Castle of the Week 18 - Conwy Castle
Conwy Castle is one of the castles built by
Edward I in the 13th century to keep peace in the newly conquered
territory of Wales. It was built on the site of a monastery and
was one of a ring of large castles around Mount Snowdon.
The castle was started in 1283 and amazingly was completed in 5 years, thanks mainly to 1500 imported English workers. It had 70 foot high walls and eight drum towers over 30 foot in diameter and was surrounded by water on three sides. From the outside it still looks much the same as it would have done in the 13th century.
The walls are 15 feet thick and follow the
rectangular shape of the rocky outcrop on which it stands
overlooking the estuary of the River Conwy. There was no
gatehouse. Invaders coming from the direction of the town had to
climb steep winding stairs, cross a drawbridge and go through two
gateways, only to be confronted with the strongly fortified
barbican which was overlooked by two massive towers. The interior
was divided in two separate wards by a cross wall, so that either
half could hold out if the other should fall. The outer ward was
the home of the garrison and the dungeons and the inner ward
contained the king’s living quarters.
Despite the great fortifications, Conwy Castle
was susceptible to a siege because of the lack of supplies
inside. In 1294 Edward I, who was staying at the castle, was
almost captured by Welsh rebels who cut him off from his main
army and his supplies with the help of a very swollen river. Food
ran very low, but luckily the river subsided before any attempt
could be made to capture the king.
In 1399 King Richard II was at Conwy Castle when he was promised safe conduct to meet the rebel Bolingbroke. However he was ambushed on the road and dead within a year. In the 15th century the castle was briefly held by the Welsh but was soon recaptured during the War of the Roses.
After this, the building started to deteriorate.
By the time of the Civil War in the 1640s, it was almost in ruins
but at the start of the War, like many other castles, it was
repaired. An ardent Royalist, the Archbishop of York, who was
from the area undertook the repairs at his own expense. Despite
this, it was taken after a three month siege by the
Parliamentarians in 1646 and in the 1660s the Earl of Conwy
shipped all his things (and a lot of the stone and lead) to his
castle in Ireland. The castle stayed in this dilapidated state
until it was put in the care of the government in the mid 1900s
and it was restored.
It is now a World Heritage listed site.
Write-up and images provided by GillB*
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