History
The parish church of St David in Llanwrtyd was built in the fourteenth or fifteenth century, and then was rebuilt or renovated in the sixteenth century. The changes affected mainly the windows and the chancel. In the years 1740-1742, the vicar at the temple was William Williams Pantycelyn, the famous Welsh author of hymns, writer and poet. In the 19th century, the building underwent a Victorian renovation.
Architecture
The church was originally a very simple aisleless building consisting of a rectangular long nave. At the beginning of the 16th century, a chancel was added to it from the east: a bit narrower and lower, very short, with a straight east wall. A porch was also attached to the nave from the south at that time. Inside the nave there had to be a rood screen with an upper loft, because in the southern wall, in the thickness of a shallow projection, there were straight stairs leading up.
Current state
The church retained its shape from the end of the Middle Ages, although the porch was to be rebuilt in the 19th century, probably with the use of older demolition material. Most of the church’s windows today date from the 16th century, but were renovated in the 19th century.
bibliography:
Salter M., The old parish churches of Mid-Wales, Malvern 1997.
Website britishlistedbuildings.co.uk, Church of St David A Grade II Listed Building in Llanwrtyd Wells, Powys.