Analysis: St Brigid may have led the way, but there were other powerful, inspiring and influential women who blazed a trail in Medieval Kildare
St Brigid’s success can be credited to a series of historical factors, but one of her greatest achievements is directly tied to one of her most defining characteristics — her gender. Surviving medieval Irish texts, such as the 9th-century Tecosca Cormaic ('The Instructions of Cormac’), testify to the misogynistic views held by some writers. Likewise, Irish medieval legal texts portray women in an inferior position.
But despite various legal and social restraints, women were not powerless, passive subjects. When Brigid navigated through restrictions imposed by a deeply patriarchal society, she inspired countless other women and created a space in which women could exercise power in the shape of the Church of Kildare. Here, many women like abbesses of Kildare Darlugdach, Gnáthnat, Sébdann, Muireann and Coblaith, and Sárnat, queen of Leinster, centred their power.
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From RTÉ Radio 1's History Show, medieval historian Dr Niamh Wycherley from Maynooth University on 1500 years of St Brigid
According to a text about the life of Brigid known as the Vita Prima, the first to take the office of abbess after her was Darlugdach, who died exactly one year after Brigid. She became a saint in her own right and was worshipped in Scotland and as far away as Germany. Darlugdach briefly features in a Pictish king-list and is cited in the Irish martyrologies. She is described as embodying the same characteristics as Brigid and shares her feast day, a phenomenon described as "saintly reproduction".
The first abbess of Kildare that pops up in the Irish annals is Gnáthnat. She died in 690 and might also have been abbess of Killeavy, Co. Armagh. From Gnáthnat until the 12th century, another 21 abbesses have been directly or indirectly recorded in the annals. Up until the 11th century, most of them came from Brigid’s own family, the Fothairt, possibly due to their status as fine érlama (kin of the patron saint), which, according to the law tract Córus Bésgnai, could grant them preference in an election to the office. The number of mentions in the Irish annals is testament to their influence, and demonstrates that Brigid’s legacy was sustained by other women who maintained and celebrated her memory.
The office granted the Fothairt a strong position within society as the abbess of Kildare was widely respected. It is recorded in the notes to one Irish law text, the Bretha Crólige, that the abbess of Kildare could ‘turn back the streams of war’. This should not be read literally as we have little historical evidence of women involved in battle, but rather recognises the abbess of Kildare as powerful mediators between political factions.
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From RTÉ Brainstorm, how we unearthed a medieval town in Co Kilkenny
In the 12th century, the competition for the position was intense, which led to violent altercations between competing Leinster families and might even have led to the sexual assault on an abbess by the notorious Diarmait Mac Murchada in 1131. The office of abbess of Kildare was a highly sought after and powerful position that was intertwined with the political landscape of medieval Ireland, meaning that the women who occupied that position are fundamental to our understanding of the Irish Middle Ages.
Outside the ecclesiastical sphere, we also find incredibly important women who had deep ties with Brigid and Kildare. One fascinating woman was Sárnat ingen Eochu, queen of Leinster in the early 7th century and later a saint. Coming from the Fothairt, she married Fáelán mac Colmáin of the Uí Dúnlainge royal dynasty and consolidated an alliance between her family and Kildare to the Uí Dúnlainge.
This alliance lasted centuries and arguably enabled the Uí Dúnlainge to take a firmer grasp of the kingship of Leinster. Considering that power in Kildare resided in the hands of the Fothairt and the abbesses of Kildare, Sárnat was likely a fundamental agent in brokering this alliance.
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From The Medieveal Irish History podcast, Dr Niamh Wycherley talks to Dr Seán Ó Hoireabhárd of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies about Queen Derbforgaill of Bréifne, 'Ireland's Helen of Troy'
Other noblewomen also cleverly used religious patronage to exert their influence by using wealth and familial connections to support a church. Often this was done together with their marital family, like in the case of Derbforgaill ingen Murchad, or their paternal kin, such as Dubchlobaid, the daughter of Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair.
Although Brigid is fascinating in her own right, we can also celebrate her life by looking beyond her. The powerful institution of Kildare survived due to the continuous efforts of women like Darlugdach, Gnáthnat, Sárnat and others in their community.
Research on women in medieval Ireland has been gaining traction recently and fills an important historiographical gap. But, more importantly it remembers the role of women who, despite all the odds, found a way to exercise their power and agency through whatever means. In doing so, we can celebrate Brigid for what was one of her greatest accomplishments — her community.
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
