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Colva Church is in the Diocese
of Swansea and Brecon, in the community of Gladestry in the county of
Powys. It is located at Ordnance Survey national grid reference
SO1996853133.
The church is recorded in the CPAT Sites and Monuments Record as
number 16751 and this number should be quoted in all correspondence.
 Summary
St David's Church is set in a small rectangular churchyard
high in the Radnorshire hills about 10km south-west of Kington; it has a
single chamber which may date back to the 13thC, although much rebuilt, a
timber bell-turret at the west end and a 15thC timbered porch. Inside the
font dates to c.1200, and several wall paintings were uncovered during the
1980s.
Church is of at least four periods. The lower walls are
original and on the basis of a re-set lancet in north wall are claimed to
be part of a 13thC structure; however the south door, probably 15thC,
could be equally relevant in dating this earliest surviving masonry. The
upper walls as well as the gable ends are rebuilt, presumably in the
19thC, though Kay (referenced in NMR) argued that the rebuilding of the
east end was later than that of the side walls. If the rectangular window
in the north wall is the same date as the surrounding masonry (18thC) this
could well be the case. The porch is in part 15thC.
Parts of the following description are quoted from the
1979 publication The Buildings of Wales: Powys by Richard
Haslam
History
Nothing is known of the origin and early history of Colva
church. Davies (1905) records that the chapelries of Colva and Rhulen were
attached to Glascwm, and this would explain the absence of a reference to
the church in either of the 13thC Taxatios or in the 16thC Valor
Ecclesiasticus.
It is evident that the church has been restored on at
least one occasion in the last two hundred years, but no information as to
when this occurred has been recovered. A restoration in 1955 included work
on a replacement roof, the excavation of the drainage trench along the
north side of the building, renovation of the bell turret, and internally
work on the floor and the plasterwork. Further restoration apparently
occurred in the 1980s.
Architecture
Colva church comprises a single chamber with a pyramidal
timber bell-turret over the west end, and a south porch. It is oriented
north-east/south-west, but 'ecclesiastical east' is adopted here for
descriptive purposes.
Fabrics: 'A' is of grey shale slabs of broadly rectangular
shape but showing some variation. 'B' is similar to 'A' but the slabs are
thicker and more regular in shape, and on the west wall in particular they
show iron staining. Plaster residue is apparent on both types of masonry.
'A' is original fabric though whether this is medieval is
unclear; 'B' was used in the Victorian rebuilding.
Roofs: wooden shingles, but bell turret may have slates.
Drainage: terrace on north side may act as drain but now
overgrown. Nothing elsewhere.
Exterior
Bell turret. General. Pyramidal roof. North and south
sides have weather boarding and louvred windows; east side lacks window;
stonework of west wall carried up to form this side of turret; perhaps
18thC; two bells.
Nave and chancel. North wall: wall face bows inwards along
its length. Fabric 'A' for first metre from ground level, then 'B' for
rest of face, except at extreme north-west corner where the latter appears
to drop to ground level. At the interface between the two there is a
narrow plastered band for well over 50% of the length of the wall; its
purpose is not entirely clear but possibly it is reinforcing poor quality
masonry. Fabric 'B' lips over it from above, Fabric 'A' beneath it is
inset slightly, and where the plaster dies out the wall face has a flatter
more vertical face. Features from west are: i) the top of a blocked lancet
window showing as a crumbling shale arch, probably 13thC in date; high up
on wall face, built into matrix of Fabric 'B', and with the blocking in
the same material; no jambs are apparent and it is clear, given its
position in the wall, that it is re-set as an architectural curiosity; ii)
a rectangular window set across the divide between the two fabrics; only
one dressed jambstone, woodwormed lintel, wooden window frame and mullion
to form two-light window of late date, perhaps 18thC; iii) small slit
window lighting chancel with dressed sandstone jambs, chamfered lintel and
sill, all original.
East wall: bulging wall primarily in Fabric 'B', but 'A'
towards base of north-east corner. Two-light Victorian window, the lights
with trefoiled heads and a relieving arch in slabs on edge; gable more
heavily pointed than rest of wall face; 19thC and 20thC gravestones lean
against wall.
South wall: again Fabric 'A' for lower part of wall and
Fabric 'B' for upper, the juncture of variable height but generally
between 1.3m-1.6m; the lower part of the wall bulges and is faintly
battered, the upper part is closer to vertical and set back very slightly;
at south-west angle 'B' dips down to ground level. From east are: i)
two-light window with pointed head, chamfered sandstone dressings,
Victorian; ii) window with two round-headed lights, chamfered shale
dressings flaking and cracking, and arch formed of slabs on edge which are
supported on small 'corbels' at springer level; 18thC; iii) porch; iv)
small rectangular aperture, not splayed, wooden window frame, high up in a
surround of Fabric 'B'.
West wall: in Fabric 'B'; plain.
Porch. General. In Fabric 'A', and dated to 15thC.
East wall: plain and rather irregular surface; top 0.3m of
the wall could be later heightening.
South wall: entrance consists of an arch-braced tie beam
springing on the west from a modern stone wall stub and on the east from a
rotting wall post; the gable has principal rafters and minor struts, and
most of this timber is original.
West wall: plinth at c.0.3m, almost level with internal
bench; wall slightly bowed and at a height of c.1.3m the wall is inset
suggesting heightening (or rebuilding) of the top 0.3m-0.4m.
Interior
Porch. General. Floor has stone slabs; one step up to
door. Walls bare, except for north wall. Roof has two bays, the outer
trusses (including that on outside) have arch-braced trusses with soffit
chamfers, springing from wall posts; the central truss has a collar beam
with cusped apex, and there are also cusped windbraces; new rafters.
North wall: = south wall of nave, plastered and
whitewashed. Two-centred arched doorway, with ornate mouldings in
sandstone, original, and almost certainly 15thC. Above door, the
distinction between Fabrics 'A' and 'B', visible externally, can be traced
under plaster as an inset. The wooden door is itself of some age and is
reinforced by modern struts.
East wall: stone bench with slab seats; bulging wall;
repointed masonry.
West wall: as east wall. but only minor outward lean.
Anomaly in masonry in north-west corner between last truss and nave wall,
but for which no obvious explanation.
Vestry. General. Two concrete steps up from nave; floor
carpetted. Belfry 'floor' near eaves level.
East wall: partition, partly a support for the bell-turret
(and also see below).
South wall: deeply splayed window but asymmetrical.
West wall: whitewashed but not plastered.
Nave. General. Floor has stone flags at entrance, then one
step up into nave; stone flags behind benches, under font etc; tiles down
central walkway, part carpetted; red painted concrete under benches. Kay
(in NMR record) claimed that flags included some re-used graveslabs at
west end. Walls plastered and whitewashed. Roof of five bays (including
sanctuary) with arch-braced collar trusses on moulded stub ties (or
'corbels'), two of them with tie beams, the ties chamfered with
ogee-stops; three rows of through purlins.
North wall: wall leans outwards at a height of about 2m,
and in the area of the only window, the wall is outset just above it,
suggesting perhaps some rebuilding, though it does not appear to coincide
with the masonry change on external face; there is also a disconformity in
the plaster face that might correspond with the blocked lancet window.
Wall has dado of old box pews to height of c.1.0m except behind organ
which was the location of the former stove; deeply splayed window
embrasure with wooden lintel to the soffit. Six fragmentary wall paintings
including skull and cross bones.
South wall: wall battered
Text and picture copied from http://www.cpat.demon.co.uk/projects/longer/churches/radnor/16751.htm
Please visit this
sit for further details of this and other churches in Radnorshire.
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