St Kevin’s Holy Well, Glendalough

Enjoying a few days in County Wicklow, we visited the magical site that is Glendalough. A place of outstanding natural beauty, it comprises a lush valley, surrounded by mountains and two lakes, the perfect place for a wild hike – or a hermitage. It is also rich in an incredible variety of historic and religious monuments and has been a site of pilgrimage for over a thousand years. Todays’ visitors are an eclectic group – tourists, walkers, pilgrims – and holy well seekers.

The original monastic settlement was founded by St Kevin in the 6th century, expanded over the years to become a place of spiritual importance – seven visits here were once the equivalent in indulgences to a pilgrimage to Rome. The site is large and includes some instantly recognisable monuments such as the 30m round tower, restored in 1876, and St Kevin’s Kitchen, an oratory dating from the 12th century. Scattered within the sacred space are the remains of seven churches, a multitude of bullaun stones, pilgrim paths, many ancient crosses and one holy well.

The day we visited was warm and sunny and it was rammed but there is space for everyone and no one seemed to be heading in our direction as we went off in search of the holy well. It’s an oddly forgotten monument for there is no signage to it and the only directions I had were vague but we walked through the forestry, a few bluebells lingering, and arrived at St Saviour’s Church.

This impressive church dates from the period when Lawrence O Toole was Abbot of Glendalough, 1163-1162AD, and was restored rather haphazardly in the 19th Century. It is notable for its attractive Romanesque architecture and intricate carvings.

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Retracing our steps we found we had walked right past the well. Originally known as St Kevin’s Keeve, meaning bath, it’s located at the edge of the Glendasan River and is almost invisible from the path – you can just see a small horseshoe shaped mound in front of the twin trunked tree .

The Archaeological Inventory for County Wicklow has this to say about the site:

Holy well marked on all editions of the OS 6-inch maps as ‘St. Kevin’s Keeve’. Described by Healy (1972, 150) as ‘St. Kevin’s Keeve (bath) is located on the Glendasan River just below the old disused dam. It is a natural pool approximately four by two metre and one metre deep. The site of St. Kevin’s Bush (WI023-047—-) is on the northern bank directly above the Keeve.The bush (WI023-047—) no longer exists but there is still a semi-circular bank twelve metres across partly cut out of the hill slope and partly built of large boulders and stones. Within the curve of this bank is a line of dry stone walling. St. Kevin’s Road (WI023-001—–) lies on the north side of this feature. The pool in the bed of the river described by Healy is depicted on the 25-inch OS map.

Archaeological Inventory for County Wicklow

From this description and looking at the early OS maps it does seem that the original well or keeve was actually in the river and judging by the name, was where full immersion was practised. St Kevin is said to have baptised his disciple, Solomon, here.

I can find no further information – did the well move up onto the banks, did the river recede and the well found itself on land? Have I misread the information?*

The description and dimensions do not tally with the current well which is a good 10metres from the river. It is subterranean, approached by four stone steps.

The well basin is made from layers of stone, an assortment of ferns and wall pennywort decorating its edges. The water is abundant if slightly scummy and is said to hold a cure for headaches and sore eyes.

Traditionally the well was visited on the 3rd of June, St Kevin’s feast day, the day he died at an impressive 120 years of age. Pilgrims were required to walk three times round the well, barefoot. Offerings were left at a holy tree called St Kevin’s Bush or St Kevin’s Tree which is marked as a thornbush on the 25inch historic map.

In river there is a well called the Keve well which St. Kevin blessed and in which he left a cure. Long ago on the 3rd of June every year people went to pray at this well and to be cured of disease. When leaving the well they used to tie a piece of cloth on a tree over the well. This tree went by the name of St. Kevin’s Tree. A man went to cut down this tree it is said and he was almost drowned with a shower which fell from the tree so that he gave up the task of cutting it.

SFC:327:0917

The original holy bush has disappeared and been replaced by birch trees, most of which are are bedecked with offerings of one sort or another – mainly coloured rags and ribbons but also rosaries, jewellery, photos and a few masks.

Although no one else was around this site obviously still attracts pilgrims

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St Kevin is a fascinating saint, with many myths and miracles attributed to him. Born into a noble family he was fiercely devout and determined to devote his life to God. After spiritual training, he became a hermit, living in a cave high above the lakes in Glendalough. Here he lived as frugally as possible, dressing in animal skins and living off nettles and herbs. To aid his meditations and prayers, he immersed himself for hours in the freezing waters of the lake.

How he was persuaded to leave his lofty cell is an interesting and creative story:

The legendary story of the foundation of Glendalough is also interesting. According to tradition, while Kevin was praying in his cave, a cow came to him every day and licked his clothes, sensing his holiness. Whenever it returned to its master it gave as much milk as 50 cows could provide. The farmer once resolved to follow the cow and to know what the mystery was. Thus he saw Kevin, who with his gentle, sweet words converted the farmer to Christ at once. The latter was baptized together with all his family and neighboring inhabitants. Inspired by divine wisdom, the saint decided to leave his hermitage and undertake a large-scale mission across the surrounding district and to build a monastery. At that time Glendalough was ruled by an old pagan king named O’Tool. He had a goose which by that time was also very frail and could not fly. The ruler, hearing about Kevin and his holy life, asked him to make his goose young. The saint promised, but on condition that the king would grant him the land (to found a monastery) over which the goose would fly. The king consented, thinking that the saint would fail, but Kevin touched the bird and it instantly became young. The goose then flew over the whole valley of Glendalough and thus it belonged to the monastery from that time.

Glendalough and St. Kevin, Lennox Barrow. Dublin Historical Record, vol. 27, no. 2, 1974, pp. 49–64. JSTOR.

There is another delightful story demonstrating his love and rapport for animals. Whilst praying in his cave, he stuck out his outstretched hand and a blackbird landed on it. St Kevin did not move his hand until the nest was built, the eggs hatched and the chicks fledged! Seamus Heaney, as always, puts it beautifully:

And then there was St Kevin and the blackbird.
The saint is kneeling, arms stretched out, inside
His cell, but the cell is narrow, so

One turned-up palm is out the window, stiff
As a crossbeam, when a blackbird lands
And lays in it and settles down to nest.

Kevin feels the warm eggs, the small breast, the tucked
Neat head and claws and, finding himself linked
Into the network of eternal life,

Is moved to pity: now he must hold his hand
Like a branch out in the sun and rain for weeks
Until the young are hatched and fledged and flown.

Part of the poem St Kevin & The Blackbird, Seamus Heaney, 1996

Clive Hicks Jenkins‘s beautiful illustration, St Kevin and the Blackbird, portrays the story eloquently.

After his monastic city was established St Kevin resumed his hermit life high above the lake. A less savoury story, for which there is little foundation, shows how, even though he tried to escape human interaction, Kevin still attracted unwanted attention. A young woman, usually called Kathleen, became so enamoured of him she climbed up the banks of the cliff to his cave, enraged Kevin pushed her off and she fell down into the lake where she drowned! Here’s the story as sung by The Dubliners and some of the lyrics:

In Glendalough lived an old saint
Renowned for learning and piety
His manners was curious and quint
And he looked upon girl with disparity
Chorus:fol di dol fol di fol day
fol di dol rol di dol ad dy
fol di dol rol di dol day
fol di dol rol di dol ad

Oh but Kitty she wouldn’t give in
And when he got home to his rockery
He found she was seated therein
a-polishin’ up his ould crockery

Well he gave the poor creature a shake
And I wish that the Garda had caught him!
For he threw her right into the lake
And, be Jaysus, she sank to the bottom

The Glendalough Saint, The Dubliners, 1966

Not far from the holy well on the main site is an enigmatic cluster of stones including a bullaun stone.

This is called the Deer Stone and there is of course another story attached:

Kevin was so wise that King Colman asked him to be in charge of raising of his younger son (all his other children died in infancy and the King wanted his only heir to be protected by the holy man). The saint kindly agreed. But the monastery had no cow to supply milk for the baby. On the same day the Lord sent them a doe which, at the saint’s command, nursed the child. One day a wolf came to the monastery and killed the doe. Kevin rebuked the cruel animal for this deed and ordered it to give milk to the infant prince instead of the doe—and the wolf obeyed.

Glendalough and St. Kevin, Lennox Barrow. Dublin Historical Record, vol. 27, no. 2, 1974, pp. 49–64. JSTOR.

I thought this delightful plaque above the doorway at one of the churches visited on our travels around Wicklow was St Francis but now I think it might be St Kevin.

The door knocker may even refer to the wolf.

An extraordinary site, full of wonderful monuments and fabulous stories. We only had time to visit a tiny part of it but should you ever find yourself in County Wicklow, Glendalough should not be missed.

*Edit: A little more detective work and it seems that the site I have described is St Kevin’s Well and the tree that has become covered in offerings is recognised as a holy tree by Sites and Monuments (W1023 -016001):

Standing over St Kevin’s Holy Well (WI023-016—-). A flamboyantly decorated tree carrying multicoloured rags, soft-drink tins and bottles, airline boarding card stubs, supermarket receipts and, at least one article of ladies underclothing.

However, St Kevin’s Keeve is a different site to the north of the well and was not visited. It sounds as though there may be some banks remaining. The holy tree which was originally on the banks at the same site has now disappeared. Apologies for the confusion! The stories remain the same.