Gwynedd

Gwynedd
Conway Castle
The castles of Beaumaris and Harlech and the fortified complexes of Caernarfon and Conwy are located in the former principality of Gwynedd, in north Wales. These extremely well-preserved monuments are examples of the colonization and defence works carried out throughout the reign of Edward I (1272–1307) and the military architecture of the time.

Year Decision Comments
1986 Inscribed Reasons for inscription

Reviews

Ian Cade (England):
These have to rank as some of the best places I have visited in Britain. At the start of November 2006 we visited the Castle at Beumaris and spent a night in Conwy, and it was fantastic.
The Castle at Beumaris is situated on the Island of Anglesea at the end of this quaint town that overlooks the treacherous Menai Straits. This castle was the most technically progressive of King Edward’s ‘Ring of Iron’. It is quite easy to see how the main defences work; they provide a barrier to invaders, if that is breached you are then in a kind of void where it would be easy for the defenders to pick you off. All in all there are about four separate lines of defence, with masses of other small details that would help to protect the castle from invasion. There is plenty for you to explore inside the castle, and the view from the wall walk is great as you look out across the Straits to the Snowdonia Mountains. If you have an interest in Bridges this is also a great place to visit, the two Bridges across the Menai are some of the finest pieces of engineering from the Industrial Revolution.
We then carried on to Conwy, which is completely surrounded by impressive Town Walls, and the walk along the top of them was perhaps the highlight of the trip for me (picture). The town itself is lovely, and the castle in the corner of the walls is very impressive, with small versions of the two Menai Bridges leading away from it. It was a great place to spend a night in a traditional Welsh B&B. The backdrop to the Town as with all of these castles is the magnificent Snowdonia National Park and if you wanted to spend longer here then it is really good for hiking.
I don’t know if it is due to translation but many World Heritage Sites are called Castles, but many are little more than Palaces, these definitely fit into the robust defensive category, and are certainly worthy of their place on the World Heritage List.
The city of Bangor is the best connected in the area for transport to the castles. All the timetables are integrated at www.traveline-cymru.org.uk, which is a very useful resource. The area would be good to explore from the WHS of Liverpool or on the way to/from the ferry for Dublin.
This was one of the best WHS I have seen in Britain and I would have no problem in going back to see the other two inscribed castles, great if you want to see a different side of Britain.
 
Kaye (Isle of Man):
hi I am currently in my graduating year in the International Hotel School in Isle of Man, and we are now working on our report about attractions in Wales for our Tourism class. A part of it is to discuss about the reason of inscription and other more information from UNESCO.This site has helped us a lot. Thank You for proviing such a resourceful site
 
paula (wales, uk):
i.e Chuck Woolgar....

Hello, i am in my third year of BA(HONS) in heritage management at the university of wales, bangor....

I have just completed my dissertation on UNESCO's World Heritage Convention and my case study sites were also the castles of north wales. weird!! if you want any help with your work just ask Bob for my e-mail address or something.

Paula Williams. 21 april, 2004
 
emmalina (england):
this is a great site but i am only 15 yet interested
 
Chuck Woolgar (North Wales):
Just a quick note. Iam currently studying for an MA in Heritage Management at the University of Wales Bangor. My thesis is based round the World Heritage Sites in Gywnedd ie Conwy Castle. I will be happy to review the Edwardian Castles and place them on your site, just give me a couple of days to gather the information. Additionally I would be grateful for any suggestive reading regarding World Heritage Status especially laws governing regulation. Thank you.
 


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