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Coed y Cwm Ringwork is a medieval ringwork situated in Wales, protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference GM117. Ringworks were economical alternatives to stone castles, consisting of a defended enclosure created by a substantial earthen bank and internal ditch, typically occupied during the 12th and 13th centuries. These fortifications served administrative, residential and defensive purposes for local lords and were particularly prevalent in the borderlands of Wales and England.
The monument lies upon bedrock of Triassic age, comprising interbedded sandstone and conglomerate that provided the underlying geology for the site's construction. The earthwork's form—the characteristic raised bank and sunken internal ditch—would have been shaped from material excavated during its building, utilising the natural topography and underlying geology. This combination of Triassic bedrock and spoil material formed the physical structure that defined the ringwork's defensive perimeter.
The site remains archaeologically significant as a tangible record of medieval settlement patterns and territorial control in Wales. Its survival as an earthwork reflects the period when such fortifications represented practical responses to the needs of governance and security in the Welsh landscape, before the later development of more substantial stone structures. The ringwork remains visible today as testimony to medieval land use and social hierarchy.
Coed y Cwm Ringwork is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM117. View the official record →
Coed y Cwm Ringwork is a medieval ringwork situated in Wales, protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference GM117.
Coed y Cwm Ringwork dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a ringwork. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Coed y Cwm Ringwork 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 GM117.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Barry Castle (6.7 km), Site of Medieval Mill & Mill Leat Cliffwood (6.8 km), Westward Corner Round Barrow (6.8 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Coed y Cwm Ringwork'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.
Coed y Cwm Ringwork stands on Triassic Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Triassic. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.