Caernarfon

Caernarfon ( ; Welsh: [kaɨrˈnarvɔn] ) is a royal town, community and port, in Gwynedd, Wales. The community (which includes Caeathro) has a population of 9,852. It lies along the A4871 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the island of Anglesey. Bangor is 9 miles (14 km) to the north-east, Porthmadog is 20 miles (32 km) southeast and Holyhead is 29 miles (47 km) northwest, via the Britannia Bridge. Snowdonia (Eryri) is located to the east and south-east of the town. The town is the historic county town of Caernarfonshire. Abundant natural resources in and around the Menai Strait enabled human habitation in prehistoric Britain. The Ordovices, a Celtic tribe, lived in the region during the period known as Roman Britain. The Roman fort Segontium was established around AD 80 to subjugate the Ordovices during the Roman conquest of Britain. The Romans occupied the region until the end of Roman rule in Britain in 382, after which Caernarfon became part of the Kingdom of Gwynedd. In the late 11th century, William the Conqueror ordered the construction of a motte-and-bailey castle at Caernarfon as part of the Norman invasion of Wales. He was unsuccessful, and Wales remained independent until around 1283. In the 13th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, ruler of Gwynedd, refused to pay homage to Edward I of England, prompting the English conquest of Gwynedd. This was followed by the construction of Caernarfon Castle, one of the largest and most imposing fortifications built by the English in Wales. In 1284, the English-style county of Caernarfonshire was established by the Statute of Rhuddlan; the same year, Caernarfon was made a borough, a county and market town, and the seat of English government in north Wales. The ascent of the Welsh House of Tudor to the throne of...