Castell Cawr Hillfort

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Monument.

The monument comprises the remains of a massive hillfort, crowning an isolated hill on the escarpment above the coastal levels, which probably dates to the Iron Age period (c. 800 BC - AD 74, the Roman conquest of Wales). Hillforts are usually located on hilltops and surrounded by a single or multiple earthworks of massive proportions and must have formed symbols of power within the landscape, while their function may have had as much to do with ostentation and display as defence.

The hillfort is a sub-rectangular enclosure about 186m north-south by 130m east-west. On the eastern and southern sides there are steep natural slopes. Elsewhere it is defined by a bank, perhaps a ruined wall. There is a pronounced inturned entrance on the west.

Nearby is Ffos Y Bleiddiaid (the fosse of the wolves [or warriors]) a natural fissure or lead mining cut, possibly with its origins in the Roman period (AD 74 - AD 400). It varies from 4.5m to 7.6m wide, and about 300m long and cuts right across the N slope of the hill.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of later prehistoric defensive organisation and settlement, and possibly Roman mining practices. The site forms an important element within the wider later prehistoric context and within the surrounding landscape. The site is well preserved and retains considerable archaeological potential. There is a strong probability of the presence of evidence relating to chronology, building techniques, functional detail, associated archaeological features and deposits.

The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.