Monknash

 
St Mary Magdalene Church is of early 12th century foundation. It is a Grade 1* listed
building surrounded by farmland with spectacular views across the Bristol channel.
Monknash was originally known as Aissa or Ash and the prefix ‘Monk’ arose from the fact
that the settlement became a Grange of Neath Abbey; the Monks arriving about 1129. As
a chapel the church served the Grange. On the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the church
passed to local noble families, who held the Grange of Neath and paid for a monk to
conduct regular prayer readings. In 1607 the Bishop of Llandaff granted a licence to allow
baptisms in the church and burials in the surrounding churchyard. In 1753 the Stradling
family (of St Donat’s Castle) appointed a curate for the church and continued to appoint
perpetual curates, leaving the church without a resident priest.
In 1950, the parishes of Monknash, Marcross and Wick were united to form one benefice
and in 1983 the three parishes were joined with St Donat’s and Llantwit Major to form the
Rectorial Benefice of Llantwit Major. Subsequently, St Mary Magdalene has become part
of The Glamorgan Heritage Coast Ministry Area, being one of its twelve churches.
Changes to the church were made during Victorian times. The church was first restored in
1860 when work was undertaken on the chancel roof and some of the church windows. A
second period of work was undertaken between 1890 and 1891 focusing on the interior
fixtures and fittings. Modern pews replaced the box shaped pews. The font was removed
from the middle of the aisle to its traditional position near the south door and new altar rails
were installed The stone tiles to both the chancel and nave were removed and re-roofed
with slates over 30 years ago. In 2024, after receiving grants and fund raising, the leaking
roof on the chancel was renewed.
In the churchyard there are the graves of shipwrecked mariners. One gravestone erected
by public subscription commemorates the members of the shipwrecked crew of the
‘Malleny’ lost off Tusker Rock with all hands on the 16th October 1886. The BBC Wales’
series ‘Weatherman Walking’ has featured the story of the ‘Malleny’. Bones uncovered at
Cwm Nash as a result of cliff erosion are also buried in the churchyard. This has been the
subject of research by Cardiff University, which has been covered in the BBC series
‘Digging For Britain’.
St Mary Magdalene church is a key station in a proposed Pilgrim Trail. Visitors to the
church come from all over the world and “a beautiful, peaceful place” is a frequent
comment written in the Visitors’ Book.

A Friday Fellowship service of Holy Eucharist, which includes the Ministry of Healing, is
held at 9.30 a.m. on the third Friday of each month and several Sunday services are held
throughout the year to celebrate Harvest, Rogation Sunday, Nine Lessons and Carols and
the Patronal service for St Mary Magdalene.
The church is located on Heol Las quite near The Plough and Harrow public house in the
hamlet of Monknash. Post Code CF71 7QQ.

To contact us, please phone on 01446 792 439