"I have loved, O Lord, the beauty of thy house': Magnificence and Catholic Architecture in Ireland, 1850–1900.

This article examines the deliberate expression of "magnificence" in Catholic church building projects across Ireland between 1850 and 1900, focusing on case studies in Tipperary, Limerick, and Armagh. It highlights how architectural grandeur—through site prominence, detailed design, and high-quality materials—was used to legitimize costly construction efforts funded by financially strained communities and to symbolize the Catholic Church’s central role in Irish religious life. The article situates these buildings within broader historical and transnational contexts, showing how their styles referenced medieval French cathedrals and classical Catholic Rome to forge a renewed Irish Catholic architectural identity that conveyed triumph over past persecution and global spiritual ambition. It also emphasizes the churches’ role in creating sensory and emotional worship experiences integral to the nineteenth-century "devotional revolution."