Eithne
5th-century saint and daughter of Lóegaire mac Néill, king of Tara, who was baptised by St. Patrick
Feast: 26 February (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Eithne, called 'of the golden hair', was a daughter of Laoghaire, High King of Ireland when St. Patrick first came to Tara. She and her younger sister were being brought up in Connacht when, one morning at the well of Clebach in County Roscommon, they met Patrick and his clerics chanting the Office.
Eithne asked who they were; Patrick told them of the true God, and the two sisters believed, were baptised and received the veil of virgins. When they asked to see the face of Christ, Patrick gave them Holy Communion, and the story says both sisters died there in rapture and were buried side by side, where a church was later built. She is commemorated on 11 January.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: she has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.
Why that counted as sanctity
A daughter of the High King of Ireland, baptised by St. Patrick at the well of Clebach.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Eithne
- Wikidata Q64786428 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
Checked against the sources listed on 22 September 2026. Corrections welcome.