Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 11.djvu/243

 ODO

211

ODO

Betham and Vallaneey. An early example of O'Don- ovan's historical method is to be found in his edition and translation of the Charter of Newry (Dublin Penny Journal, 22 Sept., 1832). From this on he shared with his brother-in-law, Eugene O'Curry, an undisputed position as supreme authority on the Irish language and Irish antiquities. He may be said to have been the mainstay of the archaeological socie- ties and journals of his day — the Kilkenny Archaiolo- gioal society, the Ulster Journal of Archa!ology, and the Celtic Society. The foundation by the Government of the Ordnance Survey Department of Ireland gave O'Donovan his chance. In Petrie's house, 21 Great Charles Street, the antiquarian section had its offices, and here O'Donovan had as colleagues, among others, Petrie, O'Curry, Mangan, and Wakeman. From the preparation of lists of names of townlands and places, O'Donovan was soon sent by Larcom, the head of the Ordnance Survey, to work "in the field".

From the various places throughout Ireland which he visited, he despatched in the form of letters to Lar- com accounts of antiquities and traditions which, collected in 103 volumes and at present deposited in the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin, are popularly known as "O'Donovan's Letters". They are not heavy with mere erudition, but are enlivened with flashes of humorous anecdote and many a merry "quip and crank and jest". He was engaged on the Survey from 1S30 to 1842. In 1836 he commenced the catalogue of Irish MSS. in Trinity College; and to aid him in his work of editing and translating MSS., Todd sought a grant in aid from Government. It was refused, and was followed up by the suppression in 1842 of the archaeological section of the Ordnance Sur- vey. Private effort had, therefore, to be relied upon, and, with the assistance of the members of the Archae- ological Society and the Celtic Society, O'Donovan was able to publish his well-known editions of Irish texts with his invaluable introductions and notes. From 1842 till his death in 1861 no year passed with- out some noteworthy edition of an Irish text appearing from his hands. A complete bibliography of his works was pubhshed by Henry Dixon (Dublin). We can only refer to two of liis works with which his name is popularly connected — his "Irish Grammar" and his edition and translation of the Annals of the Four Masters. His grammar was published in 1845, and at once elicited the praise of Grimm, on whose recom- mendation he was elected in 1856 a corresponding member of the Royal Academy of Berlin, an honour which he shared with Zeuss whose epoch-making "Grammatica Celtica" appeared in that year. He was then appointed Professor of Celtic in Queen's College, Belfast. In 1848 appeared the first part of his edition of the Annals of the Four Masters (q. v)., which won for him the Cunningham Gold Medal of the Royal Irish Academy and the LL.D. degree of Trinity College, Dublin. The edition was completed in 1851, and the Government bestowed on him a pen- sion of £50 a year. O'Donovan had decided to go to America, but the establishment of the Brehon Law Commission helped to retain his services for Ireland. He continued his work on the Brehon Law Tracts till his death in Dublin from rheumatic fever, the ten- dency to which was due to exposure on the outdoor work of the Ordnance Survey.

Besides his worlis (especially his edition of the Four Masters and MS. Letters in R. I. Academy) consult: Memoir by Sib J. Gilbert (London, 1862); Lady FERGtjsoN, Life of Bishop Reeves (London, 1893); Lady Gilbert, Life of Sir John Gilbert (London, 1905) ; Webb, Compendium of Irish Biog. (Dublin, 1878) ; Journal of Librarians' Association, II. n. i. (Dublin): MacSweeney, Cen- tenary Address; Carrigan, Hist, and Antiq. of the Diocese of Oesory (Dublin, 1905).

Patrick M. MacSweeney.

Odo of Cambrai, Blessed, bishop and confessor, called also Odoardds, b. at Orleans, 1050; d. at Anchin, 19 June, 1113. In 1087 he was invited by the canons

of Toumai to teach in that city, and there soon won a great reputation. He became a Benedictine monk (1095) in St. Martin's, Toumai, of which he became abbot later. In 1105 he was chosen Bishop of Cam- brai, and was consecrated during a synod at Reims. For some time after he was unable to obtain possession of his see owing to his refusal to receive investiture at the hands of the Emperor Henry IV, but the latter's son Henry restored the See of Cambrai to Odo in 1 106. He laboured diligently for his diocese, but in 1110 he was exiled on the ground that he had never received the cross and ring from the emperor. Odo retired to the monastery of Anchin, where he died without regaining possession of his diocese. Many of his works are lost; those extant will be found in Migne, CLX (P. L.).

Acta SS.. Ill June (Venice, 1743), 910: Mabillon, Annates O. S. B., IV (Paris, 1669), col. 623; Ziegelbauer, Hisl. rei litera- ria O. S. B.. Ill (Augsburg, 1754), 126; Le Glay, Hisl. eecles. du diocise de Cambrai (Paris, 1849) ; Baun.ard, Le b. Odon de Tournai (Orleans, 1862); Martene, Thes. nov. anecdoL, V (Paris, 1717), 853-8; Labis, Le b. Odon evtque de Cambrai in Revue oatholique, II (Louvain, 1856), 445-60; 519-26; 574-85.

G. Roger Hudleston.

Odo of Canterbury, Abbot of Battle, d. 1200, known as Odo Cantianus or of Kent. A monk of Christ Church, he became subprior in 1163 and was sent by Thomas k Becket to Pope Alexander as his representative to attend an appeal, fixed for 18 Oct., 1163, agsinst the Archbishop of York who, in spite of the remonstrances of St. Thomas and the pope, still continued to carry the cross in the southern province. Inl 166 Christ Church appealed against the archbishop and Odo applied to Richard of Ilchester for help (Fo- liot,Ep. 422, in Migne). In 1167 he became prior with William as subprior. LIntil the murder of St. Thomas he seems to have wavered in his allegiance between king and archbishop, but then took a decided stand in favour of ecclesiastical authority. On 1 Sept., 1 172, in a meeting the monks of Christ Church put forward Odo as worthy of the archbishopric. The king how- ever procrastinated, and no result followed a second meeting at Windsor (6 Oct.). Odo with other monks followed Henry to Normandy and urged that a monk should be chosen as archbishop (Mat. Becket., IV, 181). After protracted negotiations the choice fell upon Richard, Prior of Dover, formerly a monk of Canterbury, in whose behalf Odo wrote to Alexander III (Migne, CC, 1396). In 1173 occurred a great fire at Christ Church and Odo went to the Council of Woodstock on 1 July, 1175, to obtain a renewal of the charters on the model of those at Battle Abbey. St. Martin de Bello had been without an abbot for four years and the monks who attended the council caused Odo to be chosen. He was elected on 10 July. His blessing took place on 28 Sept., at the hands of Archbishop Richard at Mailing. On the death of Richard (1184) the monks of Christ Church again put Odo forward for the archbishopric, but Henry again re- fused, fearing no doubt that he would be too inflexible for his purpose. Baldwin who was appointed quar- relled with the monks, a dispute which lasted till 1 188 and occasioned a correspondence between Odo and Urban III (Epp. Cantuar., no. 280). Odo died on 20 Jan., 1200, and was buried in the lower part of the church at Battle. Leland speaks of him as a most erudite man and a great friend of Thomas k Becket and John of Salisbury who describes him as an ardent lover of books. He was a great theologian and preached in French, English, and Latin, and was noted for his humility and modesty. There is some uncer- tainty as to his writings, owing to a confusion with Odo of Cheriton and Odo of Murimund, but a list of thirteen works, chiefly writings on the Old Testament and sermons, can be ascribed to him. He was vener- ated at Battle as a saint and in the relic list at Canter- bury Cathedral is mentioned "a tooth of the Ven. Odo Abb. of Battle" (Dart. Ap. XLVII).