Florence MacMoyer facts for kids
Florence MacMoyer (who lived from about 1662 to 1713) was from a place called Ballymoyer in County Armagh, Ireland. He was the last person in his family to be the special keeper of a very old and important book called the Book of Armagh.
This book is a handwritten manuscript from the 800s. It was made in Ireland and is very valuable. It contains early writings about St Patrick, who is a famous Irish saint. It also has some of the oldest examples of the Old Irish language. Plus, it's one of the first old books from the Irish church that has almost a complete copy of the New Testament part of the Christian Bible.
Who Was Florence MacMoyer?
The MacMoyer family had lived in Ballymacmoyer since the 1300s. Florence was born in Ballymyre and later became a schoolteacher.
His Life Story
At one point, Florence needed money. He used the Book of Armagh as a guarantee to borrow five pounds. This is called "pawning" something.
He used this money to travel to London. There, he gave information in a court case involving a church leader named Oliver Plunkett, who was the Archbishop of Armagh. Florence went with his cousin, Friar John MacMoyer.
After Florence MacMoyer returned to Ireland, he was held in prison for some time. Because of this, he was not able to get the Book of Armagh back.
Florence MacMoyer passed away in 1713. He was buried in Ballymoyer Old Graveyard. Later, a special stone marking his grave was moved into Ballymoyer House.
The Book of Armagh
An old book called A Compendium of Irish Biography tells us more about the Book of Armagh and Florence MacMoyer.
It says that Florence MacMoyer was looking after this precious book on June 29, 1662. This is known because of a note written inside the book itself.
The book also mentions that Florence MacMoyer was one of the people who gave information against Archbishop Plunkett in London in 1681. Before that, he had used the book to borrow five pounds.
Because of his connection to Archbishop Plunkett's situation, some people in the countryside had a very negative view of Florence MacMoyer for a long time.
After Florence MacMoyer, the Book of Armagh was owned by different people over many years. Finally, in 1858, a Reverend William Reeves and a generous church leader helped to bring the Book of Armagh to the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, where it is kept safe today.
