Holy Trinity Church, Sarn

Holy Trinity Church is a Church of England parish church in Sarn, Powys, Wales. It was constructed in 1860 and is one of a small number of churches in Wales that voted in 1914 to remain with the Church of England rather than join the Church in Wales.

Holy Trinity Church
Holy Trinity Church
52.5104°N 3.1714°W / 52.5104; -3.1714
DenominationChurch of England
History
Statusactive
Architecture
Years built1860
Administration
ParishSarn
DioceseDiocese of Hereford

Foundation

In 1860, owing to the distance between local parish churches and the parishioners in Sarn, a petition was made to Queen Victoria, the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, with the signatures of both the Bishop of St Davids and the Bishop of St Asaph to amalgamate the surrounding churches in the area into a consolidated chapelry. The petition also mentioned the Holy Trinity area, which only had a chapel of ease called Chapel of Llanfihangel in Kerry, Powys to serve Anglicans at the time,[1] though there had been a Baptist church in the village since 1826.[2] The Queen made an Order-in-Council for Holy Trinity Church to be constructed as a parish church to serve the people of Sarn and created the parish of Holy Trinity, Sarn to be under the control of the Diocese of St Davids.[3] The church was built later that year with the church being attached to the existing chapel.[4]

Interior

The interior of the church contains a font from the 13th century that came from the original Chapel of Llanfihangel. The stained-glass windows feature images of Jesus blessing the children and of the ascension of Jesus. The church also has portrayals of Saint George and Saint Michael in its other stained glass windows. The organ was installed in 1931 and was initially hand-pumped but later was adapted to be powered by electricity.[4]

Referendum

In 1914, the Welsh Church Act 1914 was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to disestablish the Church in Wales from the Church of England. Owing to the enactment being delayed by the Suspensory Act 1914, seventeen parishes (including Sarn) were balloted by the Welsh Church Commissioners to ask whether they wanted to remain part of the Church of England or join the Church in Wales. This was because their parish boundaries crossed the border between England and Wales. Holy Trinity Church's parishioners voted 595–289 to remain part of the Church of England despite the church being located within Wales.[5] As a result of the referendum, Holy Trinity Church left the Diocese of St Davids as that became part of the Church in Wales. Instead it was transferred to the Church of England's Diocese of Hereford.[6]

References
  1. "At the Court at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, the 1st day of August, 1860" (PDF). The London Gazette. 1860-08-03. p. 2866. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  2. "Sarn History". Sarn Baptist Church. 1906-09-18. Retrieved 2016-05-11.
  3. "At the Court at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, the 1st day of August, 1860" (PDF). The London Gazette: 2867. 1860-08-03. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  4. "Sarn Holy Trinity Church". BBC. 1970-01-01. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  5. "Welsh Church Bill (Balloting)". Hansard. 1915-03-02. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  6. A Church Near You (2010-12-01). "Holy Trinity, Sarn – Powys – Diocese of Hereford". Church of England. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
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