P
Painscastle (Pain's-Castle)
PAINSCASTLE (PAIN'S-CASTLE), a
hamlet and small village, in the parish of LlanbedrPainscastle, union of Hay, hundred of Painscastle, county of Radnor, South Wales, 6 miles
(N. W. by W.) from Hay: the population is included
in the return for the parish. It is situated in a vale
near the northern bank of the Bâchwy stream,
which nearly encircles the village; and was at one
time of much greater importance than it is at present,
having had a castle and a market. The former no
longer exists, and the latter has been discontinued;
fairs, however, continue to be held on May 12th,
September 22nd, and December 15th, for horned
cattle, for sheep, and horses. Under the act of
1832, to "Amend the Representation," this is a
polling-place for the election of the knight of the
shire; and the petty-sessions for the hundred are
sometimes held here. For an historical notice of the
castle, which was once so considerable as to give
name both to the village and hundred, but of which
the only vestige is the moat that surrounds the site,
near the north-western extremity of the village, see
the article on Llanbedr-Painscastle.
Parcel-Canol (Parsel-Canol)
PARCEL-CANOL (PARSEL-CANOL), a
township, in that part of the parish of LlanbadarnVawr which is in the Upper division of the hundred
of Geneu'r-Glyn, in the union of Aberystwith,
county of Cardigan, South Wales, 5 miles (E.)
from Aberystwith; containing 568 inhabitants. It
is situated to the north of the river Rheidiol, and
contains some pleasing and respectable residences
surrounded with trees. A chapel of ease has been
erected at Tŷ'n-y-Llidiart, in the township, by
public subscription.—See Llanbadarn-Vawr.
Parcel-Mawr
PARCEL-MAWR, a hamlet, in the parish of
Llanguicke, union of Neath, hundred of Llangyvelach, county of Glamorgan, South Wales,
6 miles (N. N. W.) from Neath; containing 710 inhabitants. At the lower end of this hamlet stands the
parish church.
Park (Parc)
PARK (PARC), a hamlet, in the parish of
Eglwysilan, union of Cardiff, hundred of Caerphilly, county of Glamorgan, South Wales, 11
miles (S. S. E.) from Merthyr-Tydvil; containing
132 inhabitants. It is situated in the northern part
of the parish, and on the eastern declivity of the lofty
eminence called Cevn Eglwysilan.
Partrishow
PARTRISHOW, a parish, in the union and
hundred of Crickhowel, county of Brecknock,
South Wales, 6 miles distant (N. E. by E.) from
Crickhowel: containing 71 inhabitants. The present name of this parish is by some supposed to be a
corruption of its original appellation, Parthau yr
Ishow, signifying "the parcel or territory of Ishow,"
the saint to whom its church is dedicated. The
late Archdeacon Payne conceived the original name
to have been more correctly Merthyr Ishow, or
"Ishow the martyr," to whom, according to the
ancient register of Llandaf, a church was consecrated here, in the eleventh century, by Bishop
Herewald, under the name of Methur Yssui. The
parish is situated in a mountainous district, and comprises about 800 acres, of which one-fourth part is
common or waste land. It is bounded on the south
and east by the river Grwyne-Vawr, which separates
it from the isolated hamlet of Fawyddog, in the
county of Hereford, and from part of Monmouthshire; on the south and west by the parish of Llanbedr; and on the north by the hamlet of GrwyneVawr, in the parish of Tàlgarth. It is in a very
retired situation, remote from any public road, and
possessing no facility of intercourse with the places
in its vicinity. The surrounding country presents
some fine mountain scenery.
The living is consolidated with the rectory of
Llanbedr: the tithes have been commuted for a
rent-charge of £57. 10. The church, which is in
the later style of English architecture, and appears
to have been rebuilt upon the site of the ancient
structure consecrated by Bishop Herewald, consists
of a nave and chancel only: the vaulted roof was of
open timber frame-work, but for the comfort of the
congregation has been lately ceiled. The font, which
is of great antiquity, is very large, though formed
out of a single block of stone; around the edge is
the inscription "In tempore Gynillyn, Meilir me
fecit." Cynhyllyn, son of Rhŷs Gôch, was lord of
Ystradwy, now the hundred of Crickhowel, in the
reign of Henry I., at the time when the ancient
church was erected. The rood-loft, which is beautifully carved in Irish oak, and traditionally said to be
the work of an Italian artist, is still remaining; it is
evidently of the time of Henry VII., and was probably the gift of the Herbert family, who had property in the parish. At the west end of the nave is
a small chapel, with the altar yet preserved, and a
small cinquefoiled niche, probably intended for the
image of the saint: this chapel has been converted
into a vestry-room. Mrs. Herbert, widow of the
Rev. John Herbert, rector of Llanbedr, in 1728,
bequeathed several plots of ground, consisting of
about thirty-seven acres of clear land and twelve of
wood, for the education of girls of the parishes of
Partrishow and Llanbedr, one-third of the number
to be of the former parish; any surplus of income
there might be, to be given to poor housekeepers, in
the same proportion of one-third to Partrishow and
two-thirds to Llanbedr. The lands have been
divided into two parts, and the portion allotted to
this place lets for about £8 per annum, which are
appropriated to the relief of poor persons. At the
bottom of the hill on which the church stands, is a
stream called Nant Mair, or "Mary's brook;" and
near its margin is the well of St. Ishow, open in
front, but inclosed on three sides by walls, in which
were recesses, most probably intended to receive the
offerings presented by the votaries of the saint.
Pater, or Paterchurch
PATER, or PATERCHURCH, borough of
Pembroke, South Wales.—See Pembroke.
Pembrey
PEMBREY, county of Carmarthen, South
Wales.—See Penbrey.
Pembroke
PEMBROKE, a borough, market-town, and
sea-port, and the head of a
union, locally in the hundred of Castlemartin,
county of Pembroke, in
South Wales, 6 miles
(S. E. by E.) from Milford, 10 (S. by E.) from
Haverfordwest, and 248
(W.) from London; the
borough containing 7412
inhabitants, of whom 5441 are in the parish of St.
Mary, 1223 in the parish of St. Michael, and 748 in
part of St. Nicholas', or Monkton, parish. The
name of this place is derived from the words Pen
Bro, literally signifying a headland, or promontory, and originally applied to a district nearly corresponding in extent with the present hundred of
Castlemartin, stretching out into the sea, and separating Milford Haven, on the north, from the Bristol
Channel on the south. On the erection of a castle,
and the consequent growth of the town, the name of
the district in which they were situated was transferred to them, and subsequently to the whole of the
county, of which that town became the capital. The
early history of the place is involved in some confusion. It is stated by Giraldus Cambrensis, that
Arnulph de Montgomery, in the reign of Henry I.,
raised a slender fortress of stakes and turf here, which,
on his return into England, he placed under the
custody of his constable and lieutenant, Giraldus de
Windesor. In the Chronicle of Caradoc of Llancarvan, who was contemporary with Giraldus, it is
expressly recorded that the castle was attacked in
1092, and again in 1094, by the forces of Cadwgan
ab Bleddyn, but that it was so strongly fortified as to
baffle every effort of that chieftain to reduce it. The
latter of these dates, which is some years prior to the
accession of Henry I., contradicts the statement of
Giraldus Cambrensis, with respect to the time of the
original foundation; and the result of the attacks by
so formidable an enemy is at variance with his description of the character of the fortress. Arnulph
de Montgomery, on the accession of Henry I., having
joined in a confederacy against that sovereign, the
castle of Pembroke, together with his other estates,
became forfeited to the crown, and the king afterwards conferred the castle, together with the lordship
of Carew, and several other manors, on Giraldus de
Windesor, Arnulph's lieutenant, who had married
Nêst, daughter of Rhŷs ab Tewdwr.
CORPORATION SEAL.
According to Caradoc of Llancarvan, Giraldus or
Gerald de Windesor rebuilt the castle of Pembroke
in the year 1105, on a more advantageous site, called
"Congarth Vechan," and removed into it his family
and his goods. Soon after this, as we are informed
by some authorities, Owain, son of Cadwgan ab
Bleddyn, having heard the beauty of Nêst extolled
at a banquet given by Cadwgan either at the castle
of Aberteivy, or at that of Eare Weare in the parish
of Amroath, came, under the pretence of relationship, to pay her a visit at this place, and becoming
enamoured during the interview, resolved upon
carrying her away by force. For this purpose,
having obtained the aid of some young men as profligate as himself, he returned in the evening to the
castle, which he entered unobserved; then, placing a
guard over the chamber of Nêst, he set fire to the
building, and, in the confusion and alarm that ensued,
forcibly conveyed her and her children to his residence in Powys. Other writers, however, are of
opinion that the castle of Carew was the scene of this
outrage and abduction. The alliance of Gerald with
the native princes of the country, by his marriage
with Nêst, who was some time after restored to him,
subsequently excited the jealousy of King Henry,
who used every possible means to circumscribe his
authority, as far as was consistent with the safety of
the English interests in the province.
Gilbert de Clare, surnamed Strongbow, was created
Earl of Pembroke by Henry in 1109, and thus became possessed of the royal territories in this quarter,
and of the castle of Pembroke. In 1138, the earldom was erected into a county palatine, with the privilege of jura regalia; and under the authority of
its earl, a session and a monthly county court were
held within the castle. In the latter all pleas of the
crown were determined, fines levied, and recoveries
passed; the writs were issued in the name of the
earl, who held also at this place his courts of chancery and exchequer. Strongbow enlarged the castle,
which he strengthened with additional fortifications,
and made in every respect a residence suitable to
the dignity of the elevated rank he held. He also
incorporated the inhabitants of the town which had
arisen under the protection of the castle, and surrounded it with a lofty embattled wall, defended by
numerous bastions, and entered by three principal
gates and a postern. Under the protection and influence of its earls, Pembroke became a place of
great importance; and in the year 1172, Henry II.
kept the festival of Easter in the castle. About three
centuries afterwards, another event of some interest
occurred: Jasper Tudor, Earl of Pembroke, after the
defeat of the Lancastrians at the battle of Barnet,
retired into the castle, in which the young Earl of
Richmond and his mother were then residing; and
here he was soon besieged by Morgan ab Thomas,
brother of the celebrated Rhŷs ab Thomas, a zealous
partisan of the house of York, to whom he must have
surrendered the fortress, had not David, another
brother, who had embraced the opposite interest,
come promptly to his assistance, and conveyed him,
together with the Countess of Richmond and her son,
to Tenby, where they embarked for France. The
suppression of the palatine jurisdiction, in the reign
of Henry VIII., deprived Pembroke of its dignity
as the metropolis of a regality.
During the civil war of the seventeenth century,
the strength of Pembroke rendered it the scene of
some important transactions. The castle, at the
commencement of the war, was the only fortress
possessed by the parliament in this part of the principality, and was placed under the command of
Colonel Rowland Laugharne. In 1643, Admiral
Swanley arrived with the parliamentarian fleet in
Milford Haven, and reinforced the garrison with
200 mariners and several small pieces of cannon,
with the aid of which the governor succeeded in
reducing most of the neighbouring fortresses, which
were all garrisoned for the king. In 1647, Colonel
Laugharne, and likewise Colonels Powell and Poyer,
abandoning the interest of the parliament, and embracing that of the opposite party, made Pembroke
their head-quarters, and the rallying point for the
army which they raised on the king's behalf; and in
1648, after their defeat in the disastrous battle of
St. Fagan's, in Glamorganshire, they retired hither
with the remnant of their forces, closely followed by
an army led by Cromwell in person, who immediately commenced the siege of the town, taking post
at Welsdon, a village about two miles and a half
from it. The siege was conducted with the greatest
vigour, and sustained with obstinate valour by the
garrison, who were resolved to hold out to the last
extremity; but Cromwell having found means to
destroy their mills, and their supply of water being
also cut off by the destruction of a staircase leading
into a cavern under one of the towers, in which
was the chief reservoir, there remained only the alternative of a lingering death or immediate submission. Under these circumstances the garrison capitulated, on condition that their chief leaders should
throw themselves on the mercy of the parliament;
that several of the inferior officers should leave the
kingdom, not to return within two years; that all
arms and ammunition should be given up, and that
the town should be spared from plunder. Laugharne,
Powell, and Poyer were afterwards tried by a courtmartial, and being found guilty of treason, were condemned to be shot; but the authorities were induced
to spare two of them, and ordered that they should
draw lots for the favour. Accordingly three papers
were folded up, on two of which was written "Life
given by God," the third being left blank: the latter
was drawn by Colonel Poyer, who was shot in Covent
Garden, on the 25th of April, 1649. That the surrender of the garrison was justly attributed in a great
measure to the failure of their supply of water by the
accident above noticed, has been confirmed by a discovery of the cavern, in which a copious spring of
water was found, with the shattered remains of a
staircase leading to it from the tower, the bones of a
man, and several cannon balls.
The importance of Pembroke subsequently to
the abolition of the palatinate depending principally
upon its castle, which, after the events of the civil
war, was never re-fortified, it now experienced a
further decline, owing to its remote situation and
want of commerce; and though it nominally retained
its dignity as the capital of the county, it dwindled
into comparative insignificance, as all the substantial
benefits arising from that distinction were transferred
to Haverfordwest, which, from its more central situation, was found better adapted for the transaction of
the business of the shire. The removal of the
government dockyard from Milford to the place in
1814, however, materially contributed to revive its
prosperity. Since that period it has been gradually
increasing in extent and population, and from the
many local advantages which it possesses for an establishment of this nature, there is every prospect of
its becoming in due time one of the most considerable
naval arsenals in the kingdom.
The town is beautifully situated on an elevated
ridge projecting into the head of the Pennar Mouth
Pill, forming the largest southern creek of Milford
Haven. It divides the creek into two branches,
by which, at high water, it is nearly insulated, and
over each of which is a neat bridge of stone. It
consists principally of one long street, irregularly
built, connected on the west with the ancient village
of Monkton, which forms a suburb to the town, and
on the north with a new street leading to PembrokeDock, a flourishing and populous place, about two
miles to the north-west, within the parish of St.
Mary, forming a distinct town, which has arisen since
the removal of the dockyard thither from Milford.
The houses are built on both sides of the ridge, of
which the western extremity is crowned with the
magnificent ruins of the castle; and on each side
are gardens sloping down from the houses to the
water's edge. The embattled walls with which
ancient Pembroke was surrounded are still tolerably
perfect on the north side, and the town, rising above
the waters of the broad inlet, amidst some of the richest scenery in this part of the principality, has an air,
in some aspects, of venerable grandeur, and in others
of picturesque beauty. The streets are partially
paved and lighted, and the inhabitants are amply
supplied with excellent water from seven public conduits in different parts of the town, to which it is
conveyed from a distance of half a mile, by means of
pipes laid down at the expense of the corporation.
Exclusively of Pembroke-Dock and the village of
Monkton, the town contains about 2000 inhabitants,
partly included in St. Mary's parish, and partly in
St. Michael's.
There are no particular manufactures carried on at
Pembroke, the inhabitants consisting of persons of
small independent fortune, shop-keepers, and a few
whose business is at the dock; but it serves in a great
measure as a depôt for the neighbouring districts.
Stone-coal is brought from a distance of about six
miles to the east of it, and bituminous coal from
Swansea, Llanelly, Newport, and other towns on the
southern coast. When colonial produce was not permitted to be imported into Ireland direct, it was
lodged in warehouses appropriated to the purpose
at Pembroke ferry, in the parish of St. Mary; but
that place is at present of no commercial importance.
The market, which is abundantly supplied with provisions of every kind, is on Saturday. There are
fairs held annually on April 12th, Trinity-Monday,
July 10th, October 10th, and November 30th; and
in the suburb of Monkton, on May 4th and September 25th.
The borough, in addition to the towns of Pembroke
and Pembroke-Dock, comprises a considerable agricultural district. The parish of St. Mary is surrounded by the parishes of St. Michael, Cosheston,
and Monkton, and is computed to contain about
2000 acres, of which nearly 1600 are meadow and
pasture, and 400 arable: the soil is of a reddish
colour, and indifferent quality, except a line of limestone which passes through it; and there is little
timber of any kind. St. Michael's is bounded by the
parishes of St. Mary, Nash, Cosheston, Lamphey, and
St. Petrox, and is calculated to comprise about 1800
acres, of which nearly 1400 are meadow and pasture,
and 400 arable: there is little timber, and the soil is
of much the same character as that of St. Mary's, but
rather better; a line of limestone, also, runs from
east to west through the parish, and there are a few
small quarries. The parish of St. Nicholas', or
Monkton, comprising a village or suburb within the
limits of the borough, and a rural district in the
hundred of Castlemartin, is noticed under its own
head.
Pembroke-Dock, sometimes called Pater, or
Paterchurch, is situated on the southern shore of
Milford Haven, about two miles from the old town.
It consists of several streets of neat and well-built
houses, and is partially paved, but not lighted;
there are numerous good shops for the supply of the
population, several of which are branches from the
larger establishments in the town of Pembroke. A
handsome inclosed market-place was erected some
time ago. The dock-yard forms an area of eighty
acres, inclosed within a lofty wall of stone, and comprises a neat range of buildings for the transaction of
the public business, houses for the principal officers
of the establishment, and a fort for the defence of
the place, mounting twenty-three long twenty-four
pounders. There are thirteen slips for ship-building,
some of them adapted for building first-rates; also a
dock, which will contain the largest class ships, having an average depth of twenty-three feet. Among
the other branches of the establishment are, a
smithery; an extensive pond for the immersion of
elm timber; and a steam-engine for pumping out
the dock, which also drives a saw-mill, working two
frames and a circular saw. Some of the finest ships
in the navy have been launched here. Large barracks have recently been built under the superintendence of Capt. Farris, R.E.; they form an imperfect octagon, including an area of more than 6000
square yards, and are strongly fortified with bastions,
a wide and deep ditch, and loops for small arms.
Besides the government establishment there is a
small private dock; and the Irish packet establishment has been some years removed from Milford to
this place, with a view to which alteration a very fine
jetty was constructed at Hobbs' Point, a few hundred
yards to the east of the dockyard; new roads, also,
were formed, connecting Hobbs' Point with the main
road from Carmarthen, in a new line avoiding both
Narberth and Haverfordwest, by which route the
mail saves a distance of several miles. In connexion
with the packet-station, a large hotel was built by
government. The great South Wales railway will
have a branch of nineteen miles and a half to Pembroke-Dock, the formation of which will tend greatly
to the improvement of the whole district: some particulars of the line are given under the heads of
Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire, and a fuller
account under that of Glamorganshire. Within the
last few years, the fortifications connected with the
dockyard have been materially strengthened. About
a mile to the east of the dockyard is Pembroke ferry,
belonging to the crown, and held by Sir John Owen,
Bart., who underlets it at an annual rent of £105:
it forms the shortest and most usual line of communication between Haverfordwest and Pembroke,
the distance between which places by the ferry is
only ten miles, but by Narberth twenty-five; the
fares are, a halfpenny for a foot-passenger, a penny
for a man and horse, and a shilling per wheel for
carriages. Steam-communication is maintained between Pembroke-Dock and Haverfordwest, Milford,
Tenby, and Bristol. The entrance from Milford
Haven to the creek at the head of which the town of
Pembroke is situated, at low water is little more than
a hundred yards wide, and from nine to twelve feet
deep; but proceeding upwards it immediately expands into a wide oozy reach, called Crow Pool,
containing an abundance of excellent oysters.
The inhabitants of Pembroke received their first
charter of INCORPORATION from Gilbert Strongbow,
Earl of Pembroke, in the time of Stephen. In 1168,
Henry II. confirmed to them all the privileges which
they had previously enjoyed; also granting that they
should not answer in any plea out of their own town,
unless the same should concern the crown; that they
should be exempt from toll in Bristol, Gloucester,
Winchester, Devonshire, Cornwall, Rochelle, and
Normandy; and that they should have an eight days'
annual fair, beginning at the feast of St. Peter and
St. Paul. By a charter of King John's the freedom
from toll appears to have been extended, and a second
fair of two days granted, commencing on the eve of
John the Baptist. All former charters were confirmed by Richard III. in the 2nd year of his reign,
by Henry VIII. in the 9th year, by Edward VI. in
the 1st year, and lastly by James I. in the 5th, of his
reign. In the grant by Richard it was declared,
that "the town shall now become a corporate body,
instead of being, as hitherto, incorporate; and shall
consist of a mayor, two bailiffs, and the burgesses of
the said place."
Until the Municipal Corporations' Act was passed,
the title of the corporation was "the Mayor, Bailiffs,
and Burgesses of the town and borough of Pembroke,"
and the government was vested in a mayor, an indefinite number of common-councilmen, a town-clerk,
two bailiffs, two serjeants-at-mace, and an unlimited
number of freemen or burgesses; the mayor and
common-council forming the controlling body. The
mayor, who was a justice of the peace concurrently
with the county magistrates, also coroner, and a judge
of the "Fortnight Court," was elected in July, by
the burgesses, out of three members of the commoncouncil proposed in council as candidates. The
councilmen were appointed by a majority of the
council and the mayor, and those of them who had
served the office of mayor were styled aldermen: one
of the bailiffs was chosen by the mayor, the other by
the council; and the serjeants-at-mace were elected
in a similar manner. The corporation is now styled
the "Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses," and consists
of a mayor, six aldermen, and eighteen councillors,
forming the council of the borough, which is divided
into two wards, and of which the municipal and parliamentary boundaries are the same. The council
elect the mayor annually on November 9th, out of
the aldermen or councillors; and the aldermen
triennially from among the councillors, or persons
qualified as such, one-half going out of office every
three years, but being re-eligible: the councillors are
chosen by and out of the enrolled burgesses, on
November 1st, one-third going out of office every
year. Aldermen and councillors must each have a
property qualification amounting to £500, or be rated
at £15 annual value. The burgesses consist of the
occupiers of houses and shops who have been rated
for three years to the relief of the poor. Two assessors for each ward, and two auditors, are elected
annually on March 1st by and out of the burgesses;
and the council appoint a town-clerk, treasurer, and
other officers on November 9th. The total number
of borough magistrates is seven.
Pembroke sends a member to parliament with the
contributory boroughs of Tenby, Wiston, and Milford, which last was added by the act passed in 1832,
for "Amending the Representation." The right of
election was formerly vested in the mayor, bailiffs,
and burgesses of the borough, but is now, by the act,
confined to the old resident freemen, and extended
to every male person of full age occupying, either as
owner, or as tenant under the same landlord, a house
or other premises of the annual value of not less than
ten pounds, provided he be capable of registering as
the act directs. The number of tenements of this
value, within the limits of the borough, which are
minutely detailed in the Appendix, is 270, including
those in the village of Monkton, which is included
within the borough. The mayor is the returning
officer. The revenue of the corporation amounts
to about £100, arising out of the tolls of the
markets and fairs. This town is a polling-place in
the election of a knight for the shire. The powers
of the county debt-court of Pembroke, established in
1847, extend over the registration-district of Pembroke. There is a town-hall, a plain modern building in the centre of the south side of the principal
street, and underneath it is a commodious area for the
corn-market.
The LIVINGS of the three parishes of St. Mary,
St. Michael, and St. Nicholas, are consolidated into
one discharged vicarage, rated in the king's books
at £9, viz., £4 for St. Michael's, and £5 for the
living of Monkton or St. Nicholas, St. Mary's not
being in charge; patron and impropriator, Sir John
Owen, Bart. The tithes of St. Mary's parish have
been commuted for £187. 10. payable to the impropriator, and £162. 10. to the vicar; the tithes of St.
Michael's for £162. 10. payable to the impropriator,
and a similar sum to the vicar; and the tithes of
Monkton for £300 to the impropriator, and £175 to
the vicar. A glebe-house is attached to the benefice.
The church dedicated to St. Mary is an ancient and
venerable structure, in the Norman style, situated
near the centre of the town, and composed of a nave,
chancel, and north aisle, with a small chapel on the
southern side: in the north aisle and in the chancel
are doorways, now closed up, which communicated
with additional buildings no longer standing. That
dedicated to St. Michael has been rebuilt almost from
the ground, in the later English style of architecture,
the expense being defrayed by a parochial rate; it
will accommodate about 1000 persons, and the number of free sittings is 400. These churches had
anciently chapels of ease, situated a little distance
without the walls of the town; and on the summit of
an eminence, about three quarters of a mile to the
south, still stands an ancient ecclesiastical edifice,
dedicated to St. Daniel, with a lofty spire rising from
a low tower; now private property. The incumbency of St. John the Evangelist, Pembroke-Dock,
was formed in 1844, under the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37, and is in the gift of the Crown and the
Bishop of St. David's, alternately: the church was
begun in 1846, completed in 1848, and is in the
pointed style, with a tower. The net income of this
living is £150, and the district or ecclesiastical parish
annexed to it comprises about 4000 persons. The
church of St. Nicholas is described under the head of
that parish. There are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and Calvinistic and Wesleyan
Methodists. The different parishes of Pembroke,
though ecclesiastically united, continue separate for
all civil purposes.
A grammar school founded here in 1690 has an
endowment of £11. 3. 4. per annum, arising from
various bequests of rent-charges, by Sir Hugh Owen,
Bart., Morgan Davies, and Griffith Dawes, and from
a sum in lieu of the corn-toll granted to the master
by the corporation at an early period. No school is
now kept, as the shire-hall, in which it was held, was
pulled down in 1820; but a master is still appointed
by the mayor and council. There are a National
school in the parish of St. Michael, and National
schools and a British school at Pembroke-Dock; also
a number of Sunday schools in the borough. Dr. I.
Jones, of Carmarthen, in 1698, bequeathed his estates,
real and personal, to be appropriated to the apprenticing of children and the relief of the poor in Lawrenny, St. David's, Cosheston, and Lampeter-Velvrey; with a discretionary power to his brother, the
Rev. William Jones, to add such parishes as he should
think proper to the four named by the testator. Mr.
W. Jones accordingly, by deed, in 1703, vested in
three trustees the several sums of £300, £100, and
£44, to be laid out in the purchase of land, which
was effected shortly after in the parishes of Llandysilio-Gogo and Llanllwchaiarn, and the rents to be
appropriated to the apprenticing of children, and the
relief of the poor, of Pembroke; to which purposes
the income, now £143. 13., is applied. About £18
are annually expended in apprenticing six children,
and the residue, after the payment of some incidental
charges, is distributed among the poor. Matthew
Warren bequeathed a rent-charge of £2. 12., Dr.
Powell one of 10s., and George Evans another of
14s., for bread to twelve widows; and Richard
Howell bequeathed £100; Margaret Mears, £30, of
which £10 have been lost; Sir Hugh Owen Bart.,
£20; and Sir Martin Beckman, £5, for the poor.
There are some other small charitable donations and
bequests, and a few have been lost.
The poor-law union of which this town is the head,
was formed January 6th, 1837, and comprises the following twenty-nine parishes and townships; namely,
St. Mary, and St. Michael (Pembroke), St. Nicholas
or Monkton, Angle, Bosherston, Burton, Carew,
Castlemartin, Cosheston, St. Florence, Gumfreston,
Hodgeston, Lamphey, Lawrenny, Llanstadwell, Manorbeer, Nash, Penalley, St. Petrox, Pwllcrochon,
Redbarth, Rhôscrowther, Rhôsmarket, StackpoolElidur, St. Mary Tenby (In Liberty and Out Liberty), St. Twinnel's, Upton, and Warren. It is
under the superintendence of thirty-five guardians,
and contains a population of 19,671.
The majestic and venerable remains of the ancient CASTLE occupy the western extremity of the
elevated ridge on which the town is built, and are
justly regarded as among the most picturesque and
magnificent ruins in the country. The entire fortress was surrounded by a lofty embattled wall, protected by numerous bastions, and having only one
entrance from the land, through a grand gateway
defended by two circular towers of prodigious strength,
and a barbican. On this side it had likewise a dry
moat, and the inclosed area was divided into an inner
and an outer ward, the former of which comprised
the state apartments, and the latter the inferior buildings and the offices for the use of the garrison. The
principal remains consist of this grand entrance, the
state apartments occupying the northern side, and
the keep, which last is in the inner court, a massive
and lofty round tower, 75 feet high, 163 feet in circumference at the base, and gradually diminishing in
diameter towards the top, which is covered with a
vaulted roof. This tower is divided into five stages;
the walls are seventeen feet in thickness at the base,
and fourteen feet thick at the summit. From the
summit is obtained a most extensive and delightful
prospect, comprehending the greater part of Pembrokeshire, from the Percelly mountains, on the north,
to the sea, and from the Carmarthenshire hills, on the
east, to St. George's Channel; presenting a fine
open champaign country, intersected by the numerous estuaries that unite to form the noble Haven of
Milford, and diversified and enlivened with cheerful
villages, and gentlemen's seats: among these latter,
Cresselly, Clareston, Orielton, and others, whose
grounds are richly wooded, form a striking and beautiful contrast to the general appearance of the country,
which is elsewhere almost destitute of timber. In
the inner court, besides the keep, is a suite of apartments, apparently of later date than the rest of the
castle, extending over the cavern called the Wogan,
or Hogan, by corruption of the Welsh word Ogov,
signifying "a cave." This subterraneous chamber is
seventy-five feet in length and fifty-nine feet wide,
and communicates with the upper part of the castle
by a staircase, and with the harbour below by a
sally-port. The rock on which the castle is built is
forty feet high, and is almost insulated by the two
branches of the estuary into which it projects, and
which is navigable to the town; under the southeastern bastion is a natural opening in it, of unknown
extent. The great solidity of the walls, and its commanding situation, must have rendered this fortress
all but impregnable against any hostile attempt. Its
ponderous towers, with the northern suite of state
apartments rising above the embattled walls, and part
of the platform and parapet, which are still remaining,
give its present ruins an air of venerable grandeur;
and the ivy and other parasitical plants with which
the ruins are overspread contribute to heighten the
picturesque beauty of their appearance. Leland says,
he was shown an apartment in one of the gateway
towers, in which, he was informed, Henry VII. was
born; but other writers refer that circumstance to a
room in the inner court of the castle. Pembroke
Castle is now the property of the crown, and is held
under lease granted in the reign of James II. The
town gives the title of earl to the noble family of
Herbert.
Pembrokeshire
PEMBROKESHIRE, a maritime county of
South Wales, bounded on the north-east by the
south-western extremity of Cardiganshire, from which
it is separated by the navigable river Teivy; on the
east by Carmarthenshire, on the south-east by Carmarthen bay, on the south by the Bristol Channel,
and on the west and north-west by St. George's
Channel. On the north-west side its coast forms part
of the southern boundary of the great bay of Cardigan, whilst directly westward it is deeply indented
by the broad expanse of St. Bride's bay. It extends
from 51° 33' to 52° 4' (N. Lat.), and from 4° 45' to
5° 37' (W. Lon.); and comprises an area, according
to Mr. Carey's Communications to the Board of
Agriculture, of 345,600 statute acres, or nearly 532
square miles. Within its limits are 18,832 houses
inhabited, 1028 uninhabited, and 144 in course of
erection; and the population amounts to 88,044, of
whom 40,250 are males, and 47,794 females. The
annual value of real property in the county assessed
to the property and income tax, for the year ending
April 1843, was as follows: lands, £266,865; houses,
£57,731; tithes, £24,438; mines, £7781; quarries,
£1690; canal navigation, £723; tramways, £598;
manors, £120; fines, £1016; other kinds of property,
£680: making a total of £361,642. All the boroughs in the county are included in these various
details.
At the period of the conquest of Britain by the
Romans, the district now forming the shire of Pembroke was part of the territory of a tribe styled by
these conquerors Dimetœ, who also occupied the present counties of Cardigan and Carmarthen, and whose
country has been called after them Dimetia. The
ancient British appellation of this province was Dyved, from which word Mr. Llwyd thinks it probable
that the Roman Dimetœ was derived. The British
name may be considered as an abbreviation of Deheuvod, or Deâuvod, "the southern country," or "the
country on the right;" as Deheubarth is the common
Welsh term for South Wales. In process of time,
however, the limits of the territory to which Dyved
was especially applied seem to have been contracted
until they became nearly identical with those of the
present county of Pembroke, which, by Welsh writers,
is still frequently called by its ancient British designation. The etymology of its present name of Pembrokeshire does not appear ever to have been satisfactorily ascertained; but it seems that, in the time
of Giraldus Cambrensis, the small peninsula of
Castlemartin, lying between Milford Haven, on the
north, and the Bristol Channel on the south, constituted the province of Pembrock, a term also bestowed
upon the town and fortress built there by Arnulph
de Montgomery, in the reign of Henry I., and
thence afterwards given to the whole county. The
British words pen and bro, from which this appellation has been supposed to be derived, signify the
promontory, or headland region, and are correctly
descriptive of the territory to which the name originally belonged. Under the Roman dominion, Pembrokeshire contained the station Ad Vigesimum, near
its eastern confines; and that of Menapia, in the
vicinity of St. David's. It was traversed from east
to west by the great Via Julia, which entered it
from the station Maridunum, at Carmarthen, and
passed by that of Ad Vigesimum to Menapia; while
another road, vulgarly called in later times "the
Flemings' Way," connected the latter station with
Loventium, at Llanio in Cardiganshire, running for
a great distance over the Percelly or Preselè mountains into the northern parts of Carmarthenshire.
Little is known concerning this territory for a
long period after the withdrawal of the Roman forces
from Britain. It appears, in common with most
other parts of the country, to have passed under the
dominion of several lines of lords, or princes, some of
whom are occasionally called in the Welsh annals,
kings of Dyved; but it seems doubtful whether the
whole country was ever subject to the authority of a
single chieftain, until a kind of nominal authority was
claimed over it by the princes of Dynevor, and occasionally by those of North Wales. Of the pedigrees
preserved by the Welsh heralds of the succession of
the lords of Dyved, one only is worthy of remark,
viz., that of the family of Morien Glâs, which was
the most illustrious line of these princes: the exact
period at which Morien Glâs flourished is not precisely ascertained, but he is supposed to have been a
descendant of the great Caradoc, or Caractacus. In
the year 892, during the quarrels among the three
sons of Rhodri Mawr, King of all Wales, which ensued upon the death of this monarch, Anarawd,
Prince of North Wales, advanced through Cardiganshire with a powerful force, augmented by some
English auxiliaries, and made great devastation in
this county, burning the houses and destroying the
corn. After the death of Hywel Dda, Ievav and
Iago, Princes of North Wales, asserted their right to
the dominion of all Wales, and entering the territory
of the sons of Hywel, in South Wales, defeated them
in a great battle, and then proceeded into Pembrokeshire, making dreadful ravages along the whole line
of their march. This incursion took place in 949;
and the year following, encouraged by their former
success, the Princes of North Wales marched a second
time into Pembrokeshire; but on that occasion they
were opposed with great spirit by Owain ab Hywel
Dda, who obliged them to retreat so precipitately,
that many of their forces were drowned in the river
Teivy.
In 987, the coasts of the county were invaded by
the Danes, who committed great ravages on different
parts of them, burning the churches of St. David's
and St. Dogmael's, the latter near Cardigan. Such
was the destruction of corn and cattle made by these
barbarians, that it caused a general famine, which
proved fatal to many of the inhabitants; and Meredydd, the reigning Prince of South Wales, was compelled to purchase the retirement of the invaders by
paying a large tribute. Shortly after, Edwin,
son of Eineon, considering himself wrongfully dispossessed of the sovereignty of South Wales by his
uncle Meredydd, raised an army, and, having obtained succours from the Saxons and Danes, marched
without opposition through this county, entering it
from Cardiganshire, and quitting it for the southernmost parts of Carmarthenshire.
In the year 1021, Hywel and Meredydd, sons of
Edwin, accompanied by Eulaff, or Aulaff, and a large
army of Irish and Scots, landed in the county, with
the view of obtaining for themselves the principality
of South Wales from Llewelyn, who then ruled over
all Wales; and, after pillaging the church of St.
David's, marched eastward to Carmarthen, where
they were totally defeated by Llewelyn, who, however, was slain in the action. Grufydd, Prince of
all Wales, towards the middle of the eleventh century, ravaged the lands of some of his vassals in
Dyved, to punish them for having assisted Caradoc,
son of Rhydderch, a prince of Glamorgan, in his
endeavours to obtain the sovereignty of South Wales.
During the short reign of Caradoc, who possessed
himself of the dominion of South Wales soon after
the conquest of England by the Normans, a party of
whom he brought to his assistance against the reigning prince Meredydd, a hostile Norman force made
a descent upon the western coasts of his dominions,
and ravaged a great part of this county, as well as
that of Cardigan: Caradoc marched against them
with celerity, and compelled them to abandon their
plunder and retreat to their ships. Two years afterwards, in 1071, they made a like predatory visit,
but with no better success, being defeated with great
loss by Caradoc's son and successor Rhydderch.
Rhŷs ab Tewdwr, having, in 1077, recovered the
sovereignty of South Wales almost without opposition, was soon called upon to assist another prince,
who, like himself, had been unjustly deprived of his
lawful inheritance. This was Grufydd ab Cynan,
who laid claim to the principality of North Wales,
and landed in Pembrokeshire, in the year 1080, with
a large force composed of Irish-Scots; being joined
by Rhŷs, their combined armies marched into North
Wales, where they fought the celebrated battle on
the hills of Carno in Montgomeryshire, which established Grufydd in the sovereignty of that country.
About this time also, William the Conqueror entered
South Wales with a powerful army, and received the
homage of the Welsh princes, from whom experiencing no resistance, he changed the character of
his visit, and went with his troops on a pilgrimage
to the city of St. David's at the westernmost extremity of this county, where he offered up his devotions at the shrine of the patron saint of the Cambrians.
Cadivor Vawr, or Cadivor the Great, lord of Dyved,
called also, from the place of his residence, lord of
Blaencych, and the twenty-first in descent from Morien Glâs, died in 1088, leaving five sons by his
wife, the daughter and heiress of Llywarch Llawen
Vawr, another chieftain of the country included
within the limits of the present county of Pembroke.
Two years after this event, his eldest sons, Llewelyn
and Eineon, with their uncle Eineon ab Collwyn,
and Grufydd ab Meredydd, another chieftain of
Dyved, joined in rebellion against Rhŷs ab Tewdwr, Prince of South Wales; and, having united
their forces, marched towards Llandydoch, now St.
Dogmael's, on the Pembrokeshire side of the river
Teivy, near Cardigan, where Rhŷs at that time resided; expecting probably to take him by surprise.
In this, however, they were disappointed: Rhŷs immediately gave them battle near that place, and completely defeated them. Both the above-named sons
of Cadivor were slain in the conflict, and Grufydd
was taken prisoner, and immediately put to death as
a traitor; while Eineon ab Collwyn, the sole surviving leader, fled into Glamorgan, where he acted so
prominent a part in the fatal measure of introducing
the Normans into that province. Bledri, the next
son, having taken no share in the insurrection, was
allowed to remain in quiet possession of the lordship
of Kîlsant, and from him was descended its late proprietor, the late Lord Milford.
The next attempt of the Norman conquerors on
the coasts of this territory proved more successful
than the two preceding ones, frustrated by Caradoc
and Rhydderch respectively. It was made by Martin
de Tours, a Norman knight, whose services under the
Conqueror had been rewarded by a grant of lands on
the coast of Devonshire, adjacent to the Bristol
Channel. Martin fitted out an expedition to act
against such parts of Wales as he should find least
prepared for defence, and having rounded the western portion of Pembrokeshire, he finally resolved on
landing his troops at Fishguard; this was effected
with little difficulty, and he made an easy conquest
of the adjacent lordship of Cemmaes, or Kemmes, in
which his son Sir William afterwards erected the
castle of Newport. The conquest took place during
the minority of Grufydd, son of the late Prince of
South Wales, to whom the district lawfully belonged;
and the possession of it was subsequently secured to
the family of its new master by the marriage of
Martin's son, William, with the daughter of Rhŷs ab
Grufydd, usually called the Lord Rhŷs.
This enterprise was undoubtedly undertaken on
the general understanding that the English monarch
would sanction any attack on the Welsh; and the
next invasion of the territory now forming the county
of Pembroke was under the direct approbation of
William Rufus, to whom, in the year 1092, Arnulph,
the younger son of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of
Shrewsbury, did homage by anticipation for the province of Dyved, which he was licensed to subdue
whenever and by whatever means he chose. Arnulph
obtained almost immediate possession of the district
around the present town of Pembroke, where he
constructed the castle of Pembroke, for the defence of
his newly-acquired territories against the attacks of
the native chieftains. That fortress proved of sufficient strength to resist the assaults of a formidable
force brought against it in the course of the same
year, by Cadwgan ap Bleddyn; who again assailed it
two years afterwards, but with the like ill-success.
Arnulph de Montgomery appointed Gerald de Windesor governor of this castle, but how far his actual
conquests extended is uncertain; and neither he nor
his immediate successors appear to have held them
with such ample powers as were exercised by the
lords marcher; for the king's writs issuing out of
the courts at Westminster were current in the conquered territory of Pembroke. On the accession of
Henry I., Arnulph joined in a rebellion against that
monarch, which led to his voluntary exile and the
forfeiture of his estates. Henry, on this occasion,
gave the government of Pembroke to a Norman
knight, named Saer, but soon restored it to Gerald
de Windesor, who had married Henry's late concubine, Nêst, daughter of Rhŷs ab Tewdwr: Gerald
rebuilt the castle of Pembroke, in the year 1105.
Cadwgan ab Bleddyn, the principal chieftain in
South Wales, after the death of Rhŷs ab Tewdwr,
contrived to continue at peace with Henry I. for
some time after the accession of the latter, and in this
interval of repose gave a grand festival at the castle
of Eare Weare, in the parish of Amroath, in this
county, or, as some have asserted, but with less probability, at that of Aberteivy, or Cardigan, to the
principal persons of the surrounding country. At this
entertainment Owain ab Cadwgan (son of the host),
who had his residence at Powys, hearing the beauty
of Gerald de Windesor's wife praised in the highest
terms, his curiosity was greatly excited to see her;
and, to gratify his wish, he took an early opportunity, on pretence of relationship, of paying her a
visit. Struck with her charms at this interview, he
instantly determined to make himself master of her
person; and having engaged in his service some
young men upon whom he could rely, he returned
the same evening either to Pembroke, or to Carew,
it being somewhat uncertain whether this violent
outrage occurred at the former or the latter place.
He entered the castle unobserved, stationed a guard
over the chamber in which Gerald and his wife lay,
and set fire to the building. Gerald, in the confusion and alarm that ensued, would have rushed out
among the incendiaries; but Nêst, suspecting some
treachery, prevailed upon him to make his escape in
another direction: Owain and his followers broke
open the chamber door, seized Gerald's wife and his
four children, and, leaving the castle in flames, and
ravaging the adjacent country, carried off Nêst and
the children into Powys. It appears that the captives were soon restored; but this unprincipled outrage, in violation of the peace with the English,
brought great evils upon the offender's family. About
the year 1113, Grufydd ab Rhŷs, the eldest surviving son of Rhŷs ab Tewdwr, who, during his
minority, had resided in Ireland, came to South
Wales, and was encouraged by Gerald de Windesor,
who was his brother-in-law, to assert his claim to the
principality. At first, fearing the power of the
English monarch, he retired into North Wales; but
he returned soon after, and commenced a desultory
warfare against the English in the south of Carmarthenshire, which he sometimes extended into this
county. King Henry, regarding Gerald's conduct
on this occasion with extreme suspicion, circumscribed his power as lieutenant of the English crown
in every way consistent with the safety of the royal
possessions here.
One of the most remarkable features in the
history of Pembrokeshire is the settlement, about this
period, of a numerous colony of Flemings among
its native population; the memorials of which, however, are very scanty. It appears that, about the
year 1106, during a tremendous storm on the coast
of Flanders, the sand-hills and embankments were in
many places carried away, and the sea inundated a
large tract of country. This calamity occasioned a
great body of the inhabitants to seek an asylum in
England, where, being well received by Henry I.,
they dispersed themselves throughout different counties, in which, however, they soon became odious
to the native population. Henry at last removed
them to the district of Rhôs, or Roos, in this county,
westward of the town of Haverfordwest, where at
the same time a strong castle was erected; as also
at Tenby. How long they remained here is not
known; but it is stated by Caradoc of Llancarvan,
that after a few years they disappeared; and according to the same historian, a second inundation,
in the year 1113, drove another body into England,
and Henry, having urgent occasion for men to oppose the rising power of Grufydd ab Rhŷs, in South
Wales, sent this colony also into Pembrokeshire.
He assigned to them the district which had before
been given to their countrymen, and ordered his commanders there to provide them with habitations and
the means of subsistence, on condition that they
should consider themselves as his subjects, and act
under his officers in the wars against the Welsh.
Henry is also said by the Welsh historians to have
placed among them some English settlers, to teach
them the English language, and habituate them to
English customs. The posterity of these settlers remain to this day in the southern parts of the county,
where they are plainly distinguishable from the
ancient British population by their language, manners, and customs.
The death of Henry, in the year 1135, diffused
a spirit of revolt and hostility throughout the whole
of the native population of Wales, which he had kept
in strict submission. The insurrection began within
the present county of Pembroke, where a considerable body of Normans was defeated and destroyed.
Animated by this success, the insurgents spread
themselves over and ravaged this whole territory,
putting to death great numbers of the foreigners.
To repress this and subsequent formidable insurrections and invasions, the united forces of the Normans, Flemings, and English, in the south-western
parts of Wales, were directed by several powerful
leaders, amongst whom were the two sons of Gerald de
Windesor; also Robert Fitz-Martin, descended from
the first invader of the county; William Fitz-John;
and Stephen, the governor of Cardigan. But they
were defeated in the vicinity of Cardigan, with the
loss of 3000 men, besides numbers who were made
prisoners, or drowned in the Teivy, the few that
remained taking refuge in their castles. In the
year 1137, Owain, surnamed Gwynedd, Prince of
North Wales, invaded this territory, and compelled
its inhabitants to pay him tribute.
The parts of Pembrokeshire held by the AngloNormans at this period were regarded as the property
of the crown, the commanders for the time being
acting only by a delegated authority as lieutenants;
but early in the reign of Stephen, in 1138, Gilbert de
Clare, surnamed Strongbow, who had been created
Earl of Pembroke by Henry I. in 1109, and, before
the late reverses, had made himself master of the
greater part of the present county of Cardigan, was
invested with all the powers of a count palatine over
the country from which he derived his title. This
noble long made great but fruitless endeavours
to reconquer the territories of which he had been
deprived by the Welsh in Cardigan and elsewhere.
In 1145, the castle of Gwys, in this county, was besieged and taken by the sons of Grufydd ab Rhŷs,
aided by Hywel, a natural son of Owain Gwynedd.
In 1150, Cadell, brother of Rhŷs ab Grufydd,
Prince of South Wales, while on a hunting expedition in the territory of Pembroke, was waylaid and
attacked by a party of English from Tenby: his
attendants, being unarmed, were immediately dispersed, but, though left alone, he faced his assailants with great bravery, and is said to have killed
several of them, at the same time receiving a severe
wound, which for a long time after disabled him from
active service. His brothers Rhŷs and Meredydd, in
revenge for this outrage, marched their forces against
Tenby which they surprised, taking the castle by
escalade, and slaughtering the garrison.
One of the first acts of the government of Henry
II. was to banish out of England the Flemish mercenary soldiers who had followed the fortunes of King
Stephen; to whom, however, with much political
wisdom, he granted leave to settle among their fellow-countrymen in the province of Pembroke, of
which permission great numbers availed themselves,
thus bringing to the colony a considerable accession
of strength. Early in this reign also, Gilbert Strongbow at length succeeded in recovering much of his
territory in Cardiganshire. But Rhŷs ab Grufydd,
Prince of South Wales, enraged against the English
by repeated injuries, became their most violent
enemy, and in this county made many inroads on
the estates of the Flemings, ravaged their country,
and then returned to his castle of Dynevor, the ancient royal seat of his ancestors. The same chieftain
repeated his incursions a few years afterwards with
the like success, taking and destroying the castle of
Kîlgerran, a place of great strength and importance.
About the year 1186, Maelgwyn, son of Rhŷs ab
Grufydd, with an overwhelming force, took Tenby
Castle, and demolished the works. Gilbert Strongbow had in the mean time been succeeded in the
palatinate of Pembroke by his son Richard, who died
in 1176, leaving issue only one daughter, Isabel,
who was in her infancy at the time of his decease,
and remained a ward of the crown for fourteen years.
Richard I., on his accession, gave this lady in marriage to William de la Grace, surnamed Le Mareschal, in whose family the earldom of Pembroke thus
became vested, and who obtained from Richard's
successor, John, the castle of Haverfordwest, and
the custody of those of Carmarthen, Cardigan, and
Gower. In 1199, Grufydd, son of Rhys, the last
Prince of South Wales, took the important fortress
of Kîlgerran from his brother and enemy Maelgwyn;
but a few years afterwards it fell into the hands of
the Earl of Pembroke. After the death of Grufydd,
his son Rhŷs having been reconciled to his uncle
Maelgwyn, these leaders united their forces, and,
entering Pembrokeshire, overran and subdued the
greater part of it.
About the year 1215, Llewelyn ab Iorwerth,
Prince of North Wales, led a large army into South
Wales, against the territories of the English vassals,
took the castles of Kemmes and Newport, in the
present county of Pembroke, and closed the campaign by the reduction of those of Kîlgerran and
Cardigan. In settling the division of the reconquered territory, Llewelyn assigned to Maelgwyn
four cantrevs in Dyved, viz., Gwarthav, Penllwynoc,
Kemmes, and Emlyn, with the castle of Kîlgerran.
In 1217, continuing his march from Brecknockshire.
whither he had gone to chastise the defection of his
son-in-law Reginald de Breos, Llewelyn entered
the territory of Pembroke with his army, to attack
the Flemish settlers. They sent him proposals for
peace, which he received at a place called Cevn
Cynwarchan, but which he refused to accede to;
and a part of his army crossed the river Cleddy to
commence hostilities. The bishop of St. David's,
attended by his clergy, then repaired to the prince
on a like mission: the prelate's intercession at
length prevailed, and a peace was concluded, the
principal conditions of which were, that the inhabitants of the districts of Rhôs and Pembroke
should be subject to the Prince of North Wales,
and should hold their lands of him as their liege
lord; should pay him 1000 marks towards defraying
the expenses of the war; and should deliver to
him twenty hostages of the first note in their
country, as a pledge of their future fidelity. William Marshal, or Le Mareschal, Earl of Pembroke,
who, during the lifetime of King John of England,
had constantly adhered to his interests, and, on the
death of that monarch, had espoused the cause of the
young prince Henry in opposition to the pretensions
of the Dauphin of France, died in 1219, and was
succeeded in his titles and honours by his eldest son
William.
In 1220, the Flemings threw off their allegiance
to Llewelyn, and marching northward, seized the
castle of Cardigan. This, however, the Welsh prince
soon after recovered, and razed to the ground; then,
advancing into Pembrokeshire, he destroyed the
castle and fired the town of Gwys, now Wiston, and
extended his ravages to the country bordering on
Milford Haven, and to the gates of Haverfordwest
Castle. During the absence of William, Earl of
Pembroke, in Ireland, where he had a command in
the English army, Llewelyn laid waste his territories
in this county, and took and garrisoned two of his
castles. The earl, hearing of these ravages, landed
from Ireland with a strong body of forces near the
city of St. David's, recovered the castles of Carmarthen and Cardigan, and retaliated on the garrisons the slaughter which Llewelyn had inflicted:
he soon after rebuilt the strong castle of Kîlgerran.
Earl William died in 1231, and was succeeded in the
palatinate by his next brother Richard, at that time
abroad, and whom the king, on pretence that he had
leagued with the king's enemies in France, refused
to admit to the honours of his family; upon which he
retired into Ireland, where, having raised a powerful
band of adherents, he returned to Pembrokeshire, and
took forcible possession of the Welsh territories. He
now became reconciled to the king, with whom, however, he quarrelled again in 1233, concerning his
Poictevin favourites: then, withdrawing to South
Wales, he made common cause with some of the Welsh
chieftains against Henry's more devoted vassals. He
was soon compelled once more to seek refuge in Ireland, where he was treacherously slain in 1234. He
was succeeded in the earldom by his brother Gilbert,
who obtained from the crown a grant of the towns and
castles of Cardigan and Carmarthen, which had been
seized from his predecessor into the hands of the
king. Being accidentally killed in the year 1241,
and leaving no issue, the family honours and possessions devolved upon the next brother, Walter, who
in his turn died without issue, in 1246, and was succeeded by his only remaining brother, Anselme, who
died a few days after, also without issue. The remarkable circumstance of the decease of all these five
adult sons of William Le Mareschal without issue was
attributed, by the monkish historians of the time,
to the impiety of their father, who had seized two
manors in Ireland belonging to the Bishop of Ferns,
and whom that prelate had consequently excommunicated.
On the death of Anselme, the family inheritance
passed to his eldest sister Maud, who had married,
first, Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, and afterwards
John de Warren, Earl of Surrey, and who with the
king's consent bestowed the office of marshal, forming part of the inheritance, on her son by her first
husband, Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk. Maud died
in 1248, when the estates of the earldom of Pembroke, by marriage with her next sister Joan, devolved on Warren de Mountchensi, who died in 1255,
leaving issue by this marriage a son, William, and a
daughter, Joan. William succeeded his father in the
earldom of Pembroke, but was killed at the siege of
Dryslwyn Castle, in 1289: his sister married William de Valence, half-brother to Henry III., who
was created Earl of Pembroke by that sovereign,
and succeeded to the palatinate. After the complete
subjugation of Wales by Edward I., the attempt of
that monarch to tax his newly-acquired subjects
caused numerous insurrections; and the rebels of
Cardiganshire, headed by Maelgwyn Vychan, overran and plundered this county. William de Valence
was succeeded in the earldom of Pembroke by his
son Aymer, who was murdered in 1323, while attending Queen Isabella to France; and, leaving no
issue, his honours and estates passed to Lawrence
Hastings, grandson of his sister Isabel, who had married John Hastings. Lawrence died in 1347 or 1349,
leaving only an infant son, named John; and the
custody of the castle of Pembroke, with its dependent territory, was granted, during his minority, to his
mother Agnes, and afterwards to her jointly with her
second husband, John de Hakeluyt. John Hastings
was succeeded on his death by his son John, during
whose minority the palatinate of Pembroke was given
in charge to his relation, William de Beauchamp.
John was accidentally killed in a tournament at
Woodstock, in 1390, when only seventeen years of
age; whereupon the family honours were claimed by
Reginald, Lord Grey of Ruthin, who considered
himself the next heir, as lineally descended from
Elizabeth, the sister of John Hastings, the greatgreat-grandfather of the late earl. Richard II., however, retained the earldom in his own hands for nearly
eight years, and then conferred it on his queen Isabella, the government of the earldom being committed
to Thomas Percy, Earl of Worcester. On the deposition of this monarch, his successor, Henry IV., seized
the earldom of Pembroke, and granted it to his son
John, Duke of Bedford, who dying without issue, it
passed to his brother, Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester. During the spirited revolt of the Welsh under
Owain Glyndwr, the French force of 12,000 men,
which was sent to their assistance, landed in Milford
Haven, whence it marched to the capture of Carmarthen Castle.
After the death of the Duke of Gloucester, the
earldom and palatinate of Pembroke were next given
to William de la Pole, Earl and afterwards Duke of
Suffolk. Reverting again to the crown, on the death
of this latter nobleman, it was given by Henry VI.
to his half-brother, Jasper Tudor, by whom it was
held until the accession of Edward IV., who raised
William Herbert, Lord of Raglan, to the dignity of
Earl of Pembroke, in reward for the services rendered
by that nobleman to his family. Herbert was beheaded by the Lancastrians at Banbury, in 1469, and
was succeeded in the palatinate of Pembroke by his
son William. The new lord, however, enjoyed possession of it only a very short time; for, during the
brief reverse of fortune experienced by Edward IV.,
and the triumph of the opposite party on the liberation of Henry VI., Jasper Tudor was reinstated in his
honours and possessions; and, after the defeats of the
Lancastrians at Barnet and Tewkesbury, he retired
to Pembroke Castle, in which were his nephew, Henry,
Earl of Richmond, and the countess, the young earl's
mother. This fortress was soon invested by a Welsh
chieftain named Morgan ab Thomas, brother to Sir
Rhŷs ab Thomas, in order to prevent their escape
out of the country. But Morgan's brother David,
who had warmly espoused the cause of the Lancastrians, hastily collected about 2000 men, armed
with whatever weapons they could immediately procure, and, falling on the besieging army by surprise,
compelled it to retire; thus giving the Earl of Pembroke, with his young charge, and the Countess of
Richmond, an opportunity to escape to Tenby, whence
they immediately sailed for Britanny. The lastmentioned William Herbert resigned the palatinate
of Pembroke into the hands of Edward IV., on this
monarch's expressing a wish to confer it on his son,
the young Prince Edward. After the death of
Edward V., the palatinate of Pembroke was held by
his uncle Richard, the usurper.
Rhŷs ab Thomas, at this time the most powerful
subject in South Wales, notwithstanding his protestations of fidelity to Richard, was a secret supporter of the claims of the young Earl of Richmond;
and accordingly, when it was announced that the
French fleet, convoying that nobleman, was within
sight of the Welsh coast, Rhŷs, who was then at his
castle of Carew, in this county, marched with a
chosen band of followers, well armed and mounted,
to meet Richmond at Dale, near the mouth of Milford Haven, where it had been agreed that he should
land. The earl, who was attended only by a small
French force, ill disciplined and ill provided, was
highly gratified and encouraged by the number and
martial appearance of the troops which Rhŷs and his
other friends in this quarter had brought to his support, and at once resolved to take the field, despatching orders to his friends in other parts to join him
with their forces at Shrewsbury. Every thing being
arranged, the little army already collected commenced
its march towards that town, in two divisions, one of
which, under the command of the earl himself, passed
through Cardiganshire; while the other, led by Rhŷs
ab Thomas, took a different route, through Carmarthenshire; the ranks of both rapidly swelling by the
accession of numerous volunteers from every side.
On the successful issue of this expedition, the palatinate of Pembroke was finally restored to Jasper Tudor, the proscribed earl, who was also created Duke
of Bedford. Upon his death, Henry VII. granted
the earldom to his son Henry, Duke of York, afterwards Henry VIII., from whom, on the death of his
elder brother Arthur, it reverted to the king, who
retained it until his death.
Henry VIII., after his accession, kept the earldom
in his own hands, and created Anna Boleyn Marchioness of Pembroke. The act 27th of Henry VIII.,
c. 26. (in the year 1535), "for laws and justice to be
administered in Wales in like form as it is in England," while it entirely abolished the palatine jurisdiction of this county, increased its extent, settling its
boundaries and divisions as they now exist, and enabling it to send one knight of the shire and two burgesses to the English parliament. Since that enactment the earldom of Pembroke has been merely a
title of honour. The first Earl of Pembroke created
after this alteration was William Herbert, lord steward in the reign of Edward VI., with whose descendants the title still remains.
In the reign of Elizabeth, when the Spanish invasion was threatened, the position of the noble harbour
of Milford Haven, with the facilities which it offered
to an invading force, became a subject of deep consideration; and an engineer was sent down by the government to survey the Haven, and report concerning
the best means of defending it. This person's proceedings, however, were far from being satisfactory to
the principal gentry of the county; and a spirited memorial, signed by Dr. Anthony Rudd, Bishop of St.
David's, and four magistrates of the county, was severally addressed to four of the leading members of
the privy council, viz., the lord keeper, the lord
treasurer, the Earl of Essex, and the Lord Buckhurst, and a copy of it sent to the Earl of Pembroke;
expressing their great dissatisfaction with the engineer's conduct. The only step actually taken by
the government in this matter was to order the erection of two forts, one on each side of the mouth of the
Haven, which were begun but never finished: the
remains are still called, from their respective situations, the Angle Block-house and the Dale Blockhouse.
In the reign of King Charles I., although it was not
the scene of any important action, Pembrokeshire
experienced its share of the evils of civil war, and
several of its numerous castles sustained arduous
sieges. Pembroke Castle, garrisoned for the king,
for a time resisted the attacks of the parliamentarian
forces, as also did the castle of Picton, garrisoned in
the same cause by Sir Richard Philipps; Roche Castle, defended by Captain Francis Edwards, of Summerhill; and a castellated mansion, which occupied
the site of the modern Stackpool Court, the splendid mansion of Earl Cawdor. On the defection of
Major-General Laugharne from the side of the parliament, he and his companions in arms, Cols. Powell
and Poyer, seized on the castle of Pembroke, previously subject to the parliament, and made it their
head-quarters and the rendezvous of their partisans.
It was to this fortress, also, that these leaders retired
after their overthrow at the battle of St. Fagan's, in
Glamorganshire, on the 8th day of May, 1648; and
Cromwell himself, who closely followed them, arrived
under its walls on the 21st of the same month, and
immediately commenced operations for its reduction,
which he effected after encountering a vigorous resistance. Since this period, no events of historical importance have occurred in connexion with the county.
In February 1797, it was thrown into great alarm by
the landing of a French force of about 1500 men at
Abervelen, in the parish of Llanwnda, about three
miles to the west of Fishguard. These troops, however, being left by the ships that brought them
thither, became disorderly, and, in about two days
from their debarkation, surrendered, on Goodwick
Sands, nearly a mile north-west of Fishguard, to such
force, commanded by the late Lord Cawdor, as on
the urgency of the occasion could be assembled. Indeed the smallness of the invading force, its want of
discipline, and the unaccountable departure of the
vessels which had landed it, gave strong reason to
believe that the men who composed it were criminals
of the lowest description, of whom the French government had taken this method of ridding itself.
Pembrokeshire is in the diocese of St. David's,
and province of Canterbury, and is for the most part
comprised in the archdeaconry of St. David's, though
partly in that of Cardigan, while a few parishes are
included in that of Carmarthen. The portion in the
first-named archdeaconry is comprised in the several
deaneries of Castlemartin or Narberth, Dewisland or
Pebidiawg, Dungleddy, and Rhôs; that in the second,
in those of Kemmes and Emlyn; and the parishes
in the last, in that of Carmarthen. The total number
of parishes is 138, of which 58 are rectories, 51 vicarages, and the rest perpetual curacies. For purposes
of civil government it is divided into the seven hundreds of Castlemartin, Kemmes, Dewisland, Dungleddy, Cîl Garon or Cîl Geraint (commonly called
Kîlgerran), Narberth, and Rhôs. It contains the decayed city of St. David's; the borough, market, and
sea-port towns of Fishguard, Haverfordwest, Milford,
Pembroke, and Tenby; the borough and market-town
of Narberth; the borough of Wiston; the incorporated market and sea-port town of Newport; the
little sea-port town of Solva, and the rising sea-port
of Saundersfoot. One knight is returned to parliament for the shire; one representative for the borough of Haverfordwest and its newly-created contributory boroughs of Fishguard and Narberth; and
one for Pembroke, Tenby, Wiston, and Milford, conjointly, the last-named town having been constituted
a borough by the act of 1832, for "Amending the
Representation." The county member is elected at
Haverfordwest, where also the election of a representative for that borough and its contributories takes
place; the member for Pembroke and its contributory boroughs is chosen at Pembroke. In the election of a knight for the shire the polling-places are
Haverfordwest, Pembroke, Narberth, Fishguard,
Newport, Tenby, and Mathry. The county is included in the Carmarthen or South Wales circuit;
and the assizes and the quarter-sessions are held at
Haverfordwest, where stand the county gaol, and the
county house of correction, or bridewell. It comprises the entire poor-law unions of Pembroke and
Haverfordwest, the greater part of those of Cardigan
and Narberth, and a small portion of the union of
Newcastle-Emlyn.
This is the most western county of South Wales,
forming the extremity of the central of the three
great western projections of South Britain, owing to
which geographical position its extent of sea-coast is
double that of its land boundary. Its form, too, is
rendered extremely irregular by the many deep bays
and creeks that indent its shores, and by the great
deviousness of the arbitrary line that separates it
from Carmarthenshire. The surface of the whole
county is greatly diversified with alternate hills and
dales, decorated with rich meadows and corn-fields,
and in most parts forms a fine champaign country,
admirably adapted for hunting, which circumstance
has caused the establishment of the "Pembrokeshire
Hunt," noticed in the article on Haverfordwest.
None of the hills attain a mountainous elevation,
except a chain on the northern side of the county,
extending from east to west a distance of eight or ten
miles, under the general name of the Percelly or
Preselè Mountains. These are a continuation of the
range which, further eastward, separates the vales
of the Towy and the Teivy. Several of the summits
of the Percelly chain bear distinct appellations. One
of the most remarkable is at its western extremity,
and is called Moel Eryr: the next, proceeding eastward, is Cwm Cerwyn Hill, which is the highest land
in the county, and is visible to a great distance in
every direction: the easternmost of the remarkable
summits is Vrenni-Vawr, which is likewise a conspicuous object from the country around. The height
of Preselè Top, according to the Ordnance Survey, is
1754 feet above the level of the sea: it serves as a
landmark for mariners, and from some parts of this
range of hills may in clear weather be seen the whole
county of Pembroke, together with portions of nine
others, also vast expanses of the Irish Sea and the
Bristol Channel; the small island of Lundy, and the
Irish hills about Wexford. When the atmosphere
elsewhere is clear, the tops of these mountains are
frequently wrapped in clouds, a circumstance which
is regarded by the inhabitants of the surrounding
district as a certain prognostic of approaching rain.
In the northern parts of the county, more particularly
at a place called Trêvgarn, commonly Traugarn, in
the hundred of Rhôs, approaching the western side
of it, rise huge masses of rock, which, when viewed
from a distance, present the appearance of ruined
castles, or other large buildings. The most singular
feature among these immense masses, is a group of
rocks on the right-hand side of the high road from
Fishguard to Haverfordwest, about 300 yards beyond
the point where the road has been cut through the
rock, presenting the appearance of several lions, but
of two more especially, couchant, looking each other
in the face; and, what is still more worthy of notice,
these rocks preserve the same appearance, and that
as distinct, though approached within a few hundred
yards, as well as when viewed from the other side.
The whole of Castlemartin hundred, forming the
southernmost part of the county, is distinguished for
its gently undulating horizontal surface. The broad
expanses of Milford Haven and its numerous creeks
and branches, form objects of the highest interest,
from the picturesque and delightful scenery which in
so many places decorates their shores. Some of the
most remarkable heights whose elevation has been
ascertained, besides Preselè Top, are, Vrenni-Vawr,
situated in the northern part of the county, and
which is 1285 feet above the level of the sea; Plumstone Mountain, rising 573 feet; Newton Down, rising
322 feet; Highgate Down, rising 294 feet; and St.
Anne's Heights, at the mouth of Milford Haven, 235
feet.
The shores of Pembrokeshire are in general high,
and the cliffs perpendicular: some of the coast scenes
are remarkable for their sublimity and grandeur. The
most prominent headlands, on the north-west, are
Stumble Head and St. David's Head: the latter bounds
St. Bride's bay on the north. This bay, which derives
its name from a neighbouring village, is succeeded, as
we advance southward, by the deep inlet of Milford
Haven, beyond which the coast continues rocky, and
full of caverns worn by the action of the waves, quite
round to Carmarthen bay, where, on the confines
of the county of Carmarthen, it gradually sinks into
a marshy flat. Pembrokeshire has its coast studded
with a greater number of small islands than the coast
of any other county in the principality. The first
that occurs on the east is Caldey Island, lying off
Tenby, about two miles from the main land, and in
the parish of Penalley; it is about a mile long,
half a mile broad, and contains 600 acres, of which
a third is cultivated: between it and Tenby are various insulated rocks of wild and grotesque appearance, some of which may be approached from the
main land at low water. The two next islands, proceeding westward, occur between Milford Haven
and St. Bride's bay. One of these, called Skokham,
or Skokholm, which is extra-parochial, is situated at
a distance of rather less than three miles from the
main land, and about five miles west-by-north from
St. Anne's Point, at the mouth of Milford Haven,
and comprises about 251 acres; it is depastured by
sheep, abounds with rabbits, and contains plenty of
fresh-water springs. Skomar isle lies somewhat
nearer to the main land, and due north of Skokham,
from which it is separated by a strait about a mile
and a half wide, called Broad Sound. It contains
about 700 acres, a considerable portion of it under
tillage, and is in the occupation of a resident farmer;
it has an abundance of fresh water, and contains so
great a number of rabbits, that 2000 are said to be
killed in it annually. Anciently it formed part of
the lordship of Haverfordwest, and the isle now constitutes part of the parish of St. Martin, in that town.
At a considerable distance from these is the smaller
island of Gresholm, and several detached rocks are to
be seen in the vicinity. But the largest island on
the coast of Pembrokeshire, and of South Wales, is
Ramsey, which forms part of St. David's parish, and
occupies a prominent geographical position to the
west of the great promontory on which that city
stands; being the westernmost extremity of Wales.
It is about three miles long and one broad, and was
formerly under tillage, but is now depastured by
sheep and horses. This island, and seven rocks to
the south and west of it, have received the vulgar
name of "the Bishop and his Clerks," probably from
their vicinity to the ancient metropolitan see of St.
David's.
From the circumstance of the county lying more
fully exposed to the south-westerly winds of the Atlantic than any other Welsh county, its climate is
more humid, its winters are considerably milder, and
the heat of its summers more moderate. Severe frosts
are seldom experienced, and snow never lies long on
the ground, generally dissolving within two or three
days after its fall. The mountains towards the northern border of the county collect around their lofty
summits the watery vapours brought by the prevailing
north-westerly wind, which thence descend in frequent showers of drizzling rain, and often in heavy
torrents, surprising the farmers in the more southern
and less elevated districts, towards which the streams
from the mountains take their course, with sudden and
unexpected floods. The myrtle, arbutus, and other
tender exotics, which require to be taken under cover
in winter in most parts of Britain, bear the open air
throughout the whole year, in the southern parts of
Pembroke, as on the opposite English coasts of
Devon and Cornwall; and fruits ripen earlier and
more perfectly in the warm humid air of this county
than in most of the interior parts of the island. This
mildness and humidity render the warm limestone
soils so productive of natural grasses, that all the
efforts of the farmer to prevent the arable crops
from being materially injured by their rank luxuriance, are frequently unavailing. As the climate of
the southern maritime district is remarkably favourable to vegetation, so also is it distinguished for salubrity, and instances of great longevity are numerous. The north-western parts of the county, where
the substrata are of argillaceous rocks, are somewhat colder than the maritime limestone tracts,
and are more exposed to western storms immediately
from the sea; while the climate of the mountains,
from their superior elevation and peculiar situation,
is distinguished for its coldness and storms. The
wheat harvest, except in a few peculiarly favoured
spots, seldom commences before the third week in
August.
The soils are extremely various, but are generally characterised by great natural fertility. To the
north of a line drawn from St. David's, east-southeastward by the town of Haverfordwest, to the eastern
boundary of the county, the prevailing soil is an argillaceous loam, from six to twelve inches deep,
resting upon argillaceous substrata of slate or rab,
and in colour of a greyish brown, inclining in some
places to yellow: the natural grasses on this loam
are of a sweet kind, being chiefly sheep's fescue and
white clover. These soils, approaching the seashore, are of an excellent light texture, and have for
ages been famous for the production of barley, with
little, and in some places without any, alternation of
crops. In most places they contain a greater or less
quantity of grey porous stones, which, as imbibing
the salts and moisture wafted from the sea by westerly winds, are known to be highly favourable to
vegetation, affording in dry summers a perpetual
moisture to the roots of the corn, while their surfaces
reflect a regular warmth to its blades. The barley
of this maritime district is deemed of fine quality,
and some level patches near the shore are remarkable
for their early harvests, the adjoining hills acting as
reflectors to forward the ripening of the grain; its
produce of wheat is neither great in quantity, nor of
very good quality. In the valleys, the hollows,
and the gentle declivities having a southern aspect,
the soils of the northern parts of the county are
deepest and most fruitful, while on the uplands they
are more meagre in proportion as their substrata of
slate and shale are blue: the grey mountain rocks
described below, and the pale grey shale, have in
these situations by far the most grateful soils. A
light peat generally occupies the hollows of the
mountains, and the low flat places in the northern
parts of the county. This peat, in its natural state, is
very barren, but is rendered productive by manuring
with lime; its substratum is generally an unfertile
clay, which is found near the surface in some other
places, where it is always covered with the poorest
kind of herbage.
Southward of the line above described extends, in
the same direction, a narrow tract of fertile red soils,
of excellent quality either for tillage or pasture, with
a substratum of red sandstone. Beyond a very
narrow tract of limestone soils, succeed the poor wet
soils of the coal tract of this county, which have so
frequently a clayey substratum and peaty surface:
the substratum is of a yellowish, blueish, or light
brown colour, and from one to four or more feet
deep; the peaty surface is a mixture of sand and
black peaty earth, to the depth of from four to eight
inches. This soil and subsoil, however, are capable of great improvement, by being compounded
with each other in judicious systems of tillage, and
from their less elevation and other natural advantages, are here much more productive than in the
more eastern counties. The southern boundary extends from west-north-west to east-south-east, from
St. Bride's bay, by Walwyn's Castle, to Carmarthen
bay, northward of Tenby. The rest of the county
southward is occupied by an excellent brownish
marly loam of good tenacity, and on the declivities
by light and somewhat sandy soils, the crops on which
are sometimes damaged by the larvæ of the cockchafer. Of these latter soils the substratum is every
where limestone; they bear a natural sward of the
sweetest grasses, and under good tillage produce
abundant crops of all kinds of grain. Wherever
the limestone soils are deepest, as in the valleys,
their fertility is astonishing; and even on the more
elevated sheep downs, where they are shallow, they
produce the finest pasturage. Inclosed in this limestone district is a singular tract of remarkably fertile red soils of a good consistence, with a substratum of rab, or friable stone of the same colour:
it extends in length from Freshwater, westward
through St. Petrox, to the Isle of Sheppey, near
the entrance of Milford Haven; its greatest breadth
is from this latter spot northward to Angle Castle,
a distance of about a mile and a half; and hence,
proceeding eastward, its breadth gradually diminishes. While all the other islets on the southern
and south-western coasts have only the ordinary
limestone soils, that of Skokham has its southern
part occupied by the red loams; the general depth
of these is from six to fourteen inches, the average
being about ten, and for meadow lands they are preferred to the limestone soils: for corn, however, the
latter are superior. A narrow slip of a similar red
rab soil forms a boundary between the limestone and
the coal tract.
The mildness and humidity of the climate rendering the fertile soils, as noticed above, uncommonly
productive of grass, many agriculturists devote their
land more to grazing than to the production of corn.
The distinguished superiority of the soils, and their
remoteness from the mountains of the northern parts
of the county, which collect the vapours, have caused
tillage to be most extensively and successfully practised in the hundred of Castlemartin, which forms
the southern maritime part of it, from the town
of Tenby, on the east, to Milford Haven, on the
west; and in the neighbouring parts of the more
northern hundreds of Narberth and Rhôs. Here is
produced the finest wheat in the county, and the
greater part of that which is consumed within it;
some of the red Lammas wheat of Castlemartin,
indeed, has a deg; of transparency seldom equalled.
The farms are of a mixed kind; corn is cultivated
on all of them, while a varying portion of each is
applied to the dairy and the rearing of stock. All
the ordinary kinds of grain are cultivated. The
produce of wheat in the northern and western parts
of the county averages from fifteen to twenty-two
bushels per acre, but there are frequent instances
of much greater crops; on the best parts of the coal
tract, and southward from it, about thirty-seven
bushels per acre is esteemed a good crop. The produce of barley varies in different situations and under
different circumstances, from crops of the poorest
class to crops of sixty bushels per acre; it is smallest
in the north-western part of the county, where this
grain is frequently sown in unvaried succession.
Oats are very extensively cultivated, chiefly in the
northern and north-western parts of the county; the
produce is various, but usually small on the uplands,
where the natural disadvantages of soil and climate
are aggravated by a constant succession of this crop
only. Rye is no where grown on a large scale, except on Flimstone Downs, in Castlemartin hundred.
Peas are sometimes sown, but the climate is too
humid for them to produce much seed. Beans are
occasionally cultivated on the stronger soils; vetches
and buck-wheat are likewise only occasional crops.
Potatoes are a common agricultural crop; turnips,
also, are sometimes grown, but they frequently suffer
from being overrun by natural grasses. Cole-seed
has been cultivated in a few places, more particularly on the reclaimed waste of Castlemartin Corse.
The artificial grasses are of the ordinary kinds;
burnet grows wild on the downs of Castlemartin,
intermingled with an abundance of yarrow. Nearly
one-half of the county is in meadow and pasture.
The limestone and red soil tracts of the southern
parts of it possess the finest meadows possible, the
herbage being naturally of the sweetest kind, and
many old pastures being entirely covered with white
clover in the greatest abundance; but the dry porous
nature of the limestone renders those which have this
rock for a substratum, of but a secondary quality for
grazing. The principal fattening pastures, however,
are in the hundred of Castlemartin. It is a common
practice in the county to fog the grass lands, that is,
to keep them without stock from June until March,
which the mildness of the winter admits of being
done without detriment to the grass, and which is
found greatly to increase the quantity, and ameliorate
the quality, of the spring pasturage.
Irrigation is practised by some farmers in the valleys of the limestone, sandstone, and slate tracts; but
in the coal districts, in addition to the natural wetness
of the soils, the water rising there carries with it mineral particles very hurtful to vegetation: the want of
brooks and springs is much felt in the limestone districts of Castlemartin, &c. The manures employed,
besides the ordinary manures of the farm-yard, are
various. Lime is the principal, and is used in great
quantities, more particularly in the southern parts
of the county, where the limestone is burned with
the culm, or refuse of the stone-coal, of the adjacent measures. Sea-weed, variously called seawrack, sea-thong or tang, sea-ore, and, by the Welsh,
gwymmon, is found in great abundance after gales in
the bays and creeks, more particularly of the western
coast. It is extensively used as a manure on the
adjacent lands, sometimes in its natural state, at
others not until it has been putrefied by lying in
heaps for two or three weeks, and sometimes, again,
in composts with other manures: the fertility which
it imparts, however, is wholly exhausted by the first
crop. Shelly sea-sand is abundantly applied to the
lands bordering on the western and north-western
coasts, being deposited by the tides in inexhaustible
quantities in the various creeks, bays, and mouths of
rivers, on that side of the county; it is highly calcareous, and utterly destructive of weeds, but its fertilizing effects continue only for two years. Ashes
of all kinds are also used. Paring and burning is
practised only on some of the peaty lands. The folding of sheep has been customary from time immemorial. Many of the ploughs in use are still of the
large, awkward, old-fashioned Welsh kind; the share
is blunt, and almost like a large wedge, the coulter
equally awkward, and the mould-board nothing more
than a round stake, fastened from the right side of
the heel of the share to the hind part of the plough:
this last is intended to turn the furrow, which, however, it frequently does not perform, but leaves the
ground in the most rugged and unsightly state.
Some smaller modern improved kinds have been introduced, especially the Rotherham swing-plough.
The agricultural vehicles in common use are carts,
which were formerly drawn by two oxen yoked abreast,
with a long pole between them, which answered the
purpose of shafts, preceded by a pair of horses, also
abreast; but the use of a horse in a cart having shafts
is becoming general.
The OXEN are as active as the horses, and the
expedition which the teams use in conveying coal
and culm to certain of the creeks, where the vessels
must always be laden during one tide, strikes a
stranger with wonder, alarm, and compassion: the
usual seat of the carter is, like that of the driver of a
chaise, in front of the carriage, where, standing on
the wings of the pole, he manages his whip and
sometimes his reins with great vigour. With few exceptions, the cattle are coal-black; they are of a
very superior kind, and in great request for the
English markets, where they find a ready sale.
The parent stock appears to have been the small
broad native runts of the Welsh mountains, from
which, owing to the effects of a milder climate, more
nutritious pasturage, and greater care, has sprung
the present superior breed of Pembrokeshire cattle,
closely resembling that of Anglesey. They are often
finch-backed, and white on the belly, legs, &c., and
sometimes white-faced, but the latter are far from
being preferred by the drovers. In their proportions they are in general handsome: their legs are
shorter than those of the Glamorganshire breed, but
longer than those of the Montgomeryshire; their
horns are of a middle size, those of the oxen being
generally strong and curving upwards; and their
heads, necks, and breasts, are of a finer form than
those of the Anglesey cattle, but not so fine as those
of the Glamorgan breed. Their disposition is rather
intractable, but they are distinguished for their aptness to fatten; the average weight of the oxen is
from nine to ten score lb. per quarter, though sometimes much more in Castlemartin hundred. The hair
of these cattle has a peculiarly rich waving silkiness.
The Castlemartin bull is universally admired.
The SHEEP are of different kinds. The Preselè
range of mountains, and other walks in the northern
and north-western parts of the county, are depastured
by the small, wild, hardy, mountain breed which occupy the greater part of the rest of the principality,
but which, in the inclosures of this county, are regarded as of little value, it being impossible to confine
them by any ordinary fences. Their wool is like their
fare, very coarse; but the mutton they afford is delicious, being little inferior to the finest venison. In
the lower parts of the county the sheep are of mixed
breeds, between the mountaineers and the Cotswold,
Dorset, South Down, and other English races, generally without horns, and weighing from fourteen to
eighteen lb. per quarter; the fleece weighs from
three to four lb. The Ryeland and South Down
breeds are also found here in their native purity,
and in thriving condition. An endless variety of
mixtures is seen in the grounds of different gentlemen and farmers fond of making experiments. Ewes
are milked for the dairy in several parts of the
county; and cheese made with a proportion of their
milk, which gives it a peculiar tartness, is preferred
by the peasantry to the milder sort.
Great numbers of hogs are reared, chiefly for exportation to Bristol: in a store condition they are
called, by the Flemish race of inhabitants of the
county, tiggies. The rearing of these animals is a
chief object of the farmer's attention; they are fed
chiefly upon refuse potatoes and whey, and are sold
to drovers. The native horses are from fourteen to
fourteen and a half hands high, short-jointed, strong,
and active; the handsomest of these are broken in for
the saddle, being in much demand at the fairs, among
the dealers who resort thither from the interior of
England. They are frequently crossed with bloodhorses, thus producing a handsome and serviceable
horse for the chase, the road, or the carriage. The
Suffolk punches, and cart-horses from Herefordshire,
have also been introduced; and the greatest attention
is paid to the improvement of the breed of horses for
every purpose.
The southern parts of the county are particularly
adapted for horticulture; and flowers, vegetables, and
fruits are here produced as early, and in as great perfection, as in any other part of Britain. Orchards,
however, are not numerous; they are most commonly
attached only to the mansions of the gentry, though
there are a few about Pembroke, and many at the
pretty village of St. Dogmael's near Cardigan. It is
also much to be regretted that no attempt is made
towards improving the species of apples and pears
at present met with in the common orchard, which
are of a very inferior quality, by introducing new
trees and grafts of the best sorts of both. The
woods are few and of small extent. Considerable
quantities of timber-trees on the Picton Castle and
Lawrenny estates, with a few surviving groves about
Slebech, on the shores of the upper part of Milford
Haven, form the bulk of the present stock of timber
in that part of the county termed "below the mountains," that is, southward of the Preselè range.
Northward of it are various large tracts of woodland,
among which may be specified the numerous groves
of Dyfryn Gwain, of the Orlandon and other estates, Preselè woods, and those of Fynonè, or Finnònau. The most extensive woods remain on the
coal tract; a circumstance which is somewhat remarkable, as the high price that is given for poles for the
collieries has been one chief cause of the present
comparative destitution of wood observable in the
county. The prevailing kind of timber is oak,
besides which are seen ash, alder, sometimes beech
on the drier soils of the coal tract, and a great number
of the less common varieties. In the parks of the
larger proprietors in the southern limestone districts
are groves of very fine timber-trees, and some of its
ravines and slopes are beautifully tufted with trees.
The vast woods that covered Narberth Forest have
disappeared, except Canaston wood, which is very
extensive and thriving, and a few small coppices;
they are now succeeded by cultivated inclosures.
Some of the principal proprietors of land have made
plantations of various extent and of different kinds of
trees, which in some of the more exposed situations
suffer severely from sea gales.
The waste lands of the county are estimated, in
the view of its agriculture by Mr. Hassall, published
in 1794, at 22,220 acres, of which 14,220 are capable
of being inclosed and cultivated at a reasonable expense; while in the lordships of Llanvyrnach, Mynachlogdû, Maenclochog, and Kemmes, were 8000
acres on the mountains in the northern parts of the
county, which were too elevated, too much encumbered with rocks and stones, and too frequently precipitous, to be susceptible of profitable cultivation.
Of the waste lands capable of improvement a large
proportion has since been inclosed, the principal of
those yet lying in their original state being in Kemmes, containing about 5000 acres; Maenclochog,
about 2500; and Mynachlogdû, about 1500; all in
the northern part of the county, and exclusively of
the more mountainous parts of the same lordships,
and of Llanvyrnach above-mentioned. These wastes
are at present depastured without stint by the occupiers at large in the several manors to which they
belong, and they are consequently so overstocked as
to be rendered of little value to any one but the
lesser sheep-farmers upon the skirts of them. Besides sheep, the chief stock by which they are depastured is young cattle. The most common fuel
of Pembrokeshire is the stone-coal of its own mines,
or rather the decomposition of the stone-coal, usually
called culm, which is prepared for the fire by being
made into a compost with clay, and formed by the
hand into oblong balls; peat, however, is occasionally
used in the northern mountainous parts of it, where
it is abundant, while coal can only be procured from
a very considerable distance. The Farmers' Club,
or Sheep-Shearing, the meetings of which were
annually held for many years at Narberth, was at
length superseded by the present Society for the
Encouragement of Agriculture and Internal Improvement in the county of Pembroke.
The geological features of the county are peculiarly interesting, as in it are found all the various
classes of strata contained in South Wales. Its
mineral productions, too, are of considerable importance, consisting for the most part of coal, limestone,
slates, and different kinds of building-stones. All the
northern part, as far south as St. David's, Haverfordwest, and beyond Narberth, is included in the great
slate and shale tract of South Wales, which forms the
basis of all the more southern strata of the county.
The prevailing strata are argillaceous slates, adapted
for roofing, of different shades, from grey to blue;
with which is sometimes interstratified shale, rab, or
roch, as it is variously called, being argillaceous strata
of a more fragile texture, which soon decompose
under the action of the atmosphere. A great part of
the Preselè mountains consist, however, of hard grey
mountain rock of a primitive kind, in many places
affording excellent building-stones; and primitive
trap rocks occur near St. David's Head, the vicinity
of which is chiefly composed of masses of this description. In the northernmost part of the county
the strata nearest the surface are of argillaceous marl,
the southern boundary of which extends from the
sea-coast, near Dinas, eastward towards Penboyr in
Carmarthenshire. From this line, which runs along
the northern side of the Preselè mountains, the
stratum of marl stretches northward across the Teivy
into Cardiganshire, its thickness varying from six to
twenty feet and upwards. Beneath it are found the
ordinary strata of argillaceous schistus.
Southward of the slate district, and resting upon
it in geological position, is an extremely narrow
tract of inferior limestone, whereon rests a somewhat
broader line of red sandstone, a continuation of that
which extends over so great a tract of country in the
eastern parts of Carmarthenshire, and in Brecknockshire, but which here exhibits much less regularity
in the three successive classes of strata that compose
it: its last appearance, proceeding westward, is in
some quarries near the city of St. David's. This again
is succeeded by the mountain limestone which forms
the northern edge of the great mineral basin of South
Wales, but which is reduced in this western part of it to
a tract of extremely small breadth, frequently not
more than a stone's-throw, a circumstance perhaps
owing to its more sudden dip under the coal measures. Entering from Pendine in the southern part
of Carmarthenshire, it passes by Ludchurch, Mounton, across the Eastern Cleddy to Slebech, Picton,
and Boulston, and across the Western Cleddy to
Harroldston Cliff, south of Haverfordwest, and to
the cliffs of Galtop in St. Bride's bay.
On this limestone rest the coal measures which
traverse the county throughout, from the inner part
of Carmarthen bay, northward of Tenby, across the
higher parts of Milford Haven, to the central shores
of St. Bride's bay. Their total breadth is only from
three to five miles: their northern boundary, commencing from about the centre of the shores of St.
Bride's bay, passes east-south-eastward to the northwestern extremity of Carmarthen bay; while their
southern limits run in a nearly parallel direction by
Ivy Tower. The strata dip southward, and generally form a much greater angle with the horizon
than those of the larger coal-fields of the more eastern
counties of South Wales, being in some places nearly
vertical, and frequently at an angle of seventy, sixty,
fifty, or forty-five deg. Several faults, or dislocations of the strata, occur in the county. The
beds of coal are accompanied by strata of iron-ore.
The measures are a continuation of those in the
counties of Glamorgan, Brecknock, and Carmarthen,
which lie nearest to, and run parallel with, the
northern edge of the mineral basin, as all the mineral
strata rising southward in the first and last of those
counties, and the more central of those rising northward, are lost between the place where they pass
under water, on the eastern side of Carmarthen bay,
and the commencement of the Pembrokeshire coal
tract on the west of it. This is owing to a contraction of the sides of the basin, and to its becoming
shallower, for in Pembrokeshire none of the strata of
coal or iron-ore lie at a depth of more than eighty or
one hundred fathoms from the surface, so that it is
only the lowest strata of the formation that extend
so far westward as this county, where the basin is
too shallow to contain the higher strata also, and
too narrow to contain any of the strata rising southward.
The coal is of the kind called stone-coal or anthracite, or, by the Welsh, glo caled, "hard coal," which
neither soils the fingers nor flames when ignited,
consisting for the most part of pure carbon, having
neither asphalt to cause smoke, nor maltha to kindle
into flame: its great excellence is for culinary and
other purposes requiring a strong expansive heat
without smoke; and latterly, stone-coal has been
very extensively used in Glamorganshire, &c., for
the smelting of iron-ore. The decomposition of it,
called culm, is mixed with clay, as above-mentioned,
and a fire made of this compost in the morning will
often last for a whole day without being renewed
or stirred: the fires are covered over at night with a
stumming of the same material, on which they feed,
and in the morning require only to be stirred for
instant service. In Pembrokeshire, the surface of
the coal tract not being sufficiently elevated and
furrowed with deep valleys for its mineral stores to
be obtained by levels or horizontal shafts, as in the
northern parts of it further eastward, it is necessary
to sink pits, which are numerous. The bed of
siliceous sandstone which, resting upon the limestone
range above-mentioned, forms the immediate basis of
the coal measures on the north, and is called in
Monmouthshire and Brecknockshire the "Farewell
Rock," continues in the same direction through this
county, where it is called the "Doon Rock," and is
seen cropping out in stupendous masses in conjunction with the adjacent calcareous strata. The substances which accompany the coal strata, besides
freestone and iron-ore, are cleft or clunch, and fireclay: the beds of ironstone and clunch that lie in
the closest contact with the coal are generally marked
with vegetable impressions; the clunch contains also
vitriol of iron, and in some mines the water is so
much vitriolated that it excoriates the hands and faces
of the workmen. The quantity of sulphur contained
in the coal of this western part of the mineral basin
of South Wales is extremely small.
Southward of the southern boundary of the coal
tract, nearly the whole county, for about twenty-four
miles in length and nine in breadth, is composed of
numberless beds of white limestone, so called, not
from its natural colour, which is various, but from
the superior whiteness of the lime that it produces.
The strata generally undulate with the surface, like
those of the shale in the northern part of the county,
and are distinguished from those of older formation,
to the north of the coal tract, by their bearing numerous impressions of marine exuviæ, petrified shellfish, vertebræ, &c., which bespeak their alluvial
origin. This stone yields lime of the best quality
for manure, for whitewashing buildings, and some
other purposes; but as a cement for building it is
far inferior to that of the lias limestone of Glamorganshire, which rests in nearly the same geological
position. Some of the rising grounds of this limestone district have an anomalous deposition of huge
beds of fine white sandstone. But the most striking
anomaly observable in the white limestone of the
county, is the intrusion of the tract of red soils on
the southern side of the lower reaches of Milford
Haven, as above described; the substratum of which,
instead of limestone, is a red stone, provincially called
rab, more argillaceous than the red sandstone substratum of the red soils adjoining the slate tract, and
having some of its strata of a greyish colour. This
substratum, when brought to the surface and exposed
to the action of the atmosphere, becomes friable, and
crumbles into a saponaceous substance, not unlike
the slate marl found about Sutton, in Warwickshire,
though inferior to it in fertilizing qualities. A narrow slip of similar red rab-stone forms the boundary
between the coal measures and this great southern
limestone district. All the islets and insulated rocks
on the southern and south-western coasts are composed of limestone, except that of Skokham, the substrata of the southern part of which are of red rabstone: this island has also a turbary of five or six
acres, affording excellent peat for fuel. In the southern part of Ramsey are indications of coal, while the
rest of the island consists of the strata above described
as supporting the coal measures on the north.
This variety of mineral strata is turned to great
advantage in numerous instances; but the metalline
productions of the county are of small importance.
A fanciful etymology applied to the name of Mynwere, on the eastern shore of Milford Haven, nearly
opposite to Slebech, led some adventurers to search
for gold at that place, but without success. Silver
has been sought for on a small promontory in St.
Bride's bay, but the attempt to procure it there,
which has been several times repeated since the
reign of Elizabeth, has been as often abandoned with
loss. A rich vein of lead in a matrix of argillaceous
schistus was wrought for some years on the banks
of the Tâf, in the parish of Llanvyrnach; but the
works were abandoned, having been flooded with
water, which can only be drawn off by means of
an expensive level: the ore is said to be of superior
quality.
Coal and limestone are the chief mineral products,
being raised in vast quantities in the respective districts above described, more especially in the vicinity
of Milford Haven, St. Bride's bay, and Saundersfoot,
whence they are exported to a considerable extent.
There are likewise several furnaces for the manufacture of the iron-ore, of which abundant layers are
found interstratified with the coal and its other accompanying substances. From the mouth of the
Gwain at Fishguard, proceeding northward, several
quarries of blue argillaceous roofing-slate are worked
in the cliffs on the sea-coast. Of this material the
interior of the county also possesses abundance, but
it is not there extensively worked, except at the Glôg
quarries near Llanvyrnach, situated between the
Preselè mountains and the border of Carmarthenshire, which are very valuable; and at Pantè Philip,
about two miles distant from Fishguard. There are
likewise several quarries of slate of the best quality
at Sealyham, and much slate is quarried at Kîlgerran, and shipped down the Teivy. But the quality of all that is obtained in this county is inferior to
that of Carnarvonshire.
Stone for building is procured as follows: from
quarries in the hard grey mountain rock of the
northern parts of the county, at Newport, and other
places on the sea-coast, and at Coed-Cadw, in the
parish of Nevern; from the argillaceous freestone
strata of the coal measure; from the siliceous rocks
of the red sandstone tract that separates the coal from
the slate tract, which are quarried to the greatest
extent at Nolton, on the shore of St. Bride's bay,
the stone there obtained being of a dark grey
colour, and reputed to resist the action of fire and of
a maritime atmosphere in a superior deg; from
the various limestone strata, the fracture of which
is, however, very irregular and splintery, so that
uniform courses of masonry can hardly be worked
with them; and from the quarries of blue slate. A
range of hills, entering this county from Cardiganshire, and terminating in it in the Plumstone mountain, besides grey mountain rocks or whinstone,
affords indurated schistus, porphyroids, &c. Firestones for ovens, &c., are obtained on the boundary between the limestone and red rab in Castlemartin hundred, in some parts of the red sandstone
tract, and in the whinstone ranges of the slate tract.
Black marble, variegated with white, is obtained
near Tenby. A soft black stone, or black chalk, is
found in the parish of Meliney, in a rill descending
from the Preselè mountains. The peasantry mark
their sheep with it, and call it nôd glâs, or "blue
raddle," from the colour of the strokes which it makes:
this, without any oily mixture, preserves its strong
azure colour on the wool through the whole winter.
By some it is considered equal, for the purposes of
drawing, to that imported from Switzerland. A vein
of excellent potters'-clay occurs in the limestone near
Flimston, in Castlemartin hundred.
Pembrokeshire has no important manufacture. In
different parts of the county, domestic manufactures
of various coarse woollen articles of clothing are
carried on, which in some instances are facilitated by
scattered carding-machines. Considerable quantities
of hides and skins are dressed for the Bristol and
other English markets. There is a manufactory of
brown paper near Haverfordwest; and ship-building
is pursued in several of the harbours, particularly
at Pembroke, where an extensive dock-yard has been
established for the royal navy. Iron-works were
conducted at Black Pool, near Narberth, for many
years; and recently, the Pembrokeshire Iron and
Coal Company have erected some blast furnaces near
Saundersfoot.
The fisheries on the coast are very valuable; but
for want of a regular demand, the fishermen until
lately paid little attention to any but those of herrings, salmon, and shell-fish. One of the principal
stations for the herring-fishery is St. Dogmael's, on
the river Teivy, where the boats engaged in it are
commonly of from eight to twenty tons' burthen, with
masts and sails, but mostly open, without decks, and
manned by six or eight men. The herrings generally make their first appearance on the neighbouring coasts between the middle and the end of September, which is considered the best period of the
season, as they will then bear carriage to distant
markets, and, the harvest being commonly over, the
fishermen can be better spared from agricultural
labours. The fish usually taken on the northern
coasts of the county, besides herrings, are cod, haddock, whitings, skate, rays, turbot, bret, plaice,
flounders, soles, mullets, gurnards, mackerel, dories,
sewin, and a few other kinds. The fishing-banks
of Fishguard bay are more particularly distinguished
for their abundance of turbot, dories, &c., of the most
excellent quality; here are also large beds of oysters,
which, however, for want of enterprise, are left untouched. About seventeen boats are engaged in the
herring-fishery; it continues until Christmas, and the
produce is wholly devoted to home consumption,
forming, with potatoes, a principal article of food
among the poorer class.
The chief salmon fisheries are in the lower, navigable part of the river Teivy, where some of this fish
are said always to be in season; at the mouth of the
Gwain at Fishguard, and that of the Nevern at Newport; and in both the rivers Cleddy: on the Eastern
Cleddy, at Blackpool, is one more particularly extensive, where also are caught great quantities of the
peculiar fish called sewin. Below the weir at Llêchrhŷd, on the Teivy, this fishery is carried on by
means of the curious little boats called coracles, a
hundred of which may sometimes be seen within the
space of two miles. Salmon and sewin frequently
ascend many of the more narrow and shallow streams
in the spawning season. Extensive fisheries are
also pursued, off the coast of this county, in the
Bristol Channel, where the main bed of fish extends
from the vicinity of Tenby (called in Welsh Dinbych y Pyscod, or "the fishy Denbigh," to distinguish
it from Denbigh in North Wales) eastward to Worms
Head in Gower, and southward several leagues
around Lundy Island; the kinds caught are for the
most part flat-fish, such as turbot, bret, soles, maidenrays, and flukes, with a smaller quantity of cod, basse,
mullet, and whiting. In the beautiful bay of St.
Bride's, abounding with turbot, soles, and dories,
different gentlemen have their private yachts, by
which both an ample supply for their own tables, and
a surplus for public sale, are procured.
Shell-fish are most abundant on the southern
and south-western coasts of the limestone tract. In
various parts of Milford Haven are beds of oysters
of superior excellence, and in such abundance as to
render them a cheap article of luxury. The village
of Llangwm is more particularly famous for its oyster
fishery, which is almost the only means of support
possessed by its inhabitants, who are thus employed
at a season of the year when their labour is least
wanted in the fields; the oysters are, however, small,
and the least esteemed of the different sorts produced
in this magnificent estuary: many are taken fresh to
the market of Haverfordwest, and vast quantities are
pickled in barrels and jars for Bristol and the interior.
The "Crow oysters," found in inexhaustible quantities in that branch of Milford Haven which extends
up to the town of Pembroke, and is called Crow
Pool, are of very superior flavour. The oysters of
Tenby, Caldey Island, Stackpool, &c., are remarkably large, but are deemed of inferior quality to
those of Milford Haven. Samphire, termed in
Welsh corn carw'r môr, "sea buck-horn," grows on
the sea-shore, on the rocks and cliffs not overflowed
by the tide: it is gathered, and preserved as a
pickle. Laver, or sea liverwort, is found growing
on the rocks and stones in creeks overflowed by the
tide, and is frequently gathered, well boiled, and put
into jars with a little salt, in which state it is occasionally exported; in this county it is designated
llawvan, and by the English "black butter:" its
flavour is agreeably spicy.
Notwithstanding the extent of its coasts, the excellence and number of its harbours, and its favourable
geographical situation, the commerce of Pembrokeshire is comparatively inconsiderable, being confined
to the coasting-trade. The exports are nevertheless
various: the principal are, coal, chiefly from Saundersfoot, Milford Haven, and St. Bride's bay, for the
supply of steam-engines, lime-kilns, malt-houses, and
hop-kilns, and as fuel for domestic uses, to the West
of England, the western coasts of Wales, the coast of
Ireland, &c.; lime and limestone in great quantities,
and chiefly to the same parts; cattle, sheep, hogs,
and horses, to England; wool, for the manufactures
of the North of England; leather, to Bristol, &c.;
and slates, which, in the vicinity of Newport, are
lowered from the cliffs where they are quarried,
into the vessels below. Not only does Pembrokeshire produce sufficient corn for the supply of its
own inhabitants, but also a considerable surplus of
wheat in the southern, and of oats in the northern,
parts of it, which is exported to Liverpool, Bristol,
and the counties of Dorset and Sussex. From its
coasts, as is described above, are also sent samphire
and laver, oysters, turbot, salmon, and various other
kinds of fish, to Bristol and the interior of South
Britain.
Saundersfoot, in the inner part of Carmarthen bay,
is a noted place for the export of stone-coal and culm.
Proceeding westward along the coast, the next port
is Tenby, celebrated as a place of great and fashionable resort for the purpose of sea-bathing, and which,
with that of Saundersfoot, is subject, according to the
regulations of the custom-house, to the port of Milford, on Milford Haven. On the southern side of
the Haven is Pembroke-Dock, and higher up, on a
branch of it, the port of Haverfordwest; both which
are also subject to the port of Milford. Haverfordwest, being very favourably situated near the centre
of the county, engrosses most of its commerce.
The magnificent harbour of milford, the
finest in Great Britain, opens south-westward into
the wide expanse of the lower part of the Bristol
Channel, while inland it stretches for many miles
directly eastward, and afterwards, in its highest
reaches, northward, through the coal tract. The
navigable length of the Haven, from its mouth, up
the Western Cleddy, to Haverfordwest, is about
twenty-one miles; and from its mouth, up the Eastern
Cleddy, to Canaston Bridge, about twenty miles.
Its breadth, at the mouth, between the Dale and
Angle block-houses, is 2580 yards; and from Picton
Point to Thorn Island, 2300 yards. Exclusively of
the various roads, bays, and creeks, it has the following main pills, or branches, all on the southern side
of it; viz., Pennar Mouth, Cosheston, Carew, and
Creswell. Pennar Mouth Pill extends up to the
town of Pembroke: its mouth from rock to rock is
only 200 yards wide at high water, and 112 at low
water, with from nine to twelve feet depth of water;
but within it expands into a fine spacious basin, called
Crow Pool. Various reports have been made concerning the capaciousness of Milford Haven: one
states that it would contain with ease more than all
the navies of Europe; and another, by a naval officer,
computes that it would contain 1000 ships of the line,
1000 fifty-gun ships, 1000 frigates, 1000 sloops of
war, and 1000 transports to supply them, without in
the least deg incommoding each other; while 100
sail of the line might be brought to act simultaneously
on any ship or number of ships that might attempt
the Haven. Several plans have at various times been
proposed for increasing its natural conveniences for
trade, and the execution of some of them has much
augmented its commerce, and given rise to the town
of Milford, the custom-house at which place extends
its jurisdiction round the coast of St. Bride's bay, to
St. David's.
In the spacious bay of St. Bride's are several
creeks, which afford shelter to numerous small vessels
employed in the coal, culm, and limestone trades;
and in the western curve of this bay, to the north of
the coal tract, is situated the thriving little sea-port
of Solva, which carries on a coasting-trade with the
neighbouring ports, particularly Milford, and with
Bristol. Beyond the promontory of the eight rocks
called "the Bishop and his Clerks," and situated on
a bay to the east of Strumble Head, is the port of
Fishguard, the harbour of which is the only one free
from obstructions and bars between Milford Haven
and Aberystwith; this harbour is of an irregular form,
about 2400 feet long, by 1160 feet wide, and often
affords shelter to the Irish packets driven hither by
stress of weather. Newport, a few miles further
north-eastward, has a bar harbour for a few coastingvessels and fishing-boats. The ports of Newport and
Fishguard are subject to that of Cardigan.
The principal rivers are, the Western Cleddy,
the Eastern Cleddy, the Gwaun or Gwain, the Nevern, and the Teivy. The Western Cleddy river,
called Cleddy Gwyn, or "the fair," rises at Llygad
Cleddy, or "the eye of Cleddy," in the parish of
Llanvair-Nantgwyn, near Fishguard, and flows at
first south-eastward by the church and bridge of
Llanstinan, then westward towards Llangwaren, and
afterwards southward, receiving numerous smaller
brooks, until, at the distance of about thirteen miles
from its source, it reaches the town of Haverfordwest, where it becomes navigable for ships of small
burthen. Continuing its southern course for a few
miles, until its waters become perfectly salt, the
river, at last inclining a little south-eastward between
Hookwood and Boulston, is joined by the broad
stream of the Eastern Cleddy at Picton Point, about
five miles below Haverfordwest. The Eastern Cleddy
river, or Cleddy Dû, "the black, or swarthy," rises
among the Percelly mountains, at a place named
Blaen-y-Gors, in the parish of Mynachlogdû, and,
receiving numerous smaller streams from the same
elevated region, takes a course nearly southward,
forming the boundary between the counties of Pembroke and Carmarthen, until near Llandissilio. Below Egremont it is joined by the powerful stream of
the Syvynney, which flows into it by Longbridge
from Walton. Above Slebech it becomes navigable
for small vessels, and having gradually assumed a
western direction, a little below that place, between
Picton and Mynwere, it joins the Western Cleddy,
as above described. The united waters of these
rivers immediately form a salt-water estuary about a
mile in breadth, constituting the upper extremity of
the great harbour of Milford Haven. This harbour
is called by the Welsh Aber Dau Gleddy, "the mouth
or estuary of the two Cleddys:" its length, from the
junction of the two rivers to the open sea, is about
sixteen miles; while its breadth, owing to the irregularity of its rocky shores, varies from one to two
miles.
The Gwaun, or Gwain, has its source in the Percelly mountains, whence it pursues a romantic
course of about twenty miles westward to the Irish
Channel at Fishguard, where it forms the best harbour in the county, next to that of Milford. The
Nevern, which has a similar origin, near the mountain of Vrenni Vawr in the Percelly range, enters
the same sea at Newport, after a course of about fifteen miles, forming at its mouth a harbour for vessels
of about one hundred tons' burthen. The Newgall,
the first stream that occurs to the north of Milford
Haven, flows westward along the boundary between
the slate and coal tracts, and discharges its waters
into St. Bride's bay, at the Newgall Sands, after
forming, in the latter part of its course, the boundary
between the hundreds of Rhôs and Dewisland.
A little further northward is the Solva, or Solvach,
which, at the small town of Solva, forms a harbour
for coasting-vessels of from 100 to 150 tons' burthen,
and immediately below falls into St. Bride's bay.
On the north-eastern side of the county, the river
Cych, which has its source in the Percelly range,
flowing northward, forms the boundary between this
county and that of Carmarthen, until it falls into the
Teivy a little below Kenarth. It is at this point that
the latter river first touches Pembrokeshire, of which
it henceforward forms the northern boundary, becoming navigable for barges at Llêchrhŷd bridge, and
for vessels of 200 tons at Cardigan bridge. Pembrokeshire is wholly indebted to nature for its valuable inland navigation, having no canal whatever.
The construction of the great South Wales railway,
lately commenced, if carried out, will prove of incalculable benefit to the county. Its main line, according to the plan, will enter from Carmarthenshire
near Lampeter-Velvrey, to the north of the Pembroke mail-road, and proceeding westward, pass by
Castel-Dauyran, Clarbeston, Spittal, and Trêvgarn;
then turning northward, will run by St. Lawrence and
Letterson to the sea-coast. The terminus was originally proposed to be at Fishguard; but in 1847,
Capt. Claxton was employed to survey the Irish
Channel minutely, for the purpose of ascertaining
the best route across to Ireland, and the elaborate
survey then made appears to have led to the abandonment of Fishguard, and the substitution of Abermawr, a few miles distant from it in a western direction. The distance to Abermawr does not differ
materially from that to Fishguard, the line in this
part running northward. There will be two branches
of the railway in the county; one to Pembroke-Dock,
nineteen miles and a half in length; and the other to
Haverfordwest, rather more than five miles in length.
The former commences near where the main line
enters the county; and passes in a south-western
direction, by Crinow, the town of Narberth, Reynoldston, and Carew Castle, to its terminus at Pembroke-Dock, on Milford Haven. The Haverfordwest branch quits the main line between Clarbeston
and Spittal, and runs in nearly a south-western course
to the town from which it takes its name. The
Tenby and Saundersfoot railway, for which an act
was obtained in 1846, will commence in a junction
with the Pembroke branch of the South Wales line
near Reynoldston, and terminate at Tenby, with a
short branch to the harbour of Saundersfoot. It will
be altogether seven miles and a half in length, and
will pass through a coal and ironstone district.
Pembrokeshire has a greater abundance of excellent materials for making and repairing roads than
any other county of South Wales, even its slate district abounding in many places with siliceous rocks,
equal in durability to the imported granite pavingstones of London; yet, notwithstanding this advantage, its roads are on the whole among the worst in
the principality. The road from London to St.
David's by Oxford and Gloucester, joined by that
from London to Haverfordwest through Cardiff, enters this county from St. Clear's, in Carmarthenshire,
at Tavern 'Spyty, and proceeds through the towns of
Narberth and Haverfordwest to St. David's. The
road to Milford branches from this at Haverfordwest;
that to Tenby, at Cold-blow, two miles from Narberth; and that to Wiston, from the vicinity of Canaston Bridge. The road from London to Cardigan,
continued to St. David's, branches from the abovementioned Gloucester road at Llandovery, in Carmarthenshire, and, crossing the Teivy into Pembrokeshire from the town of Cardigan, passes through
Newport and Fishguard to St. David's: from Troedyraur, in Cardiganshire, a branch diverges either by
Newcastle or Llêchrhŷd bridge, to Kîlgerran. The
mail for Ireland was formerly despatched from Milford, but it has been removed to Pembroke, where a
good pier has been erected: a line of road has also
been formed, by which the route of this mail to the
new place of embarkation is much shorter than that
to Milford.
The remains of antiquity are various; but the
most striking and numerous are those of fortresses
erected by the Norman invaders of Pembrokeshire
and their immediate descendants, and of castellated
mansions of a later period. The earliest remains
are those referable to the Druids. The peninsula of
Castlemartin contains a few scattered relics of a kind
usually considered Druidical, among which are those
of a cromlech. Similar remains, but very rude and
on a small scale, consisting for the most part of single upright stones, are numerous in the vicinity
of St. David's. At Long-house, near the village of
Trevine, is a cromlech, the table stone of which measures about seventeen feet long: nearer Fishguard,
at Treslanog, is another monument of the same kind,
fourteen feet long, and about eight broad; and several
are visible at a place called Trêv Culhwch, near the
same town. Indeed, the district lying between the
vicinity of Trevine and that of Fishguard is remarkable for the number and size of its cromlechs, only
part of which are enumerated above. In the vicinity
of Newport are also many Druidical remains, the
principal of them being a very remarkable cromlech,
near Pentre Evan, the covering stone of which is
eighteen feet long and nine broad, and rests on
supporters a considerable height above the surface of
the ground. This is the largest cromlech but one in
the whole principality. Another large and perfect
monument of the same kind near the town of Newport is designated Llêch-y-Drybedd.
The remains of the Roman station Ad Vigesimum
are situated a few miles within the eastern boundary
of the county, and north-east of the church of Ambleston. A little westward from this station, near
the village of Ford, are some remains of a small camp
of Roman construction; and in the same vicinity,
in the year 1806, were discovered some relics of a
Roman bath. The position of the city or station of
Menapia has never been precisely ascertained: it
is considered to have been on the coast, and that the
encroachments of the sea, or the accumulation of
sand, have obliterated all traces of it. Mr. Fenton,
the intelligent tourist, was inclined to think Porthmawr, north-west of St. David's, or the sandy burrows in its vicinity, as most likely to be the site of
the ancient Menapia; in which opinion his friend
Sir R. C. Hoare concurred. Near Llanrian is a
military intrenchment called Castell Hâvod, supposed
by Mr. Fenton to have been a castrum æstivum, or
summer camp, of the Romans, and situated near the
course of the Roman road leading from Loventium to
Menapia. Near the shores of St. Bride's bay, in the
vicinity of Solva, is Poyntz Castle, an artificial
mound, conjectured to have been the site of a
Roman watch-tower. The great Roman road, the
Via Julia Maritima, entering from Carmarthenshire,
is thought to have passed in the line of the present
mountain road through the centre of the station Ad
Vigesimum; and, a little further on, evidence of its
course is yet found in the name of a farm termed
Streetland. From the latter place the road may be
traced by occasional fragments, in a line nearly
north-west, towards Menapia, the last station in this
direction. The Roman road connecting the station of
Loventium, situated at Llanio, in the Vale of Teivy,
above Lampeter, in Cardiganshire, with that of Menapia, enters Pembrokeshire from the northern part
of Carmarthenshire, in the upper part of the parish
of Llanvyrnach, and its course may be clearly traced
in several places, more particularly on Cwm Cerwyn
mountain, a distinguished summit of the Preselè
chain, where it is marked by a range of tumuli.
Much of it has been covered by accumulations of
peat; but the portions of it yet remaining in this
county are considerable, and have received the name
of Via Flandrica, or "Flemish way," from an erroneous supposition of its having been formed by the
Flemish settlers. Some traces of a paved way have
also been discovered near the Newgall sands in St.
Bride's bay: they have been thought to be fragments
of a Roman road leading along the coast from Menapia to Dale, not far from the entrance of Milford
Haven.
Near the village of Rudbaxton, about four miles
north of Haverfordwest, is a circular British encampment, on the summit of a steep conical hill, having a
single ditch of great depth; this is sometimes called
The Rath, and in old maps St. Leonard's Castle. A
little further northward is Castell Henry or Hêndrev,
a large mound, probably the site of a small fortress.
In the neighbourhood of the village of Ford, besides
the Roman remains above-mentioned, are various
other ancient military earthworks, the most remarkable of which are, a spacious circular encampment on
a farm termed Smerton, or Summerton, near the village of Little Newcastle; and a circular intrenchment styled Castell Coning, near the village of St.
Dogwell's. Near Llanrian, on an elevated rock designated Garn Vawr, is a large British encampment,
having lofty ramparts of loose stones; and in the
grounds of Picton Castle, near Slebech, are some
remains of an intrenched fortification called Castle
Lake. On the shore of the peninsula of Castlemartin
are numerous military earthworks, some of considerable strength, thought to have been raised by the
Danish and other maritime marauders, who so frequently infested this coast, and which were probably
intended to secure their plunder, and cover their retreat to their ships. Near Orielton, in the same
peninsula, on a common termed Dry Burrows, is a
great number of tumuli; and many similar mounds,
supposed to be sepulchral, are scattered near the seacoast between St. David's and Fishguard: of the
latter, one of the most remarkable is that at Trêv
Ednyved, near Llanrian, which, on being opened,
was found to contain a cist-vaen. In the more immediate vicinity of Fishguard are some other very
curious remains of remote antiquity, consisting of
sepulchral tumuli, and foundations of buildings, in
the former of which have been discovered urns and
other articles of great antiquarian curiosity.
The religious houses appear to have been more
numerous than in any other Welsh county. At the
period of the Reformation there were, at St. David's,
besides the episcopal establishment, a college of
Secular priests; at St. Dogmael's, near Cardigan, a
Benedictine monastery, which had a cell in Caldey
Island; at Haverfordwest, a priory of Augustine
canons; at Lawhaden, a small priory and a hospital;
at Newport, a house of Augustine friars; at Pembroke, a Benedictine cell; at Pill, commonly called
Hubberston Pill, in the parish of Steynton, a Benedictine priory; at Slebech, a commandery of Knights
Hospitallers; and at Tenby, two hospitals. Interesting remains exist of the abbey of St. Dogmael's,
near Cardigan; and extensive ruins of the subordinate priory in Caldey Island, including the tower of
the conventual church, surmounted by a stone spire.
There are likewise ruins of Pill priory, at the upper
extremity of Hubberston Creek, a branch of Milford
Haven; and of that of Haverfordwest, situated on
the banks of the Western Cleddy, a little below that
town. Some remains of an old monastic edifice are
also to be seen near Marlan's or Mawdlen's bridge,
a little westward from Haverfordwest. The most
remarkable specimens of ecclesiastical architecture in
the county are in the cathedral church of St. David's,
for the most part in the Anglo-Saxon, or early Norman style, and in the parochial churches of Carew,
St. Mary at Haverfordwest, Milford, Nevern, one of
the largest in the county; Slebech, anciently belonging to the commandery of the Knights of St. John
of Jerusalem; and Tenby. The following are also well
worthy of notice, viz., the chapel of St. Mary's College, at St. David's; the ruins of the chapels of St.
Justinian and St. Non, on the sea-coast in the vicinity
of that city; and the chapel or hermitage of St. Govan, romantically situated among the precipices on
the sea-coast of Castlemartin.
The ancient mural fortresses of the county,
owing to its peculiar political situation during the
encroachments upon Wales by the Norman conquerors of England, are particularly numerous; though
the only one which is at present inhabited is Picton
Castle, situated on the western side of the Eastern
Cleddy, a little below the village of Slebech. The
ruins of the castle of Benton, on the western shore of
Milford Haven, are particularly picturesque; those
of Carew, at the head of a southern branch of the
Haven, extensive and magnificent; those of Kîlgerran, on the banks of the Teivy, peculiarly striking, the circular arch which so frequently occurs in
them bespeaking the early Norman origin of this fortress; those of Manorbeer, near Tenby, extensive
and magnificent, and forming perhaps the most perfect model of a Norman baron's residence now remaining in the principality, having never experienced
the ravages of enemies, or suffered from modern innovations; those of Narberth Castle, interesting and
picturesque; those of Newport, remarkable; those of
Pembroke, strikingly grand; those of Roche, near
St. Bride's bay, between Haverfordwest and St. David's, distinguished for the singularity of their situation on the summit of a high, abrupt, and isolated
rock; those of Tenby, extensive and grand; those
of Wiston, also worthy of remark. On the hill above
Nevern church are some remains of an ancient fortress, once of great strength, now called Llanhyver
Castle. An artificial mound, some distance westward
of Milford, indicates the site of the fortress of Walwyn's Castle, or Castell Gwalchmai. The strong
and lofty walls of the old town of Tenby are, in some
places, nearly entire; and a large portion of the north
wall of Pembroke, with some of the bastions, is still
in good preservation; as is also the east gate of the
ancient city of St. David's. Some remains are yet
visible of the block-houses erected at the entrance of
Milford Haven in the reign of Elizabeth.
The number of ancient mansions formerly existing
was as remarkable as the number of castles. Very
few of these are now standing; but the ruins of several yet remain, at Trêvlyne, Scotsborough, &c. The
ruins of Lawhaden or Llewhaden Castle, near Narberth, once a magnificent residence of the bishops of
St. David's, are very striking, and include a grand
entrance gateway and an octagon tower of great
height. Those, also, of Llan-Fydd, now Lamphey,
another princely residence of the prelates of the same
see in former times, situated between Pembroke and
Tenby, are remarkably picturesque and curious; as
are those of the old episcopal mansion at St. David's.
At the village of Dale is a castellated mansion, which
has been modernised, and now forms a handsome
edifice with wings. Formerly there were also mansions of ancient erection at St. Bride's; at Blaenybylan, or Lybylan, near Kîlgerran; near Slebech;
at Llandshipping, on the Eastern Cleddy; at a place
lower down on this river; at Prendergast, a suburb
of Haverfordwest; at Boulston, in the same vicinity;
and at Trêvgarn, near to Fishguard: but very few
vestiges of these are now discernible. Among the
numerous modern seats of the nobility and gentry,
that adorn the county, may more particularly be
noticed, Amroath, Berry Hill, St. Botolph's, Boulston, Brownslade, Cîlwendêg, Clareston, Creselly,
Cuffern, Dôlhaidd, Fynonè, Glynamel, Glynfew,
Lamphey Court, Llandshipping, Llanstinan, Llanunwas, Llwyngwair, Orielton, Pantsaison, Pantyderry, Priskilly Forest, Rhôsygilwen, Ridgeway,
Sealyham, Slebech Hall, Stackpool Court, and
Whitechurch.
It is a peculiarity observable in this county, that
the cottages, and even the farmhouses in the greater
part of it, are often built of mud, notwithstanding the
abundance of much superior materials; a circumstance
which is considered to be owing to a practice perpetuated among the descendants of the Flemish emigrants. Besides their predilection for mud walls, and
round wattle and dab chimneys, there are other features in the mode of building practised by this race
of people, which were formerly much more striking
and general than at present: the chimney commonly
rises from the front wall close to the door; and the
farmhouses have frequently a transverse roof crossing
the main one at right angles, while the chimney rises
from the junction of the eaves of both. The cottages
are altogether of a mean description; and the farmbuildings usually of an inferior kind, excepting some
of those of modern erection. In the limestone tracts
of the southern parts of the county, where the fissures
of the dry limestone substrata absorb all the rain
water in a very short time, it is found necessary to
construct water-ponds with stone and lime, to preserve water for the cattle. Portable, or moveable,
threshing-floors are common; as are also, in some
parts, stiles formed of solid stone and mortar. Some
of the western maritime tracts in the county are yet
uninclosed; but the extent of these open districts has
been gradually lessening for many years. Fences of
uncemented stones are common in most parts. Stone
fences in exposed situations on the western coast
have their copings surmounted by single upright
stones placed at regular intervals, these being supposed to break the violence of westerly winds against
buildings, plantations, &c. Naked sod fences, and
fences of sods and stones in alternate layers, as in
Cardiganshire, are frequently to be seen along the
western coast from Milford northward; the faces of
these are sometimes wholly of stones laid in peculiar
courses. Of the more remarkable natural plants, the
privet and wild service-tree are most common on the
limestone of the southern parts, and the holly among
the hills in the north of it. The bread consumed by
the whole of the lower orders, and many of the middle
classes, is entirely composed of barley, unleavened,
and baked in thin cakes on cast-iron plates: oaten
bread is occasionally eaten in the uplands. Servants
are hired at the spring and autumn fairs, but chiefly
at the latter.
Various chalybeate and some sulphureous springs
rise in different parts of the county, as at St. Dogmael's, Llanllawer, Fishguard, St. Dogwell's, &c.;
but the only mineral spring of much repute is that
called Alum Well, at Treryfydd, or Griffithston, near
the sea-coast, a few miles northward of Newport.
Golden Well, near the village of Little Newcastle,
eight miles north of Haverfordwest, is said to ebb and
flow regularly with the tide in St. George's Channel,
nine miles distant. A conflux of springs, called the
Nine Wells, at Llandrudion, near St. David's, yields
such a copious supply of water as suffices immediately
to work a corn-mill. The coast of Castlemartin hundred, from Stackpool Head westward towards Angle
Point at the mouth of Milford Haven, is highly
romantic, presenting some rocky scenery of great
sublimity, interspersed with natural caverns of unusual extent and curiosity. Of these, one of the
most remarkable is Bosherston Mere, which, on the
surface of the ground, presents only a small aperture,
but underneath gradually widens into an extensive
vault. In stormy weather, when the sea beats with
violence against the rocks, the noise emitted from the
aperture of the cavern is tremendous, and sometimes
vast columns of spray are forced through it to an immense height: the ebbing of this strong current of
air is found to be very dangerous, drawing with it
into the gulf whatever animals may be standing near
the margin. The village of Trêvgarn, in the western
part of the county, derives its name, signifying literally "the town of the rocks," from the extraordinary
masses of rock scattered over the adjoining common,
appearing, at a distance, like extensive ruins of
buildings.