Muiris Mac Ionrachtaigh, anglicised as Maurice MacKenraghty (executed 30 April 1585,

Clonmel Clonmel () is the county town and largest settlement of County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Cromwellian army which sacked the towns of Dro ...

, County Tipperary) was an Irish Roman Catholic priest and one of the

Irish Catholic Martyrs Irish Catholic Martyrs () were 24 Irish men and women who have been beatified or canonized for dying for their Catholic faith between 1537 and 1681 in Ireland. The canonisation of Oliver Plunkett in 1975 brought an awareness of the others who d ...

. He was

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

in 1992.

Life

Although the exact date of his birth remains unknown, Muiris Mac Ionrachtaigh, was born at Kilmallock ( ga, Cill Mocheallóg), which was "a prosperous walled town in the Desmond lands in County Limerick". His father, Tomás Mac Ionrachtaigh ("Thomas MacKenraghty"), was a goldsmith and silversmith who was originally from the civil barony of Irraghticonnor. The MacKenraghty family were full citizens of the town of Kilmallock and probably also enjoyed the patronage of the Earl of Desmond. Edited by Patrick J. Cornish and Benignus Millet (2005), ''The Irish Martyrs'', Four Courts Press, Dublin. Page 86. Mac Ionrachtaigh embraced the ecclesiastical state, studied abroad, and graduated bachelor in theology. Returning to Ireland, he became chaplain to Gerald FitzGerald, 15th Earl of Desmond, and shared the fortunes of his patron in the Second Desmond Rebellion against Queen Elizabeth I. In September, 1583, a fugitive with the Earl, Mac Ionrachtaigh was surprised on

Sliabh Luachra Sliabh Luachra (), sometimes anglicised Slieve Logher, is an upland region in Munster, Ireland. It is on the borders of counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick, and bounded to the south by the River Blackwater. It includes the Mullaghareirk Mounta ...

Lord Roche Alexander Adair Roche, Baron Roche PC (24 July 1871 – 22 December 1956) was a British barrister and law lord. Background Adair Roche was the second son of William Brock Roche, a doctor, and his wife Mary Fraser, daughter of William Fraser ...

's gallowglass, and handed over to the Earl of Ormond. By Ormond's command he was chained to one Patrick Grant, and sent to prison at

. Here he lay in irons, instructing and hearing confessions at his prison grate until April 1585. His jailer was then bribed by Victor White, a leading townsman, to release the priest for one night to say Mass and administer Communion in White's house on Passion Sunday. The jailer secretly tipped off the

President of Munster The post of Lord President of Munster was the most important office in the English government of the Irish province of Munster from its introduction in the Elizabethan era for a century, to 1672, a period including the Desmond Rebellions in Munste ...

to take this opportunity by apprehending most of the local recusants at Mass. In the morning an armed force surrounded the house, arrested White and others seized the sacred vessels, and sought the priest everywhere. Fr. Mac Ionrachtaigh had been hidden under straw at the first alarm, and, though wounded when the heap was probed, ultimately escaped to the woods. Learning, however, that White's life could only be saved by his own surrender, he gave himself up, and was at once tried by martial law. Pardon and preferment were offered him for conforming to the Church of Ireland, but he resolutely maintained the Roman Catholic faith and the

Petrine Primacy The primacy of Peter, also known as Petrine primacy (from the la, Petrus, "Peter"), is the position of preeminence that is attributed to Peter among the Twelve Apostles. Primacy of Peter among the Apostles The ''Evangelical Dictionary of Th ...

, and was executed as a traitor. His head was displayed spiked in the market-place, and his body, purchased from the soldiers, was buried behind the high altar of the Franciscan convent.

Life

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