Llangynidr Bridge

Llangynidr Bridge with weight restrictions

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, Powys, Wales. 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 (county division) 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 69 m (230 ft) long and the road is 2.4 m (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 Y Gaer,[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]

  1. ^ a b "Llangynidr Bridge, Nr. Crickhowell". Heritage Locations. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  2. ^ a b Roger Cragg (1997). Wales and West Central England. Thomas Telford. pp. 75–76. ISBN 978-0-7277-2576-9.
  3. ^ David Barnes (2005). The Companion Guide to Wales. Companion Guides. p. 104. ISBN 978-1-900639-43-9.
  4. ^ a b c d "Llangynidr Bridge (partly in Llanfihangel Cwmdu with Bwlch and Cathedine community), Llangynidr". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  5. ^ Martin Wibberley, ed. (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 56. ISBN 0953877817.
  6. ^ a b c d "Llangynidr Bridge". Engineering-Timelines.com. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  7. ^ a b Martin Wibberley, ed. (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 77. ISBN 0953877817.
  8. ^ Martin Wibberley, ed. (2000). Shadows in a landscape. Llangynidr Local History Society. p. 227. ISBN 0953877817.
  9. ^ Theophilus Jones (1809). A History of the County of Brecknock ... W. & G. North, for the author. p. 515.
  10. ^ "Headlines for South Wales & Severn – March 2015" (PDF). Canal & River Trust. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  11. ^ "News from the Museum". Brecknock Society and Museum Friends. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  12. ^ "Llangynidr Bridge, Llangynidr, Breconshire". The Northern Antiquarian. Retrieved 30 April 2016.