Twmbarlwm, also known as Twm Barlwm, Twyn Barlwm or locally known as "the Twmp" (translation: hump), the Nipple or the Pimple because of the mound that lies at its summit, is a hill situated to the northeast of

Risca Risca ( cy, Rhisga) is a town in the Caerphilly County Borough and the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in south-east Wales. Risca has a railway station, opened on the Ebbw Valley Railway in February 2008, after a gap of 46 years. It is sp ...

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

. It is often mistakenly referred to as a mountain but is actually a hill due to being under . It is high and is a well-known landmark throughout the region. It commands extensive views across what is now the M4 corridor, over Newport and

Cwmbran Cwmbran ( ; cy, Cwmbrân , also in use as an alternative spelling in English) is a town in the county borough of Torfaen in South Wales. Lying within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, Cwmbran was designated as a New Town in 1949 to prov ...

- with part of it coming into Cwmbran - and out over the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Se ...

History

At the top of the hill, near its summit, are the remains of what is presumed to be an

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

, believed to have been built by the

Silures The Silures ( , ) were a powerful and warlike tribe or tribal confederation of ancient Britain, occupying what is now south east Wales and perhaps some adjoining areas. They were bordered to the north by the Ordovices; to the east by the Dobun ...

, the

Celt The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient ...

ic tribe that inhabited the area before and during

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

times. These remains have led the local people of Risca and Cwmcarn to call it "The Tump". There was also thereafter possibly a Roman signal point and a substantial Norman

motte-and-bailey castle A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...

which is incorporated into the eastern end of the fort, probably of early Norman construction. The area is a scheduled monument.

In popular culture

The hill itself is a well-known local landmark visible on the skyline for many miles and is indeed seen as a symbol of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, wit ...

/ Gwent. It is very popular for

hillwalking Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much unculti ...

and

mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

and with tourists who visit

Cwmcarn Cwmcarn is a village situated in the Ebbw valley in south Wales, in the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It grew with 19th-century coal mining, but is now known for its extensive mature forestry and greenery, that attract thousands of visi ...

Forest Drive or walk the Gwent Ridgeway. It features heavily in local folk legends with tales of a giant buried here, and treasure, supposedly guarded by swarms of

bees Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfam ...

. Local legend says that the

druids A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

regarded it as a sacred site and a place of judgement. The hillfort is known to locals as "the pimple" or "the nipple". An example of the use of the term "pimple" came during a boxing commentary on national radio by the BBC's Raymond Glendenning, who had grown up in Newport. As one of the boxers rose after being floored, Glendenning excitedly announced to the listeners that "he has a lump on his head the size of the pimple on the top of Twm Barlwm!" In years gone by people from Risca, Cwmbran and Newport enjoyed a day out "up the Tump" on Good Friday - Sunday schools, chapels, youth clubs, families and even whole streets would organise to walk to the top of the Tump - some church groups would carry a cross to the top and sing a few hymns. This tradition probably goes back to medieval times when Twmbarlwm was on the route of the Cistercian pilgrimage trail from

Llantarnam Llantarnam ( cy, Llanfihangel Llantarnam) is a suburban village of Cwmbran, and is a community and electoral ward in the county borough of Torfaen in south east Wales. The ward covers the same area as the community, but also includes Southville. ...

to Penrhys. The march with church banners was certainly continued into the 1970s and attempts have been made to revive the tradition as recently as 2012. Youngsters from neighbouring areas and council estates such as that at Bettws often walk to the top of Twmbarlwm and back home on

Good Friday Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Holy ...

, as a sort of tradition amongst friends and youngsters in the community. The hill also is noted in the work of such local writers as W. H. Davies and

Arthur Machen Arthur Machen (; 3 March 1863 – 15 December 1947) was the pen-name of Arthur Llewellyn Jones, a Welsh author and mystic of the 1890s and early 20th century. He is best known for his influential supernatural, fantasy, and horror fiction. His ...

. Machen described it in his autobiography ''Far Off Things'' (1922): "As soon as I saw anything I saw Twym Barlwm, that mystic tumulus, the memorial of peoples that dwelt in that region before the Celts left the Land of Summer." This description was "borrowed" by

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems " Do not go gentle into that good night" and " And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Und ...

for

Llareggub ''Under Milk Wood'' is a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, commissioned by the BBC and later adapted for the stage. A film version, ''Under Milk Wood'' directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released in 1972, and another adaptation o ...

Hill in his ''

Under Milk Wood ''Under Milk Wood'' is a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, commissioned by the BBC and later adapted for the stage. A film version, ''Under Milk Wood'' directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released in 1972, and another adaptation of ...

''. Local historian and folklorist

Fred Hando Frederick James Hando MBE (23 March 1888 – 17 February 1970) was a Welsh writer, artist and schoolteacher from Newport. He chronicled the history, character and folklore of Monmouthshire, which he also called Gwent, in a series of nearly ...

tells of the "Mountain Organ" produced by the wind on the southern slopes of the hill, and of the nearby "Pool of Avarice" the site of a great house which was swallowed wholesale by a landslip after the mistress of the house had turned away a hungry beggar. Hando, F. J., (1944) "The Pleasant Land of Gwent" - Chapter Two, Twyn Barllwm, R. H. Johns, Newport. The Cistercian Way (a waymarked, circular,

long distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...

developed in 1998) passes through Llantarnam, Old Cwmbrân, Greenmeadow and Thornhill before reaching the ancient chapel of Llanderfel on Mynydd Maen, and then onwards to Twmbarlwm. In the past 20 years extensive damage has occurred to both the tump and surrounding areas, caused primarily by illegal off-road motorcycles. Several attempts have been made by the local councils to limit this damage by fencing off large areas, but so far all have failed with the fences being destroyed within weeks of erection.

Gallery

File:Twmbarlwm seen from Llanfrechfa.jpg, Twmbarlwm seen from Llanfrechfa File:View from Twmbarlwm over Cwmbran.jpg, View from Twmbarlwm over

File:View from Twmbarlwm summit - geograph.org.uk - 221832.jpg, View over the

with the Severn motorway bridges in the distance File:View from Twmbarlwm looking out over the Bristol Channel.jpg, View from Twmbarlwm over the

towards England.

Brean Down Brean Down is a promontory off the coast of Somerset, England, standing high and extending into the Bristol Channel at the eastern end of Bridgwater Bay between Weston-super-Mare and Burnham-on-Sea. Made of Carboniferous Limestone, it is a ...

is in the centre of the photo.

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...

is out of sight in the bay to the left of Brean Down.

References

{{Reflist

External links

BBC - South East Wales Panoramics - Panoramics - see a 360 view from TwmbarlwmTwmbarlwm and the Celts
at caerphilly.gov.uk Archaeological sites in Caerphilly County Borough Hillforts in Caerphilly County Borough Mountains and hills of Caerphilly County Borough Scheduled monuments in Caerphilly Landmarks in Wales

History

In popular culture

Gallery

See also

References

External links