St Patrick's Cathedral, Killala is one of two cathedral churches (the other is
St Mary's Cathedral, Tuam
St Mary's Cathedral ( ga, Ard-Eaglais Mhuire) is a cathedral church of the Diocese of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe in the Church of Ireland. It is located in Tuam, County Galway, in Ireland. From the 12th century until 1839, both before and af ...
) in the
Diocese of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe
The Diocese of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe (full title The United Dioceses of Tuam, Killala, Achonry, Limerick, Ardfert, Aghadoe, Killaloe, Kilfenora, Clonfert, Kilmacduagh and Emly) is a diocese of the Church of Ireland that is located in th ...
of the Church of Ireland. It is situated on the Ballina to Ballycastle road in the small coastal village of Killala, County Mayo, Ireland, in the ecclesiastical province of Armagh.
The Cathedral Church of St Patrick is one of Ireland’s smallest cathedrals and consists of a long rectangular four-bay gable-ended nave (32 m x 10 m) with a square tower and spire at the west end and a gable-ended vestry at the north end. A staircase leads to a gallery in the nave. The nave is fitted with boxed pews and a rare Telford organ dating from 1838.
The graveyard contains a 9th-century souterrain with several chambers.
History
"The Episcopal See of Killala appears to have been founded between the years 434 and 441 by
St. Patrick
ST, St, or St. may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Stanza, in poetry
* Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band
* Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise
* Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...
, who, during that period, was propagating the faith of Christianity in the province of Connaught; and built a church at this place, called Kill-Aladh, over which he placed one of his disciples,
St. Muredach, as bishop." (Samuel Lewis, writing in his 1837 Topographical Dictionary).
The Diocese of Killala was established at the
Synod of Ráth Breasail
The Synod of Ráth Breasail (also known as Rathbreasail) (Irish: ''Sionad Ráth Bhreasail'') was an Irish Catholic church council which took place in Ireland in 1111. It marked the transition of the Irish church from a monastic to a diocesan and pa ...
in 1111. The medieval cathedral was probably destroyed in the troubles of the 16th century. It was certainly in ruins by 1611.
The present building was constructed in the 1670s, during the episcopate of Thomas Otway,
Bishop of Killala and Achonry
The Bishop of Killala and Achonry was the Ordinary of the Church of Ireland diocese of Killala and Achonry in the Ecclesiastical Province of Tuam. The diocese comprised part of Counties Mayo and Sligo in Ireland.
The Episcopal see was a union o ...
,
["The Cathedrals of the ]Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...
" Day, J.G.F./ Patton, H.E. p71: London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, S.P.C.K., 1932
Events January
* January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel.
* January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...
using the rubble and stone from the medieval cathedral. The tower and spire and the vestry were added to the building in 1817 by the architect James Paine. Extensive restoration of nave and chancel walls and windows was carried out in the early 1990s and plans are now in hand to restore the organ soundboard.
See also
*
Dean of Killala
The Dean of Killala is based at the Cathedral Church of St Patrick, Killala in the Diocese of Killala within the united bishopric of Tuam, Killala and Achonry of the Church of Ireland. The Cathedral Church of St Crumnathy, Achonry, was closed i ...
*
List of cathedrals in Ireland
This article lists the current and former cathedrals of the main Christian churches in Ireland. Since the main denominations are organised on an all-Ireland basis, this article includes information about both jurisdictions: Northern Ireland and ...
References
Killala onlineConservation report - Buildings and Grounds
{{Cathedrals of the Church of Ireland
Killala
Killala () is a village in County Mayo in Ireland, north of Ballina. The railway line from Dublin to Ballina once extended to Killala. To the west of Killala is a Townsplots West (known locally as Enagh Beg), which contains a number of ancient ...
Diocese of Tuam, Killala and Achonry