Gwrych Castle

Gwrych Castle History & Information

Gwrych Castle is a Grade I listed country house near Abergele in North Wales.  The enormous medieval style gothic ruins dominate the landscape and are situated within over 250 acres of gardens and grounds.  This castle was built to impress and make an impact!  Not all is what it appears at Gwrych Castle, the fairytale medieval style castle ruins only date back to the early 19th century, tell tale signs include the cast iron windows!

Building Gwrych Castle

Gwrych Castle was built between 1812 and 1822 by Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh, (who had a great love for everything picturesque) as a memorial to his mother Frances Lloyd and her ancestors, that could be traced back to the medieval period as being the owners of Gwrych.  The castle was built on the site of an earlier Elizabethan House called Y’ Fron.  

The castle is considered to be one of the first gothic follies in Northern Europe but has no military effect.

Click here to watch our video on the history of Gwrych Castle

Heyday

Later generations of the family continued to improve and extend the castle, particularly so during the time of Winifred, Countess of Dundonald when she inherited the castle in 1894 (Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh’s granddaughter).  Winifred spoke Welsh, was a patron of the arts and promoted women craftworkers and artists.  During the First World War she founded two military hospitals.  

Winifred was a strong and determined lady who left her mark on the castle by installing a magnificent marble 52 step staircase with wrought iron balustrades and stained glass windows, (if you have watched the ITV television show “I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here” you will have seen the contestants leaving the show via the staircase ruins). 

Winifred had an arranged marriage to Douglas Cochrane, this was not a happy marriage and in 1906 she banished him from the castle.  Following her death she left the castle in her will to King George V, in retaliation Douglas’s revenge went as far as burning all of the Countess’s private papers.   In 1928 Douglas bought back the castle for £78,000 (equivalent to approximately £4.75 million in 2019).  In order to buy back the castle Douglas sold most of the castle’s contents to fund the purchase.

During the castle’s heyday Gwrych Castle boasted an astonishing 128 rooms.  These included outbuildings, 28 bedrooms, an inner and outer hall, 2 smoke rooms, a dining room, study, billiards room, drawing room and more.  It also had 19 embattled towers, many of these towers are still standing and help to give the castle a real fairytale appearance.

Second World War

During the Second World War, Gwrych Castle housed 200 Jewish refugees as part of the Kindertransport program.

Following the war the castle was opened to the public and enjoyed a number of years being a popular tourist attraction and in the 1970’s hosted medieval re-enactments.

Decline

In the 1980’s the castle attracted scooterists from across Britain and unfortunately some behaved in an antisocial manner causing considerable damage.  Accounts include youths swinging from the chandeliers and leaping on antique tables, one even apparently rode a scooter straight through a stained glass window.  

The castle was closed to the public and was subsequently owned by a number of businesses who promised renovation and great things for the castle’s future, but these plans did not come to be and the castle was further vandalised and looted.  

Rescuing The Castle

The castle's savour was Mark Baker, who as a 12 year old boy fell in love with it and began fighting for its future.  Eventually Mark’s hard work paid off and he played a large part in forming the Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust.  In 2018 the castle was sold to the trust with help from a grant from the National Memorial Trust.  The trust is working to preserve and repair the castle to its former glory.

Gwrych Castle on Television

Over recent years Gwrych Castle has featured in a number of television documentaries and the very popular reality show "I'm A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here".  

Visiting Gwrych Castle

The Castle is open to the public (when television filming is not happening) for a small fee.  You can check opening dates, times and book your tickets through the castle’s website at https://www.gwrychcastle.co.uk

Address – Llanddulas, Abergele, Conwy, North Wales, LL22 8ET

Click here to read our blog post about our experience of exploring Gwyrch Castle