78 Churches to Explore in Ireland

Checkout places to visit in Ireland

Ireland

A country in the north-western Europe. Ireland, or Republic of Ireland shares its only border with Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. It is surrounded by the ocean in all it's other sides. About 40% of the countries 5 million population lives in the greater city area of Dublin.

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Churches to Explore in Ireland

Old Mellifont Abbey

This is the first Cistercian monastery in Ireland. St Malachy of Armagh created it in 1142 with the help of a small number of monks sent by St Bernard from Clairvaux. It has several extraordinary architectural features, the foremost of which is the two-storey octagonal lavabo. Today, the ruined abbey is a National monument of Ireland and accessible to the public.

Old St. Mary's Church, Clonmel

Old St. Mary's Church, also known as St. Mary's Church of Ireland Church, is a medieval church in Clonmel, County Tipperary, Ireland. The Church's main features are a 27 ft square, 84 ft high bell tower, the eastern tower house, and ornate 16th Century east and west windows. The Tower had, at one time, a wooden spire and belfry, which has not been restored. Crenellated parapets suggest that this was a fortified structure.

Roscommon Abbey

A beautiful abbey that was founded over 750 years ago by Felim O'Conor, King of Connacht, who was buried there in 1265. It has many highlights, including an effigy of a king dressed in a long robe and mantle. It is thought to be O'Conor, who was buried on the grounds, or possibly one of his successors.

Roscommon Friary

St. Mary’s Dominican Priory is located on the outskirts of the historical medieval town of Roscommon, which at its core includes the Anglo-Norman castle and house of Augustinian canons located on the site of the earlier monastery of St Commán. The church had a long north aisle, but only part of the arcade remains. There was a nave and chancel with a central tower and cloister. Nothing remains of the tower or the cloister.

Saint Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral

St Mary's Cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh. The cathedral has a cruciform plan and its style is described as ‘Early English Gothic’. The design is believed to have been based on Gloucester Cathedral in Gloucester, England. It is situated on the highest point in Kilkenny City and is a significant local landmark.

Selskar Abbey

Selskar Abbey is a 12th-century structure that replaced a pre-Christian temple dedicated to Odin. The complex, which is part of the Westgate Heritage Tower, was the location where the first Anglo-Irish treaty was signed. This ecclesiastical site would have overlooked the River Slaney at the time, as the land past Redmond Square was not reclaimed until later years.

Slane Abbey

Slane Abbey is the ruins on the Hill of Slane, Ireland where Saint Patrick infamously lit his bonfire during the pagan festival of Ostara, directly opposite the Hill of Tara. The current ruins include 1512 CE reconstructions of the monastic Abbey.

Sligo Abbey

This Dominican Friary was founded in the mid-13th century and served as both a religious centre and community gathering space, especially as a refuge for displaced landowners. It was built in the Romanesque style with some later additions and alterations. Extensive ruins remain, mainly of the church and the cloister.

St Aidan's Cathedral

A majestic cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ferns, which was located in Enniscorthy, County Wexford, in Ireland. The saint to whom the cathedral is dedicated is Máedóc of Ferns, also known as Áedan or Aidan, who died in 626, and not to be confused with St. Aidan of Lindisfarne , an Irish missionary who died in 651. Notable features include the façade, a reredos carved from Caen stone and a great north window with intricate stone tracery.

St Brigid's Shrine

According to tradition, Saint Brigid was born at Fochard Muirtheimne, about 450 AD. The place was later known as Fochard Bríde. The site is of ancient origin and would seem to have begun during her lifetime. Brigid's cult grew to a status second only to that of Patrick, and to the Irish she was known as Mary of the Gael.

St Columb's Cathedral

This was the first Cathedral built after the Reformation. It is the city’s most historic building containing displays of artefacts from the Siege. It was built in 1633 by William Parrot for the Honourable The Irish Society and is in the Planter Gothic Style. Built after the Reformation in Ireland, St Columb's is the first Anglican cathedral to have been built in the British Isles after the Reformation and was the first non-Roman Catholic cathedral to be built in Western Europe.

St Declan's Cathedral

One of the earliest ecclesiastical sites in Ireland was founded in Ardmore by Saint Declan, a pre-Patrician Saint in the 5th century. At the site are the later remains of an ecclesiastical enclosure. Inside the enclosure are Saint Declans Oratory, the 'Cathedral' shown above, a 12th century round tower, two ogham stones and several cross slabs. The Cathedral, which consists of a nave and chancel, was built by Moelettrim O Duibh Rathra sometime during the 12th century in a number of phases.

St Doulagh's Church

St Doulagh's Church was previously home to a Medieval monastic settlement. St Doulagh, who was a hermit, founded the monastic settlement in the 7th century at this site. It is the oldest stone-roofed church still in use in Ireland and it is located in Kinsealy. The original portion of the building is 48 feet by 18 feet, with a double roof of rough stone set with cement. The original walls are three feet thick. The battlemented square tower was added in the 15th Century.

St Eugene's Cathedral

St Eugene's Cathedral is the Roman Catholic cathedral located in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is the "Mother Church" for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Derry, as well as the parish Church of the parish of Templemore. The cathedral was officially opened on 4 May 1873 by the then Bishop of Derry, Francis Kelly. At first the cathedral's windows were made of plain glass due to lack of funds. It was not until the late 1890s when stained glass windows were installed.

St Michael's Church

St. Michael's Catholic Church, Enniskillen is a French Gothic revival style church built in 1870–1875 under the direction of the Belfast architects O'Neill & Byrne. This was one of the iconic attraction in this area and a main pilgrimage site too.

St Muredach's Cathedral

St. Muredach's Cathedral is the Cathedral Church of the Diocese of Killala. The Diocese of Killala encompasses North Mayo and West Sligo. St. Muredach’s is also the parish church of the parish of Kilmoremoy.Work on the Cathedral began in 1827 under the direction of Reverend Dr. John MacHale, Coadjutor Bishop of Killala. Did you know Reverend MacHale is the ONLY Bishop of the Diocese of Killala to have been appointed Archbishop of Tuam.

St Patrick's Church of Ireland Cathedral

St. Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh, Northern Ireland is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland. It was built in various phases between 1840 and 1904 to serve as the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Armagh, the original Medieval Cathedral of St. Patrick having been appropriated by the state church called the Church of Ireland at the time of the Irish Reformation.

St Peter’s Tin Church Laragh

St. Peter's Church in Laragh, County Monaghan, Ireland, is a tin tabernacle constructed in 1890 from corrugated iron and timber.The Swiss-Gothic design of the church was inspired by travels on the continent in the 1800s by Laragh Tweed Mill operator James McKean and his wife. It is part of Ireland’s irreplaceable built heritage and was listed as a Building of National Importance by National Inventory of Architectural Heritage in 2014.

St. Brigid's Cathedral & Round Tower

St Brigid’s Cathedral stands on the site where Saint Brigid founded a nunnery in the 5th century. The entire site is steeped in important religious history; it’s believed to be the location at which Saint Brigid, one of Ireland’s patron saints, founded a nunnery in the 5th century.

St. Carthage's Cathedral

St. Carthage Cathedral, Lismore is a Church of Ireland cathedral in Lismore, County Waterford. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin. Formerly the cathedral of the Diocese of Lismore, it is now one of six cathedrals in the United Dioceses of Cashel and Ossory. The medieval cathedral was in ruins after a fire in the 17th century.

Map of Churches to explore in Ireland