An introduction to Crickhowell by Greg Stevenson

Picturesque Crickhowell sits between the Black Mountains and the dramatic Brecon Beacons. It is a town that feels like towns should feel with small independent shops, a bustling atmosphere, and a vibrant community.

Above the town on the hillside is Crug Hywel, where the first settlement was made around two thousand years ago, and of course where the English name Crickhowell comes from.

The town was given its charter in 1283, and there used to be a medieval market hall in the middle of the High Street. If you look carefully at some of the buildings above the shop facades you can see timber framed upper storeys hiding behind Georgian frontages. And that is the story behind much of the town – it looks nineteenth century, but several buildings have earlier origins.