The Gatehouse website record for Pembroke Town Walls

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Penfro; Barnard's Tower; Bernard's Tower

In the community of Pembroke. In the historic county of Pembrokeshire (Modern authority of Pembrokeshire, preserved county of Dyfed).

Long rocky ridge, castle at point. Formerly a great round gate, four remaining round towers.Stone walls and earthworks built in ?C12 and C14. The town walls of Pembroke were erected in C13, probably during the tenure of the lordship by William de Valence. Most of the towers have been destroyed but much of that at the NE corner survives. The present circuit of Pembroke's town walls are thought to have been constructed in the later C13-C14 These enclose a long peninsular between two arms of Milford Haven, 850m W-E, between the castle and the E wall, and at most 240m N-S. There were three gates, of which the spring of an arch at the West Gate seems to be the only remnant, and there are remains of five towers, one of which has C18 gazebo built upon it, another, Barnard's or Bernard's tower at the NE angle, was built for independant defence.
Clearly there are difficulties with the dating of the town walls. The site is natural strong and would not need much work to make it defensible. The town was not attacked during the wars of the C13, Soulsby writes 'no doubt because of the sheer impregnability of the site'. However, walls and, particualrly gates, would have increased the defensibility and also enhanced the town status and tax collection effectiveness. Soulsby writes 'Medieval Pembroke was a prosperous community with a viable commercial life' but walls did not protect the town from decline of maritime trade (lost to Haverfordwest) and like many towns in Wales it declined in the C15, although this decline cannot, as it usually is, be blamed on the Glynd r revolt, since Pembroke was not attacked.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SM985013

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's National Monument Record (Coflein) number is 300446
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is 13203 and others 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales, the four welsh archaeological trusts and other individuals and organisations. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes. I do not receive any income from this site and I fund it myself.
The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.

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*The listed building may no be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.