School of Derry
FREE Catholic Classes
This was the first foundation of St. Columba, the great Apostle of Scotland, and one of the three patron saints of Ireland. When a terrible plague, known as the Buidhe Connaill or the Yellow Plague, dispersed the monks of the monastery of Glasnevin in the year 544, Columba instinctively turned his footsteps towards his native territory, and, full of the spirit of monasticism, bethought himself of founding his first monastery there, amongst his own kith and kin. An excellent site of 200 acres was offered to him by his princely cousin, Aedh, son of Ainmire, and the necessary permission of his master, St. Mobhi Clarainech, given with his dying breath, was immediately forthcoming. And so, a few miles from Ailech, "the stone-hill fortress of the Hy-Neill", and close beside a beautiful oak grove which gave the place its name — Doire Colgaigh, or the oak wood of Colgagh — Columba built his church and several cells for his first monks and disciples. This, according to the "Annals of Ulster", was in the year 545 (correctly, 546). Students both clerical and lay flocked hither from all sides attracted by the immediate fame of the new school, and the character of its founder. For several years Columba himself guided its destinies, and then, in pursuance of his apostolic vocation, he left to establish and govern the second of his great schools amid the oak woods of Durrow in the King's County. But whether in Derry or away from it, in Durrow or Kells, or in distant Iona, the saint's heart was ever with his first foundation, and often in the tenderest poetry he poured out his love for "My Derry, mine own little grove", with its "crowds of white angels from one end to the other".
For centuries after Columba's death the Derry continued to flourish, and in the twelfth century, it was said to be the most important of the Columban foundations in Ireland. To this period, the most glorious of its history, belong the names of several members of the illustrious family of Brolchain — saints, scholars, and builders — as well as that of the illustrious Gelasius, successor of St. Malachy in the primacy of Ireland. Like all similar institutions it suffered severely from the ravages of the Danes. It survived these, to disappear completely, however, in the general devastation of monasteries that took place in Ireland in the sixteenth century. (See COLUMBA, SAINT.)
Join the Movement
When you sign up below, you don't just join an email list - you're joining an entire movement for Free world class Catholic education.
-
Mysteries of the Rosary
-
St. Faustina Kowalska
-
Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary
-
Saint of the Day for Wednesday, Oct 4th, 2023
-
Popular Saints
-
St. Francis of Assisi
-
Bible
-
Female / Women Saints
-
7 Morning Prayers you need to get your day started with God
-
Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary
From Fields to Factories: How Petrochemical Giants Shaped Modern Agriculture
-
Jesus Christ and the Founding of the Catholic Church: The Papacy, the Bible, and the Real Presence ...
-
What is the Catechism of the Catholic Church?
-
What is Purgatory? A Catholic Perspective
-
Mission San Luis Rey de Francia: Agricultural and Ranching Powerhouse
Daily Catholic
- Daily Readings for Wednesday, October 16, 2024
- St. Gerard Majella: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, October 16, 2024
- Shine Through Me: Prayer of the Day for Wednesday, October 16, 2024
- Daily Readings for Tuesday, October 15, 2024
- St. Teresa of Avila: Saint of the Day for Tuesday, October 15, 2024
- St. Teresa of Avila: Prayer of the Day for Tuesday, October 15, 2024
Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.
Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.