Laugharne is a
townA town is a type of settlement ranging from a few hundred to several thousand inhabitants, although it may be applied loosely even to huge metropolitan areas; the precise meaning varies between countries and is not always a matter of legal definition...
in
CarmarthenshireCarmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. Its three largest towns are Carmarthen, Llanelli and Ammanford...
,
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
, lying on the
estuaryAn estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are thus subject to both marine influences, such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water; and riverine influences, such as flows of...
of the
River TâfThe River Tâf is a river that rises in the Preseli Hills of North Pembrokeshire, West Wales, near the village of Crymych and is around 50 km long....
. It is known for having been the home of
Dylan ThomasDylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer[, Encyclopædia Britannica . Retrieved 11 January 2008.] who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
from 1949 until his death in 1953, and is thought to have been an inspiration for the fictional town of
LlareggubLlareggub is a fictional town that features in Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. Its name resembles other Welsh place names, which often begin with Llan- , but is actually derived from reversing the phrase "bugger all". In early published editions of the play it was often rendered as Llaregyb or...
in
Under Milk WoodUnder Milk Wood is a 1954 play for radio by Dylan Thomas, later adapted for the stage. A film version, Under Milk Wood directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released in 1972....
.
In the early 12th century, grants of lands were made to
FlemingA Fleming is a member of the Flemish Community, and, in a slightly different meaning, an inhabitant of Flanders, one of the Belgian regions, and in a wider sense of the word, a region overlapping parts of modern Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. See Flemish people.-People:"Fleming" is a...
s by
Henry IHenry I was the fourth son of William I the Conqueror. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
when their country was flooded, and later they were joined by Flemish soldiers banished by
Henry IIHenry II, called Curtmantle ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France...
.
Laugharne is a
townA town is a type of settlement ranging from a few hundred to several thousand inhabitants, although it may be applied loosely even to huge metropolitan areas; the precise meaning varies between countries and is not always a matter of legal definition...
in
CarmarthenshireCarmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. Its three largest towns are Carmarthen, Llanelli and Ammanford...
,
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
, lying on the
estuaryAn estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are thus subject to both marine influences, such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water; and riverine influences, such as flows of...
of the
River TâfThe River Tâf is a river that rises in the Preseli Hills of North Pembrokeshire, West Wales, near the village of Crymych and is around 50 km long....
. It is known for having been the home of
Dylan ThomasDylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer[, Encyclopædia Britannica . Retrieved 11 January 2008.] who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
from 1949 until his death in 1953, and is thought to have been an inspiration for the fictional town of
LlareggubLlareggub is a fictional town that features in Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. Its name resembles other Welsh place names, which often begin with Llan- , but is actually derived from reversing the phrase "bugger all". In early published editions of the play it was often rendered as Llaregyb or...
in
Under Milk WoodUnder Milk Wood is a 1954 play for radio by Dylan Thomas, later adapted for the stage. A film version, Under Milk Wood directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released in 1972....
.
History
In the early 12th century, grants of lands were made to
FlemingA Fleming is a member of the Flemish Community, and, in a slightly different meaning, an inhabitant of Flanders, one of the Belgian regions, and in a wider sense of the word, a region overlapping parts of modern Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. See Flemish people.-People:"Fleming" is a...
s by
Henry IHenry I was the fourth son of William I the Conqueror. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
when their country was flooded, and later they were joined by Flemish soldiers banished by
Henry IIHenry II, called Curtmantle ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France...
. They were weavers and dyers and were such an influence that
WelshWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh border and in the Welsh immigrant colony in the Chubut Valley in Argentine Patagonia....
was hardly ever heard in Laugharne.
A
castleLaugharne Castle is a castle in the town of Laugharne in southern Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is located on the estuary of the River Tâf....
, known originally as the Castle of Abercorran, existed in Laugharne before the Norman Conquest and belonged to the princes of South Wales. Henry II visited it in 1172 on his return from Ireland and made peace with Prince Rhys of Dynevor. Through the marriage of Prince Rhys' daughter, the castle passed to Sir Guy de Brian, who had been Lord High Admiral of England. His daughter Elizabeth inherited the castle and married Owen Laugharne of St. Bride's who gave his name to the castle.
Possession passed to the Crown and during the 16th century belonged to Sir John Perrot, returning to the crown after his death. In 1644 the castle was garrisoned for the king and taken for Parliament by General William Laugharne, who subsequently reverted to the king's side. This led
CromwellOliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader best known for his involvement in making England into a republican Commonwealth and for his later role as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland.He was one of the commanders of the New Model Army which defeated the royalists in...
to lay siege to the castle, burning and leaving it in ruins.
Laugharne is mentioned as being affected by the
Bristol Channel floods, 1607On 30 January, 1607 the Bristol Channel floods resulted in the drowning of an estimated 2,000 or more people, with houses and villages swept away, an estimated of farmland inundated and livestock destroyed, wrecking the local economy along the coasts of the Bristol Channel, UK.The...
but it is not known whether this had any long-term effects on the town.
Laugharne Corporation
Laugharne
CorporationA municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
is an almost unique institution, and the last surviving mediæval corporation in the United Kingdom. The Corporation was established in 1291 by Sir Guy de Brian, a
Marcher LordA Marcher Lord is the English equivalent of a margrave . In this context the word "march" means a border region or frontier, and is cognate with the verb "to march," both ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European *mereg-, "edge" or "boundary." For its international context see Marches.- Border...
. The Corporation is presided over by the
PortreeveA portreeve, or 'port warden' is a historical British political appointment with a fluctuating role which evolved over time.The origins of the position are in the reign of Edward the Elder, who, in order to ensure that taxes were correctly exacted, forbade the conducting of trades outside of a...
, wearing his traditional chain of gold
cockleCockle may refer to:* Cockle * Cockle * Berwick cockles, a confectionery from Scotland* The phrase 'warm the cockles of one's heart' refers to the ventricles of the heart...
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 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 is dealt with. The Laugharne
open field systemThe open field system was the prevalent agricultural system in much of Europe from the Middle Ages to as recently as the 20th century in places. Under this system, each manor or village had several very large unfenced fields, farmed in strips by individual families...
is one of only two surviving and still in use today in Britain. The most senior 76 burgesses get a strang of land on Hugden for life, to be used in a form of mediaeval strip farming.
Customs associated with the Corporation include the Common walk (also known as beating the bounds), which occurs on Whit Monday every three years. This event is attended by most of the young and firm local population, their number swelled by many visitors. The local pubs open at approx 5.00 in the morning, and following a liquid breakfast the throng commence a trek of some 25 miles around the boundaries of the Corporation lands. At significant historical landmarks a victim is selected to name the place. If they cannot answer, they are hoisted upside down and ceremonially beaten three times on the rear.
Laugharne Corporation holds extensive historial records.
Customs
The cockle industry was once a significant part of the Laugharne economy, and the well-established
picklingPickling, also known as brining or corning, is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar . The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste...
firm Parsons have their origins in Laugharne. Prior to this, fishing in
Carmarthen BayCarmarthen Bay is an inlet of the south Wales coast. The coastline includes famous beaches, including the Pendine Sands and Cefn Sidan sands, and is partially covered by the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park....
was of great importance.
The Laugharne accent is interesting, sounding like a mix of
DevonDevon is a large county in England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, although that is an unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county itself and often indicating a traditional or historical context. The county shares borders with Cornwall to the west and Dorset and Somerset to...
with Carmarthenshire
WelshWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh border and in the Welsh immigrant colony in the Chubut Valley in Argentine Patagonia....
. Many local words and phrases are
archaicArchaic may refer to a period of time preceding a "classical period":*List of archaeological periods**Archaic period in Greece**Archaic period in the Americas**Early Dynastic Period of Egypt...
: e.g. "How art thee maid?". Laugharne is at the eastern end of the south Wales
EnglishryThe Landsker Line is a term commonly used for the language boundary between the Welsh-speaking and English-speaking areas in southwest Wales. The English-speaking areas, known as Little England beyond Wales, are notable for having been English linguistically and culturally for many centuries...
and only a minority of its inhabitants have ever spoken Welsh. The language boundary lies a few miles north of Laugharne.
Architecturally, Laugharne contains many fine examples of
GeorgianGeorgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the...
townhouseHistorically in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in many other countries, a townhouse was a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city. Most such figures owned one or more country houses in which they lived for much of the year...
s, including "Great House" and
Castle House, LaugharneCastle House in Laugharne, Carmarthenshire, Wales, is a Grade II*–listed Georgian mansion. Described by Dylan Thomas as “the best of houses in the best of places”, it is one of many buildings of note in the medieval township....
a 2* Listed building, with a scattering of earlier
vernacularVernacular architecture is a term used to categorise methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it exists...
cottageIn modern usage, a cottage is a modest dwelling, typically in a rural, or semi-rural location...
s.
Attractions in the town include the 12th-century
Laugharne CastleLaugharne Castle is a castle in the town of Laugharne in southern Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is located on the estuary of the River Tâf....
, the town hall and the birdlife of the estuary.
During the Great War, over 300 men and women of Laugharne and her surrounding villages volunteered to fight in His Majesty’s Forces, 54 of these lost their lives. They are buried or commemorated all over the world, from Belgium to India. This was the ‘War to end all Wars’, and it was thought that mankind would never again be so idiotic as to commit her sons to this slaughter again, but as we all know, the sons of these men were again to fight in
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and the area lost another 20 sons. These men, alongside their compatriots from Carmarthenshire are remembered in perpetuity on the website
Carmarthenshire War Memorials
The Laugharne Weekend
In 2007, Laugharne hosted a three day literary festival - The Laurgharne Weekend - intended as an annual event, and featuring writers such as
Niall GriffithsNiall Griffiths is an author, who has published six books to date. He has also written travel pieces, restaurant and book reviews, and radio plays. He is currently working on a collection of short stories and a novella...
and Patrick McCabe.
The 2008 event was headlined by
Will SelfWilliam Woodard Self is an English novelist, reviewer and columnist. He is known for his satirical, grotesque and fantastical novels and short stories.-Personal life:...
,
Howard MarksDennis Howard Marks is a former teacher, drug smuggler and author who achieved notoriety as an international hashish smuggler through high-profile court cases, supposed connections with groups such as MI6, the IRA, and the Mafia, and his eventual conviction at the hands of the American Drug...
and
Patti SmithPatricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer–songwriter, poet and visual artist who was a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses. Called the "Godmother of Punk", she integrated the beat poetry performance style with three-chord rock...
. Although the town's Millennium Hall was used as the main venue, smaller events were hosted by local venues including Dylan Thomas' Boathouse.
External links