GWYDDELWERN, a parish, in the hundred of EDEYRNION, county of MERIONETH, NORTH WALES, comprising the three principal
divisions of Cwm, Uwch- Avon, and Uwch-Mynydd, each of which maintains its own poor, and containing 1577 inhabitants. The
village of Gwyddelwern is in the Cwm division, and occupies a pleasant situation in a small valley, on the road from
Corwen to Ruthin, 3 miles (N.) from Corwen. The whole of this parish, comprising about four thousand four hundred acres,
is enclosed and under cultivation; but the quality of the soil is extremely various: the elevated parts, forming the
greater portion of the parish, command fine views of the Vale of Edeyrnion, watered by the river Dee, and of the
surrounding country. The south-western part is intersected by the road from London to Holyhead, and the two high roads
from Corwen to Bala: the road from Corwen to Ruthin also passes through it, and has lately been greatly improved by
diverting certain parts of it, in order to avoid the hills over which it previously passed. Peat is procured within the
parish, for the consumption of the inhabitants of the district. The manufacture of flannel is carried on at Cynwyd, a
village six miles distant from that of Gwyddelwern, in the Uwch -Avon division, which is entirely detached from the two
other divisions of the parish. At this village was also anciently held the court for the whole comot of Edeyrnion, which
contained thirteen baronies, and had independent manorial rights; but, on a quarrel between the lords, as it is stated,
the records were burnt, and the courts have been since discontinued. Fairs are held on April 15th, August 5th, and October
18th. The living is a discharged vicarage, in the archdeaconry and diocese of St. Asaph, not rated in the king's books,
endowed with £400 parliamentary grant, and in the patronage of the Bishop of St. Asaph: the tithes of the parish are
divided into five equal portions, of which four belong to the vicars choral of St. Asaph, and the fifth to the incumbent.
The church, dedicated to St. Beuno, is an ancient building, with a rich eastern window, containing some remains of ancient
stained glass: there is a curious old chandelier of wood hanging in the interior. There are several places of worship, in
different parts of the parish, for Baptists and Calvinistic and Wesleyan Methodists, with Sunday schools attached to each.
The parochial school, situated in the village of Gwyddelwern, is partly supported by subscription, having no permanent
endowment. Hugh Roberts, in 1807, bequeathed £200, directing the interest to be applied to the instruction of the children
of the Uwch - Avon division and the parish of Llangar, two-thirds to the former, and one-third to the latter: the school-
room is situated in the village of Cynwyd, and was built by subscription. Divers small bequests have been made, the
interest of which is applied annually for the benefit of the poor of the different divisions. On Bettws mountain, in the
Uwch -Mynydd division, are vestiges of an ancient British encampment; and about three-quarters of a mile south of the
village of Gwyddelwern, in a field by the road side, there is an artificial mound, surrounded by a fosse, called Tommen y
Castel', together with some tumuli. Near Gwyddelwern there is a plate called Bryn Saith Marchog, from its being the spot
where Owain Glyndwr surprised Reginald de Grey and seven knights, whom be made prisoners: it commands a beautiful view of
the small but picturesque vale of Glyn. Above the village of Cynwyd is a picturesque waterfall. The average annual
expenditure for the support of the poor of the whole parish amounts to £562. 10.