CHEPSTOW CASTLE ~ MONMOUTHSHIRE, SOUTH WALES

CHEPSTOW CASTLE ~ MONMOUTHSHIRE, SOUTH WALES

Chepstow is one of the earliest stone castles in Britain, and also holds a claim to have the oldest surviving castle doors in Europe.

The first castle at Chepstow was erected in 1067 by William fitz Osbern, a Norman follower of William the Conqueror.

Fitz Osbern fought beside William at the Battle of Hastings, and was rewarded with the earldom of Hereford as well as extensive lands in south Wales.

Fitz Osbern wanted a castle to control the main river crossing over the Wye, on the main route into Wales.
The constricted site meant that Chepstow developed into a very long, narrow castle, with one ward leading to another along a vertical axis.

Most Norman castles erected soon after the Conquest, were simple wooden affairs.
Chepstow was different, it was built in stone right from the start, using stone from Caerwent Roman town.

Dendrochronological analysis commissioned by Cadw, the Welsh Government’s historic environment service, revealed the iconic doors were hung no later than 1190, making them the earliest known surviving castle doors in Europe.

The oak planks used on the doors, is one of the earliest examples of oak being sawn, rather than using the traditional method of cleaving the wood with axes and wedges.

The latticework, is also thought to be the first use of its kind of mortise and tenon joints. in a castle door.

Held together with iron pins and clad with iron to make them resistant to fire, they were not only technologically advanced, but their appearance must have struck terror into any attackers.

The design of the doors is a testament to the strategic importance of Chepstow, in imposing royal power in Wales.

The doors were never breached, and when Chepstow did finally fall, during the 1648 English civil war, the parliamentarian army chose to blow up the side wall of the castle to gain entry, rather than attack the seemingly impregnable front entrance.

A little unusually for a structure which has stood unconquered for almost 800 years, in 1963 the doors were moved inside, to protect them from damage by weather and visitors.

The exact replicas which now hang at the front of the castle were made by apprentices at the army apprentice school, Chepstow, in March 1964.

Sadly, Chepstow’s original creator Fizt Osbern, did not have long to enjoy his creation, he died in 1071.

His son, also named William, plotted against the crown and Chepstow then became a royal estate.

In 1189 Chepstow passed to William Marshall, one of the great knights of the medieval period, and later Earl of Pembroke.

It is to Marshall that we owe much of the castle we see today.
He extended and strengthened the Norman castle, and enclosed it within strong stone walls punctuated with towers.

This design was reminiscent of castles in the Holy Land, where he had been on Crusade.

He added the Marshall’s Tower, with apartments for himself and his wife, the heiress Isabel de Clare.
It was Isabel’s sizeable fortune, that helped pay for the work.

After Marshall’s death his five sons inherited in turn, but each died without an heir.

When the Marshall line died out, the castle passed to the Earl of Norfolk, Roger Bigod II.
He further strengthened the defences, and created comfortable domestic apartments, turning the military fortress into a lavish mansion.

He also added a strong stone wall to enclose the town.

Only fragments of the town walls remain, including the gateway known as Town Gate.

Further enhancements to the living areas were added in the early Tudor period by Charles Somerset.

After the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, the castle was used as a prison and military garrison.

It’s most famous prisoner was Henry Martyn, one of the Parliamentary leaders who had signed Charles I’s death warrant.

Martyn was held for over 20 years in the tower to the left of the main entrance, a tower which now bears his name.

The castle was then left to decay for over 200 years, becoming a derelict ruin.
The ruin was often visited by artists, who thought it a suitably picturesque subject, for romantic paintings.

Today the castle is in the care of Cadw, Welsh Heritage.