, HQ= Montgomery , Government= Montgomeryshire County Council (1889–1974)
Montgomeryshire District Council (1974–1996) , Origin= , Status= , Start= , End= , Code= MGY , CodeName=

Chapman code Chapman codes are a set of 3-letter codes used in genealogy to identify the administrative divisions in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Use They were created by the historian, Dr. Colin R Chapman, in the late ...

, Replace= Powys , Motto= , Divisions= , DivisionsNames= , DivisionsMap= , Image= Montgomery Town Hall - geograph

, image_caption = Broad Street and Montgomery Town Hall (2001) , Map= , Arms= , Civic= , PopulationFirst= 66,482Vision of Britain �
1831 Census
/ref> , PopulationFirstYear= 1831 , AreaFirst= , AreaFirstYear= 1831 , DensityFirst= 0.1/acre , DensityFirstYear= 1831 , PopulationSecond= 63,779 , PopulationSecondYear= 2011 , AreaSecond= , AreaSecondYear= 2011 , DensitySecond= , DensitySecondYear= , PopulationLast= , PopulationLastYear= , AreaLast= , AreaLastYear= , DensityLast= , DensityLastYear= Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties and a former administrative county of

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 ...

. It is named after its

county town In the United Kingdom and Ireland, a county town is the most important town or city in a county. It is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county and the place where the county's members of Parliament are elect ...

, Montgomery, which in turn is named after one of

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

's main counsellors,

Roger de Montgomerie Roger de Montgomery (died 1094), also known as Roger the Great, was the first Earl of Shrewsbury, and Earl of Arundel, in Sussex. His father was Roger de Montgomery, seigneur of Montgomery, a member of the House of Montgomerie, and was probably ...

, who was the 1st Earl of Shrewsbury. Montgomeryshire today constitutes the northern part of the principal area of Powys. The population of Montgomeryshire was 63,779 according to the 2011 census, with a low population density of just 75 people per square mile (29 people per square km). The current area is 2,174 square km (839 square miles). The largest town is Newtown, followed by Welshpool and

Llanidloes Llanidloes () is a town and community on the A470 and B4518 roads in Powys, within the historic county boundaries of Montgomeryshire ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn), Wales. The population in 2011 was 2,929, of whom 15% could speak Welsh. It is the third ...

History

The Treaty of Montgomery was signed on 29 September 1267, in the town of Montgomery, which had recently been established as an English incursion on the Welsh side of the border, to control a strategic border crossing. The surrounding region (on the Welsh side of the border) otherwise comprised the mediaeval principality of Powys Wenwynwyn, the southern of the two states into which the Kingdom of Powys had been divided a century before. Attacks by

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 ...

on Powys Wenwynwyn led the latter to seek the assistance of the English. Ultimately this led them to convert their territory into a marcher lordship, via '' surrender and regrant'', as a way to strengthen their position; the ruling princes of Powys Wenwynwyn became the ''Lords of Powys'', feudally bound to the English king, and able to fully rely on English backing, but otherwise independent. The prince took an English-style surname - Owen de-la Pole - after his capital city, Pool (now Welshpool). With the introduction of the

Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 ( cy, Y Deddfau Cyfreithiau yng Nghymru 1535 a 1542) were Acts of the Parliament of England, and were the parliamentary measures by which Wales was annexed to the Kingdom of England. Moreover, the legal sys ...

the marcher lordships were converted into English counties. The Lordship of Powys – the former Powys Wenwynwyn – became Montgomeryshire; the county town being Montgomery, the strongest centre of English authority in the region, rather than centre of Welsh authority, Welshpool. Montgomeryshire was thus ultimately formed from the ''

cantref A cantref ( ; ; plural cantrefi or cantrefs; also rendered as ''cantred'') was a medieval Welsh land division, particularly important in the administration of Welsh law. Description Land in medieval Wales was divided into ''cantrefi'', which were ...

i'' of Powys Wenwynwyn: * Y Fyrnwy (

commote A commote (Welsh ''cwmwd'', sometimes spelt in older documents as ''cymwd'', plural ''cymydau'', less frequently ''cymydoedd'')''Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales ...

s of

Mochnant Mochnant, a name translating as "the rapid stream", was a medieval cantref in the Kingdom of Powys. In the 12th century it was divided into the commotes of Mochnant Is Rhaeadr (in the north) and Mochnant Uwch Rhaeadr (in the south) (''Is'' signif ...

Uwch Rhaeadr,

Mechain Mechain was a medieval cantref in the Kingdom of Powys. This cantref has also been referred to as Y Fyrnwy (''Vyrnwy''). Mechain may owe its name to the River Cain which flows through it on its way to join the River Vyrnwy; 'Me' or 'Mach' (c.f. ...

Is Coed and Llanerch Hudol) * Llyswynaf (commotes of

Caereinion Caereinion (fort of Einion) was a medieval cantref in the Kingdom of Powys, or possibly it was a commote (''cwmwd'') within a cantref called Llŷs Wynaf. It was divided into the manors of Uwch Coed and Is Coed. It lay towards the south of the ki ...

and

Uwch Coed) * Ystlyg (commotes of

Deuddwr Deuddwr (; en, Confluence, literally: two waters) was a medieval commote (''cwmwd'') in the cantref of Ystlyg in the Kingdom of Powys. It lay at the east of the kingdom, bordering England to the north, the cantref of Mechain to the north-west a ...

Ystrad Marchell Ystrad Marchell sometimes Strad Marchell ( en, Vale of Marchell) was a medieval commote (''cwmwd'') in the cantref of Ystlyg in the Kingdom of Powys. It roughly coincides with the parish of Welshpool. It lay at the east of the kingdom, bordering ...

and Y Gorddwr Isaf) *

Cedewain Cedewain (or Cydewain) was a medieval cantref in the Kingdom of Powys. It possibly consisted of the commotes (''cymydau'') of Cynan, Hafren and Uwch Hanes. Other sources give the commotes as Cedewain, Eginlle and Ceri. It lay at the south of the ...

(commotes of

Cynan Cynan (also spelled Conan or Kenan) is a Welsh masculine given name. It may refer to: * Cynan, the bardic name of Albert Evans-Jones (1895–1970), Welsh poet and dramatist * Cynan ab Iago (11th century), prince of Gwynedd and father of Gruffydd ...

Cyfeiliog Cyfeiliog was a medieval commote in the cantref of Cynan of the Kingdom of Powys. Cynan also contained the commote of Mawddwy. Other sources refer to Cyfeiliog as a cantref in its own right, possibly as a result of Cynan's being renamed for the la ...

and Mawddwy) *

Arwystli Arwystli was a cantref in mid Wales in the Middle Ages, located in the headland of the River Severn. It was chiefly associated with the Kingdom of Powys, but was heavily disputed between Powys, Gwynedd, and the Norman Marcher Lords for hundre ...

(commotes of Arwystli Is Coed and Arwystli Uwch Coed) In addition, for practical reasons, Montgomeryshire gained the commote of

Ceri Ceri () is a hamlet (''frazione'') of the ''comune'' of Cerveteri, in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio (central Italy). It occupies a fortified plateau of tuff at a short distance from the city of Cerveteri. History Inhabited before the 7t ...

, which had formed a northwards spur of the less organised region Between Wye and Severn; most of the rest of the latter region became

Radnorshire , HQ = Presteigne , Government = Radnorshire County Council (1889–1974) Radnorshire District Council (1974–1996) , Origin = , Status = historic county, administrative county , Start ...

. Montgomeryshire was bordered, to the north, by

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 ...

, to the east and south east by

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 ...

, to the south by

, to the south west by

Cardiganshire Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cere ...

, and to the west and north west by

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

. When, in subsequent centuries, the concept of ''Wales'' was once again officially distinguished from ''England'', all of these counties were deemed ''Welsh'', except for Shropshire. Montgomeryshire was the birthplace of Welsh Catholic martyr

Saint Richard Gwyn Richard Gwyn (ca. 1537 – 15 October 1584), also known by his anglicised name, Richard White, was a Welsh teacher at illegal and underground schools and a Bard who wrote both Christian and satirical poetry in the Welsh language. A Roman ...

(in 1537).

Local government

Council offices Welshpool (geograph 3183899)

Elected county councils were established in

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...

under the Local Government Act 1888 to take over the local government functions previously exercised by the quarter sessions. Although the county was named after Montgomery, by 1889 the quarter sessions were instead held at both Newtown and Welshpool, and the new county council chose to continue meeting in both towns in its early years. Montgomeryshire County Council held its first formal meeting on 1 April 1889 at the Public Rooms (also known as the Flannel Exchange) in Newtown. In 1931 the county council opened a new headquarters building in Welshpool, called the Montgomeryshire County Offices or

Neuadd Maldwyn The Montgomeryshire County Offices ( cy, Neuadd Maldwyn) is a municipal building in Severn Street, Welshpool, Powys, Wales. The structure, which was the headquarters of Montgomeryshire County Council, is a Grade II listed building. History F ...

. The county council remained based at Neuadd Maldwyn until its abolition in 1974. Local government reforms in 1974 combined the administrative areas of Montgomeryshire,

and

Brecknockshire , image_flag= , HQ= Brecon , Government= Brecknockshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= Brycheiniog , Status= , Start= 1535 , End= ...

together to form a new administrative county called Powys. A new

district of Montgomeryshire , AltName= Montgomery , HQ= Welshpool , Status= District , Start= 1 April 1974 , End= 31 March 1996 , Replace= Powys , Arms= , Populat ...

was established as a lower-tier district authority within Powys, with the district's area matching the former administrative county. The district council took over Neuadd Maldwyn in Welshpool to serve as its headquarters, and also retained the former offices of the abolished

Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn (Welsh: ''Y Drenewydd a Llanllwchaearn'') is a local government community in mid Powys, Wales. It includes the town of Newtown and the small neighbouring village of Llanllwchaiarn. At the time of the 2011 census the pop ...

Urban District Council In England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected urban district council (UDC), which shared local gove ...

at Newtown Hall Park as an area office. Further local government reform in 1996 abolished district councils in Wales, making Powys a

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

. From 1996 until 2018

Powys County Council Powys County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir Powys) is the local authority for Powys, one of the administrative areas of Wales. The County Hall is in Llandrindod Wells. History The county of Powys was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Governme ...

had a Montgomeryshire area committee covering the former Montgomeryshire district plus three communities formerly in the Glyndŵr district of

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 ...

(historically

) which were transferred to Powys in 1996. The three area committees for the former counties were abolished in 2018.

Electoral representation

Montgomeryshire is a

UK Parliament constituency The Parliament of the United Kingdom currently has 650 parliamentary constituencies across the constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), each electing a single member of parliament (MP) to the House of Commons by th ...

and a

Senedd constituency The Senedd constituencies and electoral regions () are the electoral districts used to elect Members of the Senedd (MS; cy, Aelodau'r Senedd or AS) to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ), and have been used in some form since the first election of ...

Geography

The shire is almost wholly mountainous, although there are some fertile valleys in the east. The highest point (county top) is

Moel Sych Moel Sych () with a height of is a subsidiary summit of Cadair Berwyn in north east Wales. It is the third highest summit in the Berwyn range after Cadair Berwyn and Cadair Berwyn North Top. The summit lies at the triple historic county bound ...

at , whose summit lies at the triple county boundary point of Montgomeryshire, Denbighshire and Merionethshire in the

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 ...

. The county top of Denbighshire,

Cadair Berwyn Cadair Berwyn or Cader Berwyn is a mountain summit in north-east Wales with a height of above sea level. It is the highest point in the Berwyn range, the highest in North East Wales and the highest significant summit in Wales o ...

at , is less than a kilometre away. Its main rivers are the

River Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...

(which flows east into Shropshire) and the River Dyfi (which flows west into the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

Lake Vyrnwy , image = Lakevyrnwysummer.jpg , caption = View overlooking Lake Vyrnwy showing the full extent of the lake , image_bathymetry = , pushpin_map=Wales Powys , caption_bathymetry = , location = Wales , c ...

is a reservoir supplying

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. The main towns are Machynlleth,

, Montgomery, Newtown and Welshpool. The main industries are

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

(mainly hill farming) and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

, though there is also some

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

and light

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...

. The population density is highest near the border with England and along the Severn valley. The county is closely linked to

, with many essential services for Montgomeryshire residents being located in the more densely populated town of

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 ...

, such as acute health services at the

Royal Shrewsbury Hospital The Royal Shrewsbury Hospital is a teaching hospital in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. It forms the Shrewsbury site of the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, serving patients from Shropshire (including Telford and Wrekin) and Powys, i ...

. The county flower of Montgomeryshire is ''

Spergula arvensis ''Spergula arvensis'', the corn spurry, stickwort, starwort or spurrey, is a species of plant in the genus ''Spergula''. Description Corn spurry is a summer or winter annual broadleaf plant, and its seeds buried in the soil can survive for se ...

'' (also called "corn spurrey"). The shire forms a

vice-county A vice-county (vice county or biological vice-county) is a geographical division of the British Isles used for the purposes of biological recording and other scientific data-gathering. It is sometimes called a Watsonian vice-county as vice-coun ...

for wildlife recording.

Transport

Montgomeryshire is crossed from East to West by the

Cambrian Line The Cambrian Line ( cy, Llinell y Cambrian), also known as the Cambrian Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell y Cambrian) and Cambrian Coast Line ( cy, Llinell Arfordir y Cambrian), is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Aber ...

, a mainline passenger railway which runs between

and

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

as well as

Pwllheli Pwllheli () is a market town and community of the Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn) in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011 of whom a large proportion, 81%, are Welsh language, Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the pl ...

with stations at Welshpool, Newtown, Caersws and Machynlleth. As of 2018 services are provided by

Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; cy, Trafnidiaeth Cymru; cy, TrC, label=none) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consi ...

. The Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway links Welshpool to Llanfair Caereinion.

Places of special interest

Bryntail lead mine Bryntail lead mine is a disused lead mine near Llanidloes in Powys, Wales. Sited on the Afon Clywedog and in the shadow on the Clywedog reservoir The Clywedog Reservoir ( cy, Llyn Clywedog) is a reservoir near Llanidloes, Wales on the hea ...

buildings near Llanidloes *

Centre for Alternative Technology The Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) ( cy, Canolfan y Dechnoleg Amgen) is an eco-centre in Powys, mid-Wales, dedicated to demonstrating and teaching sustainable development. CAT, despite its name, no longer concentrates its efforts exclu ...

at Llwyngwern near Machynlleth * The Museum of Modern Art, Wales (MOMA) in Machynlleth *

Dolforwyn Castle Dolforwyn Castle ( cy, Castell Dolforwyn) is a Welsh medieval castle above the village of Abermule, Powys. The fortification was established by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Gwynedd in the late 13th century. It is sited on a wooded ridge comm ...

near

Abermule Abermule ( cy, Aber-miwl) is a village lying on the River Severn 6 km (4 miles) northeast of Newtown in Powys, mid Wales. The A483 Swansea to Chester trunk road, the Cambrian Line railway, connecting Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury, and the M ...

Montgomery Castle Montgomery Castle ( cy, Castell Trefaldwyn) is a stone-built castle looking over the town of Montgomery in Powys, Mid Wales. It is one of many Norman castles on the border between Wales and England. Its strategic importance in the Welsh March ...

in Montgomery *

The Old Bell Museum The Old Bell Museum is a former 16th-century inn, converted into a museum and run by volunteers from the Montgomery Civic Society of Powys. The half-timbered building contains eleven rooms of various local exhibits, including information on the a ...

in Montgomery * Powis Castle near Welshpool
The Robert Owen Museum
in Newtown *

Trefeglwys Trefeglwys is a village and community in Powys, Wales, within the historic county of Montgomeryshire. The name derives from the Welsh language ''tref'' 'township' and ''eglwys'' 'church'. The village sits on the Afon Trannon. There are many a ...

Tumuli * Mathrafal — the seat of the Welsh kings and princes of Powys *

Meifod Meifod, formerly also written Meivod (), is a small village, community and electoral ward 7 miles north-west of Welshpool in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales, on the A495 road and located in the valley of the River Vyrnwy. The River Banwy has a conf ...

* Offa's Dyke

Politics

Montgomeryshire is represented in the following constituencies: * Montgomeryshire (UK Parliament constituency), a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom *

Montgomeryshire (Senedd constituency) , constituency_type = Senedd county constituency , parl_name=Senedd, image = , image2 = , caption2 = Montgomeryshire shown within the Mid and West Wales electoral region and the region shown within Wales ...

, a constituency of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; , formerly the National Assembly for Wales).

References

External links

Map of Montgomeryshire
on Wikishire {{Authority control Historic counties of Wales States and territories established in 1535 1535 establishments in England