John Clyn, O.F.M. (c. 1286 – c. 1349), of the

Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachin ...

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

, was a 14th-century Irish

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ol ...

and

chronicler A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...

who lived at the time of the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

Background

Clyn was probably born in

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

some years prior to 1300, possibly at Baile a Clinn/Clyn's town/Clintstown, in the parish of Conahy, some six and a half miles north-west of

. The surname Clyn is found in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

and

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, which may have been where his

Anglo-Norman Anglo-Norman may refer to: *Anglo-Normans, the medieval ruling class in England following the Norman conquest of 1066 * Anglo-Norman language **Anglo-Norman literature * Anglo-Norman England, or Norman England, the period in English history from 10 ...

ancestors originated.

Career

Bishop

James Ussher James Ussher (or Usher; 4 January 1581 – 21 March 1656) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland between 1625 and 1656. He was a prolific scholar and church leader, who today is most famous for his ident ...

stated, possibly in error, that Clyn was a

doctor Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...

of the Franciscan Order. This statement may be a presumption as it has no supporting evidence. Clyn was well educated, though just where he received his education is unknown. He may have attended the university at

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, while

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

remain more distant possibilities. Clyn is recorded as the

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

of the friary of Carrick in 1336; Bernadette Williams believes that he would have been about fifty at that time (''"around the same age as his hero Fulk de la Freigne"''), as someone mature would have been needed to hold that post. Clyn may have attended the

General Chapter A chapter ( la, capitulum or ') is one of several bodies of clergy in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Nordic Lutheran churches or their gatherings. Name The name derives from the habit of convening monks or canons for the read ...

of the Friars Minor at

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

in 1346. At some point between 1336 and 1348 he moved to Kilkenny. John Clyn wrote a diary, or journal, about the Black Death, which has become a key primary source on the plague. He left blank pages for those who wanted to "finish the work." He was still alive after 17 June 1349, his last entry in his annals being a eulogy for Fulk de la Freigne. It is unknown whether Clyn perished from the disease. Though the

persisted in Ireland until 1350, Clyn may have survived it. If this is the case, he may have ceased writing ''" ... because of the death of his friend, and perhaps

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

, Fulk de la Freigne."''

''The Annals of Ireland''

In an effort to identify Clyn's purpose in writing his annals, Bernadette Williams states:

''"They are not a house chronicle, a town chronicle or a political history. ...the difference between a city and county annalist is quite evident; Clyn was not a member of the burgage population of Kilkenny but a man of the countryside. ... The reality is that Clyn was writing a military history of the geographical area of Kilkenny and
Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...
... his audience was either the military men of that area or more specifically a military family such as the de la Freignes."''

Indeed, the latter family are mentioned fulsomely in his annals. As a person ''"from a military and chivalric background ... he displayed an acceptance of the military situation on the ground"'' but abhorred ''"treachery and unprovoked violence."'' Clyn would be unknown as the author had he not identified himself in his entry on the

. In 2007 an edition of the annals of Friar Clyn was translated into English by Dr. Bernadette Williams.

Notable entry

"''So that notable deeds should not perish with time, and be lost from the memory of future generations, I, seeing these many ills, and that the whole world encompassed by evil, waiting among the dead for death to come, have committed to writing what I have truly heard and examined; and so that the writing does not perish with the writer, or the work fail with the workman, I leave parchment for continuing the work, in case anyone should still be alive in the future and any son of Adam can escape this pestilence and continue the work thus begun.''"

References

*''The Annals of Ireland by Friar John Clyn,'' edited and translated with an Introduction, by Bernadette Williams, Four Courts Press, 2007.
John Clyn
-

Catholic Encyclopedia The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...

article

External links

* https://archive.org/stream/irishecclesiast01recogoog#page/n307/mode/2up
John Clyn's Annals of Ireland