Church

The National Monuments Service's description

An early church founded by St Patrick for the Ciarraige (Stokes 1887b, 111), and also the parish church of Baslick. Sachellus was the first bishop and references continue to 846 when it is said to have been plundered by the Vikings (Gwynn and Hadcock 1988, 374). According to Tírechán Baslick was closely associated with St. Patrick and Armagh through Sachellus or Soicheall (Ó Riain 2011, 567) and it may have held important relics. Ragallach Mac Uatach, perhaps the first securely-documented King of Connaught and of the Uí Briúin, was buried here in 649, although this was in the territory of the subject Ciarrraige Aí. Abbots are recorded in 742 and 759, but in 805 the abbot Cormac, son of the Uí Briúin king Tommaltaig, was killed by the Ciarraige. Tommaltaig's revenge marked the end of Ciarrraige dominance at Baslick, and the church began to loose its importance as the Uí Bruinn continued to dominate Macaire Connachta and Connaught in the 9th century. The church is listed as Baslick in the ecclesiastical taxation of Elphin in 1306 as the centre of a parish (Cal. doc. Ire., vol. 5, 223), and it is situated on a bluff overlooking the N-S Termon stream which curves W just S of the site and ultimately joins the River Suck at Castlerea. (Gormley 1989, 107-8; Timoney 1990, 15; Moore 2009)

The church is a rectangular structure (ext. dims 17.25m E-W; 8.25m N-S) defined by the complete W and N (H c. 3m) walls and the W end of the S wall (T 0.8m) that may incorporate earlier work. There is a blocked pointed doorway (H 1.63m) or the re-used stonework of one towards the E end of the N wall. Two broken but unfinished quernstones are built into the inner face of the N wall as well as a fragment of an ogham stone (RO021-083005-) (L 0.47m; T 0.11m) that was first identified by B. Shanahan in 2009 and was initially read by F. Moore as OMT_F_H or OMT_T_B AT (Shanahan 2013, 85) but is more likely to be AT(or C)IMAC(or Q) [I] (Pers. Comm. F. Moore). This is interpreted as ATI MAQI. The church is within a subcircular graveyard (RO021-083002-) (dims 52m N-S; 37m E-W) defined by a masonry wall but the perimeter had been an iron railing in the early 19th century (Lewis 1837, vol. 1, 188). The single flat headstone (RO021-083004-) (dims 2.2m x 1.1m; T 0.2m) of a Michael Balfe dated 1777 where coffins were traditionally laid is just outside the graveyard beside the gate at W.

The graveyard is in the SE quadrant of an ecclesiastical enclosure (RO021-083003-) recorded in remote sensing by the Discovery Programme during 2009 (Shanahan 2013). The enclosure (diam. c. 90m) is defined by two features that could be earthen banks placed 10m apart or it may be a wide bank with internal and external fosses. There are two outer concentric features that may represent additional enclosing elements (max. ext. diam. c. 240m N-S) or be part of the field system centred on the ecclesiastical enclosure. The rectangular fields (dims c. 30m x. c. 40m) are radiating from the ecclesiastical enclosure in at least two bands, particularly W-N and cover c. 3 ha (c. 7 acres). An E-W double-ditched feature (Wth c. 5m) approaching the ecclesiastical enclosure from the WNW might be a road or a field bank with two ditches, but a wider double-ditched feature (Wth 12-25m) outside the outermost enclosing element S-W is probably a droveway and leads to the quarries or ponds S of the graveyard. The ecclesiastical enclosure is centred on an enclosure (RO021-083006-) (diam. c. 40m) which may be bivallate or trivallate and is situated just NW of the graveyard. This is probably the earliest element of the site and may enclose an early cemetery.

The mill-race (RO021-090001-) is adjacent to the E. This is visible as a reed-filled N-S silted ditch (Wth 1.8-2m; D 0.5m; L c. 400m) on an artificial terrace (Wth c. 5-6m) of the E-facing slope and c. 1m over the level of the stream. Towards the S end it develops a distinct bank (Wth 4.3m; H 0.4m at W; H 0.6m at E) on the E side, but its S end is quarried away. The mill-race has been interpreted as a later prehistoric linear earthwork (Moore, S. 2009, 118).

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 10th September, 2010
Amended: 30 July, 2013

References

Lewis, S. 1837 A topographical dictionary of Ireland, 2 vols. London. Lewis and Co.

Cal. doc. Ire. - Calendar of documents relating to Ireland 1171-1307, ed. H.S. Sweetman (5 vols., London, 1875-86).

Gormley, M. 1989a Baslick. Journal of the County Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society 2, 107-9.

Gwynn, A. and Hadcock, R.N. 1970 (Reprint 1988) Medieval religious houses of Ireland. Dublin. Irish Academic Press.

Moore, S. 2009 Baslick Church: an early medieval basilica in Co. Roscommon. Journal of the Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society 11, 116-21.

Shanahan, B. 2013 A report on an archaeological survey at the early Christian church site at Baslick, County Roscommon. Journal of the Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society 13, 83-7.

Ó Riain, P. 2011 A dictionary of Irish Saints. Dublin. Four Courts Press.

Stokes, W. 1887 The tripartite life of Patrick, 2 vols. London. HMSO.

Timoney, M. A. 1990 The changing landscape around Tarmon, Co. Roscommon. In M. Lavin (ed.) Tarmon National School Centenary 1890-1990, 13-16.