Chapter 6

(J. H. Rs.)

1Hilgenfeld, Bacon and others hold that this letter is partly preserved in 2 Cor. vi. 14-vii. 1, but the evidence for removing those verses from their present position is insufficient.

CORINTO,a seaport on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua, in the department of Chinandega, built on the small island of Asserradores or Corinto, at the entrance to Realejo Bay, 65 m. by rail N.W. of Managua. Pop. (1900) about 3000. The town, which was founded in 1849, and first came into prominence as a port in 1863, has a spacious and sheltered harbour, the best in Nicaragua. It possesses no docks or wharves, and vessels anchor some 500 yds. off-shore to load or discharge cargo by means of lighters. On the mainland is the terminus of a railway to Leon, Managua and other commercial centres. Coffee, gold, mahogany, rubber and cattle are largely exported; and more than half the foreign trade of Nicaragua passes through this port, which has completely superseded the roadstead of Realejo, now partly filled with sandbanks, but from 1550 to 1850 the principal seaport of the country. About 450 ocean-going ships, of some 450,000 tons, annually enter the port. Most of the foreign vessels are owned in Germany or the United States. The coasting trade is restricted to Nicaraguan boats.

CORIOLANUS, GAIUS(orGnaeus)MARCIUS,Roman legendary hero of patrician descent. According to tradition, his surname was due to the bravery displayed by him at the siege of Corioli (493 B.C.) during the war against the Volscians (but see below). In 492, when there was a famine in Rome, he advised that the people should not be relieved out of the supplies obtained from Sicily, unless they would consent to the abolition of their tribunes. For this he was accused by the tribunes, and, being condemned to exile, took refuge with his friend Attius Tullius, king of the Volscians. A pretext for a quarrel with Rome was found, and Coriolanus, in command of the Volscian army, advanced against his native city. In vain the first men of Rome prayed for moderate terms. He would agree to nothing less than the restoration to the Volscians of all their land, and their admission among the Roman citizens. A mission of the chief priests also failed. At last, persuaded by his mother Veturia and his wife Volumnia, he led back the Volscian army, and restored the conquered towns. He died at an advanced age in exile amongst the Volscians; according to others, he was put to death by them as a traitor; a third tradition (mentioned, but ridiculed, by Cicero) represents him as having taken his own life.

The whole legend is open to serious criticism. At the traditional date (493 B.C.) Corioli was not a Volscian possession, but one of the Latin cities which had concluded a treaty of alliance with Rome; further, Livy himself states that the chroniclers knew nothing of a campaign carried on by the consul Postumus Cominius Auruncus (under whom Coriolanus is said to have served) against the Volscians. Only one of the consuls was mentioned as having concluded the treaty; the absence of the other was consequently assumed, and a reason for it found in a Volscian war. The bestowal of a cognomen from a captured city was unknown at the time, the first instance being that of Scipio; in any case, it would have been conferred upon the commander-in-chief, Postumus Cominius Auruncus, not upon a subordinate. The conquest of Corioli by Coriolanus is invented to explain the surname. The details of the famine are borrowed from those of later years, especially 433 and 411. The incident of Coriolanus taking refuge with the Volscian king, who, according to Plutarch, was his bitter enemy, curiously resembles the appeal of Themistocles to the Molossian king Admetus. Further, the tradition that Coriolanus, like Themistocles, committed suicide, renders it a probable conjecture that these incidents are derived from a Greek source. The contradictions in the accounts of the campaign against Rome and its inherent improbability give further ground for suspicion. Twelve important towns are taken in a single summer apparently without resistance on the part of the Romans, and after the retirement of Coriolanus they are immediately abandoned by the conquerors. It is strange that the Volscians should have entrusted a stranger with the command of their army, and it is possible that the attribution of their successes to a Roman general was intended to gratify the national pride and obliterate the memory of a disastrous war. It is suggested that Coriolanus never commanded the Volscian army at all, but that, like Appius Herdonius—the Sabine chieftain who in 460, with a band of fugitives and slaves, obtained possession of the capital—he appeared at the gates of Rome at the head of a body of exiles (but at a much later date, c. 443), at a time when the city was in great distress, perhaps as the result of a pestilence, and only desisted from making himself master of Rome at the earnest entreaty of his mother. This seems to be the historical nucleus of the tradition, which accentuates the great influence exercised by and the respect shown to the Roman matrons in early times.

Ancient Authorities.—Plutarch’sLife; Livy ii. 34-40; Dion. Halic. vi. 92-94, vii. 21-27, 41-47, viii. 1-60; Cicero,Brutus, x. 42. The story is the subject of Shakespeare’sCoriolanus. For a critical examination of the story see Schwegler,Römische Geschichte, bk. xxiv.; Sir G. Cornewall Lewis,Credibility of Early Roman History, ch. xii. 19-23; W. Ihne,History of Rome, i.; T. Mommsen, “Die Erzählung von Cn. Marcius Coriolanus,” inHermes, iv. (1869); E. Pais,Storia di Roma, i. ch. 4 (1898).

CORIOLI,an ancient Volscian city inLatium adiectum, taken, according to the Roman annals in 493 B.C., with Longula and Pollusca, and retaken (but see above) for the Volsci by Gaius Marcius Coriolanus, its original conqueror, who, in disgust at his treatment by his countrymen, had deserted to the enemy. After this it does not appear in history, and we hear soon afterwards (443 B.C.) of a dispute between Ardea and Aricia about some land which had been part of the territory of Corioli, but had at an unknown date passed to Rome with Corioli. The site is apparently to be sought in the N.W. portion of the district between the sea, the river Astura and the Alban Hills; but it cannot be more accurately fixed (the identification with Monte Giove, S. of the Valle-Aricciana, rests on no sufficient evidence), and even in the time of Pliny it ranked among the lost cities of Latium.

CORIPPUS, FLAVIUS CRESCONIUS,Roman epic poet of the 6th century A.D. He was a native of Africa, and in one of the MSS. is calledgrammaticus(teacher). He has been identified, but on insufficient grounds, with Cresconius, an African bishop (7th century), author of aConcordia Canonum, or collection of the laws of the church. Nothing is known of Corippus beyond what is contained in his own poems. He appears to have held the office of tribune or notary (scriniarius) under Anastasius, imperial treasurer and chamberlain of Justinian, at the end of whose reign he left Africa for Constantinople, in consequence of having lost his property during the Moorish and Vandal wars. He was the author of two poems, of considerable importance for the history of the times, one of which was not discovered till the beginning of the 19th century. The latter poem, dedicated to the nobles of Carthage, which comes first in point of time, is calledJohannisorDe bellis Libycis, and relates the overthrow of the Moors by a certain Johannes,magister militumin 546; it is in eight books (the last is unfinished) and contains about 5000 hexameters. The narrative commences with the despatch of Johannes to the theatre of war by Justinian, and ends with the decisive victory near Carthage (548). The other poem (In laudem Justini minoris), in four books, contains the death of Justinian, the coronation of his successor Justin II. (14th of November 565), and the early events of his reign. It is preceded by a preface, and a short and fulsome panegyric on Anastasius, the poet’s patron. TheLauswas published at Antwerp in 1581 by Michael Ruyz Azagra, secretary to the emperor Rudolf II., from a 9th or 10th century MS. The preface contains a reference to a previous work by the author on the wars in Africa, and although Johannes Cuspinianus (1473-1529) in hisDe Caesaribus et Imperatoribusprofessed to have seen a MS. of it in the library at Buda (destroyed by Suleiman II. in 1527), it was not till 1814 that it was discovered at Milan by Cardinal Mazzucchelli, librarian of the Ambrosian library, from the codex Trivultianus (in the library of the marquis Trivulzi), the only MS. of theJohannisstill extant.

TheJohannisis of great value, not only from a purely historical point of view, but also as giving a description of the land and people of Africa, which conscientiously records the impressions of an intelligent native observer; many of his statements as to manners and customs are confirmed both by independent ancient authorities (such as Procopius) and by our knowledge of the modern Berbers. Virgil, Lucan, and Claudian were the poet’s chief models. TheLaus, which was written when he was advanced in years, although marred by Byzantine servility and gross flattery of a by no means worthy object, throws much light upon Byzantine court ceremony, as in the account of the accession of Justin and the reception of the embassy of the Avars. On the whole the language and metre of Corippus, considering the age in which he lived and the fact that he was not a native Italian, is remarkably pure. That he was a Christian is rendered probable by negative indications, such as the absence of all the usual mythological accessories of an epic poem, positive allusions to texts of Scripture, and the highly orthodox passageLausiv. 294 ff.

The editions of theJohannisby P. Mazzucchelli (1820) and of theLausby P. F. Foggini (1777) are still valuable for their commentaries. They are both included in the 28th volume of the BonnCorpus scriptorum historiae Byzantinae. The best modern editions are by J. Partsch (inMonumenta Germaniae historica, 1879), with very valuable prolegomena, and M. Petschenig (Berliner Studien für klassische Philologie, iv., 1886); see also Gibbon,Decline and Fall, ch. xlv.

CORISCO,the name of a bay and an island on the Guinea Coast, West Africa. The bay is bounded N. by Cape San Juan (1° 10′ N.) and S. by Cape Esterias (0° 36′ N.), and is about 31 m. across, while it extends inland some 15 m. The bay is much encumbered with sandbanks, which impair its value as a harbour. Whereas the Muni river or estuary, which enters the bay on its northern side, has a maximum depth of over 100 ft., vessels entering it have to come by a channel with an average depth of six fathoms. The entrance to the southern part of the bay is obstructed by the Bana Bank, which extends for 9 m., rendering navigation dangerous. The bay encloses many small islands and islets, some hardly distinguishable from sandbanks and submerged at high water, giving rise to a native saying that “half the islands live under water.” The principal islands are four, Bana, Great and Little Elobey, and Corisco, the last-named lying farthest to seaward and giving its name to the bay.

Corisco Island, the largest of the group, is some 3 m. long by 1¾ m. in breadth and has an area of about 5½ sq. m. The surface of the island is very diversified. On a miniature scale it possesses mountains and valleys, rivers, lakes, forests and swamps, grassland and bushland, moorland and parkland. The forests supply ebony and logwood for export. The natives are a Bantu-Negro tribe called Benga. There are among them many converts to Roman Catholicism and a few Protestants. Corisco and the other islands named are Spanish possessions and are governed as dependencies of Fernando Po.

See Mary H. Kingsley,Travels in West Africa, ch. xvii. (London, 1897); E. L. Perea, “Guinea española: La isla de Corisco,” inRevista de geog. colon. y mercantil(Madrid, 1906).

CORK, RICHARD BOYLE,1st Earl of(1566-1643), Irish statesman, second son of Roger Boyle of Faversham in Kent, a descendant of an ancient Herefordshire family, and of Joan, daughter of Robert Naylor of Canterbury, was born at Canterbury on the 3rd of October 1566, and was educated at the King’s school and at Bennet (Corpus Christi) College, Cambridge, where he was admitted in 1583. He afterwards studied law at the Middle Temple and became clerk to Sir Richard Manwood, chief baron of the exchequer; but finding his position offered little opportunity for advancement he determined to make a new start in Ireland. He landed in Dublin on the 23rd of June 1588, as he relates himself, with £27, 3s. in money, a gold bracelet worth £10, and a diamond ring, besides some fine wearing apparel. He began to make his fortune almost immediately. In 1590 he obtained the appointment of deputy escheator to John Crofton, the escheator-general, and in 1595 he married Joan, daughter and co-heiress of William Appsley of Limerick, who died in 1599, having brought him an estate of £500 a year.

Meanwhile he had been the object of the attacks of Sir Henry Wallop and others, incited, according to his own account, by envy at his success and increasing prosperity, and was apprehended on various charges of fraud in his office, being more than once thrown into prison. He was on the point of leaving for England to justify himself to the queen, when the rebellion in Munster in October 1598 again reduced him to poverty and obliged him to return to London to his chambers at the Temple. He was, however, almost immediately taken by Essex into his service, when Sir Henry Wallop again renewed his prosecution, with the result that Boyle was summoned before the star chamber. His enemies appear to have failed in substantiating their accusations, and in the course of the inquiry, at which he had secured the presence of the queen herself, he was able to expose several instances of malversation on the part of his opponent, who was dismissed in consequence from his office of treasurer, while Boyle himself, who had favourably impressed the queen, was declared by her as “a man fit to be employed by ourselves” and was at once made clerk of the council of Munster. He brought to Elizabeth the news of the victory near Kingsale in December 1601, and in October 1602 was again sent over by Sir George Carew, the president of Munster, on Irish affairs; and on this occasion, at the instance of Carew, he bought for £1000 the whole of Sir Walter Raleigh’s lands in Cork, Waterford and Tipperary, consisting of 12,000 acres with immense capabilities of development. This offered a splendid opportunity for the exercise of his genius for business and administration. Manufactures were established, the breeding of cattle and fish introduced, mines opened, colonists from England encouraged to come over, the natural resources of the land developed, bridges, harbours and roads constructed, and towns settled, order being maintained by 13 castles garrisoned by retainers.

While himself quickly accumulating vast riches, the serviceswhich Boyle rendered to the government and to the nation at such a time of disorder and transition were incalculable. He soon became the most powerful subject in Ireland. On the 25th of July 1603 he married, as his second wife, Catherine, daughter of Sir Geoffrey Fenton, secretary of state, and was knighted. In 1606 he became a privy councillor for Munster and in 1613 for Ireland. On the 6th of September 1616 he was raised to the peerage as Lord Boyle, baron of Youghal, and on the 26th of October 1620 was created earl of Cork and Viscount Dungarvan. He was appointed on the 26th of October 1629 a lord justice, and on the 9th of November 1631 lord high treasurer. Though no peer of England, he was “by writ called into the Upper House by His Majesty’s great grace,” and took his place as an “assistant sitting on the inside of the Woolsack.”1The appointment of Wentworth (Lord Strafford), however, as lord deputy in 1633 put an end to the predominant power and influence of Cork in Ireland. “A most cursed man,” he writes in his diary on Wentworth’s arrival, “to all Ireland and to me in particular.” In reality these two great men had much in common, held similar views of administration, and had the same talents for practical statesmanship. Cork had already carried out in Munster the policy which Strafford desired to see extended to the whole of Ireland. But Cork belonged to the “spacious days of great Elizabeth,” and for such a man there was no room within the narrow despotism and intolerance of the government of Charles. The subjection of the great was part of Strafford’s settled policy, and consequently, instead of seeking his collaboration in developing the country and in maintaining order, he studied merely to diminish his influence. He subjected him to various humiliations. He forced him to remove his wife’s tomb from the choir in St Patrick’s at Dublin, and deprived him arbitrarily of the greater part of the revenues of Youghal, a portion of the Raleigh estates. “No physic,” wrote Laud, delighted, “better than a vomit if it be given in time, and therefore you have taken a very judicious course to administer one so early to my Lord of Cork. I hope it will do him good....”2Cork, however, refrained from any systematic or retaliatory resistance, and even simulated an admiration for Strafford’s rule. At the latter’s trial he was an important witness, but took no active part in the prosecution, though he thoroughly approved of his condemnation and execution. Scarcely had he returned to Ireland from witnessing his rival’s destruction when the rebellion broke out, but his influence and preparations, supported by the military prowess of his sons, were sufficient to offer a successful resistance to the rebels in Munster and to save the province from ruin. This was his last great service to the state. He died about the 15th of September 1643, leaving a large and illustrious family by his second wife.

Four of his seven sons received independent peerages,—Richard, created Baron Clifford and earl of Burlington; Lewis, Viscount Kinalmeaky, killed in 1642 at the battle of Liscarrol; Roger, baron of Broghill and earl of Orrery; and Francis, Viscount Shannon. Another son was Robert Boyle (q.v.), the famous natural philosopher and chemist.

The title passed to the eldest surviving son,Richard Boyle, 1st earl of Burlington and 2nd earl of Cork (1612-1698), who matriculated at Christ Church, Oxford, and was knighted in 1624. Returning home after travelling abroad he married in 1635 Elizabeth, daughter and heir of Henry, Lord Clifford, later earl of Cumberland. On the outbreak of the rebellion he supported his father in Munster, fought at the battle of Liscarrol, and raised forces for the first war with the Scots. In 1640 he represented Appleby in the Long Parliament, and in the civil war he supported zealously the royal cause, being created in 1643 Baron Clifford of Lanesborough in the peerage of England, in addition to the earldom of Cork which he inherited from his father the same year. At the Restoration he obtained also the earldom of Burlington (or Bridlington), and was appointed lord-lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, resigning this office through opposition to the government of James II. He held the office of lord treasurer of Ireland from 1680 till 1695. He died on the 15th of January 1698. His two sons having predeceased him, he was succeeded in his titles by his grandson Charles, issue of his eldest son Charles, as 2nd earl of Burlington and 3rd earl of Cork; and on the extinction of the direct male line in the person of Richard, the 4th earl, in 1753 the earldom of Cork fell to the younger branch of the Boyle family, in the person of John, 5th earl of Orrery, he and later earls being “of Cork and Orrery.”

John Boyle, 5th earl of Cork and Orrery (1707-1762), only son of the 4th earl of Orrery, was born on the 2nd of January 1707. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, and was led by indifferent health and many untoward accidents to cultivate in retirement his talents for literature and poetry. His translation of theLetters of Pliny the Younger, with various notes, for the use of his eldest son, was published in 1751. He also publishedRemarks on the Life and Writings of Jonathan Swift(1751), in several letters addressed to his second son, andMemoirs of Robert Carey, earl of Monmouth, from the original manuscript, with preface and notes. He died on the 16th of November 1762. HisLetters from Italyappeared in 1774, edited, with memoir, by the Rev. J. Duncombe. The earldom continued in later years in the Boyle family, being held in 1909 by the 10th earl (b. 1861). The wife of the 7th earl (seeCork and Orrery,Mary, Countess of) was a famous figure in society in the early 19th century.

Bibliography for 1st Earl.—True Remembrances, written by himself and printed by Birch in his edition of the works of Robert Boyle;Lismore Papers, ed. by A. B. Grosart (10 vols., 1886-1887), 1st series consisting of the diary from 1611 to his death and of autobiographical notes, and 2nd series of correspondence;Life of Lord Cork, by Dorothea Townshend (1904); article in theDict. of Nat. Biog., with authorities there given;EgertonMSS. 80 (copies of correspondence);Add. MSS., Brit. Mus., 19831-19832 (rebellion in Munster, examination before the Star Chamber, correspondence) and 18023; Strafford’sLetters;Calendars of State Papers, Domestic and Irish, andCarew Papers; E. Lodge’sIrish Peerage, i. 144; E. Budgell’sMemoirs of the Boyles(1737); Ed. Edwards’sLife of Raleigh; Gardiner’sHist. of England; Charles Smith’sHistory of Cork(1893); R. Caulfield’sCouncil Book of Youghal; also the biography inBiographia Britannica, Kippis, vol. ii.

1Lords Journals.2Strafford Letters, i. 156.

1Lords Journals.

2Strafford Letters, i. 156.

CORK,a county of Ireland in the province of Munster, bounded S. by the Atlantic Ocean, E. by the counties Waterford and Tipperary, N. by Limerick, and W. by Kerry. It is the largest county in Ireland, having an area of 1,849,686 acres, or about 2890 sq. m. The outline is irregular; the coast is for the most part bold and rocky, and is intersected by the bays of Bantry, Dunmanus, and Roaring Water. The southern part of the coast projects several headlands into the Atlantic, and its south-eastern side is indented by Cork Harbour, and Ballycotton and Youghal Bays. The surface is undulating. It consists of low rounded ridges, with corresponding valleys, running east and west, except in the western portion of the county, which is more mountainous. The principal rivers are the Blackwater, the Lee, and the Bandon, flowing generally eastward from their sources in the high ground of the west. The most elevated part of the county is in the Boggeragh Mountains, in the north-west, which reach an extreme height of 2118 ft. To the south are the Shehy Mountains, at the root of the two promontories flanking Bantry Bay, the Caha Mountains forming the backbone of the northern of these promontories, and the hills of the district of Corbery to the south of the Shehy range. North of the Blackwater the country is comparatively level, being a branch of the great plain which occupies a large part of the centre of Ireland. Of the principal rivers the Blackwater has its source in the county Limerick. The Lee originates in the wild and picturesque Gouganebarra Lough, and the Bandon river rises in the Cullinagh Lough. There are also some smaller streams which flow directly into the sea, the more important of these being in the south-west portion of the county. No lakes of any magnitude occur, the largest being Lough Allua, or Inchigeelagh, an expansion of the river Lee. The scenery of the western parts of the county is bold and rugged. In the central and eastern parts, especially in the valleys, it is green and quiet, and in some spots well wooded.

Geology.—The county presents a remarkable simplicity of geological structure. Its surface is controlled throughout by the “Hercynian” folds, running from the Kerry border eastward to the sea at Youghal. The Old Red Sandstone comes out in the north, forming the heather-clad Ballyhoura Hills, which are repeated across the limestone hollow of Mitchelstown by the western spur of the Knockmealdown Mountains. On the west, beds as high as the Millstone Grit and Coal Measures remain above the limestone, extending from Mallow and Kanturk to the Limerick and Kerry borders. Another synclinal of Carboniferous Limestone runs from Millstreet through Lismore, and the Blackwater has worn out an easy course along it. Then the Old Red Sandstone again rises as an undulating upland through the centre of the county, with a few synclinal patches of Carboniferous Shale and Limestone caught in on its back. Cork city lies on the north slope and in the floor of a larger synclinal, and the Yellow Sandstone, which forms the passage-beds from the Old Red Sandstone to the Carboniferous, appears near the city. This hollow continues across the Lee through Middleton. The limestone in it has become crystalline, veined and brecciated, while a fine red staining, especially at Little Island, adds to its value as a marble. After another anticlinal of Old Red Sandstone, the Carboniferous Slate occupies most of the country southward, with occasional appearances of the basal Coomhola Grits and of the underlying Old Red Sandstone along anticlinals. The soils thus vary from sandy loams, usually on the higher ground, to stiff clays along the limestone hollows.This country admirably illustrates the system of river-development originally traced out by Prof. J. B. Jukes in 1862, and further explained by Prof. W. M. Davis and others. The folded series, culminating originally in Upper Carboniferous strata, was worn down, perhaps as far back as Permian times, until it possessed a fairly uniform surface. This surface, or “peneplain,” was probably the result of denudation working away the beds almost to sea-level. A subsequent elevation enabled the streams, as in so many cases now recognized, to cut into the surface along the direction of greatest inclination, which here happened to be southward. When the higher strata had been worn away, the rivers and their tributaries worked upon rocks of very various hardness, but with a common strike from east to west. The tributaries, running along the strike, speedily confined themselves to the synclinals of limestone, along which they could erode and dissolve long valleys. The present surface of anticlinal sandstone ridges and synclinal limestone hollows thus began to arise; but the main streams still held on their courses across the strike, that is, from north to south. Here and there a more active tributary worked its way back at its head into the basin of one of the cross-streams, and drew off into its own system the head-waters of this other stream. With this new flood of water the strengthened system still further deepened its original ravine across the strike, while the beheaded cross-stream or streams rapidly dwindled in importance. Ultimately, the tributaries of the surviving river-systems appeared as the most important feature, stretching far west—in the case of county Cork—along the synclinal hollows; while the original cross-ravine remained in the course of each river, a right-angled bend occurring thus in the lower portion of the valleys. Jukes urged that the upper part of the original cross-ravine can be traced above the bend in each case, though the stream now descending along it seems merely a tributary entering parallel with the north-and-south portion of the main stream. Moreover, the tributaries on the north side of the great synclinal valleys may in many cases be the relics of original cross-streams that once flowed directly to the sea until captured by the growth along the synclinal of the tributary of another stream. The Blackwater, rising on Upper Carboniferous beds on the Kerry border, thus falls steeply southward to Rathmore, and then turns eastward along the synclinal valley of limestone from Millstreet to Cappoquin. Here it abruptly turns south, keeping, in fact, to that part of its valley which was first developed. The Lee, rising in the Old Red Sandstone moors of Gouganebarra, runs east, encountering one or two patches of limestone in the floor of the synclinal on its way, mere residues of the rock that once occupied the hollow. Near Cork, the limestone and accompanying shale are better preserved; but the river, instead of continuing along the synclinal through Middleton to Youghal, turns south, and forms the now submerged valley of Cork Harbour. Observations have shown that the coast lay much at its present level in pre-Glacial times, and that Cork Harbour was thus a marine inlet before the ice descended into it. The synclinal valleys of Bantry Bay and Dunmanus Bay were also, in all probability, submerged at this same early epoch.The county has been famous for its copper-mines, notably at Allihies in the extreme west. The region south-west of Bantry has been mined in several places. Both gold and silver have been found in the copper-ores of this latter area. Barytes has been mined near Bantry, Schull and Clonakilty, and manganese-ore at Glandore. Anthracite has been raised from time to time in the band of Coal Measures south-west of Kanturk. The marble of Little Island near Cork is quarried under the name of “Cork Red,” and the veined pink and grey marble of Middleton is also much esteemed.

This country admirably illustrates the system of river-development originally traced out by Prof. J. B. Jukes in 1862, and further explained by Prof. W. M. Davis and others. The folded series, culminating originally in Upper Carboniferous strata, was worn down, perhaps as far back as Permian times, until it possessed a fairly uniform surface. This surface, or “peneplain,” was probably the result of denudation working away the beds almost to sea-level. A subsequent elevation enabled the streams, as in so many cases now recognized, to cut into the surface along the direction of greatest inclination, which here happened to be southward. When the higher strata had been worn away, the rivers and their tributaries worked upon rocks of very various hardness, but with a common strike from east to west. The tributaries, running along the strike, speedily confined themselves to the synclinals of limestone, along which they could erode and dissolve long valleys. The present surface of anticlinal sandstone ridges and synclinal limestone hollows thus began to arise; but the main streams still held on their courses across the strike, that is, from north to south. Here and there a more active tributary worked its way back at its head into the basin of one of the cross-streams, and drew off into its own system the head-waters of this other stream. With this new flood of water the strengthened system still further deepened its original ravine across the strike, while the beheaded cross-stream or streams rapidly dwindled in importance. Ultimately, the tributaries of the surviving river-systems appeared as the most important feature, stretching far west—in the case of county Cork—along the synclinal hollows; while the original cross-ravine remained in the course of each river, a right-angled bend occurring thus in the lower portion of the valleys. Jukes urged that the upper part of the original cross-ravine can be traced above the bend in each case, though the stream now descending along it seems merely a tributary entering parallel with the north-and-south portion of the main stream. Moreover, the tributaries on the north side of the great synclinal valleys may in many cases be the relics of original cross-streams that once flowed directly to the sea until captured by the growth along the synclinal of the tributary of another stream. The Blackwater, rising on Upper Carboniferous beds on the Kerry border, thus falls steeply southward to Rathmore, and then turns eastward along the synclinal valley of limestone from Millstreet to Cappoquin. Here it abruptly turns south, keeping, in fact, to that part of its valley which was first developed. The Lee, rising in the Old Red Sandstone moors of Gouganebarra, runs east, encountering one or two patches of limestone in the floor of the synclinal on its way, mere residues of the rock that once occupied the hollow. Near Cork, the limestone and accompanying shale are better preserved; but the river, instead of continuing along the synclinal through Middleton to Youghal, turns south, and forms the now submerged valley of Cork Harbour. Observations have shown that the coast lay much at its present level in pre-Glacial times, and that Cork Harbour was thus a marine inlet before the ice descended into it. The synclinal valleys of Bantry Bay and Dunmanus Bay were also, in all probability, submerged at this same early epoch.

The county has been famous for its copper-mines, notably at Allihies in the extreme west. The region south-west of Bantry has been mined in several places. Both gold and silver have been found in the copper-ores of this latter area. Barytes has been mined near Bantry, Schull and Clonakilty, and manganese-ore at Glandore. Anthracite has been raised from time to time in the band of Coal Measures south-west of Kanturk. The marble of Little Island near Cork is quarried under the name of “Cork Red,” and the veined pink and grey marble of Middleton is also much esteemed.

Climate and Watering-places.—The climate is moist and warm, the prevailing winds being from the west and south-west. The annual rainfall in the city of Cork is about 40 in., that of the whole county being somewhat higher. The mean annual temperature is about 52° F. The snow-fall during the winter is usually slight, and snow rarely remains long on the ground except in sheltered places. The thermal spring of Mallow was formerly in considerable repute; it is situated in a basin on the banks of the Blackwater, rising from the base of a limestone hill. The chief places for sea-bathing are Blackrock, Passage, Monkstown, Queenstown, and other waterside villages in the vicinity of Cork; Bantry, Baltimore, Kinsale, Glengarrif and Youghal are also much frequented during the summer months.

Industries.—The soils of the county exhibit no great variety. They may be reduced in number to four: the calcareous in the limestone districts; the deep mellow loams found in districts remote from limestone, and generally occurring in the less elevated parts of the grey and red sandstone districts; the light shallow soils, and the moorland or peat soils, the usual substratum of which is coarse retentive clay. About one-sixth of the total area is quite barren. In a district of such extent and variety of surface, the state of agriculture must be liable to much variation. The more populous parts near the sea, and in the vicinity of the great lines of communication, exhibit favourable instances of agricultural improvement. Oats, potatoes and turnips are the principal crops, but the extent of land under tillage shows a general decrease. Pasture land, however, extends, and the number of cattle, sheep and poultry rises; for dairies are numerous and the character of the Cork butter and farmyard produce stands high in English and foreign markets.

Youghal, Kinsale, Queenstown, Castletown and Bearhaven are the deep-sea and coast fishing district centres of the county; while the salmon fishing is distributed among the districts of Cork, Bandon, Skibbereen and Bantry. The mackerel fishery is especially productive from mid-March to mid-June. The Blackwater, Lee and Bandon, apart from the netting industry, afford good rod-fishing for salmon, especially the first, on which Lismore, Fermoy and Mallow are the principal centres. The loughs, the upper waters of these rivers and their tributaries, frequently abound in trout. Macroom, Inchigeelagh, Bandon, Dunmanway and Glandore, with Bantry and Skibbereen, are all good stations.

Communications.—The main line of the Great Southern & Western railway, entering the county from the north at Charleville, serves Cork and Queenstown. The Cork, Bandon & South Coast line runs west to Skibbereen, Baltimore, Bantry, Clonakilty and Kinsale; and there are also the Cork & Macroom line to Macroom; the Cork, Blackrock & Passage to the western waterside villages of Cork Harbour, and the Great Southern & Western branch eastward from Cork to Youghal; while from Mallow a branch of the same system continues towards Killarney and the south-western coast of Ireland. There is also connexion from this junction with Fermoy, Mitchelstown and county Waterford eastward. The Timoleague and Courtmacsherry line connects these villages with the Clonakilty branch of the Cork, Bandon & South Coast Railway.

Population.—The population (438,432 in 1891; 404,611 in 1901) exhibits a decrease among the most serious of the Irish counties, and emigration is correspondingly heavy. Of the total about 90% are Roman Catholics, and about 70% constitute the rural population. The principal towns are Cork (pop. 76,122, a county of a city); Queenstown (7909), Fermoy (6126); Kinsale (4250), Bandon (2830), Youghal (5393), Mallow (4542), Skibbereen (3208), Macroom (3016), Bantry (3109), Middleton (3361), Clonakilty (3098), and among smaller towns Charleville, Mitchelstown, Passage West, Doneraile and Kanturk. Crookhaven in the extreme S.W. is of importance as a harbour of refuge, but the chief ports are Cork and Queenstown. The county is divided into east and west ridings, and contains twenty-three baronies and 249 parishes. Assizes are held at Cork, and quarter-sessions at Cork, Fermoy, Kanturk, Kinsale, Mallow, Middleton, and Youghal in the east riding; and Bandon, Bantry, Clonakilty, Macroom and Skibbereen in the west riding. The county is in the Protestant diocese of Cork, and the Roman Catholic dioceseof Cork, Cloyne, Kerry and Ross. There are seven parliamentary divisions, east, mid, north, north-east, south, south-east and west, each returning one member.

History.—Cork is one of the counties which is generally considered to have been instituted by King John. It had not always its present extent, for its existing boundaries include part of the ancient territory of Desmond (q.v.), which, in the later half of the 16th century, ranked as a separate county. In 1598, however, there were two sheriffs in the county Cork, one especially for Desmond, which was then included in Cork, but was afterwards amalgamated with the county Kerry. In the same period wide lands in the county were given to settlers under the crown, and among these were Sir Walter Raleigh and Edmund Spenser the poet, who received 40,000 acres and 3028 acres respectively. In 1602 a large portion of the estates of Sir Walter Raleigh and Fane Beecher were purchased by Richard Boyle, 1st earl of Cork, who had them colonized with English settlers; and by founding or rebuilding the towns of Bandon, Clonakilty, Baltimore, Youghal, and afterwards those of Middleton, Castlemartyr, Charleville and Doneraile, which were incorporated and made parliamentary boroughs, the family of Boyle became possessed of nearly the entire political power of the county.

Antiquities.—The earlier antiquities of the county are rude monuments of the Pagan era. There are two so-called druids’ altars, the most perfect near Cloyne, and certain pillar stones scattered through the county, with straight marks cut on the edges called Ogham inscriptions, the interpretation of which is a subject of much controversy. The remains of the old ecclesiastical buildings are in a very ruinous condition, being used as burial-places by the country people. The principal is Kilcrea, founded by Cormac M’Carthy about 1485, some of the tombs of whose descendants are still in the chancel; the steeple is still nearly perfect, and chapter-house, cloister, dormitory and kitchen can be seen. Timoleague church, situated on a romantic spot on rising ground at the extreme end of Courtmacsherry Bay, contains some tombs of interest, and is still in fair condition. Buttevant Abbey (13th century) contains some tombs of the Barrys and other distinguished families. There is a good crypt here. All these were the property of the Franciscans. There are two round towers in the county, one in a fine state of preservation opposite Cloyne Cathedral, the other at Kinneigh. On the chapter seal at Ross, which is dated 1661, and seems to have been a copy of a much earlier one, there is a good example of a round tower and stone-roofed church, with St Fachnan, to whom the church is dedicated, standing by, with a book in one hand and a cross in the other. The present church dates from 1837, but is on the site of a former cathedral united to Cork in 1583. Of Mourne Abbey, near Mallow, once a preceptory of the Knights Templars, and Tracton Abbey, which once sent a prior to parliament, the very ruins have perished. On an island of Lough Gouganebarra are remains of an oratory of St Finbar.

Of the castles, Lohort, built in the reign of King John, is by far the oldest, and in its architectural features the most interesting; it is still quite perfect and kept in excellent repair by the owner, the Earl of Egmont. Blarney Castle, built by Cormac M‘Carthy about 1449, has a wide reputation (seeBlarney). Castles Mahon and Macroom have been incorporated into the residences of the earls of Bandon and Bantry. The walls of Mallow Castle attest its former strength and extent, as also the castle of Kilbolane. The castles of Buttevant, Kilcrea and Dripsy are still in good condition. At Kanturk is a huge Elizabethan castle still known as “M‘Donagh’s Folly,” left unfinished owing to objections raised by a jealous government. At Kilcolman castle near Doneraile the “Faerie Queene” was written by Spenser.

CORK,a city, county of a city, parliamentary and municipal borough and seaport of Co. Cork, Ireland, at the head of the magnificent inlet of Cork Harbour, on the river Lee, 165½ m. S.W. of Dublin by the Great Southern & Western railway. Pop. (1901) 76,122. Until the middle of the 19th century it ranked second only to Dublin, but is now surpassed by Belfast in commercial importance. It is the centre of a considerable railway system, including the Great Southern & Western, the Cork, Bandon & South Coast, the Cork & Macroom Direct, the Cork, Blackrock & Passage railways, and the Cork & Muskerry light railway; each of which companies possesses a separate station in the city. The passenger steamers to Great Britain, mainly under the control of the City of Cork Steam Packet Company, serve Fishguard, Glasgow, Liverpool, Plymouth and Southampton, London and other ports, starting from Penrose Quay on the North Channel.

The nucleus of the city occupies an island formed by the North and South Channels, two arms of the river Lee, and in former times no doubt merited its name, which signifies a swamp. In the beginning of the 18th century, indeed, this island was broken up into many parts connected by drawbridges, by numerous small channels navigable at high tide. It now includes most of the principal thoroughfares, which form a notable contrast to many of the smaller streets and alleys, in which good building and cleanliness are lacking. Three bridges cross the North Channel, a footbridge, North Gate bridge and St Patrick’s bridge, the last a handsome three-arch structure leading to St Patrick’s Street, a wide and pleasant thoroughfare, containing a statue of Father Mathew, the celebrated Capuchin advocate of temperance, born in 1790. It communicates with the Grand Parade and this in turn with Great George’s Street, to the west, and the South Mall to the east, the last containing the principal banks, the County Club house, and good commercial buildings. The Clarks, South Gate, Parliament and Parnell bridges cross the South Channel to the southern parts of the city. Public grounds are few, but on the outskirts of the city are a park and race-course, with the fashionable Marina promenade; while the Mardyke walk, on the west of the island, is pleasantly shaded by a fine avenue, and was the site of the International exhibition held in 1902. Electric tramways connect the city and suburbs and traverse the principal streets and the St Patrick’s and Parnell bridges. Both branches of the Lee are lined with fine quays of cut limestone, extending in total length over 4 m.

The principal church is the Protestant cathedral, founded in 1865, and consecrated on St Andrew’s Day 1870; while the central tower was completed in 1879. It is dedicated to St Fin Barre or Finbar, who founded the original cathedral in the 7th century. The present building is in the south-west part of the city, and replaces a somewhat mean structure erected in 1735 on the site of the ancient cathedral, which suffered during the siege of Cork in September 1689. Money for the erection of the building of 1735 was raised by the curious method of a tax on imported coal. The new cathedral is in the Early French (pointed) style, with an eastern apse and a striking west front. Its design was by William Burges (d. 1881), and its erection was due to the indefatigable exertions and munificence of Dr John Gregg, bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross; while the tower and spires were the gift of two merchants of Cork. The other principal Protestant churches are St Luke’s, St Nicholas and St Anne Shandon, with its striking tower of parti-coloured stones; and its peal of bells extolled in Father Prout’s lyric “The Bells of Shandon.” The Roman Catholic cathedral, also dedicated to St Finbar, is conspicuous on the north side of the city; it dates from 1808, but has been since restored. Other fine churches of this faith are St Mary, St Peter and Paul, St Patrick, Holy Trinity and St Vincent de Paul. St Finbar’s cemetery has handsome monuments, and St Joseph’s, founded by Father Mathew in 1830 on the site of the old botanic gardens of the Cork Institution, is beautifully planted. The court house in Great George’s Street has a good Corinthian portico, happily undamaged in a fire which destroyed the rest of the building in 1891. The custom-house commands the river in a fine position at the lower junction of the branches. The usual commercial and public buildings are mainly on the island. The most notable educational establishment is the University College, founded as Queen’s College (1849), with those of the same name at Belfast and Galway, under an Act of 1845. A new charter was granted to it under letters patent pursuant to the Irish Universities Act 1908, when it was given its present name. The building,designed by Sir Thomas Deane, occupies a beautiful site on the river in the west of the city, where Gill Abbey, of the 7th century, formerly stood. It is a fine building in Tudor Style, “worthy,” said Macaulay, “to stand in the High Street of Oxford.” A large library, museum and well-furnished laboratory are here. The Crawford School of Science (1885); and the Munster Dairy and Agricultural School, 1 m. west of the city, also claim notice, while besides parochial and industrial schools several of the religious orders located here devote themselves to education. The Cork library (founded 1790) contains a valuable collection of books. The Royal Cork Institution (1807), in addition to an extensive library and a rare collection of Oriental MSS., possesses a valuable collection of minerals, and the collections of casts from the antique presented by the pope to George IV. There are numerous literary and scientific societies, including the Cork Cuvierian and Archaeological Society. The principal clubs are the County and the Southern in South Mall, and the City in Grand Parade; while for sport there are the Cork Golf Club, Little Island, three rowing clubs, and the Royal Munster and Royal Cork Yacht clubs, the latter located at Queenstown. The theatres are the opera-house in Nelson’s Place, and the Theatre Royal.

The country neighbouring to Cork is highly attractive. The harbour, with the ceaseless activity of shipping, its calm waters, sheltered by many islands, and its well-wooded shores studded with pleasant watering-places, affords a series of charming views, apart from its claim to be considered one of the finest natural harbours in the kingdom. Military depots occupy several of the smaller islets, and three batteries guard the entry. This is about 1 m. wide, but within the width increases to 3 m. while the length is about 10 m. The Atlantic port of Queenstown (q.v.) is on Great Island at the head of the outer harbour. Tivoli (the residence of Sir Walter Raleigh), Fort William, Lota Park, and Blackrock Castle are notable features on the shore; and Passage, Blackrock, Glenbrook and Monkstown are waterside resorts. Inland from Cork runs the picturesque valley of the Lee, and low hills surround the commanding situation of the port.

The harbour is by far the most important on the south coast of Ireland, and dredging operations render the quays approachable for vessels drawing 20 ft. at all states of the tide. Its trade is mainly with Bristol and the ports of South Wales. The imports, exceeding £1,000,000 in annual value, include large quantities of wheat and maize, while the exports (about £9000 annually) are chiefly of cattle, provisions, butter and fish. The Cork Butter Exchange, where classification of the various qualities is carried out by branding under the inspection of experts, was important in the early part of the 17th century, and an unbroken series of accounts dates from 1769 when the present market was founded. There are distilleries, breweries, tanneries and iron foundries in the city; and manufactures of woollen and leather goods, tweeds, friezes, gloves and chemical manure. Nearly six-sevenths of the population are Roman Catholics. The city does not share with the county the rapid decrease of population. It is governed by a lord mayor, 14 aldermen and 42 councillors. The parliamentary borough returns two members.

The original site of Cork seems to have been in the vicinity of the Protestant cathedral; St Finbar’s ecclesiastical foundation attracting many students and votaries. In the 9th century the town was frequently pillaged by the Northmen. According to theAnnals of the Four Mastersa fleet burned Cork in 821, in 846 the Danes appear to have been in possession of the town, for a force was collected to demolish their fortress; and in 1012 Cork again fell in flames. The Danes then appear to have founded the new city on the banks of the Lee as a trading centre. It was anciently surrounded with a wall, an order for the reparation of which is found so late as 1748 in the city council books (which date from 1610). Submission and homage were made to Henry II. on his arrival in 1172, and subsequently the English held the town for a long period against the Irish, by constant andcareful watch. Cork showed favour to Perkin Warbeck in 1492, and its mayor was hanged in consequence. In 1649 it surrendered to Cromwell, and in 1689 to the earl of Marlborough after five days’ siege, when Henry, duke of Grafton, was mortally wounded. Cork was a borough by prescription, and successive charters were granted to it from the reign of Henry II. onward. By a charter of Edward IV. the lord mayor of Cork was created admiral of the port, and this office is manifested in a triennial ceremony in which the mayor throws a dart over the harbour.

Back to Index Next