Stone figure in Upton castle chapel - geograph

Upton, Pembrokeshire is a small, rural

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

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, in which

Upton Castle Upton Castle is a 13th-century castle or fortification, fortified manor house with an associated chapel, located near Cosheston, Pembrokeshire in Wales. Although in private ownership, the gardens are open to the public. They are listed on the Ca ...

and Upton Chapel are significant buildings dating back to Norman times.

History

An early mention of the parish was about 1200, when

Gerald of Wales Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and English historians in the Middle Ages, historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and w ...

recorded a chapel there, subordinate to Nash parish. The Manor of Upton merged with that of Nash under the 14th century Malefants, who had built the castle probably in the 13th century. By the 16th century, the Bowen family owned the manor. The parish is marked on a 1578 parish map of the county. In the second half of the 18th century, Captain John Tasker of the

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purchased Upton Castle; among the eventual beneficiaries after his death were members of the Evans family. In 1833,

Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

, in his ''Topographical Dictionary of Wales'', recorded that the parish was occupied by a single family of six inhabitants. At that time Nash-cum-Upton was a rectory in the non-adjoining Nash parish, to the south. Lewis described the former inhabitants of the castle and its dependencies as Maliphant (sic), then Bowen, then Evans. In 1872, Upton was described as a hamlet in Nash parish, with a population of 24 in three houses. It covered an area of , of which were water. Tasker Evans sold to Stanley Neale in 1927. The asking price was £9,100. In 2004, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park said they would discontinue the upkeep of the gardens. In 2006 the estate was sold. In 2012, Channel 4's

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned online in 2022 for two episodes released on YouTube. Created by television producer Tim ...

carried out an archaeological evaluation of the castle and chapel. Their evidence suggested the chapel was 11th or 12th century, subsequently altered. Modern maps show only Upton Farm, Upton Castle Gardens and the ruins of Upton Castle and Chapel.

Upton Castle

Upton Castle was the home of the Malefant family, and later of John Tasker. It is still a private home. Its gardens are open to the public.

Upton Chapel

The chapel is dedicated to St. Giles, and is open to the public. It contains several important features including effigies of the Anglo-Norman Malefant family dating from the 13th to 15th centuries.

References

External links

Further historical information and sources on GENUKI
{{authority control Villages in Pembrokeshire