Thomas O'Herlahy (O'Herlihy, O'Hiarlaithe) (died 1579) was the Catholic
Bishop of Ross, Ireland
The Bishop of Ross ( ga, Ross Ailithir; Corco Loígde; la, Rossensis) was a separate episcopal title which took its name after the town of Rosscarbery in County Cork, Ireland. The title is now united with other bishoprics. In the Church of Irel ...
(
Rosscarbery).
His kinsman, the future
Archbishop of Cashel Dermot O'Hurley
Dermot O'Hurley (c. 1530 – 19 or 20 June 1584)—also ''Dermod or Dermond O'Hurley'': ga, Diarmaid Ó hUrthuile—was the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Cashel in Ireland during the reign of Elizabeth I, who was put to death for treason. He ...
, one of the most celebrated 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 ...
, is believed to have received his early education at a Cathedral school overseen by Bishop Thomas O'Herlahy, to whom he may have been given in
fosterage, in the monastery founded by Saint
Ailbe of Emly.
Consecrated as Bishop about 1560, he was one of three Irish bishops attending the
Council of Trent. He tried to enforce its decrees, but fled with his chaplain to a small island. There he was betrayed to
John Perrot,
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 ...
, who sent him in chains to the
Tower of London.
Simultaneously with Archbishop
Richard Creagh
Richard Creagh (born at Limerick early in the sixteenth century; died in the Tower of London about December 1586) was an Irish Roman Catholic clergyman who was the Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland in the second half of the sixte ...
, he was confined until released after about three years and seven months on the security of
Cormac Laidir,
Chief of the Name
The Chief of the Name, or in older English usage Captain of his Nation, is the recognised head of a family or clan (''fine'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic). The term has sometimes been used as a title in Ireland and Scotland.
In Ireland
In Eliza ...
of
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship
and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meaning ...
MacCarthy of Muskerry. The Bishop intended to retire to
Flanders, but ill health contracted in prison induced him to return to Ireland. He was apprehended at Dublin, but released on exhibiting his discharge, and proceeded to Muskerry under The MacCarthy's protection.
Disliking the lavishness of that nobleman's hospitality, he withdrew to a small farm and lived austerely. He made a visitation of his diocese yearly, and on great festivals officiated and preached in a neighbouring church. Thus, though afflicted with
dropsy, he lived until his sixtieth (or seventieth) year. He lies buried at
Kilcrea Friary
Kilcrea Friary () is a ruined medieval abbey located near Ovens, County Cork, Ireland. Both the friary and Kilcrea Castle, located in ruin to the west, were built by Observant Franciscans in the mid 15th century under the invitation of Cormac ...
,
County Cork.
References
Sources
*Rothe, ''Analecta Nova et Mira'', ed. Moran (Dublin, 1884);
*Moran, ''Spicilegium Ossor.'', I (Dublin, 1874);
*O'Reilly, ''Memorials of those who suffered for the Catholic Faith'' (London, 1868).
Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oherlahy, Thomas
1579 deaths
Bishops of Cork or Cloyne or of Ross
Participants in the Council of Trent
Year of birth unknown
Christian clergy from County Cork
16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland
People of Elizabethan Ireland
Post-Reformation Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland