St. Kilian's legacy draws many German visitors to Mullagh

The warm spring sun was reflecting gently on Mullagh lake with the swans enjoying their restored mobility, a pleasant setting - far removed from the ice frozen waters of barely a fortnight ago. Mullagh is a secluded place steeped in history and its name has cropped up more frequently in recent years with new houses changing the contours of the village, expanding its population dramatically with the result that today it is another one of the many small towns of County Cavan knocking down the doors of the local authority demanding extra services. Mullagh is noted for the distinguished literary people who graced the area such as Jonathan Swift who wrote Gulliver's Travels while staying at nearby Quilca House, home of the Sheridan family. Other notable descendants of the Sheridans of Quilca include the 18th century playwright, Thomas Sheridan and the writer, Richard Brinsley Sheridan. In more recent times, Mullagh has produced stars of the stage and screen such as T.P. McKenna and Brian F. O'Byrne. Mullagh has also ancestral connections with the Brooke family who have been prominent in British political life over many generations, most recently in the person of former Northern Secretary, Peter Brooke. However, it is a 7th century missionary bishop who gives the village its greatest cultural legacy. St. Kilian according to tradition was born in Mullagh in 640 AD and went on to become part of the great Irish Christian evangelization of Europe in the early middle ages. His missionary work took him across Gaul (France) and into Germany where he died as a martyr for the faith in Wurzburg on July 8, 689. It is Kilian's deep veneration by the people of Wurzburg that has undoubtedly pushed the Mullagh-born monk and prelate to the forefront of Irish missionary endeavour. Indeed the reverence that the people of this part of Germany have for St. Kilian was an important factor in the construction of St. Kilian's Heritage Centre in Mullagh back in the mid-90s. Set in its own grounds across the road from St. Kilian's church, it is a focal point for the many visitors who come here each year to learn more about the saint. German nationals are to the forefront in terms of foreign visitors but other nationalities come as well, with many also journeying here from all parts of Ireland. Visitors are given a profile of the life of St. Kilian in a ten-minute film screened in the Heritage Centre's audio-visual room, which has seating capacity for 50. The short film is in German and English - a recognition of the fact that a good proportion of those who come here are from Germany. It is in the exhibition room that one can feel the sense of history with a huge amount of artefacts many donated from Germany but there is a strong Irish presence as well such as Ogham stone dating back to the 4th/5th century. It was discovered in 1875 at the Teampall-Cheallaigh cemetery a short distance away. The statues of St. Kilian (also donated from Germany) give a life-sized image of the saint, while a copy of the Wurtzburg Glosses (protected under glass) depicts the scholarship and artistic ability of the early monks. St. Kilian's Day is July 8 and there is a festival in his honour in Wurzburg each year - indicating that the Mullagh-born missionary bishop is held by them in the same high standing as we hold St. Patrick. St. Kilian's Heritage Centre is managed by a local committee with the day-to-day running being in the capable hands of Mary Murphy and Eileen Carolan. Mary and Eileen welcome visitors and show them around the centre, explaining the significance of the various artefacts and memorabilia. Their wages are funded by Cavan Job Initiative and underscores the importance of all funding initiatives to local communities. In this case the support of Cavan Job Initiative allows St. Kilian's Heritage Centre, an important tourism attraction, to function fully on a daily basis with obvious benefits for the county and the region. The centre, which also houses a craft shop and coffee shop, is open from Monday to Friday from 10am to 5.30pm with extended opening hours from Easter onwards. Besides its valued role as a heritage centre, it also acts as an important community facility hosting meetings by the different local organisations. When it was officially opened by President Mary Robinson back in 1995, the promoters of the project, St. Kilian's Heritage Trust, acknowledged the financial assistance of the International Fund for Ireland, Cavan Monaghan Rural Development Co-op, FÁS, Bord Fáilte, Wellman International Ltd, Cavan County Enterprise Board, the diocese of Wurzburg and the Mullagh community. Now almost 15 years later, St. Kilian's Heritage Centre is a much appreciated facility that has put Mullagh on the map. The centre can be contacted by phone at 046-9242433, fax 046-9242433 or e mail: stkiliancentre@eircom.net. Visitors who come to the centre and are absorbed by the wealth of knowledge therein can't but then be persuaded to cross the road and visit St. Kilian's church where there is a primary relic of the saint. It was installed there in 1991 having been gifted by the diocese of Wurzburg. The bones of St. Kilian, which now rest in the cathedral in Wurzburg and also this primary relic in St. Kilian's church in Mullagh, express a common bond between Ireland and Germany - a bond which is given a new value as part of our common identity as Europeans.