Wrexham On-line Tour

The Parish Church of St Giles

Office: College House, 1 Temple Row, Wrexham, LL13 8LY

Tel: 01978 355808
Fax: 01978 313375

This church is one of the finest examples of ecclesiastical architecture to be found in Wales. The main body of the church was built at the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries, spanning the final years of the medieval period and the opening decades of the modern age.

This magnificent building is a very visible sign of the faith of Christian people over many centuries and is dedicated to St. Giles, "the patron saint of cripples, beggars and blacksmiths". There are many fine examples of masonry, woodcarvings, memorials and ecclesiastical artefacts throughout the church as well as some significant stained glass windows.

The tower, built in the perpendicular style and famous as one of the "Seven Wonders of Wales" (on which, it is said, the tower of the Houses of Parliament is modelled), boasts a peal of ten bells cast in 1726-7 by one of the finest bell-founders of the time, Abraham Rudhall of Gloucester. Today, Wrexham is one of very few churches to have a complete ring of Rudhall's bells.

In addition to the regular round of Sunday and mid-week services, there are numerous weddings, baptisms, and services for various service organisations, especially the Royal Welch Fusiliers who have their own chapel within the church. The church is also a popular venue for concerts.

The church receives hundreds of visitors each year, many from the USA who come here to see the tomb of Elihu Yale, benefactor of Yale University, in the churchyard. The building is usually open from 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. each weekday between Easter and Harvest and visits may be made at other times by appointment.

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