Page:Chronicles of the Picts, chronicles of the Scots, and other early memorials of Scottish history.djvu/166

 clviii PREFACE. clergy of that Church and the monastic priests of the Columban Church soon led to the latter being completely driven out of the Pictish territories ; for Tighernac records, in 717, "Expulsio familie lae " trans dorsum Britannic a Nectano Rege," which implies that Nectan had driven the whole of the Columban clergy across Drumalban, which separated the Pictish kingdom from Dalriada ; and thus the entire Pictish people passed over from the Columban to the Anglic Church. This great change evidently forms the subject of the "Legend of Bonifacius," on 16th March (A pp. No. vii.) It shows us the intro- duction of a new clergy, and the foundation of new churches, which were dedicated to St. Peter, in the reign of a King Nectan. And the clergy thus intro- duced appear to be secular, as opposed to monastic. That such was the tradition appears from Wyntoun, who teUs us of this King Nectan : — " In Ros he fowndyd Rosmarkyne, Dat dowyd wes wyth kyngys sjTie, And made was a place cathedrals Be-north MuiTaue severale ; Quhare chanomvnys ar seculare Wndyr Saynt Bonyface lyvand thare." The legend imphes the same thing, for Bonifacius is accompanied by six bishops, seven presbyters, seven deacons, seven sub-deacons, seven acolytes, seven exorcists, seven lectors, and seven hostiarii. These formed the orders of the secular clergy ; and the number of bishops, including Bonifacius, being