St. Audoen's Church
Encyclopedia
St. Audoen's Church is the church of the parish
of St. Audoen in the Church of Ireland
, located south of the River Liffey at Cornmarket in Dublin, Ireland
. This was close to the centre of the medieval city. The parish is in the Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough
. St. Audoen's is the oldest parish church in Dublin and still used as such. There is a Roman Catholic church of the same name adjacent called St Audoen's Catholic Church, Dublin.
(Normandy), a saint who lived in the seventh century and was dedicated to him by the Anglo-Normans, who arrived in Dublin after 1172. It was erected in 1190, possibly on the site of an older church dedicated to St. Columcille
, dating to the seventh century. Shortly afterwards the nave was lengthened (but also made narrower) and a century later a chancel
was added.
In 1430 King Henry VI
authorised the erection of a chantry
here, to be dedicated to St. Anne. Its founders and successors were to be called the Guild or Fraternity of St. Anne, usually called Saint Anne's Guild
. Six separate altars were set up in this chapel and were in constant use, financed by the wealthier parishioners. In 1485 Sir Roland Fitz-Eustace
, Earl Portlester, erected a new chapel next to the nave, in gratitude for his preservation from shipwreck near the site.
The turbulent events of the 16th century had its effects on the upkeep of the church and in 1630 the church was declared to be in a decrepit state. The Archbishop, Lancelot Bulkeley
, complained that "there is a guild there called St. Anne's Guild that hath swallowed upp all the church meanes" (although chantries and guilds were suppressed during the Reformation in England and their property taken over by the king, in Ireland they survived, with varying vicissitudes, for many years).
Strenuous efforts were made over the next few years to repair the roof, steeple and pillars of the building, and the guild was ordered to contribute its share. Funds were low - there were only sixteen Protestant houses in the parish. In 1671 Michael Boyle, Archbishop of Dublin, ordered the "annoyance of the buttermilke market" under St. Audoen's to be closed. In 1673 an order was made to remove the tombs and tombstones from the church "to preserve the living from being injured by the dead". St. Anne's Guild, which had managed to secret away its extensive properties after the Reformation, and which had remained under Roman Catholic control, never did give up its holdings, despite several investigations and court orders lasting until 1702.
Although many repairs were carried out to the church and tower over the centuries, finance for the maintenance of the structures was always a problem, particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries. By 1825, the church building itself was in a ruinous state (as reported by G. N. Wright
) and "very few Protestants" remained in the parish. As the finance to carry out substantial repairs was not available, parts of the church were closed off or unroofed. As a consequence many ancient tombs gradually crumbled and memorials were removed or rendered illegible by exposure to the weather.
) in a "college" adjoining the church.
In 1467 St. Audoen's was made a prebendary of St. Patrick's Cathedral
by Archbishop Michael Tregury
.
In July 1536 George Browne
arrived in Ireland as Archbishop of Dublin, and a few years later he energetically pushed through the wishes of Henry VIII to be recognized as supreme head of the Irish church. About 1544 the vicar of St. Audoen's became the nominee of the Crown. In 1547 the assets of the parish were appropriated by the state church that was established following the English Reformation
(more particularly the Tudor conquest of Ireland).
Queen Mary I
, soon after her accession in 1553, restored by Charter the Cathedral of St. Patrick. The Prebendary of St. Audoen named in this Charter of Restoration was, in 1555, Robert Daly. However, when Queen Elizabeth I
ascended the throne she nominated him Bishop of Kildare
. From then on, all Roman Catholic ceremonies in the church ceased.
After the Reformation the majority of parishioners remained loyal to the Roman Catholic church, and in 1615 a new Roman Catholic parish of St. Audoen's was established. However the Catholics were obliged to hold their services in secret, mainly in nearby Cook Street. Later in the century celebration of Mass was forbidden and bishops and priests deported, imprisoned or executed. This troubled period for Catholics lasted until the beginning of the 19th century. Meanwhile the now Protestant church and parish of St. Audoen had to struggle through the seventeenth century and began to decline. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, following a trend in several inner-city parishes, many of the wealthy parish residents moved out to the suburbs, a process that was hastened by the Act of Union
. Poor Catholics then moved into the houses thus vacated, which were turned into tenements.
In 1813 the population of the parish was 1,993 males and 2,674 females, the majority of whom were Roman Catholics.
was the first to draw serious attention to the importance of the church, architecturally and historically, in 1866. He produced detailed plans of the church for which he won an award from the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland, carried out excavations and drew up a paper on the church and its history. In a booklet published in 1873 the rector Alexander Leeper urged reroofing and restoration of the church.
In the 1980s an extensive restoration of the tower and bells was carried out. A few years later St. Anne's chapel, which had lost its roof and many monuments, was re-roofed and converted to a visitor reception centre, which included an exhibition on the history of the church.
During conservation works starting in 1996 an extensive excavation of a small section of the church was carried out, which cast new light on the early days of the church. This contributed greatly to an understanding of the building history of the church. The detailed results of this study were published in book form in 2006.
In the porch of the western door lie the fifteenth-century monuments of Sir Roland Fitz-Eustace
, Earl Portlester, who died in 1496, and his wife, Margaret. Fitz-Eustace was Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
, then Lord Chancellor and finally High Treasurer. His refusal to surrender this last post led to a break with the king and almost to civil war. He was buried at Cotlandstown, County Kildare.
Among those buried in the church are Sir Thomas Molyneux
, his son Capel
, and brother William Molyneux
, Edward Parry
, the Bishop of Killaloe and his sons John Parry
and Benjamin Parry
, successive bishops of Ossory, and Lady Frances Brudenell
.
During excavations in the 19th century an Anglo-Norman font, dating to the 12th century, was found and is now on display in the church.
The tower houses six bells, three of which are Ireland's oldest bells, dating from 1423. The bells were rung for the Angelus
and after the Reformation continued to be rung every morning and evening to call the people to and from their work. Due to the fragile state of the tower they were not pealed between 1898 and 1983. After the tower was strengthened the bells were retuned in 1983. One of them, the tenor, was recast in memory of Alexander E. Donovan (1908-1982), who was closely connected with the church. They are now pealed every week.
The present clock on the church tower came from St. Peter's Church
in Aungier Street, after this church was demolished in the 1980s. The clock face dates from the 1820s.
, Bath, Blakeney, Browne, Cusack, Desminier, Fagan, Foster, Fyan, Gifford, Gilbert, Malone, Mapas, Molesworth, Penteny, Perceval, Quinn, Talbot and Ussher. The Curate-assistant Christopher Teeling McCready (died 1913) collected detailed genealogies of these families in seven hand-written volumes, which are now in Marsh's Library
.
In the 1640s, at the time of the Catholic Confederate Rebellion
, the burghers of the city could see from the church tower the fires of their opponents burning in the distance.
In 1733 a popular Alderman, Humphrey Frend, was returned at an election by a large majority, and two barrels of pitch were burned as celebration at the top of St. Audoen's tower.
The United Irishman Oliver Bond
was born in the parish, and was elected Minister's Churchwarden of the church in 1787. Another United Irishman whose family had a long association with the church was James Napper Tandy, born at Cornmarket about 1740. He was a churchwarden of the church in 1765 and played a significant role in the life of the city before the Act of Union in 1801.
In 1793 a petition was sent from the vestry, requesting the removal of the police on the grounds of expense and inefficiency, and for the return of the night watchman originally appointed by the parish.
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of St. Audoen in the Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
, located south of the River Liffey at Cornmarket in Dublin, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. This was close to the centre of the medieval city. The parish is in the Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough
Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough
The United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough is a diocese of the Church of Ireland in the east of Ireland. It is headed by the Archbishop of Dublin who is also styled the Primate of Ireland...
. St. Audoen's is the oldest parish church in Dublin and still used as such. There is a Roman Catholic church of the same name adjacent called St Audoen's Catholic Church, Dublin.
The church
The church is named after St. Ouen (or Audoen) of RouenRouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
(Normandy), a saint who lived in the seventh century and was dedicated to him by the Anglo-Normans, who arrived in Dublin after 1172. It was erected in 1190, possibly on the site of an older church dedicated to St. Columcille
Columba
Saint Columba —also known as Colum Cille , Colm Cille , Calum Cille and Kolban or Kolbjørn —was a Gaelic Irish missionary monk who propagated Christianity among the Picts during the Early Medieval Period...
, dating to the seventh century. Shortly afterwards the nave was lengthened (but also made narrower) and a century later a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
was added.
In 1430 King Henry VI
Henry VI of England
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...
authorised the erection of a chantry
Chantry
Chantry is the English term for a fund established to pay for a priest to celebrate sung Masses for a specified purpose, generally for the soul of the deceased donor. Chantries were endowed with lands given by donors, the income from which maintained the chantry priest...
here, to be dedicated to St. Anne. Its founders and successors were to be called the Guild or Fraternity of St. Anne, usually called Saint Anne's Guild
Saint Anne's Guild
Saint Anne's Guild was one of the medieval religious guilds or associations of the City of Dublin, Ireland. It is most noteworthy for the considerable documentary evidence extant and for having survived as a Catholic lay association until the eighteenth century, despite severe persecution by...
. Six separate altars were set up in this chapel and were in constant use, financed by the wealthier parishioners. In 1485 Sir Roland Fitz-Eustace
Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester
Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester was an Irish peer and judge.FitzEustace was the son of Sir Edward FitzEustace of Castlemartin, Lord Deputy of Ireland. He was appointed Lord Chancellor of Ireland and Lord Treasurer of Ireland by Henry VI of England in 1474 and was elevated to the Irish...
, Earl Portlester, erected a new chapel next to the nave, in gratitude for his preservation from shipwreck near the site.
The turbulent events of the 16th century had its effects on the upkeep of the church and in 1630 the church was declared to be in a decrepit state. The Archbishop, Lancelot Bulkeley
Lancelot Bulkeley
-Life:He was the eleventh and youngest son of Sir Richard Bulkeley of Beaumaris and Cheadle, but the eldest by his second wife, Agnes, daughter of Thomas Needham of Stenton. He was thus half-brother of Sir Richard Bulkeley. He entered at the beginning of 1587 as commoner Brasenose College, Oxford,...
, complained that "there is a guild there called St. Anne's Guild that hath swallowed upp all the church meanes" (although chantries and guilds were suppressed during the Reformation in England and their property taken over by the king, in Ireland they survived, with varying vicissitudes, for many years).
Strenuous efforts were made over the next few years to repair the roof, steeple and pillars of the building, and the guild was ordered to contribute its share. Funds were low - there were only sixteen Protestant houses in the parish. In 1671 Michael Boyle, Archbishop of Dublin, ordered the "annoyance of the buttermilke market" under St. Audoen's to be closed. In 1673 an order was made to remove the tombs and tombstones from the church "to preserve the living from being injured by the dead". St. Anne's Guild, which had managed to secret away its extensive properties after the Reformation, and which had remained under Roman Catholic control, never did give up its holdings, despite several investigations and court orders lasting until 1702.
Although many repairs were carried out to the church and tower over the centuries, finance for the maintenance of the structures was always a problem, particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries. By 1825, the church building itself was in a ruinous state (as reported by G. N. Wright
George Newenham Wright
George Newenham Wright, , was an Irish writer and Anglican clergyman. He was born in Dublin; his father, John Thomas was a doctor. He graduated B.A. from Trinity College in 1814 and M.A. in 1817...
) and "very few Protestants" remained in the parish. As the finance to carry out substantial repairs was not available, parts of the church were closed off or unroofed. As a consequence many ancient tombs gradually crumbled and memorials were removed or rendered illegible by exposure to the weather.
The parish
St. Audoen's parish was once the most wealthy within the city and the church was for hundreds of years frequented on state occasions by the Lord Mayor and Corporation. At its heyday, the church was closely connected with the Guilds of the city and "was accounted the best in Dublin for the greater number of Aldermen and Worships of the city living in the Parish" (Richard Stanihurst, 1568). The Tanners' Guild was located in the tower and the Bakers' Guild (Saint Anne's GuildSaint Anne's Guild
Saint Anne's Guild was one of the medieval religious guilds or associations of the City of Dublin, Ireland. It is most noteworthy for the considerable documentary evidence extant and for having survived as a Catholic lay association until the eighteenth century, despite severe persecution by...
) in a "college" adjoining the church.
In 1467 St. Audoen's was made a prebendary of St. Patrick's Cathedral
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Cathedral , or more formally, the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Patrick is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland which was founded in 1191. The Church has designated it as The National Cathedral of Ireland...
by Archbishop Michael Tregury
Michael Tregury
Michael Tregury was born in the parish of St Wenn in Cornwall. He was educated at the University of Oxford, and was at some time Fellow of Exeter College, Oxford. He was Archdeacon of Barnstaple from 1445 to 1449. He was consecrated in St. Patrick's church and was Archbishop of Dublin from 1450 to...
.
In July 1536 George Browne
George Browne (archbishop of Dublin)
George Browne D.D. was an English Augustinian who was appointed by Henry VIII of England to the vacant Episcopal see of Dublin. He became the king's main instrument in his desire to establish the state church in the Kingdom of Ireland.-Life:...
arrived in Ireland as Archbishop of Dublin, and a few years later he energetically pushed through the wishes of Henry VIII to be recognized as supreme head of the Irish church. About 1544 the vicar of St. Audoen's became the nominee of the Crown. In 1547 the assets of the parish were appropriated by the state church that was established following the English Reformation
English Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
(more particularly the Tudor conquest of Ireland).
Queen Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
, soon after her accession in 1553, restored by Charter the Cathedral of St. Patrick. The Prebendary of St. Audoen named in this Charter of Restoration was, in 1555, Robert Daly. However, when Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
ascended the throne she nominated him Bishop of Kildare
Bishop of Kildare
The Bishop of Kildare was an episcopal title which took its name after the town of Kildare in County Kildare, Ireland. The title is no longer in use by any of the main Christian churches having been united with other bishoprics. In the Roman Catholic Church, the title has been merged with that of...
. From then on, all Roman Catholic ceremonies in the church ceased.
After the Reformation the majority of parishioners remained loyal to the Roman Catholic church, and in 1615 a new Roman Catholic parish of St. Audoen's was established. However the Catholics were obliged to hold their services in secret, mainly in nearby Cook Street. Later in the century celebration of Mass was forbidden and bishops and priests deported, imprisoned or executed. This troubled period for Catholics lasted until the beginning of the 19th century. Meanwhile the now Protestant church and parish of St. Audoen had to struggle through the seventeenth century and began to decline. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, following a trend in several inner-city parishes, many of the wealthy parish residents moved out to the suburbs, a process that was hastened by the Act of Union
Act of Union 1800
The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...
. Poor Catholics then moved into the houses thus vacated, which were turned into tenements.
In 1813 the population of the parish was 1,993 males and 2,674 females, the majority of whom were Roman Catholics.
Restoration
The architect Thomas DrewSir Thomas Drew
Sir Thomas Drew was an Irish architect.Thomas Drew was born in Victoria Place, Belfast.He was trained under Sir Charles Lanyon before moving to work in Dublin, where he became principal assistant to William George Murray...
was the first to draw serious attention to the importance of the church, architecturally and historically, in 1866. He produced detailed plans of the church for which he won an award from the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland, carried out excavations and drew up a paper on the church and its history. In a booklet published in 1873 the rector Alexander Leeper urged reroofing and restoration of the church.
In the 1980s an extensive restoration of the tower and bells was carried out. A few years later St. Anne's chapel, which had lost its roof and many monuments, was re-roofed and converted to a visitor reception centre, which included an exhibition on the history of the church.
During conservation works starting in 1996 an extensive excavation of a small section of the church was carried out, which cast new light on the early days of the church. This contributed greatly to an understanding of the building history of the church. The detailed results of this study were published in book form in 2006.
Memorials
In the main porch is stored an early Celtic gravestone known as the Lucky Stone which has been kept here or hereabouts since before 1309. It was said to have strange properties, and merchants and traders used to rub it for luck. It was first mentioned when Jon Le Decer, Mayor of Dublin, erected a marble cistern for water in Cornmarket in 1309 and placed this stone against it, so that all who drank of the waters may have luck. The stone was stolen on a number of occasions but always found its way back this neighbourhood. In 1826 it disappeared for twenty years, until found in front of the newly-erected Catholic Church in High Street.In the porch of the western door lie the fifteenth-century monuments of Sir Roland Fitz-Eustace
Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester
Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester was an Irish peer and judge.FitzEustace was the son of Sir Edward FitzEustace of Castlemartin, Lord Deputy of Ireland. He was appointed Lord Chancellor of Ireland and Lord Treasurer of Ireland by Henry VI of England in 1474 and was elevated to the Irish...
, Earl Portlester, who died in 1496, and his wife, Margaret. Fitz-Eustace was Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
, then Lord Chancellor and finally High Treasurer. His refusal to surrender this last post led to a break with the king and almost to civil war. He was buried at Cotlandstown, County Kildare.
Among those buried in the church are Sir Thomas Molyneux
Sir Thomas Molyneux, 1st Baronet
Lieutenant General Sir Thomas Molyneux, 1st Baronet FRS was an Irish physician.Molyneux was the youngest son of Samuel Molyneux, Master Gunner of Ireland, and grandson of Daniel Molyneux , Ulster King of Arms. Educated Trinity College, Dublin, he became a doctor with an MA and MB in 1683, aged 22...
, his son Capel
Sir Capel Molyneux, 3rd Baronet
Sir Capel Molyneux, 3rd Baronet PC was an Irish politician.Capel was the son of Sir Thomas Molyneux, 1st Baronet and Catherine Howard...
, and brother William Molyneux
William Molyneux
William Molyneux FRS was an Irish natural philosopher and writer on politics.He was born in Dublin to Samuel Molyneux , lawyer and landowner , and his wife, Anne, née Dowdall. The second of five children, William Molyneux came from a relatively prosperous Anglican background...
, Edward Parry
Edward Parry
Admiral Sir William Edward Parry KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy and the Royal Indian Navy.During World War II, he served in the New Zealand Division commanding HMS Achilles at the Battle of the River Plate in December 1939...
, the Bishop of Killaloe and his sons John Parry
John Parry
John Parry may refer to:*John Parry , Welsh harpist and composer, and father of John Orlando Parry*John Parry , Bishop of Ossory 1672–1677*John Parry Ddall John Parry may refer to:*John Parry (Bardd Alaw) (1776–1851), Welsh harpist and composer, and father of John Orlando Parry*John...
and Benjamin Parry
Benjamin Parry
Benjamin Parry was Church of Ireland Bishop of Ossory from 27 January 1678 until his death later the same year.-Life:Parry was born in February 1634 in Dublin, the son of Edward Parry and Miss Price...
, successive bishops of Ossory, and Lady Frances Brudenell
Lady Frances Brudenell
Lady Frances Brudenell , Countess of Newburgh, daughter of Francis Brudenell, Lord Brudenell and Lady Frances Savile....
.
During excavations in the 19th century an Anglo-Norman font, dating to the 12th century, was found and is now on display in the church.
The tower
The church tower dates from the 17th century. The need to keep this structure in good repair was always a drain on parish funds. It was repaired in 1637, which was paid for by the Guild of St. Anne, but in 1669 part of it collapsed onto the roof of the church, and it had to be re-built. The Guild contributed £250 towards the cost of reconstruction. In 1826 the tower was remodelled by Henry Aaron Baker but by the end of the century was again in a dangerous state. Some remedial work was carried out in 1916 after an appeal from the Archbishop of Dublin, but it was not until the major restoration of 1982 that the tower was rendered safe.The tower houses six bells, three of which are Ireland's oldest bells, dating from 1423. The bells were rung for the Angelus
Angelus
The Angelus is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ The Angelus (Latin for "angel") is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus...
and after the Reformation continued to be rung every morning and evening to call the people to and from their work. Due to the fragile state of the tower they were not pealed between 1898 and 1983. After the tower was strengthened the bells were retuned in 1983. One of them, the tenor, was recast in memory of Alexander E. Donovan (1908-1982), who was closely connected with the church. They are now pealed every week.
The present clock on the church tower came from St. Peter's Church
St. Peter's Church, Aungier Street, Dublin
St. Peter's Church was a former Church of Ireland parish church located in Aungier St. in Dublin, Ireland, where the Dublin YMCA building now stands. It was built on land that formerly belonged to the Whitefriars in Dublin...
in Aungier Street, after this church was demolished in the 1980s. The clock face dates from the 1820s.
The cemetery
The old disused graveyard of St. Audoen's has been converted into a recreation ground. Many notables were buried there, including many Bishops and Lord Mayors of the city and the families of BallMargaret Ball
Blessed Margaret Ball was born Margaret Birmingham near Skryne in County Meath, and died of deprivation in the dungeons of Dublin Castle. She was the wife of the Mayor of Dublin in 1553. She was beatified in 1992.-Early life:...
, Bath, Blakeney, Browne, Cusack, Desminier, Fagan, Foster, Fyan, Gifford, Gilbert, Malone, Mapas, Molesworth, Penteny, Perceval, Quinn, Talbot and Ussher. The Curate-assistant Christopher Teeling McCready (died 1913) collected detailed genealogies of these families in seven hand-written volumes, which are now in Marsh's Library
Marsh's Library
Marsh's Library, situated in St. Patrick's Close, adjacent to St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, Ireland is the oldest public library in Ireland. It was built to the order of Archbishop Narcissus Marsh in 1701 and has a collection of over 25,000 books and 300 manuscripts.-Foundation:The library was...
.
Historical events
On 11 March 1597 a massive accidental gunpowder explosion in one of the nearby quays damaged the tower of St. Audoen's.In the 1640s, at the time of the Catholic Confederate Rebellion
Irish Confederate Wars
This article is concerned with the military history of Ireland from 1641-53. For the political context of this conflict, see Confederate Ireland....
, the burghers of the city could see from the church tower the fires of their opponents burning in the distance.
In 1733 a popular Alderman, Humphrey Frend, was returned at an election by a large majority, and two barrels of pitch were burned as celebration at the top of St. Audoen's tower.
The United Irishman Oliver Bond
Oliver Bond
Oliver Bond was an Irish revolutionary, one of the leaders of the Society of United Irishmen in the end of 18th century, which has the objective of ending British rule over Ireland and founding an independent Irish republic.He was born in the parish of St...
was born in the parish, and was elected Minister's Churchwarden of the church in 1787. Another United Irishman whose family had a long association with the church was James Napper Tandy, born at Cornmarket about 1740. He was a churchwarden of the church in 1765 and played a significant role in the life of the city before the Act of Union in 1801.
In 1793 a petition was sent from the vestry, requesting the removal of the police on the grounds of expense and inefficiency, and for the return of the night watchman originally appointed by the parish.