40875
The Grade I Listed Conwy Town Walls which were built along with Conwy Castle by King Edward I between 1283 and 1287 at the combined cost of £15,000, (approximately £7.6 million in today's money). In Conwy, Conwy County, North Wales.
Before the English construction of the town of Conwy, the site was occupied by Aberconwy Abbey, a Cistercian monastery favoured by the Welsh princes. The site also controlled an important crossing point over the river Conwy between the coastal and inland areas of North Wales and was defended for many years by Deganwy Castle. The English kings and Welsh princes had vied for control of the region since the 1070s and the conflict had been renewed during the 13th century, leading to Edward I intervening in North Wales for the second time during his reign in 1282.
Edward invaded with a huge army, pushing north from Carmarthen and westwards from Montgomery and Chester. Edward captured Aberconwy in March 1283 and decided that the location would form the centre of a new county: the abbey would be relocated eight miles inland and a new English castle and walled town would be built on the monastery's former site. The ruined castle of Deganwy was abandoned and never rebuilt. Edward's plan was a colonial enterprise and placing the new town and walls on top of such a high-status native Welsh site was in part a symbolic act to demonstrate English power.
The walls of Conwy were built at around the same time as the castle itself, under the overall supervision of Master James of Saint George, Edward's chief architect in North Wales. Huge amounts of labourers were mobilised from across England for the task, massed at Chester and then brought into Wales for each summer building season.
The walls were declared part of a UNESCO world heritage site in 1986 and are classed as a grade 1 listed building and hold scheduled monument status. They are considered by historians Oliver Creighton and Robert Higham to be "one of the most impressive walled circuits" in Europe.
Information Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conwy_town_walls
40875
The Grade I Listed Conwy Town Walls which were built along with Conwy Castle by King Edward I between 1283 and 1287 at the combined cost of £15,000, (approximately £7.6 million in today's money). In Conwy, Conwy County, North Wales.
Before the English construction of the town of Conwy, the site was occupied by Aberconwy Abbey, a Cistercian monastery favoured by the Welsh princes. The site also controlled an important crossing point over the river Conwy between the coastal and inland areas of North Wales and was defended for many years by Deganwy Castle. The English kings and Welsh princes had vied for control of the region since the 1070s and the conflict had been renewed during the 13th century, leading to Edward I intervening in North Wales for the second time during his reign in 1282.
Edward invaded with a huge army, pushing north from Carmarthen and westwards from Montgomery and Chester. Edward captured Aberconwy in March 1283 and decided that the location would form the centre of a new county: the abbey would be relocated eight miles inland and a new English castle and walled town would be built on the monastery's former site. The ruined castle of Deganwy was abandoned and never rebuilt. Edward's plan was a colonial enterprise and placing the new town and walls on top of such a high-status native Welsh site was in part a symbolic act to demonstrate English power.
The walls of Conwy were built at around the same time as the castle itself, under the overall supervision of Master James of Saint George, Edward's chief architect in North Wales. Huge amounts of labourers were mobilised from across England for the task, massed at Chester and then brought into Wales for each summer building season.
The walls were declared part of a UNESCO world heritage site in 1986 and are classed as a grade 1 listed building and hold scheduled monument status. They are considered by historians Oliver Creighton and Robert Higham to be "one of the most impressive walled circuits" in Europe.
Information Source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conwy_town_walls