St Michael's Church, Llanvihangel Crucorney facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Michael's Church,Llanvihangel Crucorney |
|
|---|---|
Church of St Michael
|
|
| 51°52′47″N 2°58′56″W / 51.8797°N 2.9821°W | |
| Location | Monmouthshire |
| Country | Wales |
| Denomination | Church in Wales |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade II listed |
| Designated | 1956 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Monmouth |
St Michael's Church is a historic building located in the heart of Llanvihangel Crucorney, a village in Monmouthshire, Wales. This church is very old and important, which is why it was given a special "Grade II listed building" status in 1956. This means it has unique features from the Middle Ages that are worth protecting.
Contents
A Look at History
The church of St Michael has a long and interesting past. Old records, like the Book of Llandaff, suggest that the church was first built even before the year 1000! It is believed that this church took the place of a smaller chapel. That tiny chapel used to stand on top of a nearby mountain called the Skirrid.
Royal Connections
In 1542, a famous king, King Henry VIII, made a special gift. He gave the church's income (called tithes) to help start and run a grammar school for boys in a town called Abergavenny. This shows how important the church was, even to the king!
Church Design and Changes
.jpg)
The main part of the church, called the nave, was originally built by the Normans. The Normans were people who came from France and settled in England and Wales a long time ago. Even though it's very old, the nave has been changed many times over the years.
Building Over Time
The bottom part of the church tower and the chancel (the area near the altar) were likely added in the 1200s or 1300s. Later, around the 1500s, the tower was made taller, reaching its current height. The south porch, which is like a covered entrance, was also probably built around this time.
Repairs and Rebuilding
Over the centuries, buildings need repairs. In 1835, the walls of the nave were in bad shape. Instead of just fixing them, most of the walls were taken down and rebuilt. Sadly, the original oak roof was also removed and replaced with a new one. The windows you see today were put in later, between 1887 and 1897.
History repeated itself in 1974 when the nave roof again started to fail. It had to be taken down. At that time, the church could only afford to rebuild part of the roof. This meant a large section of the nave was open to the weather for many years. Finally, in the 2000s, a brand new roof was built. This important work was possible thanks to help from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
