Harlech () is a

seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

and

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 ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

North Wales North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...

, and formerly in the historic county of

Merionethshire Merionethshire, or Merioneth ( or '), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was located in the North West Wales, north-west of Wales. Name 'Merioneth' is a ...

. It lies on

Tremadog Bay Tremadog Bay (also spelled Tremadoc Bay; ), is a shallow inlet of Cardigan Bay in North Wales. It comprises the area between Mochras (Shell Island) in the east and the Trwyn Cilan headland of the Llŷn Peninsula in the west. The Sarn Badrig ree ...

in the

Snowdonia National Park Snowdonia, or Eryri (), is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in North Wales. It contains all 15 mountains in Wales Welsh 3000s, over 3000 feet high, including the country's highest, Snowdon (), which i ...

. Before 1966, it belonged to the Meirionydd District of the 1974 County of Gwynedd. Its landmark

Harlech Castle Harlech Castle (; ) in Harlech, Gwynedd, Wales, is a Grade I listed medieval fortification built onto a rocky knoll close to the Irish Sea. It was built by Edward I during his invasion of Wales between 1282 and 1289 at the relatively modest ...

was begun in 1283 by

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 ...

, captured by

Owain Glyndŵr Owain ap Gruffydd (28 May 135420 September 1415), commonly known as Owain Glyndŵr (Glyn Dŵr, , anglicised as Owen Glendower) was a Welsh people, Welsh leader, soldier and military commander in the Wales in the late Middle Ages, late Middle ...

, 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 Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

. 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 Talsarnau () is a village and community in the Ardudwy area of Gwynedd in Wales. Its population was 525 in 2001, and had increased to 550 at the 2011 Census. The village of Talsarnau is situated on the A496 coastal road between Maentwrog an ...

1,997 in the 2011 census. The estimate in 2019 was 1,881. The population of the community, which includes just the village, was 1,263 as of the 2021 census.

Etymology

The exact derivation of the name ''Harlech'' is unclear. Some, mostly older sources, derive it from ''Arddlech'', i.e. (high) + (rock), referring to the prominent crag on which the castle stands. Recent sources prefer a simpler derivation from the two Welsh words (fair/fine) and ''llech'' (slate/rock). As late as the 19th century, some texts referred to ''Harddlech'' and ''Harddlech Castle''. This name appears in the mid-19th century translation of the ''

Mabinogion The ''Mabinogion'' () is a collection of the earliest Welsh prose stories, compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions. There are two main source manuscripts, created –1410, as well as a few earlier frag ...

'': "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 mention Harlech, referring only to Llywelyn building his castle "at

Ardudwy Ardudwy () is an area of Gwynedd in north-west Wales, lying between Tremadog Bay and the Rhinogydd. Administratively, under the old Kingdom of Gwynedd, it was first a division of the sub kingdom (cantref) of Dunoding and later a commote in i ...

Modern history

In 2007, a

Lockheed P-38 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinc ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

-era

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domina ...

) was rediscovered on Harlech beach. It has been described as "one of the most important WWII finds in recent history." The ''International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery'' (TIGHAR) expressed an interest in salvaging the wreck of the

U.S. Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

plane, known as the ''Maid of Harlech''. However, in August 2019,

Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage ...

, the Welsh government's historic environment service, gave the remains scheduled status, making it the first legally designated military aircraft crash site in the UK to be protected for its historic and archaeological interest. The site is also controlled under the

Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 The Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 (1986 c. 35) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provides protection for the wreckage of military aircraft and designated military vessels. The Act provides for two types of prot ...

. The aircraft came down in September 1942 when it was on a gunnery practice mission. The pilot was Second Lt Robert F Elliott, 24, of

Rich Square Rich Square (also known as Richsquare) is an American town of 894 people in Northampton County, North Carolina. History Quakers were some of the earliest settlers in Northampton County, being established there by the early 1750s. The congrega ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, survived the crash, only to be reported missing in action a few months later.

Governance

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 ...

in the same name existed including

community. The ward population at the 2011 census was 1,997. From the 2022 Gwynedd Council election the ward was increased in size to include

Llanbedr Llanbedr () is a village and Community (Wales), community south of Harlech. Administratively, it lies in the Ardudwy area, formerly Meirionnydd, of the county of Gwynedd, Wales. In 2011 the community had a population of 645. History Ancient ...

and Llanfair, renamed ''Harlech a Llanbedr'' and the representation increased to 2 county councillors.

Transport

Harlech railway station Harlech railway station is located at a level crossing on the A496 in the centre of the town of Harlech in Gwynedd, North Wales. The waiting shelters were installed to cater for the high numbers of schoolchildren commuting to and from the adjace ...

is a stop on the

Cambrian Coast Line The Cambrian Line (), sometimes split into the Cambrian Main Line () and Cambrian Coast Line () for its branches, is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury in England, westwards to Aberystwyth and Pwllheli in Wales. Passenger train services ...

. Services run between and , operated by

Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; ; ) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consisting of itself and its subsidiaries: Trans ...

. Local bus services are operated by

Lloyds Coaches Lloyds Coaches operates bus and coach services in mid Wales. It is a small family-run independent firm. The company is based at the old Crosville bus depot opposite Machynlleth railway station. It was established in 2001. History Lloyds Co ...

, with services to

Porthmadog Porthmadog (), originally Portmadoc until 1972 and known locally as "Port", is a coastal town and community (Wales), community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd, Wales, and the historic counties of Wales, historic county of Caernarfonshire. It li ...

and

Barmouth Barmouth (formal ; colloquially ) is a seaside town and community in the county of Gwynedd, north-west Wales; it lies on the estuary of the Afon Mawddach and Cardigan Bay. Located in the historic county of Merionethshire, the Welsh form of t ...

. The town contains

Ffordd Pen Llech Ffordd Pen Llech () is a public road in the town of Harlech which lies within Snowdonia National Park, North Wales. It was once considered the steepest street in the world, although that title reverted to the previous holder Baldwin Street on ...

, 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 one of the steepest in the world.

Educational facilities

Ysgol Ardudwy Ysgol Ardudwy is a bilingual secondary school for 11–16 year olds at Harlech, Gwynedd, Wales. It serves the seaside communities of Penrhyndeudraeth, Harlech, Abermaw (Barmouth) and nearby villages. It had 323 pupils on the roll in 2023. Lead ...

is the county

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

for children aged 11–16. Ysgol Tanycastell is the town's

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

for children aged 3–11. Wales's only long-term adult residential college,

Coleg Harlech Coleg Harlech was a residential adult education college for mature students in Harlech, Gwynedd, later on part of Adult Learning Wales - Addysg Oedolion Cymru. History Coleg Harlech was Wales' only long-term, mature-student residential edu ...

, also known as the "college of second chance", existed in the town from 1927 to 2017. It was renowned for its mixed classical and

brutalist Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the b ...

architecture. Harlech's library, previously run by Gwynedd Council, also closed in 2017. Harlech's Old Library Institute runs as Harlech Hwb, offering cost-of-living support and click-and-collect library books from Gwynedd Libraries.

Demographics

The 2011 census recorded 1,762 usual residents. The village is fairly Anglicised, with 48% of residents having been born in Wales and 46.9% born in England. Correspondingly, only 42.6% reported having a Welsh national identity.

Recreation

Harlech has a beach backed with

sand dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

s and the Royal Saint David's Golf Club, which hosted its fifth

British Ladies Amateur The Women's Amateur Championship, previously known as the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship, was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union. It is organised by The R&A, which merged with the Ladies' Golf Union in 2017. Until the dawn of t ...

in 2009. The

Rhinogydd The Rhinogydd (a Welsh plural form, often anglicised as Rhinogs and also known by the alternative Welsh plural Rhinogau) are a range of mountains located east of Harlech in North Wales. The name ''Rhinogydd'' derives from the names of two of the ...

(or Rhinogs) range of mountains rises to the east. Harlech has a

Scout hut A Scout hall (also Scout hut, Scout den or Scout headquarters) is a building owned or rented and used as a meeting place by a Scout Group. General description A Scout hall typically consists of one or more large rooms which are used for games an ...

, which acts as a base for outdoor recreational activities.

In traditional and popular culture

*A street in Harlech,

, was recognised in 2019 by

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...

as the steepest residential street in the world with a gradient of 1:2.67 (37.45%); however,

Baldwin Street Baldwin Street, in Dunedin, New Zealand, is located in the residential suburb of North East Valley, northeast of Dunedin's central business district. ''Guinness World Records'' calls it the steepest street in the world, meaning no street ga ...

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, was then recognised with a gradient of 1:2.86 (35%). The steepness was determined by measuring consistently on the lower side of the street – the left or right, whichever was lower. It was later decided that measuring consistently in the middle of the street would be more accurate. This gave Baldwin Street a gradient of 34.8% and Ffordd Pen Llech one of 28.6%, so the title returned to Baldwin Street. *In the second branch of the ''

Mabinogi The ''Mabinogion'' () is a collection of the earliest Welsh prose stories, compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions. There are two main source manuscripts, created –1410, as well as a few earlier frag ...

'' (" 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 "Men of Harlech" or "The March of the Men of Harlech" ( Welsh: ) is a song and military march which is traditionally saidFuld, James J., ''The Book of World-famous Music: Classical, Popular, and Folk'', Dover, 5th ed. 2000, p. 394 to describe eve ...

'' is traditionally said to describe events during the seven-year siege of the castle in 1461–1468. *

ITV Wales & West ITV Wales and West, previously known as Harlech Television (HTV), was an ITV (TV network), ITV franchisee in the United Kingdom until 31 December 2013, licensed to broadcast by the regulator Ofcom. There is no channel, past or present, named " ...

was formerly known as HTV/Harlech Television after its founder

Lord Harlech Baron Harlech, of Harlech in the County of Merioneth, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1876 for the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician John Ormsby-Gore, 1st Baron Harlech, John Ormsby-Gore, with re ...

Notable residents

In birth order: *

(), Welsh Rebellion leader, was the last Welshman to claim the title

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. *

Ellis Wynne Ellis Wynne (7 March 1671 – 13 July 1734) was a Wales, Welsh clergyman and author. He is remembered mainly for one of the most important and influential pieces of Welsh language literature, Welsh-language literature, ''Gweledigaetheu y Bardd ...

(1671 in Lasynys Fawr – 1734), Welsh-language author and clergyman *

Alfred Perceval Graves Alfred Perceval Graves (22 July 184627 December 1931), was an Anglo-Irish poet, songwriter and folklorist. He was the father of British poet and critic Robert Graves. Early life Graves was born in Dublin and was the son of The Rt Rev. Cha ...

(1846–1931), poet,

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's a ...

and songwriter. He and a large family, including his son the poet

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was an English poet, soldier, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were b ...

, spent summers at Erinfa, a large house north-east of Harlech. * George Davison (1854–1930), photographer *

Lily Pincus Lily Pincus (, 13 March 1898 – 22 October 1981) was a German-British social worker, marital psychotherapist and author. She was a co-founder of the Family Discussion Bureau, which is now part of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, ...

(1898–1981), German-British social worker, marital psychotherapist and author * Margaret More (1903–1966), composer, was born here. *

Elinor Lyon Elinor Bruce Lyon (17 August 1921 – 28 May 2008) was an English children's author from a Scottish family background. Several of her novels are set on the Highland coast, others in Wales. They have been seen to feature "strong girls and sensitiv ...

(1921–2008), children's writer, retired here in 1975 with her schoolteacher husband.Introduction by Elinor Lyon, ''The House in Hiding'',

Fidra Books Fidra Books is a publisher based in Edinburgh specialising in reissues of bygone children's books, mainly those from the 1940s onwards. Foundation and range The firm was set up in 2005 by Malcolm and Vanessa Robertson, who also opened Edinbur ...

, Edinburgh, 2006, p. v. *

David Gwilym Morris Roberts David Gwilym Morris Roberts (24 July 1925 - 31 July 2020) was a British civil engineer, cited as "one of the most influential civil engineers of the 20th century". Born in North Wales, he grew up in Merseyside before attending Cambridge Univers ...

(1925–2020), civil engineer, was born here. *

Mari Strachan Mari Strachan (born 1945) is a Welsh novelist and librarian. Her first novel, ''The Earth Hums in B Flat'' (Canongate, 2009), works on one level as a detective story, while on another dealing with the problems of growing up in a small Welsh vill ...

(born 1945), novelist and librarian, attended secondary school here. *

Philip Pullman Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. He is best known for the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials''. The first volume, ''Northern Lights'' (1995), won the Carnegie Medal

(born 1946), children's novelist, attended secondary school here.

Gallery

File:Harlech Castle Half Mast HMQM.jpg,

with flags at half mast after the death of

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was al ...

in 2002 File:SDJ Harlech Castle Gatehouse.jpg, Harlech Castle gatehouse File:Harlech Statue The Two Kings.jpg, The Two Kings (sculptor Ivor Robert-Jones, 1984) near Harlech Castle, Wales. Bendigeidfran carries the body of his nephew Gwern. File:Harlech-Low tide at Harlech.jpg, Harlech Beach at low tide File:Harlech College and castle.jpg, Harlech College with Harlech Castle in background

References

Notes

External links

Harlech Tourism Associationgeograph.co.uk
– photos of Harlech and surrounding area {{Authority control Towns in Gwynedd Aviation accidents and incidents locations in Wales