Dinas Bran Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Crow

In the community of Llangollen.
In the historic county of Denbighshire (Modern authority of Denbighshire, preserved county of Clwyd).

Castle built towards the later part of C13 by the princes of Powys Fadog. During the wars between Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, Prince of Wales and Edward I of England the castle was burnt by the Welsh before it was captured in 1277 by Henry de Lacy, earl of Lincoln. It was not repaired and ceased to be used after the 1280s. A rectangular enclosure, c.82m ENE-WSW by 35m, defined by a stone curtain wall, with a projecting "D" shaped tower on the S side and with the E, entrance facade occupied largely by a rectangular tower and twin-towered gate. Without the wall is a broad, rock-cut ditch on the S and E sides, with a prominent counterscarp on the E and SE. The tower is the most impressive part of the standing remains, originally it protruded south of the curtain wall. A large rectanctanular building with windows looking southwards lay to the east of the tower. This may have been a hall or chapel. The keep is a large square building set in the south-east part of the castle, only the west wall and part of the south survive to any height.

This site has been described as a;
Masonry Castle
Timber Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Not known if listed listed building protected by law*.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SJ22244306

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Monuments Record number; 307064

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 101174

• Web site links
  • http://www.castlewales.com/dinas.html
    http://www.cpat.org.uk/educate/guides/dinasb/dinasb.htm
• Books
  • Pettifer, Adrian, 2000, Welsh Castles, A Guide by Counties (Boydell Press) p59-60
    Reid, Alan, 1998, Castles of Wales (John Jones Publishing) p50-2
    Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles of North Wales (Malvern) p52-3
    Davis, Paul R., 1988, Castles of the Welsh Princes (Swansea)
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p103
    Avent, Richard, 1983, Castles of the Princes of Gwynedd (Cardiff)
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p348
    Neaverson, E., 1947, Mediaeval Castles in North Wales: A study of Sites, Water Supply, and Building Stones (London) p36-7
    Lowe, W.Bezant, 1927, The Heart of North Wales (Llanfairfechan) Vol2 p217-8 [slight]
    Oman, Charles W.C., 1926, Castles (1978 edn Beetham House: New York) p225-7
    RCAHMW, 1914, An inventory of the Ancient Monuments of Denbighshire (HMSO) p120-1
    Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol3 (London) p422-5
    Buck, Samuel and Nathenial, 1774, Buck’s Antiquities (London) Vol2 p385
• Journal Articles
  • Jones, W.B., 2000, 'The building of Castell Dinas Bran' Clwyd Historian Vol45 p1-8
    Jones. E P. 1984. ‘Castell Dinas Bran’. Denbighshire Historical Society Transactions 33. 69-74 [in Welsh]
    Cathcart King. D J. 1974. ‘Two Castles in Northern Powys: Dinas Bran and Caergwrle’ Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol123 p113-139
    Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1967, 'Masonry castles in Wales and the Marches: a list' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol116 p71-132
    Forde-Johnston, 1964, Flintshire History Society Vol21 p9-12 [on the outer enclosure]
    Hemp, 1935, Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol90 p323-6
    Tregellas, W.H., 1865, ‘Castell Dinas Bran near Llangollen’ Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol11 p49-58 [reprint of Archaeological Journal article]
    Tregellas, W.H., 1864, ‘Castell Dinas Bran near Llangollen’ Archaeological Journal Vol21 p114-20
    1864, The Builder Vol22 p545, 636 [letters, the first probably from Clark]
• Guidebooks
  • Cole, J., 2003, Castell Dinas Bran (Llangollen: J.Cole) [New guides to old places]
    Hewitt, R.S., 1977, A history of Castell Dinas Brân with notes on Valle Crucis Abbey (Privately published)
    Grenter, Stephen and Berry, Andre, n.d., Castell Dinas Bran Llangollen (Clwyd Archaeology Service)
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/glameng.html#denb6]
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol5 p82