An Iron Age Gem

The area is peppered with hundreds of pre historic sites and one of the most important and famous is Tre’r Ceiri (Town of Giants) a significant Iron Age settlement that dominates the Llŷn Peninsula on the slopes of the Eifl 400 feet above the Irish Sea. The settlement contains considerable remains including 150 stone huts and a huge rampart, which were built 200 BC. Many of the remaining walls are still over 4 meters high in places.

Castles - World Heritage Site

With the collapse of the Roman Empire and the departure of the Roman legions, other invaders, despite the difficult mountainous terrain of the area, eventually succeeded in occupying the land. The Vikings, Anglo Saxons and Normans came and left their mark on the area. This fueled a period that saw the Princes of Gwynedd buil numerous castle strongholds in an endeavour to protect their lands from the invaders and each other!

The castles of Dolbadarn and Dolwyddelan were built in strategic positions within the heartland of Snowdonia to control the two principal route ways through the mountains.Cricieth Castle is another fine example that sits on the headland overlooking Tremadog Bay and towers above the town of Cricieth. This castle was also built by Llywelyn the Great and expanded by Llywelyn the Last. Castell y Bere, another native Welsh castle situated north of Abergynolwyn is also likely to have been built by Llywelyn the Great around 1221.

Having captured the native castles, Edward I proceeded to build his own formidable ring of castles in North Wales. The magnificent and awesome World Heritage Site of Caernarfon castle sits defiantly on the banks of the river Seiont and the Menai Strait. It looks today much as it would have when it was finished in 1330. It was built as a military stronghold but was also Edward’s seat and official residence in Wales.

Another of Edward I castles is Harlech Castle, high on the peninsula overlooking the bay of Cardigan and seems to rise from the rock on which it stands. It was built by James of St George Edward I  favoured architect and took seven years to complete. In 1404 the castle fell to the forces of Owain Glyndwr after a long siege when starvation reduced the determined garrison to just 21 men. During the Wars of the Roses the castle withstood the longest siege in the history of Britain which inspired the song ‘Men of Harlech’.

Roman Sophistication

The native Celtic society of the tribes that populated the area's Iron Age settlements changed completely with the coming of the Romans. But despite the might and sophistication of the Roman armies they found the Celts and Snowdonia's terrain a formidable opposition. They eventually succeeded in overcoming the indigenous population and occupied many of the hill forts and also built their own encampments in the region. Greanus Julius Agricola established the first wooden and earth fort in Caernarfon in AD77 - the remains of the Segontium site is still visible today.

Religion

With the advent of Christianity many ancient monastery’s, abbeys and churches were established in the area. The origins of Bangor Cathedral in the university town of the region can be traced back to Celtic times. St Deiniol founded a Monastery here in the 6th century around c.525 on land given by the king of Gwynedd, Maelgwn Gwynedd.

Beuno Church in Clynnog Fawr was also established in Celtic times. It developed to be an important establishment and the laws of Hywel Dda declared that the Abbot of Clynnog had the right to a place at the court of Gwynedd Kings. The church was an important resting place for the pilgrims on their way to Bardsey Island in the early years of Christianity.

Bardsey itself was inhabited in Neolithic times and still contains the remains of hut circles. During the 5th century it became a refuge for persecuted Christians and the monks led by St Cadfan began building a monastery here in the 6th century. For centuries Bardsey was important as the holy place of burial for all the bravest and best in the land and the Welsh bards called it ‘ ‘The gate to Paradise’ where over 20,000 saints are said to be buried. In early Middle Ages three pilgrimages to Bardsey equalled one to Rome.