Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for SNOWDON

SNOWDON, a mountain in Carnarvonshire; culminating at an altitude of 3,571 feet, 9½ miles SE of Carnarvon. It is known to the Welsh as Eryri, signifying ''eagle top;" it comprises four rugged and precipitous ridges, separated by caverns or hollows, about 1,000 feet deep; it consists chiefly of slate and porphyry; it presents a rich variety of picturesque, romantic, and savage close scenery; it commands most magnificent and extensive panoramic views; it connects with offshoots, spurs, and subordinate heights, extending from near the river Conway to near the Irish Sea, and constituting the region of Snowdonia; it was anciently all forest, but was divided into several manors, under the Crown, in the time of Edward I.; it was frequented for deer-hunting so late as 1626; and it has been celebrated in description and in song, by multitudes of writers. Drayton says,-

For Snowdony, a hill, imperiall in his seat,
Is from his mighty foote unto his head, so greate,
That were his Wales distrest, or of his helpe had neede,
Hee all her flocks and heards for many months coulde feede.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a mountain"   (ADL Feature Type: "mountains")
Administrative units: Caernarvonshire AncC
Place names: ERYRI     |     SNOWDON
Place: Snowdon

Go to the linked place page for a location map, and for access to other historical writing about the place. Pages for linked administrative units may contain historical statistics and information on boundaries.