Buellt orBuilth was acantref in medievalWales, located west of theRiver Wye. Unlike most cantrefs, it was not part of any of the major Welsh kingdoms for most of its history, but was instead ruled by an autonomous local dynasty. During theNorman era it was associated withRhwng Gwy a Hafren, a region independent of the Welsh monarchies and controlled by NormanMarcher Lords. In the 16th century, it was reorganized as ahundred and joined with the former kingdom ofBrycheiniog to form the county ofBrecknockshire.
The nameBuellt, also renderedBuallt, comes from the Welsh wordsbu, meaning "ox", andgellt (latergwellt), meaningpasture. This was later anglicized toBuilth, as in the modern town ofBuilth Wells.[1][2]
Situated in the valley ofAfon Irfon, Buellt's boundaries were roughly theCambrian Mountains to the north, theRiver Wye to the east, theMynydd Epynt range to the south, andCeredigion to the west. It was closely associated with the territories ofGwrtheyrnion,Elfael, andMaelienydd, and as such was often considered part of the region known asRhwng Gwy a Hafren (English:Between Wye and Severn) despite being west of the Wye.[3] Thecantref was divided into four majorcommotes, whose boundaries are unclear: Treflys, Pebuellt, Dinan, and Is Irfon. Most of Buellt's major sites were located along the Irfon, including the courts of the commotes and the major church atLlanafan Fawr, dedicated to SaintAfan Buellt, the cantref's chief saint.[4]
It is unknown when Buellt began to emerge as a distinct political unit. Its organization as a cantref seems to have developed along the earlier tribal boundaries of agwlad ("people") ortud ("tribe").[6] During theEarly Middle Ages, Buellt andGwrtheyrnion on the other side of the Wye formed a small regional kingdom. This kingdom's rulers traced their descent back to the legendary 5th-century warlordVortigern (Welsh:Gwrtheyrn, from which Gwrtheyrnion was named.)[3]
The kingdom is known from the 9th-centuryHistoria Brittonum, whose author, possibly a native of southeastern Wales, focused particular attention on it.[7][8][9] TheHistoria recounts that after Vortigern had invited theAnglo-Saxons to Britain and then been forced west, his sonPascent ruled Buellt and Gwrtheyrnion as a grant fromAmbrosius Aurelianus.[10] Whatever the reality of this story, another section attributes descent from Pascent and Vortigern toFfernfael ap Tewdwr, a 9th-century ruler of Buellt and Gwrtheyrnion known from other sources.[11]
TheHistoria further includes Buellt in itsmirabilia section, or list of marvels. According to the text, Buellt is the location of the "Carn Cabal", a (since lost)petrosomatoglyph: the imprint of a dog's paw. This marvel is attributed toKing Arthur's dogCavall, who supposedly left the print while chasing the boarTroyt. Afterward, Arthur placed this stone on top of acairn, and anyone who tried to move it would find it back in its place the next day.[12] The placename survives asCarn Gafallt nearRhayader, though it is unlikely the modern hill is the same one mentioned in theHistoria.[13][14] The prose taleCulhwch and Olwen contains a more elaborate version of Arthur's hunting of the divine boar, here known asTwrch Trwyth, however, inCulhwch the boar's detailed itinerary does not take him through Buellt.[13]
By the 11th century, Buellt and the rest of the Rhwng Gwy a Hafren passed under the control of a different dynasty tracing its descent toElystan Glodrydd.[15]
During theHigh Middle Ages, several rulers from the surrounding kingdoms took control of Buellt, but it generally reverted to independence upon their death. During theNorman invasion of Wales, theMarcher LordPhilip de Braose conquered Buellt shortly after he took Rhwng Gwy a Hafren in 1095.[16] Philip fortified the hill east of present-day Builth Wells with a woodenmotte and bailey castle and held the area until his death in 1134, when it passed to his sonWilliam.[17] Through this period, however, the representatives of the old Welsh dynasty descended from Elystan contested the Marcher Lords' rule.[15] The area changed hands between multiple Norman and Welsh figures, includingRoger Mortimer,Rhys ap Gruffudd andLlywelyn the Great.[18] Buellt passed to Llywelyn's grandsonLlywelyn ap Gruffudd, whose rights to it (though not other parts of Rhwng Gwy a Hafren) were confirmed by KingHenry III in the 1267Treaty of Montgomery.[19] In November 1282,Edward I overran Buellt as part of his finalconquest of Wales.[20]
Edward ordered the construction of the stoneBuilth Castle on the site of Braose's burnt fort, although construction was halted for lack of funds. The castle saw action duringMadog ap Llywelyn andOwain Glyndŵr's rebellions, but was subsequently abandoned.[21][22] In the 17th century it was damaged by a fire and its stones were plundered; it has since almost entirely disappeared.[23]
In the 16th century, as part ofHenry VIII'sLaws in Wales Acts, Buellt became ahundred and merged withBrycheiniog into the new county ofBrecknockshire. In 1996 the area became part of the modern county ofPowys. The cantref's name survives in the modern town ofBuilth Wells and the site of nearby Builth Castle.[24]