Twelve apostles for Ireland

Abstract

As the least Romanized part of Europe, early Christian Ireland preserved till the Anglo-Norman invasion several unique cults, traditions, and religious concepts. The one under consideration here are the twelve apostles of Ireland, a barely examined group of Irish saints, that nonetheless appear in a number of texts. The article deals with the origins, development, and decline of this cult as evidenced in the sources of different types, using the narrative approach, which contributes to our understanding of church life and politics in Ireland in the ninth-twelfth centuries