Port Eynon is a
villageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a town or city. Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in...
and
communityCommunity councils are bodies of representation in Great Britain.In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies...
in the city and county of
SwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
,
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...
. The community has its own elected community council. The village is located in the remote south western corner of the
Gower peninsulaThe Gower Peninsula is a peninsula on the south west coast of Wales, on the north side of the Bristol Channel in the southwest of the historic county of Glamorgan. Referred to colloquially as 'Gower', this was the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural...
which is a designated
Area of Outstanding Natural BeautyAn Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
.
Port Eynon Bay is a very popular
beachA beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of a body of water. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, or cobblestones...
resort beside the village of Port Eynon. Port Eynon Point, to the south west of the bay, is the most southerly point of the
Gower peninsulaThe Gower Peninsula is a peninsula on the south west coast of Wales, on the north side of the Bristol Channel in the southwest of the historic county of Glamorgan. Referred to colloquially as 'Gower', this was the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural...
. The bay is also in the area of outstanding natural beauty.
The village itself is fairly small and extends from the beach to the top of the hill.
Port Eynon is a
villageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a town or city. Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in...
and
communityCommunity councils are bodies of representation in Great Britain.In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies...
in the city and county of
SwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
,
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...
. The community has its own elected community council. The village is located in the remote south western corner of the
Gower peninsulaThe Gower Peninsula is a peninsula on the south west coast of Wales, on the north side of the Bristol Channel in the southwest of the historic county of Glamorgan. Referred to colloquially as 'Gower', this was the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural...
which is a designated
Area of Outstanding Natural BeautyAn Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...
.
Port Eynon Bay
Port Eynon Bay is a very popular
beachA beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of a body of water. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, or cobblestones...
resort beside the village of Port Eynon. Port Eynon Point, to the south west of the bay, is the most southerly point of the
Gower peninsulaThe Gower Peninsula is a peninsula on the south west coast of Wales, on the north side of the Bristol Channel in the southwest of the historic county of Glamorgan. Referred to colloquially as 'Gower', this was the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural...
. The bay is also in the area of outstanding natural beauty.
Port Eynon Village
The village itself is fairly small and extends from the beach to the top of the hill. Port Eynon village has two fish and chip shops at the sea front, a Youth Hostel, a pub, a
coffee shopA café , also spelled cafe, is an informal restaurant offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches. This differs from a coffee house, which is a limited-menu establishment which focuses on coffee sales. Depending on the jurisdiction, a café may be licensed to serve alcohol. The term...
and a
restaurantA restaurant prepares and serves food and drink to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
.
A neighbouring village, Overton, is to the north west of Port Eynon and footpaths from Overton lead to Overton Mere, a stony and rocky beach. Also, the village of Horton is at the east end of the main beach, approximately half a mile from Port Eynon.
History
Port Eynon is thought to be named after an 11th century
WelshWales 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...
PrincePrince, from French "Prince" , is a general term for a monarch, for a member of a monarchs' or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in some members of Europe's highest nobility...
named Eynon. Eynon is a surname in Wales and the church
graveyardA graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones. It is usually located near and administered by a church....
in the village shows gravestones with this surname. It is believed that the Prince built Port Eynon
castleA castle is a defensive structure seen as one of the main symbols of the Middle Ages. The term has a history of scholarly debate surrounding its exact meaning, but it is usually regarded as being distinct from the general terms fort or fortress, in that it describes a residence of a monarch or...
which no longer exists.
SmugglingSmuggling, also known as trafficking, is the clandestine transportation of goods or persons past a point where prohibited, such as out of a building, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.There are various motivations to smuggle...
is thought to have been a common engagement of the local residents in the 17th century to 19th century.
A derelict "salt house" used for extracting
saltA salt, in chemistry, is an ionic compound, and can result from the neutralization reaction of acids and bases. Salts are ionic compounds composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
from sea water is located a quarter of a mile from the village, just off Port Eynon Point.
In the second half of the 18th century, through to 1919, a
lifeboatThe meaning of lifeboat or motor lifeboat, for the purposes of this article, is that of 'a shore-based boat designed with special features for searching for, rescuing and saving the lives of people in peril at sea in inshore waters'. This is in contrast to a survival craft type of lifeboat that is...
was operated from Port Eynon. On several occasions, the lives of lifeboatmen were lost at sea on rescues. On the 1st January 1916 the lives of three young men were lost in the Port Eynon Lifeboat Disaster when the lifeboat went to the assistance of
SS Dunvegan which was shipwrecked off
OxwichOxwich is a village in the principal area of Swansea, Wales. It is situated to the far south of the Gower peninsula. Attractions in the village include the Oxwich Burrows marsh, the Tudor Oxwich Castle, Penrice Castle and local sandy beaches including Oxwich Bay.- External links :* * *...
point. A memorial to these men exists in the village churchyard. Copies of news articles on the Disaster can be seen on the wall of the local fish and chip shop in Port Eynon - The Captain's Table.
External links