As part of his efforts to contain, and then conquer, the Welsh principality of Gwynedd, Edward I built a series of castles. These have been hailed as the very heights of medieval castle design; UNESCO, for instance, lists them as ‘the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe’. This talk will explore various aspects of the purpose, design and building of these castles. It will discuss their intended military and political functions, and the use of deliberate historical symbolism in their design and siting; it will raise some of the practical issues of building and garrisoning such enormous edifices; and it will examine the sources of their architectural design: just how innovative were they? And can their design really be attributed to the genius of a single overarching ‘mastermind’?

Dr Andy King is a Lecturer in History at the University of Southampton. His interests include Anglo-Scottish relations in the late Middle Ages; chivalry and the conduct of late medieval warfare; concepts of treason and rebellion; chronicles and historical writing; and castles. Amongst other work, he co-authored a monograph with Anne Curry, Adrian Bell and David Simpkin: The Soldier in Later Medieval England; and has co-edited collections of essays with David Simpkin: England and Scotland at War, c.1296-c.1513; and, with Andrew Spencer, Edward I: New Interpretations.

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