Llanwit Major church praised by TV historian needs TLC
READERS may recently have seen a very interesting item about St Illtud’s Church in Llantwit Major on the archaeological programme Digging for Britain presented by Professor Alice Roberts on BBC2.
In the programme, Professor Roberts emphasises the Church’s great historical and spiritual significance, representing a continuous link of Christian worship and witness stretching back over 1,500 years. Founded in around 500 AD by St Illtud, the Church site is one of the oldest Christian locations in Britain and is, according to the Guiness Book of Records, Britain’s earliest ‘seat of learning’, where many well-known Celtic saints were educated, including St David and St Patrick (reputedly).
The site is thus known as the ‘Cradle of Celtic Christianity’, where the faith was kept alive after the Romans left Britain and from where it was taken to Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland and South-West Scotland. It is this early mediaeval heritage which the current archaeological excavations are exploring. Evidence to date strongly supports the hypothesis that this is one of the most important sites in Britain for this period of history.
St Illtud’s Church, which stands on the site, is a Grade I listed building “…of exceptional national interest” according to Cadw, and, when John Wesley visited in 1777, he described it as, “abundantly the most beautiful as well as the most spacious church in Wales”. The architecture reflects a rare complete history of Welsh Christianity, comprising basically three buildings, an East Church, a West Church and a restored Galilee Chapel, where a highly significant collection of Celtic crosses, dating back to the 8th to 10th Centuries, is now displayed.
The building, however, requires urgent maintenance work and modernisation, particularly to prevent water ingress in the tower, to restore the porch and to preserve the valuable wall paintings. The local Church Council, in association with the Diocese and its architects, has drawn up a master plan for a whole range of projects to develop the Church and the site. The Council launched a national appeal in November last year to raise around £500,000 and it is currently applying for grants for the tower and porch work.
If you wish to know more about the proposals for the Church and to view the full master plan, or to contribute or join the Friends of St Illtud’s, visit the Crowdfunder page here or contact
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