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32-538: Thomas F. Kilroy (23 September 1934 – 7 December 2023) was an Irish playwright and novelist. Thomas F. Kilroy was born in Green Street, Callan, County Kilkenny . He attended St Kieran's College and played hurling for the school team, captaining the senior team in 1952. He studied at University College Dublin . In his early career he was play editor at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin . In the 1980s, he sat on

64-462: A nymphaeum or nymphaion ( Greek : νυμφαίον ), was a monument consecrated to the nymphs , especially those of springs . In England, examples of reverence for wells and springs occur at a variety of historical periods. The medieval traveller William of Worcester saw a 'holy-hole, or well' within the cave at Wookey ( Somerset ), a site of human habitation in the Palaeolithic era and

96-453: A battle for the town. All of the defenders and many of the townspeople who sought safety in the stone castle and parish church were killed. In the late 19th century, a large number of human bones and cannonballs were discovered during excavations of the ruins of the old parish church. In order to commemorate those who died in the Callan area during World War One, a statue was erected outside

128-787: A hundred holy wells exist in Cornwall , each associated with a particular saint, though not always the same one as the dedication of the church. Several holy wells also survive in Turkey , called ayazma in Turkish , from Greek ἁγίασμα ( hagiasma ), literally "holiness". Examples of hagiasmata are found in the Church of St. Mary of the Spring and the Church of St. Mary of Blachernae , both located in Istanbul . The Protestant Reformers of

160-630: A statement of continuity with the history of a particular community. A good example is St Osyth's Well at Bierton ( Buckinghamshire ), 'restored' (and in the process rebuilt completely) by the Parish Council as part of a project marking Millennium Year in 2000. The most active holy wells in Britain are those linked to Christian pilgrimages , at Walsingham, Fernyhalgh ( Lancashire ) and Holywell ( Wales ), or popular tourist sites (Bath, Somerset). The Chalice Well at Glastonbury (Somerset)

192-494: A universal human instinct to revere water sources. However, the fragmentary nature of the evidence, and the historical differences among cultures and nations, make it very hard to generalize. While there are a few national studies of holy well lore and history, mainly concentrating on Ireland and the British Isles , there is a need for more work examining other regions. The earliest work specifically devoted to holy wells

224-646: A variety of smaller sites, and at wells and ritual shafts used for superstitious and sub-religious rituals. Christianity strongly affected the development of holy wells in Europe and the Middle East . Aside from the spring that issued from the staff of Moses and the Well of Beersheba , there were already a number of sites mentioned in Jewish and Christian folklore, including Moses ' well near Mount Nebo , visited by

256-667: Is Philip Dixon Hardy 's Holy Wells of Ireland (1836), a Protestant attack on Catholic observances at Irish wells bearing the names of Christian saints , or otherwise considered sacred. By the late 19th century, the term had evolved to its current usage. Robert Charles Hope's The Legendary Lore of the Holy Wells of England (1893), the first comprehensive survey of its kind, featured several named wells not dedicated to saints, along with rivers and lakes associated with folklore, as noted in Hope's subtitle. In ancient Greece and Rome ,

288-482: Is at the centre of a modern pagan - and New Age -orientated spirituality and retreat centre. Other wells, however, are often visited on an informal basis for religious or sightseeing reasons. New forms of holy well reverence continue to emerge now and again, notoriously the so-called Well of the Triple Goddess at Minster-in-Sheppey ( Kent ). In 2001 Channel 4's archaeological television programme Time Team

320-440: Is in origin an Anglo-Saxon toponym attached to specific springs in the landscape; its current use has arisen through folklore scholars, antiquarians , and other writers generalising from those actual 'Holy Wells', which survived into the modern era. The term 'holy-hole' is sometimes employed. Holy wells in different forms occur in such a wide variety of cultures, religious environments, and historical periods that it seems to be

352-564: The N76 road to Clonmel , it is near the border with County Tipperary . It is the second largest town in the county, and had a population of 2,475 at the 2016 census . Callan is the chief town of the barony of the same name . Callan was founded by William the Marshal in 1207 and reputedly gets its name from the High King of Ireland, Niall Caille . It is reported that while at war with

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384-516: The Norsemen the High King arrived in Callan to find that its river was in flood. The King witnessed his servant trying to cross the river and being swept away by the fast-flowing current. The King, recorded in history as a man of action, seeing the impending disaster, impetuously urged his horse into the fast flowing river in a vain bid to save his servant, only to be also overcome and drowned by

416-587: The "Abbey Meadow", is at the North-East end of Callan and accessible via Bridge Street or a lane and footbridge off Mill Street. The "Abbey Meadow" also contains a holy well site. St. Mary's Church is a medieval church located on Green Street. A historic workhouse is located in Prologue. Callan had two primary schools, Scoil Mhuire and Scoil Iognáid Rís. The two schools amalgamated in 2007 to form Bunscoil McAuley Rice. Callan also has two secondary schools;

448-448: The 16th century often assumed that medieval Catholic practices embodied lingering remains of pagan religious practices and thought of holy wells in that way. This affected the outlook of those who came to study holy well traditions later. The pioneers of folklore study took the view that the customs and legends they were recording were debased versions of pagan rites and myths. Thus it became standard to begin any account of holy wells with

480-641: The Abbey Theatre and the Arts Council. Callan was the fictional birthplace of the Walter O'Brien character in the CBS TV show, Scorpion . The area is home to a number of arts organisations including KCAT Arts Centre, Workhouse Union, Monkeyshine, Trasna Productions and Fennelly's Cafe. Callan is the birthplace of a number of notable people, including: Holy well The term haeligewielle

512-751: The Celts had a unique sensitivity to sacred wells, but never elaborated this in any published work. More recently, radically minded scholars have begun questioning the unity of concepts imposed by the term 'holy well'. In a paper in the Living Spring Journal , Jeremy Harte distinguishes between early Anglo-Saxon 'holy wells' and those Christianised in the Late Middle Ages , and argues 'apart from being venerated and being wet, they have little in common'; Harte has also stressed that limited evidence may mean scholars are considerably overestimating

544-526: The Church of the Assumption on Green Street. In 2007, Callan celebrated its 800th year. President Mary McAleese launched the 800th celebrations of the town being granted a charter . Callan Motte (also known locally as simply "The Moat") is located at the top of Moat Lane just off Bridge Street. It is one of Ireland's best-preserved Motte-and-bailey 's. Callan Augustinian Friary , known locally as

576-646: The board of Field Day Theatre Company , founded by Brian Friel and Stephen Rea in 1980, and was Director of its touring company. In 1978, Kilroy was appointed Professor of English at University College Galway , a post from which he resigned in 1989 to concentrate on writing. Kilroy lived in County Mayo and was a member of the Irish Academy of Letters , the Royal Society of Literature , and Aosdána . The Thomas Kilroy Collection, his archive,

608-809: The boys' school, Coláiste Éamann Rís , and the girls', St. Brigid's College. The Callan–Thomastown local electoral area of County Kilkenny includes the electoral divisions of Aghaviller, Ballyhale, Ballyvool, Bennettsbridge, Boolyglass, Bramblestown, Brownsford, Burnchurch, Callan Rural, Callan Urban, Castlebanny, Coolaghmore, Coolhill, Danesfort, Dunbell, Dunnamaggan, Dysartmoon, Earlstown, Ennisnag, Famma, Freaghana, Graiguenamanagh, Grange, Inistioge, Jerpoint Church, Kells, Kilfane, Killamery, Kilmaganny, Kiltorcan, Knocktopher, Mallardstown, Outrath, Pleberstown, Powerstown, Rosbercon Rural, Scotsborough, Stonyford, The Rower, Thomastown, Tullaghanbrogue, Tullaherin, Tullahought, Ullard and Woolengrange. Neil Jordan's film Breakfast on Pluto , with Cillian Murphy and Liam Neeson,

640-594: The cults of the saints, many wells in countries that converted to Protestant forms of Christianity fell into disuse and were lost, the Holy Well at Walsingham ( Norfolk ) being a good example, which, having been an integral element of the pilgrimage to the shrine of the Virgin Mary in the village, vanished completely. Nevertheless, this particular holy well at the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham

672-615: The evidence for a particular Cornish well's supposed association with the Irish goddess Brigid . The eco-pagan movement has largely accepted the new historiographical approach, but occasionally rather more old-fashioned accounts of holy wells are published, for instance, Gary Varner's Sacred Springs (2002). A related argument was over the nature of the influence of the Celts on the well cult. The late Francine Nicholson, an independent student of Celtica, argued forcefully and controversially that

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704-566: The fourth-century nun Egeria and many other pilgrims. St Athanasius ' Life of St Antony , written about 356–62, mentions the well created by the desert hermit Antony. It is unclear how many Christian holy wells there may have been, as records are very fragmentary and often a well appears only once, making it impossible to tell when reverence for it began and when it ceased, but by the Reformation England, for instance, probably possessed some hundreds. As they were closely linked with

736-440: The number of holy wells which were active at any one time. In a sense, the restoration of holy wells began almost as soon as they were in decline, as a number became the subject of antiquarian interest and some were turned into garden features and put to other decorative uses. However, in more modern times wells have been restored as an expression of interest in the past, sometimes from romantic or religious motives, but mostly as

768-539: The pagan religions fitted in well with their position. The magazines Wood and Water and Meyn Mamvro , among others, helped shape this approach. During the early and mid-1990s, this viewpoint was under increasing attack crowned by the publication of Ronald Hutton 's The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles (1991) which argued that the evidence for what constituted pre-Christian British religious practices, certainly outside Romano-British times,

800-730: The source of a river which had been the site of ritual activity. The proximity of named springs to Neolithic or Iron Age monuments, such as the Swallowhead Springs, close to Silbury Hill ( Wiltshire ) or the Holy Well near Tadmarton Hill ( Oxfordshire ), suggests that reverence for such sites continued without a break. There is abundant evidence for the importance of wells and springs in the Roman and sub-Roman period , not just at temple complexes such as Bath (Somerset), Chedworth ( Gloucestershire ), and Blunsdon Ridge ( Wiltshire ) which have medicinal springs at their centre, but

832-608: The statement that the Christian church had adopted them from the pagans and replaced the heathen gods with Christian saints, in order to win people over to the new religion more smoothly. Among the earliest enthusiasts for holy wells in modern times was the Neopagan movement, for whom wells formed part of ' earth mysteries ' study along with ley lines and ancient sites; the view that the Christians had 'stolen' holy wells from

864-407: The torrent. The river in question is now named the "Kings River". The town received its first charter in 1217 and was entitled to choose two elected members of Parliament. In 1650, Oliver Cromwell and his New Model Army laid siege to Callan. Although Sir Richard Talbot, the commander of the main defence had secretly organised to surrender, some of the other defenders refused to do so, leading to

896-634: Was deposited at Galway University's James Hardiman Library ; Kilroy addressed the launch event in March 2011, which was attended by, amongst others, Brian Friel and the future President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins . Kilroy died on 7 December 2023, at the age of 89. Callan, County Kilkenny Callan ( Irish : Callainn ) is a town and civil parish in County Kilkenny in Ireland . Situated 16 km (10 mi) south of Kilkenny on

928-563: Was filmed in Callan during August–September 2005. During the two weeks of filming in Callan, the main streets of the town were transformed for use in the film. Callan was the set and stage for The Big Chapel X , a large-scale theatre production and community engagement project that drew on the history of the Callan schism, in August 2019, created by Asylum Productions in partnership with the Kilkenny Arts Festival supported by

960-438: Was next to nil. As far as wells themselves were concerned, the controversy emerged in the pages of Source , the holy wells journal edited by Roy Fry and former Benedictine monk Tristan Gray-Hulse. A number of articles in the journal challenged long-standing myths about holy well history, and the editors published an exchange between the authors and Cheryl Straffon, editor of Cornish earth mysteries magazine Meyn Mamvro , about

992-471: Was responsible for exposing the infamous archaeological fraud of Llygadwy , a site which included an alleged holy well. Historiographically, the publication of Janet and Colin Bord's Sacred Waters (1985) was influential in reviving interest in the history and folklore of holy wells in Britain. The same year saw the foundation of the journal Source by Mark Valentine. Attempts to maintain a regular journal for

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1024-486: Was restored nearby the original site and its water is known for its healing properties, thus making it a popular site of Christian religious pilgrimage . Visiting of wells for therapeutic and entertainment purposes did not completely die out, however, as spas became fashionable in the 17th century and later. Eventually, antiquarians (from the 17th century) and folklorists (from the 19th) began to take notice of holy wells and record their surviving traditions. More than

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