St Mary of the Angels – Cardiff

Introduction

St Mary of the Angels in Canton, within the Archdiocese of Cardiff-Menevia, was designed by F A Walters, the architect of Buckfast Abbey. Its foundation stone was laid in January 1907 and the church was completed by November 1907.

Architecture and furnishings

The tower was built in 1916. The church is built of roughly dressed Pennant sandstone with Bath stone ashlar dressings. The church has a nave, side aisles, a chapel of the Sacred Heart at the east end of the north aisle, a Chapel of Saint Anne at the east end of the south aisle, and a north-west tower. The church is in late C12 French style.

The interior has a nave of three and a half bays with a further east bay as the sanctuary and a further west half-bay as a triple arched narthex with organ gallery over. The east sanctuary wall has a round-headed tripartite reredos of marble with three round-headed windows in the wall above. The church has a boarded tunnel-vault roof. The south aisle is blind with a range of confessionals.

The west entrance front features a tall gabled centre bay with a round-headed arch, a Romanesque doorway with three orders and paired doors, and a corbel table and arcading. The nave's side walls have triple clerestorey lights in large semi-circular arches with strip pilasters, a corbel table, and a steeply pitched roof. The north aisle has single light windows with strip pilasters and paired stone bands. The tall north-west tower, part of the original design but built later, has four stages, a projecting stair turret, clasping corner buttresses, bands between stages, and a castellated parapet.

Each nave arcade bay has paired round-headed arches with a central column with waterleaf capital, and three round-headed clerestorey windows within a semi-circular arch above. Each north aisle bay has a single round-headed window and a timber lean-to roof.

Parish life

The parish community of St Mary of the Angels, Holy Family and Saint Francis of Assisi supports its faith life through numerous groups and organisations. The Catholic community in Fairwater is served from St Mary of the Angels. Masses at St Mary of the Angels are live streamed during the scheduled mass times.

Sacraments and pastoral care

For specific enquiries about becoming a Catholic and preparing to receive the Sacraments (Baptisms, First Holy Communion, Reconciliation, Confirmation, Marriages), contact the Parish Priest directly. For urgent end-of-life sacramental care, telephone the Parish Priest directly as soon as an individual becomes seriously ill. If a faith reference is required for a child's prospective school, one must first speak to the Parish Priest in person after Sunday Mass.