Caergwrle () is a village in the county of

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

, in north east

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. Approximately from

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

and situated on the A541 road, it is contiguous with the villages of Abermorddu and

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large. As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...

, though in parts Caergwrle and Hope are separated by a river border. The village lies on the

River Alyn The River Alyn () is a tributary of the River Dee in north-east Wales. It rises at the southern end of the Clwydian hills and the Alyn Valley forms part of the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The main tow ...

and sits at the base of Hope Mountain. At the 2001 Census, the population was 1,650. The population was subsequently absorbed in the

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

of Hope and only the

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

remained. The population of this ward as taken at the 2011 census was 1,619. The ward includes the area of Abermorddu. Further south is the village of Cefn-y-Bedd.

Origins of name

The name ''Caergwrle'' derives from the Welsh ''caer'' 'fort' and a lost English

placename Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for a proper nam ...

*''Corley'' 'river meadow of the crane'.

Folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...

explained the name by means of a ''cawr'' ('giant') named ''Gwrle'', who was supposed to have lived in nearby Caergwrle Castle and to have been buried in the nearby

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at Cefn-y-bedd.

Caergwrle Castle

The 13th-century, ruined Caergwrle Castle, also sometimes known as Queen's Hope Castle, was first built by Tywysog (Prince)

Dafydd ap Gruffydd Dafydd ap Gruffudd, also known as ''Dafydd III'' (11 July 1238 – 3 October 1283), was a Prince of Gwynedd until after the death of his brother, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, when he proclaimed himself as the Prince of Wales from 11 December 1282. H ...

, in lands agreed with

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 1254 ...

during his invasion of Wales in 1277. Dafydd, in agreeing not to resist the invasion, had extensive improvements made to his castle at Edward's expense. In 1282 however, Dafydd bought his time and raised the banner of revolt, marching on Hawarden Castle controlled by Edward's invaders. Dafydd and his men seized the castle. When Dafydd was executed on 3 October 1283 by King Edward I, Edward took control of the castle, and gave it to his Queen,

Eleanor of Castile Eleanor of Castile (1241 – 28 November 1290) was Queen of England as the first wife of Edward I. She was educated at the Castilian court and also ruled as Countess of Ponthieu in her own right () from 1279. After diplomatic efforts to s ...

, which prompted the name Queen's Hope.

Other features of Caergwrle

The 17th-century

Packhorse Bridge A packhorse bridge is a bridge intended to carry packhorses (horses loaded with sidebags or panniers) across a river or stream. Typically a packhorse bridge consists of one or more narrow (one horse wide) masonry arches, and has low Parapet#Bridg ...

, which is reputed to be haunted, was nearly destroyed by flooding in 2000, though it has since been restored. There have been many other developments and restorations in Caergwrle. Caergwrle was also home to a Welsh International football player George Alfred Godding who played from 17 March 1923 to 14 April 1923 with two caps for Wales. Caergwrle's long association with the adjacent village of Hope has given rise to a well-known local joke: "Live in Hope, die in Caergwrle".''The AA touring guide to Wales'', Automobile Association, 1975, p.205 This was already described as an "old saying" in the 19th century, when it was recorded by the antiquarian John Askew Roberts.

Transport

Rail

The service from Wrexham Central to Bidston passes through Caergwrle railway station. Bidston provides a connection to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

via the Wirral Line. Caergwrle railway station is managed by Transport for Wales as of Autumn 2018.

Bus

Caergwrle has bus links giving access to

Mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal ...

, Broughton, Wrexham and

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

The Caergwrle Bowl

The Caergwrle Bowl is a unique object dating to the

Middle Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

, c. 1300 BC, originally manufactured from shale, tin and gold. It is thought to represent a boat, with its applied gold decoration signifying oars and waves, and either sun discs or circular shields. Some researchers have suggested that the Caergwrle Bowl represents a mythological solar boat. Similarities have been noted with the contemporary miniature gold boats from Nors in Denmark, and with the later Broighter gold boat from Ireland. The Caergwrle bowl has also been related to the earlier

Nebra sky disc The Nebra sky disc (, ) is a bronze disc of around diameter and a weight of , having a blue-green patina and inlaid with gold symbols. These symbols are interpreted generally as the Sun or full moon, a lunar crescent, and stars, including a clust ...

from Germany, which is thought to depict a solar boat. Gold lunulae from the Early Bronze Age

Beaker culture The Bell Beaker culture, also known as the Bell Beaker complex or Bell Beaker phenomenon, is an archaeological culture named after the inverted-bell Beaker (archaeology), beaker drinking vessel used at the beginning of the European Bronze Age, ...

, including examples from Wales, have also been interpreted as representations of solar boats. The gold cape from Mold, which dates from the same period as the Nebra sky disc, was found near to Caergwrle. The incomplete bowl was found in 1823 by a workman digging a drain in a field below Caergwrle Castle. It was donated to the National Museum Wales in 1912, and sent to the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

for restoration where it was originally reconstructed from wax with the decoration attached by an adhesive. Since then the bowl has been rebuilt again as the first conservation failed to be stable.Davis, Mary
Re-conserving the Caergwrle Bowl
" ''Museum Wales Website'' Retrieved on 17 February 2010

References

External links

Castell Alun High SchoolPhotos of Caergwrle and surrounding area on geograph.org.uk
{{authority control Villages in Flintshire