RD061

Mound & Bailey Castle, Bleddfa  

 

Designated  

Powys  

Llangunllo  

320856  

268308  

Defence  

Motte and Bailey  

Medieval  

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument. The monument comprises the remains of a motte and ditch, dating to the medieval period (c. 1066 -1540 AD). A motte is a large conical or pyramidal mound of soil and/or stone, usually surrounded by either a wet or dry ditch, and surmounted by a tower constructed of timber or stone. The site at Bleddfa is a mutilated oval mound, measuring c.46m north-west to south-east by c.36m and up to c.9m high, surrounded by a ditch and counterscarp. Traces of masonry have been noted on the summit. The castle is first mentioned in 1195, when the stone tower may have been built. It was captured by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in 1262 and is said to have been derelict by 1304. The bailey, an attached defended area, probably lay to the north of the motte within the outline of the modern field. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of medieval defensive practices. The monument is well-preserved and an important relic of the medieval landscape. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of both structural evidence and intact associated deposits. The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.