ST. NICHOLAS COLLEGIATE CHURCH

St. Nicholas’ Collegiate Church is the largest remaining medieval church in Ireland still in use. The church is dedicated to St. Nicholas of Myra, a patron saint of children and of seafarers, in recognition of Galway’s status as a port town.

It has been disputed as to when the church was actually built but certainly dates back to the 1320’s. The church has paid host to famous visitors over the centuries such as Christopher Columbus in 1477 and also to the less welcomed Cromwellian troops in 1652 who used the church as a stable for their horses after the siege of Galway. The troops are blamed for the headless and handless state of most of the carved figures inside the church.

In addition, there are many interesting and entertaining monuments and memorials within the church to be seen.