Clonard Monastery, Clonard Street, Belfast, County Antrim

Clonard Monastery is an asymmetrical three-storey-with-attic Gothic Revival monastery built in red brick and stone, erected around 1900 to the designs of John J. McDonnell, one of the principal architects working in Belfast at that time. It was established by the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer — the Redemptorists — and remains in continuous use as a religious house. The building forms part of an important group of structures on Clonard Street, together with the attached Church of the Most Holy Redeemer, the gate screen, and the former Clonard House across the road. It carries considerable social importance for the local community.

Architectural Description

The monastery is L-shaped on plan, facing south, and sits on an elevated site on the east side of Clonard Street, abutting the east elevation of the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer. The roof is natural slate with a mansard profile, terracotta ridge tiles, and lead trim. Steeply pitched dormer windows are fitted with single-pane timber sash windows set within decoratively carved surrounds with iron finials and splayed lead sills. The rainwater goods are replacement steel moulded guttering supported on sandstone corbels with box downpipes.

The external walls are red brick laid in Flemish bond, with continuous flush sandstone sill and impost courses running along the elevations, a projecting brick plinth course, and splayed sandstone ashlar trim. Window openings are both square-headed and pointed-headed, formed in stop-chamfered flush sandstone surrounds with moulded sandstone sills. The original multi-pane timber sash windows with ogee horns survive throughout.

South Elevation

The principal south elevation is eight windows wide, with a four-storey gabled projection at the east end advancing by a further five windows. At second-floor level, square-headed paired window openings contain horizontally glazed 2/2 timber sash windows. The first floor has pointed-headed openings with 4/4 timber sash windows. The ground floor has square-headed openings with 4/4 timber sash windows, bowtel-moulded lintels, and decoratively carved limestone panels above. The westernmost bay comprises a full-height three-sided canted bay window with a flat lead-lined roof set behind a crenellated parapet wall.

The entrance bay is an off-centre gabled shallow breakfront, surmounted by a stone cross. It has paired windows to the first and second floors above decoratively carved limestone panels, and a quatrefoil window to the apex. At first-floor level, a hooded niche at the centre contains a carved statue of Christ the Redeemer, resting on a cluster of squat polished granite columns with stiff-leaf capitals; the flanking windows have carved limestone shields below their sills. The entrance door opening is pointed-headed, formed in a compound moulded sandstone surround comprising a pair of polished granite columns with stiff-leaf capitals rising from the plinth course, supporting a voussoired head and hood moulding. The double-leaf timber doors are set within a recessed square-headed opening with a stone-traceried overlight containing a quatrefoil light with leaded coloured glazing.

North Rear Elevation

The multi-bay north rear elevation is ten windows wide and is abutted at the centre by a square-plan four-storey crenellated tower. The walls are red brick in Flemish bond with pointed-headed stop-chamfered brick window surrounds, sandstone sills, and 4/4 timber sash windows. The tower has multi-pane fixed timber windows. At the west end, a single-storey rear entrance projection is built in red brick with sandstone dressings matching the front elevation. Its Tudor-arched door opening is formed in a compound moulded sandstone surround with decoratively carved spandrel panels, and houses a double-leaf woodgrained door with a Y-tracery timber fanlight. At the east end, a single-storey projection behind the boundary wall has a stepped hipped slate roof and glazed lantern.

East Elevation

The east side elevation is seven windows wide, with dormers matching those on the front elevation, paired square-headed windows at second-floor level, and pointed-headed window openings to the ground and first floors. The brick walls are reinforced by three two-stage stepped buttresses. At the north end, the stairhall has windows at half-landing levels, including a lucarne window rising into the roof with a Venetian arch window, and fixed multi-pane windows to the remaining floors.

East Wing South Elevation

The south elevation of the east wing forms a large four-storey gabled elevation. To the centre of the upper two levels is a double-height limestone tracery window with leaded coloured glazing, and decoratively carved limestone plaques between the levels. At first-floor level there is a further pointed-headed window opening with limestone Y-tracery and leaded glazing. The west cheek of the advanced wing is detailed in the same manner as the principal elevation, and a diminutive lean-to timber-glazed porch sits in the re-entrant angle, set on a slightly raised platform with sandstone steps, fronting a secondary entrance with a timber door.

Setting

The monastery stands on the east side of Clonard Street on an elevated site abutting the east side of the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer. A bitmac forecourt provides some parking. A walled garden to the southeast forms the east boundary of the site. The rear boundary is enclosed by tall red brick walls with blind recessed panels and terracotta coping.

Historical Background

Shortly after becoming Catholic Bishop of Down and Connor in 1895, Bishop Henry announced his intention to found a Redemptorist house in west Belfast, believing the Redemptorists could assist the local clergy. Clonard House was acquired, and the Redemptorists took formal possession of it on 31 October 1896, providing short-term accommodation while plans were approved by Rome for a residence large enough to house a community of 18 to 20 and to provide a retreat for men. The authorities in Rome insisted that the cost of building the monastery should not exceed £11,000. The contract was won by W.J. Campbell & Son, who submitted a tender of £10,500; the contract was signed on 27 May 1898. The first sod was dug by Father Griffith on 9 June 1898, and the foundation stone was laid on 15 August by Bishop Henry.

During construction, a dispute arose between the builder and architect over the quality of the facing brick: McDonnell considered it insufficiently high in quality but ultimately allowed what had already been laid to remain. The monastery was completed one year and nine months after work began, and the Redemptorists moved in on 2 May 1900. The following day, the Sisters of Mercy moved into Clonard House. The monastery also served as a seminary for Redemptorist clerical students, 28 of whom moved in during August 1900, following the separation of the Irish Redemptorist province from the English province in 1898 — students having previously studied in England. The students left in 1905 and transferred to the new monastery at Esker, County Galway.

In 1907, McDonnell prepared plans to convert four rooms on the first floor into a library. In 1986, repairs to the tower were required following storm damage. In 1996 there was a proposal to replace the railings, gates, piers, and walls, which had become dilapidated, with higher-standard stone pillars and railings to match those around the church. During a programme of refurbishment completed in 2001, repairs to the roof were carried out along with repointing of brickwork and the provision of disabled access.