Ross-on-Wye

It may have originally been designed as a monastery but the first stage of the castle was a Norman earthwork motte and bailey fortress. Later, in the 14^th century, the fortifications were added when a rectangular keep and a twin-towered gatehouse were built into the existing curtain wall which was then flanked with octagonal and round towers.

During the 16^th century a mansion house was built within the walls where the keep and gatehouse had been but this was destroyed by fire around a hundred later during the Civil War. The house was reconstructed in the 19^th century and is still in use today.

The main structure of the castle still stands up to battlement height but is now in a state of disrepair and overgrown although work has been done recently to try to stabilise the walls.