Pennard Castle - Gower, Swansea,Wales.
N 51° 34.596 W 004° 06.116
30U E 423641 N 5714523
Pennard Castle is a ruined castle, west of the village of Pennard in the Gower Peninsula. The Castle has stunning views overlooking three cliffs Bay and Oxwich Bay. The castle was established in the 12th century but abandoned in the 1400s.
Waymark Code: WMF5JX
Location: South Wales, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 08/26/2012
Views: 1
"Pennard Castle's situation is dramatic and beautiful. It is perched on the edge of the valley of the Pennard Pill, with a sheer drop below to the north and west. From it there is a sweeping view out towards Three Cliffs Bay, and across the valley to Penmaen Burrows. It was a perfect position for a castle, except for one thing which cannot have been foreseen when it was built: it was vulnerable to sand blow. By the end of the 14th century sand encroachment had led to its abandonment.
In the early 12th century Henry de Beaumont, first earl of Warwick, was granted the lordship of Gower, and it was probably he who built the ringwork castle here. It had a bank and ditch around it, and a primitive stone hall. On the opposite side of the valley, at Penmaen, was a very similar castle of the same date. The only traces of this early castle are the footings of the hall at the west end of the courtyard, which was probably added to the ringwork in the early 13th century.
In the late 13th or early 14th century the castle was rebuilt in stone, using local limestone and reddish sandstone, and the present-day ruins are the remains of this castle. It was probably the work of the de Braoses, who held the castle for a while in the 13th century. In 1321 it passed to the de Mowbray family". Source: (
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