The Area

 

Abercamlais is set within the Brecon Beacons National Park; one of the most beautiful landscapes in the UK. Pen y Fan, the tallest peak in Southern Britain (886 metres) is close by and the landscape is a magnet for tourists throughout the year, keen to explore the breathtaking views. The area has a rich cultural history, with castles, ancient monuments, priories and notable houses.

The Brecon Beacons is also a thriving agricultural centre with livestock markets and annual shows. There is a strong history of farming and the locally produced beef and lamb raised on the lush grass of the Beacons is some of the finest available in the UK.

The market town of Brecon is just over 6 miles away, famous for its annual Jazz Festival. Brecon is home to the Infantry Battle School and Gurkha Company (Mandalay). The Headquarters 160th Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Wales is also based in the town, along with the Regimental Museum of The Royal Welsh.

The area has a strong industrial heritage with the Blaenavon World Heritage Site and Big Pit National Coal Museum a short distance away. There are also gunpowder works, ironworks and quarries to explore and even a steam mountain railway.

Wildlife is abundant and there are many nature reserves, woodlands, rivers and lakes, including Llangorse Lake which is the largest natural lake in South Wales. . There are also caves and waterfalls within easy reach. The Mumbles, home to some of the best beaches in the UK is around an hour away by car.

The thriving town of Abergavenny, famous for it’s annual Food Festival, lies at the southern tip of the National Park and is around 30 minutes drive south-east. The book town of Hay on Wye (home to the world-famous Hay Literature and Arts Festival) is around 40 minutes drive east.

‘…because I believe from my soul that there is no part of the principality wherein the nobility, gentry, and commonalty, are more worthy, whose mansions are more stately, where the dainties and delicacies of the table are more sumptuous, and the people of all ranks more distinguished for the neatness of their apparel, their kindness, or their hospitality, than the inhabitants of the county of Brecknock’

Thomas Rees quoting Dr John Davis Rhys (b. 1534), Poet and Philologist in The Beauties of England and Wales, 1815.

'Splendid Grade I mansion dating from 16th Century, altered extensively in early 18th Century with 19th Century additions, in extensive grounds beside the river Usk. Beautiful octagonal pigeon house, formerly a privy.' (2017)

Hudson's Historic Houses & Gardens is the most comprehensive guide to heritage properties in Great Britain and Ireland.

The Historic Houses Association (HHA) represents over 1,640 of the UK's privately and charitably owned historic houses, castles and gardens.

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