St Mary's Church, Whitchurch, is an Anglican place of worship in the suburb of

Whitchurch, Cardiff Whitchurch () is a suburb and community in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is approximately 3 miles north of the centre of the city on the A470 road and A4054 road. It falls within the Whitchurch & Tongwynlais ward. The population of ...

. The Victorian building is listed.

Early churches

A church in the locality is first recorded in the 12th century, though the date of its founding and its dedication are now unknown. At this time, Whitchurch 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 ...

Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral () is a Church in Wales cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul, and ...

, and would remain so until the 19th century. The first church which is known to have carried the dedication to Mary was first erected in the 14th century. In the 15th or 16th century, a porch was added, followed later still by a nave, then a

belfry The belfry /ˈbɛlfri/ is a structure enclosing bells for ringing as part of a building, usually as part of a bell tower or steeple. It can also refer to the entire tower or building, particularly in continental Europe for such a tower attached ...

Bath stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate originally obtained from the Middle Jurassic aged Great Oolite Group of the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its h ...

. The graveyard dated from 1616, when a licence for baptisms, marriages and burials was obtained. Later alterations to the interior were carried out in 1810. The old church could seat 300. Despite the fact that it was growing too small for the growing population (which the new

Melingriffith Tin Plate Works The Melingriffith Tin Plate Works (also known as Melingriffith Tin and Iron Works; ; meaning: "Griffith's Mill") were post medieval tin and iron works located on Tŷ-mawr Road, in Whitchurch, Cardiff, Wales. Founded sometime before 1750, it w ...

had bolstered to 696), the issue of the church's inadequate facilities would not be addressed for several decades. During the 19th century, Whitchurch also acquired its first Nonconformist places of worship, with the Whitchurch Methodist Church being founded in .

Modern church

As Whitchurch gradually evolved into a suburb over the 19th century, the population of the district continued to expand. Whitchurch became a separate parish in 1845. The Revd. J.T. Clarke, who became the vicar of St Mary's in 1876, was dissatisfied by the inadequate (and increasingly rundown) church, and began to agitate for a replacement. The new church was finally provided in 1884, located around 300 metres to the south-south-west from its predecessor. It was designed 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 ...

, and was consecrated for worship in 1885. After its replacement came into use, the old church was largely abandoned and lapsed into decay. It was ruinous by the turn of the 20th century and was demolished in 1904. Its graveyard remained until being converted into a public garden, St Mary's Gardens, in 1973, which is still extant on Old Church Road. The church became Listed in 1975.

Organisation

The church is now in the Rectorial Benefice of Whitchurch. It has three daughter churches: All Saints (Rhiwbina), All Saints (Llandaff North) and St Thomas's (Birchgrove).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitchurch, Saint Mary Grade II listed churches in Cardiff Churches completed in 1884 Church in Wales church buildings in Cardiff 12th-century church buildings in Wales John Prichard buildings Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Wales