This scholarly monk, who penned the celebrated biography of his kinsman St. Colmcille, maintained close ties with the monastery at Raphoe. By the 12th century, the site had grown in ecclesiastical importance, becoming established as a diocesan see. A round tower once graced the monastery grounds, but it met an unfortunate end in 1636;7 when Bishop John Leslie demolished it to make way for his new palace. Historical records, including John Lynch’s De Praesulibus Hibernicis, suggest the bishop’s palace was built directly on the tower’s former site.

Today’s cathedral bears the architectural scars of centuries of modifications and rebuilding. The earliest surviving work includes a triple sedilia and piscina bowl tucked into the south wall of the chancel, discovered during restoration work around 1888. These features, with their trefoil leaves and nail head bands, display the characteristic style of 13th century craftsmanship. The building underwent further alterations during the 15th and 16th centuries, evidenced by numerous surviving fragments from that period; a cusped ogee;headed window in the chancel’s south wall, complete with hood;mould and head terminals, and a rebuilt two;light window with multi;moulded jambs, mullion and transom at the western end.

The cathedral’s collection once included some remarkable carved details that hint at the skill of medieval stonemasons. Hood;mould terminals decorated with vine leaves, a skew;corbel bearing a sheep’s head, and narrow rectangular windows topped with carved heads all speak to the building’s rich decorative programme. Perhaps the most intriguing piece was a hood;mould terminal that depicted a dramatic hunting scene; a stag with a dog on its back and a dragon with a cat;like head biting a twisted stem. This particular treasure was stolen from outside the porch in 1980, having been removed to Drumaneny House and later returned to the cathedral. Of the original monastery, only two pieces of a sculptured door;lintel remain visible, silent witnesses to Raphoe’s ancient religious significance.