Mynydd Epynt () is a former community and upland area in Powys, Wales.
The Ministry of Defence controversially evicted the community of Mynydd Epynt in 1940, creating what is now the core of the Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA), the largest military training zone in Wales.
Etymology
The name of the area is often given as Mynydd Eppynt or Eppynt in historical sources and it appears under this spelling in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.
Mynydd is the Welsh word for "mountain" or "upland area" but the meaning of Epynt is less certain. The most commonly stated etymology is "a pathway for horses", deriving from the P-Celtic root epos, meaning "horse" (as in ebol, meaning "a foal" in Modern Welsh). However, Thomas Morgan suggested the name may be interpreted as a place where "the way (referring to the ancient mountain trackway) rises abruptly", deriving from eb- ("an issuing out") and -hynt (a "way" or "course"). A ridge continuing south-west from Mynydd Epynt is known as Mynydd Bwlch-y-groes, which may be translated as "mountain at the cross-road pass" or else "mountain at the pass of the cross".
These etymologies all suggest that the area was known since ancient times as a place where important upland routes intersected, routes still largely extant in the modern era as drovers' roads.
History
Prehistory
The area attracted antiquarian interest from as early as 1809, when Theophilus Jones described a number of enclosures, cairns and stone circles. Modern archaeologists have surveyed the sites at Ynys Hir, Cornelau Uchaf and Twyn y Post, including what has since been described as a "prehistoric monument complex".
Many of the features on Mynydd Epynt are known to be Bronze Age in origin, but the diversity of these monuments suggest they did not share a common purpose and that there were numerous phases of construction, in different historical eras. Some of the older monuments form part of later construction areas. These older sites were either reincorporated or left undisturbed, demonstrating a continued understanding of their importance and a respect for the beliefs of previous generations and cultures. The monuments are located near the trackways that cross Mynydd Epynt, and many are positioned at crossroads.
Later history
The modern community of Mynydd Epynt was active from at least the Medieval period, with archaeological surveys detailing preserved field systems, undisturbed by modern farming methods.
The importance of the area's trackways is evidenced by the four droving inns that were established on the northern side of Mynydd Epynt (The Griffin Inn, Tafarn y Mynydd, Spite Inn and The Drover's Arms). Following the Ministry of Defence's acquisition in 1940, the Drover's Arms became an important landmark within the Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA). The inn's exterior was restored in the 1990s despite its continued use in active military training.
The inns were part of an active Welsh-speaking community, with a school, church, and numerous chapels holding regular cultural events such as Eisteddfodau and Gymanfa Ganu. A noted custom of the community was to lay out a white sheet whenever a family was in need of help; this would act as a signal to the rest of the community, who would make their way to the house and offer their assistance.
Military acquisition
Expansion and developments
Training operations have destroyed most of the original structures that formed the community of Mynydd Epynt, including chapels and their cemeteries. However, an artificial village was constructed in 1988. The Fighting In Built Up Areas zone (FIBUA) saw the construction of many mock buildings, including a fake chapel with imitation gravestones.
Since the 1990s, the army have expanded the SENTA area and most of Mynydd Epynt is now subject to restricted access because of the use of live ammunition and explosives. Although explosives have destroyed the agricultural land, sheep grazing continues within the area under communal grazing and letting licences.
One of the homes acquired in 1940, Disgwylfa, was refurbished in the 1990s as a conservation centre. The property was again refurbished and re-opened in 2009 as (the Epynt Centre).
Despite the closure of the ancient trackways over Mynydd Epynt, SENTA's outlying areas continued to be Open Country or open access land. In 2004, The MOD created a long-distance path around the perimeter of the range. The Epynt Way is a circular route designed for walkers, horse riders and mountain-bikers.
The area was chosen as a special stage in the Wales Rally GB from 2006 to 2008.