Betws Bledrws
St Bledrws Church is closely associated with the nineteenth-century Derry Ormand estate nearby and the Inglis-Jones family.
A medieval church is known to have existed on the site but the twelfth-century font is all that remains of the earlier building. The addition of a slate spire to the four-sided tower, which as it rises, becomes hexagonal, is an unusual design which dates to 1831. The rest of the church was rebuilt in 1887, by D.E. Thomas of Haverfordwest.
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Situated on the A485 between Lampeter and Tregaron, adjacent to the village bus stops.
Car parking is possible nearby and cycle parking is possible in the churchyard.
Postcode SA48 8NX
OS Grid Ref SN59585200
Key and visitor guide requests: Ms Dinah Gibbons 01570 493344
Services: Eucharist normally celebrated each Sunday at 10:45 am, but please check before travelling.
Bledrws is absent from historical references. A bishop of Morganwg (Glamorgan) named Bledri (died 1022) was consecrated by Aelfric, Archbishop of Canterbury, and reputedly received the pastoral staff from Aethelred the Unready, king of England. Separately, a Bletri is also recorded in a list of abbots of Llanilltud Fawr (Llantwit Major).
In the Welsh language, betws can be translated as oratory, possibly suggesting in the village name an association with preaching.
The small twelfth-century font has a late nineteenth-century wooden cover, reputedly made from oak samples taken from nineteen Ceredigion churches. Stained glass designed by Carl Almquist of the Lancaster firm of Shrigley & Hunt, decorates the nave, chancel and porch. The previous east window was removed and reset in the nearby church at Llangybi. There are no pews, instead, unusual high-backed seats, each elevated above the one before it, were inserted at the expense of John Jones of Derry Ormond.
On the hill opposite the church is the Derry Ormond tower, erected in 1821–4, as a monument to the Battle of Waterloo.
Other churches nearby
