Editing Ardbraccan

{{short description|Ancient place of worship in County Meath, Ireland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=November 2019}}
[[File:Ardbrchurch.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|St. Ultan's Church of Ireland<br><small>''The 18th-century building was deconsecrated in 1981 by the Church of Ireland, ending over 1400 years of religious worship on the site. To the right of the picture is the thousand-year-old church tower''. </small>]]

'''Ardbraccan''' ({{langx|ga|Ard Breacáin}})<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Ard Breacáin/Ardbraccan |url=https://www.logainm.ie/en/1824 |website=logainm.ie |access-date=23 August 2022 |language=en}}</ref> is an ancient place of worship in [[County Meath]], [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]. It is the location of the former residence of the [[Roman Catholic]], then, after the [[Reformation in Ireland|Reformation]], the [[Church of Ireland]] [[Bishop of Meath]]. it was also a place of prominence in pre-Christian Pagan history '''''<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Navan Historical Society - History of Ardbraccan. Lecture to Meath Archaeological and Historical Society at Ardbraccan from 1964 |url=http://www.navanhistory.ie/index.php?page=beryl-moore-lecture-2 |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=www.navanhistory.ie}}</ref>'''''. It is approximately {{convert|52|km|mi|abbr=in}} from [[Dublin]] via the [[M3 motorway (Ireland)|M3 Motorway]], and {{convert|4|km|mi|abbr=in}} from [[Navan]]. Ardbraccan is in a [[Civil parishes in Ireland|civil parish]] of the same name.<ref name=":0"/>

==Origins==
The original name for Ardbraccan is said to have been Magh Tortain named after the Uí Tuirtri people of the [[Oirghialla|Oirghalla]].<ref name=":1" />  The area is said to have maintained strong druidic traditions until St. Brecan converted the local Uí Borthim tribe in the 6th century.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Navan Historical Society - History of Ardbraccan |url=http://www.navanhistory.ie/index.php?page=beryl-moore-lecture-2 |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=www.navanhistory.ie}}</ref> It was home to 2 of Ireland's sacred Celtic trees -  ''Bile Tortain'' and the ''Mullyfaughan'' tree.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Healy |first=Alison |date=2023-12-20 |title=Sundering of long-standing cedar tree may be a portent for our times |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/sundering-of-long-standing-cedar-tree-may-be-a-portent-for-our-times-1.685140 |access-date=2023-12-21 |newspaper=The Irish Times |language=en}}</ref> There are many local [[druid]] wells in the area, 2 of which were dedicated to [[Ultan of Ardbraccan|St. Ultan of Ardbraccan]] and [[Brigid of Kildare|St. Brigid]] after the introduction of Christianity.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Harney |first=Lorcan |date=2017 |title=Christianising pagan worlds in conversion-era Ireland: archaeological evidence for the origins of Irish ecclesiastical sites |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3318/priac.2017.117.07 |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature |volume=117C |pages=103–130 |doi=10.3318/priac.2017.117.07 |jstor=10.3318/priac.2017.117.07 |s2cid=165970409 |issn=0035-8991|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The current name of Ardbraccan originates from the [[Irish language|Irish]] placename ''Ard Breacáin'', meaning the heights or hill of ''[[Saint Brecan|Breacán]]'''<ref name=":0" />'''. St. Breacán'' (anglacised as ''Brecan or Braccan'') was the founder of a Christian monastery in the locality.  He is thought to have established a monastery on a high mound in the sixth or early seventh century.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Cogan |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7p8EkYy0Wy4C&dq=ardbraccan&pg=PA53 |title=The Diocese of Meath, Ancient and Modern |date=1862 |publisher=J. F. Fowler |language=en}}</ref>  On this high point, a monastery and a succession of churches were built, each larger than the last to accommodate the growing number of religious worshippers.  This included a large circular church known ''Daimhliag'' ("stone house").

Ardbraccan is mentioned in [[Cogad Gáedel re Gallaib|Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib]] as the site of a victory of the [[Uí Néill]] over the Vikings sometime in the mid-9th century. However the accuracy of this medieval text is questionable and has been cited as propaganda.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Beckett |first=J.C. |date=28 July 2016 |title=The Oxford illustrated history of Ireland. Edited by R.F. Foster. Pp xvi, 382. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1989. |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0021121400010336 |journal=Irish Historical Studies |volume=27 |issue=105 |pages=78–79 |doi=10.1017/s0021121400010336 |s2cid=164164673 |issn=0021-1214|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Raids on Ardbraccan==

The settlements and churches at Ardbraccan were raided and destroyed many times from at least 866. Known raids include:

* '''886, 940, 949, 992'''  The area was attacked and plundered by the Danes.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Thunder |first=John M. |date=1889 |title=The Kingdom of Meath |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25506494 |journal=The Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland |volume=8 |issue=77 |pages=507–525 |jstor=25506494 |issn=0790-6382}}</ref><ref name=":2"/>
* '''1031''' The Abbey was raided and burned down by the Danes of Dublin led by [[Sigtrygg Silkbeard|Sitric]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Part 17 of The Annals of Tigernach |url=https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T100002A/text017.html |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=celt.ucc.ie}}</ref> It is said that 200 people were sheltering from the raid in the Daimhliag, and perished when the raisers set it alight. A further 200 people were taken into captivity <ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=O'Clery |first=Michael |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gM8VrOjTtIIC |title=The Annals of Ireland |date=1846 |publisher=B. Geraghty |pages=532 |language=en}}</ref> The attack is referenced in [[Annals of Tigernach|The Annals of Tigernach]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=The Annals of Tigernach |url=https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T100002A.html |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=celt.ucc.ie}}</ref> 
* '''1035''' Ardbraccan was again attacked by the Danes, which led to Conchobar Ua Máelshechlainn plundering and burning [[Swords, County Dublin|Swords]] in retaliation.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sitriuc Silkbeard (Sitric, Sigtryggr Ólafsson Silkiskeggi) {{!}} Dictionary of Irish Biography |url=https://www.dib.ie/biography/sitriuc-silkbeard-sitric-sigtryggr-olafsson-silkiskeggi-a8101 |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=www.dib.ie |language=en}}</ref>
* '''1069''' attacked by an army led by [[Murchad mac Diarmata|Murchad]]. He is said to have burned down many buildings before receiving being mortally wounded.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Farrell |first=James P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kzpFAQAAMAAJ |title=Historical Notes and Stories of the County Longford |date=1886 |publisher=Longford Printing and Publishing Company |pages=91 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4" />
* '''1109''' attacked by the [[Uí Briain|Uí Briain's]] of Munster. [[Annals of Tigernach|The Annals of Tigernach]] note the churches were destroyed and "humans were burned ''alive'' and captives taken out of it".<ref name=":4" />
* '''1115''' attacked by the Munster men and the Damliag was destroyed once again.<ref name=":2" />
* '''1133'''<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |title=Ardbraccan – Meath History Hub with Noel French |url=https://meathhistoryhub.ie/ardbraccan/ |access-date=2023-12-21 |language=en-US}}</ref>
* '''1136''' attacked by [[Diarmait Mac Murchada|Dermot MacMurrough]] and the Danes, including the stealing of cattle.<ref name=":5" />

==King John in Ardbraccan==

On 29 June 1210, King [[John of England]], [[Lord of Ireland]] and his forces met with [[Cathal Crobhderg]], [[List of kings of Connacht|King of Connacht]] and his men in Ardbraccan before proceeding north to attack the forces of [[Hugh de Lacy, 1st Earl of Ulster]].<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060813192151/http://www.burnsmoley.com/pages/area/normans.php South Armagh History - The Norman Invasion]}}</ref>

==The Diocese of Ardbraccan==
The early Irish church possessed many bishoprics or dioceses, each presided over by a bishop. For a period, Ardbraccan itself was a diocese, with a large urban centre attached. {{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}Under the [[Synod of Kells]] in 1152, Ardbraccan was united with the Sees of Clonard, Trim, Dunshaughlin, Slane and Fore, forming with other small dioceses the [[Diocese of Meath]]. Its central importance was shown in the fact that the newly merged diocese's bishop lived in Ardbraccan.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}

==From Catholic to Protestant==
[[File:Ardbrtower.jpg|thumb|The thousand-year-old church tower<br><small>''The tower predates the current church on the site by over 700 years. It was scheduled for demolition when the new church was built in the 1700s, but the plans fell through and the medieval tower avoided demolition.'' </small>]]
When, in the aftermath of the crisis over [[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]]'s marriage to [[Catherine of Aragon]], the Irish Church was ordered to formally break its link with the [[Roman Catholic Church]] to become the [[Church of Ireland]]{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}. The Anglican or Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath continued to live in Ardbraccan in an estate attached to the main church. In this period, Ardbraccan possessed two churches; St. Mary's (which was located in the Bishop's residence) and St. Ultan's, which was named after a local saint who had lived in St. Braccan's day.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}

== New church ==
In 1777 a new [[Church of Ireland]] church was erected on the site of the earlier church of St. Ultan's. The church, built to a design by [[Daniel Augustus Beaufort|Rev. Dr. Daniel Augustus Beaufort]], remained in use until 1981 when it was deconsecrated due to the dwindling size of the Church of Ireland community in Ardbraccan. Although in 1868 the [[Ecclesiastical Commissioners of Ireland]] recorded that there were 267 members of the Church of Ireland living in Ardbraccan parish, by 1968, their number had dwindled to 10 and it ceased to be used for general worship in 1970. The church was finally offered for sale by the Church of Ireland in 2002. Its cemetery is used for burials by both the local Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic parishes.

==Bishop's residence for one thousand years==
The Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath moved out of the 18th century [[Ardbraccan House|bishop's palace]] in 1885 to live in a smaller mansion nearby, ''Bishopscourt''. In 1958, the Church of Ireland bishop moved away from Ardbraccan altogether, with Bishopscourt being bought by a Catholic religious order, the [[Holy Ghost Fathers]], who renamed it ''An Tobar'' ([[Irish language|Irish]] for "The Well", linking it to an ancient well at Ardbraccan associated with [[Ultan of Ardbraccan|St. Ultan]]). When the old church underwent some vandalism, its valuable stained glass windows were removed by the Church of Ireland and donated to ''An Tobar''.

While the Church of Ireland community used the name 'Ardbraccan' to refer to its parish, the nearby Roman Catholic parish in the 19th century opted to use a different name{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}, '''[[Bohermeen]]''', from the Irish ''An Bóthar Mín'', meaning 'the smooth road',<ref>{{Cite web |title=An Bóthar Mín/Bohermeen |url=https://www.logainm.ie/en/133204 |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=logainm.ie |language=en}}</ref> referring to a famous stretch of road that two thousand years before{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}} had passed through the neighbourhood and went to [[Tara, Ireland|Tara]], the seat of the [[High King of Ireland|High Kings of Ireland]].

==Schools==

In 1747 the first [[Irish Charter Schools|Irish Charter School]] was opened in Ardbraccan. {{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}The Charter Schools admitted only Catholics, under the condition that they be educated as Protestants. These schools were intended, in the words of their programme, "to rescue the souls of thousands of poor children from the dangers of Popish superstition and idolatry, and their bodies from the miseries of idleness and beggary."<ref>William Edward Hartpole Lecky: A History of England in the Eighteenth Century, Chapter VII</ref> The Ardbraccan school, like the others, focused on training girls for domestic service in the houses of the gentry and aristocracy, while training boys in agriculture and gardening. As with the other schools, the charter school in Ardbraccan failed and eventually closed down.<ref>Kenneth Milne, ''The Irish Charter School 1730-1830'', Four Courts Press, {{ISBN|1-85182-232-1}} pp.404.</ref>

==Ardbraccan stone==
[[File:Leinsterhouse.jpg|thumb|The Irish parliament building is built from Ardbraccan stone.]]

Ardbraccan is also famous for its quarries that supplied cut stone for many Irish and [[United Kingdom|British]] buildings. The most famous building built with Ardbraccan stone is [[Leinster House]], once the [[Dublin]] residence of the [[Duke of Leinster]], Ireland's premier peer, and now the seat of the Irish parliament, [[Oireachtas Éireann]].<ref>[http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?fn=/documents/tour/kildare01.asp Oireachtas Éireann website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114180236/http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?fn=%2Fdocuments%2Ftour%2Fkildare01.asp |date=2017-11-14 }}.</ref> Ardbraccan [[limestone]] was also used on the restoration of [[The Custom House]] in Dublin after it was [[Burning of the Custom House|burned down by the IRA]] in 1921.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-01-05 |title=History revisited: The Custom House Visitor Centre in Dublin |url=https://www.irishcentral.com/travel/history-revisited-the-custom-house-visitor-centre |access-date=2023-12-21 |website=IrishCentral.com |language=en}}</ref>

==Notable persons==
* [[Saint Brecan|St. Brecan]], founded a monastery here.
* [[Ultan of Ardbraccan|St. Ultan]], founded a school and succeeded St. Brecan as the local abbott.
* [[Alexander de Balscot]], Bishop of Meath, died here 1400.
* [[Edmund Oldhall]], Bishop of Meath, died here 1459.
* [[George Montgomery (bishop)|George Montgomery]], Bishop of Meath, buried here 1621.
* [[Richard Pococke]], English [[prelate]] and [[anthropologist]], and briefly Bishop of Meath - buried here 1765.
* [[John Cowley (actor)|John Cowley]], actor, died here 1998.
* Contested: [[Cuthbert|St. Cuthbert]]. A Durham Cathedral tradition names Ardbraccan as the potential birthplace of St. Cuthbert (under the name "Hardbrecins").<ref>{{Cite book |last=Moran |first=Patrick Francis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9is3tsTV4IQC |title=Irish Saints in Great Britain |date=1879 |publisher=M.H. Gill |pages=271 |language=en}}</ref> However this is contested as being the result of confusion [[Columba|St. Colomba]] of nearby [[Kells, County Meath|Kells]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Eyre |first=Charles |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slhcAAAAcAAJ |title=The History of St. Cuthbert: Or an Account of His Life, Decease, and Miracles of the Wanderlings with His Body at Intervals During 124 Years (etc.) |date=1849 |publisher=James Burns |pages=4 |language=en}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Allenstown House]], a Georgian mansion, controversially demolished in 1938
* [[Ardbraccan House]], a country house
* [[Durhamstown Castle]]
* [[Ultan of Ardbraccan|Saint Ultan of Ardbraccan]]

== References ==
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==Further reading==
[[Dean Cogan]], ''The Diocese of Meath'' (2 Vols, 1862 and 1867)

== External links ==
* [http://www.knowth.com/labyrinth-ard.htm Labyrinth at An Tobar - Ardbraccan]

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[[Category:Religious buildings and structures in County Meath]]
[[Category:Civil parishes of County Meath]]