We are attempting to map fortified Wales. So what do we mean by this? Well anyone can fortify their own home, a fence, wall, bit of barbed wire etc. We however mean communal defence, or sites with a military purpose. So put simply, Hillforts, Roman Camps/Forts, Mottes, Castles, Moats and Forts.
Put simply, an earthern defence work, often sited on high ground, often a hill, and dating from Bronze and Iron Age periods. They are often identified on OS maps as fort, sometimes as enclosure. The tricky thing is the exact purpose is not always clear, was it built for defence, or simply to mark a territory, or perhaps even just to keep cattle in? Generally we accept hillforts were for communal defence, perhaps just a deterent, ut nonetheless defensive. We have included all forts named as such on the map, and have looked over enclosures generally, as these are often smaller and more likely to mark ancient 'farms', however when we know that something is marked as enclosure is actually recorded as a fort elsewhere we have have of course added it to our catalogue, and ask if anyone know of any we miss to let us know.
Excavated Roman fort but nothing visible above ground
Excavated Roman fort but nothing visible above ground
Iron Age hillfort occupying earlier Neolithic settlement, with medieval church inside, and earth works suggesting a contemporary medieval castle
Iron Age hillfort occupying earlier Neolithic settlement, with medieval church inside, and earth works suggesting a contemporary medieval castle
Roman rule in Wales was patchy due to the nature of the land, and they only established one town, Caerwent. However, starting in AD48 when the Romans reached the borders of what is now Wales, where ever it went, the Roman army left behind the remnants of camps, built often at the end of a long days march to keep them safe over night. More permanent forts left more a footprint, and and the fortified town of Caerwent boasts surviving walls reaching 18 feet in places.
The Normans famously arrived in Britain in 1066, and it wasn't long until they were knocking on the doors of the Welsh Kingdoms. In order to control the relatively large population of Britain with just a few thousand men, the Normans introduced castles as as we know them. However, they took years to build and needed relative stability, or large numbers to defend during the building process. Therefore castles often started lives as simple Mottes, often with attached Baileys. earthern mounds with wooden fortifications, the Bailey then being the added outer ward, defended by a ditch and wooden pallisade. Sometimes the Mottes were temporary, in order to gain a foothold in new territory, or provide protection before moving further on. Regularly they made use of old fortification, being built inside old hillfort or Roman forts. Overtime it was common to develop these pre fab type building into something more permanent.........
The word 'castle' means different things to different people, but essentially it is the private residence of a nobleman or Lord. Palaces are essentially different in as much they are not fortified. Sometimes castles were built purely for military purposes, such as White Castle in Monmouthshire, which had no living quarters proper, so technically a fort. During the Medieval period castles were slowly replaced by fortified houses and the stately homes we see throughout the country, where possible we wiil try and complete out catalogue by including these defended manors.
Although different, we will try and group in with this fortified towns, as they more often than not are associated with castles that dominate them and are intrinsicly linked.
More modern forts, largely Victorian, are included here. Always on the coast to defend against foreign threats, built after domestic squabbles of any magnitude had ended.
Built in 1870, reused in WWII as anti aircraft battery
Built in 1870, reused in WWII as anti aircraft battery
Oldest Stone Castle in Wales
Oldest Stone Castle in Wales
Typical abandoned Motte
Developed from simple earthen mound into full stone castle
Typical abandoned Motte
Quite often fortified houses, hunting lodges etc have protective moats, which survive to this day long after the buildings they defended have gone. We are addiing these, but with caution, as moats were often used to stop animals getting in and out rather than people. Rabbit warrens are an example. Breeding rabbits in warrens for their meet became widespread in Norman times, and often a deep moat was put around them to stop rabbits escaping, and to protect them from predators.