Caio or ''Caeo'' is a village in the county of

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...

, south-west

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, sited near to the

Dolaucothi Gold Mines The Dolaucothi Gold Mines (; cy, Mwynfeydd Aur Dolaucothi) (), also known as the Ogofau Gold Mine, are ancient Roman surface and underground mines located in the valley of the River Cothi, near Pumsaint, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The gold min ...

Location

It is located between

Llandovery Llandovery (; cy, Llanymddyfri ) is a market town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It lies on the River Tywi and at the junction of the A40 and A483 roads, about north-east of Carmarthen, north of Swansea and west of Brecon. Histo ...

and

Lampeter Lampeter (; cy, Llanbedr Pont Steffan (formal); ''Llambed'' (colloquial)) is a town, community and electoral ward in Ceredigion, Wales, at the confluence of the Afon Dulas with the River Teifi. It is the third largest urban area in Ceredigion, ...

, north-east of the A482 that connects these two towns. Caio lies at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

of the

Afon Annell Afon Annell (River Annell) is a small river in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is a tributary of the Afon Cothi. Some of the waters of the Annell were previously diverted via aqueduct to serve the Roman gold mine at Dolaucothi The Dolaucothi ...

and the Nant Frena. It forms part of the parish of

Cynwyl Gaeo Cynwyl Gaeo is a parish and community located in rural Carmarthenshire, Wales, near the boundary with Ceredigion, in the upper Cothi valley about halfway between Lampeter and Llandovery. The population of the village at the United Kingdom Census ...

. In former times it gave its name to

Cayo Hundred Cayo was a hundred, a geographic division, in the traditional county of Carmarthenshire, Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–En ...

History

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

, consecrated to Saint Cynwyl, now stands at the centre of the village, near the

Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...

that linked the

Roman fort In the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, the Latin word ''castrum'', plural ''castra'', was a military-related term. In Latin usage, the singular form ''castrum'' meant 'fort', while the plural form ''castra'' meant 'camp'. The singular and ...

s at

(''Alabum'') and Llanio ( Bremia), and the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

gold mines at Dolaucothi. The Roman road remained in use until the late 18th century, mainly as a cattle-road or

Drover's road A drovers' road, drove ''roador droveway is a route for droving livestock on foot from one place to another, such as to market or between summer and winter pasture (see transhumance). Many drovers' roads were ancient routes of unknown age; oth ...

. The

Dolaucothi Estate The Dolaucothi Estate (''also'' Dolaucothy) is situated about north-west of the village of Caio up the picturesque Cothi Valley in the community of Cynwyl Gaeo, in Carmarthenshire, Wales. Its name of ''Dolaucothi'' means ‘the meadows of the ...

long held by the Johnes family is now a tourist attraction owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. A pounding-stone long known as ''Carreg Pumsaint'' and a possible

holy well A holy well or sacred spring is a well, spring or small pool of water revered either in a Christian or pagan context, sometimes both. The water of holy wells is often thought to have healing qualities, through the numinous presence of its gua ...

are located nearby.

Llywelyn ap Gruffydd Fychan Llywelyn ap Gruffydd Fychan of Caeo ( 1341–1401) was a wealthy Carmarthenshire landowner who was executed in Llandovery by Henry IV of England in punishment for his support of Owain Glyndŵr's Welsh rebellion. Until recently Llewelyn was little ...

(c. 1341 – 9 October 1401) was a Caio landowner, who was executed by Henry IV for his allegiance to

Owain Glyndŵr Owain ap Gruffydd (), commonly known as Owain Glyndŵr or Glyn Dŵr (, anglicised as Owen Glendower), was a Welsh leader, soldier and military commander who led a 15 year long Welsh War of Independence with the aim of ending English rule in Wa ...

. The hymnist

Dafydd Jones Dafydd Jones (born 24 June 1979) is a Welsh former rugby union rugby player of the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s, who played for the Scarlets in the Celtic League, playing in the back row, scoring nine tries (45 points) in 104 appearances. He also pl ...

(1711–1777), also known as ''Dafydd Jones o Gaeo'' was born in the area. Two other hymnists, the brothers

John Dafydd John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(1727–1783) and

Morgan Dafydd Morgan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Morgan (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Morgan le Fay, a powerful witch in Arthurian legend * Morgan (surname), a surname of Welsh origin * Morgan (singer) ...

(m. 1762) are also connected to the village. The oldest record of a chapel in the village is the Tynewydd

Calvinistic Methodists Calvinistic Methodists were born out of the 18th-century Welsh Methodist revival and survive as a body of Christians now forming the Presbyterian Church of Wales. Calvinistic Methodism became a major denomination in Wales, growing rapidly in the 1 ...

chapel which was built around 1774. The old Ysgol Gynradd Caio stands next to the church, and was built in 1869. It taught primarily through the medium of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

, but closed in 2012. Wales

rugby union football Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

international, later clergyman,

John Strand-Jones John Strand-Jones (2 December 1877 – 3 April 1958) was a Welsh rugby union player, who represented the Wales national rugby union team on five occasions in 1902 and 1903. His profession was in the clergy of the Anglican Church. Life Strand- ...

(1877–1958) was born in Caio, and

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

recipient

James Hills-Johnes Lieutenant General Sir James Hills-Johnes, (20 August 1833 – 3 January 1919) was a British Indian Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and ...

(1833–1919) is buried here.

Amenities

Other amenities include Caio Post Office (closed in the 1990s) and a public house, the Brunant Arms. At the turn of the 20th century there were several public houses, the "Brunant Arms", the "Sexton's Arms", which was run out of someone's front room, and the "King's Head Inn". In 1966

BBC Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, BBC Cymru Wales is ...

produced the documentary ''"A Village Called Caio"'' about rural life in rural West Wales. They paid a retrospective visit in 2008, to see how the village had changed.

References

External links

Caio Online

Photographs of Caio and surrounding areas
Villages in Carmarthenshire {{Carmarthenshire-geo-stub

Location

History

Amenities

See also

References

External links