Christian communities in fifth and sixth century Ireland

Abstract

It has often been assumed that, following Palladius’ mission of AD 431, Ireland became entirely or at the very least predominantly, Christian in the course of the remainder of the 5th and 6th centuries (see amongst others Hughes 1966, 39-56, Ó Corrain 1994, 3). Other historians have abandoned the 6th century altogether, taking the view that we simply do not have enough sources to discuss the period (Sharpe 1984, 239-43; Etchingham 1994, 38). The purpose of this paper is to examine some of the archaeological evidence for the existence of Christianity in Ireland during this two hundred year period and to discover whether the material remains can add to our knowledge of this era.