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Tours > Wales > Oswestry, Shropshire
Oswestry (Croeswallt: Croyswath't), Shropshire
Oswestry is an English town, west of Offa's Dyke, yet for centuries it has retained a Welsh character, and many of its inhabitants right up to the middle of this century were Welsh-speaking. The town was in the middle of the constant fighting between Welsh and English during the Middle Ages and few buildings survived. St. Oswald's Church dates from the 13th century, but was badly damaged by the forces of Parliament during the English Civil Wars. Within its grounds is the Holbache Museum of Childhood.
An interesting feature of Oswestry's Llwyd Mansion is the double-headed eagle crest of Austria, the insignia of the Holy Roman Empire, granted to a member of the Llwyd family for services in the Crusades (Llwyd: thlooid is the Welsh for "Grey"; it is rendered in English as Lloyd).
Just outside town, and easily missed by traffic speeding by on the new bypass, is Old Oswestry, an impressive Iron-Age Hillfort. Its grassy, cattle-covered slopes can be seen from the B5069 leading north to Chirk.
Next Stop: Llanfyllyn and Dolwar Fach
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