St Chad

St Chad's church in Holt is a marvellous historic church, built largely of red sandstone, on the banks of the River Dee, just barely inside Wales.

Holt, Wrexham

Opening times

Open during daylight hours.

Address

Bridge Street
Holt
Wrexham
LL13 9JE

It faces its English counterpart at Farndon, on the Cheshire side of the river. The oldest parts of the church date to the 13th century, with additions from the 15th century mixed with 15th and 16th century restoration work.

The church was the scene of fierce fighting during the Civil War, which spilled into the nave itself. You can see clear musket ball marks in the west wall of the church, near the font. The font is late medieval and is composed of eight sides, each bearing a heraldic shield, most of which depict arms of the Lords of Bromfield and Yale. Included are wonderful animal carvings including a stag's head and a lion. The underside of the font bowl is decorated with fascinating carved heads, the sort you would normally see on gargoyles.

Just inside the west door is a carving of a mitred head, a fragment of a medieval bench end. This head is thought to represent St Chad, the first Bishop of Lichfield. In 1872 the head was removed from the church during restoration work and ended up at Holt Hall, where it served as a newel post. When the Hall was torn down in the 1940s the head was returned to the church.

Towards the east end of the south aisle is a grave slab carved with a skull and crossed bones.

Key features