Sights in Caernarfon
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Caernarfon Castle
Majestic Caernarfon Castle was built between 1283 and 1330 as a military stronghold, a seat of government and a royal palace. Inspired by the dream of Macsen Wledig recounted in the Mabinogion, Caernarfon echoes the 5th-century walls of Constantinople, with colour-banded masonry and polygonal towers, instead of the traditional round towers and turrets.
Despite its fairytale aspect it is thoroughly fortified. It repelled Owain Glyndŵr's army in 1404 with a garrison of only 28 men, and resisted three sieges during the Civil War before surrendering to Cromwell's army in 1646.
A year after the construction of the building was begun, Edward I's second son was born here, becomin…
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B
Welsh Highland Railway
The narrow-gauge Welsh Highland Railway, the sister service to the Rheilffordd Ffestiniog Railway, is an amalgamation of several late-19th-century railways used for carrying slate. The line opened for passenger traffic in 1923 but closed just 14 years later.
It was saved by volunteers and reopened as a tourist attraction in 1997, currently running to Rhyd Ddu, from where several trails lead up Snowdon, making the train a major link for walkers. Extensions to the network to Blaenau Ffestiniog and Porthmadog are planned for completion by 2009 for links to Snowdonia National Park.
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Segontium Roman Fort
Just east of the centre, these excavated foundations represent the westernmost Roman legionary fort of the Roman Empire. Overlooking the Menai Strait, the fort dates back to AD 77, when the conquest of Wales was completed by capturing the Isle of Anglesey. It was designed to accommodate a force of up to 1000 infantrymen, and coins recovered from the site indicate that it was an active garrison until AD 394 – a reflection of its crucial strategic position.
The on-site museum explains the background to the stark remains, although it's not always open as it's staffed by volunteers. The site is located about half a mile along the A4085 (to Beddgelert), which crosses through …
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C
Museum of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers
In the Queen's Tower (named after Edward I's wife Eleanor) is the vivid Museum of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers; poets Robert Graves and Siegfried Sassoon both served in the brigade.
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