Penmaen, Swansea

:"This article refers to the village in the Gower peninsula For the hamlet in Caerphilly (county borough) see Penmain"Penmaen is a very small village consisting of a scatter of houses around the A4118 road in the Gower peninsula, south Wales. The village sits at the foot of the slopes of Cefn Bryn. There are a number of archaeological sites surrounding the village.

Penmaen Castle

The original structure on the site was a small Norman timber castle. Later on, it was replaced by a stone structure. The dates of the structures are not known but the ringwork and timber gateway is accepted as being Norman. The timber gateway was destroyed by fire and later replaced by a drystone walled gate tower. It is believed that the replacement could either have been built by a Norman or the Welsh lord Rhys Gryg ap Rhys, who had destroyed all the castles in Gower in 1217.

Parc-Le-Breos

Parc-Le-Breos is a 19th Century Hunting Lodge which is set in 70 acres of land. It was once the deer park of William de Breos, Lord of Gower. Today the estate serves as a hotel and pony trekking centre.

External links

* [http://www.enjoygower.com/communities/penmaencom.cfm The Gower Community: Penmaen]
* [http://www.the-gower.com/villages/Penmaen/penmaen.htm Penmaen and Nicholaston]
* [http://www.castlewales.com/penmaen.html Castle Wales: Penmaen Castle]
* [http://www.fookes.com/gallery/gower05.html Fookes: Penmaen, Gower peninsula]
* [http://www.parc-le-breos.co.uk/ Parc-Le-Breos]