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Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village is a medieval settlement in Wales that now survives as earthworks and abandoned plots within the modern landscape. The village shrank over time as its population declined, leaving behind visible traces of former dwellings, field systems and boundaries. The site is protected by Cadw, the Welsh heritage agency, under the reference MM272.
The settlement sits upon Lower Devonian bedrock of sandstone and conglomerate that formed during the Early Devonian period. This geological foundation provided stone suitable for building and defined the drainage characteristics of the site, influencing where villagers could settle and cultivate land.
Trellech's survival as earthworks offers valuable evidence of medieval village life and the economic and social changes that led to settlement contraction in the medieval period. The layout and distribution of abandoned house platforms and field divisions preserve a record of how the community organised its space before depopulation transformed the village into the archaeological monument visible today.
Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM272. View the official record →
Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village is a medieval settlement in Wales that now survives as earthworks and abandoned plots within the modern landscape. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference MM272.
Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a shrunken medieval village. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village 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 MM272.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Chepstow Park Wood Cairn (7.6 km), The Cold Bath: Piercefield (8.6 km), St Arvan's Church Cross-slab (8.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village'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.
Trellech Shrunken Medieval Village stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.