LLANTRISANT, a town of Glamorganshire, Wales, situ ated where the hill lands of the county abut on to the vale. It is served by the G.W.R. though the station is 2 M. S. of the town (Cross Inn station m.). Pop. (parish, 1921) 21,946; in 1901, 10,091. The castle dates from Henry III. or Edward I. Of the original building nothing remains, and of a later building only slight ruins. It was the head of the lordship of Miskin, a great part of which was in the hands of native owners, until Howel ap Meredith was expelled by Richard de Clare (1229-62). Since then it has been in the hands of the lord of Glamorgan. The church was dedicated to three saints (Illtyd, Gwyno and Ty fodwg), whence the name Llantrisant. Originally a Norman build ing, most of the present fabric belongs to the 15th century. The mediaeval records show evidences of intensive agriculture and the use of the three-field rotation system. In 1426 the lord of Glamorgan granted a charter confirming grants made by his predecessors in 1346, 1397 and 1424. The corporation was abol ished in 1883, and its property (including 284 ac. of common land) is administered by a town trust under a scheme of the charity commissioners. The "freemen" of the borough, however, still hold a court leet in the town hall. The great increase in the surrounding population is due to the proximity of numerous col lieries. Pop. of rural district (1931) 25,908 with Llantwitfardre. LLANTWIT MAJOR, a village on the south coast of Glamorganshire, Wales, on the G.W.R., 5 m. S. of Cowbridge. Pop. (parish, 1921) 1,504. About 1 m. N.N.W. there were dis covered in 1888 the remains of a large Roman villa which has been identified as part of a settlement mentioned in Welsh writings as Caer Wrgan. On the sea coast are two camps, one
known as Castle Ditches, commanding the entrance to the creek of Colhugh, once the port of Llantwit. In the time of Henry I. a small colony of Flemings settled in the district. The town and church derive their name from St. Illtyd or Iltutus, a native of Brittany and a great-nephew of Germanus of Auxerre. Having come under the influence of St. Cadoc, abbot of Llancarvan, 6 m. E.N.E. of Llantwit, Illtyd established at Llantwit in the 6th century a monastic college which became famous as a seat of learning. The place had associations with Brittany and the Celtic Saint movement in Wales. After the Norman conquest Llanilltyd Fawr passed to the abbey to Tewkesbury. The present church of St. Illtyd is the result of a sequence of churches which have sprung from a pre-Norman edifice, almost entirely rebuilt and greatly extended in the 13th century and again partially rebuilt in the 14th century. It consists of an "eastern" church— the only part now used for worship, a western one used before the dissolution, and still farther west a chantry, now in ruins. In the church and churchyard are preserved some early monu ments of Celtic Christianity. They include two cross-shafts and one cross with inscriptions in debased Latin (one being to the memory of St. Illtyd) and two cylindrical pillars, most of them being decorated with interlaced work. The town is situated in a fertile district and its people depend mainly on agriculture.