Tomen Cefn Glaniwrch

Tomen Cefn Glaniwrch stands in the village of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant, Powys, on a low rise marked SJ149254. It is a medieval earthwork castle built without the usual surrounding defensive wall called a bailey. Most such mounds in Britain were raised between the late 11th century and the latter half of the 12th century from soil and stone, often surrounded by a ditch. The Normans introduced this style of fortification from France, and Welsh builders adopted the technique. Cadw recognises the site and lists it as SAM DE123. The largest concentration of these mounds appears along the Welsh Marches, including parts of Shropshire, Cheshire, Herefordshire, Powys and Flintshire. Visitors find a simple grassy mound rising a few metres above the surrounding fields. A shallow ditch runs around the base, showing where the builders dug earth and stone. The view from the top looks across the village rooftops and distant hills. There are no buildings or fences on the mound itself, only the remains of a once important defence.