Tretower Castle
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Tretower Castle () is a Grade I-listed ruined
castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
in the
village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...
of
Tretower Tretower () is a hamlet in the community of Cwmdu and District, in the southern part of the county of Powys in Wales. It lies on the A479 road within the Brecon Beacons National Park (Bannau Brycheiniog) at the foot of the Black Mountains jus ...
in the
county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
of
Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...
, Wales. It was built around the beginning of the twelfth century as a
motte and bailey 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 ...
castle and this was probably replaced mid-century by a stone shell keep. The castle was enlarged in the early thirteenth century, but later fell into ruin.


History

Tretower (Dictionary of the Placenames of Wales byHywel Wyn owen and Richard Morgan; Gomer Press, 2007) was founded as a motte and bailey castle by Picard, a follower of
Bernard de Neufmarché Bernard de Neufmarché (), also Bernard of Newmarket or Bernard of Newmarch was the first of the Norman invasion of Wales, Norman conquerors of Wales. He was a minor Normans, Norman lord who rose to power in the Welsh Marches before successfully ...
. Probably around 1150, Picard's son, Roger Picard I, replaced the motte with a shell keep. By about 1230 a tall cylindrical keep was added to the inside of the shell keep, possibly by his great-grandson, Roger Picard II, and the space between was roofed over. At this time the earlier bailey was walled in stone and provided with cylindrical corner towers. In the early 14th century residential buildings were constructed away from the original fortifications forming today's
Tretower Court Tretower Court () is a medieval fortified manor house in Wales, situated in the village of Tretower, near Crickhowell in modern-day Powys, previously within the historical county of Breconshire or Brecknockshire. Local and national importance ...
. Over time the lords of Tretower favoured the more luxurious Court and the castle fell into disuse.


Description of the castle

The castle is roughly triangular in plan, with the motte and
keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...
assemblage occupying the western corner. The 12th century shell-keep is an irregular enclosure with a gate-tower on the line of approach from the bailey. In the centre of the shell stands the tall cylindrical 13th century keep. The keep is of three storeys, with an original entrance at first floor level, above a strong, slanted batter or talus. The top of the talus is marked by a decorative string-course of stone.


See also

* Castles in Great Britain and Ireland * List of castles in Wales


References


Bibliography

*


External links


Tretower Castle & Court
– official site at
Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage ...

Article and photos of the Tretower Castle & Court
{{Powys Castles in Powys Castle ruins in Wales Towers in Wales Cadw Brecknockshire Grade I listed castles in Wales Grade I listed buildings in Powys Scheduled monuments in Powys