Ancient history Shotton's history dates back around 1000 years to Saxon times. with 14 households. As a border region, the Deeside area was subject to frequent conflict between the Welsh and the English in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In the Battle of Ewloe in 1157,
Owain Gwynedd inflicted a notable defeat on the forces of
Henry II.
Ewloe Castle was built by
Llywelyn the Great in the early thirteenth century to secure the area. Llywelyn's son and successor,
Dafydd ap Llywelyn, was born in nearby
Coleshill in 1212.
Recent history Until industrialisation in the nineteenth century, Shotton remained a cluster of hamlets: a settlement comprising Shotton, Nine Houses and Shotton Hall, which itself dates back to 1637. Coal mining developed in the eighteenth century, then in 1889 the opening of the Hawarden Railway Bridge over the River Dee improved access to the reclaimed Dee Marshes. Following this, in 1895, the Summers family purchased of Dee marshland, on which they established Shotton Steelworks. In September 1896, Shotton Steelworks began producing sheet steel. The development of this steelworks on the banks of the River Dee changed an area that was once mainly marshland, with Shotton – just across the Dee – previously little more than a hamlet. Shotton Steelworks led to the development of whole communities to house the influx of workers, estimated up to 13,000 at the height of the industry, with Shotton and Connah's Quay Jetty hubs of activity serving the steelworks. There were also brickworks and other industries in and around Shotton, and Connah's Quay developed as a town on the banks of the
Dee Estuary, becoming known for its shipbuilding industry. ==Education==