Defynnog, also known as Devynock in some historical documents, is a small village in the

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, ...

of Maescar in the historic county of Brecknockshire,

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, now lying within the unitary authority area of

Powys Powys (; ) is a county and preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. Geog ...

. It lies immediately south of

Sennybridge Sennybridge ( cy, Pontsenni) is a village in the historic county of Brecknockshire, Wales, now within the unitary authority area of Powys, situated some from Cardiff and from Swansea. It lies west of Brecon on the A40 trunk road to Llandov ...

and about ten miles west of

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...

within the

Brecon Beacons National Park The Brecon Beacons National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) is one of three national parks in Wales, and is centred on the Brecon Beacons range of hills in southern Wales. It includes the Black Mountain ( cy, Y Mynydd Du) i ...

The village

An important place in the past, Defynnog lost much of its importance as

became more developed. The village (which has also been referred to historically as 'Devynnock') is located in the

one mile south of Sennybridge, beside the Afon Senni just south of its confluence with the River Usk and where the A4215 road meets the A4065. The

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

name signifies the 'territory belonging to Dyfwn'.

History

To the southwest of the village is "Y Gaer", a small oval

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

with a sub-rectangular annex standing on a ridge. The ramparts and ditches are covered with bracken. The local church, dedicated to Saint Cynog, contains an ancient stone with

ogham Ogham ( Modern Irish: ; mga, ogum, ogom, later mga, ogam, label=none ) is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 4th to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish langu ...

inscriptions and is a grade I listed building. In 1836 a chapel in the parish of Defynnog was dedicated to

Saint Callwen Saint Callwen was an early Welsh Christian saint from the Brychan family. There is some doubt about whether she existed. A church was dedicated to her in Defynnog, Brecknockshire. Life Saint Callwen was a member of the Brychan family of Wales wh ...

. The churchyard contains several yew trees, of which the largest has a girth large enough for it to be 1300–3000 years old. An adjacent yew was reported in 2014 to be genetically identical to the largest, leading to conjecture in the popular press that the two trees were remnants of a single 5000-year-old tree; but this conjecture has been disputed on the grounds that

layering Layering has evolved as a common means of vegetative propagation of numerous species in natural environments. Layering is also utilized by horticulturists to propagate desirable plants. Natural layering typically occurs when a branch touches ...

is a more plausible origin for the adjacent tree. The crown of the largest tree is 60 ft in diameter. The rectory within the church grounds was once the property of Moses Williams FRS and his inscription is to found on the beams of one of the attics. The property immediately south of the lychgate (Ty Defynnog, Defynnog House) may have been made up of two former cottages. Its cellar contains a stone slab of uncertain purpose. It is a

Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...

. The Sir John Davy School is now a cafe and antiques centre. The Sir John Davy Alms houses are sited close to a former police station and court, later a brass rubbing centre and now a bed and breakfast, complete with police cells. The Tanners Arms has a long and colourful history. The main building ( now the bar and restaurant ) dates to the early 1800s and was originally three separate cottages, all being homes for the workers at the nearby Tannery. Thomas Jenkins, father of David Jenkins, a defender of Rorke's Drift, was landlord of the Tanners Arms in 1871. Defynnog 1906

Notable people

Moses Davies Moses Davies (1799 – 6 January 1866) was a Welsh musician and composer. Davies was born in Defynnog, Brecknockshire (now in Powys), but in 1803 his parents moved to Merthyr Tydfil, where he grew up. He was an able singer and took to studying, a ...

(1799–1866), a Welsh musician and composer. * Isabella Gifford (1825–1891), a Welsh-born botanist, primarily an algologist, studying algae. * Gwenllian Morgan (1852–1939), an antiquary and the first woman in Wales to hold the office of Mayor. *

William Havard William Thomas Havard (23 October 1889 – 17 August 1956) was a Welsh clergyman and rugby union international player. He served as a military chaplain during the First World War, and later as Bishop of St Asaph and then Bishop of St Dav ...

MC (1889–1956), a Welsh clergyman and rugby union international player.

References

* ''Law and Disorder in Breconshire'', Dewi Davies, published by D.G and A.S. Evans, Brecon.

External links

images of Defynnog and surrounding area on Geograph website

Sir John Davy's School
* Tanners Arm

{{authority control Fforest Fawr Villages in Powys

The village

History

Notable people

See also

References

External links