13671

 

II  

Designated  

19/05/1975  

30/04/1999  

St David's Roman Catholic Cathedral  

 

Cardiff  

Castle  

 

 

318569  

176430  

W  

Opposite Ebeneser Chapel.  

Religious, Ritual and Funerary  

 

1884-1887 by Pugin and Pugin, architects. Built as RC parish church and raised to cathedral status 1920; gutted after incendiary bomb attack, 1941. Restoration in 1950s by F R Bates, Son, and Price; reopened 1959.  

Gothic building of serious, severe Early English design. Normal alignment reversed, with entrance to E gable end. Coursed rock-faced Pennant stone with red sandstone ashlar dressings; slate roofs. 8-bay nave; windows of 2 lights with cinquefoils over. On ground floor, stepped buttresses break forward; doorway to L, then 3 confessionals, and then 3 gabled chapels; taller gable to R end bay. East front has low 2-centred doorway with flat head to doors and Gothic traceried tympanum; flanked by side-lights and then by tall buttresses; tall 5-light window with geometric tracery; statue in niche over. Four stage tower to L has low spire (originally belcote), angle buttresses, 2 louvred lancets to bell stage, canopied statue of saint in niche between 2 windows; polygonal stair turret to S. In R (north) angle between front and nave has polygonal bay enclosing stair; lancets, slate roof; 2-light window to nave , above. Sanctuary of 2 bays (tall windows with quatrefoil heads); west end (ritual E end) has round window with honeycomb tracery, and projecting stair bay below.  

Spidery arch-braced and hammer-beam roof of timber and steel has tall wall posts on stone corbels. Front entrance to lobby with baptistery to S, stair to N; above lobby, stone gallery with 3 segmental arches to nave; arcaded parapet, organ chamber to S. In aisleless nave of 7 bays, square piers form superarches over clerestorey windows; side chapels and confessionals . Tall sanctuary arch, diapered reredos below round window with honeycomb tracery, marble floor to sanctuary. Late C19 stained glass in every other side window: W window has Visions of the Immaculate Conception witnessed by popes.  

Included despite consequences of war damage as rare example of large-scale Roman Catholic church by important C19 Catholic architect.