St Bigseach's Church

Kilbixy Church (Ceall Bhigsighe) dedicated to St. Bigseach who had connections with St. Brigid and her church was also known as Tristernagh (Ó Riain 2011, 106). Her feast day fell on the 28th of June. According to 17th century sources Bigseach was the daughter of Breasal of the Uí Fhiachrach tribe of Connacht (ibid., 106). The terrier of the 1656 Down Survey map of Kilbixy parish recorded that in Kilbixy there 'also standeth the parish church and an abby (WM011-053----) in Tristernagh' (NLI, MS 723-4). Anglo-Norman motte and bailey castle (WM011-039----) located 200m NNW of church and graveyard (WM040005-), leper hospital (WM011-040001-) in SW quadrant of graveyard and deserted medieval settlement earthworks (WM011-155----) in field to W and N of church. Bridget's Well (WM011-038----) located 250m to SW. This parish church belonged to the monastic estate of Tristernagh Augustinian abbey (WM011-053----) located 1.9km to the SE. In 1837 John O’Donovan visited Kilbixy where he found the following; ‘1. The Leper-house (WM011-040001-), a mere ruin; 2. The site of the castle (WM011-040006-), but no remains whatever of its walls; 3. A moat (WM011-039----), surrounded by one circular fosse; 4. Site of the gallows. A holy well (WM011-038----) near the church called the well of St. Bigseach’ (Cogan 1870, 577).

According to the Urban Survey of Ireland (Bradley et. al. 1985, 108-09) ‘the church of Kilbixy granted by Geoffrey de Costentin to Ralph Petit, archdeacon of Meath, in a charter of 1192/1218 is to be identified with this church, established before the coming of the Normans (Clarke 1941, 90). Shortly after the foundation of the priory (WM011-053----) at Tristernagh it was granted to the Augustinian canons there (Clarke 1941, 91). The parish church of Kilbixy is specifically mentioned in 1259 (Clarke 1941, 122), 1492 (Cal. papal letters 1978, 430) and 1540 (White 1943, 277). In 1682 Piers (1981, 77) described it as ‘the remains of an ancient and well built church, the mother of many churches and chapels about it, which had at the west end a very well built high tower or steeple’.

The present church, which is in ruins, was constructed c.1800. No medieval fabric survives above ground. The semi-circular enclosing ditch north-east of the church represents the remains of a post-medieval fosse dug as a landscape feature associated with the 18th century C of I church building. The construction of this feature was described in the 1793 edition of Anthologia Hibernica (Anon. 1793, 316). This enclosing ditch is visible on Bing Maps aerial photograph taken November 2011.

Octagonal shaped limestone font (WM011-040004-) located to north-east of the church. Chamfered limestone fragment (dims. H 0.46m; Wth. 0.27m; T 0.26m) of an arch of medieval date used as a grave-marker’. The present C of I church ruins were probably built on the site of the medieval parish church. On the 1656 Down Survey map of the parish of Kilbixy the medieval parish church is depicted as a fortified building with battlemented tower at W end of church similar to fortified churches at Taghmon (WM012-076----) and Kilpatrick (WM013-002----). The depiction of the church on the Down Survey map matches the description given by Piers in 1682.