Haverfordwest
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Haverfordwest Welsh Hwlffordd |
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| Coordinates | 51 ° 48 ′ N , 4 ° 58 ′ W | ||
| OS National Grid | SM955155 | ||
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| Residents | 10,808 | ||
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| Post town | HAVERFORDWEST | ||
| ZIP code section | SA61, SA62 | ||
| prefix | 01437 | ||
| Part of the country | Wales | ||
| Preserved County | Dyfed | ||
| Unitary authority | Pembrokeshire | ||
| British Parliament | Preseli Pembrokeshire | ||
| Welsh Parliament | Preseli Pembrokeshire | ||
Haverfordwest ( Welsh : Hwlffordd ) is a town with market rights in south-west Wales and has been the administrative seat of the county of Pembrokeshire since the Dyfed reorganization in 1996 .
The city is the center of the agricultural environment and a tourist resort near the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park . Located on the A40, Haverfordwest is an important transport hub between surrounding towns such as Milford Haven , Pembroke Dock and Fishguard .
The Haverfordwest Aerodrome ( IATA airport code : HAW, ICAO code : EGFE) (also Withybush Aerodrome ) is located just under four kilometers north of Haverfordwest. The airfield was created as a military airfield of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War , see below.
history
Haverfordwest is located at the mouth of the Cleddau , which is dug deep inland and is still influenced by the tides at this point. It is conceivable that the place was settled in earlier times because of its obvious strategic importance. However, there is no archaeological or written evidence of this before the 12th century. The first Norman castle was built around 1110 by Tancred, a Flemish Marcher Lord . The castle secured the trade route to Ireland and protected local English and Flemish colonists .
The city grew surprisingly quickly, initially around the castle and St. Martin's Church - this settlement is called Castletown - and then expanded into what is now the High Street area. Because of this development, the town soon became the capital of the English colony Roose (part of "Little England beyond Wales"). At the same time, due to its central location, it became the trading center of western Dyfed , which it has remained to this day.
Haverfordwest's growth was as rapid as other British cities up until about 1300, and its size was about the same as it was in the early 19th century. Probably 4,000 to 5,000 people lived in the city, a considerable number at the time.
Haverfordwest received the first "Marcher Charter" between 1213 and 1219 from William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke , combined with the lucrative trading privileges of an English township. The town operated both sea and land trade and had a busy, tidal quay below the "New Bridge". There were at least ten guilds in the city as well as an important textile factory.
On April 30, 1479, Haverfordwest became a "county corporate" by Edward, Prince of Wales , with the aim of taking action against local piracy. It shared this rank only with Carmarthen and some cities in England and remained officially "The Town and County of Haverfordwest" until the dissolution of the borough in 1974.
Like other large cities in Europe, Haverfordwest was hit hard by the plague in 1348. As a result, the population may have decreased by more than 50%, and trade decreased accordingly. Large parts of the city were abandoned and it was not until the Tudor period that a gradual recovery began. At the end of the 17th century Haverfordwest was significantly smaller than it was around 1300. In 1405, the city was also burned down by the French allies Owain Glyndŵrs .
During the English Civil War , the township's citizens supported Parliament, but the ruling nobility supported the royalists. As a result, there was considerable conflict and the city changed flags five times as a result. In the years 1644/45, the castle was partially demolished. A little later, the city also lost the prosperity resulting from the maritime economy to Milford Haven with its deep-water port .
RAF Haverfordwest
The Royal Air Force Station Haverfordwest , RAF Haverfordwest for short, was a base of the RAF Coastal Command between 1943 and 1945 . At that time it was equipped with three paved runways, of which today's civil airfield only operates two. The RAF used the base in particular as a school airfield.
With RAF Templeton , another Coastal Command base was located 15 km southeast from 1942 to 1945, the Templeton Dry Training Area , which is still used by the military today .
Cityscape
Today Haverfordwest has the atmosphere of a small market town. The neglected riverside area has now been redeveloped, and Bridge Street is reserved for pedestrians, all in all a pleasant atmosphere for a stroll through town.
In the center, the place still gives the impression of an important medieval town. The city's historic places of worship date from the 13th to 15th centuries. The most beautiful church is St. Mary from late Norman times, which already has some early Gothic elements such as pointed arches and has a remarkable carved ceiling. Most of the houses in the old town show a simple Georgian style.
Culture
Haverfordwest has always been an English city culturally. However, due to trade with the peasant producers in the region, there was a significant Welsh-speaking population. The suburb of Prendergast appears to have emerged as a Welsh dormitory town, at a time when all agricultural trade had to be conducted in the borough, but Welsh people were no longer allowed to stay in the city after dark.
Haverfordwest hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1972.
Waldo Williams , a pacifist and one of the most famous Welsh language poets of the 20th century, was born in Haverfordwest.
The story of the mutistic twins June and Jennifer Gibbons , documented by Marjorie Wallace , gained international interest; the twins lived mainly in Haverfordwest during their childhood.
Haverfordwest has had a town partnership with Oberkirch (Baden) since 1989 .
sons and daughters of the town
- Sir Thomas Picton (1758-1815), British Army General, was born in Haverfordwest and died at the Battle of Waterloo.
- Christian Bale (* 1974), who played leading roles in The Empire of the Sun and Batman ( Batman Begins , The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises ), was born in Haverfordwest in 1974.
- Rhys Ifans (* 1967), who appeared in the 1997 black comedy Twin Town and played Hugh Grant's lodger in Notting Hill , was born in Haverfordwest.
- Geraint Wyn Davies (* 1957), Welsh-Canadian actor, grew up in Haverfordwest, where his father was a churchman in a free church.
- Picture Frame Seduction , one of the pioneers of early hardcore punk rock in the UK , went to the local Sir Thomas Picton School founded in 1978 .
- Graham McPherson ("Suggs") (* 1961), the lead singer of the band Madness , attended the Grammar School for Boys in Haverfordwest from 1977 to 1978 .
- Gruff Rhys , lead singer of the indie rock band Super Furry Animals , was born here.
- Gwen John (1876–1939), painter
- Augustus John (1878–1961), artist
- Mark Delaney (* 1976), soccer player, was born in Haverfordwest.
- Simon Davies (* 1979), Welsh national soccer player, was born in Haverfordwest.
- Zoe Lyons (* 1971), comedian and stand-up comedian
literature
- HE Conrad: Wales ; Prestel Verlag, Munich 1982, ISBN 3-7913-0594-8 , p. 329.
- ↑ Haverfordwest Community, 2001 Census
- ^ Dillwyn Miles (Ed.): A History of Haverfordwest ( English ). Gomer, 1999, ISBN 1-85902-738-5 , p. 12.
- ^ Miles p 28
- ↑ Miles p 23
- ^ Miles, p. 177
Web links
- Information about the city (English)