Mathrafal near

Welshpool Welshpool ( cy, Y Trallwng) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, historically in the county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn; its Welsh language name ''Y Trallwng'' m ...

, in

Powys Powys (; ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh succession of states, successor state, petty kingdom and princi ...

Mid Wales Mid Wales ( cy, Canolbarth Cymru or simply ''Y Canolbarth'', meaning "the midlands") or Central Wales refers to a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Senedd ...

, was the seat of the Kings and Princes of

probably from the 9th century until its destruction in 1213 by Prince

Llywelyn the Great Llywelyn the Great ( cy, Llywelyn Fawr, ; full name Llywelyn mab Iorwerth; c. 117311 April 1240) was a King of Gwynedd in north Wales and eventually " Prince of the Welsh" (in 1228) and "Prince of Wales" (in 1240). By a combination of war and d ...

Location

On the banks of the

River Banwy The River Banwy is a river about long in Powys, Wales. It is a tributary of the River Vyrnwy. The Banwy rises in the hills near the pass which takes the A458 road between Mallwyd and Welshpool. The river is called Nant Cerrig-y-groes at its ...

, just above its confluence with the

river Vyrnwy The River Vyrnwy ( cy, Afon Efyrnwy, ) is a river which flows through northern Powys, Wales, and Shropshire, England. The name derives from Severn, the river of which it is a tributary. Course The river used to be sourced from the many rivers a ...

, about 5 km (3 miles) NE of

Llanfair Caereinion Llanfair Caereinion is a market town and community in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales upon the River Banwy (also known as the River Einion), around 8 miles west of Welshpool. In 2011 the ward had a population of 1,810; the town itself had a popul ...

and 10 km (6 miles) NW of

on the A495 at its junction with the B4389. Entry To The Earthworks - geograph

Llyn Coed-y-Dinas from the hide - geograph

Description

The site known today as "Mathrafal Castle" is a 90 m by 80 m compound defended by a bank and outer ditch on three sides, the fourth side being the river. Little remains of the original walls. Mathrafal is the original capital of the

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 ...

, in the

cantref A cantref ( ; ; plural cantrefi or cantrefs; also rendered as ''cantred'') was a medieval Welsh land division, particularly important in the administration of Welsh law. Description Land in medieval Wales was divided into ''cantrefi'', which were ...

Caereinion Caereinion (fort of Einion) was a medieval cantref in the Kingdom of Powys, or possibly it was a commote (''cwmwd'') within a cantref called Llŷs Wynaf. It was divided into the manors of Uwch Coed and Is Coed. It lay towards the south of the ki ...

. After the division of Powys in 1160 it became the capital of the southern portion which eventually became known as

Powys Wenwynwyn Powys Wenwynwyn or Powys Cyfeiliog was a Welsh kingdom which existed during the high Middle Ages. The realm was the southern portion of the former princely state of Powys which split following the death of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1160: the n ...

. This structure probably replaced an earlier hill fort, about 1 km away to the NW, which dates from around 656 at the time of the fall of the neighbouring Kingdom of

Pengwern Pengwern was a Brythonic settlement of sub-Roman Britain situated in what is now the English county of Shropshire, adjoining the modern Welsh border. It is generally regarded as being the early seat of the kings of Powys before its establishm ...

, or perhaps as early as 520 when the capital of Powys was moved from the old

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

city of

Viroconium Cornoviorum Viroconium or Uriconium, formally Viroconium Cornoviorum, was a Ancient Romans, Roman city, one corner of which is now occupied by Wroxeter, a small village in Shropshire, England, about east-south-east of Shrewsbury. At its peak, Viroconium ...

(

Wroxeter Wroxeter is a village in Shropshire, England, which forms part of the civil parish of Wroxeter and Uppington, beside the River Severn, south-east of Shrewsbury. ''Viroconium Cornoviorum'', the fourth largest city in Roman Britain, was sited ...

). The 35m by 25m by 5m high

motte A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...

of Mathrafal Castle dates from around the end of the 12th century and was probably built either by

Owain Cyfeiliog Owain ap Gruffydd (c. 1130–1197) was a prince of the southern part of Powys and a poet. He is usually known as Owain Cyfeiliog to distinguish him from other rulers named Owain, particularly his contemporary, Owain ap Gruffydd of Gwynedd, who is k ...

(circa 1170) or

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 in ...

on behalf of

King John King John may refer to: Rulers * John, King of England (1166–1216) * John I of Jerusalem (c. 1170–1237) * John Balliol, King of Scotland (c. 1249–1314) * John I of France (15–20 November 1316) * John II of France (1319–1364) * John I o ...

in 1212. Prince

Gwenwynwyn ab Owain 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 ...

of Powys moved his capital from Mathrafal to

(Y Trallwng) in 1212. Later in 1212, Robert de Vieuxpont was besieged in the castle by the coalition forces of Gwenwynwyn and

, he was rescued by King John. The castle was destroyed and never rebuilt. Excavations by the University of York around 1991 found an iron and bronze figurine of St

Gwynllyw Gwynllyw Filwr or Gwynllyw Farfog (), known in English in a corrupted form as Woolos the Warrior or Woolos the Bearded ( la, Gundleus, Gundleius or Gwenleue; 450 – 500 AD) was a Welsh king and religious figure. He was King of Gwynllwg in South ...

(or Woolos the Warrior) in a cavity in a window base.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Mathrafal on Castle of Wales websiteAerial views of the Mathrafal enclosure
Castles in Powys * History of Powys Archaeological sites in Powys Castle ruins in Wales