Dolbadarn Castle ( ; ; ) is a fortification built by the Welsh prince Llywelyn the Great during the early 13th century, at the base of the Llanberis Pass, in northern Wales. The castle was important both militarily and as a symbol of Llywelyn's power and authority. The castle features a large stone keep, which historian Richard Avent considers "the finest surviving example of a Welsh round tower". Traditionally the Welsh princes had not constructed castles, instead using undefended palaces called ', or courts. From the late 11th century onwards, the Normans had advanced into Wales, taking lands in the north and establishing a band of occupied territory in the south called the Welsh Marches. During the 12th century, some timber and earthwork castles began to be built but in small numbers.

thumb|350px|left|Plan of the castle: A – South Tower; B – Keep; C – West Tower; D – East Building; E – Hall

Llywelyn the Great initially controlled the princedom of Gwynedd, but grew more powerful throughout his reign, extending his influence over much of Wales during the early years of the 13th century. Llywelyn was faced with several challenges, including dealing with the threat from the kings of England and maintaining his authority over the native Welsh. As part of this strategy, Llywelyn built Castell y Bere, an innovative stone Welsh castle, in the 1220s. Shortly afterward he began the first phases of Dolbadarn Castle, constructing the initial stone fortifications on the site, including two square stone towers.

The location of the castle was important both because it controlled an important mountain pass, and possibly because Llywelyn claimed authority as the lord of the mountains and coasts of Wales: several of his castles appear to have been located with such political symbolism in mind. It is also possible that Llywelyn may have built his castle on top of the remains of a previous fortification constructed by Maelgwn Gwynedd, a king of Gwynedd in the 6th century, although no such remains have been found.

As part of his strategy for dealing with the Marcher Lords, Llywelyn married his eldest son, Dafydd, to Isabella, the daughter of William de Braose, a powerful lord in Brecon, Builth and Abergavenny. The prince was probably aiming not only to incorporate the latest military technology but also to create a castle of equal prestige to those of his new allies in the south. Traditionally the surrounding district of Is Gwyrfai had been run from the town of Llanbeblig; after the 1240s, this role was transferred to Dolbadarn. Llywelyn's grandson, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, took power in 1255 and imprisoned his brother Owain ap Gruffudd before extending his power across Wales.

The conflict between the Welsh princes and the English kings continued during the reign of Edward I. In 1282 Llywelyn fought a final campaign against Edward, ending in the prince's death near Builth that December. His brother, Dafydd ap Gruffydd, assumed power but during 1283 was forced south into Snowdonia and by May his government was based from Dolbadarn Castle. Dolbadarn was no longer relevant and within two years timber from the castle was being used by the Normans for the construction of Caernarfon Castle. From the 1760s onwards, however, it became a popular topic for painters interested in the then fashionable landscape styles of the Sublime and the Picturesque. Typically the castle was painted in the middle ground, allowing the viewer's eye to contrast its ruined outline with the lakes and mountains of Snowdonia; frequently the landscape was misrepresented by the artist, to create a more striking or dramatic effect. J. M. W. Turner's 1800 work Dolbadarn Castle depicted the back-lit castle looming over the landscape and became particularly famous, but the paintings of the castle by Richard Wilson and Paul Sandby also represent important artistic works of the period. Since 2024, Cadw have used the Welsh name in English. The castle is built from purple and green slate stone, mainly constructed in a dry stone fashion without mortar, except the keep. Of the castle buildings, only the keep remains at any significant height.

The keep today is 46 feet (14 m) high and is modelled on early 13th-century English round towers built in the south of the Welsh Marches. As with other Welsh-constructed towers, the entrance is on the first story, not at ground level; it may originally have been protected by a porch. While the castle's flooring has long since disappeared, its interior staircase to the upper story may still be climbed. This second story would have formed the main chamber in the keep and had a large fireplace and a latrine.

The rectangular west tower was a relatively short defensive structure, designed to protect the more vulnerable western slope of the ridge. Although the hall is relatively large, 50 by 27 feet (15 by 8 m), these buildings follow a simpler design than those current in England at the time, where a combination of a hall, chamber, and a service block in castles was becoming more common.

See also

  • Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
  • List of castles in Wales

Notes

References

Bibliography

  • Andrews, Malcolm. (1989) The Search for the Picturesque. Stanford, US: Stanford University Press. .
  • Avent, Richard. (2010) Dolwyddelan Castle, Dolbadarn Castle, Castel y Bere. Cardiff: Cadw. .
  • Brown, R. Allen. (1962) English Castles. London: Batsford.
  • Butler, Lawrence. (2010) "The Castles of the Princes of Gwynedd," in Williams and Kenyon (eds) (2010).
  • Crouch, David. (1992) The Image of Aristocracy in Britain, 1000–1300. London: Routledge. .
  • Emery, Anthony. (2000) Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300–1500: East Anglia, Central England, and Wales. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. .
  • Jones, Alan Ffred. (2010) "King Edward' I's Castles in North Wales – Now and Tomorrow," in Williams and Kenyon (eds) (2010).
  • King, D. J. Cathcart. (1991) The Castle in England and Wales: An Interpretative History. London: Routledge. .
  • Morgan, Gerald. (2008) Castles in Wales: A Handbook. Y Lolfa. .
  • Williams, Diane M. and John R. Kenyon. (eds) (2010) The Impact of the Edwardian Castles in Wales. Oxford: Oxbow Books. .
  • Cadw visitor information