St. Patrick Cathedral

  Founded in 1191, St. Patrick's Cathedral is officially known as "The National Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St. Patrick, Dublin." It is the largest church in Ireland. Legend states that St. Patrick reportedly baptized converts to Christianity at a well that once existed in the park next to the Cathedral. Uniquely, Dublin has two Cathedrals; Christ Church Cathedral (a short distance from St. Patrick's) is the official seat of the Archbishop of Dublin, while St. Patrick's has been designated as the National Cathedral of the whole island since 1870. Another distinction between the two is that St. Patrick's is considered to be a "secular" Cathedral, i.e. the clergy are not members of a religious order. Over the years, the two Cathedrals worked out an agreement that they would act as one entity to minister to the needs of the congregations. From the very beginning, St. Patrick's has had a problem with water seepage, and occasional flooding, from the surrounding branches of the river Poddle. As a result, it never had a crypt nor formal basement area, as did other Cathedrals of its era. Following the English Reformation of circa. 1537, St. Patrick's became an Anglican Church of Ireland, even though most of the surrounding population was Roman Catholic. The heraldic banners of the Knights of St. Patrick still hang over the choir stalls. Johnathan Swift, author of "Gulliver's Travels", is considered to be the Cathdral's most celebrated Dean (serving from 1713 to 1745). Handel's "Messiah" had its first performance in Dublin in St. Patrick's Cathedral in 1742.

St. Patrick's Cathedral from the park where St. Patrick reportedly baptized converts at a well that once existed here.

Looking down the long center aisle towards the High Altar. We thought the tile floor (unique among the other churches we have visited) was glorious.

Moving up the central aisle, we got a better look at the choir stalls in front of the High Altar.

Some of the heraldic banners of the Knights of St. Patrick still hanging above the choir stalls.

The High Altar.

The Huguenot Bell, a commemoration of when the Huguenots arrived in Dublin, was given to St. Patrick's by the parishioners of Dublin's St. Luke's Church when it was closed to public worship in 1975.

The memorial to Jonathan Swift, the most famous Dean of the Cathedral.

We have seen many elaborately sculptured pulpits in our travels. This certainly ranks near the top for its beauty.

This very beautiful spiral staircase leads to the organ loft that overlooks the central aisle. We would have loved to climb it but it was closed to the public.

The North Aisle is lined with marble statues of famous people important to the history of the Cathedral.

This elaborate memorial (just to the left of the South Entrance) is dedicated to Richard Boyle, Earle of Cork in 1632, and his family. It is huge!

This door was part of the Cathedral's Chapter House. In 1492, a feud existed between the Earl of Ormond and the Earl of Kildare. Ormond had taken refuge within the Chapter House. Kildare, trying to convince Ormond to accept a truce, hacked a hole in the door and thrust his hand through it to grasp his enemy's hand. This gesture helped to restore peace between the two families.