Brecon (brĕk'ən) or Brecknock (brĕk'nŏk, -nək), town (1981 pop. 7,422), Powys, S Wales, at the junction of the Honddu and Usk rivers. It is a market for the surrounding agricultural and cattle-raising area. Brecon was founded by the Normans c.1091. In the town are fragments of an 11th-century castle; Christ College, founded by Henry VIII in 1542; and the 11th-century priory church of St. John, which became a cathedral in 1923.
Brecon
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Coordinates: 51°56′48″N 3°23′27″W / 51.94677°N 3.39086°W
| Brecon | |
| Welsh: Aberhonddu | |
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  Brecon
 Brecon shown within Wales |
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| Population | 7,901 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| Principal area | Powys |
| Ceremonial county | Powys |
| Constituent country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BRECON |
| Postcode district | LD3 |
| Dialling code | 01874 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| European Parliament | Wales |
| UK Parliament | Brecon & Radnorshire |
| Welsh Assembly | Brecon & Radnorshire |
| List of places: UK • Wales • | |
Brecon (Welsh: Aberhonddu) is a long-established market town in southern Powys, mid Wales, with a population of roughly 8,000 with around 6,000 in the surrounding area. It was the county town of the historic county of Brecknockshire; although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of Powys, it remains an important local centre.
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Early history
In Roman Britain Y Gaer, Brecon (Cicucium) was established as a Roman cavalry base for the conquest of Roman Wales and Brecon was first established as a military base.
After the Dark Ages the original Welsh name of the kingdom in whose territory Brecon stands was (in modern orthography) "Brycheiniog", which later became anglicised to Brecknockshire or Breconshire, and probably derives from the personal name of the Irish Brychan, the eponymous founder of the kingdom. The English name of Brecon town may also be derived from Brychan.
The Welsh name, Aberhonddu, means "mouth of the Honddu". It is derived from the River Honddu, which meets the River Usk near the town centre, a short distance away from the River Tarrell which enters the Usk a few hundred metres upstream.
Before the building of the bridge over the Usk, Brecon was one of the few places where the river could be forded.
Coming of the Normans
The confluence of the Honddu and the River Usk made for a valuable defensive position for the Norman castle [1] which overlooks the town, built by Bernard de Neufmarche in the late 11th century.[2]
Priory and cathedral
Less than a mile from the castle stands Brecon Cathedral, a fairly modest building compared to many cathedrals. The role of Cathedral is a fairly recent one, and was bestowed upon the church in 1923 with the formation of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon from what was previously the Archdeaconry of Brecon - a part of the diocese of St David's.
Present day Brecon
Today Brecon is a thriving community, and is popular as a holiday destination, being on the northern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, affording among the best views of the Brecon Beacons themselves, a range of hills, including Pen-y-Fan, the highest point in southern Britain at 886m.
August sees an annual Brecon Jazz Festival. Concerts are held in both open air and indoor venues, including the town's market hall and the recently opened 400-seat Theatr Brycheiniog.
Brecon's Speakers Club Brecon Speakers Club opened in January 2008.
Military town
The east end of town also has two military establishments:
- Dering Lines, home to the Infantry Battle School (formerly Infantry Training Centre Wales),[3] where Infantry Officers and Other Ranks are trained, and
- The Barracks, home to 160th (Wales) Brigade.
Eight miles to the west of Brecon is Sennybridge Training Area, an important training facility for the British Army.[4]
Cattle market
The west end of Brecon has a small industrial area, and recent years have seen the cattle market moved from the centre of the town to this area, with markets held several times a week.
Education
Brecon has many primary schools, with a secondary school and further education college (Coleg Powys) on the northern edge of the town. Due to Brecon being a rural area, bus trips of over an hour are not uncommon for pupils making their way to school. The town is also home to Christ College, a private boarding and day school with a strong academic, sporting and musical tradition.
Transport
Brecon is located near where the east-west A40 (Monmouth-Carmarthen-Fishguard) meets the north-south A470 (Cardiff-Merthyr Tydfil-Llandudno). The nearest airport is Cardiff Airport.
Brecon and Monmouthshire Canal
The Brecon and Monmouthshire Canal runs for 32 miles between Brecon and Pontypool. It then continues to Newport. The canal was built between 1797 and 1812 to link Brecon with Newport and the Severn Estuary.
The canal basin in Brecon was re-developed in the 1990s and is now the site of Theatre Brycheiniog.
Former railways
The Neath and Brecon Railway reached Brecon in 1867, terminating at Free Street. By this point, Brecon already had two other railway stations:
- Watton - from 1 May 1863 when the Brecon and Merthyr Railway to Merthyr Tydfil was opened for traffic
- Mount Street - in September 1864, with Llanidloes by the Mid Wales Railway which linked to the Midland Railway at Talyllyn Junction. The three companies consolidated their stations at a newly rebuilt Free Street Joint Station from 1871.[5]
Through services from the Midlands ceased in 1930, while services to Neath ceased in October 1962.
Town twinning
Points of interest
- Brecon Beacons and National Park Visitor Centre (also known as the Brecon Beacons Mountain Centre)
- Brecon Cathedral, the seat of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon
- St. Mary's Church
- Brecon Jazz Festival
- Brecknock Museum
- South Wales Borderers Museum, Brecon
- Theatr Brycheiniog (Brecon Theatre)
Notable residents
- Andy Powell (rugby player) - Welsh Rugby Internationals Number Eight
- Roger Glover - Deep Purple
- Sarah Siddons - actress
- Thomas Coke - the first Methodist Bishop, who previously had served as Mayor of Brecon in 1772
- Medicine Head's Peter Hope-Evans was born in Brecon.
Culture
- Brecon hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1889.
Additional photographs
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Bibliography
- Davies, John; Jenkins, Nigel (2008). The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 9780708319536.
References
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
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Mentioned in
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