The history of Maenan Abbey starts in 1277.
In that year Edward I having defeated Llewellyn ap Gruffydd (Llewelyn the Last), in order to strengthen his hold on north
Wales built a chain of castles along the coast commencing at Conwy in 1283. Unfortunately at the very spot he intended to
build his new castle and walled town there was a monastery. Edward therefore decided to move the monks of Aberconwy elsewhere.
Compensation of £40 was paid for the land lost at Conwy and a new site chosen here at Maenan. The king bought the land and
gave the monks money and building materials to help them construct their new abbey here at Maenan.
The Abbey was extremely powerful and at one
point reputed to own over 38,000 acres. It was also once the burial place of the Princes of Gwynedd with Llewellyn the Great
himself being buried here. The abbey stood on this site until it was dissolved by Henry VIII in March 1537 when the materials
from the abbey were used to make repairs to the castle walls at Caernarfon and the remaining stone, timber, lead, slates and
glass were sold to the gentry who were building mansions along the Conwy valley. At this time the remains of Llewellyn disappeared
with only the bottom half of his stone sarcophagus being recovered from the river in Llanrwst. This is now to be found in
the local church of St Crwst.
In 1599 the land passed to the Wynne family
who constructed a house on the site. Only the cellars remain of this house below the north wing of the current house.
The present structure built of
local granite was constructed between 1851 and 1854 by the Elias family who lived here for much of the 19th century.
