Nercwys
| Nercwys | |
| Flintshire | |
|---|---|
 St Mary's Church | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SJ2321160697 |
| Location: | 53°8’15"N, 3°8’53"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 566 (2001) |
| Post town: | Mold |
| Postcode: | CH7 |
| Dialling code: | 01352 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Flintshire |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Delyn |
Nercwys is a rural village and parish in Flintshire surrounded by open countryside. The older spelling of Nerquis can sometimes be found.
It has a small school and a local bus service to Mold which is around three miles away.
Nercwys lies on the eastern fringe of the Clwydians, and is served by a network of lanes. The modern settlement straggles along a shelf that interrupts the prevailing south-west to north-east slope. The River Terrig, a tributary of the Alyn, runs northwards less than half-a-mile to the east.
History
The origins of this settlement are obscure. The shape of the churchyard might indicate an early mediæval origin but there is no convincing evidence to corroborate the theory.
The church, an ancient chapelry of Mold, is first documented in 1291, when the place was termed Nerchgwys. The meaning of the name is obscure but could combine either 'hanner' [half] or 'anner' [heifer] with 'cwys' [furrow]. The development of Nercwys through the Middle Ages and even into the post-mediæval era remains to be elucidated. The first depiction on an estate map of 1734 shows Plas-yn-llan to the south of the churchyard, the White Lion Inn at the crossroads and a small number of dwellings scattered along the road.
In Nercwys you can find a Grade I listed Welsh Fortified border house which is referred to as TOWER. It is the only Welsh fortified border house still standing and has been in the same family for six centuries and is still privately owned. Over the decades the building has had many additions, including a tower and battlements which Mr Wynne-Eyton (The current occupier) thinks date from the 18th Century and belong to the early Gothic Revival period. This now gentrified home of was referred to by the 15th century poet Hywel Cilcan as “the fair Tower ….a fortress twenty fathoms high”. Rheinallt ap Gryfydd ap Bleddyn, who features in the continuous border warfare of the time, hung the Mayor of Chester in the dining hall at TOWER in 1465. An iron staple in the ceiling of the mediæval dining hall marks the spot. The family motto “Heb dduw, heb ddim”, which translates as “without God there is nothing”, is carved over the fireplace and stained glass windows in the building display the family coat of arms
The parish church is dedicated to St Mary, dates back to the 1100s and is a grade II* listed building. [1]
References
- ↑ "St Mary's Parish Church, Village Street (W Side), Nercwys, Nercwys". British Listed Buildings. http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/wa-312-st-mary-s-parish-church-village-street-w-si. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
Outside links
This Flintshire article is a stub: help to improve Wikishire by building it up.