St Hilary
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The Bush Inn | |
Location within the Vale of Glamorgan | |
Principal area | |
Ceremonial county | |
Country | Wales |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Postcode district | CF |
Police | South Wales |
Fire | South Wales |
Ambulance | Welsh |
UK Parliament | |
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
St Hilary (Welsh : Saint Hilari [1] ) is a village in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It is located just south of the A48, about a mile southeast of the market town of Cowbridge. The village has a population of about 260, in approximately 80 houses. [2] Notable landmarks in the vicinity include The Bush Inn, the Church of St Hilary, the Old Beaupre Castle, New Beaupre, Coed Hills and St. Hilary mast.
The dedication of a church to the French bishop and saint Hilary of Poitiers is unusual for Britain [3] and probably initially reflected a foundation credited to either the Breton missionary and saint Ilar [4] [5] or the native pilgrim and saint Elian. [3] The relative obscurity of these saints, however, has led the Church in Wales to consider this church a dedication to Saint Hilary instead, [6] at least as early as the beginning of the 20th century. [7]
Saint Hilary's own connection with Wales arose from confused accounts that he ordained Saint Cybi as a bishop, although the two were separated by two centuries. [8] [9] Baring-Gould suggests this may have arisen from a confusion with Saint Elian, who was a relative of Cybi's. [10]
The village lies just south of the A48, a few miles west of Cardiff and about a mile southeast of Cowbridge. In 1845, it had a population of 164 people and had an area of 1,200 acres (490 ha). [11] The parish is bounded on the north by that of Llanblethian; on the south by Llancarfan, St Mary Church and The Herberts; on the east by Llantrithyd; and on the west by Llandough and Llanblethian. [11] The hamlets of The Garn and Ty-draw lie on the road to Llantrithyd to the east. The River Thaw runs between St Hilary and St. Mary Church. [12]
The St Hilary Conservation Area was designated a special architectural and historic interest site in October 1971. [13]
The village dates from medieval times with a parish church, rectory, [14] and a pub, the thatched roofed Grade II listed The Bush Inn. [15] The whole village, which was built surrounding the parish church, lies in the agricultural heartland of the Vale of Glamorgan. [16] To the northwest near the A48 is the St Hilary Down and a monument commemorating the dead of the Glamorgan Yeomanry. To the southeast of the village is the Coed Hills Rural Landscape, an alternative artspace established in 1997, designed following principles of low impact development. [15] In 2002, the site featured Mongolian yurts. [17]
The village also contains an Iron Age roundhouse and formerly contained the St Hilary school, the smallest in the county with just 10 pupils recorded in 1678. [2] The village school closed in 1910; children in the village now generally go to the school in St. Mary Church.
The following are the listed buildings in St Hilary and Old Beaupre. The listings are graded:
There are two notable country houses. [14] Among the most conspicuous is the now ruined Grade I listed Old Beaupre Castle, which stands to the south on the site of one of the palaces of the royal house of Sitsyllt, the progenitors of the family of the Cecils, Marquesses of Salisbury and Exeter; it is supposed to have been one of the most ancient in the vale. It is situated in a meadow about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the village. Originally called Beau Pre (pronounced 'Bewper'), on which spot the present mansion, now in a ruinous condition, was built about the year 1600. A notable feature is the ornamental porch attached to the principal front of the building, which is considered one of the earliest specimens of the Grecian style of architecture introduced into this country, and was erected at the expense of Richard Bassett, Esq. [11] It consists of three stages of columns of which the lowest is of the Doric, the middle of the Tuscan, and the upper of the Corinthian order. Te capitals, intaglios, and other sculptures are well made. Immediately over the entrance are the family arms, sculptured in alto-relievo, with a commemorative inscription in Roman capitals. Captain Richard Bassett was lord of the manor of Beau Pre, under the will of his distant relation, the late Daniel Jones, Esq., who died in 1841, and who had bought the estate in 1797 of the late C. Traherne, Esq., and Miss Edmondes. [11]
The Grade II listed New Beaupre is situated about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) to the north of Old Beaupre Castle. It was built by the late Daniel Jones, Esq.
St. Hilary Cottage, or St Hilary, was the residence of the late Llewelyn Traherne, a portion of which was the abode of the Bassets before they possessed Beau Pre. In the 1840s, Rev. John Montgomery Traherne was lord of the manor of St Hilary, which his family purchased in the year 1758. [11]
The 14th century, [18] red-tiled Grade II* listed Church of St Hilary is a substantial structure in the later English style, consisting of a nave, south aisle, and chancel, with an embattled tower at the west end. The nave is 45 feet (14 m) long and 33 feet (10 m) broad including the aisle. The chancel 22 feet (6.7 m) long and 15 feet (4.6 m) wide. The eastern window of the south aisle is elegantly design, and that of the chancel is ornamented with stained glass, representing the arms of the Traherne family. [11]
On the high ground to the north of the village (and just north of the A48) stands the 229 m (750 ft) St. Hilary mast, built in 1957 for transmitting the now-defunct 405-line/Channel 7 TV system to South Wales and the West of England. [19] [20]
The Vale of Glamorgan, often referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol Channel to the south. With an economy based largely on agriculture and chemicals, it is the southernmost unitary authority in Wales. Attractions include Barry Island Pleasure Park, the Barry Tourist Railway, Medieval wall paintings in St Cadoc's Church, Llancarfan, Porthkerry Park, St Donat's Castle, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park and Cosmeston Medieval Village. The largest town is Barry. Other towns include Penarth, Llantwit Major, and Cowbridge. There are many villages in the county borough.
Llantwit Major is a town and community in Wales on the Bristol Channel coast. It is one of four towns in the Vale of Glamorgan, with the third largest population after Barry and Penarth, and ahead of Cowbridge. It is 4+1⁄2 miles (7.2 km) from Cowbridge, 9 miles (14 km) from Bridgend, 10 miles (16 km) from Barry, and 15 miles (24 km) from Cardiff. It had a population of 9,486 in 2011.
Colwinston is both a village and a community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) southeast of the centre of Bridgend and 21 miles (34 km) west of the centre of Cardiff. The village is located within 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) of the A48. The population in 2005 was approximately 400 but with recent building development, the population is now estimated at over 600 people.
St Athan is a village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales. The village and its parish church are dedicated to Saint Tathan. The church dates to the 13th–14th century, though an earlier church was dated to the Norman period. The village and the adjacent dormitory village of Eglwys Brewis are known primarily for the MOD St Athan RAF base. There are two pubs in the village, as well as a football team at St Athan Football Club and the St Athan Golf Club. The community includes West Aberthaw.
Llanblethian is a village in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales which sits upon the River Thaw. It makes up part of the community of Cowbridge with Llanblethian, which consists of the village itself, the larger market town of Cowbridge and Aberthin.
Llanrhian is a small village, community and parish in Pembrokeshire in west Wales, near the coast, south of Porthgain village. The community of Llanrhian includes the settlements of Llanhowell, Croesgoch, Portheiddy, Porthgain and Trefin. The village church is St Rhian’s and is of medieval origin. The village is in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.
The Vale of Glamorgan has 740 listed buildings of which 4% are Grade I listed, 10% Grade II* listed and remainder Grade II listed.
Llewelyn Traherne was a Welsh magistrate and briefly High Sheriff of Glamorgan in 1801.
The Parish Church of St Hilary is a Grade II* listed Anglican church in the village of St Hilary in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. It is one of 11 churches in the Parish of Cowbridge. It became a listed building on 22 February 1963.
John Montgomery Traherne, FRS, FSA, FGS, FLS, was a Welsh Anglican priest, antiquarian, magistrate and Deputy Lieutenant of County of Glamorgan. His best known work is Historical Notices of Sir Matthew Craddock of Swansea.
Flemingston is a small village in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located 8.5 miles (13.7 km) northwest by road from the town centre of Barry. It contains the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, the ruins of Flemingston Court, and Flemingston Manor or Grange, all of which are listed buildings. Historically, the parish of Flemingston was a sub-manor of Aberthaw or St Athan.
There are 33 Grade I listed buildings in the Vale of Glamorgan all of which are churches and priory buildings, castles, country or manor houses and associated structures such as churchyard crosses and a dovecote.
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Llantrithyd is a rural village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. The Aubrey Baronets were lords of the manor of Llantrithyd for centuries: the family died out in the 1850s.
St Georges super Ely, also known as St Georges, is a small village and community in the western outskirts of Cardiff, in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. Lying to the northwest of Culverhouse Cross, between Peterston-super-Ely and Michaelston-super-Ely, it contains a medieval church and ruined manor house dated to the fifteenth century. The community includes the settlements of Drope, Downs and Sant-y-Nyll.
The Church of St John the Baptist is a medieval church in Llanblethian in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. Believed to have been built in the 12th century, the church boasts an unusual tower, consistent with the style more common in the south west of England. It underwent extensive restoration in the late 19th century, undertaken by C. B. Fowler of Cardiff. The Church of St John was listed as a Grade I building on 22 February 1963.
The Church of the Holy Cross is a medieval church in Cowbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. Initially a chapel of ease to Church of St John the Baptist, Llanblethian of Cowbridge as a medieval market town. Believed to have been built in the 13th century, the church has an unusual tower design. It has undergone several restorations including one by John Prichard in 1850–52. The Church of the Holy Cross was listed as a Grade I building on 12 May 1963.
William Bassett was an Anglo-Welsh gentleman and parliamentarian from Glamorgan, Wales.
Llanfair is a community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It is located immediately south of the town of Cowbridge and includes the settlements of St Hilary, Llandough, St Mary Church and The Herberts. The population in 2011 was 611.