Dinas Powys Castle 2

(Masonry Castle)

Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales

Above: the south-eastern entrance to the castle into the bailey has been robbed of its dressed stone blocks

Dinas Powys Castle is a ruinous medieval fortress crowning a small and isolated steep-sided hill. It was the centre for a wealthy lordship. The castle is first recorded in about 1200 and was 'al in ruine' by the early sixteenth century. Thirteenth to fifteenth century coins have been found at the site. The castle consists of a near rectangular walled court about 68m north-west to south-east by 32m. The wall is 2.0m wide and in places survives to its battlements. There was a wide arched entrance facing the main approach from the south-east and a narrower postern with a pointed arch in the north-east wall. Masonry and timber buildings, including a great lordly hall, once lined the walls. At the north-west end there are slight remains of a great rectangular tower, some 18m by 13m, attached to the outside of the enclosure wall. A small counterscarped outwork, apparently earlier than the enclosure, lies beyond the tower.

It is thought that the tower is earlier than the enclosure and it was probably built in the twelfth century. The enclosure may be late twelfth century, although the form of the postern hints at a thirteenth century date. Source: RCAHMW Glamorgan Inventory III.1a The Earlier Castles (1991), 307-314.

Below: A drawing of the plan of Dinas Powys Castle by John Northall, and OS map for both castle sites.

Additional photographs of Dinas Powys Castle

The southern wall of the bailey still stands to a considerable height. One tall robbed-out window suggests that there was a hall or solar block at this point.
The wall above a second window has collapsed, leaving a gap that can be seen in the foliage to the right.

The east wall of the bailey enclosure is smothered in ivy.

The square tower or keep at the northern end of the site is in a poor state and access is forbidden.

The change of direction of the western wall of the bailey matches the contour of the hill.

A drawbar hole for a reinforced door can be seen in the eastern wall of the keep.

The curve of a semi-circular outwork or barbican can be seen in the undergrowth.
It was built-up from the natural slope of the hill to protect the keep from the north.

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