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Anglesey
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lesey is an island and principal area off the northwest coast of Wales, with a predominantly Welsh-speaking population.
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Anglesey is an island and principal area off the northwest coast of Wales, with a predominantly Welsh-speaking population. It is connected to the mainland by two bridges spanning the Menai Strait: the original Menai Suspension Bridge (carrying the A5), designed by Thomas Telford in 1826; and the newer reconstructed Britannia Bridge (originally designed by Robert Stephenson); which carries the A55 and the North Wales Coast Railway line.
Historian and author Dr. John Davies argues that it is during the tumultuous 10th century that the Norse name for Môn, Anglesey, came into existence and was later adopted into English after Anglo-Norman occupiers arrived to conquer the island during the Norman invasions of Gwynedd.
The name Anglesey was later used in the English language as a county name which included Holy Island and other nearby small islands. Once the Welsh language was granted equal status in government with the Welsh Language Act, the representitive constituency names for the island were changed to the Welsh name of the island, Ynys Môn (UK Parliament constituency) in the UK parliament, and Ynys Môn (Assembly constituency) in the National Assembly for Wales.
With an area of , Anglesey is the largest Welsh island, and the fifth largest surrounding the island of Great Britain.
History
There are numerous megalithic monuments and menhirs present on Anglesey, testifying to the presence of mankind in prehistory.
Historically, Anglesey has long been associated with the Druids. In AD 60 the Roman general Suetonius Paulinus, determined to break the power of the Druids, attacked the island, destroying the shrine and the sacred groves. News of Boudicca's Revolt reached him just after his victory, causing him to withdraw his army before consolidating his conquest. The island was finally brought into the Roman empire by the governor Gnaeus Julius Agricola in AD 78. The Romans called the island Mona.
Môn is the Welsh name of Anglesey, but its origin is obscure, coming from the British enisis mona, appearing first during the Roman era as 'Mona'. The 'English' name is in fact derived from the Old Norse, meaning 'Ongull's Island'. The alternative "isle (ey) of the Angles" is discredited. Old Welsh names are Ynys Dywyll ("Dark Isle") and Ynys y Cedairn (cedyrn or kedyrn; "Isle of brave folk"). It is the Mona of Tacitus (Ann. xiv. 29, Agr. xiv. 18), Pliny the Elder (iv. 16) and Dio Cassius (62). It is called Môn Mam Cymru ("Môn, Mother of Wales") by Giraldus Cambrensis, for the claimed ability of the fertile land to produce enough food for the whole of Wales. In reality, the claim was probably more directed at an ability to sustain Gwynedd. Clas Merddin, and Y fêl Ynys (honey isle) are other names. According to the Triads (67), Anglesey was once part of the mainland. 28 cromlechs remain on uplands overlooking the sea; e.g. at Plâs Newydd. The Druids were attacked in 61 by Suetonius Paulinus, and again in 78 by Agricola. The present road from Holyhead to Llanfairpwllgwyngyll may originally have been a Roman road, and a network of such roads on the island may await formal discovery. British and Roman sites, coins and ornaments have been dug up and discussed, especially by the 19th century romantic antiquarian, the Hon. Lord Stanley of Penrhos. The foundations of the fort in Holyhead are Roman.
At the end of the Roman period in the late 4th century and early 5th century, pirates from Ireland colonised Anglesey and the nearby Llyn Peninsula. In response to this a Brythonic warlord from the north of Britain called Cunedda came to the area and began the process of driving the Irish out. This process was continued by his son Einion ap Cunedda and grandson Cadwallon Lawhir until the last Irish were defeated in battle in 470. As an island Môn would usually be a good defensive position and because of this it was the site of the court or Llys of the kings and princes of Gwynedd at Aberffraw. Apart from a devastating Danish raid in 853 this was to remain the case until the 13th century when improvements to the English navy made it indefensible.
After the Irish, the island was invaded by Vikings, Saxons, and Normans before falling to King Edward I of England, in the 13th century.
Geography
Anglesey is a relatively low-lying island with low hills such as Parys Mountain, Cadair Mynachdy ("chair of the monastery"; or Monachdy); there is a Nanner, "convent", not far away), Mynydd Bodafon and Holyhead Mountain. The island is separated from the Welsh mainland by Menai Strait, which at its narrowest point is about 250 metres wide.
Anglesey has several small towns scattered around the island, making it quite evenly populated. Beaumaris (Welsh: Biwmares), in the east of the island, features Beaumaris Castle, built by Edward I as part of his campaign in North Wales. Beaumaris acts as a yachting centre for the region with many boats moored in the bay or off Gallows Point. The town of Newborough (Welsh: Niwbwrch), in the south, created when the townfolk of Llanfaes were relocated to make way for the building of Beaumaris Castle, includes the site of Llys Rhosyr, another of the courts of the mediaeval Welsh princes, which features one of the oldest courtrooms in the United Kingdom. Llangefni is located in the centre of the island and is also the island's administrative centre. The town of Menai Bridge (Welsh: Porthaethwy) (in the south-east) expanded when the first bridge to the mainland was being built, in order to accommodate workers and construction. Up until that time Porthaethwy had been one of the principal ferry crossing points from the mainland. A short distance from this town lies Bryn Celli Ddu, a Stone Age burial mound. Also nearby is the village with the longest official place name in the United Kingdom, Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Near it is Plas Newydd, ancestral home of the Marquesses of Anglesey. The town of Amlwch is situated in the northeast of the island and was once largely industrialised, having grown during the 18th century supporting the copper mining industry at Parys Mountain.
Other towns and settlements include Cemaes, Benllech, Pentraeth, Gaerwen, Dwyran, Bodedern and Rhosneigr. The Anglesey Sea Zoo is a local tourist attraction, providing a look at and descriptions of local marine wildlife from lobsters to conger eels. All the fish and crustaceans on display are caught around the island and are placed in reconstructions of their natural habitat. They also make salt (evaporated from the local sea water) and commercially breed lobsters, for food, and oysters, for pearls, both from local stocks.
The island's entire rural coastline had been designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and features many sandy beaches, especially along its eastern coast between the towns of Beaumaris and Amlwch and along the western coast from Ynys Llanddwyn through Rhosneigr to the little bays around Carmel Head. The northern coastline is characterised by dramatic cliffs interspersed with small bays. The Anglesey Coastal Path is a path which follows nearly the entire coastline. Tourism is now the most significant economic activity on the island. Agriculture provides the secondary source of income for the island's economy, with the local dairies being amongst the most productive in the region. There is also a nuclear power station, at Wylfa Head on the north coast.
Major industries are restricted to Holyhead (Caergybi) which supports an aluminium smelter and the Amlwch area where the Wylfa nuclear power station is located close to a former bromine extraction plant. The nuclear power station is scheduled to close in or around 2010, and the aluminium smelting operation is likely to close as a consequence of losing its affordable local electricity supply. However, the local county council support extending the closure deadline and building a new nuclear power station at Wylfa.
The Royal Air Force base RAF Valley (Fali) is home to the RAF Fast Jet Training School and also 22 SQN Search and Rescue Helicopters which provide employment for approx 500 civilians.
There is a wide range of smaller industries, mostly located in industrial and business parks especially at Llangefni and Gaerwen. These industries include an abattoir and fine chemicals manufacture as well as factories for timber production, aluminium smelting, fish farming and food processing.
Wind power is developing on Anglesey with more than 20 commercial wind turbines established near the north coast. The strong sea currents around the island are also attracting the interest of electricity generation companies interested in exploiting tidal power.
The island is also on one of the major routes from Britain to Ireland, via ferries from Holyhead, off the west of Anglesey on Holy Island, to Dún Laoghaire and Dublin Port.
There are a few natural lakes mostly in the west, such as Llyn Llywenan, the largest natural lake on the island, and Cors Cerrig y Daran, but rivers are few and small. There are two large water supply reservoirs operated by Dwr Cymru Welsh Water. These are Llyn Cefni in the centre of the island, which is fed by the headwaters of the Afon Cefni, and Llyn Alaw to the north of the island.
The climate is humid (much less so than neighbouring mountainous Gwynedd) but generally equable under the effects of the Gulf Stream bathing the island. The land is of variable quality and it may have been more fertile in the past.
See the list of places in Anglesey for all villages, towns and cities.
See the List of Anglesey towns by population for populations.
Ecology and conservation
Much of Anglesey is covered with relatively intensive cattle and sheep farming aided by modern agro-chemicals. In these areas there is little of ecological conservation worth. However there are a number of important wetland sites which have protected status. In addition the several lakes all have significant ecological interest including their support for a wide range of aquatic and semi-aquatic bird species. In the west, the Malltraeth marshes are believed to be supporting an occasional visiting Bittern and the nearby estuary of the Afon Cefni supports a bird population made internationally famous by the paintings of Charles Tunnicliffe. The RAF airstrip at Mona is a nesting site for skylarks. The sheer cliff faces at South Stack near Holyhead provide nesting sites for huge numbers of auks including Puffins, Razorbills and Guillemots together with Choughs and Peregrine falcons. Three sites on Anglesey are important for breeding terns - see Anglesey tern colonies.
Anglesey is home to two of the UK's small number of remaining colonies of Red Squirrels, at Pentraeth and Newborough.
Almost the entire coastline of Anglesey is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty The coastal zone of Anglesey was designated as an AONB in 1966 and was confirmed in 1967. It was designated in order to protect the aesthetic appeal and variety of the island’s coastal landscape and habitats from inappropriate development.
The AONB is predominantly a coastal designation, covering most of Anglesey’s coastline but also encompasses Holyhead Mountain and Mynydd Bodafon. Substantial areas of other land protected by the AONB form the backdrop to the coast. The approximate coverage of the Anglesey AONB is 221 km², and it is the largest AONB in Wales covering as it does one third of the island.
A number of the habitats found on Anglesey are afforded even greater protection both through UK and European designations because of their nature conservation value, these include:
6 candidate Special Areas of Conservation (cSACs)
4 Special Protection Areas (SPAs)
1 National Nature Reserve
26 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
52 Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAMs)
These protected habitats support a variety of wildlife such as Harbour Porpoises and Marsh Fritillary.
The AONB also takes in three sections of open, undeveloped coastline which have been designated as Heritage Coast. These non-statutory designations complement the AONB and cover about of the coastline. The sections of Heritage Coast are:
- North Anglesey 28.6 km (17 miles)
- Holyhead Mountain 12.9 km (8 miles)
- Aberffraw Bay 7.7 km (4.5 miles)
A Living and Working Landscape
Employment on Anglesey is mainly based on agriculture and tourism and in some cases a combination of both. The range of local produce found on the island is quite varied from cheese and chocolate to wine. In a number of instances the local produce is also organic.
About two million people visit the island each year attracting people from North Wales the North West of England and also visitors from overseas. In terms of recreation the island offers a number of opportunities to both residents and visitors alike, the majority enjoying the fine sandy beaches and the coastal landscape.
The most popular forms of recreation include sailing, angling, cycling, walking, wind surfing and jet skiing. These all place pressures and demands on the AONB. At the same time, the AONBs popularity for such activities clearly provides a contribution to the local economy.
Natural history
References:
Jones, W.E. Eifion Jones (Ed.)1990. A New Natural History of Anglesey. Anglesey Antiquarian Society, Llangefni.
Culture
- Anglesey hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1999, 1983, and 1957.
- Anglesey/Ynys Môn is a member island of the International Island Games Association. The most recent Island Games were held in 2007 on Rhodes (Greece). Anglesey/Ynys Môn came 15th on the medal table with 3 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze medals. The 2009 Games will be held on the Åland Islands (Finland) and the 2011 Games will be held on the Isle of Wight (UK). In the 2005 Games, held on the Shetland Islands, Anglesey/Ynys Môn came 11th on the medal table with 4 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze medals. The Isle of Anglesey/Ynys Môn Island Games Association plan to make a bid to host the 2015 Island Games.
- Anglesey has featured in the Channel 4 television archaeology series, Time Team (series 14) - programme transmission date 4 February 2007.
- Anglesey has the second highest population of native Welsh language speakers in Wales (70% of the population).
- The Anglesey County Show is held each year in summer on the site of Mona Airfield, close to RAF Valley, in which farmers from around the country compete in livestock rearing contests including sheep and cattle.
Geology
The geology of Anglesey is notably complex and is frequently used for geology field trips by schools and colleges. Younger strata in Anglesey rest upon a foundation of very old Precambrian rocks that appear at the surface in four areas:
- a western region including Holyhead and Llanfaethlu,
- a central area about Aberffraw and Trefdraeth,
- an eastern region which includes Newborough, Caerwen and Pentraeth and
- a coastal region at Glyn Garth between Menai Bridge and Beaumaris.
These Precambrian rocks are schists and phyllites, often much contorted and disturbed. The general line of strike of the formations in the island is from north-east to south-west. A belt of granitic rocks lies immediately north-west of the central Precambrian mass, reaching from Llanfaelog near the coast to the vicinity of Llanerchymedd. Between this granite and the Precambrian of Holyhead is a narrow tract of Ordovician slates and grits with Llandovery beds in places; this tract spreads out in the north of the island between Dulas Bay and Carmel Point. A small patch of Ordovician strata lies on the northern side of Beaumaris. In parts, these Ordovician rocks are much folded, crushed and metamorphosed, and they are associated with schists and altered volcanic rocks which are probably Precambrian. Between the eastern and central Precambrian masses Carboniferous rocks are found. The Carboniferous Limestone occupies a broad area south of Lligwy Bay and Pentraeth, and sends a narrow spur in a south-westerly direction by Llangefni to Malltraeth sands. The limestone is underlain on the north-west by a red basement conglomerate and yellow sandstone (sometimes considered to be of Old Red Sandstone age). Limestone occurs again on the north coast about Llanfihangel and Llangoed; and in the south-west round Llanidan on the border of the Menai Strait. Puffin Island is made of Carboniferous Limestone. Malltraeth marsh is occupied by Coal Measures, and a small patch of the same formation appears near Tal-y-foel Ferry on the Menai Strait. A patch of rhyolitic/felsitic rocks form Parys Mountain, where copper and iron ochre have been worked. Serpentine (Mona Marble) is found near Llanfairynneubwll and upon the opposite shore in Holyhead. There are abundant evidences of glaciation, and much boulder clay and drift sand covers the older rocks. Patches of brown sand occur on the south-west coast.
A Google Earth .kmz file, Anglesey.kmz, Anglesey.kml, showing important geological locations on Anglesey, and including a number of geological map overlays, can be downloaded from:
, whereas a historiography of geological research on Anglesey is available at:
Other places of interest
Sons and daughters of Anglesey
Born on Anglesey
- Tony Adams - actor (Anglesey, 1940)
- William Bulkeley - diarist (1691 - 1760 Brynddu, Llanfechell, Anglesey)
- Dic Evans - Seaman and coxswain two-times winner of the RNLI gold medal for bravery - (Moelfre, 1905)
- Dawn French - actress, writer, comedian (Holyhead, 1957)
- Hugh Griffith - Oscar winning actor (Marianglas, 1912)
- Steve Griffiths - writer (Anglesey 1949
- Owain Gwynedd - prince (Anglesey, c. 1100)
- Hywel Gwynfryn - radio and TV personality (Llangefni, 1942)
- Wayne Hennessey - footballer - currently goalkeeper with Wolves and Wales (Anglesey 1987)
- Captain Owen Jones - volunteer lifeboatman winner of the RNLI gold medal for bravery (Anglesey)
- Rhys Jones - 2 gold medals (archery) International Island Games 2005
- Mr Thomas William Jones - able seaman on RMS Titanic who took charge of Lifeboat #8 (Anglesey, c. 1880)
- William Jones - mathematician (Llanfihangel Tre'r Beirdd, 1675)
- John Morris-Jones - Welsh grammarian and poet (Llandrygarn, 1864)
- Glenys Kinnock - politician (Holyhead, 1944)
- Goronwy Owen - poet (Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf, 1723)
- Wendy Orme - screenwriter (Anglesey, 1911)
- Edward Roberts - gold medal (team shooting) International Island Games 2005
- Edward Roberts - second coxswain winner of the RNLI gold medal for bravery (Anglesey)
- Wilf Roberts - landscape artist (Anglesey, 1941)
- Ifor Owain Thomas - tenor (Pentraeth, 1892)
- Hugh Owen Thomas - pioneering orthopaedic surgeon (Anglesey, 1833)
- Thomas Thomas - gold and bronze medal (team shooting & shooting) International Island Games 2005
- Anthony White - gold medal (team shooting) International Island Games 2005
- Nicola Kate Stretton - silver medal (athletics) International Island Games 2005
- Sir Kyffin Williams RA - landscape painter (Anglesey, 1918 - 2006)
- Claire Wilson - gold medal (swimming) International Island Games 2005
- Owain Tudor - Grandfather of Henry VII (Henry Tudor), who had married the widow of Henry V to give the Tudor dynasty a tenuous claim on the English throne Plas Penmynydd
Lived on Anglesey
- The Marquesses of Anglesey - noble family from Plas Newydd, Llanfairpwll.
- Henry Austin Dobson - poet and essayist (Plymouth, Devon 1840)
- Ioan Idris Shah - sailor and explorer (Wrexham, 1978)
- Tristan Hughes - writer (Canada)
- Aled Jones - singer and television presenter (Bangor, 1970)
- Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister - heavy metal bass player and singer (Stoke-on-Trent, 1945)
- Matthew Maynard - cricketer (Oldham, Lancashire 1966)
- Gwyn Parry - writer (Wales)
- Gary Pritchard - sports journalist & broadcaster (Bangor, 1970)
- Eric Roberts - baritone (Conwy, North Wales)
- Charles Tunnicliffe - wildlife artist (Chester, 1901)
- Naomi Watts - actress (Kent, 1968)
- Dyfed Russell-Hughes - Actor and Thrash Metal vocalist (with Alisons Refrigerated Delicatessen)
- Gruff Rhys - Musician best known for being the leadman of Super Furry Animals grew up in Rachub, near Bethesda (Haverforwest, 18 July 1970)
- Rex Whistler - artist (Eltham, Kent 1905)
- Maurice Wilks - designer of the Landrover; which was test driven on Newborough and Llanddona beach
- David Walters (guitarist) - Welsh national guitarist of the year, 2003.
Government
- see also: Isle of Anglesey County Council
Anglesey (together with Holy Island) is one of the thirteen historic counties of Wales. In medieval times, before the conquest of Wales in 1283, Môn often had periods of temporary independence as it was frequently bequeathed to the heirs of kings as a sub kingdom of Gwynedd. The last times this occurred were for a few years after 1171 following the death of Owain Gwynedd when the island was inherited by Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd and again between 1246 - c.1255 when it was given to Owain Goch as his share of the kingdom. Following the conquest of Wales by Edward I it was created a county under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan of 1284. Prior to this it had been divided into the cantrefi of:
In 1974 it formed a district of the new large county of Gwynedd, until in the 1996 reform of local government it was restored as a local government county. The county council is a unitary authority and is named "Isle of Anglesey County Council" . While there is currently a majority of independent councillors, the council is under no overall control, as the members do not generally divide along party lines. The only party group on the council is that of Plaid Cymru. There are five non-partisan groups on the council, containing a mix of party and independent candidates. The largest of these groups is Môn Ymlaen/Anglesey Forward, with 15 members out of the 40 in total.
Schools
Top performing secondary schools in Anglesey, (5 GCSEs, A-C grade, according to the latest inspection report by Estyn)
(All schools bilingual unless stated)
66% Ysgol Gyfun Llangefni, Llangefni
64% Ysgol David Hughes, Menai Bridge
59% Ysgol Uwchradd Bodedern, Bodedern
56% Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones, Amlwch
35% Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi, Holyhead
There are 52 primary schools in Anglesey:
Ysgol Aberffraw
Ysgol Amlwch
Ysgol Garreglefn, Amlwch
Ysgol Beaumaris
Ysgol Goronwy Owen, Benllech
Ysgol Bodedern
Ysgol Bodffordd
Ysgol Bodorgan
Ysgol Bryngwran
Ysgol Brynsiencyn
Ysgol Y Tywyn, Caergeiliog
Ysgol Ty Mawr, Capel Coch
Ysgol Cemaes
Ysgol Dwyran
Ysgol Esceifiog, Gaerwen
Ysgol Y Ffridd, Gwalchmai
Ysgol Llaingoch, Holyhead
Ysgol Llanfawr, Holyhead
Ysgol Morswyn, Holyhead
Ysgol y Parc, Holyhead
Ysgol Llanbedrgoch
Ysgol Llanddeusant
Ysgol Llanddona
Ysgol Llandegfan
Ysgol Llandrygarn
Ysgol Llanerchymedd
Ysgol Llanfachraeth
Ysgol Ffrwd Win, Llanfaethlu
Ysgol Llanfairpwllgwyngyll
Ysgol Llanfechell
Ysgol Corn Hir, Llangefni
Ysgol Y Graig, Llangefni
Ysgol Llangoed
Ysgol Henblas, Llangristiolus
Ysgol Cylch y Garn, Llanrhuddlad
Transport
By road, Anglesey is linked from Holyhead to the mainland by the A55 which leads to Chester. Also the A5 runs from the east of the island (Llanfairpwllgwyngyll) to Bangor and as far as St Albans via the Menai Bridge. The A5025, which runs around the northern edge of Anglesey, and the A4080, running around the southern edge form a ring around the island.
There are six railway stations in Anglesey: Holyhead, Valley, Rhosneigr, Ty Croes, Bodorgan and Llanfairpwll. All are on the North Wales Coast Line and services are operated by Virgin Trains to Birmingham New Street and London Euston, and by Arriva Trains Wales to Chester, Manchester Piccadilly and Cardiff Central.
By air, Anglesey Airport has a twice daily scheduled service to Cardiff International Airport where connections worldwide can be made.
Holyhead Port is a busy ferry port handling more than 2 million passengers each year. Stena Line and Irish Ferries sail to Dublin and Dún Laoghaire in Ireland, forming the principal link for surface transport from central and northern England and Wales to Ireland.
See also
External links
- - An information site about Anglesey.
- - Local history overview (maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions).
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