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LIS
applotted under the tithe act, and was anciently dis-
tinguished for its castle, of which there are still some
portions remaining. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the
diocese of Cashel, united to the prebend and vicarage of
Crohane, and the rectories and vicarages of Modeshill
and Mowney. together constituting the corps of the
archdeaconry of Cashel, in the patronage of the Arch-
bishop. The tithes of the union amount to £1047. 3.4.;
the glebe comprises 33½ acres. The church is a neat
edifice.
LISMATEIGUE, a denomination or reputed parish,
in the barony of KNOCKTOPHER, county of KILKENNY,
and province of LEINSTER, 3 miles (S.) from Knock-
topher, on the road from Waterford to Kilkenny; con-
taining 931 inhabitants. It anciently formed part of
the possessions of the Abbey of Jerpoint; and com-
prises 2637 statute acres, of which the tithes, amount-
ing to £100, are payable to the rector and vicar of Burn-
church, in the diocese of Ossory.
LISMORE, a market
and post-town (formerly a
parliamentary borough), a
parish, and the seat of a
diocese, partly in the barony
of CONDONS and CLONGIB-
BONS, in the county of
CORK, but chiefly in that of
COSHMORE and COSHBRIDE,
county of WATERFORD, and
in the province of MUNSTER,
34 miles (S. S. W.) from Wa-
terford, and 109½ (S.W.byS.)
from Dublin, on the mail-coach road from Waterford
to Cork; containing, with the post town of Cappoquin
(which is separately described), 14,938 inhabitants, of
which number, 2894 are in the town of Lismore. This
place, called anciently Dun-sginne, from an old fortifica-
tion to the east of the town (now called the Round Hill),
to which, on his expulsion from Rathenin by King
Blathmac, in 631, St. Carthagh fled for shelter, derived
its present name, signifying ״ a great house or village,”
from a monastery founded here by that saint, which
subsequently became a celebrated seat of learning and
the head of a diocese. St. Carthagh, who died in 638,
and was interred in his own church, was succeeded by
St. Cataldus, afterwards Bishop of Tarentum, in Italy,
whose successors were indifferently styled abbots or
bishops; and the school, which was attended by
numbers not only from the neighbouring districts, but
also from remote countries, was in the zenith of its
reputation about the commencement of the 8th century.
The establishment continued to flourish; and such was
the fame of this place, that not less than 20 churches
were founded in its immediate vicinity; but in 812 it
was plundered by the Danes, who, from that period till
915, five times repeated their devastations. In 978 the
town and abbey were burned by the Ossorians; in 1095
the town was destroyed by an accidental fire, and in
1116, 1138, and 1157 both the town and the monastery
suffered from conflagration. Hen. II., after landing at
Waterford, marched to this place, where he was met by
the chiefs of Munster, who with the archbishops,
bishops, and abbots of Ireland swore allegiance to him,
and gave him a charter confirming the kingdom of
Ireland to him and his heirs for ever. While here the
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LIS
king chose a site, and gave the necessary orders for the
erection of a fortress for its defence. In 1173, Ray-
mond Le Gros, with the English army, marched to this
place with the plunder they had taken in Ophaly; and
after ravaging the city and neighbourhood, proceeded
on his route to Dungarvan. A castle was erected here,
in 1185, by John, Earl of Morton, and Lord of Ireland:
but four years afterwards it was taken by the Irish, who
put Robert de Barry, the commander, and the whole of
the garrison to the sword; it was, however, soon after-
wards rebuilt by the king, and for many ages continued
to be the residence of the bishops of the see, till Miler
Magrath, archbishop of Cashel and bishop of Lismore,
in 1518, granted the manor and other lands to Sir Walter
Raleigh, from whom, with the rest of his possessions,
they were purchased by Sir Richard Boyle, afterwards
created Earl of Cork. The castle was greatly strengthened
and improved by the Earl, who built three other forts in
the neighbourhood, one of which was at the park, one
at Ballygarran, and the third at Ballyinn; he also
obtained a charter of incorporation for the town, and
the grant of a market and fairs. At the commencement
of the war in 1641, the castle was besieged by a force of
5000 Irish under Sir Rich. Belling, but was bravely
defended by the Earl’s son, Lord Broghill, who com-
pelled them to abandon the attempt. In 1643, a party
of 200 insurgents, in retaliation for the destruction of
Clogheen by the garrison of this place, entered the town
and burned most of the thatched houses and cabins,
killed 60 of the inhabitants, and carried off several
prisoners; and in July of the same year, Lieut.-Gen.
Purcell, commander-in-chief of the insurgent forces, at
the head of 7000 foot and 900 horse, with three pieces
of artillery, marched to Cappoquin, where he remained
for four days laying waste the adjacent country; and
being there joined by Lord Muskerry, he advanced to
besiege the castle of Lismore. After a week’s siege, a
cessation of arms was mutually agreed on, and the
assailants immediately retired; but the castle suffered
great injury during this war, and in 1645, being burned
by Lord Castlehaven, it was reduced almost to a ruin,
and the town became a neglected village, consisting
only of a few miserable cabins. In 1686, the Earl of
Clarendon, on his progress through Munster, passed a
night in this castle, which was also visited by Jas. II.,
in 1689; and in 1785 the Duke of Rutland, Lord-
Lieutenant of Ireland, held a council in the castle, from
which he issued several proclamations. The castle,
with all its lands and other property, descended from the
Earls of Cork and Burlington, by marriage, to the
ancestor of his Grace the Duke of Devonshire, who is
the present proprietor.
The town, which has been greatly improved by the
late and present Duke, is romantically situated on the
summit of a steep eminence, rising to the height of 93
feet From the southern bank of the river Blackwater,
over which is a fine bridge of stone, erected by the late
Duke of Devonshire at an expense of £9000, and of
which the central arch has a span of 100 feet. Some
new streets have been made: the total number of
houses, in 1831, was 366, of which several are neat and
well built; the place has a cheerful and thriving
appearance. The castle, restored by the late Duke in
1812, forms an imposing object, rising majestically from
the’ elevated bank of the river, and occupying the
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