Llanelieu
Encyclopedia
Llanelieu is a small settlement and former civil parish (community
Community (Wales)
A community is a division of land in Wales that forms the lowest-tier of local government in Wales. Welsh communities are analogous to civil parishes in England....
) in Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
on the northern edge of the Black Mountains
Black Mountains, Wales
The Black Mountains are a group of hills spread across parts of Powys and Monmouthshire in southeast Wales, and extending across the national border into Herefordshire, England. They are the easternmost of the four ranges of hills that comprise the Brecon Beacons National Park, and are frequently...
within the Brecon Beacons National Park. It was formerly in the county of Brecknockshire
Brecknockshire
Brecknockshire , also known as the County of Brecknock, Breconshire, or the County of Brecon is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, and a former administrative county.-Geography:...
. The settlement is now part of the Community
Community (Wales)
A community is a division of land in Wales that forms the lowest-tier of local government in Wales. Welsh communities are analogous to civil parishes in England....
of Talgarth
Talgarth
Talgarth is a small market town and community in southern Powys , Mid Wales, with a population of 1,645. Notable buildings in the town include its 14th-century parish church and 13th century Pele Tower, located in the town centre, now home to the Tourist Information and Resource Centre...
. The nearest town is Talgarth some 2.5 miles (4 km) to the west.
The settlement
Prehistoric settlement of the area is evidenced by Ffostyll Long Cairns, two neolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
burial chambers just to the north of Ffostyll Farm.
St Ellyw's Church
St Ellyw's ChurchSt Ellyw's Church, Llanelieu
St Ellyw's Church, Llanelieu, is a redundant church in the village of Llanelieu, Powys, Wales. It has been designated by Cadw as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Friends of Friendless Churches...
is the main feature of the scattered settlement as well as being the source of its name (Llan-Ellyw). Saint Ellyw is said to have been one of the many saintly offspring of Brychan
Brychan
Brychan Brycheiniog was a legendary 5th-century king of Brycheiniog in South Wales.-Life:Celtic hagiography tells us that Brychan was born in Ireland, the son of a Prince Anlach, son of Coronac, and his wife, Marchel, heiress of the Welsh kingdom of Garthmadrun , which the couple later inherited...
, legendary 5th century king of Brycheiniog
Brycheiniog
Brycheiniog was a small independent petty kingdom in South Wales in the Early Middle Ages. It often acted as a buffer state between England to the east and the powerful south Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth to the west. It was conquered and pacified by the Normans between 1088 and 1095, though it...
who ruled from nearby Talgarth
Talgarth
Talgarth is a small market town and community in southern Powys , Mid Wales, with a population of 1,645. Notable buildings in the town include its 14th-century parish church and 13th century Pele Tower, located in the town centre, now home to the Tourist Information and Resource Centre...
. The church of St Ellyw dates from the 13th century and, unusually, escaped Victorian modernization so that it preserves many of its medieval features. It is now redundant
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
, but is cared for as a Grade I listed building.
Near the church is a veteran
Veteran tree
A veteran tree or legacy tree is a tree which, because of its great age, size or condition, is of exceptional cultural, landscape or nature conservation value.-Definition:...
yew
Taxus baccata
Taxus baccata is a conifer native to western, central and southern Europe, northwest Africa, northern Iran and southwest Asia. It is the tree originally known as yew, though with other related trees becoming known, it may be now known as the English yew, or European yew.-Description:It is a small-...
that was believed to have been used as the parish stocks
Stocks
Stocks are devices used in the medieval and colonial American times as a form of physical punishment involving public humiliation. The stocks partially immobilized its victims and they were often exposed in a public place such as the site of a market to the scorn of those who passed by...
in the 17th and 18th centuries. Natural holes in the tree took the miscreant's arms which were then secured by an iron bar. The tree was subject to restoration in 2010.
Llanelieu Court
In 1845, Samuel Lewis' topographical entry for Llanelieu noted that "there were formerly several ancient mansions, but they have been all abandoned as family residences by their proprietors, and are at present occupied as farm-houses". Chief among those that survive is Llanelieu Court, a 17th century house which was formerly the home of one of the branches of the Aubrey family. In recent years it has housed a craft pottery, the Black Mountains Pottery, and is now a Grade II listed building.The parish and community
Llanelieu was a civil parish from 1837 until 1974, when it was re-termed a communityCommunity (Wales)
A community is a division of land in Wales that forms the lowest-tier of local government in Wales. Welsh communities are analogous to civil parishes in England....
. The community included the settlement of Llanelieu and extended to the south east as far as Mynydd Du Forest. As such, it included a substantial upland area of the Black Mountains
Black Mountains, Wales
The Black Mountains are a group of hills spread across parts of Powys and Monmouthshire in southeast Wales, and extending across the national border into Herefordshire, England. They are the easternmost of the four ranges of hills that comprise the Brecon Beacons National Park, and are frequently...
, principally along the valley of the Grwyne Fawr
Grwyne Fawr
The Grwyne Fawr is a river in the Brecon Beacons National Park in south Wales. A section of it forms the administrative border between Powys and Monmouthshire and also of the historic counties of Brecon and Monmouth. The river and its major tributary the Grwyne Fechan flow into the River Usk at...
where a reservoir was completed between 1908 and 1928. A temporary village, including school, was built on site to house construction workers and remains of this village are still visible. Lewis in 1845 described the "surrounding scenery as bold, and in some parts romantic", whereas the 1868 National Gazetteer dismissed it as "somewhat of a gloomy cast".
Despite its size, Llanelieu was one of the least populous communities in Brecknockshire containing just 15 houses and 72 people in 1961. In 1985, it was split up, the settlement merging with the community of Talgarth, whilst the northernmost part was transferred to the new community of Gwernyfed
Gwernyfed
Gwernyfed is a community in Powys, Wales, centred on the village of Aberllynfi . It takes its name from Gwernyfed Park, a medieval deer park within the community....
and the extensive southern part to the new community of the Vale of Grwyney.