Roose (hundred)

The Hundred of Roose (sometimes called Rowse) was a hundred in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It was formed by the Act of Union of 1536 and was essentially identical to the pre-Norman cantref of Rhos [Charles, B. G., "The Placenames of Pembrokeshire", National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, 1992, ISBN 0-907158-58-7, p 570] . It derives its Welsh name from its position nearly surrounded by water, bounded east by the tidal Western Cleddau, south by Milford Haven and west by St Brides Bay. "Rhos" locally means (among other things) "promontory" [Charles, "ibid", p 810] . The English form is a corruption of the Welsh. Its area was around 264 km².

The pre-Norman history of the cantref is uncertain, and the site of its civil headquarters is unknown: the chief town of Haverfordwest does not pre-date the Norman conquest. The ecclesiastical centre (perhaps the seat of a bishop in the Age of the Saints) was probably one of the several churches of the local St Ismael, most probably St. Ishmael's [Williams, A. H., "An Introduction to the History of Wales": Volume I: "Prehistoric Times to 1063", UoWP, 1941, p 120] .

The hundred, with its capital at Haverfordwest was the original centre of the Norman/English "plantation" in the 12th century, and it has been essentially English-speaking since then, forming the core of Little England beyond Wales.

The cantref was said in the post-Norman period to be divided into two or perhaps three commotes. The Red Book of Hergest mentions Hwlffordd (Haverfordwest) commote and Castell Gwalchmei (Walwyn's Castle) commote. The former is an English name, and the "commotes" correspond to the Norman lordships. The northern part of Hwlffordd commote was sometimes distinguished as Roch commote (a French name). None of these is likely to be a real native Welsh subdivision, and the small Cantref of Rhos was probably not actually divided into commotes [Charles "ibid", p 570] . The fragmentary Norman lordships [Howells, B, Walker, R. F., "Pembrokeshire County History": Vol II: "Medieval Pembrokeshire", Pembrokeshire Historical Society, 2002, ISBN 0-903771-10-1, p 142] are shown in the map.

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