- Pembroke Castle
Pembroke Castle is a
medieval castle inPembroke, Wales .History
The history of the site goes back at least to the Roman period, although there are no remains of that period visible.
Located in the centre of the
town of Pembroke, it is one of the most impressive Normancastle s inWales , first established in1093 , when theNorman Conquest of Wales was not complete.In
1138 , it became the property ofGilbert de Clare, 1st Earl of Pembroke .William Marshall received the castle through marriage and became Earl of Pembroke. He was responsible for commissioning the circular stone keep. Later the castle was given to Jasper Tudor along with the earldom, and he brought his widowed sister-in-law, Margaret Beaufort, to the castle to give birth to her only child, the future KingHenry VII of England (1457 ).Most of the damage to the castle was done during the
English Civil War , when its owners changed sides. After the warOliver Cromwell , who was personally present at thesiege of Pembroke here, encouraged local townspeople to disassemble the structure, stone by stone for their own re-use. Today the castle is open to the public. It is the largest privately owned castle in Wales.Plan of the castle
(1892 map)
External links
* [http://www.pembrokecastle.co.uk/ Pembroke Castle website]
* [http://www.castlewales.com/pembroke.html Castles of Wales website with pictures of the castle]
* [http://www.greatcastlesofwales.co.uk/pembroke.htm Great Castle of Wales website with more pictures]
* [http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=2767812 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Pembroke Castle]
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