Gileston ( cy, Silstwn) is a small

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 ...

village near West

Aberthaw Aberthaw ( cy, Aberddawan) is an area containing the villages of East Aberthaw and West Aberthaw, on the coast of South Wales about west of Barry. It is home to Aberthaw Cement Works, Aberthaw Lime Works, and Aberthaw Power Station, a coal po ...

in ''Bro Morgannwg'' (the

Vale of Glamorgan The Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg ), often referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol C ...

) on the coast of

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

Location

It is located some 15 miles along the coast from

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

and lies between

Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...

and

Llantwit Major Llantwit Major ( cy, Llanilltud Fawr) is a town and community in Wales on the Bristol Channel coast. It is one of four towns in the Vale of Glamorgan, with the third largest population (13,366 in 2001) after Barry and Penarth, and ahead of Cowb ...

Breaksea Point Breaksea Point is a promontory at the eastern edge of Gileston's Limpert Bay in the Vale of Glamorgan on the south coast of Wales. Breaksea Point is claimed as the southernmost point of mainland Wales, although that is also claimed of nearby Rh ...

is the southernmost point of Wales.

Amenities & History

Barry Golf Club, The Leys, Gileston, (now defunct) was founded in 1897/8. In 1917 a new professional arrived at Barry Golf Club by the name of David James Rees. His four-year-old son,

Dai Rees David James Rees, (31 March 1913 – 15 November 1983) was one of the Britain's leading golfers either side of the Second World War. The winner of many prestigious tournaments in Britain, Europe and farther afield, Rees is best remembered as ...

, learned the game there and went on to become a legend in world golf, captaining the British Ryder Cup team which beat America in 1957. The club and course was lost in 1957 when

Aberthaw Power Station Aberthaw Power Station refers to two decommissioned coal-fired and co-fired biomass power stations on the coast of South Wales, near Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan. They were located at Limpert Bay, near the villages of Gileston and West Aberth ...

was built on the site. Gileston/West Aberthaw beach overlooking Limpert Bay has a number of

pillbox Pillbox may refer to: * Pill organizer, a container for medicine * Pillbox hat, a woman's hat with a flat crown, straight upright sides, and no brim * Pillbox (military) A pillbox is a type of blockhouse, or concrete dug-in guard-post, norm ...

es which still stand from

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. It has the arable farm of the Thomas family who have farmed the surrounding land for over 100 years. The village is tiny and previously consisted of little more than the church and the

Gileston Manor Gileston Manor is a Manor house, manor and country house located next to St Giles' Church, Gileston, St Giles' Church in the small village of Gileston near St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. History and description The house contains remnants ...

. In 1771 the Bishop of Llandaff recorded that the population consisted of the rector and his family (who was also the

squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a " ...

of the

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

); a farmer, his wife, son and four servants; an old man and an old woman.Francis, Keith A.; Gibson, William (2012), ''The Oxford Handbook of the British Sermon 1689–1901'',

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, . Chapter 1
'Sermons in Wales in the Established Church'
by John Morgan Guy

Gallery

File:St. Athans crossroads.jpg, Gileston Road coming from

St Athan St Athan ( cy, Sain Tathan) is a village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales. The village and its parish church are dedicated to Saint Tathan. The church dates to the 13th–14th century, though an earlier church was dated to t ...

looking across the

B4265 road The B4265 road (often known as the Barry-Llantwit road) is a main road in the Vale of Glamorgan, southeastern Wales, running in a northwesterly direction along near the coast. It links Cardiff Airport to Bridgend, lasting for 15.9 miles (25.6&nbs ...

towards Gileston (see google map) File:GIleston6.jpg, Meadow File:Gileston8.jpg, Central village roundabout File:Gileston17.jpg, Gileston Farm File:Gileston19.jpg, Coast at Gileston File:Gileston20.jpg, Coastal defense wall File:Gileston22.jpg, Old barn

References

External links

Villages in the Vale of Glamorgan St Athan {{ValeofGlamorgan-geo-stub