Since taking up road cycling, one of my most popular destinations, or stop-off locations is castles. This started mainly due to the convenience of many castles having excellent cafes either on-site, or very close by…and most of these cafes have amazing coffee making facilities, so things were off to a good start.
Putting the coffee to one side for a moment, it’s impossible to not be impressed at the sight of some castles. Besides their dramatic and awesome architecture, they’re also doorways back into history and back into times of conquest and oppression.
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”
George Santayana
Some of the most iconic castles in Wales were built under the command of Edward I during his two conquests of Wales in the 13th century. A total of 8 castles were built by Longshanks with Flint Castle being his first in 1277. Then followed castles in Builth, Aberystwyth, Rhuddlan, Harlech, Caernarfon, Conwy and Beaumaris, although construction on the final castle in Beaumaris was not completed. Edward’s castles were extremely formidable weapons of war and the sheer magnificance of them can still be seen today with Conwy and Caernarfon both excellent examples.
However, it should not be forgotten that these castles were used to subjugate the Welsh and crush her uprisings.
There is an abundance of castles in Wales and quite a few are within a short ride away…well, they were before lockdown! My favourite castle is Caerphilly Castle. It is the largest castle in Wales, the second largest in the UK and is pretty much on my doorstep.
Caerphilly Castle has witnessed quite a bit of drama and bloodshed in its time. The tilt of the south-east tower a reminder of those times, but nowadays, it has a romantic feel to it. The way the castle walls reflect on the water on a sunny day is just mesmerising. Ok, so the duck and geese shit is less romantic, but shoes and tyres can be wiped clean…memories cannot.
Overlooking the castle from the top of Caerphilly Mountain is rewarded with views to Corn Du and Pen y Fan in the Brecon Beacons on a clear day, plus if the snack bar is open, win, win!
At night, the views over Caerphilly and South Wales are truly amazing.
Feel free to check out the full gallery for more photos.
