DOCUMENT NO 325 November 2016

A.P.A.C. Ltd.
Archaeological Perspectives Analysis Consultancy

Environmental Impact Assessment

Hafodarthen Farm, St Illtyd

IM/STI/16

Prepared for:
MR R. Davies

By: Dr N. Phillips.
 A.P.A.C. Ltd. Hafodarthen Farm, St Illtyds IM/STI/16

Summary

This document provides an understanding of the impact of a

proposed agricultural building development proposed by Mr Rhys
Davies of Hafodarthen Farm, St Illtyds, Abertillery upon the known
and unknown heritage of the proposed development site. The
proposed development site sits immediately adjacent to the
Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM) MM141 which is considered to
be a well preserved medieval motte. The original design of this
proposed agricultural building slightly encroached upon the
curtilage of the SAM which just happens to run beneath the existing
barn. However, in order to minimise any disturbance to the SAM, Mr
Davies has had the proposed building redesigned to sit outside the
curtilage of the SAM so that it poses no invasive threat upon it. The
building has been designed so that it does not require any trench
foundations, the only ground disturbance will be the excavation of
twelve shallow pits 0.5m square by c.1m deep to take the buildings
upright steel posts that would be set in concrete. Due to its proximity
to the SAM it is recommended that an archaeological watching brief
is undertaken during the cutting of these holes to recover and record
any features or finds that may be revealed as a result. The results of
the watching brief would be presented in an appropriate report with
the results of any discovered artefacts following analysis by relevant
specialists. The archive and artefacts would be deposited with the
appropriate local repository.

Copyright Notice:
A.P.A.C. Ltd. retains copyright of this report under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

The Ordnance Survey has granted A.P.A.C. Ltd a Copyright Licence (No. 100046577) to reproduce map information; Copyright remains
otherwise with the Ordnance Survey.

Cover Photograph: DSCO9989. Overview of completed trenches.

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Contents

Summary ......................................................................................................................................... 1
Contents........................................................................................................................................... 2
Figures: ............................................................................................................................................ 3
Plates: .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Justification ..................................................................................................................................... 4
Statement of Significance................................................................................................................ 4
An Assessment of the impact of the proposal ................................................................................. 6
Summary of any mitigation measures ............................................................................................. 7
Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 7
Bibliography and References: ......................................................................................................... 8

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Figures:

Figure 1. Location of the proposed development.

Figure 2. Revealing the curtilage of the Scheduled Ancient Monument in
relation to the proposed agricultural building
Figure 3. Proposed building design for the extension to the existing
agricultural buildings.

Plates:

Plate 1. View of the motte (SAM MM141) from the roadside to the south – looking
north.
Plate 2. Looking towards the north-east from the roadside to the building and silage
bales the area proposed for development.
Plate 3. Looking east from the motte towards yard and building proposed to be
extended and St Illtyd’s Church (obscured by tree).
Plate 4. View looking west from church yard wall towards proposed development
site, motte obscured by silage bales.
Plate 5. Looking south across the graveyard towards St Illtyd’s Church with Church
Farm agricultural buildings beyond the graveyard to the west of the Church.
Plate 6. Looking west from St Illtyds Church towards the Church Farms agricultural
buildings and site of proposed extension.

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Justification

The location of the proposed development has been used as an intrinsic and essential element of
Hafodarthen/Church Farm for the past 150 years and, as such, it was considered at length, with
the conclusion that this development is best suited and best placed as an extension to the existing
agricultural building. It must be noted that this building is essential for the well-being of the
farm’s livestock during the winter months. There has been a noticeable trend towards wetter
winters in recent years, possibly as a result of climate change, and housing the livestock is shown
to significantly reduce pasture damage and soil loss that results from out-wintered sheep. The
proposed agricultural building would, naturally, also store much of the winter hay and silage
bales.

Consideration has been made with regards to this building and the location of the Scheduled
Ancient Monument known as the castle motte (SAM MM141) which sits adjacent to the existing
agricultural building. The new extension will be constructed outside of the scheduled area with
minimal ground disturbance during its construction; therefore causing minimal disturbance upon
the archaeological potential of the site. It should be noted that the new extension will also cause
minimal visual impact upon the monument, as already discussed in the document Potential
Impact Of Development On Scheduled Ancient Monument MM141 And St Illtyd’s Church
Online CAD Ltd June 2016. This document fully considers the historic setting of the proposed
extension and concludes that the development would have no detrimental impact to the setting
and that none of the visual aspects between the monument and the Church would be
detrimentally affected.

Statement of Significance

The proposed extension to the long established agricultural building sits between the Grade II*
listed St Illtyd’s Church to its north-east and the Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM MM141)
considered to be a castle motte to its south-west.

The Grade II* St Illtyd’s Church occupies a central position on the north side of an unclassified
mountain-top road that runs through the village on its way to Pontypool. The church, which
closed in 1957, was finally abandoned by the Church in Wales in 1975 and fell into decay.
However, as result of community support and pressure to ensure its survival, the building was
restored in 1984 by Blaenau Gwent Borough Council.

St Illtyd’s Church is built from local stone and comprises a short saddle-back tower, nave and
chancel. The tower has a west-facing doorway that is pointed and simply chamfered and its
belfry has four slits all without cut stone. The nave is lit by two square-headed windows, each
with three cinquefoiled lights; the lower chancel is lit by a basket-arched window of three
cinquefoiled lights at its eastern end. Internally, the nave and chancel are barrel-roofed.

The church is said to have been built by the Cistercians in the late 12th or early 13th century,
though its building style suggests a later date probably as a result of major alteration/rebuilding
with much late medieval/C16th century detail, possibly with earlier masonry incorporated. The
church sits within a circular churchyard which indicates an early origin to the site and it must be
noted that the first references to church appear in a C9-C10 poem. The church was again
restored/modernised in the late 19th century (1888-91) by architects Middleton, Prothero &

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Phillot of Cheltenham, who renewed the windows and added new furnishings. The stone-tiled
roof was also reinstated at this time, replacing red pantiles.

The reason for listing the building is described as follows: Listed as a well-preserved medieval
parish church retaining much original detail, including roofs and saddleback tower, as well as
fine provincial late C18-early C19 memorials.

Within the church remains a medieval font and in the churchyard the remnants of a medieval
cross, represented by its base and stumped remains of the cross shaft. It is likely that the church
was originally dedicated to Heledd. The historian TD Breverton recorded that during the 16th
and 17th centuries the parish church of Llanhilleth bore the name Llanheledd Forwyn (Church of
Heledd the Virgin). The church is first recorded as being dedicated to St Illtyd in 1754.

The Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM MM141) described as a castle motte, like the church,
sits on the north side the road as it passes through the village. The motte is situated on privately
owned farm land with no public access. Good views of the monument can be observed from the
road side to the south (Plate 1) and south-west. The land to the north is privately owned
agricultural land with additional tree cover at the north-west, obscuring visibility of the
monument, and the land to the east and north-east has agricultural buildings and silage storage
that obscures any views of the monument from the church grounds (Plates 2, 3 and 4).

The motte is 6.19m high at its maximum point and has a top surface area of
269.801m², partially damaged to the north by what appears to be a modern access
route. The damaged area covers some 36m² of the motte top and averages about 1
m in depth. The north-east side of the motte base has been cut into by a retaining
wall associated with the farm-yard. It is probable that the building of the wall has
affected the motte side in this area; the plan view shows that not only is the width
of the slope narrower at this point but also the shape of both the top and bottom of
the motte has been flattened (see Vol. 2. surveys). The average slope gradient is
about 60% but in the narrow area it increases to 79%.
(Phillips, pp 210-211. 2004).

A shallow ditch is visible extending from the north-west of the motte towards the south and its
width varies from 4m to 5m; the depth never exceeds 0.8 m. A fence and bank, which possibly
has confused its shape, borders the ditch for most of its western length. To the south, the ditch,
deepest at this point, has a berm between the motte and its inner top. It is probable that the
ground at this point has been much altered by the road and its construction, as well as the
accumulation of dumped building materials and agricultural machinery, etc. The monument is of
uncertain age and cultural origin but probably dates to the 11th or 12th centuries. The monument
was possibly an early timber castle with timber tower and palisade or possibly just a watch
tower. Other interpretations have proposed that the site was a burial mound. No bailey has yet
been discovered that could be associated with the motte.

To the north-east of the monument, beyond the church grounds and to the rear of the Carpenter
Arms Public House, is the site known as Castell Taliorum. Although no remains are visible,
archaeological excavations were carried out in 1924-25 and revealed the bases for two
monumental towers.

The eastern tower was a plain round structure, 18m in diameter with battered walls some 4.0m
wide at the base. This tower is unusually large, much larger than the other round keeps of south-

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east Wales and could possibly be compared with the great keep towers at Pembroke and Morlais
Castles. The western tower was an elaborate cruciform structure about 23m across. The towers
stood only 7.0m apart but it is not known whether they were contemporary. From the artefacts
discovered at the site it has been suggested that together the towers may have formed part of a
short-lived, fourteenth century castle.

An entry in the Brut y Tywysogion ("Chronicle of the Princes") for 1233 records that Llywelyn
the Great burnt the castles at Monmouth, Cardiff and Abergavenny and "the castrum called
Castell Hithell" (Bailey 1957, 26). If this were a genuine medieval entry, it would prove the
existence of a castle at this site as early as the 13th century. (Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological
Trust HER).

Little is known regarding the Castell Taliorum site, with the exception of the results from the
1920’s archaeological excavations. The excavation results comment on the 14th century pottery
that possibly suggests the end of occupation at the site, whilst the 17th century pottery
discovered in amongst the demolition with could suggest when the towers/castle was levelled.
The name of the site is intriguing, with Edmund Jones suggesting in 1779 that the name Castell
Taliorum was derived from a Latin name Castrum Italorum, meaning the “fort of the Italians”
(Jones 1779, p. 59). This led to speculation that the mysterious mounds might represent the
remains of a Roman fort or watch-tower. As it happens, some Roman pottery and a 3rd century
coin were also discovered during the 1920’s excavation. The site has no visible remains and is
on privately owned land.

An Assessment of the impact of the proposal

The proposed extension will have minimal impact upon any of the known heritage assets
described above or upon the unknown archaeological potential of the area. As previously
mentioned the portal framed extension has been deliberately redesigned to sit outside the
curtilage of the Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM MM141) that sits within the long
established (150 years) Church farm yard (Figures 2 and 3). The building has been design so
that it does not require any trenched foundations, the only ground disturbance will be the
excavation of twelve shallow pits c.0.5m square by c.1m deep to take the buildings upright steel
supporting posts that would be set in concrete.

The visual impact upon both SAM and the Church have been considered and are minimal. The
motte is situated on privately owned farm land (Church Farm) with no public access. Good
views of the monument can be observed from the road side (Plate 1) to the south and south-west.
The land to the north is privately owned agricultural land with additional tree cover at the north-
west obscuring visibility of the monument, the land to the east and north-east has agricultural
buildings and silage storage that obscures any views of the monument from the church grounds
(Plates 2, 3 and 4). The area presently used for silage storage is where the new extension to the
present agricultural building is proposed. It must be noted that the silage bales form a solid
barrier (plates 3 and 4) which obscure views of the mound from the Church graveyard for the
greater part of each year, these bales would be replaced by a building whose roof line would be
no more prominent than the roofline of the existing farm buildings or stacked silage. The only
clear view of the mound from the east is at the extreme northern end of the church graveyard and
this would not be altered by the construction of the proposed extension.

The Church Farm area and its buildings are an intrinsic part of the St Illtyd’s village setting. The
farm yard has been in use for at least the past 150 years forms part of this mountain top villages

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rich heritage and character. The proposed extension has little impact on the neither setting of the
Scheduled Ancient Monument known as the motte or the Grade II* Listed St. Illtyd’s Church.
None of the current aspects on or between the monument and the church would be affected to
any detrimental effect by the addition of the proposed extension. Therefore, it can be concluded
that the proposal for the extension to the existing farm buildings of Church Farm within the
identified scheme and location would have no detrimental impact on the setting of these
monuments.

Summary of any mitigation measures

Due to the proximity of the proposed extension to the Scheduled Ancient Monument and the
unknown archaeological potential that lies between the monument and the church boundary, It
would be considered prudent to have an archaeological watching brief undertaking during the
groundworks.

All 12 of the 0.5m square by 1.0m deep holes should be dug under archaeological supervision
with time allowed to determine and record any archaeological features exposed during the work.
The archaeologist will have the authority to halt any earth-moving activity and will be provided
with adequate time to observe and record any archaeological deposits.

Should significant or potentially significant groups of archaeological features be uncovered the

Historic Environment Officer will be consulted immediately so that an alternative strategy or
more detailed investigation can be devised, in consultation with the Developer.

Conclusion

Collectively this mountain-top village appears to have had a fairly continuous rich heritage with
many of its features suggesting a more prominent past. It can be assumed that many of its
archaeological features have been protected and survived as a result of its remote location,
isolated from the industrial valley below. It is essential that the small farming community within
the village is supported in its needs to survive, as this, without doubt, forms the lifeblood of the
village and, by maintaining the link between past and present, provides a sense of place. The
proposed agricultural building extension has been designed to have minimal impact upon both
the known monuments and potential archaeology of the area while being essential to the survival
of the farm and the character of the village.

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Bibliography and References:

APAC Ltd. 2012. DB/STI/12. Archaeological Desk Based Assessment. Land

adjoining Church Farm, St Illtyds, Aberbeeg, Abertillery.

WB/STI2/12. Archaeological Watching Brief. Castle Cottage Land

adjoining Church Farm, St Illtyds, Aberbeeg, Abertillery.

WB/STI/12. Archaeological Watching Brief. Castle Cottage, St

Illtyds.

Bailey, H. W. 1957. History of the Parish of Llanhilleth (Newport Ref. Library qM230
796.33.

Bradney, J.A., 1904-33, History of Monmouthshire Vol. 1 p. 463

Coxe, W. 1801. An Historical Tour in Monmouthshire, Vol. II (repr. 1995 Merton

Priory Press).

Jones. T. 1952. Brut y Tywysogion: Peniarth MS 20 Version. (Cardiff: University

of Wales Press) pp.4. 135

King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 285Lewis,

1924. “Excavations at St. Illtyds, Monmouthshire”, Archaeologia
Cambrensis LXXIX, pp. 385-8.

Lewis, 1925. “Excavations at St. Illtyds, Monmouthshire”, Archaeologia

Cambrensis LXXX, pp. 372-80.

Phillips, Neil, 2006, Earthwork Castles of Gwent and Ergyng AD 1050-1250 (British
Archaeological Reports) p. 320-1

Newman, John, 2002 The Buildings of Wales Gwent/Monmouthshire (Yale University

Press) St Illtyd's Church, a History, published by the Friends of St
Illtyd's British Listed Buildings

http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/
Google Earth http://www.google.co.uk/
Magic http://magic.defra.gov.uk/
RCAHMW http://www.coflein.gov.uk/

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Director: Dr. N. Phillips D.Phil. BA (Hons) .Cert Ed/FE. MCIfA.

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St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

The Ordnance Survey has granted A.P.A.C. Ltd a Copyright Licence (No. 100046577)
A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
Fig 01: Location
 St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

Figure 2. Revealing the curtilage of the Scheduled Ancient Monument in relation to the proposed agricultural building
A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
 St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

Figure 3. Proposed building design for the extension to the existing agricultural buildings. A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
 St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

Plate 1: View of the motte (SAM MM141) from the roadside to the south – looking north.

Plate 2 Looking towards the north-east from the roadside to the building and silage A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
bales the area proposed for development.
 St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

Plate 3: Looking east from the motte towards yard and building proposed to be extended and St Illtyd’s Church
(obscured by tree).

Plate 4: View looking west from church yard wall towards proposed development site, A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
motte obscured by silage bales.
 St Illtyd’s, Llanhilleth

Plate 5: Looking south across the graveyard towards St Illtyd’s Church with Church Farm agricultural buildings
beyond the graveyard to the west of the Church.

Plate 6: Looking west from St Illtyds Church towards the Church Farms agricultural A.P.A.C. Ltd IM/STI/16
buildings and site of proposed extension.