Tomen yr Allt facts for kids
 Location in Wales
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| Location | Near Llanfyllin |
|---|---|
| Region | Powys, Wales |
| Coordinates | 52°46′49.33″N 3°17′45.71″W / 52.7803694°N 3.2960306°W |
| Type | Motte and Bailey Castle |
| Part of | Kingdom of Powys until 1160, then Principality of Powys Wenwynwyn. |
| Length | 40 m |
| Width | 40 m |
| History | |
| Material | Earthwork and timber |
| Founded | Possibly 10th century |
| Abandoned | 1257 (keep destroyed) |
| Periods | Medieval |
| Satellite of | Cantref of Mechain |
| Associated with | Lords of commote of Mechain Uwch Coed |
| Events | Put under siege by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in 1257 |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1978 |
| Archaeologists | Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust |
| Condition | Ruin - only earthworks remaining and very overgrown |
| Designation | Cadw scheduled monument |
Tomen yr Allt (or Domen yr Allt) was an old castle from the Middle Ages. It was a "motte and bailey" castle, which means it had a big earth mound (the motte) and a walled area (the bailey). This castle was used for defense and was located near Llanfyllin in Powys, Wales. The name "Tomen yr Allt" comes from modern Welsh and means "mound on the wooded hillside."
What Was Tomen yr Allt Like?
This old castle site is quite big, more than 40 meters across! The main part of the castle was a large, man-made earth mound. This mound, called a motte, was about 13 by 10 meters wide and nearly 10 meters tall.
Around the motte, there was a continuous ditch made of stone. On the north-east side, where the hill sloped away, this ditch was even doubled for extra protection. Part of the earth bank around the castle is flattened where it meets nearby fields. It's not clear if there was a bailey (a walled courtyard) in that section.
Most of the original earthworks are still there today. The main building of the castle, called the keep, was probably made of wood. In 1978, archaeologists from the Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) found a piece of daub (a mix of mud and straw used for building) and signs of a burnt layer. This suggests the keep was made of timber and might have been destroyed by fire. Today, Tomen yr Allt is a Cadw scheduled monument, which means it's a special historical site protected by the Welsh government.
A Look Back in Time: The Castle's Story
Tomen yr Allt was once a very important place. It was the main center for a local area called Mechain Uwch Coed. This area was part of a larger region known as Mechain.
Around the year 1160, the Kingdom of Powys was divided. Mechain became part of a new area that later became known as Powys Wenwynwyn. By 1208, a powerful Welsh leader named Llywelyn the Great controlled this region.
After Llywelyn the Great passed away in 1241, his son had to make an agreement with Henry III of England. Because of this, Powys Wenwynwyn came under the rule of Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn. He was an ally of the English king.
However, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, who was Llywelyn the Great's grandson, started to expand his own territory after 1255. He was the Prince of Gwynedd. In May 1257, reports say that Llywelyn ap Gruffudd attacked a castle called "Bodyddon." Tomen yr Allt is very close to Bodyddon, less than 1 kilometer away, and it overlooks the area.
It's believed that Llywelyn ap Gruffudd wanted to make the local lords of Mechain surrender to him. By 1258, they had indeed joined forces with Llywelyn. It is thought that Tomen yr Allt is the "castle of Bodyddon" that was attacked and destroyed in 1257.
The castle site also overlooks Bodfach Hall, which is about 1 kilometer to the south-east. Tomen yr Allt and the nearby wooded area, called Coed yr Allt, were part of the historical estate of Bodfach Hall. It's possible that the first building at Bodfach Hall was built to replace the old castle after it was destroyed.
