Aberystwyth

Since the 19th century, the seaside town of Aberystwyth has been one of Wales’ main educational centres with both a university and the National Library of Wales located here. It lies on the confluence of the Ystwyth and Rheidol rivers in the county of Ceredigion but was historically part of Cardiganshire. Despite the name, the Afon Rheidol travels through the town, whereas the Ystwyth flows around its edge. Aberystwyth came into common use after the first castle was built near the town on the banks of that river.

Evidence of settlement in the area around the town goes back to the Mesolithic period where flint knapping (making tools from flint) took place at the foot of Pen Dinas. Pen Dinas itself, in Penparcau, is the site of a Celtic fort that seems to have been inhabited before 700BC. It is more correctly known as Dinas Maelor, named after the giant Maelor Gawr, and this hill was said to be his home. South of the present town lies a medieval ringfort which is believed to be the castle from which Princess Nest was abducted.

In 1109, Gilbert Fitz Richard constructed the first castle in Aberystwyth, though not on the site of the ruins today. The first castle was built about a mile and half south of the modern town on the Ystwyth river, this location is now known as Tan-y-Castell. Historically, Aberystwyth came under the influence of the rulers of Deheubarth, but its proximity to Gwynedd and to a lesser extent Powys left it vulnerable. Llywelyn ap Iorwerth captured the town in 1208, before Edward I sited a new castle in its current location in 1277. It was occupied by Owain Glyndŵr for four years between 1404 and 1408 and it was here that Glyndŵr signed a treaty with the King of France.

Leading up to the English civil war, the castle was used to mint silver coins using silver from local mines, roughly £10,500 was minted there. After being seized by Parliamentarians in 1649, the castle was razed. In 1988, a skeleton preserved by limestone from the razing of the castle was found in an excavation, the skeleton is now on display in the Ceredigion Museum in the town and is known as ‘Charlie’.

Rural industries and trades played a vital role in the economy of Aberystwyth before the growth of tourism. However, in 1864, the railway reached the town. Originally linking just with Machynlleth, lines were soon built to Carmarthen/Caerfyrddin which prompted the construction of a new station. Yr Hen Orsaf (above), is now the town’s J.D. Wetherspoon pub, interestingly. The Cambrian line opened in 1869 on the same day as the new Royal Pier. A huge tourist boom followed, and the town even earned the nicknamed the ‘Biarritz’ of Wales. A number of hotels were constructed in the wake of this boom and one of those, the Castle Hotel was never finished due to bankruptcy. However, it was sold to a committee dedicated to the creation of a national Welsh university. The University College of Wales was founded in that same hotel in 1872 (below left). One year later, the town won the battle to host the National Library in competition with Cardiff (below right). Largely because many of the books and manuscripts were already on location at the university in the town. In the 1890s the ‘Aberystwyth Improvement Company’ completed three projects in the town, the best known of which is the funicular railway which takes passengers up a 50% gradient to the top of Constitution Hill, or Consti as the locals refer to it.

Modern Aberystwyth is somewhat of an unofficial capital of the mid-Wales region hosting not just the university and National Library but also Cymdeithas Yr Iaith Gymraeg, the Welsh Books Council, Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru, National Monuments Record of Wales, Welsh government offices and the National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales. The town still welcomes thousands of students between the term time months, including myself between 2006-2009, and thousands of tourists who visit in the summer.