Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales

 

Banc (SN 721 762) 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from LIDAR analysis and a subsequent Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips. 

Banc (SN 721 762)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are: 

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips, with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13^th May 2017. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Elenydd group of hills which are situated in the central part of the Mid and West Wales Region (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is encircled by minor roads with farther afield the A4120 road to its north and the B4343 road to its east, and has the village of Pontarfynach (Devil’s Bridge) towards the east north-east. 

When the original 300m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website this hill was not included in the Hills to be surveyed sub list, as it was considered not to meet the criteria then used for this sub category. 

After the sub list was standardised, and interpolated heights and drop values also included the details for this hill were re-evaluated and it was listed under the point (Pt. 350m) notation with 22m of drop based on the 350m summit spot height and the 328m bwlch spot height that appeared on the Ordnance Survey Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which was entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  The 350m summit spot height is now shown on the interactive mapping available on the Magic Maps website. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

As the summit of this hill comprises bounded land the details for it were examined on the Tithe map.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales. 

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 869 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Banc, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llanfihangel-y-Creuddyn and in the county named as Cardigan. 

Extract from the apportionments

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Banc and this was derived from the Tithe map. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Elenydd 

Name:  Banc 

Previously Listed Name:  Pt. 350m 

OS 1:50,000 map:  135, 147

Summit Height:  350.9 (converted to OSGM15, Trimble GeoXH 6000) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 72127 76209 (Trimble GeoXH 6000) 

Bwlch Height:  329.1m (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 72361 75991 (LIDAR) 

Drop:  21.7m (Trimble GeoXH 6000 summit and LIDAR bwlch) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips (May 2021)