Castle Bank

Castle Bank is a ruined ridge in Powys where two masonry castles replaced a Norman wooden stronghold, making the place a repeated weapon in the Welsh Marches. Llywelyn ap Gruffudd captured the first stone castle in 1262, and Roger Mortimer’s later build helped trigger the war of 1277. The town beside it vanished after plague and neglect, leaving only St Michael’s Church and a name that still means ridge and court.