Dolwyddelan Castle ( ; cy, Castell Dolwyddelan; ) is a Welsh

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

located near

Dolwyddelan Dolwyddelan ( ; ; ) – in Victorian times, often spelled Dolyddelen – is a village and community in Conwy county borough, Wales, on the main A470 road between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Betws-y-Coed. As a community, the population of Do ...

Conwy County Borough Conwy County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Conwy) is a county borough in Wales. It borders Gwynedd to the west and south, and Denbighshire to the east. Other settlements in the county borough include Abergele, Betws-y-Coed, Colwyn Bay, Conwy, ...

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

. It is thought to have been built in the early 13th century by

Llywelyn the Great Llywelyn the Great ( cy, Llywelyn Fawr, ; full name Llywelyn mab Iorwerth; c. 117311 April 1240) was a King of Gwynedd in north Wales and eventually " Prince of the Welsh" (in 1228) and "Prince of Wales" (in 1240). By a combination of war and d ...

, Prince of Gwynedd and Wales. Initially comprising just one tower with two floors, a second tower was built in the late 13th century, and a third floor was added to the first during repairs in the late 15th century.

Construction

The castle was built, using mostly local grit and slate rubble, as one of the

Snowdonia Snowdonia or Eryri (), is a mountainous region in northwestern Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three national parks in Wales, in 1951. Name and extent It was a commonly held belief that the nam ...

n strongholds of the princes of

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and C ...

. Though there are no records of the exact construction date, it is thought that a single rectangular tower, with two floors, was built in the early 13th century. The first floor would have consisted of a main chamber with a fireplace, with a trapdoor for entrance to the basement, and the main keep's doorway would have been covered by a

porch A porch (from Old French ''porche'', from Latin ''porticus'' "colonnade", from ''porta'' "passage") is a room or gallery located in front of an entrance of a building. A porch is placed in front of the facade of a building it commands, and form ...

or forebuilding. The second two-storey tower was added by Edward I during the repairs in 1283–84 and linked by an irregular curtain wall with a courtyard in the centre, with further work undertaken in 1290–92. This second tower contained a fireplace on the top floor reached by internal stairs. A third storey was added to the main keep in the late 15th century, raising it to a total height of . The castle was heavily restored between 1848 and 1850 by

Baron Willoughby de Eresby Baron Willoughby de Eresby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1313 for Robert de Willoughby. Since 1983, the title has been held by Jane Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby, 28th Baroness Willoughby de Eresby. History The ...

during which time the

battlements A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

were added.

History

The Welsh castle, built in the early 13th century, functioned as a guard post along a main route through North Wales. It was reputed to be the birthplace of

, though it is now thought that he was born at Tomen Castell, a small tower that previously stood on a nearby hill, and that he built Dolwyddelan Castle. On 18 January 1283 the castle was captured by

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

's forces during the final stages of his conquest of Wales. Some historians have suggested that there may have been a deal between the defenders of the castle and Edward I in which its surrender was negotiated. The castle was then modified and strengthened until at least 1286 for occupation by an English garrison with recorded repairs including carpentry, the bridge, and the

water mill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production o ...

. Edwardian troops maintained a military presence here until 1290. In the 15th century, the upper storey and drainage system were added to the keep by local lord Maredudd ap Ieuan who acquired the lease in 1488. It was restored and partly re-modelled in the 19th century by Lord Willoughby de Eresby, who added the

battlement A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

s. It was reported that in around 1810 one of the towers may have collapsed. In 1930 the building was placed under the guardianship of the Ministry of Works. The castle is now under the protection of

Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage s ...

, which is part of the

Welsh Assembly The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...

's historic environment division.

Media appearances

In 1980 the location was used for all the outdoor shots of Ulrich's castle during the making of the film ''

Dragonslayer A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classifica ...

''.

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Dolwyddelan Castle
{{Portal bar, United Kingdom , Wales , History Buildings and structures completed in the 13th century Dolwyddelan Castles of Llywelyn the Great Castles in Conwy County Borough Grade I listed buildings in Conwy County Borough Grade I listed castles in Wales Cadw Motte-and-bailey castles

Construction

History

Media appearances

See also

References

External links