Abergele

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

Abergele

Coordinates: 53.28° N 3.58° W
Population	17,574 (2001 census)
OS grid reference	SH945775
Principal area	Conwy
Ceremonial county	Clwyd
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ABERGELE
Postcode district	LL22
Dial code	01745
Police	North Wales
Fire	North Wales
Ambulance	Wales
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. Abergele is generally ignored due to the popularity of nearby Rhyl, Prestatyn, Colwyn Bay, Llandudno and Conwy.

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 bat. The highest hill is Moelfre Isaf (1038ft) to the south of the town. There are also outstanding views from Cefn-yr-Ogof (669ft), Tower Hill and Tan-y-Gopa.

Abergele (including Pensarn) has a population of around 18,000 and is part of the Abergele/Rhyl/Prestatyn urban area with a population of 64,026 (2001 census). Approximately 29% of Abergele has a significant knowledge of Welsh, but the town has a large population of people from England, namely Manchester, Liverpool and the Midlands. The town also has a number of satellite villages such as Saint George, Betws yn Rhos, Rhyd-y-foel, Belgrano and Llanddulas.

Famous people from Abergele include Lisa Scott-Lee of Steps who went to school at Ysgol Emrys ap Iwan. The artist Ralph Steadman, an associate of the author Hunter S Thompson was raised in the town.

Recent genetic studies [1] 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.

[edit] History

There are many sites of historical interest, including two Iron Age hill forts. Castell Cawr at Tan y gopa 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 or Bryn Twr 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 is also another watchtower Lady Elinors Tower which is located near Cefn-yr-Ogof.

Gwrych Castle was built between 1819-1825 at the behest 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 2 June 2006 but it failed to sell, The condition of the property is being monitored by the Gwrych Castle Trust. [2] The castle was set fire to, probably by new-age travellers who 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. 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.