St Declan's Way: Experience scenery, saints and stories in Ardmore

Medieval graveslabs, Ogham stones, and a tomb-church make this well worth a visit — but a cross-inscribed black stone said to have curative properties is still missing

Aerial view of Ardmore Cliff Walk by Tuatha.ie

St Declan of Ardmore is one of the pre-eminent figures in the early Irish Church. Much of what we know of Declan comes from texts written centuries after his life. These texts are hagiographical in nature, and often coloured by their contemporary politics. According to his Life, Declan was one of four saints (along with Ailbe of Emly, Ciarán of Saigir, and Abbán of Moyarney) who preached the Gospel in Munster before Patrick arrived in Ireland. In one story, Declan and Patrick met at Cashel, and this event is commemorated today in a long-distance trail known as St Declan’s Way.

Though the story of Declan preaching Christianity before Patrick has to be taken with a reasonable pinch of salt, we do know that the Déise of Waterford in particular were more likely to have had prolonged contact with Christianity than many of their rival tribes from elsewhere in Ireland. The Déise inhabited parts of west Wales, and would have connected Munster to Christian communities in Roman Britain through trade and movement. That aside, it is important to never take hagiographical writing about early Irish saints at face value. The focused writing on him in the 12th century may be seen as part of the competition between Ardmore and Lismore. This competition was driven over which monastery would be appointed as the episcopal see, gaining power, prestige, and wealth along with the role of bishop. It was a struggle that Lismore eventually won.