Harlech facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Harlech |
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 Harlech from the beach area; the castle is seen centre-left |
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 Harlech
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| Population | 1,447 (2011 Census) |
| OS grid reference | SH581312 |
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| Principal area | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HARLECH |
| Postcode district | LL46 |
| Dialling code | 01766 |
| Police | North Wales |
| Fire | North Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
| UK Parliament |
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| Welsh Assembly |
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Harlech is a seaside resort and community in the North Wales county of Gwynedd and formerly in the historic county of Merionethshire. It lies on Tremadog Bay in the Snowdonia National Park. Before 1966, it belonged to the Meirionydd District of the 1974 County of Gwynedd. Its landmark Harlech Castle was begun in 1283 by Edward I of England, captured by Owain Glyndŵr, and in the 1480s, a stronghold of Henry Tudor. Once on a seaside cliff face, it is now half a mile (800 m) inland. New housing has appeared in the low town and in the high town around the shopping street, church and castle. The two are linked by a steep road called "Twtil". Of its 1,447 inhabitants, 51 per cent habitually speak Welsh. The built-up area with Llanfair had a population of 1,762 in the 2001 census, over half of whom lacked Welsh identity, and the electoral ward which includes Talsarnau 1,997 in the 2011 census. The estimate in 2019 was 1,881.
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Etymology
The exact derivation of the name 'Harlech' is unclear. Some mostly older sources claim that it derives from Arddlech, i.e. ardd (high) + llech (rock), referring to the prominent crag on which the castle stands. More recent sources tend to claim a simpler derivation, namely from the two Welsh words hardd (fair/fine) and llech.
As late as the 19th century some texts referred to "Harddlech" and "Harddlech Castle", and this name is used in the mid-19th century translation of the Mabinogion : "And one afternoon he was at Harddlech in Ardudwy, at a court of his. And they were seated upon the rock of Harddlech overlooking the sea." Contemporary documents from the time of the Mabinogion do not actually mention Harlech, referring only to Llywelyn building his castle "at Ardudwy"
Transport
Harlech railway station is served by the Cambrian Coast Line. The town contains Ffordd Pen Llech, a street down the rock spur to the north of the castle. It is the steepest signed, public paved road in the United Kingdom and possibly the steepest in the world, but see the section below.
Recreation
Theatr Harlech (formerly called Theatr Ardudwy) is located on the Coleg Harlech campus and stages a varied selection of plays, music, and films throughout the year.
Other attractions in Harlech include its beach backed with sand dunes and the famous Royal Saint David's Golf Club, a top course in Britain which hosted its fifth British Ladies Amateur in 2009.
The Rhinogydd (or Rhinogs) range of mountains rises to the east.
A World War II-era fighter aircraft was found on Harlech beach in 2007. The discovery of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning has been described as "one of the most important WWII finds in recent history". The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) are not divulging the precise location of the U.S. Army Air Forces aeroplane, known as the Maid of Harlech, but hope eventually to salvage the wreck.
In traditional and popular culture
- In the second branch of the Mabinogi ("Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr"), Harlech is the seat of Bendigeidfran, Branwen's brother and king of the Isle of the Mighty.
- The song Men of Harlech is associated with the town, and is traditionally said to describe events during the seven-year siege of the castle from 1461 to 1468.
- Mari Strachan's 2009 novel The Earth Hums in B Flat is set in Harlech in the 1950s.
Gallery
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Harlech Castle with flags at half mast after death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 2002
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Harlech Castle gatehouse
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The Two Kings (sculptor Ivor Robert-Jones, 1984) near Harlech Castle, Wales. Bendigeidfran carries the body of his nephew Gwern
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Harlech Beach at low tide.
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Harlech College with Harlech Castle in background
Educational facilities
Ysgol Ardudwy is the county secondary school for children aged 11–16. Ysgol Tanycastell is the town's primary school for children aged 3–11. The town was until 2017 the home of Wales's only long-term adult residential college, Coleg Harlech, also known as the "college of second chance". The premises remain in use as part of Adult Learning Wales – Addysg Oedolion Cymru.
Notable residents
In birth order:
- Owain Glyndŵr (c. 1359 – c. 1415), Welsh Rebellion leader, was the last Welshman to claim the title Prince of Wales.
- Ellis Wynne (1671–1734), Welsh-language author
- Alfred Perceval Graves (1846–1931), poet, bard and songwriter. He and a large family, including his son the poet Robert Graves, spent summers at Erinfa, a large house north-east of Harlech.
- George Davison (1854–1930), photographer
- Margaret More (1903–1966), composer, was born here.
- Elinor Lyon (1921–2008), children's writer, retired here in 1975 with her schoolteacher husband.
- David Gwilym Morris Roberts (1925–2020), civil engineer, was born here.
- Mari Strachan (born 1945), novelist and librarian, attended secondary school here.
- Philip Pullman (born 1946), children's novelist, attended secondary school here.
See also
In Spanish: Harlech para niños
