Back in April, we visited Flint Castle, which sits on the North Coast of Wales, in the town of Flint not far from the border with England. Building started in 1277 and finished in 1284, and it was the first castle the English built in Wales under Edward the 1st during his invasion of Wales.
We did actually visit this last year and I also posted about it then, but the last time we visited the towers were closed off due to covid - this time we were able to get inside them, which was pretty cool.
The picture above was taken from the tallest remaining tower at the sea front. It begins to give an idea of the size of the castle, which also encompassed the large area of ground you can see out at the front as well.
The moat/sea would come all the way up along the front and side, giving it a considerable defensive bonus.
Although a ruin now, the castle is maintained by CADW, a Welsh organisation that looks after historic buildings and places. Its quite safe to enter, and its also free !
The castle is quite large, and encloses quite a large area, noting that this was the English's first foothold in Wales, so they needed a base camp and staging area. From Flint Castle then then worked there way across the north coast of Wales during the invaision in the 13th century, building other grand castles as they went.
The legacy of castles left behind is beyond impressive as they really are gargantuan, but it must have been an awful time for the Welsh. Although the Welsh did rebel and attack it in later years (1282 and 1294).
The castle also features in one of Shakespeare's plays - Richard II. In 1399, it was where Henry Bolingbroke confronted Richard the 2nd, with the scene in the play narrating the part where Richard the 2nd is captured:
'Cousin, I am too young to be your father,
Though you are old enough to be my heir.
What you will have, I’ll give, and willing too;
For do we must what force will have us do'
The remains are quite large, and leave quite a bit to be explored, both within the walks, and outside walking around them.
The walls are very thick and would have withstood just about anything back in those days - and actually the castle did withstand both of the attacks from the welsh in the 13th century.
The info board above shows what it would have been like back in its heyday, with the sea coming right up and around the castle - allowing ships to berth there too. The info board is in both English and Welsh, in case you are wondering what the other language is.
It was nice to be able to get up inside the tower this time. The tower really is a ruin, but you can see that CADW have managed to build in this steel spiral staircase to get you up to the top, which really allows you to see the extent of the castle better.
You can get up about 5 floors in height, which was also an impressive feat of construction back in those days.
The sea facing towers would have had a very far view out to sea which would have prevented any sneak attacks by sea.
The construction is quite grand, and is a testament to the skill of the architect(s) and builders all of those years ago.
And although quite a ruin, the walls are still happily standing - but they are so thick, that is no surprise.
As with many of the other grand castle in North Wales, Flint Castle also played its part in the English Civil War. It was held by Royalists and then captured by Parliamentarians in 1647. It held out for 3 months under siege before being captured.
After being captured, the castle was destroyed to prevent its further use, leaving pretty much what we see today.
I have to say I really love Flint Castle - its the size and the location that works for me. And the fact that it is free to enter is just a bonus. I highly recommend it if you are ever in the area - it really is worth the visit.