Scheduled MonumentsWalesMargam Medieval Bath House
Medieval · Bath House

Margam Medieval Bath House

Wales
Cadw SAM GM545
Period
Medieval
Site type
Bath House
Broad class
Health and Welfare
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM GM545
Authority
Cadw
Designated
2000-06-26
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Margam Medieval Bath House is a medieval bath house located in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference GM545. The site lies upon bedrock of the South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, a Westphalian-period sequence of mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete that underlie this industrially significant region. This geological foundation shaped the character of medieval settlement and resource use in the area.

Medieval bath houses were purpose-built structures designed to provide heated bathing facilities, typically associated with monastic establishments, larger manorial sites or high-status residences. Such buildings required considerable investment in construction and maintenance, including the installation of heating systems and water management infrastructure. Their presence indicates the importance of the Margam site within the medieval social and economic hierarchy.

The survival of this bath house monument provides material evidence of medieval domestic practices and standards of living. The protection afforded by scheduled monument status recognises its archaeological significance and contribution to understanding Welsh medieval settlement patterns and monastic or manorial life. The site remains a valuable record of medieval engineering and social organisation in South Wales.

Margam Medieval Bath House is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM545. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Margam Medieval Bath House?

Margam Medieval Bath House is a medieval bath house located in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference GM545.

What period does Margam Medieval Bath House date from?

Margam Medieval Bath House dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a bath house. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Margam Medieval Bath House?

Margam Medieval Bath House 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 GM545.

What other scheduled monuments are near Margam Medieval Bath House?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Sculptured Cross Llanmihangel Farm (4.3 km), Kenfig Castle & Medieval Town (4.3 km), Leat & Dam at Llanmihangel Mill (4.8 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Margam Medieval Bath House

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Margam Medieval Bath House'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.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Margam Medieval Bath House

Margam Medieval Bath House stands on South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.

The wider landscape

Around Margam Medieval Bath House

Caerphilly CastleArchaeological site · ~21.8 miles