LLANVIHANGEL-Y-CREIDDYN (LLANFIHANGEL-Y-CREUDDYN), a parish, in the union of ABERYSTWITH, upper division of the hundred
of ILAR, county of CARDIGAN, SOUTH WALES, 7 miles (S.E.) from Aberystwith, on the road to Rhaiadr; comprising the
chapelry of EgIwysNewydd, or Llanvihangel-y-Creiddyn Uchav, and the township of Llanvihangel-y-Creiddyn Isitv, and
containing 2102 inhabitants, of whom 971 are in Llanvihangel-y-Creiddyn Isiv. This parish, anciently Llanvihangel-
Glyndroed, which is situated on the river Ystwith, and intersected by various other streams, is eminently distinguished by
scenery equally remarkable for picturesque beauty and strikingly romantic grandeur. The former character prevails in a
high degree throughout the extensive and beautiful grounds of Havod, and the latter on the precipitous and craggy cliffs
through which the rivers Mynach and Rheidiol wind an arduous and frequently interrupted course. Over the former of these
streams is Pont-ar-Vynach, or, as it is called from a vulgar tradition; " the Devil's Bridge;" the Mynach here rushes
impetuously through a narrow chasm between the lofty cliffs that on each side confine its waters, darkened by the
entangled branches and foliage 'of numerous trees, which have taken root among the rocks, and at a great depth beneath a
bridge of one arch, thrown over it at a very early period, by the monks of the abbey of Strata-Florida, an ancient
establishment in the neighbourhood. The bride, to which the descent from the road was found inconvenient and dangerous,
was, in 1753, surmounted by another bridge of one arch, at a higher elevation and of larger span, over which the road is
continued to Aberystwith. The descent to the river, which lies at a great depth below its craggy and precipitous banks, is
frightfully steep, and only rendered practicable by the numerous trees with which the rocks on both sides are thickly
interspersed. The view from the bottom of the valley is strikingly picturesque; the bridges are seen to advantage only
from this point, and present an appearance truly romantic; the height of the upper bridge above the bed of the river is
about one hundred and twenty feet. At the distance of about fifty yards from the bridge, the river, rushing in a narrow
and obstructed channel, falls with violence from a rock twenty feet in height into a cavity beneath: on its emerging it
almost instantly descends from a precipice of sixty feet into another, and, after falling again from a height of twenty
feet, descends in one unbroken sheet from an elevation of more than One hundred feet. On the opposite side of the glen a
view of all the falls of the Mynach is obtained from a projecting mass of rock, a little below which the river falls into
the Rheidiol. The Rheidiol, after receiving the Mynaeh, pursues a similar course, frequently interrupted by rocks of
various elevation, over which it is precipitated with violence, and from one of which, of prodigious height, it descends
in one vast and entire column, forming i a cataract of is sublimity. The main torrent, n its descent, IS partially
intercepted on each side by projecting points of rock, which, diverting its course into an oblique direction, form two
smaller cataracts that intersect each other in their descent. The scenery of the valley through which the Rheidiol has its
course is characterised by features similar to those of the Vale of Mynach, and, notwithstanding the difficulty of at+
cess to those parts from which it is seen to the greatest advantage, it still continues to attract the attention of all
travellers into this part of the principality. Lead-ore abounds in the parish, but is not wrought to any great extent:
there is a mine called Cwm Ystwith, capable of being rendered very productive, and there are others of smaller
importance. The working of these mines at a former period led to the establishment of a small village named Pentre Brie/
nant, which was chiefly inhabited by the persons emu ployed in them, and which stands on the road from Rhaiadr to
Aberystwith, in the upper part of the Vale of the Ystwith, where the country is remarkably wild and rugged; but the
population is now principally engaged in agriculture. The Iti3nofcsis a discharged vicarage, rated in the king's at £8,
and endowed with £200 royal bounty;_present net income, £126; patron, Bit/	of St. avid's; impropriator T. P.
Chichester,	. The church, dedicated to St. Michael, is a neat structure, in the later style of English architecture.
The chapel of Eglwys-Newydd, which is within the precincts of the estate of Havod, and forms an interesting and beautiful
feature in the landscape, was originally at a place called Llantrisant, nearer to the mother church, by Vron Goch mine,
the remains of die cemetery being still plainly visible; but it was removed to the present site early in the 17th century,
through the influence of the Herberts of Ilav4 and the growing population of Cwm-Ystwith works: *Mose in the east end of
the chapel, inscribed 1842, wee brought from the original building and placed le its ptesent position 30 years ago, when
the chapel was rebuilt at the expense of Colonel.Johnes, the then spirited proprietor of Hayed: the present noble owner
of the estate, the Duke of Newcastle has repaired and considerably beautified the edifice: There are places of worship for
Calvinistic and Wesleyan Methodists. In the township of Llanvihangel-Y6 Creiddyn Istiv are a day school of 50 children,
illstructed at the expense of their parents, and five 'Sunday school% in which about 380 males and females are taught
gratuitously by Calvinistic ?dethodists: the schools in the other portion of the parish are stated under the head of
EGLWTS-NEWYDD1