Clyne Castle is a Grade II*-

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

situated on a hill overlooking

Swansea Bay Swansea Bay () is a bay on the southern coast of Wales. The River Neath, River Tawe, River Afan, River Kenfig and Clyne River flow into the bay. Swansea Bay and the upper reaches of the Bristol Channel experience a large tidal range. The sh ...

, adjacent to the Clyne valley, near

Blackpill Incel ( ; a portmanteau of "involuntary celibate") is a term associated with an online subculture of mostly male and heterosexual people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. They often ...

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

. Originally built in 1791 by a wealthy landowner it passed into the hands of the

Vivian family Vivian may refer to: *Vivian (name), a given name and also a surname Places * Vivian, Louisiana, U.S. * Vivian, South Dakota, U.S. * Vivian, West Virginia, U.S. * Vivian Island, Nunavut, Canada * Ballantrae, Ontario, a hamlet in Stouffville, On ...

and saw many distinguished guests over the years. Acquired by Swansea University in the 1950s, it was used as student accommodation. It has since become a block of apartments.

History

Clyne Castle was originally built in 1791 by Richard Phillips, a wealthy

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

landowner. The Castle was subsequently remodelled by later owners, and was for many years in the possession of the

. While they lived in the castle, the eminent guests that visited them are thought to include

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

and

King Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

. William Graham Vivian planted the landscaped gardens in the 1860s.

Later uses

Swansea University Swansea University () is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it chang ...

used the Castle as a hall of residence (Neuadd Gilbertson) after it acquired the building in the 1950s. The University built two accommodation blocks, and, later, a women's hall (Neuadd Martin), with exceptionally fine sea views, on the hill behind the castle. The two halls, which were linked by external steps, shared some functions. The City of Swansea acquired the mature park of the Castle, now called Clyne Gardens (Gerddi Clun), which has views over the bay. The historic landscape area of Clyne Castle is a Registered Historic Park. In 2003, the university decided to sell the halls and to build more accommodation on the main university campus instead. The current use of the refurbished castle is as a block of one- and two-bedroom apartments. The grounds are protected by wrought iron gates and residents have use of the lawned gardens. The student accommodation blocks and the women's hall were demolished and were replaced in 2006 by new housing.

References

{{Swansea University Castles in Swansea Mock castles in Wales Grade II* listed buildings in Swansea Houses completed in 1791 Country houses in Wales Swansea University