Scheduled MonumentsWalesPenrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)
Post Medieval/Modern · Fort

Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)

Wales
Cadw SAM MM011
Period
Post Medieval/Modern
Site type
Fort
Broad class
Defence
Nation
Wales
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Penrhos Camp is a post-medieval fortification located in Wales, constructed during the Civil War period when the region became strategically significant in the conflict between Parliamentarian and Royalist forces. The earthworks remain visible today as substantial defensive lines, characteristic of hastily constructed military positions that prioritized function over permanence.

The fort is built upon bedrock of Lower Devonian rocks, undifferentiated mudstone, siltstone and sandstone that formed during the Early Devonian period. This geological foundation provided a relatively stable base for the earthwork construction, though the mixed geology would have presented varying resistance to digging and rampart building. The underlying geology shaped how the fortification's ditches and banks were engineered into the landscape.

Penrhos Camp is protected and scheduled as an ancient monument under Cadw, the Welsh heritage organization, registered under reference MM011. This designation recognises its importance as evidence of Civil War military engineering and strategy in Wales. The earthworks survive as a significant physical record of seventeenth-century conflict and demonstrate the tactical considerations that determined fort placement and design during this tumultuous period in British history.

Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks) is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM011. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)?

Penrhos Camp is a post-medieval fortification located in Wales, constructed during the Civil War period when the region became strategically significant in the conflict between Parliamentarian and Royalist forces. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference MM011.

What period does Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks) date from?

Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks) dates from the post medieval/modern period, and is classified as a fort. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)?

Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks) 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 MM011.

What other scheduled monuments are near Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including St Julian's Wood Camp (2.7 km), Newport Castle (4.5 km), Round Barrow 57m South of Stock Wood (4.7 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)'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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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)

Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks) stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

The wider landscape

Around Penrhos Camp (civil war earthworks)

CaerwentRoman town · ~7.9 milesCaerphilly CastleArchaeological site · ~11.9 miles