A short guide to
Ffridd Faldwyn hillfort

Ffridd Faldwyn hillfort (OS national grid reference SO21699694) is positioned high above the later town and castle of Montgomery overlooking the confluence of the Severn and the Camlad. The fort was built on the end of a spur giving it good natural defences on three sides. Part of the site has been excavated.

The earliest occupation on the site has been dated to the neolithic when a settlement was built here. Finds of flint and pottery show that this was a domestic site. The first defended settlement was built during the early iron age or possibly late bronze age. The defences consisted of no more than a double wooden palisade with an inturned entrance. Later during the iron age the occupants felt the need for larger defences.

They built massive earth ramparts which were reinforced by a timber frame. There were entrances at either end of the fort, the southern one being inturned.

After some years the hillfort was abandoned, perhaps after a fire. In the final period of occupation, during the later iron age, the hillfort was greatly enlarged adding a further 3.6 hectares on the north-west side.

The defences consisted of two lines of earth banks with stone revetting, the banks would have been topped with wooden palisades. A complex entrance was built at the south-west end of the fort where the natural defences were weakest. Outside the entrance an enclosure was built, perhaps to house animals. Little is known of the buildings in the interior although rectangular buildings set on four posts appear to have been built along the roadway in the fort.

Today the defensive banks and ditches of the last hillfort can be clearly seen on the ground. The site is now a pasture field with spectacular views of Montgomery castle, town and the surrounding countryside.

Access and parking
It is best to park either in the town square or in the castle carpark. Access is then up the narrow country lane to the south-west end of the hillfort. The fort is approached via a stile and along a public footpath from the lane. The footpath crosses a field and the outer works of the fort before running through the main entrance. It is possible to pull up adjacent to the stile but parking is very limited and not suitable for minibuses.
There is also a public footpath leading off the Montgomery to Newtown road (B4385) which crosses the field and climbs steeply through the wood to the north end of the fort. Sensible shoes are required, especially for the second route.
Time required for walk from town or castle carpark c10 minutes each way. Time required for route two walk, starting in town, c20-25 minutes. Ordnance Survey Landranger map 137.

The above information comes from the Sites and Monuments Record of the Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust. For further information about the historic environment of this area, contact:-

Compiled for the Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust by Caroline Earwood and Neville Townsend You may reproduce this material free of copyright for educational purposes only