The picturesque mountain village of Beddgelert started to develop in the late 1700s, but the first people to settle here, where two mountain rivers meet before flowing down to the sea, were Christian missionaries who probably arrived by sea around 700AD and established a hermitage on the west bank of the Afon Colwyn..
Their leader may have been Celer, whose grave later gave the village its name. The rivers Glaslyn and Colwyn divided the area into three districts and each has a very different history.
On the west bank, the early Christian community was, by 1200, famous for its holiness and hospitality to travellers. By 1230 the community was re-formed as the Augustinian Priory of Valley St Mary of Snowdon and the Welsh princes gave lands and paid for the new stone priory church, parts of which can still be seen.
After King Henry VIII closed all monasteries in the 1530s, the priory church was made the parish church of the new parish of Beddgelert. The Crown owned the land but before 1600 sold it to local Welshmen who divided it into various estates.
Around 1200 the land north of the rivers Glaslyn and Colwyn had been given by Prince Llewellyn the Great to the Cistercians of Aberconwy. After the 1530s all this grange was leased and later bought from the Crown by local Welshmen.
The land east of the river Glaslyn had always been in secular ownership, and from the 1280s was part of the county of Merioneth, whereas the other two areas were within Caernarfonshire. All are now included in Gwynedd.
Trackways criss-crossing the area were used by farmers, cattle-drovers and copper miners. In the late 1700s a new turnpike road was built from Caernarfon to Dolgellau, through Beddgelert. The present main road from Caernarfon closely follows this new route and by 1796 there was also a new Beddgelert bridge. There was then just the ancient church, two farmhouses and a few cottages near the bridge.
During the Napoleonic wars there was a marked increase in English visitors and artists to North Wales and in 1803 the new Beddgelert (now Royal Goat) Hotel was built to accommodate them. The hotel manager, with local men, created Gelert's grave, and it has attracted visitors ever since. In 1805 another new turnpike road was built, going from Nefyn through Beddgelert and the Nanygwynant valley to join the main road at Capel Curig.
Beddgelert was soon frequented by climbers, walkers and artists and by the 1840s most of the terraced cottages and guesthouses along the Caernarfon and Capel Curig roads had been built. The part of the village between the Royal Goat Hotel and the church was mainly built in the 1900s, although Bwthyn Llewellyn may date to the late 1500s and Church Street to the early 1800s.
It was the 1860s before the terraces and guesthouses across the river Glaslyn were erected, and the 1950s before a new bridge gave vehicular access. The long-planned but short-lived narrow gauge railway built through Beddgelert from Caernarfon to Porthmadog to transport slate and copper opened in the 1920s, by which time most of the mines and quarries were closing.
Today farming and forestry link with tourism to provide a wide range of activities, accommodation and facilities throughout the year for visitors and local people.
Watch Margaret Dunn in a short film about the origin of Beddgelert.
More about Beddgelert.
your comments
Freda from West Yorkshire
I have a pastel colour picture of Beddgelert beautiful to see. Probably done around 1911. I would like to identify the artist - I I KIMESUY, I think.
Tue Sep 1 12:24:57 2009
Chris.Woodard - Monmouth
Was there ever a tollgate by the bridge in Beddgelert?
Mon Feb 2 09:50:37 2009
C. Smith from Leeds
Every year since my sons were little (they're now in their 20s) we have visited Beddgelert. For the last ten years it has been one massive struggle as I have had renal failure and had to try and find dialysis in the area. The closest I could get was Chester and I had to do the round trip from Anglesey to Chester and back three times a week. At times I was very ill but I did it willingly as my family and I love Wales so much. We read about the story of Gelert in a Welsh fables book and decided to visit, we were instantly hooked. The village is beautiful, the people are so friendly and the tale of Gelert held the magic and mystery that all legends and myths do. No-one should devalue the lure that Beddgelert has. Whether Gelert's existence be fantasy or not, the stories of times gone by encourage a child's imagination and creativity to grow. My sons will pass this on to their children, the next generation. I think those who are sceptical should keep their opinions closely guarded and allow children to enjoy the magic, the beauty and majesty that only this part of the world can offer.
Mon Dec 29 10:38:05 2008
Susan Thomas from Ammanford
I recently visited Beddgelert and found it to be a truly beautiful and tranquil place. I was extremely offended, however by one englishman, a schoolteacher, who told his class, by the graveside, that it was just as well that Llewelyn killed his dog, because it must have been a big dog, and so saved him a fortune in dog food. I personally believe the story to be founded in truth at it's roots, at the very least, I do not believe that it was just totally fabricated by an inkeeper and his cronies. Why write that, why try to destroy the legend? Even if you know for sure that you're version! is true, why tell everyone? What's wrong with letting people believe that this moving and poignant story may be at least partly true?
Wed Jul 12 10:46:40 2006
anon
Before the made up tale of Beddgelert came about the village used to be called Porth-Y-Llan.
Sat Nov 5 13:09:43 2005
From Cheshire
The village was named after a saint. The story of Gelert was a story made up but a previous owner of the Royal Goat, to try and attract visitors to the vilage - and succeeded. The story of Gelert has been translated in over 20 different languages and used all over the world for the same commercial reasons - only the species of animals have changed. I used to visit Beddgelert every other weekend with my Father as a child, until eventually I moved there - only for a brief period of time, and in all the time of my visits and as a resident, I know that the grave stone of Gelert has been relocated at least three times, on two occasions, on oporsites sides of the river. It is a wonderful story - and one which will remain timeless, and in the hearts of many people.
Fri Nov 26 11:02:31 2004
Nick Evans, Liverpool, formaly Nantmor
The Name of the village was changed to Beddgerlert and the story of Gelert’s Grave was brought in at the same time. There was no such event - it was just an urban legend and it wasn’t the king who killed him, it was the prince. If he was a king then Wales would have been a kingdom. As it’s still and always has been a principality he must have been a prince.
Thu Jul 29 12:18:11 2004
