ABSTRACT
An ecclesiastical settlement had developed at Glendalough (Glenn-dá-Locha, valley of the two lakes), County Wicklow, before the mid-seventh century, as shown by the obits recorded for bishops Colmán (660) and Dairchell (678), both of whom were probably also abbots. The foundation is ascribed to Cóem-gen (St. Kevin; d. 618), who is genealogically linked to Dál Messin Corb, a proto-historical dynasty of the Laigin, and who is the subject of Latin and Irish “Lives,” but about whom little of historical worth is known. The earliest settlement was at the upper lake, where the foundations of a beehive hut survive; terracing may be traced on the adjacent hillside. Located here are the churches of Templenaskellig and Reefert (Ríg-ferf), the burial ground of Leinster kings. Expansion towards the lower lake was apparently underway by the eighth century, and was facilitated by the dynasty of Uí Máil, the influence of which is discernible in the record of abbatial succession. However, before 800 C.E., as the wealth of the settlement increased and its network of dependencies expanded, Glendalough had attracted the rulers of Uí Dúnlainge, whose role in its affairs is clearly reflected in hagiographical tradition. By the eleventh century, the ecclesiastical center and its dependencies were dominated by Uí Muiredaig, a branch of Uí Dúnlainge, whose most distinguished churchman was St. Lorcán Ua Tuathail (d. 1180).
