Hay’s account of the early history of the bishopric of Argyll is timely, coming as the Isle of Lismore community decide whether to take over responsibility for the church building which was once the site of the diocesan Cathedral.
The book traces the foundation of Lismore, from the mid-6th century, as an important monastic centre under the influence of Moluag who, legend has it, beat Columba to proselytise the island. Little is known about Moluag’s period on Lismore, although the book includes details of archaeological digs which have pieced together information suggesting that there were monastic settlements into the 8thcentury.
With impressive clarity, Hay outlines the significant changes to the political and liturgical landscape over the thousand years the book covers. He focuses with great effect on the tensions between the insular church of the monks (including the beautifully named and the Roman Church which grew in favour and influence, partly due to the power of local families.
Of particular significance under the modernising influence of David I, was the formation of the diocese of Argyll at Lismore in the late 12th century. To finance it, parishioners paid a ‘teind’ which meant that a tenth of their annual produce went directly to the church.
By the 14th century, helped by warring factions within Scotland, the bishops of Lismore came under the direct control of Rome, and plans for a cathedral on Lismore were underway, led by the powerful MacDougall clan. Argyll was important because of its geographical position, to broker relations between seats of power in east of Scotland and the western isles, known then as Sodor. Added to this, the centrality of the Isle of Lismore gave it strategic significance which it retained up to the 15th century when the main cathedral for the Argyll bishopric moved to Dunoon.
Monks and Bishops: Lismore 560-1560 by Robert Hay (2025) Birlinn.
The influence of Lismore waned during the 16th century, but Catholicism itself faced an even bigger challenge and the final chapter of the book deals with the advent of the Protestant church which followed the Reformation. This caused a resurgence of Gaelic as the liturgical language and led eventually to the Presbyterian model of the national church without the need for bishops.
The book is well supported by photos, plans and diagrams, as well as a timeline documenting the Lismore bishops throughout the extensive period it covers. This is an ambitious book with an engaging narrative that explains a lot without sacrificing detail. It provides the essential background as to why islanders on Lismore think that the church is worth saving.
Caroline Bath is a retired academic in early education and has authored several journal articles and a novel. She recently published an article in The Journal of Scottish Historical Studies about Lismore schools in the nineteenth century.