Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog

St Michael's Church, Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog
The remains of St Michael's from the west
St Michael's Church, Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog Location in Anglesey
Coordinates: 53°14′09″N 4°16′51″W / 53.235914°N 4.280937°W / 53.235914; -4.280937
OS grid reference	SH476734
Location	near Gaerwen, Anglesey
Country	Wales
Previous denomination	Church of England
History
Dedication	St Michael
Architecture
Status	Parish church
Functional status	Ruins
Heritage designation	Grade II
Designated	30 January 1968
Architectural type	Church

St Michael's Church, Llanfihangel Ysgeifiog, is a former parish church in Anglesey, Wales, which is now closed and in ruins. The structure dates from the 15th century and a chapel was added to the north side in the 17th century. A replacement church (St Michael's, Gaerwen) was built elsewhere in the parish in 1847, and the old church was closed, partly demolished and abandoned. Some restoration work has taken place in the 21st century and some occasional services have been held.

It is a Grade II listed building, a national designation given to "buildings of special interest, which warrant every effort being made to preserve them", in particular because it is "an important survival, retaining unrestored original late medieval features."

St Michael's Church is set in a churchyard in the countryside of Anglesey, north Wales, about 1.4 kilometres (0.87 mi) from the village of Gaerwen. A footpath leads to the church from the nearest road, 200 metres (660 ft) away. The area takes its name, in part, from the church: the Welsh word llan originally meant "enclosure" and then "church", and "‑fihangel" is a modified form of Michael (Welsh: Mihangel), the saint to whom the church is dedicated.

The present structure dates from the 15th century and was extended in 1638 when a local family added a chapel on the north side. A decision was taken in the 1840s to build a new church on a different site within the parish; the centre of population for the area had shifted because of coal mining in Pentre Berw and the construction of the A5 road across Anglesey as part of Thomas Telford's road from London to Holyhead. St Michael's, Gaerwen, opened in 1847. The old church then closed. By 1865, when the Welsh politician and church historian Sir Stephen Glynne visited, only the chancel and north chapel remained, and a new wall had been built at the west end of the chancel where it once joined the nave. Some restoration work has taken place in the 21st century, assisted by funding from the Welsh Government and Cadw (the statutory body responsible for the built heritage of Wales), and services have occasionally been held.