60-453: The Laugharne Weekend is an annual literary and arts festival in Laugharne , Wales , held in the spring. Dylan Thomas described Laugharne as a timeless, mild, beguiling island of a town. The festival is deliberately small-scale. The size of the town ensures that the festival will not grow beyond certain bounds. Its location means that festival visitors and townspeople rub shoulders with
120-631: A castle at Laugharne in that year (this is the earliest reference to any castle at or near Laugharne ). Courtemain may be the Robertus cum tortis manibus (English: Robert with twisted hands ) mentioned in the Book of Llandaff , as one of a number of specifically named Norman magnates within the vicinity of the Llandaff diocese , who received a letter from Pope Callixtus II complaining about deprivations they had inflicted on diocesan church property; in
180-672: A long cist grave cemetery has also been recorded, is thought to be a more likely early ecclesiastical site in the immediate area. In the Early Middle Ages Laugharne was the main settlement in the area and home to the Lords of Laugharne. It was a commote of Gwarthaf , the largest of the seven cantrefi of the Kingdom of Dyfed in southwest Wales, later to be ruled by the Princes of Deheuberth . In 1093, Deheubarth
240-498: A cross-slab, probably dating from the 9th or 10th century, with a carved Celtic design carved onto it. It has been suggested that the design is of Viking origin. The church is today part of the United Benefice of Bro Sancler. Welsh poet and playwright Dylan Thomas is buried in the churchyard, his grave marked by a white cross. Local attractions include the 12th-century Laugharne Castle , Laugharne Town Hall and
300-464: A more permanent community. Excavation in the 1960s of the defended enclosure on Coygan revealed two huts contemporary with the defensive bank and ditch and a significant quantity of pottery recovered dating to the late 3rd century AD indicating that the site was occupied deep into the Romano-British period. Another significant Iron Age settlement has also been identified at Glan-y-Mor Fort in
360-554: A sword, a spearhead and a sickle. These items are thought to date to about 650 BC, and while the sword appears to be imported, the sickle is an imitation of a native bronze prototype. Over 600 hillfort were built in Wales and throughout the British Isles from c. 800 BC . The Iron Age saw the building of hillforts which are particularly numerous in Wales, including Pen Dinas near Aberystwyth and Tre'r Ceiri on
420-707: A temporary shelter for groups of hunter-gatherers moving through the landscape over 50,000 years ago and later material in the form of flint tools indicating an extended series of occupations from the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods. These discoveries suggest that the Township is probably the oldest still-inhabited settlement in Wales. Contemporary artefacts from the Mousterian period have also been found at nearby Paviland and Long Hole caves along with older hominin remains at Bontnewydd but, unlike at Laugharne,
480-501: A three-day arts festival held in the spring of 2007, featured writers such as Niall Griffiths and Patrick McCabe . Headline performers since then have included Ray Davies , Will Self , Howard Marks and Patti Smith . The Millennium Hall is the main venue and smaller events are held locally such as in the Dylan Thomas Boathouse. Prehistoric Wales Prehistoric Wales in terms of human settlements covers
540-739: Is Din Lligwy , the small village was dated from the Iron Age to Roman occupation. A hoard of Roman era pottery and coins were discovered in the 1905-07 archaeological excavation of Din Lligwy. A particularly significant find from this period was made in 1943 at Llyn Cerrig Bach on Anglesey, when the ground was being prepared for the construction of a Royal Air Force base. The cache included weapons, shields, chariots along with their fittings and harnesses, and slave chains and tools. Many had been deliberately broken and seem to have been votive offerings . These finds are considered to be one of
600-540: Is also similar to New Quay where he briefly lived. Throughout much of the Prehistoric period, human activity in the Laugharne area was centred on Coygan Bluff, a steep-sided limestone peninsula overlooking the now submerged coastal plain to the south. A natural cave on the southeast face of the promontory was excavated five times between 1865 and 1965 yielding significant evidence that its chambers acted as
660-469: Is conferred annually, with the portreeve being sworn in on the first Monday after Michaelmas at the Big Court. The Corporation holds a court leet half-yearly formerly dealing with criminal cases, and a court baron every fortnight, dealing with civil suits within the lordship, especially in matters related to land, where administration of the common fields was dealt with. The Laugharne open-field system
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#1732790249603720-602: Is considered to be of international importance. Late Neanderthal hand axes were also found at Coygan Cave , Carmarthenshire and have been dated to between 60,000 and 35,000 years old. The Paviland limestone caves of the Gower Peninsula in south Wales are by far the richest source of Aurignacian material in Britain, including burins and scrapers dated to about 28,500 years ago. The first remains of modern humans, Homo sapiens sapiens , to be found in Wales
780-481: Is one of only two surviving and still in use today in Britain. 'In Elizabeth's reign, the lordship passed to Sir John Perrott of Haroldston, a fact for which the inhabitants of Laugharne have had cause to regret. As at Carew Perrot modernised the castle, but he was the most unscrupulous "land-grabber" of his age, and in 1574 he induced the burgesses to part with three hundred acres of land in return for an annuity of £9 6s. 8d. The records say that "diverse burgesses of
840-545: The Aberffraw bay, Trwyn Du ( Welsh : Black nose ) excavated site. Millenniums later, around 2,000 BC was when a Bronze Age kerb cairn ( bowl barrow ) was built covering the original Trwyn Du artifact deposit of 7,000 thousand Mesolithic flint tools and 2 axes . The earliest farming communities are now believed to date from about 4000 BC, marking the beginning of the Neolithic period. Pollen evidence indicates
900-525: The Celts . However, studies of population genetics now suggest that this may not be true, and that immigration was on a smaller scale. The earliest known human remains discovered in modern-day Wales date from 230,000 years ago. An early Neanderthal upper jaw fragment containing two teeth, whose owner probably lived during an interglacial period in the Lower Palaeolithic , was found in a cave in
960-711: The Deceangli ( North East Wales ), the Demetae ( South West Wales ), and the Silures ( South East Wales ). These regions show an approximate correspondence to the territories of the tribes later recorded in these areas by the Romans. The earliest iron implements found in Wales come from Llyn Fawr at the head of the Rhondda Valley , where objects apparently deposited as votive offerings include three made of iron:
1020-536: The Llŷn Peninsula . The earliest distinctively Iron Age settlement in Wales is considered to be Castell Odo (modern-day Aberdaron ), a small hillfort on the tip of the Llŷn Peninsula, the fort dates to about 400 BC but was actually settled during the late Bronze Age. The largest hillforts are most numerous along the eastern border of Wales, with some large examples also found in the lowlands of north-west Wales. In
1080-615: The River Elwy valley, at the Bontnewydd Palaeolithic site , near St Asaph ( Welsh : Llanelwy ), Denbighshire . Excavations of the site between 1978 and 1995 revealed a further 17 teeth belonging to five individuals, a total of seven hand axes and some animal bones, some of which show signs of butchery. This site is the most north-westerly in Eurasia at which the remains of early hominids have been found, and
1140-572: The estuary of the River Tâf . The ancient borough of Laugharne Township ( Welsh : Treflan Lacharn ) with its Corporation and Charter is a unique survival in Wales. In a predominantly English-speaking area, just on the Landsker Line , the community is bordered by those of Llanddowror , St Clears , Llangynog and Llansteffan . It had a population at the 2021 census of 1,100. Laugharne Township electoral ward also includes
1200-629: The Congregational Church and the Rugby Club The Laugharne Weekend's music director is Richard James , formerly of the Welsh band Gorky's Zygotic Mynci . Laugharne 51°46′10″N 4°27′47″W / 51.7694°N 4.4631°W / 51.7694; -4.4631 Laugharne / ˈ l ɑːr n / ( Welsh : Talacharn ) is a town on the south coast of Carmarthenshire , Wales , lying on
1260-525: The Crown, and in 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted it to Sir John Perrot . In 1644 the castle was garrisoned for the king and taken for Parliament by Major-General Rowland Laugharne , who subsequently reverted to the king's side. The population in 1841 was 1,389. Laugharne Corporation is an almost unique institution and, together with the City of London Corporation , the last surviving mediæval corporation in
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#17327902496031320-591: The English midlands. Pottery finds also indicate a relationship with Ireland. Metal tools first appeared in Wales about 2500 BC with the Bell Beaker culture , initially copper followed by bronze . The climate during the Early Bronze Age (c. 2100-1400 BC) is thought to have been warmer than at present, as there are many remains from this period in what are now bleak uplands. Much of the copper for
1380-575: The Kinks , Mick Jones of The Clash , the actor Michael Sheen , the writer Caitlin Moran , the poet John Cooper Clarke , the comedians Harry Hill and Alexei Sayle , and the painter Peter Blake . All events take place in Laugharne's clubs, churches and halls—tiny and intimate venues which entail the close proximity of audience and performers. The principal venues used are the Millennium Hall,
1440-594: The Neolithic period have also been found in Wales, most notably the settlement at Clegyr Boia near St David's in Pembrokeshire. Many artefacts have also been found, particularly polished stone axeheads. There were a number of "factories" in Wales producing these axeheads, the largest being the Graig Lwyd factory at Penmaenmawr on the north coast which exported its products as far afield as Yorkshire and
1500-634: The Recorder must sing the following song: When Sir Guy de Brien lived in Laugharne, A jolly old man was he. Some pasture land he owned, which he Divided into three. Says he "There's Hugdon and the Moor They will the Commons please; And all the gentlemen shall have Their share down on the Lees." Since 1972, Laugharne Township Community Council has formed the lowest tier of local government for
1560-499: The United Kingdom. The Corporation was established in 1291 by Sir Guy de Brian ( Gui de Brienne ), a Marcher Lord . Laugharne Corporation holds extensive historical records. The Corporation is presided over by the portreeve , wearing his traditional chain of gold cockle shells (one added by each portreeve, with his name and date of tenure on the reverse), the aldermen, and the body of burgesses . The title of portreeve
1620-645: The arrival of the Romans may have varied from one part of Wales to another; for example there is evidence that some hillforts, such as Tre'r Ceiri, continued to be occupied during the Roman period. An example of that era is the Welsh pre-Celtic ( Goidelic ) Silures tribe, who occupied their lands for a millennium before the Roman occupation of Britain. The tribe later established a home in the Malvern Hills building earthworks to protect themselves from Ostorius Scapula and his Roman army . However, later in 78 AD,
1680-534: The artists and performers. According to the festival's co-founders, Richard Thomas and the Cardiff writer John Williams , it is a festival that involves the locality. and that they would sooner start another festival rather than let it grow too big. The Laugharne Weekend concentrates on literature and music, drawing largely from writers and musicians from Wales or who have a connection with Wales. Previous headline performers have included Patti Smith , Ray Davies of
1740-421: The castle and married an Owen of St Bride's who subsequently took his name – Owen Laugharne – from the castle despite Gerald of Wales calling the castle Talachar , and other variations on Laugharne/Talacharn appearing in ancient charters; one anonymous pre-20th-century writer erroneously claimed that Owen Laugharne gave his name to the castle rather than the other way around. Possession subsequently defaulted to
1800-468: The cemetery mound with a number of burials had become the standard form by about 2000 BC. One of the most striking finds from Bronze Age Wales was the gold cape found in a tomb at Bryn yr Ellyllion, Mold, Flintshire dated to 1900-1600 BC, weighing 560 g and produced from a single gold ingot. Very few weapons have been found in Early Bronze Age graves in Wales compared with other objects, and
1860-454: The changes. There is some evidence to support the latter model, such as burials associated with earlier religious sites. It has been suggested that a Celtic language was being spoken in Wales by about 700 BC. The prehistoric period ended with the arrival of the Roman army , who began their campaigns against the Welsh tribes in 48 AD with an attack on the Deceangli in north-east Wales, the era
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1920-441: The clearing of forests on an increasing scale during this period. The Neolithic saw the construction of many chambered tombs , the most notable including Bryn Celli Ddu and Barclodiad y Gawres on Anglesey. Also on the isle is one of the earliest settlements in Wales (potentially Wales' first village). The wooden long houses near Llanfaethlu is the remains of a Neolithic village dated to 4,000 BC. Flint tools were also found at
1980-490: The communities associated with them are long vanished. In the 4th century BC, a promontory fort was built at the summit of the hill. During the Bronze Age , Coygan camp is recorded as the site of an open settlement with funerary and ritual activity shown by a short-cist contracted inhumation. Further finds at a nearby round barrow on Laugharne Burrows together with Beaker burials at Plashett and Orchard Park confirm
2040-482: The communities of Eglwyscummin , Pendine and Llanddowror. Dylan Thomas , who lived in Laugharne from 1949 until his death in 1953, famously described it as a "timeless, mild, beguiling island of a town". It is generally accepted as the inspiration for the fictional town of Llareggub in Under Milk Wood . Thomas confirmed on two occasions that his play was based on Laugharne although topographically it
2100-489: The earliest hillforts appearing about 800 BC. The Late Bronze Age saw the development of more advanced bronze implements, with weapons becoming increasingly common. While the weapons reflect introduced styles, there are pronounced regional variations in the styles of tools, particularly axes. On the basis of tool types, Wales can be divided into four regions, These were, the Ordovices (Mid to North Wales & Anglesey),
2160-488: The end of the Early Bronze Age and are innovative in both metallurgy and design. They were widely exported, with examples being found along the continental coast from Brittany to north Germany . Burial practices in the Bronze Age differed from the communal tombs of the Neolithic period, with a change to burial in round barrows and the provision of grave goods. Inhumation was soon replaced by cremation and in Wales
2220-493: The estuary birdlife . Laugharne Township currently has 69 listed buildings and contains several fine examples of Georgian townhouses including The Great House and Castle House together with Island House , parts of which date back to the Tudor period. All three properties are grade II* listed and a number of other early vernacular cottages have also survived. There are a number of landmarks in Laugharne connected with
2280-425: The first century AD The La Tène culture is traditionally associated with the Celts , and the general view until fairly recently was that the appearance of this culture indicated a large-scale invasion by peoples who also brought a Celtic language which later developed into Welsh . The currently more popular view is that any movement of peoples was on a smaller scale, with cultural diffusion responsible for most of
2340-685: The former Deheubarth. In 1154, the Anarchy was resolved when Henry II became king; two years later, Lord Rhys agreed peace terms with Henry II and prudently accepted that he would only rule Cantref Mawr , constructing Dinefwr Castle there. Henry II de-mobilised Flemish soldiers who had aided him during the Anarchy, settling them with the other Flemings. From time to time, however, King Henry had occasion to go to Ireland, or Normandy, which Lord Rhys took as an opportunity to try and expand his own holdings. Returning from Ireland after one such occasion, in 1172, King Henry made peace with Lord Rhys, making him
2400-424: The justiciar of "South Wales" (ie. Deheubarth). By 1247, Laugharne was held by Guy de Bryan; this is the earliest reference to his family possessing the castle, and his father (also named Guy de Bryan) had only moved the family to Wales in 1219 (from Devon). Guy de Bryan's descendants continued to hold the castle; his namesake great-grandson was Lord High Admiral of England. The latter's daughter Elizabeth inherited
2460-471: The lack of traces of earlier Bronze Age settlements is thought to indicate that farms or hamlets were undefended. From about 1250 BC there was a deterioration in the climate which became more marked from about 1000 BC, with higher rainfall and much lower summer temperatures. This led to an increase in peat formation and probably the abandonment of many upland settlements. It has been suggested that this led to conflict and to changes in social organization, with
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2520-458: The last Ice age , Wales became roughly the shape it is today by about 7000 BC and was inhabited by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers . Wales has many sites where Mesolithic material has been found, but securely stratified material is rare. The earliest dated Mesolithic site in Wales is Nab Head, Pembrokeshire , around 9,200 years ago. Many of the sites from this period are coastal, although 9,000 years ago they would have been some distance inland from
2580-469: The late Iron Age between c. 500 BC - 200 BC. Later in the Iron Age , stone roundhouses were being built from c. 500 BC (earliest). Hut circles were found throughout Wales and Celtic Europe. These stone-built roundhouses were occupied for nearly a thousand years and were used until the end of the Roman occupation of Great Britain during the 5th century. A well-preserved hut circle on Anglesey
2640-579: The letter, the Pope warns he would confirm Bishop Urban 's proclamations against them, if they do not rectify matters. The Brut states that Courtemain appointed a man named Bleddyn ap Cedifor as castellan; Bleddyn was the son of Cedifor ap Gollwyn, descendant and heir of the earlier kings of Dyfed (as opposed to those of Deheubarth). The castle was originally known as Abercorran Castle. When Henry I died, Anarchy occurred , and Gruffydd, and his sons, Lord Rhys in particular, gradually reconquered large parts of
2700-465: The manor of Laugharne. The original dedication was to St Michael as 15th-century records use this dedication. The churchyard, rectangular in shape, has shown evidence of Cist burials. Various archaeological finds have been made during grave-digging: a wheel-topped stone; a medieval tile and a fragment of what is believed to be a tomb canopy. The churchyard's 18th- and 19th-century monuments are Grade II listed for their group value. The interior has
2760-466: The most important collections of La Tène metalwork discovered in Britain. Pottery on the other hand is fairly rare in Wales during this period and most of what has been found appears to be imported. In 2018, the first-ever Celtic chariot burial found in southern Britain was discovered in Llanstadwell — associated with other burials and a multivallate fort. It has been dated to the second half of
2820-425: The north of the township. The Laugharne hoard of over 2000 coins and Roman bath remains found at Island House , together with the substantial Romano-British group of imported 6th-century finewares, coinage and glass from Coygan Camp, described as "one of the richest from a native settlement in south-west Wales", are all part of a concentration of traditional 'Roman' finds in the area. As evidence of activity from
2880-420: The period from about 230,000 years ago, the date attributed to the earliest human remains found in what is now Wales , to the year AD 48 when the Roman army began a military campaign against one of the Welsh tribes. Traditionally, historians have believed that successive waves of immigrants brought different cultures into the area, largely replacing the previous inhabitants, with the last wave of immigrants being
2940-492: The period is generally scarce, these discoveries confirm the site as one of importance and suggest that it continued to be a high status settlement well beyond the Roman occupation. A 6th-century inscribed stone lies within Llansadwrnen church to the north, considered to be an outlying burial site of the more important secular settlement on Coygan. Laugharne Church, which contains a 9th-century Celtic slab stone and where
3000-728: The poet and writer Dylan Thomas. These include the Dylan Thomas Boathouse , where he lived with his family from 1949 to 1953, and now a museum; his writing shed; and the Dylan Thomas Birthday Walk, which was the setting for the work Poem in October . Many scenes in the BBC Television series Keeping Faith (broadcast in Welsh as Un Bore Mercher ) were filmed in and around Laugharne, referred to as Abercorran . The Laugharne Weekend ,
3060-613: The production of bronze probably came from the copper mine on the Great Orme , where prehistoric mining on a very large scale dates largely from the middle Bronze Age. In particular copper from the Great Orme mines appears to have been used for the production of bronze implements of the Acton Park Complex, named after a hoard found at Acton Park near Wrexham . These tools, particularly axeheads, were developed towards
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#17327902496033120-497: The said towne did not assent to same", and that it was "to the great decaying of many". It would be interesting to know by what methods of bribery or intimidation Sir John was able to accomplish his nefarious purposes.' The most senior 76 burgesses get a strang of land on Hugden for life, to be used in a form of mediæval strip-farming. The chief toast at the Portreeve's feast is "to the immortal memory of Sir Guido de Brian"; then
3180-479: The sea. There is a particular concentration in Pembrokeshire , but there are also a good number of upland sites, most apparently seasonal hunting locations, for example around Llyn Brenig . Some decorated pebbles found at Rhuddlan represent the earliest art found in Wales. Anglesey 's permanent settlement has a history beginning c. 9,000 years ago during the Mesolithic (European) period at
3240-800: The site. Three main types of megalithic tomb are found in Wales, the Severn-Cotswold type in the south-east, the Portal dolmen type and the Passage graves which are characteristic of the Irish Sea area and the Atlantic façade of Europe and Morocco . Megalithic tombs are most common in the western lowlands. There is evidence of close cultural links with Ireland , particularly in the Early Neolithic period. A number of houses from
3300-614: The south-west, by contrast, hillforts are very numerous but mainly small, with an area of under 1.2 hectares. An example on Anglesey is Arthur's Table ( Welsh : Bwrdd Arthur / Din Sylwy) hillfort, it's an Iron Age settlement that was inhabited for a millennium until after the Roman period (c. 4 AD). Some Celtic tribes originated in Germany and migrated throughout Western Europe , also to Britain and Ireland . These western European Iron Age tribes in Britain were established in
3360-506: The town, represented by 11 community councillors. For elections to Carmarthenshire County Council , Laugharne is covered by the Laugharne Township electoral ward, which also covers three neighbouring communities. The ward is represented by one county councillor. Independent councillor Jane Tremlett has represented the ward since 2004. The parish church of St Martin was built in the 14th century by Guido de Brian, lord of
3420-532: Was deemed the Roman Iron Age . Wales was divided between a number of tribes, of which the Silures and the Ordovices put up the most stubborn resistance. The Roman conquest of Wales was complete by 79 AD. The reports of Roman historians such as Tacitus give a little more information about Wales in this period, such as that the island of Anglesey was apparently a stronghold of the Druids . The impact of
3480-448: Was found along with fragments of small cylindrical ivory rods, fragments of ivory bracelets and seashells . Settlement in Wales was apparently intermittent, as periods of cooling and warming led to the ice sheets advancing and retreating. Wales appears to have been abandoned from about 21,000 years ago until after 13,000 years ago, with a burial found at Kendrick's Cave on the Great Orme dating to about 12,000 years ago. Following
3540-518: Was seized by the Normans following Rhys ap Tewdwr 's death. In the early 12th century, grants of lands were made to Flemings by King Henry I when their country was flooded. In 1116, when Gruffydd ap Rhys (the son and heir of Rhys ap Tewdwr) returned from self-imposed exile, the king arranged for the land to be fortified against him; according to the Brut y Tywysogyon , Robert Courtemain constructed
3600-712: Was the famous Red Lady of Paviland , discovered in the 1820s. This was a human skeleton dyed in red ochre discovered in 1823 in one of the Paviland caves in Gower . Despite the name, the skeleton is actually that of a young man who lived about 33,000-34,000 years ago, coincident with a warmer period at the end of the Upper Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age ). He is considered to be the oldest known ceremonial burial in Western Europe . The skeleton
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