Church

The National Monuments Service's description

No surface remains visible of St. Patrick's Church which was located inside St. Patrick's graveyard (LI005-029002-). The church is not visible on Google Earth orthoimage taken 28/06/2018. Described in 1827 as following; 'St. Patrick's Church stood in the S. E. Liberties at a short distance from the walls. The stones of the church and of a round tower in its vicinity are supposed to have been used by the English army for the erection of their batteries during the siege. Some remains of both were visible half a century ago. The parish contains 2,090 inhabitants, and is an entire rectory united with those of Cahiravahalla and Emly-grenan, being the corps of the Treasurership, which was valued in the King's books at £13. 6s. 8d. There is a glebe of nine acres near the site of Patrick's Church, and another of fifty acres near Emly-grenan. This parish is situated on both sides of the Shannon, and the duties are performed by the resident curates of the adjoining parishes' (Fitzgerald 1826-7, 561).
Westropp gives the following details about St. Patrick's Church in the townland of Singland; 'Parish and Prebend. St. Patrick is stated to have baptised Cairthenn, son of Blatt, chief of the Dalcassians, the children of Toirdelbach, at Sengal, about 440 ("Tripartite Life," x. cent.,ed.W. Stokes, p. 207). Monkish legend derived the place-name from "Sois aingel,'" because "another angel" than " Victor" appeared to the Saint. A great victory was gained by Ceallachan, of Cashel, over the Norse at Saingeal ( Wars G. G.) in 943. Sengola, 1201, Bathgerallan, and Dromohiba pertained to it, 1224. A charter of Bishop Hubert, ante 1250, and a quit claim of John de Penrys to Sennkyll, to be held in pious memory of Bishop Bobert (died 1275), remain (B.B. L., xlviii.), Sen na ghauil, 1410; Sangole (valor), 1591 ; "St. Patrick in Singlelandprope civitatem," 1615. On July 18th, 1597, the Dean, Chapter, and Vicars Choral granted to James Cromwell, Singleland, of which the mearings were, Aghnebegh, Curraghbirrin, Frelinfourde, or Aghkillfellin, or Cloghanenemagarte; along with the "personages" and vicarages of Corkmohead, Dromcollohon, Killmyde, Cloencath, Cloneltie, and Killmollanie, with their chapels and "gleabes" to be "paid at the stone within the said cathedral" (P.R. O. I., Deeds and Wills, No. 6).
Site - The graveyard alone remains. A broken round tower and ruined church are shown on the Down Survey map, 1657 (p. 13), and were levelled in 1776 (Fitzgerald, ii., p. 561); near them stood the Singland battery in the sieges of 1690-91' (Westropp 1904-5, 364).
In 1906 the following details were recorded about the church and graveyard; 'Now Singland. It was here St. Patrick cured the Thomond Prince from his bodily ailment as already related. It was a very important church and had the right of sanctuary. In old maps it is represented as
having a round tower beside it ; both have long since disappeared, but the site is still used as a graveyard, and popularly known as St. Patrick's' (Begley 1906, 121-2).
The Down Survey map of St. Patrick's Parish depicts the ruins of a single cell rectangular church with multi-storey residential tower at W end that has been mistakenly identified as the remains of a round tower. The church and residential tower are depicted in a similar fashion of the 17th century Down Survey map of South Liberties Barony (Hib. Reg.).

See attached image of church taken from Down Survey map of St. Patrick's Parish (NLI, MS 718) and image of church taken from Down Survey barony map (Hib. Reg.).

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 3 October 2018

References

NLI, MS 718 - National Library of Ireland, Parish maps with terriers, showing forfeited lands in County Limerick, commonly known as the "Down Survey", executed under the direction of Sir William Petty, 1657, and copied by Daniel O'Brien, 1786.

Fitzgerald, P. 1826-7 The history, topography, and antiquities of the county and city of Limerick. 2 vols. Dublin.

Hibernia Regnum: A set of 214 barony maps of Ireland dating to the period AD 1655-59. The original parish maps have been lost but the Hibernia Regnum maps are preserved in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris (Goblet 1932, v-x). Photographic facsimiles of these maps were published by the Ordnance Survey, Southampton in 1908.

Westropp, T.J. 1904-5 A survey of the ancient churches of Co. Limerick. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 25C, 327-479.

Begley, J. 1906 The Diocese of Limerick ancient and medieval. Dublin.