Northern Wales in a Day! ....Oct 28, 2019

A very busy day for us.

First we had breakfast with Margaret & Colin then said our goodbyes.  Was so much fun to spend the last few days with them.

Then we were off to Dolwyddelan Castle.  It was built by Llywelyn the Great, my 18th great grandfather on my mother's side.  It was also once owned by my 14th great grandfather, Maredudd ap Ieuen, who founded the Wynn(e) family.  Gruffydd ap Cynan (my 25th GGF) ws the first ruler of Gwynedd who managed to establish some sort of stability north of the Conwy River,.  His sons OOwain (my 24th GGF) and Cadwaladr (my 25 great uncle) fought against each other,  Owain and his son, Dafydd, gave King Henry II lots of trouble.  Cadwaladr had married a sister of Gilbert de Clare the 2nd Earl Of Hertford, who was the husband of my 22nd great aunt, Joan of Acre Plantagenet, and he fought on Henry's side.  This was a square castle that sat high on a hill.

Then we tried to get to Sarn Helen or Tai Penamnen, but after going down super narrow single-track roads which finally turned into a grassy lane, Ray said nope and we turned around.  Tai Penamnen is the remains of the old house of Maredudd ap Ieuan (1439/65-1525), my 14th GGF, also known as Meredith Evan Wynn.  In the 15th C., Maredudd, a nobleman from the Llyn peninsula, occupied the castle at Dolwyddelan.  He was the Head of the Royal House of Cunedda with intentions to expand his territories into the lawless lands of 15th c. Snowdonia.  After several years, he abandoned the castle and with his entourage, including his several women and his 20 children, he moved to Tai Penamnen, the house in Cwm Penamnen just south of the village of Dolwyddelan.  It is believed there was a house on the plot and that Maredudd extended the property at the northern end of the original building.  He moved here c. 1485 and his descendants were to become the Wynne's of Gwydir Caslte in Llanrwst.

 In the early 18th c., Angharad James, a lady renowned for her knowledge of poetry, law, and music, rented the property from the Wynne's of Gwydir.  When still a young woman she married William Pritchare, a man in his sixties who farmed the cwm (valley).  After being widowed, she continued to farm the valley for the remainer of her life.  It is said that she would play the harp while her maids danced at a spot known as clwt y ddawns.  Today there is a picnic spot close to the house, a pleasant place to sit and reminisce about the old house and the dancing maids of Cwm Penamnen.  Tai Penamnen has recently been the subject of an archaeological investigation.  As of 2007, the local historians were still working on the property and work was being done to prevent further deterioration of what remains of the walls and floors.  I believe this work is continuing today.

We turned around and quickly found St. Gwyddelan Church in Dolwyddalen.  The website said the openinng of the church was restricted and you had to get a key from a nearby hotel, but when we pulled up there was a big sign that said the church was open and it was.  So we had full access to it.

Lying here under tombs are:

Maurice Gwyden du Wynn  (1495/1509 -- 1580)  my 13th GGF

John Wynn  the builder's great grandson and my 15th GGF

Meredith Evan Wynn (Maredudd ap Ieuan) 1439/65-1525  my 14th GGF is supposedly buried in the churchyard here.  Couldn't find him.

The village of Dolwyddelan is stunningly located in the glorious Welsh mountains.  There was an interesting old legend about a dragon and this area.  The story goes that a Dragon came up out of the sea and made its way up the river arriving at the village of Dolwyddelan. Apparently the Dragon was so powerful that as it swooped through the valley, diving into the waters it caused a number of floods in the village.The locals knew they needed to do something about the creature but did not want to harm it and decided to lure the beast into the mountains so it could live its days out there. It did so and no harm came to the village again.

The Parish church of St. Gwyddelan was built around 1500 by Meredith ap Ieuan ap Robert of Dolwyddelan Castle (my 14th GGF), Penamnen and Gwydir at his own expense.  The older church was at Bryn y Bedd, but Maredudd built it closer to his own house when he came to live here in the 15th c.   There is the date of 1512 in East stained glass window but this window was added later.  There is a mural monument to the Wynn family placed on North wall.  East of the Screen are 4 benches with one saying: a bench for the hard of hearing.  In a case mounted on North wall are 3 brasses from Meredith ap Ieuan’s former tomb d. 1525--a kneeling figure of the donor in full plate armour, a shield with his coat of arms, and a latin inscription in Gothic lettering.

At the time Meredith moved to Dolwyddelan in late 15^th c, he had fathered 20 children and the castle was too small.  (He fathered over 20 children w 3 wives and 4 concubines.)   But the area around Penmnen was overrun with bandits and outlaws that were living in sanctuary at the Knights of St. John’s Hospice nearby.  His house in Penamnen was vulnerable to these outlaws when he left to worship in the old church.  So he demolished the church and rebuilt it nearer to Penamnen.  Built at entrance to valley so he could post lookouts and he could see the lookouts from his pew and could react swiftly to any threats.  He would take his sword and wear full armour to worship here.  He is credited with banishing these outlaws. 

In 1984, earthquake damaged bellcote so it was rebuilt.  In 2006, a refuse lorry reversed into the lynchgate and it was rebuilt.       There are regular services here.

Cloch Wyddelan or St Gwyddelan’s Bell, very old, is hanging from one of the church beams.  The bell was dug up on the site of the old church in the 19th Century and is thought to have been brought by St. Gwyddelan from Ireland in the 7th Century.  Cast in bronze and thought to be dated 800 AD.   He (the little Irishman) came to restore Christianity in Britain in the 5^th c. 

The Lynchgate was built in south side in 1736.  The date stone is in the wall near the present gate on the north side. 

The Dolwyddelan Dragon is carved in a beam in the north side.  The church is roofed with stone slates.  Timbers are held in place by wooden pegs.  There is an old door here with a sanctuary knocker!

Our next stop was at Gwydir Castle.  We couldn't go in because it was closed today.  Gwydir Castle was built by Meredith Wynne ap Ieuan (my 14^th GGF), a descendant of Owain Gwynedd (my 24 GGF).  He was a brave and vulnerable person and never went anywhere without his handpicked bodyguard of 20 tall bowmen, so afraid he was of being assassinated.  He's the one who fathered over 20 children with 3 wives and 4 concubines.  

Gwydir Castle became the ancestral home of the powerful Wynn family, descended from the Kings of Gwynedd and one of the most significant families during Tudor and Stuart period.  After the War of the Roses, it was rebuilt by Meredith ap Ieuan ap Robert (14 GGF).  His son, John Wynn ap Meredith enlarged the castle using masonry from Maenan Abbey, dissolved in 1538.  The square turret at the rear of the Solar Tower contains a spiral staircase taken from the Abbey and many elaborately carved stones can also be seen on site.  The turret was added in 1540.  It is this Sir John Wynn initials above main entrance in ctyd gatehouse with date of 1555.The oldest part of Gwydir is the Solar Tower.  

The castle was enlarged into a double courtyard mansion by Sir John Wynn in the 17^th c. 

Sir John Wynn (my 12 GGF) had 40 servants and he murdered a serving maid at the castle after she got pregnant by him and threatened to make public their affair.  He bricked her body up in a void in one of the chimneys in the Hall of Meredith, but the smell hung around the room for months.  Her ghost is said to secrete the same stench.  He gave a deathbed confession of the murder.  Sir John also lingers around the building in a tall black hat and ruff, going thru walls, as does a large dog and several crying children.  Sir John Wynn’s tormented soul lies trapped beneath the waters of Rhaiadr y Wennal—cursed by a monk for a crime against him.  A monster lived in pool upstream from Gwydir beneath Pont yr Afane (Beaver Bridge).

Sir John's wife, Lady Sydney, was truly good and moral.   IW and SW are cast in iron with 3 little eagles with wings linked to form hearts to commemorate their marriage in 1576.  Sir John was said to be aggressive, proud, domineering, more dreaded than beloved but yet a great personage.  Sir John sent his sons to school in England.

Gwydir Castle is known for its peacocks:

A bindery was set up in Sir Richard Wynn’s Chamber from the 17^th c., also called the Ghost Room in the 19^th c. book.  The ghost is named Margaret and has a high forehead and brown ringlets and is dressed in a sky blue dress.  Supposedly she is mad at the present owner, Peter Welford.

Above the gatehouse (that floor now gone) was Sir John Wynn’s study where he wrote “History of the Gwydir Family” in the 1780s.  

Gwydir became the ancestral home of the Wynn family, descended from the Kings of Gwynedd.  It is called a castle but is a Tudor courtyard house or fortified manor house.  It was also home to Katheryn of Berain, cousin of Queen Eliz I who had 4 husbands over her lifetime.  Maurice Wynn proposed to her as leaving the funeral of her 1^st husband but she turned him down because she had accepted the proposal of Sir Richard Clough on way into the church.  Five yrs later, she buried Clough and married Maurice.  Then 10 yrs later, buried Maurice and married again.  King Charles visited Gwydir in 1645 as guest of Sir Richard Wynn, 2^nd Baronet, Treasurer to Queen Henrietta Maria and Groom of the Royal Bed Chamber.  There is a chair from 1666 belonging to Maurice Wynn with MW on it.

King Charles stayed here in 1645 and King Geo & Queen Mary in April 1899 as Duke & Duchess of York.

The castle once stood in a deer park of 36,000 acres in  the16^th-17^th c.  Today it is only 10 acres.

In 1921, the paneled main dining room from the 1640s was stripped, and bought at auction by Wm Randolph Hearst.  On his death, it was inherited by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in storage in crates all these yrs..  It was sold to the Corbetts recently and reopened in 1998 in a ceremony with the Prince of Wales.  The Dining Room was one big room instead of 5 as in Sir Richard’s time.

Also returned to the castle is a  wedding chest was made in 1624 to commemorate the marriage of the alchemist, Sir Owen Wynn (3rd Baronet) to Grace Williams, the niece of Archbishop John Williams.

The water was so clear here that it once produced pearls that were used in the Crown Jewels which Sir Richard Wynn in 1636 gave to his Queen on bended knee.

Sir Richard Wynn 2^nd Baronet brought cedars back from Madrid as saplings. 

1922 fire gutted Solar Tower and left it roofless.  Fire in West Wing made the place untenable and it was abandoned and unoccupied until 1944. 

Passed by marriage in 1678 to Barons Willoughby and Eresby. 

Now privately owned by Peter Welford & wife Judy Corbett who wrote book about its restoration, “Castles in the Air.”

In around 1600, Sir John Wynn wrote “History of the Gwydir Family” and in 17^th c. a branch of the Wynn family was established in America and still flourishes today.

Interesting facts to do with Gwydir Castle:

Fourth and last of Wynn baronets, Sir Richard, d. of plague in 1674. 

Yew tree known as Lovers Tree or Giant Yew is between 600-1000 yrs old and predates castle.

Raised terrace has Renaissance arch from 1590s.  Old Dutch Garden has ancient yew topiary and octagonal fountain.  Maze in Dutch Garden and a yew avenue. 

House is famous for its peacocks, here since 1828. 

Medieval Garderobe=toilet and hang four-lied robes so ammonia fumes rising up from drain shafts would kill lice and fleas in clothes.

Rumor that Sir John –an overt Protestant—was really Catholic.

Hall-range chimney has initials IW and cross thru heart=Iohannes Wynn=John Wynn (1550)

The road past the castle and to Betws-y-coed is one of the oldest in Wales—Pre-Roman

Carreg y Gwalch—Falcon’s Rock where Dafydd ap Sieneyn, Welsh Robin Hood and men, hid out in Edward IV’s time

Twyleth Teg, fairy folk lived in burial chambers and come out at dusk to play.

King Arthur & his men roamed here.

There has been a building on the Gwydir Castle site since the Dark Ages.  Great Dark Age battle fought on site of present house in 610 AD by Llywarch Hen, the Poet Prince (520-634) my 41^st GGF.  It seems he was the resident bard at courts of King Uriens of Wales and King Arthur II at Caerleon.  wrote Eulugy to Geraint and Odes to Dwywyg and Owain

In 952—2^nd battle between sons of Hywel and Princes Ieuan & Iago

1468 sacked during Wars of Roses

1899 Royal Visit

1925 village of Dolganog swept away by flood.

1922 fire

Sat silent for over 20 yrs then the Cleggs restored it.

Dates on gate 1555 & 1828, but Clegg changed it to 1328

Wynn family motto on paneling “No Fear No Vanity” in latin

We then drove up the road to the Gwydir Uchaf Chapel.  The summer house of the Gwydir Wynne's is now the Forestry Commission.  The chapel is in the care of the State and you have to get the key from the Castle, so no going in here either.  Sir Percival (Peredur)'s Dark Age Fort was on the rocky plateau whre the shapel now stands.  It was built in 1673 by Sir Richard Wynn, 4th Baronet (who became chamberlain to Queen Catherine of Braganza), then he died a year later of the plague.  It has a simple exterior but an elaborate interior with a fine painted timber celiling depicting the Creation, the Trinity, and the Last Judgement, rich wood paneling, carved wood cherubs, a gallery, collegiate-style side pews, and an elaborate wooden pulpit.  There is supposedly a labyrinth in the bushes behind the chapel.  This chapel is a family memorial of the Wynnes.

This is a very pretty area:

Next we drove over the 1636 stone bridge built by Sir Richard Wynn and into Llanrwst to find St. Gwrst Parish Church.  And wouldn't you know it--it is closed now because of extensive restorations taking place!  I was so disappointed.  This chapel was built in 1633 by an earlier Sir Richard Wynn and designed by Inigo Jones.  Sir Richard Wynn of Gwydir who built it in 1633 has a castellated parapet.  Elaborate wood paneling, several family tombs, and a stone coffin said to be that of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth.  Llywelyn the Great was the son of Iowerth and was my 18^th GGF .

2 stone lions with shields on either side of 2 massive oak gates are flanked by the initials:

IW & 1555

Iohannes Wynn (John)     1543-1627 my 12^th GGF

Memorial brasses to Wynn family cover the walls from 1440-17^th c

“Here lyeth the Body of Sr. John Wynn of Gwydir KT and Baronet who Died Ye first of March 1626.”

Tablet to his sons on far wall:

FUNUS, FUMUS, FUIMUS, ECCE

Death comes, Breath is a Vapour, We have been, Behold

Sides of chapel have engravings on glass set in panels of wood.  

East corner has a tablet of white marble containing the pedigree of the family, comprising a period of 500 yrs.

Another tablet (esp interesting to Gwynns & Wynns of America:  “ The Chapel was erected in AD 1633 by Richard Wynne of Gwydir, in the County of Caernarvon, Knight & Baronet, Treasurer of the High and Mighty Princess Henrietta Maria, Queen of England, daughter of Henry IV, King of France and wife of our sovereign Lord, King Charles, where lyeth buried his father, Sir John Wynne of Gwydir, Knight & Baronet, son and heir to Morris Wynne, son and heir to john Wynne, son and heir to Meredith Wynn which 3 lie buried in the Church of Dolwyddelan with tombs over them.”

Crypt is now closed.  Beautiful wooden ceiling. 

Engraved in brass and fixed to wood paneling are engravings of Sir John Wynne, Lady Sidney, his wife, Owen their 3^rd son, Mary their eldest dtr, Lady Sara Wynne, the wife of Sir Richard who died in 1671 and Kathleen Lewis.   (Sir Richard buried at Wimbledon.)

On South wall is ornate marble monument to Maredudd ab Ifan (14GGF) who brought the family to this area and to Sir John Wynne and his wife Sidney.

Large square flag of free stone raised above the ground having latin inscription referring to the sons of John Wynne of Gwydir who died during their father’s lifetime.  John, a knight, buried in Lucca, Italy in 1613 aged 30 and Robert who entered Holy Orders in 1617 aged 14 and Roger.

The empty stone sarcophagus is said to be the one Prince Llewelyn Fawr was buried in in 1240.  Llywelyn  ab Iowerth stone coffin here.  Llywelyn the Great was the son of Iowerth and was my 1^st c 24xr. Of the 13^th c.  of same time and stone as whis wife Joan’s in Beaumaris.

Hywel ap Coetmore ap Griffith Vychan ap Dafydd Gam was the natural son of David, Prince of Wales.  He was killed in 1388 in Flanders fighting for the Black Prince.  It was from his descendants that Gwydir was purchased by the Wynne’s.  Stone effigy of him –and not the lid of Prince Llewelyn’s sarcophagus.

But I got to see NONE of this!  I will have to come back some day.  

Then we decided to go ahead and do some of the things on our list for tomorrow.  First up was Bangor Cathedral, a beautiful though small cathedral in the middle of Bangor.  The site of the cathedral has been used as a site of worship since the 6th c.  It was built on a low site so as not to attract attention of the Viking rainders from the sea.  Some visitors assume the Gothic style building on the hill is the cathedral, but it is part of the university.

Inside Bangor Cathedral --though unmarked--are the tombs of Owain Gwynedd, King of Gwynedd.  He lived 1100-1170 and is my 24th GGF and his brother Cadwaladr who died in 1172 and is my 25th Great Uncle.  They are in a double vault by the high altar.  Owain had committed public incest with his 1st cousin by marrying her and was excommunicated.  She was his 2nd wife and was Cristin ferch Goronwy (my 24GGM), who was the daughter of Gronw ap Owain ap Edwin (my 25GGF), so they were indeed 1st cousins.

Gruffydd ap Cynan (my 25 GGF) (1054-1137) had given the money to build the cathedral and his is also buried by the high altar.

this tiny part of the stone is the oldest part of the cathedral:

Near the entrance was the Mostyn Christ, a pensive Christ carved in oak and dating from the late 15th c..  It depicts Christ prior to the crucifixion, seated ona rock and wearing the Crown of Thorns.  It came from Rhuddlan Priory.  Sir John, 1st Baronet Wynn (my 12th GGF) had a daughter, Mary Wynne (my 12 GA) (1575-1653) who married Sir Roger Mostyn (1559-1642). 

 There is a Biblical garden here that is planted with exampoles of every plant mentioned in the Bible, but we didn't go see it.  

In 1211, the cathedral was destroyed by King John on a raid into Gwynedd and destroyed again in 1282 by King Edward I.  It was burnt to the ground in 1402 in the rebellion of Owain Glyndwr.

Then we went off to find a church we had visited before--Llangadwaladr Church or St. Cadwaladr Church..  I hoped to run into the warden of the church, Shirley Jones, again, but she wasn't there this time.  This church was established about 615 AD.

It is possible that Rhodri's father, Iago, my 41 GGF, is also buried here.  His grandson, King Cadwaladr the Blessed (my 38^th GGF) was certainly a patron and thought to have retired to a monastic life here, late in his reign.  When he died in Rome in 682, his body was returned for burial at this church.  He is depicted in the east window of the present church, which dates from the 12thc.   On my first visit here, Shirley told us that the man in the stained glass window holding the orb is King Iago’s grandson, Cadwaladr.  Some say he is also guarding the Virgin Mary’s sarcophagus.

Magnificent east window in chancel has only medieval glass to survive in quantity in Anglesey.  From late 15c.   its depiction of the crucifixion shows a translucent Christ painted to show the bones.  Has 4 angels holding grails to collect blood of Jesus.  On left is St. Mary Magdalene, and John or Joseph of Arimathea who brought the Virgin Mary there.  

Lepers window where lepers from nearby lepers house could come to receive communion without touching anyone.  

This Royal Monastery was patronized by the Kings of Gwynedd from nearby Aberffraw.  Their heirs, the King of England, appointed the rectors here until 1920.   The church is reached down a lane of yew and chestnut trees that shelter the church from storms blowing in from the Irish Sea.  St. Cadwaladr to whom church is dedicated may have been a prince of the royal house of Gwynedd.  He died around 664 AD and from him the Tudor dynasty claim to be descendants. 

This place was originally called Eglwys Ael, meaning Wattle Church –so built of wood and nothing survived--and is most famous as the burial place of King Cadfan of Gwynedd (my 40^th GGF) who d. in 625.  His memorial (called Cadfan Stone or Catamanus Stone) is incised with a small cross and was discovered near the church many yrs ago and is now built into the church wall.  Inscription: “King Cadfan (Cadfan in  Welsh, Catamus), the Wisest and Most Renowned of All Kings Lies Here.”  This is the first tombstone to bear a Celtic Cross and indicates the early Welsh Princes were practicing Christians.  Lettering on stone is mix of Roman capitals & half-uncials, a manuscript hand. His daughter, Ystradwel the Fair, Queen of Rheged, was my 39^th GGM. 

The stone commemorates King Cadfan of Gwynedd, Cadwaladr’s father.  Aberffraw Castle kings came here to worship.  Aberffraw Castle is a mile or so N. 

Rhodri Mawr (my 32 GGF) and King Gruffyd (my 25 GGF) ruled from Aberffraw.  Princess Gwenllian ferch Gruffyd was born at Aberffraw in 1097.   

At one time the chapel ceiling was adorned with paintings of the sun, moon, and stars, and the words, “Glory, Holy, Holy, Holy, Hallelujah, Amen.”

Gargoyles in E & N walls and I again found the Dragon gargoyle outside.

Some believe the church houses the tombs of the Dark Age guardians of the Grail.  Shirley said that the crypt is closed bec of flooding. 

Feuding Owen & Meyrick (Meuric) families in the church at one time.

Shirley told us that her husband—Geraint Jones-- had been killed recently and was buried just outside and she comes here to sit. 

Our last stop of the day was Ynys Llanddwyn.  We had checked the tide tables because the peninsula becomes an island at high tide.  Pretty seashells on our 3 mile walk out to the lighthouse and back.  

 I had wanted to go here since I saw the movie, "Half Light" that was filmed here.  I also wanted to see St. Dwynwens Cross and old lighthouse and the new lighthouse and the ruins of St. Dwynwen's Church where she lived as a hermit.  

Looking in the other direction, at the point of land in the distance is where my ancestors ran their ferry service:

Marram grass on the dunes is used in basketmaking.:

The sand felt like clay and the waves left these wavy patterns in it as the tide receded:

Well:

from left:

ruins of church, newer lighthouse, cross:

looking towards Snowdonia:

newer lighthouse:

from inside ruins of church:

older windmill-like lighthouse:

newer lighthouse:

our shadows on the beach:

sunset on Ynys Llandwyn in silhouette:

The island occupies a strategic position on the approaches to the Menai straits.  The oldest of the island’s two lighthouses resembles a traditional Anglesey windmill.  Ponies & sheep graze the island.  The lighthouse is automated now.

 Dwynwen lived during the 5th century AD and was one of 24 daughters of St. Brychan, a Welsh prince of Brycheiniog (Brecon). She fell in love with a young man named Maelon Dafodrill, but rejected his advances. This, depending on which story you read, was either because she wished to remain chaste and become a nun or because her father wished her to marry another or that she wanted to marry Maelon but was bethrothed to another and when Maelon found out, he attacked her and was turned into a block of ice.  Dwynwen prayed to be released from the unhappy love and dreamed that she was given a potion to do this. However, the potion turned Maelon to ice. She then prayed that she be granted three wishes: 1) that Maelon be revived, 2) that all true lovers find happiness, and 3) that she should never again wish to be married. She then retreated to the solitude of Llanddwyn Island to follow the life of a hermit.

Dwynwen became known as the patron saint of lovers and pilgrimages were made to her holy well on the island. It was said that the faithfulness of a lover could be divined through the movements of some eels that lived in the well. This was done by the woman first scattering breadcrumbs on the surface, then laying her handkerchief on the surface. If the eel disturbed it then her lover would be faithful.

Visitors would leave offerings at her shrine, and so popular was this place of pilgrimage that it became the richest in the area during Tudor times. This funded a substantial chapel that was built in the 16th century on the site of Dwynwen's original chapel. The ruins of this can still be seen today.

St. Dwynwen's day is Jan 25=Welsh Valentine’s Day.  Rocks here are some of oldest in Britain--ormed when tectonic plates met deep below ocean.  Lava oozed out, forming the pillow rocks on view today. 

So nice to walk on the beach as the sun was going down.

As leaving, we drove right by the excavated remians of the Llys Rhosyr, a former court of the Welsh Princes, right next to St. Peter's Church.