On Wells 3: Saints & Sinners

All holy wells hold a capacity for healing. As far as I can ascertain, there some subtle distinctions between them: a Blessed Well, Tobar Beannaithe, holds a cure – often for sore eye or warts while Tobar Slanán, a health giving well, as the name suggest, contains water that is good for you and may or may not be considered holy. But some wells, Tobar Naofa, have the additional potency of having been blessed by a saint. The saint was considered to intervene on your behalf so prayers and afflictions would be considered more speedily.

There is an astonishing array of saints venerated at the wells in County Cork – 70 different individuals in fact. The three most popular are more or less who you might expect.

Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM)

The Blessed Virgin Mary/Our Lady/St Mary has 33 wells dedicated to her. These wells are often known in Irish as Tobar Mhuire. She has always been an object of special veneration and remains a much loved and respected icon of the Catholic church to this day. She has even had two specific Marian Years devoted to her,1954  and 1987, when pilgrimages were encouraged, grottoes built and wells cleaned and restored. Holy Wells dedicated to the BVM can be found throughout the country, some faring better than others. Here’s a selection:

The main feast days connected with the BVM occur on May Day (the whole of May is dedicated to her);15th August, Feast of the the Assumption; 8th September, Nativity of the BVM and 8th December, Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Marian wells will be visited specifically on these dates but so will other wells as devotion to Mary often seems to coincide with devotion to the resident saint. Sunday’s Well at Rooves Beg for example, was decked out in BVM blue for May Day and a well attended pilgrimage to Tubrid Well in Millstreet also occurs on this day.

The BVM is even said to have appeared at some wells. At Lady’s Well Ballycurrany, an enchanting site, she is said to have knelt on the stone in front of the well and left the imprints of her knees. At Abbey Well, Tobar na Mainistreache, in KInsale, she kindly lead someone home in the dead of night and at Lady’s Well, Dunowen she assumed the guise of a swan.

St John the Baptist

In second place of most popular saintly dedications is St John the Baptist with 15 wells devoted to him. These wells are generally know as St John’s Well or Tobar Eoin or Tobar Eoin Baiste.

Perhaps the most popular of all St John’s Wells is Tobar Eoin Og  in Carrigaline where a large pilgrimage is still held on St John’s Eve 23rd June. This and the 24th June, St John’s Day itself, are the most popular days for pilgrimage along with the 29th August, which marks the death of the saint.

St Bridget 

St Bridget takes third place with 11 wells dedicated to her. Again, there is an interesting variety of wells still to be found dedicated to this very popular irish saint.

One of the above wells, at Mountbridget near Buttevant, was renown for its powerful healing and for its sacred tree  – Biddy’s Tree. The saint herself was once seen sitting under the tree:

It is said that the late Mr James MacCarthy, of Ballygrace, about eighty years ago, saw the saint one evening sitting on the tree near the tree.  He described the clothes she wore. (Colonel Grove White Historical and Topographical Notes, etc. on Buttevant, Castletownroche, Doneraile, Mallow, and Places in their Vicinity; Cork, 1908).

Sadly it no longer exists but it had a certain potency as this cautionary tale relates:

Mrs. M. Sullivan related the following to me: A Protestant policeman with a comrade walked out from Churchtown, where they were stationed. When they came to “Biddy’s Tree” the policeman amused himself by swinging backwards and forwards on a limb of the ash tree over the holy well.  When he arrived at his quarters in Churchtown he was seized with violent pains in his limbs, from which he died about six months after-wards. He was a County Galway man. (ibid).

Other internationally recognised saints encountered include St Michael (4), St Bartholomew (4), St Patrick (4), St Catherine (2), St James (2) , St Laurence O Toole (1), St Nicholas (1),  St Paul (2),  St Stephen (1)  and St Valentine (1).

Native Saints

And then there are the native saints, the local lads (lads used here in Corkese to cover all sexes!) St Bridget and St Patrick are of course associated with Ireland but there are many others who may not be quite so familiar. When Christian missionaries brought their new religion to Ireland in the late 4th early 5th centuries, one of the first things they did was to sain or bless the existing sacred springs, swiftly assimilating them into the new religion and casting out supposedly evil pagan influences. St Patrick (not the first arrival but the most famous) had a special staff for doing just this called the Bachall Ísu. There Is one well dedicated to the Bachall Ísu in County Cork, now dry and abandoned, just a scattering of rocks suggesting it might once have had a wellhouse:

… There is a tradition that St Patrick before returning to Ireland, to preach the Christian Faith, paid a visit to Rome. The Holy Father was impressed by the sanctity and zeal of the young missionary, so much so, that he presented him with the Staff of Our Saviour. The latter had a spear point and it is said that when St. Patrick drove it into the ground before preaching a spring of pure water gushed forth. Hence the name ‘Boughal Íosa’ which signifies club or staff of Jesus. St Patrick is supposed to have passed through this locality on his way to Ardpatrick. The well was desecrated on one occasion, by washing clothes in it. It closed or rather dried up, and the spring gushed forth in another part of the same farm.(Schools’ Folklore Collection: 350:0367)

It made sense to harness the power of the original spring and to absorb it into the new belief  system. New wells were also created and became a focus of  worship and baptism. Many springs and wells were renamed, a Christian saint replacing the original deity if there had been one. At St Michael’s Well, Tobar Mhichil Naomtha, just over the border in Kerry, the well keeper believed the well had originally been dedicated to the Celtic goddess Mór and with the coming of Christianity her name had been superimposed by St Michael. Clues were in various place names in the district.

Back in Cork, Tubrid Well near Millstreet was originally called Tobar na Bó Finne or Well of the White Cow, hinting at a long history. The name is usually taken as a reference to the Celtic goddess Boann who name is interpreted as bó fhionn or white cow. In folklore she is said to have created the River Boyne, though ultimately losing her life doing so. The current dedication of Tubrid seems a bit vague though some strong women are contenders – possibly St Ide, maybe Gobnait, possibly St Bridget or even the BVM. The main feast day is 1st May in honour of the BVM, yet this also marks it out as a Bealtaine well. The outwardly Christian feast days celebrated at the wells give more clues as to their age and to the assimilation of the old religion. St Bridget is honoured on the 1st February which is also the start of the great Celtic Festival of Imbolc, welcoming in the spring. The BVM is celebrated throughout May, especially on the 1st which ushered in Bealtaine, the festival bringing in the plenty of summer; St John’s feast day is 23/24 June – Celtic Midsummer, a fire festival, and bonfires are still traditionally lit on this date. Just next to the open air Mass held at Tobar Eoin Og, Carrigaline, people had also gathered to amass around bonfires. Other saints such as St James and St Laitiarian have their feast days near August 1st, the original celebration of the harvest festival of Lunasa. All Souls & All Saints Day coincide with the great festival of the dead at Samhain at the end of October beginning of November.

This assimilation of the old into the new was not without conflict. There are many mythological stories describing the struggle, including this strange and intriguing tale concerning two pagan princesses, St Patrick and a holy well – Ali Isaac recounts it beautifully.

The new saints were often Irish, very local, very colourful and often complexly connected to each other through kinship, education, fosterage, tutelage and deeds. There are many for until the late 10th century saints did not have to be officially canonised. It wasn’t until Pope John XV developed an official canonisation process that specific requirements were needed (he canonised the first saint in 993AD, Ulrich, Bishop of Augsburg if you’re wondering!) Until then saints were recognised through through deeds and demeanour and the supernatural events surrounding them.

The most popular local saints to have holy wells dedicated to them in County Cork are St Lachteen (6) and St Gobnait (6), closely followed by St  Brendan (4), ( St Finbarr (3), St Fachtna (3) and St Ruadhán (3).

St Lachteen

St Lacheen is patron saint in Kilnamartyra and renowned for the beautiful reliquary said to contain a sliver of his arm – now in the National Museum. Two wells dedicated him are still thriving in Grenagh, Toberlaghteen, and Cloheena, Tobar Lachtáin.

St Gobnait

St Gobnait remains very popular around Ballyvourney, Baile Bhuirne, and was recently described to me as being a wonderful woman. She is alive, active and vibrant and everywhere you go in Ballyvourney you will see her symbols – bees and deer.

Gobnait may have originally come from the Aran Islands. She was visited by an angel who told her to seek her resurrection. She would know it when she found it for she would see nine white deer. Her path to Ballyvourney, where she eventually saw the correct number of deer, can be tracked – for everywhere she stopped she caused a holy well to spring up. At Ballyvourney she built her nunnery, thwarted the plague and saw off marauders by sending a swarm of bees after them – hence she is patron saint of beekeepers. Her feast day is 11th February – before the change of the calendar in 1752 it would have been 1st February and she is sometimes considered to be another incarnation of Bridget.

St Finbarr

St Finbar is patron saint of Cork. He arrived at Gougane Barra and founded a monastic cell having first sent the local sea serpent scurrying coastwards leaving a deep trench behind him which eventually turned into the River Lee. Angels later directed Finbarr to Cork city where  a magnificent cathedral dedicated to him still remains though the site of his original settlement and holy well is looking pretty sorry for itself. So holy was he, his hand literally glowed and he had to wear a glove so as not to alarm people! There is very well attended pilgrimage  to Gougane Barra on his feast day 25th September.

Other colourful saintly characters include:

St Laitiarian    So upset by feeling the sin of pride when she accidentally revealed a saintly ankle, she fell to her knees, disappeared underground and popped up near a well. A heart-shaped boulder marks the spot where she disappeared known as the Dallan or Cloch na gCursa, stone of the rounds.

St Fionnchú-  he spoke through his mother’s womb, swapped his soul for a bad one so the recipient could take his place in Heaven, spent seven years hanging off seven sickles in penance, loved a good fight and went into battle gnashing his teeth until the sparks flew. He’s also patron saint of blowins! Also known as Fanahan.

St Olan – who, idling, caused a tree to spring up behind a well; quarrelled with his neighbouring saint as to who had the biggest parish;

St Olan and St Lachtáin were very great friends until a certain thing happened. Both agreed that what each would walk on the morrow would be his parish. However, Lachtáin by setting out when it was still dark covered more ground than St Olan and people say that the reason why Donaghmore parish is bigger than Aghabullogue. Both saints cursed each others parishes. St Olan said all the mad dogs would run towards Donaghmore and St Lachtain said that Aghabullogue would never be without robbers. (Schools’ Folklore Collection)

and left this footprints on the stone he used to preach from.There Is also an enormous stone named after him which you put on your head to ease headaches – sweetly called the capáin, Olan’s Cap!

St Ciarán  who liked to dress in animal skins and sleep on the ground, was eventually thrown off a cliff, possibly on Cape Clear, floated to Cornwall on a millstone and became St Piran and lived until 206! He even met his death by falling in a well.

St Berrihert   an Anglo-Saxon who left England in 664 AD after the Synod of Whitby. On arriving in Tullylease  he had to contend with the local druid who was not pleased to see him. A trial was devised to see who should keep the land. The two were placed in a hut, the door closed and the whole thing set alight. Whoever was left standing would win the hearts and minds of the locals! The unfortunate druid was burnt to a crisp and St Berrihert was left unharmed, ‘not a spot was reddened on him’.  A beautiful cross in Anglo-Saxon style remains in the old church near the well, as does a wonderful figure of the saint himself sporting clothes of the times it was sculpted – mid 19th Century.

St Colmán Son of the terrifyingly named Lénín the Vehement, he became distracted and fell off the round tower he was building in Cloyne and landed in a field some way away causing a well to spring up. He started off life as a bard and received 12 years training.

And finally St Finnian who seemed a rather hot headed chap (though in fairness, St Patrick could have been responsible):

There is a story told locally about the saint’s sister who was out late at night. When her brother, who was supposed to be St Finian, missed her he cursed her and said that ‘the wolves might eat you’. Immediately he had her cursed he heard the wolves howling and knew some evil had befallen her, so he set out in the night and found her at Ahane Cross which is not very far from this well, and the wolves devouring what remained of her. When he saw what evil he himself had done he cursed the wolves who turned into stones. These stones can plainly be seen some of them at Ahane Cross and more of them in the Tracton bogs near to this cross.  After the wolves were cursed he gathered up the bones of his sister and he bathed them in the holy well and she came to life again. St Patrick and St Finnian are mentioned in connection with this well.

And on that note,  Nollag shona duit, and see you in the New Year.