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Anglesey, North Wales

Harlech Castle, Gwynedd, North Wales.

Harlech Castle, Coordinates... 52.86°N 4.11°W

Harlech Castle is a Grade I listed medieval fortification built onto a rocky knoll close to the Irish Sea. It was built by Edward I during his invasion of Wales between 1282 and 1289 at the relatively modest cost of £8,190. Over the next few centuries, the castle played an important part in several wars, withstanding the siege of Madog ap Llywelyn between 1294 and 1295, but falling to Prince Owain Glyndŵr in 1404. It then became Glyndŵr's residence and military headquarters for the remainder of the uprising until being recaptured by English forces in 1409. During the 15th century Wars of the Roses, Harlech was held by the Lancastrians for seven years, before Yorkist troops forced its surrender in 1468, a siege memorialised in the song "Men of Harlech". Following the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642, the castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I, holding out until 1647 when it became the last fortification to surrender to the Parliamentary armies. In the 21st century the ruined castle is managed by Cadw, the Welsh Government's historic environment service, as a tourist attraction.

UNESCO considers Harlech, with three others at Beaumaris, Conwy and Caernarfon, to be one of "the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe", and it is classed as a World Heritage Site.

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Inside the Great Glasshouse, a single span 110 metres long by 60 metres wide. The planting replicates arid conditions, showing plants from Mediterranean-type regions around the globe.

My camera has a warning light if it's starting to overheat - this is the only place I've ever seen it come on.

One of the entrances to the Great Glasshouse.

The empty hilltop is the site of Middleton Hall, a Georgian mansion whose park is now the National Botanic Garden of Wales. The house was destroyed by fire in the 1930s and then demolished; the pale yellow building is its surviving service wing, which was separate from the main house. Interestingly, the mansion site is left empty and the Great Glasshouse, the most spectacular building in the gardens, is set into the slope slightly below it

My visit was an extended lunch stop, so there wasn't time to explore the parkland or the woods. Something for another time...

This fine embankment is part of the short Rhosydd exit tramway, which connected the New Quarry mills (visible in the distance) to the top of the impressive exit incline leading down to the Croesor Tramway.


35mm Negative | Date: 14 September 1986 | © TJW: ROTWSI

Welsh farmhouse - Amgueddfa Caerfyrddin/ Carmarthen Museum

I'm lucky enough to live in an area where there are an abundance of waterfall and cascades.

Wind Farm, South Wales near Swansea

Afan Forest, South Wales, looking towards Swansea and the Gower.

Mwy o wau artistig, www.blipfoto.com/entry/3360529185738064919, #blipfoto, @blipfoto, 2025-04-19

Mostyn, North Wales

Leanann an cinedhíothú ar aghaidh, agus tá na polaiteoirí balbh.
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Kenderc'hel a ra ar gouennlazh, ha mut eo ar bolitikourien.
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The genocide goes on, and the politicians are mute.
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The "castellated" arched entrance to the main workings as seen in 1982.

This may look like a fortification, but it was actually a bridge carrying the rubbish tramway running from workings on the right to the lengthy waste tips on the left. Unfortunately, this was all demolished and swept away shortly after this photo was taken.


Notes:-

Quarrying here dates from c1818 (although possible 'scratchings' existed earlier) and had become extensive by the 1870s, when there were several mills and inclines, galleries, a deepening pit, and underground workings. Even by this date, space for tipping waste had become an issue. Unusually, the quarry was never connected to any form of railway, despite numerous plans being muted over time, but instead relied on horse and cart. Latterly, a steam traction engine hauled the finished product to Betws-y-Coed until lorries eventually took over the work.

Unlike many quarries, Cwm Machno survived into the 20th century and continued to work after both World Wars but eventually closed due to a shortage of labour in 1962. Even after two decades of closure, the site was still full of interest. Unfortunately, the major landscaping work of the early 1980s saw the large walled rubbish tramway (and this fine arch) demolished and tipped into the pit. Quite a few of the building remains were also swept away, including the mill and the Trwnc Incline winding house on Level 3. Fortunately, the large structure that supported the header tank for this incline, located further up the hillside, still stands, along with most of the other inclines that descend from the upper levels.


35mm Negative | Date: 21 August 1982 | © TJW: ROTWSI

A tree branch at the beach. Tywyn.

A still standing hut, with just about covered windows to help with the draughts, and with a watertight roof. Maybe 100 years old and once used by the quarrymen of Dinorwic Slate quarries, Llanberis.