Roche Castle (The Gatehouse Record)

Roche Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Macrels

In the community of Laugharne Township.
In the historic county of Carmarthenshire.
Modern authority of Carmarthenshire.
Preserved county of Dyfed.

OS Map Grid Reference: SN29411022
Latitude 51.76472° Longitude -4.47309°

Roche Castle has been described as a certain Fortified Manor House.

There are masonry footings remains.

Description

Roche Castle consists of a rather irregular moat which defines a levelled, polygonal area, some 60m north-east to south-west by 50m, resting on a stream channel on the south-east. Various stone structures have also been noted within the south-western part of the enclosed area (Butler 1962), notably a north-west to south-east range, about 19.5m by 7.0m, flanked by rounded turrets, one of which yet remains; a dovecote had been removed by 1912: associated finds suggest 13th-14th century and later construction/occupation. (Coflein)

All that remains of Roche Castle today is a single stone tower with small stretches of abutting walls projecting from it to the northeast and southeast. The tower and walls were heavily covered with ivy at the time of the site visit but some architectural details were observable such as a fragment of arched vaulting and the chamber within the circular tower. The castle was in a ruinous state by the early 17th century when it is recorded as being robbed of stone for the construction of the nearby mansion at Broadway. The Ordnance Survey map of 1831 shows a wall linking two towers on the south-western side of a flat platform area. Subsequent building development on the site, especially during the 1960s, has presumably destroyed much of the fabric of the original castle and its foundations. The castle lies on a platform that is terraced into a gentle southeast facing slope, the platform is still recognisable despite the presence of modern buildings and the effects of later landscaping. The site lies on the 40m contour. (Dyfed Archaeological Trust HER)

Sources of information, references and further reading

The National Monument Record (Coflein) number(s) for this site is/are 304186.
The County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) for this site is/are 5070.

Websites (Gatehouse is not responsible for the content of external websites.)
- Dyfed Archaeological Trust, 1998-, Historic Landscape Characterisation
  CastleUK.net
Books
- Pettifer, Adrian, 2000, Welsh Castles, A Guide by Counties (Boydell Press) p. 58
  Davis, Paul, 2000, A Company of Forts. A Guide to the Medieval Castles of West Wales (Gomer Press) p. 122
  Salter, Mike, 1996, The Castles of South West Wales (Malvern) p. 43
  Davis, P.R., 1987, Castles of Dyfed (Llandysul: Gomer Press) p. 67
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 61
  Richard, A.J., 1935, in Lloyd, J.E. (ed), History of Carmathenshire (Cardiff) Vol. 1 p. 287
  RCAHMW, 1917, An inventory of the Ancient Monuments of Carmarthenshire (HMSO) p. 63 no. 177 online copy
Periodical Articles
- Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1967, 'Masonry castles in Wales and the Marches: a list' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol. 116 p. 71-132
  Butler, L.A.S., 1962, The Carmarthen Antiquary Vol. 4 p. 9-15

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

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This record last updated 20/04/2016 09:51:03

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