Inchbofin () is an island situated in

Lough Ree Lough Ree () is a lake in the midlands of Ireland, the second of the three major lakes on the River Shannon. Lough Ree is the second largest lake on the Shannon after Lough Derg. The other two major lakes are Lough Allen to the north, and Loug ...

on the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Shan ...

, in central

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

The island

Inchbofin is an island of located in the eastern arm of

, with

Tang, County Westmeath Tang () is a village and a ''half-parish'' in County Westmeath, on the N55 national secondary road between Athlone and Ballymahon, County Longford. Tang is in the parish of Drumraney. It is in County Westmeath but on the border with County ...

the nearest village.

History

Saint

Ríoch Ríoch, early Irish Christian missionary and Saint, . Biography Ríoch operated in the extreme west of Conmhaícne Mara, in what is now County Galway. Surviving traditions state that he was a nephew of Saint Patrick, and an abbot of Inchb ...

is said to have founded a Christian monastery on Inchbofin in AD 530. The island's name is from the Irish ''Inis Bó Finne'', meaning "Island of the white/fair cow", and so it is easily confused with

Inishbofin, County Galway Inishbofin (derived from the Irish ''Inis Bó Finne'' meaning 'Island of the White Cow') is a small island off the coast of Connemara, County Galway, Ireland. Inishbofin has around 180 inhabitants and is a tourist destination. Name The island ...

and

Inishbofin, County Donegal Inishbofin (''Inis Bó Finne'' in Irish, meaning ''Island of the White Cow'') is an island off the coast of Machaire Uí Rabhartaigh (Magheraroarty), County Donegal, Ireland. Geography The island is a 120-hectare (300 acre) land mass, with a ...

, which have the same Irish name. The

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language wh ...

s ''Īnsula Vaccae Albae'' or ''Īnsula Vitulae Albae'' are also used on occasion. The monastery was of the

Canons Regular of Saint Augustine Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...

. The ''Topographical Dictionary of Ireland'' (1837) said that of Inchbofin's , there were suitable for arable use. Griffith's Valuation (mid-19th century) mentions three families on the island: Skelly, Connell and Heffernan; the island was owned by Susan Galbraith. In the 1911 census, there were 13 people living on the island, of the same 3 families. In winter 2009, the

Irish Air Corps "Watchful and Loyal" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = ''see list of wars'' , decorations = , battle_honours = , battle_honours_label = , fl ...

sent a helicopter to the island to deliver cattle fodder for the last farmer on the island, John Connell, after

froze solid. He was the last permanent resident of the island and died on 12 February 2018.

Annalistic references

*750: Fiangalach, son of Anmchadh, son of Maelcuraich, Abbot of Inchbofin, in Lough Ree, died. (

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' ( ga, Annála Ríoghachta Éireann) or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' (''Annála na gCeithre Máistrí'') are chronicles of medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Deluge, dated as 2,24 ...

) *755: Indrechtach son of Dlúthach, king of

Uí Maine U or u, is the twenty-first and sixth-to-last letter and fifth vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''u'' (pro ...

, Flaithnia son of Flann grandson of Congal, king of Uí Fhailgi, Fiangalach son of Anmchad son of Mael Curaich, abbot of Inchbofin on Lough Ree, Mac Rónchon of Cenél Cairpri, Snéidcheist, abbot of Naendruim, died. (

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' ( ga, Annála Uladh) are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, ...

) *922: Tomrair son of Elgi, a ''jarl'' of the

Norsemen The Norsemen (or Norse people) were a North Germanic ethnolinguistic group of the Early Middle Ages, during which they spoke the Old Norse language. The language belongs to the North Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages and is the pre ...

, on the Lower Shannon, and he proceeded and plundered Inis Celtra and Muicinis, and burned

Clonmacnoise Clonmacnoise (Irish: ''Cluain Mhic Nóis'') is a ruined monastery situated in County Offaly in Ireland on the River Shannon south of Athlone, founded in 544 by Saint Ciarán, a young man from Rathcroghan, County Roscommon. Until the 9th ce ...

; and he went on Lough Ree and plundered all its islands, and he ravaged Meath. *1016: A great hosting by

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word meani ...

's son to Lough Ree, and he plundered

Inchcleraun Inchcleraun (), also called Quaker Island, is an island situated in Lough Ree on the River Shannon, in central Ireland. The island is home to the ruins of St. Diarmaid's Monastery, a monastery founded by Diarmaid the Just in AD 560. These build ...

and Inchbofin, brought away the boats of Mael Sechnaill and

Leth Cuinn Leath Cuinn (Conn's Half) and Leath Moga (Mugh's half) are legendary ancient divisions of Ireland. Leath Cuinn was the island north of the Esker Riada (east-west drumlin belt from Dublin to Galway Bay). Conn Cétchathach, for whom this division i ...

, and took the hostages of

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

from Cnámhchaill westwards. (

Annals of Inisfallen Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between ann ...

) *1089: The fleet of the men of Munster, under the conduct of

Muirchertach Ua Briain Muircheartach Ua Briain (old spelling: Muirchertach Ua Briain) (also known as Murtaugh O'Brien) (c. 1050 – c. 10 March 1119), son of Toirdelbach Ua Briain and great-grandson of Brian Boru, was King of Munster and later self-declared High King ...

, arrived on the Shannon, and upon

; and they plundered the churches of the lake, namely,

, Inchbofin, Hare Island, and Cloonown. (

) *1089: A great fleet led by Muircheartach Ó Briain, king of Munster, on the Shannon and on Lough Ree, and they rifled Inchbofin and Inchcleraun (

Annals of Tigernach The ''Annals of Tigernach'' ( abbr. AT, ga, Annála Tiarnaigh) are chronicles probably originating in Clonmacnoise, Ireland. The language is a mixture of Latin and Old and Middle Irish. Many of the pre-historic entries come from the 12th-cent ...

)

Buildings

The remains of two churches survive on Inchbofin. One (12th century) is at the north-eastern point of the island and has an irregular

enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

. It consists of a

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

and

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...

. To the north of the altar is a Romanesque window, and above a window is a carving of a bishop's head. The smaller church ruin to the south is from the 12th/13th centuries.

References

Islands of County Westmeath River Shannon River islands of Ireland {{Westmeath-geo-stub