The first thing you notice when you come through the gates of Cardiff Castle is probably not the tower on a hill, built by Norman thugs to consolidate their incursions, or the re-constructed Roman gate next to it, but a big, red dragon. It’s the same one that dominates today’s Welsh flag, here brought gloriously to three-dimensional life. Conquerors have come and gone, but the native Welsh came out on top.
You can easily satisfy all of your medieval castle fantasies with a couple of stops on a road trip to Cardiff. We explored Cardiff Castle and Chepstow Castle this trip. The eager castellophile could easily add in Castell Coch, which essentially functions as a small “summer house” for Cardiff. (Here’s an article on that site from an earlier visit.) But if you only have time for two … or if, like my husband, you have limits to how much Victorian Gothic you can stand … following our route for this trip makes sense.
Cardiff Castle sits right in the centre of the capital and has two primary draws. First, it’s a great demonstration of how castles evolved in use and appearance over time. Second, it’s one of the best examples of Victorian gothic in the country.
If you want to learn about the history of castle building, you can start with the reconstruction of the Roman Gate. Then clamber up the big hill, or “motte” to have a look at the Norman playbook. From up there you have a great viewpoint of the massive “bailey”, the area encircled by walls that would have been the functional space for everything from military exercises to craftspeople’s workshops. And you can see how, as castles became less defensive and more residential, their owners built against the outer walls.
It was the potential of those buildings that set John Patrick Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, dreaming in the 1860s. The outrageously wealthy young man, whose family had grown rich on Welsh coal and built Cardiff into their exporting hub, couldn’t help but be impressed when he attended the House of Lords in the brand new Palace of Westminster. It had just risen from a fire in the latest trendy style: a fairy-tale gothic that architects believed to be truly British. The Marquess thought he’d bring the style home and hired architect William Burgess. The two men would work together to realise the medieval fever dream that is Cardiff. As well as the summer house at the Castell Coch.
An entry hall, dining room and substantial library are all in this exuberant style. The most eye-popping room along this tour route, however, takes us in a completely different direction … as if one of those medieval knights took a detour through Islamic Spain on the way home from the Crusades and decided he needed a place to remind him of his travels. The Arab Room features a carved ceiling that could have come right out of the Alhambra Palace, except this one is gilded in 24 carat gold. The walls are marble. The windows have coloured marbles embedded in them to send splinters of coloured light across the interiors. The fireplace looks more like a mosque’s alcove for holding the Koran than a practical utility. It’s spectacular.
The other best bits of the interiors require a separate tour. (You could see it all under one ticket when I was last here, but that was a long time ago.) If you have time, it’s worth the extra expense to book an escorted tour into the tower, which gives you a look at the bedrooms and the unusual roof garden, which is a crazy decorative mash-up of Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages and Victorian ironwork. It’s essentially a tiny cloister garden, with covered walkways on four side and an opening to the sky in the centre.
Any past resident of Chepstow Castle, if somehow transported to one of Burgess and Bute’s interiors, would probably think they’d been whisked to another world rather than any spot in their own gothic reality. Yes, medieval castles had some nice interiors, but in a time before artificial lighting and chemically enhanced paints they never would have been this bright. Besides, the original buildings were less palaces and more easily-defended admin offices with sleeping quarters.
The upper bailey is closely associated with William Marshall, one of the great heroes of the English Middle Ages, and his powerful heiress wife Isabel de Clare. The castle, in fact, came with her as part of her dowry. But unlike so many of the arranged marriages of this time period, this was a real love match. So enduring is their story it became the foundation of the film A Knight’s Tale.
Four generations later building attention moved to the lower bailey, where the couple’s great grandson Baron Bigod turned the complex into a bit of a party palace. Not only did he put in a new great hall … even though there was a perfectly good one just up the hill … but he built a substantial complex of kitchens, serving areas and wine cellars. The latter could be stocked through a hatch directly over the river. None of the explanatory material says so, but I have a hunch that building just this little bit further down the slope made for warmer, more comfortable accommodations.
Chepstow was in continuous use for another six centuries. Its decay is fairly modern; It wasn’t until very late in the 17th century that the owners of the time abandoned it. It didn’t stay forgotten for long, however. By the end of the next century, romantic ruins were all the rage. The ruins just upriver at Tintern Abbey got the superstar treatment by artist JMW Turner. So did Chepstow. Suddenly, the Wye River ruins were on every fashionable Regency traveller’s bucket list.
Chepstow probably isn’t as famous these days as it was in those giddy times, but it’s still a star in South Wales’ firmament. It’s a logical stop, as we did it, on a trip to and from Cardiff, but it’s also an easy day trip from London and environs thanks to its location just minutes off the motorway. The castle and its surrounding town feel small and isolated, but they’re right next to the old Severn Bridge. A pleasant day trip would start here, then drive up to the equally romantic Tintern Abbey, before winding along the Wye through the Forest of Dean.
Cardiff Castle sits right in the centre of the capital and has two primary draws. First, it’s a great demonstration of how castles evolved in use and appearance over time. Second, it’s one of the best examples of Victorian gothic in the country.
If you want to learn about the history of castle building, you can start with the reconstruction of the Roman Gate. Then clamber up the big hill, or “motte” to have a look at the Norman playbook. From up there you have a great viewpoint of the massive “bailey”, the area encircled by walls that would have been the functional space for everything from military exercises to craftspeople’s workshops. And you can see how, as castles became less defensive and more residential, their owners built against the outer walls.
The duo’s vision of the Middle Ages is lavish: jewel tones, lush fabrics, ornate wood carving, plenty of gilding. You can see this best in the banqueting hall. A wooden roof encrusted with ornamental beams is held aloft by colourful angels, hair flowing and clothes picked out in eye-watering colours. Nothing in this version of history comes in pastels or neutrals. On the walls below you can follow the story of Robert of Gloucester, an early owner of the place. He was the illegitimate son of King Henry I, therefore half brother to the Matilda who scrabbled with her cousin Stephen over the throne in a civil war so nasty contemporary chroniclers described it as a time when “Christ and his saints slept.”
Robert was perhaps the only historical figure to emerge from this time period with an honourable reputation intact, and his exploits provide suitably chivalric images. An exuberant fireplace adds to the story; it’s a besieged castle sticking out into the room, with Matilda up top awaiting rescue. It’s pure Disney. And this isn’t the only place the fantasy pokes beyond the walls: animals around the door frames stick fins, feathers and paws beyond the paint, enhancing the illusion.
Robert was perhaps the only historical figure to emerge from this time period with an honourable reputation intact, and his exploits provide suitably chivalric images. An exuberant fireplace adds to the story; it’s a besieged castle sticking out into the room, with Matilda up top awaiting rescue. It’s pure Disney. And this isn’t the only place the fantasy pokes beyond the walls: animals around the door frames stick fins, feathers and paws beyond the paint, enhancing the illusion.
The other best bits of the interiors require a separate tour. (You could see it all under one ticket when I was last here, but that was a long time ago.) If you have time, it’s worth the extra expense to book an escorted tour into the tower, which gives you a look at the bedrooms and the unusual roof garden, which is a crazy decorative mash-up of Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages and Victorian ironwork. It’s essentially a tiny cloister garden, with covered walkways on four side and an opening to the sky in the centre.
Any past resident of Chepstow Castle, if somehow transported to one of Burgess and Bute’s interiors, would probably think they’d been whisked to another world rather than any spot in their own gothic reality. Yes, medieval castles had some nice interiors, but in a time before artificial lighting and chemically enhanced paints they never would have been this bright. Besides, the original buildings were less palaces and more easily-defended admin offices with sleeping quarters.
If Cardiff if the fantasy, Chepstow is the reality.
The setting is one of the prettiest in the UK. The castle climbs up cliffs that rise above the River Wye, just before the water disappears into heavy forest. These days Chepstow is a romantic ruin, but there’s enough here to help you imagine past glories. Here there are two baileys, each with its own great hall and additional buildings. It’s almost all without roofs these days, but you can scramble up stairs, walk along wall tops and take in magnificent views.
The upper bailey is closely associated with William Marshall, one of the great heroes of the English Middle Ages, and his powerful heiress wife Isabel de Clare. The castle, in fact, came with her as part of her dowry. But unlike so many of the arranged marriages of this time period, this was a real love match. So enduring is their story it became the foundation of the film A Knight’s Tale.
Four generations later building attention moved to the lower bailey, where the couple’s great grandson Baron Bigod turned the complex into a bit of a party palace. Not only did he put in a new great hall … even though there was a perfectly good one just up the hill … but he built a substantial complex of kitchens, serving areas and wine cellars. The latter could be stocked through a hatch directly over the river. None of the explanatory material says so, but I have a hunch that building just this little bit further down the slope made for warmer, more comfortable accommodations.
Chepstow probably isn’t as famous these days as it was in those giddy times, but it’s still a star in South Wales’ firmament. It’s a logical stop, as we did it, on a trip to and from Cardiff, but it’s also an easy day trip from London and environs thanks to its location just minutes off the motorway. The castle and its surrounding town feel small and isolated, but they’re right next to the old Severn Bridge. A pleasant day trip would start here, then drive up to the equally romantic Tintern Abbey, before winding along the Wye through the Forest of Dean.
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