[1] The annals record that St Fergus was the first bishop of Down and there are good historical reasons to connect him, from about the end of the sixth century, to the broad area of mid-Down.

[1] Although not as ancient or carrying such well-attested historical importance as nearby Bangor Abbey, there is little doubt that in the period of the Celtic church, when monasticism was such a hallmark of Christian settlements, that a community of monks lived on - or near - the hill overlooking the Quoile.

In 1177, Sir John de Courcy (Norman conqueror of Ulster) brought in Benedictine monks and expelled the older monastic community.

De Courcy, who had enraged the king by his seizure of lands in Ireland beyond what he was granted, was taken prisoner there on Good Friday 1204.

According to the account, the unarmed de Courcy managed to take a weapon from one of his attackers and killed 13 men before being overpowered and taken prisoner.

[8] Two small stone crosses now built into a wall in Down Cathedral appear to be 12th-century work and are carved with monks holding books.