comons of Killfeny and Finiterstowne, 138 a.
Graige, alias Grange, 75 a. ... £1 2s. 9:|d.
Rathmore, part of Graige, 28 a. . . . 8s. 5f d.
Clonlehard, 1,519 a. 3 r. profitable, 2,232 a. 3 r. unprofitable. . . . £14.
Skeaghmerigoge, 57 a. . . . 178. 3|d.
Shanaclone, & the Fishing Weares thereof, 150 a. ... £2 5s. 6|d.
In the Gardens of Croome, 11 a. ... 5d.
In Laskillagh, 10a.... 3s. O^d.
A Moiety of Baybush, 48 a. More of the same, with a Moiety of the Mill,
12a. . . . 14s. fid.
A Parcel of Land, called the Messuage, & 2 a. arable adjoining to & bounding
B. Ooshma. Lands of the Abby of Franciscans of Adare. A Parcel,
0. Limerick, called the 12 a., bounding on the South Side with said Messuage,
and 2 a., all known by the name of Knockanebegge, containing 22 a. . , . 3s. 4d.
0.' Limerick. Grages, alias Graga, cont. 20 a. Irish, 20 a. . . . 3s. 4d.
Keilbegg and Lisarry, Do., 20 a. . . . 3s. 4d.
BuolibaUy, 163 a. ... £2 Os. fid.
Mundelehy, & the Salmon Weyre thereof, 124 a. . . . £l 17s. 8d.
Black-Abby, 92 a. 3r. Gardens thereof, 10 a. ... £l 8s. 2d.
Wm. Striche's Burges Land in Adare, 36 a. .. . 10s. ll:^d.
A Moiety of White Abby and Gortmore, 32 a. 3r. . . . 9s. lO^d.
A Moiety of Poor Abbey and of the Salmon and Eel Weyres thereof, 5 a. 2r.
ls.-8id.
o' lim^ck Clonagh and Curraghreagh, 116 a. ... £1 15s. 2fd.
The Moiety of Rower, 103 a. ... £1 lis. 3^d.
® Lodge's Abstracts, vol. viii. p. 282, and Eot. Cane, Hib. 36 Car. II. 1 pars, dorso; also Letters Patent,
36 Car. II. lib. 42, fol. 34.
L 1
258
APPENDIX D.
Stephen Lee's Surges Land in Adare, 1 a. 2 r. . . . 5^d.
A Moiety of Bayhush and of the Mill thereof, 36 a. . . . 10s. ll|d.
Pierce Creagh's Surges Land in Adare, and the Salmon Weyres thereof, 117 a.
3 R £1 ISs. Old.
Lysaght's Surges Land in Adare, called Gortnaglasse, 4 a. Spitle^ Land in
Adare, 5 a. ... 2s. 8|d.
The Surges Land of Gortnedoghny, 53 a. . . . 16s. Id.
Keileoge-Yadrinsmale, 5 a. ... Is. 6|d.
Lysaght's Surges Land of Gortnagea, 45 a. . . , 13s. lOd.
The Surges Land of Cloghan-crea, distinguished by the names of Inchaghs,
Gortshandehoe, alias Johnsfield, alias Kincorra, and the Fishing "Weyres,
Sanegaruffe, Gortderrasleebegg, and Langstowne, containing about 68 a. . . .
£1 Os. 7|d.
Seven parcels of the White Abby Lands, 3 a. 2 r. ... Is. O^d.
Sraclan, and other parcels of White's Surges Land, 10 a. ... 3s. 0|^d.
Twelve Gardens, part of Pierce Creagh's Surges Land in Adare, 11a. .. .
38. 4d.
Gortderraslee, Gortanspurragh, and Gortderravanister, 5 a. ... Is. 6|^d.
Two parcels of Land formerly the property of John FitzGerald and James
Lysaght, 1 a. 2 r. . . . 5:^d.
Several parcels, called Sice's Surges Land, 6 a. ... Is. 9|d.
James Creagh's Garden in Adare, Oa. 1r. . . . Id.
A peice Land of, 1a.... 3^d.
B. incMquin. Carrowderrichimple, alias Knockdrombaniffe, alias Craganboy,
0. Clare. Dereleagh, 169 a. ... £2 lis. 3|d.
To hold the Lands and Premisses from Suolibally inclusive for the term of
1,000 years, from 1st May, 1680, and paying thereout to Gilbert Ormsby, Esq.,
and his heirs, the Sent of £230.
Which said Rent and Premisses, after the determination of the said Lease for
1000 years, are hereby granted to the said Gilbert Ormsby and his heirs for ever,
he & they paying the aforesaid respective Crown Rents.
B. Inchiquin. Crosard, alias Crossoughtragh, 50 a.
0. Clare, Clonymulwydane and Cowade, 30 a.
A right of Comonage in the Commons thereto and other Towns adjacent.
Carrowduffe in several Denominations (except Fenelegee), 191 a.
' Spitle is corrupted from Hospital, belonging to the Knights Hospitallers.
appendix d. - 259
To Hold for the Term of 99 years, from 1st May, 1666, paying of the Earl of
Inchiquin and his heirs. Six pence per Acre according to Strafford's Survey, and
no other Rent whatsoever, the Premisses being by Patent granted to the Earl
and his heirs, freed and discharged of Quit Rent, 15th Dec., 1684.
These grants or Patents from the Crown, under what was called the Act of
Grace, may be considered as a sort of Sequel or Appendage to the Acts of Settle¬
ment and Explanation. The Commission issued March, 1684.
l12
260 APPENDIX E.
APPENDIX E.
TAXATIONES ECCLESIASTICS.
I. Taxatio provincie Cassalensis, facta circa annum mccxci.
Lymericensis Diocesis.
Adare.
Ecclesia de Adare cum pertinenciis ...... x. mar., decima j. mar.
Ecclesia de Killonwyn, cum pertinenciis . . . ij. mar., decima ij®. viij*^.
Ecclesia de BalycatLan, cum pertinenciis . . iij. mar., decima iiij®.
Ecclesia de Athnyd, cum pertinenciis .... xl®., . . . decima iiij®.
Ecclesia de Dissert, cum pertinenciis xl®., . . . decima iiij®.
Ecclesia de Mowryn, cum pertinenciis .... xl®., . . . decima iiij®.
Ecclesia de Ardcathny, cum pertinenciis ... v. mar., . decima vi®. viij^.
Ecclesia de Kilcurnan, cum pertinenciis . . . iiij^., . . decima viij®.
Ecclesia de Kildyme, cum pertinenciis .... x^., . . . decima xx®.
Jurisdictio Archidiaconi, cum pertinenciis . . iiij. mar., decima v®. iiij^.
Ecclesia de Cromothe, cum pertinenciis . . . x^., . . . decima xx®.
Summa Taxacionis . . xlvi^\, inde decima, iiij^\ xij®.
II. Taxacio Proyincie Cassalensis, facta anno mcccii.
Lymericensis Diocesis.
[Inter Prehendas Eccleaie CathedraUs.'\
Vicaria de Kydyme .... iiij^. yi®. viij*^., unde decima viij®. viij^.
Prebenda de Arccatny , . v". ij®., .... unde decima x®. ij"^. qua.
« The original roll which contains this Taxation is preserved in a leather bag among the ancient records
of the Court of Exchequer of England. Erom the endorsement we learn that it was sent over from Ireland
to the Exchequer at Westminster in the year 1323. It is undated, hut is presumed to have been written
about the year 1291. See Reeves's Eccles. Antiqq. of Down and Connor, pp. xii. 120.
Now the parish of Killonahan, in the baronies of Puhhlehrien and Coshma.
' Now the parish of Ballycahane, in the baronies of Puhhlehrien and Smallcounty.
j Now the parish of Anhid, in the barony of Coshma.
Now the parish of Dysert, in the barony of Coshma.
' Now Mornane, a townland in the parish of Kilcornan, barony of Kenry.
" Now Ardcanny, a parish in the barony of Kenry.
"Now Kilcornan, a parish in the barony of Kenry.
" Now Kildimo, a parish in the barony of Kenry. ,
APPENDIX E.
261
APPENDIX E.
ECCLESIASTICAL TAXATIONS.
I. Taxation^ of the PRoviisrcE of Cashel, made about the year 1291.
Diocese of LimericTc,
Deanery of Adare.
The Church of Adare, with its appurtenances 10 marks, tenth 1 mark.
The Church of Eillonwyn with its appurtenances . . 2 marks, tenth 2s. 8d.
The Church of Balycathan with its appurtenances . . 3 marks, tenth 4s.
The Church of AthnydJ, with its appurtenances .... 40s.,. . . tenth 4s.
The Church of Dissert with its appurtenances .... 40s.,. . . tenth 4s.
The Church of Mowryn with its appurtenances . . . 40s.,. . . tenth 4s.
The Church of Ardcathny"^, with its appurtenances • . 5 marks, tenth 6s. 8d.
The Church of Kilcurnan °, with its appurtenances . . 4 pounds, tenth 8s.
The Church of Kildyme with its appurtenances ... 10 pounds, tenth 20s.
Jurisdiction ofthe Archdeacon P, with its appurtenances. 4 marks, tenth 5s. 4d.
The Church of Cromothe with its appurtenances . . 10 pounds, tenth 20s.
Sum of the Taxation, £46, tenth of which, £4 12s.
II. Taxation ^ of the Province of Cashed, made in the year 1302.
Diocese of Limerick.
[Among the Prehends of the Cathedral Churchi\
The Vicarage of Kydyme® . . £4 6s. 8d., tenth whereof 6s. 8d.
The Prebend of Arccatny*. . £5 2s., . . tenth whereof 10s. 2:^d.
p The Eectory of Kildimo and Kildicollum constituted the portion of the Archdeacon's prehend situate
in the deanery of Adare.
1 Now the parish of Groom, in the baronies of Coshma, Pubblebrien, and Connello Upper.
' This Taxation is contained in the same bag with the preceding, and was sent over to England at the
same time. It is printed in the Reports of the Irish Record Commissioners, vol. ii. pp. 61—63. The
portion containing the diocese of Limerick is undated; hut the diocese of Emly, in the same roll, bears the
date of " Saturday before the feast of St. Gregory, the year of grace 1802to which year we may
reasonably refer the Limerick Taxation. In the Black Book of Limerick a taxation is enrolled which
agrees in the several valuations with the present, hut is more correct in the forms of the names, for which
reason it is printed in the next section.
® Recte Kyldyme, now Kildimo parish.
* Rect^ Ardcatny, now Ardcanny parish.
262 APPENDIX E.
Prebenda de Balycatban . . vi®. unde decima vi®.
Ecclesia de Diserto . . liij®. unde decima v®.
Domus beati Jacobi de Adar . . xl®., unde decima iiij®.
Decamtus de Adar.
Ecclesia de Clonany . . ij. mar., decima ij®. viij'^.
Vicaria ejusdem . . j. mar., decima xvi^.
Ecclesia de Atbnyde, per Pectorem, vi. mar., et Yicarium . . vi®., decima viij®.
Ecclesia de Dunkepcby spectante ad ecclesiam de Cromytb . . xxx®., inde
decima iij®.
Ecclesia de Kylcurnan . . viij. mar., unde decima x®. viij^.
Ecclesia de Moynburyn, per Rectorem et Vicarium . . iiij. mar., unde decima
_ • • • • s
v®. lllj^.
Ecclesia de Adare cum Capellis de
Kylkyrely et Castro Roberti . . xi. mar., iiij®. t^. ob., unde decima xv®. i^. ob.
Exceptis x. marcis annui et liberi redditus quem habent Hospitalarii in
dicta ecclesia.
Yicaria ejusdem . . v. mar., viij®. x^. qua., unde decima vii®. vi^. ob.
Exceptis iiij. marcis annui et liberi redditus quern habent Hospitalarii in
eadem ecclesia.
Ecclesia de Cromuth . . xxviij. mar., unde decima xxxviij®. iiij^j
Yicaria ejusdem . . xiiij. mar., unde decima xviij®. viij^.
III. Taxacio Diocesis Lymericensis.
Athdare.
Ecclesia de Clonany . . ij. mar., decima ij®. viij^.
Yicaria ejusdem . . i. marc., inde decima xvj^.
Ecclesia de Athnyd, pro Rectoria et Yicaria . . vj. mar., decima viij®.
Ecclesia de Donkipp spectante ad ecclesiam de Crommoth . . xxx®., decima iij®.
" Now Ballycahane parish. * Now Dysert parish. y See p. 36 swpra.
^ Now Cloonanna, a townland in that part of the parish of Groom which is in the barony of Pubhlehrien.
® Now Anhid parish.
'' Now Dunkip, a townland in that part of the parish of Groom which is in the barony of Goshma.
® Now Kilcornan parish.
Now Mornane, a townland in Kilcornan parish.
® Now Kilcurly, a townland in that part of Adare parish which is in the barony of Kenry.
' Now Gastleroberts, a townland in that part of Adare parish which is in the barony of Goshma.
8 In all the Taxations the Military orders were exempt. Now Groom parish.
APPENDIX E. 263
The Prebend of Balycathan . . £3 6s. 8d., tenth whereof 6s. 8d.
The Church of Disert ^ . . 53s. 4d., tenth whereof 5s. 4d.
The House of the blessed James of Adare y . . 40s., tenth whereof 4s.
Deanery of Adare.
The Church of Clonany . 2 marks, tenth 2s. 8d.
The Yicarage of the same . . 1 mark, tenth 16d.
The Church of Athnyde^ . . by the Rector 6 marks, and Vicar 6s., tenth 8s.
The Church of Dunkepchy^, belonging to the Church of Cromyth . . 30s.,
tenth 3s.
The Church of Kylcurnan® . . 8 marks, tenth whereof 10s. 8d.
The Church of Moynhuryn^ . . by the Rector and Vicar 4 marks, tenth whereof
5s. 4d.
The Church of Adare, with the Chapels of
Kylkyrely® and Castlerobert ^. . 11 marks, 4s. 5|d., tenth whereof 15s. l|^d.
Excepting 5 marks of yearly and free rent which the Hospitallers s possess in
said church.
The Vicarage of the same . . 5 marks, 8s. lO^^d., tenth whereof 7s. 6;|d.
Excepting 4 marks of yearly and free rent which the Hospitallers possess in
said church.
The Church of Cromuth^ . . 28 marks, tenth whereof 38s. 4d.
The Vicarage of the same . . 14 marks, tenth whereof 18s. 8d.
III. Taxation* of the Diocese of Limerick''.
Athdare.
The Church of Clonany . . 2 marks, tenth 2s. 8d.
The Vicarage of the same . . 1 mark, tenth thereof 16d.
The Church of Athnyd, for the Rectory and Vicarage, 6 marks, tenth 8s.
The Church of Donkipp, belonging to the Church of Crommoth . . 30s., tenth 3s.
' This Taxation is taken from the Black Book of Limerick, into which it was copied from an ancient roll
of the diocese by Bishop Cornelius O'Dea, in 1418. It is found on p. 137 (formerly 139), col. 2. The
earlier portion of the record is wanting in the original, as a leaf of the volume has been lost at this place;
but it is found in the transcript which was made by Bishop Bernard Adams in 1616, at which period the
leaf was in its place. This transcript is preserved in the Diocesan Registry Office of Limerick. It is
nnneces^ry to add the modern names here, as the recital is almost identical with that in the preceding
section.
This list is referred to at p. 95, line 4 from the bottom, as forming Appendix G, but subsequently it
has been deemed preferable to make it a part of Appendix E.
264
APPENDIX P.
Ecclesia de Kylcuman . . viij. mar., decima x®.
Capella de Moynchuryn, pro Rectoria et Vicaria . . iiij. marc., inde decima
V®.
Ecclesia de Athdare cum Capellis de Kylkyrille et Castro Roberti . . xi. marc,
iiij®. Y^. ob., inde decima xv®. i^. ob.
Yicaria ejusdem . . v. mar. viij®. x^. d.ecima vij®. vj^.
Ecclesia de Crommotb . . xxviij. mar., decima xxxvj®. iiij^.
Vicaria ejusdem . . xiiij. mar., decima xviij®. viij^.
APPENDIX E.
Decanatm de Athdare.
Ecclesia ipsa de Atbdare, cujus Rectoria spectat ad monasterium et conventum
ordinis sancte Trinitatis, et Yicarium presentat Comes Kyldarie . . xxv®.
Ecclesia de Kylloncbon de prebenda, et habet Yicarium . . ij®. vj^.
Ecclesia de Kyllynatan vendicabatur per prebendarium de Kylbekan, sed fuit
in manu Episcopi, et non solvit procuracionem.
Ecclesia de Crommotb, ad Rectoriam et Yicariam presentat Comes Kyldarie.
Procuracio . . xxi®.
Capella de Drumassyll spectat ad ecclesiam de Crommotb, solvit procuracionem
per se . . xviij
Capella Say non solvit procuracionem, sed debet habere unum capellanum.
Ecclesia de Dolytb est de Rectoria de Crommotb, procuracio ibidem . . ij®.
Ecclesia Yille Trostany de eadem Rectoria, et babet Yicarium. Procuracio
ibidem . . iij®.
Prebenda de Dissert Engussa . . iij®. vj*^.
Prebenda de Atbnyd est Episcopi . . xviij^.
Ecclesia de Drobidtarsna de prebenda sancti Muncbini, et babet Yicarium.
Procuracio . . ij®.
' This list was copied from the rolls of the See of Limerick into the Black Book, hy Bishop Cornelius
O'Dea, in 1418, and is to he found there at p. 136. It is the fullest and most valuable record extant of
the churches of the diocese, and it is to be lamented that the first page is greatly defaced by tincture of
galls which was employed to restore the faded ink, and which renders the reading of it a matter of great
difficulty. Some assistance in remedying the evil is afibrded by Bishop Bernard Adams' transcript, called
the "New Liber Niger," which was made in 1616, and is preserved in the Diocesan Registry of Limerick;
but it is by no means a faithful counterpart of the original. The frocuratio. Anglicised " proxy," was
APPENDIX E: 265
The Church of Kylcurnan . . 8 marks, tenth IDs. 8d.
The Chapel of Moynchuryn, for the Eectory and Vicarage .. 4 marks, tenth
thereof 5s. 4d.
The Church of Athdare, with the Chapels of Kylkyrille and Castle Eobert . ,
11 marks, 4s. 5|^d., tenth thereof 15s. l^d.
The Vicarage of the same . . 5 marks, 8s. 10|^d., tenth 7s. 6d.
The Church of Crommoth . . 28 marks, tenth 36s. 4d.
The Vicarage of the same . . 14 marks, tenth 18s. 8d.
APPENDIX F.
Deanery of Athdare^,
The Church itself of Athdare, whereof the Eectory pertains to the naonastery
and convent of the order of the Holy Trinity; and the Earl of Kildare presents
the Vicar . . 25s.
The Church of Kyllonchon belongs to the Prebend, and hath a Vicar . . 2s. 6d.
The Church of Kyllynat&n was claimed by the Prebendary of Kylbekan, but
hath been in the possession of the Bishop, and doth not pay Proxy.
The Church of Crommoth. The Earl of Kildare presents to the Eectory and
Vicarage. Proxy . . 21s.
The Chapel of Drumassyll pertains to the church of Crommoth ; it pays Proxy
by itself. . 18d.
Chapel Say doth not pay Proxy, but it should have a Chaplain.
The Church of Dolyth is of the Eectory of Crommoth. Proxy of same . . 2s.
The Church of Trostany-town, of the same Eectory, and hath a Vicar. Proxy
of same .. 3s.
The Prebend of Dissert Engussa . . 3s. 6d.
The Prebend of Athnyd belongs to the Bishop . . 18d.
The Church of Drohidtarsna, of the Prebend of St. Munchin's, and hath
a Vicar. Proxy . . 3s.
! a pecuniary sum or composition paid to an ordinary in commutation for the provision or entertainment
i which in ancient times was wont to he afforded to him; and when bishops, instead of holding itinerary visita-
I tions of their dioceses, summoned their clergy to their presence in the court of visitation at their cathedrals,
I an equivalent for the cost of entertainment was assessed on their parishes in the form of fees. Out of such
' a change the present record grew, and the sum total accruing to the Bishop annually from this impost
amounted, in 1418, to £32 16s., a large sum at that period. For an account of Procurations, see
f Eeeves^s Eccles. Antiqq. of Down and Connor, pp. 98—100.
M m
266 APPENDIX p.
Ecclesia de Gleande. Procuracio j . viij®. vj^.
Ecclesia de Honeliuryn. Procuracio . . iiij®.
Et iste due ecclesie dicuntur Kyllcurnan.
Capella Russell, cujus presentacio spectat ad Comitem Kyldarie. Procuracio . .
* * * <9
XVllJ®.
Ecclesia Castri Roberti et Capella de Kylkyrylle, spectant ad Rectorem et
Yicarium de Athdare, et debent habere Capellanos, &c.
Prebenda de Balycathan, Procuracio iij®. vj^.
Ecclesia de Cluaynany, Rectoria spectat ad Rectoriara de Crommoth, et habet
Yicarium. Procuracio . . ij®.
Ecclesia de Kylgobbain spectat ad Ecclesiam Cathedralem. Procuracio ibidem
. . xviij^.
Ecclesia de Kyldyma et Kyldacolum, que est prebenda Archidiaconi, et habet
Yicarium. Procuracio ,, viij®.
Prebenda de Ardcathny habet Yicarium. Procuracio . . v®.
Summa hujus Procuracionis . . iiij^. xv®.
APPENDIX P.
267
The Church of Gleande. Proxy , . 8s. 6d.
The Church of Monehuryn. Proxy . < 4s.
And these two churches are called Kyllcurnan.
Chapel Russell, the presentation whereof pertains to the Earl of Kildare.
Proxy . . ISd.
The Church of Castle-Robert and the Chapel of Kylkyrylle belong to the
Rector and Vicar of Athdare, and ought to have Chaplains, &c.
The Prebend of Balycathan. Proxy . . 3s. 6d.
The Church of Cluaynany. The Rectory pertains to the Rectory of Crommoth,
and hath a Vicar. Proxy . . 2s.
The Church of Kylgobbain pertains to the Cathedral Church. Proxy of
same . . ISd.
The Church of Kyldyma and Kyldacolum, which is the prebend of the Arch¬
deacon, and hath a Vicar. Proxy . . 8s.
The Prebend of Ardcathny hath a Vicar. Proxy . . 5s.
Sum of this Proxy, £4 15s.
M m 2
268
APPENDIX G.
APPENDIX G.'"
Identifigation op Names of Churches in the Deanery of Adare.
1. Athdare. In Irish. Ath-dara, variously written Athdare, Adare, Adar. There
was also a place of this name in Leinster, on the Barrow. About the year 1250,
Magister Tyrrel, Yiear of Adare, witnessed a grant made by Hubert, Bishop of
Limerick.
\
2. Kyllonchon. In Irish Cill Onchon, * Church of Onchu,' a saint whose name
appears in the Calendar at the 9th of February. It is called Cellonchon in the
Inquisitions of 1201Between 1204 and 1207, Bishop Donat O'Brien created
a canonry, granting to Oolonnerregan, the canon, the church of St. Michael, and
all spiritual benefices of Katherdufduli (Caherelly ?) and of Killonchon as his pre¬
bend". It was subsequently transferred to St. Munchin's prebend. In 1615 the
Rectory of Kilionahan was appropriate to the prebend of St. Munchin, and so con¬
tinues to this day. It is now known as KiUonahan, and is principally situate in
the barony of Pubblebrien p.
. 3. Kyllynatan. Written Kyllinatan and Kellhinatan in the Inquisitions of
1291. Now Killanahan, a townland in the parish of Killeenoghty, barony of
Pubblebrien^. It belonged to the bishop, and in his ancient rental is entered
" De Kyllanatan in termino, vj®. viij"^.^
4. Crommoth. In Irish Cromadh. See "Annals of the Four Masters," an. II51,
where it is related that Rory, son of Turlogh O'Conor, burned Cromadh. It was
at that time the seat of O'Donovan, lord of Ui Cairbre Aebhdha. The name is
written Cromoth in the Tax. of 1291, and Cromuth in that of 1302: it had
assumed the form of Croom before 1615. To the Rectory of this parish belonged
at that period the Chapel of Dromassell, Chapel of Say, Church of Dolyth, and
Rectory of Clonanny, as previously set out in the Procuration list. The parish of
Croom is principally situate in the barony of Coshma ®. In the north of the parish*.
™ Appendices E and F have been contributed by my friend Dr. Reeves, who, with his accustomed kind¬
ness, copied out and drew up the various lists which comprise them j and in Appendix G he has added
a most important list of identiHcations, containing a topographical and etymological analysis, upon which
much trouble and pains must have been bestowed j but this characterizes every work which he takes in
hand: in the present instance a true historic value has been imparted to this portion of the work, which it
could not otherwise have possessed.
° Black Book, p. 14. «> Ibid,, p, 109. ^ Ord. Survey, sheet 21.
1 Ibid., sh. 22. ' " Black Book, p. 138, col. 2. ® Ord. Survey, sh. 80. ' Ibid., sh. 21.
APPENDIX G.
269
on a bend of the Malgue, is Caherass, {Cathair-easa, * fort of the waterfall/) of
which mention is made in the Black Book, in connexion with Dysert",
5. Drtjmassyll. It was situate in the north-east of the parish of Croom, in
Pubblebrien, near Tory Hill^. The name in Irish is Bruim Assail, *the ridge
of Assal,' Assal being a small territory which lay around, and Cnoc Droma-Assail,
'hill of Druim-Assail,' the original name of Tory Hill. See O'Donovan's "Four
Masters," 4169 (vol. i. p. 58), and "Book of Rights," p. 92.
6. Capella Say. Name now obsolete. Probably situate in Croom parish.
7. Dolyth. It belonged to Croom. Bollogh in Potty's map. Now the town-
lands Hollas Lower and Upper in this parish.
8. Villa Trostany. The name is now obsolete, but the Visitation of 1615 fortu¬
nately supplies Dunnaman as an alias for it. It is a townland in the Coshma
portion of Croom, on the north-west of the parish. The church, in ruins, is
marked in the Ordnance Survey, on the lower edge of sheet 21, and the old castle,
a little to the south, at the top of sheet 30. They are described pp. 198 and 203,
supra. The name in this record seems to commemorate a Danish or Norman
occupant called Thurstan or Trostam
9. Dissert Engussa. Now Dysert, a small parish of two townlands in the
barony of Coshma % and the corps of a prebend of the same name. For a full
account of it, see p. 211, &c., supra.
10. Athnyd. Now Anhid, a small parish insulated by Croom, barony of
Coshma y. Called Atnit and Athnit in the Inquisitions of 1201. The name in
Irish is Aithnid, but the meaning is unknown. There is a parish of Athnid also
in the county of Tipperary, North Riding, barony of Eliogarty. " The tithes of
this parish, with cure, forming the corps of Athnett prebend, have been from time
immemorial annexed to the See of Limerick, in consequence of which the Bishop
of Limerick, in right of his See, is Prebendary of Athnett
11. Drohidtarsna. In Irish Broichet-tarsna, 'cross-bridge,' now Drehidtarsna,
a parish in Coshma and Connello Upper % a Rectory without cure, forming part
of the corps of the prebend of St. Munchin. Written Drochetarsna in the
Inquisitions of 1201.
12. Gleande. Here set down as one of the components of KUcornan parish.
There is no name corresponding to it in the present parish of Kilcornan; but
" Black Book, pp. 33, 42. * Ord. Survey, sh. 22, south-west corner. Ibid,, sh. 30.
* Ibid., sh. 30. ^ Ibid. * Second Report of Ecclesiastical Eevenue and Patronage,
1834, p. 93. ® Ord. Survey, sheets 21, 30.
270 APPENDIX G.
in Kildimo, on the west side where it adjoins this parish, is the townland of
Glennameade where are the ruins of a church called Killulta, in Irish Cill Otta,
' church of the Ultonians,' which Dr. O'Donovan declared was much the most an¬
cient ecclesiastical building he had seen in the county ®. The walls of this very
small and ancient church were perfect until about two years ago, when the west
wall with its doorway were thrown down in a gale of wind, owing to the immense
weight of ivy with which it was loaded. The church was externally 22 ft. long,
by 15 ft. wide; internally 16 ft. 8 in., by 10 ft. The east window externally is'
triangular-headed, 1 ft. 6 in. high; the jambs are 9 in. wide at bottom, and 8 in. at
top. The jamb-stones of the doorway have been carried away. The original height
of the walls was only about 7 ft. Some of the stones in them measure nearly 3 ft.
in length, and 1 ft. 6 in. in height. The base course projects like a plinth.
13. Monehuryn. "Written Mowryn in the Taxation of 1291, Moynhuryn in
the Taxation of 1302. A component of Kilcornan, possibly represented by the
townland Mornane in this parish, barony of Kenry
14. Xyllcurnan. Now the parish of Kilcornan, barony of Kenry. Written
Kilchurnain and Kilchornain in the Inquisitions of 1201. In Irish it is Cill
Churnain, ' Church of Curnan,' a saint who is thus commemorated in the martyr-
ology of Donegal, at the 6th of January: "Curnan Beg, of Cill-Churnain, in
Caenraighe [Kenry], in the county and diocese of Limerick®:" "Patron of the
parish of Kill-Curnain, in Caenraidhe, in the county and diocese of Limerick, with
a fair and holiday
15. Capella Eussell. Now Chapelrussell, a small parish of three townlands
in the barony of Kenry, adjoining the last on the north-east. It contains the
village called Pallaskenry, in Irish Pailis Caenraighe, where was the chief castle
of the territory of Kenry. See Dr. O'Donovan's note on the " Four Masters,"
an. 1574, p. 1676. Pailis, 'palace,' is also found in the form Pailis, in the
counties of Kerry and Longford. The ancient castle is in Shanpalas {sean Pailis,
'old palace'), about half a mile east of the church.
16. Castrum Eoberti. Now Castleroberts, a townland in the south of the
parish of Adare, barony of Coshma^. The ruins of this church, and of part
of the old castle, were pulled down for materials to build a bridge over the
Maigue at Castle Eoberts, about seventy or eighty years ago.
17. Kylkyrylle. Written Kellcharli and Kellchaerli in the Inquisitions of
1201, Kylkyrely in Tax. 1302. Now Kilcurly, a townland in that part of Adare
^ Ord. Survey, sh. 12. ' Ord. Survey, Letters, co. Limerick, R.I.A. ^ Ord. Survey, sh. 11.
® Martyrology, p. 9. ' Ibid., p. 393. s Ord. Survey, sb. 21.
APPENDIX G.
271
whicli is in Kenry^. There is another Kilcurly, to the south-east, in the parish
of Monasternanenagh, barony of Pubblebrien\ The Knights Hospitallers had
possessions here according to the Tax. of 1302. Little besides the foundations
of this small church is now visible.
18. Balycathan. In Irish * town of O'Cahan.' Now Bally-
cahane, a parish in the barony of Pubblebrien which forms the corps of a prebend
in the Cathedral of Limerick.
19. Cluaynany. Now Cloonanna, a townland in the north detached portion
of Croom parish, barony of Pubblebrien. The ruins of the old church are marked
on the Ordnance Survey, sheet 12.
20. Kylgobbain. Now Kilgobbin, a townland in the north point of the parish
of Adare, barony of Coshmah Written Kellmacgoban and Kellm®coban in the
Inquisitions of 1201. The bishop was anciently possessed of it, and Geoffry de
Mariscis, between 1222 and 1246, did homage to Hubert de Burgh for the lands
of Kilmehallok, Drechenetarse, Kylsculy, Kyllonechon, Kylcohan, Kilkelbeg, and
Kilcrennal™. The same bishop, previously to 1250, assigned to the com¬
munity of the Cathedral the lands of Kilscoly, Kilgohan, and Kilscelbeg Since
that time the benefice of Kilgobbin, united to Crecora, has been possessed by the
vicars-choral of the cathedral church. The north, south, and west walls of this
small church remain: its external length was 27 ft. 6 in.; and its breadth 19 ft.
The walls were 2 ft. 6 in. thick. The stones which formed the west doorway have
been taken away.
21. Kyldyma. Now Kildimo, a parish in the barony of Kenry®. Written
Kelldima in the Inquisitions of 1201. In Irish it is Cill Dioma^ * Church of Dima,'
a saint, whose commemoration is found in the Martyrology of Donegal, at the 12th
of May: " Diomma, son of Cas; he is the patron of Cill-Dioma in Caenraighe of the
county and diocese of Limerick, and has a holiday, a festival, and a station. He
was also the master of Declan, and Cairbre son of Colum, the bishop, as we read
in the Life of Declan; and he was in the Deisi of MunsterP." About the year
1204, Donat O'Brien, the bishop, assigned the Church of Kildacolum, and the
Church of Kildima, with their appurtenances, to the Archdeacon as a portion
of his prebend*!, which grant was confirmed about 1312 by Bishop Eustace^
The benefice of Kildimo is still enjoyed by the Archdeacon. The name Kildacolum
is now locally forgotten, but the Down Survey marks Killacollum as a denomina-
Ord. Survey, sh. 12, 21.
" Black Book, p. 17.
p Addenda, p. 403.
» Ibid., sh. 22. Ibid., sh. 22. ' Ibid., sh. 12, 21.
" Ibid., p. 46. ° Ord. Survey, sh. 12.
1 Black Book, p. 109. ^ Ibid., p. 114.
272
APPENDIX H.
tion containing 86 acres, in tlie south-east of Kildimo parish, bounded by Court
on the north, Ballycasey on the south, and the river Maigue on the east. A trace
of the name is preserved in Cullam Castle®, near which this ancient chapel of
Kildimo probably stood.
22. Ardcathny. Written Ardcatni in Inquisitions of 1201 j Ardcathny, Tax.
1291; Arccatny, Tax. 1302. Now the parish of Ardcanny, in the barony of
Kenry, on the northern boundary of the county. In the townland of Mellon^ is
the old church, locally called Tempull a Mhullain, near which is St. Brigid^s Well.
APPENDIX H.
Extract from the Liber Eegalis Visitationis Hiberni^, a.d. 1615.
The following extract is taken from the original, preserved in the Probate
Office, Henrietta-street; there is also a transcript in the Royal Irish Academy,
which may have been taken from another source: any additional information
which is derived from the Academy transcript is printed in italics.
Adare Rectoria, Johannes Jephson miles, impropr. Church and Chancell well.
Vicarius ejusdem Rich. Harte, minister legens, residens, valet lO^h
Killannahan Rectoria, ad prebendam Sti. Munchini.
Vicarius ejusdem Robert Longe, minister legens residens. Valor 5^^
Killenatan, ad mensam Episcopi.
Croome, Rectoria, Nicholaus Leyles.
Vicarius ejusdem Josias Walker, valoris xv^. Non comparuit; ideo deprived and
sequestred into the hands of Rich. Ford, minister and preacher.
Capella de Drummashill. Ad Croome Rectoriam spectat.
Capella Say, ad Rectoriam de Croome spectat.
Ecclesia de Dolith, ad Rectoriam de Croome spectat.
Trustanny, alias Dunnaman, ad Rectoriam de Croome spectat.
Vicarius ejusdem, Gulielmus Meritan, minister legens.
Prebenda de Disert. Integra. Richardus Fuller; Philip Jenkyncuratus.
Prebenda de Athnid. Dominus Episcopus ad mensam.
Drehidtarsnie Rectoria; de Prebenda Sti. Munchini.
A good church and chancell, both uncovered. Vicaria vacat. Valor 30®. Ad Re-
galem donationem spectat.
Killcornan. Integra Bartholomeus Giibbins in Collegio DubKnensi studiosus.
Curatus ejusdem magister Rogers, minister legens. Valor 40^.
' Ord. Survey, sh. 12, near middle.
' Ibid., sh. 4.
APPENDIX I.
273
Capella Russhell sequestratur in manus magistri Rogers ad inserviendum curie.
Prebenda de Archanny. Rector Latimer Sampson in Collegio Dubliniensi
studiosus. Vicarius ejusdem Robert Remington. Valor 10*^. Francis Rogers per
sequestrationem, non residem.
Clonanni Rectoria. Ad Rectoriarn de Croome. Vicaria vacat. Sequestratur,
in manus dicti Rogers.
Ecclesia de Kilgoban. Ad Collegium Limericense.
Kildemo Rectoria. Arcbidiaconus. Vicarius ejusdem Ricbardus Hutcbenson
minister legens. Valor Francis Rogers curatus.
Ballicane Prebenda. Inc. Robert Rayner. Pbilip Jenkyns inservit. Inc.
non residens.
Extract from a Terrier of Tythes, &c., of the Parish of Adare, July 31,1697.
The Vicarage of Adare is endowed witb y® Vicarage Tytbes arising out of tbese
following denominations of Land, viz., Fanningstown, Lyscolenebegby, part of
Ballygele, Monearle, Rinroe, Knockanes, Castle Robert-more, Castle Robert Begg,
Lismurreen, Lyskilly, Stradnecloghy, Ardsbanbally, Kilgobbiri, Corcum-minister,
Clogbrane, Ballylangford, Portnegrougab, Ballymac-clonnane, Ballycrabeen, Cur-
rab-Bridge, Ardnagoreenee, Kiluockin, Rowere Commons, Tuagb, Kilavaraga,
Currogb, part of Barne-Licky, Kilgrougab, part of Tuagb, part of Finiterstowne,
Greague, Derryvinane, Bouliballa Glani . . . , and y® Lands of y® Wbite Abbey.
Tbe Lands of tbe Black i^bbey, consisting of a few Gardens, y* lye scattered up
and down in y® Town of Adare, westward of tbe Bridge, pay only a sixtb part
of tbe Tytbes to y® Vicar of Adare.
Tbe Lands of y® Poer Abbey being in Quantity Eleven acres, and lying to y®
East and ITortb-East of tbe Cbureb of Adare, and bounded on y® Nortb by great
Road. Lands towards Limerick pay no Tytbes at all to y® said Vicar. Tbere
belong to y® Vicar of Adare tbese following accustomed dues or surplice fees, viz.—
APPENDIX I.
In tbe Cbureb yard
For breaking y® Ground in Cbancel of Adare
And from every Family at Christmas
From every Family at Easter
For a publication of Banns
For solemnising of marriage
For a cburcbing
For funeral ofl&ce in y® Cbureb
s. d.
2 0
2 6
1 6
3 4
2 0
13 4
2 0
2 0
N n
274
APPENDIX J.
Table from the Down Survey of the forfeited lands about Adare, 1642,
The following Table, extracted from tbe books of tbe Down Survey, shews the
distribution of the forfeited and otherAands about Adare, now forming a portion
of the estate of the Earl of Dunraven.
Eeferi
to Mapi
62
63
65
67
b
E
69
70
d
e f
71
72
b
sss
73
74
76 to
81
82
83
83*
84
B1
B2
E
K
K
L
BenominatioiiSi
Proprietors Names,
Anno 1641,
Elliner Eitz Gerald, b
alias Eitz Harris, > Skeogliamery geoge
LP.". . . 3
The same . . Buolybally
John Lysaght, I. P. Mondellighy .
Duonemean and Ballinetrow
Qnantity
in Acres.
To whom disposed.
George Thornton, I. P.
John Lysaght, I. P.
The same
in
Black Abbey in 5 parcells
C Gardens of BlacK Abbey
" I Athdare Towne .
Pierce Creagh, I. P. 12 Gardens in Athdare Towne
Morris Mac Teige, ( Garryowen and a Garden in y
I. P. . . . t same ....
John Eitz Gerald and "I
James Lysaght, > Two parcells , ,
I. P. » • * J
William Stritch, I. P. 4 parcells in y* same
Unforfeited lands 7") White Abbey land in Athdare
parcels , .) Towne . . . ,
Pierce Creagh Eitz") 4 Burgess land in Athdare
Pierce, I. P.
The same
The same
The same
The same
Stephen Lee, I. P.
Gleab land
Thomas O'Cullane
. 3 Towne
. Kealogue
. Wadrens more
. Tragonelagh Burgess land
. Cluonagh
C Gurteen, Ivarryscalls, Ten* anc
' X Garden
. In y® Castle lands of Athdare
^parcels of Spittle land
~ ' in
WiUiam Stritch, I. P.
James Lysaght, I. P. Burgess land .
r Nicholas LylliSjPierce ^
3 Creagh, and other [
1 proprietors ; some f
V. Protestants . . J
The same
The same
The same
The same
Castle Bobert Begg
}
Poore Abbey
White Abbey in 3 parcells
Gortmore, being part of y® same
Bowermore, Bowerbegg, and
84 The same
Beabus
Bishop of Limerick
The same
Deesert and Carrigeen .
Dietrillasney (Drehidtarsna) .
A great surround of Protestants unforfeited.
Earl of Kildare a part ......
The same . . Comine (cummeeti) .
The same . . Burgess land
The same . . Lisgillagh ....
" I. P. signifies Irish Papist.
57
Sir Edward Ormesbey.
163
Ditto.
124
Ditto.
704
Ditto.
49
Peter Wallis.
92.3
Sir Edward Ormesbey.
10
Ditto.
11
Ditto.
1
Ditto.
1.2
Ditto.
6
Ditto.
3.1
(?)
104
Sir Edward Ormesbey.
8
Ditto.
1.3
Ditto.
4
Ditto.
116
Ditto.
1.2
Ditto.
6.2
Gleab land.
5
Sir E. Ormesbey.
36.1
Ditto.
45.2
(?)
66
11.1
51.2
14
206
26
316.2
173
138
992
6
26
174.1. 20 Sir Edward
Ormesbey.
174.1. 20 unforfeited,
not seized or seques¬
tered.
48 Sir Edw. Ormesbey,
48 not forfeited, not
seized or sequestered.
sland.
j Bishop's
Earl of Kildare, Pro¬
testant, not seized or
sequestered.
APPENDIX K.
275
APPENDIX K.
For tlie following additional information concerning the Adare meteoric stones,
as well as for some valuable remarks upon aerolites in general, I am indebted to
Nevil Story-Maskelyne, Esq., who has collected so fine a series of these singular
bodies at the British Museum, and has written several admirable papers upon
them. Mr. Maskelyne pointed out to me a paper in the " Philosophical Magazine"
for the year 1818, p. 355, which contains an account of this fall of meteoric stones,
by W. Higgins, Esq., including a letter from an eye-witness, Mr. Samuel Max¬
well, from which the following extracts have been made.
" Friday morning, September 10, 1813, being very calm and the sky clear,
about 9 o'clock a cloud appeared in the east, and soon after I heard eleven distinct
reports, appearing to proceed from thence, somewhat resembling the discharge of
heavy artillery. This was immediately followed by a considerable noise, not unlike
the beating of a large drum, which was succeeded by an uproar resembling the
continued discharge of musketry in line. The sky above the place from whence
the noise came, became darkened and disturbed, making a hissing noise, thence
appeared to issue with great violence masses of matter which directed their course
with great velocity horizontally towards the west."
He then goes on to describe difierent specimens which fell;—
" One near Patrick's Hill, weighing seventeen pounds; it was not fractured....
One very large mass passed with great rapidity and noise near me, it came to the
ground in the lands of Brasky; it appeared fractured in many places, and weighed
about sixty-five pounds.... Another at Faha, not fractured, weighed about twenty,
four pounds. The day continued calm and serene, and was rather close and sultry."
The only inaccuracies in the foregoing account seem to be as to the hour, which
was not 9 o'clock but between 10 and 11 o'clock; and the direction, which was
nearer north-east to south-west, as a line drawn from Faha to Adare would shew.
With reference to Mr. Maxwell's letter, Mr. Maskelyne observes—
" Every case seems to have something peculiar, and helps to add a new fact to
our knowledge. Hindoos liken the reports in the air to the discharge of artillery ;
Mr. S. Maxwell likens the noise which followed them at Limerick, and which was
doubtless caused by the echo, to the beating of a drum, followed by a rolling uproar
as of platoon-firing of musketry. He adds, too, a singular observation on the state
of the sky at the time, which became darkened and disturbed; while from this
darkened sky emerged the solid masses of stone. No doubt, like a squadron of
cavalry, that in the distance is but a small object, but coming up at^ a gallop
N n 2
276
APPENDIX K.
rapidly assumes formidable proportions, this celestial squadron of little planets,
from all of which molten matter was flying ofi* as dust, began to be seen as a far-
off speck in the sky, and rapidly (at first with a velocity of many miles in a second,
though afterwards slower, from the friction and obstruction of the air, which resists
and fuses the outer parts of the aerolitic stones) approaching the spectator, more
and more grew into a cloud of dispersing dust, from which the stones would
ultimately emerge, and fall with little (if any) more velocity than that of a falling
body. The reports are more difilcult to explain, but in a paper in the ' Philoso¬
phical IVTagazine' of January, 1863, I have given what I believe to be the true ex¬
planation of them, namely, the bursting of the masses of rock in consequence of the
tension produced in them by the cosmical cold of their interior, and the intense
heat of their exterior, induced by the resistance of the air. Sometimes they do
not burst, sometimes (or rather, generally) they do. Thus, in a shower, most of
the stones are found to be fragments, though a few are generally entire. These
entire stones, however, are often in reality fragments, but have been severed early
enough in the progress of the aerolite through the air, for the fusion of their
surfaces (due to the high velocity) to be effected.
" I think the largest piece I am acquainted with of the Adare meteorite is at
Oxford; it was presented to the University by the Rev. J. W. Griffith, of Wadham
College, and Bishopstrow, Wilts.; it weighs 18 lbs. 11 oz. I have examined in the
microscope a section, which I had cut and ground very thin, of the Adare meteorite,
and send you the result of my observations. It presents under the microscope a
great resemblance to the stone that fell at Alexandria in Piedmont, on February 2,
1860, and also to that which fell at Weston, Connecticut, U.S., on December 14,1807.
It is one of those aerolites (by far the most numerous kind) which contain small
spherules, more or less round, of crystalline matter dispersed through the rest of
the stone, and which Glistav Rose of Berlin has denominated cJiondritic aerolites.
It has however only a limited number of these little spherules, and like the stones
I have compared it to, the Adare aerolite exhibits these little spherules interspersed
with a comparatively large-grained confused magma of crystalline matter, not
porphyritic as in some aerolites, nor finely granular and tufaceous as in others.
Meteoric iron (metallic, and probably containing nickel) is disseminated through
the whole mass in small grains of a regular form, and often in rather long vein-like
fibres, separating, or surrounding, or again, penetrating the particles of the magma
and the spherules. Meteoric pyrites (proto-sulphide of iron) of a rich dark bronze
colour is mixed with the iron, and is present in nearly equal amount, and in the
same form with it. The stony part of the aerolite consists probably of a good deal
of olivine, and a smaller quantity of an augitic mineral frequent in these stones."
APPENDIX L.
277
APPENDIX L.
Extracts from the "Liber Niger/' relative to Disert-Engussa.
The earliest mention of Dysert in this manuscript is in the Inquisition of 1201,
mentioned at p. 211. It is too extended in its range for insertion here, but it is
important as regards the subject under consideration, not only because it furnishes
an early instance of Disertengussa in full, as the name by which the Adare Dysert
was then familiarly known, but because it enabled Dr. Peeves to discover the true
situation of the ancient church of Bisert-Muirdelra, as appears by the following
memorandum with which he has furnished me.
At the 3rd of November there occurs the following commemoration in the Irish
Calendar, called the Martyrology of Donegal: " Muirdeabhair, the Wise, of Disert-
Muirdebra in Ui Conaill Gabhra Dr. O'Donovan, not being aware that the
name of Aengus was anciently attached to the Disert near Adare, and finding
Disert-Muirdebra placed in Di Conaill Gabhra, has identified it with that church y,
(p. 213 supra). This supposition, however, is disproved by the Inquisition of
1201; for in this record we find the Adare Dysert in its proper situation as
Disirtengussa, but we also meet with Disiurfmurdeioar elsewhere % and in the fol¬
lowing position: Lemchaell (now Loughill, in the barony of Shanid), Ardinwir
(now Ardineer, in Shanagolden parish, same barony), Bisiurtmurdewar, Sengola
(now Shangolden). Thus we are brought to the barony of Shanid, and the imme¬
diate neighbourhood of Shanagolden, adjoining which, and ecclesiastically united
with it in the Poman Catholic distribution of the diocese, is the parish of Poberts-
town, wherein is a townland called Dysert % which is no doubt the place in
question. Like the other Dysert, it has dropped, in modern use, its distinctive
appellation. Shanid was formerly the western portion of Connello Lower, as
Glenquin was of Connello Dpper; but each has been severed from its proper
division for civil convenience, so that four baronies now represent the original
territory and barony of Connello.
By the following Charter, Pobert Abbot, of Magyo, or Monasternenagh, grants
the land about the white stone cross on the south side of the city of Limerick,
* Martyrology of Donegal, p. 297, Irish Archaeol. and Celt. Society publications.
y See his note on the Four Mast., an. 1088, (vol. ii. p. 934); Supplement to O'Reilly's Irish Diet.,
p. 622, (DufiFy, Dublin, 1864); Ord. Survey Letter, ca Limerick, in Royal Irish Academy.
^ Liber Niger, pp. 14, 15.
® Ord. Survey, Limerick, sheet 10.
278
APPENDIX 1.
for the Church, of Disertenegus, Prebendal of the Church of St. Mary's (the
Cathedral), Limerick.
Among the witnesses is the name of Eeginald St. James, a name which appears
in the list of mayors of Limerick, in 1230 and 1262.
Carta Ahhatis et Conventus de Magio super terra que jacet juxta alham crucem
prope Lymericum.
IJniversis sancte matris Ecclesie filiis presentem cartam visuris vel audituris,
frater Eobertus dominus Abbas de Magyo et ejusdem loci conventus, Salutem in
Domino sempiternam. Noverit universitas vestra nos, de unanimi consensu et
voluntate locius conventus nostri, dedisse concessisse, et hac presenti carta nostra
confirmasse, totam terram, cum omnibus suis pertinenciis, quam habemus vel
habere poterimus circa albam crucem lapideam ex parte australi civitatis Lymeri-
censis, ecclesie de Dysertenegus prebendali ecclesie beate Marie Lymericensis,
tenendum et habendum dicte ecclesie prebendali, libere quiete bene et in pace, in
moris pascuis et rivulis, cum omnibus libertatibus et liberis consuetudinibus, quo-
cunque jure ad predictam terram pertinentibus, prout earn aliquo tempore plenius
uberius et liberius earn tenuimus vel tenere potuimus. Et hoc pro quietaclamacione
nobis factae de terra de Balysodyr. Et nos abbas et conventus de Magio predictam
terram cum suis pertinenciis, prout superius dictum est, contra omnes homines et
ferninas imperpetuum warantizabimus acquietabimus et defendemus. Et ut hec
nostra donacio concessio et carte nostre confirmacio perpetuum robur firmitatis
optineat, presentem cartam sigilli nostri munimine roboravimus. Hiis testibus,
domino Mauricio filio Mauricii, domino Johanne Purcel, domino Galfrido de Lees,
domino Thoma de Valle, JSTicholao Scurlag, Reginaldo de Sancto Jacobo, Symone
Her ward, "Waltero Scurlag, Roberto filio Lowys clerico, et multis aliis^.
The following document is a surrender by John Fleming to Robert, Bishop
of Limerick, of the land which he had claimed before Robert Bagod, Sheriff
of Limerick. Before 1272.
Quietaclamancia Johannis Flandrensis super una carrucata terre cum dimidio
in tenemento de Dyssert Enegus et Cathyrrasse.
IJniversis has literas visuris vel audituris Johannes Flandrensis Salutem eternam
in Domino. Noverit universitas vestra quod ego, pro me et heredibus meis,
quietum clamavi Roberto Lymericensi Episcopo, et successoribus suis, et Ecclesie
Liber Niger, No. xxxviii. pp. 26, 27.
APPENDIX D.
279
beate Marie de Lymerico, totum jus et clameum quod habui vel habere potui in
una carrucata terre cum dimidio in tenemento de Dyssert Enegus et Cathyrasse %
de quibus contradictum Episcopum breve de recto cepi et me. retractavi coram
Koberto Bagod tunc Vicicomite Lymericense, quia de prosequendo plegios non
inveni, et hoc feci nuUo jure vel clamis mihi vel heredibus meis inposterum
retento in eadem terra. In cujus rei testimonium presentibus Uteris sigillum
meum apponi feci in pleno Comitatu Lymericensi. Teste Adam clerico tunc
Vicicomite Lymericensi, Johanne de Penrys, Thoma filio Bys, Alexandre Bule,
et aliis actorum ejusdem conventus
® Cathair easa, ' Fort of the water-fall/ now Caherass, in the parish of Crooui, barony of Coshma,
Ord. Survey, sheet 21.
^ Liber Niger, No, xlvii. p. 33.
280
APPENDIX M.
Manors of Adare and Tobernea.
Schedule of the Chief rents payable out of the Manors of Adare and Tobernea, extracted
from the Deed of Conveyance of a portion of the Kildare Estates to Mr. Valentine
Quin, Feb. 23, 1721.
The CMefe Ments of the Manor of Adore. £ s, d.
Corkamore . . . .300
Ballyuillane, one red rose, and one penny 0
Pallis, Ballydoile, and Ballyvenane . 1
0
0
11
5
1
0
3
0
Dromore and Ballynowlane . . 1
Bylly Surragli, 1^., Elmurreen, 5®. . 1
Calurncareaa, 10®., Carrow, 10®., Bally-IJi
Clehirnane, 1®. 116
Tuogh, 7®. 6"^., Kilgrogane, 2®. 6'^., Kille-
varaga, 1®. 0 110
Curry, 2®. 5'^., Feneterstowne, 16®. G'*. . 0 18 10
Garranistre, 9^., Kileknockane, 4®. .049
Craganacre, 5®., Ballyvodane, 3®. 9''. .089
Ballyaskee, 5®., White Abby, 1". 3®. 3"^. 18 3
Black Abby, 3®. 5'^., Poor Abby, 4®. G"*. 0 7 11
The Gleab land of Adare, 1®. G*®., The
Spittle of Adare, 1®. . .026
The Burgess of Gortnadogbny .076
The Burgess of Gortnagea . .076
White's Burgess . . .076
Siggens two Burgesses . .0150
BoUe Bally, Parkemore, and Parenboy .076
Clogbcreagb Burgess, 1®. 2^., Cloneagb
Burgess, 7®. 6*^, . . .088
The balfe Burgess of Craganesulone .039
Garrott Fitz Morriss's Burgess .076
The Gardens of the Burgesses . .076
Bice Burgess . . . .076
Ballymacsbane begg
. 0
15
0
Gragauster
. 0
7
6
Allanstowne and Killunbile
. 0
15
0
Ballyngaddy More
. 0
15
0
Ballyngaddy Begg
. 0
4
6
Ballingaddy Casey
. 0
7
6
Mill Towne
. 0
5
0
Ballynabow and Garry-duffe .
. 0
3
0
Gortevonteen .
. 0
2
6
Cloun-more
. .0
4
6
Garryketeen and Calurbowgaruffe
. 0
15
0
Tbomas-towne
. 0
2
6
Tobernea—Total
. £4
17
0
Corcamore, parish of Kilkeady, barony of
Pubblebrien.
Pallas, in Chapelrussell parish ; Ballydoole in
same; Ballyvarreen in Kildimo, barony of
Kenry.
Dromore and Ballynolan, parish of Kildimo.
Cloontaura (?) and Ballyculhane, parish of
Kildimo.
Tuogh, Kilgrogan, and Kylevarraga.
Curragh and Pinniterstown.
Kilknockan.
Cragganacree.
Ballyashea and Trinitarian Abbey.
Augustinian Abbey, and Franciscan Friary.
Boulabally.
Adare—Total . £15 19 9
The Chiefe Itents of the Manor of Tobernea. £> s. d.
Toberna, East, Middle, and West, three town-
lands in parish of Effin and Kilbreedy Minor,
barony of Coshma.
Ballymacshaneboy, in Effin and Kilquane
parishes, barony of Coshlea.
Graigauster, parish of Effin, barony of Coshma.
Ballingaddy, townlands North and South, in
the parish of Ballingaddy, barony of Coshlea.
Milltown, in Ballingaddy parish.
Ballynahown, in Ballingaddy parish.
? Ballingarry, P., in barony of Coshlea.
Thomastown, in Kilbreedy Minor, barony of
Coshma.
APPENDIX N.
281
APPENDIX N.
The Manor Courts of Adare.
Among the earliest entries in the extant books of the Manor Courts held at
Adare is the following:—
"At a Court Leet and Court Baron® held at Adare the 15th of September, 1779,
the freeholders of the following denominations were summoned to attend this day
to pay suit and service to the Lord of the Manor, and to inspect blown meat,
undue weights, and all other wrong practices, as by the statute required," &c.
The denominations are then given, and afterwards a list of persons, according
to the Townlands, who are fined 3s. 4d. each for non-attendance. Next, the
appointment of the following Jury:—
John King, James King, Francis Bowland, John Socksmith, George Spearing,
James Hogan, Thomas Harragan, Edmund Gibson, John Cushin, Connor German,^
Richard "Westley, and Joseph Alford, twelve inhabitants of the Manor of Adare,
having been duly sworn in open court to ascertain what shall be a reasonable
compensation to be paid for trespasses to be committed within the said Manor, and
also to set forth what shall be the dimensions of the meares and bounds through¬
out the said Manor, and to appoint weigh-masters and appraizers, have accordingly
done so in the following words:—
""We the above mentioned sworn Jury of the Manor of Adare, do ratifie and
enact, any trespasses within said Manor, to be levied in manner following.
For each collop on pasture grass by day, 3d.
For ditto, ditto, by night, 6d.
For each collop on waste or fattening grass by day, 5d.
For ditto, ditto, by night, lOd.
For a collop on meadow grass by day. Is.
For ditto, ditto, by night, Is. 75d.
® In explanation of the terms Court JBaron and Court Leet, it may be stated that the Court Baron was
incident to every manor and granted with it, for the purpose of the Lord settling disputes of property,
punishing the offences of his tenants, and determining actions of debt and trespass. To this Court all
freehold tenants were compellable to come to perform their suit and service, and act as jurymen. The
Court Leet was a Court of Record, and was understood as the King's Court, for although held by the Lord
it was only as representative of the King, from whom it was purchased by, or granted to, him or his
predecessors in order that their people might have justice administered near home. It was formerly a Court
of great importance, and held enquiry into all manner of criminal offences. In the following extracts both
Courts are mentioned as being held, but the proceedings and jurisdiction appear to be such as appertained
solely to the Court Baron.
0 0
.283 APPENDIX N.
" The meares or bounds of each farm on said Manor are to he five feet in heighth
from the surface, exclusive of fence, and four feet the drain or dyke in breadth. '
"Any dainaged potatoes pr corn to be considered as,meadow ground until the !
first day of May, and after that to be valued by the sworn appraisers of the '■
Manor! '. ~
" Where stone walls are bounds, said walls are to be four feet in heighth, and '
two feet thick, and the drains, being bounds, are to be seven feet wide.
"We do constitute and appoint Philip Mills a weigh-master in the town or
village of Adare; we appoint John Delmege of Kilknockan, and George Speering
of Clonnagh, to value or appraize any damages done or committed within said
Manor of Adare, and to be paid one British shilling to each appraiser, for each and
every visit or valuation of damages, the appraiser's fees to be annexed to the
damages and paid by the trespasser.
" John King, foreman."
At a Court Leet and Court Baron held in May, 1782, for the same purposes as
the one above noticed, a long list of denominations is given, which appears to be
the complete list of the townlands comprised in the Manor of Adare. It is here
thrown into a tabular form, with the modern names, &c., appended.
The Manor of Adare.
Note—The townlands in italics belong to the Ea/rl of Dun/raven.
Townlands in tlie
Modem Names
Sheet of
Manor of Adare,
on the
Parish.
Barony,
Ord.
Contents.
Observations.
A.D. 1782.
Ordnance Survey.
Survey.
1. Kenry
Pallas
Chapel-
Kenry
3,11
A. E. P.
366 1 19
In the Schedule of Chief-rents
russell
this denomination is called
Pallis. The principal castle of
the barony, called by the Irish
Pailis Caonraighe, now Pallas-
kenry, is situate in the parish
of Chapelrussell. See " Four
Masters," a.d. 1574, p. 1676.
Ardglahan—Down Survey.
2. Ardlanghen
Ardlalian
Kildimo
do.
4, 12
275 2 22
3. Careens
Carheeny
do.
do.
4, 12
228 2 25
Carheeny—nowm Survey.
4. Ballyculhane
Ballyculhane
do.
do.
12
382 2 23
Ballyealhane — Down Survey.
This townland contains the
ruins of an ancient castle, and is
called by the " Four Masters,"
BaVe-Ui-Chathlain, 'O'Cath-
lan's-town,' a.d. 1581, p. 1758.
Cuil-beg, ' little corner.'
5. Culebeg
Coolbeg
do.
do.
12
181 3 23
6. Ballyvareen
Ballyvarreen
do.
do.
12
314 3 23
Ballyvarrin—Down Survey.
7. Ballyrune
Ballyrune
do.
do.
12
187 3 1
8. Killdeemo
Kildlmo
do.
do.
12
340 3 2
This townland takes its name
from the old chureh which
gives name to the parish, and
is noticed in the Martyrology
of Donegal, under St.Dioma,
at May 12, as Cill-Dioma, i.e.
9. Killmoreen
' Dima's church.'
Kilmoreen
do.
do.
12
381 3 6
Killmor3me—Down Survey.
10. Court
Court
do.
do.
12
697 0 18
So called in Down Survey.
APPENDIX N..
28a'
Townlands in the
Manor of Adare,
A.D. 1782.
Modem Karnes
on the
Ordnance Survey.
Parish.
Barony.
Sheet of
Ord.
Survey.
Contents.
11. Ballycasey
Ballycaseg
Kildimo
Kenry
12
A* S* F*
631 0 12
12. Ballycraheen
Carraheen
do.
do.
11, 12
158 2 20
13. Ballyshea
Ballyashea
do.
do.
12
210 3 16
14. Croghanecrey
Cragganacree
do.
do.
12
129 1 19
15. Currabridge
Curraghbridge
Adare
do.
21
435 0 29
16. KilJcnocTcan
KilknocTcan
do.
do. .
21
199 3 21
17. Islanea
Islandea
do.
Goshma
21
207 1 20
I
18. Mower
Mowerheg and
Mowermore
do.
do.
21
f250 2 23
1182 3 33
19. Tuogh
TuogTi
do.
Kenry
12, 20,
21
787 0 1
20. Kilgrogan
Kilgrogan
do.
do.
20,21
237 0 31
21. Killavaraga
22. Ghrague
23. Binegarane
24. Carralrant
25. Barnalick
26. Cummeen
Kyleavarraga,
Middle, North,
and South
Graigue
Currabcbase
Currahchase
Currabcbase,North
Baurnalicka
Cummeen
do.
do.
do.
Kilcornan
do.
Adare
do.
do.
Gosbma
Kenry
do.
doi.
Gonnello
Upper
Goshma
11, 20
21
21
11
11
11
21
21
r 52 3 3
< 44135
Uo0124
296 0 33
r .512 3 36
5931 37
(283 3 23
449 3 3
109 2 32
27. Finiterstown
Finniterstown
do. and
Drehid-
tarsna
Gonnello
Upper
21, 30
(536 3 17
\438 3 31
28. Gortnamena
29. Knocke
30. Rossmore
31. Ligolanes
32. Garraneard
33. JBeabush
Granard
Beahus
Groom
Debidtars-
na
Adare
Gonnello
Upper
Goshma
21, 30
21
140 1 26
270 2 29
34. Farrantrompa
35. Ferrgvinane
Ferryvinnane
Goshma
21
163 3 37
36. Adare and
Adare /
do.
do.
21
886 1 21
, Suhuris
37. Corkamore
38. Killtemplin
39. Clounanna
Corcamore
Kiltemplan
Cloonanna.
Kilkeedy
do. -
Groom
Pubble-
brien
• do.
do.
4, 12
12
12, 21
1346 3 14
162 0 5
661 3 11
Observations.
Ballioghassy—Down Survey. In
Irish, Baile- Ua g-Cathasaigh,
• O'Casey's-tO'wn.'
In Irish, Curraghin, • a little
moor.'
Ballyashea — Down Survey.
• O'Shea's-town.'
Cragg-ne-eree —. Down Survey.
' Rock of the trees.'
A compound of Irish and Eng¬
lish, 'bridge of the moor,'
Curro-bridge—Down Survey.
Kilnokane—.Down Survey. Cill-
cnocan, ' church of the hil¬
locks.'
Probably Oilean - G'Deaghaidh,
' O'Dea's island.'
Called Mohhar by the " Four'
Masters" at 1599 (p. 2117) and
described as a hog.
Tuaith, ' a district.' Toagh be¬
longed to the Grey Friary of
Adare [Archd., p. 417; Mor-
rin's Calendar, vol. ii. p. 318).
Twogh—Down Survey.
Kellgrogan—Down Survey. Kil-
rogan—Archd., p. 417.
Kilivaraghe—Arc^(f.,p.417. Kil-
varoge—Down Survey. Coill-
mairrge, 'wood of the market.'
Graige—ArcArf., p. 417.
Rencgaran—Down Survey.
Currowe—ArcArf., p. 417.
Bearna-lice, • gap of the flag.'
Comyns—Archd., p. 417.
Called by the "Four Masters"
Baile-an-Bleteraigh, being
originally Baile-an-Fheiritea-
raigh, ' Ferriters-town,' 1599
(p. 2118), where see O'Dono-
van's note. Finnittstown —
Archd., p. 417. Ballyfinten—
Morrin's Calendar, vol. ii. p.
318.
Gort-na-mona,' field of the bog.'
Cnoc,' a hill.'
Ros-mor,' great wooded point.'.
Beahus—Down Survey.
Derryvenane —ArcA(f., p. 417.
Derivinan — Dotcn Survey.
Doire Fhionain, 'Finan's oak-
wood.'
Ath-dara, 'ford of the oaks.'.
See p. 1, supra.
Corcach-mor,' great marsh.'
Cluonona—Down Survey. It was
formerly a separate parish
called Clonany in the Tax. of
1302. The Procuration Table
284
APPENDIX N.
Towulands in the
Manor of Adare)
A.D. 1782.
Modem Names
on the
Ordnance Survey.
Parish.
Barony.
Sheet ol
Ord.
Survey.
Contents.
Observations.
40. Clohetacka
41. Kilgoihin
42. Mendellihy
43. Clennyduff
44. Ballygeale
45. Killeen
46. Monearla
47. Knockanes
48. Jiineroe
49. Fanningstown
50. LordCcvrbery's
Fillisteen
51. Lord Albe¬
marle's part
of Fillisteen
52. Knockanena-
crokery
53. Castle Eoberts
54. Clusneconnell
55. Currabeg
56. Ardshanballg
Cloghatacka
Kilgoblin
Mondellihy
Ballygeale
Killeen
Monearla
Knockanes
Rineroe
Fanningstown
rThese are in-
J eluded in Castle-
' Roberts town-
land, No. 53.
Castleroberts
!I!urraghbeg
Ardshanballg
Kilkeedy
Adare
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Pubble-
brien
Coshma
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Kenry
Coshma
12
12, 21
12, 21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
190 3 38
439 3 14
342 3 34
201 2 15
202 2 20
172 0 14
472 1 25
431 3 21
544 0 34
783 1 0
121 2 1
179 0 16
in the Liher Niger calls it
" Cluaynany, cujns reetoria
ppectat ad Rect. de Crom-
moth, et habet vicarium." See
p. 266, supra. Clonanni—JJeo,
Vis., 1615.
' Stone of the frost.'
Kellmacgoban—Inquis. 1201 in
Lih. Nig.; Kyleoban—Xi6.
Nig., pp. 17, 46. Kilgaban—
Reg. Vis., 1615.
Modullyhy—Arehd.,\>.^\5. Mo-
dullie, alias Modollagie—Mor-
rin's Calend., vol. ii. p. 318.
Mundellihy—Xoww Survey.
Ballygeill, Balllgoell — Archd.,
p. 417.
Cillin, ' little church.'
Moin-iarla,' Earl's bog.'
Knockane — Archd., p. 417.
Cnocan, ' a hillock.'
Reynroe—Archd., p. 417. Rinn-
ruadh,' the red point.'
Faningstown, Ballyfanynge —
Archd., p. 417.
Onoc-na-erochaire, 'hangman's
hill.'
Castrum Roberti—Taia:. 1302.
Ecelesia Castri Roberti spectat
ad Adare—Lih.Nig.—^Roberts-
town—.ArcA., p. 417.
Currach-leg, 'little moor.'
Ard-sean-haile, 'height of old
town.'
At the same Court, after the fines, &c., the names of the Jury are given, of whom
Isaac Butt ^ was foreman, and in addition to what the former Jury was to inspect,
they are to enquire into the laws, and customs, and regulations of said Manor, and
to inspect blown meat, undue weights, and all wrong practices, as by the statute
is required.
Among the regulations we find that all pigs are to have double rings in their
nostrils; any pig found trespassing with a double ring to pay 3d., and if with one
ring 6d.; any pig which shall do damage to potatoes, corn, or any vegetables, the
said damage to be ascertained by the appraisers of said Manor.
"We constitute and appoint Philip Mills, of the village of Adare, peruke-maker.
^ Grandfather to one of the most distinguished members of the Irish Bar, the present Member for
Youghal.
APPENDIX O.
285
weigli-master of the town or village of Adare. "We also appoint John O'Brien an
inspector into Bread, Milk, and Butter, and all other provisions to be offered to sale
in this village, and for him to see that said Bread, Milk, and Butter and all other
provisions are free from any fraud or deceit whatsoever. Bread, Milk, Butter, and
all other provisions to be sold at the same rates such articles are sold in the city of
Limerick, as to weight and measure. Any improper provisions to be seized by
said John O'Brien, and by him to be delivered to the Bev. William Bose, to be
distributed amongst the poor of the parish of Adare, allowing a moiety to said
O'Brien for his trouble."
APPEJ^DIX 0.
Documents relattng to the Prebend of Effin.
ConstituUo Episcopi Lymericensis super Ecclesia de Effyng
"TJniversis sancte matris Ecclesie filiis presentes literas visuris vel audituris
Geraldus, permissione divina Lymericensis Episcopus, Salutem in Domino sempi-
ternam. Ecclesiarum commodis quamplurimum prospicitur, dum personis pruden-
tibus scientia et potentia preditis ad earum defencionem et regimen utiliter provi-
detur, ex quorum favore et industria ecclesie in suo perseverare statu et gratis
insuper valeant proficere incrementis. Tunc enim tales persone benefactoribus suis
et ecclesie ad quarum utilitatem assumuntur, vehemencius obligantur, cum sponte
illis non exspectatis precibus beneficientie manus porrigetur et gratuitus beneficiis
alliciuntur. Proinde ecclesiam nostram Lymericensem, in rebus et personis nimis
exilem, munere favoribus et honoribus congruis attollere cupientes, ejusque mani-
festissima utilitate pensata, ecclesiam de Effyn nostre diocesis cum omnibus suis
juribus et pertinentiis et cum omni integritate sua, salva tamen porcione consueta
ejusdem ecclesie Vicario qui pro tempore fuerit, de consensu et voluntate nobilis
viri Mauricii de Rupeforti, veri ipsius ecclesie patroni, et unanimi assensu et con¬
sensu Capituli nostri Lymericensis, Prebendam in ecclesia nostra memorata facimus
constituimus et ordinamus imperpetuum, volentes concedentes et statuentes pro
nobis et successoribus nostris quod ecclesia predicta de cetero sit prebenda ecclesie
Lymericensis, et quod dictus Mauricius et sui heredes vel assignati habeant jus pre-
sentandi unum clericum ydoneum qui sciat poterit et velit jura ecclesie tueri nobis
et successoribus nostris, quocienscunque eadem prebenda vacaverit, et quod nos et
K Lib. Nig., p. Ill, A.D. 1287.
286
APPBNDIS O.
successores nostri clericum presentatum recipere, et ad eandem prebendam ad pre-"
sentacionem ipsorum absque difficultate seu contradictione teneamur admittere, e£
eidem stallum in cboro et locum in capitulo assignare, salvia nobis et successoribus
nostris Decano et Arcbidiacono qui pro tempore fuerint episcopalibus et arcHidia-
conalibus et aliis exactionibus consuetis. Ceterum ut predicti canonicus et prebenda
plena gaudeant imposterum libertate, volumus et concedimus quod Yicarii qui
pro tempore fuerint in dicta ecclesia tocius parocbie omnimodam curam babeant
animarum, et ordinaria et extraordinaria omnia et singula pro rata porcionis ipsis
in dicta ecclesia assignata sustinebunt, personalem eciam residenciam et continuam
faciant in eadem. Insuper volumus et ordinamus quod duo vicarii sustententur in
ecclesia Catbedrali Lymericensi de bonis ecclesie de Effyn prebendarie ejusdem
contingentibus, ita quod quilibet eorum recipiat sexaginta solidos annuatim cele-
brantes diebus singulis imperpetuum specialiter pro animabus predicti Mauricii et
desiderate uxoris ejusdem, antecessorum et beredum suorum, necnon dominorum
Nicbolai et Willelmi de Clera fratrum et parentum suorum, quociens ad alias missas
secundum institucionem prefate nostre ecclesie non fuerint ordinati, et cum ad alias
missas fuerint deputati, specialem dicent pro eis collectam. In cujus rei testimo¬
nium sigillum nostrum una cuni sigillis predicti nostri Capituli et prefati Mauricii
ordinacioni presenti ad modum Cyrograpbi confecte duximus apponenda. Datum
in capitulo nostro Lymericensi die Veneris proxima post festum sancti David
Episcopi, anno gracie m°. cc° octogesimo septimo/*
Decree of the Bishop of Limerick touching the Church ofEffyng.
" To all sons of Holy Mother Cburcb wbo sball see or bear tbese present letters,
Gerald, by Divine permission Bisbop of Limerick, sendetb bealtb eternal in tbe
Lord.
" Tbe interest of cburcbes is best consulted for wben wbolesorae provision for tbeir
defence and government is made by persons of discretion wbo possess wisdom and
power, by wbose favour and diligence tbe cburcbes may not only be maintained in
tbeir position, but be bettered by gratuitous augmentations. For tben sucb per¬
sons, and tbe cburcbes for wbose service tbey are engaged, are more strongly be¬
holden to tbeir benefactors, wben tbe band of beneficence is extended to tbem
spontaneously without waiting for entreaties, and tbey are gratuitously drawn to
acts of goodness. ;
" Wherefore being desirous of exalting our cburcb of Limerick, which is too '
slenderly endowed in property and members, by suitable liberality, favours and i
honours, and having duly weighed what is most clearly for its advantage, we make
APPENDIX o. 287
constitute and ordain the Church of Effyn within our diocese, with all its rights and
appurtenances, and with all its entirety, saving, however, to the Vicar for the time
heing the customary portion of the said Church, with the consent and will of the
noble Maurice Rochfort, the true patron of the said Church, and. with the unanimous
assent and consent of our Chapter of Limerick, to be a Prebend in our said Church
for ever, desiring, granting, and ordaining for ourselves and our successors that
the aforesaid Church shall for ever hereafter be a prebend of the Church of Lime¬
rick, and that the said Maurice and his heirs and assigns shall have the right of
presenting a fitting Clerk who shall possess the knowledge, ability, and desire to
defend the rights of the Church for us and our successors, as often as the said
Prebend shall become vacant, and that we and our successors shall be bound to
receive the Clerk so presented, and to admit him to the said Prebend on their pre¬
sentation, without hesitation or hindrance, and to assign him a stall in the choir
and a place in the Chapter, saving to ourselves and to our successors, to the Dean
and to the Archdeacon for the time being, the episcopal and archidiaconal and
other customary fees. But that the aforesaid canon and prebend may enjoy fuU.
liberty henceforward, we will and ordain that the Vicars for the time being in the
said Church, shall have the whole and entire cure of souls of the whole parish, and
shall discharge all and singular the ordinary and extraordinary duties, in consi¬
deration of the stipend assigned to them in the said church, and shall also keep
personal and continual residence in the same. Moreover we will and ordain that
two Vicars shall be maintained in the Cathedral Church of Limerick, out of the
property belonging to the said prebendal Church of Efiyn, in such wise that each
of them shall receive sixty shillings a-year, to say mass every day for ever for the
souls of the aforesaid Maurice and the deceased wife of the same, his ancestors and
successors, and also of the Lords Nicholas and "William de Clare, their brothers,
and relatives, as often as they shall not be appointed to other masses according to
the observance of our Church aforesaid; and when they shall be deputed to other
masses, they shall repeat for them a special collect.
" In testimony whereof we have caused our seal, together with the seals of our
said Chapter, and of the said Maurice, to be afSxed to the present ordinance, drawn
up after the manner of a chirograph.
" Given in our Chapter of Limerick the Friday after the Feast of S. David the
Bishop, in the year of Grace, One thousand two hundred and eighty-seven."
288 APPENDIX 0.
Concessio Mauricii de Rupeforti super eeclesm eadem^.
" Venerabili in Christo patri domino G. Dei gracia Lymericensi Episcopo Mauri-
cius de Rupeforti salutem cum omni reverencia et honore. Volentes quantum
valemus cultum divinum in vestra Cathedrali Lymericensi ecclesia augmentare, et
eam contra insidias inpugnancium eandem reddere forciorem, ut de ecclesia de
Effyn, que de nostra advocacione existit, in predicta vestra ecclesia Lymericensi
libere et sine contradictione cujuslibet prebendam facere valeatur, et eam perpetuo
prebendare pro nobis et nostris heredibus vobis liberam in Domino concedimus
facultatem, salva nobis et heredibus libera potestate presentandi ad eandem pre¬
bendam ydoneum clericum vobis et vestris successoribus qui pro tempore fuerint
quociens dictam prebendam vacare contigerit, tanquam ejusdem prebende veri
patroni, Ita quod vos et successores vestri quicunque tenebimini et tenebuntur
ydoneum presentatum per nos vel heredes nostros ad dictam prebendam sine diflB.-
cultate quacunque admittere et sibi stallum in chore et locum in vestro capitulo
tanquam alteri canonico assignare, ordinacionem per vos faciendam de duobus
vicariis sustentandis de fructibus prebendarum contingentibus ratam habentes et
gratam. In cujus rei testimonium sigillum nostrum presentibus est appensum.
Datum apud Lymericum die Jovis proxima post festum Sancti David Episcopi,
Anno regni Regis Edwardi sexto decimo."
Grant of Maurice Rochfort touching the said Church,
"To the venerable Father in Christ the Lord G., by the grace of God Bishop-of
Limerick, Maurice de Rochfort, health, with all respect and honour.
" Desirous as much as in us lies to advance Divine worship within your Cathedral
Church of Limerick, and to render it more secure against the devices of those
who would impugn the same, we will that a prebend should be made of the Church
of Effyn which is in our gift, within the aforesaid your Church of Limerick, freely
and without hindrance of any person; and we, for ourselves and our heirs, grant to
jmu free power in the Lord, saving to ourselves and our heirs the full power of
presenting for the same prebend to you and your successors for the time being
a fit Clerk, as often as it shall happen that the said prebend shall become vacant,
as the true patrons of the said prebend, in such wise that you and your successors
and each of you and them shall be bound to admit the fit person presented by us or
our heirs to the said prebend without let whatever, and assign him a stall in the
choir and a place in your Chapter as to any other canon, ratifying and approving
'' lAh. Nig., pp. 112, 113.
I
APPENDIX O.
289
the ordinance to be made by you concerning the maintenance of two Vicars out
of the accruing profits of the said prebends.
" In testimony whereof our seal is appended to these presents on the Thursday
next after the Feast of S. David the Bishop, in the sixteenth year of the reign of
Edward the King."
The following extract from the Table of Procurations in the Liher Niger affords
evidence that the right of presentation to this parish was still in the Pochfort
family in 1418.
" Ecclesia de Efiyng prebendata per pensionem solvendam ecclesie cathedrali
annuatim, et habet Yicarium, ad presentacionem Domini de Bochefort. Procu-
ratio ibidem una cum capella de Kylbygyll, [ . . • . ]"
" The Church of Efiyng is attached to a Prebend by a pension annually payable
to the Cathedral Church; and hath a Vicar, in the presentation of the Lord of
Rochefort. . . . The Proxy thereof together with the chapel of KylbygylD, [ • • •
The annexed document mentions the Pochfort family in connexion with Effin.
" A.D. 1881. The King to the Escheator of Ireland, and the Sheriff of Limerick,
also to Pichard Colman, clerk, and Thomas Byrrell, (reciting that Stephen, late
Bishop of Meath, was bound to the King in divers debts), commanding them to
cause to be seized into the hands of the King, all the lands and tenements which
belonged to John de Pocheford, knight, deceased, who held of the King's grand¬
father in capite, in Typernevyn, Efiyng, and elsewhere in the county aforesaid, the
custody of which the said Bishop enjoyed in his lifetime*^."
The following extract relative to Effin is from the Irish Patent and Close
Polls 1;—
Presentation by Henry VIII. of Thady Boll to the Pectory of Effing, in the
• • • • ^ ^ ^
diocese of Limerick, in the King's ^iiiplenojure" April 1, 37th year.
' The name is written Kilbygly in an instrument of the date 1240, in which year an agreement was
made between Hubert de Burgo, Bishop of Limerick, and Lord G. de Prendergaste, touching the advowsons
of the churches of Kilconegan [now Kiiquane], Kilbygly, and Efiyng. {Liber Niger, p. 104.) By this it
appears that Kilbygly was anciently a distinct benefice. The modern parish of Effiii is uivided horizontally,
along the line which separates sheets 4'? and 55 of the Ordnance Survey, into two portions, the northern
one of which is in the barony of Coshma, and the southern in that of Coshlea. The former represents
Effin proper, and the latter the chapelry of Kilbygly, the site of whose church is in the townlaud Brick¬
field, and still retains the old name Kilbigly, although all traces of the building have disappeared.
^ Calend. Kot. Cancell. Hib., p. 109 b, No. 92., ' Morrin's Calendar, vol. i. p. 123.
290
The subjoined woodcut of a portion of the Church of the Franciscan Priory
in ruins, was not received in time for insertion in its appropriate place in the
body of tlie work: ^ description of the features which it serves to illustrate will
Tower and Transept, Franciscan Abbey.
be found at pp. 80, 81, where the simple yet well-proportioned and slender Tower
is especially alluded to. This sketch shews also the long chancel and the south
window of the transept, with that plain intersecting tracery which is so cha¬
racteristic a feature of the Adare Monasteries, and is so frequently found in
Irish Friaries of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.
1. Adare Manor House, West Front.
This view embraces, on the left hand, the entrance Towers, and between them the west
window of the Gallery. The design was taken from the entrance to the Cloister Court
of Eton College. In the centre is the bay window of the Hall, and to the right or south,
the "Wyndham Tower and west end of the Library.
2. The Ruins at Adare from Ardshanbally Hill.
This view, which faces the south, is taken from an old tinted sketch, executed, probably,
before the beginning of this century. At the left-hand corner are seen the ruins of the
Franciscan Abbey; next, those of Desmond Castle; in the centre, the old Bridge, and the
Augustinian Abbey in ruins; and on the right, the Trinitarian ruins, with the hill of
Knockfierna in the background.
3. Tillage of Adare and Ruins of the Trinitarian Abbey prior
to the year 1810.
The fine old Tower of the Trinitarian Abbey is here well shewn. To the left is the inn
or club-house mentioned p. 103.
4. Village of Adare and Catholic Church.
This drawing, from a photograph, is taken from nearly the same point of view as the
last, but a little further from the Tower. It shews the restored Chancel, the new Lady-
chapel, and a portion of the Convent School; also the fountain memorial-cross, of which
p. 6 contains a woodcut; these works were all designed by P. C. Hardwick, Esq.
5. Augustinian Abbey and Ancient Bridge.
This view shews the side of the Old Bridge within the Demesne, and the Choir and
Tower of the Augustinian Abbey.
6. Adare House in the Eighteenth Century.
This drawing is from a picture at Adare Manor. It represents the south front of the
House in its original form, as built, probably, by Thady Quin, Esq. Such of the elms as
were remaining in 1814, were blown down by the great gale of that year. To the left
of the House, the Tower of the Augustinian Abbey is seen; to the right, that of the
P p 2
292
explanation op the plates.
Franciscan, and in the distance Carrigogunnell Castle. In grouping them as here repre¬
sented, the artist must have availed himself of the liberty granted " pictoribus atque poetis."
J - »
7. Adare Manor about a.il 1815.- -
We now pass to the Manor House in its second stage: the roof has been raised, and
a story added; the entrance is no longer on this (the south) side, and the old trees have
all disappeared.
8. Adare Manor House, North-west View.
This view, from a photograph, shews the Bell-Tower, the design of which was taken
from Haddon Hall; the Gallery; and the "Wyndham Tower.
9. Adare Manor House, South-east View.
In this drawing, also from a photograph, taken from the right or east bank of the river,
the diiferent parts of the building are well seen, including at the right side the Kitchen
and a portion of the Offices. The centre bay-window belongs to the Billiard-room, on the
right of which is the Dining-room, its large bay-window being concealed by the cedar.
The whole of this portion of the building was designed by the late Lord Dunraven,
Mr. Hardwick's work commencing to the left, or west of the jfiUiard-room.
10. Plan op Adare Manor.
This plate requires no explanation further than, to ,point out that the plan of the old
Manor House is placed on the paper at right angles to the new, ,D, F, and E in the new,
answer to Dining-room, Saloon, and Drawiug-rdom in the ^old house. * The singular ap¬
proach to the great Gallery by the passage C, was suggested by 'a similar mode of access
to the principal rooms, made in the thickness of,the wall, as seen in one of the old
castles on the Ehine.
11. The Hall. . ' . "
This picturesque room was designed by the late Lord Dunraveii. The st'airdase, brgan-
case, organ gallery, and ceiling, are from designs by A. W. Pugin. The height and
fine proportions of the room are hardly done justice to in the drawing, which was most
difficult of execution.
12. The Gallery.
This view, taken from towards the east end of the Gallery, gives a faithful idea of this
noble apartment, as far as the effect can be produced without colour: both this and the
preceding view of the Hall, are from carefully executed drawings by G. V. Du Noyer, Esq.
13. Plan of the Trinitarian Abbey at Adare, now the Catholic Church.
In this plan, the walls belonging to the ancient Church and monastic buildings are
drawn black. To the north of the Church is the small Convent and Schools, under the
explanation of the plates.
293
care of tlie Sisters of Mercy. The peculiar arrangement of the cells in the tower of the
Church can be easily perceived by reference to the plan of the upper floor.
14. Trinitaeian Abbey from the Convent Garden.
This view, facing north, shews on the right a gabled tower of the old Monastery, now'
converted into the kitchen of the bTuns, over which is their Oratory. Adjoining it are the
conventual buildings, beyond which is the large schoolroom.
15. Plan of the Augustintan Abbey at Adare, now the Protestant Church.
The pillars, which separate the Kave from the Aisle, are here represented as they
existed previous to the recent arrangement under the superintendence of the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners' architect, by which the ancient character of the interior has been sadly
marred.
16. Augustinian Abbey, East and West Yiew.
The first of these sketches gives the east view of this group of buildings, in the centre
of which is seen the old stepped gable of the Eefectory. To the right, the schoolmaster's
house, erected about forty years ago. On the left of the east window of the Chancel
is the Tower of the Trinitarian Abbey.
The second view shews the schoolmaster's house; the Eefectory, now the large school¬
room; in the centre the Mausoleum, and west end of the nave and south aisle of the
Church.
17. The Cloisters of the Augustus ian Abbey, Adare.
In this view, sketched by M. En Noyer, from one of the bays on the east side of the
Cloisters, the Mausoleum is seen above their western side.
18. Plan of the Franciscan Abbey, Adare.
The scale of this plan is only three-fifths of that of the other two Abbeys, consequently
the eye fails to estimate their comparative size.
19. Franciscan Abbey from the South.
, This sketch, taken from the west bank of the river, shews the Eridge on the Limerick
approach, erected about the beginning of the present century. To the right the Franciscan
ruins, with the south transept window in the centre.
20. Franciscan Abbey, with the Manor House in the distance.
The fine east window of the Church, and the peculiar shape and graceful proportions
of the Tower are well shewn in this view. In the distance is seen a portion of the north
side of the Manor House.
294
EXPLANATION OE THE PLATES.
21. Franciscan Abbey, Church and Tower-arch.
This view is taken from the nave, skewing the east window of the Ckoir, and also tke
shallow sepulchral recesses arcaded on the wall-face, of which there are so many examples
in this Abbey.
22. Cloister of the Franciscan Abbey.
The we.-tern side of the Cloisters is here represented, which is of a different character
from the remaining three sides, as may he seen by reference to the ground-plan, or to the
woodcut at p. 87.
23. Plan of the Old Parish Church and adjoining Chapel.
This plate needs no explanation.
24. Small Chapel in Adare Churchyard.
This view shews the east end and north side of this well-proportioned little Chapel, in
which may be noticed the batter of the walls. To the left, the ruins of the Parish Church
are seen, luxuriantly mantled with ivy, and behind, the Tower of Desmond Castle.
25. Desmond Castle and Franciscan Abbey from the Bridge.
In this drawing justice is by no means done to the peculiar beauty of the combination
of ruins and water which is seen from this point of view, looking east. The western or
principal gateway of the outer ward of the Castle is shewn; on the right, part of the
ancient Norman building, described pp. 122—124, as being the earliest portion of the Castle,
just beyond which is the picturesque Water Tower. In the distance, the western side of the
Franciscan Abbey.
26. Plan of Desmond Castle.
Since this plan was engraved, the ground between the walls of the Castle buildings and
the river has been removed (vide p. 136), so that the water should be represented as
washing their bases.
27. Exterior of Desmond Castle with Ancient Bridge.
The same remark applies to this, as to the foregoing plate, so that the Water Tower now
stands out boldly in the water; and a great deal of the ivj' represented in this drawing
has been removed.
28. Interior View of Desmond Castle, shewing Entrance Gateways
to the Outer and Inner Wards.
On the left side of this drawing is the east end of the ancient Norman building: the
gateways are probably of the fourteenth century.
EXPLANATION OE THE PLATES.
295
29. Plan of Adare from the Down Survey Maps.
This curious map gives a minute indication of all the small divisions in the Town and
its environs. It will he observed how, singularly the Elack and "White Abbey lands are
intermixed. Near the Bridge, on the right hank of the river, the Castle, now called
Desmond Castle, is marked, and beyond it the Eranciscan Abbey: it will be observed that
there is not a vestige of the Town upon that side of the river. The Black or Augustinian
Abbey is close to the bridge on the west side, and further on, towards the south-west, the
Trinitarian or White Abbey. The road from the Market-place to the Spittle-gate, is
the present avenue within the Demesne leading from the Town to the new Stables, which
are erected near the words Spitle-gcite. The Manor House is situated, at the bend of the
river in P. Creagh's Burgess land. The marks of the old fence or ditch, extending from
Spitle-gate to Castle Ploland, are still plainly visible. It is evident from this map that
there were but few houses in the Town when the Down Survey was made, there being
little or no indication of streets. The points of the compass are not shewn, so it may be
well to state that the top of the page is the east side.
30. Church of Dunnaman.
This plate requires no explanation.
31. Fragments of Pottery, &c. found at Desmond Castle.
These are fully described in the text.
The age of this ware is probably from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century, figs. 1, 2, 3
being the most primitive: they are fully described at p. 243. Eig. 7 is a curious and
apparently very old specimen of stamped or punched leather, found in the bed of the river
under the Castle walls.
INDEX.
Adaee, derivation of, 1, note.
Demesne of, 2 and 158,
Arthur Young's account of, 3.
Deer Park, 160.
Manor House, 7.
Gallery, stained glass in, 17.
list of pictures, 25.
Library, 27.
Museum, 118.
Gardens, 29.
Abbeys, vide Augustinian, Pranciscan,
and Trinitarian Priories.
Hst of different possessors of, 115.
Ecclesiastical ruins, account of, 35.
Catholic Church restored and enlarged, 5.
Castle, vide Desmond Castle.
Castle of, leased to Earl of Desmond, 215.
Catholic Priests of the Parish, 239,
Chapel in the Churchyard, 100.
Manor of, earliest notice of, 137.
description of, 216.
belonged to Geoffroi de Mor-
reis, 105.
survey of, 113.
lease of, to the Earl of Des¬
mond, 112, 215.
list of townlands in, 282.
Manor Courts, 216.
Court Books, 216, 281.
Deanery of, 91, 95.
Rural Deanery of, 235, 265.
Ecclesiastical Taxations, 261.
Parish and Church, 91, 263, 265.
-Parish Church, architectural description
of, 96.
Parish, Constat of Civil Survey of, 256.
Tithes of, 273.
Rectory of, 237.
Rectorial tithes granted to Sir Henry
Wallop, 253.
Vicarage of, 237-
Adare, Vicars, list of, 237.
Protestant Church, restoration of, 1.
• Town of, grants from Edward II. and
Edward III., 101.
• history of, 102.
Ancient Town, position of, 102, 211.
Ancient Bridge of, 101.
—^ Ancient Topography of, 233.
Inquisition of, 139.
list of forfeited lands from the Down
Survey, 271.
Maps of, 211.
Memorial Fountain, 6.
Aengus Ceile-De, account of, by Piiofessor
O'Curry, 205.
by Rev. Dr.
Reeves, 209.
Annals of the Four Masters, description of
a skirmish at Adare, 112.
account of Lord Essex's en¬
counter with the Irish at Adare, 117.
Ardcanny Parish, 272.
Ardfert, historical extracts relative to. 111.
Askeaton Castle, 112.
Athdare (Adare), 268.
Athnyd Parish, 269.
Augustinian Priory, foundation of, 68.
charter to, from Edward II., 68.
• architectural description of, 69.
granted to Sir Henry Wallop,
253.
Ball, Thomas, Esq., observations by, on Arthur
Young's account of the Corcase lands, 192.
Ballycahane, Parish of, 271.
Baron, Boiiaventura, extracts from his Annals,
relative to the Trinitarian Monastery, 50—51.
Black Book of Limerick, vide Liber Niger.
Bobio, Bell-tower on the Church of St. Colum-
banus at, 228.
Bourke, John, killed at Adare, 116.
q
298
INDEX.
Campaniles, circular, at Ravenna, 222.
at Ravenna, age of, 228.
circular, out of Italy, 224.
Italian, peculiarities of shape, 227i
Capella Say, 269.
Carrick O'Gunnell Castle, derivation of, 1, note.
Castle Roberts, 64.
Church of, 267, 270.
Chapel Russell Parish, 270.
Christian Brothers, School at Adare, 5.
Cloonanna, Church of, 271.
Cogan, Juliana de. Charter of, 137.
Coity Castle, 11, note.
siege of, 236.
Collam, Robert, obtains leases of Abbey lands at
Adare, 62.
grant to him of the Abbeys of
Adare, 253.
Comyn, Father John, account of, 38.
first Prior of the Trinitarian
Monastery at Adare, 41.
ConoUy, James, inscription to, on the Manor
House, 8.
Coshma, derivation of, 233, note.
Crommoth (Croom) Church, 268.
Croom, Manor of, leased to the Earl of Des¬
mond, 242.
Culdees, account of, by Professor O'Curry, 205.
Desmond Castle, historical notice of, 105.
• earliest description of, 106.
sieges of, 108, 109, 119, 120.
dismantled by Cromwell, 120.
architectural description of, 120.
excavations at, 127, 129.
antiquities found at, 242.
Earl of, obtains Adare Castle, 107.
extracts from Cox's history,
relative to, 114.
melancholy death of, 116.
James, (Sugan) Earl of, occupies the
Castles of Croom and Adare, 119.
letter to Florence Mac Cartie, 119.
obtains lease of Croom and Adare,
142.
Disert, Church of, 261, 263.
architectural description of, 211.
— founded by Aengus Ceile-De, 210.
Disert Church, historical notices of, 211.
Engussa, 269.
notices of, in the Liber Niger
of Limerick, 95, 277.
Muirdebra, its situation identified, 277.
Prebend of, 265.
Round Tower, description of, 214.
Dish, silver-gilt, 247. ,
Dolyth, Church of, 269.
Donovan, ancestor of the O'Donovans, 234.
Down Survey, list from, of the forfeited lands
about Adare, 146, 274.
Drehidtarsna, Church of, 269.
Drumassyl, Church of, 269.
Due, Viollet-le, account of the Lanternes des
Marts, 219.
Dunnaman Castle, history and description of, 198.
Cliurch, history and description of, 203.
alias Villa Trostany, 269.
Dunraven Castle, historical notice of, 9, note.
■ Richard, Earl of, 195.
Windham, Earl of, 195.
Dysert, vide Disert.
Edwin family, pedigree of, 10, note.
Effin, Advowson of, 247.
Prebend of, 285.
Essex, Earl of, lodges in the ruins of the Augus-
tinian Priory, 69.
^ engages the Irish at Adare, 117.
Fergusson, S., Esq., description of Round Tower
at Epinal, 225.
Figueras, Fr. Joanne, Chronicle of the Trini¬
tarian Order, 49.
Franciscan Priory, foundation of, 74, 75.
^ description of, in 1585, 77.
objects found in the ruins of, 78.
— architectural description of, 80.
granted to Sir Henry WaUop, 257.
Franks, A. W., Esq., account of silver-gilt dish
at Adare, 247.
Gleande parish, 269.
Goban Saer, builder of several Round Towers, 230.
Golden Butterfiy, the. Legend of O'Quin, 169.
Goold, Cardinal William, stated to have been
a member of the Trinitarian Priory, Adare, 42.
INDEX. 299
Graves, Yery Rev. Dean, remarks on the Ogham
stones at Adare, 157.
Griffin, Extracts from his poem on Adare, 1, 3.
Hardman, J., stained glass windows by, at
Adare, 4, 5.
Hooker's Hollinshed, extracts from, relative to
the Castle of Adare, 108—112.
House of St. James, at Adare, 36.
Hy-Eigeinte tribe, account of, 233.
Hy-Ifeamain, tribe name of the O'Quins, 161.
Inchiquin, Barony of, 250.
lake of, 166, 169.
Inghean Baith, founder of Kilnaboy, 250.
Kilcornan Parish, 270.
Kilcurly, Church of, 271.
Kildare, John, 1st Earl of, founds the Augus-
tinian Priory, 68.
Gerald, 5th Earl of, said to have built
the ancient bridge of Adare, 104.
Thomas, 7th Earl of, founds the Fran¬
ciscan Priory, 71.
Earl of, " Red Book," Inquisition in, re¬
lative to Adare, 139.
Thomas, 10th Earl of, his Castle and
Manor of Adare, attainted, 141.
Kildimo Parish, 271.
Kilgoban Church and Parish, 237, note c, 271.
KiUonahan Church, 268.
KiUulta Church, ruins of, 270.
Kilnaboy, Church of, 165.
founded by Inghean Baith, 250.
account of, by Dr. O'Donovan, 250.
Knights Hospitallers, House of, in Adare, 35.
Templars, medalets connected with, found
at Newcastle, 151.
Lanternes des Morts, said to resemble Irish
Round Towers, 219.
Leverus, Bishop, retires to Adare Castle, 107.
Liber Niger of Limerick, notices of the Church
at Adare, 94, 95.
account of the MS., 240.
extracts from, relative to Dysert-
Eiigussa, 277.
Lixnaw, Baron of, 114, 115.
Llanmihangle Manor House, 10, note.
Lopez, Fr., D.D., History of the Trinitarian
Order, 36.
Lylles, Nicholas, grant to, of Abbey lands at
Adare, 255.
Maelruain, St., Rule of, for the Culdees, 206.
Maigue river, derivation of, 233, note.
March, Earl of, founds the Trinitarian Convent
at Dunbar, 38.
Maskelyne, N. S., Esq., description of the Adare
Meteoric Stones, 275.
Mausoleum at Adare Church, 3.
Mellon Old Church, notice of, 272.
Mochuda, St., poem on the Ceile-De, 206.
Monaster-na-calliagh, identification of, 240.
Monasteranenagh, Abbey of, 108, note e.
Monehuryn Church, 270.
Mooney, Rev. Father, his account of the Fran¬
ciscan Priory, 75.
Muiigret, Anglo-Saxon coins found at, 150.
O'Curry, Professor, extract of a letter from, on
the Geraldines, 141.
notice by, relative to the
O'Quins, 163.
O'Dea, Bishop Cornelius, 240.
Tribe and Arms, 163, 164.
O'Donovan, Dr., extract from a letter relative
to Dysert Round Tower, 213.
O'Donovans, account of the, 234.
Ogham stones at Adare, description of, 156.
O'Quin of Inchiquin, 161.
Nial, slain at the battle of Clontarf, 162.
Edeaoin, Queen of Munster, 162.
O'Quins driven out of Clare, 163.
— ancient arms of, 164.
notice of, in the topographical poems of
O'Dugain and O'Heerin, 165.
of Inchiquin, junior branch of, 177.
different families of that name, 196.
Organ at Adare Manor House, 15, 16.
Ormonde, 10th Earl of, at Adare, 111.
Ormsby, Sir Edward, grant to, of Abbey and
other lands at Adare, 64.
Owen, Professor Richard, letter on a bone im¬
plement found at Desmond Castle, 133.
Q q 2
300
INDEX.
Palatines, the, account of, by Arthur Young, 191.
by John Wesley, 193.
—^: history of, 251.
Pallas Kenry, Yillage of, 270.
Petrie, George, LL.D., account of ecclesiastical
.hell at Adare, 152.
— letter on ancient crosses, 153.
^ — letter relative to the O'Quins
and Kilnaboy, 165.
legend of the O'Quins by, 166.
on the existence of Round Towers
in Ireland in the sixth century, 231.
Pottery found at Desmond Castle, 243.
Quin, arms of, 11, 12, 197.
Donough, 178.
John, Bishop of Limerick, 178.
John, of Rosbrien, 186.
Thady, grant to, of Abbey and other lands
at Adare, 64, 257.
" letter to Sir John Kirwan, 178.
his purchases about Adare, 179.
• Report exculpating him from the
charge of High Treason, 181.
bequests by, 250.
■ Valentine, his purchases at Adare, 146, 246.
■ — conforms to the Established
Church, 187.
—— Windham, 188.
Rathmore Castle, notice of, 108, note g.
Ravenna, Circular Campaniles at, 222, 223.
^— Campanile of S. Giovanni e Paolo, 227.
Reeves, Rev. W., on the Celi-De, 208.
• ^ on the antiqnity of Irish Round
Towers, 231.
Round Towers in England, 221.
■ in the Isle of Man, 221.
in the Orkneys, 220.
• in Scotland, 220.
at Epinal, in Lorraine, 224.
• at Ravenna, vide Campanile.
at St. Gall, 225.
of Ardmore, 223.
of Devenish, 222.
of Dungiven, 227.
of Glendalough, 228.
• on Ireland's Eye, 228.
Round Towers of Kilmacduach, 230.
■ of Kinnegh, 228.
— of St. Eineen's, Olonmacnoise, 227..
of Tamlaght-Einlagan, 227.
—— of Trummery, 227.
— of Ireland, uses of, 218.
antiquity of, 230.
origin of, 229, 232.
evidence of early date in S. Adam-
nan's life of S. Columba, 231.
Scrope pedigree, 22.
Southwell family introduce the Palatines into
Limerick, 251.
Taxations, Ecclesiastical, 261.
Todd, Rev. J. H., D.D., Remarks upon Lopez's
History, 37, note.
Trinitarian Priory, Adare, 36.
founded by the EitzGeralds, 39.
■ list of dignitaries of the Church,
connected with, 43.
celebrated writers belonging to, 45.
suppression of, 46.
martyrs of, 47.
grants to, 54, 55.
possessions of, 57.
granted to Sir Henry Wallop, 58,
62, 253.
architectural description of, 65.
notices of, 236.
Tubornea, Manor of, 246.
Wadding, Luke, account by, of the Eranciscan
Abbey of Adare, 74.
Wallis, G., Esq., account by, of pottery found at
Desmond Castle, 243.
Wallop, Sir Henry, letter to Walsingham, 58.
Abbeys of Adare leased to, 58, 253.
letter to Burghley, 60.
his career in Ireland, 61, note.
Ware, Sir J., Annals, extracts from, relative to
• Adare, 114.
Wesley, John, preaches at the Eranciscan Abbey,
Adare, 92.
his account of Adare, 193.
extracts from his Journal relative
to the Palatines, 193.
INDEX.
301
Widenham, Henry, 187, note h.
Wilde, Sir W., account of Stamped Leather found
at Desmond Castle, 245.
Willis, Professor, on the Round Towers at
S. Gall, 226.
Wyndham, Arms of, 9.
Sir John, 18, note h.
Wyndham, Sir Thomas, 18, note i.
Colonel, of Trent House, 18, note j.
Sir John, of Orchard, 19, note k.
■ royal descent of, 20, 21.
Young, Arthur, his account of Adare, 189.
303
p. 1, line 3 from bottom, for " tarb" read " tarbh."
p. 1, bottom line, for " Supplement" read " p. 33."
p. 5, line 2, for "the Earl" read "the late
Earl."
p. 18, line 12, for "1694" read "1716."
p. 19, line 30, for " Sir John Carewe" read " Sir
John Carne"
p. 19, line 34, for " Francis Wyndham" read " John
Wyndham."
p. 22, line 4, for "1694" read "1716."
p. 22, line 8, for " William Wyndham" read " John
Wyndham."
p. 35, line 4 from bottom, for " Monasticwm" read
" Monasticow."
p. 37, line 17, for " were examined" read " have been
sought for."
p. 38, note, for " Comes" read " Comitis."
p. 44, line 16, for " are" read " is."
p. 54, line 17, for "Monasticwm" read "Monastico»."
p. 56, line 20, for "Edw. III. (1399)" read "Edw.
J. (1299)."
p. 56, line 21, omit " de Clare." .
p. 56, line 24, after Patent Rolls, insert " 2."
p. 61, last line but one, for "Negeilange" read
" Negeilauge."
p. 62, line 22, for " brought" read " bought."
p. 64, line 15, for " Records of the Rolls" read
" Lodge's Abstracts of the Records of the Rolls,
in Ulster's Office."
p. 67, line 10, omit "a," and for "head" read
" heads."
p. 68, line 2, for " 1315, as appears by the following
Patent" read "1315. The following Patent
was."
p. 77, line 18, for " erected" read " appropriated."
p. 94, line 10, for "appurtinencies" read "appur¬
tenances."
p. 95, line 9, for "comprising" read "comprised in."
p. 95, line 4 from bottom, for " G" read " E, No. 3."
p. 95, note c, line 2, omit " probably."
p. 96, line 7, for " Jepson" read " Jephson."
p. 101, line 11, for " which" read " who."
p. 101, line 15, for " hence" read " have."
p. 102, line 3, for " BOTEiEii" read " botilee."
p. 105, before Chapter heading, insert " IV."
p. 106, note, after 8 omit " and," and for " 37"
read "39."
p. 115, line 19, for " Lixnow" read " Lixnaw."
p. 123, note, for "large" read "largest."
p. 131, line 16, f ^r " Airthia" read "Airthic."
p. 131, line 17, for "Namniu" read "Nairniu."
p. 137, line 17, for " Earl" read " Marquis."
p. 146, line 3, for " I" read " J."
p. 146, note y, for " Kildrino" read " Kildimo."
p. 163, line 17, for " Insi-ui" read " Inis-ui."
p. 183, line 4 Irom bottom, and 184, line 11, for
" Lere" read " letter."
p. 202, lines 4 and 8, for "Countess" read " daughter
of the Earl of."
p. 205, before Chapter heading, insert " IX."
p. 275, line 19, for ".Hill" read " Well."
PI. 2.
THE RUIHS AT ADARE, EROM AHE SH AHBA LEY HILL, ABOUT THE CLOSE OF THE XYIII CENTURY.
PL 3.
VILLAGE OE ADARE AND RUINS OF THE TRINITARIAN ABBEY, PRIOR TO THE YEAR 1810. '
IRJobLiiis
PI. 4.
J.P Jofc-bjri s.
V I 1, PAGE 0 E ADAH K A JSF J) C A T HI 0 1. i C C R E R C H
PI. 5 .
J.R.Joibius
A U G U S T T JSI I A N A P B E T AND
ANCIENT
B R I D G E
A D A R E HOUSE IN
PI. 6
XVII] CENTURY.
J.R.Jobbms
. ..4P ■ ■
PI, 7
ADA EE MA:N"0U ABOUT A. D. 18 12. EEOll THE SOUTH.
ADARE MAEOR HORSE, HORTH WEST VIEW.
PI. 9.
ADARE MANOR H 0 TJ S E , SOUTH EAST VIEW.
PI. 10.
Hall
I ■
I Dinin Room
I o
I I
Drawing Room
Saloon
REFERENCE.
A , Entrance Eeneatk Gallery.
B . Hall
G . Passage to Galleiy.
0 . Galleiy in the Hall.
I) . Dining Room
E.E . lilrary
E . Billiard Room.
G . Bntlers Room.
H . S erving Room
1 . IVyndham Tower.
K. Kitclien
l.L . OfHoes.
The/M^ooms ehewrv otv Bds Flcav are/ orv 6te^ GrouruL Moor, wUh/
ih£/ eoccepdon/ of the GoJler^ wkicivis orv thr/Moor aJbove/. vmSrr
the/ Gallery is w suite/ of prwate/rooms ocmpied/ try the/Marl and/
Gotmhess of Jhmrcwen/.
SCALE OE FEET.
80 40 50
PLA^^ OF
^ (gJlU
IL IMEMie
THE RESIDENCE OF
THE MimOIP™ THE EAML OE BOTRAEEW
S C ALE.
ao 30 FEET
PLAR OF THE OED MAHOR HOUSE.
r
IRJoloins
pwwj'ty.t;' iniyjup.y
,1 l\ Jf).hbi.us
T li K G A I, 1, E R ^ . A D A R F. M A N O R
PLAN OP THE
TRIHITAHIAM" ABBTEYs
AT ABAB.E :NOW THE
C ATM Otic OHUJH-CH.
SCALE
PL M.
X >
VL>. », V
3 E. Jabfcias
TRIE'ITARIALT ABBEY- EROM THE CORYERT GARDER.
AirGUSTmiA:ir'
AT AIDAIRE
EJELOTESTANT CmmCH
.AncientMascrrvty ahewrv Blouc^
Moierru Do. Do. Hxnted/
S C A X E .
so
80
=t=
40
s;±=
70 FEET
AUGUSTIUIAlSr ABBEY. EAST VIEW,
AUGUSTim AiN ABBEY. WEST VIEW.
PI. 17,
J'M'M'ii .'J
fiiiiM'''''
k'.ffi'iB!
■an'i&l
JE JoEEins
THE CLOISTERS OE THE AUGUSTIRIAN ABBEY, ADARE
PI.18.
REPEREirCJE.
A. Ch-oiT.
B. l^Tave.
C . Te-w~ Tree in. Cloisters.
D. Kitah.eiL. '
D! Pliers House?
E. Refectory or library.
E. Garderobes.
E'. Roouls under Dormitory.
G. Probably Infirmary.
H. Guest Gbamber?
I. Mill.
K. Gateway.
L. Pared Court.
M. Ritckento Guest Rouse?
N. BcLse of Cross.
0. Mill Stream under coirer.
P . Roajd to tke Abbey.
PLAN OF THE
ABBEIT,
AM AM.
fr.B. ThoiBloijckj Walls are/ thosd/in/'perfecb wndibiorv,
Ihose/ of cuLighter Ixnb are cUl^idatBd/.
XR.,ToHbms
J
n. ]9
StS
t'd^m
iW
. 1 'ji I —*
> JS'Srv*
J.-R Job bins.
FItANCiSCA'N A "BEET AJND B'RIEGi: OVER THE IVIAIGIJE
F1.20.
K."''i'^S^"S^
TE JohbiiiK
FRANCISCAN ABEEY, WITH MANOR HOUSE IN THE DISTANCE.
¥3^-|afH.
.<w-MW(*r»| .'Tl^
.V-^*
lEJoibins
FRANCISCAN ABBEY. CHURCH AND TOWER ARCH
.smf
iSp.l I''!®
'V/
f4S^ Ah- WZ^I
u7|jip^,-jft'|j'1
J -r
1
If
CLOISTER OF T H i: L' R A N CI S C A JST A B B F; Y" , A ,D A R E .
PI. 38.
Planof Small Chapel in Adare Church Yard.
o
CO
PI an
i,
\
/
/
\
of Adare Old Parish Chnrch.
cucucu. Widei openings cub ffie/ evcmmib of ffie/ Wall/.
10 5 0
I
10
I
SCALE OE FEET.
20 30
I I
40
—t—
50
60
J.R.JGlii)in3.
Pi. 24
"V"
J iiJobbins.
,'SS^Si!
:^CS>\SV
ms
SMALL CHAPEL IE AHARE CHURCH YAR])
PI. 25
T^v. KMOwn P.ARTl.F, AND THE EHANTCISCAN ABHEY, EROM ABARE BRIDGE
fer '^■Lhliwys
■•.a.
r-f:%
J.R.Jotfeias
PI. 26.
J.R.Jolibi"ns.
PI. 27-.
mm
'^>uiV.
■SiikmM.
J.K.JoJ)li.ms
EXTERIOR
OE DESHORR CASTLE WITH ARCIENT
ERIE G-E
PI. 28.
jf£im
;.•'•/•••• • ••."Vs'^'. "v;<yV5'4^-•
« ^ ^ I " W-K'*-'
■t..- ■-. 1 ■ ;■•
esa^'i* 4 I
iSEJti\.v
J.R.JolibiiJS
JNTPHIOK VI KW Q]'' DKK^ONl) OA S Ti, K , S H PW I N G IvNTHANCF, GATKWAY,
TO THR OUT.KP ANT) ITs^ N R R WART).
THE SMALE PATLCEES THE TO^NE OE ATHDAPE ,
COTJLD HOT BE EXPRESSED BY Y? SMALE SCALE.
A Scal£>of 40 Ferches iiv cavlrvclv.
40
whiter \BlajC/
\ aby \A>hy
WT'Stridh/
Sjjvtie/
F. Cr&cug Tve
Burgees lourvob
hlahabg'
SpMe/ gate/
GobstLe/pL land/
'p
Jmiartrnttxng T
Fl ^ i
i\' Gcury own/
\ tTr'/^Gtrich
Str{tch/_
F.KMare/
Wh/vts
B urg e>s J/Ourvd/
Spm^ll WrStrOth/ \ Clwrvo/gh/ &/
tJiTJTT
I I 14 {
' J •
\G\ \ ] \
i-ii; ! I
;/ \ O'cury rvior he/
€U
E. Kvld/cor e/
Lisaghb
CopmLfrorwdie/AncimJ/Map of Adccre/From/Qve/Bown/ Survey Anno Domini/ 1656.
PI.30.
PlaxL of WindoTv.
L Gor Jamb.
CHURCH OF HUNNAMAH, LIMERICK.
Inside of "Window.
Outside Head of Door.
fowl of Font.
f, o' X z. o"
if djeep
Scale of Feet.
ao O 10 20 30 40 50
, , , , T - I I I I ■ I
Gordon M.Hills, del.
XR.Jobbms
PI. 31.
FRAGMENTS OF POTTERY Sbc.
Foxoid iiL th-P. Moat ancL ia tke Eiver at Desmond CcLstle.
Fig. 1.
Fig. 3.
Fig.2
Fi A ■ 4r.
Fig? 1 to 6 . ys tke real size
/
Fi A . 5.
Fig. 6
ya real size.
JP Jottms