Transcribed from the 1833 T. T. and J. Tegg edition by David Price, email
ccx074@pglaf.org
[Picture: Book cover]
[Picture: The Mænai Bridge; Beaumaris Castle; Holyhead Church. London.
Published by T. T. & J. Tegg, Cheapside, Oct. 1st 1832]
SCENES
IN
NORTH WALES.
WITH
HISTORICAL ILLUSTRATIONS, LEGENDS,
AND
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES.
BY
G. N. WRIGHT, A. M. P. A. R. H. A.
AUTHOR OF “WELSH TOPOGRAPHY,” “ILLUSTRATIONS OF IRELAND,” ETC.
[Picture: Decorative graphic]
Embellished with Thirty-six Engravings.
* * * * *
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR T. T. AND J. TEGG, CHEAPSIDE:
R. GRIFFIN AND CO. GLASGOW;
J. CUMMING AND W. F. WAKEMAN, DUBLIN.
* * * * *
CHISWICK:
PRINTED BY C WHITTINGHAM.
* * * * *
PREFACE.
THERE is a local interest attached to mountain scenery, arising not only
from a natural concentration of grand and majestic objects, but also from
a spirit of independence and ardent love of liberty with which the
mountaineer, invariably, seems to be inspired.
The great deeds of Leonidas were done amidst the rocks and
glens;—Switzerland displays her hatred of tyranny in an undying affection
for the memory of Tell;—while from the chivalrous exploits of Glandwr,
brandishing high the torch of liberty, a stream of light has issued, that
seems to have poured its rays into the deepest recesses of his native
glens.
The demi-anarchy of the feudal system occasioned the erection, in
Gwynedd, of many stately castles, whose lonely ruins now adorn the petty
kingdoms they once overawed. And in the violent struggles of the ancient
Briton to preserve his wild home from Saxon intrusion, originated those
yet more splendid palaces, that illustrate like monuments, or like
medals, the history of those periods in which they were erected.
Notwithstanding the great power by which the Cambrians were overthrown,
and the healing measures subsequently pursued to obtain a willing
submission to their conquerors, the draught appears to have been
imbittered by the introduction of some ingredient not easily detected by
historical analysis; for, as a people, the ancient Britons are still
totally distinct from the parent state in customs, manners, dress, in
feelings, and in language. The tenacity with which they adhere to their
primitive tongue, tends to a dissociation from the greater part of the
empire, and contributes to the preservation, by intermarriages amongst
themselves and otherwise, of a state of society peculiar and
extraordinary as existing in the very bosom of the British isles.
The Isaurians were a small nation in the heart of the Roman empire; they
dwelt among mountains; they saw civilization on every side, yet they
rejected it with scorn, and, on occasion, found employment for the
legions through several ages.
The Cambrians have not despised civilization, but have rather so
engrafted it upon the ancient stem, that the variation in the tree is
scarce perceptible. The fruit however proves fair and wholesome. A
nation is produced, of such proverbial gentleness, that although the
envious attribute it to the obscurity of their abode, the legislature
must appreciate the moral value of subjects who are honest from a love of
justice, and governed without expense.
To illustrate the scenery of a country possessing so large a portion of
natural beauty, abounding in so many records of eminent persons and
remarkable events, and occupied by a peasantry peaceful, innocent, and
happy, presents a favourable opportunity for the production of a work
both of amusement and interest. If these ends shall not have been
happily attained, there is still one more valuable recommendation in
reserve, that is, the moral tendency of the whole.
The inhabitants of North and South Wales are to be considered as quite
distinct. They speak different dialects of the ancient language, are
sprung from a different ancestorial stock, and, in the Southern half of
the principality, the arts and manufactures of England are introduced and
cultivated with the most entire success.
The selection and arrangement of the graphic illustrations, which precede
each historic sketch, are influenced by two circumstances. First, a
desire to include scenes intimately connected with the most interesting
periods of local history, and, secondly, a wish to introduce a number of
picturesque views sufficient to convey a distinct idea of the peculiar
features of a country so romantic.
Notwithstanding the small cabinet size to which public convenience limits
each delineation, truth and expression will uniformly be found
associated, accompanied also by a clearness rarely attained in engravings
executed on such a miniature scale.