a town of Wales in the county of Glamorgan, situated between the rivers Rumney and Taf, 7 miles N.W. of Cardiff, and about 165 miles from London. It was formerly a borough and a place of considerable importance, but was disfranchised in the reign of Henry VIII. In the immediate neighbourhood of the town are the ruins of the old castle, which was originally one of the most magnificent baronial strongholds in the kingdom. This fortress was built towards the close of the thirteenth century by Gilbert de Clare, and subsequently passed into the hands of the Mortimers, lords of Glamorgan. From them it was wrested by Hugh Despenser, the favourite of Edward II., who was here besieged by his rebellious barons. The most remarkable portion of the ruins as they now exist, is an old tower called the "mint," which stands ten feet off the perpendicular. Some of the houses of the town itself are very ancient, but the majority of them are comparatively modern. The surrounding scenery is among the finest in South Wales. Considerable manufactures of woollen stuffs are carried on, and occupy a large number of the population, to many of whom also the mines and quarries in the neighbourhood give employment. There is one Episcopal chapel, and three dissenting places of worship. Market-day, Thursday. Pop. (1851) 952.