KELLS, a parish, in the barony of KELLS, county of KILKENNY, and province of LEINSTER, 6¼ miles (S. by W.) from Kilkenny city, on the road from that place to Carrick-on-suir. This place, which was formerly of considerable importance, was built by Geoffry FitzRobert, one of Earl Strongbow's followers, for his English companions: he also founded a priory in 1183, which he felled with monks from Bodmin, in Cornwall; and his sons William and John gave charters to the inhabitants, constituting the place a free borough.
The town afterwards passed into the De Birmingham family, and was burnt by William De Birmingham in 1252, during a dispute with the St. Aubans. Edward Bruce occupied it for a short time in 1316, and in 1327 it was again burnt by the De Birminghams. In the early part of the 14th century, the barony was granted to the Poers, and the town was fortified by Sir Eustace le Poer. Roger Mortimer, Earl of March, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, was slain near this place, in 1398, by the O'Byrnes, whom he bad pursued from their own country near Dublin. The priory, with some of its possessions, was granted at the dissolution to the Earl of Ormonde. The prior was a lord of parliament, and the priory of Tullelash, in the county of Cork, was under his authority. Several towers and part of the walls remain, and there is a large moat, said to have belonged to a college.
The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Ossory, united by act of council, in 1678, to the rectories and vicarages of Earlstown, Ballytobin, and Mallardstown, and the rectories of Kilree, Stamcarty, and Annamult, and in the alternate patronage of the Bishop and the Marquess of Ormonde, in the latter of whom the rectory is impropriate.
In. the Roman Catholic divisions the parish is partly in the union or district of Callan, but chiefly in that of Danesfort, and has a plain chapel.
The SEE of OSSORY,which, like that of Meath, takes its name from a district, was originally established at Saiger, now Seir-Kieran, in the territory of Ely O'Carrol, about the yeare 402, by St. Kieran. after his return from Rome, where he had remained 20 years in the study of the Christian faith, and had been consecrated bishop He was accompanied on his return by five other bishops, who also founded sees in other parts of Ireland, and after presiding over this see for many years is supposed to have died in Cornwall, as stated by the English martyrologists. Of his successors, who were called ‘Episcopi, Saigerenses,’ but very imperfect accounts are preserved. Carthag, his disciple and immediate successor, died about the yeare 540, from which period till the removal of the see from Saiger to Aghavoe, about the yeare 1052, there appears to have been, with some few intervals, a regular succession of prelates.
The Church of Ireland's diocesan system is based on the 900-year-old system set up by the Synod of Rathbreasail. The Synod of Rathbreasail took place in AD1111. It was a notable event in that it marked the transition of the Irish church from a monastic to a diocesan and parish-based church. Many Irish Roman Catholic and Church of Ireland (protestant) dioceses trace their boundaries to decisions made at the synod. It was the third of four great reforming Irish synods, the other three were at Cashel (1101), Kells (1152) and Cashel II (1172).
The monastery of Aghavoe (Aghaboe) was founded by St. Canice, of which he was the first abbot, and in which he died about the yeare 600; and after the removal of the see from Saiger, there is little mention of the bishops of Aghavoe, in whose succession there is a chasm of 13 years till the time of Donald O'Fogarty, who was consecrated in 1152, and assisted at the synod of Kells held under Cardinal Paparo, as vicar-general and bishop of Ossory. Felix O'Dullany, who succeeded him in 1118, removed the see from Aghavoe to the city of Kilkenny, as a place of greater security, where he laid the foundation of the cathedral church of St. Canice, which was continued at a great expense by Hugh Mapelton, and completed by Geoffrey St. Leger, about the yeare 1270. Bishop St. Leger gave to the vicars choral his manse and lodgings, formerly the episcopal palace, previously to the erection of the palaces of Aghor and Dorogh; and William Fitz-John, who succeeded in 1302, appropriated the church of Claragh to the abbey of St. John the Evangelist, with a reservation of 20s. to the vicars choral of St. Canice.
Richard Ledred, who was consecrated in 1318, beautified the cathedral and rebuilt and glazed all the windows, of which the great east window contained some exquisite specimens of scripture history in stained glass, for which Rinuncini, the pope's nuncio, in 1645, offered £700; he also built the episcopal palace, near the cathedral. Bishop Hacket, who succeeded in 1460, built the arch of the tower of the cathedral of hewn stone, and appropriated the parish church of Ballybur to the vicars choral; and Oliver Cantwell, who succeeded in 1488, repaired the episcopal palaces, rebuilt the bridge of Kilkenny (which had been destroyed by a flood), and gave the church of St. Mael to the vicars choral of St. Canice. Milo Baron, who was consecrated in 1527, repaired the episcopal palace and gave a silver staff to the cathedral; and Nicholas Walsh, his successor, was the first who introduced types of the Irish character, in which he had prayer-books and a catechism printed in the Irish language. Jonas Wheeler, consecrated in 1613, recovered the lands of Tascoffin, Grangecoolpobble, Freinston, and Sheskin Wood, which Bishop Thonory had alienated, and obtained a grant of the manor of Breghmoe, in Kings county (Offaly), which was confirmed to the see in 1619 by Jas. I.
The chapter, consists of a dean, precentor, chancellor, treasurer, archdeacon, and the seven prebendaries of Blackrath, Aghoure, Mayne, Killamery, Tasscoffin, Kilmanagh, and Cloneamery.
BECTIVE, a parish, in the barony of UPPER NAVAN, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER, 3 miles (S. W.) from Navan. This parish, called also De Beatitudine, was granted by Chas. I. to Sir Richard Bolton, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, in 1639, and is now the property of his descendant, Richard Bolton, Esq. It derived considerable celebrity from a Cistertian monastery founded here, in 1146 or 1152, by Murchard O'Melaghlin, King of Meath, which was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, and richly endowed : this establishment, of which the abbot was a lord in parliament, continued to flourish, and in 1195, by order of Matthew, Archbishop of Cashel, at that time apostolic legate, and John, Archbishop of Dublin, the body of Hugh de Lacy, which had been for a long time undiscovered, was interred here with great solemnity, but his head was placed in the abbey of St. Thomas, Dublin.
In the same year, the Bishop of Meath, and his Archdeacon, with the Prior of the abbey of Duleek, were appointed by Pope Innocent III, to decide a controversy between the monks of this abbey and the canons of St. Thomas, Dublin, respecting their right to the body of De Lacy, which was decided in favour of the latter. Hugh de Lacy, who was one of the English barons that accompanied Hen. II. on his expedition for the invasion of Ireland, received from that monarch a grant of the entire territory of Meath, and was subsequently appointed chief governor of the country. He erected numerous forts within his territory, encouraging and directing the workmen by his own presence, and often labouring in the trenches with his own hands. One of these forts he was proceeding to erect at Durrow, in the King's county, in 1186, on the site of an abbey, which profanation of one of their most ancient and venerable seats of devotion so incensed the native Irish and in. flamed their existing hatred, that whilst De Lacy was employed in the trenches, stooping to explain his orders, a workman drew out his battle-axe, which bad been concealed under his long mantle, and at one blow smote off his head. The abbey and its possessions, including the rectory of Bective, were surrendered in the 34th of Hen, VIII., and were subsequently granted to Alexander Fitton.
The parish is in the diocese of Meath, and, being abbeyland, is wholly tithe-free. This diocese was originally in formed by the union of several small sees, of which the principal were Clonard, Duleek, Kells, Trim, Ardbracan, Dunshaughlin, Slane, and Foure, all of which, except Duleek and Kells, were consolidated at the celebrated synod held by Cardinal Paparo in 1152, and the episcopal seate fixed at Clonard.
The sees of Duleek and Kells were afterwards annexed; and the united diocese, which took its name from the ancient province of Meath, was placed under the superintendence of Idunan who flourished towards the close of the 11th century. The first prelate after the English invasion was Eugene, who was advanced to the see in 1174, and a short time before his death, in 1194, assumed the title of Bishop of Meath, which has ever since been retained. Simon Rochfort, his immediate successor, founded an abbey for Augustinian canons at Newtown, near Trim, to which he removed the episcopal see, where it remained till the reign of Hen. VIII.; and Thos. St. Leger, who was consecrated in 1287, extended the possessions and the privileges of the diocese. Alexander de Balscot, who was consecrated in 1386, was appointed Lord High Treasurer of Ireland by Edw. III., and filled many important stations under Rich II.; his immediate successor, Edward Dantsey, was made Lord-Deputy to Sir John de Grey, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. John Pain, who was made bishop in 1483, preached the sermon and proclaimed the title of Lambert Simnel, at his coronation in Christ-church, Dublin, for which he received a pardon in 1488; and on the arrival if Sir Richard Edgecombe to settle the country after Simnel's defeat, he attended that officer on his landing at Malahide, and was employed by him to proclaim the kings pardon to all who should return to their allegiance.
In the reign of Hen. VIII., the episcopal seate was removed to the church of St. Mary's abbey at Ballymore, near Lough Seudy, in the county of Westmeath, but it appears to have remained there for a short period only, and not to have been subsequently established in any particular locality, nor has there been for a long time either dean, chapter, or cathedral church. In 1568, the see of Clonmacnoise was annexed to this diocese by act of parliament. In 1621, the celebrated James Ussher was consecrated Bishop of Meath, which dignity he held till 1624, when he was translated to the archbishoprick of Armagh.
The Bishop of Meath ranks next to the four arcbishops; the other Bishops excepting only the Bishop of Kildare, take precendence according to the date of their consecration. The diocese is one of the ten which constitute the ecclesiastical province of Armagh, and comprehends part of the counties of Kildare, Longford and Cavan, a large portion of Kings county, and the greater part; the counties of Meath and Westmeath - extending from the sea to the river Shannon.