Scheduled MonumentsWalesPenbidwal Moated Site
Medieval · Moated Site

Penbidwal Moated Site

Wales
Cadw SAM MM210
Period
Medieval
Site type
Moated Site
Broad class
Domestic
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM MM210
Authority
Cadw
Designated
1983-08-10
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Penbidwal Moated Site is a medieval moated enclosure situated in Wales, where the underlying bedrock comprises Lower Devonian rocks of undifferentiated character. These ancient mudstones, siltstones and sandstones, laid down in the Early Devonian period, form the geological foundation upon which this medieval settlement was established. The soils developed across this bedrock would have presented both opportunities and constraints for the site's inhabitants.

Moated sites represent a characteristic form of medieval settlement and land management in Britain and Wales, typically comprising a residential or defensive enclosure surrounded by a water-filled or water-retaining ditch. Such features frequently date from the twelfth to sixteenth centuries and often indicate the residence of a person of some status or resource. The water retained within the moat served both practical and symbolic functions within the medieval landscape.

Penbidwal Moated Site is protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw, the Welsh Historic Monuments organisation, registered under reference MM210. This designation recognises its significance as an archaeological site and ensures its preservation for future study and understanding of medieval settlement patterns, domestic life and land use in Wales.

Penbidwal Moated Site is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM210. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Penbidwal Moated Site?

Penbidwal Moated Site is a medieval moated enclosure situated in Wales, where the underlying bedrock comprises Lower Devonian rocks of undifferentiated character. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference MM210.

What period does Penbidwal Moated Site date from?

Penbidwal Moated Site dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a moated site. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Penbidwal Moated Site?

Penbidwal Moated 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 MM210.

What other scheduled monuments are near Penbidwal Moated Site?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Pen y Clawdd Castle Mound (3.8 km), Remains of St Michael's Chapel and Skirrid Fawr Defended Enclosure (4.2 km), St. James's Churchyard Cross, Llanvetherine (5.5 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Penbidwal Moated Site

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Penbidwal Moated Site'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 Penbidwal Moated Site

Penbidwal Moated Site stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.