Upper Chapel () is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

in the southern part of the county of

Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...

in mid

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It was formerly in the county of

Brecknockshire Brecknockshire ( or ), also known as the County of Brecknock, Breconshire, or the County of Brecon, was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was created in 1 ...

. It lies on the B4520 road from

Brecon Brecon (; ; ), 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 county town of Breck ...

Builth Wells Builth Wells (; ) is a market town and community in the county of Powys and historic county of Brecknockshire (Breconshire), mid Wales, lying at the confluence of rivers Wye and Irfon, in the Welsh (or upper) part of the Wye Valley. In 20 ...

, in the valley of the River Honddu. The south-flowing Honddu cuts deeply into the uplands of

Mynydd Epynt Mynydd Epynt () is an upland region of Mid Wales, within the county of Powys. It is bounded on the south by the upper stretch of the Usk Valley, on the north by the Irfon Valley, and on the east by the Wye Valley. Its western boundary is less ...

north of Brecon. To the north and west of Upper Chapel lies the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

Sennybridge Training Area The Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA) is a UK Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence military training area near the village of Sennybridge in Powys, Wales. It consists of approximately of Ministry of Defence freehold land a ...

.Ordnance Survey Explorer map sheet no 188 'Builth Wells/Llanfair-ym-Muallt' The hamlet lies 3 miles (5 km) to the north of its sister settlement, Lower Chapel (''Capel Isaf''), in the same valley. Upper Chapel lies within the

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Merthyr Cynog Merthyr Cynog is a hamlet (place), hamlet and a community (Wales), community in the modern county of Powys, Wales, in the historic county of Brecknockshire. The population of the community at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census was 245. ...

, whilst Lower Chapel lies within the neighbouring Honddu Isaf. Slightly to the north of the village the lane forks, with one way descending to the A483 near Llangamarch, and the main lane continuing ahead to Builth Wells. Nearby villages or hamlets are: *Merthyr Cynog (connected by a lane which climbs over the hill to the west) * Castell Madoc, Lower Chapel, Pwllgloyw and Llandefaelog Fach to the south, on the road to Brecon *The hamlet of Pentref Dolau Honddu to the north Upper Chapel has a community hall called Merthyr Cynog Community Hall, which hosts various local events and meetings. Upper Chapel used to have a pub, the Plough and Harrow, but it no longer operates. The scientist

Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English chemist and physicist who contributed to the study of electrochemistry and electromagnetism. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...

took refreshment here on the way to Builth Wells on July 2, 1819, having been misdirected to

Hay-on-Wye Hay-on-Wye, or simply Hay (; or simply ), is a market town and community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales. With over twenty bookshops, it is often described as a book town, "town of books"; it is both the National Book Town of Wales and the s ...

earlier in the day.

References

Villages in Powys Epynt {{Powys-geo-stub