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Harlech
Castle
Castle Square,
Harlech,
Gwynedd.
LL46 2YH
Tel: 01766 780552
Web: http://www.cadw.wales.gov.uk
Customer Reviews: Click HERE
Spectacularly sited Harlech Castle seems to grow naturally from
the rock on which it is perched. Like an all-seeing sentinel, it
gazes out across land and sea, keeping a watchful eye over Snowdonia.
The English monarch Edward I built Harlech in the late 13th-century
to fulfill this very role. It was one of the most formidable of
his 'iron ring' of fortresses designed to contain the Welsh in their
mountain fastness. Ironically, in 1404 it was taken by Welsh leader
Owain Glyn Dwr who proceeded to hold a parliament here. A long siege
here during the Wars of the Roses inspired the stirring song 'Men
of Harlech'. Although an imposing edifice, Harlech is at one with
its surroundings, a quality rare in the great Edwardian castles.
There is a sense of harmony at work here, created by the way in
which the castle builders took care to exploit the site's natural
advantages.
Looking seawards, Harlech's battlements spring out of the near-vertical
cliff-face, while any landward attackers would first have to deal
with a massive twin-towered gatehouse. The
sea, like Snowdonia, is one of the key to Harlech's siting. Sea
borne access was crucial in times of siege, and although the waters
of Tremadog Bay have receded over the centuries, they may originally
have lapped the cliffs beneath the castle. The fortress's massive
inner walls and towers still stand almost to their full height.
The views from its lofty battlements are truly panoramic, extending
from the dunes at its feet to the purple mass of Snowdonia in the
distance. Harlech, a combination of magnificent medieval military
architecture and breathtaking location, is an unmissable castle,
a fact reinforced by its status as a World Heritage Inscribed site.
Access:
A496 to Harlech
Admission Charge:
Adult: £3.60
Reduced Rate: £3.20
Family: £10.40 (2 adults and all children under 16 from within
the same family unit)
Children under 16 must be accompanied by and adult. Children under
5 free.
Opening Hours:
1 April - 30 June: 09.30 - 17.00 daily
1 July - 31 August: 09.30 - 18.00 daily
1 September - 31 October: 09.30 - 17.00 daily
1 November - 28 February: 10.00 - 16.00 Monday - Saturday 11.00
- 16.00 Sunday 1 March - 31 March 2011: 09.30 - 17.00 daily
Closed 24-26 December, 1 January
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