Church of St Llawddog

Cadw's description

Location

Situated at west edge of the village, some 500m W of the Castle. Medieval tower, the rest rebuilt 1853-5 by Benjamin Ferrey of London, replacing a church of 1836-7 by Daniel Evans.

Exterior

W tower, nave, S. aisle, and chancel. N vestry and S organ chamber added c.1865. Cilgerran stone, slate roofs, coped gables and stone cross finials. Tracery in Bath stone, and some moulded slate. Plain W tower with cornice, single cusped C14 bell-openings, two with small carved face in apex. Plain chamfered openings below. C20 W doorway. 1853-5 work is in Decorated Gothic style with unusually finely detailed tracery. Hoodmoulds and bicoloured voussoirs to windows. 2-light windows, 3 to nave N, one to vestry N presumably reset from S aisle, one to chancel N and S, two to S aisle. Elaborate 3-light chancel E window with intersecting ogee arches, typical of Lincolnshire. S aisle has equally elaborate 3-light E window, copied from NW window of Castle Ashby Church, Northants. Organ-chamber has small traceried rose window. Windowless W end.

Monuments: At W end John Lloyd of Cilrhue (d.1657) with columns and broken pediment; Griffith Griffith (d.1822) oval slate with marble shield and sarcophagus by Daniel Mainwaring of Carmarthen; Abel A Gower of Glandovan (d.1837) by T Marsh of London, Gothic white marble. On N wall J R Phillips (d.1887) author of the History of Cilgerran; C20 memorial to Thomas Phaer of Fforest (d.1560). In S aisle W end, Abel Gower of Glandovan (d.1788) white marble, curved front; Margaret Owen of Rhiwsaison (1730s) with fluted columns and triglyph cornice, by William Palmer; Sir Erasmus Gower (d.1814) oval with urn and leaves. On S wall, Abel A Gower (d.1857) heavy neo-Grec.

In the churchyard to S, C5 to C6 standing stone inscribed 'TRENEGUSSI FILI MACUTRENI HIC IACIT', Scheduled Ancient Monument Pe 144.

Interior

Vaulted tower, plastered walls, open rafter roofs. Stone three-bay arcade with octagonal piers, chancel arch without capitals, and window reveals. Much 1850s stained glass, among the best in Dyfed, E window by Wailes c.1854-5, the S aisle E by O'Connor c.1854-5, three nave N windows c.1860 by Ballantine and the two chancel windows by J G Howe c.1855-60. S aisle two of c.1970 by Celtic Studios. Ornate Bath stone octagonal font said to be copied from St Mary Magdalen, Oxford. Bath stone pulpit carved by J E Thomas with marble shafting. Encaustic tiles in chancel and reredos of 1877 by E B Ferrey. N door moulded and shafted externally.