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Brecon

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Brecon
Welsh: Aberhonddu


Population	7,901
OS grid reference	SO045285
Principal area	Powys
Ceremonial county	Powys
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	BRECON
Postcode district	LD3
Dialling code	01874
Police	Dyfed-Powys
Fire	Mid and West Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
UK Parliament	Brecon & Radnorshire
European Parliament	Wales
List of places: UK • Wales • Powys

Coordinates: 51°56′48″N 3°23′27″W / 51.94677, -3.39086

Brecon (Welsh: Aberhonddu) is an historic market town in southern Powys, mid Wales, with a population of roughly 8,000 with around 6,000 in the surrounding area. It was the County Town of the former county of Brecknockshire; although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of Powys it remains an important local centre.

1 Early Welsh History
2 Coming of the Normans
3 Priory & Cathedral
4 Present Day Brecon
5 Military Town
6 Cattle Market
7 Education
8 Transport
- 8.1 Railways
9 Town twinning
10 Points of interest
11 Trivia
12 Additional photographs
13 References

The original Welsh name of the kingdom in whose territory Brecon stands was 'Brycheiniog', which later became anglicised to Brecknockshire or Breconshire, and probably derives from the personal name of Welsh Prince Brychan, the eponymous founder of the kingdom. The English name of Brecon town may also be derived from Brychan.

The Welsh name, Aberhonddu, means 'mouth of the Honddu'. It is derived from the River Honddu, which meets the River Usk near the town centre, a short distance away from the River Tarrell which enters the Usk a few hundred metres upstream.

Before the building of the bridge over the Usk, Brecon was one of the few places where the river could be forded.

The confluence of the Honddu and the River Usk made for a valuable defensive position for the Norman castle [1] which overlooks the town, built by Bernard de Neufmarche in the late 11th century.

Less than a mile from the castle stands Brecon Cathedral, a fairly modest building compared to many cathedrals. The role of Cathedral is a fairly recent one, and was bestowed upon the church in 1923 with the formation of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon from what was previously the Archdeaconry of Brecon - a part of the diocese of St David's.

The Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal basin at Brecon, the starting point of the Taff Trail.

Today Brecon is a thriving community, and is popular as a holiday destination, being on the Northern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, affording among the best views of the Brecon Beacons themselves, a range of hills, including Pen-y-Fan, the highest point in southern Britain at 886m.

August sees an annual Brecon Jazz Festival held in the town centre, with several open air venues and indoor concerts held in several venues, including the town's market hall and the recently opened 400-seat Theatr Brycheiniog next to the redeveloped Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal basin to the east of the town centre.

The east end of town also has two military establishments:

Dering Lines, home to the Infantry Battle School formerly Infantry Training Centre Wales,^[1] where Infantry Officers and Other Ranks are trained, and
The Barracks, home to 160 (Wales) Brigade.

Eight miles to the west of Brecon is Sennybridge Training Area, an important training facility for the British Army.^[2]

The west end of Brecon has a small industrial area, and recent years have seen the cattle market moved from the centre of the town to this area, with markets held several times a week.

Brecon has many primary schools, with a secondary school and further education college (Coleg Powys) on the northern edge of the town. Due to Brecon being a rural area, bus trips of over an hour are not uncommon for pupils making their way to school. The town is also home to Christ College, a private boarding school.

Brecon is located near where the A40 meets the A470.

The Neath and Brecon Railway reached Brecon in 1867, terminating at Free Street. By this point, Brecon already had two other stations:

Watton - from 1 May 1863 when the Brecon and Merthyr Railway to Merthyr Tydfil was opened for traffic
Mount Street - in September 1864, with Llanidloes by the Mid Wales Railway which linked to the Midland Railway at Talyllyn Junction

The three companies consolidated their stations at a newly rebuilt Free Street Joint Station from 1871^[3]. Through services from the Midlands ceased in 1930, while services to Neath ceased in October 1962.