Dinas Emrys facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dinas Emrys |
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Dinas Emrys with the River Glaslyn in the foreground
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 Location in Gwynedd
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| Location | Gwynedd, Wales, UK |
| OS grid | SH606492 |
| Coordinates | 53°01′19″N 4°04′44″W / 53.022°N 4.079°W |
Dinas Emrys is a small, rocky, and wooded hill near Beddgelert in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. Its name means "Emrys's city" in Welsh. The hill rises about 76 meters (250 feet) above the Glaslyn river valley. It overlooks the southern end of Llyn Dinas in Snowdonia.
Not much is left of the old Iron Age hillfort or castle that once stood here. You can still see some stone walls and the base of a tower. Some people think the castle was built by Llewelyn the Last. He might have built it to protect the road to the mountain pass of Snowdon.
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What is Dinas Emrys?
Dinas Emrys is mostly known for its legends, especially those about King Arthur and Merlin. But it's also important to archaeologists. They study the remains of old buildings and walls found on the hill. These remains show that people lived here a very long time ago.
The hillfort's walls are made of stone and are quite thick, between 2.5 and 3 meters (8 to 10 feet). They follow the natural shape of the rocky hilltop. The whole area inside the walls is about 10,000 square meters (2.5 acres). Long ago, you would have entered from a steep path on the west side. The entrance you see today from the north-east was added later.
Discoveries by Archaeologists
Archaeologists have dug at Dinas Emrys several times, in 1910 and again from 1954 to 1956. These digs showed that people lived on the hill during different periods. The oldest parts date back to the British Iron Age, perhaps around the 1st or 2nd century.
Inside the old fort, there is a pool. It might have been built by people in ancient times. This pool is famous because it's part of a popular story about Vortigern and dragons. Other findings suggest people lived here until the 5th century. This time period fits with the legends of Vortigern and Ambrosius Aurelianus.
Dr. H. N. Savory, an archaeologist, was surprised by his findings in the 1950s. The old walls were from the right time for the legends of Vortigern or Ambrosius. He also found a platform above the pool, just like in the old stories. However, this platform was built much later than the time of Vortigern or Ambrosius.
The most noticeable thing on the hill today is the base of a rectangular tower. Experts believe this tower was part of a castle. It was likely built by the princes of Gwynedd in the 11th century.
Famous Legends of Dinas Emrys
Dinas Emrys is a very special place in Welsh legends. It's the setting for a famous story about a warlord named Vortigern and a young boy who would become the wizard Merlin. This tale is told in an old book called the Historia Britonum.
Vortigern and the Dragons
According to the legend, Vortigern was a powerful warlord. He fled to Wales to escape invaders called the Anglo-Saxons. He chose Dinas Emrys as the perfect spot for his royal hideout. He wanted to build a strong tower there.
But every day, his men would build the tower, and every night, it would collapse. This happened for weeks! Vortigern was advised to find a special young boy. This boy was said to have no mortal father. The soldiers found such a boy, named Myrddin Emrys, who we know as Merlin.
Vortigern's advisors told him to sacrifice the boy to stop the tower from falling. But Merlin laughed at this idea. He explained that the tower kept falling because of a hidden pool under the hill. In this pool, two vermes (dragons) were fighting.
Merlin explained that the White Dragon stood for the Saxons, who were winning battles now. But the Red Dragon stood for the Welsh, and it would soon win. After Vortigern's power ended, the fort was given to a great king named Ambrosius Aurelianus. In Welsh, he was known as Emrys Wledig, which is how the hill got its name, Dinas Emrys.
How the Dragons Got There
Another old Welsh story, "Lludd and Llefelys" from the Mabinogion, tells how the dragons ended up at Dinas Emrys. It says that when King Lludd ruled Britain, a terrible scream was heard every May Eve. This scream caused panic and made people sick.
Lludd asked his brother, Llefelys, for help. Llefelys told him the scream came from two battling dragons. The dragon of the Britons was being defeated by another, foreign dragon. Llefelys advised Lludd to capture them.
Lludd followed the advice. He caught both dragons in a cauldron filled with mead. The dragons had turned into pigs to hide. Lludd then buried the captured dragons at the place we now call Dinas Emrys. It was thought to be the safest place for them.
Before it was called Dinas Emrys, the fort was known as Dinas Ffaraon Dandde. The main entrance to the fort is on the north side. Near the top, there's a circle of fallen stones. People say this is where the dragons were hidden.
Other Local Stories
Local legends say that Merlin hid treasure in a cave at Dinas Emrys. Only a "golden-haired and blue-eyed" person can find it. When that lucky person is near, a bell will ring. The cave will open by itself as soon as their foot touches it.
One young man from near Beddgelert tried to find the treasure. He took a pickaxe and started digging where the old tower stood. Suddenly, terrible noises rumbled under his feet. The hill began to shake, and the sun disappeared, making it dark. Lightning flashed and thunder crashed. He dropped his pickaxe and ran home. He never went back for it.
Not far from Dinas Emrys is a place called Cell y Dewiniaid, which means "The Grove of the Magicians". There used to be a thick grove of oak trees here. Local stories say that Vortigern's wise men met here to discuss important matters. An nearby field is where they were buried. Long ago, a stone marked each grave, and a white thorn tree would drop white blossoms on them every year.
Images for kids
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Detail from Lambeth Palace Library MS 6 folio 43v illustrating an episode in Historia Regum Britanniae (c. 1136). Pictured above Vortigern sits at the edge of a pool whence two dragons emerge, one red and one white, which do battle in his presence.
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Archaeologists have speculated that this may be the platform above the pool where the prophecy was revealed
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Ruins of what is considered to be an 11th Century tower
See also
In Spanish: Dinas Emrys para niños
