Who was the owner of Pembroke Castle from 1265 to 1296?
Pembroke Castle Pembroke Castle ( ) is a medieval castle in the centre of Pembroke , Pembrokeshire in Wales . The castle was the original family seat of the Earldom of Pembroke . A Grade I listed building since 1951 , it underwent major restoration during the early 20th century . In 1093 , Arnulf of Montgomery built the first castle at the site when he fortified the promontory beside the Pembroke River during the Norman invasion of Wales . A century later , the castle was given by Richard I to William Marshal , who became one of the most powerful men in 12th-century Britain . He rebuilt Pembroke Castle in stone , creating most of the structure that remains today . The castle is open to the public and is the largest privately-owned castle in Wales . Construction . The castle is sited on a strategic rocky promontory by the Milford Haven Waterway . The first fortification on the site was a Norman motte-and-bailey . It had earthen ramparts and a timber palisade . In 1189 , Pembroke Castle was acquired by William Marshal . He soon became Lord Marshal of England , and set about turning the earth and wood fort into an impressive Norman stone castle . The inner ward , which was constructed first , contains the huge round keep with its domed roof . Its original first-floor entrance was through an external stairwell . Inside , a spiral staircase connected its four stories . The keeps domed roof also has several putlog holes that supported a wooden fighting-platform . If the castle was attacked , the hoarding allowed defenders to go out beyond the keeps massive walls above the heads of the attackers . The inner wards curtain wall had a large horseshoe-shaped gateway . But only a thin wall was required along the promontory . This section of the wall has a small observation turret and a square stone platform . Domestic buildings including William Marshals Great Hall and private apartments were within the inner ward . The 13th century keep is tall with walls up to thick at its base . In the late 13th century , additional buildings were added to the inner ward , including a new Great Hall . A 55-step spiral staircase was also created that led down to a large limestone cave , known as Wogan Cavern , beneath the castle . The cave , which was created by natural water erosion , was fortified with a wall , a barred gateway and arrowslits . It may have served as a boathouse or a sallyport to the river where cargo or people could have been transferred . The outer ward was defended by a large twin-towered gatehouse , a barbican and several round towers . The outer wall is thick in places and constructed from Siltstone ashlar . Although Pembroke Castle is a Norman-style enclosure castle with great keep , it can be more accurately described as a linear fortification because , like the later 13th-century castles at Caernarfon and Conwy , it was built on a rocky promontory surrounded by water . This meant that attacking forces could only assault on a narrow front . Architecturally , Pembrokes thickest walls and towers are all concentrated on its landward side facing the town , with Pembroke River providing a natural defense around the rest of its perimeter . History . Pembroke Castle stands on a site that has been occupied at least since the Roman period . Roger de Montgomerie , 1st Earl of Shrewsbury founded the first castle here in the 11th century . Although only made from earth and wood , Pembroke Castle resisted several Welsh attacks and sieges over the next 30 years . The castle was established at the heart of the Norman-controlled lands of southwest Wales . Arnulf de Montgomery appointed Gerald de Windsor as his castellan at Pembroke . When William Rufus died , Arnulf de Montgomery joined his elder brother , Robert of Bellême , in rebellion against Henry I , Williams brother and successor as king ; when the rebellion failed , he was forced to forfeit all his British lands and titles . Henry appointed his castellan , but when the chosen ally turned out to be incompetent , the King reappointed Gerald in 1102 . By 1138 King Stephen had given Pembroke Castle to Gilbert de Clare who used it as an important base in the Norman invasion of Ireland . In August 1189 Richard I arranged the marriage of Isabel , de Clares granddaughter , to William Marshal who received both the castle and the title , Earl of Pembroke . He had the castle rebuilt in stone and established the great keep at the same time . Marshal was succeeded in turn by each of his five sons . His third son , Gilbert Marshal , was responsible for enlarging and further strengthening the castle between 1234 and 1241 . All of Marshals sons died childless . In 1247 , the castle was inherited by William de Valence ( a half-brother of Henry III ) , who had become Earl of Pembroke through his marriage to Joan de Munchensi , William Marshals granddaughter . The de Valence family held Pembroke for 70 years . During this time , the town was fortified with defensive walls , three main gates and a postern . Pembroke Castle became de Valences military base for fighting the Welsh princes during the conquest of North Wales by Edward I between 1277 and 1295 . On the death of Aymer de Valence , 2nd Earl of Pembroke , William de Valences son , the castle passed through marriage to the Hastings family . In 1389 , 17-year-old John Hastings died in a jousting accident , ending a line of inheritance stretching back 250 years . Pembroke Castle then reverted to Richard II . Short tenancies were then granted by The Crown for its ownership . By 1400 Owain Glyndŵr had begun a rebellion in Wales . However , Pembroke escaped attack because the castles Constable , Francis а Court , paid off Glyndŵr in gold . Then in 1452 , the castle and the earldom were presented to Jasper Tudor by his half-brother Henry VI . Tudor brought his widowed sister-in-law , Margaret Beaufort , to Pembroke where , in 1457 , she gave birth to her only child , who was to become King Henry VII of England . In the 15th and 16th centuries , the castle was a place of peace until the outbreak of the English Civil War . Although most of South Wales sided with the King , Pembroke declared for Parliament . It was besieged by Royalist troops but was saved after Parliamentary reinforcements arrived by sea from nearby Milford Haven . Parliamentary forces then went on to capture the Royalist castles of Tenby , Haverfordwest and Carew . In 1648 , at the beginning of the Second Civil War , Pembrokes commander Colonel John Poyer led a Royalist uprising alongside Colonel Powell , Tenby Castle , and Sir Nicholas Kemoys , Chepstow Castle . Oliver Cromwell came to Pembroke on 24 May 1648 and took the castle after a seven-week siege . Its three leaders were found guilty of treason and Cromwell ordered the castle to be destroyed . Townspeople were even encouraged to disassemble the fortress and re-use its stone for their purposes . The castle was then abandoned and allowed to decay . It remained in ruins until 1880 , when a three-year restoration project was undertaken . Nothing further was done until 1928 , when Major-General Sir Ivor Philipps acquired the castle and began an extensive restoration of the castles walls , gatehouses , and towers . After his death , a trust was set up for the castle , jointly managed by the Philipps family and Pembroke town council . Film location . Pembroke has appeared in numerous feature films . These include the 1968 film The Lion in Winter , the 1976 film Jabberwocky , the BBC adaptation of C.S . Lewiss Prince Caspian , the film of Shakespeares Richard II , and the 2016 Anglo-American romantic film Me Before You . It features as the fictional Penleven Castle in Cornwall in the 2015 comedy film The Bad Education Movie . External links . - Pembroke Castle website - Castles of Wales website with pictures of the castle - Great Castle of Wales website with more pictures - www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Pembroke Castle - Pembroke Castle : description and sources - Pembroke Castle on NetWales - Information and photos of the castle