Castle Caereinion Motte

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Twmpatch Garmon; Twmpath Garmon

In the community of Castle Caereinion.
In the historic county of Montgomeryshire (Modern authority of Powys, preserved county of Powys).

Grassy mound in corner of the churchyard, standing up to 3m high and roughly 20m across; there is a slight depression to the south marking the probable line of the original ditch. The raised north-east sides of the churchyard may indicate the position of bailey banks. The castle lies at an important watershed between the Sylfaen Brook and the Banwy valley, on the route west from Welshpool. It was built by Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1156, and refurbished in 1166 by Owain Gwynedd and the Lord Rhys, after they evicted Madog's nephew Owain Cyfeiliog for swearing allegiance to the English. Owain destroyed the castle shortly afterwards with a Norman force, and nothing further is heard of it. A somewhat irregular mound, c.14-16m in diameter and 3.0m high, at the N angle of Castle Caereinion churchyard, identified as the motte of a castle recorded 1156-1167. A series of yew tree-topped mounds in the S part of the churchyard may represent the bailey bank, indicating an enclosed area of c.70m by 60m. Alternatively a preaching mound, associated with the cult of Garmon

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

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SJ16350549

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; 306739

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 104

• Web site links
  • http://www.castlewales.com/caernion.html
• Books
  • Salter, Mike, 2001, The Castles of Mid Wales (Malvern) p37
    Pettifer, Adrian, 2000, Welsh Castles, A Guide by Counties (Boydell Press) p152
    Reid, Alan, 1998, Castles of Wales (John Jones Publishing) p56
    Davis, Paul R., 1988, Castles of the Welsh Princes (Swansea)
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p295
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p327
    Renn, D.F., 1973 (2edn), Norman Castles of Britain (John Baker)
    Armitage, Ella, 1912, The Early Norman Castles of the British Isles (London: John Murray) p300
• Journal Articles
  • Spurgeon, C.J., 1966, ‘The castles of Montgomeryshire’ Montgomeryshire Collections Vol58 p11-12
    Hogg, A.H.A. and King, D.J.C., 1963, 'Early castles in Wales and the Marches: a preliminary list' Archaeologia Cambrensis Vol112 p77-124
    O'Neil, B.H.St J., 1936, Montgomeryshire Collections Vol44 p39-44 [plan]
    D.R.T[homas]. 1902, Montgomeryshire Collections Vol32 [where mistakenly placed at Pen y Foel]