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North Wales. Beaumaris, Harlech, Conwy and Caenarfon. They were designed to cower the
querulous Welsh into submission.
Conwy Castle Conwy Castle is a gritty, dark stoned
fortress which has the rare ability to evoke an
authentic medieval atmosphere. The first time that
visitors catch sight of the castle, commanding a rock
above the Conwy Estuary and demanding as much
attention as the dramatic Snowdonia skyline behind it,
they know they are in the presence of a historic site
which still casts a powerful spell.
Conwy, constructed between 1283 and 1289 as one
of the key fortresses in his ‘iron ring’ of castles to
contain the Welsh, was built to prompt such a humbling reaction. A distinguished historian wrote of
Conwy, ‘Taken as a whole, Conwy’s incomparably the most magnificent of Edward I’s Welsh
fortresses’. In comparison to other great Edwardian castles, it is also relatively straightforward in
design, a reflection of the inherent strength of its robust site.
The views from the battlements are breathtaking looking out across mountains and sea and down
to the roofless shell of the castles 125ft Great Hall. It is from these battlements that visitors can
best appreciate Conwy’s other great glory, its ring of town walls. Conwy is the classic walled town.
Its circuit of walls is over three-quarters of a mile long and guarded by no less than 22 towers.
More on Conwy . . .
Caernarfon Castle is a brute of a fortress. Its pumped-up
appearance is unashamedly muscle-bound and
intimidating. Picking a fight with this massive structure
would have been a daunting prospect. By throwing his
weight around in stone, King Edward I created what is
surely one of the most impressive of Wales’s castles.
The message from its creator to the locals was
stark: “Don’t mess with me, boyo. I will crush you.”
Most castles are happy with round towers, not Caernarfon! Polygonal towers were the order of the
day, with the Eagle Tower being the most impressive of these. You will also note the colour-coded
stones carefully arranged in bands.
The first Prince of Wales, son of Edward I, was born here in 1284. In 1969 the investiture of the
present Prince of Wales, Charles, took place here.
More on Caernarfon . . .
Cwm Idwal National Nature Reserve Walk takes you into a normally inaccessible upland
environment, and through beautiful ice-sculpted Cwm Idwal – a bowl-shaped hollow filled with the
crystal clear waters of Llyn Idwal. The site is world famous for its rock formations and its rare and
fragile plant life.
The cwm, or basin, forms an amphitheatre behind a glacial lake, Llyn Idwal, and this makes the
reserve one of the finest places to see how glaciation and the subsequent retreat of the glaciers
affected and shaped this kind of dramatic landscape.
