Today started with another castle that is part of Edward’s Iron Ring, Caernarfen. It is one of the largest that we have visited so far and several accessible towers are be even by elevator which was a nice touch. It also has a royal connection. Edward I and his Queen Elinor of Castile stayed at the castle in 1283. They returned in April of 1284 and the future Edward II was born here. He was declared the Prince of Wales of the newly conquered country. Also starting the long tradition of the Kings oldest son and heir being titled the Prince of Wales on or around his 18 birthday. In 1911 future Edward VIII received is investiture of Prince of Wales at the castle. Prince Charles followed suit in 1969 amid a growing anti royalist Welsh population. Insight to recent times the palace did not hold a similar ceremony for Prince William to avoid protest and anti royalist sentiments. It seems the Welsh are still a proud people and not in favor of Britain’s control. Caernarfen sits deep in north Wales where the Welsh language is prominant and traditions are strong.

The castle itself was glorious. It again sits right on the Irish Sea and high towers and battlements provided great views. we climbed the towers and did the open battlements. It had an elevator to one of the battlements so everyone could enjoy the views.

We learned that the English would cut off the fingers of Welshmen when captured so that they could not continue to use their long bows.

After touring the castle we went out and walked around town. Across the river provided great views of the castle.

We had a bit of time to wander and grab a quick lunch. It was a cute town with several shops and it was pretty enough for ice cream which makes a great lunch.

From Caernarfon we headed to our next stop. Along the way we drove by the lake the Welsh associate with King Arthur and the Lady of the Lake myth. Having a niece named for the lady of the lake we were quite interested in the site.

Next stop was Gwydir Castle. It is actually more fortified manor house than castle. The oldest part of the castle was built in the 14th century by the Cotemore family. They supplied welsh bowmen to both Agincourt and Poitiers. Around 1500 Gwydir was obtained by the Wynn family and was rebuilt as a Tudor mansion. The castle was abandoned and fell into complete disrepair. It was acquired by a young couple, who have taken on the task of bringing it back to its original glory. Much of the work had been done and it was a lovely place to visit. Turns out that when the prior family went bankrupt the interiors were sold at auction. The Hearst family bought several of the paneled rooms. The panels were removed and stored. the current owners were able to find one set of them at the metropolitan museum in New York. It appears the Hearst never used them and donated them to the Met. The museum also never used them but they would not loan them back to the house so the family purchased them. They are still looking for the other room.

The wall paper above the paneling is leather and original to the house. It had been stored with the paneling. The house had settled some and the fireplace and door frame just barely fit. Then Prince Charles came to the Gwydir when the dining room restoration was complete.

They are desperately trying to find the other room and feel certain it is still in one of the many warehouses owned by the Hearst family.

They did get back on the Gwydir table that had been sold in the auction. The table had the wyn family motto.

In the 1570 Katherine of Berain referred to the mother of Wales and cousin to Queen Elizabeth called Gwydir home. She was married 4 times and had numerous children. Her oldest son was executed for treason for involvement in the Babbington Plot. The plot to kill Elizabeth and put Mary Queen of Scots on the English throne. It was what got Mary to executed as well.

Gwydir comes up as one of the most haunted house in Wales and it is not a recent issue. Through the years a servant woman has been seen in one of the rooms. It is said that she was involved with the young son of lord of the manor. She became pregnant and the son killed her and left her in the priest hole.

The current owners believe a ghost/spirit was wreaking havoc on them by causing multiple accidents and injuries. One event included a spade that was on the floor of a second floor room that needed some roof repair. However the spade found its way to a hole in the ceiling and struck the current owner on the head and shoulder. The wife said she could feel it happening but couldn’t and didn’t want to move to try and stop it. They now both avoid that room in the house. She also feels the presence of Katherine or Berain near on of the period doors and she always stops to say good morning before descending the staircase.

The couple had 2 dogs and about 20 peacocks. Everywhere you turned another peacock would pop up. There were even multiple sets of baby peacocks.

After touring the house we had tea and scones out on the terrace. It was a lively afternoon for it and the scones were delicious.

This was our last stop for the day and we headed back to the hotel. Val and I decided to venture out for a fish and chips place named Enoch’s. It was about a mile and half and not too bad of a walk there. The fish was amazing and we really enjoyed dinner. When we headed back all was good for a few minutes and then it started raining. I tried to get us an uber but never found anyone to take the drive. Stood around for about 10 minutes before decided to give it up and walk back. We had barely gone 100 feet when the rain got considerably worse. By the time we got back to the hotel we were like drowned rats.

Wet and tired we called another day of our trip over.