A traditional thatched stone longhouse in Pembrokeshire, Wales.

  
   
       
 
 
 

This Welsh longhouse was abandoned with the roof collapsed and walls starting to deteriorate even though it was a Grade II listed cottage (see picture bottom left). It is now one of the few remaining thatched Pembrokeshire longhouses set at the foot of the Preseli Hills in the heart of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The cottage has been skilfully restored by the owners who have taken tremendous care to reflect the historic character of this beautiful cottage and to ensure the building reflects its history and original design.
   
           
 
 
 
         
   
 

The Pembrokeshire longhouse, much like the Scottish Blackhouse, is where people and their livestock lived under one long roof. The livestock area of this home has now been converted to the bedrooms but the building retains the character of the original design. From the living room you can see the roundwood timbers of the roof and the underside of the thatch.

Sadly the locals felt that thatching had no place in the community despite the house being thatched when it was originally built about 150 years ago. Strangely the National Park were against the building being restored giving the excuse that the house was not on a bus route. It was the perseverance of the owners and Alan Jones (left) the thatcher, that managed to get planning permission to restore the building as it was originally thatched.

Now the cottage is re-thatched the local community loves it. If you are building naturally take some advice from the Welsh One Planet Council. it's best to get community engagement [PDF see page 4] early on in the project.

  
           

The roof is an interesting mix of slate above the stonework with a wide strip of cob (or clom as it is called in Wales). Hand made wheat rope loops around the roundwood timbers and passes through the cob to provide an anchor for the combed wheat thatch (below right). The ridge was thatched using drum thrashed landrace long straw. 'Landrace' is a classification of crops and farming used before industrialization.