Tag: castle

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Castles and Great Houses – Glamorgan History Walks

Castell Coch

Wales is famous for its castles. More per square mile than anywhere else in the world apparently. Over 600 in total and that doesn’t include those which are little more than bumps in the ground. Here in Glamorgan, it is safe to say “we’ve got loads”, but you may be surprised to hear that it’s difficult to put an exact number on it. For a variety of reasons.

For example Cyfartha Castle in Merthyr Tydfil. Pictured here. It may have the word ‘castle’ in its name. It may also have crenelations. But in reality it is a 19th Century mansion built by the Crawshay family to look like a castle. So, should we count that one?

We run into similar problems with the enigmatic Castell Coch pictured at the top of this item. The site this castle is built on has been a castle since the early medieval period. In fact we have a fabulous story about its inhabitant from the early 12th Century. The Welsh Lord of Senghenydd called Ifor Bach.

He took issue with William Fitz Robert, the Norman Earl of Glamorgan for taking his land. So he rode down to Cardiff Castle and kidnapped William, his wife, their son and the daughter of the Earl of Leicester, and held them all hostage until he received due compensation.

That sounds all together more ‘castley’ doesn’t it. (Probably not a real word) But then you have to take into account that the building where all this happened all those centuries ago is not the one you are looking at today. The building there now is more of a Victorian ‘folly’ than a medieval castle.

The reason; William Crichton Stuart, the Marquis of Bute, who owned this land was obsessed with gothic, medieval architecture. But not the genuine stuff we have loads of around here. But a fairy tale version of it. So he commission an architect called Burgess to build him a castle based on ‘his idea’ of what a medieval castle should be. Ironically Burgess had to pull down what remained of the real medieval castle to do it!

This structure owes its appearance to a visit to Carcassonne in southern France rather than to the original medieval castle it replaced.

Having said all that, there are a lot of very genuine medieval castles here too. Cardiff Castle for example. It may have started out as a Roman fort, but in the late 11th Century it was taken over and rebuilt by Robert Fitzhamon, Duke of Gloucester and became the Norman stronghold of the region. The keep and black tower in particular are fantastic examples of Norman/ Mid Medieval castle architecture.

Then of course you have the nearby Caerphill Castle. Occupying 30 acres, it is the largest castle in Wales. Built by Gilbert de Claire to protect his northern lands from raiding Welsh lords between 1268-71. As genuine and unique an example of medieval military architecture as you could hope to find any where.

Cardiff Castle Norman Keep
Aerial view of Caerphilly Castle
Aerial view of Caerphilly Castle

So, its not the number of castles we’ve got here that’s the important thing. It is the variety and breadth of architecture we have in Glamorgan. It is quite breath taking .

On the Glamorgan History Walks you get to visit some of the most interesting. To see them for your self, and to hear the stories of what happened there.

Beyond the castles of course, there are also plenty of significant manor house and great houses that we visit on our walks too. Just as impressive, just as much history and in many cases achingly beautiful.

Dyffryn House
Walkers outside Coed Y Mwstwr
Cwrt Yr Ala Dinas Powys on the Glamorgan History Walks and Talks
Cwrt Yr Ala Dinas Powys
Plas Machen
Plas Machen
Walkers at Gileston Manor on the St Athan walk on the Glamorgan History Walks and Talks
Gileston Manor

So if you want to come along and explore them with us, here’s the list. It also tells you which walks you can see them on, and what dates they take place. Click on the dates to see more information on any of the walks and to buy tickets.

Please note that on our walks we will show you, or take you to these castles and houses, but in most cases we will not be going inside them.

Castles and related walks

Great Houses and related walks

For a full list of all the walks, click here. To read reviews of people who joined us on these walks last year, click here.

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    The lost city of Kenfig

    Kenfig Castle remains

    Kenfig; on the Glamorgan coast line is a bank of sand dunes and an inky black lake. But history tells us this was the site of a major town and port. The seat of a Royal household. And a place fiercely contested by Welsh warriors, raiding Vikings and Norman invaders. It was possibly the most significant settlement for miles around. But now, just a handful of cottages.

    What happened here? How did this important place just disappear? Is the old legend that it still lies at the bottom of the lake true? What was it like in its prime?

    All these questioned are answered from the places where they happened.

    This video is an episode in the Ghost towns of Britain series.

    Click to watch the video in full

    In this series of short videos, I uncover the hidden truth of towns, villages and cities that have been lost to the sands of time. Nothing but a few remains and historical documents to give you any clue that they ever existed. I hope you enjoy them. And if you do, please subscribe to this channel and share them on social media.

    And if you want to read more about the legends of Kenfig and surrounding area, this is the book for you.

    Also available from Amazon.

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    Old photos of the great houses, mansions and castles of the Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend taken between 1890 and 1955

    Here is my latest VLOG. It’s a compilation of vintage photographs of some of Glamorgan’s most significant residences. Taken before they got knocked down or converted into hotels, golf courses, flats or schools.

    Have you ever scrolled through Rightmove or Zoopla with the filters set at over a million pounds? Well if you were to have done the price equivalent of that (allowing for inflation)  in the early 20th century these are the pictures of the dream homes you would have found in the counties of Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan on the South Wales coast. 

    I have trawled through the archives of old photos and postcards for early photographs of castles, country estates, mansions, manor houses, baronial courts, great houses, town houses and quaint thatched cottages from the many villages that surround towns like Cowbridge, Bridgend, Pontyclun, Llantrisant, Llantwit Major and Cardiff. In their day they were described as ‘gentleman’s residences’ or ‘country piles’ and they were the homes of some of the oldest and most famous aristocratic families in Glamorgan. The county set. Families names like Carnes, Nichols, Lewis, Boothby, Edmondes, Picton-Tuberville. Even a maharaja!

    Many of the houses in this video are now lost to us. Either in ruins or completely demolished. The most famous example being Dunraven Castle. Others have been split up into smaller houses or flats like Crossways House. Some are now hotels like Miskin Manor or golf clubs like Wenvoe Castle. In the case of St Donats Castle one is now a university college.

    This video shows them in their prime, when they were in their hey day.

    So if you like a bit of nostalgia, old photographs, vintage or period living, big posh houses, South Wales history or anything related, you will love this. And maybe, you actually live in one of these places. Let me know if you do.

    I hope you enjoy it. Just click the play button below. There is no commentary but there is some soothing copyright free music.

    If you are interested in the history of the Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan area you might be interested in my books on the subject. Volumes 1 & 2 of ‘Legends and Folklore from Barry, Bridgend and the Vale of Glamorgan’ are out now and available from Amazon and all good bookshops. Or you can buy both volumes at a discounted prices direct from me. Just click here for more information.