St Andrew
Cardiff, City of Cardiff
The tale of St Andrew's church began in the last decade of the 19th century when Cardiff was a town growing around the docks which were built by the Marquises of Bute.
The current building was designed as a War Memorial Church by Mr E Willmott, and built in two stages: the chancel and vestry in 1921, and the nave in 1968. St Edward’s church was erected in stages, following the destruction of an earlier church by fire in 1919. Before the fire, the local community had decided that a War Memorial should be erected, so it was agreed that the new church should be the Memorial Church.
The chancel was completed in 1921 to a design by Mr E Willmott, and includes the Parish War Memorial on the north wall and a Red Cross Memorial facing west into the nave commemorating those who died in the Red Cross Hospitals, locally in Newport Road. A Second World War Memorial was added below the Parish Memorial, and in 2017 after the closure of St Anne’s Church in Roath, the wooden panels of their memorial pulpit were erected on the south chancel wall. In the vestry are pictures of the old church, the fire and the ceremony of the laying of the foundation stone on June 4th 1921 (not by Mr Coward as recorded on the stone, but by Mr Walter Thomas).
Other items of interest include: The original pipe organ was installed in 1924. The crucifix over the pulpit, given in 1929, was made at Oberammergau. The Eagle Lectern, given in 1930 in memory of Alderman Sir Amos Kirk, Lord Mayor of Cardiff 1918-1919. The stained glass east window was dedicated in 1951 by Revd Ronald Cox in memory of his parents; his father was for many years the church secretary. The oak pulpit given in 1952 by the father of Revd Kenneth Martin, who served for many years as priest at St Edward’s. It came from the Missions to Seamen. The original bell, dated 1815, has recently been removed as the bellcote (to be seen now on the south lawn) was unsafe due to the weight of the bell. It has been replaced by a smaller bell, dated 1816.
Due to the slump of the 1920s a temporary nave was erected. This was finally replaced in 1968 by the present nave, to a design by the original architect. Finally (so far) the small hall or schoolroom was opened in 1991.