St Daniel's Church is situated on a hill approximately 1.1 kilometres south of Pembroke Castle. One of the oldest churches in the area, it is located on an ancient, pre-Norman site associated with Saint Deiniol throughout the 6th century.
The saint to whom it is dedicated is Deiniol, who according to tradition was the first Bishop of Bangor. It is claimed that Deiniol had a hermit's cell on the site, pre-dating the church, and the site has also been linked to Saint David. The site gained a reputation for miraculous healing, and became a shrine for pilgrims who would drink from the well.
The current structure dates to the 14th or 15th century. It underwent repair in 1780, and again in 1849 and 1893. Today, the church, a small structure built of rubble stone with a slate roof, is disused. It has a nave, a chancel, and a spire, with a tower on the western side.
By 1832 the building was in private hands and it was being bought and sold along with the land on which it was built. At the end of the 19th century it was in use only as a cemetery chapel.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.