Cattedrale di San Patrizio (1873): i lavori si fermarono per la Grande Carestia, e l’arcivescovo morì di colera prima di vederla finita
I lavori iniziarono il 17 marzo 1840, giorno di San Patrizio — ma si fermarono cinque anni dopo, quando la Grande Carestia devastò l’Irlanda e i fondi della cattedrale furono dirottati verso il soccorso agli affamati. Lo stesso arcivescovo Crolly morì di colera nel 1849, una delle malattie portate dalla carestia. I lavori ripresero solo nel 1854, sostenuti dalle donazioni della diaspora irlandese sparsa in tutto il mondo, e la cattedrale, con le sue guglie gemelle alte oltre sessanta metri, fu finalmente completata e consacrata nel 1873.
About St Patrick’s Cathedral (Roman Catholic)
St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh serves as the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland, its construction undertaken in various phases between 1840 and 1904 to provide the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Armagh with a cathedral of its own, after the original medieval cathedral on the neighbouring hill had been retained by the Church of Ireland following the Irish Reformation. Construction began, fittingly, on Saint Patrick’s Day, 17 March 1840, but ground to a halt just five years later when the Great Famine began to devastate Ireland; funds originally raised for the cathedral’s construction were diverted to famine relief efforts, and the project’s own primate, Archbishop Crolly, tragically died of cholera in 1849, one of the diseases that spread in the famine’s wake. Work resumed in 1854, sustained substantially by donations pouring in from the Irish diaspora scattered across the world, who recognised the symbolic importance of restoring a Catholic cathedral to Patrick’s own city of Armagh. The original architect, Thomas J. Duff of Newry, died during the long construction process and was succeeded by the celebrated Gothic Revival architect J. J. McCarthy, who introduced the cathedral’s now-iconic twin spires. With these spires rising over 60 metres — some 200 feet — at the building’s western end, St Patrick’s Cathedral was finally completed and formally dedicated under Archbishop Daniel McGettigan on 24 August 1873, more than three decades after construction had first begun.
Key facts
- 17 March 1840: construction begins on Saint Patrick’s Day
- 1845: work halts as the Great Famine devastates Ireland
- 1849: Archbishop Crolly dies of cholera before seeing the cathedral completed
- 1854: construction resumes, funded substantially by the Irish diaspora
- J. J. McCarthy: succeeds original architect Thomas J. Duff, adds the twin spires
- 24 August 1873: cathedral completed and dedicated under Archbishop McGettigan
- Spires: over 60 metres (200 feet) tall
History
The cathedral’s construction history, interrupted for nearly a decade by the Great Famine and marked by the death of its own presiding archbishop from a famine-related disease, makes the building an unusually direct architectural witness to one of the most catastrophic events in modern Irish history — its very stones bearing the physical record of a project deliberately paused so that its resources could instead save lives. The eventual completion of the cathedral through worldwide Irish diaspora fundraising reflects the broader 19th-century phenomenon of famine-era Irish emigration transforming into a durable transnational network of financial and religious support for institutions back in Ireland.
The cathedral’s position on a hill facing the older Church of Ireland cathedral across the city creates a uniquely visible dual religious landscape in Armagh, the two “St Patrick’s Cathedrals” together embodying the denominational division that followed the Reformation while both tracing their spiritual authority back to the same founding saint.
What you see
The cathedral’s imposing Gothic Revival facade is dominated by its twin spires, added under architect J. J. McCarthy and rising more than 60 metres above the western entrance, visible across much of the city of Armagh. The building’s decades-long construction history, spanning multiple architects and interrupted by national catastrophe, is reflected in its rich and varied decorative programme, developed in stages between 1840 and 1904.
Practical information
- Opening hours: generally open daily with seasonal variation; check current hours before visiting; free admission
- Address: Cathedral Road, Armagh, County Armagh BT61 7QX, Northern Ireland
Getting there
St Patrick’s Cathedral (Roman Catholic) is located on a hilltop in Armagh, Northern Ireland, easily reachable on foot from the city centre. GPS: 54.3526° N, -6.6591° E.
Nearby
- St Patrick’s Cathedral (Church of Ireland) — the older cathedral, on a neighbouring hill
- Armagh city centre — the surrounding historic city
- Armagh County Museum — a nearby heritage museum
Sources
- Wikipedia — “St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh (Roman Catholic)” (en.wikipedia.org)
- Catholic World Report — “The history of the ‘other St. Patrick’s Cathedral'” (catholicworldreport.com)
- Archdiocese of Armagh — “History of the Cathedral” (armagharchdiocese.org)
Find it on the map
See this place and what’s around it →📷 Diventa un fotografo di Cultural Heritage Online
Condividi le tue foto dei luoghi: restano pubblicate con la tua firma come autore. Più vengono viste, più ti fai conoscere — e presto un concorso premierà le foto più apprezzate.
Accedi o registrati gratis per aggiungere una foto