St Mary's Church, Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf is a small medieval church in

Anglesey Anglesey ( ; ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms the bulk of the Principal areas of Wales, county known as the Isle of Anglesey, which also includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island () and some islets and Skerry, sker ...

, north Wales. The earliest parts of the building, including the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and the north doorway, date from the 14th century. Other parts, including the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

and the east window, date from the 15th century. It is associated with the Welsh poet and clergyman Goronwy Owen, who was born nearby and served as curate here. He later travelled to America to teach at The College of William & Mary,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. The church is still in use for worship, as part of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

, as one of three churches in the combined parish of Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf with Llanbedrgoch with Pentraeth. It is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, a national designation given to "particularly important buildings of more than special interest", because it is a "good rural church retaining substantial medieval fabric."

History and location

St Mary's Church is situated near the east coast of

, north Wales. It is by the side of a country road near the village of Brynteg. The parish includes the coastal resort of Benllech. The parish takes its name in part from the church: the Welsh word ' originally meant "enclosure" and then "church", and "-fair" is a modified form of Mary (' in Welsh). "Mathafarn Eithaf" translates as "area (or field) of the tavern". It is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

church, and the oldest part of the building is the

, which dates from the 14th century. The

and the arch between nave and chancel were added in the following century. The architect of the Diocese of Bangor, Henry Kennedy, carried out work on the church in 1847. He added a

vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government of a parish in England, Wales and some English colony, English colonies. At their height, the vestries were the only form of local government in many places and spen ...

on the north side and a porch to the south, as well as making some other alterations and additions, such as the re-roofing of the chancel. The church is still in use for worship, as part of the

. It is one of three churches in the combined

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf with Llanbedrgoch with Pentraeth. It is within the

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

of Tindaethwy and Menai, the archdeaconry of Bangor and the Diocese of Bangor. As of 2012, the position of rector is held by the Venerable R P Davies,

Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

of Bangor. Services are held on a Sunday morning, alternating between Holy Communion and Morning Prayer. The Welsh priest and poet Goronwy Owen, who was born in the parish on 1 January 1723, served for three weeks as curate of St Mary's. He later travelled to America to teach at The College of William & Mary,

, and remained in Virginia until his death.

Architecture and fittings

St Mary's is built from

rubble masonry Rubble masonry or rubble stone is rough, uneven building stone not laid in regular courses. It may fill the core of a wall which is faced with unit masonry such as brick or ashlar. Some medieval cathedral walls have outer shells of ashlar wi ...

, with buttresses at the eastern ends of the

and

, and it has a slate roof. The timbers of the roof can be seen from inside the church. There is a bellcote at the west end of the roof, containing one bell dated 1849. The church has a gallery at the west end, reached by climbing a spiral staircase. The nave is longer and higher than the chancel, with one step and a simple 15th-century chancel arch between them. The nave measures about 52 feet 6 inches by 16 feet 3 inches (about 16 by 5 m), and the chancel measures about 18 feet 6 inches by 13 feet 6 inches (about 5.6 by 4.1 m). Entrance is through the porch in the middle of the south wall of the nave, which houses a round-headed doorway from the 15th or 16th century. There is a

trefoil A trefoil () is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings, used in architecture, Pagan and Christian symbolism, among other areas. The term is also applied to other symbols with a threefold shape. A similar shape with f ...

-headed single window on the south wall of the nave to the left of the porch, and two windows, each with three trefoil-headed lights (sections of window, separated by mullions), to the right of the porch. The south wall of the chancel has a similar window, with only two lights, which was inserted in 1847; it adjoins a blocked window from the 17th century. The north wall of the church, which was rebuilt in 1847, has a 14th-century doorway with a pointed arch, and windows on each side similar to those on the south side. The east window, which dates from the 15th century, has three lights headed with cinquefoils set within a pointed arch. There is a hood mould on the outside. A 1937 survey by the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire noted a wooden communion table, dated 1667, and some interior memorials dated 1724 and 1731. It also recorded that the churchyard contained an 11th-century churchyard cross, which had at one point held a sundial. Most of the fittings inside the church date from the mid-19th century. The pulpit has two carved panels, one depicting Christ and the other a Madonna and Child. It was installed in 1969, marking the bicentenary of Goronwy Owen's death. The

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

behind the altar is in memory of those who died during World War I.

Assessment

The church has national recognition and statutory protection from alteration as it has been designated as a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

– the second-highest of the three grades of listing, designating "particularly important buildings of more than special interest". It was given this status on 12 May 1970.

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 ...

(the Welsh Assembly Government body responsible for the built heritage of Wales and the inclusion of Welsh buildings on the statutory lists) states that St Mary's has been listed because it is "a good rural church retaining substantial medieval fabric". Writing in 1847, the clergyman and antiquarian Harry Longueville Jones said that St Mary's, which he called "a rather long and low building", was situated "in an uneven, rocky, and exposed locality" within a parish that had a "peculiarly bleak and desolate appearance". He also thought that the roof of the church was "remarkable for the quantity of good, but light, timber used in its construction."

References

External links

Photographs of the church
* Church architectural plans from the 19th century: *
Groundplan
*
Groundplan, elevation and section
*
Groundplan and elevation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathafarn Eithaf, Saint Mary Grade II* listed churches in Anglesey Church in Wales church buildings in Anglesey 14th-century church buildings in Wales Saint Mary