HISTORICAL CHRONOLOGY
1100 - Lough Derg in possession of two islands with religious associations, a larger called Oileán na Naomh, and a smaller known as Station Island. Station Island had the great attraction of a cave, said to have been utilised by Saint Patrick
1135 - Augustinian Canons in charge of Lough Derg
1153 - Knight Owein's Pilgrimage
1186 - Henry of Saltry in Huntingdonshire writes of Knight Owein's Pilgrimage and Purgatory - 150 copies of this text still survive in libraries across Europe
1346 - The Fresco, depicting St. Patrick's Purgatory at Lough Derg, believed to have been painted by an artist from Siena
1497 - Saint Patrick's Purgatory closed by order of Pope Alexander VI
1497 - Franciscans of Donegal replace the Augustinians in charge of Lough Derg
1516 - Papal Nuncio Chiericati visits St. Patrick's Purgatory
1596 - Herenach family, the Magraths held this land in trust for the Church. They secured for themselves and for their descendants in English law a personal title to what had been essentially Church property in Gaelic law.
1600 - A report by Franciscan Friar- Michael O'Cleary makes the first mention of women doing the Pilgrimage.
1632 - Under the Franciscan friars, the pilgrimage was non-violently suppressed by order of the Privy Council for Ireland
1632 - October Anglican Bishop of Clogher, James Spottiswoode, personally supervised the destruction of everything on the island.
1651 - Lake and its surrounding lands were passed to the family of Bishop John Leslie where they remained until modern times
1704 - Act of Parliament imposed a fine of 10 shillings or a public whipping as a penalty for coming to such places of pilgrimage
1780 - Patrick Murray became the first of the modern line of priors from the Clogher Diocese. See Priors of Lough Derg for complete listing.
1790 - The cave was filled in and was replaced by a chapel
1795 - The most notable disaster- a boat carrying 93 passengers sank, close to Friar's Island, a very short distance from the quay at Station Island. Only three pilgrims survived.
1813 - Three day order of exercises
1826 - Over 15,000 pilgrims came to the Island
1846 - On the eve of the Great Famine, 30,000 pilgrims came.
1860 - The number of pilgrims had dropped to a tenth of the 1846 figure, where it remained for the rest of the century.
1960 - Sir Shane Leslie, Glaslough, generously handed over all title to the lake and its islands to the Diocese of Clogher. This in effect left the Catholic Diocese of Clogher in secure possession of St. Patrick's Purgatory, Lough Derg.
1980- Appointment of Rev. Gerard McSorley as Prior, succeeding Prior Sean McNaboe. Introduction of Renewal of Baptismal Promises and Way of the Cross.
1982- Visit of the Papal Nuncio (Gaetano Alibrandi) and the Papal Nuncios to Thailand and Guatemala. Pilgrimage of the Duke of Norfolk.
1988- Official opening of the new Women's Hospice.Faith and Light make their first pilgrimage, the first group outside of the tradtional three day season.
1990-Appointment of Rev. Richard Mohan as Prior (current Prior) following the retirement of Monsignor Gerard McSorley.
1992-Introduction of One Day Retreats.
Creation of a Blessed Sacrament Chapel in St. Mary's.
1997-Pilgrimage of group from Catalonia in memory of Ramon de Perellos (1397)
1998-Pilgrimage of Irish president, Mary McAleese
2000-Jubliee Year commemorated by Pilgrim walk from Pettigo to Lough Derg on first day of the season
2001-Relics of St Therese of Lisieux arrive on Lough Derg by helicopter
2002-Unveilling of new millenium statue on lakeshore, Patrick the Pilgrim, sculpted by Ken Thompson, and unveilled by Brian Keenan
2003-Russian pilgrimage to Lough Derg, led by former sacristan, Vladimir Belov (RIP). Visit of the Hungarian Special Olympic Team, commemorating pilgrimages of George of Grissaphan (1353) and Laurence Rathold de Paszo (1411).
Restoration of St Mary's Chapel to its original 1860 form.
Lough Derg awarded Excellence Ireland Foundation Mark.
2004-Development of Pilgrim Path around the lakeshore
2005-Blessing of Davog House, a new Retreat Centre on the Island, attended by Papal Nuncio
2006-First International Pilgrimage for the Deaf is hosted on Lough Derg
