History of Pembrokeshire: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|none}}

[[Image:Pentre Ifan burial chamber - geograph.org.uk - 384085.jpg|thumb|alt=exterior view of prehistoric structure|[[Pentre Ifan]] neolithic burial chamber]]

Human habitation of the region that is now [[Pembrokeshire]], in southwest [[Wales]], UK, extends back to between 125,000 and 70,000 years<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|3}} and there are numerous prehistoric sites such as [[Pentre Ifan]], and [[neolithic]] remains (12,000 to 6,500 years ago), more of which were revealed in an aerial survey during the 2018 heatwave;<ref name="BBCNews28Dec2018"/> in the same year, a 1st-century [[Celts|Celtic]] chariot burial was discovered in [[Llanstadwell#Llanstadwell Celtic chariot and fort|Llanstadwell]], the first such find in Wales.<ref name="BBCNews31Jan2019"/><ref name="BBCNews26Jun2019"/> There may have been dairy farming in Neolithic times.<ref name="BBCNews12Aug2021" />

==Roman period==

[[File:Descriptio Prime Tabulae Europae.jpg|thumb|Map dated 1450-75 based on [[Ptolemy's world map|Ptolemy's "Geography" written {{circa|150}}]]]]

There is little evidence of [[Roman Empire|Roman]] occupation in what is now Pembrokeshire. [[Ptolemy]]'s [[Geography (Ptolemy)|''Geography'']], written {{circa|150}}, mentioned some coastal places, two of which have been identified as the River Teifi and what is now St Davids Head, but most Roman writers did not mention the area; there may have been a Roman settlement near St Davids and a road from Bath, but this comes from a 14th-century writer. Any evidence for villas or Roman building materials reported by mediaeval or later writers has not been verified, though some remains near [[Dale, Pembrokeshire|Dale]] were tentatively identified as Roman in character by topographer [[Richard Fenton]] in his ''Historical Tour'' of 1810. Fenton stated that he had "...reason to be of opinion that they had not colonized Pembrokeshire till near the decline of their empire in Britain".<ref name="Fenton1811"/>{{rp|144}}

Part of a possible Roman road is [[List of Scheduled Roman to modern Monuments in Pembrokeshire#Scheduled Roman to modern Monuments in Pembrokeshire|noted by CADW]] near [[Llanddewi Velfrey]],<ref name="PE472"/> and another near [[Wiston, Pembrokeshire|Wiston]].<ref name="CofleinRomanRoad"/> Wiston is also the location of the first Roman fort discovered in Pembrokeshire, investigated in 2013.<ref name="DATWiston"/> A find in north Pembrokeshire in 2024 of the likely remains of a Roman fort adds to the extent of Roman military presence in the area.<ref name="BBCNews2Aug2024"/>

Some artefacts, including coins and weapons, have been found, but it is not clear whether these belonged to Romans or to a Romanised population. Welsh tradition has it that [[Magnus Maximus]] founded Haverfordwest, and took a large force of local men on campaign in Gaul in 383 which, together with the reduction of Roman forces in south Wales, left a defensive vacuum which was filled by incomers from Ireland.<ref name="Laws1888"/>{{rp|37–51}}{{Better source needed|reason=This source is...quite something! Lots of references to Aryan races and nineteenth century ethno-science, historical suppositions and clear bias towards Roman/Flemish/Norman "civilising". It's referenced three times in this article but surely there is something more rigorous and modern that could be used in its place?|date=September 2024}}

==Sub-Roman period==

[[Image:LDDyfedCantrefi.png|thumb|Dyfed, after the late 7th century, showing its seven cantrefi]]

Between 350 and 400, an Irish tribe known as the [[Déisi]] settled in the region known to the Romans as ''[[Demetae]]''.<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|52,17,30,34}} The Déisi merged with the local Welsh, with the regional name underlying ''Demetae'' evolving into [[Kingdom of Dyfed|Dyfed]], which existed as an independent [[petty kingdom]] from the 5th century.<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|52,72,85,87}} In 904, [[Hywel Dda]] married Elen (died 943),<ref name="AC1864"/> daughter of the king of Dyfed [[Llywarch ap Hyfaidd]], and merged Dyfed with his own maternal inheritance of [[Seisyllwg]], forming the new realm of [[Deheubarth]] ("southern district"). Between the Roman and Norman periods, the region was subjected to raids from [[Viking Age|Vikings]], who established settlements and trading posts at Haverfordwest, Fishguard, Caldey Island and elsewhere.<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|81–85}}<ref name="Fenton1811"/>{{rp|135–136}}

==Norman period and Middle Ages==

{{Main|Norman invasion of Wales}}

Dyfed remained an integral province of Deheubarth, but this was contested by invading [[Normans]] and [[Flemish people|Flemings]] who arrived between 1067 and 1111.<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|98}} The region became known as Pembroke (sometimes archaic "Penbroke"<ref name="Pughe1799"/>{{rp|53–230}}), after the Norman castle built in the [[cantref of Penfro]]. In 1136, Prince [[Owain Gwynedd]] at [[Battle of Crug Mawr|Crug Mawr]] near Cardigan met and destroyed a 3,000-strong Norman/Flemish army and incorporated Deheubarth into Gwynedd.<ref name="Lloyd2004"/>{{rp|80–85}}<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|124}}

Norman/Flemish influence never fully recovered in West Wales.<ref name="Gwenllian of Wales"/>{{rp|79}} In 1138, the county of Pembrokeshire was named as a [[county palatine]]. [[Rhys ap Gruffydd]], the son of Owain Gwynedd's daughter [[Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd|Gwenllian]], re-established Welsh control over much of the region and threatened to retake all of Pembrokeshire, but died in 1197. After Deheubarth was split by a dynastic feud, [[Llywelyn the Great]] almost succeeded in retaking the region of Pembroke between 1216 and his death in 1240.<ref name="Davies1994"/>{{rp|106,112,114}} In 1284 the [[Statute of Rhuddlan]] was enacted to introduce the English common law system to Wales,<ref name="Jones1969"/> heralding 100 years of peace, but had little effect on those areas already established under the [[Marcher Lords]], such as [[Cemais (Dyfed)|Cemais]] in the north of the county.<ref name="Rees1997"/>{{rp|pages=123-124}}

[[Image:Pembroke Castle - June 2011.jpg|thumb|alt=exterior of a large medieval castle with water in foreground|Pembroke Castle, birthplace of Henry VII]]

Henry Tudor, born at [[Pembroke Castle]] in 1457, landed an army in Pembrokeshire in 1485 and marched to [[Cardigan, Ceredigion|Cardigan]].<ref name="Laws1888"/>{{rp|223}}{{Better source needed|reason=Please see previous on Laws 1888|date=September 2024}} Rallying support, he continued to Leicestershire and defeated the larger army of [[Richard III of England|Richard III]] at the [[Battle of Bosworth Field]]. As [[Henry VII of England|Henry VII]], he became the first monarch of the [[House of Tudor]], which ruled England until 1603.<ref name="Davies2000"/>{{rp|337–379}}

[[File:Penbrok Atlas.jpg|thumb|250px|Hand-drawn map of Pembrokeshire by [[Christopher Saxton]] from 1577]]

==Tudor and Stuart periods==

The [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542|Laws in Wales Act 1535]] effectively abolished the powers of the Marcher Lords and divided the county into seven [[Hundred (county division)|hundreds]], roughly corresponding to the seven pre-Norman [[cantref]]i of Dyfed.<ref name="Laws1888"/>{{rp|247}}<ref name="NADeddfUno1536"/> The hundreds were (clockwise from the northeast): [[Cilgerran Hundred|Cilgerran]], [[Cemais (Dyfed)|Cemais]], [[Dewisland]], [[Roose Hundred|Roose]], [[Castlemartin Hundred|Castlemartin]], [[Narberth Hundred|Narberth]] and [[Dungleddy]] and each was divided into civil parishes;<ref name="GENUKIParishes"/> a 1578 map by [[Christopher Saxton]] is the earliest known to show parishes and chapelries in Pembrokeshire.<ref name="BLComitat"/> (See [[List of hundreds of Wales#Pembrokeshire|List of hundreds in Wales#Pembrokeshire]] for a list of parishes in medieval Pembrokeshire.) The [[Elizabethan era]] brought renewed prosperity to the county through an opening up of rural industries, including agriculture, mining and fishing, with exports to England and Ireland, though the formerly staple woollen industry had all but disappeared.<ref name="Laws1888"/>{{rp|310}}

During the [[First English Civil War]] (1642–1646) the county gave strong support to the [[Roundhead]]s (Parliamentarians), in contrast to the rest of Wales, which was staunchly [[Cavalier|Royalist]]. In spite of this, an incident in Pembrokeshire triggered the opening shots of the [[Second English Civil War]] when local units of the [[New Model Army]] mutinied. [[Oliver Cromwell]] defeated the uprising at the [[Siege of Pembroke]] in July 1648.<ref name="Royle2005"/>{{rp|437–438}} On 13 August 1649, the [[Cromwellian conquest of Ireland]] began when New Model Army forces sailed from Milford Haven.<ref name="BCWProject"/>

==18th and 19th centuries==

[[File:OS old series 1 63360 40.jpg|thumb|1819 Ordnance Survey map of north and west Pembrokeshire]]

In 1720, Emmanuel Bowen<ref name="GENUKIPembs"/> described Pembrokeshire as having five market towns, 45 parishes and about 4,329 houses, with an area of {{convert|420000|acre|km2}}. In 1791 a petition was presented to the House of Commons concerning the poor state of many of the county's roads, pointing out that repairs could not be made compulsory by the law as it stood. The petition was referred to committee.<ref name="JofHC1803"/>{{rp|178}} People applying for [[poor relief]] were often put to work mending roads. Workhouses were poorly documented. Under the [[Poor Law]]s, costs and provisions were kept to a minimum, but the emphasis was often on helping people to be self-employed. While the Poor Laws provided a significant means of support, there were many charitable and benefit societies.<ref name="PoorLaw"/> After the [[Battle of Fishguard]], the failed French invasion of 1797, 500 French prisoners were held at Golden Hill Farm, Pembroke.<ref name="RCAHMWGHPrison"/> From 1820 to 1878 one of the county's prisons, with a capacity of 86, was in the grounds of Haverfordwest Castle.<ref name="BBCNews9Jul2010"/> In 1831, the area of the county was calculated to be {{convert|345600|acre|km2}} with a population of 81,424.<ref name="GENUKIPembs"/>

It was not until nearly the end of the 19th century that mains water was provided to rural south Pembrokeshire by means of a reservoir at [[Rosebush, Pembrokeshire|Rosebush]] and cast iron water pipes throughout the district.<ref name="PH14Apr1882"/>

==20th century==

[[File:County of Pembroke War Memorial in Haverfordwest - geograph.org.uk - 3944816.jpg|thumb|Pembrokeshire County War Memorial, near County Hall]]

Throughout much of the 20th century (1911 to 1961) the population density in the county remained stable while it rose in England and Wales as a whole.<ref name="AVBTTPopDensity"/> There was considerable military activity in Pembrokeshire and offshore in the 20th century: a naval base at Milford Haven because [[U-boat campaign|German U-boats]] were active off the coast in [[World War I]]<ref name="WT12Nov2018"/> and, in [[World War II]], military exercises in the Preseli Mountains and a number of military airfields.<ref name="Thomas2013"/> The wartime increase in air activity saw a number of aircraft accidents and fatalities, often due to unfamiliarity with the terrain.<ref name="DATMilAirCrash"/> From 1943 to 1944, 5,000 soldiers from the United States Army's [[110th Infantry Regiment (United States)|110th Infantry Regiment]] were based in the county, preparing for [[D-Day]].<ref name="BBCNews19Mar2019"/><ref name="BBCNews22Oct2019"/> Military and industrial targets in the county were subjected to bombing during World War II.<ref name="PVMAirRaids"/> After the end of the war, German prisoners of war were accommodated in Pembrokeshire, the largest prison being at Haverfordwest, housing 600.<ref name="WT19Nov2013"/> The [[County of Pembroke War Memorial]] in Haverfordwest carries the names of 1,200 of those that perished in World War I.<ref name="WarMem" />

In 1972, a second reservoir for south Pembrokeshire, at [[Llys y Fran]], was completed.<ref name="VPLlysyFranCP"/>

==References==

{{reflist|refs=

<ref name="AC1864">{{cite journal |journal= Archaeologia Cambrensis |date=1864 |volume=10 |series=4 |page=25 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CZAbAQAAIAAJ&q=Elen |title= The Chronicle of the Princes |access-date= 2 February 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="AVBTTPopDensity">{{cite web |publisher= A Vision of Britain through Time |at= Pembrokeshire |title= Current rate: Population Density (Persons per Acre) |website= visionofbritain.org.uk |access-date= 1 February 2018 |url= http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10134869/rate/POP_DENS_A}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews9Jul2010">{{cite news |work= BBC News |date= 9 July 2010 |title= Pembrokeshire council to sell old Haverfordwest prison |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10555307 |access-date= 13 February 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews28Dec2018">{{cite news |work= BBC News |title= Heatwave crop marks reveal 200 ancient sites in Wales |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-46542523 |date= 28 December 2018 |access-date= 29 December 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews31Jan2019">{{cite news |work= BBC News |date= 31 January 2019 |title= Pembrokeshire chariot burial finds ruled as treasure |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-47072503 |access-date= 2 February 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews19Mar2019">{{cite news |work= BBC News |title= Pembrokeshire memorial plan for US D-Day servicemen |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-47628359 |date= 19 March 2019 |access-date= 19 March 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews26Jun2019">{{cite news |work= BBC News |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-48766001 |title= Late Iron Age chariot pieces found in Pembrokeshire |author= Huw Thomas |date= 26 June 2019 |access-date= 26 June 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews22Oct2019">{{cite news |work= BBC News |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-50143333 |access-date= 23 October 2019 |date= 22 October 2019 |title= D-Day: Pembrokeshire memorial unveiled for US soldiers }}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews12Aug2021">{{cite news |publisher= BBC News |last= Prior |first= Neil |date= 12 August 2021|title= Trellyffaint: Proof unearthed of Neolithic dairy farming in Pembrokeshire |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-58174481 |access-date= 12 August 2021 }}</ref>

<ref name="BBCNews2Aug2024">{{cite news|title=New find hints Wales fully-integrated into Roman Britain

|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c51y1x4n9qko|author=Sarah Bowdidge|access-date=3 August 2024}}</ref>

<ref name="BCWProject">{{cite web |url= http://bcw-project.org/timelines/1649 |publisher= BCW Project |title= Timelines: 1649 |access-date= 28 November 2016}}</ref>

<ref name="BLComitat">{{cite web|title=Penbrok comitat|publisher=British Library|url=http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/unvbrit/p/001map00000c7c1u00035000.html|access-date=22 July 2024|archive-date=27 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927183108/http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/unvbrit/p/001map00000c7c1u00035000.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<ref name="CofleinRomanRoad">{{Coflein|desc=Roman road W of Carmarthen; Via Julia, possible features NE of Wiston |num=309510 |access-date= 13 August 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="DATMilAirCrash">{{cite web |title= Military aircraft crash sites in south-west Wales |publisher= Dyfed Archaeological Trust |url= http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/projects/crashsites2012-13.pdf |access-date= 5 May 2019 |archive-date= 23 September 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150923221138/http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/projects/crashsites2012-13.pdf |url-status= dead }}</ref>

<ref name="DATWiston">{{cite web |title= Dyfed Archaeological Trust: Wiston Roman Fort |url= http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/digdiaries2013/wiston.html |access-date= 13 August 2019 |archive-date= 14 October 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131014172758/http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/digdiaries2013/wiston.html |url-status= dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Davies1994">{{cite book |first= John |last= Davies |title= A History of Wales |date= 1994 |publisher= Penguin |location= London |isbn= 978-0-14-014581-6}}</ref>

<ref name="Davies2000">{{cite book |last= Davies |first= Norman |title= The Isles – A History |publisher= Macmillan |location= London |date= 2000 |isbn= 978-0-333-69283-7}}</ref>

<ref name="Fenton1811">{{cite book |first= Richard |last= Fenton |author-link= Richard Fenton |title= A historical tour through Pembrokeshire |date= 1811 |url= https://archive.org/details/b22013179|publisher= Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & co. |location= London}}</ref>

<ref name="GENUKIPembs">{{cite web |publisher= GENUKI: UK & Ireland Genealogy |title= Pembrokeshire |url= http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal/PEM/ |access-date= 28 January 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="GENUKIParishes">{{cite web |title= Pembrokeshire Hundreds and Parishes |publisher= GENUKI: UK & Ireland Genealogy |url= http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal/PEM/Hundreds.html |access-date= 16 October 2016}}</ref>

<ref name="Gwenllian of Wales">{{cite book |last= Warner |first= Philip |title= Famous Welsh Battles |publisher= Barnes & Noble |location= New York |date= 1997 |asin= B01K3MUPM2}}</ref>

<ref name="JofHC1803">{{cite book |title= Journals of the House of Commons |volume= 46 |publisher= HM Stationery Office |location= London |date= 1803 |access-date= 17 May 2015 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=QhlDAAAAcAAJ&q=Poll+Tax+Inn}}</ref>

<ref name="Jones1969">{{cite book |author=Francis Jones |title=The Princes and Principality of Wales |year= 1969 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7SWTAAAAIAAJ|access-date=2 March 2011 |publisher= University of Wales Press|isbn=978-0-900768-20-0 }}</ref>

<ref name="Laws1888">{{cite book |last= Laws |first= Edward |title= The History of Little England Beyond Wales |publisher= George Bell |url= https://archive.org/details/b21781023 |location= London |date= 1888}}</ref>

<ref name="Lloyd2004">{{cite book |last= Lloyd |first= J. E. |title= A History of Wales: From the Norman Invasion to the Edwardian Conquest |publisher= Barnes & Noble |location= New York |date= 2004 |asin= B01FKW4P94}}</ref>

<ref name="NADeddfUno1536">{{cite web |title= Laws in Wales Act 1535 (repealed 21.12.1993) (c.26) |publisher= The National Archive |website= statutelaw.gov.uk |access-date= 28 November 2016 |year= 2010 |url= http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?activeTextDocId=1517920&versionNumber=1}}</ref>

<ref name="PE472">{{cite web| author=Cadw |author-link=Cadw |work=[[National Historic Assets of Wales]] |url=https://cadwpublic-api.azurewebsites.net/reports/sam/FullReport?lang=&id=1443 |title=Roman Road 300m East of Bryn Farm (PE472)}}</ref>

<ref name="PH14Apr1882">{{cite news |newspaper= The Pembrokeshire Herald |title= Pembroke Borough Waterworks |date= 14 April 1882 |url= https://newspapers.library.wales/view/3060205/3060208/14/Tufton|access-date=20 July 2019}}</ref>

<ref name="PoorLaw">{{cite web |last= Hancock |first= Simon |title= Aspects of the Old Poor Law |date= 9 December 2016 |publisher= Pembrokeshire Historical Society |url= http://www.pembrokeshirehistoricalsociety.co.uk/aspects-of-the-old-poor-law-in-pembrokeshire/ |access-date= 13 February 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="Pughe1799">{{cite book |first= William Owen |last= Pughe |title= Cambrian Register for the Year 1796, Vol. II |date= 1799 |publisher= E & T Williams |location= London |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=p9wuAAAAMAAJ |access-date= 7 May 2015}}</ref>

<ref name="PVMAirRaids">{{cite web |publisher= Pembrokeshire Virtual Museum |title= Air Raids |url-status= dead |url= http://www.pembrokeshirevirtualmuseum.co.uk/content.asp?nav=3653,3684,3686&parent_directory_id=101 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20141212220659/http://www.pembrokeshirevirtualmuseum.co.uk/content.asp?nav=3653,3684,3686&parent_directory_id=101 |archive-date= 12 December 2014 |access-date= 12 December 2014}}</ref>

<ref name="RCAHMWGHPrison">{{Coflein|desc= Golden Hill Prison |num=412561 |fewer-links=yes |access-date= 13 February 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="Rees1997">{{cite book |last= Rees |first= David |title= The son of prophecy: Henry Tudor's road to Bosworth |date= 1997 |publisher= J. Jones |location= London |isbn= 978-1-871083-01-9 |edition= 2nd., rev.}}</ref>

<ref name="Royle2005">{{cite book |last= Royle |first= Trevor |title= Civil War: The War of the Three Kingdoms 1638–1660 |publisher= Abacus |location= London |date= 2005 |isbn= 978-0-349-11564-1}}</ref>

<ref name="Thomas2013">{{cite book |editor-last= Thomas |editor-first= Roger |title= A Guide to the Military Heritage of Pembrokeshire |others= Compiled by local historians |date= 2013 |publisher= Planed |url= http://content.yudu.com/Library/A1qcir/PembrokeshireMilitar/resources/41.htm |access-date= 22 June 2014}}</ref>

<ref name="VPLlysyFranCP">{{cite web |title= Llys y Fran Reservoir and Country Park |access-date= 4 July 2014 |url= http://www.visitpembrokeshire.com/attractions-events/llys-y-fran-reservoir-country-park/ |archive-date= 14 January 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190114080532/http://www.visitpembrokeshire.com/attractions-events/llys-y-fran-reservoir-country-park/ |url-status= dead }}</ref>

<ref name="WarMem">{{cite web |title= Pembrokeshire Historical Society: The story behind the Pembrokeshire County Great War Monument at Haverfordwest |date= 12 December 2016 |url= http://www.pembrokeshirehistoricalsociety.co.uk/anatomy-war-memorial-story-behind-pembrokeshire-county-great-war-monument-haverfordwest/ |access-date= 19 February 2021}}</ref>

<ref name="WT19Nov2013">{{cite news |newspaper= Western Telegraph |title= German Prisoners of War in Pembrokeshire |url= http://www.westerntelegraph.co.uk/news/nostalgia/10820024.German_Prisoners_of_War_in_Pembrokeshire/ |date= 19 November 2013 |access-date= 13 February 2018}}</ref>

<ref name="WT12Nov2018">{{cite news |newspaper= Western Telegraph |date= 12 November 2018 |title= Pembrokeshire's front line role in the U-boat war |url= https://www.westerntelegraph.co.uk/news/17217924.pembrokeshires-front-line-role-in-the-u-boat-war/ |access-date= 13 November 2018}}</ref>