Saint Brendan's Epic Voyage
Overview
Saint Brendan, a Celtic monk, is sometimes credited as the first European to reach the new world. If the accounts of his travels are accurate, his journey to North America predates Leif Erikson's discovery of Vinland by 400 years and Christopher Columbus's Caribbean voyages by nearly 1,000 years.
We know very little about the life of the historical Brendan. Textual references to him begin in the seventh century. The evidence provided by these texts indicates that he was born around A.D. 489 in county Kerry in the southwest of Ireland. He was a student of Erc, the bishop of Kerry. Brendan was baptized by Erc at Turbid, near Ardfert. He was educated by Saint Ida, the "Brigid of Munster," over a period of five years. Then he completed his studies under Bishop Erc, who ordained him in 512. After he was made an abbot, he began his ministry in Ireland, and established numerous monasteries and churches throughout the country. Many topographic details in Ireland, and even as far as Brittany, bear his name. Between 512 and 530, Brendan built monastic cells at Ardfert and Shanakeel. Shanakeel, located at the bottom of Brandon Hill, became the departure point for Brendan's voyage to the "Promised Land." An influential member of the clergy, Brendan is credited with undertaking other far-ranging pilgrimages to Britain, Brittany, and the Orkney and Shetland Islands.
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