Denis Gargan was an Irish Catholic cleric, and educator, who served as St Patrick's College, Maynooth (

Maynooth College St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth ( ga, Coláiste Naoimh Phádraig, Maigh Nuad), is the "National Seminary for Ireland" (a Roman Catholic college), and a pontifical university, located in the town of Maynooth, from Dublin, Ireland. ...

Early life and education

Born in 1819 in

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...

, where his father Patrick Gargan was a farmer, he was educated privately then at the Diocesan School in

Navan Navan ( ; , meaning "the Cave") is the county town of County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 30,173, making it the List of urban areas in the Republic of Ireland by population, tenth largest settlement in ...

, entering

in 1836. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1843 for service in the

Diocese of Meath The Diocese of Meath ( ga, Deoise na Mí) is an Irish diocese which took its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Roman Catholic Church it still exists as a separate diocese, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other ...

, and was appointed professor of

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

at the

Irish College in Paris The Irish College in Paris (french: Collège des Irlandais, links=no, la, Collegium Clericorum Hibernoram) was for three centuries a major Roman Catholic educational establishment for Irish students. It was founded in the late 16th century, and c ...

Career

Gargan was appointed professor of Humanity at Maynooth in 1845 and in 1859 to the chair of Ecclesiastical History. He served as vice president from 1885 to 1894, when he took up the position of president. He led the college during its centenary celebrations and was still in office at the time of his death.''The Late Monsignor Gargan'' by Rev. Hogan, The Irish ecclesiastical record: a monthly journal under episcopal sanction, Ser. 4, Vol. XIV, pp. 481-492, December, 1903. Gargan briefly was appointed in 1863 to the parish of

Duleek Duleek (; ) is a small town in County Meath, Ireland. Duleek takes its name from the Irish word ''daimh liag'', meaning house of stones and referring to an early stone-built church, St Cianán's Church, the ruins of which are still visible in Du ...

, Co. Meath, but resigned and returned to Maynooth. Gargan served

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of his native diocese and, upon being pointed College President was appointed

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

. He was a member of the

Society for the Preservation of the Irish Language The Society for the Preservation of the Irish Language (SPIL; ga, Cumann Buan-Choimeádta na Gaeilge) was a cultural organisation in late 19th-century Ireland, which was part of the Gaelic revival of the period. It was founded on 29 December 187 ...

and the Royal Historical and Archaeological Society of Ireland. Gargan died aged 84 on 28 August 1903, and buried on 1 September 1903.

Publications

* ''The Ancient Church of Ireland'' By Denis Gargan, D.D., James Duffy Ltd., Dublin, 1864. * ''The charity of the church, a proof of her divinity'' by Cardinal Gaetano Baluffi, (Introduction by Rev. Denis Gargan), M.H. Gill and Son, Dublin, 1885.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gargan, Denis 19th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Presidents of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Burials at Maynooth College Cemetery Christian clergy from County Meath 1819 births 1903 deaths

Early life and education

Career

Publications

See also

References