This book tells the story of the most eventful half century in the history of the Killala diocese, from the rebellion of 1798 to the Great Famine. At the heart of this extraordinary vibrant period was the episcopate of Francis O'Finan O.P. the fault-line of his unexpected appointment opened up and the dissensions that divided bishops, priests and people. In the space of half a century, Killala diocese witnessed a French invasion, a parish priest calling, in the public press, for his bishops arraignment, the mysterious death of another parish priest, a libel trial initiated by a bishop against a local newspaper, a bitter struggle between Bishop O'Finan and Archbishop John MacHale of Tuam, a division of the Killala priests into two opposing factions, an investigation ordered by Rome and headed by the Archbishop of Armagh and the advent of the Great Famine. The period 1798-1848 was a remarkable half-century in the history of the diocese of Killala, with exceptional people who lived quite extraordinary lives.