St.Quintins Castle, Llanblethian, Cowbridge,

It's been a funny day here, mostly rain with the odd bright spot, so we decided to stay local. There has been a wooden fort of some sort on this site since 1102 but the building of this stone castle was begun in 1307 by Earl Gilbert de Clare who went off to fight in the Battle of Bannockburn.  He was killed in 1314 at the age of 23 before the building had been completed. His remains now rest in Tewksbury Abbey.  All that remains of the castle now is the twin towered gatehouse and a bit of wall as shown in the photograph. The castle was officially declared a ruin in 1714