The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales
The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales illustrates the transformation that industrial slate quarrying and mining brought about in the traditional rural environment of the mountains and valleys of the Snowdon massif. The territory, extending from mountain-top to sea-coast, presented opportunities and constraints that were used and challenged by the large-scale industrial processes undertaken by landowners and capital investors, which reshaped the agricultural landscape into an industrial centre for slate production during the Industrial Revolution (1780-1914). The serial property comprises six components each encompassing relict quarries and mines, archaeological sites related to slate industrial processing, historical settlements, both living and relict, historic gardens and grand country houses, ports, harbours and quays, and railway and road systems illustrating the functional and social linkages of the relict slate industrial landscape. The property was internationally significant not only for the export of slates, but also for the export of technology and skilled workers from the 1780s to the early 20th century. It played a leading role in the field and constituted a model for other slate quarries in different parts of the world. It offers an important and remarkable example of interchange of materials, technology and human values.
Harlech Castle (Cadw)
Craft shops and general goods can be found on the High Street in Penrhyndeudraeth, Porthmadog and Barmouth, or venture a little further to Dolgellau or Pwhelli.
The Cambrian coastline train runs from Pwhelli to Shrewsbury or Birmingham, the scenery is stunning. Disembark at Aberdovey for a lovely afternoon in this pretty seaside town. The trains run every two hours and a timetable can be found at the Trainline.com. At the time of writing this information, the Llandanwg stop is not in use, so embark at Harlech station.
Golf – Three fantastic “links” golf courses are close to hand. Royal St David’s in Harlech, Porthmadog and Aberdovey.
Llanfair and Llandanwg have two beautiful churches to visit, St Mary’s and St Tanwg’s (tiny 6th century church on the beach). The area is steeped in history, please take the time to research some of the wonderful stories.
Slate caverns and mines
The slate mining industry in North Wales has recently been awarded Unesco World Heratage status. There are lots of interesting places to visit including LLechwedd slate caverns in Blaenau Ffestiniog operated by Zip World. See also Llanfair slate caverns and Llechi Cymru Welsh Slate
Slate mining is often associated with light railways Welsh Heritage Railway Talyllyn
Off to the Beach
Llandanwg – The sand dunes to the back of the beach conceal the tiny church of Saint Tanwg which dates from the 13th century. A small path winds through the dunes and leads you to the beach from the central car park area or you can take a trail from Cardigan Bay. As you sit on the pristine sands you will also be able to enjoy vistas of the rugged Rhinog Mountains in the distance. The beach here shelves gently into the sea making this a good place to swim, although there is no lifeguard so care should be taken. When the tide is low, it reveals a causeway out to pretty Mochras which is also known by its local nickname of Shell Island due to the plethora of different hued shells found on the its beach.
Harlech – If you love beaches you must visit Harlech. It’s a bit of a walk along a path through the dunes but well worth it when you catch the first view of the beach and the sea. Children love the freedom of a large beach and the dunes behind it. It’s ideal for beach walkers with or without dogs and even on busy summer days you can find space to relax quietly in. Whatever the season or weather Harlech beach is wonderful.
Porthmadog (Black Rock Sands, Morfa Bychan) – You pay a small amount of money & then you can park on the beach all day. The water is always really clear and great for swimming in when the weather is good. But be careful to look out for jelly fish as there is often some around. Take a picnic etc & spend all day there it’s great.
Barmouth Beach sits on the idyllic west coast of North Wales and is nestled between craggy mountains and the often crashing sea. The beach is located in Snowdonia National Park and has a harbour area crossed by the impressive Barmouth Bridge which marks the beginning of the Mawddach Estuary.
World Heritage Site tourist attractions such as Harlech, Criccieth and Caernarfon castles are within a short drive, plus a visit to the area is not complete without a trip to the wonderful Portmeirion .
Further afield:
Bangor – university town with views of the Menai Straits and bridges crossing to Anglesey
Caernarfon – castle, Welsh Highland Railway and shopping
Bala – great lake for sailing, and National White Water Centre for rafting, kayaking, and canoeing
Llandudno – Victorian seaside town with great shopping, seafront walks, the pier and the Great Orme TramwayBodnant Garden – between Llanrwst and Llandudno. 80 acres of amazing gardens including a laburnum arch and huge specimen trees
The beautiful Portmeirion Village was built by Welsh architect Clough Williams-Ellis from 1925 to 1973. HISTORY OF PORTMEIRIONCLOUGH WILLIAMS-ELLISSUSAN WILLIAMS-ELLISTHE PRISONERTHE ARCHIVESPORTMEIRION POTTERY
“Clough hoped that his work at Portmeirion would inspire others.”
In 1925, Welsh architect Clough Williams-Ellis acquired the site which was to become Portmeirion. He had been searching for a suitable site for his proposed ideal village for several years and when he heard that the Aber Iâ estate near Penrhyndeudraeth was for sale, he did not hesitate to make an offer.
He wanted to show how a naturally beautiful location could be developed without spoiling it, and that one could actually enhance the natural background through sympathetic development. The Aber Iâ estate had everything he had hoped for as a site for his architectural experiment: steep cliffs overlooking a wide sandy estuary, woods, streams and a nucleus of old buildings.
But the history of Portmeirion started long before 1925. The construction of Castell Deudraeth was recorded in 1188 by Gerald of Wales, who wrote: “We crossed the Traeth mawr and the Traeth Bychan. These are two arms of the sea, one large and one small. Two stone castles have been built there recently. The one called Castell Deudraeth belongs to the sons of Cynan and is situated in the Eifionydd area, facing the northern Mountains.”
Castell Deudraeth was referenced again by the 17th century philologist, geologist, natural historian and keeper of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, Edward Lhuyd in 1700. Lhuyd recorded the name as Aber Iâ, stating ” The Castle of Aber Iâ yet stood in ruined form overlooking the south western extremity of the peninsula”.
In 1861, Richard Richards wrote a description: “Neither man nor woman was there, only a number of foreign water-fowl on a tiny pond, and two monkeys, which by their cries evidently regarded me as an unwelcome intruder. The garden itself was a very fine one, the walls of which were netted all over with fruit trees…Aber Iâ, then, gentle reader, is a beautiful mansion on the shore of Traeth Bach, in Merionethshire.”
When Williams-Ellis acquired the land in 1925 he wrote, “a neglected wilderness – long abandoned by those romantics who had realised the unique appeal and possibilities of this favoured promontory but who had been carried away by their grandiose landscaping…into sorrowful bankruptcy.” Cloughimmediately changed the name from Aber Iâ (Glacial Estuary) to Portmeirion; Port because of the coastal location and Meirion as this is Welsh for Merioneth, the county in which it lay.
His first job was to extend and convert the old house on the shore into a grand hotel. The concept of a tightly grouped coastal village had already formed in Clough’s mind some years before he found the perfect site and he had quite a well-defined vision for the village from the outset.
Portmeirion was built in two stages: from 1925 to 1939 the site was ‘pegged-out’ and its most distinctive buildings were erected. From 1954-76 he filled in the details. The second period was typically classical or Palladian in style in contrast to the Arts and Crafts style of his earlier work. Several buildings were salvaged from demolition sites, giving rise to Clough’s description of the place as “a home for fallen buildings”.
“An architect has strange pleasures,” Clough wrote in 1924. “He will lie awake listening to the storm in the night and think how the rain is beating on his roofs, he will see the sun return and will think that it was for just such sunshine that his shadow-throwing mouldings were made.”
The first article about Portmeirion appeared in The Architects’ Journal (January 6 1926) with photographs of scale models and preliminary designs prepared by Clough to impress potential investors. In this article, John Rothenstein writes: “On the sea-coast of North Wales, quite near his own old home, Plas Brondanw, he has acquired what he believes to be an ideal site, and he is engaged upon plans and models for the laying out of an entire small township. The results of his scheme will be significant and should do much to shake the current notion that although houses must be designed with due care, towns may grow up by chance.”
The Hotel Portmeirion officially opened for the Easter Weekend, on 2nd April 1926. The last building, the Tollgate, was built in Clough’s 93rd year.
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ZIP WORLD
experience adventure atpenrhyn quarry
Set in North Wales near the stunning Snowdon range, in what once was the world’s largest slate quarry, Penrhyn Quarry is now home to the fastest zip line in the world, Velocity 2, where you can fly 500m above the bright blue quarry lake. Learn all about the history of the quarry on the Penrhyn Quarry Tour or watch the zippers fly by from the Blondin Restaurant or Café. If you are after a corporate venue with a difference, The Gallery is a meeting space with a view like no other.
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