Corwen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Corwen is a town in the administrative county of Denbighshire, traditional county of Merionethshire, north Wales, lying on the River Dee. It is best known as the base of Owain Glyndŵr, the fifteenth century Welsh leader.
The town grew as a centre for cattle drovers. Attractions in Corwen include the motte of a Norman castle, the thirteenth century Church of St Mael and St Sulien and the Capel Rûg built in 1637 by William Salisbury.
In the 1860s Corwen was linked to the national rail network on the Vale of Clwyd line. The station was a vital development in the town's importance as the centre of the local Agriculture industry. Unfortunately it did not survive the Beeching Axe. Plans are advanced to link Corwen to the private Llangollen railway which currently terminates in the nearby village of Carrog.
Corwen is the last sizeable town on the A5 from London to Holyhead until Betws-y-Coed is reached. Because of this it still contains a number of hotels which were used in the past as staging hotels for the stagecoaches. Although the A5 is no longer a main trunk road, having been superseded by the coastal route of A55, there is still significant traffic travelling through the town centre’s narrow main street.
Corwen hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1919. The Pavilion in the town has played an improtant part in Welsh Culture throughout the 20th Century. It has hosted several concerts and Eisteddfods. It was also the venue for the first concert performed by Edward H Dafis. These were the first notable rock band in Wales and appeared at Corwen in 1974.
