Rhossili

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Rhossili

Rhossili is a small village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or Residential community, larger than a hamlet , but smaller than a town or city. Though generally located in rural areas, the term urban village may be applied to certain urban area neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in Beirut, Lebanon....
and community

Community

In biological terms, a community is a group of interacting organisms sharing an environment .In human communities, intention, belief, Natural resource, preferences, Need assessment, risks, and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the Identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness....
on the southwestern tip of the Gower peninsula

Gower Peninsula

The Gower Peninsula is a peninsula on the south coast of Wales, on the north side of the Bristol Channel in the southwest of the Historic counties of Wales of Glamorgan....
near Swansea

Swansea

Swansea is a City status in the United Kingdom and subdivisions of Wales in Wales. Swansea is in the Historic counties of Wales of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower peninsula and the Lliw uplands....
in Wales

Wales

native_name = Cymru|conventional_long_name = Wales|common_name = Wales|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg|national_motto = ...
.

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Origin of name

Rhossili probably gets its name in part from the Welsh

Welsh language

Welsh ]], is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh Marches and in the Welsh settlement in Argentina in the Chubut Valley in Argentina Patagonia....
word for moorland, rhos. The second element in the name may be a reference to a Saint

Saint

A saint in Christianity is a human being who has been called to holiness. The term is used differently by various denominations, with some, such as the Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans distinguishing between Saints and saints....
Sulien

Sulien

Sulien was an 11th century Bishop of St David's, for two periods . He died in the following year.Sulien is closely associated with the class church at Llanbadarn Fawr near Aberystwyth where it appears that he took refuge when St David's was at times exposed to Viking incursions....
or St. Sili, but details are not clear. Certainly the present Norman

Norman architecture

The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries....
church

Church

File:Pisgah.jpgFile:Fordekyrkje.jpgFile:Almakerek2.jpgFile:ChurchB.JPGFile:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-S36049, Frankreich, Lens, Kirche.jpgA church building is a building or structure whose primary purpose is to facilitate the meeting of a Ecclesia ....
is dedicated to St. Mary the Virgin. Inside there is a memorial to Edgar Evans

Edgar Evans

Petty Officer Edgar Evans was one of Robert Falcon Scott's companions on his ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition to the South Pole in 1911-1912....
who was the first to perish on the Terra Nova Expedition

Terra Nova Expedition

The Terra Nova Expedition , officially the British Antarctic Expedition 1910, was led by Robert Falcon Scott who had previously commanded the Discovery Expedition to the Antarctic in 1901–04....
on the return from the South Pole

South Pole

The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's rotation intersects the surface....
.

History

There was a local tradition that there had been an earlier, pre medieval village complete with church closer to the sea which had been abandoned after "besanding" in the 14th century. A storm and subsequent excavation of newly-exposed remains in the Warren (an area of sand dunes to the north of the present village) in 1980 helped to confirm the truth of this.

Despite its relatively remote position, Rhossili is a popular tourist destination: the views from the headland and the Down are panoramic; several pleasant walks begin, end, or pass through the village; Iron Age

Iron Age

In archaeology, the Iron Age was the stage in the development of any people in which tools and weapons whose main ingredient was iron were prominent....
remains are found on Rhossili Down; and the 4 mile (6.4km) long beach attracts surfers, particularly at the Llangennith

Llangennith

Llangennith is a village in the City and County of Swansea, south Wales, in the Gower peninsula. It has a scattering of houses and one pub - the Kings Head....
(northern) end.

The prominent wreck of the Helvetia, which ran aground on Rhossili Bay in November 1887, bears witness to the challenging weather conditions and the tales of our ancestors, who lured boats ashore to plunder their holds.

Rhossili Bay

Rhossili Bay curves along an arc running northwards from the village. The sandy beach is three miles (5 km) long and is backed with sand dunes. Locals refer to the beach as Llangennith Sands. Behind the beach just north of the village is Rhossili Down with the highest point on the Gower Peninsula

Peninsula

A peninsula is a piece of Landform that is nearly surrounded by water but connected to mainland via an isthmus. Word origin: Latin paeninsula : paene, almost + insula, island....
, (the Beacon), and a number of prehistoric remains. It is between Rhossili Down and the beach proper that the Warren is found.

At the southern end of the Bay is the outcrop of rock called the Worm's Head. At the north is Burry Holms

Burry Holms

Burry Holms is a small tidal island located at the northern end of the Gower peninsula, Wales. 9,000 years ago it was up to 12 miles away from the sea and inhabited by nomadic Mesolithic hunters....
. These islands are accessible at low tide only. Also at low tide, it is possible to see the remains of several shipwreck

Shipwreck

A shipwreck is the remains of a ship that has wrecked, either in it having sunk or been Beaching . A shipwreck can refer to a wrecked ship or to the event that caused the wreck, such as the striking of something that causes the ship to sink, the stranding of the ship on rocks, land or shoal, or the destruction of the ship at sea by vio...
s, wood from the wreck of the Helvetia being the most prominent when looking north from Rhossili.

Fall Bay

Fall Bay is one of the most remote and hardest to reach beaches on the Gower. The beach is never crowded due to its remoteness. There is still some beach visible at high tide. The beach is very popular with surfers. At very low tide, it is possible to walk over from the beach to Mewslade Bay

Mewslade Bay

Mewslade Bay is a sandy beach in the south of the Gower peninsula, Wales.To the east lies Butterslade, to the west lies Fall Bay.It is accessible via a rocky wooded path which is muddy in places....
. The beach is reachable via a path which passes Rhossili village hall. It continues over fields and many stiles and has a steep final descent. The cliff path leads east to Mewslade Bay

Mewslade Bay

Famous citizens

Edgar Evans
Edgar Evans

Petty Officer Edgar Evans was one of Robert Falcon Scott's companions on his ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition to the South Pole in 1911-1912....
, Antarctic explorer (a memorial tablet can be seen in the parish church)
Gary Ley
Gary Ley

Gary Ley is a Wales writer and sculpture technician, based in Rhossili on the Gower peninsula.Born in Swansea, Ley studied Geography at university and had a career as a teacher and lecturer before being involved in the setting up of a sculpture business in 1988....
, writer

National Trust

The National Trust

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty

The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organization in England, Wales and Northern Ireland....
owns and protects much land on the Gower peninsula. The Trust operates a visitor centre near the Warren, the Down, Worm's Head, Rhossili beach and coastal cliffs.

Boating

Rhossili Bay is not normally appropriate for overnight stays by visiting boats as the bay is West facing, relatively shallow and renowned as a surfing beach. It may however offer good shelter for boats in Easterly and Southerly winds - for all other wind directions it should be regarded as a no-go area. It is probably one of the few beaches that offers good shelter from Easterly winds in the Bristol Channel

Bristol Channel

The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England, and extending from the lower Severn Estuary of the River Severn to that part of the North Atlantic Ocean known as the Celtic Sea ....
.

Fishing

At the appropriate time of the year, the areas of both Worms Head and Burry Holms are renowned for the good Sea Bass

Sea bass

Sea bass refers to many fish species of various families, including:* Black sea bass , whose range is the eastern coast of the United States* White seabass , along the Pacific coast of the United States...
fishing. Worms Head can be seen to attract many small leisure fishing vessels during the summer months. Fishing from the shore is extremely popular along both the north and south sides of the Loughor estuary to the west of Burry Holms

Burry Holms

Rhossili

Origin of name

History

Rhossili Bay

Fall Bay

Famous citizens

National Trust

Boating

Fishing

External links