Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain is a large 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, villag ...

of Llansantffraid) in

Powys Powys (; ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh succession of states, successor state, petty kingdom and princi ...

Mid Wales Mid Wales ( cy, Canolbarth Cymru or simply ''Y Canolbarth'', meaning "the midlands") or Central Wales refers to a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Senedd ...

, close to the border with

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 ...

in England, about south west of

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 Boroug ...

and north of

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 ...

. It is on the

A495 road List of A roads in zone 4 in Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island ...

and is at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river ( main stem); ...

of the

River Vyrnwy The River Vyrnwy ( cy, Afon Efyrnwy, ) is a river which flows through northern Powys, Wales, and Shropshire, England. The name derives from Severn, the river of which it is a tributary. Course The river used to be sourced from the many rivers a ...

and the

River Cain The River Cain (''Afon Cain'' in Welsh) is a river in north Powys which flows into the River Vyrnwy. Cain's source is just west of Llanfyllin, at the confluence of the Nant Alan and Nant Fyllon. After flowing east through Llanfyllin, where it ...

. The population as of the

2011 UK census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...

was 1,415. The community includes the village 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 ...

and several hamlets. ''Llansanffraid'' means "Church of

Saint Bride In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern O ...

" in the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the 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 Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

, and ''ym Mechain'' refers to its location in the

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 period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

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 wer ...

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. ...

and distinguishes it from other places with the same or similar names. The name is based on the story of St Bhrid, who is said to have floated across 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 ...

on a sod of turf, or to have been carried to Scotland by two

oystercatcher The oystercatchers are a group of waders forming the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, ''Haematopus''. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia. The e ...

s. The followers of St Bhrid possibly set up new settlements known by the Welsh as ''Llan Santes Ffraid'', Church of (Lady) Saint Bhrid. In recent years the spelling of the village name, with or without a "t", has been a contentious issue (as it has been at

Llansantffraid 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 ...

History

Early settlers

Many finds of

Bell Beaker The Bell Beaker culture, also known as the Bell Beaker complex or Bell Beaker phenomenon, is an archaeological culture named after the inverted-bell beaker drinking vessel used at the very beginning of the European Bronze Age. Arising from a ...

pottery, dating from 2400 to 2000 BC, suggest settlement of the area in the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

. Earlier,

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...

settlement is likely, though there are currently no such sites known in the immediate area. During the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

, around 700 BC, a trend towards a sedentary lifestyle is evidenced by the increased number of settlements. A small hilltop enclosure was built around 400 BC where inhabitants grew

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeolog ...

and

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley ...

, and kept cattle, sheep and pigs.

Aerial photography Aerial photography (or airborne imagery) is the taking of photographs from an aircraft or other airborne platforms. When taking motion pictures, it is also known as aerial videography. Platforms for aerial photography include fixed-wing aircr ...

of the area shows evidence that a pit alignment, possibly Iron Age, is present in the grounds of the nearby Bryn Tanat Hall Hotel.

The Romans

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

archeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes ...

evidence in the area includes a Roman fort in Bronhyddon field adjacent to Cae Hywel orchard. An

archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be cond ...

at this site revealed a barracks with attached

centurion A centurion (; la, centurio , . la, centuriones, label=none; grc-gre, κεντυρίων, kentyríōn, or ) was a position in the Roman army during classical antiquity, nominally the commander of a century (), a military unit of around 80 le ...

's house.

The historic Plas-Yn-Dinas

The Plas-Yn-Dinas, west 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 above the flood plain of the Afon Fyrnwy, is a scheduled ancient monument. It was probably a timber castle but certainly a fortified manor house. It is first recorded in the 14th century as the residence of the lords of Mechain Is Coed. Some of the earthworks could be from the Roman period and it is reputed to be the site of the Roman station of

Mediolanum Mediolanum, the ancient city where Milan now stands, was originally an Insubrian city, but afterwards became an important Roman city in northern Italy. The city was settled by the Insubres around 600 BC, conquered by the Romans in 222 BC, an ...

Y Foel Camp

Y Foel Camp is situated on the summit of the Foel Hill, to the west of the Winllan Road. It has many hallmarks of an Iron Age fortification, and there are signs of a

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * "O'er the Ramparts We Watched" is a key line from "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the ...

and a ditch.

Skirmishes and battles

Two battles fought within this parish are recorded. Around the middle of the 5th century, a battle is said to have taken place in the township of Llanerch. Emrys wen Pascen induced the

Saxons The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country ( Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the No ...

to attack the Welsh. Emerys Benaur was appointed head of the Welsh army, and his victory secured the naming of the township in his honour. These events have no known factual basis. The second recorded battle was fought between Meredydd and Ithel, sons of

Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Gruffydd ap Llywelyn ( 5 August 1063) was King of Wales from 1055 to 1063. He had previously been King of Gwynedd and Powys in 1039. He was the son of King Llywelyn ap Seisyll and Angharad daughter of Maredudd ab Owain, and the great-gre ...

, on one side and Bleddyn and Rhiwallon on the other. The battle was fought for the crown of Gwynedd and Powys. Ithel and Rhiwallon were slain and Meredydd took flight, leaving Bleddyn the sole king of North Wales and Powys.

Evolution of the village name

The earliest written form in the

Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff ( la, Liber Landavensis; cy, Llyfr Llandaf, ', or '), is the chartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written primari ...

, a 12th-century document, refers to 'Llann sanfreit' in 1066. With so many places named Llansanffraid in Wales it was necessary to add location details, hence Llansanffraid-ym-Mechain (in Mechain) and Llansanffraid Glyn Ceiriog, etc. The earliest written record of Llansanffraid-ym-Mechain is 1254 as 'Llansanfret'. In 1526 the name of the village appeared as 'Llansayntefrayde' in an English document. "The 'saynte' suggests an English influence on the Welsh name." The English language

tithe maps