St Silin's Church

Description

St Silin's Church is a parish church in Llansilin. The present building, which has parts dating back to the 13th century, is a Grade I listed building. It stands on a site that has been used by Christian communities since the Dark Ages. The church is dedicated to Saint Silin, now better known as Saint Sulien, the 6th-century founder-abbot of a monastery at Luxulyan in Cornwall.

The church was constructed out of wood in a cruciform shape as a Clas, though it was damaged during Owain Glyndŵr's rebellion and the nave was rebuilt in stone. A 13th-century lancet remains a part of the current building. During the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell's Roundheads used the church as a barracks and the south door for target practice with muskets. It was also shot at by Royalist forces sieging the church; the door is still in use and still retains the bullet holes. The wooden spire of the church burned down in the 1800s and a replacement stone tower was built in 1832.