erry to Tir Eoghain, Armagh to Oriel, while Connor
comprehended the two territories of Dal Araide and Ulaid. The diocese of
Clogher was of necessity the remainder of the province. If it coincided
with a tribal district, that could only happen by chance. In fact it did
not. It was much smaller than the other dioceses. It embraced only the
present barony of Clogher in the county of Tyrone, and the portion of
Fermanagh lying between it and the Erne waterway. It had within it no
element of cohesion. It was most unlikely that it could ever constitute
an ecclesiastical unit, governed by a bishop.

Nevertheless an attempt seems to have been made to consolidate it as a
diocese a few years after Rathbreasail; as might have been expected,
without success. A bishop of Clogher, who apparently had no diocese,
died in 1135. He was succeeded by Christian O'Morgair, brother of
Malachy. He was probably nominated and consecrated by his brother, who
was then titular archbishop of Armagh. Now about this time Donough
O'Carroll, king of Oriel, joined the ranks of the reformers, as we may
suppose under the influence of Malachy. His kingdom included the little
diocese of Clogher; but the main part of it consisted of the present
counties of Monaghan and Louth. Accordingly a bold stroke of policy was
conceived and carried out. The diocese of Clogher was enlarged so as to
cover the greater part of O'Carroll's kingdom. For this purpose the
archbishop of Armagh surrendered a large part of his diocese--the whole
of Monaghan and Louth. Then Christian moved his see from Clogher to the
spot now occupied by the village of Louth. Thus there was constituted a
new diocese, which included the Rathbreasail diocese of Clogher, but was
four times its size, and had its see at Louth. It was known as the
diocese of Oriel. In all this we see plainly the hand of Malachy. Not
long after the removal of the see Christian died, and Malachy selected
and consecrated his successor, one Edan O'Kelly. O'Kelly had a long
episcopate, from 1139 to 1182; and with the help of O'Carroll he
organized his diocese, and gave it a cathedral at Louth with a chapter
of Augustinian canons.[83] Once again Malachy was the maker of a
diocese; and once again, in the interest of stability, he transgressed
the letter of the Rathbreasail canons, while fulfilling their spirit. It
was not till after the coming of the Anglo-Normans that the see was
brought back to Clogher. Subsequently the county o