Usk is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Newport. It is located on the River Usk, which is spanned by an arched stone bridge at the western entrance to the town. Usk Castle, above the town, overlooks the ancient crossing point. It developed as a small market town, with some industry including the making of Japanware, and with a notable prison built in 1841–42. In recent years, Usk has become known for its history of success in Britain in Bloom competitions, winning the "Wales in Bloom" competition 35 times in a row between 1982 and 2016. The resident population of the town in 2011 was 2,834, decreasing to roughly 2,600 in 2021. 6.8% of the population are recorded as being able to speak Welsh.
The River Usk rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain, Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east by Sennybridge to Brecon before turning southeast to flow by Talybont-on-Usk, Crickhowell and Abergavenny, after which it takes a more southerly course.
William Edwards was a Welsh Methodist minister who also practised as a stonemason, architect and bridge engineer.
Newport Castle is a ruined castle in Newport, Wales. It was built in the 14th century, probably by Hugh de Audley, 1st Earl of Gloucester or his son-in-law, Ralph, Earl of Stafford, with the purpose of managing the crossing of the River Usk. The castle was used as administrative offices for the collection of rent and dues from local tenants, and was also a residence and a garrison. In 1402 it was sacked by Owain Glyndŵr. It was in disrepair by 1522, and was taken by Oliver Cromwell's forces during the Civil War. Its use declined further in later centuries. It has been a Grade II* Listed building since 1951.
Newbridge-on-Usk is a hamlet in the village and parish of Tredunnock, near Usk, Monmouthshire, south east Wales, in the United Kingdom.
Llangwm is a small rural village and former community, now in the community of Llantrisant Fawr, in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Usk, on the B4235 Chepstow to Usk road. The main village is at Llangwm Uchaf, with a smaller and more dispersed settlement about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north-east at Llangwm Isaf .The other settlement in the community is Llansoy. In 2022 the community was abolished and merged with Llantrisant Fawr.
St Mary's Priory Church, in Whitecross Street, Monmouth, Monmouthshire, Wales, is an Anglican church founded as a Benedictine priory in 1075. The current church dates mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries. It was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1952. It is one of 24 buildings on the Monmouth Heritage Trail.
The Old Wye Bridge or Town Bridge at Chepstow, also known historically as Chepstow Bridge, crosses the River Wye between Monmouthshire in Wales and Gloucestershire in England, close to Chepstow Castle. Although there had been earlier wooden bridges on the site since Norman times, the current road bridge was constructed of cast iron in 1816 during the Regency period, by John Rastrick of Bridgnorth, who greatly modified earlier plans by John Rennie.
Rhondda Cynon Taf is a county borough in South Wales. It is located to the north-west of Cardiff and covers an area of 424 km2 (164 sq mi). In 2021 the population was approximately 237,500.
Monmouthshire is a county of Wales. It borders Torfaen and Newport to the west; Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the east; and Powys to the north. The largest town is Abergavenny, with the other major towns being Chepstow, Monmouth, and Usk. The county is 850 km2 in extent, with a population of 95,200 as of 2020. The present county was formed under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, which came into effect in 1996, and comprises some sixty percent of the historic county. Between 1974 and 1996, the county was known by the ancient title of Gwent, recalling the medieval Welsh kingdom. In his essay on local government in the fifth and final volume of the Gwent County History, Robert McCloy suggests that the governance of "no county in the United Kingdom in the twentieth century was so transformed as that of Monmouthshire".
Pant-y-Goitre Bridge crosses the River Usk between Abergavenny and Usk near the village of Llanfair Kilgeddin. The bridge carries the B4598. It was constructed in 1821 by the engineer John Upton.
The Usk Bridge, Usk, Monmouthshire, carries the A472 over the River Usk. It is the town's oldest crossing of the river and is a Grade II* listed structure.
The Church of Saint Thomas à Becket in Wolvesnewton, Monmouthshire, Wales has its origins in the 13th century. Restored in the 19th century, it remains an active parish church. St Thomas's is a Grade II* listed building. The medieval churchyard cross was restored as a First World War memorial in 1920 and has its own Grade II* listing.
Allt-y-Bela in Llangwm, Monmouthshire, Wales, is a house of late medieval origin with additions from the sixteenth to the twenty-first centuries. During the early seventeenth century, it was owned by Roger Edwards, a wealthy Midlands merchant and the founder of Usk Grammar School. Edwards made significant alterations in the Renaissance style to the medieval cruck house. By the twentieth century, the house was in ruins until restored by the Spitalfields Historic Buildings Trust in the early twenty-first century. Now owned by the garden designer Arne Maynard, the house is a Grade II* listed building recognising its significance as an "exceptionally important sub-medieval house with ambitious early renaissance additions".
Abergavenny Bridge,, crosses the River Usk at the boundary between Abergavenny and Llanfoist. The bridge carries the A4143. The bridge is of medieval origin, but was substantially reconstructed in the early 19th century, to support a tramroad, and in the mid 19th century, when the two bridges were combined.
27 Old Market Street, Usk, Monmouthshire, forms part of a range of terraced houses which were originally the Great House of Roger Williams, High Sheriff of Monmouthshire in the mid-16th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.
30 Bridge Street, Usk, Monmouthshire, is a building dating from the very early 15th century. In the 17th century the structure was used as a gaol and the Catholic martyr David Lewis was imprisoned there in 1678. 30 Bridge Street is a Grade II* listed building.
The Church of St Cadoc, Llangattock-Juxta-Usk, Monmouthshire is a parish church with its datable origins in the 15th century. The church was restored in 1827 and again in 1864–5. It is a Grade II* listed building.
The Church of St Michael, Llanvihangel Gobion, Monmouthshire is a parish church with datable origins to the 15th century. There is no record of a Victorian restoration, although one must have occurred, but there is documented evidence of a "light" reconstruction in 1925. Since the date, the church has barely been altered. It now is closed, having been declared redundant and is in the care of the Representative Body of the Church in Wales. It is a Grade II* listed building.
Glen Usk, Llanhennock, Monmouthshire is a country house dating from 1820. It was built for Sir Digby Mackworth, Bt. in the Neoclassical style. The house is Grade II* listed and the adjoining temple, and other associated structures, have their own Grade II listings. The gardens are included on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.
