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Monkstown Parish Church ( Irish: ''Eaglais Bhaile na Manach''), is a 19th Century
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
church in
Monkstown, County Dublin Monkstown (), historically known as ''Carrickbrennan'' (), is a suburb on the southside, Dublin, southside of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. It is on the coast, between Blackrock, Dublin, Blackrock an ...
,
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. It was built to replace an earlier church in Carrickbrennan Churchyard. Designed by architect John Semple, it is has a distinct style and has been described as occupying a space somewhere between the Gothic and
Saracenic upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Roma ...
architectural styles.


History

When an earlier church in Carrickbrennan Churchyard was no longer sufficient to support the growing population of the parish, it was decided to build a new church, at the site of the current structure. This church was completed in 1789, and was a simpler structure than the elaborate church that stands today. It was of a design similar to that of
Taney Parish The Parish of Taney () is a populous parish in the Church of Ireland, located in the Dundrum, Dublin, Dundrum area of Dublin. Taney is also a Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of the same name, in the Dublin (barony), barony of Dublin and ...
church, which still stands today. By 1818 this new church was itself described as being 'always much crowded'—despite being 'one of the largest ..in Ireland'—and the decision was made by Archbishop William Magge to extend the church. Following this decision the architect John Semple of the
Board of First Fruits The Board of First Fruits () was an institution of the Church of Ireland that was established in 1711 by Anne, Queen of Great Britain to build and improve churches and glebe houses in Ireland. This was funded from taxes collected on clerical inco ...
was engaged. Semple began drawing up plans in 1823, and the previous church was demolished in 1828. The new church was opened on Christmas Day, 1831. Where the old church could accommodate a congregation of 340, the new building had capacity for 1,200. Even then the church was too small, with attendance that day said to be 1,300 In 1868, the church was extended by John McCurdy, with the addition of a chancel to the same style as the original design of John Semple.Archiseek Monkstown Church
/ref> In 2007, conservation work began on the church, with assistance from the Irish Georgian Society.Monkstown Parish Church
Conservation Project, Irish Georgian Society, www.igs.ie
The church contains a memorial to members of the parish killed or missing during the Crimean War and the Great War.


Architecture

The building, designed by John Semple, is ''
sui generis ( , ) is a Latin phrase that means "of its/their own kind" or "in a class by itself", therefore "unique". It denotes an exclusion to the larger system an object is in relation to. Several disciplines use the term to refer to unique entities. ...
'', and takes inspiration from both Gothic and
Saracenic upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Roma ...
architecture. Though widely celebrated today, the design was much criticised in its day. Semple's designs are considered among the most distinctive of those funded by the Board of First Fruits, with the church at Monkstown provided as a prominent example.


Interior

The ceiling of the church features
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a wikt:superincumbent, bearing weight, a type of bracket (architecture), bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in t ...
led
fan vault A fan vault is a form of vault used in the Gothic style, in which the ribs are all of the same curve and spaced equidistantly, in a manner resembling a fan. The initiation and propagation of this design element is strongly associated with E ...
ing and is rendered in scalloped plaster, which align with the Moorish elements of the exterior.


Exterior

The church is built of local
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
from
Dalkey Dalkey ( ; ) is a village in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown county southeast of Dublin, Ireland. It was founded as a Viking settlement and became a port in the Middle Ages. According to chronicler John Clyn (c.1286–c.1349), it was one of the port ...
. The church features narrow
lancet window A lancet window is a tall, narrow window with a sharp pointed arch at its top. This arch may or may not be a steep lancet arch (in which the compass centres for drawing the arch fall outside the opening). It acquired the "lancet" name from its rese ...
s with
hood mould In architecture, a hood mould, hood, label mould (from Latin , lip), drip mould or dripstone is an external moulded projection from a wall over an opening to throw off rainwater, historically often in form of a '' pediment''. This moulding can be ...
ings on the walls of the
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...
, as well as loop windows inset in the clasping
ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...
es. String-coursing runs around the structure at different heights, notably under several windows. The west door features an
ogee arch An ogee ( ) is an object, element, or curve—often seen in architecture and building trades—that has a serpentine- or extended S-shape (sigmoid). Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combination of two semicircular curves or arcs that, as ...
; the doors to the north and south originally also featured such arches but the they were removed in the renovations in 1890. One of the most notable features of the church are its slated hexagonal
pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...
s, which are topped with
finial A finial () or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature. In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a dome, spire, tower, roo ...
s that resemble
chess piece A chess piece, or chessman, is a game piece that is placed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. It can be either White and Black in chess, white or black, and it can be one of six types: King (chess), king, Queen (chess), queen, Rook (ches ...
s. The roof's border features a
crenellated A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...
. The
bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...
is adorned with a
lantern A lantern is a source of lighting, often portable. It typically features a protective enclosure for the light sourcehistorically usually a candle, a oil lamp, wick in oil, or a thermoluminescence, thermoluminescent Gas mantle, mesh, and often a ...
, ogee arches, and at its peak a Grecian cross. Image:Monkstown Church, Dublin South Entrance.JPG, South Entrance


Rectors

Rev. Dr. William FitzGerald served in Monkstown, from 1855 to 1857 when he was elevated to Bishop of Cork, he was succeeded by the Rev. Dr. Ronald MacDonnell who served from 1857 to 1878. Archbishop of Dublin Joseph Peacocke served as rector of Monkstown 1878–94; he had earlier been a curate in the parish from 1863 to 1873.Archbishop Joseph Peacocke
Dictionary of Irish Biography.
Rev. Canon J. C. Dowse, succeeded Bishop Peacocke as Rector in 1894. Rev. Kevin Dalton served as rector from 1979 until 2007, he was succeeded by Venerable Patrick Lawrence. The incumbent rector Rev. Canon Roy Byrne is rector since 2016.Canon Roy Byrne Appointed Rector of Monkstown
The United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough, December 9, 2015.


References


Notes


Sources

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External links


Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monkstown Church, Dublin Monkstown, Dublin Churches in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown Church of Ireland church buildings in the Republic of Ireland