Dolbadarn Castle: The Imprisoned Prince

Dolbadarn Castle rises dramatically on a rocky knoll overlooking Llyn Padarn in Snowdonia, its distinctive round tower silhouetted against the mountains. Built by Llywelyn the Great in the early 13th century, this Welsh-built fortress witnessed one of medieval Wales’ most tragic family conflicts—the imprisonment of Prince Owain Goch by his brother Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. The ghost of the imprisoned prince is said to still haunt the tower where he spent over two decades in captivity.

The Tragic History of Owain Goch

Owain Goch ap Gruffydd was the eldest son of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn and should have inherited his father’s territories. However, after their father’s death in 1244, the three brothers—Owain, Llywelyn, and Dafydd—contested the succession. In 1255, Owain and his younger brother Llywelyn defeated Dafydd in battle, but shortly afterward, around 1255, Llywelyn turned on Owain, imprisoning him in Dolbadarn Castle’s great tower.

Owain Goch remained a prisoner in the round tower for over 20 years while his brother Llywelyn ap Gruffudd became Llywelyn the Last, Prince of Wales. Owain was finally released in 1277, a broken man, and died shortly afterward. His decades of imprisonment in the isolated tower, watching through narrow windows as life and freedom passed him by, left an indelible psychic impression on Dolbadarn Castle.

The Tower Haunting

The castle’s most prominent feature is its distinctive round tower, rising 40 feet above the rocky outcrop. It is here that Owain Goch’s spirit manifests most frequently. Visitors climbing the narrow spiral staircase to the tower’s upper chambers report an overwhelming sense of despair and confinement. Some experience difficulty breathing, as if the walls are closing in, reflecting the suffocating decades of imprisonment.

The ghost of Owain Goch himself has been seen as a gaunt, bearded figure in tattered noble clothing, standing at the tower’s windows or pacing the small chamber that served as his prison cell. Witnesses describe him as a tragic, haunted presence, his face bearing the mark of long suffering. He appears to gaze out over Llyn Padarn and toward the Snowdonian peaks, perhaps looking toward the freedom and princely life denied him.

Sounds of Desperation

The most commonly reported paranormal phenomenon at Dolbadarn is the sound of desperate pacing—heavy footsteps walking back and forth, back and forth, in the confined space of the tower chamber. This pacing continues for long periods, suggesting the restless movement of a man driven nearly mad by decades of solitary confinement. The footsteps are sometimes accompanied by muttering or low moaning in Welsh, though the words are indistinct.

Visitors have also reported hearing the rattling of chains, though historical records don’t confirm whether Owain was actually shackled. The chains may be a psychic impression of his captivity rather than a literal historical detail, or they may represent the invisible chains of betrayal by his own brother.

The Window Apparition

The tower’s narrow window slits, designed for defense, became Owain’s only connection to the outside world during his imprisonment. Multiple witnesses have reported seeing a figure standing at these windows when viewing the castle from a distance, particularly at dawn and dusk. The figure appears to be looking out over the landscape with what observers describe as profound longing and sadness. When visitors climb to the chamber, they find it empty, yet the sense of a recent presence lingers.

Photography taken of the tower frequently captures anomalies—unexplained shadows at the windows, light formations that resemble a human figure, or atmospheric distortions that some interpret as the energy signature of Owain’s trapped spirit.

Emotional Residue

Beyond visual and auditory manifestations, Dolbadarn Castle’s tower is notorious for the intense emotions it evokes in visitors. Sensitive individuals report sudden waves of profound sadness, anger, and betrayal when entering the tower chamber. Some visitors experience unexpected emotional reactions—tears, anxiety, or claustrophobia—that dissipate as soon as they leave the tower.

These emotional impressions may be a form of residual haunting, the psychic echo of decades of suffering imprinted on the stone walls. The betrayal by a brother, the loss of rightful inheritance, the endless years of watching life continue beyond reach—all these powerful emotions seem to have saturated the tower’s very fabric.

The Landscape Setting

The castle’s location amplifies its haunted atmosphere. Dolbadarn stands isolated beneath the looming peaks of Snowdonia, surrounded by dark lakes and steep mountain slopes. Mist frequently rises from Llyn Padarn, wreathing the castle in atmospheric conditions that seem to bring the past closer to the present. The tower’s silhouette against dramatic Welsh skies creates a naturally gothic scene that has inspired artists including J.M.W. Turner, whose 1800 painting of Dolbadarn helped establish the Romantic vision of Welsh ruins.

Modern Paranormal Activity

Contemporary visitors continue to report experiences consistent with Owain Goch’s haunting. Park rangers and Cadw staff have documented numerous accounts of:

• The sound of pacing in the empty tower
• A male figure seen at the windows
• Sudden temperature drops in the tower chamber
• Feelings of being watched or unwelcome
• Electronic equipment malfunctioning near the tower
• Photographs capturing unexplained anomalies

The consistency of these reports across decades, from visitors unaware of the castle’s tragic history, lends credence to the haunting. Many witnesses only learn about Owain Goch after reporting their experiences, discovering that their impressions match the historical reality.

A Welsh Tragedy

Dolbadarn Castle’s haunting resonates because it embodies a particularly Welsh tragedy—the fratricidal conflicts that weakened native Welsh resistance to English conquest. While Owain languished in the tower, his brother Llywelyn fought to maintain Welsh independence, only to be killed in 1282. The English conquest Llywelyn opposed was perhaps made easier by the Welsh princes’ tendency to fight each other rather than their common enemy.

Whether Owain Goch’s spirit truly walks the tower where he was imprisoned, or whether the intense suffering of those decades has left an emotional imprint that sensitive individuals can perceive, Dolbadarn Castle remains a place of profound sadness—a monument to lost freedom, betrayed brotherhood, and the human cost of medieval power struggles. The lonely tower overlooking Llyn Padarn stands as both a defensive fortification and a prison of the soul, its haunted reputation a testament to the very human tragedy that unfolded within its stone walls.