History of the Castle
History
The Castle that can be seen today was erected in Cardigan itself in the 1100, by Gilbert de Clare and if he had have realised what trouble this was to cause, he may not have bothered. Over the next 100 years the castle frequently changed hands between the Norman’s and the Welsh.
De Clare’s son gained control of the castle in 1136, the same year that Rhys ap Gruffydd, the prince of Deheubarth, or Lord Rhys, led the defeat of the Norman’s in the town at the bloody battle of Crug Mawr. His prize was the castle which he set about transforming from its original wooden structure into stone.
Rhys was the proud owner of the castle, up until his death in 1197, which marked the beginning of another period of conflict. His sons, Maelgwyn and Gruffyd, disputed their inheritance resulting in Maelgwyn surrendering Gruffydd to the Norman’s and selling the Castle to King John.
A variety of Norman owners called Cardigan Castle home until Llywellyn the Great attacked and destroyed the castle in a show of strength. In what now looks like a historical tug-of-war the Norman William Marshal was next to take control, followed by the Welsh and then yet another Norman.
After this final Norman conquest, during the 1240s, the castle was reconstructed. Two towers, a new keep and the town wall were all built to create the stronghold, the ruins of which are visible to visitors today.
By the end of the 13th century it was King Edward 1st who had laid claim to the castle. Peace the reigned for almost four centuries, 1645 and the English Civil War, when Oliver Cromwell took it upon himself to storm the battlements. Such was the damage that the castle lay uninhabited until the early 1800s when a private mansion was built on the property marking the end to the turmoil that has given Cardigan Castle the unique heritage it boasts today.
The Seaport of Cardigan
Cardigan had been a port since the early Middle Ages, its importance stemming from its strategic position on the banks of the Teifi, – the gateway to the fertile Teifi valley. The vast expanse of water below the bridge was perfect for development as a port and in mediaeval times it increased Cardigan’s importance as a trading centre by acting as a base for the import of fish and the export of local farm produce, oak bark, salted herrings and Cilgerran slates to Ireland and the western parts of the British Isles.
By Elizabethan times Cardigan had grown into the most important Welsh port with the exception of Milford Haven, with an authority over an area that extended from Fishguard to Aberaeron.
During the next century the ship building industry became established in Cardigan together with the ancillary trades concerned with maritime activity, like sail and rope making, lime burning and iron founding. During the eighteenth century, the port of Cardigan grew larger still, dealing in commodities ranging from salt to prunes and from corn to tar. A customs house was built to cope with the increased trade in St Mary’s Street opposite Chancery Lane.
Cardigan’s international trade links and ideal location brought unprecedented prosperity to the area. By the early 1800s well over 300 ships were registered at Cardigan, employing 1000 men. Even surpassing Bristol at one time, its ships left for destinations as far afield as Argentina, the Canary Islands and Canada. Not only was Cardigan prospering as a trading port, but it also became the centre of a flourishing ship building industry concentrated at Netpool (where a beautiful park now stands) and further downstream at St Dogmaels. Hundreds of ships were built on the Teifi – some were up to 400 tonnes. Some of these ships carried people, indeed Cardigan became one of the country’s largest ports for transatlantic emigration, sending ships like the Active and Albion to New Brunswick in Canada and the Triton to New York.
By the end of the 18th century, the replacement of the sailing ship by steam ship, together with the silting up of the river and the arrival of the railway in 1885, all contributed to Cardigan’s eventual downfall as an international port. Despite efforts at reviving the port’s prosperity after the first world war, its decline continued, until by 1942 commercial vessels, no longer visited the town.
However, the Teifi has recently seen an increase in its use by pleasure boats, and although the large cargo ships may have gone for ever, a new role for Cardigan as a maritime centre for tourists may be the start of a flourishing new era in the town’s long and rewarding connection with the River Teifi. A life sized bronze otter beautifully sculpted on a rock base now stand on the quay, a striking monument to the Teifi – one of the last strongholds of the river otter in Great Britain. This was unveiled by Dr. David Bellamy on Prince Charles Quay in 1988
Chronology of the Castle
1100 – Cilgerran Castle built.
1109 – Noted Welsh beauty Nest is abducted from Cilgerran Castle by Prince Owain of Powys, who was in love with her. Her husband, Gerald of Pembroke, escaped through a toilet waste chute in the castle walls
1110 – The second castle at Cardigan is built
1120 – St Dogmaels Abbey is founded on the site of a pre-Norman monastery
1136 – Rhys ap Gruffydd led the battle of Crug Mawr against the Norman’s
1155 – Flemings invade at Mwnt only to be pushed back by the Welsh, this became known as Sul Coch y Mwnt – the bloody Sunday of Mwnt [left]
1165 – Rhys ap Gruffyd conquered Cardigan for the Welsh
1171 – Cardigan Castle rebuilt in stone and mortar [see drawing top left]
1176 – Lord Rhys hosts the first National Eisteddfod of Wales in Cardigan
1244 – Stone town wall as built by the Norman’s
Drawing © Hanes Aberteifi 14c
St Mary’s church was built [left]
1485 – Henry Tudor stays at Cardigan castle during the march to Bosworth Field
1645 – Cardigan castle attacked by Oliver Cromwell’s soldiers during the English Civil War
1764 – Shire Hall built [left]
1793 – Cardigan gaol built by John Nash
1805 – John Bowen Repaired the ruins of Cardigan Castle
1815 – 300 vessels registered in Cardigan’s seaport
1922 – Cardigan Priory reopened as a hospital by Mrs Lloyd George
1976 - National Eisteddfod held in Cardigan
1987 - Theatre Mwldan opened by Sir Geraint Evans
1993 – Monument to first Eisteddfod erected near the original site
