42-595: Frongoch is a village located in Gwynedd , Wales . It lies close to the market town of Bala , on the A4212 road . It was the home of the Frongoch internment camp , used to hold German prisoners-of-war during First World War , and then Irish Republican prisoners from the 1916 Rising . By the late 1800s, Frongoch was the main centre for whisky production in Wales. The distillery
84-447: A recessional moraine , effectively damming the valley so resulting in the establishment of the lake, and on which the town of Bala now stands. The lake has abundant pike , perch , brown trout , roach , and eel . It also contains the gwyniad , a fish unique to the locality and listed as critically endangered by the IUCN due to the introduction of the invasive and non native ruffe ; and
126-507: A unitary authority , the modern entity no longer has any districts, but Arfon, Dwyfor and Meirionnydd remain as area committees . The pre-1996 boundaries were retained as a preserved county for a few purposes such as the Lieutenancy . In 2003, the boundary with Clwyd was adjusted to match the modern local government boundary, so that the preserved county now covers the two local government areas of Gwynedd and Anglesey. Conwy county borough
168-422: A beast was living below the lake's surface. Of these sightings, the most notable was reported by the lake's manager Dowie Bowen in the 1970s. Bowen described seeing a crocodile-like creature, about eight feet (2.4 m) in length emerge from the water. Bowen's report was soon followed by another sighting in 1979, when a fisherman visiting the lake also described seeing a large hump-backed beast at the water's surface. By
210-403: A creature in this lake was recorded in 1909, when the folklorist Marie Trevelyan collated a number of local legends including the story of a coiled dragon-like creature living in the lake some centuries earlier. Modern reports of sightings have been recorded since the 1920s. These include strange disruptions of the water's surface, disturbance of watercraft and the increase in local belief that
252-508: A few parishes of Denbighshire : Llanrwst , Llansanffraid Glan Conwy , Eglwysbach , Llanddoged, Llanrwst and Tir Ifan. The county was divided into five districts : Aberconwy , Arfon , Dwyfor , Meirionnydd and Anglesey . The Local Government (Wales) Act 1994 abolished the 1974 county (and the five districts) on 1 April 1996, and its area was divided: the Isle of Anglesey became an independent unitary authority, and Aberconwy (which included
294-563: A name for a local authority covering all of north Wales, but the scheme as enacted divided this area between Gwynedd and Clwyd. To prevent confusion, the Gwynedd Constabulary was therefore renamed the North Wales Police . The Snowdonia National Park was formed in 1951. After the 1974 local authority reorganisation, the park fell entirely within the boundaries of Gwynedd, and was run as a department of Gwynedd County Council. After
336-626: A significant and worrying eutrophication of the lake. Investigation by the Environment Agency , in partnership with the water industry, the farming community and others, has put in place a plan for reducing pollution inputs to the lake. The lake forms part of the River Dee regulation system and the level at its outflow is automatically controlled. Depending on flow conditions and the level of water in Llyn Celyn , water can flow either into or out of
378-570: Is a county in the north-west of Wales . It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy , Denbighshire , and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The city of Bangor is the largest settlement, and the administrative centre is Caernarfon . The preserved county of Gwynedd, which is used for ceremonial purposes, includes
420-422: Is located on the north-eastern end of the lake. The 3-mile (4.8 km) narrow gauge Bala Lake Railway , between the town and Llanuwchllyn (whose name means "church ['llan'] above ['uwch'] the lake ['llyn']"), runs along the lake's south-eastern shore using a section of former trackbed from the former Ruabon–Barmouth line . Gerald of Wales records the lake in his 12th century Itinerarium Cambriae under
462-551: Is now entirely within Clwyd. A Gwynedd Constabulary was formed in 1950 by the merger of the Anglesey, Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire forces. A further amalgamation took place in the 1960s when Gwynedd Constabulary was merged with the Flintshire and Denbighshire county forces, retaining the name Gwynedd. In one proposal for local government reform in Wales, Gwynedd had been proposed as
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#1732851747032504-773: Is the Indo-European stem. The Irish settled in NW Wales, and in Dyfed , at the end of the Roman era. Venedotia was the Latin form, and in Penmachno there is a memorial stone from c. AD 500 which reads: Cantiori Hic Iacit Venedotis ('Here lies Cantiorix, citizen of Gwynedd'). The name was retained by the Brythons when the kingdom of Gwynedd was formed in the 5th century, and it remained until
546-537: The Cronica Walliae , published in 1568. The name is translated by George Borrow as "Lake of Beauty", where the name "Tegid" derives from teg , a common Welsh place name element meaning "fair" (as in pleasant or fine scenery). The lake's name is often given as "Bala Lake" in English, after the nearby town of Bala . However, the word "bala" means "outlet of a lake", giving Bala Lake an impossible meaning. The usage of
588-679: The Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd World Heritage Site . During the Industrial Revolution the slate industry rapidly developed; in the late nineteenth century the neighbouring Penrhyn and Dinorwic quarries were the largest in the world, and the Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales is now a World Heritage Site. Gwynedd covers the majority of the historic counties of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire . In
630-401: The Isle of Anglesey . Gwynedd is the second largest county in Wales but sparsely populated, with an area of 979 square miles (2,540 km ) and a population of 117,400. After Bangor (18,322), the largest settlements are Caernarfon (9,852), Bethesda (4,735), and Pwllheli (4,076). The county has the highest percentage of Welsh speakers in Wales, at 64.4%, and is considered a heartland of
672-427: The 1990s the various sightings had attracted film crews and investigators. One Japanese crew spent three days investigating and filming the lake using specialist diving equipment and a submarine. However, no substantial evidence for the creature's existence has been found. The lake is already known to be home to a unique and extant species, the gwyniad . The survival of the gwyniad has led to discussions as to whether
714-645: The 1996 local government reorganisation, part of the park fell under Conwy County Borough , and the park's administration separated from the Gwynedd council. Gwynedd Council still appoints nine of the eighteen members of the Snowdonia National Park Authority; Conwy County Borough Council appoints three; and the Welsh Government appoints the remaining six. There has been considerable inwards migration to Gwynedd, particularly from England. According to
756-564: The 2021 census , 64.4% of the population aged three and over stated that they could speak Welsh, while 64.4% noted that they could speak Welsh in the 2011 census . It is estimated that 83% of the county's Welsh-speakers are fluent, the highest percentage of all counties in Wales. The age group with the highest proportion of Welsh speakers in Gwynedd were those between ages 5 and 15, of whom 92.3% stated that they could speak Welsh in 2011. The proportion of Welsh speakers in Gwynedd declined between 1991 and 2001, from 72.1% to 68.7%, even though
798-514: The 2021 census, 66.6% of residents had been born in Wales whilst 27.1% were born in England. The county has a mixed economy. An important part of the economy is based on tourism: many visitors are attracted by the many beaches and the mountains. A significant part of the county lies within the Snowdonia National Park , which extends from the north coast down to the district of Meirionnydd in
840-600: The English name in preference to the Welsh name is considered controversial by many. In 2023, the Eryri National Park Authority voted to use an all-Welsh list of standardised names for its lakes , thus favouring Llyn Tegid in English-language usage. The lake formed in a glacial valley along the fault line between Bala and Tal-y-Llyn . Towards the end of the last ice age , the receding Dee valley glacier left
882-450: The court of Tegid Foel also survives in a variant folktale . Near the lake was a walled spring that had to be secured and locked every night with a lid so that the spring water would not be corrupted by supernatural influences. For whatever reason, the man responsible for this task neglected his duty, though some say the Devil had found a way to open it. In any event, the water burst forth from
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#1732851747032924-473: The flow in the Dee. This body of water is estimated to be some 18,000,000 m Bala has been a tourist destination since the early 19th century. With the advent of the railways, Bala saw a growth in visitor numbers. This continued with the invention of the motor vehicle. The lake remains popular; it has two sailing clubs, and a number of companies provide kayaks , yachts and various other types of boats for hire. There
966-467: The former Denbighshire parishes) passed to the new Conwy County Borough . The remainder of the county was constituted as a principal area, with the name Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire , as it covers most of the areas of those two historic counties. As one of its first actions, the Council renamed itself Gwynedd on 2 April 1996. The present Gwynedd local government area is governed by Gwynedd Council . As
1008-641: The invasion of Edward I. This historical name was revived when the new county was formed in 1974. Gwynedd was an independent kingdom from the end of the Roman period until the 13th century, when it was conquered by England . The modern Gwynedd was one of eight Welsh counties created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 . It covered the entirety of the historic counties of Anglesey and Caernarfonshire , and all of Merionethshire apart from Edeirnion Rural District (which went to Clwyd ); and also
1050-457: The lake at the normal outflow point. Controls on the level of water in the lake were first constructed around 1840. Sluices designed and built by Thomas Telford and William Jessop were installed to ensure that the newly constructed Ellesmere Canal had a constant and sufficient supply of water. In the 1950s, these sluices were removed when the Dee and Clwyd River Authority constructed a new outlet channel and sluices to better control flooding of
1092-406: The lake could support a larger predator, and whether such a creature could survive in its isolated environment into modern times. Supporters for the potential existence of an afanc creature suggest that both the lake's size (40 metres deep and almost 6 km long) and the abundance of potential prey within it (pike, perch, brown trout and eels) would be able to support a single large predator or even
1134-580: The language . The geography of Gwynedd is mountainous, with a long coastline to the west. The county contains much of Snowdonia ( Eryri ), a national park which contains Wales's highest mountain, Snowdon ( Yr Wyddfa ; 3,560 feet, 1,090 m). To the west, the Llŷn Peninsula is flatter and renowned for its scenic coastline, part of which is protected by the Llŷn AONB . Gwynedd also contains several of Wales's largest lakes and reservoirs, including
1176-538: The largest, Bala Lake ( Llyn Tegid ). The area which is now the county has played a prominent part in the history of Wales. It formed part of the core of the Kingdom of Gwynedd and the native Principality of Wales , which under the House of Aberffraw remained independent from the Kingdom of England until Edward I 's conquest between 1277 and 1283. Edward built the castles at Caernarfon and Harlech , which form part of
1218-488: The name Penmelesmere . In his 1804 translation of Gerald's work, Sir Richard Colt Hoare states that the lake was also referred to as Pymplwy meer deriving from "pum plwyf" (five parishes). This name refers to the parishes of Llandderfel , Llanfawr, Llanycil , Llanuwchllyn and Llangywer . This name was also recorded by other English writers as "Pimble-mere" (in the 1813 Cambrian Travellers' Guide) and "Pemble Mere". The Modern Welsh name "Llyn Tegid" first appears in
1260-603: The past, historians such as J. E. Lloyd assumed that the Celtic source of the word Gwynedd meant 'collection of tribes' – the same root as the Irish fine , meaning 'tribe'. Further, a connection is recognised between the name and the Irish Féni , an early ethnonym for the Irish themselves, related to fían , 'company of hunting and fighting men, company of warriors under a leader'. Perhaps *u̯en-, u̯enə ('strive, hope, wish')
1302-455: The place where his court stood is now beneath the waters of the lake. According to Taliesin , the 6th century CE early Brittonic poet of Sub-Roman Britain whose work survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin , Tegid Foel's entire court was drowned in one night. Although in legend, its lights and the little town around it can still be seen on moonlit nights. The drowning of
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1344-414: The proportion of Welsh speakers in Wales as a whole increased during that decade to 20.5%. The Annual Population Survey estimated that as of March 2023, 77.0% of those in Gwynedd aged three years and above could speak Welsh. Bala Lake Bala Lake , or Llyn Tegid ( [ˈɬɨ̞n ˈtɛɡɨd] ), is a large freshwater glacial lake in Gwynedd , Wales. The River Dee , which has its source on
1386-461: The slate quarries. Industries which have developed more recently include TV and sound studios: the record company Sain has its HQ in the county. The education sector is also very important for the local economy, including Bangor University and Further Education colleges, Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor and Coleg Menai , both now part of Grŵp Llandrillo Menai . Gwynedd has the highest proportion of people in Wales who can speak Welsh . According to
1428-511: The slopes of Dduallt in the mountains of Snowdonia , feeds the 3.7 miles (6.0 km) long by 0.5 miles (0.8 km) wide lake. It was the largest natural body of water in Wales even before its level was raised by Thomas Telford to provide water for the Ellesmere Canal (later Llangollen Canal ). The town of Bala , which was once an important centre for the North Wales woollen trade,
1470-429: The south. But tourism provides seasonal employment and thus there is a shortage of jobs in the winter. Agriculture is less important than in the past, especially in terms of the number of people who earn their living on the land, but it remains an important element of the economy. The most important of the traditional industries is the slate industry, but these days only a small percentage of workers earn their living in
1512-637: The spring and completely drowned a nearby town, and this is how the lake was formed. "It was said Llyn Tegid (now called Bala Lake) was bottomless. Centuries ago an expert diver tried it, but was terribly frightened by his experience. He asserted that a dragon was coiled up at the bottom of the lake, and if he had not been very careful the creature would have swallowed him." Folk-Lore and Folk Stories of Wales , Marie Trevelyan 1909. Many of Wales' largest lakes feature in Welsh mythology , often associated with lake monsters , called afancod . The legend of such
1554-495: The upper Dee caused by uncontrolled releases of water from the lake. The operation of these sluices enables the lake to operate as water storage or water capacitance in the Dee system and thus allow water to be abstracted at Huntington near Chester, England in order to supply fresh water to the Wirral, England . The sluices allows water stored in the lake between 159.2m OD and 163.5m OD (4.3m height difference) to be utilised in managing
1596-402: The very rare mollusc Myxas glutinosa (the glutinous snail). According to legend, whilst the Dee itself flows through the lake, the waters never mix. However this was not confirmed by the detailed limnological work undertaken from the 1990s, to understand and manage the occurrence of algal blooms on the lake. In the 1990s the lake suffered from blooms of blue-green algae which indicated
1638-433: Was a belief in Wales that certain lakes are offended when mortals attempt to measure their depths. Two men went out in a boat to the deepest part of the lake to measure it with a plummet and line. They were angrily warned by the lake to return to the shore or face destruction. The mythological figure Tegid Foel (English: Bald Tegid ) is associated with the lake. He was the husband of the goddess or witch Ceridwen and
1680-587: Was bought by Scottish whisky companies and closed in 1910. The former distillery buildings (see above) were requisitioned by the UK government and used as a prisoner of war camp for German prisoners during World War One . After the 1916 Easter Rising in Ireland it was used to imprison 500 of the Irish Volunteer Army rank and file. Among them were Michael Collins and Arthur Griffith . Frongoch railway station
1722-625: Was on the Bala Ffestiniog Line . It closed to passenger services on 2 January 1960 and freight services on 27 January 1961. The station building and signal box are now a private residence. The Welsh Calvinistic Methodist chapel at Cwmtirmynach, lies on the B4501, 1.3 miles (2.1 km) north of Fron-goch. It was built in 1826 and rebuilt in 1880 in what the RCAHMW describes as a "Lombardic/Italian style". The folk singer Robert Roberts (Bob Tai'r Felin)
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1764-464: Was precentor at the chapel for nearly 50 years. There is weekly worship and the current minister is Hywel Edwards. There is a Welsh-medium primary school , Ysgol Bro Tryweryn, in the village. There were 58 pupils aged between 3 and 11 years on roll in 2017. As of January 2018, the school had the highest percentage of pupils (aged 5 and over) who spoke Welsh fluently at home in Wales, at 97.4%. Gwynedd Gwynedd ( Welsh: [ˈɡwɨnɛð] )
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