Barry
BARRY, a parish, in the union of Cardiff,
hundred of Dinas-Powys, county of Glamorgan,
South Wales, 10 miles (S. W.) from Cardiff; containing 104 inhabitants. This parish is situated on
the shore of the Bristol Channel, by which it is bounded
on the south; and comprises a small tract of country,
pleasingly diversified, and richly ornamented with
woods of luxuriant growth, and thriving coppices of
underwood. The views, extending over the Channel
and the adjacent country, are interesting and extensive. The soil of Barry, though resting upon a tenacious clay, is in general fertile, producing chiefly
wheat of good quality. The manor is in the possession of William, John, Edward, Henry, Charles, and
Frederick Romilly, Esqrs., the six sons of the late
Sir Samuel Romilly. The living, which has lately
been united to the rectory of Porthkerry, is a rectory
not in charge: the church is dedicated to St. Nicholas;
it is sixty feet long, and twenty-two broad, and contains about eighty sittings. The only memorial of
the ancient castle that stood here, is its gateway, which
still remains.
Barry Island
BARRY ISLAND, in the parish of Barry,
union of Cardiff, hundred of Dinas-Powys, county
of Glamorgan, South Wales, 9 miles (S. W. by S.)
from Cardiff: the population is returned with the
parish. This small islet, situated in a sandy bay of
the Bristol Channel, is separated from the main land
only by a narrow isthmus, which is dry at low water.
It is about one mile and a half in circumference, and
comprises about 300 acres of land, let as one farm,
but chiefly in a wild state of heath and warren,
abounding with rabbits, and producing only a scanty
herbage for a few sheep and cattle. Lead-ore and
calamine are stated to have been formerly obtained
among the limestone of which the island consists.
Barry is supposed to have derived its name from
St. Baruch, a disciple of Gisalch, who was interred
here in the year 700. In later times, it was in the
possession of the family of Barri, one of the most
distinguished members of which was Giraldus de
Barri, otherwise Cambrensis, who was born at Manorbeer, in the county of Pembroke, where the remains
of their castle may still be seen: some of the descendants of this family afterwards settled in Ireland, and
became ennobled. Leland describes it as bearing
"very good corne, grasse, and sum wood;" and
says, "Ther ys no dwelling in the isle, but ther is
in the midle of it a fair litle chapel of S. Barrok,
wher much pilgrimage was usid." Since his time a
house has been erected, for the farmer, which is fitted
up in summer for the reception of persons desirous of
enjoying in retirement the benefit of sea-bathing.
On the western side of the island, opposite to the
ruins of Barry Castle, are faint vestiges of a similar
structure, and of two ancient chapels, in one of
which the hermit St. Baruch was interred. Towards
the southern side, at a place called Nell's Point,
is a well, much resorted to on Holy-Thursday by
females, who, having washed their eyes with the
water, each drop a pin into it, the memorial of some
ancient custom, or offering to the presiding saint.
Giraldus Cambrensis, in his description of the island,
gives an account of a small cavity in a rock near the
entrance to it, from which, on applying the ear, proceeded a noise resembling that of blacksmiths at
work, the blowing of bellows, strokes of hammers,
grinding of tools, and roaring of furnaces. He is at
a loss to conjecture its cause, as the same sounds
were heard at low water as at the ebb and flow of the
tide, which might produce this effect by the influx
of the waters under the rocky cavities. Modern
writers, however, have not been able to discover any
cavity whence these subterraneous noises issue; and
the phenomenon, if it ever existed except in a fanciful imagination, exists no longer.
Battle
BATTLE, a parish, in the hundred of Merthyr-Cynog, union and county of Brecknock,
South Wales, 2¾ miles (N. W. by W.) from Brecknock; containing 176 inhabitants. This place, though
traditionally said to have derived its name from a
battle, in which the last of the Brechinian princes,
Bleddyn ab Maenyrch, was defeated and slain by
Bernard de Newmarch, is, with greater probability,
supposed to have been so called in honour of Battle
Abbey, in the county of Sussex, to which the monks
of Brecknock, who owned the whole or greater part
of the parish, were subject. Previously to the fourteenth century, it was a hamlet in the parish of St.
John the Evangelist, in Brecknock; and the inhabitants have still a chapel in St. John's church, to
which they resorted for divine service prior to the
erection of their own church, and in which they still
occasionally bury their dead. The village is situated
near the river Yscir, which falls into the Usk at
Aberyscir; and the neighbourhood, in which are
several neat villas and handsome seats, abounds with
beautiful and richly varied scenery.
Pennoyre, the seat of John Lloyd Vaughan Watkins, Esq., is a modern residence, surrounded by a
very extensive demesne, laid out with much taste:
the approach is by an avenue of great length. The
views from the house comprehend a wide expanse of
scenery. Through a small vista on the east appear
the village of Llanthew, and Peytyn Gwyn, the latter,
in the early part of his lifetime, the residence of the
celebrated Sir David Gam; in the distance are seen
the Black mountains, in the direction of Talgarth.
On the west is a fine view of the Vale of Usk and
the grounds above Penpont, beyond which is Abercamlais, skirted behind by the mountains of Llywel
and Devynock. The view towards the south is
richly magnificent; nearly opposite to the house is
the knoll of Venni-Vâch, luxuriantly clothed with
wood, and further south the precipitous and majestic
summits of the Beacons lift their aspiring heads.
The appearance of the Beacons, which from this spot
are seen to great advantage, is always interesting,
though varying according to the state of the atmosphere: in fine weather the whole outline may be
distinctly traced, in all the irregularity of its extent;
and in cloudy or rainy weather, the clouds, which
are continually hovering over, or breaking on, their
summits, assume an appearance indescribably beautiful.
The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with
£600 royal bounty and £200 parliamentary grant;
net income, £73; patrons and impropriators, the
Trustees of the late John Browne, Esq. The tithes
have been commuted for a rent-charge of £135. The
church, dedicated to St. Cynog, is supposed to
have been built by the prior and convent of St.
John's, Brecknock, at the commencement of the
fourteenth century, when Battle first became parochial. It is a small unadorned edifice, situated on an
eminence above the Yscir, commanding a fine view
of one reach of the Usk, with the wood of VenniVâch in front, and the beautiful plantations of Penpont and Abercamlais, fringing the slopes down to
the very margin of the river, in the western horizon.
The east window, for the repair of which the sum of
12d. was bequeathed in 1573, is in the later style of
English architecture: the sacramental cup, on which
the letters W. P. D. and the date 1576 are engraved,
is supposed to be the oldest in the county. Here is
a day school, supported by Mr. Watkins, from whom
the master receives a salary of £20, in addition to
about £8 from the scholars in fees.
In the neighbourhood are several objects the names
of which are supposed to allude to the battle before
mentioned: these are, Heol y Cymry, "the Welshman's lane;" Cwm gwŷr y gâd, "the wood of the
vale of battle;" &c. Near Fynon Pen Rhŷs, or
"the well of Rhŷs' head," the unfortunate Rhŷs ab
Tewdwr, who had just escaped from the battle of
Hîrwaun Wrgan after being defeated by Robert
Fitz-Hamon, is said to have lost his head. There is
a maen hîr, or long upright stone, situated to the
south of the church; and the remains of a Roman
encampment, where fragments of military weapons
and several coins have been found, are discernible.
Bauseley
BAUSELEY, a township, in that part of the
parish of Alberbury which is in the lower division
of the hundred of Deythur, in the union of Atcham,
county of Montgomery, North Wales, 8 miles
(N. E. by E.) from Welshpool; containing 371 inhabitants. This township is situated on the border
of Shropshire. It separately maintains its own poor;
and the impropriate tithes, belonging to All Souls'
College, Oxford, have been commuted for a rentcharge of £126. Two benefactions of £10 each, by
William Barrett and John Asterley, were left to the
poor, among whom the interest is still distributed.
Bayden
BAYDEN, a chapelry, in the parish of Llangonoyd, union of Bridgend and Cowbridge,
hundred of Newcastle, county of Glamorgan,
South Wales, 4½ miles (N. W. by N.) from Bridgend; containing 337 inhabitants. This chapelry,
also called Lower Llangonoyd, contains some wellwooded inclosures on the southern declivity of an
extensive common. The chapel, which is supposed
to have been a private one, is now in ruins. There
is a small bequest for such poor persons as do not
receive parochial relief. Bayden separately maintains its own poor.—See Llangonoyd.
Bayvill
BAYVILL, a parish, in the union of Cardigan,
hundred of Kemmes, county of Pembroke, South
Wales, 3 miles (E. N. E.) from Newport; containing
130 inhabitants. This small parish is situated in the
northern part of the county, within a short distance
of the coast, and is intersected by a stream, which
rises to the north of the church, and falls into the
river Nevern near its influx into the sea at Newport
bay. The living is a discharged vicarage, rated in
the king's books at £5, and endowed with £800
royal bounty, with the perpetual curacy of Moylgrove
consolidated; net income, £224; patron, the Lord
Chancellor. The impropriate tithes of Bayvill have
been commuted for a rent-charge of £110, and the
vicarial tithes for one of £15: the impropriate glebe
comprises 12 acres, valued at £6 per annum. The
church is dedicated to St. Andrew. There is a place
of worship for Independents, with a Sunday school
held in it.
ARMS.
Beaumaris
BEAUMARIS, a
sea-port, borough, market-town, and chapelry,
having exclusive jurisdiction, and jointly with Bangor the head of a union,
in the parish of Llandegvan, locally in the hundred
of Tyndaethwy, county
of Anglesey, in North
Wales, 8 miles (N. N. E.)
from Bangor, and 247 (N.
W. by W.) from London; containing 2308 inhabitants. This place, which is the county town of
Anglesey, was anciently called Porth Wgyr: it
derives its present name from its situation in a fine
open flat, formerly marshy, but now a fertile plain,
on the western shore of the Menai strait, near its
junction with the Irish Sea, where it expands into
a good roadstead, called Beaumaris bay. For some
centuries prior to the erection of the present town,
which owes its origin and progress to the castle built
here by Edward I., Beaumaris had attained a considerable degree of importance, and was distinguished
as one of the three principal ports of the Isle of
Britain. In 818, a sanguinary engagement took
place in the immediate neighbourhood, between the
Welsh and the West Saxons, the latter led by their
king, Egbert, who, having subdued the country as far
as Snowdon, took possession of the Isle of Mona,
which was henceforward called by the English
Angles-ey, or Anglesey, signifying "the Englishmen's Isle." But the Welsh sovereign, Mervyn
Vrych, continually on the alert to recover his possessions and repel the invaders, carried on a desultory
and successful warfare; and Egbert and his Saxon
forces, unable to contend with that valiant chieftain
and with the severities of a hard winter, abandoned
the island, and returned into their own country.
In 1096, Hugh Lupus, Earl of Chester, and Roger
de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury, entering into
a confederacy, carried slaughter and devastation
through the whole of North Wales; and, having
landed a powerful army at Cadnant, advanced against
this town, of which they made themselves masters.
To secure their conquests, they erected, in the immediate neighbourhood, the fortress of Lleiniog, or
Aberllienawg; by means of which, in conjunction
with the castle of Bangor, they commanded the whole
of the Menai strait, and reduced the islanders to the
lowest state of vassalage and degradation. But their
career of usurpation and tyranny was interrupted by
the unexpected arrival of Magnus, son of Harold,
King of Norway. The landing of this chief was opposed by the confederate earls; but Magnus placing
himself on the prow of his ship, and calling to his
side an expert archer, both discharged their arrows
at the Earl of Shrewsbury, who, in complete armour,
was standing on the shore; and an arrow entering
his brain through the eye, which was undefended by
the vizor of his helmet, he fell dead on the spot.
The Earl of Chester was soon afterwards driven from
the island, and compelled to retreat to Bangor,
where he for some time fixed his abode, carrying on
a desultory warfare with the inhabitants of Anglesey,
whom he annoyed with frequent aggressions, which
led to slight skirmishes.
After this period nothing of historical importance
is recorded of the place, till the time of Edward I.,
who, having reduced the whole of Wales under his
authority, and in part erected the splendid castles
of Carnarvon and Aberconway, found himself still
unable to retain quiet possession of his newlyacquired dominions, and exposed to continual insurrections of the bold and warlike chieftains. The
Isle of Anglesey was now the principal rendezvous
of all the native chiefs, who, notwithstanding their
formal submission to the authority of Edward, were
constantly endeavouring to throw off the English
yoke. Llewelyn, Prince of North Wales, was, indeed, no longer alive to lead his countrymen; but
Madoc, his illegitimate son, made this isle the theatre
of an insurrection; and Edward saw the impossibility
of peace while Anglesey, without an English garrison,
afforded such facility for combinations which threatened the stability of his government in Wales. He
therefore determined to erect a castle, equal in
strength and importance to those which he had previously founded at Carnarvon and Aberconway, and to
place in it a formidable garrison, to counteract the
efforts of the unsubdued spirit of the Welsh. For
this purpose he selected Porth Wgyr, which at that
time had acquired the appellation of Bonover; a
situation peculiarly adapted to command the island.
From the low site on which he built the castle, the
king conferred upon it the name of Beaumaris; and
the ground being private property, he gave the
owners other lands in exchange, of equal or superior
value. Its situation on a flat on the sea-shore afforded the opportunity of surrounding the castle with
a deep fosse, which might at any time be filled from
the sea, and of cutting a canal by which vessels might
deliver their cargoes under the very walls.
This fortress was completed in the year 1296,
and in the same year Edward incorporated the inhabitants of the town by charter, investing them with
valuable and important privileges, and appointing
the constable of the castle to be also captain of the
town. Most writers state that the town owes its
origin to the erection of the castle; but, from reference to the records of the corporation, it appears that
it must have attained some degree of importance
prior to that era. Probably Edward, who, after the
completion of the fortress, surrounded the town with
walls and made considerable additions to it as a
fortified place, may, from that circumstance, have
been regarded as its founder. The first governor
appointed to the command was Sir William Pickmore, a Gascon, with an annual salary of forty marks,
subsequently increased to £40; and according to the
Calendar of the patent rolls in the Tower, published
by the commissioners of the public records, the custody of the castle was granted for life, by Richard II.,
to Gronow ab Tudor. In the reign of Henry IV.
it was granted, together with the whole county and
dominion of Anglesey, to the renowned Henry
Percy, surnamed Hotspur. The garrison, which
usually consisted of twenty-four men, was frequently
involved in disputes with the inhabitants of the town,
and in the reign of Henry VI., a sanguinary conflict took place between them, in which Davydd ab
Evan ab Howel and many others were killed. The
maintenance of the castle was found extremely burthensome to the country, and, in consequence of continued complaints of the general misconduct of the
men, the garrison was withdrawn in the reign of
Henry VII., with the exception only of the governor,
Sir Rowland Villeville, who was continued in his
office of constable of the castle.
From this time the castle was without a garrison,
till the year 1642, when Thomas Cheadle, deputy of
the Earl of Dorset, then constable, placed in it a
body of men and supplies of ammunition, in order to
retain possession for the king during the civil war,
which now threatened to become general. The year
following, Thomas Bulkeley, Esq., soon after created
Lord Bulkeley, succeeded to the governorship of the
castle; and his son, Col. Bulkeley, and several gentlemen of the county, held it for the king till 1646,
when it was surrendered on honourable terms to
General Mytton. Charles's subsequent captivity
produced, in 1648, together with partial insurrections
in other parts of the country, that general revolt of
the inhabitants of Anglesey, which is more fully
noticed in the article on the county, and which
gave rise to the parliamentary expedition for the
reduction of the island. As soon as the parliamentary forces, under the command of General Mytton,
appeared on Penmaen Mawr, the greatest demonstrations of defiance were made by the inhabitants of
this place, by whom they were descried from Beaumaris Green; but, after a slight skirmish near Cadnant with Major Hugh Pennant's troop of horse,
General Mytton advanced with his forces, without
further opposition, to Orsedd Migin, where they
held a rendezvous the morning after their landing,
and whence they marched immediately upon Beaumaris, by way of Red Park, drawing up in order
of battle upon the hill. The islanders, commanded
by Col. Bulkeley and Col. Roger Whitely, drew up
in the fields below the hill, assisted by the town's
company, commanded by Captain Sanders. The
parliamentary forces, beginning the attack, were
resolutely repulsed by the town's company, and at
the same time charged by the cavalry; but the other
infantry on the king's side soon fled in disorder, and
the remainder of the royalists being overpowered
by numbers, and the town being closely pressed, the
islanders were dispersed, and the royalist commanders, with most of the officers, retired into the castle.
Captain Lloyd, of Penhênllŷs, who had been ordered
to defend the church, locked his men within it, and
ran away, taking the key with him; the men, notwithstanding, climbed upon the roof and the steeple,
and, firing upon the assailants, killed a considerable
number, among whom were three of the parliamentarian officers. General Mytton, having at
length entered the town, despatched a messenger to
the castle, to demand the persons of Colonels Bulkeley and Whitely, threatening, unless they were
given up to him, to put to death all the prisoners he
had taken in the course of the day, about four hundred in number. These officers, to prevent the
effusion of blood, immediately surrendered themselves, and remained prisoners at the Old Place, in
Beaumaris, the seat of the Bulkeley family, till they
were ransomed. The garrison, unable to withstand
the superior force of the enemy, soon afterwards
capitulated on honourable terms; and Mytton, who
was appointed governor by the parliament, made
Captain Evans his deputy-constable of the castle, and
lieutenant-governor of the town.
After the death of General Mytton, the constableship was given to Hugh Courteney, who was succeeded in that office by Colonel John Jones, a zealous
puritan, and one of the parliamentary commissioners
for the reduction of the island. His successor, Sir
John Carter, of Kinmel, in the county of Denbigh,
who received his appointment from General Monk,
held it till the Restoration, when Viscount Bulkeley,
who had been ennobled in reward for his sufferings
and attachment to the royal cause, was appointed to
that office, which was held by his descendants till the
death of the last Viscount Bulkeley, in 1822.
The town consists of several streets, of which
that leading to the castle is spacious, and contains
some excellent houses. Considerable improvements
have been made within the last twenty or thirty
years, among which may be noticed the levelling,
widening, and paving of the streets, and the erection
of several handsome buildings, both in the town and
neighbourhood; rendering Beaumaris one of the
most elegant towns in the principality. A line of
road, leading from Bangor ferry to Beaumaris, was
constructed in 1805, by Viscount Bulkeley, which,
passing through the woods and plantations of Baron
Hill, above the shores of the Menai, and continued
for nearly five miles, forms one of the most picturesque drives in the country. This road was thrown
open to the public in the following year, and was
afterwards extended to the Menai bridge at one
extremity, and connected at the other with a new
entrance into Beaumaris. The ancient walls by
which the town was defended still remain entire in
several parts, but on the side towards the sea, a large
portion was taken down during the summer of 1831,
in order to furnish materials for building a new hotel,
and for completing other improvements. In front
of the town is the fine open bay called Beaumaris
Roads, formed by the bold curvature of the Menai
strait, and the shores of which are here composed of
a fine, firm, level sand, affording a pleasant promenade, much frequented by the inhabitants. Warm
and cold baths have been erected, and bathingmachines are ranged along the beach. The delightful situation of the town, the salubrity of the air,
and the numerous objects of grandeur, beauty, and
interest, which impart to the surrounding scenery a
charming variety, and combine in forming a splendid
and richly diversified landscape, have made Beaumaris the favourite residence of many families during
the summer season, and contributed to render it one
of the most fashionable bathing-places in North Wales.
Its advantages are considerably enhanced by its
proximity to the Chester and Holyhead railway, to
which there is a constant communication, and from
which it is distant about five miles. Parties leaving
London in the morning will find themselves safely
located in this agreeable spot early in the evening,
having in their transit passed over a most interesting
portion of Wales. The view from the Green here
is among the most extensive and magnificent in the
principality. It embraces the Irish Sea, the noble
estuary of the Menai strait, Beaumaris Roads, the
city of Bangor, Port-Penrhyn; the village, church,
and waterfall of Aber; the stately castle, park, and
grounds of Penrhyn; Puffin Island; Penmon Point;
the priory of Penmon, and the friary of Llanvaes;
Great Orme's Head, the summit of Penmaen Mawr,
and the other stupendous mountains of Carnarvonshire; the castles of Beaumaris and Lleiniog; Baron
Hill, with its luxuriant plantations, and numerous
other objects, which contribute to enrich and beautify
the scene.
A considerable portion of the bay is left dry when
the tide is out. This tract, which extends for several
miles along the opposite coast, is called the Lavan
sands, and is supposed to have been inhabited,
prior to its being inundated by an encroachment of
the sea, in the sixth century. Its ancient name,
Traeth Lavan, or Traeth Wylovain, of which the
present is a contraction, signifies "the place of
weeping," and seems to have reference to the lamentations of the inhabitants when their lands were
overwhelmed. Over these sands is a ferry to Aber,
in Carnarvonshire, a distance of four miles. It originally belonged to the crown; and in the reign of
Edward II., an order was given to Robert Power,
chamberlain of North Wales, to inspect the state of
the boat, which was then out of repair, and either to
repair it, if practicable, at the expense of the bailiwick, or to build a new boat, at the expense of the
king. It appears that the inhabitants paid annually
into the Exchequer the sum of thirty shillings, for
the privilege of this ferry, which was granted to the
corporation by charter of Elizabeth, in the fourth
year of her reign. The sands, at low water, are
firm, and safely passable on foot; but during certain
intervals of the tides, they are extremely hazardous,
and consequently great precaution is necessary. The
passage may be effected in the interval between two
hours before, and two hours after, low water; at
other times it is attended with difficulty and danger,
and several persons have perished in the attempt.
During foggy weather, the great bell of Aber is
rung to direct passengers to the point of their destination, from which they would be otherwise in danger
of wandering.
The port has jurisdiction over those of Conway,
Amlwch, and Holyhead; and other harbours in this
part of the principality are creeks within its limits.
Its situation is extremely advantageous, but the port
carries on but little commerce. Its central position
with respect to the whole of North Wales, its intimate connexion with Liverpool and the principal
manufacturing districts, and its proximity to the
Irish coast, afforded it every facility of extending its
trade; but, since the growth and increase of Liverpool, its commercial importance has materially declined, and at present its chief trade arises from the
importation of the supplies requisite for this part of
the island. The principal articles of importation
are coal, timber, and general merchandise; and the
chief exports, marble and slates. A regular and
expeditious communication by steam-packets has been
established between Beaumaris and Liverpool, Carnarvon, and, in the summer months, Dublin. The
harbour is accessible, at low water, to vessels of four
hundred tons' burthen, and the bay affords good
anchorage and secure shelter to vessels during the
severest gales. There are many accommodations
for facilitating the business of the port; and within
the last few years a fine pier has been erected by
the town council, for landing passengers and goods
from the steamers that ply upon this station: for
access to this pier as a promenade, a small sum is
required from each person, or general admission for
families is issued for an annual subscription. The
custom-house, which is situated near the water's edge,
is a new and commodious building. The market,
which is abundantly supplied with corn and provisions, at a very moderate price, is held on Saturday;
and four fairs for cattle and various articles of
general merchandise, are held annually on February
13th, Holy-Thursday, September 19th, and December 19th. About a mile from the town is a
quarry of hard stone called China rock, which is not
at present wrought, but from which great quantities
have been raised and shipped to Whitehaven,
Runcorn, and other parts, to be converted into chinaware.
CORPORATION SEAL.
The inhabitants received their first charter
of incorporation in the
same year in which the
castle was completed, from
Edward I., who conferred
upon them considerable
privileges, and assigned
to the corporation the estates of four of the principal proprietors of land,
whom he removed by exchange, on the erection of the castle; the estates to
be held by them in capite. Among various immunities, he granted them permission to elect two
bailiffs every year on the feast of St. Michael,
liberty to have a free prison, and a guild of merchandise with a hanse, and freedom from toll and custom
throughout the dominions of the crown, with descent
of property to their heirs, whether they died testate
or intestate. The charter of Edward I. was confirmed
by the crown in the 5th of Edward III., 2nd of
Richard II., 9th of Henry IV. (a charter by Henry,
Prince of Wales), 4th of Henry VI., 8th of Edward
IV., 1st of Richard III., 18th of Henry VII., 1st of
Henry VIII., and 1st of Edward VI. It was extended, also, by Queen Elizabeth, whose charter
continued to be the governing one till the passing of
the Municipal Corporations' Act.
By this charter the corporation was permitted to
assume the title of "the Mayor, Bayliffes, and Burgesses of the burrough of Bewmares," and the
government was vested in a mayor, two bailiffs, a
recorder, coroner, town-clerk, two serjeants-at-mace,
a water-bailiff, a clerk of the market, two burleighmen, six constables, two town-stewards, two sidesmen, and twenty-one chief burgesses and councillors. The mayor, who was chosen annually by
the late mayor, the bailiffs, and the head burgesses, was, like the bailiffs and the recorder, a
justice of the peace; he was also the presiding magistrate at the court of quarter-sessions, and one of
the justices empowered by the charter to hear and
determine pleas at the civil court of record. The
bailiffs, recorder, coroner, town-clerk, treasurer, and
the inferior officers, were appointed in a similar
manner to the mayor; the town-stewards, and their
sidesmen, were chosen by the borough magistrates;
and the twenty-one chief burgesses themselves filled
up any vacancies that occurred in their body either
by death or removal. The mayor, bailiffs, and chief
burgesses possessed the amplest powers for the enactment of bye-laws and the enforcement of their
authority, and also had the liberty, according to the
charter of Elizabeth, of returning a member to serve
in parliament. The police consisted of the two serjeants-at-mace, and six constables.
By the act 5th and 6th of William IV. c. 76, the
old charters were repealed and annulled, and the
corporation, under the style of "Mayor, Aldermen,
and Burgesses," now consists of a mayor, four
aldermen, and twelve councillors, constituting the
council of the borough. The council elect the mayor
annually on November 9th, out of the aldermen or
councillors; and the aldermen triennially on November 9th, out of the councillors, or persons qualified
as such, one-half going out of office every three years,
but being re-eligible: the councillors are chosen
annually on November 1st, by and from among the
enrolled burgesses, one-third going out of office
every year. Aldermen and councillors must possess a property qualification of £500, or be rated at
£15 annual value. The burgesses are, the occupiers of
houses and shops who have been rated for three years
to the relief of the poor. The council choose a townclerk, treasurer, and other officers annually on
Nov. 9th; and two auditors and two assessors are
elected on March 1st, by and from among the burgesses. The limits of the borough comprehend the
chapelry of Beaumaris, and parts of six other places,
stretching inland to the north-west about two miles,
along the shore to the north-east about a mile and a
half, and to the south-west above a mile. The chapelry comprises 327 acres, chiefly consisting of pasture land.
The corporation are lords of the manor by virtue
of a grant by Queen Elizabeth, recorded in her
charter, of the borough and other ample possessions,
comprising, besides much property of undefined
extent, lands of the specified extent of above 1556
acres, which yielded at that early period a considerable rent, but of which the only remnant at the present day consists of a field containing about eighteen
acres, and a few small portions of waste near the
town. The grant was principally made with a view
of affording to the inhabitants the means of repairing the walls and sea-defences of their town, which
had by floods and tempests been much injured; but
there does not appear to be any trace of the erection
of a pier or the execution of other renovations. The
income of the borough for the year 1833 amounted to
£556. It was principally derived from the rents of
houses, and was subject to a payment of about £190,
being the interest of a debt of £4200, incurred by
the corporation mainly by the erection of some handsome and substantial houses upon the Green, at a
cost of £4475.
The elective franchise was conferred in the 27th
of Henry VIII., and the first return was made in the
33d of the same reign, in conjunction with Newborough, to which town the assizes and sessions for the
county had been removed in the reign of Henry VII.,
upon a false representation to this monarch, after
having been held at Beaumaris for 250 years. In
the 2nd of Edward VI., Newborough was exempted
from contributing to the support of the parliamentary
representative, the privilege thus becoming limited
to Beaumaris; and by statutes of the 2nd and 3d of
the same monarch, the great and quarter-sessions,
together with the county court for Anglesey, were
removed back to this town, after they had been held
at Newborough for forty-five years. The burgesses
of Newborough, nevertheless, still claimed a share
in the return of the member for Beaumaris, which,
however, they do not seem to have exercised. In
1790, it was decided by the House of Commons, that
the right was in the mayor, bailiffs, and capital burgesses of Beaumaris only. By the act for "Amending the representation of the people in England and
Wales," passed in 1832, the newly-created boroughs
of Amlwch, Holyhead, and Llangevni now share
with Beaumaris in the return of one member to parliament. The right of election is vested in every
male person of full age occupying, either as owner,
or as tenant under the same landlord, a house or
other premises of the annual value of not less than
ten pounds, providing he be capable of registering as
the act demands. There are, within the town, about
one hundred and ten houses of the annual value of
not less than ten pounds, and some more within the
out-borough of Beaumaris, of which the commissioners appointed about the time of the Reform act,
for ascertaining the boundaries of boroughs, were
unable to obtain the exact number. The total number of voters, including the contributory boroughs, is
about 350; and the mayor is the returning officer.
The town-hall, erected in 1790, and situated in
Castle-street, nearly in the centre of the town, is
a commodious and handsome building, containing
on the basement story the public office, shambles,
and market-house, above which are a noble room
and other apartments, appropriated to the borough
sessions and the transaction of municipal business,
and occasionally to the holding of assemblies: the
great room is the most splendid ball-room in North
Wales. Since the decline of Newborough, Beaumaris has been the county town of Anglesey, as
it more anciently was; and the assizes and general
quarter-sessions for the county, and the election of
knights for the shire, still take place here. The
county-hall, erected in 1614, is a small edifice without any pretensions to architectural character, but
recently much improved in its adaptation to the holding of the assizes and sessions, and the transaction of
the public business of the county. The borough
gaol, and house of correction for the county, forming
one large building, erected in the year 1828, comprise
twenty-three wards, six day-rooms, and six airingyards; but the number of prisoners tried at the assizes and sessions is very inconsiderable, not amounting to more than four or five annually.
The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the
rectory of Llandegvan. The chapel, dedicated to St.
Mary, is a spacious structure in the decorated and
later styles, embellished in 1825 at a considerable
expense, and comprising a nave, chancel, and north
and south aisles, with a lofty square embattled tower
crowned with crocketed pinnacles. It measures, in
the nave, sixty-eight feet by fifty, and in the chancel,
forty-two by twenty-two. Each of the aisles is
separated from the nave by an elegant range of lofty
clustered columns and gracefully pointed arches;
the windows of the chancel have round arches: the
east window is of elaborate design, and the roof of
the chapel is formed of richly-carved oak. The
north aisle is called St. Mary's chapel, and the south
St. Nicholas'. In the former is a very handsome
statue of the late Mrs. Williams Bulkeley, daughter
of Lord Dinorben, who died in 1829, the year before
the succession of her husband, R. B. Williams Bulkeley, Esq., to the baronetcy. In the vestry is a beautiful altar-tomb, bearing recumbent figures of a knight
and his lady, in white alabaster, removed from the
priory of Llanvaes, on the dissolution of that house,
and placed in St. Mary's chapel here, whence it was
removed some years ago to its present position: the
tomb is decorated with diminutive figures of monks
and knights, finely sculptured, and with shields of
armorial bearings; but the latter are so obliterated,
that they afford no means of ascertaining the persons
whose memory the tomb was intended to perpetuate.
On the south side of the altar is a tablet to the
memory of Sir Henry Sidney, Lord-Deputy of
Ireland, who died in 1586; Sir Anthony St. Leger,
also Lord-Deputy, and others: and above it is a
mural monument, of black marble, in memory of
Thomas, sixth son of Sir Julius Cæsar, Master of
the Rolls, who was rector of Llanrhyddlad, in this
county, and died in 1632. Near the castle was
situated an ancient chapel or oratory, dedicated to
St. Meugan, of which no vestiges remain. There
are places of worship for Baptists, Independents, and
Calvinistic and Wesleyan Methodists.
The Free Grammar school was founded in 1609,
by David Hughes, of Woodrising, in the county of
Norfolk, who gave a house which he had lately built
at Beaumaris, for the use of a grammar school, and
endowed it with all his lands in the county of Anglesey, for the payment of the master and usher, for the
maintenance of the scholars, and for keeping the
building in repair. He directed his trustees to appropriate the surplus in placing one or two of the
scholars in either of the universities of Oxford or
Cambridge, and in erecting an almshouse for eight
persons, three to be chosen from the parish of Llantrisaint, where the founder was born, two from that of
Ceidio, two from that of Llêchcynvarwydd, and one
from the chapelry of Gwredog. After providing for
these, if any thing remained, the founder directed
that it should be distributed among the poor of
Llantrisaint. The founder's intentions respecting
the forwarding of boys to the university, with
other regulations, were carried into effect by the
trustees, who paid £20 with every scholar that
entered there, and also apprenticed several others,
according to the state of the funds, till the year 1826,
when the affairs of the charity were carried into the
Court of Chancery, and the exhibitions and apprentice-fees were for some years suspended. The
present income of the estates is about £700 per
annum, out of which the master's salary of £100,
the usher's of £70, and the writing-master's of £21,
are paid. The master has a residence free of rent
and taxes, as has also the usher; the head master
also receives £10 per annum, and the usher £5, from
the fund of the benevolent Dr. Lewis's extensive
charities. There are about twenty-five boys, who
are all instructed in the classics, and in writing and
arithmetic, except six, who are allowed to receive
elementary instruction in English only, in consideration of their inability to afford books for the classics.
The scholars are eligible to one of two fellowships
founded in Jesus' College, Oxford, by Dr. Henry
Rowlands, Bishop of Bangor, in 1616; to certain
exhibitions, of £10 per annum each for four years,
founded by Dr. Lewis; and to others founded by
Dr. Meyrick, in Jesus' College. The almshouse,
consisting of eight rooms under one roof, is of quadrangular form, with an archway leading into the interior, and having a stone placed over it marked
"D. H. 1613;" the building is situated in the parish
of Llanvaes, about a mile from the town of Beaumaris.
The almsmen each receive an allowance of six shillings a week, five pounds of beef at Christmas, and
six yards of frieze annually on St. Thomas's day;
the whole provided out of the endowment assigned
by David Hughes for a grammar school and almshouse, &c.
A National school was founded in 1816, the schoolrooms, with the house for the master and mistress,
being built by subscription, at an expense of £550,
on a plot of ground given by the late Lord Bulkeley,
by whom, during his lordship's lifetime, the school
was chiefly supported. Since his decease in 1822, it
has been chiefly maintained by voluntary contributions, the principal of which at present is an annual
donation of £30 by Sir R. B. Williams Bulkeley,
Bart. It is conducted in a most praiseworthy manner,
and affords instruction to about eighty boys and sixtyfive girls, each of whom pays one penny a week.
There are also three Sunday schools in the town,
taught gratuitously by dissenters.
The other charities comprise a bequest of a rentcharge of £2. 12. by Lewis Owen, of Middlesex, in
1623, which is distributed in bread on Sundays; two
benefactions for a similar purpose amounting to
£1.6. per annum, by Ellen Nicholas and Tabora
the Black, in 1736 and 1743 respectively; and a
like distribution of bread on Christmas eve, to the
amount of £3. 10., arising from a gift of £20 by
George Robinson, £20 from Lucy Morris, of London, in 1799, £20 from T. Cross, and £5 each by
two other persons. Elizabeth Gould, in 1780, bequeathed £50, the interest to be annually divided
among aged widows, decayed housekeepers of Beaumaris: this sum is secured by the payment of a rentcharge of fifty shillings, out of a house built by the
corporation with this and other funds of their own.
John de Courcy, Esq., of Dublin, in 1820, bequeathed £30 for the use of the poor, which is
lodged in the Anglesey savings' bank, and the
interest, £1, is distributed among them. Mary Roberts, in 1804, left £10; Mrs. Jones, of the Green,
a similar sum; and there are two rent-charges,
one of £1 by Rice Price in 1782, and the other
of 8s. on Plâs Gwŷn; the produce of all which
is disposed of in like manner. Lastly, William
Hughes, in 1833, bequeathed £15, which is deposited
in the savings' bank at Carnarvon, and the interest
divided in the proportion of two-thirds among poor
aged females, and one-third among aged men. Of
the benevolent societies formed in the town, the most
remarkable for the extent of its benefactions is the
Society of Ancient Druids, established in 1772, and
patronised by many of the principal nobility, clergy,
and gentry of the neighbourhood. It consists of an
Arch-Druid and Sub-Druid, annually elected, and
an unlimited number of brethren, who celebrate their
anniversaries in September, and upon those occasions
vote various sums of money for benevolent purposes.
The principal of these are donations to the hospitals,
infirmaries, and dispensaries in the neighbouring
counties both of Wales and England; premiums for
apprenticing poor boys; and rewards for humane
and meritorious exertions in saving from destruction
the lives and property of shipwrecked seamen.
The site and remains of the once important castle
of Beaumaris were purchased from the crown in
1816, and are now the property of Sir Richard B.
Williams Bulkeley, who has made great improvements
in the grounds, by laying out walks, plantations, and
shrubberies, and has thrown them open to the public
as a promenade. The splendid remains of the castle,
though less conspicuous from the lowness of their
situation than those of Carnarvon and Conway
Castles, prove that it was scarcely inferior in beauty
and extent to either of those structures. It consisted of two courts, the outer comprehending a
spacious quadrilateral area defended by fourteen
circular towers, of which those at the angles are
much larger than the rest, and having the principal
entrance towards the sea, flanked by two strong
round towers, between which is a pointed archway
with a portcullis. Near this entrance is a long,
narrow, advanced work, with a platform, called the
Gunners' Walk, which was carried over the moat by
a lofty arch, still remaining, and near which is one
of the iron rings anciently used for mooring the
vessels that delivered their supplies under the castle
walls. Within the outer wall, and equidistant from
it in every part, is the inner quadrangle, 190 feet in
length and nearly the same in breadth, surrounded
by the chief range of buildings, which are much
loftier than those of the outer court, and defended by
ten circular towers, of which those at the angles are
in nearly a perfect state, being more massive than
those in the centre. In this quadrangle are the
principal state apartments. On the north-west side
is the great hall, seventy feet in length and twentyfour in width, of lofty dimensions, and lighted by
a noble range of five windows, embellished with
tracery. To the east is the chapel, an elegant structure in the early style of English architecture, nearly
perfect. Its roof is elaborately groined, and supported on arched ribs, springing from clustered pilasters richly ornamented. The walls are embellished
with a series of twenty-one canopied niches, between
which are lancet-shaped windows of peculiar delicacy,
and behind them are recesses in the thickness of the
walls, probably appropriated to the principal officers
of the garrison, or to persons of rank residing at the
castle. A narrow corridor, formed in the walls, is
carried nearly round the whole building, with the
exception of the north-west side, affording communication with the principal state apartments, which,
though not equal in splendour to those of Carnarvon
and Conway, display abundant evidence of departed
grandeur. Within the area are a tennis-court and a
bowling-green, open to the public; and the pleasantness of the situation, and the taste with which the
grounds have been laid out, render the place a
favourite resort of the inhabitants. In August, 1832,
a congress of bards, or royal eisteddvod, was held in
the inner quadrangle of the castle, under the patronage of Sir Richard Bulkeley; it was attended by
most of the gentry of the neighbouring counties, and
honoured with the presence of Her Majesty, then
Princess Victoria, and Her Royal Highness the
Duchess of Kent, who had been residing in the
neighbourhood during the summer months.
Baron Hill, the seat of Sir R. B. Williams
Bulkeley, was originally built in 1618, by Sir Richard
Bulkeley, a distinguished personage in the reign of
James I., and was much enlarged and improved by
its late possessor, under the superintendence of Mr.
Samuel Wyatt, architect. The house is beautifully
situated on an eminence above the town, to which it
is open in the front; it has an extensive lawn, and is
sheltered in the rear and on each side by woods of
luxuriant foliage. The view from the mansion is
justly esteemed one of the finest in the principality,
extending over the bay of Beaumaris with the grand
opening of the Menai strait, bounded by a noble
range of rocks and mountains, rising in the form of a
vast amphitheatre, and including some of the principal mountains of Snowdon, whose summits of varied
form soar in romantic grandeur above the surrounding
heights, and whose verdant and well-cultivated bases
slope gradually to the margin of the water. The
great promontory of Penmaen Mawr, and the vast
rock of Llandudno, or the Great Orme's Head, of
barren and rugged aspect, form a striking contrast to
the milder features of the scenery in the neighbourhood of Baron Hill, and aid in producing that variety
which constitutes its superior beauty. Within the
grounds is the stone coffin in which the Princess Joan,
daughter of King John, and wife of Llewelyn, Prince
of North Wales, was interred in the priory of Llanvaes. This relic, on the dissolution of that establishment, was removed, and, after lying neglected on a
farm near the spot for many years, was bought by the
late Lord Bulkeley, and placed under a temple which
that nobleman erected in the park, in honour of her
memory. The covering slab of the coffin is of very
elegant workmanship, bearing a semi-effigy of the
princess, peculiar for the head-dress and ornament of
the neck, and especially for having the hands lying
open on the breast, towards the spectator. The lower
part of the slab is filled with beautiful foliated branches,
exactly corresponding in style with the illuminated
manuscripts of the period: the stem is seized by the
mouth of a winged dragon. An engraving of this
early monumental effigy is given in the Archæologia
Cambrensis.
Among the other seats in the neighbourhood may
be enumerated Red Hill, the Friary, Plâs Llangoed,
Cadnant, and Hênllŷs, anciently the seat of Gweirydd ab Rhŷs Gôch, one of the fifteen tribes of North
Wales, and of his posterity until the conquest of
Wales by Edward I., who removed them to Bôdlewyddan, in the county of Flint, by an exchange of
property, granting the estates belonging to them and
other freeholders to the corporation.
Beeston, or Biston
BEESTON, or BISTON, a township, in the
parish and union of Wrexham, hundred of Bromfield, county of Denbigh, North Wales, ¾ of a
mile (S. W.) from Wrexham; containing 101 inhabitants. It is assessed separately for the maintenance of its poor, according to a regulation entered
into in 1830. The impropriate tithes of Beeston and
Gourton have been commuted for a rent-charge of
£165. 19.: a rent-charge of 5s. is paid to the vicar
of Wrexham.
Begelly (Bugeli)
BEGELLY (BUGELI), a parish, in the union
and hundred of Narberth, county of Pembroke,
South Wales, 5 miles (S. by E.) from Narberth, on
the road to Tenby; containing, with the chapelry of
Williamston, which supports its own poor, 1159 inhabitants. The substratum in this parish is coal, of excellent quality, and in great request for the drying of
malt and hops by the proprietors of breweries and
distilleries. It is principally procured by a company
under Lord Milford and J. M. Childe, Esq., who are
the chief proprietors of the soil, and receive one-sixth
part, as their share of the produce: there are some
smaller proprietors, who exact one-fifth, and even
one-fourth part from those who work only on a limited
scale. A tramway from the mines leads over King's
Moor to Saundersfoot, in the parish of St. Issels, and
greatly contributes to promote the interests of the
neighbourhood, which will be further enhanced by
the Tenby, Saundersfoot, and South Wales railway
company, formed under act of parliament in 1846.
Iron-ore is also found, both above and below the coal,
and, during the existence of the Penbrey Iron Company, was procured in great quantities; but since the
stoppage of the company's works, the search for it has
been discontinued. It seems likely, however, to be
again wrought extensively. The shale which is found
with the coal exhibits many interesting specimens of
the fern and reed plants, and pyrites of iron has been
discovered.
The living is a discharged rectory, rated in the
king's books at £12. 19. 2.; present net income,
£216, with a glebe-house; patron, Lord Milford.
The church is an ancient structure in the early style
of English architecture, with a lofty tower, and is
pleasantly situated near Begelly Hall, by the trees
surrounding which it is partly concealed. The chapel
of Williamston is a rude structure without a tower,
standing in the hamlet of that name. The rectoryhouse is situated on part of a stratum of coal, which
has been wrought all round it: if the excavation had
been continued, it would have endangered the stability of the building. Here is a place of worship for
Calvinistic Methodists. From fifty to sixty children
are instructed in a Church day school, chiefly supported by subscription; and there are two Sunday
schools conducted gratuitously, in one of which, in
connexion with the Church, are about eighty children, and in the other, belonging to the Calvinistic Methodists, about forty. Near the parsonagehouse are the remains of a cromlech, which has been
thrown down; and in its vicinity is a tumulus, raised
probably to the memory of some chieftain.
Beguildy (Bugeildy)
BEGUILDY (BUGEILDY), a parish, in the
union and hundred of Knighton, county of Radnor, South Wales, 6½ miles (N. W. by W.) from
Knighton; comprising the upper and lower divisions,
and containing 1051 inhabitants. This place is situated on the road leading from Knighton to Newtown, and on the river Teme, which separates it from
the county of Salop. It is bounded on the north and
east by the parishes of Bettws and Llanvair-Waterdine, in Salop, on the south-east by the parish of
Heyop, on the south by Llangunllo, on the southwest by Llanbister and Llanano, on the west by Llanbadarn-Vynydd, and on the north and north-west by
Kerry in Montgomeryshire. It comprises between
7000 and 8000 acres, of which about 1250 are arable,
600 woodland, and the rest pasture. The surface is
in general greatly diversified by hill and dale, mountains and valleys, abrupt precipices and gentle declivities; in the midst of which is a long narrow tract of
great fertility, affording pasturage for cattle: on the
hills are fed vast numbers of sheep, which form the
principal dependence of the farmers. The neighbourhood abounds with pleasing and picturesque scenery, ornamented in many parts with plantations of
oak and ash; and the higher grounds, comprising the
Black mountain, and the Beacon and Cavysty hills,
command extensive and finely varied prospects over
the counties of Radnor, Montgomery, and Salop.
The soil is dry and light, and produces very good
oats, which are much more cultivated than wheat or
barley; potatoes and turnips have also been much
grown during the last few years. There are several
quarries from which good building-stone is obtained;
and two mills for grinding corn. Part of the borough
of Cnwclas, or Knucklass, is within the parish, the
remainder being in that of Heyop; and the courthouse in which the burgesses of that place are elected,
is situated in the township of Beguildy. The parish
contains the hamlets of Velindre, Beguildy, Crûg-yByddar, Mudwalledd, and Pennant; which are distinct
as regards the collection of the county stock and the
repair of the roads, but are united for the maintenance
of the poor.
The living is a discharged vicarage, rated in the
king's books at £7. 15. 7½.; patron, the Bishop of
St. David's; impropriators, the Dean and Chapter of
St. David's. The vicarial tithes of the Church township have been commuted for a rent-charge of £190,
and the glebe comprises ten acres, valued at £18 per
annum; with a glebe-house. The church, dedicated
to St. Michael, is in the early English style, and
consists of a nave and chancel, but is not remarkable
for its architectural character; it is eighty feet in
length and twenty-five in breadth, and contains 350
sittings. At Velindre is a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. A free school was endowed by
Lord Robert Wharton, with a rent-charge of £10 on
an estate called Maesgwynne, formerly the property
of the noble family of Harley, but sold by the late
Earl of Oxford. The Rev. John Davies, in 1741,
bequeathed £100 to poor housekeepers of the parish;
and the Rev. Vavasour Griffiths, in the same year,
bequeathed £20: these sums are now secured on the
tenement of Pant-y-Garragl, and produce a rentcharge of £4. 16., which, together with £2. 6. an
overplus of the rent-charge payable to the schoolmaster, is divided shortly before Christmas among
the poor who have not received parochial relief within
the year. Here are the remains of an ancient British
fortification, said to have been occupied by the renowned Uthyr Pendragon; and at the foot of a hill
is a place called the Bloody Field, where a battle is
said to have been fought. On the south-western
border of the parish is the site of Knucklass Castle, on
the summit of a conical artificial mound.
Berriew (Aber-Rhiw)
BERRIEW (ABER-RHIW), a village and parish, in the union of Forden, partly in the hundred
of Cawrse, liberties of the borough of Welshpool,
but chiefly in the lower division of the hundred of
Newtown, county of Montgomery, North Wales,
5 miles (S. S. W.) from Welshpool; containing 2259
inhabitants. This village derives its name from being
situated near the junction of the river Rhiw with the
Severn, from which point it is distant about three
quarters of a mile, on the banks of the Rhiw, on the
road between Welshpool and Newtown. The parish
consists of about 12,000 acres, and is wholly inclosed, the waste lands, amounting to some thousands
of acres, in the manor of Cedewain, having been
allotted pursuant to an act obtained in 1796. Flannel is manufactured to a limited extent. The Montgomeryshire canal passes through the parish, and is
carried over the Rhiw, near the village, by an aqueduct of four arches. The high grounds, especially
the Byrwydd, about three miles north-west of the
village, command very extensive and richly-diversified prospects of the fertile vales of Severn, Montgomery, Salop, and Manavon, studded with numerous villages and mansions; and of the principal
mountains in North Wales, Salop, &c.
The village presents a cheerful and pleasing appearance, containing several good houses and neat
white-washed cottages: a daily mail to and from
London passes through it. The ancient mansion of
Vaenor occupies an elevated situation in a park tolerably well wooded. It formerly belonged to the family
of Price, an heiress of which being married to George
Devereux, Esq., in the seventeenth century, it became the property of the Viscounts Hereford: the
estate is now in the possession of John Lyon
Winder, Esq., nephew of the late John Winder,
Esq., who has rebuilt the house in the most magnificent manner, preserving the old Elizabethan style of
architecture. The gardens, and particularly the
terrace, are much admired. There are several other
genteel residences in the parish, namely, Glàn
Severn, a handsome stone edifice, situated in grounds
beautifully laid out, through which the river Severn
pursues a winding course; Bôd Heilin, occupying a
romantic situation on the slope, and near the summit,
of a well-wooded hill, which commands a delightful
view of the vales of Severn and Montgomery; the
house of Rhiwport; Garthmael Hall; Pennant;
Bryncwmysir; Brithdir Hall; and Rhiwbank, or
Lower Vaenor. The petty sessions for the lower
division of the hundred are held at Berriew on the
first Saturday in every month.
The living is a vicarage, rated in the king's books
at £13. 6. 8.; patron, the Bishop of St. Asaph; impropriator, Lord Sudeley. The great tithes have
been commuted for a rent-charge of £793, and the
vicarial for one of £445, with a glebe of 1½ acre, and
a glebe-house; the tithes of the parish-clerk produce
£12 per annum. The church, dedicated to St.
Beuno, is a neat modern structure, with a square
tower surmounted with pinnacles. There are places
of worship for Baptists and Wesleyan Methodists.
Humphrey Jones, Esq., of Garthmael, by will dated
February 26th, 1652, devised to trustees, for the
foundation and endowment of a free school at Berriew,
the rectory of Bettws, and certain lands and tenements, called Cwm Madoc Ucheldre, in the parish of
Trêgynon, which he held as a security for the sum
of £400 advanced on mortgage. In the event of the
mortgage being redeemed, the testator directed that
the sum should be invested in the mortgage of other
premises. This having taken place, the sum of
£400 was expended in 1754, together with £50
arising from a bequest by Rees Evans and belonging
to the poor, in the purchase of an estate called
Penarth, in the parish of Llanvair, now consisting of
nearly 146 acres, 15½ of which are woodland, and an
allotment of 43¼ acres subsequently added under an
inclosure act; the whole producing £72 per annum
to the charity. The old school-house, being in a
dilapidated state, was pulled down in 1819, and a
neat and substantial stone structure was erected as a
National school, at an expense of £1580, defrayed
partly from the funds of the charity, which had accumulated during a suspension of the school, and
partly by subscription. Both boys and girls are
taught, but the mistress derives her salary from subscriptions, and not from the endowment, which appears to be exclusively applied towards the support
of the boys' department. The master receives a
salary of £40, and is allowed to take private scholars;
the mistress receives £20, and they have a house and
garden rent-free. The children pay a small sum
weekly, to form a fund for fuel and repairs. Several
Sunday schools are supported by the dissenters.
Various bequests have been made for the benefit
of the poor, to be applied in the distribution of bread
and clothes, and in apprenticing children. The most
considerable of these, are, a gift of £200 by the
above-mentioned Humphrey Jones for apprenticing
poor children, the proceeds of which, £9, are so employed, in premiums not exceeding £5 each; an
annual sum of £6. 5. 7. for the poor, received from
Hannah Lloyd's charity at Castle Caer-Einion; and
the interest of £86. 17. 7., being the proportion of
this parish for timber cut on the property of the
charity, applied to the above fund for putting out
apprentices. With Mrs. Lloyd's charity for the poor
are placed a charge of £2 by Anne Morris, another
of 10s. by Morris Thomas, a gift of £50 by Viscount
Hereford, and one of £20 by Ann Higgins; producing, with the £6. 5. 7., a total sum of £11. 15. 7.
for distribution among the poor at Easter and Christmas. Besides these, a rent-charge of £1 by Oliver
Rees, and one of £3 by Edward Edwards, are appropriated in clothing; and the poor receive from
the parties on whose properties they are charged, a
rent-charge of £3 by Mrs. Margaret Corbet, and
another of £2 by Rees Jones. A benefaction of
£2. 12. per annum, the rent of a tenement bequeathed
by Mrs. Bridget Devereux, is distributed in bread
on every second Sunday: a few other small charities
have been lost. This is one of the parishes incorporated, by an act passed in the 32nd of George III.,
for the maintenance of their poor in a house of industry at Forden.
In the township of Allt, between the canal and the
road leading to Welshpool, is a tumulus; and on the
top of Cevn-yr-Allt are the remains of a British encampment: there is also an encampment in the
township of Frith, near the road from Berriew to
Castle Caer-Einion. Maen Beuno, a stone pillar
bearing the name of the patron saint of the church,
is still standing in the township of Berriew, between
the Welshpool road and the river Severn.
Bersham-Drelincourt
BERSHAM-DRELINCOURT, a chapelry,
in the parish and union of Wrexham, hundred of
Bromfield, county of Denbigh, North Wales,
2 miles (W. by N.) from Wrexham; the township of
Bersham containing 1716 inhabitants. In or near
this chapelry are extensive paper-mills, situated upon
the river Clywedog; and the whole district abounds
with valuable mines of iron and coal. The township
comprises 1901 acres. The living is a perpetual
curacy, endowed with £16 per annum private benefaction, £600 royal bounty, and £600 parliamentary
grant; net income, £90; patron, the Bishop of St.
Asaph. The vicarial tithes of the township, payable
to the incumbent of Wrexham, have been commuted
for a rent-charge of £240; and the impropriate, for
one of £174. 10. The chapel, known by the local
name of "Capel Madam," is situated at the southwestern extremity of the township of Broughton.
Attached to it is a school for the instruction of twenty
poor girls, founded in 1762, by Anne, Dowager
Viscountess Primerose, who endowed it with lands,
&c., under the superintendence of trustees, including
the Bishop of St. Asaph, the Governors of Queen
Anne's Bounty, and others. All the children are
clothed, and half of the number lodged and maintained, at the expense of the charity, which is open
to the parishes of Wrexham and Llanvair-Dyfryn-Clwyd. At Bersham is a well-built school, established
in 1842 by the Harris family, by whom considerably
more than half the expenses are defrayed, the remainder being met by school-fees and subscriptions.
That celebrated relic of Anglo-Saxon antiquity,
Wat's Dyke, passes in the vicinity, nearly in a
direction from south to north, and is perfect throughout the whole of its course here. The inhabitants
of the township are assessed separately for the maintenance of their poor, pursuant to an arrangement
made in 1830.
Berwick
BERWICK, a hamlet, in the parish and union
of Llanelly, hundred of Carnawllon, county of
Carmarthen, South Wales; containing 981 inhabitants. An ancient chapel here having fallen into
ruin, was lately rebuilt.
Berwyn
BERWYN, with Croes, a hamlet, in the parish
and union of Trêgaron, upper division of the hundred of Penarth, county of Cardigan, South
Wales, 3½ miles (E. by S.) from Trêgaron. In this
wild and mountainous district is Llŷn Berwyn, a small
lake, from which issues a stream called the Berwyn,
which, after joining the Croes, falls into the Teivy a
little below the town of Trêgaron.
Bethgelart (Bedd-Gelert)
BETHGELART (BEDD-GELERT), a parish, in the union of Festiniog, partly in the hundred of Eivionydd, Eivionydd division, and partly
in that of Isgorvai, Arvon division, of the county
of Carnarvon, and partly in the hundred of Ardudwy, county of Merioneth, North Wales,
13 miles (S. E. by S.) from Carnarvon; containing
1397 inhabitants. This extensive parish, anciently
called Llan-Ybor, contained a priory, founded, according to some writers, about the year 1198, by
Llewelyn the Great, in gratitude for the preservation of his infant son from the attack of a wolf, which,
during the absence of the family upon a hunting
excursion, had entered the house, and which his
favourite greyhound Gelert had killed, while attempting to seize the child in its cradle. According
to the well-known legendary story, Llewelyn, on his
return from the chase, perceiving the mouth of the
dog stained with blood, hastened to the nursery, and
finding the cradle overturned, and the floor streaming
with blood, rashly concluded that his son had been
killed by the hound, and instantly drew his sword
and stabbed the faithful animal. But on removing
the cradle, he found his child unhurt, and sleeping
quietly by the side of the wolf, which the watchful
Gelert had killed. Stung with remorse, Llewelyn
erected a tomb over the dog's grave, not far from
which the conventual church was afterwards built;
and from this circumstance the place obtained the
appellation of Bedd-Gelert, or "the Grave of
Gelert." But Mr. Rowlands has traced the existence
of this monastic establishment to a period long
anterior to the above, even prior to the reign of
Owain Gwynedd, from whom it received an endowment of lands, &c., which was augmented by
Llewelyn.
Having been nearly destroyed by fire, about the
year 1283, the priory was repaired by Edward I.,
assisted by Anianus, Bishop of Bangor, who granted
ample indulgences to all that should contribute towards the rebuilding of it; and who, in his edicts
for this purpose, describes it as being, with the exception of those of Bardsey and Bangor-Iscoed, the
oldest religious establishment in the principality. It
flourished till the time of Henry VIII., who annexed
it to the abbey of Chertsey, in the county of Surrey;
and the priory was subsequently, together with that
establishment, given by the same monarch to Bisham
Abbey, in the county of Berks. Its revenue, at the
Dissolution, amounted to £69. 3. 8. There are still
some remains of the building, the parochial church
being considered to be the conventual church; the
architecture corresponds to the date of the re-edification under Edward I., and on the southern side traces
of foundations have been laid bare at different times,
indicating, no doubt, monastic buildings. All the
lands in the county of Carnarvon belonging to the
ancient priory, were granted by King Edward VI.,
in the second year of his reign, to Robert and Henry
Bodvel.
This parish forms an extensive mountainous district, bounded on the north by the parish of BettwsGarmon, on the north-east by Dolwyddelan and
Llanrhychwyn, on the south by Ynyscynhaiarn, on
the south-east by Llanvrothen, on the west by Llanvihangel-y-Pennant, and on the north-west by Llandwrog and Llanwnda. It comprises an area of 26,716
acres, chiefly pasture and mountain sheep-walks, and
abounds with strikingly romantic scenery, diversified
with lofty mountains of various elevation and character, luxuriant vales, expansive lakes, woods containing almost every kind of timber, with groves and
plantations of larch and other trees of the richest verdure; and comprehending an almost endless variety
of prospects of surpassing interest. Its limits reach
to the summit of the towering Snowdon, including
nearly the whole of its southern side and base, as well
as the mountains Moel Hebog, Aran, Graig Gôch,
and Mynydd Mawr, with part of Siabod, all of which,
though secondary to Snowdon, are mountains of
lofty elevation.
The village, which is small, but in which an excellent inn has been built, on account of the increase
of visiters to this interesting neighbourhood, is delightfully situated at the confluence of the rivers
Glâslyn and Colwyn, which rise in the adjacent
mountains. To the north-west of it the road passes
near the small lakes Llŷn-y-Cader and Llŷn-yDywerch, beyond which is the broad lake Llŷn
Cwellyn, at the base of Mynydd Mawr, a mountain
of precipitous elevation, which in this part, receding
in a curve, forms a bold and rugged barrier to this
fine sheet of water. The lake is more than a mile
and a half in length, and about three quarters of a
mile broad; the water is beautifully transparent, and
abounds with char, a fish peculiar to mountain lakes.
At the extremity of the lake, and upon a bold rocky
precipice in the mountain, is Castell Cidwm, a natural
fortress which served to defend this important pass
into the regions of Snowdon, where, from the earliest
ages, the native Welsh found a secure retreat, in
cases of extreme danger, and a rallying point for
their efforts in repelling the invaders of their country.
To the west is the mountain pass called Drws-y-Coed,
in the parish of Llandwrog, where are some productive copper-mines; and beyond are two fine lakes
adjoining each other, called Llŷniau Nantlle, from
which the summit of Snowdon is seen, through a
vista between the intervening mountains, with singular grandeur of effect.
On the north-east of the village, an opening between the mountains forms the beautifully romantic
pass of Nant Gwynant, memorable for the sanguinary
battle fought between the forces of the Earl of Pembroke and those of Ievan ab Robert, in the reign of
Edward IV. Along this delightful vale, the name
of which implies "the vale of waters," passes the
road to Capel Curig, extending for five or six miles
through a continued succession of richly varied
scenery, unsurpassed for picturesque beauty and for
sublimity. In some parts are seen clear and expansive lakes, reflecting the sides of the lofty mountains
by which they are inclosed; in others, luxuriant
meadows and fertile plains, intersected by numerous
rivulets; and in others, craggy cliffs over which the
mountain torrent forms frequent cataracts, together
with barren rocks, and the most dreary sterility. A
mile up the valley, is the isolated rocky eminence
called Dinas Emrys, celebrated as the spot where
Vortigern is said to have assembled his council of
wise men, or magicians, in 449, and also as the residence of the renowned Merlin. The summit of this
rock forms an extensive area, defended with walls of
loose stones, and accessible only on one side: the
entrance appears to have been guarded by two
towers, and within the area are the foundations of
circular buildings of loose stones, the walls of which
are about five feet in thickness. On the margin of
Llŷn Gwynant, one of the principal lakes in this
romantic vale, are the ruins of a small ancient chapel,
called Capel Nant Gwynant, that belonged to Bethgelart. The road to Capel Curig extends beyond
the point of the mountain Siabod, where it joins the
pass of Llanberis, through which a road to Carnarvon
was opened in 1831.
To the south of the village is the pass of Pont Aber
Glâslyn, which is somewhat narrow at the entrance,
and becomes gradually more contracted by the approach of the mountains, leaving scarcely room for
the river, which rushes with violence along its rocky
channel. The scenery in this vale is rudely magnificent: the mountains rise to an amazing height, and
towards the vale present a series of huge precipices,
towering above each other at irregular intervals, with
rugged masses of projecting cliffs, threatening every
moment to detach themselves from their lofty heights,
and fall into the vale. At the extremity of the pass
is a bridge of one arch, thirty feet in the span,
thrown over a chasm of tremendous depth, between
two steep precipices; the bridge bounds the counties
of Carnarvon and Merioneth, and forms the principal
communication between them. This spot is celebrated as the place where the princes of Meirion
received the sign of the cross from Baldwin, Archbishop of Canterbury, when he was preaching the
crusades throughout the principality. Near it is a
cataract, formed by a mountain torrent obstructed in
its descent by shelving ledges of projecting rock.
The lake Glâslyn, or the Blue Lake, so called from
the transparency of its waters, is the source of the
river of that name; and within the parish are numerous other lakes, besides those already described,
among which may be noticed Llyn Dinas, Llyn
Llydaw, Llyn yr Adar, and Llyn Duwaunydd. Of
the several beautiful mansions and estates, the chief
are, Plâs Gwynant, at the head of Llyn Dinas; Bryn
Gwynant, situated on an acclivity overhanging Llyn
Gwynant; and Dôlvriog, where considerable plantations have been formed within the present century
by W. M. Thackeray, Esq., M.D., in a most beautiful valley, rich in wood and water.
Slate is quarried; and a little to the south of the
village, and near Pont Aber Glâslyn, copper-ore has
been found in great abundance. The copper-mines
were originally worked many years ago; but the copper was so intermixed with other ores, as to render it
very difficult of separation with any advantage to the
proprietors. About the year 1800, the high price of
ore induced some adventurers to renew the works,
from which great quantities of ore were obtained;
but they were again discontinued, and remained in a
neglected state till 1819, when they were re-opened.
From that period many hundred tons were procured
annually for some years, but no mines are now
worked. Fairs are held in the parish on August 18th
and September 23rd.
The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with
£800 royal bounty; net income, £90: the patronage
and impropriation belong to Mr. Priestley, whose
tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of
£130. The church, dedicated to St. Mary, and
formerly connected with the priory, is a neat and
spacious structure, 77 feet in length and 26½ in
breadth. It is built in the early English style; in
the north wall are two lofty sharply-pointed arches,
which communicated with a north aisle, and at the
east end is a handsome lancet-shaped window of three
lights. In the village is a place of worship for Calvinistic Methodists, who have three others in various
parts of the parish. A day school is partly supported by subscriptions among the dissenters, averaging about £7 per annum, and partly by payments
from the parents of the children. There are also
four Sunday schools, gratuitously conducted by the
dissenters, affording instruction to several hundred
persons of both sexes. W. Wynne bequeathed a
rent-charge of £2. 13., for providing coats for six
poor men of the parish, and other uses. Maurice
Wynne, also, gave a rent-charge of £2. 13. 4. for
educating one boy in the school at Bangor; and
Mrs. Jones, in 1743, bequeathed £50, directing the
interest to be distributed annually among ten widows;
but these two bequests are supposed to be lost.
Some beautiful quartz crystals are found in the
mountains in the parish, more particularly in Snowdon, of a clear diamond-like transparency, and in the
form of a regular hexagonal prism: they are known
by the appellation of Welsh diamonds. In the township of Nantmor resided two distinguished bards of
the fifteenth century, Rhŷs Gôch o Eryri, the favourite bard of Owain Glyndwr, and Davydd Nantmor, both of whom were natives of the parish, and
were interred in the churchyard.
Bettesfield
BETTESFIELD, a township, in the parish of
Hanmer, union of Ellesmere, hundred of Maelor,
county of Flint, North Wales, 4 miles (E. N. E.)
from Ellesmere; containing 370 inhabitants. It is
situated on the border of Shropshire, and the road
from Ellesmere to Whitchurch passes through it.
Bettesfield Park, the ancient residence of the family
of Hanmer, was the birthplace of Sir Thomas Hanmer, Speaker of the House of Commons in the reign
of Queen Anne: it is described in the article on the
parish. A portion of the tithes of the township was
bequeathed by Sir John Hanmer, Bart., in 1624, to
the support of a learned preacher in the church of
Hanmer. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £276. 15. 10., and those
payable to the vicar for one of £71. 7., with a glebe
of 7 acres, valued at £14 per annum.