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Castell Mawr is a prehistoric enclosure located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference CM126. The monument occupies ground underlain by Ashgill Rocks, a bedrock formation of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone laid down during the Ashgill period. This geology has shaped both the landscape and the character of the site itself.
The enclosure consists of an earthwork defence of substantial proportions typical of later prehistoric settlement practices in Wales. The combination of stone-rich Ashgill geology and the site's topography would have provided both material and strategic advantages to its builders and occupants. Such enclosures served defensive, administrative and territorial functions within their communities.
Castell Mawr represents an important record of prehistoric land use and settlement patterns in this region of Wales. As a scheduled ancient monument, it remains an archaeological resource of significant value, preserving evidence of the social organisation and economic activities of Wales's prehistoric inhabitants in its physical structure and surviving earthwork.
Castell Mawr is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CM126. View the official record →
Castell Mawr is a prehistoric enclosure located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference CM126.
Castell Mawr dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a enclosure. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Castell Mawr 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 CM126.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Capel Bettws (0.9 km), Castell Bach (2.4 km), Castell Mawr Mound and Bailey Castle (2.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Castell Mawr's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Castell Mawr stands on Ashgill Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ashgill. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.