Castell y Bere

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Castell y Bere
Castell y Bere shown within the United Kingdom
OS grid reference	SH667085
Principal area	Gwynedd
Ceremonial county	Gwynedd
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Police	North Wales
Fire	North Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
European Parliament	Wales
List of places: UK • Wales • Gwynedd

Coordinates: 52°39′29″N 3°58′17″W / 52.65818, -3.9715

Castell y Bere rising above the surrounding trees

Castell y Bere is a native Welsh castle near Llanfihangel-y-pennant north of Abergynolwyn, in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It is situated atop a steep, flat-topped rock from which it commands views of the surrounding Dysynni Valley and Cadair Idris. It was likely built by Prince Llywelyn ab Iorwerth around 1221. It is now in the care of Cadw.

Today the Castell y Bere is mostly ruins, though the castle's layout, dictated by the lozenge shape of the rocky outcrop upon which it sits, is still apparent. The castle is composed of two typical Welsh towers fashioned in approximately the shape of the letter D, and a third rectangular tower at the highest point of the land. Scholars have theorized that one of the towers contained a chapel. It was once protected by a system of ditches and drawbridges.

The main courtyard

Castell y Bere, located in an isolated area, stood guard over a major trade route through the nearby mountains. In 1283, following the fall of Dolwyddelan to an invading English force, Dafydd ap Gruffydd retreated to Castell y Bere. Soon after, the castle was besieged by English forces. Dafydd escaped, but Castell y Bere fell to Edward I of England's army. Seeing the castle's strategic importance in his campaign to capture the Welsh countryside, Edward refortified the castle and a small town began to crop up around it. The English held Castell y Bere until 1294.

In 1294, Welsh revolutionary Madoc ap Llywelyn laid siege to Castell y Bere, seeking to drive its English interlopers out. Scholars are divided on what exactly happened next, but for one reason or another the English were forced to abandon the castle. Archaeologists, upon excavating the castle, found evidence that the inner courtyard's buildings had been burned sometime in the 13th century and the castle abandoned.