Scheduled MonumentsWalesCastell Foel-Allt
Medieval · Motte and Bailey

Castell Foel-Allt

Radnorshire, Wales
Cadw SAM RD060
Period
Medieval
Site type
Motte and Bailey
Broad class
Defence
Nation
Wales
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Castell Foel-Allt is a medieval motte and bailey castle situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference RD060. The monument comprises the characteristic earthwork elements of this fortification type: a prominent mound serving as the motte, accompanied by an adjoining bailey enclosure. These defensive structures date to the medieval period and represent a widespread form of military architecture across Britain and its neighbouring territories during the Norman conquest and subsequent centuries.

The castle is founded upon bedrock of the Ludlow Rocks series, comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formations. These varied lithologies, deposited during the Ludlow period of the Silurian era, provided the underlying geology upon which the earthwork mound was constructed. The local bedrock composition would have influenced both the stability of the structure and the materials available for any stone construction within the bailey.

Motte and bailey castles were rapidly erected defensive structures, designed to provide military control and territorial authority over surrounding lands. Castell Foel-Allt follows the standard arrangement of this castle type, with its fortifications arranged to exploit the local topography. The site remains an important monument to medieval military engineering and settlement strategy in Wales, preserved within the historic environment to illustrate the region's medieval heritage.

Castell Foel-Allt is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference RD060. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Castell Foel-Allt?

Castell Foel-Allt is a medieval motte and bailey castle situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference RD060.

What period does Castell Foel-Allt date from?

Castell Foel-Allt dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a motte and bailey. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Castell Foel-Allt?

Castell Foel-Allt is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is RD060.

What other scheduled monuments are near Castell Foel-Allt?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Womaston Castle Mound (7.2 km), Roman Fort E of Hindwell Farm (7.2 km), Offa's Dyke: Section from Ditchyeld Bridge to County Boundary (7.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Castell Foel-Allt

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Castell Foel-Allt's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Castell Foel-Allt report
Or see a real report first
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Castell Foel-Allt

Castell Foel-Allt stands on Ludlow Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ludlow. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.