Christ the King Cathedral, Mullingar
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Christ the King Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral located in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland. It is situated near the centre of Mullingar next to the canal, and overlooks the local Garda Siochana base on College Street.
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[edit] Diocese of Meath
The cathedral is both the cathedral church of the diocese of Meath and the principal centre of worship in the catholic parish of Mullingar. This incudes both Meath and Westmeath counties for the major part.
Designed to replace the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (1836-1936), planning commenced in 1920. The architects appointed were William Byrne & Sons of Dublin.
Building began in March 1933 and the foundation stone was laid on 6 August of that year by Bishop Thomas Mulvany. The formal opening and dedication of the new cathedral took place on 6 September 1936. At the request of Pope Pius XI, it became the first cathedral in the world to be dedicated to Christ the King. It was solemnly consecrated on 6 August 1939.
[edit] Architecture
Basillican in form and renaissance in style, the cathedral has a seating capacity of 5,000. Its distinctive twin towers, surmounted by bronze crosses, rise to a height of about 55 metres. The total cost of the building, including decoration was 275,000 Irish pounds.
Messrs. Murphy of Dublin were the builders, while much of the artistic decoration work was completed by Earley & Co. of Camden Street, Dublin and Oppenheimer Ltd., of Old Trafford, Manchester.
[edit] Mosaics
The works of art for which the cathedral is most famous are the mosaics in the chapels of Saint Anne and Saint Patrick. These are the work of the Russian born mosaic artist Boris Anrep, whose work may also be found in Westminster Cathedral.
The Saint Patrick mosaic represents the saint lighting the Paschal fire on the mount of Slane. The principal figure is that of the saint in his apostolic mission, lifting the cross in a vigorous movement, in his other hand holding a torch. The firewood is arranged in a Christogram, signifying the symbolic importance of the fire.
[edit] Associated External links
- Official website for the diocese
- Diocese of Meath (Giga-Catholic Information)
- Catholic-Hierarchy.org - Diocese Profile
- Profile from CatholicCity.com - info from Catholic Encyclopedia
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