Penhow Castle

It's been a beautiful sunny day around these parts. I was on the phone to a friend from Hull and he held up his phone whilst in his car, about midday so I could hear it hammering down!

The blip photo is an aerial of Penhow Castle which is situated off the A48 between Newport, South Wales and Chepstow. The name Penhow is believed to be derived from the Welsh word Pen meaning head or top and How derived from the Old Norse word Haugr meaning hill or mound.

Penhow Castle lays claims to be the oldest inhabited castle in Wales. It was built as a home for Sir Roger de St Maur, one of the Norman Kinights who served the Norman Lord of Striguil at nearby Chepstow Castle. He built a tower house, and documentary evidence shows that he was at Penhow by 1129. It was the first British home of the family who would later rise to national prominence under the more familiar name of Seymour. Later the Seymour family sold Penhow Castle to the Lewis family of St Pierre, who converted the castle to a modern residence in 1674. The Lewis family retained ownership of Penhow Castle for several centuries.


The castle, which has a reputation for being haunted was open to the public between 1978 and 2002. It is now a private residence.

Also shown in the picture is The parish church of St John The Baptist. It has 13th-century origins and was the subject of restoration work in the 19th century. Behind the castle and the church you can see Penhow Quarry which is now disused.