So there was this Flemish geezer called Wizo who, with a name like that sounds like he should be a wizard. Sadly he wasn’t. Despite his lack of magical abilities, he was granted a piece of land by Henry the first who had taken control of it from the previous owner who was in revolt against Henry. Wizo built a motte and bailey castle, ‘cos why wouldn’t you? It is considered one of the best examples of its type in Wales. It is situated in the Pembrokeshire village of Wiston in south west Wales which is named after Wizo – Wiston being an Old Flemish/Saxon for Wizo’s enclosure/town.
Tag: pembrokeshire
Llawhaden Castle. A Castle Built By A Bishop Called Bernard.
Llawhaden Castle or Castell Llanhuadain in the native Welsh tongue is a sprawling ruin of a castle in Pembrokeshire in southwest Wales. It and the surrounding lands were owned by the Bishopric of the Diocese of St David and was the only ecclesiastically-ruled Marcher Lordship. A motte and bailey were built by the first Norman Bishop, Bernard, in 1115 of which only the moat survives.
What’s in the Twin Towers of Cilgerran Castle?
A 13th-century ruined Norman Castle with a smashing view across the River Telfi in Cilgerran, Pembrokeshire, Wales. It’s all about the Round Towers here. Between around 1110–1115, Gerald of Windsor built a wooden palisade which was replaced at some point before the attack in 1165 by Rhys ap Gruffydd. He captured the castle and utterly destroyed it. He then began reconstruction using stone and lime mortar. The castle was recaptured by the English when William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, in 1204 when he drove out Rhy’s son, Maelgwn ap Rhys. Having captured the castle William Marshal began repairs but these proved futile when in 1215 Llywelyn the Great took the castle back into Welsh hands after just a single day of battle. In 1223 the castle was recaptured by Williams son William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, who began the construction of the castle in its present form. It remained in English hands until it was allowed to fall into ruin and was deserted by 1400.