Llanigon - Llanlligan

Llanigon (Llan-Igon)

LLANIGON (LLAN-IGON), a parish, in the union of Hay, hundred of Tàlgarth, county of Brecknock, South Wales, 2 miles (S. S. W.) from Hay; and containing 547 inhabitants, of whom 488 are in the body of the parish, and the rest in the township of Glynvâch. It derives its name from the dedication of its church either to Eigen, a female saint, or to Eigion, the son of Caw, a saint who flourished in the sixth century. The parish is situated on the turnpike-road leading from Hay to Tàlgarth, and comprises a considerable tract of land, of which the greater portion is arable, though much consists of excellent meadows in the valleys, and of elevated commons. Its surface is finely varied; and the soil, in some parts of a rocky nature, in the lower districts is tolerably fertile, affording good crops of grain and valuable pasturage for cattle and sheep, upon the rearing of which the farmers principally depend: one of the chief manures employed is lime, burned on the hills above. Some small veins of lead-ore have been discovered at various times in the hilly parts of the parish, but not of sufficient value or extent to justify the establishment of any works. The tramroad from Brecknock to Hay and Kington passes within little more than a mile of the village. The scenery is diversified, and in many parts beautifully picturesque; some of the vales and hills are richly clothed with wood, and the distant views are strikingly distinguished by features of grandeur and magnificence.

Llanthomas, an ancient mansion in the parish, was occupied during the time of Henry VIII., by Walter Devereux, Earl Ferrers, Lord Chief Justice of South Wales, and in the following reign by William Thomas, one of the clerks of the council, and the principal instructor of the young King Edward VI., and who, in the time of Mary, was arraigned and executed for treason. It has been modernised with great taste, and now forms a handsome object in the scenery of the village, close to which it is situated. Upon a high bank to the south-east of the church is Penyrwrlodd, now a farmhouse, originally built in 1651, by William Watkins, an active officer in the army of the parliament during the reign of Charles I., and one of the principal agents of the propagators of the Gospel in South Wales. In this mansion, where he resided till his death, he left a great number of coats of mail and other armour, which were preserved here till the middle of the last century. From the grounds, and more especially from the well-wooded hill immediately above the house, is obtained one of the most magnificent views in South Wales, being remarkable for its grandeur, richness, and variety. This splendid prospect combines features of the most interesting and romantic character: hills of varied elevation and of diversified aspect recede in long succession towards the town of Brecknock, beyond which towers the majestic chain of the Beacons; and on the declivity of a barren hill, at the distance of seven or eight miles, the white-washed village of Llanvillo forms a conspicuous object. On the west and north-west are seen Maesllwch Castle, with the beautiful grounds by which it is surrounded; the numerous villas that enrich the scenery about Glâsbury; and the graceful windings of the river Wye, which, after a devious course through a tract of highly picturesque country, is at length lost among the majestic woods of Llangoed.

The living is a discharged vicarage, rated in the king's books at £7. 12. 8½., and in the patronage of the Lord Chancellor; present net income, £202: it is endowed with one-half of the tithes, and the other half belongs to Viscount Hereford, and J. Spencer, Esq. The church is a spacious and lofty edifice, but not distinguished by any architectural details of importance, and is situated on a gentle eminence, sheltered on one side by the hill above Penyrwrlodd, and on the other by an abrupt eminence called Wènallt: the belfry, containing three bells, is a kind of loft over the porch. In the hamlet of Glynvâch is a chapel, called Capel-y-Vîn, or "the chapel of the boundary." There is a place of worship for Calvinistic Methodists. Lewis Watkins, in 1712, gave an estate named Cae'r Bwla, consisting of about thirteen acres of arable, meadow, and copse, now producing from £10 to £12 per annum, for the endowment of a free school: the income is paid to the master of a Church school established in 1838. A Sunday school is also held, on Church principles; and the parish shares in the Boughrood charity in St. David's, Brecon, for apprenticing poor children, under the bequest of Rice Powell.

Of the antiquities with which it is said the parish formerly abounded, there are but very few remains. On the hills are some circular intrenchments; and near the spot where the counties of Brecknock, Hereford, and Monmouth unite, is a large barrow, called Twyn-y-Beddau, or the "mound of the graves," 270 feet in circumference, and 12 feet high, which is supposed to have been raised to commemorate some battle fought here, and also as a place of interment for the warriors who fell in the conflict. In the hamlet of Cîlonw, a little south-west of the village, are the ruins of an old chapel, thought to have been dedicated to Celin, an eminent British saint who flourished in the sixth century, from which circumstance the hamlet derived its name.

Llanilar (Llan-Ilar)

LLANILAR (LLAN-ILAR), a parish, consisting of the Upper and Lower divisions, in the union of Aberystwith, Upper division of the hundred of Ilar, county of Cardigan, South Wales, 6 miles (S. S. E.) from Aberystwith; containing 1010 inhabitants, of whom 514 are in the Upper, and 496 in the Lower, division. This parish, which derives its name from the dedication of its church, is situated on the southern bank of the river Ystwith, and near the high road from Aberystwith to Cardigan. Part of it is hilly, but some of the land is flat and liable to be flooded; the soil is in general shallow and dry, but produces good crops of corn, hay, &c. The scenery is in some parts pleasingly varied, and here are the seats of Birch Grove and Castle Hill. Fairs are held on March 14th, May 13th, July 8th, and November 14th. The living is a discharged vicarage, rated in the king's books at £6. 13. 4.: patron, the Bishop of St. David's; impropriator, J. P. B. Chichester, Esq. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £313. 16., and the vicarial for one of £136. 4.: the vicar's glebe comprises four acres, valued at £8 per annum; and there is a glebe-house. The church, dedicated to St. Hilary, and pleasantly situated on the bank of the river, is a low ancient structure in good repair, with a square massive tower at the west end; the body consists of a nave and chancel, formerly separated by an old carved screen of elegant design, which has been removed. There is a place of worship for Calvinistic Methodists. Richard Jones, of St. Clement Danes, London, in 1792 bequeathed £300 Bank annuities, the dividends on which he directed to be paid to a proper person, being a member of the Established Church, for teaching six boys and six girls of the parish English, writing, and arithmetic: the interest, amounting to £9 per annum, is accordingly paid to the master of a Church school here. Of two Sunday schools, one is in connexion with the Church, and the other with the Calvinistic body. Mr. Jones also left the interest of £100 to be given yearly to the poor; and the Rev. Mr. Edwards gave £40, the interest to be distributed among poor tradesmen. The vicar of Marston-upon-Dove, in the county of Derby, in 1761 bequeathed £30; and Jenkin Williams in 1732, and Morgan Parry in 1762, gave £10 each; but these three charities have been lost.

Llanilid (Llan-Ilid)

LLANILID (LLAN-ILID), a parish, in the union of Bridgend and Cowbridge, hundred of Cowbridge, county of Glamorgan, South Wales, 5 miles (N. by W.) from Cowbridge; containing 150 inhabitants. The name of this place is derived from the dedication of its church to St. Ilid, who is boldly conjectured to have been a converted Israelite, and to have accompanied Brân ab Llŷr, the deposed Prince of Siluria, from Rome, about the year 70, for the purpose of introducing the Christian faith into Britain. The parish is situated under the lofty ridge that extends from east to west through the county, and on the east bank of the river Ewenny, which has its source in the vicinity, and joins the Ogmore near its influx into the Bristol Channel. It is bounded on the north by the chapelry of Peterstone-superMontem, on the south by the parishes of Llansannor and St. Mary Hill, on the east by those of Llanharan and Llanhary, and on the west by Coychurch parish; comprising about 1700 or 1800 acres, of which about 300 are arable, 900 pasture, 100 woodland, and the remainder furze and waste. The surface is undulated, and the higher grounds command some fine views over the adjacent country and the Channel. The soil comprehends gravel, clay, peat, and bog; the land is generally inclosed, and by far the greater part is in a state of good cultivation. Coal and limestone are found, and the latter is worked, and used to a small extent for agricultural purposes. The parish comprehends the manors of St. John of Jerusalem, Rhythin, and part of Tàlyvan.

The living is a discharged rectory, with the living of Llanharan consolidated, rated in the king's books at £7. 15. 7½., and in the patronage of the Lord Chancellor; present net income, £253, with a glebehouse. The church is an ancient edifice, forty feet long and fifteen wide, and contains upwards of seventy sittings, all free. A Sunday school is also held in it. Charles Price, about the year 1704, bequeathed £50; and William Thomas, in 1737, £10; the interest of which sums is annually distributed among the poor not receiving parochial relief. At the distance of about thirty yards north of the church are the remains of an encampment, the form of which resembles that of an inverted basin, and which contains a large open space in the interior. A house called Trê Brân, "the house of Brân," is said to have been the residence of Brân, the father of Caractacus; who, upon his return from Rome, where he had been kept as a hostage for his son, brought with him the Jewish proselyte to whom the foundation of the church is ascribed.

Llanilterne, or Chapel-Ilterne (Llan-Illteyrn)

LLANILTERNE, or CHAPEL-ILTERNE (LLAN-ILLTEYRN), a parochial chapelry, in the union of Cardiff, hundred of Dinas-Powys, county of Glamorgan, South Wales, 6 miles (W. N. W.) from Cardiff, on the road to Llantrissent; containing 136 inhabitants. It is stated to have been separated from the parish of St. Fagan's about the reign of Queen Elizabeth; but the inhabitants still contribute one-third to the repairs of the church and bridge of that place. The living is consolidated with the rectory of St. Fagan's: the chapel, dedicated to St. Illtyd, is a very small building, with a curious inscription, not wholly legible, at the south-western angle of the exterior wall, said to be in memory of the wife of the renowned King Arthur. There is a place of worship for Independents, in which a Sunday school is also held. At Llanvairvawr, an ancient farmhouse destroyed some time ago by fire, are the ruins of a religious house, founded about the year 508, by St. Illtyd, as "a place for education in human learning, as well as religion:" the chapel is entire, and has been converted into a barn.

Llanina (Llan-Ina)

LLANINA (LLAN-INA), a parish, in the union of Aberaëron, hundred of Moythen, county of Cardigan, South Wales, 15 miles (N. W. by W.) from Lampeter; containing 447 inhabitants. This parish is situated on the shore of Cardigan bay, by which it is bounded on the north; and is intersected by a small river, which, formed by the union of two streams on the south, pursues a northern course, and falls into the bay of Cardigan. The lands are mostly inclosed, and in a tolerable state of cultivation: the scenery is pleasingly varied, in some parts enriched with thriving timber; and the views, extending over the open bay, are not destitute of interest. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the vicarage of Llanarth; the tithes have been commuted for £61. 13. 4. payable to the Bishop of St. David's, £30. 16. 8. to the vicar of Llanarth, and £22. 10. to the rector of Llanllwchairn. The church, a neat edifice erected not many years ago near the shore of the bay, at the extremity of a well-wooded dingle, is dedicated to St. Ina, King of the West Saxons, who, devoting his life to religious pursuits, resigned the government of his kingdom to his kinsman Ethelred, and went on a pilgrimage to Rome: having passed the remainder of his life in retirement, he was canonized after his death. There is a place of worship for Independents; and two Sunday schools are held, one of which is in connexion with the Established Church, and the other supported by the Independent body of dissenters.

Llanio

LLANIO, a township, in the parish of Llandewy-Brevi, union of Trêgaron, Lower division of the hundred of Penarth, county of Cardigan, South Wales, 8 miles (N. E.) from Lampeter: containing 131 inhabitants. It is traversed by the high road between Trêgaron and Lampeter, which passes along the Vale of Teivy; and has produced so many remains of Roman antiquity, as to leave no doubt of its having contained a station of that people. The site of the Roman Loventium is placed here by antiquaries, between the right bank of the Teivy and the road, at a place called Cae'r Castell, where numerous vestiges of foundations are still discernible, and whence the Roman Via Occidentalis, or, as it has subsequently been termed, Sarn Helen, branched off in a northern and a south-western direction. Three inscribed stones are (or until lately were) still preserved, two of them built in the walls of two cottages, and the third used as a seat in the porch of one of them. One of the two stones, placed over the chimney, is inscribed OVERIONI; on the other, inserted in the wall, near the door, of the second cottage, can be decyphered letters and words that have been interpreted to be Caii Artii manibus (or memoriæ) Ennius Primus. Upon the third stone can be traced letters which have been considered to mean, in full, Cohors Secundæ Augustæ Fecit Quinque Passus; affording evidence, it is said, that a cohort of the second Augustan legion built a portion of the station walls. Other vestiges of the same people have been discovered in the neighbourhood at various times, such as coins, domestic utensils, bricks, &c., and on one occasion a large piece of unwrought lead. The tithes of the township have been commuted for a rent-charge of £68.

Llanishen (Llan-Isan)

LLANISHEN (LLAN-ISAN), a parish, in the union of Cardiff, hundred of Kibbor, county of Glamorgan, South Wales, on the road from Cardiff to Caerphilly, 3½ miles (N.) from Cardiff; containing 418 inhabitants. Llanishen House, now fallen to decay, was, for more than two centuries, the seat of the family of Lewis; it previously belonged to the Vaughans, the heiress of which family was married to a younger son of the Lewises of the Vann. New House is a handsome modern seat, pleasantly situated at the southern foot of a lofty ridge of hills running in a direction from east to west in this part of the county. The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with £200 private benefaction, and £800 royal bounty; net income, £46; patrons, alternately, C. K. Kemeys Tynte, Esq., and the representative of the last Earl of Plymouth, the impropriators. The church, dedicated to St. Isan, is a neat structure, in the pointed style of architecture. There is a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. Two day schools in connexion with the Church are held, as also is a Church Sunday school. In 1728, Mary Lewis conveyed by deed a moiety of the great tithes of the parish of Lisvane, in trust to certain parties, to the intent that they should out of the rents and profits employ masters here and at Lisvane, at a salary of £5 each, to teach the poor children in both places, and that the remainder should be employed in apprenticing them. These tithes, at present let for £70 per annum, are also subject to a payment of £10 to the perpetual curate. Edward Morgan, by will in 1669, assigned a rent-charge of £2. 12., to be distributed in bread among the poor; and Thomas Lewis, Esq., in 1775, gave one of £4 to the paupers in four almshouses, let by him to the parish; but this endowment has not been paid of late years; and a rent-charge of 13s. 4d., bequeathed by Matthew Pritchard, in 1623, for the benefit of the poor, is said to have been lost by the river Tâf encroaching on the property. According to Leland, Richard William, otherwise Cromwell, afterwards Earl of Essex, who was beheaded by order of Henry VIII., was born at the mansion of New House; but the circumstance is doubtful. The water of a spring called St. Dene's Well is considered efficacious in the cure of scorbutic complaints.

Llankîlken

LLANKÎLKEN, a hamlet, in the parish of Kîlken, union of Holywell, Northop division of the hundred of Coleshill, county of Flint, North Wales, 4½ miles (W. by N.) from Mold; containing 390 inhabitants. This hamlet, in which the parish church stands, is situated in a valley surrounded by lofty hills, and one of these, the stupendous Moel Vammau, separates it on the west and south from the Vale of Clwyd, which can only be approached from this place by the elevated passes in the mountains.

Llanllawddog (Llan-Llaw-Ddog)

LLANLLAWDDOG (LLAN-LLAW-DDOG), a parish, in the Lower division of the hundred of Eelvet, union and county of Carmarthen, South Wales, 8 miles (N. E. by N.) from Carmarthen; containing 779 inhabitants. This parish derives its name from the dedication of its church to Llawddog, an eminent British saint, who flourished in the early part of the sixth century. It is situated nearly in the centre of the county, upon the turnpikeroad from Carmarthen to Lampeter; and comprises 7013 acres of land, of which a considerable portion is open and uncultivated. The surrounding country, though not distinguished by any striking peculiarity of feature, is agreeably diversified with hill and vale, and in some of the vales are interesting combinations of rural beauty. At a short distance from the church is the seat, lately rebuilt, of John Lloyd Price, Esq., high sheriff of the county in 1840, whose estate, on which he annually employs a considerable number of the poor, who would otherwise become burthensome to the parish, is principally situate here. The living is a perpetual curacy, with that of Llanpympsaint annexed, the former endowed with £800, and the latter with £1000, royal bounty; net income, £150; patron, the Vicar of Aberguilly; appropriators, the Dean and Canons of Windsor, whose tithes in Llanllawddog have been commuted for a rent-charge of £200. The church, which is not remarkable for any architectural details, was formerly dependent upon that of Aberguilly, but was separated from it by an act of parliament. There are one or two places of worship for dissenters, and two Sunday schools, one of which is in connexion with the Established Church, and the other with the Calvinistic Methodists. John David bequeathed a rent-charge of £1, which, with another of 5s., continued to be paid out of two farms in the parish until 1832, when they were discontinued; and there are some smaller charitable donations, producing about 15s. per annum, for distribution among the poor.

Llanllawer (Llan-Llawen)

LLANLLAWER (LLAN-LLAWEN), a parish, in the union of Haverfordwest, hundred of Kemmes, county of Pembroke, South Wales, 3 miles (E. S. E.) from Fishguard; containing 114 inhabitants. This parish is pleasantly situated in the northern part of the county, and on the river Gwayn, which falls into Fishguard bay. It comprises 1163 acres, of which nearly one-third is mountainous, the remainder being inclosed and cultivated. The scenery is finely varied, combining features of picturesque beauty with mountains of rugged aspect; and the distant views extend over a remarkably interesting tract of country. Court House, in the parish, is a good family mansion, occupying an agreeable situation. The living is a rectory not in charge, annexed to the living of Llanerchllwydog: the church is not remarkable for any architectural details. On the side of Llanllawer mountain, which terminates in a rocky point, and is hence called the Maiden's Breast, numerous Druidical relics and ancient carneddau are profusely scattered, supposed to have been places of sepulture; and adjoining is a mineral well, formerly in high repute for its efficacy in the cure of ague and other diseases, but now neglected.

Llanllêchid (Llan-Llêchid)

LLANLLÊCHID (LLAN-LLÊCHID), a parish, comprising the Upper and Lower divisions, in the union of Bangor and Beaumaris, hundred of Llêchwedd Uchâv, county of Carnarvon, North Wales, 4 miles (S. E.) from Bangor; containing 4957 inhabitants. This parish derived its name from the dedication of its church to Llechid, an eminent female saint, who flourished in the beginning of the sixth century. It extends nearly thirteen miles in length, and three miles in breadth, and comprises a tract of about 18,000 acres, of which comparatively but a small portion is inclosed and cultivated. The surface is boldly undulated, and the houses of the inhabitants, scattered widely over the parish, have, from the diversity of their situations, a pleasing effect in its scenery, some of which is of a finely mountainous character, the parish comprising within its limits the lofty mountains of Carnedd Llewelyn and Carnedd Davydd; the former with an elevation of 3469, and the latter of 3427 feet above the level of the sea. On these mountains, which form prominent features in the surrounding scenery, are some heaps of loose stones, supposed to be the remains of ancient watch-places. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, a giant named Rhita was buried on the summit of Carnedd Llewelyn. Near the base of this mountain is Fynnon Llugwy, a fine lake covering a surface of many acres, the source of the river Llugwy, which, after traversing part of this parish, falls into the Conway river near Bettws.

The village of Llanllêchid is pleasantly situated in an open plain, in the north-western part of the parish; but the greater portion of the inhabitants reside in the hamlet of Pant-y-Vridlas, and the villages of Bethesda and Achub, and find profitable employment in the adjacent slate-quarries of Penrhyn. Several attempts have been made to procure slates in the parish, and some quarries have been opened, but the undertaking has not been carried on to any profitable extent; the quarries are wrought only on a very limited scale, and afford but little employment in comparison with the Penrhyn works. The road from Shrewsbury to Holyhead runs for twelve miles through the parish, and that from Chester to the same place for about three miles, affording excellent facilities of communication with the neighbouring districts. A fair is held on October 29th, in Llanllêchid village: at Tàlybont, a small village, others take place on May 7th and August 11th; and of late years, three have been held at Bethesda on the third Saturday in the months of April, July, and October, respectively.

The living is a rectory, rated in the king's books at £15. 13. 4.; patron, the Bishop of Bangor: the tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £465, and there is a glebe of 16a. 1r. 12p., with a glebe-house. The late church was a long, low, ancient edifice, consisting of a nave and chancel, with a small chapel or oratory on the south side. The present church, consecrated in the autumn of the year 1846, and standing on a new site, close to the old churchyard, is in the Anglo-Norman style, and comprises a nave and chancel, with a transition east window filled with painted glass of good design, the gift of a member of the Pennant family. The style is well sustained throughout; the communion-table and altar rails are of solid oak, beautifully carved, and under the chancel steps is an eagle lectern: the pulpit is of stone, the slate of the neighbourhood, inlaid with designs expressive of the panoply of the Christian. Accommodation is afforded for 500 persons, and all the sittings are free. This building, whose severe exterior is suited to the mountainous character of the scenery in which it is placed, is situated at about an equal distance from the Chester and Shrewsbury roads, on elevated ground. It cost about £2500, and was erected by grants from the church-building societies, and by subscriptions from the gentry of the district; the Very Rev. J. H. Cotton, Dean of Bangor (who holds the living), Colonel Pennant, and Sir Edward Tierney of Dublin, being liberal contributors. There are places of worship in the parish for Calvinistic Methodists, Independents, Wesleyan Methodists, and Baptists.

A parochial school was founded in 1719, by the Rev. Dr. John Jones, Dean of Bangor, who endowed it with £100, for teaching twelve poor children to read the Welsh language. A National school was established in 1828, for which a house was built by subscription, at a cost of £156, aided by a grant of £30 from the parent society in London; and this school, in which 130 children of both sexes receive instruction, is supported partly by subscription, partly by weekly payments of a penny from each child, and partly by the endowment given to the parochial school by Dean Jones. A large number of males and females are taught gratuitously in thirteen Sunday schools, one held in the church, and the others in the meeting-houses. Dr. Griffith Williams, Bishop of Ossory, in 1672, left an estate in the parish, called Plâs Hwva, containing 10½ acres, with a farmhouse and four cottages, directing its produce to be distributed at the discretion of the rector: the farm yields a rental of £13, annually given in money and coal to the poor. William Griffith bequeathed a rent-charge of £2. 16., in the 16th of Charles I.; Robert and Catherine George, a sum of £50; Dr. Lloyd, Dean of Bangor, £20; and Jane Thomas and Pierce Williams, £5 each: the whole of these sums, with £32 saved from vacancies in the school, were expended in erecting six cottages at Gate House, paying a rent of £6. 2. 6., which, with 5s. annually from a gift by Margaret Owen, is expended in bread and money among the poor of the parish. Two charities are lost; one of £60, by Mrs. Fletcher, and one of £5, by Maurice Pritchard. Dr. Williams, Bishop of Ossory, was a native of this place; and Dr. John Williams, Keeper of the Privy Seal, and Archbishop of York, in the reign of Charles I., resided at Côchwillan, in the parish.

Llanlleonvel (Llan-Lleon-Foel)

LLANLLEONVEL (LLAN-LLEON-FOEL), a parish, in the union and hundred of Builth, county of Brecknock, South Wales, 7 miles (W. by S.) from Builth; containing, with the whole of the hamlet of Gwravog, part only of which is in the parish, 261 inhabitants. This place, the name of which signifies the "church of Lleon the Bald," is situated in a hilly district in the northwestern portion of the county, and on the rivers Irvon and Dulas, over which are three bridges within the parish, kept in repair at the expense of the hundred. It is intersected by the road from Llanvihangel-Abergwessin to Builth; and bounded on the north by the parish of Llanavan-Vawr, on the south by that of Llangammarch, on the east by that of Llanavan-Vechan, and on the west by the parishes of Llanvihangel-Abergwessin and Llanwrtyd. It comprises, according to computation, 2697 acres, of which 674 are arable, 1700 pasture and common, and 323 woodland. The scenery is uninteresting, except near Garth House, which has a very romantic appearance, being surrounded with oak and fir woods. Some of the higher grounds command extensive views, but in most parts the prospect is intercepted by the mountainous elevations encircling nearly all this part of the county. The soil, though not rich, is in general well cultivated, and produces good oats and barley; the hills afford fine pasturage for sheep.

The manor that includes the parish is co-extensive with the hundred, and is distinguished for the prevalence of several peculiar customs, the origin of which is very obscure, and for certain singular payments. Of the latter the principal are the "Tâldiestyn," the "Comortha," the "Vuwch Larder," the "Porthant Herwyr," the "Maccwyn," and the "Mabryddiaeth," the two last of which are altogether inexplicable. From these payments certain inhabitants of the hundred are exempt. There are no copyhold tenures in the manor, and the chief-rents are collected for the lord by the officers of the parish. A presentment by a jury in 1646, of which Rees Gwyn, Esq., father of Marmaduke Gwyn, the Judge, was foreman, states the custom of the lordship to be, that no man's son dwelling within the lordship ought to be summoned to do fealty within the said court during the life of his father, if his father be seized of lands within the lordship. The woollen manufacture is carried on upon a limited scale, affording employment to a small number of persons. Baronial courts continue to be held at an inn in the village, called Maes-Cevn-y-Fordd.

The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with £800 royal bounty; net income, £60; patron, the Bishop of St. David's: there is neither parsonagehouse nor any glebe land attached to the benefice. The church, the dedication of which is unknown, is a small edifice, pleasantly situated on a gentle eminence on the north-western bank of the river Dulas, about a mile north of the high road from Builth to Llandovery; it is sixty feet in length and twentyfour in breadth, and contains sixteen pews, the whole of the sittings in which are free. There are places of worship for Baptists and Independents, and some Sunday schools. A branch of the Sarn Lleon passed through the parish, connecting Maridunum, at Carmarthen, with the Roman station at Cwm, in Radnorshire, and uniting at the latter place with the great Roman road that led from Nidus, at Neath, to Deva, now Chester. On an eminence opposite to the church is the old mansion of Garth, noticed above, formerly the residence of the family of Gwyn, or Gwynne. In a field below the church, and at no great distance from the Dulas, is a mineral spring, resembling in taste and smell the water at Llanwrtyd, but not so strongly impregnated with sulphur.

Llanllibio (Llan-Llibio)

LLANLLIBIO (LLAN-LLIBIO), a parish, in the hundred of Llyvon, union and county of Anglesey, North Wales, 1½ mile (E.) from Bôdedern; containing 87 inhabitants. This place takes its name from the patron saint to whom its church was dedicated. It is situated near the old line of road from Bangor to Holyhead, and consists of a few farms, the produce of which, owing to the poor argillaceous quality of the soil, is chiefly oats, with a very small portion of wheat and barley: the entire parish is the property of Sir Richard Williams Bulkeley, Bart. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the rectory of Llantrisaint. The church, which had been dilapidated for upwards of forty years, and suffered to fall into decay, at length entirely disappeared; and the churchyard has been ploughed up: the present incumbent has, notwithstanding, marked out the ancient boundaries of the churchyard, and rebuilt the walls, and has it in contemplation to erect a church. The inhabitants at present attend divine service at Llantrisaint, where all ecclesiastical rites are performed.

Llanlligan, or Llanllugan (Llan-Llugan)

LLANLLIGAN, or LLANLLUGAN (LLAN-LLUGAN), a parish, in the union of Newtown and Llanidloes, Lower division of the hundred of Newtown, county of Montgomery, North Wales, 4 miles (S. W.) from Llanvair; containing 413 inhabitants. It is distinguished as the site of an ancient Cistercian nunnery, which, according to Tanner, was founded prior to the year 1239, when the tithes of the parish of LlanvairCaereinion were given by Bishop Hugh to the "nuns of Llanllugan in Powys," to whom also the tithes of Llanllwchaiarn and Bettws were appropriated by Anian, Bishop of St. Asaph, in the year 1265. This establishment, of which the founder is not known, at the Dissolution had a revenue estimated at £22. 13. 8.: the site was granted, in the 37th of Henry VIII., to Sir Arthur D'Arcy, Knt. The only remains of the nunnery are some fragments of painted glass in the chancel window of the church. The parish, situated nearly in the centre of the county, is intersected by the small river Rhiw, which has its rise in the immediate vicinity, and, after passing by the village, pursues its course in an eastern direction, and falls into the Severn at Berriew. It is about three miles in length, and a mile and a half in breadth, and a very large portion of it is uninclosed and uncultivated. The scenery is diversified, in some parts highly picturesque; and the views over the adjacent country embrace many interesting features. A road from Welshpool and Llanvair passes through the parish by Cevn Côch to meet the road from Newtown to Machynlleth, at Talerddig, in the parish of Llanbrynmair. The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with £1000 royal bounty, and in the patronage of the Lord of the Manor, and other impropriators, who are owners of land; net income, £49. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, and situated on the bank of the river Rhiw, is an ancient structure in the early English style. There is a place of worship for Calvinistic Methodists, in which a Sunday school is also held. About a mile south-west of Cevn Côch, and to the right of the road from Newtown and Machynlleth, are the remains of a Druidical circle.