The fascinating collections of the National Maritime Museum of Ireland are found in the slightly incongruous surroundings of a former Church of Ireland building. The church was originally begun in 1836 and consecrated in 1843, and successive…

The little chapel situated in the grounds of the Church of St Mary in Angle is known as the Fishermen’s or Sailors’ Chapel, only a short walk from the beach at the west end of Angle Bay. The bay consists of mudflats and provides an important feeding…

The tradition of commissioning stained glass at St Mary’s Church in Fishguard began relatively late in the 1920s. The church was designed in the 1850s with an outward appearance and interior that had more in common with Nonconformist chapels than…

The images of two saints can be found in Venetian glass mosaics at the entrance to the Celtic Gateway Bridge in Holyhead. One is of St Cybi, whose church can be found in the grounds of the Roman fort, and a Victorian church in Holyhead was built in…

The close association of St Patrick with Ireland extends back to Patrick’s own writings, probably dating to the fifth century. In these letters he states that he came from a Christian family in Britain. The location of his upbringing in Britain has…

Medieval churches that appear to have been dedicated to the Irish saint Brigid, Bride or Ffraid can be found across most parts of Wales. The large west facing haven known as St Bride’s Bay in Pembrokeshire seems to have been known by versions of the…

One of the disciples of St David in the Latin Life of St David is named sanctus Aidanus. According to text, written late in the eleventh century by Rhygyfarch ap Sulien at his scriptorium in Llanbadarn Fawr, Aidan left David’s monastery and…

The Catholic mission in Fishguard was established in the late nineteenth century to minister to Irish workers and families involved in the construction of the port, mirroring a similar mission to Catholic families in Holyhead in the mid-nineteenth…

Towards the end of the Civil War, Major Thomas Swift took control of the fort of Holyhead in 1649, and in the following year he was made Postmaster. This gave him responsibility for the ships carrying the mail to Ireland, which was a troublesome…

The oldest building in Pembroke Dock is the tower that stands behind the dockyard wall on Fort Road. Although the Anglican church in Pembroke Dock, dedicated to St John the Evangelist, appears to have a tall tower that is similar to other…