Julius Caesar Ibbetson, Conway Castle: Moonlight Effect, 1794. Source: Victoria and Albert Museum.

The scenery of North Wales, as yet untrammelled by the incursions of industry, drew 18th- and early 19th-century travellers and artists in search of the sublime wildness associated with that part of Britain. The massive castle and town walls of Conwy (or Conway as the English called it) had been built by Edward I between 1283 and 1289 and had helped to complete the conquest of the Welsh princes. The castle was finally abandoned in 1685, so it had been in slow decay for over 100 years when this picture was painted.