Llandaff Cathedral

Set in a hollow on the west bank of the River Taff is the imposingly beautiful Llandaff Cathedral, built on the site of a 6th-century monastery founded by St Teilo.

The present cathedral dates from 1130 - it crumbled throughout the Middle Ages, and during the Reformation and Civil War it was used as an alehouse and then an animal shelter. Derelict by the 18th century, it was largely rebuilt in the 19th century and extensively restored after being damaged by a German bomb in 1941. The towers at the western end epitomise the cathedral's fragmented history - one was built in the 15th century, the other in the 19th. Inside, plain glass windows provide a striking clarity of light. A giant arch carries the organ and the huge, aluminium sculpture Majestas - its modern style a bold shock in contrast to Sir Jacob Epstein's gracious, vaulted space. Pre-Raphaelite groupies will like the Burne-Jones reredos (screens) in St Dyfrig's chapel and the stained glass by Rossetti and William Morris' company.