Lewis Topographical Directory of Ireland.

Arms of the Bishoprick.

The foundation of the See of Cork is generally ascribed to St. Barr or Finbarr, in the early part of the 7th century: his relics, which were enclosed in a silver shrine, were carried away from the cathedral, in 1089, by Dermot, the son of Turlough O'Brian, when he pillaged Cork.

St. Finbarr is said to have been succeeded by St, Nessan. In 1292, Bishop Robert Mac Donagh was twice fined £130 for presuming to hold pleas in the ecclesiastical courts for matters belonging to the Crown; and these two fines were paid, with the exception of £84. 14. 2., which was remitted. In 1324 Philip of Slane was sent in embassy to the pope by Edw. II., and discharged his commission with such address that he was made one of the privy council of Ireland. On his return, an assembly of bishops, noblemen, and others was held, at which it was resolved that all disturbers of the public peace should be excommunicated; that the small and poor bishopricks not exceeding £20, £40, or £60 per annum, and which were governed by the mere Irish, should be united with the more eminent bishopricks; and that the Irish abbots and priors should receive Englishmen into lay brotherhoods, as in England.

In 1430, the sees of Cork and Cloyne being both vacant, Pope Martin V. united them, and appointed Jordan, chancellor of Limerick, bishop of the united diocese. The last Roman Catholic bishop before the Reformation was John Fitz-Edmund, of the noble family of the Geraldines, who was appointed bishop by the pope in 1499. After his death his powerful relatives seized the revenues of Cloyne and part of those of Cork.

In 1536, Dominic Tirrey, who was reckoned favourable to the Reformation, was appointed bishop by mandate of Hen. VIII., and held the see 20 years, during which period the pope appointed two ecclesiastics to the united see, neither of whom took possession. Matthew Sheyn, who was appointed bishop by Elizabeth in 1572, was a great enemy to the veneration paid to images, and, in October, 1578, burnt that of St. Dominick at the high cross of Cork, to the great grief of the people. William Lyon was consecrated bishop of Ross in 1582, and on the 17th of May, 1586, Elizabeth annexed the sees of Cork and Cloyne to Ross, in favour of this prelate, who, in a return to a regal visitation held about the year 1613, states "that the bishoprick of Cloyne was granted by his predecessor, in fee farm, at five marks rent; that Cork and Ross, when he came into possession, were worth only £70 per annum, but that he had improved them to £200 per annum; that he built a mansion-house at Ross, at an expense of at least £300, which, in a little more than three years after, was burnt down by the rebel O'Donovan; that he found no episcopal house at Cork, but that he built one, which cost him at least £1000; and that he never was in possession of the house belonging to the bishoprick of Cloyne, which was withheld from him by Sir John Fitz-Edmund Fitz-Gerald in his lifetime, and since his death by his heir." After Bishop Lyon's decease, the see was successively occupied by John and Richard Boyle, relatives of the Earls of Cork: the latter, who was afterwards archbishop of Tuam, died at Cork in 1644, and was buried in the cathedral, in a vault he had prepared during his prelacy.

While he occupied this see, he is stated to have repaired more ruinous churches and consecrated more new ones than any other bishop in that age. This prelate was succeeded by Dr. Chappel, provost of Trinity College, Dublin, whose successor was Michael Boyle, son of Dr. Chappel's predecessor. Bishop Boyle was succeeded by Dr. Synge, who, by will dated May 23rd, 1677, left several legacies to the poor of St. Finbarr's (Cork), Youghal, Cloyne, and Innishowen. From the death of this prelate, the see of Cloyne was held separately from the united see of Cork and Ross until 1835. Dr. Wetenhall, who was the first Bishop of Cork and Ross, "suffered great cruelties and oppressions from the year 1688 to the settlement under King William," and at his own expense repaired the episcopal palace at Cork. Dr. Brown, Provost of Trinity College, was promoted to this bishoprick in 1709, and held it till his death, in 1735. By his encouragement several churches were rebuilt or repaired, and glebe-houses erected; and a handsome public library, with a large room for a charity-school, was built near the cathedral.

He expended more than £2000 on a country house, built in a demesne of 118 acres belonging to the see, at Ballinaspick or Bishopstown, near Cork, which he occupied as a summer residence, and left to his successors free from any charge. By will he left £300 contingently, of which one-third of the interest was to be paid to the librarian of the library recently erected near the cathedral (to which he also bequeathed some of his books), one-third for the purchase of books for its use, and the remainder for the widows and children of poor clergymen; he also left £20 to the poor of St. Finbarr's parish, and £100 for clothing and apprenticing poor children.

On the death of Dr. Brinkley, bishop of Cloyne, in 1835, that bishoprick was added to Cork and Ross by the Church Temporalities Act of the 3rd of Wm. IV., and the united see is called the bishoprick of Cork, Ross, and Cloyne. By the act for amending the Church Temporalities Act, £1500 per annum, commencing Sept. 14th, 1835, has been granted out of the funds at the disposal of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, to compensate Dr. Kyle, the present bishop, for the loss he has sustained in exchanging the temporalities of Cork and Ross for those of Cloyne. The diocese is one of the eleven which constitute the ecclesiastical province of Cashel; it is entirely within the county of Cork, extending about 74 miles in length and 16 in breadth, and contains an estimated superficies of 356,300 acres.

The chapter of Cork consists of a dean, precentor, chancellor, treasurer, archdeacon, and the twelve prebendaries of Kilbrogan, Kilbritain, Killaspigmullane, Cahirlog, Liscleary, Killanully, Inniskenny, Kilnaglory, Holy Trinity, St. Michael, Desertmore, and Dromdaleague. The see lands comprise 3306 acres, about one-half of which is profitable land; and its gross annual revenue, on an average of three years ending Dec. 31st, 1831, was £2630. 1.; the whole is now vested in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, under the Church Temporalities Act. To the dean belong, as the corps of the deanery, the rectory and vicarage of Templebready, and the rectories of Cullen and Templemartin, the tithes of which amount to £921. 4. per annum; besides which he has a residence, or deanery, and the right of nomination to the perpetual cure of Templebready, of the annual value of £56. 6. 7., and to the curacy of St. Finbarr's of the annual value of £100. To the precentor belong the rectories of Carrigrohane, Curricuppane, a third of Corbally, and a fourth of Kinneigh, the tithes of which amount to £858. 6. 8. per annum; to the chancellor belongs the consolidated rectory of St. Nicholas, the tithes of which amount to £315; to the treasurer belong the rectory entire of Ballinadee, and the tithes of the townlands of Kilgoban, Rathdowlan, and Mackloneigh, amounting altogether to £651.10. 8 1/2.; to the archdeacon belong the rectories of St. Peter, in the city of Cork, and those of Nohoval, Kilmanogue, Dunbollogue, and Dunisky, the tithes of which amount to £856. 4. 7., and about £200 of which is paid as minister's money, in lieu of tithes, for St. Peter's parish. The endowments of the prebends will be found in the accounts of the parishes after which they are named. The cathedral is also the parish church of St. Finbarr's, and is described in the account of that parish in a subsequent part of this article. The annual income of the economy estate, on an average of three years ending Aug. 30th, 1831, was £786. 3. 6., principally arising from the tithes of two-thirds of that part of the parish of St. Finbarr which is in the city, and of the whole of that part which is in the county, of Cork. The expenditure consists of repairs of the cathedral, and payments to its officers, &c, but principally in the building and support of St. Michael's chapel at Blackrock, from which, in 1831, the economy estate was in debt £1400. This is the only fund under the control of the dean and chapter in their corporate capacity, and the only benefices in their patronage are the perpetual cure of Marmullane and the chapelry of St. Michael. The four vicars choral possess a net annual income of more than £1200, arising from the tithes of several parishes and the rents of some houses in Cork, and yielding to each above £300 per annum. The palace is the only portion of the property of the see, except the mensal and demesne lands, that is not vested in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The consistorial court of the dioceses of Cork and Ross is held in the chapter-house at Cork; its officers are a vicar-general, registrar, and proctors; the registrar is keeper of the records of the see, which consist of original wills, oaths, declarations, canons, and records of the proceedings of the bishops, the oldest of which commences in 1521. The total number of parishes in the diocese is 84, of which 11 are unions; they are comprised in 65 benefices, 6 of which are in the patronage of the Crown, 2 in the alternate patronage of the Crown and the Bishop, 41 in the gift of the Bishop, 5 in the gift of incumbents, and the remaining 11 in the patronage of laymen. There are 58 churches and 26 school buildings, besides which are other houses licensed by the bishop, in which divine worship is regularly performed. The glebe-houses are 25 in number.

In the R. C. divisions Cork forms a separate bishoprick, comprising 35 parochial districts, containing 81 chapels: of these, 71 are parochial, 3 annexed to presentation convents, and one to each of the Dominican, Capuchin, Augustinian, Carmelite, and Franciscan friaries; one to an Ursuline convent, and one to the Magdalen Asylum, Cork. The total number of the R. C. clergy, in 1835, including the bishop, was 74, of which 35 were parish priests and 39 coadjutors or curates. The parochial benefice of the bishop, who resides in Cork, is the union of Shandon, called the North Parish.

The county of the city comprises a populous rural district of great beauty and fertility, watered by several small rivulets and intersected by the river Lee and its noble estuary: it is bounded on the north by the barony of Fermoy, on the east by that of Barrymore, on the south by Kerricurrihy, and on the west by Muskerry: it comprehends the parishes of St. Finbarr, Christ-Church or the Holy Trinity, St. Peter, St. Mary Shandon, St. Anne Shandon, St. Paul and St. Nicholas, all, except part of St. Finbarr's, within the city and suburbs, and those of Curricuppane, Carrigrohanemore, Kilcully, and Rathcoony, together with parts of the parishes of Killanully or Killingly, Carrigaline, Dunbullogue or Carrignavar, Ballinaboy, Inniskenny, Kilnaglory, White-church, and Templemichael, without those limits; and contains, according to the Ordnance survey, an area of 44,463 statute acres, of which, 2396 are occupied by the city and suburbs. The Grand Jury presentments for 1835 were as follow: new roads, bridges, &c, £611. 19. 7.; repairs of roads, bridges, &c, £2641. 14. 0 1/2.; public buildings, charities, officers' salaries, and miscellaneous expenses, £14,592. 1. 1.; police establishment, £1148. 14. 3.; repayment of advances by Government, £1254. 19. 6.; wide street commissioners for lighting, paving, &c, £8800; making a total of £29,049. 8. 5 1/2.

The parish of St. Finbarr is a rectory, appropriate to the dean and chapter and vicars choral. The tithes under the composition act amount to £990 per annum, of which £690 constitute the greater portion of the economy fund of the cathedral under the control and management of the dean and chapter, and £300 are payable to the vicars choral: a residentiary preacher with a stipend of £100, of which £50 is from the economy fund, and £50 from the respective members for discharging their turns of preaching; a reader, with a stipend of £75 paid by the vicars choral out of their estates, and a curate, who also acts as librarian, with a fixed stipend of £21 from the economy fund, are appointed for the ordinary performance of the ecclesiastical duties. The parish church, which is also the cathedral of the see of Cork, and is dedicated to the saint whose name it bears, was rebuilt between the years 1725 and 1735, and for defraying the expense a duty of 1s. per ton was imposed by act on all coal and culm imported into Cork for five years, from May 1st, 1736: it was newly roofed in 1817 at an expense of £617 from the economy fund. The new structure is of the Doric order, except the tower, supposed to be part of the ancient building, erected by Gilla-Aeda O'Mugin, in the 12th century, and is surmounted by a lofty octangular spire of hewn stone under which is the principal entrance; on the south is the chapter hall, where the consistorial court is held, on the north the vestry room; the choir is lighted by a fine Venetian window; the bishop's throne, of black Irish oak, and the prebendal stalls, are handsomely finished, and well arranged: a beautiful monument of white marble, erected to the memory of Chief Baron Tracton, whose body is interred in the cathedral, has been recently transferred from St. Nicholas' church to a conspicuous position in it. Near the cathedral is the bishop's palace, built between 1772 and 1789, during the prelacy of Dr. Mann, a large and well-constructed edifice, on the southern bank of the river Lee, surrounded by pleasure grounds and gardens, and containing some fine paintings, among which is a portrait of Dr. Lyons, concerning whose preferment to the see a traditionary story, but wholly unsupported by documentary evidence, relates, that having received a promise from Queen Elizabeth to be promoted to the first vacancy in her gift, in consequence of his gallant conduct as captain of a ship in several actions with the Spaniards, he applied for the bishoprick of Cork on the death of the bishop, and notwithstanding the objections made in consequence of his former profession, by urging his reliance on the royal promise, he was appointed to the see. On the south side of the cathedral is Dean's Court, a good modern house, the residence of the Dean. A chapel of ease to this parish has been erected at Blackrock, for the description of which, see Blackrock. The living of the parish of Christ-Church is a vicarage, in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory constitutes the corps of the prebend of the same name in the cathedral church, and is in the gift of the Crown: the prebendary derives his income from lands at Blackrock, averaging in rent and renewal fines, £396. 18. 5 3/4 per annum; the endowment of the vicarage, arising solely from houses assessed to minister's money, amounts to about £650 per annum: it has neither glebe nor glebe-house. The old church was taken down in 1716, and rebuilt in 1720 by a tax of 1s. per ton on coal imported for 15 years: the steeple having afterwards sunk on one side so as to swerve 3 1/2 feet from the perpendicular, though without any fissures, thus presenting a very singular appearance, was lowered to the level of the roof and ultimately wholly removed, and the church rebuilt by the Messrs. Pain. The new structure is 97 feet by 57, its richly panelled ceiling rests on ranges of Ionic pillars of scagliola continued across the eastern end; along the northern and southern walls are galleries supported by Doric pilasters. Several of the lower columns, with parts of the floor, having been destroyed by the dry rot, Richard Beamish, Esq., civil engineer, in 1831, replaced the whole lower range of columns with pillars of cast iron without the smallest derangement of the upper columns, thus effectually securing the stability of the entire edifice. Several gravestones, some of the 16th century, and bearing emblematic devices, were discovered during the progress of the alterations. The living of St.Peter's is a rectory, united from time immemorial with the entire rectories of Nohoval, Kilmonogue, Dunbullogue, and Dunisky, together constituting the union and corps of the archdeaconry, in the patronage of the Bishop. The archdeacon's gross income is about £1000, arising from minister's money assessed on St. Peter's parish, from the tithes of the four rural parishes, and from reserved rents of houses, out of which he pays a perpetual and four stipendiary curates. The church, one of the most ancient in the city, formerly had as a steeple a tower detached from it considerably to the west, which once defended the city wall; its site is now occupied by an alms-house: the altar is ornamented with fluted Corinthian pilasters, and on its south side was a monument to the memory of Sir Matthew Deane and his lady, of the date of 1710, now removed to the further end of the church. The living of St. Mary's Shandon is a rectory and vicarage, with the rectory of St. Catharine, near Shandon, which has merged into it, united from time immemorial, and in the alternate patronage of the Duke of Leinster, and the Rev. Robert Longfield. There is neither glebe nor glebe-house: the tithes amount to £25, under the composition act, and the minister's money to £40 per ann., in addition to which the rector receives a rental of £95. 10. 9., from 7 houses in Shandon-street. This income is charged with the stipend of £75 per annum to a licensed curate. The church of the ancient parish of Shandon, which comprised the present parishes of St. Mary, St. Anne, and St. Paul, occupied the site of St. Anne's church, and from its proximity to Shandon castle, was several times damaged by contending factions and ultimately destroyed by the Irish about 1690: the present church, a neat edifice, was built in 1696, on a new site, and the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have lately granted £198. 19. 4. for its repairs. St. Anne's Shandon is a rectory, in the alternate patronage of the Duke of Leinster, and the Rev. Robert Longfield. It has neither glebe nor glebe-house. The tithes under the composition act amount to £240. 3. 5 1/2., and the minister's money is about £370 per annum. The church, a large and handsome edifice, with a tower of several stories, 120 feet high, was built by subscription in 1772, on the site of the old church of Shandon, and being erected on an eminence, is prominently conspicuous from most parts of the city: the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have granted £259. 9. 10. for its repairs. A chapel of ease to this parish was erected in 1836, near the Brickfields, in the later English style of architecture, from a design of Messrs. Pain, with a western tower surmounted by a light and elegant spire and two lofty pinnacles at the east end; capacious school-rooms have been formed below the level of the floor at the same end where the ground declines rapidly; the late Board of First Fruits granted £1000, and an equal sum was raised by subscription for the erection of this building. The living of St. Paul's is a rectory, in the alternate patronage of the Duke of Leinster, and the Rev. Robert Longfield. The parish was formed, in 1726, out of the districts of the East Marsh, in the parish of St. Mary Shandon, and Dunscombe's Marsh, in that of Christ-Church: the income, amounting to about £200 per ann., is derived solely from assessments of minister's money: there is neither glebe nor glebe-house. The church is a neat edifice in the Grecian style, built by subscription on the formation of the parish, and on ground granted by the corporation. The living of St. Nicholas' is a rectory, united by act of council in 1752 with those of St. Bridget, St. John of Jerusalem, St. Stephen, St. Mary de Narde, St. Dominic, and St. Magdalene, which together constitute the corps of the chancellorship, in the patronage of the Bishop. The income of the union is £293. 18. 0., arising from houses assessed to minister's money, the tithes of St. Magdalene amounting to £21, the tithes of St. Nicholas and houses producing £5. 18. 0. per ann. The church, formerly a chapel of ease to St. Finbarr's, was built in 1723 by contributions from Bishop Browne and others, and is a small neat edifice, situate in the southern part of the city. A free church, near the South Infirmary, is now nearly completed, and above St. Patrick's bridge the hulk of an old vessel forms the Bethel or Mariner's church. The church of St. Brandon, which was situate on the north side of the river, on the road to Youghal, has been entirely destroyed, but the cemetery is still in use.

The principal schools in connection with the Established Church are the following. St. Stephen's Blue Coat Hospital was founded pursuant to a grant of lands and tenements in the north and south liberties by the Honourable William Worth, by deed dated Sept. 2nd, 1699, now producing a rental of £443. 4. 4. which, with the interest of £500 saved by the trustees, is expended in the maintenance, clothing, and education of 22 boys, the sons of reduced Protestant citizens, and in aid of the support of four students at Trinity College, Dublin: it is under the superintendence of the mayor and council, who nominate the boys. The school premises are situated on an eminence in the parish of St. Nicholas, and comprise a good school-room, dining-hall, apartments for the governor, and suitable offices, with an enclosed playground in front. The Green Coat Hospital, in the churchyard of St. Anne's Shandon, was founded about 1715, chiefly through the exertions of some military gentlemen and others to the number of 25, who by an act passed in 1717 were incorporated trustees, for the instruction of 20 children of each sex in the rudiments of useful knowledge and the principles of the Protestant religion, and for apprenticing them at a proper age, with a preference to the children of military men who had served their country. No regular system appears to have been introduced prior to 1751, but subsequently 40 children were clothed and educated till 1812; the number has since been increased by aid of a parliamentary grant, and at present there are 40 boys and 28 girls in the school. The income amounts to £96. 7. 11 1/4. per annum, of which £83. 15. 11 1/4. arises from donations and bequests, and the remainder from annual subscriptions: the chief benefactors were Daniel Thresher, who devised the lands of Rickenhead, in the county of Dublin, now let for £26 per annum on lease, which will expire in 1844, when they will probably produce at least £100 per annum; and Francis Edwards, of London, who devised eleven ploughlands in the parish of Ballyvourney, let permanently for £11 per annum: a librarian and treasurer, chosen from among the trustees, act gratuitously. The building consists of a centre and two wings, the former containing two school-rooms and apartments for the master; in the west wing are a library and board-room, with apartments for the mistress; and the other wing contains lodging-rooms for about 38 poor parishioners. Deane's charity schools were founded under the will, dated in 1726, of Moses Deane, Esq., of this city, who devised the rents of certain premises held for a term of years in trust to the corporation, to accumulate until they should yield a sum of £1200 for the parishes of St. Peter, St. Nicholas, St. Mary Shandon, and Christ-Church respectively, which sums were to be invested in lands in the county of Cork, and the rents applied to the instruction and clothing of 20 boys and 20 girls of each parish. The portion of the bequest assigned to the parish of St. Peter having been paid, the school was re-opened in 1817, and now affords instruction to 30 boys and 35 girls, of whom 20 of each sex are clothed: the endowment produces £66. 17. per annum, and an additional sum of about £50 is raised annually by subscriptions and the proceeds of an annual sermon: these form the parochial schools of St. Peter's. The portion assigned to the parish of St. Nicholas was obtained by the Rev. Archdeacon Austin, and was afterwards vested in the hands of the commissioners for charitable bequests by the Rev. Dr. Quarry. In 1822 a grant was obtained, and a plain and commodious building containing two school-rooms was erected in Cove-street, to which, in 1831, the Rev. J. N. Lombard, the present rector, added a school-room for infants: there are now in these schools 76 boys and 99 girls, of whom 30 boys and 25 girls are clothed out of the funds, which now amount to £189. 14. 10. per annum, and the children receive a daily supply of bread. The portion belonging to St. Mary Shandon's was lost for many years, but by the exertions of Dr. Quarry, the present rector, £800 was recovered, which, by a legacy of £100 and accumulated interest, has been augmented to £2000 three and a half per cent. reduced annuities: a commodious building of red brick ornamented with hewn limestone, and containing apartments for the master and three spacious school-rooms with a covered play-ground for the children, was erected in 1833 under the superintendence of Dr. Quarry, at the cost of £743. 2. 6. collected by him for that purpose: the pupils amount to 64 boys and 46 girls. An infants' school affords instruction to 100 children: the entire average of attendance may be averaged at 200. A Sunday and an adult school are also held in the same building. The boys' and girls' schools are supported by a portion of the dividends arising from the funded property, and by local subscriptions, and a collection after a charity sermon; and the infants' school by a portion of the same dividends and subscriptions. The parish of Christ-Church obtained no portion of Deane's bequest, the lease of the premises from which it was payable having expired. The diocesan schools for the sees of Cork, Ross, and Cloyne, are situated in Prince's-street, and are attended by 60 pupils, of whom 14 are taught gratuitously. On the eastern side of the cathedral is a free school founded by Archdeacon Pomeroy for the instruction in reading, writing, and arithmetic, of ten boys, to be nominated by the bishop; the master's original salary of £10 having been augmented by the dean and chapter, and by a bequest by the late Mrs. Shearman, to £30, twenty boys are now instructed gratuitously and are also taught the mathematics. Attached to the school is a library, founded also by the archdeacon, and much enlarged by a bequest of the late Bishop Stopford: it contains more than 4000 volumes, chiefly valuable editions of the classics and works on Divinity, and is open gratuitously to the clergy of the diocese and the parishioners of St. Finbarr's.

According to the R. C. divisions, the city with the suburbs is divided into three unions or parishes, St. Mary's and St. Anne's, St. Peter's and St. Paul's, and St. Finbarr's. St. Mary's and St. Anne's comprises nearly the whole of the Protestant parishes of St. Mary, St. Anne, and St. Catherine: the duties are performed by the parish priest, who is the Bishop, six curates, and two chaplains. The parochial chapel, which is also the cathedral, is a spacious structure, with a plain exterior: the eastern end having been destroyed by an accidental fire, it was rebuilt, and, with the rest of the interior, decorated by the Messrs. Pain in the later English style of architecture: the altar-piece is extremely rich and similar to that of the abbey of St. Albans, in England. There are chapels of ease at Brickfields and Clogheen: the former, dedicated to St. Patrick, is a handsome edifice in the Grecian style by the Messrs. Pain: the principal front is ornamented by a lofty and elegant portico of eight columns of grey marble, not yet finished, and approached by a flight of steps, extending along the entire front: from the centre of the roof rises a cupola, supported by eight Corinthian columns, surmounted by figures representing as many of the Apostles; the whole topped by a pedestal and cross. This chapel was opened for divine service, October 18th, 1836. St. Peter's and Paul's, comprising the Protestant parishes of the same name, with portions of those of Christ-Church, St. Anne's, and St. Finbarr's, is a mensal of the Bishop: the duties are performed by an administrator and two curates. The parochial chapel, a plain edifice, built in 1786, has an elegant altar in the Corinthian style, with a fine painting of the Crucifixion. St. Finbarr's comprises the Protestant parish of St. Nicholas, most part of St. Finbarr's, and a small portion of that of Christ-Church: the duties are performed by a parish priest and four curates, one of whom resides near Blackrock, and officiates at the chapel of ease there, which is noticed under the article descriptive of that village. The parochial chapel is in Dunbar-street, a spacious building, erected in 1776, in form of a T: under the altar is a figure of a "dead Christ," of a single block of white marble, executed at Rome, at an expense of £500, by Hogan, a native or Cork. In the chapel is also a monument to the memory of the Rev. Dr. McCarthy, coadjutor bishop, in which he is represented in the act of administering the sacrament to a person labouring under malignant fever, thus expressing in the most lively manner the cause of his premature death. There are four friaries belonging severally to the Augustinians, Franciscans, Dominicans, and Capuchins; two monasteries for monks, one of the Presentation order, the other of the Christian Brotherhood; and two convents for nuns of the Presentation order, one in the southern and the other in the northern part of the city. The Augustinians had an institution, called Gill Abbey, founded by St. Finbarr, for canons regular of the order, largely endowed by Cormac Mac Carthy, King of Cork, and shortly afterwards completed by Gilla Aeda, bishop of the see, from whom it derived its name; it anciently formed the cathedral establishment. The present state of this and the other decayed monastic buildings in the city is described in the subsequent part of this article, which treats of its antiquities. The institution at present is situated in Brunswick-street, and consists of a prior and four priests: the chapel, erected in 1780, was much enlarged in 1827; over the altar is a good painting of the Crucifixion. The Franciscan monastery was founded in 1214, on the north side of the city, by Dermot Mac Carthy Reagh, and rebuilt in 1240 by Lord Philip Prendergast. The present institution, situated in Grattan-street, consists of a guardian and four priests: the chapel, a neat building, was erected in 1830 by subscription, at an expense of £4500. The Dominican friary was founded in 1229, by the Barry family, on an island on the south side of the city, whence it acquired the name of the Abbey of the Island. The institution is now situated in Dominic-street, on the site of Shandon castle, and consists of a prior and six priests. A new chapel, dedicated to St. Mary, is being erected on Pope's quay from a design gratuitously furnished by Kearnes Deane, Esq, who superintends its erection on a principle of similar liberality. When finished, it will consist of a portico of six Ionic columns with a triangular pediment surmounted by sculptured figures, with a stately portico, enriched with Corinthian pillars on each side, and topped by a dome with an octangular tambour. The interior, 112 1/2 by 100 feet, will be also enriched by ranges of Corinthian pillars; the cost will be defrayed both by voluntary subscriptions collected in the usual manner and by a weekly penny collection from the industrious and poorer classes. A Sunday school with about 500 pupils is attached to this body. The Capuchins' or Reformed Franciscans' institution, situated in Blackman's-lane, consists of a provincial, guardian, and three priests. The chapel was built by the celebrated Arthur O'Leary, who was a priest of this order. A new chapel has been commenced in 1823, on Charlotte's-quay, by the present provincial, the Very Rev. Theobald Matthews, who has contributed liberally to its expense, which has already amounted to £10,000; the remainder is derived from subscriptions and weekly collections. The structure, from a design and under the superintendence of Messrs. Pain, is built of a light grey limestone, and is already carried up as high as the roof; when finished, it will present a splendid specimen of the later English style, with a tower and spire, 200 feet high the front has a portico of three lofty arches resting on octagonal piers; between the centre piers is a rich screen, forming a kind of porch to the doorway. The piers, ten in number, are continued at the angles of the building, those not connected with the tower terminating like those of Hen. VII.'s chapel at Westminster, from which spring the exterior flying buttresses. Similar buttresses are introduced in connection with the turrets at the angles of the tower, which rise from a base just above the arches before mentioned. The tower will consist of two stories, having an open parapet of tracery passing round it, above which will rise the spire: the upper story of the tower and the lower portion of the spire wi!l be open, so managed as to combine strength and variety with airy lightness. The contract for the building was nearly £ 12,000, but it is estimated that the entire cost will exceed £20,000. The Sunday schools, under the care of the Josephian Society (the Very Rev. T. Matthews, patron), are composed of religious and well-educated young men who instruct 500 boys: the day schools are under the superintendence of 50 Ladies Governesses, five of whom attend every day and are assisted by a matron and instruct 500 girls; an infants' school for 350 children is under the direction of the same ladies, aided by a matron from the London parent institution. Evening schools for the instruction of apprentices and labouring boys are under the care of the same society. The Presentation Monastery, situated in Douglas-street, was established in 1827 in buildings previously occupied by the Nuns of the Presentation order. The community consists of a superior and ten brothers, who devote themselves to the instruction of the poor on a system embracing every branch of useful education. Attached to the dwelling is a spacious building, divided into four large apartments capable of accommodating 1000 boys; about 600 receive instruction and are apprenticed when at a proper age. The funds are derived from subscriptions and the proceeds of an annual sermon. The school owes its origin to the late Very Rev. Dean Collins, priest of the. parish, who contributed liberally towards the erection of the building, and also to its support. The Lancasterian school, at the end of Great George's-street, is conducted by this community; it is 80 feet by 60, and capable of accommodating 1000 pupils; it is attended by the same number, and supported in the same manner as the school previously described. The Christian Brotherhood was instituted in 1811; the present buildings, situated in Peacock-lane, were erected in 1815. The community consists of a superior and eight brothers, who devote themselves to the instruction of the poor in two schools, one in Peacock lane, the other on Sullivan's-quay: the former of these, two stories high and divided into six apartments, each 45 feet by 25, affords accommodation for 800 boys; in the latter about 300 attend. The schools are conducted and supported in the same manner as those of the Presentation Monastery. The community's dwelling-house is at a short distance from the former of these schools, on an elevated and commanding situation. The Presentation Convent, in Douglas-street, owes its origin to the late Miss Honora Nagle, who in 1777 erected a small building for that purpose; which being soon found too small for the increasing number of its inmates, the building now occupied by the parochial clergymen and by the monks of the Presentation order, was erected by the ladies and their friends, under the superintendence of the Very Rev. Dean Collins: the establishment has since become the parent house of the Presentation Institute in Ireland. After the decease of this lady, the new order was approved of by Pope Pius VI. and confirmed by Pius VII., under the title of "the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary." Dean Collins, then the parish priest, purchased, in 1825, the interest of the present buildings (partly erected by Miss Nagle) from the Ursuline Nuns, who had removed to their present abode in Blackrock; and the present community of the Presentation Institute removed into them on Oct. 1st, 1827, from the buildings now occupied by the Parochial Clergy and the Monks of the Presentation order. The community consists of a superioress, 17 professed and 2 lay nuns, who devote their whole time to the gratuitous instruction of poor female children; the average attendance of pupils is about 500. The buildings, with the chapel, form a very respectable pile in an elevated situation. The remains of the foundress are interred in the cemetery within the grounds, and those of Dean Collins within the chapel, in which there is a neat marble slab erected to his memory. There is an almshouse for 20 poor old women in connection with it, chiefly supported by the ladies. The North Presentation convent was founded in Chapel-street in 1799, and removed to the present house in Clarence-street in. 1808. The community consists of a superioress, 14 professed nuns and two lay sisters, who devote their time to the same purpose as those in Douglas-street already described: the average attendance of children at the school is 600, one-third of whom are clothed annually by a subscription of the citizens: the buildings with the chapel form a handsome pile. A branch of the Sisters of Charity, Stanhope-street, Dublin, was established near the cathedral 10 years since; the community consists of six inmates, who go out to relieve the sick poor and to instruct them in the duties of religion.

The Presbyterians have two places of worship, one in connection with the Synod of Munster, and the other in connection with that of Ulster; each is of the first class. There are also two places of worship for Wesleyan Methodists, and one each for the Baptists, the Society of Friends, the Independents and the Primitive Methodists. The congregation belonging to the Synod of Munster is a Cromwellian establishment, and one of the oldest dissenting congregations in Cork: the place of worship, a commodious and well-arranged edifice, is in Princes's-street: a boys' and girls' school in connection with it, the pupils of which are clothed and apprenticed at a proper age, is supported by subscription and the proceeds of an annual sermon: there is also an almshouse, with accommodation for 15 inmates, but having only 9 at present in it; also a loan fund and a lending library. J. Pedder, Esq., bequeathed to the congregation £600, one half for the ministers, and the other for the poor; S. McCarthy also bequeathed £300 for the same purpose. Dr. Hincks, Greek professor in the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, and author of a Greek and English Lexicon and other works connected with classical literature, was minister of this congregation for many years. The congregation of the Synod of Ulster holds its devotional meetings in a large room in Tuckey-street, formerly the assembly-room belonging to Daly's Club-house. The Wesleyan Methodists' places of worship, both neat and commodious edifices, are in Henry-street and Patrick-street; attached to the former are a female day school and an infants' school; each has a Sunday school; all are supported by subscription. The Baptist place of worship is a plain building in Marl-borough-street. The meeting-house belonging to the Society of Friends consists of a large and convenient range of buildings lately erected in Grattan-street, on the site of the old meeting-house, and comprising an apartment for public worship, with committee-rooms attached to it, and, fronting the street, a commodious dwelling-house for the resident care-taker and for reduced aged and infirm members: the expense, amounting to £4200, was defrayed by a subscription of its own members. The Independent meeting-house, in Old George's-street, was built by Messrs. Pain in 1829, at an expense of about £3000; it is an oblong edifice, 80 feet by 40, with two semicircular appendages; and in front is a small portico of four fanciful columns resembling the Corinthian order; the ceiling is arched and richly pannelled. The Primitive Methodists have their place of worship in French Church-street.

In addition to the schools already noticed are many more in the different parishes of the city and suburbs, supported principally by annual grants, local subscriptions, and collections after charity sermons. In Christ-Church parish are the male and female parochial schools, of which the boys' school has an endowment of £15 late currency bequeathed by Mrs. Shearman; an infants' school, and several Sunday schools. In the parish of St. Anne Shandon are the male and female parochial schools; the parochial infants' school; the Brickfields' National schools, aided by grants from the National Board, and several Sunday schools. A school in George's-street was established in 1822, principally by the exertions of Dr. P. Kehoe, for the instruction of deaf and dumb children, into which, since its foundation, 60 children have been admitted; of these, 30 have been withdrawn by their parents from time to time; 15 have been apprenticed; 4 died, and 11 are at present in attendance. Here is a branch of the Juvenile Auxiliary Society to the National Institution for the deaf and dumb at Claremont, near Dublin. In the parish of St. Finbarr are the parochial male school, aided by an annual subscription of £20 from the dean and chapter, and a bequest of £10 per annum late currency from Mrs. Shearman; the parochial female school, a National school for boys at Blackrock, a school supported by subscriptions, and several Sunday schools. In the parish of St. Mary Shandon are a National school for boys and girls in Blarney-lane, and another at Sunday's Well: the latter was erected in 1835, at an expense of £340, of which the National Board of Education contributed £186, and the remainder was defrayed by subscription; it is a neat building of two apartments each 52 feet by 24, and affords instruction to about 350 of each sex. In the parish of St. Nicholas the Masonic Female Orphan Asylum, Cove-street, was founded in 1820, in which the children are maintained, clothed, educated, and apprenticed to trades or other useful occupations: from its commencement to July 31st, 1836, 60 children have been admitted, of whom 40 have been apprenticed: the expense for that year was about £300: the parish also contains a friary school for girls, and an infants' school adjoining the chapel of the Capuchins, a friary and Sunday and evening school for girls, and a Sunday school in connection with the Established Church. In the parish of St. Paul are a Protestant free school for boys and girls, several of whom are clothed, and, under the same roof, an infants' school; a free school for girls, endowed with the dividends on £450 three and a half per cent. consol. bank annuities; and two Sunday schools. In the parish of St. Peter are a school for girls adjoining the chapel of St. Peter and St. Paul, under the superintendence of a committee of ladies, and aided by the interest of a bequest from the late Mr. Rochford; St. Patrick's asylum for orphans, under the superintendence of the R. C. clergyman, in which 20 boys and 20 girls are boarded, lodged, clothed, and educated, and at a proper age apprenticed, and which is supported by subscriptions and a collection after a charity sermon, amounting to about £220 per annum; a school for girls, and an infants' school in connection with the Wesleyan Methodists; and several Sunday schools. These schools altogether, exclusively of the Sunday schools, afford instruction to about 3750 boys and 3250 girls; there are also 45 private pay schools, in which about 1150 boys and 740 girls are taught.

The Foundling Hospital, in Leitrim-street, was opened in 1747 It is governed by an incorporated board, consisting of the diocesan, the mayor, recorder, aldermen, sheriffs, common-councilmen and common-speaker, with 26 of the commonalty, elected by the D'Oyer Hundred, and is maintained by a local tax on coal and culm, weigh-house fines, carriage licenses and penalties on car drivers, amounting to about £5500 annually. The infants, received periodically from the churchwardens, are placed out at nurse till they are six or seven years old, when they become inmates until of an age to be apprenticed. The average number of the former class is 1000 and of the latter 400. They are educated as Protestants and bound to Protestant masters. Good conduct during apprenticeship is rewarded by a gratuity of three guineas. The building is a small quadrangle, of which the chapel forms one side; the other three are appropriated to school-rooms (two for the boys and two for the girls), dormitories, and other necessary apartments. A resident chaplain superintends the details of the institution. The North Infirmary, adjoining the churchyard of St. Anne's, Shandon, was formed in 1744 by the members of a musical society, who appropriated their surplus funds for its support, and by individual subscriptions, and was established by an act passed in 1752; it is supported by a Grand Jury presentment of £250, a grant of £50 from Government, and voluntary subscriptions, all which together, with funded property arising from bequests, amounts to about £500 per annum. In 1829 Mr. Sampayo, a native of the city, but resident in London, contributed £1000 for the enlargement of the hospital accommodation, which having been increased by a bequest of £500 from Mr. Rochford and by other subscriptions, amounting in all to £3200, the trustees determined to erect a new building capable of containing 100 beds, on the ground belonging to the old infirmary. The building, erected by Mr. Hill, a resident architect, consists of a plain structure, of three stories, forming three sides of a quadrangle, 100 feet in front, with lateral returns of 75 feet each. The ground floor is appropriated to the dispensary department and to accommodation for officers; the two upper stories are laid out in wards. The expense of its erection was £3760.13.6. Its affairs are conducted by a board of trustees partly official and partly elected annually. The number of patients during 1835 was, interns, cured 227, relieved 30, died 8, remaining at the close of the year 30; total, 295 externs, cured or relieved, 14,606; general total, 14,901. The income for the same year was £1703.12.2., and the expenditure, £1559.4.6., from which latter item is to be deducted £800 paid to the architect on account of the building, leaving £759.4.6. for the current annual expenses of the institution. The South Infirmary was established under the 11th and 12th of Geo. III., and is supported by a similar presentment of £250 late currency from the Grand Jury, an annual grant of £50 by the Government, and subscriptions amounting to about £200 per annum. The building contains about 32 beds, and is well adapted to its purpose; the wards are large and well ventilated. The number admitted in 1835 was 381, of whom 243 were discharged cured, 76 relieved, 25 died, 6 absconded, and 30 remained on Jan. 1st, 1836; during the same year, 14,354 externs were cured or relieved. An attempt was some time since made by the trustees to unite these infirmaries and constitute them a general hospital both for the county and the county of the city of Cork, and to erect a large building sufficient for the purpose; this arrangement being subsequently limited to the union of the infirmaries only, an act was procured in the 2nd and 3rd of Wm. IV., but from some difficulty which arose the design was ultimately abandoned. The Fever Hospital and House of Recovery, established in 1802, and supported by annual subscriptions and Grand Jury presentments, is situated in an airy part of the north suburbs; and from its opening to the 31st of Oct., 1836, not less than 51,085 patients have been admitted. In 1816 a detached building, capable of containing 80 beds, was added to it, into which, during the prevalence of cholera, 775 patients of that class were admitted. The building is spacious, well arranged, and thoroughly ventilated, and contains 200 beds: the total expenditure for the year 1835 amounted to £1295. 17. 10. The Lying-in Hospital, on the Mardyke parade, was established in 1798, and is supported by subscription under the superintendence of a committee of ladies; it contains 12 beds, and, in 1835, 368 poor women participated in the benefits of the establishment. The Cork Midwifery Dispensary and Institution for Diseases of Women and Children was opened in Brown-street in 1834, and is supported by subscription. The Cork General Dispensary, Humane Society, and Cow-pock Institution was established in 1787, and is supported by Grand Jury presentments, donations, and subscriptions: in the year ending April 1st, 1836, not less than 11,198 patients received medical and surgical relief from this establishment, of whom 5066 were relieved in their own dwellings. The Lunatic Asylum for the county and city is situated on the Blackrock road, and is connected with the House of Industry adjoining, and under the direction of the same board of governors; the house, though spacious, is not adapted for complete classification; a considerable piece of ground in front enclosed with a high wall is used as a place of recreation for the patients, and is cultivated by them; the number in 1836 was 370, which is 70 more than can be properly accommodated; the institution is supported by presentments on the county and county of the city, apportioned by sharing equally certain fixed expenses, and by contributing to the maintenance of the inmates according to the number sent from each: the annual average expenditure amounts to £4000. The asylum is under the medical superintendence of Dr. Osburne, and of a moral governor, the former of whom has a private establishment at Lindville for the reception of insane patients, beautifully situated on a limestone rock gently sloping to the river, of which it commands a pleasing view; and attached to it is an enclosed demesne of 14 acres, affording extensive walks and ample means of recreation to the patients under his care. The House of Industry is an extensive building, affording accommodation to 1200 inmates, who are always under its roof, and of whom two-thirds are women; these are employed in household work, washing, spinning, plain work, weaving, and platting straw; and the males in picking oakum, weaving, quarrying and breaking stones for the roads, and in cleaning the streets. The establishment contains two medical and surgical hospitals, in which are 150 beds; and there are three schools for boys and girls, each under a separate teacher. It is supported by Grand Jury presentments, the labour of the inmates, collections at charity sermons, and by subscriptions and donations; and is conducted with the greatest regard to the comfort and moral improvement of the inmates. The Magdalene Asylum, in Peacock-lane, was founded in 1809 by Nicholas Therry, Esq., for the protection and reformation of penitent females of dissolute habits, who now contribute to their own maintenance by honest industry. The County and City of Cork Refuge, in Deane-street, instituted in 18-25 for destitute females, and more especially for female liberated prisoners, is supported by subscription; there are at present 30 inmates in this institution. There are various almshouses, principally of parochial character, among which the chief are the corporation almshouses, and those of the parishes of St. Finbarr, St. Nicholas, Christ-Church, and St. Peter and St. Paul; the almshouses in connection with the South Presentation convent, founded by Miss Nagle for aged women; and St. John's Asylum, in Douglas-street, for aged men, the two latter of Roman Catholic origin. Capt. Bretridge, in 1683, devised the lands of East Drumcummer to the corporation for ever, in trust for the payment of 10s. 6d. weekly to seven poor old Protestant men that had been soldiers, the surplus to be applied in apprenticing the children of poor soldiers of the Protestant religion in the city and liberties, or in default of such, the children of other poor Protestant parents; the present income is £258 per annum. In 1584, Stephen Skiddy bequeathed to the mayor and aldermen £24 per annum, to be paid by the Vintners' Company of London, and to be distributed among ten poor, honest, and aged persons of the city. Almshouses were built for each of these charities, and in 1718 a new house was erected for both near the Green Coat Hospital, at an expense of £1150, arising from the sale of the former site; the piazzas were subsequently added at the expense of some benevolent individuals: the annual income of Skiddy's charity, arising from the original bequest and the rents of certain premises granted by the corporation in 1702, is now £235. 18., and is expended in the support of 41 aged widows and five aged men, who have apartments in the almshouse. Mr. William Masterson bequeathed £30 per annum to the poor of the parish of St. Mary, of which sum, £16 is distributed in sums of £2 to poor Protestant tradesmen, £10 is given as marriage portions to two Protestant female servants married to Protestant tradesmen, and the remaining £4 to the Green Coat Hospital. In 1832, W. Lapp, Esq., bequeathed £30,000 for the support of poor old Protestants in the city; but the will not being properly attested to pass freehold estates, the heir resists payment; it, is, however, thought that the personal property will be sufficient to pay nearly the whole of the bequest. There are various societies for the diffusion of religious knowledge. The charitable loan fund originated in the establishment of a society for the relief of poor confined debtors by Henry Shears, in 1774; by a deed dated March 30th, 1785, trustees were empowered by the Musical Society of Dublin to lend money, at first free of interest, to industrious tradesmen in sums from £2 to £5, but subsequently with a charge of 1s. interest on each loan of £3 under the authority of the act of the 4th of Geo. IV. cap. 32. The funds are now entirely appropriated to the purposes of the loan society, and are lent in sums of £3, the borrower giving security for repayment by weekly instalments of 2s. 6d.: the number of families repaying the loan in 1834 was 1150.

Among the remains of antiquity one of the most ancient was Gill Abbey, which, after standing 980 years, fell down in 1738; no vestiges of it can now be traced, but near the site is a cave, anciently called the cave of St. Finbarr, and several fragments of stone pillars and other sculptured ornaments have been lately turned up on the spot. An Augustinian monastery, also on the south side of the town, is the only one of which there are any remains: it is stated by various writers to have been founded at different periods, by some in the reign of Edw. I., by others in that of Hen. V. or VI., and by some even so late as 1472 or 1475; the remains consist of the tower, which is 64 feet high, and is called the Red abbey. The Franciscan monastery had a stately church in which many illustrious persons were interred, but it is now entirely demolished, and Hebert's-square is built on its site. On digging the foundations of the buildings in this square in 1836, a stone curiously sculptured with the date 1567 marked on it was discovered, also a plate of metal 34 inches by 30, now in Mr. Hebert's possession, on which is represented the Nativity, accompanied by a long description, apparently in Dutch. The site of the Dominican friary, called the Abbey of St. Mary of the Island, is now occupied by Mr. O'Keefe's distillery. A nunnery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, and from which St. John's-street took its name, was founded early in the 14th century; the site was discovered a few years since, when several tombstones were dug up near the spot. St. Stephen's priory for lepers was founded in the south suburbs, at a very early period, on the site now occupied by the Blue Coat Hospital; and a Benedictine priory is said to have been founded by King John on the south side of the city, and made a cell to the English abbey at Bath. Bourke mentions a house of White friars and a preceptory of Knights Templars, of which not the slightest vestiges can be traced. Of the ancient walls of the city, with their circular towers, there are considerable remains near the North bridge, and in the rear of the foundry the wall is perfect: of the fortifications in and near it, the last, which was called from its founder Skiddy's castle, was taken down in 1785. A mint was established in the city after the English settlement, but the specimens of coinage are extremely scarce; the earliest extant are silver pennies and halfpennies of the reign of Edw. I., which have on the obverse the king's head within a triangle, with the inscription EDW: R: ANGL: DUX: HYB:. Among the writers who have contributed to elevate the literary character of the city, exclusively of professional writers, are Arthur Murphy, the translator of Tacitus, and author of several successful tragedies and comedies; O'Keefe, the writer of comedies; Edw. Murphy, editor of Lucian; the celebrated Arthur O'Leary, equally distinguished for his wit, learning, and eloquence, and his biographer the Rev. Thos. England; Thos. Crofton Croker, author of "Fairy Legends" and other works illustrative of Irish customs and superstitions; James Roche, author of several articles on the history and descent of the principal commoners of the empire; Dr. Wood, a writer on natural history and on the antiquities of Ireland; John O'Driscol, late judge of Dominica, who published a work in two volumes on the state of Ireland; the Rev. Thos. Townsend, author of the statistical survey of the county of Cork; Dr. Maginn, a principal contributor to Fraser's Magazine; the Rev. Dr. Hincks, already noticed as a former minister of the Presbyterian congregation in connection with the Synod of Munster; Henry Uppington, a writer on various scientific subjects; the writer of the articles in Fraser's Magazine, under the fictitious name of Father Prout, is a native of this city; Richard Milliken, both a poet and a painter; Miss Milliken, writer of several novels. Of eminent painters, Cork is the native place of the celebrated Barry, professor of Painting in the Royal Academy of London, a man equally memorable for his genius, his eccentricities, and his spirit of independence; also Butt, Grogan, Ford, and McAlise: Hogan the sculptor is a native of this city. Cork gives the title of Earl to the senior branch of the noble family of Boyle.