Dolwyddelan

Dolwyddelan (English: /ˌdɒlwɪˈðɛlæn/ dol-with-EL-an; Welsh: [ˌdɔlwɪˈðɛlan]; Welsh pronunciation^ⓘ) is a village and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The community occupies most of the valley of the Afon Lledr and comprises Dolwyddelan and Pentre Bont and the hamlets of Blaenau Dolwyddelan and Pont-y-Pant. It lies within Snowdonia, and the surrounding hills are part of the Moelwynion range. The population of the community was recorded as 454 in the 2021 census, and in the 2011 census the proportion of Welsh speakers was recorded as 50.8%.

Dolwyddelan was a centre within the Kingdom of Gwynedd in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries; it is likely that Prince Llywelyn the Great was born in Tomen Castell, west of the village, in c. 1173. Llywelyn built Dolwyddelan Castle some time between 1210 and 1240, although after its capture by Edward I of England in 1283, the military importance of the area declined. In 1488, the lease on the area was bought by Maredudd ab Ieuan, and it later became part of the large Gwydir Estate. In the nineteenth century slate was mined in the area.