Penitential Bed 5 St Patrick’s Bed

3D Model

It is no surprise that one of the penitential beds at Lough Derg would be dedicated to St Patrick. People may be surprised to learn that until the 12th century the main saint of Lough Derg was not Patrick but his disciple Davog who founded the monastery on nearby Saints Island. Bishop Tirechan (7th Cent) places him passing through this part of the country: ‘The route Patrick followed is, in its main points, sufficiently determined: from Assaroe (near Ballyshannon) north-eastward through the pass of Barnesmore, then by Ardstraw in Tyrone.’ An ancient churchyard at Templecarn halfway between Pettigo and Lough Derg claims to have been a Patrician foundation. It is Patrick’s tradition of penance that is particularly honoured here at Lough Derg.