James Magauran (or Magaurin),

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (i.e., Christian theology and ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the English-speaking world than elsewhere. In the United Kin ...

, (1769/71–1829) was an Irish cleric who served as the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise The Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise (; ) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Ireland. Geography The diocese is entirely within the Republic of Ireland and contains most of counties Longford and Leitrim, with parts of counties ...

from 1815 to 1829. At one point, Magauran was invited to testified before the

British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

about conditions in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Early life

Magauran was born in

Moneensauran Moneensauran () is a townland in the civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Templeport, County Cavan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies within the Roman Catholic parish of Glangevlin and barony of Tullyhaw. Geography Moneensauran is bo ...

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is based on the hi ...

between 1769 and 1771. He belonged to the Magauran family of

Glangevlin Glangevlin () is a village in the northwest of County Cavan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the townlands of Gub (Glangevlin) and Tullytiernan, at the junction of the R200 road (Ireland), R200 and R207 road (Ireland), R207 regional roads ...

, County Cavan, of whom many men became priests. His siblings were: *Peter Magauran of

. King of Glan in 1815. *Arthur Magauran of

Curraghglass Curraghglass, an Anglicisation of the Gaelic, ‘Currach Glas’ meaning ''The Green Moor'', is a townland in the civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Templeport, County Cavan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies in the Roman Catholic pa ...

, *Dr. Patrick Magauran,

British army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

doctor *Elizabeth Magauran, Queen of Glan in 1815 *Miss Magauran

Priestly career

In 1789, Magauran attended the

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca () is a public university, public research university in Salamanca, Spain. Founded in 1218 by Alfonso IX of León, King Alfonso IX, it is the oldest university in the Hispanic world and the fourth oldest in the ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. On his return to Ireland, Magauran was appointed a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are as ...

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of and had a population of 63,585 as of 2021. Enniskillen is the ...

. He later became the

Priest in charge A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent; they will normally work on a short-term contract and have less freedom to act within the ...

of the Parish of Oughteragh,

Ballinamore Ballinamore (, meaning "mouth of the big ford") is a small town in the south-east of County Leitrim in Ireland. Etymology , corrupted ''Bellanamore'', means "town at the mouth of the big ford", so named because it was a main crossing (ford) o ...

Episcopal career

After the death of Dr. James Cruise, the bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, the priests from Ardagh parish voted for Magauran as his successor. Magauran was elected on 6 March 1815 and confirmed by

Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...

on 12 March 1815. Magauran was known for his common sense, his administrative skills and for his mentoring of young priests. He officiated the 8 AM mass every Sunday in

Ballymahon Ballymahon () on the River Inny (Leinster), River Inny is a town in the southern part of County Longford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is 19 km north-east of Athlone, at the junction of the N55 road, N55 and R392 road (Ireland), R392 ro ...

. On one occasion, Magauran compelled Dr.

William O'Higgins William O'Higgins (1794-1853), was an Irish Roman Catholic priest and professor, who served as Bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, from 1829 until his death in 1853. O'Higgins taught english and theology in France, the Austrian Empire and Irelan ...

, a priest just returned from teaching in France, to stand the

Concursus Interpleader is a civil procedure device that allows a plaintiff or a defendant to initiate a lawsuit in order to compel two or more other parties to litigate a dispute. An interpleader action originates when the plaintiff holds property on behal ...

Maynooth College St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth (), is a pontifical Catholic university in the town of Maynooth near Dublin, Ireland. The college and national seminary on its grounds are often referred to as Maynooth College. The college was of ...

against Dr. Laurence F. Renehan. A few days later, Magauran held a social gathering for his clergy. He entertained the group with an account of how O'Higgins bested Renehan in the debate. "I have never witnessed," said Magauran, "such a display of theological learning." In 1821, Magauran traveled to Dublin for the visit of King

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

. Magauran and another Irish cleric were presented to the king, who afterwards observed, "They were the two finest-looking ecclesiastics in Great Britain." On 25 March 1825, Magauran testified to a select committee of the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

, chaired by

Lord Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865), known as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman and politician who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1855 to 1858 and from 1859 to 1865. A m ...

, about conditions in Ireland. Magauran died on either 3 June or 25 June 1829 at

County Longford County Longford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the Local government in the Republic ...

. He was interred in the church in that town

References

Bibliography

*Very Rev.Owen F.Traynor, 'Dr. James Magauran, Bishop of Ardagh, 1815-29' in Breifne Journal, Volume IV, No.15, 1972, 336-44. {{DEFAULTSORT:Magauran, James 1769 births 1829 deaths Christian clergy from County Cavan Roman Catholic bishops of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise University of Salamanca alumni