Denbigh from Ruthin

Denbigh is 10 miles north of Ruthin on the B5382 — close enough to combine with a Ruthin visit or to reach easily from a Ruthin base. It is a walled hill town with an Edwardian castle, a medieval town wall circuit, and a complicated history as the planned English borough that never fully displaced its Welsh context.

Denbigh Castle

Denbigh Castle was begun by Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, in 1282, immediately after Edward I's conquest of Wales. Like Ruthin, it was established as an English borough within conquered Welsh territory; like Ruthin, it has since become thoroughly Welsh. The castle is managed by Cadw and is open to visitors. The gatehouse is one of the most impressive in North Wales — three towers of deep red sandstone on a high ridge above the Vale of Clwyd.

The Town Walls

Denbigh retains substantial sections of its medieval town walls, including the Burgess Gate and the Leicester's Folly — the incomplete church begun by Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, in the 1570s, never finished, and now a romantic ruin. The wall circuit is walkable in under an hour.

St Marcella's Church

St Marcella's (Llanfarchell) church, on the edge of the town, has a medieval double-nave plan unusual in Wales and a notable set of carved monuments. It is worth a stop on the way back to Ruthin.

Getting There

Ruthin to Denbigh via the B5382 is about 25 minutes by car. There are bus connections but services are infrequent. The most efficient approach is to drive, combining Denbigh with Bodelwyddan (another 10 miles north) or St Asaph (12 miles from Denbigh) in a circular north Denbighshire day.