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Ringwork and Bailey at Gelligarn is a medieval fortified earthwork located in Wales and protected by Cadw under the reference GM377. The monument comprises a ringwork—a circular or oval defended enclosure—and an associated bailey, representing a common form of early medieval defensive settlement in Britain and Wales. These structures typically date from the Norman period onwards, when such modest fortifications provided practical protection for lords and their retinues across the Welsh marches and interior.
The site sits upon bedrock of the Lias Group, a geological formation of mudstone, siltstone, limestone and sandstone dating to the Aalenian epoch. This relatively soft underlying geology would have influenced the construction techniques and durability of the earthworks, which rely on the mounding and ramping of soil rather than stone foundations. The composition of the local bedrock and soils would have shaped the visibility and preservation of the monument's earthen banks and ditches across the landscape.
As a ringwork and bailey, the monument represents a significant phase in medieval military architecture before the construction of substantial stone castles became widespread. Such sites served defensive, residential and administrative functions within their local territories, and their distribution across Wales provides important evidence for patterns of settlement, control and social organisation during the medieval period.
Ringwork & Bailey at Gelligarn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM377. View the official record →
Ringwork and Bailey at Gelligarn is a medieval fortified earthwork located in Wales and protected by Cadw under the reference GM377.
Ringwork & Bailey at Gelligarn dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a ringwork and bailey. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Ringwork & Bailey at Gelligarn 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 GM377.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Morfa House Round Barrow (8.6 km), Round Barrows South of Monkton (8.7 km), Caermead Roman Site (8.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Ringwork & Bailey at Gelligarn'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.
Ringwork & Bailey at Gelligarn stands on Lias Group, bedrock that formed in the Aalenian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, limestone and sandstone.