Breckenbrough. See Newsham with Brecken-
brough.

Breckles, par., W. Norfolk, 5 miles SE. of Watton,
1860 ac., pop. 130; contains hamlet of Little Breckles.

Brecknock, or Brecon, mun. bor. and county town
of Brecknockshire, situated near the centre of the co.,
at the confluence of the rivers Usk and Honddu, 40
miles NE. of Swansea and 190 miles NW. of London
by rail—mun. bor., 2614 ac., pop. 6247 ; local govern-
ment dist., pop. 6372 ; 3 Banks. Market-days, Wednes-
day, Friday, and Saturday; has mfrs. of woollens
and hosiery. Here the ancient Britons had a town,
and the Romans a station. After the Norman conquest
B. was strongly fortified to resist the native tribes;
the fortifications were dismantled during the civil war.
The bor. returned 1 member to Parliament until 1885.

Brecknock Beacons, 2 mountain peaks, in mid. of
co. and 5 miles S. of Brecknock, alt. 2862 ft.

Brecknockshire, or Brecon, an inland co. of S.
Wales, bounded N. by Radnorshire, E. by Hereford-
shire and Monmouthshire, S. by Monmouthshire and
Glamorgan, and W. by Carmarthenshire and Cardigan-
shire ; greatest length, N. and S., 38 miles; greatest
breadth, E. and W., 33 miles ; area, 460,158 ac., pop.
57,746. B. is one of the most mountainous of the
Welsh counties, abounding in grand and picturesque
scenery. A range of mountains, running E. and AY.,
culminates about 4 miles S. of the centre of the co. in
the Van or Beacon (2862 ft.), the highest summit of
South Wales; its rocks belong to the old red sandstone or
Devonian system. Part of the S. lies within the great
Welsh coal-field, where ironstone is also abundant;
limestone occurs in the W. Less than one-half of the
surface is under cultivation, and the mountain land is
generally bare. The river Wye traces nearly the whole
of the N. boundary, and the Usk flows in an easterly
direction through the central valley. (For agricultural
statistics, see Appendix.) There are mfrs. of coarse
woollens and worsted hosiery. The Brecon Canal, 33
miles long, extends to the Monmouth Canal at Ponty-
pool. The co. comprises 6 hundreds, 91 pars., with
part of one other, and the mun. bor. of Brecknock.
It is mostly in the diocese of St David’s. It returns 1
member to Parliament.

Breckon, hill, St Mungo par., Dumfriesshire, 34
miles SE. of Lockerbie, alt. 603 ft.

Breck Road, ry. sta., inN. suburbs of Liverpool, on
the Liverpool and Bootle Ry., Lancashire ; P.O., T.O.

Breckry.—vil., W. Isle of Skye, Inverness-shire.—

2. Breckry, small stream and glen, Southend par.,
Argyllshire.

Brecon Canal, extending from Brecknock SE. to
Pontypool in Monmouthshire, 33 miles long, with 8
locks; was formed in 1811, and cost £170,000.

Brecongill, hamlet, Coverham par., North-Riding
Yorkshire, 2 miles SW. of Middleham.

Breconhill, township, Arthuret par., E. Cumber-
land, on river Line, 44 miles NE. of Longtown.

Breda, seat, 3 miles W. of Alford, Aberdeenshire.

Bredbnry, township with ry. sta., in par. and 2
miles NE. of Stockport, E. Cheshire, 2536 ac. (75
water), pop. 3734.

Brede.—affluent of river Rye, E. Sussex; 12 miles
long.—2. Brede, par., E. Sussex, on river Brede, 5
miles NE. of Battle, 4840 ac., pop. 1056; contains
Brede Hill; P.O.

Bredenbury, par., NE. Herefordshire, 3 miles NAY.
of Bromyard, 545 ac., pop. 84 ; contains B. Court.

Bredfield, par., E. Suffolk, 3 miles N. of Wood-
bridge, 1067 ac., pop. 432; P.O.

Bredgar, par., E. Kent, 3 miles SW. of Sitting-
bourne, 1762 ac., pop. 616; P.O.

Bredburst, par., E. Kent, 44 miles SE. of Chatham,
602 ac., pop. 131.

Bredicot, par., in W. of co. and 3£ miles E. of AYor-
cester, 397 ac., pop. 67.

Brediland, seat, 14 mile SAY. of Paisley, Renfrewsh.

Bredisbolm, seat, 24 miles SW. of Coatbridge,
Lanarkshire.

Gazetteer of the British Isles, Statistical and Topographical, by John Bartholomew, F.R.G.S.

Edinburgh: Adam and Charles Black, 1887. Public domain image from Gedcomindex.com