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Abergavenny

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Abergavenny
Abergavenny town centre, showing the Market Hall and town hall clock tower
Population14,055 
OS grid referenceSO295145
Community
  • Abergavenny
Principal area
Preserved county
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townABERGAVENNY
Postcode districtNP7
Dialling code01873
PoliceGwent
FireSouth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh
UK Parliament
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament
List of places
UK
Wales
Monmouthshire

Abergavenny (Template:Lang-cy), meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles (24 km) west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles (10 km) from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches. The town contains the remains of a medieval stone castle built soon after the Norman conquest of Wales.

Abergavenny is promoted as the "Gateway to Wales".[1][2] Situated at the confluence of a tributary stream, the Gavenny, and the River Usk,[3] it is almost surrounded by two mountains – the Blorenge (559 m)[4] and the Sugar Loaf (596 m)[5] – and five hills: Ysgyryd Fawr (The Skirrid), Ysgyryd Fach (Skirrid Fach), Deri, Rholben and Mynydd Llanwenarth, known locally as "Llanwenarth Breast". It provides access to the nearby Black Mountains and the Brecon Beacons National Park. The Offa's Dyke Path is close by and the Marches Way, the Beacons Way and Usk Valley Walk all pass through the town.

History

Origins of the town and its name

Part of Abergavenny and Skirrid Fach (Little Skirrid) seen from the castle ruins

The name derives from a Brythonic word Gobannia meaning "river of the blacksmiths", and relates to the town's pre-Roman importance in iron smelting. The name is related to the modern Welsh word gof (blacksmith), and so is also associated with the Welsh smith Gofannon from folklore. The river later became, in Welsh, Gafenni, and the town's name became Abergavenny, meaning "mouth of (Welsh: Aber) the Gavenny (Gafenni)". In Welsh, the shortened form Y Fenni may have come into use for a very short period after about the 15th century, although pronounced similarly in English or Welsh the English spelling Abergavenny is in general use.[6]

Roman period

Gobannium was a Roman fort guarding the road along the valley of the River Usk,[3] which linked the legionary fortress of Burrium (Usk) and later Isca Augusta or Isca Silurum, (Caerleon) in the south with Y Gaer, Brecon and Mid Wales. It was also built to keep the peace among the local British Iron Age tribe, the Silures.[citation needed]

Remains of the walls of this fort were discovered west of the castle when excavating the foundations for a new post office and telephone exchange building in the late 1960s.[citation needed]

11th century

Abergavenny grew as a town in early Norman times under the protection of the Lords of Abergavenny. The first Baron was Hamelin de Balun, from Ballon, a small town and castle in Maine-Anjou called "Gateway to Maine", near Le Mans, today in the Sarthe département of France. He founded the Benedictine priory, now the Priory Church of St Mary, in the late 11th century. The Priory belonged originally to the Benedictine foundation of St. Vincent Abbaye at Le Mans. It was subsequently endowed by William de Braose, with a tenth or "tithe" of the profits of the castle and town. The church contains some unique alabaster effigies, church monuments and unique medieval wood carving, such as the Tree of Jesse.[citation needed]

12th and 13th centuries

Owing to its geographical location, the town was frequently embroiled in the border warfare and power play of the 12th and 13th centuries in the Welsh Marches. In 1175, Abergavenny Castle was the site of the Massacre.[citation needed] Reference to a market at Abergavenny is found in a charter granted to the Prior by William de Braose (d. 1211).[citation needed]

15th to 17th centuries

Abergavenny and Holy Mountain in the 1890s

Owain Glyndŵr attacked Abergavenny in 1404. According to popular legend, his raiders gained access to the walled town with the aid of a local woman who sympathised with the rebellion, letting a small party in via the Market Street gate at midnight. They were able to open the gate and allow a much larger party who set fire to the town and plundered its churches and homes leaving Abergavenny Castle intact. Market Street has been referred to as Traitors' Lane thereafter. In 1404 Abergavenny was declared its own nation by Ieuan ab Owain Glyndŵr, illegitimate son of Owain Glyndŵr. The arrangement lasted approximately two weeks.[citation needed]

At the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1541, the priory's endowment went towards the foundation of a free grammar school, King Henry VIII Grammar School, the site itself passing to the Gunter family.[citation needed]

During the Civil War, prior to the siege of Raglan Castle in 1645, King Charles I visited Abergavenny and presided in person over the trial of Sir Trefor Williams, 1st Baronet of Llangibby, a Royalist who changed sides, and other Parliamentarians.[citation needed]

In 1639, Abergavenny received a charter of incorporation under the title of bailiff and burgesses. A charter with extended privileges was drafted in 1657, but appears never to have been enrolled or to have come into effect. Owing to the refusal of the chief officers of the corporation to take the oath of allegiance to William III in 1688, the charter was annulled, and the town subsequently declined in prosperity. Chapter 28 of the 1535 Act of Henry VIII, which provided that Monmouth, as county town, should return one burgess to Parliament, further stated that other ancient Monmouthshire boroughs were to contribute towards the payment of the member. In consequence of this clause Abergavenny on various occasions shared in the election, the last instance being in 1685.[citation needed]

The right to hold two weekly markets and three yearly fairs, beginning in the 13th century, was held ever since as confirmed in 1657.[citation needed] Abergavenny was celebrated for the production of Welsh flannel, and also for the manufacture, whilst the fashion prevailed, of goats' hair periwigs.[citation needed]

19th and 20th centuries

Abergavenny Boys National School c. 1865

Abergavenny railway station opened 2 January 1854 by the Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway. The London North Western Railway sponsored the construction of the railway linking Newport station to Hereford station. The line was taken over by the West Midland Railway in 1860 before becoming part of the Great Western Railway in 1863. The station is on the Welsh Marches Line and is mostly served by Arriva Trains Wales services.[citation needed] Adolf Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess was kept under escort at Maindiff Court Military Hospital during the Second World War, after his flight to Britain.[7]

Baron of Abergavenny

The title of Baron Abergavenny, in the Nevill family, dates from Edward Nevill, 3rd Baron Bergavenny (d. 1476), who was the youngest son of Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland by his second wife Joan Beaufort, daughter of John of Gaunt, first Duke of Lancaster.[citation needed] He married the heiress of Richard de Beauchamp, 1st Earl of Worcester, whose father had inherited the castle and estate of Abergavenny, and was summoned in 1392 to parliament as Lord Bergavenny.[citation needed] Edward Nevill was summoned to parliament with this title in 1450.[citation needed] His direct male descendants ended in 1387 in Henry Nevill, 6th Baron Bergavenny, but a cousin, Edward Nevill, 8th Baron Bergavenny (d. 1622), was confirmed in the Barony in 1604.[citation needed] From him it has descended continuously, through fifteen individuals, the title being increased to an Earldom in 1784; and in 1876 William Nevill [sic] 5th Earl (b. 1826), (d.1915) an indefatigable and powerful supporter of the Tory Party, was created 1st Marquess of Abergavenny.[citation needed]

Coldbrook Park was a country house in an estate some 2 km south east of the town. The house was originally built in the 14th century and belonged to the Herbert family for many generations until purchased by John Hanbury for his son, the diplomat Sir Charles Hanbury Williams.[8] Sir Charles reconstructed the house in 1746 with the addition of a 9 bay 2 storey Georgian facade with a Doric portico. It subsequently passed down in the Hanbury Williams family until it was demolished in 1954.[9]

Welsh language

In recent decades the number of Welsh speakers in the town has increased dramatically. The 2001 census recorded 10% of the local population spoke the language, a five fold increase over ten years from the figure of 2% recorded in 1991.[10]

The town has one of the two Welsh-medium primary schools in Monmouthshire, Ysgol Gymraeg y Fenni,[11] which was founded in the early 1990s. It is also home to the Abergavenny Welsh society, Cymreigyddion y Fenni,[12] and the local Abergavenny Eisteddfod.[13]

Sporting traditions

Abergavenny is the home of Abergavenny Thursdays F.C., which was formed in 1927, and is currently a member of the Gwent County League Division 3. The club's current position comes within 15 years of their being one of the top sides in Welsh football, winning the old format Welsh Football League in 1991 and 1992, but being relegated in 1993 after just one season in the newly formed League of Wales. The club suffered relegation from the Welsh Football League in 2001 and has since slipped down through the next two divisions into its current position, although the future is now looking brighter.[citation needed]

Abergavenny Cricket Club play at Pen-y-Pound, Avenue Road, and Glamorgan CCC also play some of their games here. Abergavenny Cricket Club is one of the oldest in the country and celebrated the 175th anniversary of its foundation in 2009.[citation needed] Abergavenny Tennis Club also play at Pen-y-Pound and plays in the South Wales Doubles League and Aegon Team Tennis. The club engages the services of a head tennis professional to run a coaching programme for the town and was crowned Tennis Wales' Club of the Year in 2010.[citation needed]

Abergavenny is also the home of Abergavenny RFC, a rugby union club founded in 1875 who play at Bailey Park. They play in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Two East league.[citation needed] Abergavenny Hockey Club, formed in 1897, currently compete in the Davis Woods hockey league and play at the Old Hereford Road ground.[citation needed] Abergavenny hosted the British National Cycling Championships in 2007, 2009 and 2014, as part of the town's Festival of Cycling.[14]

Markets and fairs

Cattle market

A cattle market has been held in Abergavenny on its current site since 1863.[3] During the period 1825–1863 a sheep market was held at a site in Castle Street, to stop the sale of sheep on the streets of the town. Today the market is leased and operated by Abergavenny Market Auctioneers Ltd, who hold regular livestock auctions on the site. Market days are: Tuesday – auction sale of finished sheep, cull ewe/store and fodder (hay and straw). Some Fridays - auction sale of cattle. A few other sales are held at the market on other days throughout the year. Following the closure of Newport's cattle market for redevelopment, Newport’s sales are held at Abergavenny every Wednesday.[citation needed]

In 2011, doubts about the future of Abergavenny Cattle Market were raised following the granting of planning permission by Monmouthshire County Council for its demolition and replacement with a supermarket, car park, and library.[15]

In January 2012, the Welsh Government announced the repeal the Abergavenny Improvement Acts of 1854 to 1871 which obliged the holding of a livestock market within the boundaries of Abergavenny town;[16] that repeal being effective from 26 March 2012.[17]

Monmouthshire County Council, which requested that the Abergavenny Improvement Acts be repealed, is supporting plans for a new cattle market to be established about ten miles from Abergavenny in countryside at Bryngwyn, some three miles from Raglan. There has been extensive local opposition to this site, which is situated on a notoriously dangerous B road.[citation needed]

The Market Hall

Abergavenny Market Hall in 2009

Various markets are held in the Market Hall, for example: Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays – retail market; Wednesdays – flea market; fourth Thursday of each month - farmers' market; third Sunday of each month – antique fair; second Saturday of each month – craft fair.[citation needed]

Culture

During September the town holds the Abergavenny Food Festival.

Notable people

See also Category:People from Abergavenny

Buildings of note

From 1851, the Monmouthshire Lunatic Asylum, later Pen-y-Fal Hospital, a psychiatric hospital, stood on the outskirts of Abergavenny. Between 1851 and 1950, over 3,000 patients died at the hospital. A memorial plaque for the deceased has now been placed at the site. After closure in the 1990s, its buildings and grounds were redeveloped as a luxury housing development comprising houses as well as apartments.[citation needed] Some psychiatric services are now administered from Maindiff Court Hospital on the outskirts of the town, close to the foot of the Skirrid mountain. The hospital is housed in historic buildings, and is known for Rudolf Hess who was incarcerated here during WW2.

Twin towns


Abergavenny as seen from the Monmouthshire Canal 2014, with the Skirrid in the centre of the picture, and showing its characteristic notched outline

See also

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article "Abergavenny".
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Abergavenny.

References

  1. ^ BBC. "The Gateway to Wales". Retrieved 8 February 2011.
  2. ^ Frommers. "Introduction to Abergavenny". Retrieved 8 February 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Hoiberg, Dale H., ed. (2010). "Abergavenny". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. I: A-ak Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, IL: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-59339-837-8.
  4. ^ Geograph British Isles – The Blorenge from the B4598 road at Ty'r-pwll
  5. ^ Geograph British Isles – River Usk with Sugar Loaf in background
  6. ^ Hywel Wyn Owen, The Place-Names of Wales, 1998, ISBN 0-7083-1458-9
  7. ^ BBC. WW2 People's War – Marjorie's War
  8. ^ An Historical Tour in Monmouthshire. Vol. 2. p. 270.
  9. ^ "COLDBROOK HOUSE (DEMOLISHED)". Royal Commission on the Ancient and Histoorical Sites of Wales. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  10. ^ "Abergavenny Welsh speakers eager to promote language".
  11. ^ "http://www.ysgolgymraegyfenni.co.uk/". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  12. ^ "http://www.ysgolgymraegyfenni.co.uk/". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  13. ^ "http://www.abergavennyeisteddfod.co.uk/english/index.php". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  14. ^ Howell, Andy (4 October 2013). "Abergavenny wins bid to stage 2014 British Road Race". WalesOnline. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  15. ^ Minutes of the Planning Committee held at County Hall, Cwmbran on 14 June 2011
  16. ^ BBC News, Law change spells end for Abergavenny cattle market, 12 January 2012
  17. ^ The Abergavenny Improvement Act 1854 (Repeal) Order 2012, 12 January 2012
  18. ^ Shannon - Songs
  19. ^ Welcome to Abergavenny Borough Brass Band
  20. ^ History of Abergavenny Borough Brass Band in South Wales
  21. ^ Archived News 2006 at Abergavenny Borough Band
  22. ^ Current News at Abergavenny Borough Band
  23. ^ Sherlock Holmes - The Adventure of the Priory School Page 02
  24. ^ Williams, Jules (2011). The Weigh Forward. Quartet Books. ISBN 0-7043-7214-2.

Sources

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