Pentraeth (; ) is a village 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, tow ...

on the island of

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

(''Ynys Môn''),

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

, at . The

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

postcode A postal code (also known locally in various English-speaking countries throughout the world as a postcode, post code, PIN or ZIP Code) is a series of letters or digits or both, sometimes including spaces or punctuation, included in a postal a ...

begins LL75. The community population taken at the 2011 census was 1,178. The village itself having a population of 557. Its

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 ...

name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A personal ...

means ''at the end of (or head of) a beach'', and it is located near

Traeth Coch Red Wharf Bay, also known as Traeth Coch (Welsh for "red beach"), is a village and a wide sandy bay in the Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the east coast of the island of Anglesey in Wales. The bay lies between the villages of Pe ...

(Red Wharf Bay). There is a small river, Afon Nodwydd which runs through it. The village's ancient name was ''Llanfair Betws Geraint''. In 1170 it was the site of a battle when

Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd (circa 11201170), Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, was a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as ''Hy ...

landed with an army raised in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in an attempt to claim a share of the kingdom of

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and C ...

following the death of his father

Owain Gwynedd Owain ap Gruffudd ( 23 or 28 November 1170) was King of Gwynedd, North Wales, from 1137 until his death in 1170, succeeding his father Gruffudd ap Cynan. He was called Owain the Great ( cy, Owain Fawr) and the first to be ...

. He was defeated and killed here by the forces of his half-brothers

Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd ( – 1203) was Prince of Gwynedd from 1170 to 1195. For a time he ruled jointly with his brothers Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd and Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd. Dafydd was the son of Owain Gwynedd by Cristin ferch Goronwy ab ...

and Rhodri. In 1859,

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

stayed in the village on his trip, as a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', to visit the wreck of the ''Royal Charter'' in Moelfre. Between 1908 and 1950 it was served by

Pentraeth railway station Pentraeth railway station was situated on the Red Wharf Bay branch line between Holland Arms railway station and Benllech, the third station after the line branched from the main Anglesey Central Railway. Opening on 1 July 1908, a quarter of a ...

, on the

Red Wharf Bay branch line The Red Wharf Bay branch line was a standard gauge railway line in Anglesey, Wales, a branch off the Anglesey Central Railway. It opened fully in 1909, but closed to passengers in September 1930.Richards, Melville: An Atlas of Anglesey, page 99 ...

. The village has a football side, Pentraeth F.C., who play in the Welsh Alliance Division 2, the fourth tier of Welsh football. The centre of the village is The Square. It is bounded by St. Mary's Church and the

Panton Arms The Panton Arms is a pub in Cambridge, U.K. that is often frequented by scientists from the Engineering and Chemistry Department of the University of Cambridge. It became more widely known in February 2010 when a group of scientists released the ...

public house as well as a row of shops called Cloth Hall. This was founded in the 19th century by Benjamin Thomas as a general store. It continued as a grocery store into the 1990s, and is now occupied by a carpet shop as well as a bakery and party-ware hire shop. The community includes

Rhos Cefn Hir Rhos Cefn Hir (or Rhoscefnhir) is a village in the community of Pentraeth, Anglesey, Wales, which is 130.8 miles (210.5 km) from Cardiff and 210.8 miles (339.2 km) from London. References See also *List of localities in Wales by pop ...

St Mary's Church

St Mary's Church is the village church. The date of construction is unknown, but is probably from some time between the 12th to 14th centuries. Some medieval stonework remains in three walls of the building. A chapel was added to the south side in the 16th or 17th century, and the church was altered and refurbished during the 19th century. The church is still in use, as part of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales ( cy, Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) is an Anglicanism, Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishop ...

, and is one of five churches in a combined parish. It 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 ...

, a designation given to "buildings of special interest, which warrant every effort being made to preserve them", in particular because of the retention of medieval fabric in a predominantly 19th-century building, and its "fine" memorials.

Governance

Prior to the 2012 Anglesey electoral boundary changes an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

in the same name existed, electing a county councillor to the

Isle of Anglesey County Council The Isle of Anglesey County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir Ynys Môn) is the local authority for the county of Anglesey, one of the principal areas of Wales. Since 2022 the council has 35 councillors who represent 11 multi-member electoral wards. His ...

. This ward included the community of

Llanddona Llanddona (; ); ) is a village and community noted for its sandy beach in the Welsh county of Anglesey. Located between Benllech and Beaumaris, it is popular as a holiday destination, particularly for families. Llanddona has no shops; however, ...

and had a total population in 2011 of 1,869.

References

External links

Pentraeth Community Council websitePhotographs of Pentraeth and surrounding area on geograph
* {{portal bar , United Kingdom , Wales Former wards of Anglesey