Hawarden Old Castle
- Not to be confused with New Hawarden Castle
| Hawarden Castle | |
|
Flintshire | |
|---|---|
 The keep of Hawarden Castle | |
| Location | |
| Location: | 53°10’51"N, 3°1’11"W |
| Village: | Hawarden |
| History | |
| Built late 13th century | |
| Key events: | Welsh Wars |
| Information | |
| Condition: | Ruin |
| Owned by: | Lord Gladstone |
Hawarden Old Castle is a Grade I listed mediæval castle near Hawarden, Flintshire.
The oldest origins of the fortress are indeterminate and the oldest fortifications on this site may date back to the Iron Age. The site was later used as a Norman Motte-and-bailey castle which was reportedly destroyed and replaced in a short period during the 13th century.
The castle played an important role during the Welsh Wars in the 13th century. At Easter 1282, Dafydd ap Gruffudd, brother and heir of Llywelyn the Last, attacked Hawarden Castle, thereby starting the final conflict with King Edward I, who had conquered and abolished ancient Gwynedd. King Edward's sense of outrage at this rebellion was such that he designed a punishment for Dafydd harsher than any previous form of capital punishment; Dafydd was hanged, drawn, and quartered in Shrewsbury in October 1283.
In 1294 the castle was captured during the revolt of Madog ap Llywelyn.
After the Civil War in the 17th century the castle was slighted on the orders of Oliver Cromwell. Its ruins are on the New Hawarden Castle estate and are open to the public on some Sundays, typically the second and fourth Sundays in summertime.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Hawarden Old Castle) |
References
- Alan Reid, The Castles of Wales (Letts Guides, 1973)