Harthill
Situated on the coast of South Wales between the town of Swansea to the west and the city of Cardiff to the east Harthill is a prosperous, university town set within the rolling greenery of the Welsh countryside. Ostensibly, it is well-known to the outside world, both within and beyond the shores of the United Kingdom, because of the presence of Teliávus University, one of the oldest seats of learning in the country, but beneath its sleepy academic exterior, it is known in more secretive circles as a hotbed of weird and generally inexplicable activity.
Demographics
Harthill is unusual for a town of its size in that a larger percentage of its population, around 40% are deemed to be, or would describe themselves as being middle class and this phenomenon is principally because of the presence of Teliávus University, which provides ample work for this sector of the population, either through direct employment, or the supporting of secondary and linked businesses.
The rest of the population are divided into the 50%; that are regarded as being lower class, and who predominantly find employment at the McIntyre Steelworks and the Pinkerton Brewery, as well as in the many local farms that are accessible from the town; and into the 10% regarded as being the upper class, representing the wealthiest citizens of Harthill, including the McIntyre and Pinkerton families who own the steelworks and the brewery respectively.
In addition to the core population of Harthill, the town’s population fluctuates with the ebb and flow of Teliávus University's terms, with many of its nearly three thousand students appearing at the beginning of each term and leaving at the end. As most of these students come from middle and upper class backgrounds, this influx sways the demographic mix of the town, particularly in the Town Centre and Evansfarm districts.
In terms of the religious make-up of the town, the majority of Harthill’s residents are Anglican Christians, though there is a strong community of Catholics based out of St Augustine's church in the south of the Town Centre, and there relatively large and tight knit communities of Methodists, Quakers and Non-Conformists, all of whom have their own religious centres located within the town. There is also a small, tight knit Jewish community, focused around the Davies Street Synagogue in the Evansfarm region of the town.
Beyond the more conventional faiths, Harthill has always had a history of being a refuge for cults and sects that if discovered would certainly draw the suspicion, if not the ire of the communities they have based themselves in. By their very nature, such cults and sects are secretive, but every now and again, one will emerge, either because of a number of infamous acts and atrocities that can be traced back to it, or in an attempt to try and make itself mainstream.
Government
Harthill is governed in a multifaceted way that is divided along the lines of local government and national government.
Nationally, Harthill is represented in the UK Parliament by a Member of the House of Commons, who votes on issues concerning the nation as a whole, as part of a political party.
Locally, Harthill is governed by a board of Town Councillors, who oversee matters of local governance ranging from the state of the town’s roads to the budget of the local fire department. The town also has a Mayor, who is elected by the Town Councillors, but the position of Mayor is almost exclusively a ceremonial post, generally restricted to the incumbent attending events and occasionally opening new buildings.
Districts
Harthill is nominally split into five separate districts, which are more social and economic divisions in the town, rather than being separate administrative areas. As a result, the boundaries of these areas are set by social perception rather than being hard borders, and one person’s definition of where a district starts and ends may be very different to another. It is not uncommon for people living near the boundaries to stretch their interpretation of where the districts begin and end, so that they can claim to live somewhere with more social cachet attached to it. The districts of Harthill are as follows: Green Glades: The north-west of Harthill is referred to as Green Glades and this is regarded as being the most respectable and expensive part of the town. The buildings here are larger, tending to house only single families and there are several extensive mansions that have been built in the area, complete with large private gardens. Green Glades is populated by the wealthiest of the town’s residents and has amenities such as the Glamorgan Botanic Gardens and St Luke's Hospital & Sanatorium within its perceived limits. Evansfarm: The north-east and central northern areas of Harthill are referred to as Evansfarm, which is regarded as being a solidly middle class area and it is heavily defined by the fact that a large part of Teliávus University's buildings and constituent colleges are based there. Town Centre: The south-central part of Harthill is known simply as the Town Centre, or sometimes even more simply as ‘the centre’. The least residential of the town’s districts, the Town Centre has the largest concentration of businesses within its perceived limits, and is the heart of the town’s administration, with the Townhall being at its heart. Several of Teliávus University's faculties, colleges and the Buchanan Museum are also regarded as being within the Town Centre. Brewer's Inn: The south-east of the town is known as Brewer’s Inn, a name taken from the presence of the Pinkerton Brewery in the area and Brewer’s Inn is regarded as being a respectable lower middle/upper lower class area, home to skilled tradespeople as well as the vast majority of the employees of the Pinkerton Brewery. The proximity of the brewery also means that Brewer’s Inn has one of the highest densities of public houses in the whole town. Additionally, the ruins of Hart Castle, Harthill Gaol and a small handful of buildings associated with Teliávus University can be found here. Hart Harbour: The south-west of Harthill is known as the Hart Harbour area, and it has a rather unsavoury reputation as being the roughest area of the town; a place where those who do not obviously come from there better watch their backs, lest they end up being shaken down for their pocketbooks, or worse. Hart Harbour’s reputation is made worse by the presence of the McIntyre Steelworks , which disgorges smoke and noxious fumes into the air, and the presence of Harthill Harbour, an industrial piece of waterfront where coal, iron ore and steel products from the factory are brought by train to be shipped out elsewhere, alongside a small fishing fleet that taints the air with the smell of rotting fish.Defences
Though the medieval town was protected by the imposing, but now ruined Hart Castle, the town has no formal military protection attached to it, which is not unusual given that the majority of towns and cities within the United Kingdom are not fortified settlements, and only have military installations within their limits if they happen to already be there. The nearest army base to Harthill is about ten miles away inland, located in the village of Llantrithyd. There is also an RAF base located about three miles away from the town in the village Sigingstone.
The partially restored north façade of Hart Castle
In terms of civil protection, the town has its own police force, the South Glamorgan Constabulary who serve both the town and the surrounding countryside. Within Harthill they are based out of Harthill Gaol in the Brewer’s Inn area in the south-east of the town. In addition, Harthill has its own Firestation located in Hart Harbour Area in the south-west of the town.
Industry & Trade
There are two main industrial centres within the town, the McIntyre Steelworks and the Pinkerton Brewery. The steelworks primarily produces materials and goods for international as well an internal export, whilst the beer produced at the brewery tends to circulate relatively locally, with a large proportion of the produce being consumed within Harthill itself, and the rest tending to find its way into the pubs and bars of Swansea and Cardiff.
Many people would argue that the real output of Harthill is not goods, but knowledge. The academic community of Teliávus University certainly outputs large quantities of academic musings on all manner of subjects, and every year around 1,000 students graduate and step out into the world, ready to take on more academically demanding jobs and trades.
Infrastructure
The town is relatively well endowed when it comes to its infrastructure, thanks in a great part to the benevolence of former wealthy residents, who wished to improve the community ‘for the better’. As a result, the town has a well-constructed sewer network and ample access to fresh water for its inhabitants, though many homes still do not have indoor plumbing, which in all fairness is not unusual. In addition, the town’s roads are for the most part well paved and maintained, predominantly with cobbles, though the industrial areas around Hart Harbour have recently seen the experimental use of asphalt roads.
Harthill has several schools, at both the primary and secondary level, has its own Firestation, Policestation and Hospital & Sanatorium , as well as having numerous places of worship to cater to the vast majority of faiths and denominations that are present within the community.
History
As the history of Harthill is rather voluminous, with much debate and conjecture surrounding large swathes of it, it is too voluminous to detail in full here, with many scholars having dedicated their entire lives to recording, digesting and analysing it. As a result, brief highlights are noted below:
It is generally agreed that a community has been present in the Harthill area since the Neolithic period, a fact corroborated by the discovery of stone tools and a flintknapping site at a farm about half a mile away from the town itself.
The first written reference that has been found to Harthill, comes from Roman records discovered at the fort of Caerleon, one of only three permanent Roman Legionary Fortresses built in Great Britain, which date to the 90sAD, which refer to Harthill as a fortified hilltop settlement and a stronghold of the local Celtic tribes in the region. Excavations carried out at Hart Castle have provided enough evidence to convince most experts that Harthill is the fortress that is referred to in these Roman records.
In any case, the Celtic fortress at Harthill was eventually besieged and destroyed by the Roman forces, though its settlement continued, bolstered by a small plant of retired Roman legionaries who were granted land in the area. From that time on, the town has appeared regularly in the historical records relating to South Wales, and occasionally Great Britain and the United Kingdom as a whole.
Following the Norman invasion of Britain in 1066, the main hill in the town once again became the site of a fortification, with the fist phase of Hart Castle's construction, and over many years the castle was upgraded and rebuilt to match the prevailing threats that rose and fell through the centuries. The majority of Hart Castle’s remaining features were constructed by Edward I in the late 11th Century.
The oldest establishment in the town, or what claims to be the oldest establishment in the town, is Teliávus University, which claims to have had a presence ever since the arrival of Christianity on the shores of Great Britain. Indeed, two of the university’s colleges, St Augustine College and St Lucia's College claim to have begun life as religious communities, founded by St Teilo, who would eventually end up becoming the first Bishop of Llandaff in neighbouring Cardiff. Regardless of the exact date when Teliávus University was officially founded, the university has brought interest and investment to the town ever since, and is generally agreed to be the thing that put Harthill on the map.
Harthill has managed to survive a great many trials and tribulations, some easily explainable, a great many others apparently shrouded in the mists of time, and with the horrors of the First World War and the outbreak of Spanish Influenza beginning to slip into memory, a new era of hope and optimism has seized the town.
Tourism
Little of Harthill is geared towards attracting tourists specifically, but the presence of Hart Castle and the many grand and beautiful buildings of Teliávus University mean that a regular number of tourists arrive throughout the year to visit the town’s beauty spots and to enjoy the sea air away from the pollution and the hustle and bustle of the larger towns of South Wales and the south-west of England.
Architecture
The architecture of Harthill varies between the different districts of the town. The area around Teliávus University is a mixture of styles, with some buildings dating back to the medieval period, some more Georgian or Victorian in feel, along with a large number of Gothic and neo-classical style buildings. A similar hodgepodge is seen in the parts of the town immediately around Hart Castle.
The Green Glades district is dominated by large Georgian and Victorian townhouses, with several large sprawling mansions dotted amongst them, which is a stark contrast to the buildings of the Hart Harbour district to the south, which are a mess of shabby tenements and in many cases makeshift, or severely dilapidated dwellings. The north-eastern area of Evansfarm is characterised by comfortable Victorian townhouses, whilst the areas of Brewer’s Inn away from the immediate vicinity of Hart Castle are characterised by a collection of workers cottages, built by the original founder of the Pinkerton Brewery, Alfred Pinkerton to house his workers.
The Town Centre district of Harthill is one of the few areas where a coherent style has been imposed upon the area, with the majority of the buildings, including the Townhall and the Theatre Royal having been constructed in the neoclassical style, or at least having had a neoclassical façade built over their frontages to maintain some sense of coherence.
Geography
Harthill is a coastal settlement, with the shoreline of the Bristol Channel marking its southern border. To the north, west and east, the town is surrounded by the rolling fields of the Vale of Glamorgan, with the land to the north gently sloping up over many miles to the foothills of the Brecon Beacons mountains.
The town itself is mostly flat, though the north-west of the town, in the area of the Green Glades district being slightly elevated above much of the rest of the town. In addition, there are three large hills that punctuate Harthill’s geography. The first in the south-east is by far that largest and is the site of the ruins of Hart Castle; the second in the central part of the town has for many years been the focal point of Teliávus University; and the third and by far the smallest of the three hills, is within the Glamorgan Botanic Gardens, and is the site of the Neolithic standing stones known locally as Myrddin's Stones.
The southern edge of the town, is mostly comprised of thin strips of pebble beach, rather than sandy beaches or cliffs.
Natural Resources
The land surrounding Harthill is rich in resources, which for the most part, are mostly exploited by the town’s larger neighbours to the east and west, but they are by no means ignored by the town’s residents. The land immediately surrounding Harthill is richly fertile and ideally suited to agriculture, with arable crops being grown in large quantities, and cattle and sheep being reared in large numbers as well. The volume of agricultural products produced in Harthill’s environs is enough to satisfy the basic needs of the town’s inhabitants, alongside leaving a surplus spare for export. In addition, the town’s coastal setting means that the community has a small fishing fleet based there, who provide an ample supply of seafood in addition to the land based agricultural activities.
To the north of the town, the rolling landscape of hills, mountains and valleys that mark the foothills of the Brecon Beacons are well known for the vast quantities of coal and iron ore that lie beneath them, and though Harthill is not a mining town itself, its proximity to the coast and its railway mean that coal is transported to the town in large quantities to be shipped on elsewhere, whilst much of the iron ore that is brought to the town is taken to the McIntyre Steelworks for processing and transformation into steel products.
Founding Date
Site occupied since at least 3,000BC, town itself known to exist since before AD43.
Type
Town
Population
c.20,000
Inhabitant Demonym
Harts
Location under
Included Locations
Entrance to the The Teliávus Building.
The Buchanan Museum
Main entrance to the Townhall
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