The River Usk (; cy, Afon Wysg) rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain (''y Mynydd Du''),

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, in the westernmost part of the

Brecon Beacons National Park The Brecon Beacons National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) is one of three national parks in Wales, and is centred on the Brecon Beacons range of hills in southern Wales. It includes the Black Mountain ( cy, Y Mynydd Du) i ...

. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east by

Sennybridge Sennybridge ( cy, Pontsenni) is a village in the historic county of Brecknockshire, Wales, now within the unitary authority area of Powys, situated some from Cardiff and from Swansea. It lies west of Brecon on the A40 trunk road to Llan ...

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the c ...

before turning southeast to flow by

Talybont-on-Usk Talybont-on-Usk ( cy, Tal-y-bont ar Wysg) is a village and community in Powys, Wales, in the historic county of Brecknockshire. It lies on both the Caerfanell river and the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, about from the River Usk. In 2001, i ...

, Crickhowell and

Abergavenny Abergavenny (; cy, Y Fenni , archaically ''Abergafenni'' meaning "mouth of the River Gavenny") is a market town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales. Abergavenny is promoted as a ''Gateway to Wales''; it is approximately from the border wit ...

after which it takes a more southerly course. Beyond the eponymous town of Usk it passes the

Roman legion The Roman legion ( la, legiō, ) was the largest military unit of the Roman army, composed of 5,200 infantry and 300 equites (cavalry) in the period of the Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) and of 5,600 infantry and 200 auxilia in the period o ...

ary fortress of

Caerleon Caerleon (; cy, Caerllion) is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman ...

to flow through the heart of the city of Newport and into the Severn Estuary at Uskmouth beyond Newport near the

Newport Wetlands Newport Wetlands is a wildlife reserve covering parts of Uskmouth, Nash and Goldcliff, in the south-east of the city of Newport, South Wales. History The reserve was established in 2000 to mitigate losses of wildlife habitat when the Cardi ...

. The river is about long. The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal follows the Usk for most of the length of the canal.

Etymology

The name of the river derives from a

Common Brittonic Common Brittonic ( cy, Brythoneg; kw, Brythonek; br, Predeneg), also known as British, Common Brythonic, or Proto-Brittonic, was a Celtic language spoken in Britain and Brittany. It is a form of Insular Celtic, descended from Proto-Celtic, ...

word meaning "abounding in fish" (or possibly "water"), this root also appears in other British river names such as

Exe Exe or EXE may refer to: * .exe, a file extension * exe., abbreviation for executive Places * River Exe, in England * Exe Estuary, in England * Exe Island, in Exeter, England Transportation and vehicles * Exe (locomotive), a British locomotiv ...

, Axe, Esk and other variants. The name is

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical ef ...

with '' pysg'' (plural of '' pysgod''), the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

word for fish, borrowed from Latin ''piscis''. The name of the river appears as "Wÿsk" on the Cambriae Typus map of 1573.

Ecology

The whole river has been designated a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

. It contains

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

with

mudflat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal f ...

s and

salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into '' coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons ...

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

and marsh, varied

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

and

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

habitats along its course. Its flora and fauna are diverse and include

Atlantic salmon The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlantic salmon are ...

, European otters,

twait shad The twait shad or twaite shad (''Alosa fallax'') is a species of fish in the family Clupeidae. It is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea and is an anadromous fish which lives in the sea but migrates into fresh water to ...

shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae
lamprey, European perch,

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

chub Chub is a common fish name. It pertains to any one of a number of ray-finned fish in several families and genera. In the UK, the term ''chub'' usually refers to the species '' Squalius cephalus''. In addition, see sea chub. In family Cyprinida ...

, common dace and common roach as well as kingfishers,

grey heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more north ...

s and other wildfowl and bird life. Dippers can be seen upriver along with red kites in the river's valley upstream from around the town of Usk. The Usk has long been a noted salmon and trout fishing river. Salmon of over may still be caught. In 1999 the river had the highest estimated salmon egg deposition of any river south of

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...

and the Scottish rivers, and exceeded its spawning target. The river has recently been rated as the best

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight fishing lure, lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is Casting (fishing), cast using a fly rod, Fishing reel#Fly reel, reel, and specialized Fly line, weighted line. T ...

water in Wales for salmon and inside the UK Top Ten. The normal tidal limit of the river is just below the bridge at Newbridge-on-Usk, some north of Newport.

Bridge crossings

There are multiple bridge crossings of the river, variously for vehicles, pedestrians and rail traffic. A number are of historic interest, notably a series of largely eighteenth and nineteenth century listed structures between Abercamlais and Newport. The highest crossing is that of Pont ar Wysg (translates from

as ''bridge on the Usk'') which carries the moorland road west from

Trecastle Trecastle ( cy, Trecastell) ("the town of the castle") is a village in Powys, Wales, situated on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) and in the community of Llywel. The village has a populatio ...

to Twynllanan. There are a further couple of minor road crossings below the Usk Reservoir dam around Cwmwysg. then Pont Newydd (translates as ''new bridge'') immediately south of Trecastle. In the vicinity of

are Pont Pantysgallog, Pont Ynysyrwyddfa, Pont Senni (after which the village is named) and Pont Llwyncyntefin. Pont y Commin is of interest insofar as a former railway bridge carried the Neath and Brecon Railway at a high level diagonally over the road bridge itself. Three historic bridges span the river in quick succession; a pedestrian suspension bridge at

Abercamlais Abercamlais is a Grade I listed country house in the Usk valley between Brecon and Sennybridge in Powys, Wales. Possibly dating back to the Middle Ages, it underwent various alterations and additions during the nineteenth century accounting for ...

and stone arch bridges at Abercamlais and Penpont (both grade II* listed) with Aberbrân bridge another downstream. The Grade I listed Usk Bridge in Brecon dates back to 1563 but it was significantly altered in the 1950s to accommodate increased road traffic. It is supplemented by a modern concrete span bridge carrying the A40 Brecon bypass dual carriageway over the river to the east of the town. Another miles downstream is Lock Bridge which carries the B4558 over the river and immediately downstream again is the substantial Brynich Aqueduct bringing the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal over the river at Llanfrynach. There was another pair of bridges at Llansantffraed but since the dismantling of the railway bridge only the road bridge linking to

remains. A couple of private footbridges span the next section of the river before its waters pass beneath the historic (grade I listed)

Llangynidr Bridge Llangynidr Bridge, also known as "Coed-yr-Ynys Bridge", is an early 18th-century bridge that crosses the River Usk to the north of Llangynidr, Powys, Wales. It carries the B4560 road towards Bwlch. The existing stone bridge dates from approximat ...

. Tower Bridge is a grade II* listed structure providing private vehicular access into Glanusk Park, the river then remaining unbridged downstream until the historic (grade I listed) Crickhowell Bridge. At Glangrwyney is a

bailey bridge A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British for military use during the Second World War and saw extensive use by British, Canadian and American military engineering units ...

installed after the earlier stone bridge was washed away. Though there was once a ferry crossing of the river near Llanwenarth, the next bridge is that at Abergavenny connecting the town with

Llanfoist Llanfoist ( cy, Llan-ffwyst) is both a village near Abergavenny, in Monmouthshire, Wales, and the community of Llanfoist Fawr. Llanfoist derives from ''Ffwyst'', an early Christian Welsh saint, although the anglicised version of the church pa ...

. This grade II* listed structure was accompanied on its upstream side by a railway bridge from the 1860s until the railway's closure in the late 1950s. Abergavenny is bypassed to the south by the A465 dual carriageway which crosses the river west of the Hardwicke roundabout. The bridge which carries the A4042 road over the river at

Llanellen Llanellen ( cy, Llanelen) is a village in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales, United Kingdom. It is located south of Abergavenny. The population was 506 in 2011. Geography The Blorenge mountain towers above the village. The River Usk The Ri ...

was built by John Upton in 1821. A private footbridge spans the river at Llanover and the mainline railway crosses it at The Bryn, a small village otherwise known as Llangattock Nigh Usk. The B4598 road is carried over the river by another Upton legacy, the Grade II* listed

Pant-y-Goitre Bridge Pant-y-Goitre Bridge crosses the River Usk between Abergavenny and Usk near the village of Llanfair Kilgeddin. The bridge carries the B4598. It was constructed in 1821 by the engineer John Upton. History The bridge was designed and built in 182 ...

near

Llanvihangel Gobion Llanfihangel Gobion ( cy, Llanfihangel-y-gofion) is a village and rural parish of Monmouthshire, Wales, lying within the administrative community of Llanover. Location Llanfihangel Gobion is located approximately 5 miles east of Abergavenny ...

and again by the 'Chain Bridge' near

Kemeys Commander Kemeys Commander ( cy, Cemais Comawndwr) is a village in Monmouthshire, in South East Wales. Location Kemeys Commander, north-west of Usk, comprises a few farms and cottages slightly off the main road leading to Abergavenny within a graceful be ...

(the name of this iron arch structure is a hangover from the previous bridge which was supported by chains). The river is crossed by two bridges at Usk, the former railway crossing and downstream, the Usk Bridge which carries the A472 road, and the Usk Valley Walk. Yet another Grade II* listed structure, it was built by William Edwards in the late 1740s. A long unbridged section follows until, just upstream from the normal tidal limit on the Usk, it is crossed by the Grade II* listed

New Bridge New Bridge may refer to: Bridges * Chester New Bridge, County Durham, England * Most Slovenského Národného Povstania (called the Nový Most, for New Bridge, until 2012), over the Danube in Bratislava, Slovakia * New Bridge (Dublin), over the ...

at Newbridge-on-Usk, probably also a legacy of Edwards from 1779. The Twenty Ten Bridge is a recently constructed private bridge upstream of Caerleon giving access to one of the golf courses associated with Celtic Manor. In Caerleon itself the B4236 road crosses by means of Caerleon Bridge dating from 1806, one of 12 structures which cross the river within the city boundaries of Newport. These include two rail crossings,

upstream Upstream may refer to: * Upstream (bioprocess) * ''Upstream'' (film), a 1927 film by John Ford * Upstream (networking) * ''Upstream'' (newspaper), a newspaper covering the oil and gas industry * Upstream (petroleum industry) * Upstream (software ...

and downstream of the M4 motorway crossing which comprises two independent structures carrying the east and westbound carriageways over the river together with two further structures carrying the A4042 slip roads which form a part of junction 25a of the motorway. Newport Bridge, often known as Town Bridge, carries the B4591 immediately downstream of the second railway crossing, the two bridges trapping Newport Castle between them. The innovative Newport City footbridge was opened in 2006 to carry both pedestrians and cyclists over the river as part of an urban regeneration project. Just downstream George Street Bridge carries the B4237 road across and downstream again is City Bridge carrying the A48 dual carriageway across. Newport Transporter Bridge is the furthest downstream of the many crossings of the Usk. Completed in 1906, it is one of fewer than 10 such structures remaining in use across the world and at just short of is the longest of these.

Former mills

There are a number of former

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production ...

s along the banks of the river, the majority of which were engaged in milling

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...

for

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cul ...

production. The uppermost mill on the Usk was that at Cwm-wysg, a corn mill of mediaeval origin at Ordnance Survey grid reference SN 849285. Watergate Mill at Brecon (SO 435285) was another cornmill making use of water from the Usk, though post-mediaeval in date. A couple of miles downstream was Millbrook Mill at Llanhamlach (SO 084268). This drew water via a 42m long leat from an 85m long weir spanning the width of the river. Buckland Old Mill, upstream of Llangynidr (at SO 134201) is thought to have been another post-mediaeval cornmill. Three further mills sit close to the banks of the Usk between here and Crickhowell though all draw their water from tributaries rather than the main river. Aberhoyw Mill takes water from the Nant Cleisfer, Knight's Cornmill at

Tretower Tretower ( cy, Tretŵr) is a hamlet in the community of Llanfihangel Cwmdu with Bwlch and Cathedine in the southern part of the county of Powys in Wales. It lies on the A479 road within the Brecon Beacons National Park at the foot of the Blac ...

takes water via a 440m long leat from the

Rhiangoll The Rhiangoll is a river in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Powys, Wales. It rises on the western slopes of Waun Fach, highest point of the Black Mountains (Welsh: Y Mynyddoedd Duon) and drops steeply down to the west into the north–south ...

and Usk Vale Mill at Glangrwyney draws it water from the

Grwyne Fawr The Grwyne Fawr is a river in the Brecon Beacons National Park in south Wales. A section of it forms the administrative border between Powys and Monmouthshire and also of the historic counties of Brecon and Monmouth. The river and its major tr ...

. The first two are post-mediaeval corn-mills, the latter a nineteenth century

paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...

which later converted to become a ‘sawdust mill’. Forge Mill north of Bettws Newydd at SO 355974 was still in use at the end of the nineteenth century, using a 200m long weir stretching between islands on the river to draw its water. Gorrats Mill at Trostrey sits on the Usk's left bank at SO 359040. The possible 16th century Prioress Mill (SO 367022) at Rhadyr just north of the town of Usk was another which whilst close to the Usk drew its water from a tributary, in this case the Berthin Brook. In addition to these there is an enigmatic leat beside the uppermost section of the river's course which is presumed to have drawn water off it at SN 816263 and transferred it via a contouring route across the moors for over 2 km. Its northern end is lost within 20th century forestry south of Usk Reservoir.

Archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

s have postulated it as being of either mediaeval or even Roman origin but do not know its purpose.

In history and legend

The River Usk has played an important role in the history of

and features in some local folk-tales. Historically, the tidal reaches of the Usk have been used as a major shipping port for much of the last millennium, mostly because of its wide and deep mouth, and good navigable access from the Severn Estuary and the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Se ...

and thence access to home waters and further overseas. Evidence of the Usk's long-standing use in transport and trade came in the form of the remains of the Newport Ship that were discovered in 2002. This ship, dated to around 1465, was most likely a trading vessel and may have sailed around Europe or even beyond in its lifetime. Its presence in the Usk has confirmed what an important trading route the Usk must have been to the many towns and villages along its course. The Usk has also played a role in many local legends. The Medieval Latin text ''

De Ortu Waluuanii ''De Ortu Waluuanii Nepotis Arturi'' ( en, The Rise of Gawain, Nephew of Arthur) is an anonymous Medieval Latin chivalric romance dating to the 12th or 13th century. It describes the birth, boyhood deeds, and early adventures of King Arthur's nep ...

'' recounts a humorous tale in which an incognito

Gawain Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest ...

pushes his uncle

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as ...

into the Usk, and is then forced to explain to his wife Gwendoloena (

Guinevere Guinevere ( ; cy, Gwenhwyfar ; br, Gwenivar, kw, Gwynnever), also often written in Modern English as Guenevere or Guenever, was, according to Arthurian legend, an early-medieval queen of Great Britain and the wife of King Arthur. First me ...

) why he is so wet. Geoffrey of Monmouth writes of

in the mid 12th century: "It is not until the 13th century

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

prose romances that

Camelot Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as th ...

began to supersede Caerleon, and even then, many descriptive details applied to Camelot derive from Geoffrey's earlier grand depiction of the Welsh town."''Camelot'' in Norris J. Lacy, Editor, ''The Arthurian Encyclopedia'' (1986 Peter Bedrick Books, New York) 75-6. The Usk valley contains many sites of prehistorical archaeological significance and the valley has long been a trade route, settlement area and an avenue into Wales for successive invaders such as the Romans and

Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...

References

External links

The Usk Valley Walk - photos

A trophy salmon from the Usk in October 1917

{{authority control Usk Usk Usk Usk Usk Usk Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Brecknock Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Monmouthshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Newport Usk