St James's Church, Rudry is an historic

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

church in the village of

Rudry Rudry () is a small village and community located to the east of Caerphilly in Wales. As a community Rudry contains not only the village of Rudry, but also the villages of Draethen, Garth and Waterloo. The population of the community at the 2 ...

in the Diocese of Monmouth.

History

The church was founded in the mid 13th Century (possibly 1254) as a

wayside shrine A wayside shrine is a religious image, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway, sometimes in a settlement or at a crossroads, but often in the middle of an empty stretch of country road, or at the top of a hill or mount ...

used by pilgrims. A church was present at the location by 1295, when it was a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

to the parish church in

Bedwas Bedwas is a town situated two miles north-east of Caerphilly, south Wales, situated in the Caerphilly (county borough), Caerphilly county borough, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshi ...

, St Barrwg. It retained this function for the next 619 years, separating from Bedwas in 1914. The parish records at St James's date back to 1627. After 1254, the Bishop of Llandaf held the right to appoint the parish priest at Rudry, a practice which would continue until 1920. There exists a long-standing local myth that

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

sought refuge in St James's during the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

. Hard evidence for this is lacking, though it is known that King Charles I spent time at nearby

Ruperra Castle Ruperra Castle or Rhiwperra Castle () is a Grade II* Listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument, situated in Lower Machen in the county borough of Caerphilly, Wales. Built in 1626, the castle is in a ruinous condition as at 2023. Its gr ...

. In the late 18th Century, the officiant at St James's was Father William Price, an eccentric priest who was known for his habit of swimming naked in local ponds. His son was William Price, the archdruid and pioneer of

cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a corpse through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India, Nepal, and ...

, who was baptised in St James's in 1800.

Conservation

The church was restored by

John Prichard John Prichard (6 May 1817 – 13 October 1886) was a Welsh architect in the neo-Gothic style. As diocesan architect of Llandaff, he was involved in the building or restoration of many churches in south Wales. Personal history John Prichard ...

in 1885. It was Grade II listed in 1963. The tower at St James's was refurbished in the early 2011s.

Churchyard

There are two

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

memorials in the churchyard, marking the burial place of two soldiers of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. They commemorate Private David John Jones of the Australian Infantry, who died in September 1918, age 34, and Gunner Walter James Moses of the Royal Garrison Artillery, who died in November 1918, age 27. The war memorial and three chest

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

s of the Moses family in the churchyard are Grade II listed.

References

External links

*
BBC blog on Rudry village
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudry, Saint James Church in Wales church buildings in Caerphilly County Borough Churchyards in Wales Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Wales Grade II listed churches in Caerphilly County Borough John Prichard buildings