Llan Ffestiniog, also known as Ffestiniog or simply Llan, is a village in

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 ...

(formerly in the 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 ...

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 ...

, about 2 miles south of

Blaenau Ffestiniog Blaenau Ffestiniog () is a town in Gwynedd, Wales. Once a slate mining centre in historic Merionethshire, it now relies much on tourists, drawn for instance to the Ffestiniog Railway and Llechwedd Slate Caverns. It reached a population of 12,0 ...

. Llan Ffestiniog is the older of the two communities, with its church and other buildings predating most of Blaenau Ffestiniog. The population was given as 864 in the 2011 census.

Buildings

Attractions near the village include the Rhaeadr Cynfal

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s and the remains of the Tomen-y-Mur

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

fort A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

and

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

. A decommissioned

nuclear power station A nuclear power plant (NPP), also known as a nuclear power station (NPS), nuclear generating station (NGS) or atomic power station (APS) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power st ...

lies south of the village, at

Trawsfynydd Trawsfynydd (; Welsh language, Welsh for ) is a linear village in Gwynedd, Wales, near Llyn Trawsfynydd reservoir, and adjacent to the A470 road, A470 north of Bronaber and Dolgellau and 10 km (6 miles) south of Blaenau Ffestiniog. It als ...

Historic house

Situated in the square opposite the Pengwern Arms, is the oldest dwelling and established business in the area, Meirion House, a

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

listed building. Its name is derived from the county of Meirionydd, and the core of the building is thought to date back to 1411. Several annexes were added over the years, with a business established in 1726. It has nevertheless retained much of its original character, including the original pitch pine and oak beams and

lath and plaster Lath and plaster is a building process used to finish mainly interior dividing walls and ceilings. It consists of narrow strips of wood (laths) which are nailed horizontally across the wall studs or ceiling joists and then coated in plaster. T ...

ceiling, slate floors and

inglenook An inglenook or chimney corner is a recess that adjoins a fireplace. The word comes from "ingle", an old Scots word for a domestic fire (derived from the Gaelic ''aingeal''), and "nook". The inglenook originated as a partially enclosed hear ...

fireplace with inset cast iron double oven. There is a headstone inlaid in the slate floor, part of which is under the second stairway, believed to have been constructed in the late 19th century. Part of Meirion House was once a small drover's bank, known as Banc y Ddafad Ddu ("The Bank of the Black Sheep"). In the early 19th century, it was a draper's shop. In the early 20th century, it became a guest house, with the original visitors book dating back to 1909. It was used extensively by cyclists, and was at one time the official quarters of the National Cyclists Union (NCU). In the visitors book there is an entry referencing the ghost of "Elizabeth". The house was owned by

Thomas John Wynn, 5th Baron Newborough Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

until 1925, when it was sold to Robert Thomas Williams. During World War II, officials from the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

stayed there, whilst working at the Cwt y Bugail quarry, which was used to house the nation's art galleries' treasures. The houses next door were built on the site of Abbey Arms, an old

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of t ...

, which once had its own stables.

Notable residents

Notable persons who live, or have lived, in Llan Ffestiniog include actor, author and comedian Mici Plwm, journalist and TV presenter Mared Parry. The cartoonist Mal Humphreys, otherwise known as Mumph, who worked for many Welsh and UK broadcasters and publications. His life's work is now held at the National Library of Wales

Writers on the village

Elizabeth Gaskell Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer, and short story writer. Her novels offer detailed studies of Victorian era, Victoria ...

, the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

writer whose

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

s and short stories were a critique of the era's inequality in industrial cities and of its attitudes towards women, was fond of Ffestiniog. Mr and Mrs Gaskell visited the village and spent some time there on their wedding tour. On another, later visit in 1844, it was at the inn there that their young son William caught

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes'', a Group A streptococcus (GAS). It most commonly affects children between five and 15 years of age. The signs and symptoms include a sore ...

, from which he died. It was to turn her thoughts from her bereavement that she took her husband's advice and began to write her first novel, ''

Mary Barton ''Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life'' was the Debut novel, first novel by English author Elizabeth Gaskell, first published in 1848. The story is set in the English city of Manchester between 1839 and 1842, and deals with the difficulties ...

''.

George Borrow George Henry Borrow (5 July 1803 – 26 July 1881) was an English writer of novels and of travel based on personal experiences in Europe. His travels gave him a close affinity with the Romani people of Europe, who figure strongly in his work. Hi ...

wrote briefly about Ffestiniog and its church-side

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

, the ''Pengwern'', in his travelogue ''

Wild Wales ''Wild Wales: Its People, Language and Scenery'' is a travel book by the English Victorian gentleman writer George Borrow (1803–1881), first published in 1862. The book recounts Borrow's personal experiences and insights while touring Wales ...

''. He says,

Transport

Ffestiniog railway station opened on 30 May 1868. It was closed to passenger services on 2 January 1960. There are several bus services running.Bus times. Retrieved 10 June 2019.

Legend

The area is connected with

Blodeuwedd Blodeuwedd (; Welsh "Flower-Faced", a composite name from ''blodau'' "flowers" + ''gwedd'' "face"), is married to Lleu Llaw Gyffes in Welsh mythology. She was made from the flowers of broom, meadowsweet and oak by the magicians Math and Gwydio ...

Lleu Llaw Gyffes Lleu Llaw Gyffes (), sometimes incorrectly spelled as Llew Llaw Gyffes, is a hero of Welsh mythology. He appears most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Math fab Mathonwy, which tells the tale of his birth, his marriag ...

and Gronw Pebr, all characters in the

Four Branches of the Mabinogi The ''Four Branches of the Mabinogi'' or are the earliest prose stories in the literature of Great Britain, Britain. Originally written in Wales in Middle Welsh, but widely available in translations, the is generally agreed to be a single work i ...

. An old rock on the bank of Afon Cynfal, to the south of the village, is called Gronw's Slate. It has a small hole through it, and it is believed that this was the rock that Gronw grasped to defend himself against a spear thrown by Lleu. Four km or 2 miles east of the village is Llyn Morwynion, a lake which is now a reservoir, where Blodeuwedd and her maidens of Ardudwy are said to have drowned; nearby are the Beddau Gwŷr Ardudwy (graves of the men of

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 ...

References

External links

Landscape photographs in and around Blaenau Ffestiniogwww.geograph.co.uk : photos of Llan Ffestiniog and surrounding area
{{authority control Villages in Gwynedd Villages in Snowdonia Ffestiniog