History
With its strategic position on the far west coast of the British Isles, and a natural sheltered harbour from both the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea, Tenby was a natural settlement point.
The earliest reference to a settlement at Tenby is in Etmic Dinbych, a poem probably of 9th century date, preserved in the 14th century Book of Taliesin. At this point the settlement was likely a hill fort, the mercantile nature of the settlement possibly developing under Hiberno-Norse influence.
After the Norman Conquest, the lands came under the control of the Earls of Pembroke, who strengthened the easy to defend but hard to attack hill fort on Castle Hill, by building the first stone walled castle. This enabled the town to grow as a seaport. But the need for additional defences was shown, when attacked by Welsh forces in 1187 and again in 1260 by Llewelyn the Great. The town walls were built by William de Valence, 1st Earl of Pembroke, in the late 13th century.
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