Driving along the A40 after crossing the Welsh/English border, there is no clue about the magnificent site not far off the road. The sign for the castle appears suddenly, and after a very short drive you reach the large car park. Still no sign of a castle. Into the ticket office and still no clue. A short walk and suddenly the beautiful red stone castle is there before you. It takes you a few minutes to even realise that you’re standing on the edge of a very deep ditch.
The castle has a very long history. The keep is nearly 1000 years old. That’s not something that you can wrap your head around easily, especially when you consider how much is known about the people who owned it.
Despite being close to the border, and having some controversial owners, the castle survived the turbulence of medieval and Tudor times relatively unscathed. What I find most interesting about the history, considering the times, is that the castle was inherited by the female line several times. Unfortunately, after surviving for hundreds of years, the English civil war resulted in a huge amount of damage. Most of the ruins you see today we’re caused by the event.
It’s a spectacular castle, despite that. The sun shows the red stone to good advantage, the clouds make it look brooding. Most of the lower levels are accessible, but obviously there’s no way you can get into the higher areas if you have mobility problems. I climbed every stair there. It’s s quite narrow, but ropes are available to help you up. It’s worth it. You get a bird’s-eye view of the castle and the surrounding area.
When you climb down to walk around the defensive ditches, you soon realise how impressive the scale of the castle is. I have no idea how they could construct something like this 1000 years ago and despite the onslaught hundreds of years ago, it’s still standing. That’s some very impressive engineering.
The site is dog friendly. Plenty of watering posts in the cafe. Children old and young will love to clamber around and climb the towers. I went a few years ago with my stepsons and they had a blast. One was 11, the other 15. While I was there this time I watched toddlers really enjoying the idea of being a king or knight. The only thing they could improve on is a few more toilets. Car park is a decent size, theres a shop and cafe. The surrounding villages and area are also lovely. One I’d definitely recommend, whether passing through on the way to Wales, or staying in the area.
