St. Macartin's Cathedral Enniskillen: Building has a long, rich past

With a spire that pierces the Enniskillen skyline, standing tall close to the spire of St. Michael’s Church opposite it, they are familiar landmarks in the town.

The cathedral itself is full of history and prestige and has hosted dignitaries such as The Queen and the President of Ireland, as well as many other civic guests of repute.

The Dean of Clogher, the Very Reverend Kenneth Hall, describes it as “an open building for all” and a “spiritual home for anybody who wants it”.

According to Samuel B. Morrow’s book, ‘St. Macartin’s Cathedral at the Heart of the Community’, the cathedral can trace its parish history back to the early 14th Century.

Around the start of the 17th Century, Sir William Cole was given the task of creating the town of Enniskillen.

According to Mr. Morrow’s book, it is thought that work on the building started in 1622. It was known as ‘St. Anne’s Church’, and may have been completed around 1637, according to dates carved on different stones in the now cathedral.

The original church was enlarged and reconfigured in 1842. Part of the tower and south wall remain from the original structure, with further enlargement taking place in 1889.

It was not until 1923, however, when St. Anne’s Church became St. Macartin’s Cathedral that its central position in Enniskillen was acknowledged, with regards to the Church of Ireland in the Diocese of Clogher.

It was in 1923 that the choir stalls and bishop’s throne were added to the furniture.

READ MORE:St. Michael's Church: A community hub of prayer set in the heart of Enniskillen

Today, there are some fascinating artifacts and aspects in regards to the cathedral, with possibly one of the oldest artifacts in the town of Enniskillen being a communion chalice.

During the 1641 Rising, Enniskillen Castle and town was the only stronghold in Fermanagh not to be captured, according to Mr. Morrow’s Parish History.

“It was a safe refuge for those Planters who were forced to abandon their homes elsewhere in the county,” the book states.

“Numbers attending Enniskillen Church would have swollen at this time. However, the Rector of Enniskillen, Precentor John Smith, obviously had serious concerns about the security of the town.

“He returned to England, taking with him for safekeeping a valuable piece of communion silver.

“He died in Dublin in 1653. In his will, he mentions a chalice and cover belonging to Enniskillen parish – present at his request by Edward Davis.

“This chalice, dated 1638, is still in regular use in St. Macartin’s Cathedral.”

The bells in St. Macartin’s also have a rich history. There was a bell in the church tower from the time the church was built, and over the centuries people gifted bells to the church, such as King William of Orange, who gifted two cannons used during the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, and were melted down to make two bells for the church – the Earl of Belmore, and the Earl of Enniskillen.

In 1918, it was the bells of the parish church peeling at 7am on November 11 which announced the end of the First World War, with Enniskillen becoming the first town in the United Kingdom to hear the news.

The cathedral is also well endowed with fine stained-glass windows. According to the book, these have been installed as memorials to individuals, organisations or events.

The crowning glory is the east window, which is regarded as one of the finest stained-glass windows in the island of Ireland. The window was erected by William Willoughby, Earl of Enniskillen, as a memorial to his wife, Countess Jane, who died in 1855.

The visit of HRH Queen Elizabeth and her late husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 2012 as part of their Diamond Jubilee anniversary is probably the most significant day in the history of the church.

It was the first time for a monarch to visit the cathedral, and the Queen also crossed the street to St. Michael’s Church – the first time The Queen had visited a Roman Catholic Church in Ireland.

Her Majesty’s dual visit displayed the special relationship between St. Macartin’s and St. Michael’s, and the close relationship between Dean Hall and Monsignor Peter O’Reilly.

This outreach by The Queen ‘rubber-stamped’ the work both churches were doing, Dean Hall recalls.

He said: “It was an equal balance [between both religious landmarks] because the President of Ireland, he came to St. Michael’s, and came across St. Macartin’s, and we needed that balance.

“Actually, it was in Windsor Castle where Peter [O’Reilly] and I met the Irish President, and we invited him to Enniskillen, and the invitation was extended in Windsor Castle.

“The Queen and the President were together, and they were talking about Enniskillen and the outreach, and that to us sort of rubber-stamped, or give us the stamp of approval, from both jurisdictions – trying to build community.

“Really, what it is, it’s not just looking after your own, but it’s all about building community and reaching out.”

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This outreach sees Dean Hall – who has been Rector of Enniskillen Parish since 2010 – describes the beauty of the cathedral as being a spiritual place for anybody, an outlook strengthened by the cathedral’s motto: ‘St. Macartin’s – The heart of the community, strength and commitment, outreach, worship and Christian love’.

Work is set to get under way on the roof of the cathedral. Dean Hall sums the cathedral’s legacy up when he looks ahead to its future, too.

“While we’ve been there for 400 years, it will be there for hundreds of years to come, and we will see it as a welcoming centre and that’s what we will continue to be.”

Indeed, with 400 years of history inside the grounds of the cathedral on Church Street, the cathedral remains a prominent landmark both physically and spiritually in Enniskillen, and will do so for many years to come.

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