Part 13

A new road leading from Dolgelley to Towyn was recently opened, by which the very hilly and dangerous route through Llanegryn is entirely avoided. It passes by Penmaen Pool, Abergwynnant (the mansion of Sir H. Bunbury), Garthangharad, Arthog, Ynysfaig, and Henddol, through the village of Llwyngiul, where there is a very comfortable inn, called the Garthangharad Arms. From the bridge by Abergwynnant, a most magnificent view of Cader Idris presents itself; and in going along the sea-coast opposite to Barmouth, there is a delightful view of Cardigan Bay, Bardsey Island, and the Caernarvonshire mountains. The variety, beauty, and extent of prospects on this road are not surpassed in any part of the Principality. The highway from Barmouth ferry comes into this road by Ynysfaig.

The waterfalls in this vicinity are interesting attractions to the tourist: these are _Rhaiadr Dû_ (the Black Cataract); _Rhaiadr-y-Mawddach_ (the Fall of the river Mawddach); _Pistyll-y-Cain_ (the Fall of the Cain). The first is about five, the two latter about eight miles from Dolgelley, and all of them near the high road leading towards Maentwrog. These falls may be classed among the most magnificent and picturesque cataracts of the Principality.

Y Vanner, or Kymmer Abbey,

Stands in its mouldering desolation about a mile and a half from Dolgelley, and half a mile from Llanilltyd, near the banks of the Maw. The ruins may be visited by the pedestrian, in his way to the waterfalls. The abbey was founded in 1198, by Meredith and Griffith, lords of Merioneth. The monks were of the Cistercian order, and the abbey was dedicated to St. Mary. Part only of the church of this monastery is left, and the refectory and abbot’s lodgings are built into an adjoining farm-house.

Within a few hundred yards of the village of Llanilltyd, in this parish, on the right of the road from Dolgelley, stands Hengwrt, the property of Colonel Vaughan, of Rhûg, formerly the residence of Robert Vaughan, Esq. the eminent antiquary, author of British Antiquities Revived and other learned works. The library here contains the largest collection of Welsh MSS. in existence. It was principally from the MSS. in this library that Aneurin Owen, Esq. compiled his able Digest of the Old Welsh Laws.

Nassau Park.

About two miles from Dolgelley, is an ancient seat, formerly belonging to the Nannau family, but now the property and residence of Sir Robert Williames Vaughan, Bart.

The grounds of Nannau are entered under a fine gateway, the house being a mile distant from the entrance to the park; which for picturesque beauty and the calm grandeur of rural scenery, is not surpassed by any domain in the Principality. Some romantic traditions also confer additional interest on this charming scene. In the higher part are the remains of a British post, called Moel Orthrwm (or the Hill of Oppression), having probably been held by some notorious tyrant of the olden time. Here also once stood an immense oak, blasted and hollowed by time, in which, according to popular belief, Owen Glyndwr inhumed the fresh-bleeding corpse of his treacherous cousin, Howel Sele, who had been bribed to make an attempt upon his life, where it remained concealed for forty years. In Pennant’s time, the trunk of this patriarchal tree was twenty-seven feet and a half in circumference; it was in the last stage of decay, and pierced by age into the form of a Gothic arch. Its end is thus described by Sir Richard Colt Hoare: “During a visit to Sir Robert Vaughan, in the summer of the year 1813, this aged tree, mentioned by Mr. Pennant, attracted my notice; and in the morning of the 13th of July, I made a drawing of it, on one of the most sultry days I ever felt; the succeeding night was equally hot, and on the same night this venerable oak fell to the ground.”

The gardens at Nannau are very extensive, and laid out with excellent taste: they contain a number of choice exotics, and an inspection of them proves a source of never-failing gratification to every lover of horticultural pursuits.

Angling Stations.

_Distances from Dolgelley_. _Miles_. Traws-vynydd, on the Bychan 12 Llanvachreth 3½ Hendre Llwyngwr, (S. W.) 11 Pont Dolgefiliau, on the Mawddach, (N.) 8 Dol-y-gamedd, on the Wnion 3½ Llyn Cregenan, (S. W.) 4 Llyn Gader 1½ Llyn Geirw, (S. W.) 5 Tal-y-llyn, Cader Idris 8

FFESTINIOG, (_Merionethshire_.)

Caernarvon 25 Capel Curig 20 Bala 19 Maentwrog 2½ Tan-y-Bwlch 2½ Tremadoc 13

Ffestiniog is a small but increasing village, standing on eminence at the head of the beautiful vale of Maentwrog. The population amounts to 1648, principally employed in the slate quarries, about four miles from the village. The church is built in the ancient style of English architecture, and dedicated to St. Michael. A gallery has recently been erected at the west end, containing seventy-two free sittings. There are also several dissenting places of worship, with Sunday schools attached. A national school for the parishes of Ffestiniog and Maentwrog, was opened in 1830, in a neat building erected a short distance from the village on the Maentwrog road. Mrs. Oakeley, of Tan-y-Bwlch, has lately built and endowed a chapel of ease near the quarries. It is intended for the convenience of the inhabitants of the houses that have been built in the vicinity of the quarries, which are upwards of four miles distant from the parish church.

There are two good inns, the Pengwern Arms, and the Newborough Arms; at the former, cars and post horses may be obtained; there is likewise attached to it a very comfortable boarding-house, kept by Miss Owen. There is a branch of the North and South Wales bank here. The roads in this neighbourhood have, of late, been much improved. A rail road it now completed for the conveyance of slates to Port Madoc, a distance of about fourteen miles.

The scenery of Ffestiniog closely resembles that of St. Helena, and particularly Sandy Hook Cove. The vale which gives celebrity to this village has been eulogized by many distinguished travellers. Mr. Pennant calls it the “Tempê of the country.” Mr. Warner observes, “that it comprehends every object that can enrich or diversify a landscape.” Mr. Wyndham affirms, that “it affords as rich studies for the painter, as the neighbourhood of Tivoli or Frascati.” And Lord Lyttelton, who visited the place about the year 1756, is still more lavish in his encomiums. More recent travellers have been equally enthusiastic in their admiration of this pleasant locality.—About half a mile from Ffestiniog are the

Falls of the Cynvael.

One of these is about three hundred yards above, and the other three hundred yards below a rustic stone bridge, three quarters of a mile distant. The upper fall consists of three steep rocks, over which the water foams into a deep black basin, overshadowed by the adjoining rocks. The other is formed by a broad sheet of water, precipitated down a slightly shelving rock, about 40 feet high. After the water has reached the bottom of the deep concavity, it rushes along a narrow rocky chasm, where rolling amid the shaggy rocks, it glistens among the scattered fragments, and falling from slope to slope, gains a smoother bed, and steals among the mazes of the vale. In the pools below these falls, there is excellent fishing, the trout and salmon being very numerous. Between the lower cataract and the bridge is a tall columnar rock, which stands in the bed of the river, called _Pulpit Hugh Llwyd Cynvael_ (or Hugh Lloyd’s Pulpit.)

There are few vales which afford such delightful prospects. Many of the high mountains bounding its sides, are shaded by oaks, and the serpentine Dwyryd steals placidly along the bottom through rich cultivated fields. This river, at the bottom of the valley, receives the tide, and expands into a wide lake-like channel, called Traeth Bychan, where it flows through the sandy estuary of Traeth Bach, and into Cardigan bay, the sea at a distance closing the view.

The village of MAENTWROG is delightfully situated near the middle of the vale.—About four miles distant, among the hills, is

Cwm-orddin Lake.

This and several other lakes are notable for the excellent sport they afford for angling. Of these, a gentleman who is fond of this diversion, and who has visited those parts, has kindly furnished us with the following information:—“The fish in Cwm-orddin Lake (says he) rise more eagerly to flies than any I ever saw. The fish are rather small, and not good for the table. The two best stations for angling, are, first, where the boat is kept; second, the head of the lake. Throw among the weeds, fearlessly, as they always come away with a pull.

Llyn Morwynion,

Contains excellent fish, both in size and quality, but they are very shy: it is about two miles from Ffestiniog, near the Capel Curig road.—No boat.

Llyn Maonod,

About two miles and a half from Ffestiniog, contains most excellent trout, far less shy than those of Morwynion. No boat.—There is a small lake just below the summit of Moel Wyn, which may be tried by any one wishing to combine a fine extensive view with sport. No boat.—Llyn Conway is at times difficult of access round its banks, being marshy. No boat.—There are two or three lakes on the right of the road to Bala. My opinion is, that without a boat the angler will do little on a lake. I would recommend, therefore, a very long rod when you must fish from shore. There is good salmon fishing in the river that runs past Maentwrog. In the beginning of June, I found the sand fly excellent for the lakes.”

FLINT, (_Flintshire_.)

Chester 14 Holywell 5 London 200 Mold 6

Flint is a borough, market-town, and sea-port, and a parochial chapelry in the parish of Northop, and is the ancient capital of the county: it contains a population of 2860 inhabitants. Although it cannot be identified with any Roman station mentioned in the Itineraries, it was nevertheless either of Roman or Roman-British origin, as is proved from the circumstance of its even now occupying a rectangular entrenched area, like that of a Roman place of defence, and by the discovery, at various times, both here and in the neighbourhood, of Roman coins, fibulæ, &c., while at the same time it is traditionally related that a very large town existed here at an early period.

The town is situated on the shore of the estuary of the Dee, opposite to Parkgate, to which ferry-boats ply daily from Flint. It consists of four principal streets, crossing each other at right angles; the buildings, however, are very inferior in appearance. The town-hall, and gaol where the county prisoners are kept, are tolerable structures, but the assizes are held at Mold, six miles distant. Close to the town are extensive collieries, in which several hundred men are constantly employed, and 1,500 tons of coal are raised weekly: rail-roads have been constructed to convey the coal to the wharfs, whence it is sent coastwise to Chester, and to various parts of North Wales. The principal exports, in addition to the vast quantity of coal, are the produce of the lead works in the vicinity, consisting of lead in pigs, bars, sheets, and patent pipes; red lead, litharge, and silver.

For the convenience of persons who visit Flint, hot baths have been constructed, and are provided with every requisite accommodation. The Royal Oak and the Ship may be considered inns of the second order. The government of the town was vested in a mayor, the constable of the castle (appointed by letters patent), two bailiffs, a recorder, and twelve capital burgesses, assisted by a mace-bearer, and other officers, elected annually, until the municipal Reform Act superseded the charters. It is one of the contributory boroughs, which, in conjunction with Caergwrle, Caerwys, Overton, Rhuddlan, St. Asaph, Holywell, and Mold, return one member to parliament. There are daily ferry-boats plying between Flint and Chester, at the low rate of six-pence for each passenger.

The Castle.

The remains of this ancient structure stand upon a rock in the marsh at the bottom of the town, and so near the river, that at high water the walls are washed by the tide. It has been a square building, with a tower at each angle, considerable remains of every one of which are yet left. The tower at the south-east corner, which is called the Double Tower, is much larger than the others. In its outward diameter it measures forty feet; it is formed by two concentric walls, each six feet thick, having a gallery eight feet wide included between them, and leaving a circular area of about twenty feet in diameter, into which there was an entry from the gallery by four doors. This appears to have been the keep. The interior of the castle is a square court, containing about an acre of ground. In the curtain on the west side, there are yet left several windows with pointed arches.

Antiquarians are undecided as to the founder of Flint castle, some asserting that it was commenced by Henry the Second, and completed by Edward the First; while others affirm that it was entirely the work of the latter. It was alternately in possession of the Welsh and English princes during the various vicissitudes which distinguished the wars of that period; and in 1399 was the scene of the betrayal of the unfortunate monarch, Richard the Second, by Percy, Earl of Northumberland, into the power of his ambitious rival, Bolingbroke, the “aspiring Lancaster.” Under the insidious pretence that Bolingbroke, who was waiting for the king at Flint, desired only to have his property restored, and that the kingdom should have a parliament, Northumberland met Richard at Conway, where he had gone after his return from Ireland; and they were journeying together, when, among the recesses of the mountains near Penmaen Rhôs, the latter observed a band of soldiers. Alarmed for his safety, and now fearful of the snare that was laid for him, he attempted to return; but Percy, springing forward, caught his horse’s bridle, and forcibly directed his course. They dined together at Rhuddlan castle, and arrived on the same evening at Flint. The next day, “after dinner, (says Stowe) the Duke of Lancaster entered the castle all armed, his basinet excepted. King Richard came down to meet him; and the duke, as soon as he saw the king, fell down on his knees, and coming near unto him, he kneeled a second time with his hat in his hand; and the king then put off his hoode, and spoke first: ‘Fair cousin of Lancaster, you are right welcome.’ The duke, bowing low to the ground, answered, ‘My lord, I am come before you sent for me; the reason why I shall shew you. The common fame among your people is such, that ye have for the space of twenty or two-and-twenty years, ruled them very rigorously; but, if it please our lord, I will help you to govern better!’ The duke then, with a high sharp voice, bade bring forth the king’s horses, and two little nagges, not worth fourtie franks, were brought forthe: the king was set on the one, and the Earl of Salisbury on the other; and thus the duke brought them from Flint to Chester;” whence, after a night’s rest, they were marched to London, and made a public entry into the metropolis, under those moving circumstances which are so exquisitely narrated by Shakspere in his tragedy of Richard the Second.

In the civil wars, Flint castle was garrisoned for the king, by Sir Roger Mostyn, and was defended with great bravery, but was at last surrendered to General Mytton. In August, 1646, it was ordered to be dismantled, with Hawarden and several other fortresses, and has since fallen into utter decay, though its ruins present towards the sea a somewhat imposing appearance.

GRESFORD, (_Denbighshire_.)

Chester 8 Wrexham 3

Gresford is a beautiful village, situated on the western side of the road from Wrexham to Chester, near the head of a romantic valley, which opens into the Vale Royal of Cheshire, a tract of country remarkable for the richness of its soil, the beauty of its scenery, and the diversified views which it presents. The little vale of Gresford was one of the most lovely in the Principality; but the fiery dragons of the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway have now invaded its tranquil retreats, and marred the picturesque charms of this locality.

On one of the richly wooded eminences overlooking the vale, stands Gresford Church, a truly noble and admirable specimen of ecclesiastical architecture, in the late perpendicular style, which was probably built during the latter part of the reign of Henry the Seventh. No tourist, who has the least taste for ecclesiology, should neglect to examine this sacred edifice, which exhibits in its construction a combination of beauties that never fail to command the eulogiums of the intelligent and discriminating. Its appearance is also much enhanced by the scenery around it, and those only who are familiar with the vicinity can feel how admirably the church harmonises with the country. Its melodious peal of bells was once reckoned among the seven wonders of North Wales; but wonders since those days have become more plentiful, and some people say the peal is actually deteriorated. In the churchyard is a remarkable yew tree, 30 feet in girth, which botanists say is more than 2000 years old. This tree attracts even as much notice as the church itself.

Deeply sheltered in the vale, is Gresford Lodge, the elegant seat of Mrs. W. Egerton. Upper Gwersyllt Hall, on the banks of the Alyn, was the residence of Colonel Robinson, a distinguished partizan of the unfortunate Charles the First, who was interred in Gresford church in 1680. Lower Gwersyllt was occupied by another zealous adherent of that prince, Jefferey Shakerley.

From the top of Marford Hill, on the road towards Chester, is a most magnificent and extensive view of the vale of Cheshire, the “old city,” and the river Dee. In the immediate vicinity of the village, is an eminence called the Rofts, formerly a British camp, treble-trenched, having at one corner a lofty mount or keep.

Angling station.—The river Alyn.

HANMER, (_Flintshire_.)

Ellesmere 5 Wrexham 10

This village, which forms a detached portion of Flintshire, takes its name from a spacious mere or lake, in form resembling a human hand, on one side of which the village is pleasantly situated. It stands on the road betwixt Wrexham and Whitchurch. The lake occupies a space of 73 acres, on one side of which stands the family mansion of Sir John Hanmer, and on the other the seat of Lord Kenyon. In the church is a handsome monument, erected in 1806, to the memory of Lord Chief Justice Kenyon, who was born at Gredington, in the vicinity. There is another monument in honour of Sir Thomas Hanmer, who was Speaker of the House of Commons in the reign of Queen Anne.

Hanmer is distinguished by the Welsh, as being the birthplace of their celebrated bard, Davydd ab Edmund, who at an Eisteddvod, held at Caermarthen, in 1451, won the bardic chair, and through his superior eloquence obtained the sanction of that congress to his twenty-four canons of Welsh poetry, by which the “science” has, in a great measure, been governed ever since.

HARLECH, (_Merionethshire_.)

Barmouth 10 London 229 Maen-Twrog 10 Penmorfa, across sands 12 Tan-y-Bwlch 10 Tremadoc, across sands 10 Do. through Tan-y-Bwlch 20

Harlech, or Harddlech, is an inconsiderable place, situated upon a barren rock, containing four or five hundred inhabitants; it is the county town of Merionethshire, and all elections for a representative in parliament take place here. Its name is derived from its situation, originally called Twr Bronwen, and afterwards Caer Collwyn, from Collwyn ap Tagno, who resided there about 877. Harlech castle stands on a rocky eminence, close by the marshy tract between the hills and Cardigan bay, bearing it is said a strong resemblance to the Turkish castle of Belgrade. It consists of one large square building, each side measuring about 70 yards, having a round tower at the several corners, crowned with turrets now nearly defaced. The walls, now clad with ivy, are lofty and of great thickness, from the summit of which a most splendid and sublime prospect may be commanded, including a vast extent of marine and mountain scenery.

According to ancient history, this castle was built by Maelgwyn Gwynedd, Prince of North Wales, about 530, and Edward I. founded the present fortress upon the ruins of the old building. It was completed in 1283. In 1404, this castle, with that of Aberystwyth, was seized by Owen Glyndwr, during his contest with Henry IV. They were both retaken, about four years afterwards, by an army which the king despatched into Wales. Margaret of Anjou, the haughty queen of Henry VI., after the king’s defeat at Northampton, in 1460, fled from Coventry, and found an asylum in this fortress.

In the civil wars of Charles I. Harlech castle was the last in North Wales which held out for the king. Near this place is a curious antique monument, called Coeten Arthur, or King Arthur’s Quoit, which is a large flat stone, lying horizontally, supported by two others. The supporters are about twenty inches square, two of them are eight feet high, and the incumbent stone, inclining to an oval, is eleven feet in length. Col. Vaughan, of Rhûg, is constable of the castle.

In the winter of 1694, this neighbourhood was greatly alarmed by a kind of fiery exhalation, or mephitic vapour, which arose from a sandy marshy tract of land, called Morfa Bychan (the little marsh), across the channel, eight miles towards Harlech, and injured much of the country, by poisoning the grass in such a manner as to kill the cattle, and to set fire to hay and corn ricks for near a mile from the coast. It is represented to have had the appearance of a weak blue flame, which by any noise, such as the firing of guns, or the sounding of a horn, was easily extinguished. All the damage was done invariably in the night, and in the course of the winter not less than sixteen hay ricks and two barns, one filled with corn and the other with hay, were burnt by it. It did not appear to affect anything else, and the men could go into it without receiving any injury. It was observed at different times during eight months. The occasion of this singular phenomenon has never been satisfactorily accounted for.

In 1692, a golden torque, which is now placed amongst the admirable collection of Welsh antiquities at Mostyn, was discovered near Harlech. It is in the form of a wreathed bar of gold, highly polished, twisted, and flexible. It is hooked at both ends, and about four feet long.