England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Llansilin St Silin

The Parish

The parish of Llansilin is unusual in its geography, it occupies the extreme south the of the county of Denbighshire but also the extreme northwest of the county of Shropshire, it is unusual for a parish to contain parts of two counties but Llansilin also occupies parts of both England and Wales! In addition to this geographical anomaly Llansilin parish also forms a small part of the border with neighbouring Montgomeryshire. Llansilin is located about 6 miles west of the large market town of Oswestry in Shropshire. Llansilin sits astride the B4580 road which connects Oswestry to Llanrhaeadr ym Mochnant. Llansilin is a relatively small and compact village, barely a half mile from the Welsh/English border but the parish covered almost 7 miles by 5 miles and included numerous hamlets and farms. The area is rather picturesque rolling countryside not only rich in pastures but also fertile enough for arable cropping. Llansilin is largely separated from much of Denbighshire by the high hills of the Berwyn range. Llansilin is drained southwards by the Afon Cynllaith which makes its way via the Afon Tanat & Afon Efrynwy to join the River Severn at Crewgreen near Welshpool, from there it makes its long way to the Bristol Channel through the Severn Estuary. Llansilin is sited at 180 metres above the sea, with the Cynllaith sitting some 30 metres lower; land rises to the northwest of the village reaching 523 metres on Gyrn Moelfre just 2 miles to the northwest, the Berwyns top out at 827 metres on Cadair Berwyn but this is some way from Llansilin. Llansilin parish is very large indeed (it also incorporates a detached portion of Llangadwaldr parish within it, the total area was almost 17,500 acres of which 16,200 was in Denbighshire and the remainder in Shropshire, the parish would have supported a population of just under 2,000 parishioners. Like most of Wales Llansilin is not mentioned in Domesday Book which didn't cover this area.

The Church

St Silin's church stands alongside the B4580 as it winds though Llansilin village, itself. The church is double-naved, required to enclose the large population. The present building is not the first to occupy what is believed to be a "clas" or Celtic Monastery site. Documentary and archaeological evidence shows that formerly a cruciform 13th century church occupied the site. Much of the alignment of the present church matches key alignments and features within that 13th century church and indeed some Early English style features remain from that building used (or reused) in the present church. The need for the replacement is assigned to the church having been partially destroyed during the Owain Glyndwr era. Much of the present building is Perpendicular in style and probably late 15th or early 16th century. The tower was a replacement for a timber-framed spire and was erected in 1832, and a major restoration of 1890 made numerous changes. The church is accessed by a short tarred pathway leading through metal gates into the churchyard, there are few obstacles to photography within that churchyard.