(1567) PROMONTORY FORT on Trwyn Porth Dinllaen. This\u00a0long narrow promontory, extending northwards for about\u00a0II50 yds., is the most prominent headland on the north coast\u00a0of Caernarvonshire. The sides rise steeply in cliffs about 50 ft.\u00a0high, reaching 100 ft. along part of the E. side. The top is\u00a0level or gently undulating, varying in width from 130 yds.\u00a0to 300 yds. The sheltered bay to the E. is the only good\u00a0natural harbour and landing place between Caernarvon and\u00a0Bardsey.<\/p>\n
Dinllaen is the ancient name of the fort, from which is\u00a0derived that of the commote in which it stands.<\/p>\n
Banks and ditches cut across the promontory 500 yds. from\u00a0its N. tip, protecting an area of about 14 acres. The southernmost\u00a0line of defence, much mutilated, is recognisable immediately\u00a0W. of Ty-coch Inn. Only its western half is preserved\u00a0(SH 27454157), for a length of about 130 ft. This consists\u00a0of a flat-bottomed ditch some 36 ft. wide, with an inner side\u00a05 ft. high, and a rounded counterscarp bank about 15ft. wide\u00a0and 3 ft. high. There is now no sign of a bank on the inner\u00a0lip of the ditch, but there are vague remains of one along the\u00a0E. half of this defensive line, where the ditch and counterscarp\u00a0have been obliterated by the cutting of a road leading\u00a0down to the E. beach. Likewise at the extreme W. end the\u00a0tail of the inner face of the ditch has been cut into and has\u00a0disclosed a gravel make-up that may be the last remains of a\u00a0bank.<\/p>\n
A space averaging 200 ft. wide separates this rampart from\u00a0the northern line of defence which lies N.W. of Ty-coch Inn\u00a0and consists of a high bank of which only the E. half is preserved,\u00a0for a length of about 120 ft. (SH 27504162). This is\u00a0grassgrown, about 40 ft. wide at the base, 15ft. high on the\u00a0outer (S.) side and 6 ft. high on the inner, with an inner quarry\u00a0ditch 30 ft. wide. There is no outer ditch. Erosion shows this\u00a0bank also to be of sand and gravel.
\nThere are no remains of authentic antiquity within the\u00a0defended area. On the E. side of the promontory, on the edge\u00a0of the cliff immediately N. of the Ty-coch Inn (SH 27604164),\u00a0is a vague square enclosure, about 36 ft. each way, with a low\u00a0mound in the centre. Nine yards to the W. is an oval hollow,\u00a015 ft. by 12 ft., with an entrance at the N. end. These were\u00a0visible in 1918, but their purpose is unknown and their\u00a0antiquity doubtful; they are probably the result of turfcutting. \u00a0A similar rectangular hollow just to the N., from\u00a0which turf has recently been stripped, will look much the\u00a0same when the grass has re-grown.<\/p>\n
At the extreme N. end of the headland (SH 27734201) is a\u00a0long rectangular building, 88 ft. by 20 ft., divided into four\u00a0equal compartments, with grassgrown walls 2 ft. high; an\u00a0observer in 1918 was informed locally that the remains were\u00a0the foundations of cottages for men employed in the construction\u00a0of the road and other works at the projected harbour.<\/p>\n
Features that might be taken for a ditch and counterscarp\u00a0bank on the E. side of the promontory at its extreme S. end\u00a0(SH 27644103) are also not ancient. The ‘ditch’ is the last\u00a0remnant of a sunken track, and the ‘countcrscarp bank’ is a\u00a0modern field boundary. Condition: greatly mutilated.<\/p>\n SH 27504160 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a01 x 57 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a031 N.E.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" (1567) PROMONTORY FORT on Trwyn Porth Dinllaen. This\u00a0long narrow promontory, extending northwards for about\u00a0II50 yds., is the most prominent headland on the north coast\u00a0of Caernarvonshire. The sides rise steeply in cliffs about 50 ft.\u00a0high, reaching 100 ft. along part of the E. side. The top is\u00a0level or gently undulating, varying in width from 130 yds.\u00a0to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":133,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/135"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=135"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":136,"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/135\/revisions\/136"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/crwydro.co.uk\/nefyn\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nHemp (Arch. Camb.<\/em>, 1923, p. 148) records the occurrence of
\nfragments of flint ‘on the cliffs inside and outside the camp’.<\/p>\n