St John the Baptist Cathedral, Sligo, Anglican cathedral in Sligo, Ireland.
St John the Baptist Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Sligo designed with Roman-influenced architecture featuring a spacious interior framed by stone pillars and vaulted passageways. The building displays a structured layout where arches and columns create distinct sections throughout the worship space.
The current structure was designed by German architect Richard Cassels in 1730, making it the oldest continuously used building in Sligo Town. This design established standards for church architecture in the region during that era.
The cathedral's full title, the Cathedral of St Mary the Virgin and St John the Baptist, dates from 25 October 1961, when St John's Church replaced the storm-damaged Elphin and Ardagh cathedral at Kilmore. The west tower is thought to hold remnants of the 13th-century hospital and parish that first stood on the site.
The cathedral stands in Sligo town centre, in the Church of Ireland diocese of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh within the province of Armagh. It has been in continuous use since about 1730, making it the oldest building still in use in the town. Look for the surviving round-arched Romanesque windows in the west tower, which may hold remnants of the earlier 13th-century hospital and parish on the site.
The west tower is thought to contain remnants of the 13th-century hospital and parish that once stood on the site, and some original Romanesque round-arched windows survive there despite the 1812 and 1883 renovations that removed most of them.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,170 contributors worldwide.