Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin

Christ Church Cathedral rises here as a medieval cathedral of the Church of Ireland, dedicated to the Holy Trinity. Its heavy stonework and pointed forms express Gothic architecture, while the tower, flying buttresses and covered footbridge belong to the rebuilding that created its present appearance. The cathedral began in 1031 under Sitric Silkenbeard, the Viking ruler of Dublin.

Later, Norman patrons replaced the early structure with stone, and craftsmen brought from Somerset shaped much of the work during the major expansion of the early 13th century. The long nave carries that medieval story in its scale, but the building also bears the marks of disaster: in the 16th century, ground movement through peat caused the nave’s foundations to slip, bringing down the south wall and its stone roof. The surviving north wall leans and largely dates from 1230. Look at the covered footbridge and the flying buttresses as parts of the late rebuilding, then take in the cathedral as Dublin’s elder medieval cathedral, alongside St Patrick’s Cathedral in the city’s historic pair.