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Pen y Gorddyn is a prehistoric hillfort situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG238. The fort was constructed on bedrock formed from Wenlock Rocks, a Silurian-age deposit of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone that provided a naturally stable foundation. Hillforts of this type typically date to the Iron Age, though some were established or reoccupied in earlier periods, and served as defensive strongholds, administrative centres or communal gathering places for Iron Age communities.
The site exploits its elevated position to command views across the surrounding landscape, a strategic principle common to hillfort design. The underlying Wenlock geology, typical of central and mid-Wales, would have offered workable stone for rampart construction and the making of tools and weapons. The local bedrock composition reflects the region's geological character during the Palaeozoic era.
As a nationally significant monument, Pen y Gorddyn preserves evidence of Iron Age settlement patterns and defensive architecture. Such sites remain important to understanding how prehistoric communities organised themselves, distributed resources and fortified their territories in the landscape they inhabited.
Pen y Gorddyn Hillfort is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MG238. View the official record →
Pen y Gorddyn is a prehistoric hillfort situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG238.
Pen y Gorddyn Hillfort dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a hillfort. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Pen y Gorddyn Hillfort 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 MG238.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Allt Dolanog Hillfort (1.9 km), Ffridd Mathrafal Hillfort (4.5 km), Bryn y Saethau Hillfort (5.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Pen y Gorddyn Hillfort'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.
Pen y Gorddyn Hillfort stands on Wenlock Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.