Enniskillen Cathedral
Enniskillen, County Fermanagh
During the summer our 400 year old church is open to visitors every day and it would be even nicer if you could attend one of our services. We would love to meet you!
Built in 1897, the current church stands on a site rich in Presbyterian heritage, with roots stretching back to the 1640s. It is the spiritual home of a congregation first formed in 1676, making it one of the oldest Presbyterian communities in Ireland.
Architecturally, the church captivates with its five bay nave, lancet windows, and Tudor style doorway, all framed by iron railings and sturdy stone pillars. The hipped timber roof, supported by elaborate hammerbeam trusses, speaks to the craftsmanship of the era, though the architect remains unknown.
Inside, a series of stained glass windows offer more than just beauty - they tell powerful stories. The Pulpit Window, a World War I memorial window by George Hillyard Swinstead (1860–1926) depicting Christ appearing to two soldiers on the battlefield. It was first shown at the War Exhibition held at the Prince’s Skating Club in Knightsbridge in September 1915 and shows an officer of the Royal Army Medical Corps who is supporting a badly wounded soldier, while with an expression of hope he gazes at a white vision of Christ. In the background the horrors of the battlefield are suggested. Another window honours six congregation members who lost their lives in the 1987 Enniskillen bombing, incorporating a carved plaque made from timber salvaged from the bomb site.
The south facing window celebrates Presbyterian identity with symbols like the burning bush and the Solemn League and Covenant, recalling the Scottish roots of the faith. Texts from Scripture and powerful visual motifs run throughout, affirming the congregation’s enduring witness “in spirit and in truth.”
Enniskillen Presbyterian Church played a key role in a spirited 19th century debate over music in worship. In the 1880s, the introduction of a harmonium by Revd Alexander Cooper McClatchy sparked controversy, with some viewing instrumental music as a "pollutant" to pure worship. Despite opposition from the Synod and a formal Assembly ban, the congregation stood firm, making Enniskillen the first Irish Presbyterian church to use an organ in public worship. One piece of the original harmonium still survives.
The remains of the area’s earlier monastic past can still be discovered in the local landscape, from the unique and intriguing carved stone figures on Boa Island, White Island and in Killadeas Graveyard, to the imposing 12th century round tower on Devenish Island - an important monastic site founded in the 6th century by St Molaise.