Lamphey Bishop's Palace or Lamphey Palace is a ruined medieval building complex in

Lamphey Lamphey ( cy, Llandyfái ) is both a village, a parish and a community near the south coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales, approximately east of the historic town of Pembroke, and north of the seaside village of Freshwater East. The 2011 census re ...

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...

and is a

scheduled ancient monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

which has had Grade I

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 ...

designation since May 1970. In the past, it has also been known as Lamphey Court.

History

Whilst early thirteenth-century fragments from the old hall still exist, the palace, including the

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great ...

, was largely constructed under Bishop Henry de Gower,

Bishop of St David's The Bishop of St Davids is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of St Davids. The succession of bishops stretches back to Saint David who in the 6th century established his seat in what is today the St Davids, city of ...

(1328–1347) and was used by high-ranking clergy. The palace was built in three stages and originally had over 20 rooms and featured fishponds, orchards, fruit and herb gardens and areas of parkland with grazing deer. The palace was surrendered to the crown in 1546 during the reign

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

and granted to Richard Devereux and subsequently the

Earls of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex, KG (16 September 1541 – 22 September 1576), was an English nobleman and general. From 1573 until his death he fought in Ireland in connection with the Plantations of Ireland, most notably the Rathlin Is ...

lived in the palace as a child. The palace was sold to the Owens of Orielton in 1683, possibly due to damage in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. The buildings were possibly used for farm purposes in this era.

Gallery

File:Lantphey Court, Pembrokeshire.jpeg, Engraving from 1774 File:Lanfey Court, Pembrokeshire.jpeg, Engraving from 1815 File:Lamphey Palace, Pembrokeshire.jpeg, Engraving from circa 1830 File:Bishop's Palace, Lamphey - geograph.org.uk - 14003.jpg, File:Part of Lamphey Bishop's Palace - geograph.org.uk - 1057230.jpg File:Into The Light Lamphey Bishops Palace.jpg, The

undercroft An undercroft is traditionally a cellar or storage room, often brick-lined and vaulted, and used for storage in buildings since medieval times. In modern usage, an undercroft is generally a ground (street-level) area which is relatively open ...

References

{{reflist Episcopal palaces in Wales Grade I listed buildings in Pembrokeshire Scheduled monuments in Pembrokeshire

History

Gallery

See also

References