Castles / GB / Wales
Caldicot Castle (unoccupied parts)
Which definitions does it satisfy?
This dataset does not record whether something “is a castle”. It records a verdict against each named definition, with the reasoning that produced it.
| Definition | Verdict | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Fortified residence | yes | A motte-and-bailey founded in the 12th century by Milo Fitzwalter, Lord of Caldicot, and refortified in stone from c.1221 by Humphrey de Bohun. Active defence: a keep with 3m walls, cross arrow loops, a crenellated parapet and hourd; a curtain wall with a full wall-walk; and the de Bohun and Woodstock gatehouses with portcullises and murder holes meant to be held. Residence: grand lordly accommodation in the SE tower and hall range, and a gatehouse built as "accommodation for the Lord and his family" — both halves met, for identified lords. |
| Enclosure fortification | unassessed | No source consulted so far speaks to this definition. Unassessed is not the same as no. |
| State fortification | unassessed | No source consulted so far speaks to this definition. Unassessed is not the same as no. |
| Palatial seat | unassessed | No source consulted so far speaks to this definition. Unassessed is not the same as no. |
| Revival and folly | no | A 12th-14th-century castle within the defensive era; the 1885-1963 Cobb restoration into a family home was restoration of a genuine castle, not a post-defensive sham — the original defensive intent governs. |
| Popularly a castle | unassessed | No source consulted so far speaks to this definition. Unassessed is not the same as no. |
Facts
| Tradition | european medieval |
|---|---|
| Location | Caldicot, Monmouthshire, Wales, GB |
| Built | Medieval |
| Confidence | medium |
| First recorded | 2026-07-21 |
| Last updated | 2026-07-22 |
In the registers
Where this structure appears in official inventories. This is what turns an individual record into evidence about a count.
- Cof Cymru — National Historic Assets of Wales —
MM050· Scheduled Monument — SiteType: Castle · entry
Location
Approximate. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Notes
Upgraded from bulk register import to assessed verdicts. palatial_seat is OMITTED: the 1885-1963 Cobb conversion made the gatehouse "a comfortable home" and inserted larger windows, but this was a Victorian restoration of a genuine castle rather than construction of an unfortified seat, and the report does not frame a governing palatial phase. popular_castle omitted — the report is a designation document and, beyond noting sale to the council in 1963, gives no visitor-operation or public-standing evidence to assess the usage band on. enclosure_fortification and state_fortification omitted. Confidence medium: one official report plus the register.
Sources
- Scheduled Monument Full Report — Caldicot Castle (unoccupied parts) — Cadw, 2026-07-22
Cadw's full scheduled-monument report (MM050); the sole source, read in full for the band assessment. One official report plus the register = medium.
Signals
Raw per-source observations behind this record (2):
sig-20260721-cadw-mm050,
sig-20260722-report-mm050
Record file · dataset licensed CC BY 4.0 — see provenance.