BEGUILDY (BUGEILDY), a parish, in the hundred of KNIGHTON, county of RADNOR, SOUTH WALES; miles (N. W. by w.) from
Knighton, comprising the upper and lower divisions, and containing 1043 inhabitants, of which number, 591 are in the
upper, and 452 in the lower, division. This parish is situated on the river Teme, and, towards the north, borders on the
county of Montgomery: it is in general mountainous, but there is a long narrow tract of great fertility, affording good
pasturage for cattle, and on the hills are fed vast numbers of sheep, which form the principal dependence of the farmers,
very little of the land comparatively being in a state of tillage. The neighbourhood abounds with pleasing and picturesque
scenery, and the higher grounds command extensive and finely varied prospects over the counties of Radnor, Montgomery, and
Salop. Part of the borough of Cnwclas is within this parish, the remainder being in that of Heyop, and the court-house in
which the burgesses of that place are elected is situated in the township of Beguildy. The parish comprises four
townships, namely, Beguildy, Crtig y Byddar, Mudwalledd, and Pennant; which are distinct as regards the collection of the
county stock and the repair of the roads, but are united for the maintenance of the poor. The living is a discharged
vicarage, in the archdeaconry of Brecknock, and diocese of St. David's, rated in the king's books at £7. 15. 7i., and in
the patronage of the Bishop of St. David's. The church, dedicated to St. Michael, consists of a nave and chancel, but is
not remarkable for any architectural character. There is a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists at Velindre, in this
parish. The free school is endowed with a rent-charge of A 10, given by Lord Robert Wharton, on an estate called
Maesgwynne, formerly the property of the noble family of Harley, but sold by the late Earl of Oxford. The Rev. John
Davies, in 1741, bequeathed A 100, now secured on a tenement called Pen y Garragl, to poor housekeepers of this parish;
the Rev. Vavasour Griffiths, in 1741, bequeathed 420; and there are also some other charitable donations and bequests for
distribution among the poor. Here are the remains of an ancient British fortification, said to have been occupied by the
renowned Uthyr Pendragon; and at the foot of a hill is a place called the Bloody Field, where a battle is said to have
been fought. On the south-western border of the parish is the site of Cnwclas castle, on the summit of a conical
artificial mound. The average annual expenditure for the support of the poor is £363. 16.