St Mary's Church, Betws Gwerful Goch, is in the village of
Betws Gwerful Goch
Betws Gwerfil Goch (Standard Welsh: ''Betws Gwerful Goch'') is a village and community in Denbighshire, Wales. It had a population of 351 at the 2011 census. Until 1974 it was part of Edeirnion Rural District in Meirionnydd, and was transf ...
,
Denbighshire, Wales. It is an active
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
church in the deanery of Penllyn & Edeyrnion, the archdeaconry of Wrexham and the
diocese of St Asaph. The church is designated by
Cadw
(, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage s ...
as a Grade II*
listed building.
History
The building dates probably from the 12th century although there may have been an earlier church on the site dedicated to Saint Elain.
It was restored by the
Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
architect
John Douglas in 1881–82.
In the process of this restoration, the north door was removed, a
vestry with a chimney was added, and the
box pews were taken out. The plaster was removed from the walls, windows were replaced, a
buttress was added to the south side, a new screen was erected. A new
bellcote with a spire, and the
lychgate were added. In 1985 the bellcote had to be removed.
[
]
Architecture
The church is built in shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...
. The roofs are covered in slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
s, with stone ridge tiles. Its plan consists of a nave and a chancel, with a south porch and a vestry to the north of the chancel. At the east end is a stone cross finial
A finial (from '' la, finis'', end) or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature.
In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a d ...
. The east window is part of Douglas' restoration; it consists of three lights with ogee heads.[
]
See also
*
References
File:St Mary's Church, Betws - Douglas.jpg, Douglas' design for the restoration of the church (from the southeast), showing the bellcote and spire
File:St Mary's Church, Betws - Groundplan.jpg, Douglas' groundplan for the restoration
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bettws Gwerfil Gogh, St Mary's Church
Grade II* listed churches in Denbighshire
Church in Wales church buildings in Denbighshire
John Douglas buildings