CARMARTHEN (CAERMARTHEN), a parish and port and borough and market town, and itsel a county, locally in the
hundreds of Elvet and Derlifts, county of CARMARTHEN, SOUTH WALES, 216 miles (w. by N.) from London, on the road to
Milford, containing 9995 inhabitants. This place is allowed by all writers to be of very remote antiquity, though they
materially differ in assigning its origin. According to some, it was the capital of a principal division of the island,
called by the Britons Dyved, and by the Romans Dimetia; and by others its origin is attributed to Maximus, a Roman
general, who, having espoused Helena, daughter of Euddav, Duke of Cornwall, is said to have built Carmarthen, Cardigan,
and Haverfordwest. From the concurrent testimony of all antiquaries it appears to have been the Maridunum of Ptolemy,
and the Maridunum of Antoninus, one of the principal stations in the country of the Dimette, situated on the Via Julia, or
great Roman road, which formed the chief line of communication between this remote part of Britain and the more eastern
portions of the island, and, in its course westward through the present county of Monmouth, divided into two branches,
which re-united at this place. From Maridunum the Via Julia was continued to the furthestextremity of the present county
of Pembroke; and another road, also branching from this station, extended northward to Loventium, in the present county of
Cardigan. The Roman station is supposed to have occupied the site upon which the castle was subsequently erected; and
this opinion is greatly strengthened not only by the natural advantages of the situation, and its peculiar adaptation for
the site of a Roman camp, but also by existing vestiges of ramparts and earthworks enclosing a quadrilateral area, and the
discovery of Roman coins, chiefly of the Lower Empire, and of other Roman relics, among which is one supposed to have been
an altar, now preserved in the garden of the vicarage-house. After the departure of the Romans from Britain, that part of
Dimetia which now constitutes the present county of Carmarthen became part of the principality of Ceredigion; and the
princes of that territory, who assumed a kind of superiority over the petty sovereigns of South Wales, selected Maridunum
as the principal seat of their government, and consequently made it the metropolis of South Wales. Its modern name of
Carmarthen, or Caer Fyrddin, as it is called by the Welsh, (by a change of the convertible consonants f and m, common in
their language), implies " a military station fortified with walls," and perfectly agrees with the description given by
Giraldus Cambrensis, who calls it " Urbs antiqua coctilibus Mans." Its history, for nearly four centuries, is involved in
obscurity; nor does any mention of it worthy of notice occur till the year 877, when, on the division of the kingdom of
Wales among the three sons of Roderic the Great, the seat of government of the princes of South Wales, which had
heretofore been fixed at Carmarthen, was transferred to Dynevor, a place strongly fortified both by nature and art, and
consequently more suited to the character of the times than their ancient residence, which, according to thb Welsh annals,
had been repeatedly assailed during the continued struggles among the native chieftains for the sovereignty of South
Wales, and which probably at that early period was in the possession of the Saxons, who at that time were making frequent
incursions into this part of the principality. In the year 1021, Hywel and Meredydd, two Welsh chieftains, aspiring to the
sovereignty of South Wales, which they intended to divide between them, obtained the assistance of Eulaf, or Aulaf, with a
large army of Irish and Scots, and, landing on the coast of Pembroke, advanced to Carmarthen, where they were encountered
by Llewelyn, the reigning prince, and his brother Conan, who put them to flight after a severe engagement, in which
Llewelyn was slain. In 1038, Howe!, Prince of South Wales, in the fourth attempt which he made to recover his dominions
from the usurpation of Grufydd ab Llewelyn, Prince of North Wales, advanced to a place called Pen Cader, a few miles to
the north of Carmarthen, bringing his wife with him, to share in the victory which he too sanguinely anticipated. But his
army was entirely defeated by Grufydd; and Howel himself narrowly escaped, leaving his wife a captive to the conqueror.
The Myvyrian Archaeology frequently notices, during the eleventh century, a fortress at Rhtd y Gors, or " the boggy ford,"
on the bank of the river Towy, about half a mile below the town, where a road was discovered some few years since, leading
directly to the river, on the opposite bank of which are the remains of a circular camp, evidently designed to protect the
ford, or pass. It is not, however, known at what time, or by whom, the castle of Carmarthen was originally built: the
first notice of it occurs about the year 1116, when Grufydd ab RhYs ab Tewdwr, a native prince of South Wales, whom Henry
I. had dispossessed of his hereditary dominions, and who had passed the greater part of his minority in Ireland, after
carrying on a desultory warfare against the Norman invaders of his territory, resolved to make a more powerful effort for
the recovery of his right. With this view he attacked the castle of Carmarthen, which, from the strength of the
fortifications and the number of the garrison, resisted all his attempts. But Grufydd, having received a considerable
accession of forces, and obtained possession of the surrounding country, aware of the importance of that fortress in the
hands of his enemies, renewed his efforts, and advanced again to besiege it. In the mean time the Normans, foreseeing the
danger, and conscious of their own insufficiency for its defence, invited to their aid the Welsh chieftains who had become
vassals to the English monarch, each of whom, in succession, they appointed to defend it for fourteen days; and Owain ab
Caradoc, who was among the first to obey the summons, took upon himself the command of the garrison. Grufydd, having
informed himself of the state of the fortifications, advanced with great secrecy, and ordering his men, upon the first
assault, to raise the shout of victory the garrison was thrown into confusion, and Owain ab Caradoc, being deserted by his
men, was killed upon the ramparts. The castle was taken and dismantled, and Grufydd, having plundered and afterwards
demolished the town, retired laden with booty to his retreat in the forest of Ystrad Tywi. The castle and town were
subsequently restored by the Normans, and remained, for short periods only, in the alternate possession of these invaders
and the Welsh, by each of whom they suffered severely. In 1137 it was destroyed by Owain Gwynedd, Prince of North Wales,
and again by his sons in 1143. In the following year, Gilbert Earl of Clare, having recovered a considerable portion of
the territory of which he had been deprived by Grufydd, rebuilt the castle, and garrisoned it with Normans, who were
immediately attacked by Cadell, son of Grufydd ab RhS's, to whom it was surrendered, on condition that the lives of the
garrison should be spared: the victorious chieftain repaired and strengthened the fortifications, and for some time
retained possession of Carmarthen, from which place he made repeated incursions into the territories of the Norman
settlers in that part of the country. The castle, which appears to have been an object of continual attack during the
hostilities that prevailed between the English and the Welsh, being in the early part of the reign of Henry II. in the
hands of the English, was assailed in 1159, by RhYs ab Grufydd, Prince of South Wales, and eldest brother of Cadell, who
was ultimately compelled to raise the siege, in consequence of the powerful succours thrown into it by the Earls of
Bristol and Clare, whom King Henry had sent to its relief, and of the presence of the English monarch's Welsh allies,
Cadwaladr, Cynan, and. Hywel, sons of Owain Gwynedd, with their forces. The English monarch, in 1163, received at Pen
Cader the submission of RhYs, who there did him homage, and gave hostages for his future good behaviour. Notwithstanding
which, in 1195, during the absence of King Richard I. in Palestine, that turbulent prince again laid siege to the castle,
which, after a feeble resistance, he took and demolished, and afterwards laid waste the adjacent country. In 1212, RhSts
Vychan, a powerful chieftain, and one of the sons of RhSts ab Grufydd, fighting against his nephews Rhts and Owain, who
were in alliance with King John of England, was taken prisoner, and confined in this town, but was soon after released, on
giving hostages to that monarch for his future good conduct. In 1215, Llewelyn ab Iorwerth, Prince of North Wales, in an
expedition against the foreign settlers in this part of the principality, invested the castle of Carmarthen, which he took
and dismantled, after a siege of five days; but on doing homage to Henry III. at Gloucester, in 1218, he promised to
restore it and others to the English, together with all the dependent territory. In the following year, however, instead
of performing his promise, he repaired the fortifications; and placing in it a strong garrison of his own forces, kept
possession of it till the year 1223„ when the Earl of Pembroke captured it after an obstinate defence, and put the
garrison to the sword. Liewelyn, apprised of this event, sent his son Grufydd, with an army of nine thousand men, to give
battle to the earl; and Grufydd, advancing to Carmarthen from Kidwelly, drew up his forces on the opposite side of the
river Towy. The earl crossing the river to meet him, a sanguinary battle ensued, which terminated doubtfully, darkness
alone parting the combatants, who remained in sight of each other for several days, on the opposite sides of the river ;
but, owing to a scarcity of provisions, Grufydd was eventually compelled to withdraw his forces, and retire into North
Wales. From this period the castle appears to have appertained for a considerable time to the English crown. The Earl of
Pembroke, in 1233, having quarrelled with Henry III., and being joined by Owain ab Grufydd, RhSts Vychan, and Maelgwyn ab
Maelgwyn, laid siege to the castle, which held out for three months, and, being relieved by a reinforcement of troops, and
a supply of provisions, which arrived by sea, the confederates were compelled to raise the siege. In 1256, Henry sent a
large army by sea to this place, for the protection of his vassals in South Wales, who were frequently attacked by the
native chieftains. After the entire subjugation of the principality by Edward I., Carmarthen was constituted the
metropolis of the district to which it gives name, and which was then first formed into a county by that monarch, who
established in it his courts of chancery and exchequer and the great sessions for South Wales. In the reign of Henry IV.,
Owain Glyndwr, having obtained the assistance of an army of twelve thousand men from France, under the command of the
Marshal de Montmorency, and being joined by several of the Welsh chieftains, advanced from Milford to Carmarthen, in 1405,
and laid siege to the castle, which, together with several other fortresses in the neighbourhood, was soon surrendered to
him; but, upon the subsequent defeat of his foreign auxiliaries, the principal men of the county abandoned his cause, and
returned, to their allegiance to King Henry. About the year 1450, a grand Eisteddvod, or congress of the Welsh bards, was
held in this town, against which the synod of the primitive bards of Glamorgan strongly protested, as tending to subvert
the ancient institutions of their order. Soon after the debarkation of the forces of the Earl of Richmond, afterwards
Henry VII., at Milford Haven, a division of his army passed through this town, under the conduct of the celebrated RhSrs
ab Thomas, who rejoined the young prince at Shrewsbury, with a powerful body of Welsh adherents whom he had collected in
his march. In the persecutions on account of religious tenets which took place during the reign of Mary, Dr. Ferrara,
Bishop of St. David's, was accused of heresy and condemned to be burnt at the stake, which sentence was carried into
execution at the High Cross, in this town, on the 30th of March, 1555. Carmarthen was visited by the plague in 1604, and
again in 1606, when the pestilence raged with such fatality that the sessions were held this year at Golden Grove, to
avoid the contagion, which re-appeared here in 1651. During the civil war of the seventeenth century, the castle, which
had been garrisoned for the king, was taken for the parliament by Colonel Laugherne, who afterwards, abandoning the cause
of the parliament, withdrew the garrison to Pembroke castle, where, being joined by Colonel Poyer, who had also come over
to the royal cause, he made a memorable stand against the authority of that assembly. In 1648, the castle reverted to the
parliament, and was ordered by Oliver Cromwell to be dismantled; in which state it remained, part of the keep only being
used as a common gaol, till 1787, when the principal part of it was incorporated with the new county gaol, completed in
1792. The town is beautifully situated on the north-western bank of the navigable river Tywi, or Towy, about nine miles
from its influx into that portion of the Bristol channel called Carmarthen bay, on a moderate eminence, which commands
some of the finest views in the Vale of Towy, and imparts to the town a striking and picturesque appearance. It is above a
mile in length, and about half a mile in breadth, and consists of several streets, the two principal meeting near its
centre, where formerly stood the High Cross, the site of which is now occupied by the fish and butter market: the descent
to the bridge, an elegant stone structure of seven arches, surmounted with an iron balustrade, is inconveniently narrow
and precipitous, as are also several of the smaller streets which lead down to the water side. The principal streets
contain a large proportion of good houses and many excellent shops, and in the minor streets there are several of
respectable character. Considerable improvement has taken place of late years by modernizing old buildings and erecting
new ones in a style of comfort and taste suited to the improvement of modern times: among the latter are, PictonTerrace at
the western end of the town, and Waterloo-Place to the north. The principal streets are well paved, and lighted with gas,
first introduced here in 1821, and the inhabitants are amply supplied with excellent water, conveyed from springs in the
neighbOurhood into public conduits in various parts of the town, by iron pipes laid down at the expense of the
corporation, in 1803. At the western end of the town, near the entrance from Pembrokeshire, is a colamn, erected by public
subscription, at an expense of £3000, to the memory of Lieut.-General Sir Thomas Picton, G. C. B., who represented the
borough in parliament, and was slain at Waterloo. It consists of a pedestal and column, sixty-four feet in height,
supporting a colossal statue of the general, nine feet and a half in height, liabited in the Re-man costume, and having a
sword in the left hand. The pedestal on which the figure stands displays a tasteful arrangement of shields and halberts,
and at the angles of the platform are mortars mounted on carriages. On one side of the pedestal of the column is an
inscription; recording in the English language the various exploits of the general during his military career, and on the
opposite side is a literal translation of it into the Welsh language: the other two faces are respectively occupied with
representations in alto relievo of the storming of Badajos and the battle of Waterloo, in both of which he particularly
distinguished himself. The ornamental parts of this column were finely executed by F. H. Bailey, R. A., but the
composition of which they are formed has not withstood the influence of the weather. The environs are adorned with neat
villas and some pleasingly varied scenery; and the view of the town, with its castle and bridge, the vessels in the
river, and the bold and diversified character of the hills by which it is terminated, is strikingly beautiful. The
Cambrian Society in Dyved, for the preservation of the remains of ancient British literature, and for the encouragement of
the national music of the harp, established in 1818, under the patronage of Dr. Burgess, late Bishop of St. David's, and
now Bishop of Salisbury, is at present nearly extinct; and the Cwmreigyddion Society, for the encouragement of Welsh
poetry, by the distribution of medals and premiums, is also in a declining state: the affairs of both these societies are
transacted here. The theatre, an old mean-looking building, is open during the months of November and December, when
dramatic pieces are performed every evening; and concerts and balls are occasionally held at the principal inns. Races
take place annually in September, and continue for two days, on the first of which the Carmarthen stakes of £5 each, with
an addition of £40 from the fund, are run for by all horses; a sweepstakes of £5, with £30 added from the fund, by all
horses bred in Carmarthenshire and the adjoining counties; and a sweepstakes of £10 each, with a tradesmen's purse of
£30: on the second day the Dynevor stakes of five sovereigns each, with an addition of 50, are run for by horses of all
ages; a hunters' stakes of five sovereigns each, with £20 added from the fund, by half-bred horses; the county members'
plate of fifty sovereigns by horses bred in South Wales; and a forced handicap of five sovereigns, with £20 added from
the fund, by the beaten horses. The race-course, which is well adapted to the purpose, is about four miles distant from
the town, higher up the vale. During the races, which are usually well attended, balls take place alternately at the two
principal inns. The port of Carmarthen, though only a creek to that of Llanelly, carries on a small foreign, and a very
considerable coasting, trade; and, from the great increase in the shipping within the last five years, application has
been made by the merchants to have it constituted an independent port. The principal exports are, British timber, bark,
marble, slate, bricks, lead-ore, leather, manufactured goods, grain, butter, and eggs; and the principal imports are
foreign timber, pitch, rosin, tallow, coal, culm, malt, and manufactured goods for the supply of the town and
neighbourhood. In the year ending January 5th. 1830, one hundred and thirty-six thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine
bushels of oats, one thousand four hundred and seventy bushels of barley, seven hundred and sixty bushels of wheat, and
seven hundred and forty bushels of malt, were shipped from this port; and previously to that time, the average quantity
of butter, of which no separate entries are now kept in the customhouse books, was annually twenty-two thousand casks,
weighing eighty lb. each; and the average value of the eggs annually sent away is £6050. During the year ending January
5th, 1831, thirteen vessels from foreign parts, of the aggregate burden of one thousand five hundred and three tons; and
four hundred and twenty coasting vessels (including different arrivals of the same vessel), of the aggregate burden of
sixteen thousand eight hundred and fifty tons, entered inwards at this port: and in the same year, three vessels from
foreign parts, of the aggregate burden of four hundred and thirty-three tons; and one hundred and seventy-four coasting
vessels (reckoning as above), of the aggregate burden of eight thousand nine hundred and nine tons, cleared outwards: in
the course of that year also, the amount of duties paid to the custom-house was about £3000. The number of registered
vessels belonging to the port is fifty-one, the aggregate burden of which amounts to two thousand one hundred and ninety-
five tons, and which employ one hundred and fifty-two men. Towards the close of the year 1830, a weekly communication was
established between Bristol and Carmarthen, by the Frolic steam-packet, which was unhappily lost off the Naas sands, in
its voyage from Tenby to Bristol, in March 1831, when all on board perished; and since that time this mode of
communication has not been renewed: there are, however, vessels called Bristol traders, which sail alternately every
week. With that city, which is regarded as the emporium of South Wales, Carmarthen. carries on a very extensive trade,
obtaining from it large quantities of goods of various descriptions, with which it furnishes an extensive and populous
district entirely dependent on it for supplies. The quay, which at spring tides is accessible to ships of three hundred
tons' burden, extends several hundred yards along the north-western bank of the river, and is commodious. The river Towy
is celebrated for its salmon and sewin fisheries, in which several of the poorer inhabitants are allowed to employ
themselves throughout the year, with the view of preventing them applying for parochial relief, to the great detriment of
the fisheries, and to the injury of the health of the consumers. There are three weekly markets, on Wednesday, Friday, and
Saturday: the last, which is the principal, is abundantly supplied with corn and every article of consumption: the
market on Wednesday is chiefly for meat, poultry, butter, and vegetables; and that on Friday is almost disused, except
for fish, which is also exposed for sale every day in the week: dairy produce of every description is remarkably cheap
here. Fairs, chiefly for cattle, are held on April 15th, June 3rd and 4th, July 10th, August 12th, September 9th, October
9th, and November 14th and 15th. The corn market is held in an area beneath the guildhall, and on market days the
guildhall square is occupied by temporary booths for the sale of hats, shoes, hardware, and other articles. The markets
for cheese, and butchers' meat and poultry, erected by the corporation in 1801, are situated in Red-street: the latter is
quadrangular, with covered shambles round the sides, and a range down the centre. The fish and butter markets, as before
observed, occupy the site of the old cross, at the junction of the leading thoroughfares: the roof is supported by a
range of plain pillars, and surmounted by a clock turret: the market for cattle and pigs is at present held in Lammas-
street. The borough, which is of great antiquity, probably possessed several municipal privileges under the native princes
of South Wales, who made this place the seat of their government, and these are said to have been subsequently confirmed
and extended by charter of Edward I.; but the earliest charter of incorporation of which there is any authentic record is
that of Henry VIII., which was afterwards confirmed by James I., who constituted the borough a county of itself, under the
designation of "the county of the borough of Carmarthen," and substituted two sheriffs for the bailiffs appointed under
the former charter. This form of municipal government remained till the fourth year of the reign of George III., when the
inhabitants petitioned for a new charter, which was granted, on the 27th of July, 1764, and ordained that the government
should be vested in a mayor, recorder, two sheriffs, twenty common-councilmen, and an indefinite number of burgesses,
assisted by a town-clerk, sword-bearer, two serjeants at mace, and subordinate officers, under the style of "The Mayor,
Burgesses, and Commonalty." Six of the burgesses, called peers, are, together with the mayor and recorder, justices of the
peace within the borough (which is co-extensive with the parish of St. Peter), with power to fill up vacancies in their
number from among the burgesses. The mayor is also coroner, clerk of the market, and the king's admiral on fhe river Towy,
with a jurisdiction extending from Carmarthen bridge to the sea, and, with the two sheriffs, is annually chosen, from
among the burgesses, on the Monday after the festival of St. Michael: the recorder, who must be a barrister, and the
town-clerk, who is also clerk of the peace, clerk of the assize, and prothonotary, retain their offices for life: the
mayor and sheriffs must be resident within the borough, or are otherwise liable to a penalty not exceeding £100. The
qualification requisite for the mayor, recorder, and peers, is either a freehold of not less than £75 per annum, a
leasehold of not less than 100 per annum, for a term of thirty years, or a personal estate of not less than £2000. The
qualification for a burgess is either a servitude of seven years to a resident freeman; a life interest within the
borough of not less than £4 per annum, held for three years prior to application for admission, unless acquired by
inheritance or marriage, in which cases actual possession is sufficient; or an actual tenure to the amount of A.10 per
annum within the borough, held for three years prior to the time of application. The burgesses are exempt from serving on
juries out of the borough, except on matters in which its interests are concerned, and are free from all tolls and customs
throughout the kingdom. The borough first received the elective franchise in the 27th of Henry VIII., since which time it
has continued to return one member to parliament: the right of election was formerly in the burgesses generally, in
number about seven hundred, of whom between three and four hundred are resident. By the late act for amending the
representation of the people, which, however, has caused no alteration in the boundaries of this borough, the town of
Llanelly has been united to Carmarthen in the return of a member to parliament: this act vests the franchise in the
former resident constituency, if duly registered according to its provisions, and in every male person of full age
occupying, either as owner or as tenant under the same landlord, a house or other premises of the annual value of ten
pounds and upwards, provided they are capable of registering as the act demands: the number of such tenements within the
limits of the borough is seven hundred and thirty-eight: the sheriffs are the returning officers. The corporation hold
general courts of session twice in the year, at which the mayor presides, assisted by the recorder and justices, for the
trial of all offenders not charged with the commission of capital crimes. The mayor, recorder, .and town-clerk, also hold
a court of record, every alternate Monday, commonly called the Mayor's Court, or Fortnight Court, which may sit for two
days, if requisite, for determining all manner of pleas, with the power of issuing process to hold to bail in actions for
debt, to an unlimited amount; but that process is seldom applied for in this court, such proceedings being generally
carried on in the court of great sessions, in which also actions above forty shillings are now usually brought and
determined, and the business of the Fortnight Court, which is tolerably extensive, is now by custom principally confined
to the recovery of debts under forty shillings, though actions above that amount are occasionally tried and determined.
The sheriffs are empowered to hold their courts monthly, for the county of the borough; and courts of pie powder are
attached to the markets and fairs. The mayor and justices, or two of them, of whom the recorder must be one, have power to
hold a court of view of frankpledge, twice a year, within the borough. Petty sessions are also held weekly; and the
assizes and general quarter sessions for the county, and the election of the two knights of the shire, take place at
Carmarthen, as the county town. The guildhall, in which all the public business for the borough and for the county is
transacted, is a handsome modern structure, supported on a range of columns of the Doric order, surmounted by an
entablature and cornice: the principal front is ornamented with three lofty Venetian windows, the central compartment of
each of which is circular-headed, and separated by Ionic columns from the side compartments, on the outer sides of which
are pilasters of the same order. In the centre is a grand flight of stone steps, leading through the middle compartment of
the central window, which opens with folding-doors into the principal story, containing, besides the hall in which the
courts for the borough and county are held, a grand jury room, in which is an excellent portrait of LieutGeneral Sir
Thomas Picton, G. C. B.; a room for the transaction of county business; and a banqueting-room. Beneath are the offices
of the clerk of the peace, and the remainder of the lower area is appropriated to the use of the corn market. The gaol for
the borough is a neat and commodious building, adapted to the reception of eight prisoners in separate cells, and contains
three day-rooms and four airing-yards. The county gaol and house of correction occupy the site of the ancient castle, and
are partly incorporated with its remains: the buildings were begun in 1789, and completed in 1792: the appearance of the
exterior is appropriately massive, without any unnecessary heaviness, and the interior, which is arranged upon the plan
recommended by the philanthropic Howard, comprises, in the portion appropriated as a gaol, four compartments for the
classification of prisoners, eighteen day-rooms, including apartments for debtors, and four airing-yards; and in the
house of correction, four compartments for classification, six work-rooms, four day-rooms, and four airing-yards: both
departments are well adapted to the system of classification, and each of them is capable of containing twenty-six
prisoners in separate cells, or sixty by placing more than one in the same cell. Henry VIII. is said to have meditated the
removal of the seat of the ancient diocese of St. David's from that city to Carmarthen; but abandoned his design on the
representation that the remains of his grandfather, Edmund of Lancaster, were intered in the cathedral or the former
place, which would probably, after the removal of the see, fall into decay. The town is wholly within the parish of St.
Peter, to which, by charter of the 4th of George III., the Priory-street, or Old Carmarthen, was united, the whole forming
what is now called the borough of Carmarthen. The living of St. Peter's is a discharged vicarage, in the archdeaconry of
Carmarthen, and diocese of St. David's, rated in the king's books at £6. 13. 4., endowed with £400 private benefaction,
£400 royal bounty, and £400 parliamentary grant, and in the patronage of the Principal and Tutors of St. David's College,
Lampeter, to whom, since the last presentation in 1816, it has been ceded by the crown, in whose gift it was previously.
Of the five churches which formerly existed here, only those of St. Peter and Llanllwch are remaining; the others, not
being used for sacred purposes, have long since been suffered to fall into decay. The church of St. Peter is situated
without the walls of the ancient Carmarthen, but nearly in the centre of the present town: it is supposed to have been
originally a cruciform structure, in the early style of English architecture, but of the ancient building only the nave,
chancel, and south transept, are remaining, and these have been greatly disfigured, by the insertion of modern windows of
incongruous character, and other injudicious alterations. After the suppression of the monasteries, and the neglect of the
other churches, it was probably found necessary to enlarge St. Peter's church; and at this time the north aisle, which is
of much later date than the rest of the building, is supposed to have been added to it. The interior is handsomely fitted
:up, and divine service is performed twice every Sunday in the English, and twice in the Welsh language. There are some
very ancient and interesting monuments, among which the most remarkable is one to the memory of Sir Rh9s ab Thomas, who
attended the Earl of Richmond to Bosworth Field, and for his signal services on that memorable occasion was, immediately
after the battle, made Knight of the Garter, and was invested with divers other distinctions. This monument, which was
removed at the dissolution from St. John's priory, consists of an altar-tomb, on which are the recumbent effigies in
alabaster of that warrior and his lady, the former in complete armour, booted and spurred, with long flowing hair, the
hands upraised in the attitude of prayer, and a short sword lying by the right side: the tomb is richly ornamented with
small figures, escutcheons, and shields charged with armorial bearings. There were also three other effigies in alabaster
of individuals of the same family, which were destroyed by the masons, some years since, and converted into plaister. The
church, or chapel of Llanllwch is not distinguished by any remarkable architectural features: the living is a perpetual
curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar of St. Peter's. Owing to the great want of accommodation in these edifices, it has
for some time been in contemplation to erect an additional church, to defray the expense of which a considerable sum was
raised by subscription; but, in consequence of the inability of the parliamentary commissioners to grant pecuniary
assistance, the design is for the present relinquished. There are two places of worship each for Baptists, Independents,
and Wesleyan Methodists, and one each for Calvinistic Methodists and Unitarians. The free grammar school was founded by
the Rev. Morgan Owen, D. D., who was promoted to the see of Llandaf in 1639: he endowed it with £20 per annum, chargeable
on the tithes of the parish of Ishmael, in this county, which was subsequently increased by the Rev. William Jones, who
gave a house and garden adjoining the school-room in Lammas-street. It has an exhibition of £4 per annum at Queen's
College, Cambridge; and boys from this school have the preference to two exhibitions at Jesus' College, Oxford, which are
open to the whole of the county of Carmarthen. The patronage of the school, which was a licensed institution, and from
which young men were admitted into holy orders, prior to the establishment of St. David's College, at Lampeter, is vested
in the corporation, who intended to found an exhibition of £10 per annum for boys from it at that college; but it is
supposed that it will not be accepted, unless thrown open to the principality at large, which the corporation refuse to
accede to. Here is an institution called the Presbyterian College, for the education of fourteen young men intended for
the ministry, which owes its origin, as is reported, to some of the ejected ministers in the reign of Charles IL, and
which has of late years been under the management of a board of directors in London: there are at present twelve
students, who, in addition to the advantages of a gratuitous academical education, receive from the funds of the
institution an allowance, for four years, of £20 per annum, for their maintenance while in the college: it has not been
stationary in this town, to which it was last removed from Swansea, and is held in a house, hired for the purpose,
adjoining the Independent chapel, in Lammas-street. Many distinguished dissenting ministers have received their education
in this establishment, and young men intended for the ministry in the church of England were formerly admitted, though not
on the same foundation, to participate in the literary advantages it afforded. Belonging to the college are, an excellent
theological library, containing about four thousand volumes, and a valuable philosophical apparatus. Among the most
eminent men that have presided over this institution may be noticed, John Jones, L.L.D., compiler of the first Greek and
English Lexicon, and author of several elementary works; and Dr. Abraham Rees, author of the Encyclopaedia which bears
his name, was for many years one of the visitors. Two houses were left by an unknown benefactor, as an endowment for
instructing six young men in mathematics and navigation, the rental of which has long been received by the Rev. Mr. Peter,
minister of the Independent congregation, and theological professor to the college, but there are no students on the
foundation. A Lancasterian school, under the superintendence of a committee, was established in 1813, for teaching boys
reading, writing, and arithmetic: it is supported by subscription, and one hundred and fifty boys at present receive
gratuitous instruction. National schools, for which two spacious and commodious rooms have been erected by public
subscription, aided by a grant of £150 from the National Society, have been established, for the instruction of children
of each sex, that for girls in 1818, and that for boys in 1822, having previously existed for many years as Sunday
schools, under the direction of the minister and a committee: in these schools, which are liberally supported by
subscription, one hundred and twenty boys and the same number of girls are gratuitously instructed. There are also Sunday
schools in connexion with the established church and the several dissenting congregations. Charles Powell, Esq., in 1687,
bequeathed a house and stable, to be converted into six rooms, with a garden to each, for the residence of six aged men,
and £300 to be invested in the purchase of lands for their endowment: the inmates receive each an annual allowance of £2.
15. in money, coal to the amount of ten shillings, shoes and stockings of the value of £1. 4., and, every alternate year,
a blue gown and a hat, together worth £2. 15. The Rev. Edward Meyrick, treasurer of St. David's, gave a house and garden
for the use of a charity school and lending library. Sir Rice Rudd, of Aberglasney, Bart., by deed bearing date the 16th
of Charles I., charged certain premises with an annual payment of £25, towards the support of a charity founded by Bishop
Rudd and his lady, to which also he gave the hospital, or almshouse, in St. Peter's-street, with all its lands and
appurtenances. Of the charity founded by Bishop Rudd nothing whatever is known: the rent-charge of £25 is at present
received by the proprietor of Aberglasney, in the parish of Llangathen, and paid to the inmates of the hospital in St.
Peter's-street, who must be natives of the county of Carmarthen. Alderman John Philipps, in 1730, gave £200 to be laid out
in land, or on other good security, directing the produce to be given annually to the most deserving of the indigent
inhabitants of the county of the borough, not receiving parochial relief. There are also numerous other small donations
and bequests for distribution among the poor. The ancient castle occupied a spacious quadrangular area on the brow of a
hill rising abruptly from the river Towy, enclosed on the south-west, south-east, and north-east by lofty walls, defended
in the centre by semicircular bastions, at the southern angle by a strong square tower, and at the eastern and western
angles by massive circular towers. The principal entrance was in the north-west front, and was guarded by an advanced
gateway: the keep and principal buildings were situated in the northern angle of the area. The few existing remains of
this fortress, being incorporated with the gaol, are concealed from public observation, except one of the entrances and
portions of the walls above the river. There are only inconsiderable remains either of the priory of St. John, or of the
convent of the Grey friars in Lammas-street: the former was founded for Black canons, about the year 1148, but by whom is
uncertain; its revenue at the dissolution was s€174. 8. 8., and the site, in the 35th of Henry VIII., was granted to
Richard Andrews and Nicholas Temple: the latter was a cell to the monastery of St. Augustine, at Bristol, and the site
was granted by Henry VIII. to Thomas Lloyd, and, in the 5th of Edward VI., to Sir Thomas Gresham. The church, dedicated to
St. Mary, was situated on the south side of the guildhall, in a street of that name; but not being used after the
Reformation, it was converted into dwelling-houses, on the timbers of the roofs of which may be discerned the heads of
saints, which formed part of its original ornaments. Near the remains of the Grey friars' house, in Lammas-street, are
some vestiges of another church, supposed to have been the chapel belonging to that convent. The church of the priory of
St. John was taken down after the suppression of religions houses, and several of the ancient monuments were removed into
St. Peter's church. In the garden of the vicarage-house is still preserved a Roman altar, of a cubic form, in the upper
surface of which is a cavity, probably the patella, for holding the blood of the victim. Near the northern part of the
town, in a field called the Bulrack, or Bulwark, are the remains of a Roman camp, the prretorium of which may be clearly
distinguished by the superior elevation of the ground within the area, and which evidently appears to have been the campus
testivus of the principal station. The remains of a causeway have recently been discovered, extending in a line from the
priory to the castle, and apparently indicating the direction of the Via Julia Montana, which led to Maridunum from the
east, and here joined the Via Julia Maritima, which, having its course nearer to the sea, is supposed to have passed
through this station from east to west, in the line of the present turnpike road. The village at the extremity of this
causeway still retains the name of Pen y Sarn, " the Head of the Causeway; " and it is related by Giraldus Cambrensis,
who flourished about the close of the twelfth century, that, in his time, Roman bricks might be seen in the walls by which
the town was surrounded. Near Llanllwch are some imperfect remains of an extensive encampment; and an intrenchment on a
smaller scale, but in a very perfect state, which was probably thrown up during the great civil war, may be seen in a
field near the gas-works. Carmarthen is said to have been the birthplace of the celebrated Merlin, or Ambrosias, whose
exploits were the subject of the romances of former ages: his mother is said to have been the daughter of a king of South
Wales, and he is supposed to have taken the name of Merddyn, or Merlin, from the place of his nativity, and to have spent
much of his time in seclusion in a grove, about three miles to the east of this town, still called Merlin's Grove. His
extraordinary skill in various sciences, especially in the mathematics and astronomy, caused him to be regarded as a
magician in the dark age in which he lived. The Rev. Lewis Bailey, D.D., Bishop of Bangor, was a native of this town: he
was the author of the " Practice of Piety," which passed through many editions, and was translated into the French and
Welsh languages. Walter D'Evereux, Earl of Essex, and father of the accomplished and unfortunate nobleman who suffered in
the reign of Elizabeth, was buried here. Sir Richard Steele was for some years a resident at Carmarthen, where he is said
to have composed his play entitled " The Conscious Lovers." He married the daughter and only child of Jonathan Scurlock,
Esq., of this place, and towards the close of his life retired to a small estate called TY-Gwtn, on the opposite bank of
the river, in the parish of Llangunnor he died at his house in King-street, Carmarthen, at a very advanced age, and was
interred in the family vault of the Scurlocks in St. Peter's church. A neat monument was erected to his memory, in the
church of Llangunnor, by the late William Williams, Esq., of Ivy Tower, in the county of Pembroke. Carmarthen gives the
inferior title of marquis to the noble family of Osborne, Dukes of Leeds. The average annual expenditure for the support
of the poor amounts to £3072. 5.