Newport
| |
---|---|
Newport and Nevern estuary | |
Location within Pembrokeshire | |
Population | 1,161 (2011 census) [1] |
OS grid reference | SN055395 |
Community |
|
Principal area | |
Preserved county | |
Country | Wales |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | NEWPORT |
Postcode district | SA42 |
Dialling code | 01239 |
Police | Dyfed-Powys |
Fire | Mid and West Wales |
Ambulance | Welsh |
UK Parliament | |
Newport (Welsh : Trefdraeth, meaning: "town by the beach") is a town, community, electoral ward and ancient port of Parrog, on the Pembrokeshire coast in West Wales at the mouth of the River Nevern (Welsh : Afon Nyfer) in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The town gives its name to Newport Bay. [2]
A popular tourist destination, Newport town straddles the Fishguard to Cardigan (A487) road, while the old port area hosts beach, water and other activities.
The town was founded by the Norman William FitzMartin (c. 1155 – 1209) in about 1197. He was a son-in-law of the Lord Rhys, who nevertheless expelled him from his former base at nearby Nevern, which had been established by his father Robert fitz Martin. William founded Newport as the new capital of the Marcher Lordship of Cemais and it was a busy port founded primarily on the growing medieval wool trade. Despite seizure from the native Welsh, it remained within the FitzMartin family until the death of William, the 2nd Lord Martin, who died without a male heir in 1326.
Newport Castle, built by FitzMartin, is situated on a spur of Carn Ingli which overlooks Newport and much of the surrounding countryside. Though in ruins since at least the 17th century, it is impressive due to its situation; a house incorporating the castle walls, which faces west over the town, the bay and the Irish Sea, is still inhabited.
In the town is a significant mediaeval pottery kiln from the 15th century, believed to be the only intact example in Britain; finds include jugs, pots, ridge tiles and distilling equipment. Excavation was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2017. [3] [4]
Newport appears prominently on a 1578 parish map of Pembrokeshire, [5] and is a former marcher borough. George Owen of Henllys, in 1603, described it as one of five Pembrokeshire boroughs overseen by a portreeve. [6] It retains some of the borough customs such as electing a mayor, who beats the bounds on horseback every August.
In the 1880s the castle was associated with John Brett, who rented it for his large family while he spent summers cruising the south and west coasts of Wales painting, sketching and photographing. He moored his 210-ton schooner, Viking (which had a crew of twelve) at Parrog. A lifeboat station (now a private residence) was operated from a beach known as The Cwm to the west of Parrog in the early 20th century. [7]
At the local level, the electorate of the community elects up to eleven town councillors to Newport Town Council, who meet monthly. [8]
Newport is also an electoral ward to Pembrokeshire County Council, electing one county councillor. Like many wards in the county, Newport has been represented by Independent councillors with no party affiliation. [9]
Newport town has a compact but varied shopping centre with most facilities including a post office, a wide range of retail premises and ancient buildings including the castle (not open to the public), which is undergoing restoration work.
The old port area contains much of historic interest, including some of the old quay walls and two former lime kilns. There are moorings for small craft and a number of holiday lets and eating places. It is possible, with caution, to cross the river on foot at low tide. Parrog has two beaches, a golf course, a windsurfing and dinghy sailing club, pubs, hotels and camping grounds. [10] [11]
In the community, there are more than 60 listed buildings. [12]
The church of St Mary's, situated below the castle though within the town, dates from the FitzMartin era, and the outside east apse bears their arms ("Argent, two bars gules"). It is a Grade II* listed building. [13] The church was the subject of an 1860 photograph by notable early Welsh photographer John Thomas (1838–1905). [14]
Other religious buildings include Bethlehem Chapel and the Tabernacle Chapel.
The town's hostelries include Llwyngwair Arms in the centre of town and Cnapan Hotel, a Georgian hotel and restaurant.
Newport Sailing Club is housed in an old warehouse. As well as facilities for members, it has a non-members' bar.
Newport is on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, part of the Wales Coast Path, has a youth hostel and is popular for walks in the Preseli Hills. Carn Ingli hill, an Iron Age hillfort with Bronze Age hut circles, lies just outside the town. Nearby are the Carreg Coetan Arthur burial chamber and the West Wales Eco Centre.
A little to the north of Newport lie Newport Cliffs, a Site of Special Scientific Interest managed by Natural Resources Wales.
Newport is twinned with the village of Plouguin in Finistère, Brittany and Annapolis, Maryland, USA
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and administrative headquarters of Pembrokeshire County Council.
Nevern is both a parish and a community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The community includes the settlements of Felindre Farchog, Monington, Moylgrove and Bayvil. The small village lies in the Nevern valley near the Preseli Hills of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park 2 miles (3 km) east of Newport on the B4582 road.
Cnapan is a Welsh form of Celtic medieval football. The game originated in, and seems to have remained largely confined to, the western counties of Wales, especially Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire. According to George Owen of Henllys, in his Description of Pembrokeshire (1603), cnapan had been "extremely popular in Pembrokeshire since greate antiquitie". Cnapan was one of the traditional ball games played to celebrate Shrovetide and Eastertide in the British Isles. These games were the forerunners of the codified football games first developed by Public Schools which led to the creation of Association football and Rugby football in the 19th century. Cnapan continued to be played until the rising popularity of Rugby Union Football resulted in the game falling into decline.
St Dogmaels is a village, parish and community in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the estuary of the River Teifi, a mile downstream from the town of Cardigan in neighbouring Ceredigion. A little to the north of the village, further along the estuary, lies Poppit Sands beach. The parish includes the small settlement of Cippyn, south of Cemaes Head.
Dinas Cross is a village, a community and a former parish in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Located between Fishguard and Newport in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, it is a popular holiday destination on the A487 road. The two hamlets, Cwm-yr-Eglwys and Pwllgwaelod, are in the community. The community has an elected community council and until 2022 gave its name to an electoral ward of Pembrokeshire County Council which covered the communities of Dinas Cross, Cwm Gwaun and Puncheston.
George Owen of Henllys was a Welsh antiquarian, author, and naturalist.
The Landsker Line is a term used for the language border in Wales between the largely Welsh-speaking and largely English-speaking areas in Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire. The English-speaking areas, south of the Landsker line and known as Little England beyond Wales, are notable for having been English linguistically and culturally for many centuries despite being far from the England–Wales border.
Castell Henllys is an archaeological site near Nevern in north Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Robert fitz Martin was a knight from Devon whose father, Martin de Turribus, was the first Norman Lord of Kemes, in what had previously been the Dyfed part of Deheubarth. Fitz Martin inherited the Lordship of Kemes from his father, and founded St Dogmaels Abbey c. 1118. He was the first of the FitzMartin line. His descendants continued to hold lands in England and Wales until the 14th century.
The River Nevern is a river in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Its source is north of the village of Crymych and its length is about 11 miles (18 km) to its estuary at Newport, Pembrokeshire.
Cemais was an ancient cantref of the Kingdom of Dyfed, from the 11th century a Norman Marcher Lordship, from the 16th century a Hundred, and is now part of Pembrokeshire, Wales. It occupied the coastal area between the Teifi estuary and Fishguard, and the northern and southern slopes of the Preseli Hills, covering an area of approximately 140 square miles (360 km2). The Afon Nyfer divided it into two commotes: Cemais Is Nyfer to the north and Cemais Uwch Nyfer to the south.
Felindre Farchog is a small village in the community of Nevern in Pembrokeshire, Wales, located around 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Cardigan, and within the parish of Bayvil. The A487 road from Cardigan to Newport runs through the village.
Dillwyn Miles was a Welsh writer.
Newport Castle is a castle located in Newport, Pembrokeshire, Wales. The earliest castle on the site was built in the 13th century, and the present structure was built in the 19th century and is a private residence.
Fishguard and Goodwick is the name of a community that wraps around Fishguard Bay, on the northern coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales. It comprises the two towns of Fishguard and Goodwick, with their neighbourhoods of Dyffryn, Harbour Village, Penyraber, Lower Town, and Stop-and-Call. Within the community are two railway stations and Goodwick Ferry Terminal, which is the terminus of the A40 London to Fishguard Trunk Road.
Cemaes Head is a headland and nature reserve in north Pembrokeshire. It lies in the community of St Dogmaels, within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. To the west and north it overlooks Cardigan Bay, and to the east Cardigan Island and the estuary of the River Teifi.
Brynberian is a small village in north Pembrokeshire, Wales, in the foothills of the Preseli Mountains in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. It is in the community of Eglwyswrw and the parish of Nevern, and is on the B4329 road between Crosswell and Tafarn y Bwlch. Afon Brynberian flows through the village under an ancient bridge and joins the River Nevern to the north.
Newport Bay is a bay on a section of the north Pembrokeshire coast, Wales, which is within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The bay is one of many in the much larger Cardigan Bay, and it stretches from Dinas Island to the headland of Pen-y-bâl, two miles to the east. It is overlooked by the town of Newport and the River Nevern flows into the bay.
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