2467

10  

II*  

Designated  

01/11/1974  

10/11/2005  

Church of Our Lady and St Michael R C, including attached Presbytery (No. 10)  

10 Pen-y-pound  

Monmouthshire  

Abergavenny  

Abergavenny  

Abergavenny  

329682  

214648  

W  

On the west side of Pen-y-pound and one of the varied group of historic buildings on the main north-eastern access to Abergavenny.  

Religious, Ritual and Funerary  

 

Church and presbytery built in 1858-60 and designed by J B Bucknall. The Roman Catholic faith continued in Abergavenny after the Reformation and survived the years of persecution during the C16 and C17 (see No. 39 Cross Street). The first church was built in 1690 and enlarged in 1740, this partially survives still in Frogmore Street. It was replaced by the present one in 1858. This makes the Catholic ministry of Abergavenny the third longest established one in Wales.  

Built of local, coursed, squared, purple sandstone rubble with Bath stone quoins and dressings, natural slate roofs with stone chimneys. Comprising church and attached domestic range at right angles, the church in a C14 Decorated Gothic style and the domestic range a C15/C16 late Gothic style, The church to the right (north) has nave, north and south aisles with lean-to roofs and chancel. The east gable faces the road and forms the right hand part of the main elevation. Plinth and stepped buttresses, very large east window in the Decorated manner, 6-lights with an elaborately traceried head, steeply coped gable. The north and south elevations of the chancel are of two bays with further stepped buttresses and 2-light windows. The nave is taller and has six bays separated by strip buttresses to the clerestorey and stepped ones to the aisle. Two-light windows with cusped heads and reticulated tracery above in east walls of aisles. Smaller 2-light windows in north aisle and Decorated ones with cusped lights and quatrefoils in clerestorey. Very steeply pitched roof and coped gables. West end has a 5-light Decorated window over a shafted doorway. To the left the domestic range of the Presbytery. One storey and attic with projecting two storey cross-wing to the left, 1 + 3 bays. Tudor style mullioned windows, and Tudor central door with 4-light transom window over. Late Tudor style hall window on right, 4-lights with king mullion. Three-light mullion-and-transom window to left with small single light window above it. One central steeply gabled half dormer with 2-light window. Steeply pitched roof with stacks behind the ridge. The gabled wing to the left has a 2-light basement window with a 4-light mullion-and-transom window with king mullion above and a 3-light above that. Trefoil in gable above. Photographs show that the one major alteration to this elevation has been the removal of a large chimney stack from the right hand return wall of the projecting wing. Rear elevation not inspected.  

The church is lofty and well proportioned with a 6-bay nave. The arcades have slim quatrefoil columns with sharply pointed arches, uncarved blocks for heads and also at the foot of the trusses at clerestorey level. Scissor truss roof with close set secondary rafters and two tiers of purlins; lean-to aisle roofs. The inner west porch was added in the late C20. Elaborate wide and tall stone Decorated style reredos of 1883 designed by Edmund Kirby of Liverpool and carved by A B Wall of Cheltenham. The fine east window has glass by Hardman. Chantry chapel added to the south aisle in 1894 to the memory of the local C17 martyrs and richly decorated with paintings, sculpture and glass, and includes panelling from the demolished Coldbrook House. The furniture of the church is all Victorian. The church also has an exceptionally fine collection of medieval and later vestments. The interior and planning of the Presbytery is little altered with joinery, staircase, fireplaces and plasterwork typical of the period and building type.  

Included in a higher grade for its exceptional interest as a finely designed and finished Roman Catholic church and presbytery by one of the most notable Victorian architects in Wales; the buildings have retained their character and have group value with the other listed buildings in Pen-y-pound.