Beaufort, Ebbw Vale

Beaufort ( _cy. Cendl) is a small town located on the northern edge of the area broadly referred to as Ebbw Vale, but more accurately referred to as the county borough of Blaenau Gwent in Wales.

The border between Beaufort and Ebbw Vale itself is generally considered to the river Ebbw itself, which passes close to St David's Church (Church in Wales). The town's name derives from the fact that much of the local land was originally owned by the Duke of Beaufort.

The western end of Beaufort is known as 'The Rassau'. The eastern end is the most populous and borders on Brynmawr. Beaufort was formerly part of Breconshire, but was transferred to Monmouthshire as part of the urban district of Ebbw Vale in 1878. Subsequent local government changes incorporated it into the Blaenau Gwent district of Gwent in 1974 and the unitary authority of Blaenau Gwent in 1996.

Until the early 1900s, Beaufort was bilingual with both Welsh and English-language chapels. Elements of a Welsh service continued until the 1970s. Amongst its Nonconformist chapels, the Welsh Independent Congregational Chapel 'Carmel' was pre-eminent, rising to national fame under the leadership of Thomas Rees DD (author of "History of Protestant Nonconformity in Wales", whose second edition was printed in 1883).

External links

* [http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal/BRE/Llangatwg/Beaufort2.html History of Beaufort] from "The History of Brecknockshire" by Theophilus Jones.
* [http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=2802021 www,geograph.co.uk : photos of Beaufort and surrounding area]