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Wales Edward I's Castles in North Wales

When Edward I assumed the throne in 1272, Wales was ruled by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (Llywelyn the Last). Henry III had been a weak ruler and his reign had been marked by reign had been marked by rebellion, confusion and indecision. Llywelan had successfully exploited his weak and ineffective rule to obtain complete control of the principality culminating in English recognition of his title of Prince of Wales at the Treaty of Montgomery in 1267.

Edward after fighting in the crusades was an experienced and decisive leader, determined to make his mark on England. Relations between Edward and Llywelyn quickly deteriorated, resulting in two campaigns to defeat Llywelyn and bring Wales under English rule. To increase his hold and control of the area, Edward strengthened existing Welsh castle like Criccieth, Dolwyddelan and Castles y Bere. He also built many new castles in an attempt to subjugate the Welsh and stop further uprisings. All were designed by his military architect, James of St George. Not only were they a statement of Edward’s power, they were also state of the art military design. They were also in tended to function as royal palaces, capable of supporting the king and queen's households in secure comfort.

They are the most ambitious and concentrated medieval building project designed to prevent the need for further (expensive) military campaigns. The castles are among the finest examples of late C13th and early C14th military architecture and illustrate the developments in castle building from development from a motte and bailey castle to the concentric castle which relied on rings of walls for protection. Later castles were built with a planned walled town or Bastide, which allowed the English settlers to live safely inside the walls. All were built with direct access to the sea so they could be supplied by sea.

As many as 2000 men were needed and money was always a problem, stretching royal finances to the limit. By the time Beaumaris Castle was built, the money had run out and it was never completed. By then, Wales was firmly under English control and the castle was effectively redundant.

Unlike many castles which have evolved over the years into sumptuous living quarters, the Edwardian Castles have undergone little change and retain their original architectural form. The castles are now in the care of Cadw and their policy has been to conserve as found with minimal intervention or modification.


Flint was the first castle to be constructed and is the only one to have been built with a keep. Rhuddlan and Harlech soon followed and are the first examples of concentric castles. Conwy and Caernarfon could probably be best described as ‘figure of eight’ castles as shape was diced by terrain. They were also built with a planned walled town. Beaumaris was the last to be built and is possibly the best example of a concentric castle with its moat and two rings of walls. If it had been completed, it would have been virtually impregnable.

Denbigh Castle was built at the same time and, although not built by James of St George was an important link in Edward’s chain of castles.

The castles all played a major role in the history of England and Wales. Together they form one of the most complete examples of the development of medieval fortifications. Even ruined they are among some of the most impressive castles in Britain. Conwy, Caernarfon, Beaumaris and Harlech are World Heritage sites.

Flint Castle - the first castle to be built

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Flint Castle was built on a rocky outcrop along the River Dee and close to the border of England and Wales.

It was the first of Edward’s Castles to be built in 1277 and is very different to the later castles as it is the only one to have been built with a keep.

When Edward became king, relations between him and Llywelyn ap Gruffudd quickly deteriorated. In 1277, Edward marched along the North Wales coast and, faced by the prospect of overwhelming defeat, Llywelyn withdrew into the mountainous Snowdonia region hoping to draw the English King into a protracted, and costly, guerrilla war. He was thwarted as Edward launched a naval attack on Anglesey, the bread-basket of North West Wales, compelling the Welsh to surrender. Llywelyn was stripped of all his territory to the east of the River Conwy, although he was allowed to keep his title, Prince of Wales. Edward consolidated his victory with the construction of a series of castles with Flint being the first. Begun in 1277, 970 diggers, 300 carpenters and 200 stonemasons were employed and the castle was completed in 1282 at a cost of £6068.7s.5d. It was quickly followed by further castles at Rhuddlan and Denbigh.

There was no previous settlement on the site, which was low lying. The castle was constructed on a rocky outcrop which jutted into the River Dee which provided additional protection to the walled outer Bailey by a tidal moat.

Beyond was the inner bailey, surrounded by a wall with three defensive towers. This was the fore runner of the later concentric castles and contained the domestic buildings. The massive round stand alone keep or donjon was separated from the inner ward by its own moat and was only accessible over a drawbridge.

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With massive 20’ walls, it was intended to be the final refuge in the event of an attack. Unlike previous keeps, it was built with a central courtyard with galleries with rooms off. The topmost level was reserved for the royal court.

A civilian settlement was built to the south of the castle, protected by a double ditch plus wooden palisade. For a while, Flint was a royal castle and the town grew in prosperity.

Welsh resistance continued and Llywelyn ap Gruffudd was killed in 1284. Ten years later, Madog ap Llywelyn burnt the town, but the castle held out against the Welsh. Owain Glyndŵr made various attacks on Flint in 1403 which again destroyed much of the town, before he finally fled and disappeared in the mountains of Snowdonia.

In 1399, Richard II was held prisoner in the castle by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke where he was forced to abdicate leaving Bolingbroke to become Henry IV.

The castle was repaired and garrisoned for the Royalists in the Civil War. It survived a three month siege before surrendering. It was slighted by the Parliamentarians to prevent its further military use.

Although now ruined the original plan can clearly be seen in aerial photographs.

This has always been rather a deprived part of Wales and the castle gets few visitors. It is unmanned and has suffered from vandalism in the past. It always feels forlorn and forgotten.
 
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Rhuddlan Castle - the first of the concentric castles

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Rhuddlan, at a key crossing point of the River Clwyd, and had been the power base of the Welsh Princes who carried out raids across the border into England. The Normans stamped their authority on the area by building a motte and bailey castle, Twt Hill, to the south east of the present castle.

Edward I replaced this with a stone built castle during his suppression of Wales at the end of the C13th.

Begun in 1277 this was the first of the concentric castles to be designed by James of St George, with moat, two curtain walls surrounding the outer and inner bailey, which could only be entered through a massive gatehouse. The river was straightened and dredged forming a three mile long deep water channel from the sea at Rhyl. This allowed ships to sail up to the base of the castle, allowing the castle to be provisioned even if besieged.

The castle was eventually finished in 1282 at the then-astronomical cost of £9,613.2s.8p.

Edward I used the castle as his base. His eighth daughter was born here and his wife, Queen Eleanor, laid out lawns in the central area with a small fishpond.

Rhuddlan Castle occupies an important place in the history of Wales. The Statute of Rhuddlan was signed here in 1284 following the defeat of Llewellyn the Last. It ceded all the lands of the former Welsh Princes to the English Crown and introduced English Common Law.

In 1294 the castle was attacked during the Welsh rising of Madog ap Llywelyn but was not taken. It was attacked again by forces of Owain Glyndŵr in 1400. This time the town was badly damaged but the castle held out. In the latter 15th and early 16th centuries the castle's condition deteriorated as its strategic and administrative importance waned.

Rhuddlan Castle was again garrisoned by Royalist troops during the English Civil War. It was taken by Parliamentary forces after a siege in 1646. The Parliamentarians partially demolished the castle to prevent any further military use.

Although in ruins Rhuddlan Castle is still a splendid sight set above the river at the edge of the present town.

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An outer wall round a dry ditch protects the inner walls of the castle. The ashlar was removed from the base of the towers by Cromwell’s troops to weaken the walls.

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Entry is through the massive double towered gatehouse.

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The inner ward has a well and the remains of the foundations of buildings inside the walls. Opposite the main gatehouse is a small gateway with two towers and portcullis grooves which leads to the outside of the castle. From here you can walk round the castle to the now dry dock used to unload ships, protected by the small square Gillot’s tower.

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Spiral staircases give access to the base of the towers and also up onto the wall walk.

In some ways, there isn’t a lot to see inside the castle. It is, perhaps, more impressive from the outside.
 
Conwy Castle - possibly the most impressive of Edward I’s castles

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Conwy Castle is possibly the most impressive of the castles built by James of St George for Edward I. Standing on a rocky outcrop overlooking the mouth of the River Conwy, it controlled movement along the Menai Strait. It contains the best preserved set of royal apartments of any of the Edwardian castles.

It was built on the site of an earlier Cistercian monastery and the site of a castle belonging to Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. Edward had the monastery moved to a new site further up the valley and the remains of Llywelan’s castle were incorporated into the wallsof his new castle. Building on this site could be considered as a symbolic act to demonstrate English dominance.

Designed by James of St George, it took four years to build at a cost of £15000 and was state of the art. Massive walls and towers provided lethal fields of fire. Originally covered by white harling, it must have been an awe inspiring structure to put the fear of God (and Edward I) into the hearts of the Welsh. Power and domination hardly begin to describe it.

Building began in 1283, after the defeat of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, last of the Princes of Wales. It successfully survived a siege by Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294/5, as a result of its strong defences and capability to be supplied by sea. It was a temporary haven for Richard II in 1399 and was held for several months by forces loyal to Owain Glyndŵr in 1401.

Following the outbreak of the English Civil War the castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I before surrendering to the Parliamentary armies. In the aftermath the castle was partially slighted by Parliament to prevent it being used in any further revolt, and was finally left in ruins when its remaining iron and lead was stripped and sold off.

The shape of the castle was very much determined by its site, and it can best be described as figure of eight shape. It is surrounded by a massive curtain wall with eight defensive towers.

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Wall passages linked the towers and there was a wall walk round the top of the walls. Unlike the other Edwardian Castles, Conwy has two barbicans, giving additional protection to the gatehouse and the postern gate that allowed the castle to be supplied from the sea.

The barbican effectively became a killing ground if the castle was attacked. Access would have been by a steep ramp, across a footbridge, under the portcullis and through two sets of wooden gates with murder holes above.

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Two massive round towers guard the entrance into the outer ward. This feels quite congested as it contained the kitchen, bakehouse, brewery and stables (all foundations) as well as the great hall. Although now roofless, it still stands to its original height, giving an impression of how impressive the castle must have been when built.

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Below the great hall were the cellars with living accommodation above. The archway separated the garrison chapel from the living area.

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A stone cross wall with the well next to it, separated the outer from the much smaller inner ward and would have had two wooden doors as well as a drawbridge.

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The inner ward contained the royal chambers and presence room. They were designed as a small palace and nearly filled the inner ward, just allowing space for a small courtyard. The King and Queen’s apartments were separate with their own entrance. Not only did this provide privacy, it could also be sealed off from the rest of the castle and supplied indefinitely from the sea by the eastern gate. In fact, they were rarely used by the royal family. Edward I only stayed here the once in 1284 and Edward II only visited once in 1301, while Prince of Wales.

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At the far end is the east barbican which functioned as a private garden for teh royal apartments.Steps led own to the water gate and a small dock. These are now masked by the later bridges.

The chapel tower could be accessed from the inner ward or from the wall walk. The chapel on the first floor was just used by the royal family and there was a small room where the king could observe the mass in isolation through a wall opening. Down a side passageway was a latrine.
The three lancet windows now contain attractive modern stained glass.

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Spiral staircases inside the towers give access to the wall walk around the top of the towers. Not only does this give good views down into the castle, it also gives good views of the town walls, town, quayside and bridges across the river.

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I first visited Conwy Castle on a family holiday aged 15 and was bowled over by the place. Walking in through the gateway, the internal buildings stand to their full height and I could really imagine myself as Chatelaine. Sixty years on I am still bowled over by the castle each time I visit and it ranks as my all time favourite. I’m not alone in this as UNESCO considers Conwy to be one of ‘the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe’. It is a World Heritage site.
 

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Conwy Walled town.

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When Edward I built Conwy Castle, he he also built a walled town or Bastide, adjacent to it. The walls were nearly one mile in length and included 21 towers and three gatehouses.

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It was further fortified by a ditch round the outside. They walls still remain some of the most complete and best preserved walls in Europe, although additional gateways were added for road improvements in the C19th. it is possible to walk a section of them.

The towers were constructed first and the inter connecting walls were completed later. The towers projected beyond the walls, were roofless and lacked walls on the town side. Removable wooden bridges connected them to the wall walk. If one tower was captured, it could quickly be isolated from the rest of the walls.

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Three gateways protected by towers and portcullis gave entry to the town. In the C19th, new gateways were added to improve road access and for the railway line.

Don’t miss the twelve latrines built along the outside of the walls to the west of Mill Gate. These were built for use by Edward I’s logistic corps (the equivalent of today’s civil service) whose building was outside the castle on the site of the car park.

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The town walls gave protection to the English settlers and by 1312, it had 124 burgage plots paying rent to the king. Aberconwy House on Castle Street, is the oldest house in Conwy. Dating from the C14th, it is one of the few surviving medieval merchant houses in Britain. The house was in a strategically important position at the junction of the two main streets in Conwy; Castle Street and High Street and close to the gateway through the walls to the quay. The owner must have been an important merchant connected with the shipping trade.

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Plas Mawr in the centre of Conwy is later, and was built in the C16th by a wealthy merchant. It is possibly the best preserved Elizabethan town house in Britain.
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The walled town still preserves the Medieval street pattern with St Mary and All Saint’s Church at the centre. This was originally the church of Aberconwy Abbey but when Edward moved the monks and abbey further up river, it became the parish church for the newly built town. Parts of the original church remain and can be seen in parts of the tower. The rest has been rebuilt and extended many times.

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Streets are narrow and busy with traffic. Explore on foot!

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Beaumaris Castle - the last of the castles to be built

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Beaumaris was the last of the Edwardian castles to be built in 1295, in response to the rebellion by Madog ap Llywelyn. It was the most sophisticated and one of the finest concentric castles ever built.

It was to be Edward's crowing glory and the most impregnable castle ever designed.

Beaumaris means ‘fair marsh’ and the castle was built on flat marshy land, so needed to be needed to be well fortified with a moat and two massive defensive walls.

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The moat was fed by a stream to the north of the castle and water level was controlled by a sluice. It even had its own tidal dock which allowed supply ships to sail right up to the castle.

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The original plans also included royal apartments as well as accommodation for garrison and government officials.

Anglesey with its mild climate and fertile soil was an important food supplier. In the early C13th Llywelyn the Great established a castle here. The small settlement of Llanfaes nearby was a busy port trading as far as Europe.

Like at Conwy, Edward decided to build his castle on a place of considerable importance and significance to the Welsh. The local population were moved to a new settlement of Newborough thirteen miles away and Edward began to build Beaumaris Castle and establish an English town under its protection. It soon became the biggest Native Welsh residents were not allowed to purchase houses or land within the borough and were disqualified from holding any civic office. There was also a requirement that all trade be conducted at Beaumaris, making it the main commercial centre of Anglesey.

Work began in 1295 with an average of 1,800 workmen, 450 stonemasons and 375 quarriers on the site. The wage bill was around £270 a week and the project rapidly fell into arrears. Workers were paid with leather tokens instead of normal coinage. Construction slowed as debts began to rise. Work stopped in 1300, when around £11,000 had been spent. Edward's invasion of Scotland was diverting funding from the project. Work only recommencing after an invasion scare in 1306. When work finally ceased around 1330 a total of £15,000 had been spent. The south gatehouse and the six great towers in the inner ward never reached their intended height. The Llanfaes gate was barely started before being abandoned. The town walls had yet to be started. A royal survey in 1343 suggested that at least a further £684 would be needed to complete the castle, but this was never invested.

Beaumaris Castle was taken by Welsh forces in 1403 during the Owain Glyndŵr rebellion, the last of the Welsh uprisings. It was recaptured two years later. The castle was poorly maintained and in a state of disrepair by 1534.

During the Civil War, Beaumaris Castle held a strategic location as it controlled part of the route between the King’s bases in Ireland and his operations in England. The castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I, and money was spent to improve its defences. It held out until 1646 when it surrendered to the Parliamentary armies. The castle escaped slighting as Parliament was concerned about the threat of a Royalist invasion from Scotland and it continued to be garrisoned by Parliamentary troops.

After the restoration of the monarchy, the castle was no longer needed. Lead was stripped from the roofs and it was left to fall into ruin. In 1807, Lord Thomas Bulkeley, whose family had managed the castle since the C16th, bought the castle from the Crown for £735, incorporating it into the park that surrounded his local residence, Baron Hill.

By now Victorians were beginning to visit romantic ivy clad ruins and Beaumaris Castle was visited by the future Queen Victoria in 1832 for an Eisteddfod festival.

In 1923 the castle was placed in the care of the Commission for Works who carried out a major restoration project, stripping back the vegetation, digging out the moat and repairing stonework. Now it is under the care of Cadw. It is still as impressive as ever, and a World Heritage Site.

The main entrance to the castle was the "Gate next the Sea", next to the castle's tidal dock. Access was across a drawbridge and the gatehouse had two towers and was defended by portcullis and murder holes. The dock was protected by a wall later named the Gunners Walk and a firing platform that may have housed a trebuchet siege engine during the medieval period. with two massive towers and heavily defended by arrow slits, murder holes and portcullis. Stairs inside the towers lead to the wall walk round the outer wall.

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The small outer ward had a curtain wall with wall walk and twelve towers. These were well supplied by arrow slits with over 300 shooting positions. Entry was either through the Gate next the Sea or the Llanfaes (or friary) gate on the landward side. The inner defensive wall surrounding the inner ward is taller and much more substantial with four massive corner towers with either gatehouse or another tower between them. The area between the two walls would have been a real killing zone.

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There were two massive gateways, both offset from the gateways through the outer walls. These were intended to be two stories high and include the state rooms. Neither were completed and are now roofless shells. Being near the main entrance, a barbican was added to the south gate in the C14th. to give an extra line of defense.

The north gateway although never finished, remains the largest and most impressive structure in the castle, with the great hall above it.

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The chapel, built on the first floor of the Chapel tower, was designed to be used by the King rather than the garrison.

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The domestic buildings would have been built round the inside of the inner wall. Nothing remains of them and it is unknown how many were built or completed. Now there are just a few fireplaces in the walls.

There were a series of wall passages through the walls with small rooms and latrines. Steps in the towers gave access to the wall walk with its splendid views of the castle, town and Welsh coastline.

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Caernarfon Castle - intended as a royal palace


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Caernarfon on the Menai Strait at the mouth of the River Seont, has always been of major military importance, as it controlled all movement between the mainland and Anglesey. With flat land and very fertile soils, Anglesey was the main food source for the area.

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It was the site of a Roman fort and William I built a motte and bailey castle there as part of the Norman invasion of Wales. It didn’t work and the Welsh Princes seized the castle and regained power in Gwynedd. When Edward I decided to stamp his authority on Wales, it was the natural choice for the site of one of his most important castles.

Caernarfon Castle differs from the rest of Edward’s Welsh castles with its distinctively banded walls and polygonal rather than round towers.

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Arnold Taylor, who was Chief Inspector of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings and an international expert on European castle building, has proposed a theory that the design of Caernarfon Castle was a representation of the walls of Constantinople. This was influenced by the legendary dream of Magnus Maximus (Macsen Wledig), a Roman emperor who married the daughter of a Welsh prince and founded a great dynasty.

In his dream Maximus had seen a fort, "the fairest that man ever saw", within a city at the mouth of a river in a mountainous country and opposite an island. Edward interpreted this to mean Caernarfon and its architecture reflects that of Roman sites of that time.

Edward also had Welsh links from his grandfather, King John, who had linked the family to the Welsh princes through a marriage agreement. By linking to Welsh mythology, Edward wanted to identify himself with the Welsh princes and establish his ‘right’ to rule. Apparently, the body of Magnus Maximus at Caernarfon during building work on the castle. Edward I ordered his reburial nearby with a degree of pomp. The mythology is explored in an exhibition in the Black Tower.

Building began in 1283 and took 47 years at a total cost of £25,000. Existing buildings were cleared to build a new walled town next to the castle which was to become Edward’s administrative centre for Gwynedd. A new quay was built for building material brought in by sea.

While still incomplete, the castle was seized and held by Madog ap Llywelyn for a short time during his rebellion in 1294 against excessive English taxation. The English response was swift and work soon repaired the damage.

The Eagle tower with its three turrets at the top was the first to be completed and was intended for the royal apartments. This was where Edward I’s Son, Edward was born.

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In 1301 he was presented to the Welsh nobility from Queen’s Gate as a prince ‘that was borne in Wales and could speak never a word of English’. This tale may well be apocryphal, as it can only be traced to the C16th.

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The tradition continued in 1969, when Queen Elizabeth II invested Charles as Prince of Wales on the circular slate dais in the centre of the castle.

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The chair and kneeler used are now on display in the Eagle Tower.

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Caernarfon continued as a major stronghold and administrative centre for North Wales with a permanent garrison. Owen Glyndwr besieged the town and castle in 1403 but the English garrison of around 30 people successfully fought him off.

It wasn’t until the accession of Henry Tudor to the throne that Caernarfon lost its significance and fell into neglect. Henry was of Welsh descent, leading to diminished tension between the English and the Welsh. the castle did see some action during the Civil War when it was held by the Royalist before surrendering to the Parliamentary Forces. Cromwell ordered the castle to be slighted to prevent its further use, but fortunately these orders were never carried out.

By the C19th the castle was in a very poor state when state funds were used to restore the outer walls and towers.

From the outside, Caernarfon is impressive with its curtain wall and massive polygonal towers. With its interconnecting wall passageways and rampart walks it has been described as one of the most formidable concentrations of fire power of the Middle Ages.


The plan of the castle was very much determined by the terrain and incorporated the mound of the earlier Norman castle. It is long and narrow, unlike the more square concentric castles of Harlech and Rhuddlan.

The castle was surrounded by a moat and curtain wall with wall walk and defensive towers. Interconnecting passageways through the walls provided safe access to all parts of the castle if attacked.

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Entry was either through the Queen’s Gate over looking the river, or from the King’s Gate from inside the town.

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The inside was divided into the upper (east) ward which contained the Royal apartments, and a lower west ward which contained the service facilities and accommodation for the garrison.

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The intended range of buildings separating the two were never built. All that is left of the internal buildings are foundations and a fireplace on the wall near the Eagle Tower.

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The Eagle Tower, Queen's Tower, Chamberlain Tower and Black Tower were all intended as accommodation with a central chamber on each floor surrounded by small rooms with latrines as well as a chapel. Narrow spiral staircases climb to the roof of the Eagle tower which has good views of the river and quayside.

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The Royal Welch Fusilier’s Museum is housed in two of the towers and there are exhibitions and a film show in other towers.

Although the castle remains the property of the Crown, it is now in the care of Cadw.
 
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Caernarfon Walled town

When Edward I built Caernarfon Castle, he also built a walled town adjacent to it.

Caernarfon rapidly became the capital and administrative centre for North Wales. English settlers could live safely within the walls. The Welsh were only allowed to live inside the walls after 1507 when the accession of Welsh Henry Tudor to the throne brought about a lessening of hostilities between the English and the Welsh.

At a length of about half a mile, the walls enclosed an area of about 10 acres with a grid network of narrow streets. It was a massive undertaking involving large numbers of labourers from across England and cost £3,500, a massive sum for the time. Originally there were eight towers with two fortified gatehouses with the west gate allowing entry from the harbour and the east from the landward side. It would originally have been protected by the Rver Cadnant which is now culverted.

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In the early C19th more gateways were inserted into the walls.

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In the north west corner of the walls is the tiny Chapel of St Mary which was built in the C14th for the soldiers garrisoned in the town. It’s present appearance is the result of rebuilding in the early C19th.

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With the rapid growth of Caernarfon in the C19th, the town rapidly spread outside the walls. The walled town still retains its medieval grid pattern of streets and is lined with Georgian houses, many painted in pastel colours.

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Castle Street was the main shopping street and is still lined with small specialist shops and eateries.

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The walls still form an unbroken circuit around the old town, although there is no longer access to the wall walk.
 
Harlech Castle - possibly the most dramatic of the concentric castles

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Harlech Castle was built on a dramatic setting on top of a very steep and high rocky outcrop above the sea. When it was built, the sea came to the base of the cliffs and a water gate gave access to the sea from the castle.

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Over the centuries the seaward side has gradually silted up forming an expanse of low lying sand dunes

Harlech was one of three castles begun in 1283 by James of St George and took seven years to build. It was one of Edward’s cheapest castles at as ‘modest’ cost of £8,100, about 10% of the amount spent on the construction of all the Edwardian castles.

It survived a siege by Madog ap Llewelyn in 1294-5 and additional walls were built round the outer bailey and to protect access to the sea. It fell to Owain Glyndwr in 1404, when the garrison was poorly equipped with only three shields, eight helmets, six lances (but four of them lacked heads), ten pairs of gloves and four firearms. It became Glyndwr’s main base of operations until being regained by Harry of Monmouth (later Henry V) in 1409.

It was the inspiration for the unofficial Welsh anthem Rhyfelgyrch Gwyr Harlech (Men of Harlech) for its role in the Wars of the Roses, when it was held by a small handful of Lancastrians for seven years before surrendering to the massive Yorkist army. It was the last garrison to fall to the Parliamentary Army in the Civil War in 1647. Parliament ordered its destruction but fortunately this was only partially carried out.

It is considered to be on of the finest examples of lateC13th/earlyC14th military architecture and is a world heritage site.

It is an impressive example of a concentric castle, with two rings of walls and a massive gatehouse. A ditch on the landward side gave additional protection and it was virtually impregnable. Direct access to the sea was via a water gate and 108 steps. Access from the landward side was by drawbridge across the ditch and a passageway with three portcullis and at least two massive doorways.

The inner wall was much higher than the outer wall and had four massive defensive towers linked by a walkway and an impressive gatehouse on the landward side. This provided comfortable living accommodation.

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There was further accommodation in the corner towers, with the domestic buildings constructed round the inside of the walls.

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The original plan can still be seen clearly in aerial photographs.

A new ‘floating bridge’ was constructed in 2015 to give access to the gatehouse replacing a flight of wooden steps. It links the castle with a new visitor centre in what was the Castle Hotel.
 
Denbigh Castle - originally the site of a Welsh castle which was rebuilt for Edward I

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Denbigh Castle standing on a rock to the south of the modern town, formed an important link in Edward I’s chain of fortresses in North Wales, although it wasn’t designed by James of St George and lacks the sophistication of his designs. The town walls were built before the castle, presumably to protect the workforce. Although the town moved outside the walls in the C14th, they are still some of the best preserved and most complete town walls in Wales.

When finished, it was one of the largest and strongest castles in Wales with seven towers defending the perimeter walls and a mighty gatehouse. The inner ward is surrounded by a single curtain wall with walkway and defensive towers. Entry was by drawbridge across the moat to the massive gatehouse of three octagonal towers in the form of a triangle, with the postern gate providing a rear entrance.

The castle is now surrounded by a large green area which would originally have been the bastide. When the market and town moved outside the town walls in the C14th, this area became the outer ward of the castle. St Hilary’s Church was built outside the castle as the garrison church. All that is left now is its tower.

The castle was built on the stronghold of Dafydd ap Gruffydd, the brother of Llewelyn, the last Prince of Wales. After his defeat in 1282, the castle was granted to Hugh de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln and one of Edward’s more trusted military leaders. He demolished the Welsh castle and started to build a state of the art English castle. The walls and towers were begun first, followed by the gatehouse and the town walls.

The partially built castle was captured by Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294 and was held by him for a short time, but soon recaptured. Hugh de Lacy revised the plans and the curtain walls were refortified with thicker, taller walls. The main gatehouse was heavily buttressed with three octagonal towers and a drawbridge. Murder holes, portcullis, two doors and arrow slits completed the defences. One of the towers contained the porter’s lodgings. The other was a prison.

The great hall and the eastern domestic ranges including the kitchen tower, the pantry and the postern gate were completed.

De Lacy never completed the castle. Local tradition maintains work stopped when his eldest son fell into the castle well and drowned.

The castle resisted an attack by Owain Glyndwr in 1400.

In the C16th, the castle and Lordship of Denbigh was granted to Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, who was effectively Governor General of North Wales. He had plans to build a grand church below the castle, which was intended to replace St Asaph’s cathedral. The project ran out of money and local people who opposed the building of the church frequently pulled down the walls. Now all that is left of Leicester’s Church is a wall with empty windows.

The castle endured a six month siege during the Civil War before surrendering to the Parliamentarian forces. It was slighted to prevent further military use and was used as a prison for captured Royalists. It fell into ruin after the restoration of Charles II.

Entry is through the massive gateway with three octagonal towers and the remains of a statue of Edward II above the entrance.

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Inside is a large grassy area, the inner ward, surrounded by the curtain walls with the remains of towers.

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On one side is the remains of the great hall with steps down to the cellars which have the remains of a sink and drain.

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The corbels which held up the vaulted ceiling have remains of carvings. Above the cellars were the Green Chambers, the private apartments of the castle governor. Near these buildings is the massive well.

The postern gate on the opposite side of the wall to the main gatehouse has steep stone steps with two dog legs providing extra defence as well as two portcullises and drawbridges. This was used when going out for a day's hunting. It now ends in the dry ditch with views along the outside of the walls.

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Steep steps lead up from the gatehouse to a short section of wall walk with views over Denbigh to the mountains.

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Criccieth Castle - a Welsh castle captured and refortified by Edward I

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Set high above the town on a grassy mound between the two beaches at Criccieth, this was originally a Welsh Castle, having been built by Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (known as Llywelyn the Great by the English), around 1230.

The small walled inner ward was entered through a massive double gatehouse which was unique amongst the Welsh castles and may have been influenced by the English Marcher Lords who were building similar structures. There was a portcullis with guard rooms on the ground floor with more comfortable living quarters above. Llywelyn's grandson, Llywelyn ap Gruffuddor or Llywelyn the Last, extended the castle by adding the outer ward, curtain walls and two extra towers.

In 1283, the castle came under the control of Edward I who refortified the castle at a cost of £353 by adding an extra storey to the gatehouse towers and adapting the Engine Tower for use by a trebuchet.

At the beginning of the C15th, Owain Glyndwr captured and burnt the castle to prevent its reuse by the English. It was left in ruins and never rebuilt. Even today the evidence of scorching can be seen on the walls.

The two massive gateway towers with a curtain wall enclose a small inner bailey.

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To the north, steps lead up to the Engine tower. To the south are the remains of the Prison Tower.

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There isn’t a lot of the castle left but on a clear day there are superb views down the Llyn Peninsula to Llanbedrog and the headland beyond Abersoch. Across the bay is Harlech, although it can be difficult to pick out the castle against the houses of the town.

The long stretch of sand of Criccieth beach stretches to Black Rock Sands, overlooked by Moel y Gest with the bulk of Moel Hebbog looming to the side of it.

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The visitor centre has an exhibition on Welsh Castles and information about Gerald of Wales and the trip he made with Archbishop Baldwin through Wales in 1188.
 

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