The Bear Hotel, 63 High Street, Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, CF71 7AF 01446 774814
This meeting is being organised by Sian Rees and Jill Jacobs and will be based on the Bear Hotel.
Please note that this is a little later than usual – the second weekend in October rather than the
last in September. The visits centre on the exquisite town of Cowbridge, founded in the Roman
period and developed as a 13th century walled town. We perambulate the historic town and visit a
variety of sites nearby – the recent excavations at Tinkinswood and St Lythans Neolithic burial
chambers, the medieval defensive houses at Llanblethian and Old Beaupre, churches, including
Llancarfan, with its recently discovered wall paintings, the new displays at St Illtud Fawr, and the
spectacular conservation of the formerly derelict Sker House.
Friday 9 October
12.00 – 14.00 Bear Hotel. Registration
Lunch (own cost) – prior booking with hotel advisable but not essential.
14.00 Perambulation of Cowbridge to include the layout of the Roman town, the Medieval Town
Defences, Church, Physick Garden and medieval and post medieval architecture (Mark Lewis).
15.30 Walk to St Quentin’s Castle, Llanblethian (John Kenyon)
17.00 Return to Bear Hotel
18.00 Lecture: Roman and Medieval Cowbridge – (Mark Lewis)
19.30 Dinner
Saturday 10 October
9.00 Coach (on road outside Bear)
9.30 Tinkinswood and St Lythan’s Burial Chambers
11.00 Llancarfan Castle Ditches Iron Age hillfort (view from footpath)
11.30 Llancarfan Church medieval wall paintings (Ann Ballantyne)
12.30 Red Lion pub lunch
13.30 Old Beaupre castle (or Fonmon castle?)
15.00 Llantwit church (Jeremy Knight) and view of the Old Plas restoration
16.00 Llysworney church and Tea at Moor Farm by kind invitation of Jill and Edward Jacobs
17.00 Coach leaves for Bear Hotel
18.00 Lecture: Great Houses of the Vale of Glamorgan (Prys Morgan)
19.30 Dinner
Sunday 11 October
9.00 Private cars leave for Sker House
9.40 Arrive Sker House (Michael Davies)
11.30 Merthyr Mawr Church and Early Christian Stones (Jeremy Knight)
12.15 Candleston Castle (Jeremy Knight)
13.00 Return to Bear Hotel Lunch (own cost) and conference disperses.
BOOKING FORM FOR COWBRIDGE CAN BE DOWNLOADED HERE.