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Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site is a medieval deserted rural settlement located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference FL162. The site lies upon Dinantian limestone bedrock, interspersed with sandstone and argillaceous strata deposited during the Mississippian period. This geological foundation, typical of much of Wales, provided stone suitable for building and lime production, resources that would have been valuable to the medieval community that inhabited this locality.
The settlement represents a phase of rural occupation that was eventually abandoned, a pattern common across medieval Wales as communities relocated, economic circumstances changed, or land use shifted. The precise archaeological extent and layout of the deserted village remain to be fully understood, though the site's designation reflects its potential to illuminate medieval Welsh settlement patterns, agricultural practices and social organisation.
The limestone bedrock beneath the site would have influenced both the landscape character and the practical possibilities available to its medieval inhabitants, from water sources shaped by karst geology to the materials accessible for construction and everyday use. The survival of the site as a recognisable archaeological entity offers opportunities to study the physical traces of medieval rural life in this region of Wales.
Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference FL162. View the official record →
Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site is a medieval deserted rural settlement located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference FL162.
Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a deserted rural settlement. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site 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 FL162.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bron Fadog Enclosure (2 km), Round Barrow 135m SE of Lodge Farm (4.1 km), Round Barrow 180m E of Mwccwd (5.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site'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.
Hen Caerwys Deserted Village Site stands on Dinantian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Mississippian. The rock here is limestone with subordinate sandstone and argillaceous rocks.