History of Lampeter

During the Civil War, the Lloyds were Royalists, and after being taken prisoner at St. Fagans, they were heavily fined by Cromwell. After these events, the family of Maesyfelin began to lose influence, and the great house of Maesyfelin crumbled. This was blamed by the locals on a curse, issued by Vicar Pritchard of Llandovery. The Vicar, who was a notable hymnist, was good friends with the Lloyd family. The Vicar's son, Samuel Pritchard,  is said to have became involved with one of the sisters of Sir Francis, and was murdered by him. His body was then dumped in the river Tywi

The Vicar was enraged, and in his grief, cast a curse on the house of Maesyfelin,

Melltith Duw fo ar Maesyfelin,

Ar bob carreg a phob gwreiddyn,

Am daflu blodyn tre' Llandyfri,

Ar ei ben i Dywi i foddi.

(May God's curse be on Maesyfelin,

On every Stone and every Root,

For casting the folower of Llandovery town,

Headlong into the river Tywi to drown.)

As Maesyfelin fell, the new Peterwell rose, although, as the Lloyd family of Peterwell was related to the Lloyd family of Maesyfelin, and the stones of the latter were used in the re-building of the former, local legend says that the curse was also transferred. Initially, the house of Peterwell thrived. The house was an imposing building, with four towers topped with domes and a roof garden. A stately drive led from the main road.

Its most notorious owner was Sir Herbert Lloyd who climbed the social ladder before rapidly falling. he was granted a baronetcy by George III, and served as MP for Cardigan  from 1761-68, also acting as a Justice of the Peace in the town. He is remembered as a harsh and tyrrannical ruler who would stop at noting to get what he wanted.

This is exemplified by his treatment of a small holder, named Sion Phillip. This old man and his wife farmed a small area of land that stood between Peterwell and the River Teifi. This was a constant annoyance to Sir Herbert, who wanted the land, but Sion Phillip refused to sell. Sir Herbert made it known that a valuable black Ram had been stolen, and a few nights later arranged for it to be lowered down Sion Phillip's chimney. armed with a warrant issued by himself, he called for Thomas Evans, the constable, and went to search the house. Felony was punishable by hanging in those days, so with this lever, he attempted to blackmail Sion Phillip to sell. He once again refused, and enraged, Sir Herbert ordered that he be marched to Cardigan in the snow to await trial. With no defence, he was found guilty by a jury hand picked by Lloyd and hanged outside Cardigan in April 1763. Although most people knew  the truth of the matter not one came forward to speak in his defence. Sir Herbert then produced a document transferring ownership of the field to himself, which he swore was signed by Phillip.

In 1766, he attempted by similar means to acquire land of the farm of Maespwll, this time by using a valuable tapestry. The servants were witnessed lowering the tapestry down the chimney by a wandering harpist, who alerted the occupants of the house, who then burned the tapestry.

But Sir Herbert had upset too many people to continue. His record as an MP was undistinguished, and there is no record of him ever speaking in Parliament. before the election in 1768, the local squires conspired to ensure he did not win the seat again. Burgesses were created en masse at Aberystwyth (Lloyd had himself created many burgesses to ensure his election) and pacts were agreed. Lloyd was not returned to Parliament in 1768.

Stripped of an MP's immunity against debts his troubles mounted. He died at Bath in 1769, and his body was returned to Lampeter to be buried. The funeral had to be undertaken in dramatic fashion under cover of darkness, as bailiffs had prohibited the buriel of the body until debts were paid.

The estate was then sold to the Harford family, who built a new manor house at Falcondale. For the next 150 years they took a keen interest in the town, and are fondly remembered. The family were involved in supplying clean drinking water to the town, the construction of local railways and the Town Hall. They also gave the land for the construction of the University.

During the eighteenth century, Lampeter had grown to be an important centre of commerce. Near the present day Co-operative Supermarket there was a corn mill, and in the centre of town a gaol and whipping post. The administration of the town was in the hands of a Court Leet with Burgess and Portreeve, and as with the rest of Cardiganshire Politics corruption was rife. The population of Lampeter in 1801 was 696, but had nearly doubled to 1225 by 1871. Drovers herding their cattle to markets in England stopped here, and Lampeter remains one of the focal points of the West Wales economy.