The Bear Hotel, formerly the White Bear, stands on Beaufort Street,

Crickhowell Crickhowell (; , non-standard spelling ') is a town and community (Wales), community in southeastern Powys, Wales, near Abergavenny, and is in the historic counties of Wales, historic county of Brecknockshire. Location The town lies on th ...

Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...

, Wales. A

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of t ...

from the mid 18th century, the building has older origins from the 17th and 15th centuries. It is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History and description

The

edition of ''The Buildings of Wales'' describes the Bear as "the epitome of an 18th century coaching inn". It is reputed to have functioned as an inn since 1432, although

Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage ...

attributes a certain dating only to the 17th century. In the late 19th century the inn was a local headquarters of the

Cyclists' Touring Club Cycling UK is a trading name of the Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC), which is a charitable membership organisation supporting cyclists and promoting bicycle use. Cycling UK is registered at Companies House as "Cyclists’ Touring Club", and is c ...

. The Bear remains an independent hotel. In the 1990s,

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, ''Life thru a Lens'', was re ...

stayed at the Bear for some months, when recording at

Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Recording studios Rockfield is a two-stu ...

following his split from

Take That Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer ...

. In 2004

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for ...

visited while filming '' The Libertine'' at

Tretower Court Tretower Court () is a medieval fortified manor house in Wales, situated in the village of Tretower, near Crickhowell in modern-day Powys, previously within the historical county of Breconshire or Brecknockshire. Local and national importance ...

. The main block of the hotel comprises three storeys with four bays, with a central porch flanked by Doric columns, and an arched

carriage A carriage is a two- or four-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle for passengers. In Europe they were a common mode of transport for the wealthy during the Roman Empire, and then again from around 1600 until they were replaced by the motor car around 1 ...

entrance to the right. The Bear is a

, with the hotel bar having its own Grade II listing.

References

Sources

* {{Cite book , last1 = Scourfield, first1 = Robert , last2 = Haslam, first2 = Richard , series=The Buildings of Wales , title=Powys: Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire and Breconshire , url=http://yalebooks.co.uk/display.asp?K=9780300185089&nat=false&sort=%24rank&sf1=keyword&st1=Powys&m=1&dc=1 , year=2013 , location=New Haven, US and London , publisher=Yale University Press , isbn=9780300185089 Grade II* listed pubs in Wales Grade II* listed buildings in Powys Crickhowell Pubs in Powys