Saint Patrick’s is the largest church in Ireland. Although first built between 1200 and 1270, it was heavily restored between 1860 and 1900 by the Guinness family, having been the victim of religious persecution and neglect for hundreds of years. Much of the earlier fabric remains though, including the massive West Tower of 1370 with one of the largest peals of bells in Ireland and medieval floor tiles, now in the Baptistery, which were discovered during the restoration. Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver’s Travels and Dean of St Patrick’s from 1713 to 1745, is buried here.
