St Pedrog, Y Ferwig, Ceredigion (PRN 17358)

ST PEDROG,  Y FERWIG, CEREDIGION

Dyfed PRN 17358

 RB No. 2961 

 NGR SN 1834 4957

 Listed Building no. 9907?

 Grade B listed (1998)

September 2021: According to “Church Heritage Cymru” this church is not a listed building. Also, it does not appear in “British Listed Buildings”.

 SUMMARY

19th century church; 0% pre-19th century core fabric. On site of, and same location as, medieval church (PRN 5304).

A 3-cell church, small. Consists of chancel, 2 bays; nave, 2 bays; south porch; vestry (north), 1 bay; all later 19th century. (Former west tower, medieval.) Construction is in slate rubble. Neo-gothic. Slate gable roofs; vestry with a slate lean-to roof. All openings from the later 19th century. West wall, 1968-70.

Roofs and floors, later 19th century.. Finishes, later 19th century and 1968-70.

Condition – good.

Archaeological potential – very good-excellent. Deep, wide external cutting around 40% of church, primary?, secondarily deepened; no external drain; suspended floors?; former component beyond 20% of church.

.Structural value (pre 19th century) – poor. 0% pre-C19 core fabric.

Group value – low.

Phasing:

(Phase I – Former west tower, medieval.)

Phase 2 – Chancel, nave, south porch, vestry- later C19.

Phase 3 – West tower demolished 1968 and west wall rebuilt.

DESCRIPTION

St Pedrog, Y Ferwig, is a 3-celled church, of small size. It was largely rebuilt in the later 19th century retaining only a west tower from the earlier fabric; this was itself demolished in 1968 (Bartosch, 1991, 1).

The present church consists of a 2-bayed chancel, a 2-bayed nave, a south porch and a single-bayed vestry north of the chancel east bay. Construction is in slate rubble, plastered within. All dressings are in yellow oolite and from the later 19th century; the openings are neo-gothic comprising cusped 2- (or more) light windows with curvilinear tracery. The blind west wall was rebuilt in concrete blockwork 1968-70 and has a simple bracket bell-hanging. The roofs are slated gables; the vestry has a slated lean-to roof. The floors may be suspended except in the chancel and porch.

The earlier church was described as a ‘small, ancient edifice’ in 1833 (Lewis, 1833). It comprised a nave and chancel, a porch (north or south?) and a west tower which was demolished as recently as 1968 (Bartosch, 1991, 1) leaving no physical evidence for its presence. Both the chancel arch and the arch from the nave into the tower were pointed, the chancel arch being ‘large’. Over the porch was the date-stone from 1627; this may have been the date of the porch itself, or may mark a restoration of the church. Minor repairs were undertaken in 1929 (NLW, SD/F/668).

The font in the church of 1833 was ‘ancient’ and ‘elaborately ornamented’ (Lewis, 1833).

There is a deep, wide external cutting along the north wall, primary?, deepened in the later 19th century when the upcast was thrown to the north to form an earthwork ‘bank’. A west tower was formerly present but lacks physical evidence. There is no external drain. The floors may be suspended.

The church was Grade B listed in 1998.

September 2021: According to “Church Heritage Cymru” this church is not a listed building. Also, it does not appear in “British Listed Buildings”.

SITE HISTORY

 There is possible evidence for the pre-conquest religious use of the site –

Celtic dedication?.

St Pedrog, Y Ferwig, was a parish church during the medieval period (Rees, 1932), of the medieval Deanery of Sub-Aeron. It was a possession of Cardigan Priory.

At the dissolution, the advowson fell to the crown with whom it remained in 1833 when, as a discharged vicarage, the living was rated in the king’s books at £10 13s 4d and endowed with £200 royal bounty (Lewis, 1833).

In 1998 St Pedrog, Y Ferwig, was a parish church. The living was a vicarage, held with Cardigan and Mwnt (Benefice no. 510) in the Archdeaconry of Cardigan, Rural Deanery of Cemais and Sub-Aeron (St Davids, 1997-8).

It has been suggested that the ‘Pedrog’ of the dedication is a corruption of St Peter the Apostle, a very popular cult in Wales (Various, 1994, 394-5).

Stained Glass:

East Wall of the Chancel

Upper light of a five-light window shows “Lamb bearing the cross of banner “Agnus Dei” – Symbol of Christ.

Upper light detail.

South Wall of the Chancel.

Two-light Window with standing figures – St Pedrog and t Carannog.

Text: Go ye into the world and preach the gospel in every creature. (Mark 16:15).

Given in memory of John Jones by his wife. He was vicar of the parish 1912 – 1941.

Artist: The window was made for Duncan Dearle at Lowndes & Drury’s Glass House, probably in 1948, or early 1949. Dearle was not a designer and the cartoons were probably reused designs from Morris & Co.

North Wall of the Nave.

Two-Light Window with standing figures – St Non & St Padarn.

Given in memory of Thomas and Sarah Bateman of Gwbert. (1958).

Artist: Alfred L. Wilkinson. Signed with his monogram.

 SOURCES CONSULTED

 Map Evidence

Blaeu, J., 1648, Map of Cardiganshire.

Rees, W., 1932, South Wales and the Border in the XIVth century.

Church in Wales Records

Bartosch, P. M., 1992, Quinquennial Report, Y Ferwig.

St Davids, 1997-8, Diocesan Year Book.

NLW, SD/F/668, Faculty – Placing new organ in church and repairing church, 1929.

Printed Accounts

Lewis, S., 1833, A Topographical Dictionary of Wales.

Salter, M., 1994, The Old Parish Churches of South West Wales.

Various, 1994, ‘The Church in Ceredigion in the Early Middle Ages’, in Davies, J. L., and Kirby, D. P. (eds.), Cardiganshire County History Vol. I.

Up dated: September 2021 – PKR

Heneb - The Trust for Welsh Archaeology