On a dry but cool morning Janet and John led a short walk in the Llantwit Major (Llanilltud Fawr) area which attracted six walkers and Jodie the dog.
Beginning from what is now the Town Hall, this lovely building began its life in the 15th century as the administrative centre for the manor where the court met to collect rents. During the reign of King Henry VIII it was referred to as a guildhall and was renovated in the late 16th century. Following this it was rented out and over the years the lower floor has been a school, slaughter house and lock-up.
During the 1830’s the upper rooms were leased to the Oddfellows, which was a friendly society set up to protect and care for their members and the community at a time when there was no welfare state, health service or trade union and they established branches throughout the country commonly known as ‘Lodges’. When the Parish Council was established in Llantwit Major the upper floor served as a meeting place, concert and dance hall and even a cinema!
From the aptly named Burial Lane they walked past St Illtud’s Church which lies in a dip beside the Ogney brook before climbing the steps beside the neat row of private terraced houses at Hillhead, built at the beginning of the 19th century to house the poor people of the parish. After the Poorhouse was opened in Bridgend these cottages were sold as private dwellings and leading up to the cottages is a flight of steps known as ‘Big Man’s’ or ‘Pig-Man’s Steps.’
Stone stiles are a feature of this area and clambering over the first of many they entered a field which contains the splendid stone dovecote or columbarium, which despite having a locked iron gate now sadly only contains empty cans, beer bottles and rubbish.
It dates from the 14th century when doves and pigeons helped to provide meat during the winter time, their feathers were used in pillows and covers and their droppings were collected and used as manure on the land. This lovely well preserved dovecote because it was circular meant more nesting places in the walls and internal wooden platforms were usually constructed for easy access to collect the eggs.
Exiting from the field to join a quiet lane they passed Colhugh Park and joined a track through Lower House Farm which led them along the very slippery muddy path above Cwm Col-huw that had been made worse by loose cattle tramping along it. Avoiding deep pools of surface water and after slithering and sliding their way through it was a relief to join firmer footing on the coastal path above Llantwit Major beach.
Turning west the group tramped along the cliff top passing pretty spring daffodils and enjoying splendid views along the coast towards St Donats.
Descending steps they entered Tresilian Bay where the Nant Tresilian flows down to join the sea and the splendid white-painted Tresilian House set behind a wall was once an inn, no doubt frequented by smugglers as the Bristol Channel was renowned for smuggling.
Several of the group had never visited Reynard’s Cave which is only accessible at low tide and with the tide ebbing they tramped down the pebble beach and were able to enter the large cave about which many old legends abound.
Inside is a natural limestone arch known as the Bow of Destiny and it is said that lovers would visit and the man would attempt to throw a pebble over the arch, the number of times it took being the number of years it would take for them to marry.
Sheltering out of the blustery chilly northeast wind, refreshments were enjoyed in the bay before the group retraced their footsteps back up onto the cliff from where they walked to the Dimhole where they turned inland climbing gently uphill.
With the cool wind in their faces their return journey was made over a variety of old stone stiles in between fields which had been ploughed and seeded before they reached a green lane that led them back to the Gatehouse.
A large Grange or farm once stood there and both the Gatehouse and dovecot remain from that time when they were given to Tewkesbury Abbey by Robert Fitzhamon, Lord of Glamorgan. The main entrance to the farm was via an archway, which although it has been bricked up is still clearly visible and the grange was run by lay brethren with the revenue being passed to Tewkesbury.
The Ogney Brook and the Hoddnant converge to form the Afon Col-huw which flows down through the pretty valley for about a mile where it enters the Bristol Channel at Llantwit Major beach. A port was constructed there in the 5th century but was destroyed in the 16th century by a massive storm and never rebuilt.
Crossing the bridge over the Ogney Brook they passed into the churchyard of St Illtud’s Church which is built in two halves and has a magnificent preaching cross. The first church was Norman, a simple cruciform design with a tower and built on the site of an earlier Christian site founded by St Illtud around 500AD containing a church, monastery and school.
In the 13th century a low east tower was added and later the extensive grange or farm was established on the land to the west of the present church and an extension to the west church called the Galilee Chapel also dates from then. It was endowed as a Chantry when trust funds were set up by the Ragland family and used to employ a priest to sing masses for the benefit of departed souls to speed their journey to heaven. Sadly it has been in ruins for several centuries and the atmospheric remains of the Chantry Priests house damaged by a German bomb in 1940 stands to the rear of the cross on the south side of the churchyard.
The group returned past the old Tudor buildings in the centre of Llantwit Major after what had been an interesting half day tramp through history.
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