Bartholomew MacCarthy
Encyclopedia
Bartholomew MacCarthy was a scholar and chronologist who wrote extensively on Early Irish literature
.
He was educated at Mount Melleray Seminary
, County Waterford
, and at St Colman's College, Fermoy, Co. Cork, afterwards studying at Rome, where he was ordained in 1869. On his return to Ireland he was appointed professor of Classics
at St. Colman's, where he remained about three years. He then went as curate
to Mitchelstown
(where he was at the time of a massacre in 1887), and afterwards to Macroom
and Youghal
. In 1895 he was appointed parish priest of Inniscarra, near Cork, where he died. A few months before his death, he had been chosen by the Government on the recommendation of the Council of the Royal Irish Academy to edit the Annals of Tighearnach. He often spoke critically of his predecessors, for instance of John Colgan
, the O'Clerys, Eugene O'Curry
, etc., and of contemporary scholars. A letter of his criticising a favourable review of John Salmon's Ancient Irish Church as a Witness to Catholic Doctrine in the Irish Ecclesiastical Record (August, 1897, 166-170) led to a controversy between these two Catholic scholars, which was carried on in that periodical the following year.
Early Irish literature
-The earliest Irish authors:It is unclear when literacy first came to Ireland. The earliest Irish writings are inscriptions, mostly simple memorials, on stone in the ogham alphabet, the earliest of which date to the fourth century...
.
He was educated at Mount Melleray Seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
, County Waterford
County Waterford
*Abbeyside, Affane, Aglish, Annestown, An Rinn, Ardmore*Ballinacourty, Ballinameela, Ballinamult, Ballinroad, Ballybeg, Ballybricken, Ballyduff Lower, Ballyduff Upper, Ballydurn, Ballygunner, Ballylaneen, Ballymacarbry, Ballymacart, Ballynaneashagh, Ballysaggart, Ballytruckle, Bilberry, Bunmahon,...
, and at St Colman's College, Fermoy, Co. Cork, afterwards studying at Rome, where he was ordained in 1869. On his return to Ireland he was appointed professor of Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
at St. Colman's, where he remained about three years. He then went as curate
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
to Mitchelstown
Mitchelstown
Mitchelstown is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of approximately 3300. Mitchelstown is situated in the valley to the south of the Galtee Mountains close to the Mitchelstown Caves and is 28 km from Cahir, 50 km from Cork and 59 km from Limerick...
(where he was at the time of a massacre in 1887), and afterwards to Macroom
Macroom
Macroom is a market town in Ireland located in a valley on the River Sullane, a tributary of the River Lee, between Cork and Killarney. It is one of the key gateways to the tourist region of West Cork. The town recorded a population on 3,553 in the 2006 national census...
and Youghal
Youghal
Youghal is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Sitting on the estuary of the River Blackwater, in the past it was militarily and economically important. Being built on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a distinctive long and narrow layout...
. In 1895 he was appointed parish priest of Inniscarra, near Cork, where he died. A few months before his death, he had been chosen by the Government on the recommendation of the Council of the Royal Irish Academy to edit the Annals of Tighearnach. He often spoke critically of his predecessors, for instance of John Colgan
John Colgan
John Colgan was an Irish hagiographer and historian.-Life:...
, the O'Clerys, Eugene O'Curry
Eugene O'Curry
-Life:He was born at Doonaha, near Carrigaholt, County Clare, the son of Eoghan Ó Comhraí, a farmer, and his wife Cáit. Eoghan had spent some time as a travelling pedlar and had developed an interest in Irish folklore and music. Unusually for someone of his background, he appears to have been...
, etc., and of contemporary scholars. A letter of his criticising a favourable review of John Salmon's Ancient Irish Church as a Witness to Catholic Doctrine in the Irish Ecclesiastical Record (August, 1897, 166-170) led to a controversy between these two Catholic scholars, which was carried on in that periodical the following year.
Published works
- Essays on various Early Irish Ecclesiastical Fragments, written while he was in Rome and published mostly anonymously in the Irish Ecclesiastical Record (1864 sqq.)
- The Stowe Missal, perhaps his best-known work, published in the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, XXVII (1886), 135-268, in which he establishes the date of Moelchaich's recension as about 750 or at least the eighth century, and proves that the so-called Middle Irish corruptions can be paralleled from old Irish manuscripts, none of which are later than the ninth century; he also separates the earlier portion of the text into (a) the original Mass, dating from at least A.D. 500, called "Missa Patricii" in the Book of ArmaghBook of ArmaghThe Book of Armagh or Codex Ardmachanus , also known as the Canon of Patrick and the Liber Armachanus, is a 9th-century Irish manuscript written mainly in Latin. It is held by the Library of Trinity College, Dublin...
(A.D. 807), and (b) later augments and Roman contents. - Four Dissertations on the Codex Palatino-Vaticanus, No. 830 (Chronica Mariani Scotti), published in the Todd Lecture Series of the Royal Irish AcademyRoyal Irish AcademyThe Royal Irish Academy , based in Dublin, is an all-Ireland, independent, academic body that promotes study and excellence in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is one of Ireland's premier learned societies and cultural institutions and currently has around 420 Members, elected in...
, III (1892), illustrated by studies on Old Irish MetricMeter (poetry)In poetry, metre is the basic rhythmic structure of a verse or lines in verse. Many traditional verse forms prescribe a specific verse metre, or a certain set of metres alternating in a particular order. The study of metres and forms of versification is known as prosody...
, the Synchronisms from the Book of BallymoteBook of BallymoteThe Book of Ballymote , named for the parish of Ballymote, County Sligo, was written in 1390 or 1391....
, Paschal computationsComputusComputus is the calculation of the date of Easter in the Christian calendar. The name has been used for this procedure since the early Middle Ages, as it was one of the most important computations of the age....
, and various Irish historical documents. - New Textual Studies on the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick, published in the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, XXIX, 183 sqq., in which he proves that portion of the material of the Vita Tripartita must date back to the middle of the sixth century.
- The Annals of Ulster. On the death of William M. Hennessey, Dr. MacCarthy was asked by the Government to continue the editing of this collection of Irish Annals in the Rolls SeriesRolls SeriesThe Rolls Series, official title The Chronicles and Memorials of Great Britain and Ireland during the Middle Ages, is a major collection of British and Irish historical materials and primary sources, published in the second half of the 19th century. Some 255 volumes, representing 99 separate...
. He published vols. II (1893), III (1895), and IV (1901). In the introduction to the fourth and final volume of these annals he deals in detail of various questions connected with the history of chronology among the nations of western Europe. These include discussions of the ancient Paschal cyclePaschal cycleThe Paschal cycle in the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, is the cycle of the moveable feasts built around Pascha . The cycle consists of approximately ten weeks before and seven weeks after Pascha. The ten weeks before Pascha are known as the period of the Triodion...
of 84 years and other Paschal computations in vogue in Ireland, the origin of A.D. dating in Irish annals, the methods of rectifying errors in the same, and the history of the various British or Irish falsifications which appeared during the disputes regarding EasterEasterEaster is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
in the insular churches of the West, such as the Acts of Caesarea, the Athanasian Tractate, the Book of Anatolius, and the "Epistle" of Cyril of AlexandriaCyril of AlexandriaCyril of Alexandria was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444. He came to power when the city was at its height of influence and power within the Roman Empire. Cyril wrote extensively and was a leading protagonist in the Christological controversies of the later 4th and 5th centuries...
. MacCarthy was recognized as an authority on the Paschal question.