Ruperra Castle

After a call out this morning, and with a view to getting a wide angle photo for the Wide Angle Wednesday challenge, I headed to an old friends farm about three miles from our house.

John used to live in the house next to the castle but moved out when he sold the castle and some land for a reputed £1 million. The new owner whom I met once many years ago wanted to turn the castle into apartments, put houses in nearby fields, and run a Polo school. Conservation groups, local opposition and planning problems put paid to his plans and now it's on the market for about £1.5million. The shame is the castle continues to deteriorate whereas it would have been saved but for the opposition.

Ruperra Castle was built in 1626 by Sir Thomas Morgan, Steward to the Earl of Pembroke. It was one of the first of the 'mock' castles to be built in Wales. King Charles 1 spent two nights at Ruperra Castle in 1645 shortly after the Battle of Naseby. Resultantly the royal coat of arms was added to the decoration on the South Porch, and the present public footpath from Rudry to the Castle is still known as "King's Drive".

It was once owned by the writer H G Wells who grew up there (early 1900's) and by 1935, with the current owner The Morgan family of Tredegar Park fortunes in decline, the estate of 3,000 acres was put up for sale and bought by The British Army. It fell into decline and in 1941 was badly damaged by another fire, the state of which remains today. It is grade 2 listed.

I'm off to watch Cardiff City play Sheffield Wednesday tonight to see if our new manager Neil Warnock can contunue to work his magic and secure another win.