, also known as Carnarvonshire or, in
Welsh , as ''Sir Gaernarfon'', is a maritime
Traditional County of
Wales .
The county is bounded to the north by the
Irish Sea , to the east by
Denbighshire , to the south by
Cardigan Bay and
Merionethshire , and to the west by
Caernarfon Bay and the
Menai Strait , which separates it from
Anglesey . It has an area of 1,462 km² and a population of 128,000. The surface is mountainous. A large part of the
Snowdonia National Park lies in the county including
Yr Wyddfa , the highest mountain in
Wales at 1,085 m. The
Lleyn Peninsula is less mountaineous and contains many bays and sandy beaches.
Bardsey Island is a major site for nesting seabirds. The
River Conwy runs north along the eastern boundary.
Principal towns are
Bangor ,
Betws-y-Coed ,
Caernarfon ,
Conwy ,
Llandudno ,
Porthmadog and
Pwllheli . Sheep rearing and tourism are the main industries, the coast being much developed for the latter.
The county was originally created under the terms of the
Statute Of Rhuddlan in
1284 and included the ''
Cantrefi '' of:
and the ''
Commote '' of:
Caernarfonshire has a detached coastal portion near the town of
Llandulas that lies locally in Denbighshire. This has been omitted from the map opposite, and is shown as being part of Denbighshire.
Places of special interest: Bardsey Island (); Caernarfon Castle (); Conwy Castle (); Cricceith Castle (); Great Orme Tramway (); Gwydir Castle, nr. Llanrwst (); Penrhyn Castle (); Swallow Falls, Betws-y-Coed (); Snowdon Mountain Railway, Llanberis (); Ty Mawr Wybrnant ().
For administrative purposes, the county is divided between the
Unitary Authorities of
Gwynedd to the west and
Conwy to the east. Its own county council, established in 1889 was abolished in 1974.
