St Wynwallow's Church, Landewednack facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Wynwallow's Church, Landewednack |
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St Wynwallow's Church
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| 49°58′14″N 05°11′36″W / 49.97056°N 5.19333°W | |
| OS grid reference | SW 711 127 |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Broad Church |
| History | |
| Dedication | St Wynwallow |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Landewednack |
| Archdeaconry | Cornwall |
| Diocese | Truro |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Wynwallow's Church in Landewednack, Cornwall, is a special church. It is the most southerly church on mainland Britain. You can find it about 16 kilometers (10 miles) south of Helston. This church is part of the Church of England. It was first started around 600 AD. Some parts of the building you see today are from the 11th century.
About the Church Building
The church is named after Saint Winwaloe. He was the third son of a Cornish couple. They moved to Brittany, where he founded a monastery. There is no proof that Saint Winwaloe ever visited Cornwall. The church might have been started by one of his monks. Or perhaps his older brother, Wennac, founded it. Nothing from the very first building remains today.
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The oldest part of the church is its south doorway. It was built in the 11th century in the Norman style. This doorway has columns made of a dark, greenish rock called serpentinite. The south doorway is inside a Gothic porch. This porch was added in the 13th or 14th century. It has a special arched ceiling called a rib vault.
The church also has a south transept, which is like a side arm of the church. Its east window is from the 13th century. You can also see two old stone basins called piscinas from the 13th century. One is in the chancel (the area near the altar) and the other in the south transept. There's even a small opening called a hagioscope from the south transept to the chancel. This allowed people to see the altar.
The tall tower at the west end of the church was rebuilt in the early 15th century. It is built with a mix of granite and serpentinite blocks. The font, used for baptisms, is made of granite. It has an old inscription that says "IHC and D RIC BOLHAM ME FECIT c1404". This means "Richard Bolham made me around 1404." Richard Bolham was the Rector (a type of priest) of the church from 1404 to 1442.
In the early 16th century, a north aisle was added. This is a long, narrow part of the church. Its east and north windows are in the Perpendicular Gothic style. The south window of the south transept and the west window of the tower are also Perpendicular.
The church was repaired and updated in the 1860s. This is called a Victorian restoration. The base of the pulpit, where sermons are given, is made of serpentinite and is dated 1860. There is also a lectern, used for reading, made of shiny serpentinite from the Victorian era. Some of the stained glass windows in the north aisle are also from the 19th century. During this restoration, an old wooden screen that separated the chancel from the main part of the church was removed. The vestry, a room for the clergy, was added in the 20th century. Today, the building is a Grade I listed site. This means it is a very important historic building.
Church Bells
The church tower has a set of six bells. They are used for change ringing, a special way of ringing bells in a pattern. One of the bells, the fifth one, is very old. It was made around 1456, making it one of the oldest church bells in Cornwall. Two other bells were made around 1515. One of these is now displayed on the church floor because it is no longer used. In 1937, four new bells were made. Interestingly, the old 15th-century bell is heavier than the new main bell.
Churchyard and Memorials
The churchyard around St Wynwallow's Church has a war memorial. It also has a few graves cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Four of these graves belong to sailors who survived a ship sinking in 1941. Their ship, the SS Gairsoppa, sank on February 17, 1941. They spent 13 days in a lifeboat. Sadly, on March 1, their boat overturned in Caerthillian Cove, and they died. These graves include a radio officer, a deck hand, and two unidentified Muslim sailors.
The Parish
St Wynwallow's Church is famous for a historical event. It is said that the last sermon in the Cornish language was preached here in 1674. However, other churches also claim this.
The church is part of a group of parishes. These include:
- St Grada & Holy Cross Church, Grade
- St Wynwallow's Church, Landewednack
- St Rumon's Church, Ruan Minor
- St Mary's Church, Cadgwith
