St Peter's Church is a

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...

Dixton Dixton () is a small village located north east of Monmouth, on the banks of the River Wye, in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. The parish originally comprised the two manors of Dixton Newton and Hadnock, Dixton Hadnock, on either side of the r ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It is situated on the banks of the

River Wye The River Wye (; ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn Estuary. The lower reaches of the river forms part of Wales-England bor ...

, about north-east of

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

, Wales. The church 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 ...

and the cross in the churchyard is both a listed building and a scheduled monument.

History

The

Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff (; , ', or '), is the cartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written primarily in Latin but also contains a signific ...

refers to the existence of a church, or

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

, on this site in about 735, when it was already described as an "old church" (''henllan'';

Old Welsh Old Welsh () is the stage of the Welsh language from about 800 AD until the early 12th century when it developed into Middle Welsh.Koch, p. 1757. The preceding period, from the time Welsh became distinct from Common Brittonic around 550, ha ...

, ''hên-llan''). Later charters refer to its fishing rights on the River Wye. At that time, it was dedicated to the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

Tydiwg, or Tadeocus.Sarah and John Zaluckyj, ''The Celtic Christian Sites of the Central and Southern Marches'', Logaston Press, 2006, , p. 329 The

name of the parish, ''Llandydiwg'', and ultimately the name Dixton, derives from that of the saint. The existing church, now substantially rendered and

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

ed, consists of a

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 ...

with a separate

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 ...

, 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 ...

, a

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

to the west, and north and south porches. The oldest parts of the building, including the herring-bone masonry in the north wall of the nave, may have an

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

origin or, alternatively, date from the 12th century.John Newman, ''The Buildings of Wales: Gwent/Monmouthshire'', Penguin Books, 2000, , p. 216 The nave seems to have been lengthened during the 13th century, perhaps when the tower and chancel were built. A small window in the southwest corner dates from the early 14th century; even so, in 1397 the church was described as "intolerably dark". The exposed

Old Red Sandstone Old Red Sandstone, abbreviated ORS, is an assemblage of rocks in the North Atlantic region largely of Devonian age. It extends in the east across Great Britain, Ireland and Norway, and in the west along the eastern seaboard of North America. It ...

walling in the chancel dates from the 14th century; the chancel has a

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

window on each side, a priest's door, and an ancient stone bench outside. A royal coat of arms dated 1711 is painted on a board inside the church. Interior of Dixton Church

The north porch and vestry were added in 1824, and the whole church was

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004, by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard Aus ...

in 1861–62. Inside the church are five

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows. The 1862 window on the south of the nave is titled ''Christ Raising the Daughter of Jairus and Healing the Son of the Widow of Nain''. It was designed by John Pollard Seddon, who with

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 ...

restored the church. On the same wall is an 1871 window titled ''The Sermon on the Mount'' by

Ward and Hughes Ward and Hughes (formerly Ward and Nixon) was the name of an English company producing stained-glass windows. History Ward and Hughes was preceded by the company Ward and Nixon, whose studio was at 67 Frith Street, Soho. They created a large w ...

. The last large window is on the east wall of the chancel and is entitled ''Agnus Dei Adored by St Mary Magdalene and St Tadioc''; it dates from 1954. The church is a

as of 27 June 1952. In 2005 the cross in the churchyard was also made a listed building. The churchyard cross is also a scheduled monument. The church is too low-lying to prevent winter floods from entering the building, and brass plates near the

chancel arch In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

record the heights of notable floods. A new balcony has been constructed at the back of the church so that perishable items can be kept above the floodline. This balcony is decorated with a beautiful oak screen. The church had a rectory, which was later known as Dixton Cottage. Burials include Admiral Thomas Griffin (died 1771) and cricketer Trevor Arnott (1902 – 1975).

Diocese

The church remains part of the

Diocese of Hereford The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England, and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales. The cathedral i ...

and the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

, despite being in

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

, Wales. With Monmouth, it was transferred to the

Diocese of Llandaff The Diocese of Llandaff is an Anglican (Church in Wales) diocese that traces its roots to pre-Reformation times as heir of a Catholic bishopric. It is headed by the Bishop of Llandaff, whose seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Pet ...

in 1844. However, a vote by the parishioners in 1915 decided that it should not join 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 ...

when it became disestablished, but stay as part of the Church of England; it therefore returned in 1920 to the Diocese of Hereford. Dixton-Newton at Genuki.org.uk
/ref> In the following year John Witherston Rickards, who had been the vicar since 1886, died.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dixton, Peter, Saint, Church

Scheduled monuments in Monmouthshire Church of England church buildings in Wales