26 C O N T E X T 1 2 1 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 Annual School ual School 2011 ool 2011 IHBC An 11 IHBC Annual S HBC Annual School School 2011 IHBC IHBC Annual Scho Gwydir Castle family), was taken into guardianship in 1993. Since then it has been restored. The lime rendering of the exterior was particularly controversial. Nothing quite prepares the visitor for the boldness, bright colours and downright weirdness of the internal plasterwork. The tour was treated to a lunch hosted by Cadw. A ‘15th century physician’ entertains delegates in the setting of the fine lime plasterwork of a Plas Mawr interior Plas Mawr: the view through the archway to the main courtyard and, below, the view from the street (Photos: Jonathan Taylor and Fiona Newton) The river is bridged by Telford’s 1826 suspension bridge, now in the care of the National Trust, Stephenson’s 1849 tubular railway bridge, and the plain 1958 road bridge. The Telford Bridge survives only because in 1958 Conwy people voted 1,800 in favour and 1,200 against its preservation. From here we moved on to the Quay, improved in 2007.Tempted by Conwy mussels, we went to the ‘Smallest House in Britain’ – once, amazingly, occupied by a 6ft 3in fisherman. The group split, with some going to Aberconwy House, the only surviving 15th-century merchant’s house, and the others climbing the town walls. From here the views are magnificent, the only blot being the 1960s library. Conwy offers a feast for those interested in history, the historic environment and broader townscape management.The expertise of our guides was supported by the enviable quality of the Cadw and National Trust guidebooks, the former in particular being exemplary. Malcolm A Cooper and John Preston
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjgyMjA=