Timoleague Friary

The friary sits on a monastic site dedicated to Saint Molaga dating to either the 6th[4] or 7th century.[5] According to legend, it was originally to be built a mile west of Timoleague, but all work done on that site by day would fall down by morning.[6] Interpreting this as God's will that the friary be built elsewhere, Molaga supposedly placed a blessed candle on a sheaf of corn, and set it down the Argideen river, building his settlement on the spot that it came ashore.[7] The town derives its Irish name, Teach Molaga or "Molaga's House" from the saint.[8]

The date of foundation by the Franciscans is disputed. Documentary evidence places the foundation of the friary between 1307 and 1316, though physical evidence suggests that a preexisting 13th century building was incorporated into the site.[9] According to the Annals of the Four Masters, the friary was founded in 1240 by the native Irish MacCarthy Reagh family.[3] This has been identified as possibly being too early.[10] Some sources ascribe this claimed foundation to Domhnall Got MacCarthy,[3] while others claim that Got MacCarthy merely expanded the friary anywhere between 1312 and 1366.[11][12] Domhnall's grandson, Domhnall Glas MacCarthy, is also thought to have been a patron of the abbey.[9] Samuel Lewis, in A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland... (1837) claims that the MacCarthy's founded the abbey in 1312.[13] The friary's foundation has also been attributed to the Anglo-Norman de Barry family in the early 14th century.[3] Though the friars were well established in Timoleague by 1320, the earliest surviving parts of the ruined friary date from later in the 14th century. It is likely that they were based in Timoleague Castle prior to the construction of the friary.[10]

By the 15th century, the friary was recognised as a centre of learning, and also as an important ecclesiastical centre.[14][15] In 1460, Timoleague was one of the first houses in the Franciscan order to recognise the observantine reform.[16] Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh, also known as "Blessed Thaddeus", is said to have been educated by the friars around this time.[17] An important patron of the church was Bishop John Edmond de Courcy, along with his nephew James, 8th Baron Kingsale. They funded the construction of the Gothic style bell tower, the infirmary, the library, and one of the dormitories.[18] De Courcy had been a friar in Timoleague before being made a bishop. The tower was added in 1510.[19] They also contributed to the friary's collection of plate.[18] John de Courcy was buried in the transept of the friary, but in the Cromwellian period his grave was desecrated and his bones thrown into the estuary.[18]

Following the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540 by Henry VIII, the Franciscans remained resident in Timoleague until 1568, when the friary was seized by crown forces.[3] After the succession of James I, the Abbey was reclaimed by Catholics in 1603, and was repaired in its entirety by the end of 1604.[20][13]

In 1612, Bishop Lyons came to Timoleague to disperse the friars but was repelled by an Irish force led by Daniel O'Sullivan.[3][21] In 1629, four years after the death of King James, Richard Boyle was named Lord Justice and instigated the closure of religious buildings across Cork, putting increasing pressure on the friary.[22] It is assumed, however, that the friary was already largely abandoned by the Franciscans by this point, as the guardian appointed to the friary, Eugenius Fildaeus, was appointed in Limerick, in Loco refugii.[23] By 1631 the friary had been largely plundered by Protestant settlers,[9] and it was eventually burnt down by crown forces in July 1642, when a force led by Lord Kinelmeaky failed to capture Timoleague Castle and instead burnt the abbey and much of the town.[22] The friary at one time engaged in significant trade with Spain, and an account of the burning of the friary states that:

We burnt all the towne, and their great Abbey, in which was some thousand barrels of wine.[24]

The destruction of the friary led to a significant downturn in the financial development of the town.[22]

After the friary was burnt, local families began to bury their dead within the friary regardless of status, something which previously had only been done for prominent local families.[25] Despite the burning of the friary, the Franciscan community of Timoleague survived for close to two centuries.[26] In 1696 four friars were reportedly living in the ruined monastery.[27] The last Franciscan friar working in the area was Fr Edmund Tobin (also known as Bonaventure Tobin),[28] who died circa 1822.[19] The Franciscans appointed titular guardians of the friary up until 1872.[28] The last guardian of Timoleague friary was Patrick Carey.[29] Interest in the friary was renewed during the Romantic era of the early 19th century, and many paintings and sketches of the friary exist from this period.[30] On 15 January 1848, Fr Matt Horgan, writing under the pen-name "Viator", wrote the following which was released in the Cork Examiner:

"The walls [of the friary] are washed by the tide and some large breaches are already made in the burying ground, much to the disgrace of the lord of the soil, who must be either some heartless absentee, or a Gothic resident, having no feeling of fatherland; irrespective of its history or monuments, thinking only of bullocks, and knowing nothing, and caring less for the arts; blind to the beauties, with heart closed against the romance and poetry of the glorious past, and its mute but still eloquent memorials."

Soon after the publication of these remarks, Colonel Robert Travers, the so-called "lord of the soil", had the walls of the friary grounds replaced, and a road built between them and the sea, all at his own expense.[30] In 1891, mass was celebrated in the friary for the first time since it was burnt down 249 years prior.[31] One of the Timoleague chalices (the Dale-Browne Chalice) was used on the occasion.[32] In 1892, Denham Franklin wrote that

"The preservation of the abbey is mainly due to the care bestowed on it by the family of the present proprietor of Timoleague, Mr. Robert Travers, who did not allow the depredations unfortunately too common on our ancient buildings."

In 1920, in response to the murder of three police officers by Irish nationalists, British soldiers desecrated the abbey's burial ground. Burial vaults were opened, and the flags that had been draped over the coffins within were torn and cast aside. Coffins were opened, and in some cases, human remains were left visible.[33]

In 1955, Irish-language writer Máire Ní Shíthe was interred in the abbey in an unmarked grave. In 2016 the location of her burial was identified, and a commemorative stone placed above it.[34]

An excerpt from the Book of Lismore detailing the lives of saints

Leabhar Leasa Móir, or the Book of Lismore, also known as Leabhar Mhic Cárthaigh Riabhaigh, is a 15th century manuscript with connections to the friary.[50] Though some sources claim that the manuscript was written or partly written in the friary,[4][14] Professor Pádraig Ó Macháin, an expert on Irish manuscripts, says that that is not the case.[51]

It was held in the friary at times, and material from the book was transcribed there by Mícheál Ó Cléirigh in 1629.[52][53]

Two 17th century chalices, - both of which are referred to as the "Timoleague Chalice" - are associated with the friary.[54]

The first chalice, also known as the "Dale-Browne Chalice", or the "Dale Chalice",[55] is made of gilt silver and was created circa. 1600.[56] After the suppression of the monastery, one of the friars supposedly escaped with the chalice, disguised himself, and lived as a farmer.[57] His dying wish was that the chalice, along with his vestments, be buried in a box beneath his house, and that they remain buried until the abbey was restored and the friars had returned. Years later, the house was undergoing renovations and the box was discovered. The contents were given to Franciscans in Cork.[57] The chalice is engraved with the words "Orate · Pro · Animabvs · Caroli · Dali · Et · Elizie · Browne · TimoLeagve." around the base, which translates as "Pray for the souls of Charles Daly and Elizabeth Browne, Timoleague".[58] The chalice is 8.5 inches tall, with the tulip-shaped bowl measuring 3.25 inches wide and 3 inches deep.[56] The chalice's primary decoration is on one facet of its tall hexagonal foot. It depicts a selection of the Instruments of the Passion: a cross in the centre, a spear to one side, and a stick with a sponge to the other. The cross is depicted as the tree of life, with branches sprouting from its tip and base, and shamrocks forming its head and arms.[59] The chalice was likely a gift from the Dalys (Elizabeth Browne being Charles' wife) to the friars upon their return to the friary after its suppression in 1568. It is currently in the possession of the National Museum of Ireland.[58]

The second chalice, also known as the "Timoleague Franciscan Chalice",[60] is made of gold and was deemed by experts to have been created in 1633.[61] When the friary was burnt down, three friars supposedly fled via rowboat.[62] The friars were found at sea by fishermen from Cape Clear Island, by which point two of them had died.[61] A box was left with the fishermen by the surviving friar, with instructions that they not open it, as the friar would one day return for it, though he never did.[61][62] The box was opened in 1860, and was found to contain a set of severely deteriorated vestments and a chalice that was "black with age". The chalice is engraved with the words "ffr'MinConv de Thimolaggi", which translates as "Friars Minor Convent of Timoleague".[61][54] In 1892, 250 years after the chalice was removed from the town, it was returned to the parish priest of Timoleague.[60] It has remained in the safekeeping of his successors,[54] and an exact replica of the chalice is on permanent display in the local Catholic church.[63]