Nicholas Tuite MacCarthy (May 1769 – 3 May 1833) was a renowned
Jesuit
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
preacher in late-18th- and early-19th-century France. He was known also as the Abbé de Lévignac. He was of noble birth, being a member of the
MacCarthy Reagh
The Mac Cárthaigh Riabhach (anglicised ''MacCarthy Reagh'') dynasty are a branch of the MacCarthy dynasty, Kings of Desmond, deriving from the Eóganacht Chaisil sept.
History
The Mac Cárthaigh Riabhach seated themselves as kings of Carbery in ...
family of Springhouse,
Bansha
Bansha () is a village in County Tipperary in Ireland. The village is part of the parish of "Bansha and Kilmoyler" (united in 1858) in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly. It is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam. Bansha i ...
,
Co. Tipperary
County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named afte ...
in Ireland who were Princes of
Carbery Carbery or Carbury may refer to:
;People:
* Brian Carbury (1918–1961), New Zealand fighter ace
* Douglas Carbery (1894–1959), British soldier and airman
* Ethna Carbery (1864–1902), Irish writer
* James Joseph Carbery (1823–1887), Irish ...
and who subsequently became
Counts of Toulouse
The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings,
the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...
in France.
Biography
Nicholas was born in
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 ...
, but left
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 ...
for
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
with his parents when he was four years of age.
[New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia](_blank)
/ref> Over the succeeding six decades he dedicated his life to preaching throughout France and Europe. Tuite MacCarthy, who grew up at the family's palatial townhouse at 3, Rue Mage in the city of Toulouse was profoundly affected by the death in childbirth of a sister-in-law, wife of Viscount (later Count) Robert MacCarthy, deputy for the Drome in 1815–20. He then resolved to study for the priesthood, which he did, firstly in the College du Plessis, and afterwards at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
, Paris. On account of the Revolution, which broke out in France in May, 1789, and subsequently as the result of an accident whereby his spine was strained when he fell from a rickety stairs as he was carrying an immense bundle of firewood, to a frail old woman in an attic, his college career was interrupted. When his health had sufficiently improved, he resumed his theological studies in 1813, at the age of forty-four years in the seminary of Chambéry, Savoie, and returned to complete his studies in Paris. He was ordained to the priesthood on 19 June 1814, in his forty-sixth year. On his ordination, his strength was restored sufficiently for the exercise of his sacerdotal duties.
Toulouse was the scene of his first missionary labours, and he became known as l'Abbe MacCarthy, and was referred to also as l'Abbe de Levignac, after an estate which his father had purchased near Bordeaux, Gironde. In a short time he became famous as a preacher and theologian, and besides his eminent qualifications as an ecclesiastic, he was endowed with poetical talent, and composed Latin verse of a high order of merit. He preached in the presence of many distinguished audiences, even in Switzerland and in Rome. Louis XVIII, King of France, nominated him, in accordance with a privilege then existing in that country, to the Bishopric of Montauban
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Montauban (Latin: ''Dioecesis Montis Albani''; French: ''Diocèse de Montauban'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese is coextensive with Tarn-et-Garonne, and is currentl ...
, Tarn et Garonne, and the nomination was confirmed by Pope Pius VII. In his deep humility, Abbe MacCarthy did not accept the episcopal office, and when close to fifty years old, he joined the Society of Jesus in 1818. After a course of Lenten sermons at Annecy, Savoie
Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population of ...
, concluding on Easter Sunday, 7 April 1833, he was taken ill, and having expired in the Bishop's Palace in his 64th year, he was buried in the Cathedral there.
Background
Nicholas Tuite MacCarthy was the second son of the eleven children of Count Justin MacCarthy of Toulouse (18 August 1744 – 1811), who was born at Spring House, near Bansha
Bansha () is a village in County Tipperary in Ireland. The village is part of the parish of "Bansha and Kilmoyler" (united in 1858) in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly. It is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam. Bansha i ...
in County Tipperary
County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...
and Maria (Mary) Winifred Tuite (September 1747 – 1822), daughter of Nicholas Tuite of St. Croix
Saint Croix; nl, Sint-Kruis; french: link=no, Sainte-Croix; Danish and no, Sankt Croix, Taino: ''Ay Ay'' ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincor ...
having relocated from the island of Montserrat
Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with r ...
. Nicholas Tuite MacCarthy's uncle, Robert Tuite, was chamberlain to the King of Denmark. His maternal grandfather, Nicholas Tuite of St. Croix, was the son of Richard Tuite of Tuitestown in County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state, Country
, subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland
, subdivision_type1 = Provinces o ...
. It was this Richard who fled Ireland as part of the Wild Geese in 1691 following an extraordinary family background in Ireland. Richard was one of only two surviving sons (the other being Robert) of Walter Tuite of Tuitestown and his wife, Margaret O'More, daughter of David O'More of Portallen in County Laois
County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...
. Richard's remaining eleven brothers, Nicholas Tuite MacCarthy's great-granduncles, were all killed in the wars
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
in Ireland in 1691.[ John Lodge ''Peerage of Ireland'', Volume 3, 1789, pp. 25-28]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maccarthy, Nicholas Tuite
18th-century French Jesuits
Clergy from Toulouse
University of Paris alumni
1769 births
1833 deaths
MacCarthy dynasty
Irish emigrants to France
19th-century French Jesuits