Church in Arklow

The church of Arklow in the diocese of Dublin was mentioned in 1279 when it was held by 'Fremund called Lebrun, papal chaplain and the dean and chapter of St Patrick’s elected Master William de Conreria, papal chaplain' (Cal. papal letters, 457). In 1283 the Calendar of Ormond Deeds recorded the following about Arklow Church; 'Acknowledgment by John de Kerdyfe, clerk, (if having received by the land of Ralph Cossin, bailiff of Sir Theobald le Botiller, of Thuk, ten marks in which Sir Theobald was bound to de Kerdyfe's lord, Fromund le Brun, for tithes of sheaves of the church of Arclo [Arklow]' (Curtis 1932, No. 265, 105). In 1289 the King ordered 'Protection in Ireland for 5 years for Richard of Baluncheville, parson of the churches of Blauncheville, Dovenachmore, Clonhussell, and Arclo, remaining by licence in England' (Cal. doc. Ire., No. 540, 243). The 1302-06 Ecclesiastical taxation of the bishopric of Dublin valued the 'The church of Arklow, with the chapel’ , in the Deanery of Arklow, at £4 per annum with the tenth value of 8s. (Cal. doc. Ire., 241). The Visitation of Dublin Diocese in 1630 described the site as follows; 'The church of Arklow wants some covering. The chauncel is in good repair, only it wants ornaments within. The great tithes are impropriate, worth about £40 per annum. Mr Balthazar Fox is vicar there, whose vicarage is set for £17 per annum, out of which he allows to one Nicholas Whyte, curate there, £5 sterling per annum' (Anon. 1869, 163). The Urban Survey of Co. Wicklow described the parish church of St Mary as follows; 'The medieval parish church was located on the north side of Main Street. No remains survive above ground today and the site has been turned into a small public park with a series of eighteenth and nineteenth century tombstones arranged around the wall' (Bradley and King 1989, 6). The site of the medieval church of St Mary on the N side of Main Street; marked as 'Grave Yard' on the 1838 ed. OSi 6-inch map. Not visible at ground level; the rectangular graveyard (dims. 29m E-W; 23m N-S) has been made into a public park and the 18th- and 19th-century headstones, including examples by Denis Cullen, have been arranged around the perimeter. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Wicklow' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1997). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 14 July 2021