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The castle voted Europe’s most beautiful is in Wales

28 Dec 2023 2 minute read
Conwy Castle

A castle in Wales has been voted the most beautiful in Europe.

Travel magazine Condé Nast Traveller has released a new ranking of the 26 most stunning castles in Europe, and Conwy Castle took the crown.

The stunning Welsh fortress saw off competition from castles in Lithuania, Spain, Romania, Denmark, Scotland, France, Slovenia, Ireland and Italy, to secure the top spot.

The 21-tower medieval fortress in Conwy, is the most beautiful castle you’re going to find on the entire continent, according to the respected travel publication. It’s surrounded by high fortified walls which stretch for three-quarters of a mile, and you can walk a complete circuit around its battlements.

It was a given that Wales was going to make the top 10 of this prestigious poll given we have more castles per square mile than any other country in Europe.

Conwy Castle (Credit: WikiCommons)

According to Cadw, which works to protect the historic buildings and heritage sites of Wales: ‘Conwy Castle is regarded as one of the most magnificent medieval fortresses in Europe. The castle, and its 1.3km ring of town walls, have World Heritage status.

‘This remarkable fortress was built in an astonishing four-year period, between 1283 and 1287, and remains incredibly well-preserved today: it contains the most intact set of medieval royal apartments in Wales. If you have a head for heights, climb one of the castle’s eight tremendous towers for breathtaking views of the harbour and the narrow streets of Conwy below.’

Conwy,Castle panorama

Of course, Wales’ history has left a landscape scattered with Iron Age hill forts, Roman ruins and castles from Medieval Welsh princes and English kings. With over 600 castles, wherever you go in Wales you won’t be too far from a historic site.

Go and discover the rich history on your doorstep.

Top of the turrets

1. Conwy Castle, Wales
2. Trakai Island Castle, Lithuania
3. Alcázar of Seville, Spain
4. Bran Castle, Romania
5. Egeskov Castle, Denmark
6. Eilean Donan Castle, Scotland
7. Château de Chambord, France
8. Predjama Castle, Slovenia
9. Kylemore Abbey, Ireland
10. Castel del Monte, Italy


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Martyn Rhys Vaughan
9 months ago

It’s no good complaining it’s a product of Edward I’s conquest of Wales. We can’t wish the castles out of existence. And it’s not true the Welsh had no part in their construction. Someone (not me) once pointed out that the Edwardian castles were conjured out of the ground by the need to subdue the heroic Welsh resitance.

Matthew
Matthew
9 months ago

A magnificent relic of what makes being Welsh and British so great.

Annibendod
Annibendod
9 months ago
Reply to  Matthew

Wow, it takes some effort to be so deliberately blinkered.

Owain
Owain
9 months ago

We are number 1 woooo

Thorfinn
Thorfinn
9 months ago

Look it took just over 400 yrs for the normans to fully subdue Wales in which time these castles changed hands and allegiance numerous times but in the end who do they belong to now? That’s right,Us, Y Cymru the Welsh, you wouldnt disparage the Mona Lisa,so stop grumping and enjoy them for what they are, Works of Art,

Marc Evans
Marc Evans
9 months ago
Reply to  Thorfinn

Sadly, they are still ‘owned’ by the ‘Crown’ (as in the personol property of the English monarch).

Scott Thomas
Scott Thomas
9 months ago

Reading all the comments one would think this castle came last in a competition . What a lot of moaning about history . Its a beautiful kick ass castle to be proud of .

The Eye
9 months ago

Built by an Englishman though!

Owen Reynolds
Owen Reynolds
9 months ago
Reply to  The Eye

Could Edward the 1st be considered English – Maybe; if you want to play that game. I look at royalty back then like organised criminals are viewed today. Was he in any way representative of Englishness – whatever that was back then. Did the Normans even speak English? Yes and no. A lot of his time he would have used Latin or French. and his English though fluent – would have been very different to that of the ordinary people of England. So many choose to look at history through veils of anger or boastfulness- and fail to see anything… Read more »

CapM
CapM
9 months ago

It may have been Lloyd George who said something like the following to an Englishman who commented on how impressive the castles were –

The impressive thing is not that you built them but that you had to build them.

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