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Llandudno

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Great
Britain

               Llandudno

   Coordinates: 53.32° N 3.82° W
   Llandudno (United Kingdom)
   Llandudno
       Population      20,090
    OS grid reference  SH785815
     Principal area    Conwy
    Ceremonial county  Clwyd
   Constituent country Wales
     Sovereign state   United Kingdom
        Post town      LLANDUDNO
    Postcode district  LL30
        Dial code      01492
         Police        North Wales
          Fire         North Wales
        Ambulance      Welsh
      UK Parliament    Conwy
   European Parliament Wales
   List of places: UK • Wales • Conwy
   Llandudno South Parade (on the north shore) viewed from the Great Orme,
   with the twin mounds of Deganwy Castle in the distance
   Llandudno South Parade (on the north shore) viewed from the Great Orme,
   with the twin mounds of Deganwy Castle in the distance
   Llandudno Bay and the Little Orme viewed from the Great Orme
   Llandudno Bay and the Little Orme viewed from the Great Orme
   Llandudno Pier viewed from the Happy Valley gardens
   Llandudno Pier viewed from the Happy Valley gardens
   A sunny corner in the Happy Valley gardens
   A sunny corner in the Happy Valley gardens
   Llandudno - The Great Orme Marine Drive
   Llandudno - The Great Orme Marine Drive
   Mostyn Street stores and St. John's Methodist Church
   Mostyn Street stores and St. John's Methodist Church
   Venue Cymru - The North Wales Theatre near the centre of the promenade
   Venue Cymru - The North Wales Theatre near the centre of the promenade
   All the fun of the fair in Trinity Square at the Victorian Extravaganza
   All the fun of the fair in Trinity Square at the Victorian Extravaganza
   The Llandudno Lifeboat on the promenade
   The Llandudno Lifeboat on the promenade
   Open Air Sunday Morning Service at Saint Tudno's Church on the Great
   Orme
   Open Air Sunday Morning Service at Saint Tudno's Church on the Great
   Orme

   Llandudno (pronounced /ɬan.'dɪd.nɔ/) is a seaside resort and town on
   the North Wales coast between Conwy and Colwyn Bay, and at the 2001
   census had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and
   Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community. The town is just
   off the North Wales Coast railway line which was opened as the Chester
   and Holyhead Railway in 1848, became part of the London and North
   Western Railway in 1859, and part of the London, Midland and Scottish
   Railway in 1923. Llandudno was specifically built as a mid- Victorian
   era holiday destination and is served by a branch railway line opened
   in 1858 from Llandudno Junction with stations at Deganwy and Llandudno.

Attractions

   Llandudno, Queen of the Welsh Resorts, a title first implied as early
   as 1864 is now the largest seaside resort in Wales, and lies on a flat
   land between the Welsh mainland and the Great Orme peninsula. Llandudno
   takes its name from the ancient parish of Saint Tudno but also
   encompasses several neighbouring townships and districts including
   Craig-y-Don, Llanrhos, and Penrhyn Bay. Also nearby is the small town
   and marina of Deganwy, though this is part of the town of Conwy.

Llandudno Bay and the North Shore

   This wide sweep of sand and shingle extends two miles in a graceful
   curve between the headlands of the Great Orme and the Little Orme. For
   most of the distance on Llandudno's North Shore there is a wide curving
   Victorian promenade separated from the roadway by a strip of garden.
   The road, collectively known as The Parade, has a different name for
   each block and it is on these parades and crescents that many of
   Llandudno's hotels are built. Near the centre of the bay is the North
   Wales Theatre and next to it The North Wales Conference Centre. The
   Llandudno Yacht Club and a roundabout mark the end of this section of
   The Parade and beyond are more hotels and guest houses but they are in
   the township of Craig-y-Don. At Nant-y-Gamar road, The Parade becomes
   Colwyn Road with the fields of Bodafon Hall Farm on the landward side
   but with the promenade continuing until it ends in a large paddling
   pool for children and finally the Craigside residential development on
   the lower slopes of the Little Orme.

Llandudno Pier

   The town's award winning pier is on the North Shore; it was built in
   1878, and is 1,234 feet in length and a Grade II listed building.
   Looking back towards the town from the end of the pier, on a clear day
   one can see the mountains of Snowdonia rising over the town. A curious
   major extension of the pier in 1884 was in a landwards direction along
   the side of the Grand Hotel to provide a new entrance with a pier
   pavilion theatre at the North Parade end of the promenade, thus
   increasing the pier's length to 2,295 feet. In the summer, Professor
   Codman's Punch and Judy show (established in 1860) can be found on the
   promenade near the entrance to the Pier.

Great Orme

   This great limestone headland has many attractions for the tourist
   including the Great Orme Tramway that takes tourists effortlessly to
   the summit. Two features of the Great Orme should be mentioned here
   because the both start at the end of the promenade where North Parade
   becomes for a short distance Happy Valley Road, which in its turn
   becomes the Marine Drive.

Happy Valley

   The Happy Valley, a former quarry, was the gift of Lord Mostyn to the
   town in celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887.
   The area was landscaped and developed as gardens, two miniature golf
   courses, a putting green, a popular open air theatre and extensive
   lawns. The ceremonies connected with the Welsh National Eisteddfod were
   held there in 1896 and again in 1963. In June 1969, The Great Orme
   Cabin Lift, a modern alternative to the tramway, was opened with its
   base station adjacent to the open air theatre. The distance to the
   summit is just over one mile and the four-seater cabins travel at six
   m.p.h. on a continuous steel cable over two miles long. It is the
   longest single stage cabin lift in Britain and the longest span between
   pylons is over 1,000 feet. The popularity of open air theatre having
   declined, the theatre closed in the 1980s and likewise the two
   miniature golf courses closed and were converted in 1987 to create a
   280 metre artificial ski slope and toboggan run. The gardens were
   extensively restored as part of the resort's millennium celebrations
   and remain a major attraction.

Marine Drive

   The first route round the perimeter of the Great Orme was a footpath
   constructed in 1858 by Reginald Cust a Trustee of the Mostyn Estate. In
   1872 the Great Ormes Head Marine Drive Co. Ltd. was formed to turn the
   path into a carriage road. Following bankruptcy, a second company
   completed the road in 1878. The contractors for the scheme were Mssrs
   Hughes, Morris, Davies, a consortium led by Richard Hughes of
   Llandudno. The road was bought by Llandudno Urban District Council in
   1897. The four mile drive (it is one way only) starts at the foot of
   the Happy Valley and is a pleasant drive or an excellent walk. After
   about one and a half miles, a side road leads to St. Tudno's Church,
   the Great Orme Bronze Age Copper Mine, and the Summit of the Great
   Orme. But, continuing on the Marine Drive one passes the Great Orme
   Lighthouse (no longer operational) and at the half way point the 'Rest
   and be thankful' Café is very popular with both walkers and motorists.
   This is almost the highest point on the drive and it is down hill for
   two miles to the West Shore.

West Shore

   The West Shore is the quiet beach on the estuary of the River Conwy. It
   was here at Pen Morfa that Alice Liddell (of Alice in Wonderland fame)
   spent the long summer holidays of her childhood from 1862 to 1871.
   There are few hotels and a few quiet residential streets. The West
   Shore is linked to the North Shore by Gloddaeth Avenue, a wide dual
   carriageway.

Mostyn Street

   Running behind the promenade is Mostyn Street leading to Mostyn
   Broadway and then Mostyn Avenue. These are the main shopping streets of
   Llandudno and Craig-y-Don. Mostyn Street accommodates the high street
   shops, the major banks and building societies, two churches, amusement
   arcades and the town public library. The latter is the starting point
   for the Town Trail a carefully planned walk to facilitate the viewing
   of Llandudno in an historical perspective.

Victorian Extravaganza

   Every year in May Bank Holiday weekend, Llandudno has a great three-day
   Victorian Carnival and Mostyn Street becomes a fairground. Madoc Street
   and Gloddaeth Street and the Promenade become part of the route each
   day of a mid-day carnival parade. The Bodafon Farm fields become the
   location of a Festival of Transport for the weekend.

Alice in Wonderland

   Llandudno has a link with Lewis Carroll; because the family of the
   "real Alice" regularly spent holidays at their holiday-home Penmorfa,
   later the Gogarth Abbey Hotel and recently the Penmorfa Hotel on the
   West Shore of Llandudno. Contrary to local myth, Alice Liddell did not
   meet Carroll in the town, and was not told the Alice stories in the
   town. It is, however, just possible that she may have first read the
   Alice books in print while on holiday in the town. There is no evidence
   that Carroll ever visited Penmorfa, and he probably would have been
   unwelcome if he had. Indeed, there is contrary evidence; a letter
   exists, written by one of Alice Liddell's sisters when grown-up, saying
   she had no memory of Carroll ever visiting the girls in Llandudno.

Venue Cymru

   The North Wales Theatre, Arena and Conference Centre, built in 1995,
   extended in 2006 and renamed " Venue Cymru" is located near the centre
   of the promenade on Penrhyn Crescent. It is noted for its productions
   of Opera, Orchestral Concerts, Ballet, Musicals, Drama, Circus, Ice
   Shows and Pantomime.

Llandudno Lifeboat

   Llandudno is unique within the United Kingdom in that its lifeboat
   station is located inland, allowing it to launch with equal facility
   from either the West Shore or the North Shore as needed. Llandudno's
   active volunteer crews are called out more than ever with the rapidly
   increasing numbers of small pleasure craft sailing in coastal waters.
   The Llandudno Lifeboat is normally on display on the promenade every
   Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday from May until October.

Early History of Llandudno

   The town of Llandudno developed from stone age, bronze age and iron age
   settlements over many hundreds of years on the slopes of the limestone
   headland, known to seafarers as the Great Orme and to landsmen as the
   Creuddyn peninsular. The origins in recorded history are with the Manor
   of Gogarth conveyed by King Edward I to Annan, Bishop of Bangor in
   1284. The manor comprised three townships, Y Gogarth in the south-west,
   Y Cyngreawdr in the north (with the parish church of St. Tudno) and Yn
   Wyddfid in the south-east. By 1847 the town had grown to a thousand
   persons served by the new church of St. George, built in 1840, the
   great majority of the men working in the copper mines with others
   employed in fishing and subsistence agriculture.

   In 1848, Owen Williams, an architect and surveyor from Liverpool,
   presented Lord Mostyn with plans to develop the marsh lands behind
   Llandudno Bay as a holiday resort. These were enthusiastically pursued
   by Lord Mostyn. The influence of the Mostyn Estate and its agents over
   the years was to become paramount in the development of Llandudno and
   especially after the appointment of George Felton as surveyor and
   architect in 1857. During the years 1857 to 1877 much of central
   Llandudno was developed under Felton's supervision. George Felton also
   undertook architectural design work including the design and execution
   of Holy Trinity Church in Mostyn Street.

Churches

   The ancient parish church dedicated to Saint Tudno stands in a hollow
   near the northern point of the Great Orme and two miles from the
   present town. It was established as an oratory by Tudno, a sixth
   century monk, but the present church dates from the 12th century and it
   is still used on summer Sunday mornings. It was the Anglican parish
   church of Llandudno until that status was transferred first to St
   George’s (now closed) and later to Holy Trinity Church in Mostyn
   Street.

   The principal Christian Churches of Llandudno are members of Cytûn
   (churches together) and include the Church in Wales (Holy Trinity and
   also Saint Paul's at Craig-y-Don), the Roman Catholic Church of Our
   Lady Star of the Sea, Saint John’s Methodist Church, Gloddaeth United
   Church ( Presbyterian), Assemblies of God ( Pentecostal), Llandudno
   Baptist Church, St. David's Methodist Church at Craig-y-Don, the Coptic
   Orthodox Church of Saint Mary and Saint Abasikhiron, and Eglwys Unedig
   Gymraeg Llandudno (the United Welsh Church of Llandudno). These
   churches all have fine buildings.

   A high profile member of the local Methodist community is The Revd
   Roger Roberts, now Lord Roberts of Llandudno, Liberal Democrat
   Spokesman for International Development in the House of Lords.

Area features

   Bodysgallen Hall is a manor house nearby to the south near the village
   of Llanrhos. This listed historical building derives primarily from the
   17th century, and has several later additions. Bodysgallen was
   constructed as a tower house in the Middle Ages to serve as defensive
   support for nearby Conwy Castle.

Links with Wormhout and Mametz

   Llandudno is twinned with the Flemish town of Wormhout ten miles from
   Dunkirk. It was there that many members of the Llandudno-based 69th
   Territorial Regiment were ambushed and taken prisoner. Later, at nearby
   Esquelbecq on 28 May 1940, the prisoners were shot.

   During the 1914–18 war the Llandudno Brigade ( Royal Welch Fusiliers) a
   major part of the 38th Welsh Division took part in the Battle of the
   Somme and the Llandudno Brigade was ordered to take Mametz Wood. Two
   days of fighting brought about the total destruction of Mametz village
   by shelling. After the war, the people of Llandudno (including
   returning survivors from the 38th Welsh Division) contributed
   generously to the fund for the reconstruction of the village of Mametz.

Cultural connections

   Llandudno hosted the Welsh National Eisteddfod in 1864, 1896 and 1963.

   Matthew Arnold gives a vivid and lengthy description of 1860s Llandudno
   – and of the ancient tales of Taliesin and Maelgwn that are associated
   with the local landscape — in the first sections of the preface to On
   the Study of Celtic Literature (1867).

   Queen Elisabeth of Romania, the writer Carmen Sylva, stayed in
   Llandudno for five weeks in 1890 and on taking her leave described
   Wales as "a beautiful haven of peace". Translated into Welsh as "hardd,
   hafan, hedd" it became the town's official motto.

   Other famous people with links to Llandudno include the Victorian
   Statesman John Bright and multi-capped Welsh international footballers
   Neville Southall and Joey Jones. Australian ex- PM the late Billy
   Hughes attended school in Llandudno.

   The international art gallery, Oriel Mostyn is situated in Vaughan
   Street next to the post office. It was built in 1902 to house the art
   collection of Lady Augusta Mostyn. It was requisitioned in 1914 for use
   as an Army drill hall and later became a warehouse before being
   returned to use as an art gallery in 1979.

   Llandudno is home to a Hebrew Centre in Church Walks, which serves the
   local Jewish population - one of few in North Wales.
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