Carreghofa Castle ( cy, Castell Carreghwfa) was a

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

timber and masonry castle located in the Welsh village of

Carreghofa Carreghofa ( cy, Carreghwfa) is a community in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales, and is 89.6 miles (144.2 km) from Cardiff and 153.6 miles (247.2 km) from London. In 2011 the population of Carreghofa was 667 with 10.2% of them able to speak ...

Powys Powys (; ) is a county and preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. Geog ...

. Between its construction in 1101 and destruction in 1236, it was the site of many battles between rival Welsh and English forces. Archaeological remains of the castle's perimeter were uncovered in the late 19th century and this is all that remains of the structure.

Medieval disputes

Carreghofa Castle was built in 1101 by

Robert de Bellême The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

in the North Wales border regions, without the permission of the newly crowned King Henry I. In the following years the castle, among others like Bridgenorth Castle, was captured by Henry I and transformed into a military base for English forces. Carreghofa Castle was built on land which was heavily disputed, largely due to its location in the Welsh Marches. This was a politically tumultuous region in the medieval

Kingdom of Powys The Kingdom of Powys ( cy, Teyrnas Powys; la, Regnum Poysiae) was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. It very roughly covered the northern t ...

, founded in the 5th century, which began experiencing increased threats from the east following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. In building Carreghofa Castle, Robert de Bellême was directly allying himself with the princes of Powys, the sons of

Bleddyn ap Cynfyn Bleddyn ap Cynfyn ( owl, Bledẏnt uab Kẏn ỽẏn; AD 1075), sometimes spelled Blethyn, was an 11th-century Welsh king. Harold Godwinson and Tostig Godwinson installed him and his brother, Rhiwallon, as the co-rulers of Gwynedd ...

, against the English monarchy. This political tension is evidenced in the castle's frequent shifts of ownership and alliances throughout its 12th-century lifespan. Carreghofa was captured by the Welsh in 1163 with the help of the

King of Gwynedd Prior to the Conquest of Wales, completed in 1282, Wales consisted of a number of independent kingdoms, the most important being Gwynedd, Powys, Deheubarth (originally Ceredigion, Seisyllwg and Dyfed) and Morgannwg (Glywysing and Gwent). Bou ...

, before being lost again to King Henry II in 1165. In this latter instance

Owain Fychan Owain Fychan ap Madog (alternatively ''Owain Vychan ap Madoc'') (c. 1125 – 1187) was styled Lord of Mechain Is Coed and one of the sons of Madog ap Maredudd. His mother was Susanna, daughter of Gruffudd ap Cynan. Division of the Kingdom of Po ...

, one of the princes of Powys, was given permission to retain the castle after switching allegiance to the English monarch, though he was slain in 1187 during an attack on Carreghofa Castle by his nephews

Gwenwynwyn Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Cyfeiliog (died c. 1216) was the last major ruler of mid Wales before the completion of the Norman English invasion. He was one of few native rulers to represent a real threat to the rule of Llywelyn the Great. Lineage Gwenwy ...

and Cadwallon ab Owain. A decade later in 1197 Gwenwynwyn, the second ruler of the southern Powys region, would be voluntarily given ownership of the castle by the English in exchange for surrendering

Rhys ap Gruffudd Rhys ap Gruffydd, commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh ''Yr Arglwydd Rhys'' (c. 1132 – 28 April 1197) was the ruler of the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales from 1155 to 1197 and native Prince of Wales. It was believed that h ...

to them. At this time, Carreghofa Castle was probably also used for silver mining. The castle would switch hands again to

Robert de Vieuxpont Robert de Vieuxpont (died 1227/8), also called Vipont, Veteripont, or ''de Vetere Ponte'' ("from the Old Bridge"), Baron of Westmorland, was an Anglo-Norman noble landowner and administrator. He entered royal service and was initially employed i ...

in 1212 after a series of Welsh defeats in the area. He is said to have rebuilt the castle. Carreghofa Castle is believed to have been destroyed a final time in the 1230s (approximately 1236) as part of Llewelyn ap Iorwerth’s campaigns against English rule in Wales.

Rediscovery

The ruins of Carreghofa Castle were rediscovered in 1871 when workmen uncovered an underground room and perimeter stone foundations. Subsequently reburied, the prominent earthworks are all that remain of the old Castle structure. A 17th-century farm complex, Carreghofa Hall, is believed to be built directly above the old castle and is designated a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

References

{{Authority control Castles in Wales