Scheduled MonumentsWalesPen Dinas Camp
Prehistoric · Hillfort

Pen Dinas Camp

Ceredigion, Wales
Cadw SAM CD102
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Hillfort
Broad class
Defence
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM CD102
Authority
Cadw
Designated
1949-09-19
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Pen Dinas Camp is a prehistoric hillfort occupying a prominent hilltop position in Wales. The site is protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw reference CD102. The fort exploits the natural defensive advantages of its elevated location, with steep slopes that would have afforded commanding views across the surrounding landscape and difficult access for potential attackers. The underlying bedrock comprises Llandovery rocks—a sequence of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formations—which would have presented both opportunities and constraints for the construction of ramparts and ditches typical of Iron Age hillforts.

The geology of the Llandovery rocks would have influenced the fort's building methods and structural durability. These softer sedimentary materials differ from the harder igneous or metamorphic stone found at other Welsh hillforts, shaping how the site's defences were engineered and how they have survived to the present day. The combination of strategic hilltop position and local stone resources reflects the typical planning decisions of prehistoric communities constructing such fortifications.

Today, Pen Dinas Camp remains a significant testimony to prehistoric settlement and defensive strategy in Wales. Its designation by Cadw recognises its importance as an archaeological monument, preserving the physical evidence of a substantial communal undertaking and offering insight into Iron Age settlement patterns and territorial organisation across the Welsh landscape.

Pen Dinas Camp is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CD102. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Pen Dinas Camp?

Pen Dinas Camp is a prehistoric hillfort occupying a prominent hilltop position in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CD102.

What period does Pen Dinas Camp date from?

Pen Dinas Camp dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a hillfort. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Pen Dinas Camp?

Pen Dinas Camp 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 CD102.

What other scheduled monuments are near Pen Dinas Camp?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Castell Gwar-Cwm (5.8 km), Castell S of Goginan-Fach (6.1 km), Roman Fort 300m NW of Pen-Llwyn (7.4 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Pen Dinas Camp

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Pen Dinas Camp'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 Pen Dinas Camp

Pen Dinas Camp stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.