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Coordinates: 53°17'40?N 3°27'51?W? / ?53.29446, -3.46426
Rhuddlan (pronounced IPA: ['r???ð.lan], approximately "RITH-lan") is a town in the county of Denbighshire (previously in Clwyd and before 1974 in the former county of Flintshire), in north Wales. It is situated to the south of the coastal town of Rhyl and overlooks the River Clwyd. The town gave its name to the Welsh district of Rhuddlan from 1974 to 1996.
[edit] History
The town is known for the ruins of Rhuddlan Castle, built by Edward I of England from 1277 to 1282 and the site of another castle at Twthill, built by the Norman Robert of Rhuddlan about 1072.
The town was also the location where Edward I signed the Statute of Rhuddlan, laying down the way by which the Principality of Wales, created by the princes of Gwynedd, was to be governed.
Rhuddlan railway station was part of the Vale of Clwyd Railway, it closed in the 1960s.
A fossil of a pterosaur was believed to have been discovered in Rhuddlan in the early 1990s.
In 2001, a bypass road was completed, easing access to Rhyl and since then the centre of Rhuddlan has been redeveloped.
[edit] Notable people
Photographer Philip Jones Griffiths, well known for his photographs during the Vietnam War was born in Rhuddlan.
Famous former residents include Lisa Scott-Lee of pop band Steps and her brother Andy Scott-Lee.
Wales and Real Sociedad footballer David Vaughan was born in Rhuddlan.
One of the original Reliant Regal three wheeled vans from the BBC TV sitcom Only Fools And Horses is owned by a couple in Rhuddlan.[citation needed]
[edit] Rhuddlan Community Recycling Centre
Denbighshire County Council's (DCC) controversial plans to build a recycling centre off the A525 [1], to the south of the village, have been scrapped [1].
The local council faced very strong, and very public, condemnation of their plans. Rhuddlan's residents, Professor David Bellamy and CADW, voiced their opposition to the proposal based on a number of factors:
- The area is of environmental importance with otters and other rare wildlife nearby.
- The site was to be a few hundred metres from, and in clear view of, the historically important Rhuddlan Castle.
- The proposed site was to be located on a flood plain below the River Clwyd's mean tidal point.
- Commerce in Rhuddlan is heavily reliant on tourism, the recycling centre would have detracted from the natural beauty of the area.
- The site would have lead to a dramatic increase in road traffic. Primarily due to the planned closures of recycling centres in the larger settlements of Rhyl and Prestatyn.
- The amalgamation of the existing two facilities in Rhyl and Prestatyn, to one at the edge of the small village of Rhuddlan, would also increase the distance for waste transportation from the larger settlements by at least 8 miles.
The council claimed their dramatic u-turn was primarily due to the formal objection from the Environment Agency[2]. The agency asked Denbighshire Council to assert the site would be suitable to withstand flooding and rising sea levels caused by global warming. Steve Parker[3], head of environmental services at DCC, said: "The cost of the mitigation measures was starting to outweigh the benefits of using this location."
The council said it would not be submitting any further planning applications for the site, and that it would be restored to its former condition.
[edit] References
(Source: Wikipedia) |