Dolwyddelan

Dolwyddelan (English: /ˌdɒlwɪˈðɛlæn/ dol-with-EL-an; Welsh: [ˌdɔlwɪˈðɛlan]; Welsh pronunciation^ⓘ) is a village and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The community occupies most of the valley of the Afon Lledr, and contains the settlements of Dolwyddelan, Pentre Bont, Blaenau Dolwyddelan, and Pont-y-Pant. It lies within Snowdonia, and the surrounding hills are part of the Moelwynion range. The population of the community was recorded as 454 in the 2021 census, and in the 2011 census the proportion of Welsh speakers was recorded as 50.8%.

Dolwyddelan was a centre within the Kingdom of Gwynedd in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries; it is likely that Prince Llywelyn the Great was born in Tomen Castell, west of the village, in c. 1173. Llywelyn built Dolwyddelan Castle some time between 1210 and 1240, although after its capture by Edward I of England in 1283, the military importance of the area declined. In 1488, the lease on the area was bought by Maredudd ab Ieuan, and it later became part of the large Gwydir Estate. In the nineteenth century slate was mined in the area.

The spelling of the village's name has varied over the years, though there appear to be two primary spellings with two primary meanings. The common modern spelling "Dolwyddelan" is translated as "Gwyddelan's meadow", referring to Saint Gwyddelan, an Irish missionary of the 6th century, after whom the parish church is named. There is some question as to which came first, the castle or the name. Saint Gwyddelan is believed to have arrived around 600 AD. A variant of this spelling is Dolwyddelen, which was used by the railway between 1880 and 1980.

Before the First World War, the alternate spelling Dolyddelen was in common use; it is translated as "Elen's meadow", named after Elen Luyddog. Elen's Castle Hotel, which is on the east of the village, is also named after Elen Llyddog.

The community lies in the valley of the Afon Lledr, which has its source in the south-west of the community on the eastern slopes of Ysgafell Wen. The river is approximately 10 miles (16 km) long, and exits the community approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) before its confluence with the River Conwy in Betws-y-Coed.

Dolwyddelan is surrounded on the north, south, and west by the Moelwynion range, which is within the wider region of Snowdonia (Eryri). The northern skyline is dominated by Moel Siabod (872 m (2,861 ft)), the highest mountain in the community. Other peaks in the area include Y Cribau (591 m (1,939 ft)) and Ysgafell Wen 672 m (2,205 ft) in the west, and Yr Arddu (589 m (1,932 ft)), Moel Dyrnogydd (524 m (1,719 ft)), Moel Farlwydd (577 m (1,893 ft)), and Y Ro Wen (599 m (1,965 ft)) to the south. The summits of several of these peaks form the community boundary, including Moel Siabod. Carreg Alltrem, a crag used by many rock climbers, is located about a mile south of the village.

The Lledr Valley contains a number of earthworks. On the side of Garnedd Pen y Bont to the north of Blaenau Dolwyddelan are a pair of huts dating from the Iron Age or Romano-British era. Blaenau Dolwyddelan also contains Ty'n y Ddol, a medieval long hut 'of national importance.' All three sites are scheduled monuments. A boundary bank marks part of the community's border with Beddgelert in the west, across the Bwlch y Rhediad pass between Carnedd y Cribau and Cerrig Cochion. It may originally have marked the boundary of lands belonging to Aberconwy Abbey, which are mentioned in a charter of c. 1198.

Between Blaenau Dolwyddelan and Dolwyddelan are the remains of Tomen Castell, a small fortification which stood a rocky outcrop between the Afon Lledr and the later Dolwyddelan Castle. The outcrop falls away steeply to the north, east, and south, and was defended by a ditch on the west where the ground is less precipitous. At its summit are the fragmentary ruins of a small rectangular tower with outer dimensions of approximately 8.8m by 9.5m and walls approximately 2.3 to 2.95m thick. There is a tradition that the later castle was the birthplace of Llywelyn the Great, which would make it an eleventh-century structure, however it is more likely that he was born at Tomen Castell. The site was designated a scheduled monument in 1988.