St John the Baptist Church, Cardiff facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St John the Baptist Church
View from Church Street
General information
Architectural style	Perpendicular Gothic
Town or city	Cardiff
Country	Wales
Coordinates	51°28′50.59″N 3°10′42.13″W / 51.4807194°N 3.1783694°W / 51.4807194; -3.1783694
Construction started	c. 1460s

St John the Baptist Church is a very old and important church in Cardiff, Wales. It's so special that it's a Grade I listed building. This means it's protected because of its history and beauty. Besides Cardiff Castle, it's the only building from the Middle Ages left in the heart of Cardiff.

Discover St John's Church

This church is known for its beautiful design and tall tower. People have admired it for a long time. Even today, you can see it clearly from streets like Church Street and Trinity Street in the city centre.

The church's tower is over 40 metres tall. It's made of grey limestone with details in a buff-coloured stone. This makes it a standout feature in Cardiff's skyline.

A Look at History

View down Church Street towards St John's Church in 1852

Inside the church

St John's Church was first built around 1180. It started as a smaller chapel for a bigger church called St Mary's. Monks from Tewkesbury Abbey helped build it. The first church was made from a type of stone called blue Lias, which has layers of old shells.

In 1404, during a rebellion led by Owain Glyndŵr, the church was attacked. It was rebuilt in the late 1400s. This is when it got its tall tower with ten bells. The top of the tower has a special open design, similar to churches in the west of England. It's thought to be from around 1490.

A big flood in 1607 damaged St Mary's. Because of this, most church services moved to St John's by 1620.

Later, in 1843, a new church was built to replace St Mary's. This allowed St John's to be rebuilt and made bigger. More parts were added between 1886 and 1897, using a different type of limestone.

The church also got new stained glass windows. Some, from around 1855, show links to the Bute family. Others, from 1869, were made by a famous company called Morris & Co. Some of the designs were even created by William Morris himself.

In the late 1800s, the church was made wider with new aisles. The old windows were moved to fit the new walls.

The churchyard, which was already full of graves, was changed in the 1890s. A new public path was made through it. This path connects Working Street with Cardiff Central Market. Part of the churchyard became St John's Gardens. The path is still owned by the church and is closed every Good Friday. You can see brass numbers on the path that show where graves used to be.

In 1952, St John's became a Grade I listed building. This means it's considered very important for its history and architecture.

The Church Organ

The church's 1894 "Father Willis" organ

The organ you see in the church today was built in 1894 by a famous builder known as "Father" Henry Willis. It was repaired in 2005 with help from donations and the Heritage Lottery Fund. To celebrate its repair, a special concert was held. In 2013, experts gave it a Grade I Historic Organ Certificate. This shows it's a very special and important musical instrument.

Images for kids

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  View from the east

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  The 14th century tower

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  Church tower from the west

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  Entrance

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  Side entrance

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  Interior

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  Baptismal font

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  Stained glass window

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  Stained glass window

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  Altar and reredos done as a memorial to Lord Kitchener