Parish Church of St Martin

The Parish Church of St Martin is a complex of 15th-century origins with 19th-century alterations. It comprises a chancel, nave, a south porch, a vestry, and a battlemented tower, the upper stage of which has been rebuilt. The church is constructed from Penant sandstone rubble with quoins and dressings of pink sandstone. The roof is continuously tiled with terracotta. All windows are from the 19th century, designed in the Perpendicular style, featuring sunk spandrels and square label stops. The east window consists of three cusped lights with Perpendicular tracery and a simple hoodmould, set beneath a relieving arch. The north and south sides of the chancel have two two-light windows, and the nave has matching three-light windows on each side. The tower has a batter and prominent sandstone quoins, with a plinth and two stringcourses at the roofline of the nave and just below the battlements. The west door features a broadly four-centred doorway with chamfered jambs in pink sandstone, including diagonal stops. Above the door is a two-light window, probably from the 15th century, with a cusped head, simple hoodmould, and relieving arch. Each face of the tower has a similar two-light belfry window beneath the battlement, and a small square-headed light is located beneath the belfry window on the west side. A rebuilt stair turret is present on the northeast side, containing two small stairlights. The south porch has a pointed outer arch with a simple hoodmould and a simple, plain chamfered inner doorway with a single cusped light on both the east and west elevations.

On the north side of the chancel, within a niche, is the tomb of Sir Thomas Morgan, the first knight of Pencoed, who died in 1510. The tomb is carved from fine white stone and depicts a figure supporting a shield, flanked by the seven praying figures of his children. The niche is topped by a flat four-centred arch with detached bosses depicting angels clasping shields. The chancel arch is wide and plain, likely dating to the 15th century. The tower arch is tall and narrow with a plain chamfered stone head, sharing a similar style with the chancel arch. The chancel roof is arch braced with a plain collared structure, displaying 19th-century painted stencilled plasterwork between the rafters. The nave roof is similarly 19th century, plastered with moulded ribs and gilded bosses of floral design. A 19th-century octagonal font stands beneath the tower. The vestry door has a pointed, complex moulding, possibly dating to the late 15th or early 16th century.