Twthill () is a Norman

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 ...

located near the town of Rhuddlan,

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

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 ...

; historic names for the site include Toothill and Tot Hill Castle and it is also known as Old Rhuddlan Castle. It is a

motte-and-bailey castle 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 ...

and was later replaced by the much larger, stone-built Rhuddlan Castle. The only remaining visible signs of the old castle are the large mound of the motte, and traces of the wall that surrounded the bailey.

History

Twthill castle was built to a 'motte and bailey' design and was erected by

Robert of Rhuddlan Robert of Rhuddlan (died 3 July 1093) was a Norman adventurer who became lord of much of north-east Wales and for a period lord of all North Wales. Robert was the son of Humphrey de Tillieul (or Bigod) and Adeliza de Grentemesnil, brother of Ar ...

in 1073. He was a kinsman of

Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester Hugh d'Avranches ( 1047 – 27 July 1101), nicknamed ''le Gros'' (the Large) or ''Lupus'' (the Wolf), was from 1071 the second Norman Earl of Chester and one of the great magnates of early Norman England. Early life and career Hugh d'Avra ...

and the castle was designed to consolidate Norman advances into the north of Wales at the command of

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

. Using this castle as a base, Robert subdued the Welsh and established control of much of North Wales. A borough became established beside the castle and by 1086, eighteen burgesses enjoying special privileges lived here, and the buildings included a church and a

mint Mint or The Mint may refer to: Plants * Lamiaceae, the mint family ** ''Mentha'', the genus of plants commonly known as "mint" Coins and collectibles * Mint (facility), a facility for manufacturing coins * Mint condition, a state of like-new ...

. Coins minted at Rhuddlan between this date and 1215 can be found in museum collections. The motte and bailey castle remained in use for two hundred years until Rhuddlan Castle was built adjacent to the site, on the orders of

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 125 ...

. Tradition has it that Twthill Castle was built on the site of the palace of

Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Gruffudd ap Llywelyn ( – 5 August 1063) was the first and only Welsh king to unite all of Wales under his rule from 1055 to 1063. He had also previously been King of Gwynedd and Powys from 1039 to 1055. Gruffudd was the son of Llywelyn ap ...

, king of Wales.

Preservation

Twthill is located some 300 yards south of the later, stone-built Rhuddlan Castle. The only major earthwork is the motte which stands 12 metres high with a maximum diameter of 80 metres, light impressions of the bailey can be seen in the surrounding fields. Much of the site has degraded due to the sandy soil conditions. Twthill is currently in the care of

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 ...

and is open to the public all year round. Admission is free and the castle is accessed via a 400-metre public footpath across agricultural land.

History

Preservation

References

See also