Anglesey
Situated off the
North Coast of Wales the Island of Anglesey was largely independent of the mainland
until the early C19th when the first Bridge the historic and innovative Menai Suspension Bridge spanning the
treacherous Menai Straits opened up the island. Prior to this the island was
accessible by fording the Straits at either end of the Island under the
watchful eye of Caernarfon Castle at one end and Beaumaris Castle
at the other. Ferries plied their trade across the Straits, the principal one
being for centuries under the control of the Bishop of Bangor in the shadow
of the later Suspension Bridge from the St. Georges site to Borth (Menai Bridge).
In Roman times the island became the last major enclave of the Druid
religion, and a thorn in the flesh of the occupying Romans. In response to
the frequent raiding of the mainland from the island the Roman army launched
a well documented campaign against the island druids and were surprised at
the ferocity of the islands defence, so much so that they sought out the
Sacred Groves and holy places and destroyed all that they could find. An
unusual punitive act for the empire which usually assimilated local gods and
religions into their own canon.
Christianity arrived in Wales
before the Roman Church, the style and architecture of the Celtic church
being much simpler, the islands earlier churches carrying none of the
grandeur. The island has its share of Saints with Seriol, Teilo and Dwynwen
amongst its number. Once the Celtic church had been assimilated into the
Roman Catholic church Anglesey fell under the see of Bangor having no Cathedral of its own.
When the Roman Legions left the Irish occupied the Island and much of the
North Wales coastal area up to the Dee, it
took the Celtic Princes nearly 200 years to expel them remembered in the
cliff from which the last Irishman was thrown from the island. They
established their Court at Aberfraw from which to expand their kingdom of Gwynedd,
which they had to defend against the Kingdom
of Northumberland and later the
Viking raiders based on the Isle of Man and Dublin. The Norman invasion confined itself
to the control of the coastal waters particularly the Menai Straits, with
strongholds at each end, echoed later by the occupation first by King John in
a fit of mistrust of his Son in Law Llewllyn and later by the Edward
Longshanks who established the Castles of Beaumaris and Caernarfon to put an
end to the constant threat of border raiding by the Princes of Gwynedd on his
English borders.
Birthplace of Henry Tudor, who became Henry Vll of England after the Battle
of Bosworth in 1485, uniting England
and Wales
under his rule abolishing the border Marcher States, and introducing a single
legal code to the union, something which had not been seen since Roman times.
Currently not held in great esteem the failed border adventurer Glyndower
finding more favour. The Welsh Tudor dynasty brought considerable changes,
the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry Vlll brought an end to the
contemplative life, their lands being eagerly plundered by the recently promoted
Welsh ruling class but there are still some parts of these ecclesiastical
structures remaining on the island. Under Elizabeth
came the opening up of the New World, Anglesey
sailors taking their share of the new trade, including the piracy of French
and Spanish Ships.
During the English Civil War the island was predominantly for the King but
largely kept a low profile not least to avoid the taxation and levies
required by both sides although a few left the island to join the war on both
sides the island watched as the Parliamentary forces swept across
Caernarfonshire to pacify and gain control of the Ports and Castles
controlled from Criccieth and Harlech. When the Islands Royalists did make
their move they were dealt with in a single sweep across the Island by Parliamentary forces, with no more than an
occasional skirmish.
The natural wealth of Anglesey has been its
agriculture. From the twelfth century Gerald of Wales used the phrase Mon Mam
Cymru, meaning Mona , Mother of Wales, and is recorded as saying that
"When crops have failed in all other regions, this island, from the
richness of its soil and its abundant produce, has been able to supply all
Wales" The C18th and the Georgian accession left their marks on the
island as advances in agricultural methods brought considerable prosperity to
the island marked by the legacy of fine C18th buildings across the island.
Throughout the century the opening up of the colonies in North
America and the rise in the Atlantic trade was shared in by the
island in the revictualling of the ships many with local owners before they
embarked on the dangerous Atlantic Voyage.
The end of the century brought the Napoleonic Wars, and the island took its
share both from the supply of provisions and the plunder due to the winners
and particularly along the Menai Straits the Great Houses particulary Plas
Newydd were a celebration of that success. One wonders what the landscape
would have looked like had Wellington lost at Waterloo. It was really
the result of these Wars which lost the island its independence as Thomas
Telfords great trunk road from London to
Holyhead and the shortest sea route to Dublin
and Ireland opened up the
island with the magnificent Menai
Suspension Bridge.
The great Trunk
Road the A5 with its metalled surface replaced the old Coaching routes with
their staging posts for changing horses which were needed twice to cross the
island Their abandonment was completed with the other major feat of
engineering the Stephenson
Tubular Bridge
which now carries the A55 but was original built for the Railway. The old
coaching roads seem somewhat misplaced until you connect them to the old
ferry and fording points across the Menai Straits.
The Industrial Revolution which drove the economy into the C20th came close
to Anglesey with the great Slate Quarries of
Caernarfonshire but scarcely touched the island, food prices as they are now
were gradually eroded and less labour required on the farms to produce them.
Local craftsmen were replaced by much cheaper goods from the new Factories
and the island has seen a constant level of emigration as its young people
find it difficult to find local opportunities. Little has changed in this
respect for some 200 years.
The residual wealth of the island still comes from Agriculture, cattle and
sheep are still farmed by tradition methods and Dairy farming is still
important. Not that the island is entirely pastoral, Anglesey was famous for
its windmills and grain production, although there is only one windmill left
, Wheat and Barley are still grown, and there is a good market for Anglesey
potatoes. The climate of the island is mild, the brunt of the Atlantic winds
being attracted by the mountains of Snowdonia on the Mainland allowing
particularly the Southern end of the island to enjoy their shelter and the
benefits of the warmth of the Gulf Stream. As a consequence leeks, brassicas,
herbs and soft fruit are products of these areas.
The islands landscape is regarded as unspoilt, but it bears the imprint of
continuous occupation from the earliest of times with the ancient monuments
and burial chambers of the early inhabitants through to new Industrial Parks
intended for the island regeneration. Almost every generation has left its
mark somewhere on the island and the most fortunate part is that so much of
it is still to be seen. the Island has not been overdeveloped, rather the
reverse, abandonment has left much in place and the joy of island is how much
it has to offer whether it be a Mill, a Barrow, a Well or Ancient Church or
the Bridges and the great buildings like Plas Newydd, the Castle and other
buildings in Beaumaris. The natural beauty of the island is seldom
overwhelmed by the uglier of Mans endeavours.
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