St Lythans

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St Lythans
St.Lythans Parish Church, near Cardiff. - geograph.org.uk - 373478.jpg
St.Lythans Parish Church
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St Lythans
Location within the Vale of Glamorgan
Principal area
Ceremonial county
Country Wales
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Historic county
Postcode district CF
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UK Parliament
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Wales
Vale of Glamorgan
51°26′54″N3°16′57″W / 51.448333°N 3.2825°W / 51.448333; -3.2825 Coordinates: 51°26′54″N3°16′57″W / 51.448333°N 3.2825°W / 51.448333; -3.2825

St Lythans (Welsh : Llwyneliddon) is an affluent hamlet and former parish in the Vale of Glamorgan, southeast Wales, just outside western Cardiff. It lies southwest of Culverhouse Cross, west of Wenvoe and southwest of Twyn-yr-Odyn and is also connected by road from Dyffryn and the Five Mile Lane in the west. It is one of the wealthiest communities in the Vale of Glamorgan, containing some notable mansions and cottages, valued on average at over £500,000 as of 2011. [1] The megalithic St Lythans burial chamber, over 6000 years old, lies 1 km to the west of the village [2] and the hamlet also contains the St.Lythans Parish Church or Church of St Bleddian, a Grade II* listed building.

Contents

History

St Lythans Church Eglwys Sain Bleddian.JPG
St Lythans Church

In the 16th century, the manor in the area was acquired by the Button family, who built the first house about 500 yards (0.46 km) north west of the tumulus. The Manor's name was changed to Dyffryn St Nicholas and the house rebuilt in the 18th century, when the estate was purchased by Thomas Pryce. Worlton Manor was also prominent in this area for some time. Commenting on St Lythans in his 'A Topographical Dictionary of The Dominion of Wales', London, 1811, Nicholas Carlisle, says "The Resident Population of this Parish, in 1801, was 72. It is 6m. W. S.W. from Caerdiff (sic)." and notes that "Here is a Druidical Altar." [3] (Note the spelling of Cardiff, which corresponds closely to the current local Cardiff pronunciation.) By 1831, the population had grown by over 50% ("Lythan's, St. (St. Lythian), a parish in the hundred of Dinas-Powis, county of Glamorgan, South Wales, 6 miles (W. S. W.) from Cardiff, containing 103 inhabitants.") and Dyffryn House was being used as "a school for all the poor children of this parish". By now, the dolmen had been correctly identified: "There is a cromlech on St. Lythan's common." (From 'A Topographical Dictionary of Wales' by Samuel Lewis, 1833). [3] Census records show that St Lythans' population fluctuated between 81 (1881) and 136 (1861) over the rest of the 19th century. [3] In 1939, the Dyffryn Estate was leased to the Glamorgan County Council for 999 years. [4]

The area is little changed from the mid 19th century, when Llowe's 'A Topographical Dictionary of Wales' (1849) said: "There is a cromlech on a farm belonging to the Dyfryn (sic) estate; it is near the road-side, about half a mile west of the church, on the approach to Dyfryn (sic) village". [5]

Geography

St Lythans is a small rural settlement in the Vale of Glamorgan, midway between the villages of Wenvoe and St Nicholas, about four miles (6.4 km) west-south-west of Cardiff.

The burial chamber stands in a field, Maesyfelin (The Mill Field), often shared by a herd of cows, to the south of St Lythans Road. Roadside parking is available, for 23 cars, about 50 yards (46 m) from the site, which is maintained by Cadw (to keep), [6] the Welsh Historic Environment Agency. [7] Access to the field, which slopes gently downwards towards the north west, is permitted, and is free, via a kissing gate. There is no wheelchair access, although there is an uninterrupted view of the site from the gate, about 50 yards (46 m) away.

To the south of the hamlet is Goldsland and wood, where a notable archaeological excavation has been conducted by the University of Central Lancashire since 2005.

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St Lythans burial chamber Megalithic dolmen in Wales

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Goldsland Human settlement in Wales

Goldsland is a small hamlet and farm in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located near the boundary of the Wenvoe Castle Golf Club in the parish of Wenvoe. It lies to the east of Dyffryn and south of St Lythans and the road leading from the west passes through the farms of Old and New Wallace. Goldsland Brook flows through here. A sub-manor was reportedly held at Goldsland by a Mathew of Llandaff under the manor of Wenvoe in 1583.

Dyffryn, Vale of Glamorgan Human settlement in Wales

Dyffryn, often Duffryn, is a small village in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located 4.8 miles (7.7 km) north of the town centre of Barry, roughly 1 mile (1.6 km) west of St Lythans and 2 miles (3.2 km) south of St. Nicholas. It lies off the A4226 road, along St Lythans Road, directly east of Walterston. Dyffryn is best known for its Dyffryn Gardens and its megalithic monuments nearby including the Tinkinswood and St Lythans Burial Chamber and also the caves of nearby Goldsland. The River Waycock flows through the village.

Flemingston Human settlement in Wales

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.

Eglwys Brewis Human settlement in Wales

Eglwys Brewis is a village in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located just to the north of the village of St Athan, south of Flemingston and northeast of Llantwit Major. Greenlands and St Mary Church lie to the north by road from Eglwys Brewis. The village consists primarily of residential estates which were originally built in the mid-20th century for service families stationed at nearby RAF St Athan. The estates are regularly used by driving instructors in the Vale of Glamorgan. Nant y Stepsau flows in the vicinity.

Wrinstone

Wrinstone or Wrinston is a medieval hamlet, just east of Wenvoe, Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. The Wrinstone estate was variously also known as Wrenston, Wrencheston or Wrenchester. The Barry Railway line ran past the hamlet and entered the Wenvoe Tunnel just to the north near Wenvoe Quarry. It closed after a fire in 1963.

References

  1. "St Lythan's home values". Zoopla. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
  2. Castleden, Rodney (1992). Neolithic Britain: new stone age sites of England, Scotland, and Wales. Routledge. p. 383. ISBN   978-0-415-05845-2 . Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 "GENUKI: St. Lythans". GENUKI website. GENUKI. 17 July 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
  4. "History of the Dyffryn Estate: History of the House and Gardens". Dyffryn Gardens website. The Friends of Dyffryn Gardens. 2001. Retrieved 5 August 2008.
  5. Samuel Lewis. "Llowes Lythan's, St.', A Topographical Dictionary of Wales (1849), pp. 172179". British History Online website. University of London & History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
  6. "About Cadw". Cadw website. Cadw, a division of the Welsh Assembly Government. 2008. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2008.
  7. "Places to visit: St Lythans Burial Chamber". Cadw website. Cadw, a division of the Welsh Assembly Government. 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2008.