Morris Castle

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Morris Castle was erected in or about the year 1770 by John Morris and comprised four tower blocks situated around a central courtyard enclosed by link buildings. Each block had four floors and the whole complex provided accommodation in separate flats for workers and families employed in Morris's concerns. The building would have been one of the very first structures erected for housing workers in flats.

As now surviving, the structure consists of the end walls of two of the tower blocks, which still stand to their original height and preserve many features which enable the layout of the interior to be reconstructed. 19th century plans and drawings provide further evidence for its layout and the foundations of other parts of the buildings obviously survive below the present ground surface.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of construction techniques and settlement organisation. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits. The structure itself may be expected to contain archaeological information concerning chronology and building techniques. The building may be part of a larger cluster of monuments and its importance can further enhanced by their group value.

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