Although some people across Wales may not be familiar with the Tanat Valley and it’s rugged beauty, the area’s contribution to the country’s history and culture is huge.

The valley, located in north Powys, divides the Berwyn mountains to the north from the green Montgomeryshire hills to the south, and follows the River Tanat from its source in the Rhiwarth and Pennant Valleys, across the border to Shropshire.

The area is known as the home and parish of some Welsh giants, from the Queen of the Harp, Nansi Richards Jones, to the poets Cynddelw and Huw Morus, to Owain Glyndŵr himself.

And the village of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant, in the heart of the valley, is the location of one of the most important events to shape the history of Wales; the first ever translation of the bible into Welsh, by the Bishop William Morgan in 1588.

Welsh language channel S4C discovers more about the Tanat Valley’s dramatic history and landscapes in the company of Heledd Cynwal, Siôn Tomos Owen and Iestyn Jones on Cynefin, on Tuesday, March 15, the story of the translation is more complex than many would know.

"William Morgan was in his thirties when he began the translation," said Tom Morris, a local historian from Llanrhaeadr. "He was here as a vicar in the parish, preaching every week, and he realised that his audience did not understand what he was saying. This made him realise the need for the word of god in their own language. He was living in the vicarage, about 50 yards behind the church, and it was there where he translated the bible.

"He would have been sitting there with all those documents, translating from the original languages, Hebrew, Greek, Latin, but he had a very hard time while doing this work. There were people accusing him of not doing his work. The local people did not understand what he was doing.

"There is evidence that he even had to carry a gun under his cassock on his walks around, between the church and the vicarage, and during the service too, in case Ifan Meredith Lloran or one of his servants attacked him.

"The history of Wales would be very different over the last four centuries, without the work of William Morgan."

Watch Cynefin on S4C and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on Tuesday, March 15, to hear more about the history of Tanat Valley.