White Castle

Grosmont, Skenfrith and White Castles formed a triangle to guard the southern border of England and Wales, an area commonly referred to as the Marchers. In the 12th century, all three castles came under the ownership of Hubert de Burgh, who carried out substantial building work at Grosmont and Skenfrith. However, White Castle already boasted a stone curtain wall and a strong, square Norman keep, and is likely to have served as a predominantly military fortification, not requiring much alteration.

Aptly named, as the masonry was once coated with white plaster and traces of this can still be seen. By the end of the 13th century the original Norman architecture had become dated and a substantial amount of rebuilding work took place. This included a twin-towered gatehouse and towers inserted into the Norman curtain wall. An outer bailey was also created to the north of White Castle on the site of earlier earthwork defences, and an outer curtain wall with three cylindrical towers, one rectangular tower and a gatehouse surrounds the outer bailey to the north. To the south of White Castle a second outer enclosure formed part of the original earthwork defences. A moat surrounded all three enclosures, the inner bailey separated by its own moat.

A twin-towered inner gateway from the outer bailey was added to the earlier stone curtain of the inner bailey during the rebuilding phase. Within the inner bailey the Norman keep was demolished and replaced by a section of curtain wall. However, some of the foundations of the keep can still be seen. The chapel tower located at the south-east corner of the inner curtain wall was originally four storeys, the chapel being situated on the first floor.

White Castle's domestic buildings were located against the north-east curtain, the foundations of which survive today. The foundations of some private lodgings can also be seen to the south of the domestic buildings, and in between lies the castle well in front of the east central tower. The D-shaped tower in the south-west corner of the inner bailey was added to the earlier curtain wall towards the end of the 13th century, and along this wall, between the tower and the gatehouse, foundations of a series of minor buildings survive. White Castle, in common with its two counterparts, was deserted by the 16th century and in a ruinous state by the 17th century.