Buckholt is a small village in

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...

, Wales, located some north of

Monmouth Monmouth ( , ; cy, Trefynwy meaning "town on the Monnow") is a town and community in Wales. It is situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. Monmouth is northeast of Cardiff, and west of London. I ...

, adjoining the

boundary Boundary or Boundaries may refer to: * Border, in political geography Entertainment *Boundaries (2016 film), ''Boundaries'' (2016 film), a 2016 Canadian film *Boundaries (2018 film), ''Boundaries'' (2018 film), a 2018 American-Canadian road trip ...

with

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It is a

linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical re ...

situated in the valley of the Mally Brook along the

A466 road The A466, also known as the Wye Valley Road, is a road from Hereford, England to Chepstow, Wales via Monmouth, Tintern and the Wye Valley. The road was largely developed during the late 18th and early 19th centuries by turnpike trusts in Here ...

between Monmouth and

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

History

The name Buckholt derives from words meaning "beech wood", and much of the area around the village remains wooded on steeply sloping valley sides. The local woods contain evidence of

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

settlement, and

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

material has also been found. Grist Castle Wood, rising above the valley to the east and adjoining Orles Wood, is thought to have been the site of a small fortification commanding the strategically important road between Monmouth and Hereford. In 1248 the Buckholt area was owned by

Monmouth Priory Monmouth Priory, in Priory Street, Monmouth, Wales, is a building that incorporates the remains of the monastic buildings attached to St Mary's Priory Church. The priory was a Benedictine foundation of 1075, and parts of the mediaeval buildings ...

and the local lord

John of Monmouth John of Monmouth (c. 1182 – 1248) was an Anglo-Norman feudal lord of Breton ancestry, who was lord of Monmouth between 1190 and 1248. He was a favourite of both King John and his son, Henry III, and one of the most powerful royal allies i ...

gave the monks certain rights and privileges in relation to the woodland. Buckholt Old Mill Farm is the site of a mediaeval

corn mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separated ...

owned by the Priory; the mill remained operational until the late 19th century. The area came into the possession of the

Duke of Beaufort Duke of Beaufort (), a title in the Peerage of England, was created by Charles II in 1682 for Henry Somerset, 3rd Marquess of Worcester, a descendant of Charles Somerset, 1st Earl of Worcester, legitimised son of Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of So ...

in 1682. ''The Gwent Village Book'', section on Buckholt, reproduced at VisitorUK.com
Accessed 27 March 2012 Houses built in the valley in the 18th and 19th centuries were mainly occupied by

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...

burners and were constructed from local timber and stone. Charcoal burning was an important local activity until the 1890s. Building stone was provided by local quarries, including Callow Quarry which produces red

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

. Stone from the quarry was used to build Haberdashers' Schools in Monmouth and for restoring the town wall at Hereford. The quarry was taken over in 2007 by Black Mountain Quarries, based at

Pontrilas Pontrilas ('' en, Bridge over Three Rivers'') is a village in south Herefordshire, England, half a mile from the border with Wales. It is in the parish of Kentchurch and lies midway between Hereford and Abergavenny. In 2011 the main village conta ...

, and remains operational.

Buildings

The church of St. John was built in 1889. Its octagonal font is dated 1663 and is said to have come from St Peter's Church at nearby

Dixton Dixton ( cy, Llandydiwg) is a small village located north east of Monmouth, on the banks of the River Wye, in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. The parish originally comprised the two manors of Dixton Newton and Dixton Hadnock, on either side of ...

.John Newman, ''The Buildings of Wales: Gwent/Monmouthshire'', 2000, , p.135 A small school operated in a building opposite the church for 40 years after it was built in 1860. The Old Inn at Manson Cross was built in 1760 and is said to have been used by highwaymen. The Plough Inn at Buckholt was used by charcoal burners and millers. Both pubs have now been converted into private houses. The village hall was built in 1929 by public subscription. It continues to host a wide range of village activities. Farms in the area include Great Manson Farm, southwest of Manson Lane.

References

{{authority control Villages in Monmouthshire