Llandaff Bishops Palace

In the community of Llandaff.
In the historic county of Glamorgan (Modern authority of Cardiff, preserved county of South Glamorgan).

There is apparently no recorded history of this castle, although according to tradition it was burnt by Owain Glyndwr when his revolt spread to the south at the beginning of C15. The main feature of the ruins is the twin-towered gatehouse, probably dating from the early C14. The castle was small, and its four irregular sides were guarded by three small towers, one round, one square, and another which has vanished.Substantial remains of a sub-rectangular enclosure, c.52m NW-SE by 40m, defined by ruinous masonry curtain walls, towers and a monumental gatehouse at the W angle, facing the approach from the Cathedral. Thought to have been first constructed in the late C13, substantially intact c.1600, the palace/castle decayed thereafter. The castle/palace is the only surviving residence of the medieval clergy of Llandaff. Although complete in 1610, it was probably ruined during the Civil War. There are twin towers to what was a 2-storey gatehouse, and an original studded oak door remains. There is a further tower to the NE, and traces of towers survive along the S wall. No evidence remains to suggest the layout inside the walls, although the bailey would almost certainly have contained timber structures. Ground floor room to S tower, including hooded fireplace, and turret to rear contains newel stair.

This site has been described as a;
Palace
Masonry Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Major remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Listed but grading unknown listed building protected by law*.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is ST15577800

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; 300278, 96079, 94548

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 00148s

• Web site links
  • http://www.castlewales.com/llandaff.html
• Books
  • Pettifer, Adrian, 2000, Welsh Castles, A Guide by Counties (Boydell Press) p97
    RCAHMW, 2000, An Inventory of Ancient Monuments of Glamorgan Vol3 pt1b: The Later Castles (London: HMSO)
    Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p179
    Reid, Alan, 1998, Castles of Wales (John Jones Publishing) p98
    Salter, Mike, 1991, The Castles of Gwent, Glamorgan and Gower (Malvern) p53
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p164
    Davis, Paul R., 1983, Castles of Glamorgan (Alun Books) p47
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p362
    Hague, D.B., 1971, in Pugh, T.B. (ed), Glamorgan County History Vol3 The Middle Ages (Cardiff) p442
    Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p381
    Grose, F., 1756, Antiquities of England and Wales Vol7 p83-4
• Journal Articles
  • Johns, C.N., 1974, 'The castle and manor of Llandaff' Glamorgan Historian Vol10 p177-95
    Jones, 1971, Archaeology in Wales Vol11 p25-6
    Lewis, 1971, CBA Group2 Vol11 p26-7
    Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1967, 'Masonry castles in Wales and the Marches: a list' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol116 p71-132
    [Jones], 1964, Medieval Archaeology Vol8 p248
    Jones, 1962, Archaeology in Wales Vol2 p15 [excavation report]
    Fox, 1933, Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol88 p367-8
• Guidebooks
  • Johns, C.N., 1972, The Bishop’s Palace, Llandaff (Cardiff)