A Calendar of Scottish Saints
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"Angus Fair" was formerly held at King's House, in the parish of Balquhidder, on the Wednesday after the second Tuesday in August.
This locates the saint's feast-day (which the fair doubtless commemorated) in the early part of August, although the exact date is uncertain.
11 – St. Blaan, Bishop, A.D. 590.
He was born in Ireland of a noble family, and after spending seven years under the direction of St. Comgall and St. Kenneth, passed over to Bute, to St. Cathan, his mother's brother. He is said to have made later a pilgrimage to Rome. The monastery he founded became the site of the well-known Cathedral of Dunblane a place which derives its name from the saint where the mediaeval building begun by David I. is still to be seen. Among the many miracles attributed to the saint is the restoration to life of a dead boy. He is also said to have rekindled the extinguished lamps in his church during the night office, on one occasion, by striking fire from his fingers as from a flint; the miracle being vouchsafed by God to clear the saint of any imputation of negligence in his duty.
St. Blaan became eventually a bishop. After his death devotion to him became popular, and many dedications bear witness to his callus. There was a church of St. Blaan in Dumfries and another at Kilblane in Argyll. The ruins of the saint's church in the parish of Kingarth, Bute, form an object of great interest to antiquarians, and stand amid surroundings of extraordinary beauty and charm. His bell is still preserved at Dunblane. The saint's feast was restored to the Scottish Calendar by Leo XIII. in 1898.
18 – St. Inan, Confessor, 9th century.
In the southern district of Scotland are to be found many traces of the cultus of a saint bearing this name, though his history is not known.
Some consider him a native of Ayrshire, since the greater part of the remains connected with him are to be found in that county, where he seems to have spent many years of his life. Others claim him as a native of Ireland, and it has been conjectured that his name is merely a corruption of Finan. There are no conclusive proofs in support of either opinion.
The chief place of residence of St. Inan seems to have been at Irvine, though many interesting remains recall his memory at Beith On the Cuff Hill in the latter parish is a cleft in the rock which was originally of natural formation, but has been enlarged by art; it bears the name of "St. Inan's Chair." At a short distance from it is a double spring of abundant and excellent water known as "St. Inan's Well." On the day corresponding to the 18th August, old style, a fair is annually held in the vicinity, which bears the name of "Tenant's (probably a corruption of St. Inan's) Fair." Inchinnan (Renfrewshire) is said to signify "Inans' Isle."
Another well bearing the saint's name is at Lamington in Lanarkshire, where the church was dedicated to him. At Southenan, Ayrshire, was another church or chapel bearing the name of St. Inan; for a charter of James IV. in 1509, confirms the donation of John, Lord Sempill, of a perpetual Mass therein.
24 – St. Yrchard or Merchard, Bishop, 5th or 6th century.
This saint was born of pagan parents in the district of Kincardine-O'Neil, Aberdeenshire.
In his early youth he embraced the Christian Faith, and was ordained priest by St. Ternan, who associated the young man with himself in his missionary labours. In later life he journeyed to Rome, and was there consecrated bishop. Returning to Scotland he ended his days in Aberdeenshire. At Kincardine-O'Neil a church was erected over the spot where the chariot which was conveying his remains to burial was miraculously stopped. A fair was formerly held there annually on St. Merchard's feast and during the octave.
One of the saint's churches was in Glenmoriston. The ancient burial ground which adjoins it is still in use, and some few stones of the old building are yet to be seen there. The local tradition tells that the saint when labouring as a missionary in Strathglass with two companions, discovered, by previous revelation, three bright new bells buried in the earth Taking one for himself, he gave the others to his fellow-missionaries, bidding each to erect a church on the spot where his bell should ring for the third time of its own accord; undertaking to do the same with regard to his own. One of these companions founded a church at Glenconvinth, in Strathglass, the other at Broadford, Isle of Skye.
St. Merchard travelled towards Glenmoriston. His bell rang first at Suidh Mhercheird (Merchard's Seat), again at Fuaran Mhercheird (Merchard's Well), near Ballintombuie, where a spring of excellent water treasured by both Catholics and Protestants still bears his name, and a third time at the spot where the old churchyard, called Clachan Mhercheird, close by the river Moriston, recalls his memory.
The bell of the saint was preserved there for centuries. After the church fell into decay's early in the seventeenth century, the bell remained in the churchyard. The narrow-pointed spar of granite on which it rested still stands there. The bell, unfortunately, was wantonly removed, by Protestant strangers about thirty years ago, to the great indignation of the inhabitants of the glen, Protestant as well as Catholic; it has never since been discovered.
Tradition has it that the bell was wont to ring of its own accord when a funeral came in sight, and that whenever it was removed from its usual position it was invariably found restored miraculously to its place, Many persons still living in the glen have seen the bell, and the grandparents of some of them used to relate that they heard it ring in their youth. Devotion to this saint was very strong in that neighbourhood in Catholic times, and he is still regarded by Catholics as the local patron.
25 – St. Ebba, Abbess, A.D. 683.
She was sister to St. Oswald, and to Oswy, his successor, Kings of Northumbria. She founded a monastery at Ebchester, on the Derwent, and another and more important one at Coldingham. It was at the latter place that the great St. Ethelreda received her monastic training. St. Ebba was buried at Coldingham, but portions of her relics were afterwards placed in the tomb of St. Cuthbert at Durham. St. Abb's Head, the well-known promontory on the coast of Northumberland, takes its name from this saint.
30 – St. Fiacre, Hermit, 7th century.
He was born in Ireland about the year 590. A hermitage and holy well near Kilkenny are called after him, and were frequented as late as the beginning of this century by pilgrims who wished to pay him honour. After labouring as a missionary in Scotland, St. Fiacre ended his days at Breuil, near Meaux, in France, where he became famous for miracles both before and after his death; he was invoked as the patron saint of the province of Brie, and his shrine became a famous place of pilgrimage.
St. Fiacre's day was kept with devotion in Scotland. The Breviary of Aberdeen contains the office for the saint's feast. Several Scottish churches bore his name. Among these may be mentioned the ancient church and burial ground of St. Fiacre, or, as he is often styled, St. Fittack, at Nigg, Kincardineshire, on the opposite bank of the Dee from Aberdeen. The bay in the vicinity is known as St. Picker's Bay, and St. Fittack's Well, a clear spring near the roofless ruins of the old church, still recalls his memory. Its existence is a strong proof of the saint's residence in the neighbourhood at some time in his life. The fame of this well for healing powers survived the downfall of religion, and it became necessary to prevent recourse to it by severe penalties. Thus in the records of the Kirk Session of Aberdeen for 1630 we read: – "Margrat Davidson, spous to Andro Adam, fined L5 for sending her child to be washed at St. Fiackre's Well and leaving an offering."
The large numbers of pilgrims conveyed in hackney coaches to the French shrine of this saint at Breuil, caused those vehicles to be known as fiacres, a designation they still bear.
31 – St. Aidan, Bishop, A.D. 651.
This saint was a native of Ireland, where, after some years of monastic life at Inniscattery in the Shannon, he was consecrated bishop. Later on he entered the monastery of Iona. He became the first bishop of Lindisfarne, and the helper of St. Oswald in the conversion of Northumbria. His life was one of great poverty and detachment, and his example had a wonderful effect on his flock. He used to travel about his diocese on foot, accompanied by his clergy, spending the time occupied by the journey in prayer and holy reading. His alms were abundant, and his manner to all with whom he came in contact kind and fatherly. His miracles, even during life, were many and striking.
St. Aidan was the founder of Old Melrose, which stood a short distance from the site of the more modern Cistercian Abbey whose ruins are familiar to travellers. He also assisted the Abbess, St. Ebba, in the foundation of the celebrated monastery of Coldingham, which consisted of two distinct communities of men and women.
After ruling his see for seventeen years, he died at Bamborough in a tent which he had caused to be erected by the wall of the church. St. Cuthbert, then a youthful shepherd, as he kept his flock on the hills, had a vision of the soul of St. Aidan being borne by angels to Heaven. It was this vision which determined him to seek admission to Melrose. Many churches bear St. Aidan's name. Among them are those of Cambusnethan in Lanarkshire and Menmuir in Angus. At the latter place is the saint's holy well, which was renowned for the cure of asthma and other complaints. Another holy well called after St. Aidan is to be found at Fearn in Angus. The ancient church of Kenmore, Perthshire, was known as Inchadin. Keltney Burn in the same neighbourhood, is called in Gaelic "St. Aidan's Stream."
SEPTEMBER
1 – St. Egidius or Giles, Abbot, A.D. 714.
This saint never laboured in Scotland, yet the honour shown to him in the country is sufficient reason for the mention of his name here. He is said to have been an Athenian by birth, who fled from his native land to escape the admiration excited by his extraordinary sanctity. He settled in France and founded a monastery in the neighbourhood of Nismes, where many disciples placed themselves under his guidance, and where he died and was laid to rest. His cultus extended from France into other countries. St. Giles was honoured in Edinburgh as early as 11 50, when a monastery existed under his invocation. He became the recognised patron saint of the city, and his figure appeared in the armorial bearings of Edinburgh, accompanied by the hind which is said in his legend to have attached herself to the saint. Since the Reformation the figure of the saint has disappeared, though that of the animal remains.
The beautiful Church of St. Giles was re built in the 15th century, and was erected into a collegiate church by Pope Paul II. It still continues to be the glory of the Scottish capital. This church possessed an arm-bone of the saint, for which a rich reliquary was provided by the city. Fairs were formerly held in honour of St. Giles at Moffat and also at Elgin, where the parish church bore his name.
2 – St. Murdoch, Bishop.
No very reliable particulars can be ascertained as to the life of this saint. Traces of the honour shown to him are to be found in Forfarshire, the district which seems to have been the scene of his missionary labours. At Ethie, in the parish of Inverkeilor, in that county, are the remains of an ancient church and burial-ground which bear his name. Near Ethiebeaton, in the parish of Monifieth, are traces of an old church which goes by the name of "Chapel Dockie." This is believed to be another dedication in honour of St. Murdoch.
9 – St. Queran or Kieran, Abbot, A.D. 548.
This saint was born in Ireland and became abbot of the monastery known as Clonmacnois. He passed over to Cornwall, and there laboured as a missionary for some years. Many churches in that district are known by his name, which appears there under the form of Piran.
The saint afterwards journeyed to Scotland, where he preached the Gospel in the western districts. He settled at Dalruadhain, near Campbeltown, and the cave to which he was accustomed to retire for prayer is still to be seen there. He died in A.D. 548. St. Kieran came to be regarded eventually as the patron saint of the whole of Kintyre. He became very popular in Scotland, on account of the great affection with which St. Columba regarded him. Every year his hermitage and holy well were the resort of pilgrims who came to honour his memory. A rock near the sea shore is said to have been marked by the impress of his knees, from the frequency with which he would kneel there to pray with arms outstretched, looking towards his beloved Ireland.
Several churches in Scotland are dedicated to this saint. Besides a church in Campbeltown, others at Kilkerran in Kintyre, Kilcheran in Lismore, Kilkeran in Islay and Barvas in Lewis were named after him. Those of Strathmore in Caithness, Fetteresso and Glenbervie in Kincardineshire and Dalkerran in Ayrshire are dedicated to a saint of the same name, but whether it is this particular St. Kieran is disputed. There is a well of "St. Jargon" at Troqueer (Kirkcudbright), which is thought to be St. Kieran's.
15 – St. Mirin. Bishop, 6th century.
Born in Ireland, he became a pupil of St. Comgall in the monastery of Bangor on Belfast Lough, where no less than three thousand monks are said to have resided together. In the course of time Mirin was made Prior of the Abbey. No authentic record relates that he left Ireland to labour in Scotland; but Bangor, like Iona, was a great missionary centre, from which the brethren started to evangelise the various countries of Europe, and this fact lends credence to a tradition that St. Mirin came to Scotland. Paisley has always claimed the honour of possessing his remains, which became in after years an attraction to many pilgrims.
When in the twelfth century Walter Fitz-Alan founded a Benedictine abbey there, he placed it under the patronage of St. Mirin, jointly with Our Lady, St. James and St. Milburga, the patron of Wenlock, Shropshire, whence the first community came. Lights were burnt around St. Mirin's tomb for centuries, and a constant devotion was cherished towards him. The seal of the abbey bore his figure, with a scroll inscribed, "O Mirin, pray to Christ for thy servants." The chapel in which his remains repose is popularly known as "The Sounding Aisle," from its peculiar echo.
A fair was formerly held at Paisley on the saint's feast-day and during the octave. Other churches in the south of Scotland were dedicated to him. In the parish of Kelton, in Kirkcudbright, are the remains of an ancient chapel and burial-ground known as "Kirk Mirren." On Inch Murryn (Mirin's Island), in Loch Lomond, are the ruins of his chapel. At Kilsyth, Stirlingshire, is "St. Mirin's Well." There are other traces of him at Coylton, in Ayrshire, where a farm is called "Knock Murran," and at Edzell, in Forfarshire, where there is the "Burn of Marran."
16 – St. Ninian, Bishop. 5th century.
He was the first bishop residing in Scotland of whom there is any authentic record, and one of the earliest missionaries to the country. He was born about A.D. 360, in the district now known as Cumberland. His father was a converted British chieftain. Ninian had a strong desire to study the Faith at its fountain-head, and journeyed to Rome in his twenty-first year. The Pope of the time, St. Damasus, received him very cordially, and give him special teachers to instruct him in the doctrines of the Church. After he had spent there fifteen years, Pope St. Siricius made him priest and bishop, and sent him to preach the Faith in his native country. Ninian settled in the district now called Galloway. The recollection of the churches he had seen in Rome awoke in him a desire to build one more worthy of God's worship than the simple edifices of that early age in these northern countries. By the help of his friend, St. Martin of Tours, he obtained Prankish masons for this purpose, and built the first stone church ever yet seen in Britain. It was called Candida Casa, or "White House" (still the designation in Latin of the See of Galloway). The point of land on which it stood became known as the "White Home," from which Whithorn derives its name.
Besides converting the people of his own neighbourhood, St. Ninian, by his zeal, brought into the Church the Southern Picts, who inhabited the old Roman province of Valentia, south of the Forth. He is therefore styled their Apostle. He was more than seventy when he died, and was laid to rest in the church he had built and dedicated to St. Martin. Later on it was called after him and became illustrious for pilgrimages from England and Ireland, as well as from all parts of Scotland. So many churches in Scotland bore his name that the enumeration of them would be impossible here, while almost every important church had an altar dedicated to him. An altar of St. Ninian was endowed by the Scottish nation in the Carmelite Church at Bruges in Catholic ages. There is a portion of a fresco on the wall of Turriff Church, Aberdeenshire, which bears the figure of St. Ninian. The burgh of Nairn was placed under his patronage. Many holy wells bore his name: at Arbirlot, Arbroath, Mains and Menmuir (Forfarshire); Ashkirk (Selkirkshire); Alyth, Dull (Perthshire); Mayfield (Kirkcubrightshire); Sandwick (Orkney); Penninghame, Wigtown (Wigtownshire); Isle of Mull. That at Dull is said by a Protestant writer of 1845 to have been greatly frequented by invalids from far and near, on account of its reputed healing powers.
St. Ninian's fairs were held at Whithorn (for four days), and also at Arbroath. The saint's feast, which had previously been long observed in the diocese of Galloway and at the Benedictine Abbey, Fort-Augustus, was extended to the whole Scottish Church by Leo XIII. in 1898.
St. Laisren. Abbot, A.D. 605.
He was a cousin of St. Columba. He ruled for some years the Abbey of Durrow in Ireland, and afterwards that of Iona, of which he was the third abbot.
20 – St. Marthom.
A fair was held annually at Ordiquhill (Banffshire) for eight days from September 20, under the name of St. Marthom's fair. Nothing is known about the life of the saint.
22 – St. Lolan, Bishop.
Many extraordinary miracles are related of this saint, but his real history is involved in obscurity.
The crozier and bell of St. Lolan were long preserved at Kincardine-on-Forth, Perthshire, and were included in the feudal investitures of the earldom of Perth. They are alluded to in documents of the 12th century, and the mention of the bell occurs in one as late as 1675. Both relics have long disappeared.
23 – St. Adamnan, Abbot, A.D. 704.
He was of Irish race, and belonged to the same family as St. Columba. In his 55th year he was elected Abbot of Iona. He is said to have been instrumental in obtaining the passing of "The Law of the Innocents" in the Irish National Assembly of Tara. This statute exempted the Irish women from serving on the battle field, which before that time they had been bound to do. In 701 St. Adamnan was sent on an embassy to his former pupil, Aldfrid, King of Northumbria, to seek reparation for injuries committed by that King's subjects in the Province of Meath. It was during this visit to England that he conformed to the Roman usage with regard to the time for keeping Easter, and he was afterwards successful in introducing the true practice into the Irish Church. His efforts in this respect were not successful with his monks at Iona; though his earnest exhortations, and the unfailing charity which he exhibited towards those who differed from him, must have helped to dispose them to conform to the rest of the Church, which they did about twenty years after his death.
St. Adamnan is most renowned for his life of St. Columba, which has been called by a competent judge "the most complete piece of such biography that all Europe can boast of, not only at so early a period, but throughout the whole Middle Ages." He is also the author of a treatise on the Holy Land, valuable as being one of the earliest produced in Europe.
Though the saint died at Iona, his relics were carried to Ireland; but they must have been restored to Iona, as they were venerated there in 1520. He was one of the most popular of the Scottish saints, and many churches were named after him. The chief of these were at Aboyne and Forvie (parish of Slains) in Aberdeenshire; Abriachan in Inverness-shire; Forglen or Teunan Kirk in Banffshire; Tannadice in Forfarshire; Kileunan (parish of Kilkerran) in Kintyre; Kinneff in Kincardineshire; the Island of Sanda; Dull, Grandtully and Blair Athole in Perthshire – the latter place was once known as Kilmaveonaig, from the quaint little chapel and burying ground of the saint. There were chapels in his honour at Campsie in Stirlingshire and Dalmeny in Linlithgow. At Aboyne are "Skeulan Tree" and "Skeulan Well," at Tannadice "St. Arnold's Seat," at Campsie "St. Adamnan's Acre," at Kinneff "St. Arnty's Cell." At Dull a fair was formerly held on his feast-day (old style); it was called Feille Eonan. Another fair at Blair Athole was known as Feill Espic Eoin ("Bishop Eunan's Fair" though St. Adamnan was an abbot only); it has been abolished in modern times. His well is still to be seen in the Manse garden there, and down the glen a fissure in the rock is called "St. Ennan's Footmark." There was a "St. Adamnan's Croft" in Glenurquhart (Inverness-shire), but the site is no longer known.
Ardeonaig, near Loch Tay; Ben Eunaich, Dalmally; and Damsey (Adamnan's Isle) in Orkney, take their names from this saint. At Firth-on-the-Spey, near Kingussie, is a very ancient bronze bell, long kept on a window-sill of the old church, and tradition relates that when moved from thence it produced a sound similar to the words, "Tom Eunan, Tom Eunan," until it was restored to its original resting-place in the church, which stands on the hill bearing that name. The tradition points to the dedication of the church to this saint. Few names have passed through such various transformations in the course of ages as that of Adamnan. It is met under the forms of Aunan, Arnty, Eunan, Ounan, Teunan (Saint-Eunan), Skeulan, Eonan, Ewen and even Arnold.
St. Adamnan's feast was restored by Pope Leo XIII. in 1898.
25 – St. Barr or Finbar, Bishop, 6th century.
He was born in Connaught and was the founder of a celebrated monastery and school on an island in Lough Eirce (now known as Gougane-Barra), in County Cork, and to this house, says Colgan in his Acta Sanctorum, so many came through zeal for a holy life that it changed a desert into a great city.
St. Finbar became the first Bishop of Cork, where he founded a monastery almost as famous as the former. St. Finbar, like so many Irish saints, made a pilgrimage to Rome. Missionary zeal led him later on to Scotland, and for some time he laboured in Kintyre.
Devotion to St. Barr was very great in Catholic Scotland, as numerous dedications attest. His churches are chiefly to be found on solitary islands, which seem to have had a special attraction for him. Thus in the parish of Kilkerran, Kintyre, is an island now known as Davar; it was formerly called St. Barre's Island. The island of Barra takes its name from him; traces of his cultus lingered on there long after the Reformation. At Kilbar (sometimes called Shilbar), for example, an image of the saint, which was long preserved, used to be clothed with a linen robe on his feast-day in comparatively recent times. Other curious customs also prevailed in the island in connection with him; his holy well is there. St. Barr was the patron saint of the churches of Dornoch, and of Eddleston (Peebles-shire); at both places a fair was annually held on his feast-day. In Ayrshire is the parish of Barr, and in Forfarshire that of Inch bare. At Midd Genie, in Tarbat, is Chapel Barre.
28 – St. Machan or Mahon, Bishop, about 6th century.
St. Machan, born in Scotland, was like many of his contemporaries, sent to Ireland, then renowned for its schools, to be educated. After he had returned to his native land and had become a priest, he laboured in various provinces of Scotland.
At Rome, whither he had gone as a pilgrim, he was consecrated bishop in spite of protestations from his humility; later he returned to Scotland and to the apostolic ministry. After many years of fruitful labour he died and was laid to rest at Campsie in Lennox. His name still survives in Ecclesmachan (Church of Machan) in Linlithgow, of which he is patron. The parish of Dalserf, Lanarkshire, formed at one time the chapelry of St. Machan, and was known as Machanshire. It was connected with the church of Cadzow (now Hamilton). An altar in St. Mungo's Cathedral, Glasgow, was dedicated to him. A fair in honour of this saint was held annually at Kilmahog, Perthshire.