Ruardyn Castle

Castles in Gloucestershire

Ruardyn Castle was a manor house in the village of Ruardean. Its ruins have been scheduled as an ancient monument.It was originally a manor house built in Norman times, but because of its strategic importance it was crenellated in 1311 and became a castle. The surviving evidence suggests the site comprised a courtyard, flanked by short ranges of buildings to the north east and south west, with a tower in the western corner. A gatehouse stood to the south east, with a hollow way leading from it towards the parish church. The site was probably enclosed by a curtain wall. The castle suffered major damage during the English Civil war in the 17th century.Nowadays, little remains of the castle, just large mounds with some stone wall surviving on the steep bank side. By the size of the landscape that it once stood, it is suggested that it was of considerable size. Its ruins can be found in the field behind St. John the Baptist church.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Ruardyn Castle (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Ruardyn Castle
High Street, Forest of Dean Ruardean

Geographical coordinates (GPS) Address Nearby Places
placeShow on map

Continue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude	Longitude
N 51.8576 °	E -2.5515 °

placeShow on map

Address

High Street
GL17 9US Forest of Dean, Ruardean
England, United Kingdom
mapOpen on Google Maps

Nearby Places

Ruardean

Ruardean is a village in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, to the North West of Cinderford. It is situated on a hillside with views west towards the mountains of South Wales. Little now remains of the village's industrial history, but once it was a centre for iron-ore smelting furnaces, forges and coal mines. The Norman castle, now little more than a mound, commanded the shortest route from Gloucester Castle to the Welsh Marches and the Wye Valley.

Drybrook

Drybrook is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean in west Gloucestershire, England.

Ruardean Woodside

Ruardean Woodside is a village in Gloucestershire, England, located in the Forest of Dean and tucked away behind Ruardean Hill and Brierley. There is a primary school and a village hall. The Roebuck was the last of the local pubs to close.

The Pludds

The Pludds is a hamlet in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England (grid reference SO617161). Lydbrook and Joys Green are to the west, Ruardean is to the north, and Ruardean Woodside is to the east. The Pludds has a village hall.

Hope Mansell

Hope Mansell is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England. In 2011 the civil parish had a population of 259. Hope Mansell is mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086) as Hope.

Ruardean Hill

Ruardean Hill is a prominent hill and a village in the English county of Gloucestershire, 20 km (12 mi) west of Gloucester. It lies in the Forest of Dean, in the parish of Drybrook. The southern slopes are wooded and are part of the northern edge of the Forest of Dean. The hill forms part of a low range of hills separating the River Severn from the River Wye. The hill's summit is the highest point in the Forest of Dean. A mostly friendly community, there is a local post office and village shop in neighbouring Ruardean Woodside. The village and surrounding areas are well served by Ruardean Hill Sports and Social Club.

Brierley, Gloucestershire

Brierley is a village in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. It has one petrol station and a shop, both of which are both operated by Jet. Brierley was the birthplace of Winifred Foley (25 July 1914 – 21 March 2009) author of the autobiographical A Child in the Forest (1974), and other later works including No Pipe Dreams for Father (1977). The village was also the birthplace of her father, Charlie Mason, who led the hunger march to the workhouse of Westbury during the pit strikes of May 1926.

Joys Green, Gloucestershire

Joy's Green is a village in the Forest of Dean in West Gloucestershire, England. The village is in the civil parish of the neighbouring village of Lydbrook.

Drybrook Halt railway station

Drybrook Halt railway station served the village of Drybrook, Gloucestershire, England, from 1907 to 1930 on the Mitcheldean Road & Forest of Dean Junction Railway.

Upper Lydbrook railway station

Upper Lydbrook railway station served the civil parish of Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England, from 1875 to 1929 on the Severn and Wye Railway.

Holy Jesus Church, Lydbrook

Holy Jesus Church at Lydbrook is a Church of England parish church in the English county of Gloucestershire.

Lydbrook

Lydbrook is a civil parish in the Forest of Dean, a local government district in the English county of Gloucestershire and is located in the Wye Valley. It is on the north west edge of the Forest of Dean's present legal boundary proper. It comprises the districts of Lower Lydbrook, Upper Lydbrook, Joys Green and Worrall Hill. It has a mile and a half long high street, reputed to be the longest high street of any village in England.