Penhow () is a small village, historic

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

and

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

just inside the eastern edge of the boundary of the

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay * Newport (Vietnam), a United States Army and Army of t ...

South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, 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 Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...

, within the historic county of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

. The name ''Penhow'' is believed to be derived from the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

word ''pen'' meaning 'head' or 'top' and ''how'' from the

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

''hō'' 'projecting ridge' in its

dative In grammar, the dative case (abbreviated , or sometimes when it is a core argument) is a grammatical case used in some languages to indicate the recipient or beneficiary of an action, as in "", Latin for "Maria gave Jacob a drink". In this exampl ...

form ''hōh'' 'place at the ridge'. The community includes the estate of Parc-Seymour. The Penhow Woodlands National Nature Reserve lies a short distance to the south of the village. Penhow Quarry is operated by

Hanson plc Heidelberg Materials UK is a British-based building materials company, headquartered in Maidenhead. Previously known as Hanson UK, the company has been a subsidiary of the German company HeidelbergCement since August 2007, and was formerly lis ...

History and architecture

Roman remains

Fragments of

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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

building material have been found in the area. These include evidence of a Roman building at

Llanvaches Llanvaches () is a village and community within the boundaries of the city of Newport, Wales. It lies to the east of the urban area, in the historic county of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent. The population rose to 402 by the ...

, an artefact at Penhow, and a

Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

at Parc-Seymour.

Penhow Castle

Penhow is best known for Penhow Castle, which has claims to be the oldest inhabited castle in Wales. It was built by Sir Roger de St Maur, one of the

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

s who served the Norman Lord of

Striguil Striguil or Strigoil is the name that was used from the 11th century until the late 14th century for the port and Norman castle of Chepstow, on the Welsh side of the River Wye which forms the boundary with England. The name was also applied to t ...

Chepstow Castle Chepstow Castle () at Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, is the oldest surviving post-Roman stone fortification in Britain. Located above cliffs on the River Wye, construction began in 1067 under the instruction of the Normans, Norman Lord William ...

. He built a tower house, and documentary evidence shows that he was at Penhow by 1129. It is the first known British home of the St Maur ''alias''

Seymour family The House of Seymour or St. Maur, is the name of an old English family in which several titles of nobility have from time to time been created, and of which the Duke of Somerset is the head. Origins The family was settled in Monmouthshire in th ...

which rose to national prominence in the 16th century in the person of Queen

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (; 24 October 1537) was Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen following the execution of Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn, who was ...

, the third wife of King

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

, represented today by the

Duke of Somerset Duke of Somerset, from the county of Somerset, is a title that has been created five times in the peerage of England. It is particularly associated with two families: the Beauforts, who held the title from the creation of 1448, and the Seymours ...

. Later the Seymour family, which moved to

Hatch Beauchamp Hatch Beauchamp is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south east of Taunton. The village has a population of 620. History The manor of "Hache" dates from Saxon times and became the ''caput'' of a feudal barony after ...

in Somerset and

Wulfhall Wulfhall or Wolfhall is an early 17th-century manor house in Burbage parish, Wiltshire, England. It is north-east of Burbage village, and about south-east of Marlborough. A previous manor house on the same site, at that time in the parish of G ...

in Wiltshire, sold Penhow Castle to the Lewis family of St. Pierre, who converted the castle to a modern residence in 1674. Thomas Lewis' son Thomas was High Sheriff of the county, and married the daughter of Sir

Richard Levett Sir Richard Levett (1629 – 20 January 1711) was an English merchant and politician who was elected Lord Mayor of London in 1699. Born in Ashwell, Rutland, he moved to London and established a pioneering mercantile career, becoming involved w ...

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

. The Lewis family retained ownership of Penhow Castle for several centuries. The castle, which has a reputation for being haunted, was open to the public between 1978 and 2002.

Church of St. John the Baptist

The parish

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

St. John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

is next to the castle. It has 13th-century origins and was the subject of restoration work in the 19th century.

Village shop

Following the closure of the privately run shop in 2008, the Penhow Community banded together to finance and regenerate the village shop. Community volunteers redecorated, restocked and reopened the shop in November 2008. Since reopening, the shop has been managed and operated by the community and, where possible, stock has been sourced locally.

Rock and Fountain

The Rock and Fountain Inn is a 17th-century

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of t ...

on the edge of the village. The historic inn and its site underwent a £1m renovation and redevelopment during 2010. The inn reopened as a steak and seafood restaurant in November 2010. It was later transformed into an Italian restaurant and closed a few years later. The Rock and Fountain opened again in June 2014. In February 2018, the Indian restaurant (located behind the Rock and Fountain) closed and in April, the building was transformed into a

churrascaria A ''churrascaria'' () is a place where meat is cooked in ''churrasco'' style, which translates roughly from the Portuguese word for "barbecue". ''Churrascaria'' cuisine is typically (but not always) served '' rodízio'' style, where roving ...

Penhow History Society

In 2016 a Penhow History Society was set up to examine Penhow's varied history. It was formed to research local history projects around the village and aims to promote a wider interest in its history through the publication of articles and organising public talks.

Temperature record

Penhow formerly held the July record temperature for Wales of 34.2°C (93.5°F), set on 18 July 2006.

Government

Penhow has a

community council A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain. In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies. ...

comprising eight members. The area is part of the Bishton and Langstone

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

for elections to

Newport City Council Newport City Council () is the governing body for Newport, one of the principal areas of Wales. It consists of 51 councillors, who represent the city's 20 wards. The council is currently, and has historically been, held by the Labour Party. ...

Notes

References

External links

Geograph photos of Penhow areaPenhow Community Council website Penhow History Group
{{authority control Communities in Newport, Wales Villages in Newport, Wales