Bayvil ( cy, Y Beifil) is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

and

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is situated in the north of the county, east of Newport. It is in the

Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Arfordir Penfro) is a national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales. It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of three national parks in Wales, the others b ...

. The parish includes most of the village of

Felindre Farchog Felindre Farchog (; rough English translation: mill village of the knight, or horseman) is a small village in the community of Nevern in Pembrokeshire, Wales, located around south-west of Cardigan, and within the parish of Bayvil. The A487 road ...

. Together with the parishes of Monington,

Moylgrove Moylgrove ( cy, Trewyddel), also spelled Moylegrove, is a village and parish in north Pembrokeshire, Wales, about from Cardigan, in the community of Nevern. Description The placename "Moylegrove" means "Matilda's Grove"; "Matilda" may have bee ...

and most of

Nevern Nevern ( cy, Nanhyfer) is both a parish and a community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The community includes the settlements of Felindre Farchog, Monington, Moylgrove and Bayvil. The small village lies in the Nevern valley near the Preseli Hills of ...

, it constitutes the

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, ...

of Nevern.

History

The name may derive from

Norman-French Norman or Norman French (, french: Normand, Guernésiais: , Jèrriais: ) is a Romance language which can be classified as one of the Oïl languages along with French, Picard and Walloon. The name "Norman French" is sometimes used to descri ...

''Beauvil'', a "pleasant settlement". It is in the heart of Welsh-speaking Pembrokeshire, in the Welsh cantref of Cemais. The parish appears on a 1578 map of Pembrokeshire. It had, in 1844, a population of 130 in an area of . It included the more developed village of Felindre Farchog and part of the estate of Cwmgloyne, owned by the Lloyd family, and which gave its name to the former ''Cwmgloyne Arms'' in the nearby settlement of

Crosswell Crosswell ( cy, Ffynnon-groes) is a hamlet on the B4329 road in the community of Eglwyswrw, Pembrokeshire, Wales, in the parish of Meline. It is southwest of Cardigan, northeast of Haverfordwest and east of Fishguard. Description The hamle ...

. The estate was broken up to be sold in 1899 and part was sold for a total of £17,000. In 1909 the remainder, including the Bayvil portion, 356 acres, reached a bid of £6,550 before being withdrawn. Parts of the estate were bought by tenants.

Parish church

The parish church of St Andrew was built in the early 19th century and is a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, being a scarce rural example of an Anglican church of the period. It is built from rubble stone, and has a bellcote and slate roof. The font is 12th century. There is a memorial to T. Lloyd dating from about 1850. Having been closed for a period, with the roof being repaired in 1905, the church was reopened for services in 1908. It is now disused and looked after by the

Friends of Friendless Churches Friends of Friendless Churches is a registered charity formed in 1957, active in England and Wales, which campaigns for and rescues redundant historic places of worship threatened by demolition, decay, or inappropriate conversion. As of April ...

Demographics

Its census populations were: 102 (1801): 124 (1851): 67 (1901): 75 (1951): 44 (1981). The percentage of Welsh speakers was 100 (1891): 96 (1931): 70 (1971).

References

External links

Bayvil on GenukiPhotographs of Bayvil and surrounding area on Geograph
{{authority control Villages in Pembrokeshire