Let's try this again. Only one picture per entry.

Conwy Castle in Wales

is (the Wiki) on the north coast, built between 1283 and 1289 during King Edward I's second campaign in North Wales.

Conwy replaced an earlier stronghold that had been destroyed by Llywelyn the Last in 1263.

I wonder if folks called Llywelyn "the Last" before or after his demise.

Someone talked me into visiting Bodiam Castle during my first circumlocution of England in 2005. Castles weren't really my thing. Romantic and all that, but if I couldn't put a piece of literature or history with it, a castle didn't make my list. I had learned, however, that even as historically irrelevant (to me) Bodiam Castle may have been, the journey there was worth the price of admission as it took me down a country lane which convinced me that the literary landscape I was looking for could still be found.

My daughter Caroline was all about the castles for her first foray beyond the bounds of London. Wales is awash with them, not because the Welsh themselves were besot with castles. Quite the contrary. Most Welsh castles were built to house the English garrisons and keep the Welsh in check. Nevertheless, today these castles are kept in check by the Welsh and visits are parceled out for those who wish to visit them in exchange for coin on the realm.