St Muredach's Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killala in Ireland. It is located on the east bank of the River Moy in Ballina, County Mayo. It is also the parish church of the parish of Kilmoremoy.
| St Muredach's Cathedral | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| 54°06′46″N 9°09′02″W / 54.1129°N 9.1505°W | |
| Location | Ballina, County Mayo |
| Country | Ireland |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| History | |
| Dedication | Muiredach of Killala |
| Consecrated | 1845 |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Groundbreaking | 1827 |
| Completed | 1875 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 240,000 |
| Height | 600M |
| Administration | |
| Province | Tuam |
| Archdiocese | Tuam |
| Diocese | Killala |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop(s) | John Fleming |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | [1] |
It is a detached six-bay double-height building on a cruciform plan comprising a four-bay double-height nave which opens into single-bay double-height transepts all centred on a single-bay double-height chancel.[2]
The cathedral's construction was initiated by Bishop John MacHale (1791–1881) who served as the Bishop of Killala from 1825 to 1834 and the completion of the cathedral in 1834 coincided with his translation to the Archdiocese of Tuam.
The spire was completed in 1855 to the designs of the celebrated architect James Joseph McCarthy and further embellishment continued throughout the nineteenth century.[3]
The cathedral is situated in the townland of Abbeyhalfquarter. When built, it was in County Sligo, but since the 1898 revisions of county boundaries, it has been in County Mayo.
Parish priests
edit18th century
edit- Richard Hoare (1704)
- Francis Beolane (1731)
- John Finan (1743–1760)
19th century
edit- John Lyons (1823–1825)
- John McHale (1825–1834)
- John Lyons (1835)
- P.A. Lyons (1837–1838)
- Patrick McHale (1839–1841)
- Bart Costello (1842–1845)
- Hugh Conway (1845–1848)
- Patrick Malone (1849–1852)
- Dominick Madden (1853)
- Michael Conway (1854)
- J. Gilvarry (1854–1858)
- P.J. Nolan (1859)
- P. Irwin (1862–1867)
- J. Timlin (1867)
- P. Conway (1867–1870)
- H. Hewson (1870–1873)
- J.J. O'Keane (1873–1879)
- P. McNulty (1879–1881)
- D. O'Donoghue (1881–1885)
- A. Finnerty (1885–1890)
- J. Mullen (1890–1891)
- A. McHale (1891–1892)
- M. Gallagher (1892–1900)
20th century
edit- J. Naughton (1900–1906)
- B. Quinn (1906–1913)
- T.L. Beirne (1913–1915)
- M. Tully (1915–1919)
- W. Greaney (1919–1930)
- D. O'Connor (1930–1942)
- M.J. Feeney (1942)
- P. Maloney (1942–1957)
- J. Heverin (1957–1963)
- T. McDonnell (1963–1970)
- G. Moore (1970–1987)
- P. O' Brien (1987–1994)
- M. Flynn (1994–2005)
21st century
edit- M. Flynn (1994–2005)
- Brendan Hoban (2005–2011), a founder member of the Association of Catholic Priests
- Gerard O'Hora (2008–2019)
- Aidan O'Boyle (2019–2024)
- Anthony Gillespie (2024-
References
edit- ^ "Archbishop John MacHale". catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
- ^ "Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral, Cathedral Road, Abbeyhalfquarter, Ballina originally Ardnaree, Mayo". National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
- ^ "Co. Mayo, Ballina, Cathedral of St Muiredach (RC)". Dictionary of Irish Architects 1720-1940. Retrieved 6 November 2022.