Saint Lachtain’s Holy Well, Freshford

A zoomorphic image in the arch of St Lachtain's church

In the picturesque little village of Freshford in County Kilkenny lies a deep holy well dedicated to Saint Lachtain. The village is settled on a small park square with the remnants of an Irish high cross, but sadly all that is to be seen is a lump of worn stone. A little way down from the village square is the church of Saint Lachtain, built in 1731 and incorporating an ancient doorway portal from 1110. Although the actual church building is of a relatively late date, the site is of great historical significance in Ireland as a site of almost continuous use since its early foundation.

 The ancient archway of St Lachtain's church

The original foundation at Freshford was settled some time in the seventh century before the death of Saint Lachtain in 672AD (some annals record the earlier date of 622AD, but this may be a confusion with the date of the foundation of the first church at Freshford) and very early historical records make many references to the existence of the site. It is mentioned later in various Annals dating from the twelfth and thirteenth century, where an attempt is clearly being made to have the site recognized as the Episcopal centre of the newly established diocese of Ossory. The mission met with failure with the site being recognized only a part of the temporalities of the See of Ossory in 1218. However, Bishop Hugh Mapleton held it in high esteem and built his Episcopal palace close by called Uppercourt. Uppercourt was to remain the favoured residence of the Bishop’s of Ossory until the 1550’s when Bishop John Bale was resident. This Bishop had a voracious reforming zeal which enraged the local population and in a single night they murdered five of his servants, forcing him to flee for his life. Since then, the building of Uppercourt has been in secular ownership.

The village of Freshford

Today the church of Saint Lachtain is still in regular use and the nave of the church is thought to be built on the same foundation outline as the tenth century cell church (the second church to built on the site) which was built to house the relic of Saint Lachtain’s arm; a magnificent silver and gold reliquary which housed the saints forearm bones and which can be seen in the National Museum in Dublin. It’s nothing short of a miracle that the relic survived at all as the site was plundered numerous times by the Vikings and casual robbers, who repeatedly burned its books and plundered its silver and gold. The Franciscan’s moved the reliquary to County Kerry in the mid 1600’s where it was to stay for some time before being transferred into the care of the Museum in Dublin. The doorway to the church is the oldest surviving part of it, dating to 1110 and incorporating some zoomorphic figures, a rider on horseback and two ecclesiastical figures (both unidentified). The arch carries a prayer inscribed in Irish script: Pray for Niamh, daughter of Corc, and for Mathgamhan O Clearmaic for whom this church was made. Pray for Gille Mocholmoc for whom this church was made. Pray for Gille Mocholmoc O Ceannucain who made it.

Two ecclesiastical figures in the arch

Saint Lachtain’s day is celebrated on 19^th March. A native of Muskerry in County Cork and born into an illustrious family, Saint Lachtain’s arrival was shrouded in mystery in a vision given to Saint Molua while under the oversight of Saint Comgall of Bangor. It was said that Saint Molua was so disturbed by this vision, and in fear that it he had fantasised the whole thing himself, he never broke a smile until he heard of the child’s birth! Lachtains genealogy is confused, but it is generally regarded that he was of royal lineage. The earliest life of the saint (which only records his early years) is now lost, but various writers such as Colgan records a story from it regarding how the child in the womb appeared in a vision to a blind man by the name of Mohemeth to give him his sight. Other stories relating to Lachtain’s childhood portray him in the same vein as Jacob, Jeremiah and John the Baptist, sanctified before their birth - a common device used in early Irish Saint’s Life’s. Other miracles from his childhood relate how he healed himself of food poisoning, how he healed his mother of a terminal tumor and how he saved the cattle of the area from a terrible plague.

The shrine reliquary of Saint Lachtain's arm

In later Life accounts of the saint we are told how he journeyed northward and went to study under the direction of Saint Comgall in Bangor, who placed him in the care of Saint Molua as his guardian and teacher. He remained here until the age of thirty, studying diligently and being highly proficient in his knowledge of the scriptures. After this period in Bangor, Lachtain set out to establish a number of religious foundations both in County Kilkenny and in County Cork.

 The much neglected holy well

The saint’s holy well is a short walk from the ecclesiastical site, set off slightly from the main road into the village. O’Hanlon records it as being in great disrepair and utterly neglected by the local people, but the same well is mentioned in the ancient Life of Saint Mochoemoc (an Abbott in the time of Saint Lachtain’s later years and patron saint of LIsmore) as being a place ‘sacred to the memory of Saint Lachtain’. Saint Lachtain died on the 19^th March in 672AD and within a very short period of his death he was being venerated as a saint, recorded in the martyrology of AEngus of Culdee, the Martyrology of Tallaght, of Marianus O’Gorman, of Maguire, O’Clery’s, in the Calendar of Cashel, and more curiously the saint appears in the sanctorale of the Carthusian Order throughout Europe on the same date. There are a number of Holy Wells dedicated to Saint Lachtain throughout Ireland and all of them hold in common a belief that they cure paralytics and those ‘possessed by a diabolical agency’. The waters in the holy well at Freshford are considered beneficial for the blessing of cattle; possibly relating to an account in one of the Life’s which tells of the Saint’s gift of cattle to the people and of his love of dairy food. Saint Lachtain was also highly regarded as a broker of peace between warring factions and tribal scuffles, and was said to have been a keen defender of the interests of the people of Munster. In later martyrologies he is recorded as being a Bishop, but despite the record, it is a claim that is difficult to ascertain in truth. Overall, Lachtain’s life is one that tells of supreme sacrifice, leaving behind his royal rights to enter a life of self-giving and risking his life in peacemaking for the people he loved. A healer, a teacher and a man of prayer who travelled by faith the length and breath of Ireland, Saint Lachtain’s memory is firmly fixed in Freshford; a sleepy, peaceful little village in County Kilkenny.

The modern, small cross at the well

At some point the holy well at Freshford has gone through very significant alteration, with a boundary wall now built to separate it from the surrounding farmer’s fields, and an iron gate encompassing a cross erected at its entrance. A Conservation Plan from 2004, typically makes no mention of the well at all. The holy well itself is very deep, but badly neglected. Its culverts have become blocked, so the water fills up over the top of the circular well housing and because of the lack of flow, much green algae has grown on the surface of the water. The rest of the well housing is in good condition, with a tiny stone cross in one corner. It is a simple layout and easy to make rounds, but the waters are far from inviting! Despite being on a main road into the village, it is a peaceful place with its own peculiar charm and sleepy nature. A much overlooked site that’s well worth the visit.

The iron gate at the entrance to the well

Lachtain, the Champion, loved

Humility, perfect and pure,

Stand through perpetual time

Did he in defence of the men of Munster.

Cumineus of Connor.

O thou who art heroic love, keep alive in our hearts that adventurous spirit which makes men scorn the way of safety, so that thy will be done. For so only, O Lord, shall we be worthy of those courageous souls who in every age have ventured all in obedience to thy call, and for whom the trumpets have sounded on the other side; through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Amen.

John H. Oldham

The stump of the high cross

How to find it:

From Kilkenny heading out to the village of Freshford, the holy well is located around 200 metres before the village on the right hand side of the road. As you enter the village, the church is located down a road to the right off the main village green.

A cross inscribed in the doorway of the church

Saint Moling’s Well, County Carlow

Saint Moling's Holy Well

Saint Moling’s well in the parish of County Carlow in St Mullins, is a famous well that to this day still has a significant pattern observed there. The pattern takes place on the feast day of the saint on the last Sunday before the 25^th July and it normally involves marching bands, food stalls, a mass (and sometimes an ecumenical service), school children singing and lots of pilgrims come to bathe their feet. The pattern makes a procession from the holy well itself, up the hill towards the graveyard - the site of Moling’s monastery and possibly the site of his burial.

The stream by the turas

St Mullins is a very beautiful place with the remains of an old motte and bailey perched at the top of a hill alongside a collection of ruined churches, remains of a round tower and even fragments of a high cross. To the left lies the holy well and to the right lies the slow and winding River Barrow shrouded in leafy trees. It has a small café down by the riverbank and is the perfect spot to wile away a sunny afternoon. This is an incredibly pretty spot and a great hidden little gem in the county.

The bathing house below the well

The well is said to have a curious beginning. Saint Moling was said to have been interested in acquiring the wood from one of the five trees of Ireland to build a church on the land that had been granted him by Fingin (of Cashel fame). Saint Laserian had also expressed a great interest in having some of the wood from the Yew of Rossa (which had recently fallen), but Moling - who was very close to Laserian - convinced the saint to part with the precious wood. When the wood arrived on the site, Moling had been working the wood and a small shaving entered his eye causing him great discomfort. One day as a cleric walked past he noted Moling sitting idly by the roadside and he asked him what the matter was. Moling explained that his felt the talons of an eagle, a branch of holly and the scratch of a griffin in his eyelid each time his eye moved, causing him much pain and discomfort. The cleric took pity on Moling and blessed a local well of water and told him to bathe his eye in it until it got better. The Brussels manuscript of the 'Birth and Life of Saint Moling' makes reference to the healing well with many rather obscure allusions to Tobit, but from this passage it seems clear that the well was considered as being a holy well of general healing rather than for anything specific. Today, however, the well’s healing properties are considered to be somewhat specific. It is said to heal ulcers on the feet (which Moling suffered from later in life), eye ailments, a trinitarian visit to cure warts and a cure for flu (whereby the person must duck their head into the freezing cold water three times!). In 1349 visits to the well reached fever pitch from a desperate people living in mortal fear of the plague that was sweeping Ireland at the time. Since then there has been a steady flow of pilgrims - some who come for healing, some for prayer and others just to enjoy the peace and the beauty of the area.

One of the stone basins full of well water

The well is slightly above the lay of the land, which seems a little curious, and it is said to be seven springs rising into a large basin with rocks and lumps of quartz. The waters flow from this through two narrow channels, down into stone basins, which in turn overflow into a trough that winds its way down to the river. The trough in the grass is known as the turas, or the pilgrim’s way. Tales are sometimes told of the bush that grows at the well being from Saint Moling’s original walking stick that he planted there to bathe his eyes, and in the time it took for him to complete this act the dead stick had come to life and sprouted and rooted itself to the spot. However, there are other wells dedicated to Saint Moling which also make this bold claim!

The Motte and Bailey

Up the hill from the well is the seventh century monastic settlement, known in Irish as Tighe Moling (House of Moling). The monastery was built on land gifted by Fingin under the instruction and careful spiritual direction of Saint Aidan from Ferns. It is said that Moling dug out the mile long watercourse to power his mill on the site – a task which took nearly seven years. Today none of the original monastery buildings survive, but you can see the remains of a round tower and a badly weathered fragment of a high cross. Worship continued on the site up to more recent times in the Church of Ireland parish church built on the site in 1811. There are three other church remains on the site, the great church (Tempall Mor) said to be the burial site of the saint. There is another little shrine church that caught my eye. Right at the very back of the settlement a small ruined shrine church perches close to the edge of the hill. It bears a sign that says it was ‘Saint James’ Cell’. Ordinance Field Books from 1839 record two pattern days held here in times past. The first was held on 17^th June in honour of Saint Moling (to commemorate his death in 696) and another on the 25^th July in honour of Saint James. On this day people visited Saint Moling’s well and the Ordinance Field Books describe it exactly as it appears today. As to what the cell of Saint James is, is not very clear at all and much digging in books and papers has not revealed an answer I’m afraid. It is entirely possible that at one time it held a relic of Saint James, brought by a visitor to the site or by one of the monks. Could it be that this cell is the rough granite rubble shrine church of Moling? All other six Medieval church ruins are clustered around it on what is otherwise a substantial and open, flat site.

The St Mullins Site

The High Cross towards the back of the site is now sadly very badly eroded and almost impossible to decipher. The base of the cross was a highly decorated, squat cylinder with carved interlinking spirals in a Celtic design. The mains shaft of the cross is broken and missing and the right arm is also broken.  The central figure in the cross is of a crucified Christ flanked by two other unidentified figures. The cross is thought to date from the ninth century. The Book of Moling (preserved in Trinity College Dublin) is a small Gospel book with some notes on Moling’s life and monastery. The book proclaims him as its scribe, but it is generally believed to have been created at least a century after his death. In it a simplified plan of the monastery can be seen with a plan for the erection of no less than sixteen high crosses: eight dedicated to the prophets, four dedicated to the four evangelists, one to the Holy Spirit and three of uncertain dedication (they may be scriptural crosses). The site was envisaged as a double circle with crosses inside and out of the circular enclosures.

The remains of the High Cross

There is no doubt about it, this is a beautiful spot and on a sunny afternoon it is very easy to soak up its peace. On the far side of the hill the River Barrow winds its way gracefully past the lines of trees while people sip hot drinks and chatter alongside the birdsong. It is a hidden gem and a very beautiful well, truly worth the journey.

Down by the River Barrow

O Lord, lead me in your river of life. Teach me to trust in your stream of grace. May I never fight your current of love, but come instead into the steady flow of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ who with you and the Holy Spirit, live and reign now and for ever.

Amen.

How to find it:

The site is very clearly signposted in St Mullins in County Carlow. The holy well is in the valley where the car park is. Across the road you can see a stream and a small, narrow path. Following this path you come to a small stone building with no roof, and directly above this up on the bank is the holy well. The rest of the St Mullins site is on the top of the hill and the River Barrow is down the other side.

Saint James' Cell