We've been here just three years. We'd lived and worked overseas for nearly thirty years in various countries, and we decided that it was time for us to retire, so this was our retirement. The location is very pretty, very quiet and laid-back, nice people, lovely countryside, wonderful views, and I think that probably had a lot to do with it. When we had a look at it, we then found out a little about the background. Since being here, we've obviously made it our business to find out as much as we possibly can about it, and found it even more interesting than we thought it was.

First of all, one of our customers comes here, who claims to be a medium, and she swears every time she comes here she sees monks. Sometimes in the car park, but mostly in one of the lounges by the fire place, and she swears that she sees monks there quite often. She says they're very old looking with lots of brownish robes tied up with rope, and they all seem very happy and very quiet, and very nice monks.

They think originally that the Britannia Inn was one cottage and it was built specifically for the monks, who used to be at Valle Crucis Abbey. It was built specifically for them because there's a stream that runs down the side of the building and they used to use the water from the stream to brew ale. The ale was originally used just for the monks at Valle Crucis, and from there, it went on that they gave succour to travellers. Valle Crucis is just a couple of hundred yards away.

The Abbey was there in 1201. They did date one of the beams in the lounge as being 1200 and something, but they don't think it was built originally. They think that it was a piece of wood that came up from the Abbey after this was built and it was used primarily to help to build it. So this place is not from the 1200s but they think it's probably about 1400 or 1500 - something like that.

The story, as far as I know, is that this was a group of cottages, or at least one cottage that the monks used to use. It was an overspill for the monks from Valle Crucis Abbey. We're talking around 1400 at this point. But one of the beams in the lounge, over the fireplace, has been dated at 1200 and something. They're not sure if the beam was used to build the original cottage, or if it was a beam that had been taken from Valle Crucis Abbey, perhaps left over from when they were building the Abbey, and brought here in 1400 and something, and used for building it then. It's a bit uncertain. They know that there were monks here in around 1400, because records show that they used to use the back of the inn as a burial place. But with the beam being dated, they think that it might actually have been here before then but nobody can say for certain. So at that point it wasn't an inn, it was a place where the monks lived and brewed ale.

After 1462, from what I can gather, that actually started the tradition of the inn as it is now, and the monks went from brewing ale for themselves, to helping travellers going up and down the Horseshoe Pass, and it's been a tradition that's been kept up ever since, one way or another. I think at one point, around 1700, it was turned back into cottages, and there were three cottages then, and after that it was turned back into an inn, so it's been an inn for a very long time.

The Britannia Inn first appears in written records in the census of 1841 and it was Robert Crowe who was the publican, and he owned the inn and the land around Ty'n y Pistyll. In the 1860s, John Jones, a carpenter, was living at the Britannia. He was the publican right up until 1886 and then a lady called Margaret Jones took over, who was possibly his widow, and she took over the running of the inn, then Thomas Wilson took over as a publican at the end of the 19th century and he was succeeded by his wife Mary, who was succeeded by the Richards family, and Eleanor Richards died in around 1941. Since then, there've been considerable records of the people who've had it. The people who do take over the Britannia tend to be here a long time. Previously to us, there was a family called the Callaghans. They were here for 18 years, and before that, there was a lady and gentleman called Cyril and Maureen and they were here for 15 years, and before that a local family had it, and they were here for about ten years. So whoever comes seems to stay for quite a long time!