En un regard
Le château en bref
Cusop Castle is a medieval earthwork of the ringwork type, set on a natural promontory above a stream a short distance from Hay-on-Wye, in the Wye Valley, which here marks the border between England and Wales. The slopes are steep on every side except the north-east; the builders made use of a rocky outcrop, cut back by quarrying and strengthened with earthen banks.
The earthwork forms an irregular oval platform aligned east to west, 2 to 3 m high and 60 to 80 m across at the top. A ditch 3 to 5 m wide and up to 2.5 m deep survives on the north-east and east; to the south and south-west, a berm reinforces the natural slope. The interior is divided into two levels by a low bank, and traces of an entrance causeway can be made out to the east. The building of Castle House destroyed the western defences, while a modern road conceals part of the ditch.
The site, in an area held by the King at the time of Domesday Book (1086), is traditionally attributed to the Cianowes (or Clarowes) family, active in the county from the 12th to the 14th century. In the 19th century a standing gateway was still recorded, and masonry foundations were mentioned later, so stone buildings must once have stood within the enclosure. Today only the earthworks remain, protected as a Scheduled Monument.
