Llandyssil is a village in the community of Abermule with Llandyssil, in Powys, Wales, in the traditional county of Montgomeryshire. It is about two miles from the town of Montgomery.
In 2001 there were 420 inhabitants in the parish, of whom 300 lived in the village itself.
Connection with Celtic saints
Llandyssil takes its name from St Tysul, a little known Welsh saint of the 7th century. Only two churches in Wales were dedicated to this saint, Llandyssil in Montgomeryshire and Llandysul in Ceredigion, and the feast day for this saint was celebrated on 31 January. The old church in the village (largely demolished in 1866) stood in the graveyard to the southeast of the present village. This suggests that the present settlement dates back to the period around 700. There is also a connection with another early Welsh and Breton saint, St Padarn. On the highland to the south in Cefn y Coed is the farm Cwm Badarn. The Llandyssil Brook rises in this Cwm or valley, and between Cwm Badarn Farm and the Pinion is a rock-cut spring, that was possibly a holy well, dedicated to St Padarn.
History
In the medieval period, Llandyssil was in the Cantref of Cedewain in the Kingdom of Powys. The parish was divided into four townships: Bolbro, Bronywood (or Bronycoed), Bryntalch and Rhandir. Rhandir, which contained the parish church, was the largest of these townships. It was probably an amalgamation of three other townships; Cefn-y-coed, Coedywig and Trefganol.
In 1536, following the Act of Union, Llandyssil became part of the new county of Montgomeryshire. For ecclesiastical administration, the parish was in the Bishopric of St Asaph, the Archdeaconry of Montgomery and the Deanery of Cedewain. For Parliamentary representation, Llandyssil fell within the County of Montgomery until 1885, when, for electoral purposes, it was included within the Montgomery Boroughs. It was transferred back to the county in 1918, when only one MP represented Montgomeryshire.
With the establishment of the Montgomeryshire County Council in 1894, Llandyssil Parish Council was created, and it was included in Forden Rural District Council. In 1974, as a result of local government reform, Llandyssil Parish Council became a Community Council within the Montgomeryshire District Council. At this time, Llanmerewig was joined with Llandyssil to form the new community council, and in 1984 this was renamed Abermule with Llandyssil Community Council. At this time, the council covered the old parishes of Llanmerewig and Llandyssil, together with Dolforwyn, which had been a township in Bettws Cedewain parish. In 1996, with the abolition of the Montgomeryshire District Council, the Community Council became part of Powys County Council.
Population and language
According to census returns, the historical population of Llandyssil has been as follows:
In 1880, a portion of the township of Bolbro was transferred from Llandyssil to Llanmerewig and the size of the parish was reduced from 4187 acres to 3800 acres. This may be reflected in the decrease in population between the 1881 and 1891 censuses.
During the later part of the 18th century, it appears that the Welsh language was supplanted by English for general usage in the village. There remain some Welsh speakers in the village, but they have mainly come from elsewhere in Montgomeryshire.
Archaeological and historic monuments
Llandyssil is particularly rich in archaeological sites, especially of the Later Bronze Age and Iron Age. To the northeast is Ffridd Faldwyn, possibly the largest hillfort in Wales, which is adjacent to Town Hill in Montgomery. Most of the sites have been discovered by aerial photography. The main sites are as follows.