St Iestyn's Church, Llaniestyn

St Iestyn's Church, Llaniestyn
St Iestyn's Church, with the south transept (left) and east window (right)
St Iestyn's Church, Llaniestyn Location in Anglesey
Coordinates: 53°17′40″N 4°07′28″W / 53.294409°N 4.124471°W / 53.294409; -4.124471
OS grid reference	SH 585 796
Location	Llaniestyn, Anglesey
Country	Wales
Denomination	Church in Wales
History
Founded	Unknown, but possibly 7th century; earliest part of building is from the 12th century
Founder(s)	St Iestyn
Dedication	St Iestyn
Architecture
Status	Church
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade II*
Designated	30 January 1968
Style	Medieval
Specifications
Length	38 ft 3 in (11.7 m)
Width	15 ft 6 in (4.7 m)
Other dimensions	South transept: 18 by 15 feet (5.5 by 4.6 m)
Materials	Rubble masonry
Administration
Parish	Beaumaris with Llanddona and Llaniestyn
Deanery	Tindaethwy
Archdeaconry	Bangor
Diocese	Diocese of Bangor
Province	Province of Wales
Clergy
Rector	Neil Fairlamb

St Iestyn's Church, Llaniestyn is a medieval church in Llaniestyn, Anglesey, in Wales. A church is said to have been founded here by St Iestyn in the 7th century, with the earliest parts of the present building dating from the 12th century. The church was extended in the 14th century, with further changes over the coming years. It contains a 12th-century font and a 14th-century memorial stone to Iestyn, from the same workshop as the stone to St Pabo at St Pabo's Church, Llanbabo.

The church is still in use, as part of the Church in Wales, and is one of seven churches in a combined parish. It is a Grade II* listed building, a national designation given to "particularly important buildings of more than special interest", because of its age and retention of many original features, including the Iestyn effigy.

St Iestyn's Church stands in a churchyard in a rural part of eastern Anglesey, near the village of Llanddona. The church gave its name to the area of Llaniestyn: the Welsh word llan originally meant "enclosure" and then "church", with the saint's name as a suffix. The date of foundation of the church is unknown. Geraint Jones, author of a 2006 guide to the churches of Anglesey, notes that it is thought that St Iestyn, a nephew of the Anglesey saint St Cybi, established a religious community in this place in the 7th century. It was the last of the churches that he established.

According to the 19th-century writer Samuel Lewis, the church was donated by Llywelyn the Great (c. 1172–1240) to the priory he had established at Llanfaes. It is known that there was a church here before 1254 as it is recorded in the Norwich Valuation of that year. The oldest parts of the building, including the blocked west door, date back to the 12th century. There was an extension to the chancel, probably in the 14th century; the east window is 15th-century, and the south door dates from about 1500. The 16th century saw the addition of the south transept. Restoration work took place in 1865 (renewing the roof and adding the north window) and in 1954, when the west door was discovered.