Llawhaden Castle

Llawhaden Castle (Welsh: Castell Llanhuadain) is a castle in the Pembrokeshire village of Llawhaden and 10 miles east of Haverfordwest in southwest Wales, at grid reference SN 073175. A motte-and-bailey castle is thought to have previously occupied the site and the present structure was built by the bishops of the Diocese of St David in the 13th century. The castle was abandoned in the 16th century and some of the stone was removed for local building projects. The site is owned and managed by Cadw.

The ruins of Llawhaden Castle stands on a hill overlooking the River Cleddau, and is located in the Pembrokeshire village of Llawhaden, some 10 miles east of Haverfordwest. The remaining ruins date from the early 13th century. It is surrounded by a ditch, which was designed to be only crossable by a drawbridge. The castle is pentagonal in shape and while the north-western and western sides of the castle are no longer present, the other three sides remain. The gatehouse is located on the southern side, which is formed of two drum towers and a gateway. This was also where the drawbridge would have been located to allow entrance to the interior of the castle. The ruins are managed by Cadw, and are open the public.

Prior to the stone built building, a motte-and-bailey castle was thought to have been located on the same site. It was built by the bishops of the Diocese of St David between the 12th century and 14th century. The first castle on the site was constructed in 1115 by Bishop Bernard. Only the moat and the earth bank from this period survive. The vast majority of the ruins seen today date from the construction commissioned by Bishop Adam de Houghton between 1362 and 1389. This was much grander, with two suites of residences situated on the first floor. The gate house shown in the picture was probably added at a later date.

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