Templeton (
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 ...
: ''Tredeml'') 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 ...
in
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...
,
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 ...
. The population of the community was 943 in 2011. The built-up area had a population of 627.
History
Early history
The
placename
Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
Templeton may derive from “The Templar's Farm” or (“Tun”).
It is possible that the
Knights Templar
, colors = White mantle with a red cross
, colors_label = Attire
, march =
, mascot = Two knights riding a single horse
, equipment ...
had some form of religious house here before their possessions were taken over by the
Knights Hospitaller
The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...
s, which had a
commandery
In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...
at nearby
Slebech
Slebech was a community (prior to 1974, a civil parish) in Pembrokeshire, Wales, which is now part of the combined community of Uzmaston and Boulston and Slebech, a sparsely populated community on the northern shore of the Eastern River Cleddau. ...
, which, by 1282 passed to the
Mortimer
Mortimer () is an English surname, and occasionally a given name.
Norman origins
The surname Mortimer has a Norman origin, deriving from the village of Mortemer, Seine-Maritime, Normandy. A Norman castle existed at Mortemer from an early point; ...
s, Lords of
Narberth.
In 1282 Templeton was referred to as "Villa temparil" which means the “Vil” or settlement of the Templars and "Villa Templarorium Campestris" – the vil of the Templars in the fields. In 1283 there was also a reference to “Burgesses”. These burgesses were "de vento" - "of the wind" meaning they were not property owners within the settlement but were permitted to come in and out of trade on a regular basis. Burgesses at Templeton are again recorded in the 16th century.
The layout of the present village is an example of deliberate planning in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, with a single main street fronted by houses with their respected plots extending behind each dwelling. These houses and plots, the "
burgage
Burgage is a medieval land term used in Great Britain and Ireland, well established by the 13th century.
A burgage was a town ("borough" or "burgh") rental property (to use modern terms), owned by a king or lord. The property ("burgage tenement ...
s" of the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, form a coherent unit imposed on the landscape and set in a regular system of fields, which themselves still show the narrow strips representing recent enclosures from an extensive
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
"open field" agricultural
field system The study of field systems (collections of fields) in landscape history is concerned with the size, shape and orientation of a number of fields. These are often adjacent, but may be separated by a later feature.
Field systems by region Czech Republ ...
.
It is not certain that the Templars were responsible for creating the planned settlement. It is possible that this was done by Mortimer incorporating an earlier agricultural holding or farm established by the Templars. It was once a
marcher borough. Owen, in 1603, described it as one of nine Pembrokeshire "boroughs in decay".
In the 17th century Narberth Mountain was stocked with
Red Deer
The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...
and covered of woodland. The Pembrokeshire county history records also show open fields in Molleston and Templeton being
enclosed for pasture. The establishment of the
Tavernspite Turnpike Trust in the 1770s led to a
turnpike road
A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented ...
toll gate
Toll Gate or Tollgate may refer to:
* Toll gate, a barrier across a toll road or toll bridge that is lifted when the toll is paid
Entertainment
* "Tollgate" (Hale single)
* ''The Toll-Gate'', a 1954 novel by Georgette Heyer
* ''The Toll Gate'', ...
being built at Catershook to the south of the village; its position on an important trading route from
Tenby
Tenby ( cy, Dinbych-y-pysgod, lit=fortlet of the fish) is both a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the western side of Carmarthen Bay, and a local government community.
Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembroke ...
to
Cardigan undoubtedly contributed to the growth of Templeton. In the late 18th century the countryside continued to change with woodland disappearing, more land being enclosed and farming dominating the landscape.
The 1870 Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Templeton as "a chapelry, with a village, in Narberth parish, Pembroke; 5 miles SSW of Narberth-Road r. station. It was constituted in 1863: and it has a post-office under Narberth. Pop., 650. A property here belonged to the Knights Templars. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of St. Davids. Value, £182. Patron, the Crown. The church was built in 1862. There is a dissenting chapel."
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, tow ...
(and pre-1974
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
) covering Templeton was formerly called Narberth South, being renamed Templeton in 1986.
Sentence Castle
Sentence Castle is a raised fortification, a "
ringwork
A ringwork is a form of fortified defensive structure, usually circular or oval in shape. Ringworks are essentially motte-and-bailey castles without the motte. Defences were usually earthworks in the form of a ditch and bank surrounding the site.
...
", thought to date from the 12th century. This was probably the castle of ''arberth'' which was attacked and destroyed by
Gruffydd ap Rhys
Gruffydd ap Rhys (c. 1090 – 1137) was Prince of Deheubarth, in Wales. His sister was the Princess Nest ferch Rhys. He was the father of Rhys ap Gruffydd, known as 'The Lord Rhys', who was one of the most successful rulers of Deheubarth duri ...
in 1116, according to a chronicle in the
Cotton library
The Cotton or Cottonian library is a collection of manuscripts once owned by Sir Robert Bruce Cotton MP (1571–1631), an antiquarian and bibliophile. It later became the basis of what is now the British Library, which still holds the collection. ...
; the stone castle at Narberth was not built until over 100 years later.
[Record of ]RCAHMW
The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales (RCAHMW; cy, Comisiwn Brenhinol Henebion Cymru; ), established in 1908, is a Welsh Government sponsored body concerned with some aspects of the archaeological, architectura ...
/ref>
Legends as recorded in the 13th century Four Branches of the Mabinogi, Third Branch of the Mabinogi (concerning Manawydan fab Llŷr
; "Manawydan, the son of Llŷr" is a legendary tale from medieval Welsh literature and the third of the four branches of the Mabinogi. It is a direct sequel to the second branch, ''Branwen ferch Llŷr'', and deals with the aftermath of Bran's i ...
) mention the area of Arberth and a place called Gorsedd Arberth, thought by some authorities to be Sentence Castle. The embanked earthworks are about 15M across and the site is a Scheduled monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
.
Margaret's Well
Located adjacent to Sentence Castle is one of the 'Holy Wells of Wales', known as Margaret's Well. Set into a bank, the well chamber is lined with stone and has a corbelled
In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the st ...
roof.
Templeton Railway Station
On 4 September 1866 a railway line was completed to link south Pembrokeshire with the main rail line at Whitland. In Templeton a high limestone bridge was built to span Tanner's Lane and a small station was built in 1867. This was mainly used by the adjacent brickworks until World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
when a new platform was built. There were also extensive sidings that were used twice for overnight stops for the Royal Train. The station was closed on the 16 June 1965 as part of the Beeching cuts
The Beeching cuts (also Beeching Axe) was a plan to increase the efficiency of the nationalised British Rail, railway system in Great Britain. The plan was outlined in two reports: ''The Reshaping of British Railways'' (1963) and ''The Develop ...
and has since been removed.
Templeton Airfield
Opened in 1943, RAF Templeton
RAF Templeton is a former Royal Air Force station located near Templeton, Pembrokeshire, Wales which was operational between December 1942 and July 1945. It remains in use as Templeton Dry Training Area.
History
RAF Templeton initially form ...
had three concrete runways and was originally a base for 306 Ferry Training Unit which used twin engined Bristol Beaufort
The Bristol Beaufort (manufacturer designation Type 152) is a British twin-engined torpedo bomber designed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, and developed from experience gained designing and building the earlier Blenheim light bomber. At l ...
torpedo bomber aircraft. Templeton was also used by 595 Squadron target towing Spitfires
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...
, as well as Spitfires and Mosquito bombers of A Flight, No. 8 Operational Training Unit in 1945, when operations moved to RAF Benson
Royal Air Force Benson or RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located at Benson, near Wallingford, in South Oxfordshire, England. It is a front-line station and home to the RAF's fleet of Westland Puma HC2 support helicopters, use ...
and the airfield closed.
The disused runways are now occasionally used for military exercises and low flying training with Hercules transport aircraft.
Some sources (including the UK Ordnance Survey) place the 1081 Battle of Mynydd Carn within the boundary of the airfield.
Templeton today
Templeton's importance declined with the closures of the brickworks and the blacksmith but it remains active with a nineteenth-century pub, the ''Boars Head'', a primary school, church and park.
See also
* RAF Templeton
RAF Templeton is a former Royal Air Force station located near Templeton, Pembrokeshire, Wales which was operational between December 1942 and July 1945. It remains in use as Templeton Dry Training Area.
History
RAF Templeton initially form ...
References
External links
Photos of Templeton and surrounding area on geograph.org.uk
{{Communities of Pembrokeshire
Villages in Pembrokeshire
Communities in Pembrokeshire