Ruperra Castle in Caerphilly is the only so-called ‘mock castle’ in Wales. That essentially means that it was built to look pretty, rather than provide defence against any would-be invaders. The fake fortress was built in 1626 by a guy called Sir Thomas Morgan of Machen and once hosted King Charles I for four nights. In other words, it’s got plenty of history worth preserving.
But, as you can imagine, after almost 400 years Ruperra Castle is looking a bit worse for wear. Okay, more than a bit. Caerphilly Borough County Council warned in 2022 that the castle was in danger of deteriorating if nothing was done to preserve its structures. It called it ‘structurally unsound’ and closed the footpaths around the castle on safety grounds. Last year, one article even went so far as to call the neglect of the place a ‘national scandal’.
Two years later, though, there’s some good news. The Ruperra Castle Preservations Trust announced last month that Cadw, the Welsh government’s historic environment service, will be contributing a grant to help save the building.
The trust called the news a ‘vital first step’ in ensuring the castle’s future and reopening the surrounding footpaths.
Cadw described the castle as ‘a rare example of a substantial Jacobean Renaissance mock castle’ that holds national importance for ‘its potential to enhance our knowledge of post-medieval social, domestic, and political life and architectural design’.
Thanks to the funding and with some help from its private owner, surveys on the building and its structures will take place this month. The trust says that these will provide an ‘up-to-date understanding of the condition of the structure, and any defects, to help inform the owner of next steps’.
Crazy for castles?
The UK is the castle capital of the world, so you certainly won’t be short of palaces, fortress and towers to check out. Visit one of the best castles in the UK or really splash out and book a sleepover in one of these castles that you can actually stay in. Oh and we’ve also got your guide to the iconic ‘Traitors’ castle in Scotland and a stunning stone structure used in an Indiana Jones movie – both of which you can spend a night (or five) in.
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