Llandovery
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 Monument toLlywelyn ap Gruffydd Fychan at Llandovery | |
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  Llandovery Location withinCarmarthenshire | |
| Population | 1,985 (Community, 2021)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SN763346 |
| Community |
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| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LLANDOVERY |
| Postcode district | SA20 |
| Dialling code | 01550 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
51°59′45″N3°47′50″W / 51.99583°N 3.79722°W /51.99583; -3.79722  Map of the community | |
Llandovery (Welsh:Llanymddyfri;Welsh pronunciation:[ɬanəmˈðəvri]ⓘ) is amarket town andcommunity inCarmarthenshire,Wales. It lies on theRiver Tywi and at the junction of theA40 andA483 roads, about 25 miles (40 km) north-east ofCarmarthen, 27 miles (43 km) north ofSwansea and 21 miles (34 km) west ofBrecon.
The name of the town derives fromLlan ymlith y dyfroedd, meaning "church enclosure amid the waters", i.e. between the Tywi and theAfon Brân just upstream of their confluence. A smaller watercourse, the Bawddwr, runs through and under the town.
TheRoman fort at Llanfair Hill to the north-east of the modern town was known to theRomans asAlabum. It was built around AD 50–60 as part of a strategy for the conquest ofWales. ARoman road heads acrossMynydd Bach Trecastell to the south-east of Llandovery bound for the fort ofBrecon Gaer. Another heads down the Towy valley forCarmarthen, whilst a third makes for the goldmines atDolaucothi.
Attractions in the town include the remains of the NormanLlandovery Castle, built in 1110. It was almost immediately captured by the Welsh and changed hands between them and theNormans until the reign of KingEdward I of England in the late 13th century. The castle was used by KingHenry IV while on a sortie into Wales, when he executedLlywelyn ap Gruffydd Fychan in the market place. It was later attacked by the forces ofOwain Glyndŵr in 1403.
A 16-foot-high (4.9 m) stainless-steel statue toLlywelyn ap Gruffydd Fychan was unveiled in 2001 on the north side of Llandovery Castle, overlooking the place of his execution 600 years earlier. He had led the army of KingHenry IV on a "wild goose chase", under the pretence of leading them to a secret rebel camp and an ambush of Glyndŵr's forces. King Henry lost patience with him, exposed the charade and had him half hanged, disembowelled in front of his own eyes, beheaded and quartered – the quarters salted and dispatched to other Welsh towns for public display.
The design of the statue, by Toby and Gideon Petersen, was chosen after a national competition. It was funded by the National Lottery and theArts Council of Wales.
According to folklore, thePhysicians of Myddfai practised in the area in the 13th century.
The Bank of the Black Ox, one of the first Welsh banks, was established by a wealthycattle drover. The original bank building was part of the King's Head Inn. It later became part ofLloyds Bank.[2]
The population in 1841 was 1,709.[3]
The town has a theatre (Llandovery Theatre), aheritage centre, a private school (Llandovery College) and a tourist information and heritage centre, which houses exhibitions on the Tonn Press, the area's droving history, and the 19th-century geologistSir Roderick Impey Murchison, whose work here resulted in the name "Llandovery" being given to rocks of a certain age across the world. The Llandovery epoch is the earliest in theSilurian period of geological time.
In the small central market place standsLlandovery Town Hall (1857–1858) by the architect Richard Kyke Penson. This was designed in theItalianate style with a courtroom over an open market. Behind are police cells with iron grilles; entry to the old courtroom (now a library) is via a door on the ground floor of the tower.[4]
There are two medieval churches in Llandovery: the 14th-century St Dingat's to the west of the town centre, and the 12th-centurySt Mary's on the northern outskirts of the town. St Dingat's is aGrade II* listed building, and one of the largest medieval churches in Carmarthenshire. It stands on a site which appears to have been in religious use since pre-Norman times.[5][6] St Mary's is aGrade I listed building and was formerly the parish church for the neighbouring parish ofLlanfair-ar-y-bryn, despite not being within that parish's boundaries. It subsequently became achapel of ease to St Dingat's in 1883 after a new church for Llanfair-ar-y-bryn was built within the parish boundaries.[7][8][9]
TheMemorial Chapel in Stryd y Bont was built as a memorial to the hymnistWilliam Williams Pantycelyn.
The town'scomprehensive school, Ysgol Pantycelyn, with about 300 pupils,[10] was closed on 31 August 2013[11] and merged withYsgol Tre-Gib inFfairfach to formYsgol Bro Dinefwr.
The town has an independent day and boarding school,Llandovery College.
Llandovery has a leading Welsh Premiershiprugby union team,Llandovery RFC, nicknamed The Drovers, active as such since at least 1877 and a founder member of the Welsh Rugby Union. It has successful junior and youth sections. A number of former players have gone on to represent Wales (and some other nations) in international rugby. Home games are played at its ground in Church Bank.
Llandovery Junior Football Club has a membership of over 70 from Llandovery and its surrounding area. It provides coaching and competitive scope for all aged 6 to 16 years. The club currently has an Under 14 team in the Carmarthenshire Junior League, and Under 11 and Under 8 teams playing in the Carmarthen Mini Football League.
A Llandovery Golf Club, founded in 1910, survived until the onset of the Second World War.[12] Golfing now takes place on the Llandovery College 9-hole course.[13]
There are two tiers of local government covering Llandovery, atcommunity (town) andcounty level: Llandovery Town Council (Cyngor Tref Llanymddyfri) andCarmarthenshire County Council (Cyngor Sir Gâr). The town council meets at the Town Hall in the Market Square.[14]
The community is bordered by those ofLlanfair-ar-y-bryn,Myddfai,Llanwrda, andCilycwm, all being in Carmarthenshire.[15]
Llandovery istwinned withPluguffan inBrittany, France.
Llandovery historically formed part of the parish of Llandingat. Llandovery was the main settlement in the parish, which was named after its parish church of St Dingat's. The parish included surrounding rural areas as well as Llandovery.[16] Llandovery appears to have been anancient borough, although its earliest knowncharter was not issued until 1485 byRichard III. The borough covered the central part of Llandingat parish, including St Dingat's church.[17]
The borough was reformed to become amunicipal borough in 1836 under theMunicipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country.[18] TheLocal Government Act 1894 directed thatcivil parishes could no longer straddle borough boundaries, and so Llandingat parish was split into a Llandingat Within parish covering the same area as the borough of Llandovery, and a Llandingat Without parish covering the areas outside the borough.[19]
The borough of Llandovery was abolished in 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972. A community called Llandovery was created instead, covering the area of the abolished borough, with its community council taking the name Llandovery Town Council. District-level functions passed toDinefwr Borough Council. Carmarthenshire County Council was abolished as part of the same reforms, with county-level functions passing to the newDyfed County Council.[20] Dinefwr and Dyfed were both abolished in 1996 and their councils' functions passed to a re-established Carmarthenshire County Council.[21] Llandingat Without also became a community under the 1974 reforms; it was abolished in 1987 and split between the community of Llandovery and other neighbouring communities.[22]
Llandovery stands at the junction of the mainA40 andA483 roads.
Llandovery railway station is on theHeart of Wales line, with services in the direction ofSwansea and ofShrewsbury.
In date-of-birth order.See alsoCategory:People from Llandovery
TheDolaucothi Gold Mines are located 10 miles (16 km) away nearPumpsaint on the A482. The road follows an originalRoman road toLlanio fort.
Llandovery lies just north ofBrecon Beacons National Park andFforest Fawr Geopark, whose geological heritage is celebrated. These designated landscapes are centred onBannau Sir Gâr or theCarmarthen Fans, themselves part of theBlack Mountain extending north towards the town, asMynydd Myddfai andMynydd Bach Trecastell. The village ofMyddfai lies within the National Park, 4 miles (6 km) to the south-east of Llandovery.
TheLlyn Brianne dam is 11 miles (18 km) to the north is in rugged countryside aboveRhandirmwyn. The route to the dam also passesTwm Siôn Cati's Cave at theRSPB's Dinas reserve.
Llandovery travel guide from Wikivoyage| International | |
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