St. Thomas

Sometime earlier than 1298, a garrison Chapel stood on or near the site of the present church, which served the needs of the Norman retainers of the nearby castle. Believed originally to be dedicated to Thomas a Becket, when Henry VIII broke from Rome in 1533/34, this church was rededicated to St. Thomas the Apostle.

 

The base of the tower, circa 1340, is the oldest part of the church. In 1691 the tower height was increased by the addition of stone taken from the ruins of Neath Abbey, the stone can be easily seen today. After the heightening of the tower, in 1694 three bells in the tower were increased to six, which are regularly rung by an enthusiastic team.

 

There were many alterations in 1730. Public subscription and grant money was used to pierce the side walls, so creating two aisles. Subsequent alterations in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries added a gallery at the west end, a new pulpit, a water-powered organ, an inner wooden porch and two vestries. Consequently little of the original Norman Church can now be distinguished.

 

Six large hatchments or "achievements" - The practice of hanging these boards outside the house of the deceased, and then placing them in church for six months began in the early eighteenth century. The Royal Standard of 1731 is found on the east wall of the north aisle.

 

A large war memorial commemorates many local people who gave their lives in the Great War of 1914/18. Over the memorial hang three Royal British Legion standards which have been laid-up in the church.

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