Mallwyd () is a small village at the most southern end of

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and C ...

, Wales in the

Dinas Mawddwy Dinas Mawddwy () is a village in the community of Mawddwy in south-east Gwynedd, north Wales. It lies within the Snowdonia National Park, but just to the east of the main A470, and consequently many visitors pass the village by. Its population is ...

community, in the valley of the

River Dyfi The River Dyfi ( cy, Afon Dyfi; ), also known as the River Dovey (; ), is an approximately long river in Wales. Its large estuary forms the boundary between the counties of Gwynedd and Ceredigion, and its lower reaches have historically been c ...

. It lies on the

A470 The A470 (also named the Cardiff to Glan Conwy Trunk Road) is a trunk road in Wales. It is the country's longest road at and links the capital Cardiff on the south coast to Llandudno on the north coast. While previously one had to navigate t ...

approximately halfway between

Dolgellau Dolgellau () is a town and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the historic county of Merionethshire ( cy, Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd) un ...

and

Machynlleth Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a popul ...

, and forms the junction of the A458 towards

Welshpool Welshpool ( cy, Y Trallwng) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, historically in the county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn; its Welsh language name ''Y Trallwng'' m ...

. The nearest villages are

, two miles to the north, and

Aberangell Aberangell () is a village in Gwynedd, Wales. Geography Aberangell stands at the confluence of the Afon Angell and the Afon Dyfi, and lies within Dinas Mawddwy community. On the north side of the village, the long ridge of Pen y Clipau runs d ...

a similar distance to the south. The River Dugoed flows into the River Dyfi near the village.

History

The village is situated near the boundary between the historic counties of

Merionethshire , HQ= Dolgellau , Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= , Status= , Start= 1284 , End= , Code= MER , CodeName= ...

and

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...

. The village is situated in the parish of Mallwyd in the district of Mawddwy. This was the region of the

Red Bandits of Mawddwy The Red Bandits of Mawddwy (Welsh: ''Gwylliaid Cochion Mawddwy'') were a band of red-haired robbers, highwaymen or footpads from the area of Mawddwy in Mid Wales in the 16th century, who became famous in folk literature. History In the 1500s, M ...

, which is remembered in the village pub, ''The Brigands''.

Railway

In 1867, the

Mawddwy Railway The Mawddwy Railway was a rural line in the Dyfi Valley in mid-Wales that connected Dinas Mawddwy with a junction at railway station on the Newtown and Machynlleth Railway section of the Cambrian Railways. Despite being only 6 miles 63 chains ...

was opened, connecting

with

Cemmaes Road Cemmaes Road ( cy, Glantwymyn; ) is a village in Powys, Wales. It is in the community (civil parish) of Glantwymyn. The village was named in English after the now-closed station on the Newtown and Machynlleth Railway, now part of the Cambrian ...

. A small station was provided to serve Mallwyd, though it was nearly a mile from the village. Passenger services on the railway were withdrawn in 1931, and the railway closed and was lifted in 1952.

The Church

Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 30.tif, The church viewed from the East Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 93.JPG, Yew tree Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 34.JPG, Church portals Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 22.JPG, Ports and timber belltower Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 37.JPG, The timber belltower Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 92.jpg, A panorama view of the church facing East Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 67.tif, Raised seating at the back of the church Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 57.JPG Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 49.tif Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 41.JPG, The font Eglwys Sant Tydecho Mallwyd Powys Cymru Wales 62.JPG, Sculpture of Mary and Jesus According to tradition, Mallwyd church was founded in the 6th century by

Saint Tydecho Saint Tydecho was a 6th century saint of Wales. The life of Saint Padarn described Tydecho as one of the saints who came to Wales from Armorica. There are questions as to whether this place was Brittany or an area in southeast Wales which is known ...

after he came to the area from

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. The present building dates from the 14th century and is unusual in form, being long and narrow with a balcony at each end. There are many wooden fixtures dating from the 17th century. The scholar John Davies was rector of Mallwyd for 40 years at the beginning of the 17th century. There is a memorial to him in the church which was put up to commemorate the 200th anniversary of his death. Outside the church are several great

yew Yew is a common name given to various species of trees. It is most prominently given to any of various coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Taxus'': * European yew or common yew (''Taxus baccata'') * Pacific yew or western yew (''Taxus br ...

trees. The timber bell tower of the church is inscribed: SOLI DEO SACRUM ANNI CHRISTI MDCXL. It formerly also read VENITE CANTEM

s domino S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. Histor ...

A.D.1640 HONOR DEO IN EXCELSIS. The portals of the church, found between the church and the river, are decorated with fossil mammal bones. The black marble, octagonal font, dated below the bowl 1734, was a gift of Sir John Mytton of

Notable people

* John Davies (ca.1567–1644), scholar, Rector of Mallwyd 1604-44 *

Robert Foulkes Robert Foulkes (baptised 19 March 1633/34 – executed 31 January 1678/79) was a Welsh-born English Church of England cleric and murderer. Early life Although long presumed to have been a native of Shropshire in England, Foulkes was born and bapt ...

(ca.1633 - 1679), clergyman and murderer. *

John Rice Jones John Rice Jones (February 11, 1759 – February 1, 1824) was a Welsh-born, American politician, jurist, and military officer. He helped establish the territorial governments in Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri. John Rice Jones was the father of U ...

(1759–1824), American jurist and politician * Rowland Williams (1779–1854), Welsh Anglican priest and writer *

Robert Vaughn Robert Francis Vaughn (November 22, 1932 – November 11, 2016) was an American actor noted for his stage, film and television work. His television roles include the spy Napoleon Solo in the 1960s series ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.''; the ...

(1836-1918), Montana Rancher

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Mallwyd and surrounding area
{{authority control Villages in Gwynedd Villages in Snowdonia Mawddwy