Abergele

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the district in Ethiopia, see Abergele (woreda).

Statistics
Abergele
Population:	12,000 approx.
Ordnance Survey
OS grid reference:	Maps for SH945775
Administration
Principal area:	Conwy
Constituent country:	Wales
Sovereign state:	United Kingdom
Other
Police force:	North Wales Police
Ceremonial county:	Clwyd
Historic county:	Denbighshire
Post office and telephone
Post town:	ABERGELE
Postal district:	LL22
Dialling code:	+44-1745
Politics
UK Parliament:	Clwyd West
European Parliament:	Wales

Abergele is an old Roman trading town, situated near the north Wales coast between the popular holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in the county borough of Conwy, traditional county of Denbighshire. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies on the Irish Sea coast and is known for its beach, where a ghost ship has been sighted. Abergele and Pensarn railway station serves both resorts.

The town itself lies on the A55 road and is known for Gwrych Castle. The town is surrounded by wooded hillsides, which contain caves with rare lesser horseshoe bats. The highest hill is Moelfre Isaf (1038ft) to the south of the town.

In 1868 the Abergele Train Disaster was, up to that time, the worst railway disaster in Britain. Thirty-three people died, and they are buried in a mass grave in the local churchyard.

On 30 June 1969, the evening before the investiture of Prince Charles in Caernarfon, two members of Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru (Welsh Defence Movement), Alwyn Jones and George Taylor, were killed when their bomb - intended for the railway line along which the Royal Train would be passing - exploded prematurely.

There are many sites of historical interest, including two iron age hill forts. Castell Cawr at Tan y goppa and Fort Dinorben now virtually disappeared owing to limestone quarrying at St George. On Gallt y Felin Wynt, a hill above the town popularly known as Tower Hill, is a C17th watchtower, partially restored in 1930. There is another iron-age fort at Pen-y-Corddyn mawr hill above Rhyd-y-Foel. There are many limestone cliffs in the hills surrounding the town.

Gwrych Castle was built between 1819-1825 at the bequest of Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh. From 1894 until 1946 it was the residence of the Dundonald family. Gwrych Castle's present owner, Californian businessman Nick Tavaglione, who bought the landmark 17 years ago has put Gwrych up for auction on 2nd June 2006 but it failed to sell, The condition of the property is being monitered by the Gwrych Castle Trust. [1] The castle was set fire to, probably by new-age travellers in which frequented the castle in 1995-96.

The boxers Bruce Woodcock (in the late 1940s) and Randolph Turpin (in 1952) trained at Gwrych Castle and the film `Prince Valiant` starring Edward Fox and Katherine Heigl (American actress, star of Roswell) was filmed there in 1996.

Rumour has it that the world's biggest grand piano was at the site of Gwrych Castle and that Rudolph Hess also left his car there.

A curious inscription can be found on a tombstone in St Michael's Church (built on the site of a 'clas' or Celtic monastery). It states 'Here lieth in St Michael's churchyard a man who had his dwelling three miles to the north'. The peculiar part of this is that the sea lies half a mile to the north. Was this a mistake or did the man live, perhaps, in a houseboat in the midst of the shipping lines to Liverpool?

Outside the church is a penitential stone where sinners had to do penance by standing, dressed in white, by the stone and bessech the congregation for mercy as they entered and left the church.

Abergele (including Pensarn) has a population of around 10,000. Famous people from Abergele include Lisa Scott-Lee of Steps who went to school at Ysgol Emrys ap Iwan, and Geraint Archer, member of the REME in the army, who also attended Ysgol Emrys ap Iwan. Approximately 29% of Abergele has a significant knowledge of Welsh, but the town has a large population of people from England, namely Manchester and Liverpool.

Recent genetic studies [2] on the y-chromosomes of men in Abergele have revealed that there is a substantial percentage of North African DNA in Abergele. Genetic marker e3b was found to average at 38.97% in male y-chromosomes in Abergele. Genetic marker e3b is found at its highest concentrations in North Africa at 75% but at much lower percentages in Northern Europe at less than 5%. The reason for the high levels of e3b in Abergele is most likely due to the heavy Roman presence in Abergele as most of the Romans that came to Britain did not come from Italy rather from other parts of the empire such as North Africa, the Middle East and eastern europe. Above average levels of genetic marker e3b have been found in other towns in Britain that were known to have had a heavy Roman presence.