Chirk ( cy, Y Waun) is a town and

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...

Wrexham County Borough Wrexham County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Wrecsam) is a county borough, with city status, in the north-east of Wales. It borders England to the east and south-east, Powys to the south-west, Denbighshire to the west and Flintshire to the nort ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, south of

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

, between it and

Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads. The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 4,468. Historically in the traditional county of

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...

, and later

Clwyd Clwyd () is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English ceremonial counties of Cheshire to th ...

, it has been part of Wrexham County Borough since a local government reorganisation in 1996. The

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

with the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

is immediately south of the town, on the other side of the

River Ceiriog The River Ceiriog ( cy, Afon Ceiriog) is an long river in north east Wales, whose name may derive from a term meaning "favoured one". It is a tributary of the River Dee. It rises at an altitude of around on the south east slopes of Moel Ffern ...

. The town is served by

Chirk railway station Chirk ( cy, Y Waun) is a town and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, south of Wrexham, between it and Oswestry. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 4,468. Historically in the traditional county of Denbighshire, and later Clw ...

and the A5/

A483 The A483, officially described as the Swansea to Manchester Trunk Road, although now ending in Chester, is a major road in the United Kingdom. It runs from Swansea in Wales to Chester in England via Llandovery, Llandrindod Wells, Oswestry and W ...

roads.

Etymology

The name of the town in English, Chirk, derives from the name of the

, which itself may mean "the favoured one". The Welsh place name, ', is literarally "The Moor".

History and heritage

Chirk Castle Chirk Castle ( cy, Castell y Waun) is a Grade I listed castle located in Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. History The castle was built in 1295 by Roger Mortimer de Chirk, uncle of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March as part of King Edward ...

, a

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

property, is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

castle. Two families are associated with the town and its castle: the

Trevor Trevor (Trefor (disambiguation), Trefor in the Welsh language) is a common given name or surname of Welsh language, Welsh origin. It is an habitational name, deriving from the Welsh ''tre(f)'', meaning "homestead", or "settlement" and ''fawr'', ...

family of

Brynkinallt Brynkinalt Hall ( cy, Neuadd Bryncunallt; or simply Brynkinalt (); also spelled as Brynkinallt or Bryn-kinallt) is a Grade-II* listed private property, built in 1612, near Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The hall is surrounded by an esta ...

and the Myddelton family. The

Hughes of Gwerclas Hughes of Gwerclas were a native Welsh royal family descended from Owain Brogyntyn the illegitimate but acknowledged son of Madog ap Maredudd (one of the last Kings of Powys, of the House of Mathrafal) by a daughter of the "Maer du" or "black m ...

, a family descended from the ancient kings of

Powys Fadog Powys Fadog (English: ''Lower Powys'' or ''Madog's Powys'') was the northern portion of the former princely realm of Powys, which split in two following the death of Madog ap Maredudd in 1160. The realm was divided under Welsh law, with Madog's ...

, also lived in the area for many years. Other attractions in the town include a section of

Offa's Dyke Offa's Dyke ( cy, Clawdd Offa) is a large linear earthwork that roughly follows the border between England and Wales. The structure is named after Offa, the Anglo-Saxon king of Mercia from AD 757 until 796, who is traditionally believed to h ...

and the

Chirk Aqueduct Chirk Aqueduct is a high and long navigable aqueduct that carries what is now the Llangollen Canal across the Ceiriog Valley near Chirk, on the England-Wales border, spanning the two countries. History The aqueduct was designed by civil engin ...

, part of a larger

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

including

Pontcysyllte The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (; cy, Traphont Ddŵr Pontcysyllte) is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee in the Vale of Llangollen in northeast Wales. The 18-arched stone and cast iron structure is for use ...

aqueduct, on the

Llangollen Canal The Llangollen Canal ( cy, Camlas Llangollen) is a navigable canal crossing the border between England and Wales. The waterway links Llangollen in Denbighshire, north Wales, with Hurleston in south Cheshire, via the town of Ellesmere, Shropshir ...

, built in 1801 by

Thomas Telford Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotla ...

. The

Glyn Valley Tramway Glyn means "Valley" in Welsh and may refer to: *Glyn (name), including a list of people with the name *Baron Glyn, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom *Glyn baronets, created for members of the Glyn family *Glyn Ceiriog, a former slate ...

terminated on the canal near the mainline railway station. The parish church of St Mary's is a Grade I listed building. The current church building was begun during the 11th century by the Normans, although it is believed that an older ''llan'', dedicated to St Tysilio, had existed on the site. Indeed, the current church was dedicated to St Tysilio until the late 15th or early 16th century, after which it was re-dedicated to St Mary. Today, the church is a member of the Open Church Network and participates in the Sacred Space Project. Chirk was formerly a

coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

community with coal being worked from the 17th to the 20th century. The two largest collieries were Black Park (one of the oldest in the north of Wales) and Brynkinallt ( cy, Bryncunallt). These coal mines have now closed. Chirk was a coaching stop on the old

mail coach A mail coach is a stagecoach that is used to deliver mail. In Great Britain, Ireland, and Australia, they were built to a General Post Office-approved design operated by an independent contractor to carry long-distance mail for the Post Office. M ...

route along the A5 from

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Holyhead Holyhead (,; cy, Caergybi , "Cybi's fort") is the largest town and a community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales, with a population of 13,659 at the 2011 census. Holyhead is on Holy Island, bounded by the Irish Sea to the north, and is ...

. The

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

to Ruabon railway had been extended south to

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

by 1848, with stations at Llangollen Road (Whitehurst Halt, near Pentre) and Chirk; the Castle owners insisted that the railway not be visible to them and that the station be well outside the town lest it encourage the populace to travel. South of the town a

railway viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide ...

was constructed by

Henry Robertson Henry Robertson (11 June 1816 – 22 March 1888) was a Scottish mining engineer and prolific railway builder, industrialist and Liberal Party politician. He was head of Brymbo Steelworks, Wrexham. He was co-founder of Beyer-Peacock, with Charl ...

to take the line over the

Ceiriog Valley The Ceiriog Valley ( cy, Dyffryn Ceiriog) is the valley of the River Ceiriog in north-east Wales. Its Welsh name, "Dyffryn Ceiriog", is the name of an electoral ward of Wrexham County Borough. The ward is the largest ward of the county borough ...

. The Llangollen branch of the

Shropshire Union Canal The Shropshire Union Canal, nicknamed the "Shroppie", is a navigable canal in England. The Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union (SU) system and lie partially in Wales. The canal lies in ...

runs through Chirk. The canal crosses the Ceiriog Valley (from England into Wales) along Thomas Telford's aqueduct. Telford's aqueduct runs alongside the railway viaduct before the canal enters the Chirk Tunnel.

Modern day

Agriculture continues to be of some importance, as does tourism. The

's Chirk Castle is an attraction, as are the World Heritage Site of the Llangollen Canal, and the local scenery of the

and

Berwyn Mountains The Berwyn range (Welsh: ''Y Berwyn'' or ''Mynydd y Berwyn'') is an isolated and sparsely populated area of moorland in the northeast of Wales, roughly bounded by Llangollen in the northeast, Corwen in the northwest, Bala in the southwest, and ...

. Manufacturing now plays a prominent position within the local industries, with major international firms such as

Kronospan Kronospan is an Austrian-founded, Cyprus-based, international company that manufactures and distributes wood-based panels which are used in applications including flooring, furniture and timber-framed houses. The company manufactures particleboar ...

and Mondelez UK maintaining sites in the town. There are small business which support the local communities and its visitors, as well as service industries such as hotels, leisure facilities and restaurants. There are a wide range of employment opportunities and professions. Religion no longer has a prominent position, but there are four churches: St Mary's (

Church in Wales The Church in Wales ( cy, Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) is an Anglicanism, Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishop ...

), Chirk Methodist Church, Sacred Heart (Roman Catholic) and the Community Church. Chirk is served by two local primary schools: Ysgol Y Waun and Pentre Church in Wales Controlled School. Ysgol Y Waun is the main primary school for children in Chirk. It was formed in 2012, by the merger of Chirk Infants School and Ceiriog Junior School. Ysgol Y Waun is a nursery, infant and junior school of mixed gender and lessons are taught through the medium of English. The school has about 335 pupils, with an increasing number of pupils on free school meals: 19.7% in 2014, which is above the Local Authority average but below the Wales average. Pentre School is a nursery, infant and junior school of mixed gender. There are approximately 86 pupils on roll who are all taught through the medium of English. Welsh is taught as a compulsory part of the school curriculum as a second language. The school is in a relatively affluent area, with only 15.9% of the school population eligible for free school meals, which is substantially below the Local Authority and Wales averages. Most pupils in the community attend Ysgol Dinas Brân, Llangollen, for their secondary education. Ysgol Dinas Brân is a relatively large, bilingual secondary school catering for pupils from ages 11 – 19 (including Sixth Form). Other secondary schools in the area include Ysgol Rhiwabon, St Martin's School (Shropshire) and St Joseph's in Wrexham. The area is served by independent schools, such as Moreton Hall and

Ellesmere College (''Striving for one's country'') , established = 1879 , song = ''Jerusalem'' , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding schoolDay School , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label ...

in neighbouring Shropshire. Although Chirk is a predominantly English-speaking area, some parents choose to educate their children through the medium of Welsh. The nearest Welsh-medium primary schools are in

Glyn Ceiriog Glyn Ceiriog is the principal settlement of the Ceiriog Valley and a community in Wrexham County Borough, north-east Wales. Glyn Ceiriog translates simply as Ceiriog Valley, though there are other villages in the valley. The village and communit ...

and Cefn Mawr. Pupils can then transfer to either Ysgol Dinas Brân, Llangollen or Ysgol Morgan Llwyd, Wrexham for Welsh-medium secondary education. The Ceiriog Memorial Institute, in the

Ceiriog valley The Ceiriog Valley ( cy, Dyffryn Ceiriog) is the valley of the River Ceiriog in north-east Wales. Its Welsh name, "Dyffryn Ceiriog", is the name of an electoral ward of Wrexham County Borough. The ward is the largest ward of the county borough ...

, just west of Chirk, is home to a collection of Welsh cultural memorabilia and was founded in the early 1900s to support the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

, culture and heritage for future generations. In the 2011 census, a total of 3,652 residents (81.7%) have no skills in the

Sport

Chirk is home to Chirk AAA F.C., a football team founded in 1876. Currently playing in the Cymru North (the second tier of Welsh football). Chirk Golf Club was founded in 1991. The club closed in September 2012.“Chirk Golf Club”
“Golf’s Missing Links”.

Notable people

British (English) School - Sir Thomas Myddelton III (1624–1663), 1st Bt - 1171110 - National Trust

* Sir Edward Trevor (ca.1580–1642), founder of the fortunes of the Trevor dynasty *

Sir Thomas Myddelton, 1st Baronet Sir Thomas Myddelton, 1st Baronet (2 November 1624 – 13 July 1663) was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1646 and 1663. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War but later took part in the ...

(1624–1663), MP for Flint Boroughs *

Sir Thomas Myddelton, 2nd Baronet Sir Thomas Myddelton, 2nd Baronet (ca. 1651 – 5 February 1684) was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1679 and 1681. Myddelton was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Myddelton, 1st Baronet and his first wife Mary Cholmondley ...

(ca.1651–1684), MP for

Sir Richard Myddelton, 3rd Baronet Sir Richard Myddelton, 3rd Baronet (23 March 1655 – 29 April 1716), of Chirk Castle, Denbighshire, was a Welsh landowner and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1685 to 1716. Myddelton was the fourth son of Sir Thomas Myddel ...

(1655–1716), of

, MP for

* Robert Roberts (1680–1741), cleric and writer. * Frederick West (1767–1852), MP for Denbigh Boroughs * Robert Myddelton Biddulph (1805–1872), MP for Denbigh Boroughs *

Joseph Fletcher Joseph Francis Fletcher (April 10, 1905 in Newark, New Jersey - October 28, 1991 in Charlottesville, Virginia) was an American professor who founded the theory of situational ethics in the 1960s, and was a pioneer in the field of bioethics. Flet ...

(1813–1852), barrister and statistician * Edwin Hill-Trevor, 1st Baron Trevor (1819–1894), MP for

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

(estate at

Brynkinalt Brynkinalt Hall ( cy, Neuadd Bryncunallt; or simply Brynkinalt (); also spelled as Brynkinallt or Bryn-kinallt) is a Grade-II* listed private property, built in 1612, near Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The hall is surrounded by an est ...

) *

R. S. Thomas Ronald Stuart Thomas (29 March 1913 – 25 September 2000), published as R. S. Thomas, was a Welsh poet and Anglican priest ( Church of Wales) noted for nationalism, spirituality and dislike of the anglicisation of Wales. John Betjeman, introduc ...

(1913–2000), a Welsh poet and Anglican priest * Ian Hamilton (born 1946), a Canadian mystery writer, former journalist and civil servant * Peter Edwards, (born 1955), painter, he won the 1994

BP Portrait Award The BP Portrait Award is an annual portraiture competition held at the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. It is the successor to the John Player Portrait Award. It is the most important portrait prize in the world, and is reputedly ...

Sport

Di Jones David "Di" Jones (1867 – 27 August 1902) was a Welsh footballer who played as a full-back for Oswestry, Chirk, Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City in the late 19th century. He also won 14 caps for the Welsh national team. Career Club career ...

(1867–1902), footballer with 342 club caps and 14 for

* Hugh Morris (1872–1897), footballer with 59 club caps and 3 for

Billy Meredith William Henry Meredith (30 July 1874 – 19 April 1958) was a Welsh professional footballer. He was considered one of the early superstars of football due to his performances, notably for Manchester City and Manchester United. He won each ...

(1874–1958), footballer with 680 club caps and 48 for

* Lot Jones (1882–1941), footballer with over 300 club caps and 20 for

* Harry Millership (1889-1959), footballer with 124 club caps and 6 for

* Stan Davies (1898–1972), footballer with over 220 club caps and 18 for

* John Hulme (born 1950), cricketer, left-handed batsman * Paul Jones (born 1967), footballer with 583 club caps and 50 for

* Neil Thomas (born 1968), retired World Champion artistic gymnast * Mike Jones (born 1987), footballer with over 450 club caps

References

*G. G. Lerry, "Collieries of Denbighshire", 1968

External links

Chirk Town Council websiteBBC Wales – Chirk website

The Glyn Valley Tramway Trust in ChirkSt Mary's Church, ChirkWrexham & Shropshire Railway
{{authority control Towns in Wrexham County Borough Communities in Wrexham County Borough Towns of the Welsh Marches

Etymology

History and heritage

Modern day

Sport

Notable people

Sport

See also

References

External links