text: st nidan 's church , llanidan st nidan 's church , llanidan is a 19th - century parish church near the village of brynsiencyn , in anglesey , north wales . built between 1839 and 1843 , it replaced the old church of st nidan , llanidan , which needed significant repair , providing a place of anglican worship nearer to the village than the old church . some items were moved here from the old church , including the 13th - century font , two bells from the 14th and 15th century , and a reliquary thought to hold the remains of st nidan . the tower at the west end has been described as " top heavy " and looking like " a water tower " . the church is still used for worship by the church in wales , one of five in a group of parishes in the south of anglesey . it is a grade ii listed building , a national designation given to " buildings of special interest , which warrant every effort being made to preserve them " , in particular because it is regarded as " a distinctive example of pre - archaeological gothic revival work . " the 19th - century clergyman and antiquarian harry longueville jones said that it had been built in a " debased barbarous style , showing neither architectural science nor taste " . history and location st nidan 's church was built between 1839 and 1843 , replacing its medieval predecessor . the architect was john welch , who also designed st ffinan 's church , llanffinan , in central anglesey , which was built in 1841 . st nidan 's was originally intended to have a spire on the west tower , but this was not added . the chancel was built in 1882 , and a vestry and organ chamber added later . the battlements on the tower were added in 1933 , replacing the original . st nidan 's is set within a walled churchyard on the north of the road , in the south of anglesey , wales . the village of brynsiencyn is about 500 metres ( about one - third of a mile ) to the south - west , and the old church of st nidan is about 750 metres ( about half a mile ) to the south - east . a new church was needed because the old church needed significant repair and also because the growth of brynsiencyn meant that more people lived there than in llanidan itself . like its predecessor , it is dedicated to nidan , a 7th - century welsh saint who was the confessor of the monastery at penmon , on the eastern tip of anglesey . st nidan 's is still used for worship by the church in wales . it is one of five churches in the combined benefice ( parishes combined under one priest ) of newborough with llanidan with llangeinwen and llanfair - yn - y - . the parish is within the deanery of tindaethwy and menai , the archdeaconry of bangor and the diocese of bangor . as of 2012 , the priest in charge is e. roberts . architecture and fittings st nidan 's is built mainly from red gritstone rubble , dressed with sandstone , with buttresses at the corners ; the roof , which is made from slate , has stone copings with a cross at the east end . the church is built in a cross - shape , in early english style . there is a tower at the west end , which has battlements at the top along with a clock on the east and west sides , a belfry in the middle , and an entrance porch with an arched doorway at the bottom . there are two transepts leading from the nave , one to the north and one to the south , and a chancel at the east end . there are four " equal and bold " arches at the crossing where nave , transepts and chancel meet . the quadrant - shaped organ room and vestry are built into the eastern external angles of the chancel and transepts , one on each side of the church . the gallery at the west end of the nave , supported by octagonal columns , is reached from the entrance porch ; it has its pews set at an angle . a step leads up from the nave into the chancel , with a further two steps up from the chancel into the sanctuary . the floor of the chancel and the sanctuary are made from encaustic tiles . the internal walls have been plastered . the nave has two bays , each lit with a lancet window ; the transepts have groups of three large windows , as does the east end of the building . the chancel window depicts " faith , hope and charity " , by heaton , butler and bayne ( 1877 ) ; it is dedicated to the 5th lord boston who died in 1897 . one transept set of windows by shrigley and hunt depicts the ascension , in memory of anna maria evans ( died 1929 , wife of the vicar richard evans ) . a sandstone chest with a glass front was moved here from the old church ; local tradition maintains that it holds the relics of st nidan . it was discovered under the altar of the old church , and may date from the 16th century . the church also has pews made of pine , and a semi - octagonal pulpit with decorated panels . a survey by the royal commission on ancient and historical monuments in wales and monmouthshire in 1937 noted which of the church 's contents had come from the old church . the report listed the font , which has carved decoration and dates from the early 13th century ; two bells , one from the first half of the 14th century ( inscribed " + e : d : a : n " ) and another from the latter part of the 15th century ( inscribed " ap " ) ; and a carved oak chair from the time of charles ii . in 1906 , a survey of church plate within the bangor diocese recorded that st nidan 's had a silver chalice and alms dish . these were donated probably in 1701 and remade in 1871 – 72 . it also had a silver paten and two with silver handles , all marked with the date 1871 – 72 . records from the 19th century indicated that two tankards ( one silver , one pewter ) and a silver chalice had been lost . the churchyard contains the grave of sir ellis ellis - griffith , 1st baronet , who was mp for anglesey for 25 years . the grave , by the church 's north wall , has a bust of the politician wearing a wing collar . other people buried here include the presbyterian minister and theologian j. e. hughes , who died in 1959 . there are four commonwealth war graves , of a british army soldier of world war i and three soldiers of world war ii . assessment the church has national recognition and statutory protection from alteration as it has been designated as a grade ii listed building – the lowest of the three grades of listing , designating " buildings of special interest , which warrant every effort being made to preserve them " . it was given this status on 30 january 1968 , and has been listed as " a small early 19th - century church " . cadw ( the welsh assembly government body responsible for the built heritage of wales and the inclusion of welsh buildings on the statutory lists ) describes the church as " a distinctive example of pre - archaeological gothic revival work . " writing in 1846 , the clergyman and antiquarian harry longueville jones condemned the treatment of the old church , which he said was " one of the largest and most important in the island of anglesey " , given its architecture , contents and traditions . he said that the new church had been built " in a debased barbarous style , showing neither architectural science nor taste , and without any example or analogy amongst the ecclesiastical edifices of any age , except the present . " he also described it in 1863 as " that hideous pile ... a painfully impressive example of architectural bad taste . " he said that the font was " one of the most interesting as a work of art ( not later than the thirteenth century ) extent in anglesey " , and although he did not consider that its design or execution matched that of the font at st ceinwen 's church , llangeinwen , it was " a highly valuable specimen of medieval taste . " the reliquary , he added , was " unique , so far as wales is concerned " . the 19th - century writer samuel lewis said that the new church was " apparently of substantial construction , but is much inferior in style to the old building . " the historian and clergyman edmund tyrrell green , writing a survey of anglesey church architecture and contents in 1929 , described the church as " hideous " , although he said that the font was " remarkable " for its " very graceful patterns in relief showing influence of greek classical design . " a 2006 guide to the churches of anglesey says that it is " of fairly unusual appearance , not at all typical of anglesey churches in its stonework or the shape of the tower " . it comments that the organ and vestry were in " unusually - shaped rooms " , and notes the " ornate stained glass " of the ascension . a 2009 guide to the buildings of the region says that the church is " bolder " than john welch 's similarly designed church at llandudno . it describes the tower as " top - heavy with battlements ... like a water tower " , and adds that the seating is " crowded " .