Llangynidr Bridge
Llangynidr Bridge, also known as "Coed-yr-Ynys Bridge",[1] is an early 18th-century bridge that crosses the River Usk to the north of Llangynidr, in Brecknockshire. It carries the B4560 road towards Bwlch.[2]
The existing stone bridge dates from approximately 1700, and is thought by some to be the oldest bridge on the River Usk.[3] It replaced an earlier bridge that was located 500m further west;[4] the sale deeds of a local smithy, dated 1630, contain the first known reference to that earlier bridge, which itself replaced a wooden bridge shown on a land survey of 1587.[5]
Llangynidr Bridge lies in the hundred of Crickhowell and is similar in style to the Crickhowell Bridge over the Usk,[4] which dates from 1706. It has six arches, which vary in span from 22 to 30 feet,[6] divided by v-shaped cutwaters topped by pedestrian refuges and parapets with plain coping stones.[4] The cutwaters continue up to the parapet, in order to provide spaces for pedestrians to stand to avoid wheeled traffic crossing the bridge.[2] It is 230 ft long and the road is 8 ft wide.[6] It is considered a particularly impressive example because of its height - reducing the danger of flooding - and its location, which gives a good view of the architecture.[1]
Llangynidr Bridge is known to have been repaired in 1707,[6] and again in 1822. In 1794 a turnpike gate was set up on the Bwlch side of the river, and the right to collect the tolls was auctioned off in 1800.[7] The turnpike cottage is still standing and was purchased from the Beaufort estate in 1915 by the family of one of the earliest toll-keepers.[8] Theophilus Jones, passing through in 1809, noted that the responsibility for repairs lay with the hundred of Crickhowell.[9] Further repairs were carried out in 2015-16.[10] The bridge has been painted over the years by many artists, notably Sir Cedric Morris, whose painting of the bridge has been purchased for Brecknock Museum,[11] Elizabeth Wynter and Gwyn Briwnant Jones.[7]
A short way from the bridge is a standing stone, 14 feet tall, which stands on a field boundary.[12]
The bridge became a Grade-II listed structure in 1952; it was upgraded to Grade I in 2003[6] as one of the best early road bridges in Wales, ranked equally with Crickhowell Bridge.[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Llangynidr Bridge, Nr. Crickhowell". http://transportheritage.com/find-heritage-locations.html?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&sobi2Id=672. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Roger Cragg (1997). Wales and West Central England. Thomas Telford. pp. 75–76. ISBN 978-0-7277-2576-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=oTZZsUzmKrMC&pg=PA75.
- ↑ David Barnes (2005). The Companion Guide to Wales. Companion Guides. p. 104. ISBN 978-1-900639-43-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=Np_H_j3hXUEC&pg=PA104.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Llangynidr Bridge (partly in Llanfihangel Cwmdu with Bwlch and Cathedine community), Llangynidr". British Listed Buildings. http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk./wa-6694-llangynidr-bridge-partly-in-llanfihangel-c. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ↑ Martin Wibberley (ed.) (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 56. ISBN 0953877817.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Llangynidr Bridge". Engineering-Timelines.com. http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=1381. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Martin Wibberley (ed.) (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 77. ISBN 0953877817.
- ↑ Martin Wibberley (ed.) (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 227. ISBN 0953877817.
- ↑ Theophilus Jones (1809). A History of the County of Brecknock .... W. & G. North, for the author. p. 515. https://books.google.com/books?id=9JDnAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA515.
- ↑ "Headlines for South Wales & Severn – March 2015". Canal & River Trust. https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/media/library/9137-sws-headlines-march-2015.pdf. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ↑ "News from the Museum". http://www.brecknocksociety.co.uk/news.html. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ↑ "Llangynidr Bridge, Llangynidr, Breconshire". https://megalithix.wordpress.com/2008/08/09/llangynidr-bridge-breconshire/. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
Outside links
- Location map: 51°52’29"N, 3°13’59"W
