St.
Brendan's Voyage |
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 St. Brendan the navigator was born in Ireland during the last quarter of the
fifth century. Brendan became a famous churchman who founded four monasteries in
western Ireland an making several voyages to England, Scotland, and Wales with one of his
disciples St. Malo. Brendan wrote in Book of Lismore, which detailed his travels, that an angel appeared to him telling him that God granted him a special retreat beyond the shores of his native Ireland. Inspired, Brendan climbed to the summit of Brandon mountain and took a of land which lay far to the west. He quickly put his monks to work and they built three vessels called curraghs. These first boats where made of slaughtered skins, oars and sails. Leaving Erin, Brendan and his crew sailed around to no avail never reaching his destination (see map). Returning home, Brendan visited his foster-mother who suggested to him that his boats were unfit for holy travel because his boats were made from slaughtered animal skins. Brendan and his crew built a new large wooden ship that could carry a crew of sixty. Upon completion, Brendan and his crew again set sail for the west. They were able to come into contact with several islands; during which Brendan noted they were followed by "sea-cats". Presumably, these "sea-cats" were whales. On there third island, they encountered a hermit who told them the way to the "promised land." Brendan had wrote that he finally had reached a land that was "odorous, flower-smooth, and blessed." Due to large gaps in St. Brendan's text, his story could not be authenticated. Various historical scholars have concluded that St. Brendan never made it to America and his legend of accomplishing this feat only remains in Irish lore. |