Wales · Restored
Castell Aberlleiniog
Castell Aberlleiniog is a small motte-and-bailey castle on a steep hill near Llangoed on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales, built by the Normans in the late 11th century. The site later received stone defences and was partially destroyed in the mid-17th century; it has been restored and is open to the public.
First raised
1080
Its prime
1600
Today
Restored
As it stood in 1600
What Castell Aberlleiniog looked like in its prime.
A compact stone motte-and-bailey fortress set atop a steep, tree-strewn hill beside the Menai Strait. The castle presents low, roughly coursed grey-brown rubble curtain walls with a narrow wall walk and parapet; round, squat towers occupy the corners and rise a storey or two above the parapet. The inner motte is broad with earthen ramparts, the bailey sits immediately adjacent, and the whole group reads as a tight, roughly circular stone enclosure above a grassy scarp.
Its story
The story of Castell Aberlleiniog.
Hugh d'Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester, built the motte-and-bailey of Castell Aberlleiniog between 1080 and 1099, probably in 1088, when he conquered Gwynedd, atop a very steep hill near Llangoed on Anglesey. It stands beside the Menai Strait opposite the Norman castle at Abergwyngregyn, a siting that shows how much visual communication mattered to the invaders, and about two miles from the later Beaumaris Castle.
Gruffudd ap Cynan besieged the castle in 1094 on his return from Ireland; the siege succeeded and 124 Norman defenders died. Gruffudd later drove Hugh out altogether, and Anglesey remained under Welsh control until Edward I arrived two hundred years later, whether the Welsh used Aberlleiniog is not known. The original Norman timber structure was at some point replaced in stone; partially destroyed in the mid-17th century, the site has been restored and is open to the public.
Step inside
8 places to explore in 1600.
The record describes 8 distinct spots at Castell Aberlleiniog, including 1 interior: keep interior / central court. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.
Build Your Own Castle
Recreate Castell Aberlleiniog with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1600, a photoreal reconstruction that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
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