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The River Usk (; ) River source on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain ( y Mynydd Du), Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east through Sennybridge to Brecon before turning southeast to flow by Talybont-on-Usk, Crickhowell and Abergavenny, after which it takes a more southerly course.
Beyond the eponymous town of Usk, it passes the fortress of Caerleon to flow through the heart of the city of Newport and into the Severn Estuary at Uskmouth near the Newport Wetlands. The river is about long. According to the Encyclopaedia of Wales (which gives a figure of ), the river is the longest to flow wholly within Wales. (2025). 9780708319536, University of Wales Press. ISBN 9780708319536
The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal follows the Usk for most of the length of the canal.
The name of the river appears as "Wÿsk" on the Cambriae Typus map of 1573.A reproduction of the map is at Atlas_Ortelius_KB_PPN369376781-011av-011br.jpg
The Usk has long been a noted salmon and trout fishing river. Salmon of over may still be caught. In 1999 the river had the highest estimated salmon egg deposition of any river south of Cumbria and the Scottish rivers, and exceeded its spawning target. The river has recently been rated as the best fly fishing water in Wales for salmon and inside the UK Top Ten.
The normal tidal limit of the river is just below the bridge at Newbridge-on-Usk, some north of Newport.Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 scale Explorer map sheet 152 Newport & Pontypool
The Grade I listed Usk Bridge in Brecon dates back to 1563 but it was significantly altered in the 1950s to accommodate increased road traffic. It is supplemented by a modern concrete span bridge carrying the A40 Brecon bypass dual carriageway over the river to the east of the town. Another miles downstream is Lock Bridge, which carries the B4558 over the river, and immediately downstream again is the substantial Brynich Aqueduct carrying the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal over the river at Llanfrynach. There was another pair of bridges at Llansantffraed but since the dismantling of the railway bridge only the road bridge linking to Talybont-on-Usk remains. A couple of private footbridges span the next section of the river before its waters pass beneath the historic (Grade I listed) Llangynidr Bridge.
Tower Bridge is a Grade II* listed structure providing private vehicular access into Glanusk Park, the river then remaining unbridged downstream until the historic (Grade I listed) Crickhowell Bridge. At Glangrwyney is a bailey bridge installed after the earlier stone bridge was washed away, though there was once a cable ferry crossing of the river near Llanwenarth as the nearby Boat Farm testifies.
A private footbridge spans the river at Llanover and the mainline railway crosses it at The Bryn, a small village otherwise known as Llangattock Nigh Usk. The B4598 road is carried over the river by another Upton legacy, the Grade II* listed Pant-y-Goitre Bridge near Llanvihangel Gobion, and again by the 'Chain Bridge' near Kemeys Commander (the name of this iron arch structure is a hangover from the previous bridge which was supported by chains). The river is crossed by two bridges at Usk, the former railway crossing and, downstream, the Usk Bridge carrying the A472 road and the Usk Valley Walk. Yet another Grade II* listed structure, it was built by William Edwards in the late 1740s. A long unbridged section follows until, just upstream from the normal tidal limit on the Usk, it is crossed by the Grade II* listed New Bridge at Newbridge-on-Usk, probably also a legacy of Edwards from 1779.
Newport Bridge, often known as Town Bridge, carries the B4591 immediately downstream of the second railway crossing, with Newport Castle between them. Newport City footbridge was opened in 2006 to carry both pedestrians and cyclists over the river as part of an urban regeneration project. Just downriver is George Street Bridge carrying the B4237 road across, and downstream again is City Bridge carrying the A48 dual carriageway across. Newport Transporter Bridge is the furthest downstream of the many crossings of the Usk. Completed in 1906, it is one of fewer than 10 such structures remaining in use across the world and, at just short of , is the longest of these.
Three further mills sit close to the banks of the Usk between here and Crickhowell, though all draw their water from tributaries rather than the main river. Aberhoyw Mill takes water from the Nant Cleisfer, while Knight's Cornmill at Tretower takes water via a long leat from the Rhiangoll, and Usk Vale Mill at Glangrwyney draws its water from the Grwyne Fawr. The first two are post-mediaeval cornmills, the latter a nineteenth-century paper mill which was later converted to become a ‘sawdust mill’. Forge Mill, north of Bettws Newydd at SO 355974, was still in use at the end of the nineteenth century, using a long weir stretching between islands on the river to draw its water. Gorrats Mill at Trostrey sits on the Usk's left bank at SO 359040. The possible 16th-century Prioress Mill (SO 367022) at Rhadyr, just north of the town of Usk, was another which, whilst close to the Usk, drew its water from a tributary, in this case the Berthin Brook.
In addition to these there is a leat beside the uppermost section of the river's course which is presumed to have drawn water off it at SN 816263 and transferred it via a contouring route across the moors for over . Its northern end is hidden within 20th-century woodland south of Usk Reservoir. have postulated it as being of either mediaeval or even Roman origin but do not know its purpose.
Historically, the tidal reaches of the Usk have been used as a major shipping port for much of the last millennium, mostly because of its wide and deep mouth, and good navigable access from the Severn Estuary and the Bristol Channel and thence access to home waters and further overseas.
Evidence of the Usk's long-standing use in transport and trade came in the form of the remains of the Newport Ship that were discovered in 2002. This ship, dated to around 1465, was most likely a trading vessel and may have sailed to Europe or even beyond.
The Usk has also played a role in many local legends. The Medieval Latin text De Ortu Waluuanii recounts a humorous tale in which an incognito Gawain pushes his uncle King Arthur into the Usk, and is then forced to explain to his wife Gwendoloena (Guinevere) why he is so wet.
Geoffrey of Monmouth writes of Caerleon in the mid 12th century:
"It is not until the 13th century French language prose romances that Camelot began to supersede Caerleon, and even then, many descriptive details applied to Camelot derive from Geoffrey's earlier grand depiction of the Welsh town." Camelot in Norris J. Lacy, Editor, The Arthurian Encyclopedia (1986 Peter Bedrick Books, New York) 75-6.
The Usk valley contains many sites of prehistory archaeological significance and the valley has long been a trade route, settlement area and an avenue into Wales for successive invaders such as the Ancient Rome and Normans.
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