ST. MARY'S CHURCH OF IRELAND CATHEDRAL [LIMERICK CITY]-153058

Last year when I visited Limerick in May I brought Sony Lenses with me and I also used a Voigtlander 15mm which gave me some problems.

 

This year I am bring three Zeiss Batis lenses [25mm, 85mm and 135mm] and this will limit my options to some extent but they are light and weather resistant which is important because the weather forecast for the rest of the week is not good. My backup up will be an iPhone XR.

 

This photograph of St. Mary's Cathedral is from my May 2018 visit and I used a Sony A7RIII fitted with a Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM lens.

 

Saint Mary's Cathedral, Limerick, is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland and it is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin [that's a bit unexpected].

 

Previously the cathedral of the Diocese of Limerick, Ardfert and Aghadoe, it is now the central cathedral in the United Dioceses of Limerick and Killaloe.

 

In 1651, after Oliver Cromwell's forces captured Limerick, the cathedral was used as a stable by the parliamentary army. This misuse was short lived, but was a similar fate to that suffered by some of the other great cathedrals during the Cromwellian campaign in Ireland. The troops also removed the cathedral's original 13 ft Pre-Reformation high altar from the cathedral. The altar was only reinstated in the 1960s. It is the largest such altar in Ireland and the UK, carved from a single limestone block. The altar is now no longer used for communion services but remains in its historic location in what is now the chapel of the Virgin Mary.

 

In 1691, the cathedral suffered considerable damage, particularly on the east end, during the Williamite Siege of Limerick. After the Treaty of Limerick, William granted £1,000 towards repairs. There are cannonballs from 1691 in the Glentworth Chapel inside.

 

Today the cathedral is still used for its original purpose as a place of worship and prayer for the people of Limerick. It is open to the public every day from 9:00 am to 4:45 pm. For Tourists there is a 5 Euro suggested donation upon entry. This money is essential for the upkeep of the building, and without it, the cathedral simply could not function.

 

Following the retirement of the Very Rev'd Maurice Sir on 24 June 2012, Bishop Trevor Williams announced the appointment of the Reverend Sandra Ann Pragnell as Dean of Limerick and Rector of Limerick City Parish. She was the first female Dean of the cathedral and rector of Limerick City Parish, and retired in January 2017.

 

It was announced on 27 August 2017, that The Reverend Canon Niall James Sloane was to become the 63rd Dean of Limerick and the new rector of Limerick City Parish; with his installation and institution taking place on 21 October 2017 in the cathedral.

 

The cathedral grounds holds United Nations Memorial Plaque with the names of all the Irish men who died while serving in the United Nations Peacekeepers.

 

Done