Upton, Pembrokeshire

An early mention of the parish was about 1200, when Gerald of Wales recorded a chapel there, subordinate to Nash parish. The Manor of Upton merged with that of Nash under the 14th century Malefants, who had built the castle probably in the 13th century.[3] By the 16th century, the Bowen family owned the manor.[4] The parish is marked on a 1578 parish map of the county.[5]

In the second half of the 18th century, Captain John Tasker of the East India Company purchased Upton Castle; among the eventual beneficiaries after his death were members of the Evans family.[6] In 1833, Lewis, in his Topographical Dictionary of Wales, recorded that the parish was occupied by a single family of six inhabitants. At that time Nash-cum-Upton was a rectory in the non-adjoining Nash parish, to the south. Lewis described the former inhabitants of the castle and its dependencies as Maliphant (sic), then Bowen, then Evans.[2] In 1872, Upton was described as a hamlet in Nash parish, with a population of 24 in three houses. It covered an area of 435 acres (176 ha), 105 acres (42 ha) of which were water.[7]

Tasker Evans sold to Stanley Neale in 1927. The asking price was £9,100.[8]

In 2004, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park said they would discontinue the upkeep of the gardens. In 2006 the estate was sold.[8] In 2012, Channel 4's Time Team carried out an archaeological evaluation of the castle and chapel. Their evidence suggested the chapel was 11th or 12th century, subsequently altered.[3]

Modern maps show only Upton Farm, Upton Castle Gardens and the ruins of Upton Castle and Chapel.[9]

Upton Castle was the home of the Malefant family, and is still a private home.[10] Its gardens are open to the public.[11]

The chapel is dedicated to St. Giles, and is open to the public. It contains several important features including effigies of the Anglo-Norman Malefant family dating from the 13th to 15th centuries.[10]

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