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[Illustration: Book Cover]




NOOKS AND CORNERS OF PEMBROKESHIRE.




[Illustration]




[Illustration: THE ROOD SCREEN ST. DAVIDS CATHEDRAL]




[Illustration: NOOKS & CORNERS OF PEMBROKESHIRE.

DRAWN & DESCRIBED BY
H. THORNHILL TIMMINS, F.R.C.S.

AUTHOR of
NOOKS & CORNERS OF HEREFORDSHIRE

LONDON:
ELLIOT STOCK, 62, PATERNOSTER ROW, E.C.
1895.]




PREFACE.


The kindly reception accorded to my 'Nooks and Corners of Herefordshire,'
both by the public and the press, has encouraged me (where, indeed,
encouragement was little needed) to set forth anew upon my sketching
rambles, and explore the Nooks and Corners of Pembrokeshire.

In chronicling the results of these peregrinations, I feel that I owe
some apology to those whose knowledge of the Shire of Pembroke is far
more thorough and intimate than my own, and upon whose preserves I may
fairly be accused of poaching. I venture to plead, in extenuation, an
inveterate love for exploring these unfrequented byways of my native
land, and for searching out and sketching those picturesque old
buildings that lend such a unique interest to its sequestered nooks and
corners.

Pembrokeshire is rich in these relics of a bygone time, but for one
reason or another they do not appear to have received the attention they
certainly deserve. Few counties can boast anything finer of their kind
than the mediaeval castles of Pembroke, Manorbere and Carew; while St.
Davids Cathedral and the ruined Palace of its bishops, nestling in their
secluded western vale, form a scene that alone is worth a visit to
behold. No less remarkable in their way are the wonderful old crosses,
circles and cromlechs, which remind the traveller of a vanished race as
he tramps the broad fern-clad uplands of the Precelly Hills. It is a
notable fact that 'he who runs may read,' in the diversified character
of its place-names, an important and interesting chapter of
Pembrokeshire history. The south-western portion of the county, with the
Saxon 'tons' of its Teutonic settlers, is as English as Oxfordshire, and
hence has acquired the title of 'Little England beyond Wales.' On the
other hand, the northern and eastern districts are as Welsh as the heart
of Wales; and there, as the wayfarer soon discovers for himself, the
mother-tongue of the Principality is the only one 'understanded of the
people.'

Although Pembrokeshire cannot pretend to lay claim to such striking
scenery as the North Wallian counties display, yet its wind-swept
uplands and deep, secluded dingles have a character all their own; while
the loftier regions of the Precelly Hills, and the broken and varied
nature of the seaboard, afford many a picturesque prospect as the
traveller fares on his way.

In compiling the following notes I have availed myself of Fenton's
well-known work on Pembrokeshire, and of the writings of George Owen of
Henllys; I have consulted the records of that prolific chronicler,
Gerald de Barri; Bevan's 'History of the Diocese of St. Dav