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Y GARN - PARKE
![Y GARN - PARKE](images/ygarnparke1.jpg)
GRID REFERENCE: SN 040377
AREA IN HECTARES: 224
Historic Background
A small area of modern Pembrokeshire, comprising a narrow
strip of enclosed land and ‘cottages’ lying between Mynydd
Carningli and Newport town. It lies within the medieval Cantref Cemaes.
Cemaes was brought under Anglo-Norman control in c.1100 by the Fitzmartins
who retained it, as the Barony of Cemaes, until 1326, when they were succeeded
by the Audleys. The Barony was coterminous with the later Hundred of Cemais,
which was created in 1536, but many feudal rights and obligations persisted,
some until as late as 1922. The area lies along the northern edge of the
unenclosed moorland of Mynydd Carningli and it is likely that it too was
unenclosed during the medieval period, forming part of an common (see
Carningli character area). There is no immediate evidence for early enclosures
in Y Garn Parke character area but prehistoric field systems have been
recorded on Mynydd Carningli. The common was held directly by the Lords
of Cemaes, but in 1278 Nicholas Fitzmartin issued a charter, specifying
the borough boundaries and granting the burgesses right of common grazing
over ‘all my land wet and dry, moors and turbaries’ on Mynydd
Carningli. This area is crossed by the medieval Newport-Haverfordwest
highway, ‘Ffordd Bedd Morris’, and the holding of Parc-y-marriage,
which lies partly within this area, was recorded as demesne in Nicholas
Fitzmartin’s charter. The medieval pilgrimage chapel of Capel Curig
also appears to have occupied the area, but at an unknown location. Such
chapels rarely appear to have been accompanied by any form of settlement.
Most of this area in fact appears to have lain within the unenclosed common
land, which, during the medieval period, probably extended as far as Newport
town and the castle; surveys of 1434 and 1594 suggest that the southern
limit of the town was much as it is today. Indeed the form of the present
enclosure suggests that it largely represents post-medieval encroachment
onto the common. A painting by J ‘Warwick’ Smith, from 1787,
appears to show open land descending to the castle, suggesting that some
of this enclosure is very late indeed, but it may be artistic convention.
A close examination of the enclosure reveals two distinct patterns. One
comprises small, irregular fields from informal enclosure, possibly resulting
from ‘squatter’ settlement, characteristic of the 18th century
and first half of the 19th century when squatters settled on the fringes
of common land at a period of rising population. The second comprises
regular, rectangular fields that appear co-ordinated, and are possibly
later. The field pattern extends into the parish of Dinas. There is very
little cartographic evidence to indicate the form and density of settlement
in the 18th century and early 19th century apart from a couple of mid
18th century estate maps. These are useful as they show small fields and
farms over at least part of this area interspersed with pockets of common,
showing that colonisation of the landscape was in progress. Right of common
pasture appears to have ended by the early 19th century and the tithe
map of c. 1840 shows a pattern much as today, although there has been
some loss of settlement, particularly at higher levels.
![Y GARN - PARKE](images/ygarnparke2.jpg)
Description and essential historic landscape
components
This historic landscape character area occupies a 300m
to 600m wide band on north-facing slopes at 100m to 200m high sandwiched
between the lower-lying Newport coastal plain to the north and the higher
unenclosed moorland of Mynydd Carningli to the south. It is characterised
by a fairly densely packed distribution of cottages and small agricultural
holdings set in a landscape of small, irregular fields. Pasture is the
dominant land-use, but much of the land close to the mountain edge is
reverting to rough grazing and moorland, and scrubby woodland is regenerating
in sheltered hollows at lower levels. There is very little improved pasture.
Boundaries to the small fields are a mixture of stone-faced banks, stony
banks and dry-stone walls; with dry-stone walls probably the dominant
type. There are gaps in some of the banks, and many of the walls are in
poor condition. Barbed wire fences supplement these older boundaries in
many instances. At higher levels it is a virtually treeless landscape,
but at lower levels overgrown hedges, many containing much gorse, and
scrubby woodland lend a wooded aspect to the landscape -an aspect that
is emphasised by occasional small coniferous shelter belts. Dwellings
are generally of two storeys (with one storey, and one-and-a-half storeys
present) and three bays. They are in the broad vernacular tradition of
southwest Wales, some with polite ‘Georgian’ pretensions.
Their box-sash windows, symmetry of layout and occasional architectural
detailing indicates a mid to late 19th century date for the construction
of most of them. Generally the house quality is better in this area than
in other fringe agricultural settlements, indicating perhaps an income
from sources other than agriculture. Very small ranges of stone-built
agricultural buildings, some attached to the ends of dwellings and some
detached, testify to the original function of these settlements. Many
of these outbuildings have been converted to non-agricultural use. Most
dwellings are not now agricultural, and only a few examples of modern,
small, concrete, steel and timber outbuildings have been constructed.
Local stone, dolerite, is the chief, traditional building material, although
in many instances this is assumed as it is covered in cement render. Slate
is the only roofing building material noted, and all was the commercial
machine-cut variety. No local slate was recorded. There are a few modern
dwellings in this area. A network of lanes, trackways and paths, often
flanked by high banks, connects the settlements. The few recorded archaeological
sites in this area include a fold/pound, a possible round barrow and other
possible prehistoric sites. Several deserted settlements/dwellings testify
to the depopulation of this area in the late 19th century through to the
mid 20th century.
This is a distinct area, although it is not easy to define
its boundaries with precision. Along the northern edge this area merges
with larger farms and larger fields, and to the south, west and east reversion
of pasture to rougher grazing and moor is leading to a blurring of the
boundary between this area and open moorland.
Sources: Bignall 1991; Howells 1997; Lewis 1833; Miles 1995; National
Library of Wales Llwyngwair Map 5, Map 7 (1758), Map 8 (1758); Newport
Parish tithe map 1844; Owen 1897; Pembrokeshire Record Office HPR/33/33
(1772)
Base map reproduced from the OS map with the permission
of Ordnance Survey on behalf of The Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery
Office, © Crown Copyright 2001.
All rights reserved. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown Copyright
and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. Licence Number: GD272221 |