Brendan of Clonfert (c. AD 484 – c. 577) is one of the early Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is also referred to as Brendan the Navigator, Brendan the Voyager, Brendan the Anchorite, and Brendan the Bold. The Irish form of his name is or . He is mainly known for his legendary voyage to find the "Isle of the Blessed" which is sometimes referred to as "Saint Brendan’s Island". The written narrative of his journey comes from the immram (Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot).
Saint Brendan's feast day is celebrated on 16 May by Catholics, Anglicans, and Orthodox Christians.
Sources There is very little secure information concerning Brendan's life, although at least the approximate dates of his birth and death, and accounts of some events in his life, are found in Irish annals and genealogies. The earliest mention of Brendan is in the (Life of Saint Columba) of Adamnán written between AD 679 and 704. The earliest mention of him as a seafarer appears in the Martyrology of Tallaght of the ninth century.Alan G. MacPherson, "Pre-Columbian Discoveries and Exploration of North America", North American Exploration, (John Logan Allen, ed.), University of Nebraska Press, 1997,
The principal works regarding Brendan and his legend are a "Life of Brendan" in several Latin () and Irish versions () and the better known (Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot). Unfortunately, the versions of the and the provide little reliable information of his life and travels; they do, however, attest to the development of devotion to him in the centuries after his death. An additional problem is that the precise relationship between the and the traditions is uncertain.
The date when the tradition began is uncertain. The earliest surviving copies are no earlier than the end of the twelfth century, but scholars suggest that a version of the was composed before AD 1000. The was probably written earlier than the , perhaps in the second half of the eighth century.John D. Anderson, "The Navigatio Brendani: A Medieval Best Seller", The Classical Journal, 83, 4 (1988): pp. 315–322. Aengus the Culdee, in his Litany, composed in the end of the eighth century, invoked "the sixty who accompanied St. Brendan in his quest for the Land of Promise"."St. Brendan the Navigator", Orthodox Outlet for Dogmatic Enquiries.
Any attempt to reconstruct the facts of the life of Brendan or to understand the nature of his legend must be based principally on Irish annals and genealogies and on the various versions of the .Glyn Burgess, The Voyage of St Brendan, University of Exeter Press, United Kingdom, 2002.
History
Early life Brendan was born in AD 484 in Tralee, in County Kerry, in the province of Munster, in the south-west of Ireland.
He was born among the Altraige, an Irish clan originally centred on Tralee Bay, to parents called Finnlug and Cara. Tradition has it that he was born in the Kilfenora/Fenit area on the north side of the bay. He was baptised at Tubrid, near Ardfert, by Erc of Slane,Flood, William Henry Grattan (1907). "Twelve Apostles of Erin". In Catholic Encyclopedia. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company. and was originally to be called but signs and portents attending his birth and baptism led to him being christened or 'fair-drop'. For five years he was both educated and given in fosterage to St. Íte of Killeedy, "The Brigid of Munster". When he was six he was sent to Jarlath's monastery school at Tuam to further his education. Brendan is considered one of the "Twelve Apostles of Ireland", one of those said to have been tutored by the great teacher, Finnian of Clonard.
Foundations At age 26, Brendan was ordained a priest by Erc."Saint Brendan the Navigator", A Little Book of Celtic Saints, Irelandseye.com. Accessed 29 September 2022. Afterward, he founded a number of monasteries. Brendan's first voyage took him to the Aran Islands, where he founded a monastery. He also visited Hinba (Argyll), an island off the Scottish coast, where he is said to have met Columcille. On the same voyage he travelled to Wales and finally to Brittany, on the northern coast of France.
Between AD 512 and 530, Brendan built monastic cells at Ardfert, and Shanakeel (, usually translated as the "Old Church"), at the foot of Mount Brandon. From there, he is supposed to have embarked on his famous seven-year voyage bound for Paradise. The old Irish calendars assigned a feast for the "egressio familiae Sancti Brendani".
Legendary journey Brendan is primarily renowned for his legendary journey to the Isle of the Blessed as described in the (Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot) of the ninth century. Many versions exist that narrate how he set out on the Atlantic Ocean with sixteen monks (although other versions record fourteen monks and three unbelievers who joined in the last minute) to search for the Garden of Eden. One of these companions is said to have been Malo.Grattan-Flood, William. "St. Machutus." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 10 May 2018 The voyage is dated to AD 512–530, before his travel to the island of Great Britain. On his trip, Brendan is supposed to have seen Saint Brendan's Island, a blessed island covered with vegetation. He also encountered a sea monster, an adventure he shared with his contemporary Columcille. The most commonly illustrated adventure is his landing on an island which turned out to be a giant sea monster named "Jasconius".
The Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot The earliest extant version of the (Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot) was recorded AD 900. There are over 100 manuscripts of the narrative throughout Europe and many translations. The is plainly a Christian narrative, but also narrates natural phenomena and fantastical events and places, which appealed to a broad audience. The contains many parallels and inter-textual references to Bran and The Voyage of Máel Dúin.
On the Kerry coast, Brendan built a currach-like boat of wattle, covered it with hides tanned in oak bark and softened with butter, and set up a mast and a sail. He and a small group of monks fasted for 40 days, and after a prayer on the shore, embarked in the name of the Most Holy Trinity."The Commemoration of St. Brendan of Ardfert and Clonert", All Saints Parish The narrative is characterized by much literary licence; for example, it refers to Hell where "great demons threw down lumps of fiery slag from an island with rivers of gold fire" and also to "great crystal pillars". Many speculate that these are references to volcanic activity around Iceland and to icebergs.
Synopsis The journey of Brendan begins when he meets Saint Barinthus. Barinthus describes The Promised Land for Saints (). As Barinthus describes his journey to this island, Brendan decides to visit the island also because it was described as a place of those who lived a certain lifestyle and embraced true faith of Christianity. Brendan assembles a group of fourteen monks who pray together with him in his community to leave with him on his journey. Before departing, Brendan and the monks fast at three-day intervals for forty nights and set out on the voyage that was described to him by Barinthus. They first embark towards the island called Saint Edna. After Brendan and the monks build a small boat for their journey, three people join them after Brendan has already chosen his companions. These three extras will not return to Ireland, as Brendan prophesies, since their number is now an unholy one.
For a period of seven years, the group travel the seas and come across various locations while searching for the Promised Land. One of the first islands they come across is an unnamed and uninhabited island. It is here that the first of the three extra travellers dies. The survivors leave and continue their journey to the Island of Sheep. After a short stay, they land on the back of a giant fish named Jasconius, which they believe to be an island. But once they light a fire, the island starts to move revealing its true nature. Other places they visit include the Island of Birds, the Island of Ailbe inhabited by a community of silent monks, and the Island of Strong Men. In some accounts, it is on the Island of Strong Men where the second of the three additional sailors leaves, remaining on the island instead of continuing. The third of the three is dragged away by demons.
After travelling for seven years, visiting some of the same places repeatedly, the wanderers finally arrive in the Promised Land for Saints. They are welcomed and allowed to enter briefly. Awed by what they see, they return to Ireland rejoicing.
Context
The fits in with a then-popular literary genre, peculiar to Ireland, called an immram. Irish immrama flourished during the seventh and eighth centuries. Typically, an immram is a tale that describes the hero's series of seafaring adventures. Some of the immrams involved the search for, and visits to, Tír na nÓg, an island far to the west, beyond the edges of the world map. There appear to be similarities with The Voyage of Bran written much earlier. In the , this style of storytelling accorded with a religious ascetic tradition in which Irish monks travelled alone in boats, in a similar way to that in which their desert brothers isolated themselves in caves.
Brendan's voyages were one of the most remarkable and enduring of European legends. With many of the facts of Brendan's journeys coming from the , it has been difficult for scholars to distinguish fact and folklore. The narrative of Brendan's voyage, developed during this time, shares some characteristics with immrams. Like an immram, the tells the story of Brendan, who, with some companion monks, sets out to find the , ("Promised Land of the Saints"), that is, the Earthly Paradise.# John D. Anderson, The Classical Journal, Vol. 83, No. 4 (Apr. – May 1988), pp. 315–322.
Jude S. Mackley holds that efforts to identify possible, actual locations referred to in the distract from the author's purpose of presenting a legend of "salvation, monastic obedience and the faith required to undertake such a pilgrimage."Jude S. Mackley, "The Legend of St. Brendan", Brill, 2008 .
Intertextuality Scholars debate whether the influenced The Voyage of Máel Dúin or vice versa. Jude Mackley suggests that an early influenced an equally early and that inter-borrowing continued as the traditions developed. The adapts the immram traditions to a Christian context.
A principal similarity between and the is the introduction in both of three additional passengers. Mael Dúin is joined by his foster brothers, and Brendan by three additional monks. Both additions upset the equilibrium of the voyages, and only when the additional persons are no longer on board can each voyage be completed.
Anglo-Norman version The Anglo-Norman Voyage of Saint Brendan is the earliest surviving narrative text of Anglo-Norman literature. It was probably translated around 1121 by a cleric called Benedeit at the commission of Adeliza of Louvain, the second wife of Henry I of England. In its use of octosyllabic couplets to recount a quest narrative drawn from Celtic sources, it has been described as a precursor of later Old French romances. Benedeit's version of the legend was itself retranslated several times into Latin prose and verse.
Early Dutch version