HIstory & context
Abernant is in the Upper Wye, almost half way between Hay on Wye and Builth Wells, on the left bank of the river. It is a delightful 'haugh' - a "piece of flat alluvial land by the side of a river, forming part of the floor of the river valley" with pasture falling gently to the water, and surrounded by ancient woodland.
It sits just below where the River Edw joins the Wye, and as A G Bradley described in his 1910 book, The Wye, it is an area of great beauty.
"It will be enough to say here, that the view down the Wye from the summit, or southern flanks of Aberedw Hill is amongst the finest on the river. For at the far-away end of the deep trough through which it hurls its broad foaming waters, the fine masses of the Black Mountains, which later-on force the river to the eastward and to England, loom large against the sky, a noble background of shapely outline."
The book was illustrated by Sutton Palmer, of which the first plate is the one below of the Wye at AberEdw, by Abernant beat.
It is also an area of great national historical interest. It was at Aberedw that Llywelyn 'The Last' (Llywelyn ap Gruffydd), the last sovereign Prince of Wales (or in Welsh "Llwelyn Ein Llyw Olaf", "Llywelyn, Our Last Leader") was taken by King Edward the I of England, thus ending the rule of the Welsh Princes. The exact circumstances of his demise are unclear. It is noted that he was separated from his army at the battle of Orewin Bridge, at Builth Wells, perhaps by deceipt, pursued by a lone lancer and stuck down. Another account gives that he was ambushed and chased into a wood at Aberedw at dusk. Llywelyn was surrounded and struck down. As he lay dying, he asked for a priest and gave away his identity. He was then killed and his head hewn from his body. Another account gives that he hid in caves at Aberedw and escaped his pursuers by reversing the shoes on his horse only to be captured and killed near to the River Irfon. Whatever the case, it is agreed that he died on 11th December, 1282, aged 59, after 36 years' reign. His head was taken to London and impaled on a gate at the Tower of London where, it is claimed it remained for 15 years. His body was interred at the Cistercian abbey at Abbey Cwmhir, which lies 20 miles to the north of Abernant. Since his death, the heir apparent to the British throne has held the title of The Prince of Wales.
Abernant is set in rural Powys, which spans 2,000 square miles and is Wales’ largest county. It is also its most sparsely populated, with inhabitants spread out over its many small and beautiful towns & villages. The county motto is: Powys – the paradise of Wales (Welsh: Powys Paradwys Cymru).
More widely, Radnorshire was the area of the Picturesque, the great fashion of the 18th century which fed into the Romantic Period. The two main figures in Herefordshire and the Borders being Uvedale Price (from Foxley near Mansell Lacey) and the Knight family of Downton (near Ludlow). Picturesque, being the opposite of Capability Brown and his landscapes - a reflection of the rugged foothills of Wales, the Silurian system (the rock formations named by Sir Roderick Impey Murchison 1792-1871, the most politically powerful geologist of the 19th century). Murchison visited Radnorshire, staying at nearby Harpton Court on whose estate there was a farm called Siluria. Siluria being the area of the iron age hill tribes of that name (Brecon area), and after which the rock formation was named by Murchison.
Keep an eye on the Wye River Voices who are compiling an oral history of the River Wye.
Directions:
BY CAR, BICYCLE or ON FOOT- Aim for AberEdw
BY TRAIN - Take the train to Builth Road and walk / taxi, or to Abergavenny and then take the X31 bus to Builth Wells, via Talgarth, and hop off near Erwood, walk the 2 miles to Abernant, or the train to Hereford, and take the X15 to Builth, or the train to Cardiff and take the T4 to Llandrindod . There are also buses from Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil
BY PLANE - Fly to Shobdon and taxi to AberEdw
BY BUS - From Abergavenny or Crickhowell, the X31 bus to Builth Wells, via Talgarth, and hop off near Erwood, walk the 2 miles to Abernant, or from Hereford take the X15 to Builth, or from Cardiff the T4 to Llandrindod. There are also buses from Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil.
It sits just below where the River Edw joins the Wye, and as A G Bradley described in his 1910 book, The Wye, it is an area of great beauty.
"It will be enough to say here, that the view down the Wye from the summit, or southern flanks of Aberedw Hill is amongst the finest on the river. For at the far-away end of the deep trough through which it hurls its broad foaming waters, the fine masses of the Black Mountains, which later-on force the river to the eastward and to England, loom large against the sky, a noble background of shapely outline."
The book was illustrated by Sutton Palmer, of which the first plate is the one below of the Wye at AberEdw, by Abernant beat.
It is also an area of great national historical interest. It was at Aberedw that Llywelyn 'The Last' (Llywelyn ap Gruffydd), the last sovereign Prince of Wales (or in Welsh "Llwelyn Ein Llyw Olaf", "Llywelyn, Our Last Leader") was taken by King Edward the I of England, thus ending the rule of the Welsh Princes. The exact circumstances of his demise are unclear. It is noted that he was separated from his army at the battle of Orewin Bridge, at Builth Wells, perhaps by deceipt, pursued by a lone lancer and stuck down. Another account gives that he was ambushed and chased into a wood at Aberedw at dusk. Llywelyn was surrounded and struck down. As he lay dying, he asked for a priest and gave away his identity. He was then killed and his head hewn from his body. Another account gives that he hid in caves at Aberedw and escaped his pursuers by reversing the shoes on his horse only to be captured and killed near to the River Irfon. Whatever the case, it is agreed that he died on 11th December, 1282, aged 59, after 36 years' reign. His head was taken to London and impaled on a gate at the Tower of London where, it is claimed it remained for 15 years. His body was interred at the Cistercian abbey at Abbey Cwmhir, which lies 20 miles to the north of Abernant. Since his death, the heir apparent to the British throne has held the title of The Prince of Wales.
Abernant is set in rural Powys, which spans 2,000 square miles and is Wales’ largest county. It is also its most sparsely populated, with inhabitants spread out over its many small and beautiful towns & villages. The county motto is: Powys – the paradise of Wales (Welsh: Powys Paradwys Cymru).
More widely, Radnorshire was the area of the Picturesque, the great fashion of the 18th century which fed into the Romantic Period. The two main figures in Herefordshire and the Borders being Uvedale Price (from Foxley near Mansell Lacey) and the Knight family of Downton (near Ludlow). Picturesque, being the opposite of Capability Brown and his landscapes - a reflection of the rugged foothills of Wales, the Silurian system (the rock formations named by Sir Roderick Impey Murchison 1792-1871, the most politically powerful geologist of the 19th century). Murchison visited Radnorshire, staying at nearby Harpton Court on whose estate there was a farm called Siluria. Siluria being the area of the iron age hill tribes of that name (Brecon area), and after which the rock formation was named by Murchison.
Keep an eye on the Wye River Voices who are compiling an oral history of the River Wye.
Directions:
BY CAR, BICYCLE or ON FOOT- Aim for AberEdw
BY TRAIN - Take the train to Builth Road and walk / taxi, or to Abergavenny and then take the X31 bus to Builth Wells, via Talgarth, and hop off near Erwood, walk the 2 miles to Abernant, or the train to Hereford, and take the X15 to Builth, or the train to Cardiff and take the T4 to Llandrindod . There are also buses from Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil
BY PLANE - Fly to Shobdon and taxi to AberEdw
BY BUS - From Abergavenny or Crickhowell, the X31 bus to Builth Wells, via Talgarth, and hop off near Erwood, walk the 2 miles to Abernant, or from Hereford take the X15 to Builth, or from Cardiff the T4 to Llandrindod. There are also buses from Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil.
