St Peters-yr Eglwys - Llanbedr Gwynedd Community

St Peter’s Church Llanbedr History

St Peter’s Church Llanbedr is a medieval parish church, once a chapel of ease to Llandanwg church; possibly C13, but thought to be of predominantly late C15 or early C16 construction. It is one of only 2 churches in the commote of Ardudwy to have a chancel arch which dates to the Middle Ages.
It has cusped roof timbers of the late Medieval or early modern period, but most roof timbers are thought to date to the C17.
It was restored by F R Wilson of Alnwick in 1883 who renewed all the windows, rebuilt the west wall, added the vestry and restored the roof, but retained the main timber work.

Interior
The church has exposed roof timbers. The chancel has 3 roof bays with one scissor braced truss and one arch braced collared truss, cusped above the collar, both are on wallposts down to chamfered corbels; single purlins have cusped windbraces. The nave roof has 6 roof bays with pegged and chamfered braced collared trusses and paired purlins, the 2 bays closest to the chancel with windbraces. The walls have been stripped of render and the chancel arch is a flat pointed arch formed with slabs of local stone; pointed headed recesses in the East and North walls of the chancel formerly housing water stoups and aumbreys.

The late C19 East window bears a depiction of the Crucifixion, the Laying in the tomb, the Resurrection and the Ascension and is a memorial to Berkley Smith; the South chancel wall has a window bearing the image of St Michael dedicated to Samuel Pope d1901 and in the South wall one dedicated to Anne Pope which depicts The Good Shepherd and Job holding a child. The West window depicts Christ with St Peter and is dedicataed to Charles Ansell d1881 and his wife Louisa d1885.

The South wall of the chancel bears a number of bronze memorial tablets to members of the Poole family, dating from 1594 to 1783 and the South wall of the nave has a slate tablet to Anthony Pool of Newton, Montgomery, 2nd son of Reverend Anthony Poole of Cae Nest d1791; other memorials in the church are of late C19 and early C20.

The fittings are also late C19 and early C20
There is an octagonal sandstone font at the West end of the nave.

Exterior
St Peter’s Church Llanbedr is comprised of a 3-bay nave and shorter, narrower 2-bay chancel, it has a North vestry and South porch. It is built of local rubble masonry with freestone dressings; there is a rough stone plinth along the West wall. It has a Slate roof with stone copings, there is a single bellcote at the West gable surmounted by a cross finial; there is a similar finial at the East gable of the nave and on the porch. The North vestry has a large shouldered stack with pointed capping.

The entrance is within a slate roofed timber porch on stone plinths, the inner doorway has a shallow elliptical head of rough stone voussoirs and the boarded door has ornate hinges. Above the doorway there is a slate slab, possibly reset from an older building on the site ( or possibly removed from Llandnawg , inscribed with this englyn: Anneddfawr Gardarn noddfa - Gŵr breiniol / Ger Bron Duw a'r Dyrfa / Er Dim na thyred yma / Y Dyn ond a Meddwl Da.

Late C19 windows throughout, the East window has paired trefoil headed lights under a quatrefoil in a pointed arched frame, the West gable has a similarly detailed single window; other windows are single or paired trefoil lights. The North vestry has a doorway in the E wall and a leaded light in the West wall, both have stepped flat heads to arched openings.

Reason for Listing
Listed at II* as a rural parish church of predominantly C15 or C16 retaining significant early fabric including fine Medieval roof timbers.

Llandecwyn, Talsarnau, Ynys, Llanfihangel y Traethau, Harlech, Llanfair, Llandanwg, Llanbedr, Dyffryn, Talybont, Llanaber, Abermaw, Bontddu

Gweinyddwraig Bro Ardudwy

Administrator Bro Ardudwy:

Mrs P Odam

20 Y Waun

Harlech

LL46 2 UN

01766 780030

E bost/E mail pam@broardudwy.church

Arweinydd yr Ardal Weinidogaeth a'r Ficer

Ministry Area Leader and Vicar:

Parchedig/ Reverend Wayne Anthony Hodges