St Arvans
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St Arvans parish church | |
Location within Monmouthshire | |
Population | 765 (2011) [1] |
OS grid reference | ST516965 |
Principal area | |
Preserved county | |
Country | Wales |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CHEPSTOW |
Postcode district | NP16 |
Dialling code | 01291 |
Police | Gwent |
Fire | South Wales |
Ambulance | Welsh |
UK Parliament | |
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
St Arvans (Welsh : Llanarfan) is a village and community (equivalent to a parish) in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. It is located two miles north west of Chepstow, close to Chepstow Racecourse, Piercefield House and the Wye Valley AONB. It is connected by a segregated bicycle path to the edge of Chepstow. The name "Sain Arfan" was incorrectly placed on signage provided by Monmouthshire county council, sometime between 2005-2010, as a Welsh language version of St Arvans. This translation was never approved by the St Arvans community council or the Welsh speakers within the village itself. It took over 10 years before the signage was corrected to match the fountain stone tablet, and the historically used "Llanarfan" (Welsh translation for the Parish of St Arvans) in 2022.
The village church is dedicated to Saint Arvan. According to tradition he was a 9th-century hermit who supported himself by fishing for salmon in the River Wye, and drowned when his coracle capsized.
The circular nature of the churchyard suggests that the church may be a Celtic foundation. There are remains of a Celtic cross of the period, and also part of an apparently Saxon doorway, but essentially the original church was late Norman in date. By 1254 it belonged to the small priory of St Kingsmark or Cynmarch. It was enlarged between 1813 and 1823, and extensive restoration work was carried out in the 1880s and again in the 1980s. The octagonal tower was the gift of the local property-owner Nathaniel Wells. [2]
The village has a large village hall, the Memorial Hall, opened in 1924. There is also a cast iron drinking fountain constructed in 1893. The centre of the village is designated as a Conservation Area. [3]
The cave systems in the area are a strong attraction to cavers and potholers.
To the north of the village is Wyndcliffe Court, a Grade II* listed house and gardens in the Arts and Crafts style. The ruined Piercefield House is also listed at Grade II*. [4]
An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches north from St Arvans to Tintern. The total ward population taken at the 2011 census was 1,618. [5]
Monmouth is a market town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, two miles from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8,877 in 2001. Monmouth was the county town of historic Monmouthshire, although Abergavenny is the largest settlement and Monmouthshire County Council has its main offices at Rhadyr, just outside Usk. Monmouth is in the UK Parliament constituency of Monmouthshire and the Senedd constituency of Monmouth.
Chepstow is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about 2 miles (3 km) above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the western end of the Severn Bridge. It is the easternmost settlement in Wales, situated 16 miles (26 km) east of Newport, 28 miles (45 km) east-northeast of Cardiff, 18 miles (29 km) northwest of Bristol and 110 miles (180 km) west of London.
Monmouthshire is a county in the south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the south, and Torfaen, Newport and Blaenau Gwent to the west. The largest town is Abergavenny, and the administrative centre is Usk. The county is administered by Monmouthshire County Council. It sends two directly-elected members to the Senedd at Cardiff and one elected member to the UK parliament at Westminster. The county name is identical to that of the historic county, of which the current local authority covers the eastern three-fifths. Between 1974 and 1996, the county was known as Gwent, recalling the medieval kingdom which covered a similar area. The present county was formed under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, which came into effect in 1996. In his essay 'Changes in local government', in the fifth and final volume of the Gwent County History, Robert McCloy writes, "the local government of no county in the United Kingdom in the twentieth century was so transformed as that of Monmouthshire".
Piercefield House is a largely ruined neo-classical country house near St Arvans, Monmouthshire, Wales, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north of the centre of Chepstow. The central block of the house was designed in the very late 18th century, by, or to the designs of, Sir John Soane. It is flanked by two pavilions, of slightly later date, by Joseph Bonomi the Elder. The house sits within Piercefield Park, a Grade I listed historic landscape, that was created in the 18th century as a notable Picturesque estate.
Tidenham is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean of west Gloucestershire, England, adjoining the Welsh border. Tidenham is bounded by the River Wye to the west and the River Severn to the south. Offa's Dyke runs through the western part of the parish, terminating at Sedbury cliff above the River Severn.
Itton, is a small village in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales, in the community of Devauden about 3 miles (4.8 km) north-west of Chepstow. The village covers about a 2-mile (3.2 km) radius, with about 70 properties across a rural area. The parish also includes the hamlet of Howick.
Llanvaches is a village and community within the boundaries of the city of Newport, Wales. It lies to the east of the urban area, in the historic county of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent. The population rose to 402 by the 2011 census.
Shirenewton is a village and community in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located 3 miles due west of Chepstow, 5 miles (8 km) by road. The village stands around 500 feet above sea level, and has extensive views of the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel. The population of the village and the conjoined village of Mynydd-bach was 657 in 2011.
Raglan is a village and community in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. It is located some 9 miles south-west of Monmouth, midway between Monmouth and Abergavenny on the A40 road very near to the junction with the A449 road. It is the location of Raglan Castle, built for William ap Thomas and now maintained by Cadw. The community includes the villages of Llandenny and Pen-y-clawdd. Raglan itself has a population of 1,183.
Langstone is a village and community of the City of Newport, Wales. The area is governed by the Newport City Council. The community had a population of 4,730 in 2019.
The Wye Valley is a valley in Wales and England. The River Wye is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom.
The A466, also known as the Wye Valley Road, is a road from Hereford, England to Chepstow, Wales via Monmouth, Tintern and the Wye Valley.
Chepstow Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing course located just north of the town of Chepstow in Monmouthshire, Wales, near the southern end of the Wye Valley and close to the border with England. It is one of 16 racecourses operated by the Arena Racing Company and is home of the richest race in Wales, the Coral Welsh Grand National.
Devauden is a village and community in Monmouthshire, southeast Wales. It is located between Chepstow and Monmouth near the top of the Trellech ridge on the B4293 road. The community covers an area of 3,790 hectares (14.6 sq mi), and includes the villages of Itton and Wolvesnewton, Llanfihangel-tor-y-mynydd and Newchurch.
Brockweir is a village in Hewelsfield and Brockweir civil parish, in the Forest of Dean District of Gloucestershire, England. The civil parish also includes the separate village of Hewelsfield.
Valentine Morris was a British landowner and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Saint Vincent from 1772 to 1779. He was also responsible for developing the picturesque woodland walks at Piercefield House in the Wye Valley, which Morris owned.
Penterry is a small rural parish of 479 acres (1.94 km2) in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located between the villages of St. Arvans and Tintern, about 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Chepstow, within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and about 2 miles (3.2 km) from the border with England. It now contains an isolated parish church adjoining the site of a deserted village, and a few farms.
Llangarron is a small village and civil parish in southwest Herefordshire within 7 miles (11 km) of both Ross-on-Wye and Monmouth. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,053. The civil parish includes the settlements of Llangrove, Llancloudy, Biddlestone and Three Ashes. The church is dedicated to St. Deinst. The village no longer has a post office nor pub, though it does have a community hall.
Llandevaud is a hamlet in Newport, Wales. It is situated between the A48 Newport-Chepstow Road and the M4 motorway, 1 mile (1.6 km) east of the village of Langstone. It is part of the community of Langstone.
The Wyndcliff or Wynd Cliff is a steep limestone cliff rising above the western bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, Wales, some 1 mile (1.6 km) north-east of the village of St Arvans, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south of Tintern, and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of the town of Chepstow, within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The cliff rises to 771 feet (235 m) at its summit, the highest point on the Monmouthshire bank of the Wye. The area is traversed by the Wye Valley Walk, and is also a popular venue for rock climbing. Access is provided by the A466 road which passes along the valley immediately below the cliff face.