Russell George
Russell Ian George is a Conservative Party politician and has been the Montgomeryshire Assembly Member in the National Assembly for Wales since the May 2011 election. Russell was brought up in Montgomeryshire, he attended Birmingham City University, achieving a BA degree in Information and Media Studies, has lived in Montgomeryshire all his life. He owns. In 2008 Russell was elected to Powys County Council to represent the Newtown Central ward. Following this, he was elected by the County Councils’ Welsh Conservative group to be one of its representatives on the Council’s executive management board a position he held until 2011, he stood down as a Councillor in 2017. Following his Welsh Assembly Election win in 2011, Russell was appointed as the Shadow Secretary for Energy and Sustainable Development. Following the 2016 Assembly Election he became the Conservatives spokesman for Economy and Infrastructure he chair's the Assembly's Economy and Skills Committee. Russell George Official website Assembly Member Profile Profile on National Assembly website
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough has been one of the 22 unitary authorities in Wales since 1 April 1996. Merthyr Tydfil County Borough today has a population of 59,000, it takes its name from Merthyr Tydfil town. The County Borough consists of the northern part of the Taff Valley and the smaller neighbouring Taff Bargoed Valley, it borders the counties of Rhondda Cynon Caerphilly county borough. Following the industrial revolution and growth from the iron and steel industry, in Dowlais, Cyfarthfa and Plymouth, later from the coal-mining industry in Aberfan and Bedlinog the area was granted county borough status in 1908. Despite protests from the southern part of the borough, where it was claimed that links were stronger with Pontypridd. In 1935, a Royal Commission argued that Merthyr Tydfil County Borough heavily burdened by the cost of maintaining many unemployed people, should be abolished and merged with Glamorgan; the county council refused the proposal. The current borough boundaries date back to 1974, when Merthyr Tydfil became a local government district in the administrative county of Mid Glamorgan.
It reverted to a county borough again on 1 April 1996. Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council is the governing body for the area, it consists of 33 councillors representing 11 wards. During the local government elections of 1 May 2008, the long-ruling Welsh Labour Party lost its majority control of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council as a cohort of independents took seats and the Liberal Democrats made a significant breakthrough; however the Labour group gained back majority control in the following election on 3 May 2012. The current Member of Parliament for the Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency is Gerald Jones MP, while the Welsh Assembly member is Dawn Bowden AM. Additionally, the Bedlinog Ward in the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, which covers the villages of Trelewis and Bedlinog in the neighbouring Taff Bargoed Valley, is governed by Bedlinog Community Council, which consists of nine elected members, whose powers and responsibilities cover the two villages within its area; the Ward is the only electoral area within the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council area with its own Council.
The Council was created in 1974 by the former Gelligaer Urban District Council prior to its abolition and the subsequent transfer of Trelewis and Bedlinog into the Merthyr administrative area upon local government reorganisation in that year, to which most people in Bedlinog and Trelewis were opposed. What is now Merthyr Tydfil town centre was little more than a village. An ironworks existed in the parish in the Elizabethan period, but it did not survive beyond the early 1640s at the latest. In 1754, it was recorded that the valley was entirely populated by shepherds. Farm produce was traded at a number of fairs, notably the Waun Fair above Dowlais. What is now Merthyr Tydfil County Borough was situated close to reserves of iron ore, coal and water, making it an ideal site for ironworks. Small-scale iron working and coal mining had been carried out at some places in South Wales since the Tudor period, but in the wake of the Industrial revolution the demand for iron led to the rapid expansion of Merthyr's iron operations in the northern half of the County Borough.
The Dowlais Ironworks was founded by what would become the Dowlais Iron Company in 1759, making it the first major works in the area. It was followed in 1765 by the Cyfarthfa Ironworks; the Plymouth Ironworks were in the same ownership as Cyfarthfa, but passed after the death of Anthony Bacon to Richard Hill in 1788. The fourth ironworks was Penydarren built by Francis Homfray and Samuel Homfray after 1784; the demand for iron was fuelled by the Royal Navy, who needed cannon for their ships, by the railways. In 1802, Admiral Lord Nelson visited Merthyr to witness cannon being made. Several railway companies established routes that linked Merthyr with coastal ports or other parts of Britain, they included the Brecon and Merthyr Railway, Vale of Neath Railway, Taff Vale Railway and Great Western Railway. They shared routes to enable access to coal mines and ironworks through rugged country, which presented great engineering challenges. In 1804, the world’s first railway steam locomotive, "The Iron Horse", developed by the Cornish engineer Richard Trevithick, pulled 10 tons of iron on the newly constructed Merthyr Tramway from Penydarren to Abercynon.
A replica of this now resides in the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea. The tramway passed through what is arguably the oldest railway tunnel in the world, part of which can still be seen alongside Pentrebach Road at the lower end of the town; the 1801 census recorded the population of Merthyr as the most populous parish in Wales. By 1851 Merthyr had overtaken Swansea to become the largest town in Wales with 46,378 inhabitants. By this time, Irish immigrants made up 10% of the local population, there were substantial numbers of English, together with some Spaniards and Italians. A Jewish community was established some time after 1841, by 1851, they were able to establish a small prayer hall; the charming Merthyr Synagogue was consecrated in 1875 and a cemetery at Cefn-Coed was established in the 1860s. During the first few decades of the 19th century, the ironworks at Dowlais and Cyfarthfa continued to expand and at their peak were the most productive ironworks in the world. 50,000 tons of rails left just one ironworks in 1844, to enable expansion of railways
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in southwest Wales, one of the historic counties of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli and Ammanford. Carmarthen is administrative centre. Carmarthenshire has been inhabited since prehistoric times; the county town was founded by the Romans, the region was part of the Principality of Deheubarth in the High Middle Ages. After invasion by the Normans in the 12th and 13th centuries it was subjugated, along with other parts of Wales, by Edward I of England. There was further unrest in the early 15th century, when the Welsh rebelled under Owain Glyndŵr, during the English Civil War. Carmarthenshire is an agricultural county, apart from the southeastern part which at one time was industrialised with coal mining, steel-making and tin-plating. In the north of the county the woollen industry was important in the 18th century; the economy depends on agriculture, forestry and tourism. With the decline in its industrial base, the low profitability of the livestock sector, West Wales was identified in 2014 as the worst-performing region in the United Kingdom along with the South Wales Valleys.
Carmarthenshire, as a tourist destination, offers a wide range of outdoor activities. Much of the coast is flat. Further west are the sandy beaches at Llansteffan and Pendine, Dylan Thomas' boathouse at Laugharne. There are a number of medieval castles and standing stones in the county. Stone tools found in Coygan Cave, near Laugharne indicate the presence of hominins neanderthals, at least 40,000 years ago, though, as in the rest of the British Isles, continuous habitation by modern humans is not known before the end of the Younger Dryas, around 11,500 years BP. Before the Romans arrived in Britain, the land now forming the county of Carmarthenshire was part of the kingdom of the Demetae who gave their name to the county of Dyfed; the Romans established two forts in South Wales, one at Caerwent to control the southeast of the country, one at Carmarthen to control the southwest. The fort at Carmarthen dates from around 75 AD, there is a Roman amphitheatre nearby, so this makes Carmarthen the oldest continually occupied town in Wales.
Carmarthenshire has its early roots in the region known as Ystrad Tywi and part of the Kingdom of Deheubarth during the High Middle Ages, with the court at Dinefwr. After the Normans had subjugated England they tried to subdue Wales. Carmarthenshire was disputed between the Normans and the Welsh lords and many of the castles built around this time, first of wood and stone, changed hands several times. Following the Conquest of Wales by Edward I, the region was reorganized by the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 into Carmarthenshire. Edward I made Carmarthen the capital of this new county, establishing his courts of chancery and his exchequer there, holding the Court of Great Sessions in Wales in the town; the Normans transformed Carmarthen into an international trading port, the only staple port in Wales. Merchants imported food and French wines and exported wool, leather and tin. In the late medieval period the county's fortunes varied, as good and bad harvests occurred, increased taxes were levied by England, there were episodes of plague, recruitment for wars removed the young men.
Carmarthen was susceptible to plague as it was brought in by flea-infested rats on board ships from southern France. In 1405, Owain Glyndŵr captured Carmarthen Castle and several other strongholds in the neighbourhood. However, when his support dwindled, the principal men of the county returned their allegiance to King Henry V. During the English Civil War, Parliamentary forces under Colonel Roland Laugharne besieged and captured Carmarthen Castle but abandoned the cause, joined the Royalists. In 1648, Carmarthen Castle was recaptured by the Parliamentarians, Oliver Cromwell ordered it to be slighted; the first industrial canal in Wales was built in 1768 to convey coal from the Gwendraeth Valley to the coast, the following year, the earliest tramroad bridge was on the tramroad built alongside the canal. During the Napoleonic Wars there was increased demand for coal and agricultural goods, the county prospered; the landscape changed as much woodland was cleared to make way for more food production, mills, power stations and factories sprang up between Llanelli and Pembrey.
Carmarthenshire was at the centre of the Rebecca Riots around 1840, when local farmers and agricultural workers dressed as women and rebelled against higher taxes and tolls. On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, Carmarthenshire joined Cardiganshire and Pembrokeshire in the new county of Dyfed. Twenty-two years this amalgamation was reversed when, under the Local Government Act 1994, the original county boundaries were reinstated; the county is bounded to the north by Ceredigion, to the east by Powys, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea, to the south by the Bristol Channel and to the west by Pembrokeshire. The surface is upland and mountainous. Fforest Fawr and the Black Mountain range extend into the east of the county and the Cambrian Mountains into the north; the south coast contains sandy beaches. The highest point is Fan Brycheiniog, 2,631 feet (although
Machynlleth
Machynlleth, sometimes referred to colloquially as Mach, is a market town and electoral ward in Powys and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a population of 2,147, rising to 2,235 in 2011. Machynlleth was the seat of Owain Glyndŵr's Welsh Parliament in 1404, as such claims to be the "ancient capital of Wales". However, it has never held any official recognition as a capital, it was unsuccessful. It is twinned with Michigan. Machynlleth hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1937 and 1981. There is a long history of human activity in the Machynlleth area. In the late-1990s, radiocarbon dating showed that copper mining was taking place in the Early Bronze Age, within a mile of the town centre. There are legends of a once fertile plain, the Cantre'r Gwaelod, now lost beneath the waves of Cardigan Bay; the Romans settled in the area. One of the earliest written references to Machynlleth is the Royal charter granted in 1291 by Edward I to Owen de la Pole, Lord of Powys.
This gave him the right to hold "a market at Machynlleth every Wednesday for and two fairs every year". The Wednesday market is still a popular day in Machynlleth 700 years later; the Royal House, which stands on the corner of the Garsiwn, is another of the mediaeval houses that can still be seen today. According to local tradition, Dafydd Gam, a Welsh ally of the English kings, was imprisoned here from 1404 to 1412 for attempting to assassinate Owain Glyndŵr. After his release by Glyndŵr, ransomed Gam fought alongside Henry V at the Battle of Agincourt and is named amongst the dead in Shakespeare's Henry V; the name Royal House undoubtedly refers to the tradition that Charles I stayed at the house in 1643. The weekly market and biannual fair thrived, in 1613 drew complaints from other towns whose trading in cloth was being affected. A document dated 1632 shows that animals for sale came from all over Merionethshire, Cardiganshire and Denbighshire, prospective buyers came from Flintshire, Brecknockshire and Shropshire, in addition to the above.
The Dyfi Bridge was first mentioned in 1533, by Geoffrey Hughes, "Citizen and Merchant taylour of London" who left £6 13/4 "towards making of a bridge at the toune of Mathanlleth". By 1601 "Dyfi bridge in the Hundred of Mochunleth" was reported to be insufficient, the current one was built in 1805 for £250. Fenton describes it in 1809 as "A noble erection of five large arches; the piers are narrow and over each cut-water is a pilaster, a common feature of the 18th century". Rowland Pugh was the Lord of Meirionedd, lived at Mathafarn about two miles east of Machynlleth. Pugh supported the Royalist side in the English Civil War. On 2 November 1644, Sir Thomas Myddleton of Chirk Castle was marching on Machynlleth with a force of the Parliamentarian army, when he was ambushed by a force organised by Pugh. In retaliation for the attack, Myddleton burned down Mathafarn on 29 November 1644, along with a number of houses in Machynlleth; the disappearance of April Jones in October 2012 received a large amount of coverage in the UK media.
Mary Cornelia, the daughter of local landowner Sir John Edwards married Viscount Seaham, the second son of the third Marquess of Londonderry, in 1846 and they set up home in Plas Machynlleth. He became Earl Vane on the death of his father and the fifth Marquess on the death of his half-brother. To celebrate the 21st birthday of their eldest son, Viscount Castlereagh, the townspeople subscribed to the erection of the clock tower, which has become known as the symbol of Machynlleth; the tower, which stands on the site of the old town hall, is the first thing many visitors will notice. The foundation stone was laid on 15 July 1874 amid great festivities. Another son, Lord Herbert Vane-Tempest, was the last member of the family to live at the Plas and was killed in the Abermule train collision on the Cambrian Railways, of which he was a director; the house was given to the townspeople in December 1948 under the stewardship of the Machynlleth Urban District Council. Various local government re-organisations saw responsibility for the Plas pass first to Montgomeryshire District Council, who in 1995 converted it into the Celtica Visitor Centre.
Celtica interpreted the history and culture of the Celts with a walk-through audio-visual exhibition housed in a purpose-built addition to the house. The £3 million attraction was part-funded by the European Union; the centre had a high-profile in the Welsh media, with opera singer Bryn Terfel opening the attraction in October 1995. Powys Council took over Celtica and the house when it was formed as a unitary authority in 1997; the centre was successful in attracting tourist, school groups and conferences for a number of years, however initial visitor number predictions proved to be too ambitious and Powys Council were unwilling to prolong its subsidy and with little scope for alternative investment Celtica closed in March 2006, the house stood empty while Powys Council sought to relinquish responsibility for it in line with their policy of selling many of their publicly owned buildings. At this point, Machynlleth Town Council, realising that the town was in danger of losing the Plas house and grounds, which they saw as belonging to the community in the spirit of the 1948 bequest, began discussions with Powys Council with a vi
Montgomeryshire
Montgomeryshire known as Maldwyn is one of thirteen historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county town, which in turn is named after one of William the Conqueror's main counsellors, Roger de Montgomerie, the 1st Earl of Shrewsbury. Montgomeryshire today constitutes the northern part of the principal area of Powys; the population of Montgomeryshire was 63,779 according to the 2011 census, with a low population density of 29 people per square km. The current area is 2,174 square km; the largest town is Newtown, followed by Llanidloes. The Treaty of Montgomery was signed on 29 September 1267, in the town of Montgomery, established as an English incursion on the Welsh side of the border, to control a strategic border crossing; the surrounding region 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.
This led them to convert their territory into a marcher lordship, via surrender and regrant, as a way to strengthen their position. The prince took an English-style surname - Owen de-la Pole - after Pool. 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. Montgomeryshire was thus formed from the cantrefi of Powys Wenwynwyn: Y Fyrnwy Llyswynaf Ystlyg Cedewain Arwystli In addition, for practical reasons, Montgomeryshire gained the commote of Ceri, which had formed a northwards spur of the less organised Region Between the Wye and Severn. 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, to the west and north west by Merionethshire. When, in subsequent centuries, the concept of Wales was once again distinguished from England, all of these counties were deemed Welsh, except for Shropshire.
Montgomeryshire was the birthplace of Welsh Catholic martyr Saint Richard Gwyn. From 1889 to 1974 the county became an administrative county with a county council. Montgomery, the traditional county town, held the assizes and became the meeting place of the new County Council. However, the administration continued to be based at Welshpool, which prior to the reforms had been regarded as the county town. Local government reforms in 1974 combined the administrative areas of Montgomeryshire and Breconshire together to form a new administrative Powys county. Montgomeryshire became a district of Powys, with its administrative headquarters in Newtown. Further local government reform in 1996 abolished district councils in Wales, making Powys a unitary authority; the Montgomeryshire area continues to have an administrative/political function as one of the three committee areas used by Powys Council, along with the other two historic counties. These three areas are referred to by the county council as "shires".
The few communities that were added to northern Powys in 1996 now form part of the modern-day Montgomeryshire area. Montgomeryshire is a Welsh Assembly constituency; the shire is wholly mountainous, although there are some fertile valleys in the east. The highest point is Cadair Berwyn at 832 metres, its main rivers are the River Dyfi. Lake Vyrnwy is a reservoir supplying Liverpool; the main towns are Machynlleth, Montgomery and Welshpool. The main industries are agriculture and tourism, though there is some forestry and light manufacturing; the population density is highest near the border along the Severn valley. The county is 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 is Spergula arvensis. The shire forms a vice-county for wildlife recording. Montgomeryshire is crossed from East to West by the Cambrian Line, a mainline passenger railway which runs between Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth with stations at Welshpool, Newtown and Machynlleth.
As of 2018 services are provided by Transport for Wales. Bryntail lead mine buildings near Llanidloes Centre for Alternative Technology at Llwyngwern near Machynlleth The Museum of Modern Art, Wales in Machynlleth Dolforwyn Castle near Abermule Montgomery Castle in Montgomery The Old Bell Museum in Montgomery Powis Castle near Welshpool The Robert Owen Museum in Newtown Trefeglwys Tumuli Mathrafal — the seat
Llandrindod Wells
Llandrindod Wells is a town and community in Powys, within the historic boundaries of Radnorshire, Wales. It serves as the seat of Powys County Council and thus the administrative centre of Powys, it was developed as a spa town in the 19th century, with a boom in the late 20th century as a centre of local government. Before the 1860s the site of the town was common land in Llanfihangel Cefn-llys parish. Llandrindod Wells is the fifth largest town in Powys, the largest in Radnorshire. During the mid-18th century the'healing qualities' of the local spring waters attracted visitors to the area resulting in an economic boom with the building of a'splendid' hotel at Llandrindod Hall. A period of relative decline during the late 18th and early 19th centuries was reversed with the construction of the Heart of Wales Line making Llandrindod accessible from the Midlands and North West of England, South Wales. Enclosure of the common in 1862 enabled expansion of the town with the construction of new streets, hotels and houses.
During the'season' between May and mid-September visitors would take the waters at the pump rooms at the Rock Park and Pump House Hotel, entertained by orchestras. Hotels, boarding houses and shops—including the Central Wales Emporium on the corner of Temple Street and Station Crescent—provided for the visitors. In the early 1870s an ornamental lake was formed by draining marshland near the Pump House Hotel, in 1893 a 9-hole golf course was opened on the common beside the lake. Horse races were held on the Rock Ddole meadow beside the river. In 1893 the archdeacon with responsibility for the area had Llandrindod old church and Cefnllys church unroofed in order to persuade the congregations to attend the new church in the centre of the town. In 1895 both churches were restored. Llandrindod was the place of the election of the first Archbishop of Wales, which occurred at the Old Parish Church. Elections for every Archbishop since have continued to be held in Llandrindod, now at Holy Trinity Church in the Town Centre.
In 1907, a Catholic church was founded in Our Lady of Ransom and the Holy Souls Church. The Town has maintained an important profile in the world of motor sport. Apart from two of its most symbolic recent buildings being the Tom Norton's Automobile Palace and Pritchard's Garage, it served as the base for many International motorcycle events such as the International Six Days Trial ISDT starting in 1933 with the last visit taking place in 1961 drawing in crowds of thousands to watch; the Welsh International Two Day Trial organised by locals is still a popular event as well as many rallies which rely on the infrastructure of Llandrindod's Hotels and public spaces. The town's boom continued until the First World War during which time soldiers on training courses were billeted in hotels and boarding houses, refugees and wounded soldiers were accommodated in the town; the depression of the late-1920s and 1930s led to many hotels and boarding houses being turned into private homes and flats. During the Second World War the town was again used for military hospitals and billets, followed by a slump in the post-war years.
The Beeching Axe resulted in the closure in the mid-1960s of the Mid-Wales line and with it Llandrindod's connection from nearby Builth Wells direct to Cardiff in the south and to North and West Wales. The town does however retain connections to Swansea and Shrewsbury via its station on the Heart of Wales Line and the A483 road, the main route through the town centre. Prior to 1974 the county housed much of the administration of the county of Radnorshire, although the official county town was Presteigne; the reorganisation of local government in 1974 resulted in Llandrindod becoming the county town of the newly formed administrative county of Powys. This led to an influx of people employed by the new bureaucracies, on salaries determined by national pay scales. With the low cost of living in the area this resulted in a boom in the town's economy as the newcomers spent their money on housing and entertainment. In more recent years the economy has again flagged. Significant local industries, the town's carpet and stationery factories and many shops likewise.
As in many such areas there are now some empty retail units and charity shops, including Oxfam and British Red Cross occupying premises once used by commercial enterprises. An open-air market is held once a week in County Council’s High Street Car Park and brings many visitors into the town; the town has larger business chains, including Tesco, Spar, Mica Hardware and a Post Office, as well as smaller businesses. In a recent survey undertaken by Rightmove, Llandrindod was voted the Happiest Place in Wales. A survey by the Royal Mail over the Easter 2018 period showed that Llandrindod had the highest online shopping rates for that period in the whole of the country. Three county electoral wards lie within the boundaries of the town which each elect a councillor to Powys County Council: Llandrindod East/West, Llandrindod North and Llandrindod South. Llandrindod Wells Town Council has one clerk; the 2018 Mayor is the deputy, Cllr Steve Deeks D'Silva. In May 2017 Cllr Williams was elected as county councillor for Llandrindod East/West.
The architecture of the town includes many buildings in ornate styles dating from the boom period of the Victorian and Edwardian eras including the Metropole and the Glen Usk hotels, the Albert Hall theatre and former county hall building adjacent to it. There are buildings in the Art Deco style includin
Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant
Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant is a village, a community and an ecclesiastical parish in the extreme north of Powys, Wales. It lies near the foothills of the Berwyn mountains on the river Rhaeadr. At the top end of the valley is the Pistyll Rhaeadr waterfall, one of the Seven Wonders of Wales in the old rhyme. One mile north of the village is the hill Moel Hen-fache, it was an important site in the ancient commote of Mochnant, as indicated by the ym-Mochnant in its name. Until 1974, Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant was split into two civil parishes: the northern parish was in historic Denbighshire and the southern parish in historic Montgomeryshire; the divide continued between 1974 and 1996, with the former Denbighshire parish being placed in Clwyd and former Montgomeryshire parish in Powys. In 1996, both parts of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant were united within the county of Powys. Capel Seion is in the village, it is a Methodist chapel rebuilt in the early 20th century in crafts style. In the 2001 Census the population was 1,470, of whom 55% were Welsh-speaking, but by the 2011 census it had reduced to 1,195.
The village falls in the electoral ward of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant/Llansilin. The ward population at the 2011 Census was 2,295; the Norman church of St Dogfan is a Grade II* listed building, restored between 1879 and 1882, but with parts dating back to the 13th century. There is a gravestone with a Celtic cross commemorating Cwgan son of Ethelstan, a Welsh prince of the 11th century; the parish is best known for its former vicar, William Morgan, who first translated the whole Bible into Welsh in the 1580s and became a Bishop of Llandaff and of St. Asaph. Gwallter Mechain, the bard, was the vicar from 1837 until his death in 1849. St Dogfan was a Welsh prince in the 5th century. A clas dedicated to him was founded on the site of the present church; the holy well of the saint is on the farm of Gwernfeifod in Cwm-ffynnon. Attractions near the village include the Pistyll Rhaeadr waterfall, known for its natural arch, the Berwyn Mountains, Lake Vyrnwy. Bus services are operated based in the village. Route 76 links the village with Llanfyllin and Welshpool.
Routes 79/79A connect the village with Llangynog, Llangedwyn and Oswestry. The village was at one point served by the defunct Tanat Valley Light Railway which served Pentrefelin, Llanrhaiadr Mochnant and Pedairffordd Halt. Of these station, Llanrhaiadr Mochant was the closest one to the village being around a mile south east; these closed in 1951 to passengers along with the line to Llangynog but the line remained open to freight to as far as Llanrhaeadr Mochant until 1964 when the entire line to Blodwell Junction was closed. The trackbed has been incorporated into agricultural use but the newly form Tanat Valley Light Railway have expressed interest in reopening the line to as far as Llanrhaiadr Mochnant for heritage and tourist use, but are focused on reaching Blodwell Junction from Nantmawr. Parts of the 1995 film The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain, starring Hugh Grant, were filmed in the village, portraying the real-life village of Taff's Well, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, which by 1995 had become too developed to use.
More the village featured in the 2012 film Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger with David Tennant, as the village where the St. Bernadette's school bus stopped to buy sweets on the way to Lake Vyrnwy in search of the Castell Llawen. Photos of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and surrounding area on geograph
