Llawhaden Castle is a castle in the Pembrokeshire village of Llawhaden and 10 miles east of Haverfordwest in southwest Wales. A motte-and-bailey castle is thought to have previously occupied the site and the present structure was built by the bishops of the Diocese of St David in the 13th century. The castle was abandoned in the 16th century and some of the stone was removed for local building projects. The site is owned and managed by Cadw.
Description
The ruins of Llawhaden Castle stands on a hill overlooking the River Cleddau, and is located in the Pembrokeshire village of Llawhaden, some 10 miles east of Haverfordwest. The remaining ruins date from the early 13th century. It is surrounded by a ditch, which was designed to be only crossable by a drawbridge. The castle is pentagonal in shape and while the north-western and western sides of the castle are no longer present, the other three sides remain. The gatehouse is located on the southern side, which is formed of two drum towers and a gateway. This was also where the drawbridge would have been located to allow entrance to the interior of the castle. The ruins are managed by Cadw, and are open to the public.
History
Prior to the stone built building, a motte-and-bailey castle was thought to have been located on the same site. It was built by the bishops of the Diocese of St David between the 12th century and 14th century. The first castle on the site was constructed in 1115 by Bishop Bernard. Only the moat and the earth bank from this period survive. The vast majority of the ruins seen today date from the construction commissioned by Bishop Adam de Houghton between 1362 and 1389. This was much grander, with two suites of residences situated on the first floor. The gate house shown in the picture was probably added at a later date.
Additions continued to be made to the castle into the early years of the reign of Henry VIII of England. The building fell into decline under the control of Bishop William Barlow, who in particular sold the lead from the roof of the castle to pay for the dowry of one of his daughters. This resulted in damage to the rest of the building, from which it never recovered. After the dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century the castle was abandoned, fell into disrepair and has since been quarried for building stone. George Lansbury, then First Commissioner of Works in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, organised a party of 1,300 previously unemployed men for six months to do renovation work on several castles in 1930. Llawhaden Castle was among those worked on, with several tasks undertaken including digging out moats and ditches, as well as removing ivy and undergrowth.

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Narberth Castle is a ruined Norman fortress in the town of Narberth, Pembrokeshire, West Wales. It was first mentioned in 1116 and forms part of the Landsker Line.
Origins
The current ruins are undoubtedly Norman and seem to date from the 13th century, having been built by Andrew Perrot. However the castle is mentioned in the Mabinogion as the place where Rhiannon was imprisoned and forced to carry travellers through the gates as penance for killing her son. Although there is some controversy over the actual location of the castle in the Mabinogion (there are at least two other earthworks nearby that are contenders, but neither are in good defensive positions compared to the site of this one), the Normans often built castles on top of earlier defensive structures and it is plausible that the original was obliterated.
History
The castle never changed hands throughout the Glyndŵr Rising and was slighted after being taken by Oliver Cromwell in the English Civil War. Excavations have found more than 20 graves on the north side dating from the 12th century to the 13th, hinting that the area may have once been the site of a church.
In the early part of the 20th century, the annual town fair held a procession which ended in the castle, with dancing and music. In 2005, the castle was opened again to the public after being taken over by the council and made safe. At the opening ceremony, the official documents confirming the 'twinning' of Narberth and Ludlow were signed by the towns' mayors. There was also a performance of a specially written adaptation by Derek Webb of the Mabinogion tale Culhwch and Olwen featuring many local children and a giant boar made by a local artist.
Style
The castle has provided a good deal of building material for the surrounding houses and the remains are mostly single and double storey walls, with the barrel-vaulted kitchen cellars intact. No upper storey rooms are intact. There is an early engraving visible on an information board at Narberth railway station (and possible elsewhere in the town) which shows now-vanished tall chimneys of a Flemish style that can still be seen at the well-preserved Manorbier Castle.

Narberth Castle

Picton Castle is a medieval castle near Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Originally built at the end of the 13th century by a Flemish knight, it later came into the hands of Sir John Wogan, and is till this day inhabited by his descendants, the Philipps family. It is of unusual construction and has been remodelled several times during its history. It is a Grade I listed building.
Until the late eleventh century, this part of southwestern Wales was part of the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth. After the death in 1093 of the king of Deheubarth, Rhys ap Tewdwr, in the Battle of Brecon, the Normans took advantage of the lack of leadership among the Welsh. and the English forces seized much of South Wales. To supplement their castle with its garrison at Pembroke, Henry I of England sought to colonise the surrounding area by settling Flemings in Rhos and Deugleddau, in the neighbourhood of Haverfordwest. One of these Flemish barons was Wizo, who built and lived at Wiston Castle. Wizo began to grant estates from the land he had been given to his followers, and one of these knights was granted the land at Picton, which was three miles to the south of Wiston. This Flemish knight was not a great historical figure and his name is not recorded. The site chosen for the castle he built may have been on a mound a few hundred yards to the east of the present house, but in any event, the present building was in place by the end of the thirteenth century and was by then in the hands of the Wogan family, who were now the owners of Wiston Castle.
The circumstances under which Picton Castle came to be owned by the Wogans is unclear, but it may have been through a failure to beget male heirs or through the marriage of an heiress to one of the Wogans. By the 13th century, Wiston Castle seems to have been abandoned and the Wogan family lived at Picton Castle, where their heirs have lived ever since. Picton Castle began as a motte castle and was reconstructed in stone by the Sir John Wogan between 1295 and 1308. The design was unusual, there being no courtyard internally, the main building being protected by seven circular towers which projected from the wall. At the east end, two of these towers acted as a gatehouse, and the portcullised-entrance between them led straight into the lower part of the great hall. At this time the windows were narrow slits but these were replaced in about 1400 by large windows and a grand recessed arch with large window was built in the gatehouse.
In 1405, French troops supporting Owain Glyndŵr attacked and held the Castle, and it was seized again during the English Civil War in 1645 by Parliamentary forces.
The Picton Castle estate came into the hands of the Philipps family when Sir Thomas ap Philipps of Cilsant married Jane, daughter of Sir Henry Dwnn, and heiress of Picton in the 1490s. Sir John Philipps, who inherited the castle in the 15th century, remodelled the building and created a new entrance which remained until the 1820s when a new entrance was designed by Thomas Rowlands (who also designed Slebech Church). In 1611, King James I wanted to pay for his army in Ireland and decided to raise the money by selling baronetcies. Sir John Philipps paid £1,095 for his hereditary title.
The estate remained with the Philipps family until the death of Lord Milford in 1823, when it was inherited by his cousin Richard Grant, who assumed the surname Philipps and was created a Baronet in 1828 and Baron Milford in 1847. His heir was his half-brother, the Reverend James Henry Alexander Philipps (formerly Gwyther), who assumed by royal licence the surname and arms of Philipps. On his death the estate passed to his son-in-law, Charles Edward Gregg Philipps, who was created a Baronet, of Picton, in 1887 (see Philipps baronets) then to Sir Richard Foley Foley-Philipps, cousin of Sir John Erasmus, and grandson of Charles Edward Gregg Philipps. The estate is now run by the Picton Castle Trust a Registered Charity. The castle is a Grade I listed building and the walled garden is listed at Grade II.
Visitor attractions
Picton Castle is open to visitors for guided tours from spring to autumn and the gardens are open all year round. They extend to about 40 acres and include a walled garden and a Mediterranean garden created in about 1800. There is a restaurant and shop and self-catering accommodation is available in several cottages. Events such as exhibitions, fairs and workshops are held periodically and the venue is available for weddings. Halloween "Freaky Family Fundays" attract visitors from all over south west Wales.

Picton Castle

Haverfordwest Castle (Welsh: Castell Hwlffordd) is a castle located in the town centre at Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, south Wales, located in a naturally defensive position at the end of a strong, isolated ridge. The castle was established during Norman times in 1120 but much of the architecture remaining today is dated to 1290. For centuries the castle was an English stronghold. There are several other notable castles in area; Wiston Castle lies 6 miles (9.7 km) to the northeast and Pembroke Castle lies 12 miles (19 km) to the south.
Pembrokeshire Records indicate that there was an Iron Age hill fort on the site of the castle although there is no physical evidence to suggest this on the present location. Haverfordwest was believed to have been a Danish settlement prior to the Norman conquest of West Wales in 1093/94. The Flemish settled in the area in 1108 to protect the main Norman stronghold at Pembroke Castle from Welsh raiders from the north.
The vast majority of sources indicate that the structure was originally a Norman architecture stone keep and bailey fortress, founded by the Englishman Gilbert de Clare, earl of Pembroke in 1120. While this date is generally consistent, although some indicate 1110 or 1113, Pembrokeshire Records insist that the castle was actually originally built by Tancred the Fleming, so the original medieval town and castle would have been Flemish not Norman and they claim that the castle remained in the possession of the Tancred family until 1210. The original castle is believed to have been first attacked (unsuccessfully) by Gruffydd ap Rhys, Prince of Deheubarth, in 1135 – 1136. In 1173 the castle had its first royal visit by Henry II of England who passed by the town on coming back from a trip to Ireland. In 1188 Giraldus Cambrensis mentions visiting the castle with Archbishop Baldwin during his progress around Wales preaching for the 3rd Crusade that Richard I the Lion Heart led to the Holy Land.
By 1200, many of the original timber buildings had been replaced with the first stone buildings, including a rectangular north eastern tower to serve as the castle's keep. In 1210 King John took the castle from the Tancred family and Robert Fitz Richard, and in 1213 he gave concessions for the extremely wealthy William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, to run the castle in return for an exorbitant sum of money. Marshal was responsible for replacing most of the original timber walls, towers and gatehouse with stone in the 1210s, and even by 1220 little remained of the original castle. Today all that remains of the 1120 establishment is a large square keep in the north-east corner of the inner ward. This mass reconstruction to strengthen the castle was likely due to the persistent attacks during this period.
In 1217, Llywelyn Fawr (Llywelyn the Great), Prince of Wales threatened the Marshal and in 1220 he burned the town but failed to take the castle. Following the burning of the town, it was rebuilt greater than before and developed quickly in the 13th century as a commercial centre due to its position at the centre of Pembrokeshire and its naval links. In 1248, Humphrey II de Bohun acquired the castle and resisted an attack in 1257 by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Gwynedd (Llywelyn the Last). In 1265, Haverfordwest castle was taken by William de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, during the Second Barons' War, but in 1274 royalty intervened and granted it back to the de Bohun family, to the next generation, Humphrey III de Bohun.
In 1284 King Edward I and Queen Eleanor of Castile visited the castle for the first time during a royal pilgrimage to St Davids. Eleanor was said to be in love with the castle. Four years later she borrowed a huge amount of money in those times to purchase the castle from the de Bohun family and loaned £407 (an extreme amount in those days) to fully rebuild the castle and complete its transition fully into stone. A massive scale reconstruction took place, and it was completed a year later in 1290, shortly before she died, although it long became known as the "Queen's Castle at Haverford". Today much of what remains is dated to Queen Eleanor's 1290 version, including the extensive curtain wall. The castle remained in Royal possession after Eleanor's death and it was granted out to various wealthy tenants. In the 14th century, the castle was occupied by many owners, amongst them was Edward, the Black Prince, from 1359–67. The castle was owned by the crown from 1381–85, who paid for restoration works of the castle. These works proved important later, as in 1405 the castle was strong enough to fend off an attack during Owain Glyndŵr's War of Welsh independence. The town walls around the high ground near the castle also did much to protect the castle from invaders, although nothing remains of these town walls today. Over the centuries the castle was visited by numerous nobles and monarchs such as King Richard II and Oliver Cromwell.
By the 16th century, however, the castle had become dilapidated and subsequently was re-fortified during the English Civil War. In 1644 Haverfordwest Castle is documented as being occupied by the Royalists, but they abandoned it on misinterpreting the noises of cows for a Parliamentary army. Although it was recaptured and held for the king for a year, who finally surrendered after the Battle of Colby Moor nearby. Shortly afterwards, in 1648, one wall of the inner ward was slighted and it was abandoned soon after. Oliver Cromwell sent letters to the castle, ordering it to be destroyed in July 1648 and threatened to imprison the townsfolk unless it was demolished. These letters were only unearthed in 1986 and are currently on display in the town museum.

Prison
The derelict medieval castle was converted to a prison in 1779, although Giraldus Cambrensis records that part of the castle was used as a prison as early as 1188.
In 1820 a new prison building was erected within the castle grounds, mainly within the inner bailey. It had a capacity for 86 prisoners. In 1878 the remaining inmates were transferred to the gaol in Carmarthen. The building has subsequently been used as a police station and council offices. Today it houses the Pembrokeshire Record Office. A cell door, leg irons, the original lock from the castle gate and numerous artifacts are on display. Today the castle is operated by the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and is open to the public.
In 2010 there were plans to put the prison building on the market, with new council offices being built in the Prendergast area of Haverfordwest.
In January 2008 an extensive archaeological excavation was conducted at Haverfordwest Castle.
Architecture
The original entrance to the castle lay on the west side, guarded by a gatehouse but no trace of this survives. Round towers are located on the north-west and south-west corners, and in the south-east corner there is a square tower with an additional projecting turret. The south-west and south-east towers have three storeys, with the south-east tower possessing a basement and postern gate which could serve as a counter-attack during a siege. A large hall lies the south of the castle with great, high windows and scaling ladders. Little remains of the original medieval defences in the outer ward of the castle, although the extensive curtain wall has been upkept and still remains along with a considerable part of the north side, including a semicircular turret and a square tower to the east.

Haverfordwest Castle

Upton Castle is a 13th-century castle or fortified manor house with an associated chapel, located near Cosheston, Pembrokeshire in Wales. Although in private ownership, the gardens are open to the public.
Upton Castle is believed to have been built in the 13th century and stands close to a creek of the Carew River on land held by the Earls of Pembroke. The original holders were the Norman Malefant family, in whose hands it remained until the 16th century when it passed to the Bowen family. In the late 18th century, the house and estate was sold to John Tasker, although Nicholas Carlisle described the building in 1811 as "now in ruins". Between 1828 and 1860 there were considerable alterations to the building, including the insertion of a new door and the construction of two large wings. In January 1883 there was a fire at the castle, attended by a fire crew from the 23rd Regiment, Royal Welsh Fusiliers. The owner at the time was Mr H. H. Vaughan. The damage was confined to timbers, walls and chimney-piece.
Management of the gardens, which had been substantially improved in the early 20th century, was taken over by the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and opened to the public in 1976. However, the park authority later withdrew their funding and since the property changed hands in 2007, the new owners and a team of volunteers have restored and reopened the gardens. In the summer of 2012, the castle was investigated by a team of archaeologists from the Channel 4 television series Time Team, which confirmed that the chapel pre-dated the castle.
Upton Chapel
Too small to be described as castle in the strict sense of the word, most sources refer to it as a "fortified mansion" although its towers are unusually strong in comparison with other examples. The medieval portion of the exterior stands to the north east of the range, which is dominated by three early towers, separated by short sections of curtain wall and surmounted by a plain parapet on corbels. Surviving internal medieval features include two fireplaces, a spiral staircase and a vaulted ceiling. It is a Grade II listed building.
Close to the castle is Upton Chapel dedicated to Saint Giles. Dated to the 12th or 13th century, it consists of a small nave and chancel. Amongst the various memorials in the chapel are the effigies of William Malefant (died in 1362) wearing chain mail and another of a female member of the Malefant family. The interior was restored in 1978 by the owner of the castle. It is a Grade I listed building.

Upton Castle

At the end of the 11th century the Normans extended their conquest of England into Wales and Pembroke Castle became the centre of Norman rule in South Pembrokeshire.
Gerald de Windsor was constable of the Castle on behalf of Henry I when he decided to build his own fortification on the Carew River, some ten miles up the tidal waterway from Pembroke.
This was not the first settlement on the site however. Excavation has revealed an Iron Age settlement. A substantial five ditched promontory fort has been unearthed, together with large quantities of Roman pottery. A Dark Age settlement or fort may also have existed on the site.
Gerald's fortification was probably built of earth and wooden stakes. This fortification was later replaced by a stone Castle. Much of what remains of Carew Castle today was the work of Sir Nicholas de Carew (who died in 1311), who was responsible in particular for the east and west ranges.
In the late fifteenth century the Castle was greatly improved and extended by a very colourful character, Sir Rhys ap Thomas (1449-1525). He altered both the east and west ranges, and was responsible for many of the Bath stone windows and other features. Gaining the implicit trust of both Henry VII and Henry VIII he was said 'to rule this corner of Wales like a King'.
The final development took Carew from Medieval fortress to Elizabethan manor. Sir John Perrot (1530-1592) built the great northern range, with its huge windows overlooking the Millpond. However he was not destined to enjoy his magnificent new home, for he died in the Tower of London before the work could be completed.
During the Civil War the Castle was owned by Sir George Carew who declared for the King, but it was garrisoned at different times by both royalists and parliamentarians, and indeed changed hands four times, on at least one occasion following a fierce assault. Buildings on the south side, including the kitchens, were slighted to prevent the enemy making further use of the site. Following the Civil War the Castle was occupied for some years, but eventually abandoned in 1686.
In 1983 the National Park Authority leased the Castle and surrounding area for 99 years. We began an extensive programme of restoration and management with the aims of conserving the buildings, improving their setting and increasing public access and enjoyment. The restoration programme was long-term, involving a team of masons and grant-aided by Cadw: Welsh Historic Monuments.
The Castle is now a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) due to its bat population and several locally or regionally rare species of plants described on our Wildlife page.
Major renovation works were completed at Carew Castle in 2013, including reinstatement of the Lesser Hall roof, a new visitor centre and shop, as well as car park enhancements.

Carew Castle

Tenby Castle is a fortification which stands on a headland separated by an isthmus from the town of Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales. The remaining stone structure dates from the 13th century but there are mentions of the castle from as early as 1153.
St Catherine's Fort, a Palmerston Fort, stands just offshore of the medieval castle.
Construction
The castle, which was sited on a rocky promontory, was founded by the Normans during their invasion of West Wales in the 12th century. A stone tower was built on the headland's highest point which was protected by a curtain wall. The walls had a gateway and several small towers on the landward side. A lesser sea wall surrounded the remainder of the site and the beach area to the west.
In 1153, the castle was captured and destroyed by Maredudd ap Gruffydd and Rhys ap Gruffydd, the future ruler of the south-western petty kingdom of Deheubarth in mid Wales. The castle was besieged again by the Welsh in 1187. Almost a century later, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd sacked the town during his campaigns to retake South Wales in 1260 but the castle was not taken by the Welsh.
Abandonment
By the late 13th century, Tenby castle and the town had become part of the feudal lands of William de Valence, 1st Earl of Pembroke. The French knight, who had been given the peerage of Pembroke for his military services for Henry III in the Second Barons' War, instigated the building of stone walls around the town. By the start of the 14th century, the walls enclosing Tenby's old town were mostly completed so diminishing the defensive importance of Tenby Castle. In 1328, they were further strengthened when a D-shaped barbican was built to defend the town's main gate and additional D-shaped towers were later added to the northern and southern walls. By the 1400s, Tenby castle was abandoned and in disrepair.
In 1457, Jasper Tudor agreed to refurbish and improve Tenby's defences by dividing the cost between himself and the town's merchants. Improvements included widening the dry ditch along the outside of the town walls to 30 feet (9.1 m). Raising the wall's height to include a second tier of higher arrow slits behind a new parapet walk and adding additional turret towers to the ends of the walls where they abutted the cliff edges. In the mid 16th century, another large D-shaped tower (named the "Five Arches") was built in the Elizabethan period following fears about a second Spanish Armada.
In 1648 during the Second English Civil War, a unit of Royalists under the command of Rice Powell held a refortified Tenby for 10 weeks until they were starved into surrendering by besieging Parliamentarians.
Present day
A few features of the medieval castle remain. A path from Tenby harbour to the top of Castle Hill passes through the main square gateway. On the summit of the promontory is a small tower. A circular walk which was laid out in the 19th century follows the line of the original curtain walls. Tenby Museum & Art Gallery is built on the remains of the castle's domestic building, probably the great hall.
Although the north gate has been demolished to widen the road, Tenby town walls on the north side are largely complete. The eastern walls and towers remain intact.

Tenby Castle

An enormous oval castle, mostly surrounded by a serene mill pond. Extensively restored in Victorian times, it's dominated by the complex gatehouse on the outside and the huge circular keep once you're inside. The walled town of Pembroke which grew up around the castle also contains many ancient and interesting Norman buildings.
History
Established by Roger Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury in 1093 as a timber structure.
The first stone structure was erected by William Marshal after he became Earl of Pembroke in 1189.
His third son, Gilbert, was responsible for enlarging and strengthening the castle between 1234 and 1241.
The castle then passed into the hands of William de Valence, a half-brother of Henry III through his marriage to Joan, granddaughter of William Marshal.
Valence family held the castle for 70 years, strengthening it by building the walls and towers around the outer ward. They also fortified the town, creating a ring of walls with three main gates and a postern.
On the death of Aymer, William de Valence's son, the castle passed through marriage into the hands of the Hastings family.
In 1389, the castle reverted to Richard II. It was granted out in a series of short tenancies and began to fall into disrepair.
In 1400, the castle was attacked by Owain Glyndwr, but escaped a siege because the Constable at the time, Francis а Court, bought off Glyndwr with the Welsh equivalent of danegeld.
Eventually Pembroke Castle passed into the hands of a new Earl, Henry VI's half-brother Jasper Tewdwr. He was the first to make it more of a home than a fortress.
In 1457 Henry Tewdwr was born in the castle. He later defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field to become the first monarch of the Tudor dynasty, Henry VII.
In 1648, Cromwell laid siege to the castle during The English Civil War.
Pembroke Castle remained an ivy-covered ruin until 1880 when a Mr J R Cobb of Brecon spent three years restoring what he could.
Nothing further was done until Major-General Sir Ivor Phillips of Cosheston Hall acquired the ruins in 1928 and started an extensive restoration of the castle, restoring the walls and towers as nearly as possible to their original appearance.
Features
Impressive 5 storey central keep with intact domed roof.
A complex gatehouse that dominates Pembroke's Main Street.
Historical displays in the gatehouse rooms.
Wogan's Cavern, a large subterranean cave under the castle, accessed by a tight spiral staircase.
A maze of tunnels, stairs, towers and battlements.
Circular path around inside and outside of the mill pond.

Pembroke Castle

Roch Castle is a 12th-century castle, located at Roch near Haverfordwest, Wales.
Built by Norman knight Adam de Rupe in the second half of the 12th century, probably on the site of an earlier wooden structure. Roche is the usual French word for rock, while rupestre signifies a plant growing among rocks.
Built at the same time as Pill Priory near Milford Haven, Roch Castle was probably built in this location as one of the outer defences of "Little England" or "Landsker", as it is located near the unmarked border which for centuries has separated the English and Welsh areas of Pembrokeshire.
After the deRupe family died out in the 15th century, the Castle was taken over eventually in the 17th century by the Walter family. Their daughter Lucy was born in the castle, and later became a courtesan of Charles II, and bore him an acknowledged son James, 1st Duke of Monmouth.
During the English Civil War, the Walter family declared for King Charles I. Although Pembrokeshire was initially Royalist, the Puritans gained the upper hand. The castle changed hands twice, before the Walter family fled when it was captured for a second time by the Parliamentary forces and subsequently burned in 1644. It lay dormant and unclaimed until the return of Duke of Monmouth, who led a rebellion and was captured at the Battle of Sedgemoor, and then beheaded on 15 July 1685.
The castle remained decaying until 1900, when purchased by John Philipps, 1st Viscount St Davids, who restored it with a steel frame and new concrete floors to the designs of D. E. Thomas of Haverfordwest. Further works were carried out in 1910 and circa 1918–20, the latter by D. F. Ingleton.
The Castle was purchased in 2008 by Keith Griffiths for the Griffiths-Roch Foundation and was restored for operation by the Retreats Group as a six-bedroom luxury hotel Roch Castle Hotel. Completed in 2013, the restoration was designed by architects Keith Griffiths and Acanthus Holden. In 2016, the hotel received a 5-Star Gold Award from the AA and was named Best 5-star Hotel in Wales by Trivago. It is also listed in The Independent’s ‘The Big Six: British castle stay’; The Guardian’s ‘10 of the best cool new hotels in Wales’, The Sunday Times’ ‘Ultimate 100 British Hotels’ list, The Times’s Cool Hotel Guide, and was featured by BBC News, WalesOnline, Conde Nast Traveller and more.

Roch Castle

Manorbier Castle is a Norman castle located in the village of Manorbier, five miles south-west of Tenby, West Wales. The castle was part of a mesne lorship under the control of the medieval Earls of Pembroke. It was founded in the late 11th century by the Anglo-Norman de Barry family.
Construction
Manorbier is a rectangular enclosure castle that has curtain walls and round and square towers. It stands on a natural coastal promontory and has no external moat. The main entrance to the inner ward is a tower gateway that was defended by a portcullis, roof embrasures and a heavy iron/wood door. A postern gate provided access to the beach and boats. The south-east tower is round but the north-east one is angular. The castle's domestic ranges, which were completed in the 1140s, included kitchens, apartments and a Great hall. Windows replaced the arrowslits in the domestic range. A chapel with elaborate vaulting and plaster-work was built around 1260. Some of the original medieval frescoes survive.
Earthworks completed an outer ward but there was no barbican. A bridge across a neck ditch linked the inner and outer wards.
History
The castle was originally built on land granted to Odo de Barri, a Norman knight, at the end of the 11th century. Initially he constructed a Motte-and-bailey on the site which had a wooden keep defended by a palisade and earthworks embankments. In the early part of the 12th century, William de Barri, Odo's son, used locally-quarried Limestone to strengthen the fortification.
In 1146 Gerald of Wales, the great 12th century scholar known as Geraldus Cambrensis was born at the castle. He was the fourth and youngest son of William de Barri, who was related on his mothers's side, to the legendary Welsh princess Nest ferch Rhys. Gerald wrote of his birthplace:
In all the broad lands of Wales, Manorbier is the most pleasant place by far.
In the castle's history, it was only attacked twice; both were minor skirmishes. In 1327, Richard de Barri assaulted Manorbier in a dispute over family succession. Then 300 years later during the English Civil War, the castle was seized in 1645 by Parliamentarian forces. It was then slighted to prevent further military use by the Royalists.
Through the 17th and 18th centuries Manorbier fell into decay. However, in 1880 the castle was partially restored by J.R.Cobb, a tenant who carried out repairs to the buildings and walls.
The castle is now privately owned. It is along with the gardens, dovecote and mill open to the public. The castle is also a wedding venue. Parts of it have been converted into a holiday cottage.

Manorbier Castle

Laugharne Castle is a castle in the town of Laugharne in southern Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is located on the estuary of the River Tâf and was originally established in 1116. It was rebuilt as a Norman stronghold in 1215 and has seen many alterations over time, becoming a Tudor fortified manor house in the sixteenth century. It changed hands twice during the English Civil War, being eventually captured by Parliamentary forces in 1644.
The original castle was established by 1116 as the castle of Robert Courtemain, who is recorded to have entrusted its care to the Welshman Bleddyn ap Cedifor. The castle also was the meeting place of Henry II of England with Rhys ap Gruffudd in 1171-1172, where they agreed a treaty of peace. When Henry II of England died in 1189 the castle along with St Clears and Llansteffan were seized by Rhys ap Gruffudd of Deheubarth in 1189, Laugharne Castle may have been burnt down at this time.
The Castle was rebuilt by the Normans and in 1215 was captured by Llywelyn the Great in his campaign across South Wales. By 1247 Laugharne was granted to the de Brian family. In 1257 Guy De Brian was captured at Laugharne Castle by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and the castle destroyed. It was in Laugharne in 1403 that Owain Glyndŵr's rebellion stalled. Perhaps lulled into complacency, he was tricked by an ambush and lost 700 men. When a local soothsayer then warned him to leave the area or be captured, he retreated. After this the rebellion petered out under the weight of greater English numbers, and by 1415, Owain Glyndŵr had disappeared, fading into myth. In 1584, Elizabeth I of England granted Laugharne to Sir John Perrott, said to have been the illegitimate son of Henry VIII.
During the Civil War, Laugharne was captured by Royalists in 1644, the Parliamentary forces of Major-General Rowland Laugharne attacked the castle in 1644. After a weeklong siege in which much of the castle was damaged by cannon fire, the Royalist garrison finally surrendered. The castle was slighted to prevent any further use. It was left as a romantic ruin during the 18th century, and around the start of the 19th century the outer ward was laid with formal gardens. The gazebo overlooking the estuary was used in the 1930s and 40s by the author Richard Hughes, who leased Castle House during this period. Laugharne has also inspired two great modern writers, who worked in the garden gazebo overlooking the river. Richard Hughes wrote his novel In Hazard here, and Dylan Thomas, Laugharne's most famous resident, worked in the castle on its Portrait of the Artist as a Young Dog.
The site
The ruins of the castle as seen now are the result of much development as the building graduated from an earthwork castle to a Tudor mansion. There is little trace of the original earthwork bank or the first stone hall, which may have been taken down in the twelfth century. The two robust round towers date from the rebuilding work done in the late thirteenth century. Some of the curtain walling from this time also survives. The north-west tower acted as a keep and also guarded the entry gate through the curtain wall to its south. This tower has a domed roof, but the other, three-storeyed tower has partially collapsed. The two extra storeys and the circular stairway were probably erected in the late thirteenth century, and a new hall was built at this time against the south of the curtain wall. The outer ward, with timber defences, may also date from this period. Further work done in the late thirteenth century includes an additional round tower at the south-west corner of the inner ward and a new, stronger gatehouse, and the defences of the outer ward were rebuilt in stone.
In the mid-fourteenth century, the height of the curtain walling at the south-western corner of the inner ward was increased, and the round tower and the inner gatehouse were also raised in height. This process is particularly noticeable because a greenish stone was used for the alterations that was significantly different in colour from the red sandstone used in the rest of the building. In the sixteenth century, the castle was remodelled into a substantial Tudor mansion with a more comfortable accommodation block and with mock battlements added to the curtain walls. Excavation has shown the remains of the Tudor cobbled courtyard, the presence of a pitched stone kitchen floor and the ground plans of the building at the different periods of its existence.
Visitor information
The castle is a scheduled ancient monument and was designated as a Grade I listed building on 30 November 1966, being "amongst the most substantial castle remain in Wales". The castle is under the care of Cadw and is open to the public from spring to autumn. Parking is a short distance away and access is available to wheelchair-users though there are some sloping surfaces. There is a visitor centre and disabled toilets and unaccompanied children are not allowed.