The site of Castell Arnallt, sometimes known as Castle Arnold, is located near the village of Llanover in the Usk valley of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, some south east of

Abergavenny Abergavenny (; , , archaically , ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales. Abergavenny is promoted as a "Gateway to Wales"; it is approximately from the England–Wales border, border with England and is loca ...

. It was the fortified court house, or '' llys'', of Seisyll ap Dyfnwal, lord of Over Gwent or ''Gwent Uwchcoed'', before it was destroyed after Seisyll and some of his household were killed at

Abergavenny Castle Abergavenny Castle () is a ruined castle in the market town of Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, Wales, established by the Normans, Norman lord Hamelin de Balun . It was the site of a massacre of Welsh noblemen in 1175, and was attacked during the e ...

by William de Braose in 1175. The land is now in agricultural use, with no remains visible.

History

Origin

Castell Arnallt was a medieval fortification, believed to have been the fortified residence of the Welsh rulers of Over Gwent or ''Gwent Uwch Coed''. Together with other manors in the area, it formed part of the estates of Dyfnwal ap Caradog, who may have been based at Penpergwm near Abergavenny. Trostrey Excavation Group, ''Penpergwm: medieval manor house and chapel''
Retrieved 19 July 2013

Use and destruction in the 12th century

King

Henry II of England Henry II () was King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with the ...

recognised Dyfnwal's son, Seisyll ap Dyfnwal, as lord of Over Gwent or ''Gwent Uwchcoed'', with the honour of Abergavenny castle, in return for releasing a hostage, Hugh de Beauchamp. As part of the peace proceedings between The Lord Rhys and Henry II, Seisyll, the Lord Rhys’s brother in law, was persuaded to give the Honour of

to William de Braose. Abergavenny Castle was attacked in 1175 and Henry Fitzmiles was killed, reputedly by Seisyll. The Fitzmiles estate, including Abergavenny Castle, passed to William de Braose, the husband of Henry's sister Bertha. De Braose called Seisyll to his castle for Christmas in 1175, telling him that his intention was reconciliation. Also invited were other leaders from Gwent and Seisyll's son Geoffrey. In retribution for FitzMiles' death, De Braose had the men killed in the castle's great hall during a feast, an episode known as the Massacre of Abergavenny. His actions included seizing Seisyll's land. While Seisyll was at Abergavenny Castle, Castell Arnallt was attacked by retainers of William de Braose, who razed it in a surprise attack and killed Seisyll's other son Cadwaladr. Seisyll's wife was either kidnapped or killed during the raid. The final destruction of the castle is dated to 1177.

Subsequent use

In 1325 Castell Arnallt was part of the estates gifted to Sir William de Hastings, a relative of the lord of Abergavenny. The only known use of the site after the castle was destroyed is agriculture. The site has been surveyed, but has not been excavated. It has been scheduled as an

Ancient Monument An ancient monument can refer to any early or historical manmade structure or architecture. Certain ancient monuments are of cultural importance for nations and become symbols of international recognition, including the Baalbek, ruins of Baalbek ...

since 1947.

The current site

All that remains of the castle is a large, oblong mound. It sits in pasture land used for grazing, on the edge of the

flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...

of the

River Usk The River Usk (; ) rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain (''y Mynydd Du''), Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north int ...

. There are two enclosures, one on top of the mound and one its western side. It appears, from examination of the mound, that there may be structures, a gate, and masonry walls below the surface, built over a period of time. It is believed to have been a '' llys'', or

royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

, used for administrative purposes and built prior to 1175. It was considered likely to have been built without a motte, relying on natural formations.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Arnallt Castle Castles in Monmouthshire Castle ruins in Wales Scheduled monuments in Monmouthshire