•  Penrhyn Castle, Caernarvonshire

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In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Penrhyn Castle like this:

PENRHYN, a place in Llandegai parish, Carnarvon; on the river Ogwen, in the E and the S E vicinity of Bangor. Penrhyn Castle here is the seat of Lord Penrhyn; occupies the site of King Roderic Malwynog'spalace, and of the subsequent palace of the Gruffydds of the time of Henry VI.; was erected by Wyatt, for Lord Penrhyn, at a cost of about £500,000; is of Mona marble, in the Norman castellated style, withtowers and turrets; includes a tall square donjon tower, five stories high, copied from Rochester castle; contains a drinking-horn of Piers Gruffydd, who was at the Armada with Drake; stands on an eminence embowered in trees; presents a very imposing aspect, as seen at adistance; and has very extensive offices, and a park ofabout 7 miles in circuit. ...

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Penrhyn slate quarries, to the S of the park, and belonging to Lord Penrhyn, have longbeen worked on so great a scale as to employ upwards of3,000 men and boys; and are said to be worth £80,000a year. A harbour, called Port-Penrhyn, about 6 miles from the quarries, was formed by the late Lord Penrhyn, for exporting their produce; and the quantity of slatesshipped there averages about 120,000 tons a year. Asmall church for the quarrymen is at Tregarth.

Additional information about this locality is available for Llandygai

Penrhyn Castle through time

Penrhyn Castle is now part of Gwynedd district. Click here for graphs and data of how Gwynedd has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Penrhyn Castle itself, go to Units and Statistics.

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