In the small village of Loughguile, near the Glens of Antrim, where Cardinal Cahal Daly was born, those who knew him have spoken of their sadness at the loss of such “an inspirational man”.

Among those who met the 92-year-old was Ita McGarry, the owner of the Pound Bar in the village.

“Everyone is just saddened to hear that he is gone because he came here every year faithfully to commemorate the death of his parents and his sisters who are buried here with a Mass,” she said.

“He was very friendly and always called in to say hello — he was really a Loughguile man at heart.

“There was also real pride that he was from here.”

Harry Connolly, SDLP councillor and friend of the cardinal, said people were shocked to hear he had been brought into hospital earlier this week.

“He was so very well-known when he was a curate. Then when he became bishop he always came back here to say a Mass,” he said.

Mr Connolly said he has many memories of the cardinal.

“When he was elevated to cardinal I had the privilege of being one of the people selected to go to St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh,” Mr Connolly explained.

“There were only about three or four places and I will never forget it. It was a day of great celebration for the people in Loughguile and wider afield. He will be very badly missed.”

Armagh

In Armagh, the death of Cardinal Daly caused much sadness in a community where he was much respected by all who knew him.

His funeral Mass will take place at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Armagh on Tuesday before he is laid to rest in the adjoining cemetery which has a commanding view from the hillside around Armagh and across to the Church of Ireland Cathedral.

Parishioner Gerry Gribbon said: “We got a Christmas card from him and he filled the card from back to front with gospel and greeting. He was a genuinely lovely man, gentle but firm and he had a nice way of working with people. It was a privilege to know him.

“He was a fabulous servant to the poor, there was nothing high and mighty, he was a very humble man. If there was a function he always went to the kitchen to thank people for their hard work. He taught by example.”

John Rafferty, another Armagh parishioner, said he remembered Cardinal Daly and all the cardinals who had been based at St Patrick’s Cathedral Armagh.

“I remember seeing him at the Charlemount Hotel and I said to him, ‘I’m not particularly religious’, and he said ‘Oh, we’ll make you religious’. I thought it was very funny, he had a sense of humour,” he said.

Belfast

In Belfast, parishioners at St Peter’s Cathedral and St Patrick’s Church in Donegall Street paid tribute to Cardinal Daly.

The cardinal will be lying in state at St Peter’s Cathedral over the weekend, prior to burial at Armagh Cathedral.

Fr Stephen Quinn said preparations were being made to receive the cardinal and the clergy there were expecting it to be a busy time as many people are expected to visit to pay their last respects.

“It is a privilege for the Parish of St Peter’s. There have been prayers for him at Masses while he was ill and yesterday morning Mass was offered for him on news of his death,” he said.

Fr Michael Sheehan said: “Cardinal Daly was highly devoted to Mary the Mother of God, and it is significant that he died on the vigil of the feast day of Mary the Mother of God. He was born on the feast day of St Therese of Lisieux.

“Cahal was not just known among the clergy here, originally he was from this diocese and was made Bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise. He would have ordained a lot of priests now in their 40s and 50s.

“He was a gentleman in many different ways. As a person he was very quiet, very prayerful, like a gentle grandfather. Along with all the priests of the Diocese, Cardinal Daly made a special effort to call when my mother, the late Maureen Sheehan (61), was killed by joyriders in 2000. He was present and very supportive of the family and of my late father Pat Sheehan.”

Mrs Sheehan was a district nurse, and the Maureen Sheehan Centre, which stands opposite St Peter’s Cathedral, was named in her honour.