Peniel chapel, Tremadog
Peniel Chapel is located at the southern gateway of the planned town of Tremadog. Its innovative gable front and auditorium plan proved highly influential in the evolution of Welsh chapel design whilst its pedimented portico with Tuscan columns has made it one of Wales’ most iconic chapels. Tremadog was the project of London entrepreneur, William Madocks, who bought the marsh land in 1798 and envisioned it as a settlement on the trade route between London and Ireland. The Calvinist Methodist chapel was finished in 1810, and when enlarged in 1849 to the original designs, it was possibly the most striking chapel in Wales, its temple front loosely based on Inigo Jones’ St Paul’s, Covent Garden.
Madocks himself was not a dissenter, so his allowing a chapel within the town was a shock to some. However Madocks was not threatened by the idea of such a large chapel being built, observing that “the church is built on rocks, the chapel is built on sand.” The opening ceremony was presided over by influential Welsh preacher, Rev.Thomas Charles of Bala. As the congregation increased, the pews were replaced in 1860, the galleries extended in 1880, and the pulpit renewed in 1898. Following its closure, it was acquired by Addoldai Cymru in 2010, and its schoolroom houses the Trust’s main office.
