User Reviews
St David's church in Glascwm has 13th century nave has two original doorways, and the chancel dates from the 15th century. Part of the original wagon ceiling remains. The church was heavily rebuilt in the 19th century, when most of the medieval windows were replaced.
The most interesting historic feature is the font, dated to the late 14th or early 15th century. The nicely carved chancel arch is 15th century, with wave mouldings typical of that period.
One unexpected memorial is a simple wooden cross, tucked in behind an old church bell at the west end of the nave. The cross commemorates a pair of German airmen, Oberleutenant G Brixius and Feldwebel A Liedig, who died on 25 April 1942 when their Junkers 88 was shot down over the village. A military funeral was held for the dead airmen at Glascwm church. They were later reinterred at the German war cemetery at Cannock Chase.
References:The Jan Hus Memorial stands at one end of Old Town Square. The huge monument depicts victorious Hussite warriors and Protestants who were forced into exile 200 years after Hus, and a young mother who symbolises national rebirth. The monument was so large that the sculptor designed and built his own villa and studio where the work could be carried out. It was unveiled in 1915 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Jan Hus' martyrdom. The memorial was designed by Ladislav Šaloun and paid for solely by public donations.
Born in 1369, Hus became an influential religious thinker, philosopher, and reformer in Prague. He was a key predecessor to the Protestant movement of the sixteenth century. In his works he criticized religious moral decay of the Catholic Church. Accordingly, the Czech patriot Hus believed that mass should be given in the vernacular, or local language, rather than in Latin. He was inspired by the teachings of John Wycliffe.