The Gatehouse website logo
The comprehensive gazetteer and bibliography of the medieval castles, fortifications and palaces of England, Wales, the Islands.
 
 
Home
The listings
Other Info
Books
Links
Downloads
Contact
 
Print Page 
 
Next Record 
Previous Record 
Back to list 

St Davids Cathedral Close

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Porth-y-twr

In the community of St Davids and the Cathedral Close.
In the historic county of Pembrokeshire.
Modern authority of Pembrokeshire.
Preserved county of Dyfed.

OS Map Grid Reference: SM75202536
Latitude 51.88138° Longitude -5.26754°

St Davids Cathedral Close has been described as a certain Fortified Ecclesiastical site.

There are major building remains.

This is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*.
Description

Close surrounded by embattled wall of fair height. One fine gate in a long projection below a fortified belfry (Porth-y- twr). The whole is impractically large and not well suited for defence. (King)

But the Close, the ecclesiastical palladium, including within its embattled wall the venerable cathedral, the episcopal palace, the still habitable houses of some of the dignitaries, together with the skeletons of several in ruins, exhibit such remains of grandeur as may justify us in forming the most magnificent notions of their former establishment. This close was in circuit twelve hundred yards, had a walk round with a crenelled parapet. The entrance was by four handsome gateways or Porths, answering to the four cardinal points, such as Porth y twr, Tower Gate to the east, Porth Patrick, Patrick's Gate to the south, Porth gwyn, the White Gate to the west, Porth Bwnning, or Bunning's Gate to the north. This enclosure, allowing for the cemetery and suitable gardens to most of the houses, was richly built upon, and in its present state of decadency, as it bursts on the sight from the entrance above the valley, forms a most striking coup d'oeil. The Tower Gate, through which is the principal entrance into the close as leading from the town immediately, and connecting from all the main roads from the interior, consists of a large octagon tower 60 feet in height, with a noble door-way facing the east end of the church, and opening into the churchyard. This building, divided into stories, formed the consistory court and the record office of the see. In the opposite wing, consisting likewise of a tower, but of a very different form, and connected with the other by a range of buildings extending over the gateway, were the council chamber and other large appartments, supposed to have been appropriate to the mayor of the town, as they were only entered by a door and staircase on the town side. Under these apartments were the porter's lodge on one side of the gateway, and on the other a prison with a dungeon in the centre, a dark subterraneous vault or cavern, with no other adit than a circular opening in the floor, covered with a strong grating of iron, by which the malefactors were let into it. (Fenton, 1811 quoted in RCAHMW, 1925)
Links to mapping and other online resources
Data >
Coflein   County HER        
Maps >
OS getamap   Streetmap   Old-Maps   Where's the path  
Data/Maps > 
Magic   Vision of Britain   EarthTools    
Air Photos >
Bing Maps   Google Maps   Getmapping   Flashearth  
Photos >
CastleFacts   Geograph   Flickr   Panoramio  

Sources of information, references and further reading

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.
It is an offence to disturb a Scheduled Monument without consent. It is a destruction of everyone's heritage to remove archaeological evidence from ANY site without proper recording and reporting.
Don't use metal detectors on historic sites without authorisation.
The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales, the four welsh archaeological trusts and other individuals and organisations. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes.
I do not receive any income from this site and I fund it myself. The information within this site is provided freely by me for educational purposes only.
The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.
The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown.
Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.
Please help me to make this as useful a resource as possible by contacting me if you see errors or if you can add information.
I do acknowledge the help I get.
*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of the described site.

This record last updated on Monday, June 17, 2013
Home | Books | Links | The Fortifications and Castles | Help | Downloads | Author Information | Contact

¤¤¤¤¤