Bishop of Kilfenora

Former episcopal title in Ireland

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The Bishop of Kilfenora (Irish: Easpag Chill Fhionnúrach) was a distinct episcopal title which took its name from the village of Kilfenora in County Clare in the Republic of Ireland. In both the Church of Ireland and the Roman Catholic Church, the title is now united with other bishoprics.

## History

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The monastery at Kilfenora was reportedly founded by Saint Fachanan in the sixth century.[1][self-published source?] It was not until March 1152 that the diocese of Kilfenora was established at the Synod of Kells.[1] The diocese corresponded with the ancient territory of Corcomroe.[1][2] Part of the Archdiocese of Cashel, it only extended over 200 square miles of very thinly populated land. It was reckoned the poorest diocese, with only 13 parishes. Demand for the position of bishop thus was not great, but for 1189 a bishop is recorded. In 1660, Samuel Pullen was made Archbishop of Tuam and Kilfenora became part of his province.[3]: 2, 4

After the Reformation, there were parallel paths of succession. In the Church of Ireland, Kilfenora continued as a separate see until it was combined with Killaloe to form the united bishopric of Killaloe and Kilfenora in 1752. Under the Church Temporalities (Ireland) Act 1833 (3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 37), the united see became one of the sees held by bishops of Killaloe and Clonfert in 1834. Since 1976, Kilfenora has been one of the sees held by the bishops of Limerick and Killaloe.[4][5]

The Roman Catholic Church bishopric of Kilfenora continued as a separate title until 1750 when Pope Benedict XIV decreed that it be united with the bishopric of Kilmacduagh. Since Kilmacduagh was in the ecclesiastical province of Tuam while Kilfenora was in the Province of Cashel, it was arranged that the ordinary of the united dioceses was to be alternately bishop of one diocese and apostolic administrator of the other.[6] The first holder of this unusual arrangement was Peter Kilkelly, who had been Bishop of Kilmacduagh since 1744, and became Apostolic Administrator of Kilfenora in September 1750. In 1866, Patrick Fallon, the sitting Bishop of Kilmacduagh and Apostolic Administrator of Kilfenora, resigned due to ill health, and John McEvilly, the Bishop of Galway, was appointed Apostolic Administrator of both Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora. McEvilly would be named Coadjutor Archbishop of Tuam in 1878 but retained his duties in Galway until he eventually succeeded to the Tuam archdiocesan throne in 1881. Upon McEvilly's succession in Tuam, the three sees of Galway, Kilmacduagh, and Kilfenora remained vacant for two years. In 1883, Pope Leo XIII combined the dioceses of Galway and Kilmacduagh into a unified see, and made the Bishop of Galway and Kilmacduagh Apostolic Administrator of Kilfenora in perpetuum.[6][7][8]

## Pre-Reformation bishops

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Pre-Reformation Bishops of Kilfenora

From  | Until  | Incumbent  | Notes
bef.1172  | unknown | (Name not known)  | Took the oath of fealty to King Henry II of England in 1172
bef.1205  | unknown | F. | Elected before 1205
bef.1224  | unknown | John | Elected before 1224; also known as Johannes
1251/54  | 1255  | Christian | Known to be bishop fl. 1251 and 1254; died before December 1255; also known as Christianus
unknown | 1264  | (Name not known)  | Died on 28 February 1264
1266  | 1273  | Maurice | Elected after 3 March 1265 and consecrated before 12 February 1266; died before 14 July 1273; also known as Mauricius and called by some as Henry
1273  | 1281  | Florence Ó Tigernaig, O.S.A. | Formerly Abbot of Kilsanne; elected bishop before 18 September 1273; died before 12 July 1281; also known as Florentius
1281  | 1298  | Congalach Ó Lochlainn | Formerly Dean of Kilfenora; elected bishop before 6 September 1281; died before 21 December 1298; also known as Carolus
1300  | 1302  | Simon Ó Cuirrin | Elected on 16 May and confirmed on 22 July 1300; died on 26 December 1302
1303  | 1319  | Maurice Ó Briain | Formerly Dean of Kilfenora; elected bishop sometime between 16 March and 10 June 1303; died in office
1323  | 1359  | Risdeard Ó Lochlainn | Consecrated on 17 April 1323; died on 3 February 1359; also known as Richard O'Loghlain
unknown | 1372  | Denis | Died before October 1372; also known as Dionysius
1372  | unknown | Henry | Appointed on 6 October 1372; also known as Henricus
unknown | c.1389  | Cornelius | Died in office circa 1389
1390  | 1421  | Patrick | Elected before 28 February and appointed on that date; consecrated after 19 March 1390; died before 15 January 1421; also known as Patricius
1421  | 1433  | Feidhlimidh mac Mathghamhna Ó Lochlainn | Appointed on 15 January 1421; consecrated after 6 February 1421; died before 7 August 1433; also known as Florentius or Florence O'Loughlin
1433  | 1434  | Fearghal | Appointed on 7 August 1433; died before 17 November 1434
1434  | 1491  | Denis Ó Connmhaigh | Appointed on 17 November and consecrated on 26 December 1434; resigned on 12 December 1491; also known as Denis O'Cahan or in Latin as Dionysius
1491  | 1541  | Muircheartach mac Murchadha Ó Briain | Formerly a Canon of Kilfenora; appointed bishop on 12 December 1491; Papal bulls expediated on 26 August 1492; died before 21 November 1541; also known as Maurice O'Brien or in Latin as Mauricius
1514  | c.1541  | Maurice O'Kelly | Appointed 6 November 1514; died in office circa 1541
1541  | 1572  | John O'Nialain | Appointed by Pope Paul III on 21 November 1541, but seems to have accepted royal supremacy since he was recognised by King Henry VIII; died in 1572; also recorded as John O'Neylan
Sources: [9][10][11][12]

## Post-Reformation bishops

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### Church of Ireland succession

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Church of Ireland Bishops of Kilfenora

From  | Until  | Incumbent  | Notes
1572  | 1606  | See vacant
1606  | 1617  | See held in commendam by Bernard Adams, Bishop of Limerick
1617  | 1622  | John Steere | Formerly Archdeacon of Emly; nominated on 9 July and consecrated on 26 August 1617; translated to Ardfert and Aghadoe on 20 July 1622
1622  | 1627  | William Murray | Formerly Chaplain-in-Ordinary to King James I & VI; nominated on 15 March and consecrated on 18 December 1622; translated to Llandaff on 24 December 1627
1628  | Richard Betts | Chaplain-in-Ordinary to King James I & VI; appointed by letters patent on 19 September 1628, but when he arrived in Ireland and learned of the poverty of the see, he declined the appointment and left without consecration
1628  | 1630  | See vacant
1630  | 1638  | James Heygate | Formerly Archdeacon of Clogher; nominated on 28 February and consecrated on 9 May 1630; died on 30 April 1638
1638  | 1643  | Robert Sibthorp | Formerly Treasurer of Killaloe and Prebendary of Maynooth, in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin; nominated on 19 June and consecrated on 11 November 1638; translated to Limerick in 1643
1643  | 1661  | See vacant
1661  | 1741  | See held in commendam by the Archbishops of Tuam
1742  | 1752  | See held in commendam by John Whitcombe, Bishop of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh
1752  | 1834  | See part of the united bishopric of Killaloe and Kilfenora
1834  | 1976  | See part of the united bishopric of Killaloe and Clonfert
since 1976  | See part of the united bishopric of Limerick and Killaloe
Sources: [4][5][13]

### Roman Catholic succession

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Roman Catholic Bishops of Kilfenora

From  | Until  | Incumbent  | Notes
1572  | 1629  | See vacant
1629  | unknown | (Daniel Gryphaeus) | Appointed vicar general in 1629 and vicar apostolic by Papal brief on 1 April 1631
1647  | c.1673  | Andrew Lynch | Appointed on 11 March and consecrated on 21 April 1647; died circa 1673
1673  | 1722  | See vacant
1722  | unknown | William O'Daly | He was vicar general of Kilfenora before appointed bishop on 7 August 1722; date of death unknown
1726  | 1749  | James Augustine O'Daly, O.S.A. | Appointed on 27 July 1726; died on 20 August 1749
1750  | 1883  | See part of the united bishopric of Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora
since 1883  | See part of the united diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora
Sources: [14][15][16][17][18][19]

## References

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1. ^ a b c "The Dioceses of Ireland: Territorial History". RootsWeb. Retrieved 18 May 2009.
2. ^ Cotton 1851, The Province of Munster, p. 500.
3. ^ Cunningham, George (1978). Burren Journey. Shannonside Mid Western Regional Tourism Organisation.
4. ^ a b Cotton 1851, The Province of Munster, pp. 502–504.
5. ^ a b Fryde et al. 1986, Handbook of British Chronology, p. 395.
6. ^ a b "History of the Diocese". Galway Diocese. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021.
7. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, Handbook of British Chronology, p. 436.
8. ^ Moody, Martin & Byrne 1984, Maps, Genealogies, Lists, p. 390.
9. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, Handbook of British Chronology, p. 358.
10. ^ Brady 1876, The Episcopal Succession in England, Scotland and Ireland, volume 2, pp. 125–127.
11. ^ Cotton 1851, The Province of Munster, pp. 501–502.
12. ^ Moody, Martin & Byrne 1984, Maps, Genealogies, Lists, p. 299.
13. ^ Moody, Martin & Byrne 1984, Maps, Genealogies, Lists, p. 417.
14. ^ Brady 1876, The Episcopal Succession in England, Scotland and Ireland, volume 2, pp. 127–128.
15. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 430 and 432–433.
16. ^ "Diocese of Kilmacduagh". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved 28 September 2009.
17. ^ "Diocese of Kilfenora". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved 28 September 2009.
18. ^ History of the Diocese. Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora. Retrieved on 28 September 2009.
19. ^ Moody, Martin & Byrne 1984, Maps, Genealogies, Lists, p. 362.

## Bibliography

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* Brady, W. Maziere (1876). The Episcopal Succession in England, Scotland and Ireland, A.D. 1400 to 1875. Vol. 2\. Rome: Tipografia Della Pace.
* Cotton, Henry (1851). The Province of Munster. Fasti Ecclesiae Hiberniae: The Succession of the Prelates and Members of the Cathedral Bodies of Ireland. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Dublin: Hodges and Smith.
* Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I., eds. (1986). Handbook of British Chronology (3rd, reprinted 2003 ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
* Moody, T. W.; Martin, F. X.; Byrne, F. J., eds. (1984). Maps, Genealogies, Lists: A Companion to Irish History, Part II. New History of Ireland. Vol. 9\. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-821745-5.