History
The first wood and earth town fortifications were probably built as early as in the 12th century together with the castle built at that time. The earliest murage grant to the town walls in Kidwelly is known from 1280, so it is assumed that stone fortifications were built on the site of the earlier one to around 1300, along with the great reconstruction of the castle made by Patrick de Chaworth. Perhaps the impetus for their construction were the damages suffered by Kidwelly during the battles with the Welsh in 1257.
In 1308, the town received its first charter, confirmed in 1357. It included the right to hold two markets a week and one annual big fair. As a result, the town began to develop rapidly, although the buildings moved to the other side of the river near the Benedictine priory, and the fortified area south of the castle in the fifteenth century began to depopulate. An additional blow was the invasion of Owain Glyndŵr’s army in 1403 during the great Welsh uprising. During the fighting, the town burned down and probably never recovered fully from this destruction.
Architecture
The town stretched southwest from the castle. Its fortifications ran from the castle’s southern gate, curved gently twice in the southwest, and then led north, where, after turning eastward, reached the castle moat, encompassing an area approximately 120 x 160 meters. The town was protected by the river on the east and south, and on the other sides by a ditch, which separated the town from the castle in the northeast. The town was opened to the castle, meaning it had no fortifications of its own on the side of the feudal residence. The wall was approximately 1.6 meters thick at the ground level. It was topped with crenellations and had a defenders’ wall-walk without the need for a timber porch. The town wall was not reinforced with towers.
Two gates led to the town: from the south-west and north. In 1530, a third gate was mentioned, which identification causes problems. It was probably a smaller wicket located on the eastern side, allowing access to the riverside areas and the nearby mill. In the north-east corner, the town was connected with the castle, accessible through a foregate located on a small hill and a great double-tower gatehouse.
The southern gate was a rectangular structure with spurs in the corners and sides turning into towers, flanking the centrally located gate passage. It had two floors and was crowned with battlement. The gate passage had a portcullis and was closed by a doors with drawbar. As the upper floor at the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries was transformed into a town hall, on the second floor large windows were pierced, also from the outside (field side). The first floor had three rooms and was warmed by a fireplace. The second floor (on which the town hall functioned) also had a fireplace and an independent entrance via timber external stairs. The portals also led to a defensive walkway on the crown of the walls.
Current state
Currently, the best preserved part of the defensive wall is the section running west of the castle’s moat on the north side of the town. It is about 1.6 meters wide and has survived to an average height of 2.3 meters. In addition, the ruined south-western town gate has survived, missing the inner wall in the eastern part, i.e. a large section of the wall closing the building from the town side.
show southern gatehouse on map
bibliography:
Kenyon J., Kidwelly Castle, Cardiff 2002.
Kenyon J., The medieval castles of Wales, Cardiff 2010.
Salter M., Medieval walled towns, Malvern 2013.