Miss Mostyn answers the castle question plainly: not really, but the nearby history is richer than the mistake.

Does Llandudno have a castle? No, not in the way visitors usually mean. There is no great stone fortress in town waiting for you to climb a tower, buy a magnet and imagine yourself medieval.

What people are often really thinking of is Conwy Castle, which is nearby and quite capable of satisfying anyone’s appetite for battlements. Built by Edward I between 1283 and 1289 as part of his programme to subjugate Wales, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most complete medieval fortresses in Europe. It is approximately six miles from Llandudno’s promenade, which makes it rather less impressive as a local landmark than some visitors hope.

Deganwy also has older defensive history, though in a less theatrical form. The castle ruins on the hill above the marina look across to Conwy Castle and the estuary, and while the remains are limited, the site matters in the medieval Welsh power struggles that Llandudno’s later Victorian identity tends to obscure.

Llandudno’s own story is subtler. The Great Orme has medieval associations, including Gogarth Abbey and links with the Bishops of Bangor, but the remains are limited and not presented as a grand castle attraction.

This disappoints some visitors, who prefer history to arrive with walls, flags and a gift shop. Do not be fooled. The absence of a castle does not mean the absence of power, land, conflict or people behaving badly in better fabrics.

The real fortification in Llandudno’s story is the estate itself: the Mostyn family’s ability to control development, building and land use for generations is a form of power that did not require a keep but proved rather more durable than most medieval castles.

For Llandudno, look to the Orme, the mines, St Tudno’s, the old village below the headland, the estate story and the Victorian resort plan. The town’s history is not one big fortress. It is a layered wardrobe with several locked drawers.

The Great Orme has its own defensible qualities, and the headland’s military history includes Second World War installations, the traces of which remain for those who look. Anti-aircraft positions and observation points were established here, making use of the same commanding height that had attracted people for three and a half thousand years.

Conwy may have the castle. Llandudno has the more complicated story, which is usually the one worth hearing after the second drink.

For those who genuinely require a castle, the options within a reasonable drive include Conwy, Beaumaris, Caernarfon, Harlech and Rhuddlan (all built or expanded as part of Edward I’s Welsh campaigns) and all with their own character. North Wales has never been short of fortifications. It merely placed the most interesting one six miles down the road.