Llantwit Major
Llantwit Major is a modest seaside town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, lying on the Bristol Channel shoreline. It is one of four towns in the Vale of Glamorgan and the 3rd greatest by population (13,366 (2001) after Barry and Penarth. The town's name in Welsh, Llanilltud Fawr, is derived from the name of Saint Illtud, who came to the region from Brittany, Gaul. He established the abbey of Illtud and the college attached to it, Cor Tewdws, which would become among the most prestigious Christian schools of the times. At peak it drew in over 2000 students, featuring princes and numerous distinguished clergymen, some now revered as saints. The modern town of Llantwit established rapidly in the 20th century to accommodate Royal Air Force employees from the base constructed at close-by St Athan, but it holds on to its medieval cobbled streets and structures of the 15th and 16th centuries. Collugh Beach is a popular surfing site and has the remnants of an Iron Age fort and some of the finest examples of Jurassic-period fossils in Wales. The pebble beach and its dramatic clifftops are part of a 14 miles (23 kilometre)-long shoreline safeguarded under the Glamorgan Heritage Coast, which extends from Gileston in the east to Newton Point beyond Southerndown in the west. Llantwit Major is largely dependent on local retail and profits from further afield. The bulk of the occupants commute to work elsewhere, primarily Cardiff or Bridgend. During the course of the summer months tourism is essential to the town which has "The Precinct", Rainbow Plaza and many bars and eateries. Of note are the Old Swan Inn, Old White Hart Inn, The Tudor Tavern, and the 17th century West House Country Hotel Heritage Restaurant. For all your home makeovers, make certain to identify reputable experts in Llantwit Major to make certain of quality.
