The Ardfert Cathedral ( ga, Ardeaglais Ard Fhearta) is a ruined

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

Ardfert Ardfert () is a village in County Kerry, Ireland. Historically a religious centre, the economy of the locality is driven by agriculture and its position as a dormitory town, being only from Tralee. The population of the village was 749 at the 2 ...

, County Kerry, Ireland. Dedicated to

Saint Brendan Brendan of Clonfert (c. AD 484 - c.577), is one of the early Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is also referred to as Brendan the Navigator, Brendan the Voyager, Brendan the Anchorite, Brendan the Bold. The ...

, it was the seat of the Diocese of Ardfert from 1117. It is now a

heritage tourism Cultural heritage tourism (or just heritage tourism) is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring. The National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States defines heritage t ...

site.

History

Ardfert was the site of a Celtic Christian monastery reputedly founded in the 6th century by

. Although 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 ...

in 1111 had put the cathedral for Ciarraige at

Ratass Church Ratass Church is a medieval church with ogham stone inscriptions in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland. It is a National Monument. Location The church and adjacent graveyard are located on Quill Street, in the eastern suburbs of Tralee. History It ...

near

Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...

, it was moved to Ardfert by 1117. The Diocese later renamed "Ardfert and

Aghadoe Aghadoe (Irish: ''Achadh an Dá Eó'') is a large townland overlooking the town and lakes of Killarney in Ireland. Officially it is also a parish, although the parish is larger than the area normally associated with the name. The area is famou ...

", although it is unclear whether Aghadoe "Cathedral" ever operated as a separate diocese. The site has three medieval church ruins, the main and earliest building being from the 12th century. Within the adjoining graveyard there are two other churches, ''Temple Na Hoe'' dating from the 12th century and ''Temple Na Griffin'' dating from the 15th century. The main church has an

ogham Ogham ( Modern Irish: ; mga, ogum, ogom, later mga, ogam, label=none ) is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 4th to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish langu ...

stone and a number of early Christian and medieval grave slabs. In the 15th century, a small

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

was added and

battlement A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interv ...

s were constructed. During the

Reformation in Ireland The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English administration at the behest of King Henry VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage ...

, the established

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 secon ...

became Protestant. The cathedral roof was destroyed during the Irish Rebellion of 1641,"The Cathedrals of the

" Day, J.G.F./ Patton, H.E. p159:

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

, 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: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hiro ...

but the south transept was re-roofed and extended later in the 17th century. From 1663 the diocese was united with the Diocese of Limerick and the former cathedral became a parish church. In 1871, when a new Church of Ireland church was opened, the cathedral's roof was again removed. After the 1871 disestablishment of the Church of Ireland, its disused historic sites, such as Ardfert Cathedral, were transferred to the Board of Public Works, now the

Office of Public Works The Office of Public Works (OPW) ( ga, Oifig na nOibreacha Poiblí) (legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of o ...

. Part of the transept has been restored, and houses the entrance and a gift shop.

References

External links

Ardfert Village website - Site plan and old postcard of St Brendan's Cathedral

Brief information

"The Building of Ardfert Cathedral"
{{coord, 52.328704, -9.781703, display=title Former cathedrals in Ireland Archaeological sites in County Kerry Churches in County Kerry National Monuments in County Kerry Former churches in the Republic of Ireland

History

See also

References

External links