Mathafarn is a house and farm near

Llanwrin Llanwrin () is a small village in the valley of the Afon Dyfi in Powys about two miles north-east of Machynlleth. History and background Historically, it was in the county of Montgomeryshire ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn). The village is named after its ...

, in

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 ...

. The earliest house here was built before 1485, and Mathafarn plays a significant role in Welsh and English history.

History

The earliest reference to Mathafarn is in 1485. Henry Tudor was travelling through Wales to meet

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Bat ...

at the

Battle of Bosworth Field The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 ...

, when he stopped at Mathafarn Hall, near

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 pop ...

and consulted with the poet Dafydd Llwyd (c1420 to c1500) who lived at the hall. Llwyd was made an

esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

following Henry's decisive victory at the Battle of Bosworth. Around 1600, the house was owned by Richard ap John ap Hugh, a descendant of Llwyd. Hugh's son

Rowland Pugh Rowland Pugh (born 1579, date of death unknown) was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1624 to 1625. Pugh was the eldest son of Richard ap John ap Hugh, of Mathafarn, Montgomeryshire. He matriculated at Jesus College, Oxfo ...

was the Lord of Meirionedd, and in 1624, was elected as the MP for Cardigan. In 1625, he was re-elected to the seat, and appointed as

High Sheriff of Montgomeryshire The office of High Sheriff of Montgomeryshire was established in 1541 since then a High Sheriff was appointed annually until 1974 when the office was transformed into that of High Sheriff of Powys as part of the creation of Powys from the amalgamat ...

. In 1628 he built a new house at Mathafarn. Pugh supported the

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

side in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of Kingdom of England, England's governanc ...

. On 2 November 1644, Sir Thomas Myddleton of the Parliamentarian army was marching through the Dyfi valley when he was ambushed by a force organised by Pugh. In retaliation for the attack, Myddleton burned down Mathafarn on 29 November 1644. Rowland Pugh died at Christmas 1644; his son John Pugh was made Lord of Cyfeiliog at the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration *Restoration ecology ...

in recognition of his father's support of the Monarchy. Another house was built at Mathafarn towards the end of the 17th century and was sold to Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn in 1752. Wynn's son

Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th Baronet Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th Baronet (25 October 1772 – 6 January 1840) was a Welsh landowner and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1794 to 1840. Biography Williams-Wynn was the son of Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Baronet ...

built a new house at Mathafarn around 1800. By 1859, Williams-Wynn had moved out of Mathafarn and had leased the house to William Owen. In 1915, Edward Hughes, a county

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

and

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a ''magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

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

was in possession of Mathafarn. The house built in 1800 still stands in 2017.

Location

Mathafarn is located half a mile north-west of

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 ...

and a similar distance east of Llanwrin. It stands at the confluence of the

Afon Ceirig The Afon Ceirig is a small river in Mid Wales. It flows from Esgair Llewelyn in the middle of the Dyfi Hills down to Mathafarn, north-west of Cemmaes Road, where it joins the Afon Dyfi The River Dyfi ( cy, Afon Dyfi; ), also known as the Ri ...

and the

Afon 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 bee ...

References

{{coord, 52.6249, -3.7633, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in Powys Glantwymyn Machynlleth English Civil War Henry VII of England 1644 in Wales Grade II listed buildings in Powys