THE CHARTIST ALE TRAIL
 
Five ceramic markers on pubs and former pubs in Newport city centre, each tied to the story of the Newport Rising of Monday 4th November 1839. It's a short walk from one end to the other, and a longer one if you stop for a pint along the way.
 
1. THE CARPENTERS ARMS, 9 High Street
On Saturday 2 November 1839, two days before the Rising, a young Chartist messenger from Bradford stayed here overnight. He had been to Blackwood to urge John Frost to delay the march, because the Yorkshire Chartists were not ready to rise in support. Frost refused.
 
2. YE OLDE MURENGER HOUSE, 52-53 High Street
John Frost was one of the owners of this building, which dates from 1533 and was once home to the High Sheriff of Monmouthshire. His draper's shop stood on the same side of High Street.
 
3. 22-23 HIGH STREET (now Low and Slow)
High Street was Frost's home ground. He and his wife Mary raised their family above the shop, and Henry Vincent once led 300 women along the street in an impromptu procession. The marker was put up when this was Tiny Rebel's bar. You can still get a pint next door in Newport Market.
 
4. THE POTTERS, 22-24 Upper Dock Street
The Potters stands beside Friars Walk. By one account, Frost took refuge in Friars Fields, the crowded district close by, before his arrest that evening with three loaded pistols in his pockets. Look for the scene from the Rising on the pub's window facing the bus station.
 
5. THE RED LION, 47 Stow Hill
On the morning of the Rising the Chartists marched down this hill, reaching the Westgate at about 9.30am. When the soldiers opened fire, those at the back of the column fled back up Stow Hill, dropping their weapons as they ran.