Llanfoist
Encyclopedia
Llanfoist is a village
in Monmouthshire
, Wales
at , very near Abergavenny
.
The name of the village derives from St. Fwyst, an early Christian Welsh
Saint
.
Mountain, part of the Brecon Beacons National Park, rising 1,838 feet above sea level
over the vale of the River Usk
. The mountain
can be ascended on foot from Llanfoist, straight up its 'front', a very direct route but also very steep. The rewarding views from the top are among the best in South Wales.
The Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/49209 runs just above the village offering an excellent flat route for contour walking along the valley side, with views across to the Black Mountains, Wales
. Llanfoist Wharf
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/289015 is a very picturesque spot a quarter of the way up the Blorenge. The wharf is now owned by a narrowboat
hire company.
, most famously author of The Rape of the Fair Country
is buried in Llanfoist.
, of the sort depicted in Cordell's books, Crawshay Bailey
, who retired to Llanfoist House in 1870, a year or two before his death.
.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire is a county in south east Wales. The name derives from the historic county of Monmouthshire which covered a much larger area. The largest town is Abergavenny. There are many castles in Monmouthshire .-Historic county:...
, 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...
at , very near Abergavenny
Abergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
.
The name of the village derives from St. Fwyst, an early Christian Welsh
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...
Saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
.
Attractions
The village is sited beneath the massive BlorengeBlorenge
The Blorenge or simply Blorenge is a prominent hill which overlooks the valley of the River Usk in Monmouthshire, southeast Wales. It is situated in the southeastern corner of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The summit plateau reaches a height of ....
Mountain, part of the Brecon Beacons National Park, rising 1,838 feet above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
over the vale of the River Usk
River Usk
The River Usk rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain of mid-Wales, in the easternmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east by Sennybridge to Brecon before turning southeast to flow by Talybont-on-Usk, Crickhowell and...
. The mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
can be ascended on foot from Llanfoist, straight up its 'front', a very direct route but also very steep. The rewarding views from the top are among the best in South Wales.
The Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal
Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal
The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal is a small network of canals in South Wales. For most of its length it runs through the Brecon Beacons National Park, and its present rural character and tranquillity belies its original purpose as an industrial corridor for coal and iron, which were brought to...
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/49209 runs just above the village offering an excellent flat route for contour walking along the valley side, with views across to the Black Mountains, Wales
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...
. Llanfoist Wharf
Wharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/289015 is a very picturesque spot a quarter of the way up the Blorenge. The wharf is now owned by a narrowboat
Narrowboat
A narrowboat or narrow boat is a boat of a distinctive design, made to fit the narrow canals of Great Britain.In the context of British Inland Waterways, "narrow boat" refers to the original working boats built in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries for carrying goods on the narrow canals...
hire company.
In Cordell Country
The novelist Alexander CordellAlexander Cordell
Alexander Cordell was the pen-name of George Alexander Graber, a prolific Welsh novelist and author of thirty acclaimed works including Rape of the Fair Country, The Hosts of Rebecca and Song of the Earth....
, most famously author of The Rape of the Fair Country
Rape of the Fair Country
Rape of the Fair Country is a novel by Alexander Cordell, first published in 1959. It is the first in Cordell's "Mortymer Trilogy", followed by The Hosts Of Rebecca and Song of the Earth...
is buried in Llanfoist.
Home of An Ironmaster
Llanfoist was home to a famed, or infamous, ironmasterIronmaster
An ironmaster is the manager – and usually owner – of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain....
, of the sort depicted in Cordell's books, Crawshay Bailey
Crawshay Bailey
Crawshay Bailey was an English industrialist who became one of the great iron-masters of Wales.-Early life:Bailey was born in 1789 in Great Wenham, Suffolk, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield and his wife Susannah...
, who retired to Llanfoist House in 1870, a year or two before his death.
Recent history
The primary school is due to move from its current location to a field alongside the canalCanal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
.