Tonteg is a village around three and a half miles (6 km) from

Pontypridd () (colloquially: Ponty) is a town and a community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Geography comprises the electoral wards of , Hawthorn, Pontypridd Town, 'Rhondda', Rhydyfelin Central/Ilan ( Rhydfelen), Trallwng (Trallwn) and Treforest (). The ...

south Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

. It is north west of

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

and four miles (6.5 km) north east of

Llantrisant Llantrisant (; "Parish of the Three Saints") is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying on the River Ely and the Afon Clun. The three saints of the town's name are SS ...

. The village is within the community of

Llantwit Fardre Llantwit Fardre ( cy, Llanilltud Faerdref) is a large village and community (and electoral ward) situated on the A473, Pontypridd to Bridgend, road near the Welsh towns of Pontypridd and Llantrisant. Llantwit Fardre is also the name of the old ...

. Tonteg is to the north west of the

Garth Mountain Garth Hill (usually called The Garth, or Garth Mountain, ''Mynydd y Garth'' in Welsh) is a hill located in between the communities of Llantwit Fardre and Pentyrch in Wales. The Garth can be seen from nearly the whole of the city of Cardiff and th ...

, on the west side of the

River Taff The River Taff ( cy, Afon Taf) is a river in Wales. It rises as two rivers in the Brecon Beacons; the Taf Fechan (''little Taff'') and the Taf Fawr (''great Taff'') before becoming one just north of Merthyr Tydfil. Its confluence with the R ...

valley, at the top of a hill known locally as ''Powerstation Hill''. The hill gets its name from the

Upper Boat Upper Boat ( cy, Glan-Bad) is a village on the southernmost outskirts of the town of Pontypridd, within the electoral ward of Hawthorn, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, and comprises part of the Treforest Industrial Estate. Historically part of Glamorga ...

power station which was situated at the bottom of the hill until it was demolished in 1972. Tonteg is next to

Church Village Church Village ( cy, Pentre'r Eglwys) is a large village in the historic parish and community of Llantwit Fardre, located within the Taff Ely district of the County Borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf in Wales. The village is centrally located being ...

and the boundaries between the two villages are blurred. A significant part of the

Treforest Treforest ( cy, Trefforest) is a village in the south-east of Pontypridd, in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. It is situated in the Treforest electoral ward, along with the village of Glyntaff (or Glyn-Taf). It is part of the Pon ...

Industrial Estate falls within the Willowford area of Tonteg.

Toponymy

The name of the village occurs in a number of forms: Tonteg, Ton teg, Ton-teg and on some older maps as Ton-têg or Twyn-teg. Tonteg is now seen on the village sign, however some other signs say Ton-Teg. The name means "Beautiful hill" when translated from Welsh, deriving not from the Welsh for "wave" (ton) as might be thought, but rather from the word "twyn". Indeed, a farm on the Black Road above the nearby Church Village is named Dan-y-twyn ("Beneath the hill"). It could also be related to the toponym ''ton'' as seen in Tonna.

Castle/Motte

The village has a fairly well preserved 12th-century

motte A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

with an intact

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

called Tomen-Y-Clawdd or Coed-Y-Twr. To locals this fort situated in Ffordd Gerdinan is commonly known as the Monkey Tump

Hospital

Tonteg Hospital is situated north of the village, now surrounded by housing estates. It was originally an isolation hospital treating contagious diseases. Nowadays it provides mental health care and other services. No emergency services are provided.

Schools

Gwauncelyn Primary School serves the local community.

Shopping

Two main areas of local businesses exist along Main Road through the village and in the center of one of the housing estates (Cardigan Close area). Tonteg no longer has a post office.

Transport

There are bus services to

Beddau Beddau ( en, Graves cy, Y Beddau) is a large former mining village (and electoral ward) situated within the South Wales Valleys Davies (2008), page 507. around from Llantrisant and from the larger town of Pontypridd in the county borough of R ...

, Cardiff, Pontypridd,

Talbot Green Talbot Green ( cy, Tonysguboriau "lea of the barns") is a town (and electoral ward) just north of the M4 motorway, in the County Borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales in the United Kingdom. The town is part of Llantrisant Community Council. Geograp ...

and

Royal Glamorgan Hospital The Royal Glamorgan Hospital ( cy, Ysbyty Brenhinol Morgannwg), is a District General Hospital in Ynysmaerdy, Talbot Green, Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales. It is managed by the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. History The hospital was ...

. Tonteg used to have at differing times two stations - both called Tonteg Halt railway station - on two former railway lines that ran nearby;

Barry Railway The Barry Railway Company was a railway and docks company in South Wales, first incorporated as the ''Barry Dock and Railway Company'' in 1884. It arose out of frustration among Rhondda coal owners at congestion and high charges at Cardiff Dock ...

and the

Llantrisant and Taff Vale Junction Railway The Llantrisant and Taff Vale Junction Railway was a railway company that constructed a standard gauge line in South Wales, connecting Llantrisant and the Taff Vale Railway near Treforest. It ran through thinly populated country, and linked to a ...

. After 1930 the original Tonteg Halt was moved to Tonteg Junction after track rationalisation; the name Tonteg Halt was used for this station. The existence of the railways in the area around Power Station Hill has been obliterated by the Church Village bypass (described below), though some remnants exist between Tonteg and Treforest and to the south of the village towards Church Village. There existed plans for a new station to be built on the remaining Pontypridd-Cardiff line between Treforest and Treforest Estate to serve the village, although its location would have been at the bottom of Power Station Hill and access to the village difficult.

Bypass

Rhondda Cynon Taf Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vil ...

, the local authority, has constructed a bypass to reduce traffic congestion on the A473, Pontypridd to

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...

( cy, Penybont ar Ogwr) road, at Tonteg, Church Village ( cy, Pentre'r Eglwys) and

( cy, Llanilltud Faerdref). The Church Village bypass, as it is known, is built as a single carriageway, with crawler and overtaking lanes around roundabouts and was completed in Autumn 2010.

Governance

Tonteg is represented on

Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council ( cy, Cyngor Bwrdeistref Sirol Rhondda Cynon Taf) is the governing body for Rhondda Cynon Taf, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The council headquarters are located in the community of Cwm Clydach o ...

by two county councillors from the

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

of Tonteg. The ward comprises the eastern strip of the Llantwit Fardre community, including the Tonteg village, Treforest Industrial Estate in the north and Gedrys Farm in the south. A 2018 review of electoral arrangements, if accepted, would see a decrease in the number of councillors to one, effective from the 2022 council elections. Tonteg is also the name of a community ward for Llantwit Fardre Community Council, electing three of the thirteen community councillors.

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Tonteg and surrounding area
WWW.TRACKBED.COM : photos of Tonteg Junction railway station {{authority control Villages in Rhondda Cynon Taf