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Hay-on-Wye ( cy, Y Gelli Gandryll), simply known locally as "Hay" ( cy, Y Gelli), is a
market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...
and
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, t ...
in
Powys Powys (; ) is a county and preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. Geog ...
,
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
; it was historically in the
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Brecknockshire , image_flag= , HQ= Brecon , Government= Brecknockshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= Brycheiniog , Status= , Start= 1535 , End= ...
. With over twenty bookshops, it is often described as "the town of books"; it is both the ''National Book Town of Wales'' and the site of the annual Hay Festival. The population of the town in 1841 was 1,455; this had grown to 1,680 by 1901. The town has grown little since, with 2018 estimates at 1,900. The built-up area includes Cusop across the border in England and has a population of around 2,000.


Location

The town lies on the south-east bank of the
River Wye The River Wye (; cy, Afon Gwy ) is the fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary. For much of its length the river forms part of the border between England and Wales ...
and is within the north-easternmost tip of the
Brecon Beacons National Park The Brecon Beacons National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) is one of three national parks in Wales, and is centred on the Brecon Beacons range of hills in southern Wales. It includes the Black Mountain ( cy, Y Mynydd Du) i ...
, just north of the Black Mountains. The town is just on the Welsh side of the border with
Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouths ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, here defined by the Dulas Brook. Where the brook joins the River Wye just north of the town, the border continues northwards along the river. The Wye was the boundary between the former counties and districts of
Radnorshire , HQ = Presteigne , Government = Radnorshire County Council (1889–1974) Radnorshire District Council (1974–1996) , Origin = , Status = historic county, administrative county , Start ...
and
Brecknockshire , image_flag= , HQ= Brecon , Government= Brecknockshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= Brycheiniog , Status= , Start= 1535 , End= ...
. The adjacent village of Cusop lies on the English side of the Dulas Brook. The nearest city is
Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester, England, Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. ...
,
county town In the United Kingdom and Ireland, a county town is the most important town or city in a county. It is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county and the place where the county's members of Parliament are elect ...
of Herefordshire, some to the east.


Etymology

The settlement's name is first referred to between 1135 and 1147 as ; in 1299 the name of is used. By the 16th century it was simply called ''Hay'', and the use of the river as a suffix is a later addition. In 1215, a Welsh name, was recorded, and in 1614; the two names may have been used concurrently in 1625. The English language name, ''Hay'', is derived from
Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th ...
, possibly meaning a "fenced area" and a noun used in late Saxon and Norman times for an enclosure in a forest. The Welsh word ( lenited to ) has a range of meanings, including wooded areas of various extents.


History

Hay-on-Wye, like
Builth Wells Builth Wells (; cy, Llanfair-ym-Muallt) is a market town and community in the county of Powys and historic county of Brecknockshire (Breconshire), mid Wales, lying at the confluence of rivers Wye and Irfon, in the Welsh (or upper) part of ...
, has two Norman
castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
s within a short distance of each other. It seems likely that Hay was first fortified by William Fitz Osbern during his penetration of south-east Wales in the summer of 1070, when he defeated three Welsh kings. The history of the site then continues through the lordships of the de Neufmarchés, which was confirmed at the Battle of
Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the c ...
in 1093, and also the Gloucester/Hereford families until 1165, when the district of
Brycheiniog Brycheiniog was an independent kingdom in South Wales in the Early Middle Ages. It often acted as a buffer state between England to the east and the south Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth to the west. It was conquered and pacified by the Norman ...
passed into the hands of the de Braose dynasty of
Marcher Lord A Marcher lord () was a noble appointed by the king of England to guard the border (known as the Welsh Marches) between England and Wales. A Marcher lord was the English equivalent of a margrave (in the Holy Roman Empire) or a marquis (in ...
s. In 1230 Hay Castle passed to the de Bohuns and the local history, including the battle near Hay in 1231, is continued through the Mortimer Wars of the 1260s and the battle near Brecon in 1266 down to the death of Earl Humphrey de Bohun in 1298.


First castle

Lying close to St Mary's Church on the western edge of Hay-on-Wye is a small but well-preserved motte. The site overlooks a gorge and small stream, locally known as The Login Brook, that flows into the River Wye, which was undoubtedly one reason for the construction of a
motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...
castle there. A recently levelled platform under the car park to the northeast may once have housed the castle's bailey. This little fortress was probably the work of William Revel, a
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...
of Bernard de Neufmarché who is usually referred to as Bernard Newmarch, and may later have been the seat for the manor or
commote A commote ( Welsh ''cwmwd'', sometimes spelt in older documents as ''cymwd'', plural ''cymydau'', less frequently ''cymydoedd'')''Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wale ...
of Melinog.


Stone castle

The main fortress within Hay-on-Wye was situated on the great site commanding the town and river, under the current ruins of the castle and
mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...
. The English lordship of Hay passed by marriage to
Miles of Gloucester Miles FitzWalter of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford (died 24 December 1143) (''alias'' Miles of GloucesterSanders, I.J. English Baronies: A Study of their Origin and Descent 1086-1327, Oxford, 1960, p.7) was a great magnate based in the west of ...
and then into the de Braose family. In the late 11th or early 12th century, a new fortification was built, taking the form of an earth ringwork with a stone gate-tower. It was re-enforced in stone around 1200 with a curtain wall but damaged during the Welsh rebellion led by
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 ...
around 1401 and in 1460 during the
Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the throne of England, English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These w ...
. It was then substantially expanded in the 17th century, creating a Jacobean mansion.


Book town

Hay-on-Wye is a destination for
bibliophiles Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. A bibliophile or bookworm is an individual who loves and frequently reads and/or collects books. Profile The classic bibliophile is one who loves to read, admire and collect books, often ama ...
in the United Kingdom, with two dozen bookshops, many selling specialist and second-hand
books A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physic ...
, although the number has declined sharply in recent years, many becoming general antique shops and similar. Hay-on-Wye was already well known for its many bookshops before the festival was launched.
Richard Booth Richard George William Pitt Booth (12 September 1938 – 20 August 2019) was a British bookseller, known for his contribution to the success of Hay-on-Wye as a centre for second-hand bookselling. He was also the self-proclaimed "King of Hay". ...
opened his first shop there, called The Old Fire Station, in 1962, and by the 1970s Hay had gained the nickname "The Town of Books".


Hay Festival

Since 1988, Hay-on-Wye has been the venue for an annual literary festival, now sponsored by ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' newspaper, which draws a claimed 80,000 visitors over ten days at the end of May or beginning of June to see and hear big literary names from all over the world. Devised by Norman, Rhoda and Peter Florence in 1988, the festival was described by
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
in 2001 as "The
Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aq ...
of the mind".
Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British politician, writer and diarist who served as a Cabinet minister in the 1960s and 1970s. A member of the Labour Party, ...
said: "In my mind it's replaced Christmas". In late July 2021, co-founder and director Peter Florence resigned as Festival Director.


Governance

Hay-on-Wye is a Welsh
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, t ...
with a town council. Its boundary follows the English border/Dulas Brook from the River Wye south-eastwards for just over a kilometre, turns south-west to a point just south of Oakfield house, thence north to Greenpit Farm and north-westwards, enclosing the Hay Showground and meeting the National Park boundary near the B4350, Brecon Road. From this point, it follows the National Park boundary to the River Wye and the river back to the Dulas Brook. The town council consists of a mayor, deputy mayor and eight councillors. Hay also participates in the election of a councillor to Powys County Council as part of a larger county division.


Transport

The B4350 runs through the town and the B4351 links it with the main A438 from Brecon to Hereford, on the far side of the River Wye. The town was formerly served by train services at Hay-on-Wye railway station on the Hereford, Hay and Brecon line ; it closed in 1962 due to the line's commercial underperformance.


Sport

Hay St. Mary's Football Club is based on Hay Sports Field, off Brecon Road, and they compete in the Mid-Wales Football League. Hay-on-Wye Cricket Club is also located on Hay Sports Field. The 1st team compete in The Marches Cricket League. Hay Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1903. The club continued on its nine-hole course until the onset of World War 2.


Music and philosophy

Hay hosts the philosophy and music festival ''
HowTheLightGetsIn HowTheLightGetsIn Festival is a philosophy and music festival, hosted by the Institute of Art and Ideas. It aims "to get philosophy out of the academy and into people's lives" by bringing together philosophers, writers, academics, comedians and ...
'', which occurs annually in Hay-on-Wye in May. ''HowTheLightGetsIn'' aims "to get philosophy out of the academy and into people's lives".


Quality of living

Hay-on-Wye was named one of the best places to live in Wales in 2017.


Notable buildings

Hay has nearly 150 listed buildings, including the Castle, St Mary's parish church, St John's chapel, the Ebenezer United Reformed Church, the Swan Hotel, and part of the town wall, as well as many of the town centre inns and shops. The Butter Market was commissioned by William Enoch and erected in the form of a Doric temple in 1833; the Cheese Market was commissioned by
Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet (21 January 1783 – 20 November 1858), was an English ironmaster and Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP). Bailey was born in 1783 in Great Wenham, Suffolk, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield and his w ...
and completed in 1835. Oakfield is a Grade II listed Regency house located south of the town centre: built in about 1820, it was recorded in 1842 as the home of Henry Allen Junior. Hay-on-Wye has a Victorian clock tower which was completed in 1884.


Twinning

Hay-on-Wye is twinned with Redu, a village in the Belgian municipality of Libin, and with
Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...
,
Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...
, West Africa.


King of Hay-on-Wye

On 1 April 1977, bibliophile
Richard Booth Richard George William Pitt Booth (12 September 1938 – 20 August 2019) was a British bookseller, known for his contribution to the success of Hay-on-Wye as a centre for second-hand bookselling. He was also the self-proclaimed "King of Hay". ...
conceived a publicity stunt in which he declared Hay-on-Wye to be an 'independent kingdom' with himself as its monarch and a National Anthem written by
Les Penning Les Penning is a British folk musician and composer, best known for his work with Mike Oldfield on the album ''Ommadawn'' and several of Oldfield's singles. He is credited with introducing Oldfield to Medieval Music, medieval music through their ...
. The tongue-in-cheek micronation of Hay-on-Wye has subsequently developed a healthy tourism industry based on literary interests for which some credit Booth. In 2005, Booth announced plans to sell his bookshop and move to
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
; on this occasion local
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
(MP)
Roger Williams Roger Williams (21 September 1603between 27 January and 15 March 1683) was an English-born New England Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantatio ...
was quoted as saying "His legacy will be that Hay changed from a small market town into a mecca for second-hand book lovers and this transformed the local economy".


Notable people

* Herbert Rowse Armstrong, the "Hay Poisoner" – the only UK solicitor to have been hanged for murder *
Richard Booth Richard George William Pitt Booth (12 September 1938 – 20 August 2019) was a British bookseller, known for his contribution to the success of Hay-on-Wye as a centre for second-hand bookselling. He was also the self-proclaimed "King of Hay". ...
(1938–2019), self-proclaimed "King of Hay" * Jason "J" Brown, singer in
boy band A boy band is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Ma ...
Five 5 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 5, five or number 5 may also refer to: * AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era * 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era Literature * ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram * ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
* Penelope Chetwode, Lady Betjeman, author of ''Two Middle-Aged Ladies in Andalucia'' *
Christopher Dawson Christopher Henry Dawson (12 October 188925 May 1970) was a British independent scholar, who wrote many books on cultural history and Christendom. Dawson has been called "the greatest English-speaking Catholic historian of the twentieth century ...
, author * Jasper Fforde, author, the Thursday Next series *
Iain Finlayson Iain Finlayson (born 1945) is a Scottish writer and journalist. Finlayson has written biographies of James Boswell and Robert Browning, as well as books about Romney Marsh, the Scots, denim and Tangier. He was books editor of ''Saga Magazine'' ...
, author * Josie Pearson, Paralympian athlete and Gold Medal winner at the 2012 Paralympic Games * Terry Pratchett, author * Jenny Valentine, author of '' Finding Violet Park'' * Greg Haver, music producer


See also

* Sedbergh – the national book town of England * Wigtown – the national book town of Scotland


References


Further reading

* Remfry, P.M., ''Hay on Wye Castle, 1066 to 1298'' ()


External links


Official website

Local tourism website

Old photographs and history
{{Authority control Towns in Powys Brecknockshire Antiquarian booksellers Towns of the Welsh Marches Market towns in Wales Bookshops of the United Kingdom Tourist attractions in Powys River Wye Black Mountains, Wales Bookstore neighborhoods Communities in Powys