DINEFWR CASTLE – NEWTON HOUSE

Dinefwr Castle was the seat of the kingdom of Deheubarth. Positioned high on hilltop overlooking the Tywi Valley, In the 12th century, the fortress was in the possession of The Lord Rhys, ruler of the ancient south Wales kingdom of Deheubarth. His reign saw a rare period of peace and stability that led to a flowering of Welsh culture, music and poetry.

After Rhys’s death, conflicts over succession led to turbulent years as the Welsh princes fought amongst themselves and against the English. Dinefwr eventually fell into English control in 1287 and remained there for centuries, despite Owain Glyndŵr’s attempt to wrest it back during his uprising of 1403. 

Now under the care of CADW on National Trust land. The ruins are in very good order, leaving plenty to explore, particularly the unusual round tower giving a full 360 degree view of the surrounding countryside. The view to the south follows the Tywi river with Paxton’s Tower on the left hand hillside and the sad ruins of Dryslwyn Castle on a smaller hill to its right. .

Newton House sits at the heart of the Dinefwr estate and now dominates the landscape. First built in 1660, the house was home to the Rhys (or Rice) family for over three hundred years.  The family were descendants of the Lord Rhys, the powerful Prince of the Welsh Kingdom of Deheubarth.  Over the years the house has undergone various redesigns, the most notable in the 1850s when a Gothic façade, fashionable at the time, was added.  It is this façade that you see on the house today.  Luckily some of the original 17th century features survive, including the magnificent grand staircase and exceptional ornate ceilings. National Trust members can visit the house and cafe, non-members will need to pay an entrance fee.

Newton House takes its name from the ‘New Towne’ that was built for English settlers in the medieval period.  By the time Newton House was built the new town had long since disappeared. The landscape around Newton House was originally formal gardens, but this all changed in the mid-1700s, inspired by Lancelot Capability Brown in the transform of the formal gardens into a more naturalistic designed landscape.  Capability Brown visited in 1775 to give his stamp of approval on the..

• Llandeilo Bridge over the river Tywi. The single-arch bridge was designed by William Williams, the county bridge surveyor, and built between 1843 and 1848. It replaced a previous three-arched bridge over the river Tywi that had, in turn, replaced the medieval seven-arch bridge which had collapsed in 1795.

• Llandyfeisant Church. The church is built on much earlier foundations, possibly going back to pre-roman times. The current stone built church was built in the 19th century.

• Nature Reserve. The grounds surrounding Newton House is a nature reserve, with herds of fallow deer roaming the park grounds and readily visible to the public.

• White Park Cattle. There are herds of these rare breed cattle in the fields surrounding Newton House and sometimes at the cattle sheds. These cattle are understood to be the ones in Welsh Folklore’s Lady of the Lake (see the Llyn-Y-Fan Fach Walk for a fuller story).

• For the Young. The four animal and bird wood sculputers in the enclosed deer park.

• Ice House. Although not visited on the route, the Ice House is a short distance on the rough path on the left after you exit the two double gates at the end of the deer park.