Online Encyclopedia
Search over 40,000 articles from the original, classic Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition.
BRECONSHIRE, or BRECKNOCKSHIRE
Online EncyclopediaEncyclopedia Home :: BOS-BRI
del.icio.us it!
|
See also:BRECONSHIRE, or BRECKNOCKSHIRE , an inland See also:county in See also:South See also:Wales, and the See also:fourth largest in all Wales, bounded N.W. by See also:Cardigan, N. and N.E. by See also:Radnor, E. and S.E. by See also:Monmouth, S. by Glamorgan and W. by See also:Carmarthen. The See also:general aspect of the county is mountainous, and the scenery is marked by beauty and grandeur. The See also:climate is moist but temperate and healthy, and the See also:soil of the valleys, often consisting of See also:rich alluvial deposits, is very fertile. The loftiest mountains in South Wales, extending from See also:Herefordshire and See also:Monmouthshire (where their eastern spurs See also:form the Hatteral Hills) in a south-easterly direction into See also:Carmarthenshire, completely encircle the county on the See also:east and south except for the break formed by the Vale of See also:Usk at See also:Crickhowell. Their highest See also:summit See also:north of the Usk, on the eastern See also:side, where they are known as the See also:Black Mountains, or sometimes the Black See also:Forest Mountains, is See also:Pen y Gader (2624 ft.) between See also:Talgarth and Llanthony, and on the south-See also:west the twin peaks of the Mynydd Du (" Black See also:Mountain ") or the so-called Carmarthenshire Vans or Beacons, only the higher of which, See also:Fan Brycheiniog (2632 ft.), is, however, in Breconshire; while the centre of the See also:crescent is occupied by the masses of the Brecknockshire Beacons or Vans (often called the Beacons simply), the highest point of which, Pen y Fan, formerly also known as Cadair See also:Arthur, or Arthur's See also:Chair, attains an See also:altitude of 2910 ft. In the north, a range of barren hills, which goes by the general designation of Mynydd Eppynt (a name more properly limited to its central portion), stretches right across the county in a north-easterly direction, beginning with Mynydd Bwlch-y-Groes on the boundary to the east of See also:Llandovery, and terminating near See also:Builth. In the dreary See also:country still farther north there is a See also:series of rounded hills covered with See also:peat and mosses, the See also:chief feature being Drygarn Fawr (2115 ft.) on the confines of See also:Cardiganshire. Of the valleys, the most distinguished for beauty is that of the Usk, stretching from east to west and dividing the county into two nearly equal portions. The Wye is the chief See also:river, and forms the boundary between the county and See also:Radnorshire on the north and north-east, from See also:Rhayader to See also:Hay, a distance of upwards of 20 m.; its tributary, the Elan, till it receives the Claerwen, and then the latter river, continue the boundary between the two counties on the north, while the Towy separates the county from Cardigan on the north-west. The hilly country to the north of the Eppynt is mainly drained by the Irfon, which falls into the Wye near Builth. The Usk rises in the Carmarthen-See also:shire See also:Van on the west, and flowing in a direction nearly due east through the centre of the county, collects the See also:water from the range of the Beacons in the south, and from the Eppynt range in the north by means of numerous smaller streams, of whiccI the Tarell and the Honddu (which join it at See also:Brecon) are the most important, and it enters Monmouthshire near See also:Abergavenny. The Taff, the Nedd (with its tributaries the Hepste and the Mellte) and the Tawe, all rise on the south of the See also:Beacon range, and passing through See also:Glamorganshire, flow into the See also:Bristol Channel, the upper reaches of the Nedd and its tributaries in the Vale of See also:Neath being deservedly famous for its scenery. The mountains of the county constitute one of the best water-producing areas in Wales. Recognizing this, the See also:corporation of See also:Birmingham, under an See also:act of 1892, acquired the See also:watershed of the Elan and Claerwen, and constructed on the Elan three impounding reservoirs whence the water is conducted through an See also:aqueduct to Birmingham (q.v.). See also:Swansea obtains its chief See also:supply from a See also:reservoir of one thousand million gallons constructed in 1898-1996 on the Cray, a tributary of the Usk. A large See also:industrial See also:area around Neath is supplied from Ystradfellte. Merthyr Tydfil draws its supply from the lesser Taff, while See also:Cardiff's See also:main supply comes from the See also:Great Taff valley, where, under acts of 1884 and 1894, two reservoirs with a capacity of 668 million gallons have been constructed and a third authorized. In the east of the county, at the See also:foot of the Black Forest Mountains, is Llyn Safaddan, or Brecknock See also:Mere, now more generally known as Llangorse See also:Lake (from being partly situated in the See also:parish of that name). It is about 3 M. See also:long by I M. broad, being the largest lake in South Wales. Upon an artificial See also:island in the lake traces of lake-dwellings were discovered in 1869, together with the bones of red See also:deer, See also:wild See also:boar and See also:Bos longifrons. See also:Geology.—The See also:oldest rocks in Brecknockshire are the Llandeilo shales and intrusive diabases of pre-Llandovery See also:age which near Builth extend across the Wye from Radnorshire; another patch with volcanic outflows comes up at Llanwrtyd, and at both places they give rise to See also:mineral springs. Next follow the See also:Bala Beds, which, with the succeeding See also:Lower and Upper Llandovery shales, sandstones and conglomerates, form the sparsely populated sheepwalks and valleys which occupy most of the north-western See also:part of the county. These rocks are much folded and the shales are locally cleaved into slates, while the sandstones and conglomerates form scarps and ridges. To the south-east of this region a narrow outcrop of Upper Llandovery, See also:Wenlock and See also:Ludlow sandstones and mudstones follows, uncomformably overlying the Llandeilo and Bala rocks, and dipping conformably under the Old Red See also:Sandstone; they extend from Newbridge-on-Wye and Builth through Llangammarch (where there are mineral springs) towards Llandovery, while a See also:tongue of Ludlow rocks brought up by faulting extends from Erwood on the Wye for 8 m. south-westwards into the Old Red Sandstone. The See also:remainder and greater part of the county is occupied chiefly by the gently inclined Old Red Sandstone; in the dissected See also:plateau of the Black Mountains north of Crickhowell the lower marls and cornstones are laid open, while south of Brecon the conglomeratic upper beds form the escarpment and plateaus of the Beacons. The See also:southern edge of the county is formed by the scarps and moorlands of the Carboniferous See also:Limestone and Millstone Grit (both of which form also the outlier of Pen-ceryg-calch north of Crickhowell), while the lowest beds of the See also:Coal See also:Measures of the South Wales coalfield are reached in the Tawe and Neath valleys (where the beds are much folded) and near See also:Tredegar and See also:Brynmawr. Glacial deposits spread over the lower grounds and striae occur at great heights on the Black Mountains.
See also:Industries.—Agriculture is the chief See also:industry, and the Agri-cultural Society of the county, dating from 1755, is the oldest in Wales. About one-fourth only of the area of the county is under cultivation, and the chief crops grown are See also:wheat and See also:barley, but above all, turnips and oats. The acreage devoted to any other See also:crop is practically infinitesimal, though in the eastern part more See also:attention is paid to fruittgrowing than perhaps in any other part of South Wales. The farming is, however, chiefly See also:pastoral, nearly one-third of the county is See also:common or See also:waste See also:land, and its number of See also:sheep (mainly of the Radnor Forest breed) far exceeds that of any other county in Wales. The breeding of cobs and ponies comes next in importance, and thirdly that of See also:cattle, now mostly Herefords, though See also:Speed mentions a native breed, long since See also:extinct, all See also: 
There are also limestone and fireclay, See also:firebrick and See also:cement See also:works, chiefly on the See also:northern outcrop of the carboniferous limestone, as at Abernant in the Vale of Neath and at Penwyllt. The Central Wales See also:section of the See also:London & North-Western railway from See also:Craven Arms to Swansea crosses the north-west corner of the county, and is intersected at Builth Road by a See also:branch of the See also:Cambrian, which, See also:running for the most part on the Radnorshire side of the Wye, follows that river from Rhayader to Three Cocks; the Midland railway from See also:Hereford to Swansea runs through the centre of the county, effecting junctions at Three Cocks with the Cambrian, at Talyllyn with the Brecon & Merthyr railway (which connects the county with the industrial areas of East Glamorgan and West Monmouthshire), and at See also:Capel Colbren with the Neath and Brecon See also:line. The North-Western and See also:Rhymney See also:joint line skirts the south-eastern boundary of the county. Brecon is also connected with See also:Newport by means of the Brecknock and Abergavenny See also:Canal, which was completed in 18oi and is 35 M. in length. The Swansea Canal and that of the Vale of Neath have also their northern terminal within the county, at Ystradgynlais and Abernant respectively. The main roads of the county are probably the best in South Wales. See also:Population and See also:Administration.—The area of the See also:ancient county is 475,224 acres, with a population in 1891 of 57,031 and in 1901 of 59,907. The area of the administrative county is 469,301 acres. The only municipal See also:borough is Brecon, which is the county See also:town, and had in 19or a population of 5741. The other See also:urban districts are Brynmawr, Builth See also:Wells and Hay, with populations of 6833, of 1805 and of 168o respectively in 1901. Crickhowell and Talgarth are See also:market towns, while Llanwrtyd Wells is a rapidly developing See also:health resort. The county forms part of the South Wales See also:circuit, and the assizes are held at Brecon. It had one See also:court of See also:quarter sessions, and is divided into ten See also:petty sessional divisions. The borough of Brecon has a See also:separate See also:commission of the See also:peace, but no separate court of quarter sessions. There are 94 See also:civil parishes, while the ecclesiastical parishes or districts wholly or in part within the county number 70, of which 67 are in the See also:diocese of St See also:David's and the archdeaconry of Brecon, the remaining 3 being in the diocese of See also:Llandaff. The county is not divided for See also:parliamentary purposes, and returns one member to See also:parliament. It contains a small part of the parliamentary borough of Merthyr Tydfil. In the eastern parts and along the Wye valley, See also:English has become the predominant See also:language, but in the See also:rest of the county, especially north of the Eppynt range, Welsh occupies that position. In 1901 about 51% of the population above three years could speak both English and Welsh, 38% could speak English only and 11 % Welsh only. The See also:majority of the population is See also:Nonconformist in See also:religion, the chief denominations being the See also:Baptists, Calvinistic Methodists and Congregationalists. Besides an endowed See also:grammar-school (See also:Christ See also:College) at Brecon, there are in the county four secondary See also:schools, established under the Welsh Intermediate See also:Education Act 1899, viz. separate schools for boys and girls at Brecon, and dual schools at Builth and Brynmawr. Most of the county institutions are in the town of Brecon, but the joint See also:asylum for the counties of Brecon and Radnor is at Talgarth. It was opened in See also:February 1903. At Trevecca, near the same town, was a theological college for ministerial students attached to the Calvinistic Methodist See also:body, but in See also:October 1996 the institution was removed to See also:Aberystwyth, and the buildings have since been utilized for a preparatory school belonging to the same body. See also:History.—There are no traces or See also:record of Breconshire being inhabited before the See also:Neolithic See also:period, but to that period may be ascribed a number of See also:cairns, menhirs and one cromlech (near Glanusk). In See also:Roman times the eastern See also:half of the county formed part of the territory of the See also:Silures, a pre-See also:Celtic See also:race, whose governing class at that See also:time probably consisted of Brythonic
486
Celts. But an earlier See also:wave of Celtic invasion represented by the Goidels had passed westwards along the valleys of the Usk and Wye, leaving traces in See also:place-names (e.g. llwch, lake), and in the Ogham inscribed stones found at Glanusk, Trallwng and Trecastle, and probably surviving into historic times around the Beacon range and farther south even to See also:Gower and See also:Kidwelly. The See also:conquest of the See also:district by the See also:Romans was effected between about A.D. 75 and 8o, and they established a frontier fort (which some have called Caer Bannau, identifying it as Bannium) some 3 M. out of the See also:present town of Brecon, with smaller stations on roads leading thereto at Y Gaer near Crickhowell, and at Capel Colbren in the direction of Neath. On the departure of the Romans, the Goidelic See also: The Irfon valley, near Builth, was, however, the See also:scene of the last struggle between the English and See also:Llewelyn, who in 1282 See also:fell in a petty skirmish in that district. The old spirit of See also:independence flickered once again when See also:Owen See also:Glendower marched to Brecon in 1403. Upon the See also:attainder of See also:Edward, See also:duke of See also:Buckingham, in 1521, the lordship of Brecon with its dependencies became vested in the See also:crown. In 1536 it was grouped with a whole series of petty lordships marcher and the lordship of Builth' to form the county of Brecknock with Brecon as the county town, and the place for holding the county court. The county returns one member to parliament, and has done so since 1536; the borough of Brecon, with the town of Llywel, had also a separate representative from the same date till 1885, when it became merged in the county. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML. Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide. |
|
|
[back] BRECON, or BRECKNOCK |
[next] BREDA |