Ewenny

Ewenny

Ewenny ( _cy. Ewenni) is a village on the Ewenny River in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.

Over the years the village has grown into the neighbouring village of Corntown to such an extent that there is no longer a clear boundary between the two. The nearest town of significant size is Bridgend, 3.5 miles / 5.6 kilometres away.

History

Ewenny Priory

The village grew around the Priory and Church. The Norman church of St. Michael was built in the 12th century by one of the Norman knights of Glamorgan, William de Londres. His son Maurice founded the adjacent Benedictine priory in 1141 when he granted the church to the abbey of St. Peter at Gloucester, together with the churches of St Brides Major, St. Michael at Colwinston and the manor at Lampha.

The priory is widely regarded as one of the finest fortified religious buildings in Britain. Over the centuries the priory has sustained some damage, but nonetheless it is still inhabited by its current owners, the Turbervill family. The priory is not open to the public but the attached Church is still in use today.

Potteries

Records show that the pottery industry has existed in the area since 1427. This is probably because the materials required for the production of pottery are readily available in this area, including a local red earthenware, glaze materials, stone to build the kilns and coal to fire the pots in the kilns. There have been fifteen potteries in the Ewenny area at one time or another, all small family concerns.

The village is home to the Ewenny Pottery, founded in 1610 and the oldest working pottery in Wales. The business is run by the descendants of the pottery's original founders, the Jenkins family. The pottery is currently run by Alun Jenkins, son of Arthur Thomas Jenkins.

The Legend of the White Lady

Close to Ewenny Priory is an area of land known as White Lady’s meadow and White Lady’s Lane. It is said that the area is haunted by the ghost of the White Lady. Few details are available about the ghost, but it is generally believed that she committed some terrible misdeed in the past and now her spirit must roam the earth in penance. There is a similar legend associated with Ogmore Castle. As these two locations are within a couple of miles of each other it is likely that the legends are related, or inspired by each other.

Other Points of Interest

The nearby Coed-y-Bwl nature reserve, more locally known as the "Daffodil woods" has around a quarter of a million ‘wild’ daffodils. The reserve was established in 1971 and in 1975 received a Prince of Wales trust award. The daffodils were planted in the early 19th century by Mrs Nicholl of Merthyr Mawr.

A Roman bridge is situated near the reserve.

References

* [http://www.bridgend.gov.uk/Web1/groups/tourism/documents/marketing/001761.hcsp Description of the Priory provided by Bridgend County Council]
* [http://www.bridgend.gov.uk/Web1/groups/tourism/documents/marketing/002265.hcsp History of the village]
* [http://www.ewennypottery.com/ Ewenny Pottery]
* [http://www.ewenny.org.uk/ The Village website]


=

* [http://www.britainexpress.com/wales/cardiff/abbeys/ewenny-p1.htm Priory interior]
* [http://www.mkomor.plus.com/ewenny/images/Priory-across-the-moors.jpgPriory Exterior]
* [http://www.glamorganwalks.com/wpeA2.jpgSt. Michael's Church]
* [http://blog.diobach.com/images/2004/09_2004/ewenny-stores-views-(6).jpgThe Village Shop]
* [http://www.ogmoreriver.com/images/winter_grayling/ewennyriver3.jpgEwenny River]

External links

* [http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=2732032 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Ewenny and surrounding area]
*gbmapping|SS906771


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ewenny Priory — Ewenny Priory, in Ewenny in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, was a monastery of the Benedictine order, founded in the 12th century. The building was unusual in having military style defences. Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the priory …   Wikipedia

  • Ewenny River — The Ewenny River ( cy. Afon Ewenni) is a river that rises to the north east of Bridgend town, in South Wales, flows past the village of Pencoed and enters the River Ogmore estuary just below Ogmore Castle. External links *… …   Wikipedia

  • Maesteg (Ewenny Road) railway station — Maesteg (Ewenny Road) Maesteg Heol Ewenni …   Wikipedia

  • Maesteg Ewenny Road railway station — Infobox UK station name=Maesteg Ewenny Road other name=Maesteg Heol Ewenni code=MEW manager=Arriva Trains Wales locale=Maesteg borough=Bridgend platforms=1 start= lowusage0405 = 3,256 lowusage0506 = 3,225 lowusage0607 = 3,502Maesteg Ewenny Road… …   Wikipedia

  • Pencoed — infobox UK place country = Wales welsh name= constituency welsh assembly= official name= Pencoed population= 11,832 [Population from the South Wales Fire Service [http://www.southwales fire.gov.uk/SWFSCMS/WhereWeAre/Stations/Pencoed.htm] ]… …   Wikipedia

  • River Ogmore — Coordinates: 51°28′11″N 3°38′18″W / 51.46972°N 3.63833°W / 51.46972; 3.63833 …   Wikipedia

  • Bridgend — infobox UK place country = Wales welsh name=Pen y bont ar Ogwr constituency welsh assembly= latitude= 51.5072 longitude= 03.5784 official name= Bridgend unitary wales= Bridgend lieutenancy wales= Mid Glamorgan constituency westminster= Bridgend… …   Wikipedia

  • Ogmore Castle — and grounds Ogmore Castle (alternate: Ogor Castelle; or Castell Ogwr) is located near the village of Ogmore by Sea, south of the town of Bridgend in Glamorgan, South Wales. It is situated on the south bank of the River Ewenny and the east bank of …   Wikipedia

  • Maesteg railway station — Maesteg Arriva Trains Wales 150208 stands at Maesteg with a service from Ch …   Wikipedia

  • Alun Cairns — Infobox Politician name=Alun Cairns AM imagesize=150px birth date =birth date and age|1970|07|30|df=y birth place = Swansea, Wales office = Shadow Minister for Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills constituency= term start = 07 July 2007 term… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”