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The B4329 is a scenic route and a former turnpike in
Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...
, West
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
. It links
Eglwyswrw Eglwyswrw () is a village, Community (Wales), community and parish in the former Cantref of Cemais (Dyfed cantref), Cemais, Pembrokeshire, Wales. The village lies between Newport, Pembrokeshire, Newport and Cardigan, Ceredigion, Cardigan at the ...
in the north of the county to
Haverfordwest Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...
, the county town in the south, in an approximately southwesterly direction, crossing the
Preseli Mountains The Preseli Mountains (, ; or ), also known as the Preseli Hills, or just the Preselis, are a range of hills in western Wales, mostly within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and entirely within the county of Pembrokeshire. The range ...
. At both its northern and southern ends, it joins the
A487 The A487, officially the Fishguard to Bangor Trunk Road, is a trunk road in Wales that follows the coast from Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, in the south, to Bangor, Gwynedd, in the north. Route The road starts at a junction with the A40 in H ...
trunk road.Ordnance Survey Explorer Map OL36: South Pembrokeshire, 2009 Before the 20th century, the road across the mountains was the main route linking Cardigan and Haverfordwest, a distance of 27 miles, and featured a number of inns (at least eight) to sustain travellers. The part now designated B4329 is long and varies in elevation from above sea level. Much of the route is through farmland with scattered settlements, while the central section is through high moorland grazing with extensive views.


History

The road was the main link between Cardigan and Haverfordwest in mediaeval times; the future
Henry VII of England Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509), also known as Henry Tudor, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henr ...
used it to march from Haverfordwest to Cardigan in early August 1485 on his way to the
Battle of Bosworth Field The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field ( ) was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of House of Lancaster, Lancaster and House of York, York that extended across England in the latter half ...
. In the following century, the
Highways Act 1555 The Highways Act 1555 ( 2 & 3 Ph. & M. c. 8), sometimes the First Statute of Highways, was an act of the Parliament of England, which placed the burden of upkeep of the highways on individual parishes and that was passed in 1555. The act was a ...
placed the burden of maintenance of roads on the parishes through which they ran. In the 18th century, on the grounds that the road was badly in need of repair, it was turnpiked with a toll of six pence per cart by the 1790 Haverfordwest Roads Bill, though not without protests from parishes from Stephen's Ford, near Haverfordwest, to ''Cornel Fach'' (a.k.a. "Morris the Bailiffs") in Castlebythe parish, on account of the hardship tolls would bring to local people. In Samuel Lewis's 1833 ''A Topographical Dictionary of Wales'' it is described as the ''"great road"'' from Cardigan to Haverfordwest. In 1895, H. Thornhill-Timmins termed it "the main road... from Haverfordwest to Cardigan". While the
A487 The A487, officially the Fishguard to Bangor Trunk Road, is a trunk road in Wales that follows the coast from Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, in the south, to Bangor, Gwynedd, in the north. Route The road starts at a junction with the A40 in H ...
(Cardigan to
Fishguard Fishguard (, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,400 (rounded to the nearest 100) as of the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Modern Fishguard consists of two parts, Lowe ...
) and the A40 (Fishguard to Haverfordwest) sections were later upgraded to trunk routes, the direct route was not, and was designated in the early 20th century road classification scheme as the B4329. From the 1920s to 1935, the B4329 was a multiplex with the A487 and an unclassified road from
Boncath Boncath is a village, Community (Wales), community and postal district in north Pembrokeshire, Wales, about west of Newcastle Emlyn. The village stands at a cross-roads linking the nearby settlements of Newchapel, Pembrokeshire, Newchapel (''C ...
but reverted to the original start point in Eglwyswrw. The unclassified road became the B4332. Before that, when most journeys were made on foot, horseback or
horse-drawn vehicle A horse-drawn vehicle is a piece of equipment pulled by one or more horses. These vehicles typically have two or four wheels and were used to carry passengers or a load. They were once common worldwide, but they have mostly been replaced by auto ...
, travellers were provided for by inns along the route, such as those at Crosswell, Tufton,
New Inn New Inn () is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfaen in Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It had a population of 5,986 at the 2011 Census. Location The village is bo ...
and Crundale.


Extensive views

From the high moorland, there are extensive views across much of Pembrokeshire with the
Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel (, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales (from Pembrokeshire to the Vale of Glamorgan) and South West England (from Devon to North Somerset). It extends ...
,
St George's Channel St George's Channel (, ) is a sea channel connecting the Irish Sea to the north and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It separates Wexford on the southeastern corner of Ireland from St Davids in on the southwestern tip of Wales. Origin of nam ...
and the
Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...
beyond. On clear days there are views as far as the
Gower Peninsula The Gower Peninsula (), or simply Gower (), is a peninsula in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is the most westerly part of the historic county of Glamorgan, and is now within the City and County of Swansea. It projects towards th ...
in the southeast, much of mid-Wales to the north as far as
Snowdonia Snowdonia, or Eryri (), is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in North Wales. It contains all 15 mountains in Wales Welsh 3000s, over 3000 feet high, including the country's highest, Snowdon (), which i ...
and the
Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( or , ) is a peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales, with an area of about , and a population of at least 20,000. It extends into the Irish Sea, and its southern coast is the northern boundary of the Tremadog Bay inlet of Cardigan Ba ...
as well as across much of the Preseli range. It is also possible, atmospheric conditions permitting, to see the tops of mountains in
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
over away. The Preselis are noted for their many prehistoric sites, some of which are close to the B4329. Because of the steep inclines in the mountains, few heavy goods vehicles use the route, which is popular with tourists and bikers. In winter, the highest parts of the road can occasionally be closed when ice or snow make driving conditions dangerous.


Route


Northern section

From its northern end, branching from the A487 southwest of Eglwyswrw, the road drops down to cross the River Nevern by a single-lane stone bridge (''Pont Gynon'') just north of the hamlet of Crosswell, where a former inn, now ''Crosswell House'', still stands. The road enters the
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park () is a National Parks of England and Wales, national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales. It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of the three National parks of Wales, the others ...
, crossing another narrow bridge, ''Pont Saeson'', then climbs steadily through farmland, passing a Grade II-listed 19th century circular stone structure for impounding livestock that had strayed from the mountains. Crossing a 400-year-old bridge (mentioned as ''Pont llin birian'' in c.1600) crossing ''Afon Brynberian'', the road passes close by the hamlet of Brynberian.


Mountain section

From Brynberian, the gradient increases until the road reaches at Tafarn-y-Bwlch (''approximate English: Tavern at the Pass''), an inn which existed at least as early as 1729, and still sustaining travellers as late as 1895, when it was described as a "lowly inn". The building was recorded by the
Royal Commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...
in 2003 and was still standing, but derelict, in 2024. On an 1888 map, the inn was called ''Salutation Inn''. Close by is Waun Mawn, whose prehistoric stones have been linked to those at
Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
. Immediately after the inn, the road crosses a
cattle grid A cattle grid – also known as a stock grid in Australia; cattle guard, or cattle grate in American English; vehicle pass, or stock gap in the Southeastern United States; Texas gate in western Canada and the northwestern United States; and a c ...
marking a boundary between enclosed agricultural land and unenclosed moorland and continues to climb, reaching between Cerrig Lladron and Mynydd-du Commin. At the summit the B4329 meets the western end of the elevated track that runs from Mynachlog-ddu along the top of the range and is known as Flemings' Way or alternatively the Golden Road. After the summit, Bwlch-gwynt (translation: ''windy gap''), the road drops steeply to another cattle grid and the intersection with the B4313 at
New Inn New Inn () is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfaen in Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It had a population of 5,986 at the 2011 Census. Location The village is bo ...
which, according to
Richard Fenton Richard Fenton (January 1747 – November 1821) was a Welsh lawyer, topography, topographer and poet. Biography Fenton was born in January 1747 in St David's, Pembrokeshire, and was baptised in St David's Cathedral on 20 February 1747, "being t ...
in the 19th century, sustained northbound travellers before ''"the arduous task of winding up the painful ascent of Bwlch Gwynt"''. In this locale the route crosses the imaginary
Landsker Line The Landsker Line () is a term used for the language border in Wales between the largely Welsh-speaking and largely English-speaking areas in Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire. The English-speaking areas, south of the Landsker line and sometim ...
marking the change from the largely Welsh place names of north Pembrokeshire to the largely English place names in the south of the county.


Southern section

After the New Inn crossroads, the road slopes more gently downwards past Rosebush reservoir and Henry's Moat, leaving the National Park just before passing through the hamlet of Tufton, where the ''Tufton Arms'', now a pub, stands. A much older hostelry (possibly dating back to the 13th century), known as ''Paltockes Inne'' or ''Poll-tax Inn'' (the latter as recently as 1895) still stands; it is now a private house bypassed by road straightening (the old road forded a stream, shown on modern maps as ''Portrux Ford''). The road passes close by Llys-y-frân Country Park, through the village of
Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...
and past Scolton Manor, bridges the Carmarthen to Fishguard
railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...
, then passes through the hamlets of Bethlehem and Poyston Cross and the village of Crundale in Rudbaxton parish. The inn in Crundale was the ''Boot and Shoe Inn'', now converted to two residential dwellings. The section between New Inn and Woodstock is on the 345 bus route. South of Crundale, the road crosses an unnamed stream at Stephen's Ford Bridge, then crosses the A40 Haverfordwest bypass on a roundabout at Withybush, and ends at another roundabout at Prendergast in the centre of Haverfordwest, connecting with the A40 spur (Cartlet Road) and reconnecting with the
A487 The A487, officially the Fishguard to Bangor Trunk Road, is a trunk road in Wales that follows the coast from Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, in the south, to Bangor, Gwynedd, in the north. Route The road starts at a junction with the A40 in H ...
.


See also

*
Preseli Mountains The Preseli Mountains (, ; or ), also known as the Preseli Hills, or just the Preselis, are a range of hills in western Wales, mostly within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and entirely within the county of Pembrokeshire. The range ...
*
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park () is a National Parks of England and Wales, national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales. It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of the three National parks of Wales, the others ...


References


External links

{{Commons category, B4329 road (Wales) Transport in Pembrokeshire Roads in Pembrokeshire