59 Caernarfon Castle Facts About The Beautiful Welsh Stronghold

The Caernarfon Castle is the most celebrated castle of King Edward I's Iron Ring!

Equipped with a Black Tower, stone ramp, and a majestic King's Gate, this castle was known for its off-beat shape. The best way to describe the structure of the castle would be to say that the walls are built in the form of the number eight.

Like the number eight, the walls converge into each other and become thinner towards the center. The castle was a symbol of English dominion and was also used by King Edward I to win the trust of the Welsh people.

An elaborate storyline was built which said that his son, Edward II was the son of Wales and was a prince that did not speak a word in English.

The storyline did not pan out well but the castle was revered by many nonetheless! Keep reading to know more facts!

Facts About Caernarfon Castle

The Caernarfon Castle of North Wales has been an important part of Welsh as well as English history for all the right reasons. The castle has been standing firm on its grounds for several centuries and is now a major tourist attraction in Wales.

This castle was the most extensive of all the projects that were taken up by Edward I in an attempt to make sure that he could maintain a stronghold over Wales.

• Amongst all the Welsh castles that were built at that time, the Caernarfon Castle stands as one of the greatest and most visited.
• The Caernarfon Castle held a special place for King Edward I, who started the construction of this majestic place in the year 1283.
• The castle was designed by Master James of St. Georges.
• The building of the castle also cost the King several million pounds in the currency of the present day, which shows the kind of dedication and determination Edward I had in terms of finishing over this grand and rather expensive project.
• This castle stands as a symbol for the English rule in Wales.
• The bailey or curtain walls and octagonal towers are testaments to the fact that the king was not ready to let go of his power over North Wales at any cost.
• Expectedly, the attacks and rebellions did not stop after the last Welsh Prince of Wales was killed by the King.
• There were many attacks in the coming years, and since the King had already established Caernarfon Castle as his base, this majestic structure suffered many damages at the hands of the Welsh rebels.
• In spite of all that this stone castle has been standing tall and now houses many exhibitions and also hosts many tourists throughout the year!
• Keeping in mind that the castle is ginormous, the mind boggles at how its construction only took around five years!
• The castle was a symbol of King Edward's successful endeavor, which was intended towards the conquering of independent Wales.
• This project became a reality in the year 1282 when the last Welsh Prince of Wales was killed.
• The last Welsh Prince of Wales was Llywelyn ap Gruffudd.
• What came next was a series of events such as the building of castles all around Wales in order to consolidate the King's power over the land.
• Even after Llywelyn was killed, Welsh rebels tried very hard to bring down the English power and to regain control of their own land.
• However, their efforts were quickly quashed and the people were punished thoroughly for their actions.
• The Caernarfon Castle is known to have been the most ambitious and intensive of the King's projects, which essentially meant that it cost him an entire fortune.
• The total money that was spent on the initial building of the castle is said to have been more than the annual tax that the treasury collected from the citizens.
• It is interesting to note that more money was spent on the transportation of the materials that this castle is made up of than the actual material.
• The colored stones and other building materials were transported from all parts of Wales and England.
• Most of these materials came from Liverpool.
• It is believed that the labor required to build this castle was more than 100 people.
• The castle was a product of a Roman myth or legend which became the King's personal agenda to fulfill and bring to life.
• The myth was that there was once a Roman king who had a dream of a castle somewhere in the world where there were colorful towers.
• This Roman king was said to have sent many explorers throughout the world in search of such a place and the place that they came across was none other than Caernarfon.
• King Edward I was inspired by this Roman myth and wanted to make this vision come to life.
• The octagonal and hexagonal towers of the castle are inspired by Constantinople and this might be the reason why they seem to be so familiar.

Caernarfon Castle's History

Caernarfon Castle is known for its immense history with reference to the many conquests and battles that took place here. The castle is also a symbol of how the English king was able to defeat the Welsh prince and also quash the chances of any major rebellions in the future.

Each castle building has its own story to tell and is known for its own share of conquests and sieges.

• The castle's history is littered with stories of how the reinforced walls were built in order to safeguard the main castle buildings and the settlements that lay within.
• The town of Caernarfon was important in medieval times in terms of military warfare.
• As a result, it also became important for King Edward I to not only build a castle that would be secure to the highest order but also to engulf the old town walls for protection.
• Walls extend from the bay to the exterior of the old town in the present day, making the castle virtually impregnable.
• The eight towers which are built in an octagonal shape also provide the castle with its strength.
• Some of the most important towers would be the Eagle Tower, Chamberlain Tower, and Queen's Tower!
• The curtain wall and the intense history surrounding the colorful stones used in making the octagonal towers also add charm to the castle
• The construction of the castle started in the year 1283 and the entire construction was almost concluded in a period of five years.
• Such speed is unimaginable since the octagonal towers had the potential of taking a long time to be constructed.
• The only problematic attack that was launched on the castle was in the year 1294, which took the King and his men by surprise.
• All the other rebellions were quickly dealt with.
• The castle was also stuck in the hassle between the Royalists and Parliamentarians!

Caernarfon Castle's Importance

The castle's importance is made clear through the fact that it was the most extensive project that was a part of the Iron Ring castles. The Iron Ring castles were inspired by the Caerphilly Castle and its concentric design.

However, the Caernarfon Castle was unable to incorporate such a concentric design due to the location. The other castles of the Iron Ring set were not nearly as expensive on the King's treasury, neither did they end up having the architectural wonders that the Caernarfon Castle does.

• The importance of the Caernarfon Castle can easily be seen through the fact that it was a symbol of the English conquest of Wales.
• The town walls were engulfed into the castle to increase the security of the town as well as to make sure that the Welsh rebels had a tougher time trying to figure out a way to penetrate into the real castle.
• The castle also helped the king in holding out against rebellions.
• It was also helpful in making sure that all the Welsh attacks and rebellions that took place after 1294 could be quashed effectively.
• 1294 holds a special place because it is told that the English still had to be careful in their Welsh territories since rebels could easily be motivated if they did not do so.
• The fact that the castle can only be entered through only two gatehouses was also a factor that contributed greatly towards building a strong base.
• The immensely fearsome King's Gate was the town-side gatehouse which was equipped with many new and old methods of killing any enemy troops that dared to enter.
• The Queen's gate, on the other hand, is substantially smaller and was built for the maintenance of trade.
• The castle's walls are reinforced and were able to hold out firmly against all but one rebellion. The walls were later fixed, which also added to humongous expenditures!
• The Caernarfon Castle now holds a special place in the culture of the Royal family of the United Kingdom as the investiture takes place here.
• According to the custom of the Royal family, the person who is named the Prince of Wales is next in line for the throne.
• Presently, the status is given to Prince Charles, who will inherit the throne after Queen Elizabeth.
• There are chances that Prince William will have his investiture ceremony at the Caernarfon Castle once his father gets the throne, making him next in line.

Caernarfon Castle's Facts For Tourists

When in North Wales, you should definitely visit Caernarfon Castle, however, there are some things that you must know in order to be able to get the most value for your money.

• North Wales is not particularly popular for having great accommodation options and hence, it would be best to explore all options and check the ratings given to inns and hotels.
• Since the Caernarfon Castles are one of the most impressive castles found in the whole of the United Kingdom, there are many pubs and restaurants in the area if you want to relax for a while after having indulged in the rich cultural history and architecture of the Caernarfon Castle.
• The Museum Castle sure is famous and holds a lot of significance, but the fact remains that apart from the architecture, gift shops and exhibitions, there really isn't much to discover in Caernarfon Castle.
• The best thing to do would therefore be to make a day trip out of your Caernarfon Castle visit.
• This will save you the trouble of staying at questionable inns while enabling you to still bask in the glory of this medieval castle!