Latitude: 51.7638 / 51°45'49"N
Longitude: -2.7585 / 2°45'30"W
OS Eastings: 347747
OS Northings: 207502
OS Grid: SO477075
Mapcode National: GBR JH.04TN
Mapcode Global: VH870.4XJS
Plus Code: 9C3VQ67R+GH
Entry Name: Church of St Catwg
Listing Date: 27 November 1953
Last Amended: 27 September 2001
Grade: II*
Source: Cadw
Source ID: 18286
Building Class: Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Also known as: St Catwg's Church, Cwmcarvan
Church of St Catwg, Cwmcarvan
ID on this website: 300018286
Location: In a relatively isolated position about 2.4km SSW of Monmouth, in the fork of two lanes which run S up towards Cwmcarvan Hill.
County: Monmouthshire
Community: Mitchel Troy (Llanfihangel Troddi)
Community: Mitchel Troy
Locality: Cwmcarvan
Traditional County: Monmouthshire
Tagged with: Church building Gothic architecture
Probably late C13 or early C14, tower added or rebuilt c.1525; restored and chancel rebuilt by John Prichard 1872-9. Apparently customarily regarded as a chapel-of-ease to St Michael's.
A humble medieval nave-and-chancel church, with N and S porches, greatly dignified by a superbly-proportioned and finely-finished W tower built in the early Tudor period. The nave, porches and chancel are all built of warm-hued Old Red Sandstone with roofs of small grey slates; the tower of greyer-hued ashlar.
The tower has 3 stages, boldly distinguished by weathered string-courses carried round, and finished with an emphatically embattled parapet, and has a slightly-tapered rectangular 4-stage stair-turret at the NE corner, rising above the main parapet, similarly embattled and carrying a tall weather-cock. Its W
face has a Tudor-arched doorway with a hoodmould, a small square window above this; a 2-centred arched belfry window to the top stage, of 2 cusped depressed-arched lights with stone louvres and Perpendicular blank tracery above; and, at each end of the string-course above, a very prominent but plain pipe-shaped gargoyle. The S side of the 2nd stage has a vertically-aligned pair of small square windows; the N side has only one. Each side of the belfry stage has a window like the W side.
The N side of the nave has a single very sturdy buttress near the E end, a medieval cusped lancet to the right of this, with a hoodmould, a large Victorian 3-light traceried window, and a prominent gabled porch towards the W end, with a moulded 2-centred doorway and an apex finial. Its S side has a small gabled porch close to the W end, with shafted imposts and hollow moulding; 2 widely-spaced square-headed 3-light windows with cinquefoiled lights; and in the centre between these is a low blocked square-headed doorway with a humped monolithic lintel. The chancel (rebuilt by Prichard) has a priest doorway flanked by 2-light mullioned windows with depressed-arched lights; a similar E window; and a similarly-arched 1-light window on the N side. The E gables of the nave and chancel both have
raised coping, that to the chancel of emphatic width.
Both walls of the nave (which are now unplastered) have a pronounced internal batter, and carry deep moulded wallplates with brattished cornices, from which rises a late medieval ribbed barrel-vaulted roof. In the centre of the S wall is a blocked round-headed doorway. At the W end is a relatively narrow tower arch with a Tudor-arched extrados and a set-in 2-centred arch dying into the sides, both arches with sunk-wave moulding: probably late C13 or early C14. It contains a wooden screen made of Jacobean carved arched panels. At the E end is a low 2-centred and double-chamfered chancel arch, and within the chancel the E side of the wall above shows the gable line of a formerly lower chancel. In the centre of the S wall of the chancel is a blocked 2-centred arch; and on the floor of the NE corner is a medieval stone coffin lid with carved with a cross in a foliated roundel.
Included as a medieval church retaining interesting original detail, and with a fine early Tudor tower.
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