Kenfig Castle

Kenfig Castle is a ruined castle in Bridgend County Borough in Wales that came to prominence after the Anglo-Norman invasion of Wales in the late 11th century.

An early reference to a castle at Kenfig can be found in 1080, when Iestyn ap Gwrgan was said to have refortified it, but probably this was a different structure to that raised alongside the town that developed there in the mid-12th century. In its day, it was an important Norman stronghold and was built by Robert, Earl of Gloucester, in the early 12th century. It was set on a mound with the river to the west and north. The 14 m square, free-standing keep had an entrance at the southwest corner. It was a tall, elegant structure with buttresses of dressed stone at each corner and the centre of each side, as well as a hall and offices. The bailey lies to the south, surrounded by the remains of a bank and ditch. The castle acted as an administrative centre, and by 1183, a borough had grown up to the south.

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