D
Dale
DALE, a village and parish, in the union of Haverfordwest, hundred of Rhôs, county of Pembroke, South Wales, 13 miles (S. W. by W.) from
Haverfordwest; containing 392 inhabitants. This
village is supposed to have derived its name from a
contraction of De Vale, the name of one of its ancient
lords, in whose time it was dignified with the title of
a borough, and appears to have enjoyed certain immunities. It still preserves the right of pasturing
cattle on a plot of ground, called Dale Meadow,
after the lord of the manor has cleared off the hay,
which privilege was granted to the holders of burgage
tenements by Henry VII., who, when Earl of Richmond, landed at this place, on his expedition to wrest
the crown of England from Richard III. Here he
was met by Rhŷs ab Thomas, who advanced from
Carew Castle with a well-disciplined and well-appointed band of followers, to join the standard of the
earl, with whom he was present at Bosworth Field,
and to whose success he materially contributed, not
only by his influence in adding to the number of
Henry's partisans, but by his valour and discretion
in the field.
Dale is situated on a little bay forming one side
of the entrance into Milford Haven, and affording,
in Dale Roads, good anchorage for small vessels,
which may ride in safety in two or three fathoms at
low water. Block-houses were built here in the reign
of Elizabeth, and a chain is said to have been drawn
across the mouth of the Haven, from St. Anne's here
to Angle Point on the opposite side, to obstruct the
passage of the Spanish Armada. St. Anne's lighthouses were originally erected in 1712, by William
Allen, Esq., to whom a lease was granted by the
crown for ninety-nine years, which term expired in
1813: they were rebuilt and again opened in 1800.
The lantern of one of them contains eleven lights,
and has an elevation of 160 feet; that of the other
has sixteen lights, at an elevation of 195 feet. Copper-ore was formerly worked in the parish. A fishery
is carried on, employing six boats, chiefly in taking
lobsters, oysters, and herrings, during their respective
seasons; and there is a small trade in the importation
of coal and culm from the interior of the county.
The parishioners at large have the right of pasturing
cattle on Pickleridge common.
The scenery is of a bold and striking character;
and from the higher grounds are obtained some extensive and pleasing views over St. George's Channel to the south and east, and of the adjacent
country to the north. Dale Castle, formerly the
mansion of the Allens, passed by marriage with the
heiress to John Lloyd, Esq., of Mabus, in the county
of Cardigan, and is now the property of his grandson, John P. Lloyd Allen Phillips, Esq. It is an
embattled structure, and has been modernised and
greatly improved by the addition of two spacious
wings, communicating with the centre by two circular
projecting towers; the edifice now forms one of
the finest castellated mansions in the county, and,
from its situation, is a prominent and interesting object in the scenery of the place. The living is a
perpetual curacy, endowed with £800 royal bounty;
net income, £65; patron and impropriator, Mr.
Phillips. The church, dedicated to St. James, and
rebuilt in 1761 at the sole expense of John Allen,
Esq., is a neat edifice, consisting of a nave and chancel, and containing an elegant font of marble, presented to the parish by the same gentleman. There
is a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists, and
a Sunday school is held in the church. Along the
cliffs by which this part of the coast is bounded, are
remains of several ancient encampments, apparently
of Danish construction.
Darowen (Dâr-Owain)
DAROWEN (DÂR-OWAIN), a parish, in
the union and hundred of Machynlleth, county
of Montgomery, North Wales, 6 miles (E. by N.)
from Machynlleth; containing 1041 inhabitants.
This parish, the name of which signifies "Owain's
oak" or "forest," is bounded on the north-west by
the river Dovey, and on the north-east by the Twymyn, which flows into the Dovey at its northern extremity. It comprises about 9000 acres of land, of
which only about 4000 are inclosed and under cultivation, the remainder being in commons, chiefly appropriated as sheepwalks. A considerable quantity
of peat is obtained, for consumption in the neighbourhood. There are three lead-mines, one in Fridd
Cwm Bychan, another at Cwm Dû, and the third at
Dylivau: but the quantity of ore produced being inconsiderable, the working of them has been discontinued. The manufacture of flannel is carried on.
The turnpike-roads from Machynlleth to Newtown
through Carno, and to Welshpool through Mallwyd,
run through the western and northern parts of the
parish.
The living is a discharged vicarage, not rated in
the king's books; net income, £98, with a glebehouse; patron, the Bishop of St. Asaph. It was instituted in the year 1545, by Bishop Robert Warton,
at the request of Richard ab Grufydd, rector. The
rectory is a sinecure, rated at £10. 17. 11., also in
the gift of the Bishop; net income, £79. The church,
dedicated to St. Tudyr, is in the early style of
English architecture: it is situated in the township
of Noddva, the name of which signifies "a place of
refuge," the limits of safety being probably described by three stones, one, called Carreg Noddva,
standing about one mile to the east; another large
stone, rising nearly three yards above the ground,
about a mile to the south; and a smaller one about
the same distance north-east. There are places of
worship for Wesleyan Methodists, Calvinistic Methodists, and Independents. A National school,
capable of accommodating 120 children, was built in
the year 1841; and six Sunday schools are held in
the parish, one of them in connexion with the Established Church, three belonging to the Wesleyans,
and the other two to the Calvinistic Methodists.
Richard Rowlands, Rowland ab Prichard, and Thomas
Jones, at periods unknown left £5 each to the poor,
the interest of which is paid out of the Rhiwvelen
estate, and distributed with a sum of £3. 10., a moiety
of the rent of a small tract of mountainous ground
bequeathed to this parish and that of Cemmes, by
Derwas Griffith, about a century since. A gift of
£21. 15. by an unknown donor has been lost, the
security having been placed in the hands of an attorney, and not recovered upon his death. At the distance of about half a mile westward from the church,
on the summit of the hill Vron Gôch, in the township of Noddva, are the remains of an ancient encampment; and on the top of another hill, called
Bwlch Gelli Lâs, is a tumulus, near which, on the
sheepwalk of the farm Berllan Dêg, a celt and several
brazen instruments of warfare were found some years
ago.
Dr. John Davies, author of the Welsh and Latin
Dictionary, and the Welsh Grammar, and one of the
translators of the Bible into the Welsh language, was
appointed to the sinecure rectory of this parish by
Bishop Parry, in 1615. It was also held by Dr.
Randolph, Bishop of Oxford, and afterwards of London. St. Tudyr, son of Arwstyl Glof, who flourished in the seventh century, is stated in the Genealogy of the Saints to have been interred here. The
wake, or feast, of his dedication is annually observed
on the 25th of October, or the Sunday next after it;
and the diversion is continued the following day, by
what is called Curo Tudyr, "the beating of Tudyr,"
generally performed by the boys, one of whom
carries a long pole, or branch of a tree, upon his
shoulder, the rest beating it with clubs, probably to
perpetuate the remembrance of the persecution which
that saint endured.
David's (St.), or Llanvaes
DAVID'S (ST.), or LLANVAES, a parish,
composed of the Lower and Upper divisions, the
former constituting part of the borough of Brecknock, the latter included partly in the hundred of
Devynock, the portion in which is designated "the
township," and partly in the hundred of Pencelly;
in the union and county of Brecknock, South
Wales; containing 1422 inhabitants, of whom 1236
are in the Lower, and 186 in the Upper, division.
This parish, which is situated at the confluence of
the Tarrell with the Usk, comprises some extensive
tracts of arable and pasture land; the total area is
2880 acres, whereof 230 are common or waste. The
scenery is finely varied, and the views from the higher
grounds are highly picturesque, comprising a number
of interesting objects. Frwdgrêch, the elegant seat
of Samuel Church, Esq., and Dinas, the residence
of John Lloyd, Esq., both of them in this parish, are
described in the article on Brecknock, in which
will also be found a minute account of other objects
of importance, situated within the limits of St.
David's, but forming conspicuous features in that
borough and its environs. The living is a discharged
vicarage, rated in the king's books at £5. 15. 7½., and
endowed with £400 private benefaction, and £400
royal bounty; present net income, £160; patron,
the Archdeacon of Brecknock. The impropriate
tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £260,
and the vicarial for £77. The church is situated in
the borough.
David's (St.)
DAVID'S (ST.), a
city and parish, in the union
of Haverfordwest, hundred of Dewisland, county of Pembroke, South
Wales, 16 miles (W. N. W.)
from Haverfordwest, 26
(N. W.) from Pembroke,
and 265 (W. by N.) from
London; containing, with
the Close, 2413 inhabitants. This city has been
described by several historians as occupying the site
of the Roman station Menapia, both from the evidence of various ancient roads leading in a direction
towards it, and the position of that station as noticed
in the Itineraries. But later writers are of opinion,
chiefly from the absence of all military works or
other relics of the Romans, that the site of Menapia
was nearer the sea, on or not far from a sandy tract
called "The Burrows," and that it is now covered
either by an accumulation of sand, or by the sea
itself, which has encroached considerably upon the
shore in the vicinity. That the district constituting
the parish of St. David's was inhabited at a very early
period is obvious, from the Druidical remains with
which it still abounds. In the fifth century it appears
to have been called by the Welsh Mynyw, which is
also variously written Menyw and Manyw, and is
probably compounded of the words Mân and Yw,
signifying "small yew-trees," which were formerly
very plentiful in the neighbourhood; though divers
other etymologies have been proposed. Its Roman
name, which was perhaps a Latinized modification of
the British Mynyw, was also altered into Menevia,
which is still retained in the style of its bishops, who
are called Episcopi Menevenses.
ARMS.
The history of the present city commences with
that of the saint to whom it owes its name, who is
also the patron saint of Wales, and to whom its origin
is ascribed. St. David was the son of Xantus,
Prince of Caredigion, and Non, daughter of Gynyr,
of Caer Gawch in Mynyw, or Menevia, a chieftain
who lived about the middle of the fifth century, and
who, embracing a religious life, gave all his lands to
support the church, which was probably the first endowment of the see of Menevia. The period of
David's birth is not with certainty known, but may
be assigned to the middle of the fifth century. The
author of his life in the Acta Sanctorum considers
him to have been born in 445; Cressy, in 462; and
others, at a still later period. In Leland's Collectanea it is related that St. David was baptized by
Elveus, Bishop of Menevia; that he was brought up
in a place now called Hên Fynyw, or "Old Menevia,"
and that Gistilianus, Bishop of Menevia, was his
uncle; from which it appears that this place had been
made the seat of an episcopal see at least before
David had arrived at years of maturity. Being advanced to the priesthood, and having long studied in
the Isle of Wight, under Paulinus, a disciple of St.
Germanus, David proceeded to propagate the truths
of Christianity among the Britons, and to assist in
uprooting the Pelagian heresy, in which he exhibited
such surpassing abilities, that he collected around
him a considerable body of disciples, many of whom
were afterwards canonized for their superior wisdom
and piety. His reputation, indeed, became so well
established, that at a great synod held at LlandewyBrevi, in the county of Cardigan, he was preferred
to the archbishopric of Caerleon, the capital of
Gwent, on account of the increasing infirmities of the
holy Dubricius, who then enjoyed that high dignity.
David, however, only accepted it at the unanimous
request of the bishops, clergy, and laity present at
the synod, and on condition that he should be allowed
to remove the metropolitan see from Caerleon to this
place, where St. Patrick had already founded a monastery, over which David presided, and which he is
said to have held in greater favour than all the other
religious houses in the diocese. The archbishop,
with the consent of his nephew, the renowned King
Arthur, accordingly removed the seat of the primacy
to Menevia, called by Giraldus Cambrensis Vallis
Rosini, which Capgrave translates "the Rosy Valley," and Sir R. Colt Hoare "the Vale of Rhôs;"
and established it at his college in this vale, near
the western extremity of Wales; the place being
afterwards called by his countrymen, from respect to
his memory, Tŷ Ddewi, "the House of David," or
"St. David's," which appellation it has ever since
retained. During his primacy he had for his suffragans the bishops of Worcester, Hereford, Bangor,
Llandaf, Llanelwy or St. Asaph, Llanbadarn (near
Aberystwith), called in Latin Paternensis, and Margam. The two first were at an early period accounted English bishoprics, and the two last being
dissolved, the succeeding archbishops had only the
bishops of the other three Welsh dioceses as suffragans.
The period of the death of David, and the age at
which he died, are as undetermined as the time of
his birth. Pits considers this event to have occurred
in the year 544; Giraldus Cambrensis, and John of
Tynemouth, in 609; and Bishop Godwin in 647;
whilst all four concur in ascribing to him the almost
incredible age of 147. Ussher, and St. David's
biographer in the Acta Sanctorum, are also of opinion
that he died in 544; but the former states that he
was only eighty-two years old, and the latter ninetyseven. He was interred in the cathedral which he
had founded, and many years after his decease was
canonized by Pope Calixtus II.; but the distinction
which he attained, as patron saint of Wales, is comparatively of modern origin. His immediate successor is stated by Giraldus to have been Ceneauc,
or Kenanc, called also Kinothus, who was also interred in the cathedral, and was succeeded by St.
Teilo, the celebrated Bishop of Llandaf; but in
Bishop Godwin's list of successors the name of Eliud
appears next to that of David.
The city and cathedral of St. David's were repeatedly exposed to the desolating effects of incursive
warfare in the early ages, and the events which
marked the progress of one had an equal influence on
that of the other. In the year 808, during the reign
of Cynan Tyndaethwy, they were reduced to ashes
by the West Saxons, which disaster was followed
by a destructive murrain among the cattle in the
surrounding district. In the reign of Anarawd, in
the year 911, St. David's was utterly destroyed by
the Danes: on this occasion a desperate battle was
fought in the vicinity, in which Maylor, one of the
Welsh princes, was slain. Bishop Godwin records
that, in the time of Samson, the twenty-fifth archbishop, there were seven suffragans to the see, viz.,
the bishops of Exeter, Bath, Hereford, Llandaf,
Bangor, St. Asaph, and Ferns in Ireland. This
prelate, in 915, according to Browne Willis, on account of a pestilential disease which then raged here,
withdrew to Dôl in Brittany, taking his pall with
him: he appears to have died there; and his successors in the see, either for want of the pall, or for
some other reason, were deprived of the title of archbishop, although they still exercised the power of
consecrating the Welsh bishops of Llandaf, St. Asaph,
and Bangor, until the reign of Henry I. At that
time, a Norman ecclesiastic, named Bernard, not
chosen by the Welsh clergy, as had been the custom,
but forced upon them by the English monarch, yielded
an extorted submission to the see of Canterbury,
which has continued to the present time; the bishops
of St. David's and the other Welsh dioceses, being
thenceforward suffragans to the primate of all England. The first mention of the archdeaconry of St.
David's occurs in this reign, about the year 1128,
when it was held by one William, whose successor
was the celebrated Giraldus Cambrensis, who was
afterwards elected by the chapter to the bishopric,
but not consecrated.
Meanwhile, events of great importance to the city
had occurred. In 982, during the reign of Howel ab
Ievav, Geofryd, son of the Danish king Harold, laid
waste the church of St. David's and its possessions;
and towards the close of the same century, the Danes
again landed, slew Bishop Urgenau, or Morgenau,
and destroyed with fire and sword the inhabitants
and their property. The reigning sovereign, whose
two sons had been interred here, being unable to
restrain the desolating progress of these marauders,
was compelled to purchase their departure by paying
them a tribute of one penny for every man in his
dominions, commonly called "the Tribute of the
Black Army," and is said to have died of grief in
consequence. In 1077, in the reign of Trahaern ab
Caradoc, St. David's was sacked and destroyed by a
roving army either of Danes or Norwegians, who landed in great numbers from their ships. But notwithstanding these disasters, the city rapidly increased in
wealth and magnificence, owing principally to the
largesses bestowed at the shrine of its patron saint,
two visits to which were deemed as meritorious as one
pilgrimage to Rome. The amount of these offerings
is reported to have been so great, that it was divided
among the clergy of the establishment by measures,
to save the trouble of counting it.
In 1077, William the Conqueror invaded Wales
with a large army; but not experiencing the slightest
opposition from the natives, he, with his accustomed
good policy, changed his military expedition into a
pilgrimage, and advanced at the head of his troops
to this city, where he offered his devotions at the
shrine of St. David, and received the homage of the
Welsh princes. The shrine was sacrilegiously pillaged, and the city plundered, in 1087; and a few
years afterwards, the Danes once more landed, plundered and burnt the church, and, taking possession
of the surrounding intrenchments, settled here for
some time, during which they perpetrated the most
cruel outrages in the adjacent country. In 1090,
the descent of the Normans on the district now
forming the county of Pembroke commenced; and it
is probably to the hardy valour of these invaders
that the city of St. David's owed the tranquillity
which it afterwards enjoyed. During the prelacy of
David Fitzgerald, the immediate successor of Bernard, the Norman bishop, who, in the reign of
Henry I., had surrendered the archiepiscopal authority of the see into the hands of the Archbishop of
Canterbury, King Henry II. came hither, and having
made his offering at St. David's shrine, was entertained by the bishop. Peter de Leia, the successor
of Fitzgerald, finding the cathedral church almost in
ruins, from the frequent assaults of the Danes and
other piratical invaders, pulled it entirely down, in
1180, and built in its stead a new church, dedicated,
as the former had been, to St. Andrew and St. David,
and which constitutes the greater part of the present
edifice. Before the preferment of this prelate, the
chapter had elected Giraldus Cambrensis as the successor of his uncle, Bishop Fitzgerald; but the king,
unwilling to elevate to that dignity a man of such
influence and talents, refused to ratify their choice.
The same body, however, on the death of Peter de
Leia, again placed Giraldus at the head of a list of
four persons, whom they nominated; but his election
not being confirmed, the see remained vacant for six
years, whilst Giraldus was endeavouring to procure
his consecration to it; and it was ultimately filled by
Geoffry de Henelawe, prior of Llanthony, whose
successor was Iorwerth, or Gervase, by whom the
precentorships in the cathedral were founded, about
the year 1225, and in whose prelacy the new tower
of the cathedral fell down, in November 1220.
During the war between Henry III. and the
disaffected barons, Richard, Earl of Pembroke, Mareschal of England, and the most powerful of the
barons, attacked this city, in 1223, and barbarously
put to death all the king's partisans in it. In March
1248, whilst Anselm was bishop, a great part of the
cathedral was thrown down by an earthquake. The
office of treasurer of St. David's was founded in
1259, by Bishop Carew, and the dignity of chancellor in 1287, by Bishop Thomas Becke, who established other offices in the cathedral, some of which
exist at present, though under different names.
During the episcopacy of Becke, King Edward I.
and Queen Eleanor, in 1284, came on a pilgrimage
to the shrine of St. David. The next bishop was
David Martin, who built a chapel, dedicated to St.
Mary, at the eastern end of the cathedral, still occasionally called Bishop Martin's chapel, in which he
was interred. He was succeeded by Henry Gower,
Chancellor of England, who erected the magnificent
episcopal palace of St. David's, the interesting remains of which are so deservedly admired: this prelate died in 1347, and was interred in a chapel, dedicated to St. John, which he had built for his own
sepulture under the rood-loft of the cathedral. His
immediate successor was John Thoresby, Chancellor of
England, and subsequently Archbishop of York; and
Bishop Adam Houghton, who was also Chancellor
from 1377 to 1379, was another early successor.
The latter drew up certain statutes, to be observed
in the church of St. David's: he also built St. Mary's
College, adjoining the northern front of the cathedral,
for a master and seven fellows, and endowed it with
£100 per annum, and a separate house for each. To
this institution John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster,
and Blanch his wife, were so great benefactors as to
be reckoned joint founders with the bishop. Bishop
Houghton was interred in the chapel of St. Mary;
and his second successor was John Gilbert, who was
twice appointed Treasurer of England. He was succeeded by Guy Mohun, who was also Keeper of the
King's Privy Seal, Treasurer of England, and Treasurer of St. Paul's, London. This prelate's immediate successor, Henry Chichele, afterwards became
Archbishop of Canterbury, and was accounted the
most worthy and benevolent bishop of the age in which
he lived.
Edward Vaughan, the eighty-second bishop of St.
David's, is recorded as the last who contributed
materially to the enrichment of the cathedral. He
built a most elegant chapel in honour of the Holy
Trinity, between the chapel of St. Mary and the
choir, and adorned various parts of the church with
appropriate embellishments; he is said to have also
erected St. Justinian's chapel, about a mile from the
city, and, dying about the year 1521, was interred in
his own chapel, where was formerly a brass plate
inscribed to his memory. His successor, Richard
Rawlins, died in 1535, and was the last bishop buried
in the cathedral. Bishop Barlow, the immediate
successor of Rawlins, presided over the see thirteen
years, during which he greatly impoverished it, in
order, as it is said (by Browne Willis), successively
to provide for his five daughters, who were married
to five bishops. He is even stated to have taken off
the roof of the episcopal palace, for the sake of the
lead, thus occasioning so much damage to that magnificent structure, as to require the revenue of the
bishopric for twelve years to repair it; but this object was never attempted, so that it now presents a
vast pile of ruins. Bishop Barlow's successor, Robert
Farrar, was likewise a great dilapidator: subsequently to the fall of his patron, the Duke of Somerset,
he was imprisoned by the precentor and canons, and,
after continuing in confinement during the remainder
of the reign of Edward VI., was, in the time of
Mary, adjudged a heretic, and burned at the stake
at Carmarthen, in 1555. On Farrar's deprivation,
Henry Morgan was elected, in 1553, but he was
ejected on the accession of Elizabeth, and succeeded
by Thomas Younge, the precentor, who had caused
the imprisonment of Farrar, and who had been driven
into exile in Germany, during the persecutions in
the reign of Mary, but finally was made Archbishop
of York. His successor in this bishopric was Richard
Davies, a man of great learning, and one of the
translators of the Bible: he was buried at Aberguilly,
near Carmarthen, and his coffin has lately been discovered in the chancel of the parish church there, in
consequence of which Bishop Thirlwall has placed a
tablet in that church to his memory, with an inscription in the Welsh language, written by the Rev. J.
Jones (Tegid). Bishop Davies was succeeded by
Richard Milbourne, D.D., who was translated to the
see of Carlisle in 1621, and was accounted one of the
most learned, benevolent, and public-spirited persons
of the age.
The next bishop was the celebrated William Laud,
subsequently elevated to the archbishopric of Canterbury, and beheaded on Tower-hill in 1644. His
second successor in this see was Roger Mainwaring,
who was imprisoned and subjected to great persecution during the parliamentary war: he died in 1653.
About this period, lands of the value of £3547 were
alienated by an ordinance of the parliament from the
bishopric, which continued vacant from the death of
Bishop Mainwaring to the election of William Lucy,
in 1660. Another vacancy, of five years and eight
months, occurred in the see, which was terminated
in 1704, by the appointment of George Bull, one of
the most eminent divines of the last century. Robert
Lowth, prebendary of Durham, who was eminently
distinguished for his learning and amiable manners, was
elevated to the see in 1766, but was translated in the
same year to Oxford, and thence to London. Samuel
Horsley, the one hundred and fifteenth bishop, was
appointed in the year 1788. He was a man of great
learning, and early distinguished himself by an intimate acquaintance with the mathematical sciences:
amongst his publications were, a complete edition of
Newton's works, and a translation of Hosea. He was
promoted to Rochester in 1793, and afterwards to St.
Asaph. Thus, with the divines who have since succeeded to the bishopric, has St. David's had the
greatest number of prelates of any see in the kingdom: of these, twenty-six were archbishops, and
twenty-one more, although they did not bear the title,
retained archiepiscopal authority over the other Welsh
sees; whilst many others filled the highest civil
offices in the state.
The parish comprises the westernmost portion
of the great rocky promontory projecting into St.
George's Channel, and forming the northern boundary of St. Bride's bay; and also the small islands
lying off its extremity, which gave to this headland
its ancient name of Octopitarum, or Octo-petrarum.
These islands, with some sunken rocks, occasion in
the intervening channels exceedingly strong currents.
They are eight in number, but seven of them are
mere rocks, called "The Bishop and his Clerks;" the
eighth, called Ramsey Island, lies about one mile
from the main land, and is about three miles in length
and one in breadth. At the southern end of the
intervening sound is a dangerous reef of rocks, denominated "The Bitches;" and in the middle of it
a rock much dreaded, called "The Horse," which
is covered at high water. The whole of Ramsey
Island is elevated, and at each end rises a lofty hill,
imparting to it a grand appearance, and presenting
various picturesque groups of rocks: on the summits
of these hills, which command prospects of great
magnificence, are various remains of antiquity, including intrenchments, carneddau, &c. The island
contains much good arable and pasture land, and
is amply supplied with water, the principal stream
being powerful enough to turn a mill. "The Bishop
and his Clerks," three of which afford scanty pasturage for sheep, are appurtenant to Ramsey; they
are all included in this parish, and are the property
of the bishop. At the eastern end of Ramsey, and
scarcely separated from it, are two smaller rocky
islands, one termed Ynys y Byry, or "The Kite's
Island," and the other Ynys y Cantwr, or "The
Precentor's Island," yielding a thick matted herbage,
on which a few sheep feed. A little to the northwest of Ramsey is a bank, which is said to have
been noted for its excellent fishery of cod, turbot,
soles, &c., long since entirely neglected. The rocky
cliffs of the islands are annually the resort of an immense number of migratory birds, including eligugs,
razor-bills, puffins, &c., and were anciently likewise
distinguished for their breed of falcons. The area of
the parish is 10,655 acres.
The city of St. David's, exclusively of "the
Close," is situated on ground sloping gently towards
the sea, and at the distance of one mile from it.
There were formerly five streets, called respectively
High-street, St. Non's street, New-street, Shipstreet, and Pit-street; but it is now reduced in appearance to a mere village, the houses, with few
exceptions, being small and meanly built. In the
middle of the town stands the High Cross, where the
market was held, and funerals were wont to stop;
from which the High-street is continued downward
to the Close, an extensive area at the foot of the hill,
which comprises within its precincts the venerable
cathedral, the magnificent ruins of the palace, and
other buildings; exhibiting very interesting remains
of the pristine grandeur of this ancient city. The
Close, which is extra-parochial, is 1200 yards in
circumference, and was encompassed by an embattled wall, of which there are still some remains. In
this wall were four gates, corresponding with the
cardinal points; but the only one remaining is the
Tower Gate, situated at the bottom of the Highstreet, and forming the principal entrance into the
Close. The small river Allan, celebrated for its
trout, runs through the area, and is now crossed by
a bridge, in lieu of an ancient marble slab, which was
polished by the feet of pilgrims, and was superstitiously believed to possess miraculous properties.
The parish is very productive of grain, which in
some years is shipped to a considerable extent. A
haven is formed by the mouth of the river Allan, at
Porth Clais, about one mile from the city, where a
pier was constructed, at a very early period, to defend
it from the violence of the waves, and was rebuilt in
1722. Of late years the quay has been extended,
and the harbour otherwise considerably improved.
To this small port, which is a creek to that of Milford, belong seven vessels, averaging about twentyfive tons' burthen, which are principally employed
during winter in conveying grain (chiefly barley)
and butter to Bristol and other ports on the Severn,
and during summer in bringing limestone, coal, and
culm from the shores of Milford Haven. The market, which was held on Monday and Thursday, has
long been discontinued: fairs take place on March
12th and August 5th. St. David's has no municipal
corporation, but there is an officer called mayor,
whose duty consists in collecting the chief rents belonging to the bishop, within the limits of the city,
which is co-extensive with one of the four cylchs, or
divisions of the parish, called Cylch-y-Drêv, or
"the Town Hamlet;" the remaining three being denominated Cylch-Mawr, Cylch-Bychan, and CylchGwaelod, "the Larger, the Smaller, and the Lower
Hamlets." During the debates in parliament on the
subject of amending the representation of the people, it was proposed by the first Reform Bill that
St. David's should be contributory to Haverfordwest,
but that arrangement was altered, and it was wholly
omitted in the Act.
ARMS OF THE BISHOPRIC.
The diocese appears anciently to have comprised
the whole of South Wales,
and is still of great extent,
containing the four counties of Brecknock, Cardigan, Carmarthen, and
Pembroke; the whole of
Radnorshire, except six
parishes, which belong to
the see of Hereford; and
the hundred of Ewyaslacy,
in the county of Hereford. Prior to the passing of
the act 6th and 7th of William IV., c. 77, it also
comprised the deanery of Gower in the county of
Glamorgan, and two parishes in each of the counties
of Monmouth and Montgomery. The ecclesiastical
establishment consists of a bishop, dean, chancellor,
treasurer, four archdeacons, a number of canons and
cursal canons, two minor canons, an organist, six
choristers, a master of the grammar-school, and other
officers. The bishops formerly exercised almost
sovereign authority throughout the diocese, particularly over the province of Dewisland, or honour of
Pebidiawg, in which their jurisdiction was more absolute than the minor regality of a lordship marcher.
In their instruments they called the inhabitants of
Dewisland, including St. David's, their subjects; and
such as dared to violate rashly, or infringe upon,
their statutes, were punished by them. The mayor
of St. David's acted in entire subordination to the
bishops, whose statutes and mandates it was his duty
to enforce; he held his court in the building which
formed the south-east wing of the Tower Gate.
The bishop's seneschal, or steward, was usually some
person of distinction in the country; and within his
jurisdiction the prelate had several inferior courts,
from which an appeal lay to the supreme court at his
castle of Lawhaden, which place still confers on the
bishops the dignity of a baron of the United Kingdom. In some cases the bishop exercised the power
of inflicting capital punishment; but on the other
hand he was bound to garrison and protect the city
and its suburbs, and, by his military tenure, was
compelled to be present in war; in which event he
made his progress with great state, being accompanied from this city, on the first day of his march,
by the burgesses, carrying with them the relics and
shrine of St. David, so far as permitted their return
the same night. The privileges of the sanctuary of
St. David's were very extensive, and much respected:
the sanctity of the place was not confined to the
limits of the Close, or of the city, but the whole
parish, emphatically called in Welsh Plwyv Tŷ
Ddewi, "the parish of the house of St. David," was
overspread with chapels, crosses, and holy wells,
some of the last being still held in great repute. In
addition to the sumptuous episcopal palace of St.
David's, the bishop had castles at Trêvdyn, about
six miles distant, Llan-Vydd (now Lamphey), and
Lawhaden, in Pembrokeshire; at Llandygwidd, in
Cardiganshire; Llanddewi, in Brecknockshire; and
Aberguilly, in Carmarthenshire; all which are now
in ruins, except the last, where an establishment is
still kept up. At present the bishop holds his consistorial court at Carmarthen for the whole of the
diocese, at Brecknock for the counties of Brecknock
and Radnor, at Haverfordwest for Pembrokeshire,
and at Cardigan for Cardiganshire: at each of the
three places last mentioned the principal registrar appoints a deputy.
The cathedral, dedicated to St. Andrew and St.
David, is a magnificent cruciform structure, consisting of a nave, with aisles extending nearly the whole
length of the building, a choir and sanctuary, north
and south transepts, and a large square tower of
elegant proportions rising from the intersection of
the nave and transepts, surmounted by pinnacles at
the angles. The exterior, with the exception of an
early Norman doorway on the north side, is wholly
in the three styles of English architecture: the
western front was rebuilt, towards the close of the
last century, by Mr. Nash, and displays a fantastic
intermixture of these various styles. The principal
entrance is through a grand doorway at the west
end, called the Bishop's Door; but this is seldom
used, the common entrance being by a handsomely
enriched porch on the south side. The Nave is
separated from the aisles by a row of five massive
pillars on each side, alternately round and octagonal,
with corresponding pilasters at each end, supporting
six arches rudely ornamented in the later Norman
style, above which is a double series of Norman
arches, reaching to the roof of the nave, and occupied in the upper part of the higher range by the
windows of the clerestory, every alternate one of
which, on the south side, has been closed. There
is also a range of five elegant windows, in the English
style of architecture, in each of the aisles, opposite
the arches which separate them from the nave. The
roof of the nave is of Irish oak, divided into compartments, and ornamented with a carved pendent
in the centre of each. The Choir, in which service is
performed daily, is entered from the nave through the
centre of a handsome stone screen, erected by Bishop
Gower, and accounted, both for design and execution,
one of the finest specimens of decorated English
architecture. It is comprised within the four lofty
arches that support the tower, three of which are
of ancient English architecture, and the fourth, or
western, which is occupied by the rood-loft, and is
supposed to be the only one remaining of those on
which the tower was anciently built by Bishop Peter
de Leia, is in the Norman style: all of them spring
from Norman columns. The choir contains twentyeight stalls, which are of oak, and the bishop's throne,
which was executed at the expense of Bishop Morgan, and, for elegance of design and carved decorations, is probably only surpassed by that in Exeter
Cathedral. In the north arch, and not in the roodloft, as is usual, is placed the organ. The Sanctuary,
which is separated from the choir by an oak screen,
contains a beautiful Mosaic pavement, composed of
small tiles, inscribed with religious mottoes and other
ingenious devices: the altar is placed under an elegant
design of three arches, said to have been formerly
filled with painted glass, which, combined with the
handsome window above, consisting of three lancetshaped compartments, and adorned with the most
elaborate tracery, had a rich appearance.
Immediately beyond the sanctuary is the chapel
erected by Bishop Vaughan, in the reign of Henry
VIII., an exquisite specimen of the later (or Perpendicular) style of English architecture, almost
rivalling in richness and elegance the chapel of
Henry VII., in Westminster Abbey: the roof, which
is of freestone, is beautifully designed in fan tracery,
and the sculpture, from the great care with which it is
preserved by the chapter, appears almost as fresh
and perfect as when first executed. Beyond a small
intervening passage, and forming the eastern extremity of the cathedral, is the decayed chapel of St.
Mary the Virgin, built by Bishop Martin, which has
been unroofed for some years. In the same state of
ruin are the aisles eastward from the transepts, which
were greatly damaged by Cromwell's soldiers, who
unroofed them for the sake of the lead, which they
sold to one of their partisans, then in possession of
the priory estate at Cardigan, who made use of it in
covering the church and priory-house there. From
the north aisle a considerable flight of steps forms
the ascent into what was anciently the chapter-house,
but is now used as a grammar-school. Under it is a
room of the same dimensions, having an elegant
groined roof, and being probably that in which the
entertainments of the chapter took place at their
audits, the upper end containing a dais, as in colleges
and ancient baronial mansions. Both these ruined
aisles retain vestiges of their groined roofs, with windows of beautiful proportions in the English style of
architecture, and other corresponding decorations.
In the north transept was formerly a chapel, dedicated to St. Andrew; and in the south was one dedicated to St. David, now called the Chanter's. The
north-west door of the cathedral opens into a space
much obstructed by some heavy and unsightly buttresses, which it was found necessary to erect for the
support of this part of the building. Between this
and the ruins of St. Mary's College were the cloisters,
of which only the pillars of the arches are now remaining. The extreme length of the cathedral, including the chapels of Bishop Vaughan and Bishop
Martin, is 274½ feet; its breadth along the transepts
is 184 feet, and the width of the nave and aisles
76 feet.
Since the appointment of Dr. Connop Thirlwall to
the see in 1840, laudable efforts have been made by
the Dean and Chapter in the restoration of the fabric;
though much yet remains to be done. The new
works include, the restoration of the south transept,
now used as a parochial church instead of the nave;
the insertion of a large window with flowing tracery,
in the gable of the north transept, previously blocked
up; and the erection of two windows of a similar character in the aisles. The stone screen of the choir,
and the rood-loft above, have been restored and
partly rebuilt, and the Norman arch between the
nave and choir, which was closely built up, has been
opened; the steps in front of the screen have been
repaired, and a new pavement of encaustic tiles laid
down. W. Butterfield, Esq., of London, was the
architect employed for these restorations and improvements, which have been effected partly from the
funds of the Dean and Chapter, and partly by subscription.
Among the monuments are several of great beauty
and antiquity. The celebrated shrine of St. David,
now scarcely distinguishable from other ancient
tombs, occupies a recess on the north side of the
sanctuary, consisting of three arches in the ancient
style of English architecture, resting on pillars of
great delicacy and beauty. In the central arch was
placed an image of the saint, and on the sides were
images of St. Patrick and St. Denis: beneath a horizontal slab were four quatrefoil holes, for the offerings of pilgrims, of which two have been closed; and
the whole was formerly enriched with precious stones,
and veiled with silken drapery. In another part of
the cathedral are three recumbent effigies, one of
which, originally inclosed on two sides by a railing of
brass, is of Bishop Gower, and the other two are attributed by Browne Willis to Thomas Wallensis, who
died in 1255, and Richard de Carew, who died in 1280,
though other writers have assigned them to different
persons. In the area of the sanctuary is the altartomb of Edmund, Earl of Richmond, the eldest son
of Owen Tudor (by Catherine, widow of Henry V.),
and father of Henry VII., on which were formerly
his effigy and various escutcheons and other ornaments in brass, removed by the parliamentarians, who
stripped the cathedral of many of its costly decorations: the earl was first interred in the monastery of
Grey friars, at Carmarthen, on the dissolution of
which his remains are said to have been removed to
this place. On the floor of the south side of this
portion of the building are the recumbent effigies of
Bishops Iorwerth and Anselm; and under recesses
on the sides of the altar, are figures of two knights
in armour, well executed in freestone. That on the
south side, which is in good preservation, is interesting as the memorial of Rhŷs ab Grufydd, last Prince
of South Wales, who died in 1196: the effigy represents a man rather advanced in years, in a recumbent posture, his vizor raised, and his head supported
by a helmet, with a sword suspended at his side by
a rich belt, a lion rampant sculptured on his breastplate, and another lion supporting his feet. The other
effigy is that of a Welsh chieftain, named Rhŷs Gryg,
and represents a younger man, similarly accoutred.
Near it is the handsome tomb of Treasurer Lloyd,
who died in the reign of James I. In the roofless
aisle on the north side of the sanctuary are the mutilated effigies of a Knight Templar and a monk,
another effigy with an inscription much defaced, and
two arched ornamented recesses. Beneath a richly
adorned canopy, on the south side of the dilapidated
chapel of St. Mary, lie the remains of its founder;
and on the opposite side is the tomb of Bishop
Houghton. The decayed aisle on the south side of
the sanctuary contains the monuments of various dignitaries of the cathedral, one of which is supposed to
be the effigy of Giraldus Cambrensis, who was interred here. In the north transept, in which is an
effigy of some dignitary, many relics of antiquity,
found in the cathedral, and some of them very curious,
are deposited. In this part of the edifice is a place
separated by a railing, said to have been used as a
penitentiary; and in the wall are some round holes,
by means of which the voices of the priests officiating
in the choir might be heard by the inmates. Near
the west end of the cathedral stands a building,
erected towards the close of the last century, as a
chapter-house: this, from the inelegance of its style
of architecture, and as it obstructs one of the finest
views of the venerable cathedral, has been the object of general censure. Besides a room in which
the affairs of the chapter are transacted, it comprises
a handsome apartment, forty-two feet long, in which
the audit entertainments of the chapter take place,
with kitchens, cellars, &c.; the whole being surmounted by a fancifully ornamented spire. The
records of the minor chapter are kept in a room
over the porch on the south side of the cathedral.
The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with
£600 royal bounty and £1200 parliamentary grant,
and in the patronage of the Bishop of St. David's;
net income, £110. The tithes have been commuted
for three respective rent-charges, the largest, amounting to £720, payable to the Dean and Chapter of
St. David's; the second, £320, payable to the Subchanter and Vicars-choral; and the third, £7, to the
Bishop. The cathedral is used also as the parochial
church, divine service being performed in the nave
four times every Sunday, twice in the English, and
twice in the Welsh language. Formerly there were
several small chapels in the parish, most of them
situated near the sea-side, adjacent to the landingplaces, so as to attract the devotion of seamen and
passengers; and the offerings received at them were
carried to the cathedral, and there divided every
Saturday among the canons and priests. Of these,
the names of four have been preserved, viz., St. Justinian's, St. Non's, Capel-y-Pistill, and Capel-yGwyrhyd. St. Justinian's is said to have been built
by Bishop Vaughan, and now forms a very interesting
ruin in a beautiful and romantic situation: some remains, also, still exist of St. Non's. There are three
places of worship for Calvinistic Methodists, two
each for Independents and Baptists, and one for
Wesleyans. The free grammar-school attached to
the cathedral affords instruction to six choristers, the
number fixed in 1501, by Bishop Morgan, who conferred upon it a handsome endowment, which, however, it lost at the time of the Reformation, by the
act for the suppression of chantries. The master,
who is appointed by the chapter, has from that
body a stipend of £20 per annum; and each of the
choristers receives £3. 8. per annum from the same
source. There is also what is called the Benevolent
school, established in 1812, and supported by the
chapter and a few subscribers: two schools, conducted
on the principles of the British system as regards religion, are maintained principally by subscription;
and the master of another school receives an endowment of £1. 4. per annum, being the interest of £40
bequeathed by the late Thomas Beynon, in 1810.
Of the ten Sunday schools, one, conducted by the
curate of the parish, is held in the cathedral. About
1703, William Jones bequeathed to the chapter a
sum of £300, which, after a suit in chancery, was
vested with arrears in the three per cent. reduced
annuities, producing £15 per annum, now distributed
among six widows of clergymen of the diocese in
equal shares. St. David's is one of the four parishes
participating in the munificent bequest of Dr. Jones,
made in the year 1698, for the relief of the poor and
the apprenticing of children, and receives as its share
£50 per annum, which are distributed according to
the intentions of the donor. This sum is received
from the trustees of the charity by the sub-chanter
and vicars-choral, who pay £1 to each of the masters
of four boys placed out as apprentices, and divide
the remainder among poor persons not receiving
parochial relief, in sums varying from £3 to 2s. 6d.
A rent-charge of £1 per annum, the gift of Mathias
Adams in the year 1700, is likewise distributed among
the poor.
A college for a master and seven priests was
founded here, as already observed, in 1365, by Bishop
Houghton; to which John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and Blanch his wife, were so great benefactors
as to be considered joint founders with the bishop.
It was dedicated to St. Mary, and at the Dissolution
had a clear revenue of £106. 3. 6. The buildings
were connected with the north side of the cathedral
by cloisters, which, with the exception of the pillars
of the arches, have been destroyed; and the only
part remaining of the college is the shell of its chapel,
from which some idea may be formed of its grandeur
and extent. The chapel was sixty-nine feet in
length, and about twenty-four in width, with a square
tower at the west end, which is seventy feet in
height: the side walls are forty-five feet high, and
in each of them were three windows in the English
style of architecture, twenty-four feet high and nine
broad; the east window was similar in shape, but
larger in dimensions, and the whole of them were
enriched with painted glass. Underneath this edifice
is a vaulted crypt of equal dimensions, through which
runs a small stream of water.
In addition to the cathedral and the college chapel,
the remains of the episcopal palace complete the
venerable and magnificent group of buildings which,
with their varied architectural features, characterize
the Close. This superb edifice was situated at a
short distance to the west of the cathedral, on
the western bank of the river Allan, and was built
by Bishop Gower, in the reign of Edward III.; it
inclosed a quadrangular area, 120 feet square, and
presented four fronts, of which the south-east and
south-west alone remain. In the latter is a noble
room, measuring ninety-six feet by thirty-three,
erroneously called King John's Hall, which is entered
from the court by an elegant porch, in the exterior
of which are two niches, containing mutilated statues
of Edward III. and his queen. The apartment is
lighted by lofty windows at the side, and by a rich
and curious circular window at the south-west end,
having sixteen radii diverging from its centre, which
were originally filled with painted glass. At the
other end of the hall is a drawing-room, opening into
a small chapel, the freestone tower and spire of which
are still standing. The bishop's apartments occupied
the other remaining, or south-east, side of the
quadrangle: the principal is a hall, sixty-seven feet
in length and twenty-five in breadth, also entered
from the court by an elegant porch, the archway of
which forms a curious semi-octagon. At the southeast end, between these two halls, was the kitchen,
alike convenient to the royal and the episcopal apartments, having in the centre a low pillar, from which
sprang four arches, gradually diminishing into the
same number of chimneys, the whole now presenting
a heap of ruins. At the other extremity of the
bishop's hall, was a drawing-room, opening also into
a small chapel, corresponding with that at the extremity of King John's Hall; the basement story is
composed of a series of curious and spacious vaults.
But the most remarkable feature of these interesting
ruins is the majestic open parapet surmounting the
walls, and which, rising to the height of seven feet
above the ceilings of the upper rooms, is formed by
a succession of arches, resting upon octagonal pillars
with decorated capitals. Besides its concealing the
roof, and having been exceedingly ornamental to the
palace, it afforded the means of defence similar to
the battlements of a castle; and it was adopted by
the same bishop in the fortification and adorning
of Swansea Castle and Lamphey Court.
The entrance from the town to the ecclesiastical
precincts of the Close is through the Tower Gate, an
arched gateway flanked by two towers. One of these
is a noble octagonal structure, sixty feet in height,
which anciently comprised the consistory court and
record office of the diocese; it now communicates
with the cemetery, a spacious area on the south side
of the cathedral. The other is circular, and, as it
communicated only with the town, is supposed to
have been appropriated to municipal purposes. The
whole was secured by a ponderous portcullis. The
lower part of the building consisted of a porter's
lodge, and prison, and to the latter was attached a
dungeon, entered only by an iron grating, through
which malefactors were lowered into it.
The promontory of St. David's abounds with
ancient military and Druidical remains. The Barrows, on or near which the Roman Menapia is supposed to have been situated, are overspread with
tumuli; and there, according to tradition, was the
site of a town called Caerlleon, "the City of the
Legion." The military work situated nearest to the
city is a small circular encampment, about a mile to
the north of it. In the same direction is St. David's
Head, projecting a considerable distance into the
sea, and displaying scenery of the wildest character.
At the entrance to it, from a heathy tract producing
various aromatic plants, rises a lofty mass of rugged
rocks, called Carn Lludw, towering in the most
grotesque forms, and commanding from their summits an extensive and diversified prospect by sea
and land. At the southern base of this rocky elevation lies the celebrated Maen Sigl, or Logan Stone,
of enormous size, and once so delicately poised as to
yield to a slight pressure; but its equilibrium was
destroyed by the parliamentarian soldiers in the
seventeenth century. Several ancient military inclosures of a great variety of shapes and dimensions
are scattered over this part of the promontory, which
is also intersected by the remains of a rampart,
formed of loose stones, adjacent to which are divers
square and circular areas, inclosed with stones.
There is also a remarkable cromlech; the table-stone
is twelve feet long, eight feet broad, and about two
feet thick, and is supported by a single upright stone.
A little beyond is a huge work called Clawdd-yMilwyr, "the fence of the soldiers," which consists of
a high and broad rampart of loose stones, extending,
like that above-mentioned, from one side of the promontory to the other, but across a narrower part of
it, with two outer lines of defence. This work is
supposed to have been constructed by the Northmen, who repeatedly ravaged these coasts, and of
whose habitations there are still some remains in
various circular inclosures within the space protected
by it. The parish is interspersed with numerous
carneddau, or sepulchral heaps of stones; and on
Crûglas, a common about three miles in length, bestowed on the parish by Rhŷs ab Tewdwr, is a huge
stone, the supposed memorial of some victory obtained here by the Welsh over some of the northern
pirates. There were likewise vestiges in the parish
of an ancient fosse-way, called also "the military
way;" and on the southern extremity of Carnochun,
or Carn Nwchwn, are the remains of some ancient
fortifications, the inclosed area of one of which is about
one hundred yards long and sixty broad, and is intersected by a natural perpendicular trench of great
depth and width: the whole is flanked with four parallel ramparts.
Here are several metallic veins, most of them containing copper, which run in parallel directions, and
are much impregnated with sulphur; but none of
them are worked. In the clefts of the precipitous
and abrupt rocks forming St. David's Head, is found
a species of crystal, called "St. David's diamond,"
which, when first obtained, resembles the amethyst,
and, being extremely hard, is susceptible of a better
polish than most of the British gems. In this part of
the promontory is also a large natural cave. The
principal holy wells in the parish, now held in repute,
are, one situated near St. Non's chapel, which is
arched over, and the water of which is esteemed efficacious in the cure of divers diseases, particularly
those of the eye; another near Porth Clais; and a
third just without the southern boundary of the Close:
the last has also an arched covering, which yet exhibits some specimens of the rich sculpture that characterized an elegant chapel erected near it by Bishop
Houghton. At a place called Llan-Druidion is a
number of springs, called the Nine Wells, the waters
of which are immediately united into a copious
stream.
St. David's and its immediate vicinity are distinguished as the birthplace of several eminent characters, in addition to the patron saint. Carausius, the
celebrated Roman general, was born at Menapia:
he assumed the government in Britain, which he
conducted with great dignity and splendour, but was
assassinated by his minister Alectus, at the instigation
of the Emperor Constantius. According to some
writers, Asser, the friend and biographer of Alfred
the Great, and commonly called Asserius Menevensis,
was born here, about the middle of the ninth century;
but others are of opinion that he was a native of a
small village called Trêv Asser, in the parish of
Llanwnda, and that he obtained the surname of Menevensis from having been a monk at this place, where
his uncle Novis was archbishop. John Erigena, who
is also known by the names of John Patrick Erigena
and John Scotus, is claimed by the Welsh as a native
of St. David's, whilst, so great is the obscurity of his
birth, both the Irish and the Scots regard him respectively as their countryman. He flourished in
the middle of the ninth century, was a man of great
learning, and, having resided for a considerable period
in France, distinguished himself by some writings on
school divinity, which gave offence to Pope Nicholas
I. In recent times, the late Richard Fenton, Esq.,
F.S.A., author of an "Historical Tour through Pembrokeshire," was born in the parish.