Montgomeryshire | |
---|---|
Area | |
• 1831 | 483,323 acres (1,955.94 km2) |
Population | |
• 1831 | 66,482 [1] |
Density | |
• 1831 | 0.1/acre |
History | |
• Succeeded by | Powys |
Chapman code | MGY |
Government | Montgomeryshire County Council (1889–1974) Montgomeryshire District Council (1974–1996) |
• HQ | Montgomery |
Montgomeryshire (Welsh : Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town") was one of the thirteen historic counties of Wales. It was named after its county town, Montgomery, which in turn was named after one of William the Conqueror's main counsellors, Roger de Montgomerie, who was the 1st Earl of Shrewsbury.
The area of what was Montgomeryshire, now constitutes the northern part of the principal area of Powys. The current area was 2,174 square km (839 square miles).
The largest town was Newtown, followed by Welshpool and Llanidloes.
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 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 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 cantrefi of Powys Wenwynwyn: [2]
In addition, for practical reasons, Montgomeryshire gained the commote of Ceri, 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.
Montgomeryshire was bordered, to the north, by Denbighshire, to the east and south east by Shropshire, to the south by Radnorshire, to the south west by Cardiganshire, and to the west and north west by Merionethshire. 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 (in 1537).
Elected county councils were established in 1889 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. [3] [4] Montgomeryshire County Council held its first formal meeting on 1 April 1889 at the Public Rooms (also known as the Flannel Exchange) in Newtown. [5] [6]
In 1931 the county council opened a new headquarters building in Welshpool, called the Montgomeryshire County Offices or Neuadd Maldwyn. The county council remained based at Neuadd Maldwyn until its abolition in 1974. [7] [8]
Until 1974, Montgomeryshire was divided into civil parishes for the purpose of local government; these in large part equated to ecclesiastical parishes (see the table below), most of which still exist as part of the Church in Wales. [9]
Hundred | Parishes |
---|---|
Cawrse | Crugion/Criggion 1 • Forden/Ffordun |
Deythur | Llandrinio • Llandysilio • Llansanffraid-ym-Mechain |
Llanfyllin | Hirnant • Llanfihangel-yng-Ngwynfa • Llanfyllin • Llangynog • Llanwddyn 2 • Meifod • Pennant-melangell |
Llanidloes | Carno • Llandinam • Llangurig • Llanidloes • Llanwnnog • Penystrywaid/Penstrowed • Trefeglwys |
Machynlleth | Cemais/Cemmaes • Darowen • Llanbrynmair • Llanwrin • Machynlleth • Penegoes |
Mathrafal | Castell Caereinion/Castle Caereinion • Garthbeibio • Llanerfyl • Llanfair Caereinion • Llangadfan • Llangynyw |
Montgomery | Ceri/Kerry • Churchstoke/Yr Ystog • Hyssington/Isatyn • Mochdre • Montgomery/Trefaldwyn • Snead |
Newtown | Aberhafesb/Aberhafesp • Aberriw/Berriew • Betws Cedewain/Bettws Cedewain • Llandysul/Llandyssil • Llanllugan • Llanllwchaearn • Llanmerewig • Llanwyddelan • Manafon • Newtown/Y Drenewydd • Tregynon |
Pool | Buttington/Tal-y-bont • Cegidfa/Guilsfield • Llanfechain • Y Trallwng/Welshpool |
1a chapelry to Alberbury in Shropshire 2a chapelry to Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant in Denbighshire
Local government reforms in 1974 combined the administrative areas of Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire and Brecknockshire together to form a new administrative county called Powys. A new district of Montgomeryshire 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 Urban District Council at Newtown Hall Park as an area office. [10]
Further local government reform in 1996 abolished district councils in Wales, making Powys a unitary authority. From 1996 until 2018 Powys County Council had a Montgomeryshire area committee covering the former Montgomeryshire district plus three communities formerly in the Glyndŵr district of Clwyd (historically Denbighshire) which were transferred to Powys in 1996. [11] The three area committees for the former counties were abolished in 2018. [12]
The area of what was Montogmeryshire was almost wholly mountainous, although there are some fertile valleys in the east. The highest point (county top) was Moel Sych at 826.7 metres (2,712 ft), whose summit lies at the triple county boundary point of Montgomeryshire, Denbighshire and Merionethshire in the Berwyn Mountains. The county top of Denbighshire, Cadair Berwyn at 832 metres (2,730 ft), was less than a kilometre away. Its main rivers were the River Severn (which flows east into Shropshire) and the River Dyfi (which flows west into the Irish Sea). Lake Vyrnwy is a reservoir supplying Liverpool.
The main towns were Machynlleth, Llanidloes, Montgomery, Newtown and Welshpool. The main industries were agriculture (mainly hill farming) and tourism, though there was also some forestry and light manufacturing. The population density was highest near the border with England and along the Severn valley. The county was closely linked to Shropshire, with many essential services for Montgomeryshire residents being located in the more densely populated town of Shrewsbury, such as acute health services at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.
The county flower of Montgomeryshire remains the Spergula arvensis (also called "corn spurrey"). The shire forms a vice-county for wildlife recording.
Montgomeryshire was crossed from East to West by the Cambrian Line, a mainline passenger railway which runs between Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth as well as Pwllheli with stations at Welshpool, Newtown, Caersws and Machynlleth.
The Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway links Welshpool to Llanfair Caereinion.
Montgomeryshire's name is used in the constituencies that represent the same area today:
Powys is a county and preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham to the north; the English ceremonial counties of Shropshire and Herefordshire to the east; Monmouthshire, Blaenau Gwent, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and Neath Port Talbot to the south; and Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion to the west. The largest settlement is Newtown, and the administrative centre is Llandrindod Wells.
Welshpool is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, historically in the county of Montgomeryshire. The town is four miles from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn. The community, which also includes Cloddiau and Pool Quay, has a population of 6,664, with the town having 5,948. There are many examples of Georgian architecture within the town. Powis Castle is located to the north.
Llanidloes is a town and community on the A470 and B4518 roads in Powys, within the historic county boundaries of Montgomeryshire, Wales. The population in 2011 was 2,929, of whom 15% could speak Welsh. It is the third largest settlement in Montgomeryshire, after Newtown and Welshpool.
The Kingdom of Powys was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. It very roughly covered the northern two-thirds of the modern county of Powys and part of today's English West Midlands. More precisely, and based on the Romano-British tribal lands of the Ordovices in the west and the Cornovii in the east, its boundaries originally extended from the Cambrian Mountains in the west to include the modern West Midlands region of England in the east. The fertile river valleys of the Severn and Tern are found there, and this region is referred to in later Welsh literature as "the Paradise of Powys".
Mid Wales, or Central Wales, is a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Senedd covered the unitary authority areas of Ceredigion and Powys and the area of Gwynedd that had previously been the district of Meirionnydd. A similar definition is used by the BBC. The Wales Spatial Plan defines a region known as "Central Wales" which covers Ceredigion and Powys.
The Central Wales Football League(formerly the Mid Wales Football League) is a football league in Wales at tier four of the Welsh Football pyramid, run by the Central Wales Football Association. The league consists of two regionally based divisions - a Northern Division and a Southern Division. The league offers a promotion route to the Football Association of Wales administered tier three Ardal Leagues. Relegation is possible to the relevant tier five level leagues in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion and Montgomeryshire.
Abermule is a village lying on the River Severn 6 km northeast of Newtown in Powys, mid Wales. The A483 Swansea to Chester trunk road, the Cambrian Line railway, connecting Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury, and the Montgomery Canal, close to the river, all pass through Abermule. The village had a population of 900 as of the 2011 census.
The District of Montgomeryshire or Montgomery was one of three local government districts of the county of Powys, Wales, from 1974 until 1996. The district had an identical area to the previous administrative county of Montgomeryshire. The district was abolished in 1996, with Powys County Council taking over its functions.
Powys County Council is the local authority for Powys, one of the 22 principal areas of Wales. The council is based at County Hall in Llandrindod Wells.
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 amalgamation of Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire and Brecknockshire. Between the Edwardian Conquest of Wales in 1282 and the establishment of the High Sheriff of Montgomeryshire in 1541 the sheriff's duties were mainly the responsibility of the coroner and the Custos Rotulorum of Montgomeryshire. The Office of High Sheriff remained first in precedence in the County until the reign of Edward VII when an Order in Council in 1908 gave the Lord Lieutenant of Montgomeryshire the prime Office under the Crown as the Sovereign's personal representative.
The SY postcode area, also known as the Shrewsbury postcode area, is a group of 25 postcode districts in the West Midlands and Mid Wales, with small areas in North West England and North Wales. Together the districts cover most of Shropshire, north Powys, north Ceredigion, and part of south Cheshire. In addition, the SY7 and SY8 districts cover a small part of north Herefordshire, and the SY14 and SY20 districts also contain very small parts of Gwynedd and Wrexham County Borough respectively. The postcode area contains 32 post towns.
Thomas Penson, or Thomas Penson the younger, was the county surveyor of Denbighshire and Montgomeryshire, and an innovative architect and designer of a number of masonry arch bridges over the River Severn and elsewhere.
The Montgomeryshire Football League is a football league in Mid Wales, sitting at the fifth level of the Welsh football league system.
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 hundreds of years, and was the scene of many skirmishes between those groups. Like many other cantrefs and subdivisions, it was divided up by the Laws in Wales Acts in the 16th century.
Forden is a village near Welshpool in Powys, Wales, formerly in the historic county of Montgomeryshire. It forms part of the community of Forden with Leighton and Trelystan with the neighbouring settlements of Trelystan, Leighton and Kingswood.
Frank Hearn Shayler (1867–1954) was a Shrewsbury-based architect who worked in an Arts and Crafts style. He was in partnership with Thomas Ridge, and they also had offices in Oswestry and Welshpool.
Townships in Montgomeryshire are divisions of the ancient parishes of the county of Montgomery. In 1539 townships were grouped together in Hundreds. The Townships which were recognised were based on the older Welsh divisions of Tref, or plural Trefi, which had formed the Welsh administrative districts of the Commote. Not all of the former Tref were recognised and some smaller trefi were amalgamated into larger townships. A township was allocated to a particular parish—that is, one of the [civil] parishes of Wales, the predecessors to today's communities of Wales. The townships were recognised as administrative districts, rather than the parishes.
Tomen yr Allt was a Medieval motte and bailey defensive castle near Llanfyllin in Powys, Wales. "Tomen ar hallt" is modern Welsh for "mound on the wooded hillside."
The Montgomeryshire County Offices 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.
Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament, first contested at the 2024 United Kingdom general election, following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies.