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Dolbadarn Castle

Castle ruins in WalesCastles in GwyneddCastles of Llywelyn the GreatGrade I listed buildings in GwyneddLlanberis
Dolbadarn Castle Cadw
Dolbadarn Castle Cadw

Dolbadarn Castle (English: dol-BAD-an; Welsh: Castell Dolbadarn Welsh pronunciation: [kastɛɬ dɔl'badaːn]) 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". In 1284 Dolbadarn was taken by Edward I, who removed some of its timbers to build his new castle at Caernarfon. The castle was used as a manor house for some years, before falling into ruin. In the 18th and 19th centuries, it was a popular destination for painters interested in Sublime and Picturesque landscapes. It is now owned by Cadw and managed as a tourist attraction, and is protected as a grade I listed building.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Dolbadarn Castle (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 53.1166 ° E -4.1142 °
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Address

Castell Dolbadarn

A4086
LL55 4UB , Llanberis
Wales, United Kingdom
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Dolbadarn Castle Cadw
Dolbadarn Castle Cadw
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Nearby Places

Llyn Peris
Llyn Peris

Llyn Peris is a lake in Snowdonia, Wales, approximately 1.8 km long and situated close to the villages of Llanberis and Nant Peris, and the smaller twin of Llyn Padarn. The lake was formed glacially and is an example of a moraine-dammed lake. Llyn Peris is named after Saint Peris, an early Christian saint of whom little is known. The lake is flanked on one side by the mountain Elidir Fawr and the former slate quarry of Dinorwig. Above the opposite bank are the hills of Derlwyn and Clogwyn Mawr and a rock formation known as the Lady of Snowdon, due to its resemblance to a human face. The ruins of Dolbadarn Castle are also located on a mound above the lake. The lake now forms the lower reservoir of Dinorwig power station, and the administrative buildings for the station are situated on the lake shore. Water is released into the lake from Marchlyn Mawr (the upper reservoir) to produce electricity during periods of peak demand. This water is, in turn, pumped back to the upper reservoir using electricity purchased at off-peak periods. The water level of the lake therefore varies considerably, depending on UK electricity demand. Excess water from the lake drains into Llyn Padarn. During construction of the power station, when the capacity of the lake was increased considerably at this time, with the removal of a large quantity of slate waste, rare Welsh Arctic char fish were removed to four other lakes in the neighbouring Carneddau mountains, namely Ffynnon Llugwy, Llyn Cowlyd, Llyn Melynllyn and Llyn Dulyn, where they are still to be found. Although Llyn Peris itself was not restocked, some char have found their way back to the lake. Parts of the lake shore are designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest for Glacial Geology.

Padarn Halt railway station

Padarn Halt was a passenger only railway station located in Llanberis, Gwynedd, Wales, on the western shore of Llyn Padarn. It opened on 21 November 1936 and closed on the outbreak of the Second World War. The line through the station remained in use for excursions until 1962 and for freight until 1964; it was lifted in 1965. The LMSR closed the Llanberis branch to regular passenger services in 1930, though frequent Summer excursions continued to run. In 1934 the company reinstated a regular Saturdays only train specifically to serve Caernarfon market. In many parts of Britain "Market Trains" were an established part of local commerce and social life in a way which has passed into history. Llanberis station was not in the centre of Llanberis, so the company built the halt half a mile from the terminus specifically for this market traffic. The halt opened on 21 November 1936, from which time the market trains used the halt there instead of at Llanberis station. The halt consisted of an unlit single wooden platform on trestles, with a very small wooden waiting shelter at its southern end. It was accessed by a gravel footpath which continued over the tracks to the lakeside by a foot crossing. The 1939 working timetable shows that some excursions made unadvertised stops at the halt.The track bed from Llanberis through the site of the halt (at what is now the lakeside entrance to the industrial estate) as far as Cwm-y-Glo is now occupied by the improved A4086, which by-passes the centre of Llanberis. No trace of the station remains.