The Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust
Historic Environment Record
 

The following information has been provided under the terms and conditions of access as detailed on GGAT�s website www.ggat.org.uk.  Copyright is reserved on all data supplied by the GGAT HER Charitable Trust. All output resulting from the use of the data must acknowledge the source as follows:-
Derived from information held by the GGAT HER Charitable Trust copyright.

The data below is intended to be used for information and research only and is not for use as part of a commercial project.  If you wish to use information derived from material held by the GGAT HER Charitable Trust for publication in printed or multimedia form or to compile resources for commercial use, prior permission must be obtained in writing. For further information or to arrange a visit to the Trust please send an enquiry form http://www.ggat.org.uk/her/english/enquiry_form.html to her@ggat.org.uk.

Caerphilly Castle

Primary Reference Number (PRN) : 00696m
Trust : Glamorgan Gwent
Community : Caerphilly
Unitary authority : Caerphilly
NGR : ST15558701
Site Type (preferred type first) : Medieval Castle
Status : Site Cared for by the State

Summary :
This formidable concentric citadel was built during the mid-late 13th century (being completed in 1271 and re-fortified in 1290), but by the 16th century it was largely ruinous. Partly reconstructed in the 19th/20th century. It is now a Guardianship site

Description :
Much of Caerphilly Castle was constructed by Earl Gilbert II de Clare (died 1295) in the second half of the 13th century to protect his holdings in Glamorgan against the incursions of Llywelyn Prince of Wales. Four phases of construction (First, Second, Third and Fourth Works, distinguishable by changes in architectural detail) can be attributed to Earl Gilbert, whose new castle was at the cutting edge of military thinking for the period, predating Edward Is castles of similar design in North Wales. A Fifth Work, the rebuilding of the Great Hall, dated by documentary evidence to 1325-26, was undertaken by Hugh Despenser the Younger, though he is likely also to have needed to carry out restoration work to other parts of the castle following its capture by Llywelyn Bren.

The castle has concentric rectangular Inner and Middle Wards, each with an east and west gate, the Inner East Gate capable of being isolated from the surrounding structures in case of attack. The Inner Ward also has a tower at each of its four corners, mural galleries in its curtain walls, and the Great Hall constructed against the south curtain wall with sets of lodgings at either end. The main surviving structures within the Middle Ward are the Kitchen Tower, abutted against the curtain wall for the Inner Ward on its other side from the Great Hall, and a store building. A western outwork or bailey is accessible from the Outer West Gate via a bridge across one arm of the water defences, which are extensive and elaborate. The moat around the Middle Ward is expanded on the south side to form a lake, which is connected to a second lake at the north side of the castle by the channel which isolates the northwestern side of the Western Bailey from the surrounding area. The outer defences are completed by the stone-faced embankments which enclose the lakes on the eastern side and are themselves protected by a further moat to the east. These central embankments houses the Outermost East Gate (the main entrance to the castle); there is a barbican gate at the southern end of the southern embankment, whilst the narrower northern embankment, which is further strengthened by a series of towers, continues northwards to the North Gate.

First Work (1268-7)(RCAHMW 2000, 62
Construction during this phase was interrupted by the seizure of the castle by Llywelyn in 1270. By the time of his second attack in the following year, it was strong enough to withstand a siege.
Inner Ward: Curtain wall with gatehouses and corner towers, plus original version of Great Hall, the lower part of which abuts the curtain wall showing that it must be relatively late in the sequence.
Middle Ward: Curtain wall, facades of both gatehouses and entry passage of west gateway
Outer Ward: All except north side and northeast corner from east gatehouse inclusive, and barbican to south barbican gate.
RCAHMW (2000, 62, 66) notes that the First Work is characterised by the use of bar-and-ball or bar-and-broach stops applied to simple chamfers of doors and windows, appearing in primary work of the curtains, angle towers and gatehouses of the Inner Ward, mainly at ground level, but also above where preserved (eg Inner East Gatehouse); occasional plain broach stop without a bar. Also appears on north and south posterns (water-gates) of Middle Bailey wall, and on the door leading to the latter postern from the Great Hall. All the towers are circular in plan, and the arrow-slits are tall and plain, with or without a lower oillet.

Second Work (complete before 1277) RCAHMW 2000, 62-5
Middle Ward: Kitchen Tower constructed against outer wall of Great Hall, together with the block housing the stairs to the South Postern with lodgings above. Storehouse to the south of the Outer East Gate..
This phase is characterised by a general lack of architectural refinement, with rough stone voussoir arched openings and vault ribs, hardly any ashlar dressings and no distinctive chamfers or stops.
Outer wall with salients on north front and southeast and southwest salients, heightened.

Third Work (1277-83) RCAHMW 2000, 66
Inner Ward: Suite of lodgings at the west end of the Great Hall/
Middle Ward: Rear section of its East and West Gate Towers constructed, to form lodgings in the case of the former; block extending between Kitchen Tower and Southeast Corner Tower constructed.
Outer Ward: addition of North Lake with its embankments which incorporated Outermost East Gatehouse and North Gatehouse; rear section of Barbican Gate constructed and additional barbican added to its approach.
RCAHMW notes that the Third Work characterised by the return of ashlar for dressings; the stops are bullnosed or quarter-round, either continuing to the foot or terminated with a broach or plain splay. The towers are polygonal above square bases with bold pyramidal spurs, with innovative design for the drawbridge housing on the gate towers; arrow-slits are cross-oillets.

Fourth Work (probably before 1288) RCAHMW 2000, 66
Outer Ward: Heightening of north embankment and addition of its three salient towers; finishing upper floors of Outermost East Gatehouse.
Characterised by plain chamfers with simple ball-stops without a bar; form of towers and arrow-slits as for Third Work.

Fifth Work (1325-26) RCAHMW 2000, 68-70, 88
Inner Ward: Reconstruction of the Great Hall, involving the complete replacement of its north wall facing the Inner Bailey, and its roof. This is clearly stylistically later than Gilbert de Clares works, incorporating ogee arches, and is not military in character. The craftsmen responsible were the kings master-mason Thomas de la Bataille and his master-carpenter William Hurley.

Restoration of the castle was begun in the 1870s by the third Marquess of Bute, who re-roofed the Great Hall and rebuilt the retaining wall on the north side of the North Lake. However, most of the work was carried out by his son in the 1920s and 1930s, partly as a job creation scheme. Both campaigns of restoration were undertaken on the basis of meticulous examination of the surviving fabric.

RCAHMW 2000, 59-76

Caerphilly Castle occupies a low glacial ridge aligned E-W, on the floor of a wide basin confined by surrounding mountains, but of such modest elevation that it was strictly neutral in military terms. Its formidable concentric citadel and western bailey were devised and largely completed for Earl Gilbert II de Clare between 1268 and 1271, together with the strongly fortified Central Platform and its contiguous South Embankment which compounded the large South Lake. Twice attacked by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd during the formative period of building, in 1270 and 1271, this castle was completed and further strengthened by 1290 with the addition of the fortified northern platform which retained the North Lake. The castle repulsed further Welsh attacks in 1294-5 and 1316, but was taken and sacked in the baronial uprising of 1321. Restored, and given a remodelled Great Hall, it briefly sheltered the fugitive Edward II in 1326, before sieges in 1326-7 and 1329 appear to have concluded its active role in regional and national hostilities. No documentary evidence affirms the dubious tradition that Caerphilly fell to Glyndwr in 1404, and it was largely ruinous by the early 16th century.

In 1999 GGAT carried out an evaluation at South Gate Square, Caerphilly. The evaluation revealed no features or finds of archaeological interest apart from a 19th century flagged pathway and cobbled surface within excavation depths of no more than 1.5m. (Roberts 1999).

Excavations on behalf of Cadw were undertaken as part of an assessment before building works within the Castle at Caerphilly, to determine whether archaeological deposits were present in some areas of the castle. The wall core in Trench 1 by the South West Tower was contemporary with the inner curtain wall of the castle. The deposit below may represent collapsed material from the original tower, before the rebuild. The plinth at the base of the tower is well constructed and sturdy at a depth of at least 0.6m below present ground surface. The full depth was not revealed, a similar structure within the North tower extends into a basement 4m below ground level. The original floor material of the Kitchen block Annexe doesn't survive, later cobbling was a replacement surface not corresponding with the original masonry. A rubbly deposit in all three trenches is a layer above a ceiling, and the entrances are visible above ground level in the middle ward." Given that previous excavations in other areas within Caerphilly castle have revealed few features or deposits of archaeological significance, the trenches opened in these areas contain archaeological remains of some importance." (Milne, 2001)

Between 2002 and 2008 during groundworks for various improvements at the site, several features were uncovered during archaeological watching briefs/evaluations (E006993, E007030, E007033, E007035, E007036, E007037). A set of limestone slab steps were excavated at the base of the South-East Tower, sealed by a 13th to 15th century deposit above. In the D shaped South Tower a considerable amount of intact original flooring was uncovered in the base. The flooring excavated to the south of the low wall was clay and mortar sealed, supporting the theory that the base of the tower was used as a brewhouse for the castle (Milne 2002). to the east of the Inner East Gatehouse several wall structures were excavated dating to construction phases 1-3 and 4-5 (Evans 2002). Medieval floor horizons were uncovered to the east of the Inner East gatehouse, and to the east of the mill near the Outer Main Gatehouse (Smith 2007, 2008, 2009). A section of intact slipway surface was also uncovered (Smith 2007).



Sources :
, Archwilio App Submission
Cadw , Application for Scheduled Monument Consent
Evans, P , 2002 , Caerphilly Castle, Glamorgan. Archaeological Evaluation
Glamorgan Gwent Archaeological Trust , Site Visit Record
Milne, H , 2001 , Caerphilly castle Archaeological Evaluation
Milne, H , 2002 , Caerphilly Castle, Glamorgan Archaeological Watching Brief and Evaluation
Rees W. , 1957 , Records of the Lordship of Senghenydd with the Castle of Caerphilly (from the time of Edward I - Henry VIII) , South Wales & Monmouth Record Society : 4 : 33-49
Rigold S.E , 1975 , Structural Aspects of Medieval Timber Bridges , Medieval Archaeology : 19 : 48-91
Smith E.G. , 1936 , Excursion to Caerphilly Castle
Smith, C. E. , 2007 , Archaeological Evaluation & Standing Fabric Recording Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly
Smith, C. E. , 2008 , Caerphilly Castle Floodlighting Scheme Archaeological Watching Brief
Smith, C.E. , 2009 , Caerphilly Castle Archaeological Evaluation & Watching Brief
Taylor, B , 2014 , Digital photograph (1); Caerphilly Castle
The Handley Partnership , HAAbase built heritage assessment system: Buildings at Risk database
Udyrysz-Krawec, M. , 2019 , Geophysical Survey Report: Caerphilly Castle
2000/RCAHMW/AN INVENTORY OF THE ANCIENT MONUMENTS IN GLAMORGAN/VOL 3/PART 1b/MEDIEVAL SECULAR MONUMENTS/THE LATER CASTLES FROM 1217 TO THE PRESENT/p51-104
02/PM Desc Text/Rees W/1937/Caerphilly Castle/p5
01/MM Record Card/OS/1974/ST 18 NE 3
03/PM Desc Text/Rees W & Fox C/1933/Archaeol Cambrensis/Vol88 pp378-83
04/PM Desc Text/1951/Archaeol Cambrensis/Vol101 part2 pp113-4
06/PM Desc Text/Hamilton Thomas A/1912/Military Architecture in England pp274-5
05/PM Desc Text/Simpson WD/1940/Archaeol Cambrensis/Vol95 pp154-55
07/PM Desc Text/Lewis JM/1966/Archaeol Cambrensis/Vol115 pp67-87
09/PM List/Cadw/1995/Application for Scheduled Monument Consent
10/PM List/Cadw/1996/Application for Scheduled Monument Consent
08/PM Desc Text/RCAHM/Invent III 1b/LM3
12/Desc Text/Cadw/Full Management Report/2007/Copy in further information file.

Events :
E002590 : Caerphilly Castle (year : 2001)
E002603 : South Gate Square, Caerphilly (year : 1999)
E006022 : Land at Gwern y Domen, Caerphilly (year : 2015)
E000198 : Caerphilly Castle (year : 1974)
E006993 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2002)
E007030 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2001)
E007031 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2005)
E007032 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2005)
E007033 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2007)
E007034 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2007)
E007035 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2008)
E007036 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2009)
E007037 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2009)
E007563 : Caerphilly Castle Moat, Crescent Road, Caerphilly (year : 2022)
E007774 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2018)
E008116 : Caerphilly Castle (year : 2019)
E008143 : Caerphilly Castle Great Hall (year : 2019)
E008231 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly, Glamorgan (year : 2019)
E008432 : Windsor Colliery, Abertridwr (year : 2021)
E008456 : Caerphilly Castle Footpaths, Caerphilly (year : 2021)
E008457 : Caerphilly Castle Footpaths, Caerphilly (year : 2021)
E008458 : Caerphilly Castle Footpaths, Caerphilly (year : 2021)
E008491 : Caerphilly Castle Moat, Crescent Road, Caerphilly (year : 2022)
E008492 : Caerphilly Castle Moat, Crescent Road, Caerphilly (year : 2022)
E008574 : Caerphilly Castle Visitor Centre, Caerphilly, Glamorgan (year : 2021)
E008595 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly, Glamorgan (year : 2020-21)
E008596 : Caerphilly Castle, State Apartments, Caerphilly, Glamorgan (year : 2021)
E008634 : Caerphilly Interchange (year : 2021)
E008716 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2011)
E008717 : Caerphilly Castle, Caerphilly (year : 2011)

Related records
National Monuments Record NPRN 94497 http://www.coflein.gov.uk/en/site/94497/details/caerphilly-castle
GGAT Historic Environment Record (HER) 11688m
GGAT Historic Environment Record (HER) 01028m
GGAT Historic Environment Record (HER) 11838m

Compiled date : 01-10-1977


Images :



March 31, 2025, 6:11 am - HTML file produced from GGAT HER Charitable Trust Ltd. Heathfield House, Heathfield, Swansea SA1 Tel. 01792 655208; Fax 01792 474469 website: www.ggat.org.uk  email: her@ggat.org.uk Registered Charity no. 505609
Data supplied by in partnership with Local Authorities, Cadw and the partners of ENDEX © GGAT HER Charitable Trust, 2025 (and in part © Crown, 2025).