Feast days, church holidays and the market

Feast days, church holidays and the market

Niall C.E.J. O’Brien

The twin attractions of church and the commercial market have competed with each other over many centuries. Sometime the medieval church embraced commercialisation to increase its own income such as the selling of church ale in Somerset and the selling of souvenirs and other items at centres of pilgrimage. But at other times the Church has endeavoured to separate its people from the commercial world on feast days, church holidays and on Sundays with mixed results.

Sometimes it was the Church itself that had to make the separation. Between 1139 and 1159 Robert de Lewis, Bishop of Bath and Wells, published a charter forbidding fairs to be held in the cemetery at Wells.[1] Presumably the Church at Wells encourage or turned a blind to previous fairs on its property.  

Wells Cathedral from the east

In 1342 Ralph de Shrewsbury, Bishop of Bath and Wells, issued an ordinance concerning the observation of feast days in the diocese. He declared that the following days were to be observed as exempt from customary agricultural work, namely: - Sundays and festivals of dedication and of patronal saints of parishes. In addition the church feast day of Circumcision, Epiphany, Conversion of St. Paul, Purification and the Cathedra of St. Peter, St. Matthias the Apostle, Annunciation, Good Friday, Easter Day, St. Mark, Ss. Philip and James, Invention of the Holy Cross, St. John outside the Latin Gate, Ascension, Pentecost, Corpus Christi, St. Barnabas, Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Ss. Peter and Paul, the Translation of St. Thomas of Canterbury, St. Mary Magdalene, St. James, St. Peter’s Chains, Assumption, Beheading of St. John the Baptist, St. Bartholomew, Nativity of St. Mary, Exaltation of the Cross, St. Matthew, St. Michael, St. Luke, Ss. Simon and Jude, All Saints, St. Martin, St. Andrew, St. Nicholas, Conception of St. Mary, St. Thomas, Nativity of Jesus Christ, St. Stephen, St. John the Evangelist, Holy Innocents and the feast of St. Thomas of Canterbury.[2]

     

About the year 1380 the Archbishop of Canterbury issued an order to all the dioceses of England on which feast days were to be observed in all churches. These days were; the Lord’s Day, from the hour of Vespers on Saturday; the Nativity of the Lord; St. Stephen, St. John, Innocents, St. Thomas the Martyr (erased); the Circumcision; the Epiphany; the Purification; St. Matthias; the Annunciation; Ss. Parasceves, Pascha, with the three days following; St. Mark, SS. Philip and James; Invent Sacred Cross; St. John outside the Lateran Gate; the Ascension; Pentecost, with the three days following; Corpus Christi; Nativity of St. John the Baptist; the Apostles Peter and Paul; St. Mary Magdalene; St. James; the Assumption; St. Lawrence; St. Bartholomew; Nativity of St. Mary; Exaltation of the Sacred Cross; St. Matthew; St. Michael the Archangel; St. Luke; SS. Simon and Jude; All Saints; St. Andrew; St. Nicholas; Conception of St. Mary and St. Thomas. In addition to these feast days the people were to observe the anniversary days of the dedication of their parochial church along with the days of the Saints in whose honour they were dedicated.[3]  

Both the Bishop of Bath and Wells and the Archbishop of Canterbury mentioned the church holiday on the anniversary day of the dedication of the local parish church. Yet sometimes the church could be flexible on its rule book. On the feast day of St. Faith (6^th October) 1351 the Bishop of Bath and Wells allowed William Power to celebrate divine services for a year in the chapel of Salty in Pedirtham notwithstanding that it was not dedicated.[4]

It was one thing to order the people to observe feasts days and church holidays; quite another thing to get the people to follow that observation. In 1359 John de Grandisson, Bishop of Exeter, issued an ordinance that people were forbidden to desert their churches on Sunday in order to frequent markets and fairs.[5] It is not clear if John de Grandisson was successful in holding his people within their churches.

The ordinance by Bishop Grandisson possibly had limit impact. It certainly didn’t had impact beyond the diocesan boundary as the Bishop of Winchester had to follow the action of Bishop Grandisson. In October 1400 William de Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, had to issue a mandate to the official of the archdeacon of Winchester and the dean of Southampton against Sunday trading. The two clerics were to summon all the clerics having cure of souls in the deanery of Southampton to come to the town on the Sunday before All Saints. At the same time the people of the deanery were to gather in a convenient place. There the two clerics were to announce in the vulgar tongue (so that everyone would understand) a strict prohibition against Sunday markets, except in harvest time, so the people would not miss the reading of banns or the publication of episcopal mandates.[6]

The frequent issue of ordinances about church holidays and feast days along with Sunday observance may have convince some clerics that the Church was never going to get the people to fully obey these ordinances. This realisation possible prompted churches in Somerset to enter the beer market and sale church ale as a way of attracting people to church and holding them there.

Today the commercial world has swiped many of these church holidays and feast days off the calendar. Even Sunday church has in many cases given way to the market and the shopping centre.   

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Appendix one

Feast days of the bishop of Bath and Wells 1342

The Circumcision = 1^st January

Epiphany = 6^th January

Conversion of St. Paul = 25^th January

The Purification = 2^nd February

Cathedra of Peter = 22^nd February

St. Matthias the Apostle = 24^th February

The Annunciation = 25^th March

Good Friday = movable date

Easter Day = movable date

St. Mark = 5^th April

Ss. Philip and James = 1^st May

The Invention of the Holy Cross = 3^rd May

St. John outside the Lateran Gate = 6^th May

Ascension = movable date

Pentecost = movable date

Corpus Christi = movable date

St. Barnabas = 11^th June

Nativity of St. John the Baptist = 24^th June

Ss. Peter and Paul = 29^th June

Translation of St. Thomas of Canterbury = 7^th July

St. Mary Magdalene = 22^nd July

St. James = 25^th July

St. Peter’s Chains [Lammas Day] = 1^st August

Assumption Thursday = 15^th August

St. Bartholomew = 24^th August

Beheading of St. John the Baptist = 29^th August

Nativity of St. Mary = 8^th September

Exaltation of the Holy Cross = 16^th September

St. Matthew = 21^st September

St. Michael = 29^th September

St. Luke = 18^th October

Ss. Simon and Jude = 28^th October

All Saints = 1^st November

St. Martin [Martinmas] = 11^th November

St. Andrew = 30^th November[7]

St. Nicholas = 6^th December

Conception of the Blessed Mary = 8^th December

St. Thomas = 21^st December

Nativity of Jesus Christ = 25^th December

St. Stephen = 26^th December

St. John the Evangelist = 27^th December

Holy Innocents = 28^th December

St. Thomas of Canterbury = 29^th December

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Appendix two

Feast days of the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1380

The Nativity of the Lord = 25^th December

St. Stephen = 26^th December

St. John = 27^th December

The Innocents = 28^th December

St. Thomas the Martyr = 29^th December

The Circumcision = 1^st January

The Epiphany = 6^th January

The Purification [Candlemas] = 2^nd February

St. Matthias = 24^th February

The Annunciation = 25^th March

Parasceves [preparation day = Good Friday] = movable date

Pascha [Easter], with the three days following = movable feast

St. Mark = 25^th April

Ss. Philip and James = 1^st May

The Invention Sacred Cross = 3^rd May

St. John outside the Lateran Gate = 6^th May

The Ascension = movable date

Pentecost, with the three days following = movable date

Corpus Christi = movable date

Nativity of St. John the Baptist = 24^th June

The Apostles Peter and Paul = 29^th June

St. Mary Magdalene = 22^nd July

St. James = 25^th July

St. Lawrence = 10^th August

The Assumption = 15^th August

St. Bartholomew = 24^th August

Nativity of St. Mary = 8^th September

Exaltation of the Sacred Cross = 16^th September

St. Matthew = 21^st September

St. Michael the Archangel = 29^th September

St. Luke = 18^th October

SS. Simon and Jude = 28^th October

All Saints = 1^st November

St. Andrew = 30^th November

St. Nicholas = 6^th December

Conception of St. Mary = 8^th December

St. Thomas = 21^st December

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[1] J.A. Bennett (ed.), Report on the Manuscripts of Wells Cathedral (Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1885), p. 185; Dom Aelred Watkin (ed.), Dean Cosyn and Wells Cathedral Miscellanea (Somerset Record Society, Vol. 56, 1941), p. xxvi

[2] Thomas Scott Holmes (ed.), The register of Ralph of Shrewsbury, Bishop of Bath & Wells, 1329-1363 (Somerset Record Society, Vol. 9, 1896), no. 1691 and pp. 803-4

[3] J.A. Bennett (ed.), Report on the Manuscripts of Wells Cathedral (Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1885), p. 124

[4] Thomas Scott Holmes (ed.), The register of Ralph of Shrewsbury, Bishop of Bath & Wells, no. 2598

[5] Rev. F.C. Hingeston-Randolph (ed.), The register of John de Grandisson, Bishop of Exeter, A.D. 1327-1369 (3 vols. George Bell, London, 1897), Vol. 2, pp. 1201-1204

[6] Dorothy M. Owen (ed.), John Lydford’s Book (Devon & Cornwall Record Society, New Series, Vol. 20, 1975), no. 247

[7] Dom Aelred Watkin (ed.), Dean Cosyn and Wells Cathedral Miscellanea (Somerset Record Society, Vol. 56, 1941), p. 132 = the calendar of the colours of vestments at Wells placing St. Andrew’s day in early December, possibly on the first

Dovecots of Llanthony Priory in Ireland

Dovecots of Llanthony Priory in Ireland

Niall C.E.J. O’Brien

Early in the Norman conquest of Ireland the ancient Irish kingdom of Meath was granted to Hugh de Lacy. This lord held numerous estates in South Wales and England. Thus when he came to granting tithes and land on his new Irish estates, Hugh de Lacy favoured the religious house of Llanthony in the Vale of Ewyas in Wales (established around 1103). When unrest in Wales made life difficult from the Norman settlement a daughter house of Llanthony was established near Gloucester in 1137.[1] Between 1204 and 1217 long negotiations were held on the separation of the two houses which was made effective in 1217. Thus from that year the house in Wales became known as Llanthony Prima while the other became Llanthony by Gloucester or Llanthony Secunda.[2] The possessions of Llanthony in Ireland were divided between the two houses and separate records were held relating to these possessions.

In 1421 the patronage of Llanthony Secunda passed from Anne, Countess of Stafford to the crown. This was followed in 1461 by Llanthony Prima when its patron, the Earl of March, became King Edward IV. Twenty years later, in May 1481, the priory of Llanthony Prima was sold to Llanthony Secunda and the two houses became one house. The records held at Llanthony Prima travelled to Gloucester with the five monks who were left in Wales. At the dissolution of the priory in 1539/40 its records passed to the new owner, Arthur Porter, who had acted as under-steward at Llanthony Secunda before 1539. In 1771 Frances Scudmore, a descendent of Arthur Porter, married Charles, Duke of Norfolk. She died in 1820 after many years as a lunatic. Her estates passed to the Chancery along with the various record books of Llanthony and which today form part of the National Archives at Kew.[3]

These records tell us much about the origins and growth of a religious house in medieval Ireland. Today’s article will focus on the dovecots of the priory in Ireland that are mentioned in these records. In 1381 a detailed survey was carried out concerning the property of Llanthony Secunda in Ireland. The chief grange of Llanthony Secunda was in the Barony of Lower Duleek in County Meath at the House of St. Michael at Duleek. The main buildings of the grange were located between the King’s Highway and the Nanny River. The buildings were arranged around an open courtyard.[4]

Outside the court, in the meadow field above the Nanny River was a thatched dovecot which for the previous four years was worth very little but if restored would have been worth 6 shillings 8 pence. Nearby in another meadow field beside the court was a second dovecot, in good condition, which was worth 6 shillings 8 pence. In this second meadow field was also located a water mill which was generally worth 10 shillings.[5] One hundred and sixty years later (1541), in the survey associated with the dissolution of Llanthony Priory, a straw-thatched dovecot at Duleek was worth 3 shillings 4 pence per year – only half the previous valuation.[6]

Map of the Duleek area showing the location of the Llanthony court and the River Nanny between which were located the dovecots

The actual income from the dovecot at Duleek as opposed of the valuation of the building was about £1 3s 4d in 1381. But this amount also included the income from the windmill.[7] The precise income from the dovecot is therefore difficult to determine. In 1513 a dovecot belonging to Llanthony Secunda at Brockworth, Gloucestershire, was leased to John Theyr for 8 shillings per year. In addition Theyr leased the house and outbuildings of Brockworth along with farming land and woodland for about 150 shillings.[8]

The income from the dovecot and windmill was added to farm rents, altar dues and fishing rights income along with other income to make about £50 5s per year. Of this amount £20 was spent on hospitality while £30 5s went on necessity and external expenses including repairs to buildings. From other sources of income the proctor at Duleek was able to send about £80 to Llanthony Secunda by Gloucester in England.[9]

Little trace of these buildings at Duleek, including the dovecots, remain today except for the ruined walls of the chapel of St. Michael, which was at the eastern end of the courtyard. This absence of physical evidence of the dovecots in this present time (2014) is in large part attributed to the materials used in its construction. A thatched roof needs continuous maintenance over the years. The derelict condition of the first dovecot at Duleek in 1381 is reflected in dereliction to parts of the court buildings in the same survey. Other monastic houses like Kilcooley, Co. Tipperary and Ballybeg, Co. Cork built their dovecots from stone including a stone roof. These dovecots are still standing today.

Was the presence of thatch roof dovecots at Duleek a reflection of the lack of good stone working skills in the area or a conscious policy of Llanthony Secunda to spend as little as possible on the fabric of their Irish buildings so as to maximise the profits sent to England? The valuable description of the buildings around the courtyard at Duleek would suggest that the local builders were competent at making stone roofs. The east range had a straw-thatched kitchen and dairy which was connected to a small stable roofed with stone tiles. Further along the east range was a series of rooms that were also covered with stone tiles. The south range had a bakery and malt house which were also covered with stone tiles but the range also had a bake-house and pigsty which had a thatched roof.[10]

Duleek was not usual for having a mixture of thatched and tiled roofs. The previously mentioned property at Brockworth had a mixture of roof types. There the leasee was obliged to maintain the thatched roofs while the prior of Llanthony took care of the tiled roofs.[11] We sometimes may have the idea that a thatched building reflected a lower social status to a person with a tiled roof. But this is a Victorian idea where the big landlord lived in the big house with the slate roof while the peasant lived in the mud thatched cottage, more often than not depicted in the semi-ruinous condition in the illustrated newspapers. In medieval times thatch was as good a material for the rich man as the beggar. The stone built tower houses which dot the countryside were the “big house” of their day and were sometimes covered in thatch

Records from Llanthony property in England show that the leasees of the priory’s estates there were obliged to maintain the buildings on the property including any dovecot. For example, in 1459 Robert White took a twelve year lease on the manor of Chirton in Wiltshire in which he was among other obligations to “maintain a dovecot and houses, walls and enclosures including earthen walls and roofs”.[12]  

But this was not always the case. In 1503 John Stephens took lease of the manor of Turkdean, Gloucestershire, for thirty years during which time he was to “maintain the property and its walls, ditches and hedges, except that the prior will find shingles and pegs for the dovecot and other buildings”. John Stephens had taken use of the dovecot as part of the lease.[13] It would appear that Llanthony operated the manor at Duleek directly and leased outlining estates to tenants. Therefore maintenance of the dovecot was the responsibility of the priory proctor. We saw earlier how the proctor gathered such money for building maintenance.

A dovecot with a stone roof at Llantwit Major

In addition to the dovecot of Llanthony Secunda at Duleek, the priory of Llanthony Prima had a dovecot at their manor of Colpe, also in County Meath. A description and valuation of this dovecot is not given in the records. A valuation of £7 11s 8 ½ d given in the accounts of 1408 included the valuation of pasture land, meadow land and land and gardens around the manor house.[14]

It is interesting that in England a good number of the manors owned by Llanthony priory had dovecots. Yet in Ireland the only known dovecots of the priory were located in the principle manor of each priory, Prima and Secunda, at Colpe and Duleek, respectively. Is this situation a reflection of the poorer number of surviving documents from Ireland or is there another conclusion? Could it be that doves and pigeons were not a favourite diet in Ireland compared to England? Did the Irish prefer their meat from four-legged animals as oppose to two-legged birds? A more detailed survey of the distribution of dovecots in Ireland may provide some answers to these questions. A job for another day no doubt.

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[1] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, 1172-1541: Land, patronage and politics (Four Courts Press, Dublin, 2008), pp. 24-5

[2] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 26

[3] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 40

[4] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 184

[5] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 185

[6] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 187

[7] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 199

[8] John Rhodes (ed.), A calendar of the Registers of the Priory of Llanthony by Gloucester 1457-1466, 1501-1525 (Bristol & Gloucestershire Archaeological Society, Record Series, vol. 15, 2002), no. 343

[9] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, pp. 199-200

[10] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, pp. 184-5

[11] John Rhodes (ed.), A calendar of the Registers of the Priory of Llanthony by Gloucester, no. 343

[12] John Rhodes (ed.), A calendar of the Registers of the Priory of Llanthony by Gloucester, no. 50

[13] John Rhodes (ed.), A calendar of the Registers of the Priory of Llanthony by Gloucester, no. 145

[14] Arlene Hogan, The Priory of Llanthony Prima and Secunda in Ireland, p. 213

Irish Parliament of 1264: The first Irish parliament or just another parliament?

Irish Parliament of 1264:

The first Irish parliament or just another parliament?

Niall C.E.J. O’Brien

Introduction

As we approach the year 2015 and the eight hundred year anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta, which to many people signifies the start of parliamentary democracy, we here at medieval news will post a few articles on Irish Parliaments in medieval times. Assemblies to discuss laws and issues of common concern were held among the Irish kingdoms long before the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1169. After the invasion these assemblies were still held in the Irish controlled areas of the country. Within the English sphere of control a number of different bodies met to discuss the issues of government.

The three bodies of state

The body nearest to the centre of government was the Irish council. It was formed by the chief ministers of the government such as the chancellor, treasurer, escheator along with the justices of both benches. It appears that no minister had a right to attend meetings of the council although the chief ministers were usually present. Instead it was at the justiciar’s discretion who should attend a particular meeting.[1] This body advised the justiciar (the head of the government and the English king’s representative in Ireland) and deliberated on the ordinary problems of administration. The council was joined by other individuals from time to time. In the fourteenth century some people retained life membership of the council.[2]

Further out from the government circle was a “great council”. This body was an extension of the Irish council but with numerous outsiders attending to debate the great issues of the day. These issues usually focused on a certain geographical area and many of the outsiders attending came from this restricted area. There were no prescribed days of notice for a great council unlike the forty days’ notice needed to call parliament and thus the great council could be called to deal with matters of urgency.[3]

Beyond the great council was the Irish Parliament which is the focus of this and subsequent articles. The parliament was composed of four elements, the Irish council, the lords (both spiritual and temporal), the commons and the representatives of the lower clergy.[4] If a full house attended parliament there could be about 120 people. Yet the Irish Parliament remained a single body unlike in England were two houses were formed (the lords and the commons).[5]

Parliament: origins and development

Originally the idea of a parliament developed in Western Europe to discuss judicial purposes. Over time parliament took on the role of enacting legislation and by 1300 the Irish Parliament dealt with the important matter of taxation. The legislative role of the Irish Parliament developed slowly as in the first half of the thirteenth century numerous communications were sent from the English king and his council that the laws of England also applied to Ireland.[6]

At the start of the thirteenth century a king only needed the consent of the great magnates in matters of taxation as a lord’s tenants were bound to accept their master’s decision. By the second half of the century many of the tenants had gained in economic value along with the towns. The increasing cost of government meant that kings had to get more taxes from these new rich. It was Pope Innocent III who promoted the idea of various communities sending representatives to an assembly like a parliament to consent to taxation.[7]

The Irish Parliament never developed into a body where ministers were called to account by impeachment or attainder. It remained for much of the medieval period as an embryonic body which was very much controlled by government. The official language was Latin or French but later English was accepted.[8]  

The Irish Parliament of 1264

In the late 1250s the English barons waged a struggle for power against Henry III. In 1258 they successfully implemented the Provisions of Oxford whereby parliament was to meet three times per year. These Provisions also applied to Ireland. Thus in the year 1264 we hear of a parliament held in Ireland. This parliament was possibly more a glorified 'great council' than a later more defined parliament. This parliament met in June 1264 at Castledermot. [9] It is unclear if this was the first Irish Parliament or just the first one that we know of.

Leinster House, Dublin - present location of the Irish Parliament

For example, in December 1253 Henry III sent letters to Maurice Fitzgerald and the other magnates of Ireland along with the archbishops and bishops asking them to assemble at Dublin before John Fitz Geoffrey, the justiciar, and debate the threatened war by the King of Castille on the English lands in Gascony. A latter letter on 2^nd February 1254 was directed to the archbishops, bishops, abbots, priors, earls, barons, knights and other of the king’s subjects in Ireland to listen to the justiciar about the threatened war by Castille. The persons attending the assembly were to debate how best Ireland can contribute to the defence of Gascony.[10] Was this assembly a “great council” or a “parliament”?

The records do not ascribe any particular name to the Dublin assembly but then we should not worry too much on that point. An assembly was held at Kilkenny in October 1346 which was described as a “tractatus” in the records. This term usually denoted a council which did not have the status of a parliament. But in the roll of Holy Trinity Priory, Dublin, the Kilkenny assembly is described as a parliament. This so called “tractatus” was attended by representatives of the commons as well as by the magnates.[11]

Returning to this Dublin assembly of 1254 we note that the meeting was to debate an issue of national and international importance and so beyond the usual scope of a great council. The Dublin assembly was summoned to attend more the forty days before the event which is the usual time given between the issue of writs to attend parliament and the actual parliament. A great number of people from across the country and across the social strata were invited to the assembly which is a more usual practice for a parliament than for a great council. Thus the assembly of 1254 has much of the characteristics of a parliament and could well be called a parliament. Could there have been gatherings before 1254 that could also be termed as a parliament? A minute search of the records may reveal such a case.

Meanwhile the transactions of the known parliament of 1264 are unknown. The Irish Parliament did not keep parliament rolls on the English model. In fact the first Irish Parliament to leave a record of its enactments was the one held in 1297. The text for that parliament survives not in any government papers but in the Black Book of Christ Church.[12]

There is a suggestion in an ordinance of 1269 for the possible business of the 1264 parliament. This ordinance, from the bench plea rolls, called for the standardisation of weights and measures. It is unknown when legislation was created for this ordinance but a parliament held sometime before 1269 seems a likely place of origin.[13]

Although the Provisions of Oxford were swept away following the final defeat of the English baronial party at the battle of Evesham in 1265 various records suggest that there were about twenty-one parliaments held in Ireland during the reign of Edward the First.[14]  

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[1] A.J. Otway-Ruthven, A history of Medieval Ireland (Ernest Benn, London, 1980), p. 149

[2] Philomena Connolly, Medieval Record Sources (Four Courts Press, Dublin, 2002), pp. 26-7

[3] Philomena Connolly, Medieval Record Sources, p. 28

[4] Philomena Connolly, Medieval Record Sources, p. 27

[5] Edmund Curtis, History of medieval Ireland (Metheun, London, 1938), p. 252

[6] H.S. Sweetman (ed.), Calendar of Documents relating to Ireland (Kraus reprint, 1974), Vol. 1 (1171-1251), nos. 1458, 1679, 2379, 2850

[7] A.J. Otway-Ruthven, A history of Medieval Ireland, pp. 168-9

[8] Edmund Curtis, History of medieval Ireland, p. 252

[9] A.J. Otway-Ruthven, A history of Medieval Ireland, p. 168; Aubrey Gwynn, 'The Irish Parliament in the Middle Ages', in Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review, Vol. 42, No. 166 (1953), p. 215

[10] H.S. Sweetman (ed.), Calendar of Documents relating to Ireland, Vol. 1 (1171-1251), nos. 305, 306, 312

[11] H.G. Richardson & G.O. Sayles (eds.), Parliaments and Councils of Medieval Ireland (Stationery Office, Dublin, 1947), pp. xi-xii

[12] Philomena Connolly, Medieval Record Sources, pp. 27, 29

[13] Philomena Connolly, ‘The enactments of the 1297 parliament’, in James Lydon (ed.), Law and disorder in thirteenth-century Ireland (Four Courts Press, Dublin, 1997), p. 144

[14] A.J. Otway-Ruthven, A history of Medieval Ireland, p. 168