Vale of Clwyd facts for kids
The Vale of Clwyd (which is Dyffryn Clwyd in Welsh) is a flat, low area of land in Denbighshire, a county in northeast Wales. This valley stretches about 20 miles (around 30 km) from the coast of the Irish Sea towards the south. It forms a triangle of low ground.
On its eastern side, the Vale is bordered by the clear, steep slope of the Clwydian Range. To the west, you'll find many smaller hills. The River Clwyd (Welsh: Afon Clwyd) flows through the entire length of the valley. This river starts in Clocaenog Forest, southwest of Denbigh. Other rivers like the River Clywedog (Welsh: Afon Clywedog), River Elwy (Welsh: Afon Elwy), and the smaller River Wheeler (Welsh: Afon Chwiler) also join the River Clwyd.
A Look at Vale of Clwyd History
The area known as Dyffryn Clwyd has a long history. In Medieval Wales, it was called a cantref, which was a type of land division. After the year 1282, it became a special kind of area called a marcher lordship. This meant it had its own rules and leaders.
Towns and How the Vale is Governed
At the end of the Vale, near the sea, you'll find popular coastal towns. These include Kinmel Bay (Welsh: Bae Cinmel), Rhyl, and Prestatyn. Just a little bit inland are the town of Abergele and the city of St Asaph (Welsh: Llanelwy).
Other important towns in the valley are Denbigh (Welsh: Dinbych), Ruthin (Welsh: Rhuthun), and Rhuddlan. Most of the Vale of Clwyd is part of the modern county of Denbighshire. A smaller part is in the Conwy County Borough. Much of this area is also part of the Vale of Clwyd UK Parliamentary constituency, which is how people in the area are represented in the UK Parliament.
Understanding Vale of Clwyd Geology
The Vale of Clwyd is like a giant bowl in the ground, filled with layers of rock. Geologists call this a sedimentary basin. It's shaped like a half-graben, which means one side has dropped down along a major crack in the Earth's crust. This crack is known as the Vale of Clwyd Fault.
Most of the valley floor is made up of thick layers of Permian and Triassic sandstone. These are very old rocks. Near St Asaph, you can also find older rocks from the late Carboniferous period. These include Coal Measures mudstones and sandstones.
Long ago, during the ice ages, huge sheets of ice covered this area. When the ice melted, it left behind a layer of glacial till, which is a mix of clay, sand, and rocks. You can also see small, oval-shaped hills called drumlins along the western edge of the valley. These were formed by the moving ice. Finally, along the floodplains of the River Clwyd and its smaller rivers, you'll find alluvium. This is a type of soil deposited by flowing water.
