The cuisine of Swansea (Welsh: ) is based on the city's long history and the influence of the surrounding regions of Gower, Carmarthenshire, and Glamorgan, Wales. The city has a long maritime, industrial, and academic tradition, and people from many different parts of the world have lived, studied, and worked in the city. The city's distinctive cuisine is based on the ingredients and foods that are associated with the city and the wider region.
Development of the area from prehistoric times
During the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods the area to the north of Swansea was covered in an ice sheet from the Last Glacial Period. The ice-free areas were made up of tundra and the winters were severe. The sea level was approximately 80m lower than it is today.Balchin, W.G.V. (editor): Swansea and its Region, pages 133–135. Swansea: University of Wales, 1971. This meant that Swansea Bay formed part of a broad valley together with what is now the Bristol Channel, with the coast lying approximately 100 km further to the west of its present location. People lived as hunter-gatherers, and the diet consisted of wild animals, plants, and fish. Animal remains from this period have been found in the caves of Gower, such as Goat's Hole Cave and Bacon Hole Cave (named after the red oxide streaks on the cave walls). These include bison, hyena, elephant, and soft-nosed rhinoceros. Paleolithic stone tools made from flint, were used for food preparation, and have been found in these caves. The incorrectly named Red Lady of Paviland was a male hunter-gatherer from the Upper Paleolithic period who lived during this period and the remains of his skeleton were found in Goat's Hole Cave.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 133–135
During the Neolithic period, the ice retreated and was replaced by forests of oak, hazel and ash. People sailed to Swansea directly from France in wooden-framed boats covered in animal skin, like a currach. They brought domestic animals with them. These included cattle, pigs, goats, and possibly sheep.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 135-136 These people grew crops, including barley and varieties of wheat, such as emmer and einkorn. However, they also took part in long hunting forays to the upland areas of Glamorgan where Neolithic arrowheads have been found. Some of these people settled at a location near Mount Pleasant, Swansea while others settled in Gower. They cut down the forests to make open areas for grazing and used the wood for heating. Analysis of the charcoal from the Mount Pleasant settlement shows that it was made of hawthorn with some ash, oak, and hazel.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 135–136
During the early Bronze Age, the climate was warm and dry and there was further immigration by sea, possibly directly from France or through Wessex. Evidence of settlement has been found at West Cross where an early Bronze Age hut, 30m in diameter and made from brushwood, was excavated in 1969. Settlements during this period were on higher ground where heathland had developed because the forest had been cleared. Examples of similar settlement locations include Rhossili Down, Llanmadoc Hill and Cefn Bryn. During this period there is evidence of pastoralism with some wheat and barley cultivation.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 137–138 During the Iron Age, the climate got colder and the soil pH became acidic. This led to settlements relocating from the uplands to coastal hillforts and defended farmhouses which practiced pastoralism with some cultivation.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 138–139
During the Roman era, which lasted for about 350 years, there is little evidence of Roman settlement in the area, although a Roman villa was built in the grounds of what is now Oystermouth Cemetery. This has the most westerly mosaic found in Britain and suggests a high degree of sophistication and that the owners were thoroughly Roman in culture. However, the main Roman settlements were located around the forts at Loughor Castle (Leucarum) and Neath (Nidum), which lined the east–west route from Cardiff to Carmarthen.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 139–140
The Romans introduced new foods into Britain, but grain remained the main component of the diet. Excavations at Loughor have revealed three granaries and the grain that was discovered in them includes bread wheat, spelt, emmer and barley, with some rye and oats. Flour was made from the wheat to make bread which was baked in ovens within the fort. Spelt and emmer are not as good for making bread because the husk is more difficult to remove and this makes threshing harder. The granaries at Leucarum supplied Roman soldiers and the local population. During this period farms produced beef, mutton, and goat meat. Fish and seafood was popular, and they cultivated oysters, and made fish sauce, while olive oil, and red wine were imported from the Roman Empire. https://www.ggat.org.uk
After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, the region to the north and west of Swansea came under the control of the Deisi, who arrived from Ireland and during the sixth and seventh centuries the Irish language was spoken in this area. However, Swansea itself was settled by the Vikings who created a trading post at the mouth of the River Tawe. The name Swansea is believed to come from the personal name Svein, as a pre-fix, with the suffix '-ey' having been added and referring to an island that may have been located at the mouth of the river Tawe.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 140-144 However, the Welsh name of refers to the river mouth on which the settlement occurred, and the Celtic people from the pre-Roman period remained the main population group, with the Viking trading centre being relatively small.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 140–144
After the Norman Conquest, Motte-and-bailey castles protected the fertile and valley areas which were subject to manorialism, which developed from the Roman villa system of the Late Roman Empire, while the Welsh occupied the less productive highland areas, where sheep were raised, and oats and barley were grown. (Powell, 1584). The Welsh areas were subject to the Laws of Hywel Dda (Cyfraith Hywel), while Swansea was governed by Anglo-Norman overlords, who granted charters listing liberties and privileges. The Norman areas were subject to Welsh raids, most notably in 1136, 1151, 1189 and 1215. The manorial areas were enclosed to make fields for arable land, pasture, and meadows. The main crop was corn, with other crops including wheat, barley, rye, white and grey oats, peas and vetches. Surplus produce was exported to the West Country.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 147–159
During the Industrial Revolution, coal mining and non-ferrous metal industries developed around Swansea and substantial immigration occurred. During this period 45% of Swansea's population was born outside Glamorgan, with people coming from Gower and Carmarthenshire, and the trading areas of the West Country and Ireland.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, page 166 In 1850 the South Wales Main Line from Cardiff to Swansea was completed and this stimulated further population growth.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 166–172 The hamlets and scattered farms associated with subsistence agriculture merged with the settlements that grew unplanned around the coal mines, road junctions and canals because of industrialization.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, page 175 By the twentieth century there were over fifty distinct communities in the Swansea region based on nucleated communities focused on collieries, metal works, chapels, and shopping on local high streets.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 179–180
However, after World War II, most of central Swansea was destroyed by bombing and rebuilt. With the increasing use of private transport the city functioned as a regional shopping center, leading to a decline in the distinctiveness of surrounding settlements. D. T. Herbert noted that by 1971 the business district of Wind Street and High Street had also declined, as the emphasis within Swansea shifted towards post-war rebuilt areas around Oxford Street and Kingsway. However, Wind Street has since become a popular location for eating and drinking.Balchin, Swansea and its Region, pages 179-180/190
Markets
Swansea Market probably originated as early as the twelfth century and was confirmed in 1306 in a Charter given to the men of Gower by William de Braose, 2nd Baron Braose. By the 1530s the Market was described by John Leland (antiquary) as follows: "Swansey...a market town and chief place of Gower lande".Gabb, G.: Swansea and its History, page 1153. Swansea: Gerald Gabb, 2007. The main market day was on a Saturday, although under the 1655 Charter of Oliver Cromwell the market could open two days a week.Gabb, Swansea and its History, page 1161 Evidence of the activities of the Market are shown in cases brought before the Court leet for the sale of goods outside the Market precincts in contravention of the 1306 Charter. The Charter controlled market activities to avoid profiteering. The activity of regrating involved an intermediary acting as a go-between in the sale of goods to make a profit. Although Swansea did not have a butcher in 1739, by 1810 one butcher was charged with forestalling and regrating in contravention of the Charter.
Forestalling referred to the practice of intercepting sellers on their way to a market, buying up their stock, then taking it to the market and selling it at a higher price. This was a type of arbitrage. Another activity was ingrossing, which involved the creation of a monopoly in sales. This occurred during the corn shortage of the mid-1750s, and during this period the market was subject to a royal proclamation against the forestalling and ingrossing of corn and stipulated that between the hours of midday and two o'clock, corn was only to be sold for domestic consumption with bakers and maltsters able to buy in the open market after these hours for commercial use.Gabb, Swansea and its History, page 1154 The problem of forestalling butter led to the creation, in 1765, of a butter market, which was a dedicated open space for the sale of salted butter located in front of Swansea's town hall so that the sale of butter could be controlled.
On market days the town crier would announce publicly to country people arriving in the town that they were not to sell corn, butter, or cheese except in the market and if any was sold before it came to the market the seller would be prosecuted as a forestaller. Additional precautions were taken to control quantities sold, with the 1655 Charter providing for regulation of the weights and measures based on the Winchester measure. The clerk of the market, known as a portreeve, was responsible for weights and measures and by 1785 had a "mawn" in which he put bread which was considered to be "short of weight".
The old market was held at Market Square (now called Castle Square), next to Swansea Castle with the market stalls spread out around the square and down Wind Street, with one narrow street being called Potato Street because it was mainly occupied by potato dealers on market day.Gabb, Swansea and its History, page 1178 A market house had been completed by 1652, and this had ten, simple columns of the Doric order with a lead roof on timber beams.Gabb, Swansea and its History, page 1173 This remained the location of the market until, in 1829, when a new market was built in Oxford Street. This was mainly open-air but was surrounded by a perimeter wall and had a clock tower with a copper roof. The market tables were sheltered by a roof on cast iron pillars. From this time onwards, the market operated daily.Gabb, Swansea and its History, pages 1161, 1177