Caernarfon town walls

Caernarfon town walls
Caernarfon, North Wales
The north-east corner of the walls
Caernarfon town walls
Coordinates	53°08′17″N 4°15′59″W / 53.1381°N 4.2663°W / 53.1381; -4.2663Coordinates: 53°08′17″N 4°15′59″W / 53.1381°N 4.2663°W / 53.1381; -4.2663
Grid reference	grid reference SH485625
Type	Town wall
Site information
Controlled by	Cadw
Open to the public	Yes
Condition	Intact

Caernarfon's town walls are a medieval defensive structure around the town of Caernarfon in North Wales. The walls were constructed between 1283 and 1292 after the foundation of Caernarfon by Edward I, alongside the adjacent castle. The walls are 734 m (2,408 ft) long and include eight towers and two medieval gatehouses. The project was completed using large numbers of labourers brought in from England; the cost of building the walls came to around £3,500, a large sum for the period. The walls were significantly damaged during the rebellion of Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294, and had to be repaired at considerable expense. Political changes in the 16th century reduced the need to maintain such defences around the town. Today the walls form part of the UNESCO world heritage site administered by Cadw. Historians Oliver Creighton and Robert Higham describe the defences as "a remarkably intact walled circuit".

Before the English construction of the town of Caernarfon, the area had been occupied first by the Romans, who built the fort of Segontium, and later by both the Normans and the Welsh princes. As a result of this long history, depicted in the Welsh saga of Mabinogion, the site was both culturally and politically significant to the medieval Welsh. The English kings and Welsh princes had vied for control of North Wales since the 1070s and the conflict had been renewed during the 13th century, leading to Edward I intervening in North Wales for the second time during his reign in 1282. Edward invaded with a huge army, pushing north from Carmarthen and westwards from Montgomery and Chester. By summer 1283 Edward had secured Caernarfon and the surrounding area.