St. Cronan's Church, Roscrea (Church of Ireland)

St. Cronan's Church is a 19th-century

Original church

The grounds include part of a 12th-century Romanesque church which was demolished in 1812 to make way for the construction of the current church. Only the western gable of the original church remains, including a

Current church design

The modern church was designed by local architect James Sheane, whose name is inscribed on a datestone in the tower and who was buried in the churchyard upon his death in 1816.^[5] A porch was later added by John Bowden. The church was restored in 1879 by Thomas Newenham Deane.^[6] The original construction was funded by the Board of First Fruits with a gift of £100 and a loan of £775.^[7]

It is a detached, single-cell, gable-fronted church. The pitched roof is covered with artificial slate. There are 5 bays on each side of the nave which features Gothic pointed-arch stained glass windows, with a vestry to the south east, and a porch and 4-stage bell tower to the south west. The string coursed sandstone walls and tower feature crenellation and pinnacles, as well as diagonal buttresses and pinnacles on the porch. The pointed-arch main doorway holds a timber battened double-leaf door.^[2]

Preservation

The church has been renovated several times, including a large renovation in the 1960s when the slate roof was replaced, the interior was redecorated, and the graveyard was deforested.^{[citation needed]}

Its most notable historical artefact is a 17th-century pre-Reformation silver chalice decorated with raised angelic figures. The chalice may have been used at a wedding as the letters S.C. M.P., thought to be the initials of the couple, are inscribed on the base.^[8]

References