Gelasius Ó Cuileanáin was a martyred Cistercian Abbot of Boyle

Boyle, County Roscommon

Boyle is a town in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is located at the foot of the Curlew Mountains near Lough Key in the north of the county. Carrowkeel Megalithic Cemetery, the Drumanone Dolmen and the popular fishing lakes of Lough Arrow and Lough Gara are also close by...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

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Biography

He was born probably near Assaroe Abbey, at Ballyshannon

Ballyshannon

Ballyshannon is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located where the N3 and N15 cross the River Erne, and claims to be the oldest town in Ireland.-Location:...

, County Donegal

County Donegal

County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...

; martyred, 21 November 1580. Three of his brothers were Cistercian abbots, and a fourth Bishop of Raphoe

Bishop of Raphoe

The Bishop of Raphoe is an episcopal title which takes its name after the town of Raphoe in County Donegal, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with another bishopric.-History:...

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Gelasius, the eldest, studied at Salamanca University in Spain, went thence to Paris where he took his doctorate at the Sorbonne

Sorbonne

The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...

, made his monastic profession, and was created Abbot of Boyle, County Roscommon

County Roscommon

County Roscommon is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the town of Roscommon. Roscommon County Council is the local authority for the county...

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This abbey had been confiscated and granted to Cusack

Cusack

Cusack is an Irish family name of Norman origin, originally from Cussac in Guienne , France. The surname died out in England, but is common in Ireland, where it was imported at the time of the Norman invasion of Ireland in the 12th century....

, Sheriff

Sheriff

A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....

 of Meath

County Meath

County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...

; but the Irish regulars continued to appoint superiors to the suppressed houses. The young abbot went immediately to Ireland and is said to have obtained restoration of his abbey. He was, however, seized at Dublin by the Government and imprisoned with Eugene O'Mulkeeran, Abbot of Holy Trinity at Lough Key

Lough Key

Lough Key is a lake in Ireland. It is located in the northwest of County Roscommon, northeast of the town of Boyle. The lough's name is believed to come from Cé, a druid; the lake was formed over his grave.-Derivation of name:...

. Refusing to conform, they were tortured and finally hanged outside Dublin, 21 November 1580. O'Cullenan's body was spared mutilation through his friends' intercession. His clothes were divided as a martyr's relics among the Catholics.

Sources

• http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11205a.htm