Irish College in Santiago

[danielc]

The Irish College in Santiago

Recently I was reading up about Donal Cam O Sullivan Beara the last Irish Celtic Chieftain. After the Gaelic forces were defeat by the Elizabethan forces at the battle of Kinsale in 1601 many Chieftains submitted to Elizabeth 1 .However after a long winter march of 840 km from the south coast to the north of Ireland , Donal and his followers were forced into exile . Due to the historic connection between Spain and Ireland, in particular Galicia, he landed in La Coruna in 1607. He and his followers were welcomed by the Spanish and indeed his title was recognised by the Spanish King. Eventually he set up an Irish College in Santiago at 44 Rua Nova. I wonder does anyone know this site. Are there any remains of the college still in existence?

 

[SYates]

No idea, but very interested in the answer also! Buen Camino, SY

 

[mspath]

Here is some information re the Irish College in Santiago.
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/244108

From this Forum is an earlier thread
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...ege-at-santiago-de-compostela-1605-1769.4923/

Happy reading and Buen camino!

 

[Felipe]

And here
Apparently the building fell into ruins after the expulsion of the jesuits, and a new structure was built in the place, de Pazo de Ramiràs.
There was a long tradition on Irishmen in Spain, mainly as religious and soldiers (thousands of them). Even an Irish Regiment in service of the king, that had the honour (it was so considered) of being in the first battle line, besides the Spanish much renowned and feared "tercios". See there an online book about Irish soldiers. Mostly in Spanish, but there is an English section about modern times.
There was also the legend that the Irish were of Spanish descendency -hence the supposed similitaries of character.

 

[Castilian]

The College was under Jesuit rule when King Charles III of Spain decreed the ejection of Jesuits out of Spain in 1767. The college didn't survive a lot of time after the decree and it was closed in 1770 (or 1769, I don't recall). It became ruins. A pazo was build instead (no idea if it has something -as minimum as it could be- from the former college); the Pazo Ramirás. It's private property so you are unlikely to be able to visit it but you could take a look at the outside where I think there's a plaque recalling there was an Irish College there.

P.S.: If I'm not wrong, among all the Colleges created in Spain to form Catholic priests when Catholicism became ilegal on the British isles, the Royal English College of Valladolid (www.sanalbano.org) is the only one still in service (although it just offers a propaedeutic year and priest candidates make the rest of their training somewhere else).

Edited by Castilian who had written islands instead of isles.

 

[JohnnieWalker]

Yes the building which housed the Irish College in Santiago is still there at 44 Rua Nova - a plaque on the wall marks the spot. A delegation of the Irish Society recently visited it.

 

[Felipe]

Btw....Would not be nice to have a "Camino history" sub forum (ot whatever is technically called)? It seems there are here some fans of past things, and I have read very interesting threads on this topic.

 

[VNwalking]

Btw....Would not be nice to have a "Camino history" sub forum (ot whatever is technically called)? It seems there are here some fans of past things, and I have read very interesting threads on this topic.

Triple like, @Felipe! I really like this idea.
@ivar? Por favor?

 

[danielc]

Here is some information re the Irish College in Santiago.
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/244108

From this Forum is an earlier thread
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...ege-at-santiago-de-compostela-1605-1769.4923/

Happy reading and Buen camino!

Thanks for the info

 

[danielc]

Yes the building which housed the Irish College in Santiago is still there at 44 Rua Nova - a plaque on the wall marks the spot. A delegation of the Irish Society recently visited it.

Thanks - next time in Santiago I must visit this site

 

[McNickj]

See below.....a link to a recent document on the the Irish College in Santiago produced by Professor Pádraig Breandán Ó Laighin. The document is written in both Irish and English (as Gaeilge agus Béarla).
Regards. Jim

http://www.caminosociety.ie
http://www.caminosociety.ie/_fileupload/The Irish College Santiago.pdf

 

[danielc]

See below.....a link to a recent document on the the Irish College in Santiago produced by Professor Pádraig Breandán Ó Laighin. The document is written in both Irish and English (as Gaeilge agus Béarla).
Regards. Jim

http://www.caminosociety.ie
http://www.caminosociety.ie/_fileupload/The Irish College Santiago.pdf

Very interesting information - thank you

 

[crackmrmac]

This will certainly get a mention at an upcoming free talk in Cabra, Dublin.
The current chairperson of Irish Society spoke at annual mass of desire to have it reopened.
Log on to dublinfestivalofhistory.ie and scroll down to

THE IRISH AND THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO: 800 YEARS OF HISTORY

 

[Smallest_Sparrow]

The Wild Geese were highly valued in many European countries for their willingness to lead the way into battle and refuse to surrender, but Spain offered them immediate citizenship based the legend of Spanish Celts invading and settling Ireland. I stood at the lighthouse of Hercules in O Coruna, and tried my best to see Ireland (the legend says this is where the Celts got the idea).
Off topic...growing up in Southern California meant learning a fair amount about Mexico as well as the US. Mexico honors the memory of the San Patricios, a unit made up of Irish soldiers fighting for the US who crossed sides to defend Mexico after seeing the treatment of the Catholic Mexicans during the Mexican-American War (1846-8)