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Jesus Christ spent around 30 years in Palestine (what is now Israel) around the year 1AD. His ministry must have been extraordinary, for his followers spread rapidly across the known world with the message that he had taught. The early missions around the eastern Mediterranean are chronicled in the book of Acts in the Bible, as well as the letters of St Paul. Despite widespread persecution under the Romans, during which time thousands of Christians were thrown to the lions or crucified, the Roman Empire ultimately adopted Christianity as its religion. From the Mediterranean it spread northwards into Gaul and it reached Ireland around the late 300s or early 400s.

The first recorded missionary to Ireland was Palladius, who was probably from Gaul [France]. He was sent by the Pope to be bishop to the "Irish who believe in Christ". Patrick himself stated that Palladius' mission was a failure. However, other historical documents from outside Ireland indicate that the mission of Palladius was very successful, at least in Laigin (Leinster), and that he set up a number of churches. [1]. Tradition says that Palladius' visit to Ireland was in the year 431.

St Patrick Perhaps the most famous missionary to Ireland was St Patrick. However, a small point of caution is needed here [2]. It is widely believed by historians that the missions of St Patrick were embellished and enshrined by Patrick's monastery at Armagh in their (ultimately successful) bid for primacy over the church in Ireland. In creating what is referred to as the 'Cult of Patrick', Armagh exaggerated the importance of Patrick and diminished the importance of the other missionaries, possibly even attributing some of the work of these other missionaries to Patrick. That said, St Patrick is such an important part of Irish culture that it would be a mistake to ignore him.

We know very little for certain about Patrick. According to his own "Confession", he was born in Roman Britain - probably near Hadrian's Wall in northern England - the son of a wealthy official. His mother may have come from Gaul [France]. When he was 16, sometime in the early 400s, he was kidnapped by an Irish raiding party and sold into slavery in Ireland. As Roman Britian collapsed, it was increasingly common for Irish, Pict and Saxon raiders to pillage its coastal settlements and it seems that Patrick fell victim to one of these raids. Patrick worked as a slave for 6 years tending sheep, traditionally believed to be on Slemish Mountain, county Antrim, but it seems possible that he was, in fact, somewhere near the Atlantic Ocean in county Mayo or Sligo.

Patrick says in his Confession that he discovered God during his time of captivity, and took to praying a hundred times a day. After 6 years, Patrick managed to escape from captivity, walked the 200 miles to the east coast and managed to negotiate passage aboard a trading ship to Gaul [France]. There, he probably trained to be a Christian Priest and spent time in Auxerre. He then received prophetic dreams where he heard the people of Ireland near the 'western sea' call him to come and walk among them again. He then travelled to Ireland as a missionary, and it seems that he never left. The year traditonally given is 432, but it seems more likely to have been around 460 [3].

Patrick concentrated his work in north-east Ireland, and his first church was at Saul, near present-day Downpatrick. He preached to the Kings and their households and met with varied levels of success. One of his methods was to 'Christianize' the Celtic Pagan festivals. For example, Patrick reputedly lit an Easter bonfire on Slane Hill near the Hill of Tara while the King was having his own Pagan bonfire there. The King was enraged, but he took the opportunity to preach and managed to make some converts. He is famously said to have used the 3-leaved Shamrock to explain the concept of the Trinity: God as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (although this story is almost certainly a myth). Patrick died in Ireland and is traditionally believed to be buried on the Hill of Down in Downpatrick, county Down. A stone marking the traditional burial spot was added in 1901 and the site is now a popular tourist attraction.

The Rise of Monasticism The churches set up by Patrick and other missionaries were fairly simple affairs. During the late 400s, hundreds of churches were set up. They were unlike the churches that we would recognise today: most were small wooden buildings, with the occasional small stone structure and would not have accommodated more than a few dozen people at a time. Each tuath (petty kingdom) had a 'bishop' to oversee the church's work in it.

In time, the Irish church matured and by the 500s a number of monasteries were set up. Initially intended to be places of retreat from the world, they attracted the patronage of the kings and the rich and became influential institutions in their own right. Many extended control over other monasteries, with Armagh ultimately claiming primacy over all churches in Ireland. The network of buildings that eventually grew up on monastic settlements - the hired workers, craftsmen and artisans - were, in a sense, the first 'towns' in Ireland. A Celtic monastery was not of the church-and-cloisters type that appeared in the middle ages. Rather, it usually consisted of an enclosure with a small stone church and a number of cells were the monks lived individually. By their nature, some were in the most remote areas imaginable. Sceilg Mhicil was perched on an outcrop of rock in the stormy north Atlantic off the coast of county Kerry. The picture above [4] shows the ruins of the monastery on Sceilg Mhicil (Photo: Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland). Many monasteries were set up in connection with the ministry of Patrick, for example the great monastery of Armagh.

One of the most prominent Irish Saints was St Colum Cille (also known as St Columba and St Colmcille). Colum Cille was of the province of the northern Uí Néill (in present-day Donegal), a prominent relative of the King who became a Christian and evangelised in the Irish colony of the Dal Riata in Scotland (see Celtic Iron Age for details). Colum Cille believed in people becoming "Exiles for Christ", by leaving their homes to go and live with other Christians in isolated places, thereby coming closer to God. He set up monasteries in Ireland, such as that at Derry, before setting up the monastery of Iona off the western Scottish coast in the year 563.  Colum Cille's establishment successfully converted the Dal Riata before converting Northumbria [Northern England] by 627. The great Northumbrian monastery of Lindisfarne was founded in 635. Thus, Britian was Christianised by a missionary from north-west Ireland. Iona and Armagh together became the most influential monasteries in Ireland. The map below shows the principal monasteries in Ireland as they were around the year 650 [5].

The Irish church was fairly simple, because the hierarchical structure of the continental church was found to be incompatible with the network of small kingdoms in Ireland. However, Roman missionaries had arrived in southern England and there were disagreements between the Celtic church and the Roman church. This was resolved at the Synod of Whitby of 664 in which it was decided that the church in Britain would follow the Roman practices. However, the people in Ireland resisted the changes and so Romanism did not have much impact in Ireland.

One of the most important works of the Irish monasteries, besides catering for the needs of the local population, was in the production of books. These are the great illuminated manuscripts, such as the Book of Kells, which were hand written copies of the Bible and other books. Beautifully decorated by hand, these books were usually written in Latin, which was introduced by Patrick. The Latin alphabet was also introduced, replacing the more awkward Ogham scripts. Although Latin was the language of education, Celtic-Irish remained the language of everyday life.

Irish Influences in Europe
As Ireland's monastic establishments grew, they became centres of learning as well as of evangelism. It is for this reason that Ireland has been termed the land of "Saints and Scholars". After Colum Cille, and his evangelical successor Aidan, had set up the monasteries in Scotland and Northumbria (northern England), the Irish turned their attention to southern England. St Fursa preached in East Anglia (eastern England) in the 6th century before travelling to Gaul (France) and setting up churches there. St Columbanus, of Bangor Monastery in northern Ireland, went to Gaul in 591 and founded 2 monasteries in France before travelling through modern Germany, Switzerland and Italy. He is buried in a Monastery he founded at Bobbio, in northern Italy. By the 9th century, Irish scholars followed the missionaries and managed to gain important academic roles in the courts of Kings such as Charlemagne of the Franks. Irish foundations can be found in France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Italy and their influence was been left in places as far afield as Vienna, Rome and eastern Germany.

The southern Uí Néill spent the early Christian period expanding eastwards at the expense of Laigin. The power of the Ulaid, whose capital was at Emain Macha (near Armagh), was slowly diminished by the "Three Collas" who drove them out of their western lands and set up the Province of Airgialla (also known as Oriel). Airgialla eventually captured Emain Macha. In response to being driven eastwards, some of the Ulaid founded a colony in Scotland. This is the colony of the Dal Riata (see Celtic Iron Age for details).

The map above shows the state of the provinces of Ireland around 650AD.

By the early 700s, the spread of Christianity and continued growth of the concept of a 'province' meant that the Kings of individual tuaths ceased to be regarded as kings, and were referred to increasingly as dukes or lords. The provinces evolved from being federations of dozens of tuaths, to being more closely knit units whose king was from one of the more prominent families. It became more common, then, for there to be dynastic disputes within provinces over which family held the kingship. A province can be almost regarded as an independent country, although without the well-delineated borders of today.

The period 700-850 marks the growth in the influence of the Uí Néill. Their northern half was dominated by the Cenel nEoghan dynasty, who lived in the east of the territory and they went on the offensive against the province of Airgialla, driving them out of their northern territories over the century 750-850. By 804, the Uí Néill had become the protectors of the monastery of Armagh. Meanwhile, the southern Uí Néill penetrated further into Laigin in the period 700-800, driving them out of the Boyne valley and taking control of the royal site of Tara.

In the 700s, the power of Connaght rose dramatically, and they began to expand eastwards, further dividing the northern and southern Uí Néill and founding the secondary province of Bréifne around present-day Cavan and Leitrim. This had the additional effect of splitting the Uí Néill into two parts, referred to simply as the Northern Uí Néill and the Southern Uí Néill.

It was around about this time that the kings of Ireland began to realise that it might be possible to extend control over the entire island - a concept not previously considered. This gave rise to the term High King and, although nobody could yet legitimally use the term, it did not stop the Uí Néill eyeing it up.

Everyday Life in early Christian Ireland
Society in Early Christian Ireland was heavily tiered. At the top of society was the kings. Laterally, these were the rulers of the large Provinces. They lived in large enclosures, often fortified, and had a large retinue of staff. The kings maintained their position by ensuring the loyality of the lords in their province, although it was not unknown for a lord to challenge the sitting king for the position. Below the kings were the lords. The lords were the heads of the individual tuaths, which had been independent kingdoms in the pre-Christian period. A lord owed allegiance to the king, and usually paid his dues in the form of military service. It was not common for the peasantry to engage in warfare. Some lords may have lived in crannógs, which are artificial islands built from wood in lakes. Easily defended, but hard to build, crannógs were apparently built in two intense phases of 420-650 and 720-930. Some crannógs survive, but many have been destroyed by drainage schemes. There is an excellent reconstructed crannóg at the Ulster History Park, near Omagh, in county Tyrone.

Below the lords were the commoners - grád Fhéne in Irish. Commoners were attached to a lord by clientship - célsine in Irish - which was similar to medieval feudalism. The landlord gave the commoner a payment and a certain number of animals and in return the commoner gave various food products to the lord at regular intervals. For the lord, having many clients increased his prestige and ensured a steady supply of food. For the client, it provided a source of food and protection. It was not without its perks. By law, the commoner was entitled to one night's feasting at the lord's residence each year - not a trivial expense. In general, extended families lived together in early Christian Ireland. The poorer commoners would have lived in wooden houses in the open countryside. Wealthier commoners would have built their houses within an earthen enclosure about 30 metres (100 feet) in diameter. So-called ringforts are amongst the most common historical features in Ireland, and are readily identifiable. There are almost 50,000 known examples although these are being rapidly destroyed by urban growth and agricultural mechanisation.

Below the commoners were the cottiers and landless men - bothach, fuidir in Irish - who were free men but did not have any land and hired themselves out as labourers either to lords, commoners or to monasteries. At the bottom of the hierarchy were the hereditary serfs - senchléithe in Irish - who were part of the estate of their landlord. Slavery was widely practiced in Ireland at the time. The slaves were usually supplied by traders, who acquired them from raiding trips in Britain. Alternatively, some families sold children into slavery during times of famine. In some cases, prisoners escaped their fates by being taken on as manual labour by a monastery.

In terms of agriculture, most farmers had animals. Cows were grazed on common land and beef provided the bulk of meat that was eaten. This was supplemented by some pork, and mutton for the poorer people. The cows also provided dairy produce which formed a large part of the diet in the form of milk, salted butter and cheeses. Unfenced strips of arable land were found nearer the houses. These were used for cereal crops such as oats, barley, wheat and rye. These were eaten in the form of porridge, bread or ale. The grain was ususally stored in pits or souterrains, because it was common for enemies to burn the grain of your peasantry at time of war. Wild fruit and vegetable growing provided the remainder of the diet. Survival was almost purely subsistence, and if there was a bad year for both animals and crops there was a famine. Famine was all too common in this era, probably causing the population to fluctuate continuously. New technology aided the farmers somewhat: the horizontal mill and a more efficient plough were adopted in the 400s.

Marriage was very unstable: divorce and remarriage was common. In all tiers of society, but most notably with the nobility, polygamy was practiced. Despite the best efforts of the church, this trend persisted all through the period. The effect of polygamy was that the lords had huge families, not all of which could maintain the lordship status. This resulted in a general drift of lineages down through the ranks of society.

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Related Topics:
Bookshop - Books on pre-Norman Ireland
Bookshop - General Irish history books

The Vikings