Llanvaches Castle (The Gatehouse Record)

Llanvaches Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;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

In the community of Llanvaches.
In the historic county of Monmouthshire.
Modern authority of Newport.
Preserved county of Gwent.

OS Map Grid Reference: ST43379206
Latitude 51.62451° Longitude -2.81932°

Llanvaches Castle has been described as a probable Masonry Castle.

There are cropmark/slight earthwork remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

Description

Low spread banks of tumbled stone roughly define a sub-rectangular enclosure known as Llanvaches Castle. it measures c.54m E-W by 42m, and is set upon the summit of a hillock. (Coflein)

The fragmentary outlying earthworks connected with the 'castle' have been encroached upon by development. No dating material recovered (1976). (Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust HER)

Traces of earthworks and masonry. King reported as built over (repeated by Salter) but the platform is still extant as a low platform with the clearly marked foundations of a large rectangular structure and enclosing wall. Doubt has been cast on its defensive nature. (Description from Will Davies)

The monument consists of the remains of a castle, dating to the medieval period. It consists of a roughly rectangular area measuring 54m E/W by 42m located on the summit of a low knoll and defined by low grass-covered banks. The external bank measures between 0.8m and 1.2m high. There is a large opening in the bank on the NW side, possibly where it has been disturbed. In the SE corner is a break in the bank that may represent the original entrance. Internally, the ground is level with a series of banks appearing to delineate the location of buildings on the E side. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of medieval defensive practices. (Scheduling Report)

Comments

One of several small masonry castles associated with Wentwood forest.

Sources of information, references and further reading

The CADW scheduled monument record number is MM129.
The National Monument Record (Coflein) number(s) for this site is/are 307978.
The County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) for this site is/are 00993g.

Books
- Morgan, Gerald, 2008, Castles in Wales: A Handbook (Talybont: Y Lolfa Cyf.) p. 254 (listed as vanished (it isn't) and as in Glamorgan (it isn't)), p. 256 (listing for Monmouthshire 'Probably a mansion ruin')
  Phillips, Neil, 2006, Earthwork Castles of Gwent and Ergyng AD 1050-1250 (British Archaeological Reports) p. 244-5
  Reid, Alan, 1998, Castles of Wales (John Jones Publishing) p. 101
  Salter, Mike, 1991, The Castles of Gwent, Glamorgan and Gower (Malvern) p. 75 (slight and mislocated in Glamorgan)
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 289
  Barber, J.T., 1803, A Tour Throughout South Wales and Monmouthshire (London: T. Cadell and W. Davies) p. 227
Periodical Articles
- Vyner, B.E., 1976, Archaeology in Wales Vol. 16 p. 43 no. 98
  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
Other sources: Theses; 'grey' literature; in-house reports; unpublished works; etc.
- Will Davies, 10/8/06, pers. corr.
  Phillips, Neil, 2005, Earthwork Castles of Gwent and Ergyng AD 1050-1250 (PhD Thesis University of Sheffield) Download

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales, the four welsh archaeological trusts and other individuals and organisations. It may also contain Designated Historic Asset Descriptive Information from The Welsh Historic Environment Service (Cadw), licensed under the Open Government Licence. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes.
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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.

The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown.
Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.

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This record last updated 07/07/2016 08:40:58

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