Ymddiriedolaeth elusennol yn rheoli ac yn gofalu am barcdir a gerddi'r Hen Balas Esgobion Tyddewi
A charitable trust managing and caring for the parkland and gardens of the Old Bishops of St David's Palace Heddiw, mae’r hyn sy’n weddill o’r parc ar agor i’r cyhoedd drwy gydol y flwyddyn ac yn fan poblogaidd i fynd am dro a dilyn ôl troed Esgob Tyddewi. Mae tirwedd y parc wedi newid llawer yn ystod
ei hanes hir, gan adlewyrchu ffasiynau’r oes, newidiadau i’w ddefnydd ac, yn fwy dramatig, grym byd natur. Gwnaed y newidiadau mwyaf diweddar yn y 1970au pan ddewiswyd rhan o’r tir fel safle i adeiladu Plas yr Esgob newydd. Daeth hen Blas yr Esgob yn gartref i Amgueddfa Sir Gaerfyrddin yn y pen draw, ac nid oes unrhyw ymweliad â Pharc yr Esgob yn gyflawn heb archwilio’r amgueddfa ddiddorol iawn hon. Er gwaethaf y newidiadau niferus sydd wedi digwydd wrth i ni edrych o gwmpas Parc yr Esgob heddiw, gallwn weld olion y parciau cynharach hyn o hyd. Mae’r Ardd Gegin Furiog, sy’n wych ond wedi gordyfu, gyda’i bwthyn gwledig hynod, yr hen lwybrau trwy’r coed, yr ‘ha-ha’ sy’n edrych dros y Ddôl Fawr a Phwll yr Esgob gyda’i ynys gudd, oll yn awgrymu ysblander y tir pwysig a heddychlon hwn. Safle cudd a gwirioneddol unigryw yw hwn wedi’i osod o fewn tirwedd a adwaenir yn gyffredin fel Gardd Cymru, ac er bod ei ogoniant wedi pylu i raddau, mae Prosiect Porth Tywi yn gweithio i adfer Parc yr Esgob i’w fawredd gynt. Once set on the banks of the River Tywi, in the beautiful Tywi Valley, for nearly 500 years the Bishop’s Park was the private garden of the Bishops of St. Today, what remains of the park is now open to the public all year round and is a much-loved place to take a stroll and follow in the footsteps of the Bishop’s of St David’s. Over its long history the parks landscape has gone through many changes reflecting the fashions of the time, changes in its use and more dramatically the forces of nature. The most recent changes were made in the 1970s when part of the grounds were chosen as the site on which to build a new Bishop’s Palace. The old Bishop’s Palace eventually becoming the home of the fascinating Carmarthenshire County Museum and no visit to the Bishop’s Park is complete without exploring this jewel of a museum. Despite the many changes that have taken place as we look around the Bishop’s Park today we can still see the remains of these earlier parks. The wonderful but overgrown Walled Kitchen Garden with its quaint cottage ornee, the old pathways through the trees, the ha ha overlooking The Great Meadow and the Bishop’s Pond with its secret island all offer us a hint at the one time splendour of these important and peaceful grounds. This undiscovered jewel set within a landscape famously known as the Garden of Wales is a truly unique site and though its glory is somewhat faded the Tywi Gateway Project is working to restore the Bishop’s Park to it former grandeur.
