Photographs of Caernarfon

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Caernarfon is a Royal town and port in Gwynedd, Wales. It has been inhabited without a break since pre-Roman times. Firstly by the Ordovices (a Celtic tribe. In about 77 A.D. North West Wales was finally conquered by Suetonius Paulinus, and a fort was built by about 80 A.D. and was named Segontium. After the departure of the Romans in the 5th century, Caernarfon became part of the Kingdom of Gwynedd. In the late 11th century, William I, King of England, ordered the construction of a motte-and-bailey at Caernarfon, as part of the Norman invasion of Wales. In the 13th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, ruler of Gwynedd, refused to pay homage to Edward I, King of England. This prompted the English conquest of Gwynedd and the building of an 'iron ring' of castles along the North Wales coast. This included the Castle at Caernarfon. The castle itself was not completed until about 1322. It is said that Edward I's son, later to become Edward II, was born in Caernarfon. This Edward was the first English Prince of Wales. The investiture of Prince Charles as the present Prince of Wales took place in Caernarfon in 1969.