Gilwern

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Old main road through Gilwern

Gilwern is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales.[1] The name translates from the Welsh Y Gilwern (from cil-gwern) as "the recess (or bend) of the alders",[2] probably a reference to its position at the point where the Clydach Gorge opens out into the Usk Valley and the River Clydach flows into a sharp bend in the River Usk. It is within the Llanelly parish ward of Monmouthshire County Council, just off the A465 road 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west of the market town of Abergavenny.

Attractions

Gilwern stands on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The local area has a history of iron and lime production.[3] The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, which runs through Gilwern, was built to transport coal and coke to service the Clydach ironworks, to which it was linked by a tramway, the route of which is still visible. The canal crosses the River Clydach on the Gilwern Aqueduct, an embankment over 90 feet high[4] just next to Gilwern Wharf.

Gilwern Hill lies to the south of the village.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.wales-tourist-information.co.uk/town/Monmouthshire/Gilwern/index.html
  2. ↑ http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/docs/ebooks/guide-to-welsh-origins-of-place-names.pdf
  3. ↑ http://www.ggat.org.uk/cadw/historic_landscape/clydach_gorge/english/clydach_008.htm
  4. ↑ http://www.visitoruk.com/Abergavenny/gilwern-C592-V3122.html

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gilwern.

Coordinates: 51°50′N 3°05′W / 51.833°N 3.083°W / 51.833; -3.083


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