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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.
Admission Charge: Opening Hours: Back to the top. |
Harlech
Castle
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.