Past SWAG Visits
Trellech, near Monmouth 18th July 2010 map satellite image of village
While today it is only a small village, Trellech was a major town in mediaeval times; indeed some people believe it to have been the largest urban settlement in Wales at that time and so larger then than Cardiff or Chepstow.
With iron ore available
locally, and abundant raw materials for making charcoal,
the area became a centre for the manufacture of the weapons and
armour used by the Norman De Clare family in their military pursuits
in
Wales. Its importance fell from 1291 owing to a combination of
raids and repeated outbreaks of the Black Death.
For a number of years, various archaeologists searched for the site of the old town but without any real success, although clear remains of settlement were found. The investigations took a sudden step forward in 2005, though, when a young graduate, Stuart Wilson, acting on something of a hunch, bought a field in the vicinity and began to investigate. His belief that the field contained the remains of the mediaeval town proved to have worth when he unearthed mediaeval walls. Further digs and investigations have identified the site of the town aligned to the main Catbrook Road, further south than originally thought, and include the site of a manor house complex. Moreover, beneath the remains evidence has been found of an earlier town, stretching back a further hundred years or so. |
 The excavations of mediaeval Trellech Photo © Rob and Denise Lythe 2010 |
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Trellech has a holy well, known as St Anne's or the Virtuous Well, which was once a site of pilgrimage. In past times, visitors to holy wells would tie pieces of cloth to nearby trees, a practice which exists today. |
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| SWAG members visit St Anne's Well. Photos © Rob and Denise Lythe 2010 |
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Nearby are standing stones, known as Harold's Stones, suggesting the area of Trellech was of significance even in prehistoric times. The stones have the appearance of having been made from concrete but they are cut from volcanic rock, known locally as 'pudding' rock.
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| Photo © Rob and Denise Lythe 2010 |
Grateful thanks to Rob and Denise Lythe for the photographs.
Further Information
www.swag-online.org.uk
