Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Merthyr Tydfil (United Kingdom). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Cyfarthfa Castle, Joseph Parry's Cottage, and Merthyr Tydfil Town Hall. Also, be sure to include Morlais Castle in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Merthyr Tydfil (Wales).
Table of Contents
Cyfarthfa Castle
Building in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Cyfarthfa Castle is a castellated mansion that was the home of the Crawshay family, ironmasters of Cyfarthfa Ironworks in Park, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. The house commanded a view of the valley and the works, which ‘at night, offer a truly magnificent scene, resembling the fabled Pandemonium, but on which the eye may gaze with pleasure’. Cyfarthfa loosely translates from the Welsh for place of barking. The reason is hunting dogs were regularly heard in this area of the town, hunting polecats and weasels among others.
Despite appearing to be a fortified building, it is a house built in the style of a large mansion with a large kitchen, bake house and dairy, billiard room, library, and a range of reception rooms. In addition, there is a brew house, icehouse and extensive storage cellars that used to contain over 15,000 individual bottles of wines and spirits such as Sherry, Champagne, Whiskey, Brandy, Madeira Wine, and over 7,500 bottles of port. Adjoining the building were also stable blocks and coach houses. The castle stands in 158-acre (64 ha) of parkland, now called Cyfarthfa Park and maintained by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council.[1]
Address: Brecon Road, Merthyr Tydfil Cyfarthfa Park, CF47 8RE Merthyr Tydfil
Joseph Parry's Cottage
Museum in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Joseph Parry's Cottage, also known as 4 Chapel Row, is a cottage located in Merthyr Tydfil, in South Wales. Built in the early 19th century for ironworkers, the cottage is best known as the birthplace of the famous Welsh composer Joseph Parry. It is now open to the public as a museum.[2]
Address: 4 Chapel Row, CF48 1BN Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil Town Hall
City or town hall in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Merthyr Tydfil Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street, Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, is a Grade II* listed building.[3]
Morlais Castle
Castle in Wales. Morlais Castle is a 13th-century castle located above the Taff Gorge near the town of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales.
Not much remains today of the castle first begun by Gilbert de Clare, 3rd Earl of Gloucester on land claimed by Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford. Warfare broke out between the Earls in 1290 and they were severely admonished and fined by King Edward I of England, who had to march down from North Wales to intervene. The castle was captured by Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294. The castle is believed to have never been fully completed, and the location was too remote and exposed to serve as a residence. The Bucks' engraving of 1741, however, shows that fragments of the walls then still stood high.[4]
Glamorganshire Canal
The Glamorganshire Canal in South Wales, UK, was begun in 1790. It ran along the valley of the River Taff from Merthyr Tydfil to the sea at Cardiff. The final section of canal was closed in 1951.[5]
Pont-y-Cafnau
Bridge in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. The Pont-y-Cafnau, sometimes written Pont y Cafnau or Pontycafnau, is a 14.2-metre long iron truss bridge over the River Taff in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. The bridge was designed by Watkin George and built in 1793 for his employer, the Cyfarthfa Ironworks, to support both a tramway and an aqueduct to carry limestone and water into the works. A Grade II* listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument, the Pont-y-Cafnau is the world's earliest surviving iron railway bridge.[6]
St John's Church
St John's Church is a defunct Grade II listed church in the village of Dowlais, near Merthyr Tydfil in Wales.
The church was built in 1827 for local ironworks manager Sir John Josiah Guest, at a cost of £3000. It was gradually completely rebuilt later in the century, in a Gothic style, finishing with the main nave and aisle in 1893/4. Sir John (d. 1852) was buried in an iron coffin in the chancel under a red granite slab.
The church finally closed in 1997 and, in early 2015, was put up for sale with an asking price of £50,000. It was subsequently earmarked for £400,000 of Welsh Government grants to support its repair and redevelopment.[7]
Merthyr Synagogue
Synagogue in the United Kingdom. The former Merthyr Synagogue is located on Bryntirion Road in the Thomastown section of Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. It is a Grade II listed building and is the oldest purpose-built synagogue still standing in Wales.[8]
Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme
Mine in Wales. The Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme is a major opencast coaling operation to the north-east of Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. The contracted excavator/reclaiming company is Merthyr Ltd, which is owned by Gwent Investments Limited, a privately-owned family business based in South Wales. The scheme development is the last part of the East Merthyr Reclamation scheme, and will extract 10 million tonnes of coal over 15 years, the revenues from which will redevelop the current former industrial workings into residential and recreational use.
The opencast coal mine has provoked criticism at a local and national scale, including objections on health and safety grounds as to the close proximity of housing to the site, concerns of the despoiling of the landscape, and global concerns of the contribution of coal to climate change. A number of protests have occurred on and around the site.[9]
Pont-y-gwaith
Bridge in the United Kingdom. Pont-y-gwaith is a historical bridge over the River Taff near Edwardsville, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales.
Pont-y-gwaith was constructed in 1811 to replace the wooden bridge associated with the nearby 16th century ironworks. The bridge was repaired in 1993 by Mid Glamorgan County Council and awarded a commendation by the civic trust. This historical bridge is now a Taff Trail heritage site.[10]
The Hoover Factory
The Hoover Factory, situated in Pentrebach, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, opened on 19 October 1948 in order to manufacture Hoover washing machines. The initial workforce consisted of only 350 people but throughout the years, the growth of the company saw this figure rise to 5,000 in the 1960s and 70s.
At its peak, the Hoover Factory was the largest employer in the borough.[11]