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Roch - From 'A Topographical Dictionary of Wales' (1849)
ROCH, a parish, in the union of Haverfordwest, hundred of Rhôs, county of Pembroke, South Wales, 6 miles (N. W. by W.) from Haverfordwest; containing 835 inhabitants. It derives its name from a rocky mountainous ridge, rising abruptly from the plain, and the summit of which is occupied by an ancient castle. This castle, from its situation near the extremity of the district of Rhôs, was probably erected as a border fortress by some of the earlier Norman invaders, or by the Flemings who, in the reign of Henry I., settled in this part of the principality. The first possessor of it of whom any notice is extant, was Adam de Rupe, or de la Roche, who is by some writers supposed to have been the founder, and to whom also is attributed the establishment of the church, and of the priory of Hubberston Pill. Little is recorded of the history of the castle, which appears to have been constructed equally with a view to military and domestic purposes. It is known, however, to have belonged to the de la Roches till the reign of Henry VI., when the extensive estates of that family were divided between two coheiresses, at which time it is thought to have been abandoned as a residence. It was garrisoned for the king during the civil war of the seventeenth century, and in 1644 was besieged by the parliamentarians, under the command of Captain Edwards, to whom, after a defence of two days, it was surrendered.
The parish lies on the eastern shore of St. Bride's bay, and on the turnpike-road leading from Haverfordwest to St. David's. It is of considerable extent, comprising a large tract of arable and pasture land, which, with the exception of Cyfern mountain, occupying only a small portion of it, and the cliffs to the west and south-west, bordering upon the bay, is inclosed and in a good state of cultivation. There is a culm colliery in the parish; and a breakwater has been formed for the protection of vessels arriving at Nolton haven, whence a large quantity of culm is shipped by means of jetties. Cyfern is a handsome residence occupying a pleasant situation. The living is a discharged vicarage, rated in the king's books at £4. 13. 9., endowed with £200 royal bounty, and in the patronage of the Lord Chancellor; present net income, £137; impropriator, George Augustus Harries, Esq. The tithes have been commuted for £299. 17., of which £200 are payable to the impropriator, and £99. 17. to the vicar: a glebe of 2½ acres, valued at £6 per annum, belongs to the incumbent. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, is a plain neat edifice without a tower, consisting only of a nave and chancel, and containing a chaste monument to the memory of the Rev. John Grant, a former vicar. There were anciently two chapels of ease, both now in ruins; one at Hilton, a mile south of the church; and the other, called Caradoc's chapel, at Trêvran, about a mile and a half distant from it, on the margin of the bay, probably erected to commemorate the spot where the corpse of St. Caradoc rested on its way for interment at St. David's. There are places of worship for Baptists and Wesleyan Methodists, and the Independents hold a Sunday school in a farmhouse. John, third son of the Rev. John Grant, bequeathed £500 for the endowment of a free school here, the interest of which sum, £18, is paid to the master of a day school for boys and girls, who receives also £2 in fees; the school is carried on in a cottage on the glebe-land, by the permission of the vicar, and the master is appointed by the vicar and churchwardens, who also nominate the children. Another school, for girls, is partly supported by subscription. Mrs. Fluerton, in 1700, bequeathed a rent-charge of £2 to the poor, but it is at present unproductive.
The remains of the castle form an interesting and striking object. The structure originally consisted of one stately tower, divided into three stories, each composed of a large apartment, with an elegant smaller apartment, or retiring-room, having an arched roof and an oriel window, both enriched with tracery: the ruins consist of the shell of this tower in a very perfect state. The rock on which it is built is, on the south side, incorporated with the building for nearly half the height, and a huge mass protrudes into the lower apartment. A very extensive prospect is obtained from the tower, commanding the whole of St. Bride's bay, with a great part of the adjacent country, which, however, from the want of wood with the exception only of two or three small patches, is generally destitute of picturesque character.
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