Llandeilo

For geologic period, see Llandeilo (age).
Llandeilo
Llandeilo
 Llandeilo shown within Carmarthenshire
Population 1,795 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceSN625225
CommunityLlandeilo
Principal areaCarmarthenshire
Ceremonial countyDyfed
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town LLANDEILO
Postcode district SA19
Dialling code 01558
Police Dyfed-Powys
Fire Mid and West Wales
Ambulance Welsh
EU Parliament Wales
UK ParliamentCarmarthen East and Dinefwr
Welsh AssemblyCarmarthen East and Dinefwr
List of places
UK
Wales
Carmarthenshire

Coordinates: 51°53′06″N 3°59′31″W / 51.885°N 3.992°W / 51.885; -3.992

Llandeilo is a community and town in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated at the crossing of the River Towy by the A483 on a 19th-century stone bridge. Its population was 1,795 at the 2011 Census. It is adjacent to the westernmost point of the Brecon Beacons National Park.

The town is served by Llandeilo railway station on the Heart of Wales Line.

Early history

Llandeilo is named after one of the better-known Celtic saints of the 6th century, Saint Teilo. The Welsh word llan signified a monastery or a church. Saint Teilo, who was a contemporary of Saint David, the patron Saint of Wales, established a small monastic settlement (clas) on the site of the present-day parish church.[2]

Although there is very little factual detail about the life of Saint Teilo, it appears that he was highly respected in his lifetime, and revered after his death: there are 45 places dedicated to him, some as far afield as Brittany.

Dinefwr Castle

After Saint Teilo's death, two equally important ecclesiastical centres in Wales, Llandaff and St David's, laid claim to his body. There is reasonable evidence to suggest, however, that Saint Teilo was buried in Llandeilo, where "he spent a solitary life gloriously". The parish church of Llandeilo Fawr (Great Llandeilo) is dedicated to Saint Teilo, and until 1880 its churchyard encompassed his baptistry.

The early Christian settlement that developed around the Church of St Teilo prospered, and by the early 9th century it had attained considerable ecclesiastical status as the seat of a Bishop-Abbot. The Church of St Teilo soon became a 'mother church' to the surrounding district, acquiring an extensive estate, and possessing one of Wales' most beautiful and finely illustrated manuscripts – the Gospel Book of Saint Teilo. The discovery of fragments of two large Celtic crosses from this period provides further testimony to Llandeilo's importance and indeed prestige as an early ecclesiastical centre.

Towards the end of the 9th century, the importance of Llandeilo as a spiritual centre had started to decline and the Gospel Book of St Teilo was removed to Lichfield, where it became commonly known as the Lichfield Gospels or the Book of St Chad. The Bishops of Lichfield still use this manuscript to swear allegiance to the Crown.

Carreg Cennen

Dinefwr Castle (anglicized as Dynevor) is a spectacular Welsh castle overlooking the River Tywi near the town. It lies on a ridge on the northern bank of the Tywi, with a steep drop of about 250 feet or 75 metres to the river. Dinefwr was the chief seat of the kingdom of Deheubarth and the seat of Rhys ap Gruffydd, one of the early kings of Wales. The foundations of two Roman forts have been discovered in the grounds of the Dinefwr estate, which is in the custody of the National Trust. The estate of Golden Grove lies near the town, and further away, the impressive Carreg Cennen castle, another Welsh stronghold. The remains of Talley Abbey can be seen six miles away to the north of the town. Ten miles further north are the remains of the Roman gold mines of Dolaucothi, another National Trust property.

Medieval period

In the centuries that followed the Norman Conquest, the Bishop of Llandaff and Bishop of St David's both claimed Llandeilo for their respective diocese. By the early 12th century, Llandeilo came under the patronage of the Bishopric of St David's, an ecclesiastic borough which became responsible for the affairs of the town including its development as an important medieval market centre to an extensive agricultural hinterland. Until the middle of the 20th century, a fair called St. Teilo's Fair, which had been authorised initially by Edward I in 1290, was held annually in the churchyard. Some of the agricultural produce and other goods offered for sale are recorded to have been displayed on the tombstones. Today, the fair has been replaced by a small farmers' market, held on the first Saturday of every month in the same place.

Llandeilo bridges

The railway bridge over the River Towy is currently (2011) under restoration.

The road and railway bridges over the River Towy are of engineering interest. The single-arched road bridge was completed in 1848 and is Grade II* listed.[3] The railway bridge, opened in 1852, is a rare survival of an early 'Town-type' lattice girder truss.

1987 rail disaster

In the Great Storm of 1987, the floods were so severe that the River Tywi (Towy) overwhelmed the railway bridge crossing the river near Llandeilo. Four people, one of them a boy, were drowned when the 05:27 train from Swansea to Shrewsbury plunged off the damaged Glanrhyd Bridge into the river.

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches south from the confines of Llandeilo with a total population of 2,971.[4] The community is bordered by the communities of: Manordeilo and Salem; Dyffryn Cennen; Llanfihangel Aberbythych; and Llangathen, all being in Carmarthenshire.

Sports and recreation

The local rugby union team is Llandeilo RFC, which was one of the founding clubs of the Welsh Rugby Union. The town is also home to Llandeilo AFC, an association football club currently playing in the Carmarthenshire League.

The town also hosts a pro–celebrity football event which takes place biannually at Bro Dinefwr playing fields to help raise money for Ty Hafan Children's Hospice.[5]

In 2008 Llandeilo hosted the 2008 World Sheepdog Trials.

Llandeilo Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1908/9. The club and course disappeared in the late 1960s.[6]

Culture

Llandeilo hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1996, held on the meadow across the river at Ffairfach. The town sign was moved to the far side of the bridge at this time.

Notable residents

Rachel Barrett was born in Llandeilo in 1874. A teacher by profession, she later became a prominent member of the women's suffrage movement and became editor of The Suffragette, the mouthpiece of the Women's Social and Political Union.[7] Llandeilo is also the birthplace of Stefan Cush – vocalist and guitarist of folk punk band The Men They Couldn't Hang.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Community population 2011". Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  2. ↑ "St Teilo's Church (Priory Church)". Coflein Database Record. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  3. ↑ "Llandeilo Bridge (including causeways) (partly in Dyffryn Cennen community), Llandeilo". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  4. ↑ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  5. ↑ "GALLERY: Celebrities take on locals in Llandeilo charity match". Carmarthen Journal. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  6. ↑ “Llandeilo Golf Club”, “Golf’s Missing Links”.
  7. ↑ Morrell, Caroline. "Rachel Barrett". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/63825. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  8. ↑ "Angry rocker gives Xmas a new twist". South Wales Guardian. Ammanford. 21 November 2011. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Llandeilo.
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