Beaumaris Castle: The Perfect Fortress, Imperfect Peace

Beaumaris Castle represents the pinnacle of medieval military architecture—a perfectly symmetrical concentric castle that was never finished. Begun in 1295, it was the last of Edward I’s Iron Ring fortresses, designed to complete the subjugation of Wales. But funds ran out, and the castle remained incomplete. Perhaps fittingly, the ghosts that walk its walls also seem incomplete—fragments of lives cut short.

The History

The Final Fortress

After a Welsh uprising in 1294-1295, Edward I determined to build a new castle on Anglesey to control the Menai Strait. The town of Llanfaes was cleared to make way for the fortification, its Welsh inhabitants forcibly relocated.

Never Completed

Despite its architectural brilliance, Beaumaris was never finished:

• Work slowed after 1298 due to Scottish wars
• The towers were never raised to their intended height
• The inner walls remained incomplete
• The castle never saw significant military action

The Hauntings

The Incomplete Builders

Workmen who died during construction are said to still labor on the castle:

• The sound of hammering and stone-cutting
• Ghostly scaffolding appearing against the walls
• Figures in medieval worker’s clothes
• They seem frustrated, still trying to complete their task

The Displaced Townsfolk

The Welsh people removed from Llanfaes have left their mark:

• Voices speaking Welsh near the moat
• Figures appearing to be searching for something lost
• A sense of displacement and sorrow
• Particularly active on the anniversary of the town’s destruction

The Chapel Ghost

A priestly figure has been seen in the castle chapel area:

• Dressed in medieval religious garb
• Appears to be performing services
• Vanishes when approached
• Accompanied by the smell of incense

The Weeping Woman

A woman in white has been seen and heard:

• Walking the castle’s inner ward
• The sound of weeping
• Associated with childbirth or infant death
• Some believe she was a noblewoman who lost a child here

Modern Activity

Visitors and staff report:

• Cold spots that move through the castle
• EMF fluctuations in the chapel area
• Photographs capturing unexplained mists
• The feeling of being watched from empty towers

Visiting

Beaumaris Castle is a UNESCO World Heritage Site managed by Cadw. Despite being unfinished, it remains one of the finest examples of medieval castle design in Europe—and one of Wales’s most subtly haunted sites.

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Beaumaris Castle was meant to be perfect but was never completed. The spirits within seem caught in the same liminal state—present but not quite whole, haunting but not quite at rest.