South Parish is the name given to both a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

parish of

Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...

and to the residential area contained within it.

Location

The parish stretches from Oliver Plunkett Street in the north to St Patrick's Road in the south and from Sharman Crawford Street in the west to Albert Road in the east. When used to refer to the residential area, the parts north of the south channel of the

River Lee The River Lee (Irish: ''An Laoi'') is a river in Ireland. It rises in the Shehy Mountains on the western border of County Cork and flows eastwards through Cork, where it splits in two for a short distance, creating an island on which Cork's ...

are usually excluded as being part of the city centre. For example, the scope of

Cork City Council Cork City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Chorcaí) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Cork in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Prior to the enactment of the 2001 Act, t ...

's 'South Parish Area Action Plan' excludes the parish's city centre areas.

History

The South Parish is one of the oldest inhabited areas of Cork City. Along with Shandon, it was the first area developed outside the city walls. In the oldest known maps of Cork City, including examples dated to 1545 and 1601, there are structures shown in the area. There was a Danish settlement in the area that is now Frenches Quay, Barrack Street and George's Quay as early as the 10th century AD. In this area, Keysers Hill still bears a name of Danish origin. The Red Abbey, Cork's oldest surviving medieval structure, was built in the late 13th or early 14th century. Also in the area is Elizabeth Fort, the current structure of which was built in 1624, to replace an earlier fort dating from 1601. By 1690, there had been additional development in the area, with the streets that are now Barrack St, Evergreen St, Douglas St, Cove St and Sober Lane distinguishable in maps and lined with buildings. It was in this year that the

Siege of Cork The siege of Cork took place during the Williamite war in Ireland in the year of 1690, shortly after the Battle of the Boyne when James II attempted to retake the English throne from King William III. In a combined land and sea operation, W ...

took place. Cork was occupied by Jacobite forces who held Elizabeth Fort. They were attacked by

Williamite A Williamite was a follower of King William III of England (r. 1689–1702) who deposed King James II and VII in the Glorious Revolution. William, the Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, replaced James with the support of English Whigs. O ...

forces from the Red Abbey and

Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral ( ga, Ardeaglais Naomh Fionnbarra) is a Gothic Revival three-spire Church of Ireland cathedral in the city of Cork. It is located on the south bank of the River Lee and dedicated to Finbarr of Cork, patron saint of ...

. Both located in South Parish, these were the only high vantage points in the area. This siege led to significant damage to buildings in the area, such as the Red Abbey, which was never used for religious purposes again and St Nicholas Church, which was not rebuilt until 1720. By 1726 all but a small area of the South Parish, designated as 'Gardens', had been built up and by 1750, the development of the area was complete, with any new buildings replacing existing buildings. The present South Chapel (St. Finbarr's South), the Roman Catholic

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

, was built in 1766. 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 secon ...

church, St Nicholas, was rebuilt again in 1850, although this is now deconsecrated with parish duties merged with the parish of St Fin Barre's cathedral

References

Geography of Cork (city) {{Cork-geo-stub