Church of St Cynllo

Church of St Cynllo

A parish church built in mixed Gothic styles, situated on a steep site. The building comprises a nave with crypt and south porch, a chancel, all under a single roof, and an east tower. The walls are constructed of rubble stone, partly rendered on the nave south wall and wholly rendered on the north side. The roof is slate with overhanging eaves.

The open-fronted south porch is built of rubble stone with a timber-framed gable having rendered panels. Its east wall contains a wall tablet to John Dakins (died 1819). Inside the porch, stone steps lead up to the early 14th-century nave south doorway, which has a continuous double chamfer to a two-centred arch. The double doors date from 1908. Worked masonry fragments have been incorporated into the east and west walls, including part of a stiff-leaf capital re-used as a stoup. This masonry is said to have come from Cwmhir Abbey.

To the left of the porch is a boarded crypt door with studs and strap hinges, beneath an elliptical head with continuous hollow-chamfer and broach stops at half height. Above are two superimposed windows (the upper lighting the gallery), each square-headed with two cinquefoiled lights and sunk spandrels. The wall is recessed where the porch is positioned, where there is a small pointed window to the right of the porch, above which sits a fragment of re-used masonry. Further right, the rendered wall has a pronounced batter and a four-light square-headed window with pointed lights and sunk spandrels. At the east end of the nave, the elevation is slightly recessed again and has a two-centred boarded door in a 14th-century doorway with continuous chamfer, probably a priest's door to the original chancel.

The chancel is brought slightly forward with quoins. It has a band of two courses of diagonally set stones beneath the eaves to the left of the window. The five-light south window is similar in style to the nave four-light window. To its left is a wall tablet to Richard and Eleanor Davies (died 1807, 1813), signed 'ES'. The east wall of the chancel, to the left of the tower, has two wall tablets; a former tablet between them has fallen. The left tablet commemorates Richard Williams (date weathered), and the right one is badly weathered and indecipherable.

The two-stage tower is broad and square, with diagonal east buttresses, an angle buttress to the southwest, and a square turret to the northwest. In the south wall is a boarded door with studs and strap hinges of 1908, beneath an original four-centred head recessed within a two-centred arch of rubble voussoirs. A relieving arch stands above. The jambs of a former bell-stage window are visible beneath the eaves. In the east wall is a blocked window with dressed surround to the bell stage. To its left is a stone with an inscription only partly legible, reading 'HI, IE, WARDENS, WS, ID, 1786, …'. The two-tier belfry has weatherboarded sides and two-light openings, beneath a pyramidal roof with weathervane.

On the north side, the nave is stepped at the west end, continuous with the northwest buttress and west wall, but is otherwise set back and has a two-light vestry window to the right with cinquefoiled heads similar to those on the south. Other windows are mainly medieval, comprising two narrow pointed lights and a pointed window in a dressed surround. The chancel has two pointed windows. The west wall of the nave has diagonal buttresses and a lower central buttress, with distinct bands of shale.

Inside the south door, concrete steps lead up to the nave level. The nave and chancel have a roof of eighteen narrow bays with arched-brace trusses, largely of 1908 but reproducing the earlier roof. In the chancel are four tiers of windbraces forming quatrefoils, while in the nave are three and a half tiers, with every third truss having a tie beam. To the left of the reredos is a segmental-headed doorway to the tower. The tower has springers for a vault with stiff-leaf capitals, suggesting they have been re-set here, probably in 1908.

The west gallery stands on two octagonal posts, has a front of turned balusters, and a straight stair with similar balusters. It is dated 'July 7, 1716', with a further inscription 'IH, GI, CH'WARDENS, IC, UNDERTAKERS'. On its north side it projects forward, beneath which is a contemporary schoolroom, now a vestry, with wooden panelling. The restored rood screen has a broad doorway with triangular head and eight narrow bays either side with open tracery heads (copied in 1908 from Llananno), above which is a plain beam and brattishing. The dado is panelled but does not correspond to the bay structure above. In the chancel is a communion rail inscribed 'IHCW/EDG/1828' with plain balusters. Re-used pew ends form a wainscot in the north and south chancel walls. In the north nave wall are three fragments of wall painting, probably post-Reformation, comprising frames for inscriptions. The panelled and painted wooden reredos, dating from circa 1950, is in simple classical style with a tall central panel beneath a tester and Crucifixion in low relief. Outer panels have shields in low relief, the right representing St Cynllo, and are surmounted by carved angels.

Near the west end of the nave, opposite the entrance, is an ashlar baptistery with iron gates to stone steps, allowing full immersion. The unusual presence of such a baptistery in an Anglican church is considered to have been influenced by the strong Baptist tradition in the locality, although it is said to have been used only three times in the 20th century. The font is medieval, with a plain but asymmetrical octagonal bowl, short stem, and square base. Pews of 1908 incorporate panels of older box pews and have panelled ends. The plain panelled pulpit with tester is early 19th century (perhaps contemporary with the communion rails) and was originally a double-decker pulpit on the south side of the nave. Choir stalls have shaped ends and fronts incorporating open arcading.

Several wall monuments are present. In the nave north wall from the west end is a freestone monument to David Lloyd (died 1838) and family, by Davies of Clun. It has two inscription panels and a further inscription to the apron, framed by shaped balusters, entablature, and pediment with low-relief urn, flanked by finials. It originally occupied the chancel east wall but was moved here in 1908. Next is a neo-classical wall tablet to Edward Meredith (died 1833), comprising a slate inscription panel with freestone surround incorporating an apron and tall gable with low-relief urn. Further east is a simpler wall tablet to Evan Williams (died 1790), comprising a slate inscription panel with broken pediment and urn. In the nave south wall, beginning at the east end, is a simple freestone tablet to Thomas Davies (died 1805) and family, comprising an inscription panel surmounted by an urn. Next is a tablet to Eleanor Griffiths (died 1841), comprising a slate panel with freestone surround. In the embrasure of the chancel south window is a freestone tablet commemorating Elizabeth Bywater (died 1830) and Richard Bywater (died 1867), by D. Davies of Clun. It has oval inscription panels in a low-relief surround with gable and urn. In the chancel south wall is a wall tablet to Richard Bywater (died 1827), a slate inscription in freestone surround with apron and pediment. In the tower is a wooden wall memorial to Anne Thickens, by J. Griffiths and dated 1827.