Chepstow Castle
According to the Domesday Book of 1086 Chepstow was one of the castles built by Earl William Fitz Osbern
(d.1071). What form the castle took in his lifetime is open to
debate. However it is possible that he was responsible for
building the great hall block seen above. This rectangular hall
keep is over one hundred feet long by forty feet deep. There were
probably also contemporary curtain walls forming baileys to east and
west. The original tower was two storeys high above a half
basement, with pilaster buttresses and an entrance at first floor level
to the south and a stair up from this built into the thickness of the
wall. Much Roman tile is used in the fabric of the structure and
this was certainly the first masonry built on the site. Another
possibility is that this built by King Henry I to meet the princes of Wales at, but this theory is unprovable.
King Henry I granted Chepstow castle to the Clare
family whose male line died in 1176. The most famous member of
the family was Earl Richard Clare of Chepstow, often, like his father,
Gilbert, known by nickname, Strongbow. In 1139 Earl Gilbert had
married his sister, Rose Clare, to Baderon Monmouth and thereby
obtained control of Goodrich castle.
On Earl Richard's death the castle passed through royal custody
to the great Earl William Marshall from 1189 until his death in 1219.
In 1202 he reunited the honour with Goodrich castle.
William and his sons are said to be responsible for much of the
current masonry at the castle.
Copyright©2010
Paul Martin Remfry