| Llanelli | |
|---|---|
  Llanelli Location withinCarmarthenshire | |
| Population | 25,366 (Community, 2021)[1] 42,155 (Built up area, 2021)[2] |
| OS grid reference | SN505005 |
| Community |
|
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LLANELLI |
| Postcode district | SA14, SA15 |
| Dialling code | 01554[3] |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
| Website | llanellitowncouncil.co.uk |
51°41′02″N4°09′47″W / 51.684°N 4.163°W /51.684; -4.163  Map of the community | |
Llanelli (Welsh for 'St Elli'sParish';Welsh:[ɬaˈnɛɬi]ⓘ) is amarket town andcommunity inCarmarthenshire and thepreserved county ofDyfed, Wales. It is on theestuary of theRiver Loughor and is the largest town in thecounty of Carmarthenshire.[4]
The town is 11 miles (18 km) north-west ofSwansea and 12 miles (19 km) south-east ofCarmarthen. At the2021 census the community had a population of 25,366, and the built up area had a population of 42,155. The local authority wasLlanelli Borough Council when the county of Dyfed existed, and it has been underCarmarthenshire County Council since 1996.[5]
The anglicised spelling “Llanelly” was used until 1966, when it was changed to Llanelli after a local public campaign. It remains in the name of a local historic building,Llanelly House, and this is sometimes confused with the village and parish ofLlanelly, in south-east Wales nearAbergavenny.
Llanelly inVictoria, Australia was named after this town of Llanelli, using the spelling current at that time.[6][7]
The beginnings of Llanelli can be found on the lands of present-day Parc Howard. An Iron Age hill fort once stood which was calledBryn-Caerau (hill of the forts). Evidence suggests there were five hill forts from Old Road to the Dimpath. During the Roman conquest of Wales it is unknown whether the area of Llanelli was part of theSilures tribe or theDemetae tribe. There is evidence of a Roman camp near St Elli shopping centre. It is unknown when it was built, and it was completely abandoned shortly after construction either due to the Romans thinking the area was completely worthless or due to a raid by either rebellious local Britons or an Irish raid. During the post-Roman period, the area of Llanelli may have been heavily populated withPagans as there's evidence of a pagan worship temple under the Saint Elli church, it may have had frequent raids fromBrycheiniog andDyfed in order to Christianise the area to which it would eventually fall into Dyfed. During the early medieval period, it is said a saint named Elli, or Ellyw,[4] who in legend is the son or daughter of KingBrychan established a church on the banks of theAfon Lliedi. The original church would have been a wooden or partly stone, thatched structure. According to early Welsh transcripts, the church of Carnwyllion, i.e. the mother church of the cwmwd, was at Llanelli.[8] The currentSt Elli's Church dates from the 14th century although extensive restorations were completed in 1911.[9]
According to theRed Book of Hergest during theNorman invasion of Wales Rhys Ieuanc and his uncle Maelgwn ap Rhys took the allegiance of all the Welsh of theKingdom of Dyfed apart from one region.Cemais would not pay allegiance and thus Rhys Ieuanc and his uncle, Maelgwn ap Rhys, attacked and pillaged the area moving on to attack the castles at Narberth and Maenclochog. At this time Rhys Ieuanc moved against Cedweli and Carnwyllion with his forces besieging and burning Carnwyllion Castle in 1215.[10]
Llanelli was industrialised in the early 19th century as the global centre fortinplate production.[11] Lying near the Western fringe of the South Wales Coal Field, Llanelli played an important role in industry, with coal exported through three small docks along with the copper and tin produced within the town itself. Although Llanelli is not located within the South Wales valleys, coal from the Gwendraeth and the Loughor Valleys was transported to Llanelli for export. TheStepney Family and other prominent families (including the Raby family, Howard family and Cowell family), played an important role in the development of the town. Aside from industry, Llanelli is also renowned for its pottery, which has a unique cockerel hand-painted on each item. A collection of this pottery can bee seen at the Llanelli Museum in Parc Howard.[12]
Llanelli people are sometimes nicknamed "Turks".[13] There are several theories on this nickname: Llanelli allowed the docking of a Turkish ship when Swansea dockers were on strike in the 1920s, Llanelli tinplate workers wrapped their heads like turbans to deal with sweat, or it is a reference to the 4th Battalion of theWelch Regiment fighting against theOttoman Empire in theMiddle Eastern theatre of World War I.[14]
The built up area, as defined by theOffice for National Statistics, extends beyond the Llanelli community to include parts of the neighbouring Llanelli Rural community.[2]
In 2024 it was announced that the town would be seeking city status.[15][16]
Llanelli hosted theNational Eisteddfod six times between 1895 and 2014.[17]
In the mid-20th century, Llanelli was the world's largest town in which more than half the inhabitants spoke aCeltic language.[18] It is ranked as theseventh largest urban area in Wales. According to the2011 UK Census returns, 23.7 per cent of Llanelli town residents habitually spokeWelsh. However, the area around Llanelli is a Welsh stronghold, in which 56 per cent do so in communities such asLlwynhendy andBurry Port.
During the 1950s, Trefor andEileen Beasley campaigned to get Llanelli Rural Council to distribute tax papers in Welsh by refusing to pay taxes until their demand was met. The council reacted by sending in the bailiffs and selling their furniture to recover the money owed. The Beasleys' neighbours bought the furniture and returned it to them. The council finally reversed its policy in the 1960s, giving Welsh equal status with English.[19]
In 1991 Llanelli was a distincttravel to work area, but a 2001-based revision has merged it into a wider one ofSwansea Bay.[20]
Several firms, includingTata Steel Europetinplate atTrostre andDyfed Steels, are based in the Llanelli area and service the automotive industry.[21] TheTechnium Performance Engineering Centre was developed at Llanelli Gate as a business incubator for businesses in the automotive, motor sport and aerospace sectors.[22]
The traditional industries of Llanelli have gradually declined in recent decades. Local government has responded by seeking to attract tourism with developments such as theMachynys Golf Course, retail parks at Trostre andPemberton, and theMillennium Coastal Park.[23] The core shopping area has now moved largely from the town centre to the Trostre/Pemberton area.
The longstandingFelinfoel Brewery is inFelinfoel, just outside the town.[24]
James Buckley was an ordainedMethodist minister, born inOldham, Lancashire in 1770, who after moving to Llanelli towards the end of the 18th century became involved in establishing a smallbrewery. After the death of the owner, Buckley gained possession of the brewery and changed its name to Buckley's. In 1998, the brewery was bought byBrains Brewery, which transferred production to its facility inCardiff. Brains producesThe Reverend James, abitter named after Buckley.[25] Since then the Llanelli brewery has been partly demolished.[citation needed]
Developments include the Llanelli Scarlets rugby stadium, the Old Castle Works leisure village (see below) and a National Huntracecourse atFfos Las nearTrimsaran.[26]Machynys Ponds, aSite of Special Scientific Interest notable for itsdragonfly population, lies a mile to the south.[27][28]
Theparish church ofSt Elli has a medieval tower. The body of the church was rebuilt byG. F. Bodley in 1905–1906. It is a Grade II*listed building.[29] Several other churches in the town are also listed buildings, but made redundant by the Church in Wales and now in private ownership. They includeAll Saints'[30] andSt Alban's.[31]
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From the early 19th to late 20th centuries, Llanelli was a major centre of Welshnonconformism. At the end of the Second World War there were 22 chapels in the town. The history of the chapels has been chronicled in a book by the former BBC journalistHuw Edwards.[32] Edwards noted that many of the chapels had closed and others were in sharp decline, he suggested that if the decline continued, only two or three were likely to survive as functioning chapels in the 2020s.[33]
The most well known of Llanelli's chapels is probablyCapel Als, whereDavid Rees was a minister for many years in the 19th century. Llanelli had seven other Independent (Congregationalist) chapels, namely Tabernacle, Lloyd Street,Siloah now closed,Soar now closed, Ebenezer, Dock Chapel, and Park Church (the only chapel where services were conducted in English). The Tabernacle Chapel built in 1872–1873 by John Humphreys ofMorriston overlooks the Town Hall. There is a prominent four-pillaredCorinthian arcade at the entrance. The building wasGrade II* listed in December 1992.[34] It is used as a venue by the Llanelli Choral Society.[35][36] Other listed chapels includeBethel Baptist Chapel in Copperworks Road,[37]Park Congregational Chapel,[38]Zion Baptist Chapel at Island Place,[39] andHall Street Methodist Church.[40]
Situated on Waunlanyrafon, across the road from the police station, is the Roman Catholic Church,Our Lady Queen of Peace Church.
Llanelli has an Islamic centre on Station Road[41] andBaptist churches spread throughout the town and surrounding areas.[42]
The town'srugby union teams – theScarlets, who compete in thePro14, andLlanelli RFC in theWelsh Premiership – play atParc y Scarlets, which opened in November 2008 in Pemberton. Previously they had played atStradey Park, home to Llanelli RFC for over 130 years and one venue used for the1999 Rugby World Cup, hosting the match betweenArgentina andSamoa on 10 October 1999.
The Welsh folk song "Sosban Fach" (Little Saucepan) is mostly associated with Llanelli RFC.
Many rugby clubs have notable scalps collected from touring international sides but Llanelli has in its rugby history one of the greatest scalps ever. On 31 October 1972, in one of the most famous results in rugby union history, Llanelli beat theNew Zealand national team9–3 in front of around 20,000 spectators. Llanelli centreRoy Bergiers scored the only try of the game, charging down a clearance by All Black scrum-halfLin Colling after a penalty fromPhil Bennett rebounded back into play off the crossbar.
There is a strong junior rugby core, including club sides such asFelinfoel, New Dock Stars,Llangennech and theLlanelli Wanderers. In 2005, Coedcae School won the Inter-Schools Cup of Wales with an 8–5 victory overBrynteg Comprehensive.
Llanelli'sWest Wales Raiders play inRFL League 1, the third tier of rugby league in England and Wales. The club is based atStebonheath Park.
Stebonheath Park is the home offootball clubLlanelli A.F.C., which plays in theCymru South. The town has many active local teams and tournaments such as the 2018 Challenge Cup, where West End United beat Trostre Sports AFC.
Llanelli hosts the annual Llanelli Open Bowls Tournaments, the oldest and most prestigious of which, the Roberts-Rolfe Open Singles event, has been run since 1926 and has a first prize of £600. The contests are held from July to September in Parc Howard.
The Llanelli area has twogolf courses: the Machynys Peninsula Golf & Country Club which hosted theWales Ladies Championship of Europe from 2005 until 2008, and Glyn Abbey Golf Club, which was named Welsh Golf Club of the Year 2009.
Llanelli is the birthplace and home ofTerry Griffiths OBE (1947–2024), snooker world champion in 1979 and runner-up in 1988. Later a coach and snooker commentator, he ran the Terry Griffiths Matchroom in the town centre.
Llanelli is home toTinopolis, one of Britain's largest independent media producers. It has subsidiaries that produce over 2,500 hours of broadcast television, includingEnglish language programmes such asQuestion Time for theBBC andWelsh-language television programs such asWedi 7 forS4C.[43]
Coverage of local affairs appears in two papers, theLlanelli Star founded in 1909 and Llanelli Herald launched in 2015.[44] Online coverage is found onLlanelli Online.[45] The main county-wide radio station isRadio Carmarthenshire. Other radio stations covering the area areHits Radio South Wales, its sister stationGreatest Hits Radio South Wales,Swansea Bay Radio, Radio BGM, which serves the Prince Philip Hospital and the local community online, andHeart South Wales.[46]
Some local attractions include:
The Ffwrnes Theatre opened in late 2012, replacing the Theatr Elli, which was part of the Llanelli Entertainment Centre.[49][50] A multi-screen cinema opened in October 2012. Much is being spent on regenerating the central shopping district.[51]
Llanelli holds festivals,carnivals and events throughout the year. They include:
TheLlanelli railway station is on the Great Western Crescent south of the town centre.
Llanelli is connected to theNational Cycle Network from the north onNCR 43, and along the coast from the east and west onNCR 4.[55] These routes link with a cycle path to the town centre.
The nearest passenger airport isCardiff Airport, 50 miles (80 km) away, andPembrey, 2 miles (3.2 km), provides air charter services.[56]
The firstWelsh-mediumprimary school,Ysgol Gymraeg Dewi Sant, was founded in Llanelli in 1947. The English-mediumsecondary schools areSt John Lloyd,Bryngwyn andCoedcae; the only Welsh medium secondary school isYsgol y Strade.St Michael's School is aprivate school for ages 3–18. Ysgol Heol Goffa is aspecial school for pupils with disabilities.
Coleg Sir Gâr (Carmarthenshire College), with its main campus at Graig near Pwll, provides a college education for most of the town's further education students and some vocational undergraduate degrees through theUniversity of Wales. There aresixth form colleges at Ysgol Gyfun y Strade (Welsh medium) and St Michael's (English medium).
Prince Philip Hospital has a postgraduate centre for medical training run byCardiff University's School of Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education.[57]
There are two tiers of local government covering Llanelli, atcommunity (town) andcounty level:Llanelli Town Council (Cyngor Tref Llanelli) andCarmarthenshire County Council (Cyngor Sir Gâr). The town council is based at the Old Vicarage on Town Hall Square.[58] Carmarthenshire County Council also has offices in the town, at Ty Elwyn on Town Hall Square,[59] and a customer service centre at 36 Stepney Street.[60]
Some of the built up area extends into the neighbouring community ofLlanelli Rural, which has a separate community council.[61] The community of Llanelli is bordered by those of Llanelli Rural,Llanrhidian Higher andLlanrhidian Lower, the last two being across theLoughor Estuary in theCity and County of Swansea.[62]
The town forms part of theLlanelli parliamentary constituency, currently represented byNia GriffithMP of theLabour Party. TheLlanelli Senedd constituency is represented by Labour'sLee WatersMS.
Llanelli was anancient parish, which covered the town and surrounding rural areas.[63] The parish was subdivided into fivehamlets: Berwick, Glyn, Hêngoed, Westfa and a Llanelli hamlet, also known as the borough hamlet, covering the town itself.[64] The borough hamlet was administered as aborough by the 17th century, run by a corporation led by aportreeve. Agovernment survey of boroughs in 1835 found that the borough corporation had no officialcharter and very few powers. The borough was thereforeleft unreformed when theMunicipal Corporations Act 1835 reformed most ancient boroughs across the country intomunicipal boroughs.[65][66]
In order to provide more modern forms of local government, the borough hamlet was made alocal board district in 1850, run by an elected local board. The board was given the property of the old borough corporation, which then ceased to function.[67] Local board districts were converted intourban districts under theLocal Government Act 1894. The 1894 Act also directed thatcivil parishes could no longer straddle district boundaries, and so the part of Llanelli parish outside the urban district was made a separate parish called Llanelli Rural.[68]
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Llanelli Town Hall was completed in 1896 to serve as the urban district council's headquarters.[69] Llanelly Urban District was upgraded to a municipal borough in 1913.[70] The official spelling of the borough's name was Llanelly until 1966 when it was changed to Llanelli.[71]
The municipal borough of Llanelli was abolished in 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972. A community called Llanelli was created covering the area of the former borough, with its community council taking the name Llanelli Town Council. District-level functions passed to the newLlanelli Borough Council, which covered surrounding rural areas and nearby towns as well as Llanelli itself. Carmarthenshire County Council was abolished as part of the same reforms, with county-level functions passing to the newDyfed County Council.[72] The borough of Llanelli and county of Dyfed were both abolished in 1996 and their councils' functions passed to a re-established Carmarthenshire County Council.[73]
Llanelli istwinned withAgen, France.[74]
Notable Llanelli people with a Wikipedia page in alphabetical order by section:
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
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