Scheduled Monuments›Wales›Grosmont Castle
Medieval · Castle

Grosmont Castle

Wales
Cadw SAM MM007
Period
Medieval
Site type
Castle
Broad class
Defence
Nation
Wales
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Grosmont Castle is a Norman fortification located in the Monmouth area of Monmouthshire, Wales, founded in the early twelfth century as part of the Anglo-Norman conquest and settlement of South Wales. The castle comprises a substantial stone keep built upon an earlier motte-and-bailey earthwork, with later medieval additions including curtain walls and domestic structures that reflect its development as a baronial stronghold throughout the medieval period. The site demonstrates the characteristic defensive architecture of its era, with the prominent stone keep serving as both a symbol of Norman authority and a practical military structure commanding the surrounding landscape. Grosmont remained strategically significant until the later medieval period, when it gradually declined as a residence and military installation.

Grosmont Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM007. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Grosmont Castle?

Grosmont Castle is a Norman fortification located in the Monmouth area of Monmouthshire, Wales, founded in the early twelfth century as part of the Anglo-Norman conquest and settlement of South Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference MM007.

What period does Grosmont Castle date from?

Grosmont Castle dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a castle. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Grosmont Castle?

Grosmont Castle 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 MM007.

What other scheduled monuments are near Grosmont Castle?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Grosmont Churchyard Cross (0.2 km), Iron Age farmstead enclosure on Garway Hill (3.7 km), Churchyard cross in St Michael's churchyard (5.3 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Grosmont Castle

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Grosmont Castle'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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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Grosmont Castle

Grosmont Castle stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.