© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw
Usk Castle is a medieval castle situated in Wales, protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw reference MM012. The castle occupies a strategic location where its foundations rest upon bedrock of Ludlow Rocks, an undifferentiated formation of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone dating to the Ludlow period. This geology provided a stable base for construction whilst the varied stone types offered local building material suitable for the castle's walls and structures.
The castle's unoccupied parts represent the substantial remains of a medieval fortification. Its placement exploited the natural topography of the landscape, with the underlying bedrock contributing to the site's defensive capabilities and structural integrity. The Ludlow geology, whilst providing workable stone for building, would have required considerable labour to quarry and dress for masonry work typical of medieval castle construction.
Today the monument survives as an important record of medieval military architecture in Wales. The protected status reflects its significance as an archaeological and historical asset. The surviving elements, set within their geological context, continue to demonstrate the relationship between landscape, available materials and medieval building practices that characterised castle construction in the Welsh borderlands.
Usk Castle (Unoccupied Parts) is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM012. View the official record →
Usk Castle is a medieval castle situated in Wales, protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw reference MM012.
Usk Castle (Unoccupied Parts) dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a castle. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Usk Castle (Unoccupied Parts) 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 MM012.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Caer Licyn (8.4 km), All Saint's Church, Kemys Inferior (8.4 km), Castell Prin Camp (9.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Usk Castle (Unoccupied Parts)'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.
Usk Castle (Unoccupied Parts) stands on Ludlow Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ludlow. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.