Owain Glyndwrs Mount

Owain Glyndwr’s Mount is a ditched motte at the top of a ridge overlooking the southern bank of the River Dee. It has undoubtedly been subject to damage on the northern side, where the construction of the Llangollen Railway required cutting into the slopes of the ridge. The motte is clearly visible from the public road, and is fenced off separately from the field which surrounds it. To the east a short distance away is a square earthwork, now much reduced, that is most likely a moated manorial site.

The motte is about 6 metres high, and is about 36 metres across. The summit is about 12 metres across, which is large enough to house a single building only, which combines with the location to indicate it was not a residential site, instead perhaps serving as a symbol of dominance, or a watch tower of sorts. It is known that Owain ap Gruffudd’s father was lord of Glyndyfrdwy in the reign of King Edward III, and it seems very likely that the moated manor to the east of this motte was the seat of this lordship. It is undated but a late 13th or early 14th century date would not be unreasonable.

Owain was descended from the native Welsh ruling dynasty of Powys, who had held the lands around the Dee valley since well before the Norman Conquest, with a brief hiatus when Robert of Rhuddlan waged war upon the region between 1073 and 1093. It is therefore conceivable that the motte was actually founded as part of a military campaign along the Dee by the Normans. Bleddyn ap Cynfyn was killed in these wars, leaving his sons to fight back. This they did with limited success against King Henry I, but Madog ap Maredudd ap Bleddyn was more successful, uniting Powys under him and achieving an impressive hegemony. His sons fought over and divided Powys between them, and Nanheudwy – the lands around the Dee – eventually fell to Gruffudd Maelor after the death of his brother Owain Fychan. Glyndyfrdwy was undoubtedly part of this inheritance, and remained within the family – and I strongly suspect they did not use the motte, unless as a watchtower of sorts to warn of invasion from Gwynedd, a neighbour usually considered hostile.

RCAHMW Coflein database entry