LLANLLEONVEL (LLAN-LLEONFOEL), a parish, comprising the hamlet of Llanlleonvel, and a portion of that of Gwravog, in the
union and hundred of BUILTH, county of BRECKNOCK, SOUTH WALES, 7 miles (W. by S.) from Builth; and containing 261
inhabitants, of whom 189 are in the township of Llanlleonvel. This place, the name of which signifies the "church of Lleon
the Bald," is situated in a hilly district in the north-western portion of the county, and on the rivers Irvon and Dulas,
over which are three bridges within the parish, kept in repair at the expense of the hundred. It is intersected by the
road from Llanvihangel-Abergwessin to Builth; and bounded on the north by the parish of Llanavan-Vawr, on the -south by
that of Llangammarch, on the east by that of Llanavan-Veehan, and on the west by those of Llanvihangel-Abergwessin and
Llanwrtyd; and comprises, according to computation, 2697 acres, of which 674 are arable, 1700 pasture and common, and 323
woodland. The surface is hilly, and the scenery uninteresting, except in the vicinity of Garth House, which has a very
romantic appearance, being surrounded with oak and fir woods; some of the higher grounds command extensive views, but in
most parts the prospect is intercepted by the mountainous elevations encircling nearly the whole of this part of the
county. The soil, though not rich, is in general well cultivated, and produces good oats and barley, and the bills afford
fine pasturage for sheep: the rateable annual value of the parish, including the hamlet of Gwravog, is £943, of which
£693 is returned for the township of Trevlyn. The manor that includes the parish is co-extensive with the hundred, and is
distinguished for the prevalence of several peculiar customs, the origin of which is very obscure, and for certain
singular payments. Of these latter the principal are the " Tiddiestyn," the " Comortha," the " V uwch Larder," the "
Porthant Herwyr," the "Maccwyn," and the " Mabryddiaeth," the two last of which are  altogether inexplicable. From these
payments certain inhabitants of the bundred are exempt: there are no copyhold tenures in the manor, and the chief-rents
are collected for the lord by the officers of the parish. A presentment by a jury in 1646, of which Rees Gwyn, Esq.,
father of Marmaduke Gwyn, the Judge, was foreman, states the custom of the lordship to be, that no man's son dwelling
within the lordship ought to be summoned to do fealty within the said court during the life of his father, if his father
be seized of lands within the lordship. The woollen manufacture is carried on in the village upon a very limited scale,
affording employment only to a small number of persons. Baronial courts continue to be held at an inn in the village,
called Maes-Cevn-y-Fordd. The living is a perpetual curacy, endowed with £800 royal bounty; net income, £60; patron and
appropriator, Prebendary of Llanwrthwl in the Collegiate Church of Brecknock: there is neither parsonage-house nor any
glebe land attached to the. benefice. The church, the dedication of which is unknown, is a small edifice, undistinguished
by any architectural details, but pleasantly situated on a gentle eminence on the north-western bank of the river Dulas,
about a mile to the north of the high road from Build) to Llandovery; it is 60 feet in length and 24 in breadth, and
contains 16 pews, the whole of the sittings in which are free. There is a place of worship for Independents, who have also
tivo Sunday schools, conducted by gratuitous teachers, affording instruction to 175 males and females; and there is a day
school, in which 25 children are taught at the expense of their parents. A branch of the Sarn Lleon passed through the
parish, connecting Maridunum, at Carmarthen, with the Roman station at Cwm, in Radnorshire, and uniting at the latter
place with the great Roman road that anciently led from Nidus, at Neath, to Deva, now Chester. On an eminence opposite to
the church is the old mansion of Garth, noticed above, formerly the residence of the family of Gwyn, or Gwynne. In a field
below the church, and at no great distance from the river Dulas, is a mineral spring, resembling in taste and smell the
water at Llanwrtyd, but not so strongly impregnated with sulphur.