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Alter Window |
St.Patrick's Church |
Graveyard |
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Saint Patrick's ministry founded an Abbey and Church here in the 5th century, the land on which it stood was said to have been given to him by Fergus Mor MacEarca, son of Eric of Armoy, after Patrick had intervened in a dispute on inheritance between himself and his brothers. St. Patrick prophesised that Fergus would one day have his own kingdom, which came true. In 490AD, Fergus moved the throne of Dalriada from Ireland to Scotland and in doing so became the first Scots King to reign over Dalriada from Scotland. Fergus later drowned while returning from Scotland, the location of his death is today known as Carrickfergus (Rock of Fergus). It is known that Armoy was an important settlement in the kingdom of Dalriada and the monastery a focal point for scholastic learning with close links to Northumbria and Clonmacnoise. St.Olcan who became Bishop of Armoy was baptized at Dunseverick by St. Patrick and sent by him to study in France (Gaul). Some accounts refer to St.Olcan being the nephew of Fergus, others to him being found as an orphan. Next to the current church is the remains of the only round tower in North Antrim which dates to the 9th century. The present church was built in 1740 on the site of an older medieval church, the landscape surrounding the area is made up of drumlins left behind by the melt water of retreating glaciers some 10,000 years ago. You will also find an ancestral link here to Oscar Wilde, the Reverend Ralph Wilde buried in the churchyard was his great grandfather. |
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