Church of St. Michael of All Angels, Llanfihangel Talyllyn            Grade II listed

The church of St Michael and All Angels is located in the centre of Llanfihangel Talyllyn which is some seven km to the east of Brecon.  There is a plaque there stating that the first church was built sometime between 700 and 1066 and that the Christian church replaced a pagan temple which had been on that site.  A church is first listed here in the St David's Episcopal Register for 1486

Parts of the church, particularly the chancel and perhaps sections of the nave, were rebuilt in 1870, but the tower and porch appear to be fifteenth century, and the foundations of the nave even earlier.  There is a Norman font in the church and a monolithic stone in the porch.  The churchyard may once have been curvilinear which suggests early medieval origin.  It is now listed as a medieval church retaining much of its fabric notwithstanding nineteenth century restoration.

The tower is Perpendicular with little in the way of later modifications, and the porch too appears to be fifteenth century.  The nave is probably earlier, though whether fourteenth century or earlier isn’t quite apparent.  However it is likely that sections of the nave were rebuilt at the time of restoration, though precise definition of these is not possible. The chancel is wholly Victorian.

The church is a single fifteenth century nave with a south porch with a Victorian chancel, lower and narrower than the nave, and a vestry off the north wall of the chancel; and a Norman west tower.  Built from local sandstone with welsh slate roofs.  The tower has a stair turret built into the south-east angle and two waterspouts project from the north wall.

About 1809 the church was described by Theophilus Jones as a whitened sepulchre, with an uneven earth floor. "The pulpit is a small sheep pen, the seats decayed and irregular, the windows are long narrow apertures".  This description occurred when the church was in serious decline and there was an absentee Rector.  Not far from the door was a carved fragment of the front of the oak rood loft. In the churchyard was the foot or socket of a stone cross.

The tower is Perpendicular medieval, further altered in later middle ages.  The whole church was substantially restored in 1869-70 by Thomas Nicholson when the chancel was built, the rest of the rood loft or screen disappeared and in 1896 a tiled pavement was substituted for some of the old stone flooring.

A flagged floor of the porch with unplastered walls and a roof with three archbraced collars leads into the nave.  The nave has a tiled floor under a wagon roof of 28 close-set scissor braces intersecting with collars and crenellated wall plates.  Two steps lead through the chancel arch which has ornate capitals.  The chancel has a tiled floor and a roof of arch-braced collar trusses and collar and side purlins, again crenellated wall plates.

The twelfth century circular font has rough cable and roll moulding.  There is an oak reredos and an oak altar table with a wrought iron and polished oak communion rail while the pulpit is eighteenth century with simple ashlar decoration and a there is a black oak lectern.  A single manual organ circa 1850 was donated by Mrs Raikes of Treberfydd in 1948.

The stained glass is Victorian and can be viewed at  http://stainedglass.llgc.org.uk by kind permission of Martin Crampin

Stained glass  

The Ascension -- east wall of the chancel

Three-light window.  Christ ascending with angels, disciples and women below.  Figure of Michael in the upper roundel.  Mary is frequently shown in scenes of the Ascension, with the gathered disciples, but the inclusion of two further women is much more unusual.

studio: John Hardman & Co.   1895

Given in memory of Archibald Adam Swinton, died 1894.

 

Christ raising the daughter of Jairus - north wall of the nave

Two-light window.  The usual scene of Christ raising the daughter of Jairus, in the left-hand light (here showing Christ and the girl alone), is joined by an additional scene of the girl embracing her mother, with Christ and Jairus standing behind.

studio: John Hardman & Co. 1890s

The window commemorates Jessie Elizabeth Denston Perrott, who died in 1885, but is perhaps more likely to have been installed at the time of, or after, the east window in 1895. 

Christ with Mary and Martha/span> - north wall of the nave

Two-light window.  In the left-hand light Mary Magdalene kneels at Christ's feet while Martha prepares food in the background. In the right-hand light Martha kneels before him at the gate of Bethany, with Mary shown in a house behind, grieving for Lazarus.

studio: John Hardman & Co.   1890s

The window was given by Joseph Denston Perrott, in memory of his wife Mary, who died in 1892, but is perhaps more likely to have been installed at the time of, or after, the east window in 1895. 

Agnus Dei/span> - west wall

about 1878

Single-light window with roundel of the lamb and red cross flag, together with vine decoration.

Given in memory of Edward Williams, died 3 January 1878.  If given soon after his death, it may have been installed shortly after the restoration of the church, making it the earliest pictorial glass in the church.

The Church is always open.  There is a step up into the churchyard with flat access into the Church.

Churchyard:

The churchyard is well kept and is still used for burial.  Monuments are spread widely and quite densely throughout the yard except in the north-west sector and beyond the terrace on the east.  Gravestones south-east of the nave date back to the last two decades of the eighteenth century.   There are several small yews all in the western half of yard and an ancient Yew.  Grade II listed memorial stones and one which records a tragic village event which states “Beneath this stone lieth the remains of 8 dear ones who lost their lives by fire in the still hours of night at the Royal Oak Inn in this village on Tuesday the 13^th of February 1850”.

Chest tombs to Bevan and Morgan - south west of church

‘a pair of good early C19 chest tombs, in a prominent position in the churchyard and with interesting industrial connections to the Tredegar ironworks.  Group value with the church and other churchyard monuments’. 

Bevan monument commemorates Elizabeth wife of John Bevan of Tredegar Ironworks and daughter of William and Elizabeth Perrott of Penypentre died 1836, John Bevan died 1846, Caroline daughter died 1849, John son died 1849, Theophilus son died at Caldicott 1877; also Lydia Perrott died at Ash Vale, Tredegar Ironworks 1858.

Morgan monument commemorates Margaret wife of Thomas Morgan of Tredegar Ironworks died 1838, their children who died in infancy and Margaret daughter died 1842; also Thomas William son of Thomas Morgan and Ann his wife died 1840 in infancy. 

Pair of tall chest tombs of sandstone. That to south to Bevan family has primary inscription on east side, others to south and west; attached colonettes to corners, decorative frieze, overhanging cornice rising to the iron fitting for a former urn now broken and lying beneath; four stone feet stand on a tiered stone base.  That to north to Morgan family has primary inscription on south side and another east; chest is splayed outward to deep moulded plinth; heavy moulded pedimented cornice is surmounted by large fluted urn now split. 

Watkins & Williams tombs

‘group value with the church of St Michael and All Angels and other churchyard monuments as interesting examples of late C18 and early C19 tombstones’

Watkins tomb near south wall of nave commemorates Elizabeth Watkins, wife of William Watkins of Brecon died 1811, also her sister died 1813, her three sons who died in infancy in 1807, 1809 and 1811, and William Watkins died ?1819. Monument by Phillips of Talgarth. Adjacent to south the smaller Williams tomb commemorates Mary daughter of William Williams gent died 1782, Margaret wife of William and Margaret daughter of William, died 1806. 

Watkins tomb near south wall of nave is a plain stone table tomb with a moulded and incised slab on top, main inscription on south panel, secondary inscription on north, standing on a plain stone plinth. The smaller Williams tomb to south set directly into the soil has main inscription in large lettering under a garland on the slab; second inscription on south panel in two parts; the ends are unusually decoratively carved in shallow relief - to east flowers in an urn and to west an inscribed circle, degraded.