Pwt o hanes
Ychydig lathenni i lawr y ffordd o olion hynafol Llys Rhosyr ar Ffordd Llanddwyn, Niwbwrch saif eglwys San Pedr yn edrych allan ar fawredd eang mynyddoedd Eryri. Tybed ai’r eglwys hon sy’n mwynhau un o’r golygfeydd harddaf ar yr Ynys? Mae’n eglwys daclus, ddiaddurn oddi allan, heb dŵr pigfain i dynnu sylw, ond oddi mewn mae yno sawl nodwedd deniadol a hynod hardd.
Mae’n debyg mai yn y ddeuddegfed ganrif yr adeiladwyd yr eglwys garreg gyntaf yno. Credir fod y gangell, Capel y Santes Fair, wedi’i hadeiladu gan un o dywysogion Cymru cyn 1156 - Owain Gwynedd mwy na thebyg - gyda mynediad iddi drwy ddrws y festri presennol. Y gred yw y byddai Owain, a adeiladodd sawl eglwys yn ystod ei deyrnasiad heddychlon, yn addoli yno pan fyddai’n aros yn Llys Rhosyr.
Ers hynny estynnwyd yr eglwys i gyfeiriad y dwyrain yn fuan ar ôl 1300 i greu un adeilad ac estynnwyd corff yr eglwys i gyfeiriad y gorllewin tua 1500, i’w hyd presennol. Ychwanegwyd y festri presennol yn 1886 gan ddefnyddio drws gwreiddiol hen Gapel y Santes Fair.
Mae’r bedyddfaen, dyddiedig 1150, a wnaed o garreg rud (gritstone) ymhlith yr hynaf yng Nghymru. Mae dwy gloch yn yr eglwys, un a symudwyd o Eglwys Llanddwyn ar ddiwedd y 16eg ganrif; lluniwyd y llall tua 1690 yn wreiddiol a chafodd y ddwy eu hail fwrw yn y 19eg ganrif. Yn wal ddeheuol yr eglwys ger yr allor mae piscine, math o fowlen ar gyfer golchi llestri cymun, sy’n dyddio o’r cyfnod ar ôl 1300.
Cynlluniwyd y ffenest liw yn y wal ddwyreiniol gan Henry Wooldridge, disgybl i Syr Edward Burne-Jones, a chredir fod y gwydr yn enghraifft nodedig o ffenest ‘Pre-Raphaelite’ ddiweddar.
A short history
A few yards down the road from the archaeological site of Llys Rhosyr on the road to Llanddwyn, Newborough, stands St. Peter’s church with its fine panoramic views of Eryri. Is this the church that enjoys one of the best views on the Island?.. From the outside it is a simple, unadorned church – no tall spire here – but inside it contains a number of interesting and striking features.
Most probably, the first stone church was built here in the twelfth century. It’s believed that the chancel (the former St Mary’s Chapel) was built by Owain Gwynedd, one of the princes of Wales, before 1156 and would have been entered by the present vestry door. Owain, who built a number of churches during his peaceful reign, would have worshipped here while staying at Llys Rhosyr from time to time.
The church was extended eastwards after 1300 to form one building and about 1500 the nave was extended westwards to its present length. The present vestry was added in 1886 using the original door to St Mary’s Chapel.
The gritstone font, dated 1150, is one of the oldest in Wales. There are two bells in the church, one that was moved from Llanddwyn church at the end of the 16th century; the other dates from about 1690 and both were recast towards the end of the 19th century. There is a piscine in the south wall near the altar, a kind of bowl used for washing communion vessels, which dates from the period after 1300.
The stained glass east window was designed by Henry Wooldridge, a pupil of Sir Edward Burne-Jones, and is believed to be a very fine example of a late Pre-Raphaelite window.