Chirk (Y Waun) is a town on the Welsh-English border in the historic county of Clwyd and before than Denbighshire (though nowdays officially in the Wrexham County Borough).
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| Old house in Chirk |
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| County: | Clwyd |
| District: | Wrexham |
| Population: | 4,468 (2011 census) |
Chirk may take it's name from the river Ceiriog which flows next to the town. The Welsh name Y Waun means The Moor. As a town on the border, Chirk was in a position of importance. Chirk castle was built in 1295 as part of King Edward I's border defences. The castle is well preserved and is now a National Trust property. The Normans built the parish church of St Mary in the 11th century though an earlier church dedicated to St Tysilio existed on the site.
Chirk was a stop on the mail coach route from London to Holyhead, in latter times the Llangollen Canal was built through Chirk. Thomas Telford built an aqueduct to allow the canal to cross the Ceiriog valley. Next to the aqueduct is a railway viaduct built in the late 1840s. Chirk railway station opened in 1848.
Chirk was a coal mining community from the 17th to 20th centuries though the mines are now closed. Agriculture and tourism are important to the town though there are some manufacturers still in the town including Cadbury.
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| Inside St Mary's |
