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The Lock-Up, Hawarden is a post-medieval lock-up situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference FL078. Built during a period when many market towns and villages across Britain required secure facilities for detaining offenders, this structure exemplifies the small-scale local justice infrastructure that emerged following the decline of feudal manorial authority. Such lock-ups typically served as temporary holding cells for minor offenders awaiting trial or punishment, operated by parish constables or local authorities.
The monument stands upon bedrock of the Millstone Grit Group, a Namurian formation comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone that characterises much of the underlying geology in this region of Wales. This sedimentary sequence, deposited during the Carboniferous period, provides the substantial stone that would have been readily available for the construction of such civic buildings.
As a rare surviving example of its type, the Lock-Up represents an important record of local governance and social control practices in the post-medieval and early modern period. Its survival allows insight into the practical arrangements of everyday law enforcement at a community level, reflecting the administrative structures that underpinned order in smaller settlements before more formalised police forces emerged.
The 'Lock-Up', Hawarden is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference FL078. View the official record →
The Lock-Up, Hawarden is a post-medieval lock-up situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference FL078.
The 'Lock-Up', Hawarden dates from the post medieval/modern period, and is classified as a lock up. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
The 'Lock-Up', Hawarden 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 FL078.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Wat's Dyke: Section N of Carlton Grange (6.8 km), Wat's Dyke: Section N of Bryn Estyn (7 km), Wat's Dyke: Section N of the Rectory, Hope (7.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of The 'Lock-Up', Hawarden'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.
The 'Lock-Up', Hawarden stands on Millstone Grit Group [See Also Migr], bedrock that formed in the Namurian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.