The Normans

For about 500 years Wales was unoccupied by foreign invaders. Though the threat from the Vikings and Irish remained. Christianity took hold with the Celtic Saints of St David, St Madoc, St Illtyd etc. Area names reflect their allegiance to a saint with the word ‘LLAN’ – meaning Parish of. Llan St Madoc, Llan St Rhidian, Llan St Elli. Llangyfelach and todays Bishopston was part of the St David’s bishopric. The Cymru had their own feudal lords and kings. King Hywel Dda created laws in Whitland. Prince Uren was reportedly the leader in the Gower area.

Then the Normans landed in England in 1066 and the new king William ruled that his French dukes who had been with him in the Battle of Hastings could take control of lands that they conquered and rule as Marcher Lords.

The Welsh Book ‘Brut y Tywysogion’ relates that the Welsh commote of Gwyr was raided by Normans in 1095 and that in 1099, a Harry Neaumont (Henry Beaumont, Earl of Warwick – but sometimes also named de Newburgh) came to Gwyr against the sons of Caradog, son of Iestyn and won many of their lands from them and built the castle at Swansea and Loughor, Llan Rhidian and Penrice.

Other historical sources say that the Gower area was owned by Hywel ap Goronwy who was betrayed and murdered in 1106.

Anyway, the formidable force that was the Normans controlled the area. If you can imagine the area - as the wild west - with the Normans holed up in their hurriedly constructed wooden fortresses to protect them from the Welsh - as the dispossessed, angry indigenous people. Is it any wonder that all Norman castles were placed near the sea – where supplies and reinforcements could be accessed. The roads were very dangerous and as soon as possible, French architects and stonemasons were brought in to stabilise the castles as places of administration and control.

Notice that all castles in Gower are within viewing distance of each other. If there was a problem of attack, a fire beacon could be lit to summon help.

The Norman Lords needed to make money from taxes to support their lifestyles and military and immediately set up their administration machine and appointed Burgesses to control trade and taxation in all the boroughs. The Burgesses, appointed by the local Earl, had to be professional people or tradesmen or their families by marriage.

These burgesses were to have the main power in the Swansea area for the following 800 years. At the time of the Enclosures Act in the 1700s, it was mainly the Burgesses of Swansea who were given the right to enclose common lands – such as the area known as Townhill – but probably also in this area, once common land was taken by the richer people and enclosed by hedges.

At Norman times, the lower class people were known as Taeogion,- bond people tied to the land where they lived and unable to leave without the permission of their lord – Welsh or Norman. These people were needed to work the land and their overseers were called Maer. Sited near a stream or river a merdrefi was a demesne manor. These were often known as Maerdy.

The Charter of William de Newburgh, Earl of Warwick (whose family eventually also inherited through marriage, the title of Duke of Beaufort) clearly states in 1158 that the local Baron and Burgesses were able to do within the town of Swansea and those people living seven acres outside it’s confines

That is – they could use the woods around the town to build houses and for firewood (fallen trees and twigs) and graze animals and hunt for food – but not the deer, wild boar or pine martens – as these were only for the Earl. A tax was levied for trees taken for ship building. (As a matter of interest one of the town boundaries was a small stream in Cwmbwrla – Cwm Burlais – so one can imagine Cwmbwrla, Townhill as a forest of trees with wild deer, wild boar etc) This would stretch to this area – full of wild animals and trees. In 1136, in the unsettled times of Stephen and Matilda, just after King Henry I died of a surfeit of lampreys, a Welsh force under the leadership of Meredydd of Brecheiniog battled with the Normans from Gower on a clear area between Loughor and Cadle. It is recorded by Lady Julian of Worcester that hundreds of Normans died on Garn Goch (hence the word Goch after the bloodstained earth) and their bodies were horribly devoured by wolves. (so lots of wild life in those days!) The Battle of Gower is commemorated with a stone just off the Hospital Road.
Also serfs could fish in Swansea Bay but if they caught a porpoise or sturgeon, they must be offered to the Earl first. Half the booty from ship wrecks must be given to the Earl.

No-one – other than a Burgess would be allowed to start a business and all cloth, leather must be bought from a Burgess.

With the conquest, the Earl, as the ancestor to the Duke of Beaufort were given mineral rights to the area. It was in their interest to exploit the hitherto untapped resources of the area. Every sack of Lead, tin, lime, copper and coal mined in the area brought revenue to the Duke.

One can only imagine the wealth that the Industrial revolution brought to this person in taxes. Some of the Gower lands were subsequently sold off or lost during the reformation or Civil War (because the Duke picked the wrong side!) but some were returned and the Duke of Beaufort continues to own much of the land in the Swansea area to this day.

Because the Duke, for the most part, was based in his lands either in Norfolk or Warwickshire, he appointed a Steward to ensure that his interests were being taken care of in the Gower area.

Stewards who represented their Lords in Swansea included Sir Mathew Craddock (whose tomb was in the original St Mary’s church destroyed in the Blitz) and Sir William Herbert who lived in the Plas – which was situated in Castle Square. A lot of the stone from this subsequently ruined building was taken by the Vivians of Singleton Abbey and some can be clearly identified in the Estate Farm building.

One noteable Steward was Gabriel Powell – lived in the house (now the Windsor Hotel) that is at the foot of the Mount Pleasant Hill. The records show he was an unpleasant person, but he was totally loyal to his Earl and sometimes clashed with the Burgesses of the time. For example, he tried to obstruct any development of the docks, as it would reduce the taxation his master could take from docking ships and took Lewis Dillwyn to court as he believed, incorrectly, that the Penllergare mines went onto the Earls land. But today, historians can be grateful to him, because at the time, he did a survey of properties in the area – and meticulously recorded the names of the owners and the land rents they paid to his Duke. Many of the properties can be identified to this day.

In 1764, Powell did a survey of his Lords lands and buildings and it is very interesting that many of the buildings mentioned can be identified today. Though some of the spelling is different because most of the administrators weren’t familiar with the Welsh language. (Publication by Gower Society)

Gowerton and Penclawdd were in the area known as Welsh Gower Subboscus and Loughor.The River Llan is sometimes referred to a Lliw Itha Cobbs Bridge and Island House are mentioned frequently as is the Trafle Mill – so by this date the estuary was starting to silt up. But the rivers were deep enough to have a dock pond – probably for small ships.

In 1741, Mr James Griffiths holds the Lease of that small piece of ground containing half quarter of an acre formerly part of Loughor Marsh adjoining to Sluice Pill and enclosed by James Griffiths together with the Dock Pond.

Richard David holds by lease in 1707 (time of Queen Anne) at the yearly rent of seven pounds, six shilling and eight pence, a large piece of salt marsh near Cobbs Bridge about forty acres having the lands of Lady Charlotte Edwin on the east and Rivers Llyw and Llyw Ytha surrounding in on other parts thereof.

October 1754, Miss Anne Mackworth has by Lease all the veins mines and seams of coal and culm, and coal and coal works upon or under all that tenement and land commonly called or known by the name of Gurnos. Also under all those several commons or wastes commonly called by several names, Loughor Moor, Loughor Marsh, Mynnydd Rhose Bishwell and Mynnydd Stafford.

So as early as 1754, there is evidence that the area, not only is used for farming, but also the mineral wealth (coal) was being extracted. The workers on the farms and those working the mines would build their cottages in the nearby areas. This seems to be the beginning of Gowerton as a major settlement.