St John the Baptist Church, Porthcawl facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St John the Baptist Church |
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| Location | Church Street, Newton Porthcawl |
| Country | Wales |
| Denomination | Church in Wales |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Completed | 1180s |
St John the Baptist Church is a very old church in Newton, Porthcawl, Wales. It's a special building because it was built in the late 1100s. Over the years, it has been updated many times. It is a Grade I listed building, which means it's super important and protected.
Contents
A Look Back in Time
The church was probably built around the 1180s. We know this because the first church leader, called a rector, started his job there in 1189.
Changes Over the Centuries
The church has been updated many times throughout history.
- Between 1485 and 1495, Jasper Tudor, Duke of Bedford, helped refurbish the church.
- Later, from 1825 to 1827, the rector Rev. Robert Knight made more changes. He added a vestry, which is a room for clergy, and changed the stone pulpit.
- In 1860 and 1861, John Prichard and John Pollard Seddon restored the building. They also added a room for the organ in 1885.
- More work was done in 1903 and 1927. This included putting new floors in the nave (the main part of the church). They also put a new roof on the porch and added oak stalls in the chancel (the area around the altar).
- Most recently, in 1993, a meeting room and another vestry wing were added.
What Does the Church Look Like?
The church has several parts. It has a tall tower at the west end. Then there's the main part, called the nave, and a porch on the south side. It also has a chancel, a chapel on the northeast, and a wing on the north side.
Building Materials and Roof
The church is built from rough grey stones. It has smooth, cut stones called ashlar around the windows and doors. The roof is made of slate tiles. It has stone decorations called finials at the very top points.
The West Tower
The west tower is large and looks strong, almost like a fortress. It has wide supports called buttresses at each corner. The roof of the tower is shaped like a triangle, known as a saddleback roof. It has decorative walls called embattled and corbelled parapets only on its north and south sides. The top of the stone-tiled roof has a coping and a weathervane.
Tower Details
The north and south sides of the tower have four levels of small round or square windows. One window on the south side is shaped like a three-leaf clover, which is called trefoil-headed. The east side of the tower has large openings above a row of stone supports called a corbel table. This table probably held a wooden platform a long time ago. On the west side of the tower, there's a stone face carving. People say it's a carving of Saint John the Baptist. Below it, there's a slatted opening called a gable opening, a clock, and a window with three sections. The main entrance, which is very decorated, is below this window.
