27-628: Lickbla (pronounced Lick-blay, in Irish: Leicc Bladma meaning "Bladma's Leacht or Hearth") , is a historic monument, civil parish , religious parish, and townland, in County Westmeath , Ireland. It is located about 23.05 kilometres (14 mi) north of Mullingar . St. Bladma is listed in the Martyrology of Oengus (died 11 March 824) as a saint: " Bladma, i.e. from Blad son of Conmac Cas Clothach, grandson of Tachall son of Cermait, son of
54-833: A bridge over the River Glore (running from Lough Glore to the River Inney) as evidenced by Ordnance Survey maps of circa 1900. Currently, the graveyard is heavily overgrown and the church is poorly preserved. The present owner is Westmeath County Council following divestment from the Church of Ireland, following disestablishment, in 1870. Leacht A leacht (plural: leachta ) is a small square or rectangular stone structure often found in Early Irish Christian places of worship. They are typically made from rough, un mortared stones, and are most often found in monasteries on islands off
81-470: A period in the house. There was a very considerable clearance of forests in the early part of the period, such that by the 9th century, large tracts of forest appear to have been rare, and the native Scots pine cleared almost to extinction; the large areas of bogland were harder for the medieval Irish to affect. By 800, small towns had started to form around some of the larger monasteries, such as Trim and Lismore , and some kings were based in them, but
108-436: A river flood plain, also bisected by a mill-race, and may have consisted of a rocky outcrop making it a significant landmark prior to the monument's construction. If such a rocky outcrop exists under the ruins and graveyard, this would have given rise to the name "Leicc" or stone/hearth. The "present remains consist of a nave and chancel church with post medieval entrance gate inserted into E end of S wall of chancel when chancel
135-483: A ruined medieval 'barn' church aligned towards east south east (rather than due east) surrounded by an ovoid graveyard possibly set within a larger earlier enclosure. The medieval church, most likely constructed in the 13th century as part of the newly formed manor of Lickbla, dedicated the Blessed Virgin Mary, was in use until the early modern era. It is set on a small hill at the crossing of the River Glore within
162-571: Is now clear that cereal farming was increasingly important from about AD 200 onwards, with barley and oats more important crops than rye , wheat and others. Cattle were greatly prized, and cattle-raiding constituted a large part of warfare, so cattle needed the constant presence of a herdsman in daylight hours and were put in an enclosure at night. By the end of the period, the largest herds were probably those of monasteries. Generally, mild Irish winters seem to have meant they were never put in roofed shelters in winter, although young calves might spend
189-438: Is well documented, at least for later periods, but these sources are not easy to interpret. Many questions remain unanswered and the study of early Christian Ireland continues to produce new theories and new discoveries. Since the later 19th century, when scholars such as Kuno Meyer and Whitley Stokes applied an increasingly rigorous approach to the study of written sources, a great deal of new information has been extracted from
216-516: The Book of Kells , brooches, which were worn by clergy as well as nobles, carved stone high crosses , and other isolated survivals of metalwork, such as the Derrynaflan and Ardagh Hoards . Recorded Irish history begins with the introduction of Christianity and Latin literacy, beginning in the 5th century or possibly slightly before. When compared to neighbouring Insular societies, early Christian Ireland
243-650: The 5th to 8th centuries, from the gradual emergence out of the protohistoric period ( Ogham inscriptions in Primitive Irish , mentions in Greco-Roman ethnography ) to the beginning of the Viking Age . The period includes the Hiberno-Scottish mission of Christianised Ireland to regions of pagan Great Britain and the spread of Irish cultural influence to Continental Europe . Early Christian Ireland began after
270-672: The 7th century on, Irish churchmen such as Columbanus and Columba were active in Gaul , in Scotland and in Anglo-Saxon England . The mixing of Irish, Pictish , Anglo-Saxon and even Byzantine styles created the Insular style of art, represented by the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells . Ireland's reputation for scholarship was such that many scholars travelled from Britain and
297-818: The Dagda, a quo nominatur. Or Blad son of Breogan, a quo Sliab Bladma " whose feastday is 7 April and 20 November. The civil parish of Lickbla is one of 8 civil parishes in the barony of Fore in the Province of Leinster . The civil parish covers 8,819.5 acres (35.691 km). Lickbla civil parish comprises 24 townlands: Ardnagross , Ballynagall , Ballynagall Little , Ballynameagh , Balrath , Bigwood , Camagh , Carlanstown , Castletown Lower , Castletown Upper , Clonrobert , Clonsura , Curry , Derrycrave , Doon , Gilbertstown , Lickbla, Littlewood , Martinstown , Mullagh , Newcastle , Rathcreevagh , Robinstown and Rochestown . The neighbouring civil parishes are: Foyran to
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#1732858417164324-724: The European mainland to study in Irish schools. Eoin MacNeill identified the "oldest certain fact in the political history of Ireland" as the existence in late prehistory of a pentarchy, probably consisting of the cóiceda or "fifths" of the Ulaid (Ulster), the Connachta (Connacht), the Laigin (Leinster), Mumu ( Munster ) and Mide (Meath), although some accounts discount Mide and split Mumu in two. However, by
351-563: The barbarian island Christian", although it is clear the Christianisation of the island was a longer and more gradual process. The mission of Saint Patrick is traditionally dated around the same time – the earliest date for his arrival in Ireland in the Irish annals is 432 – although Patrick's own writings contain nothing securely dateable. It is likely that Palladius' activities were in
378-665: The centre and the Uí Néill kingdom of Ailech in the west of the old province. Early Irish annals also show regular warfare between the Uí Néill and the Laigin in the midlands, with the Uí Néill conquering as far south as the Kildare / Offaly border, and claiming the kingship of Tara , beginning to be conceptualised as the High Kingship of Ireland . This led to a new division of the country into two halves, Leth Cuinn , "Conn's half" after Conn of
405-513: The chancel arch survives on the S side. A low stone wall running across this opening was built in the post-medieval period blocking access from the nave into the chancel. Possible remains of a broken out window in NE corner of chancel. According to Cogan (1867, 400) the parish of Lickbla was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin and formed part of the monastic estate of Fore abbey (WM004-035010-). Cogan described
432-438: The church ruins of Lickbla as following; ‘the old church measured fifty-five feet seven inches (16.75m) by eighteen feet six-inches (5.6m)’ (ibid.)" As with Foyran and Rathgarve, the current extant remains are of an early medieval church set within a possible earlier early Christian enclosure, adjoined by a motte & bailey. Lickbla, in addition is located near the ruins of a medieval mill/castle complex which would have included
459-514: The country emerged from a mysterious decline in population and standards of living that archaeological evidence suggests lasted from c. 100 to 300 AD. During this period, called the Irish Dark Age by Thomas Charles-Edwards , the population was entirely rural and dispersed, with small ringforts the largest centres of human occupation. Some 40,000 of these are known, although there may have been as many as 50,000, and "archaeologists are agreed that
486-662: The dawn of history this pentarchy no longer existed. The rise of new dynasties, notably the Uí Néill in the north and midlands and the Eóganachta in the south-west, changed the political landscape. The Uí Néill, or their parent group the Connachta, reduced the former fifth of the Ulaid to counties Down and Antrim in the 4th or 5th centuries, establishing the tributary kingdom of the Airgíalla in
513-414: The first Christian High King. The monastic movement, headed by abbots, took hold in the mid 6th century, and by 700 Ireland was at least nominally a Christian country, with the church fully part of Irish society. The status of ecclesiastics was regulated by secular law, and many leading ecclesiastics came from aristocratic Irish families. Monasteries in the 8th century even went to war with each other. From
540-467: The foundation of larger towns by the Vikings had yet to occur. Otherwise, kings lived in ringforts larger than the norm, but generally similar; however the possession of luxury objects such as elaborate Celtic brooches was much greater among royalty. The latter part of the period was the peak of the Irish contribution to Insular art , whose surviving products include illuminated manuscripts , most famously
567-470: The north, Rathgarve to the east and south, Mayne to the south, Street to the south and west and Abbeylara ( County Longford ) to the west. The religious parish was subsumed into Castlepollard Parish (St. Michael), and existed as a 'vicarage' and is listed as having tithe evaluation in 1837 of "£276 18s. 5 ½d. of which £123 1s. 6d. is payable to the impropriator, and the remainder to the vicar (of Castlepollard)" The present historic monument consists of
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#1732858417164594-420: The south of Ireland, perhaps associated with Cashel , while Patrick's were later, in the north, and associated with Armagh . By the early 6th century the church had developed separate dioceses, with bishops as the most senior ecclesiastical figures, but the country was still predominantly pagan. The High Kings of Ireland continued pagan practices until the reign of Diarmait mac Cerbaill c. 558, traditionally
621-598: The vast bulk of them are the farm enclosures of the well-to-do of early medieval Ireland". These commonly featured souterrains : underground passages and chambers for hiding in or escaping through. It is likely that raiding Great Britain for slaves and other loot gave an important boost to an otherwise almost entirely agricultural economy. The lakeside enclosures called crannógs continued to be used and seem especially associated with crafts. The older view that early medieval Irish farming concentrated on livestock has been overturned by pollen studies and other evidence, and it
648-615: The west coast of Ireland. Their precise function is unknown, they may have been erected to mark burial places (a number contain human remains), or to honor a saint, or for use as an altar or place of prayer. Because they are so perishable and easily destroyed, their original density and distribution is unknown. The best known examples are found on the islands of Skellig Michael and Illauntannig , both off County Kerry, and Inishmurray off County Sligo . History of Ireland (400%E2%80%93800) The early medieval history of Ireland , often referred to as Early Christian Ireland , spans
675-400: The window which was possibly inserted into the window in the late 16th/ early 17th century. The interior of the chancel which is smaller in width than the nave was converted into a private burial area in the 19th century if not earlier. Inside the chancel in front of the E window there is the headstone of Reverend John Murray, priest of Castlepollard who died in 1805. Only the springing stones of
702-561: The written material. New fields, such as paleobotany , have contributed to the debate, while the volume of archaeological evidence has increased. The first reliable historical event in Irish history, recorded in the Chronicle of Prosper of Aquitaine , is the ordination by Pope Celestine I of Palladius as the first bishop to Irish Christians in 431 – which demonstrates that there were already Christians living in Ireland. Prosper says in his Contra Collatorem that by this act Celestine "made
729-465: Was converted into private burial area by the Nugent family. The walls of the church are built with coursed rubble with base batter visible on the east gable of church which survives to full height and contains a single light round-headed window with hollowed recessed spandrels and square hood-moulding above. The punch dressed jambs with glazing grooves of the medieval window do not match the round headed arch of
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