Pennard

Pennard (previously Llanarthbodu)[1] is a village and community on the south of the Gower Peninsula, about 7 miles south-west of Swansea city centre. It falls within the Pennard electoral ward of Swansea. The Pennard community includes the larger settlements of Southgate and Kittle. the population as of 2011 was 2,688.[2]

For the Swansea Council electoral ward, see Pennard (electoral ward).
St Mary's Church

Description and amenities

The village has a church, health centre, library and a primary school. There is also an 18-hole golf course, as well as the remains of a 12th-century castle.

Pennard Castle
Pennard Castle and Golf Course
Main article: Pennard Castle

To the west of Pennard village, overlooking the valley of Pennard Pill, is the 12th-century ruins of Pennard Castle. The castle was abandoned in the 14th-century due to encroachment from the sand dunes. It was described as "desolate and ruinous" by 1650 and today only the gatehouse and some of the curtain wall remain.[3]

Pennard Golf Club

Pennard Golf Club is an 18-hole golf course known as the "links in the sky"[4] due to its lofty views over the coast and Pennard Sand Dunes. Described variously as "intimidating"[5] and only second in beauty to the Langland Bay Golf Club,[4] the club invited golf architect Tom Doak to rebuild and redesign its bunkers in 2015.[6]

St Mary's Church

The parish church of St Mary's, post dates an earlier medieval church of the same name which was located near Pennard Castle.[7] The older church was abandoned in the 1500s and only the foundations remain.[8] The newer church was restored in 1847 and a porch added. Inside the church there is a Jacobean pulpit and font cover, as well as some 18th-century wall tablets. The church became Grade II listed in 1964.[8]

The poets Vernon Watkins (1906–1967), Harri Webb (1920–1994) and Nigel Jenkins (1949–2014) are buried in the churchyard.[9] Watkins also has a memorial plaque inside the church.[10]

A fine example of a restored medieval Gower Church, St Mary's is open all year during daylight hours. At night an illuminated cross shines out across the community. Services are held every Sunday.[11]

Local politics

Pennard lies in the Gower parliamentary constituency and Senedd Cymru constituency. The Pennard ward elects a councillor to the City and County of Swansea Council.

The Pennard community (civil parish) includes the nearby villages of Southgate, Kittle, Sandylane, Cannisland and Langrove. It elects a Community council of fourteen members. The council is divided into two ward areas, Southgate and Kittle, who return eleven and three councillors respectively.[12] It made the Swansea news in 2013 when the chairman resigned after other councillors expressed concerns about the running of the council.[13]

The community of Pennard is twinned with Passage West in the Republic of Ireland.[14]

Further reading
  • Pennard and West Gower, Rev. Latimer Davies M.A., W. Spurrell & Son, 1928
  • A History of Pennard Parish up to the Second Millennium, W. J. Harding, 2000, Southgate, (ISBN 0953836509)

References
  1. Williams, Nino (2020-01-11). "The lost Welsh place names of Gower". walesonline. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
  2. UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Pennard Parish (W04000587)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 2020-01-13.
  3. "Pennard Castle - A Grade II* Listed Building in Southgate, Swansea". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
  4. Tansley, Craig (24 March 2016). "The green, green grass of Tom Jones' home". The Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  5. "18 golf holes in South West Wales that will challenge and delight the most demanding of players". South Wales Evening Post. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  6. Lawrence, Adam (22 November 2015). "Pennard appoints Tom Doak to consult on bunker rebuilding work". Golf Course Architecture. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  7. Remains Of St Mary's Church, Pennard, Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales. Retrieved 2016-03-24
  8. "Church of St Mary, Pennard, Pennard". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  9. Osmond, John (12 February 2014). "Farewell to poet who held close his vision for Wales". Click on Wales. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  11. "St. Mary Pennard - The Parish of Three Cliffs". parish.churchinwales.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
  12. Councillors, Pennard Community Council. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
  13. "Councillors exonerated over "bullying letter" to Pennard Community Council chairman". South Wales Evening Post. 1 February 2013. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  14. "A renewal of links?", Pennard Life, Autumn/Winter 2013, page 38.

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