St Patrick's College, Maynooth

St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth (Irish: Coláiste Naoimh Phádraig, Maigh Nuad), is a pontifical Catholic university in the town of Maynooth near Dublin, Ireland. The college and national seminary on its grounds are often referred to as Maynooth College.

The college was officially established as the Royal College of St Patrick by Maynooth College Act 1795. Thomas Pelham, the Chief Secretary for Ireland, introduced a bill for the foundation of a Catholic college, and this was enacted by parliament. It was opened to hold up to 500 students for the Catholic priesthood of whom up to 90 would be ordained each year, and was once the largest seminary in the world.

Degrees are awarded by the Pontifical University at Maynooth, which was established by a pontifical charter of 1896. The pontifical charter entitles the university to grant degrees in canon law, philosophy and theology.

The college is associated with the state-run Maynooth University, with which it shares an historic campus, as well as certain facilities.

History

16th century foundation

The town of Maynooth, County Kildare, was the seat of the Fitzgeralds, Earls of Kildare. The ivy-covered tower attached to St Mary's Church of Ireland is all that remains of the ancient college of St Mary of Maynooth, founded and endowed by Gerald, 8th Earl of Kildare, and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. On 7 October 1515 Henry VIII granted licence for the establishment of a college. In 1518, the 9th Earl presented a petition to the Archbishop of Dublin, William Rokeby, for a license to found and endow a college at Maynooth: the College of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1535 the college was suppressed and its endowments and lands confiscated as part of the Reformation.

1795 re-establishment

The present college was created in the 1790s against the background of the upheaval during the French Revolution and the gradual removal of the penal laws. The college was particularly intended to provide for the education of Catholic priests in Ireland, who until this Act had to go to continental Europe for their formation and theological education. Many were educated in France, and the church and government were concerned at the Dechristianization of France during the French Revolution, and at the same time at the risk of revolutionary thinking arising from training in revolutionary France (with whom Britain was at war). A number of the early lecturers in Maynooth, were exiles from France (such as sometimes called the French founding fathers, Professors Francois Anglade, André Darré, Louis-Gilles Delahogue, and Pierre-Justin Delort), also among the first professors was a layman James Bernard Clinch recommended by Edmund Burke. Also relevant was the enactment of the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1793.

The college was legally established on 5 June 1795 by the Maynooth College Act 1795 as The Royal College of St Patrick, by act of the Parliament of Ireland, to provide "for the better education of persons professing the popish or Roman Catholic religion". The college was originally established to provide a university education for Catholic lay and ecclesiastical students, the lay college was based in Riverstown House on the south campus from 1802. With the opening of Clongowes Wood in 1814, the lay college (which had lay trustees) was closed and the college functioned solely as a Catholic seminary for almost 150 years.

In 1800, John Butler, 12th Baron Dunboyne, died and left a substantial fortune to the college. Butler had been a Roman Catholic, and Bishop of Cork, who had embraced Protestantism in order to marry and guarantee the succession to his hereditary title. However, there were no children to his marriage and it was alleged that he had been reconciled to the Catholic Church at his death. Were this the case, a Penal Law demanded that the will was invalid and his wealth would pass to his family. Much litigation followed before a negotiated settlement in 1808 that led to the establishment of a Dunboyne scholarship fund.

Student activities and alumni

Maynooth Students' Union represents students of St Patrick's College, Maynooth and NUI Maynooth.

The Maynooth Union was founded in 1895 during the centenary and the constitution agreed in 1896, to "foster a spirit of mutual sympathy between the College and its past students and friends", it hosts an annual reunion. Maynooth Alumni Association provides graduates of the St. Patrick's College, Maynooth and NUI Maynooth, with a channel to keep in touch with their alma mater as well as with friends and classmates from their time in Maynooth it is based in Riverstown Lodge on the south campus.

In 1972 Maynooth entered the Gaelic Football Sigerson Cup for the first time and won it in 1976. They also participate in the Hurling competition, the Fitzgibbon Cup and won it in 1973 and 1974.

Emblem

St. Patrick's Flag is used as the emblem of the college, and the flag has flown above Stoyte House, a new logo was used for the buildup and since the bicentennial of the college based on the Gothic buildings. The St. Patrick's flag is on the coat of arms of the Duke of Leinster who donated the land for Maynooth College. The St. Patrick's flag is also contained in the logo of St. Patrick's Pontifical University Maynooth, the Maynooth logo, with the papal keys symbol behind it.

Governance

From its foundation 1795 Maynooth had been governed by a board of clerical (long-serving Catholic bishops of Ireland) and lay trustees appointed by the government. The lay trustees were prominent Catholic Lords, such as the Earl of Fingall Arthur James Plunkett and the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. One of the side effects of the act to disestablish the Church of Ireland, was that Maynooth's governance and funding changed, leaving only the Bishops on the board of trustees.(Vic., C.25)

Buildings

The historic buildings of Maynooth.

Stoyte House – dating from 1780, originally the home of the steward of the Leinster estate.

College Chapel - arguably the most precious building of all on the entire campus, the foundation stone was laid in 1875 and it was opened for worship in 1891 in preparation for the college's first centenary.

St. Joseph's Square – the square is laid out as a formal garden. The eastern side of the square contains Callan Hall and Physics Hall.

Dunboyne House – South wing of St. Joseph's Square.

Humanity House – Extension to Dunboyne completing south wing of St. Joseph's Square.

New House – North wing of St. Joseph's Square, completed in 1809 and rebuilt after being burnt down in the 1940s.

• St. Mary's Square
• St. Mary's
• St. Patrick's

Russell Library – designed by Augustus Welby Pugin and completed in 1861.

Pugin Hall

Aula Maxima – opened in 1893, was the gift to his alma mater of the Right Rev. Mgr. James McMahon of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Riverstown House – used by the lay college from 1801 to 1817. Now Alumni office for both St. Patrick's College, and MU.

Logic House – Mathematics and Music Departments (MU).

Rhetoric House – History, Geography and Economics Departments (MU).

Loftus Halls – Examination halls.

Senior Infirmary/Columba Centre – designed in the early 1860s by JJ McCarthy is today used as office space by Irish Bishops' Conference, Accord and CURA.

Staff Dining Hall

Museum – The museum houses many beautiful ecclesiastical and scientific artifacts.

John Paul II Library – was opened in 1983, extension completed in 2012.

St Mary's (Church of Ireland) – was the chapel for the Fitzgeralds, later incorporated into the outer wall of the college.

Library

Prior to the establishment of the college, students for the diocesan priesthood had to travel to the European mainland, to one of the many Irish colleges based principally in France, Spain, and the Low Countries. The continental background of early members of staff, some of whom were native French refugees from the French Revolution, is reflected in the Library's holdings. A large proportion of the 22,000 pre-1850 books were published abroad. Several professors and eminent churchmen were great collectors, and their collections ultimately came to the Library. At the beginning, the Library was small and there were no text books for the students. Many professors decided to go into print and to write their own, having their students subscribe in advance. Printing by subscription was a common practice and the subscription lists still show the names of students and staff from this early period in the college's history.

Presidents of Maynooth College

• Reverend Thomas Hussey F.R.S. (25 June 1795)
• Reverend Peter Flood (17 January 1798)
• Reverend Andrew Dunne (24 February 1803)
• Reverend Patrick Byrne (27 June 1807)
• Reverend Patrick Everard (29 June 1810)
• Most Reverend Daniel Murray (Coadjutor Archbishop of Dublin) (29 June 1812)
• Reverend Bartholomew Crotty (13 November 1813)
• Reverend Michael Slattery (19 June 1832)
• Reverend Michael Montague (25 June 1834)
• Reverend Laurence Renehan (25 June 1845)
• Reverend Charles W. Russell (20 October 1857)
• Reverend William J Walsh (22 June 1880)
• Reverend Robert Browne (7 October 1885)
• Rt Reverend Monsignor Denis Gargan (9 October 1894)
• Reverend Daniel Mannix (13 October 1903)

People

The University has a wealth of illustrious alumni. For a comprehensive list, see: Alumni of St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth

Today

Any student of the college, prior to the passing of the Universities Act, 1997, upon whom a degree of the National University of Ireland was conferred is now legally considered to be a graduate of Maynooth University. The college continues to share its campus with the National University of Ireland, but Maynooth remains a separate legal entity with training in canon law, philosophy and theology and awards the degrees of the Pontifical University and is associated with several other colleges. Pontifical University BA undergraduate students can take their degree in Theology along with an Arts subject from the National University. BA in Theology and BA in Theology with Arts is available on the CAO system.

Students who graduate from MU in philosophy can on submission of a subsequent different thesis can be conferred with a B.Phil. by the Pontifical University.

The Postgraduate Diploma in Christian Communications and Media Practice is provided by the college, in conjunction with Kairos Communications in Maynooth, where classes and training on the course take place.

Since October 2011, all academic awards from the Pontifical University of Maynooth have been aligned to the Irish National Framework of Qualifications by the NQAI.

As part of the Erasmus university exchange programme, Saint Patrick's College, Maynooth has bilateral agreements with Faculties of Theology in Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain (Salamanca) and Switzerland (Freiburg).

In 2014–2015, the college had 69 resident seminarians and a significant number of non-resident seminarians travelling in by day for lectures. A further five Irish seminarians were studying in St. Malachy's Seminary in Belfast (the only other Catholic seminary in Ireland until its closure in 2018) and maintained close links with their counterparts in Maynooth. There are approximately 80 post-graduate students of theology and 250 undergraduate philosophy and theology students who are registered as full-time students of the college.

Following Froebel College of Education's move to Maynooth in 2013, and continuing its ethos and heritage, Religious Education and Theology modules are delivered by the Froebel Department of Early Childhood and Primary Education(NUIM) and St. Patrick's College, Maynooth's, Faculty of Theology, running alongside the Degree and Masters programmes, leading to a Certificate awarded by Maynooth and qualifying to teach in Catholic Schools.

Seminarians from Redemptoris Mater Seminary study philosophy and theology in Maynooth, since its formation in 2012.

Publications

Archivium Hibernicum : founded in 1911; annual historical journal published by St. Patrick's College and the Department of Modern History, National University of Ireland Maynooth

• The Bridge: biannual magazine for Maynooth and NUIM alumni
• The Furrow : founded in 1950; a monthly journal for the contemporary Church
• Irish Theological Quarterly: quarterly journal of theology, and scripture
• Irish Ecclesiastical Record, a monthly journal, was published from 1880 until 1968 from Maynooth
• Kalendarium: the annual publication of Maynooth College for the Seminary and Pontifical University
• Maynooth Theological Journal (MTJ): biannual journal of theological studies, founded in 2010

Intercom: a pastoral and liturgical resource magazine published by Veritas, edited by Fr. Chris Hayden, Catholic Communications office, Maynooth.

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