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Candleston Castle

📍 Bridgend, Wales

3.7 ★★★½ 320 reviews

About

Candleston Castle is a 14th-century fortified manor house, in ruins since the 19th century. It is 0.75 miles (1.2 km) southwest of Merthyr Mawr, Glamorgan, Wales, now Bridgend County Borough and just 0.75 miles (1.2 km) northwest of Ogmore Castle, separated by the River Ogmore. Candleston's original long and narrow rectangular structure lay across the western end of a low narrow promontory, suggesting a defensive position. The castle is believed to be named after the Norman family of Cantilupe, thought to be its first feudal tenants.

A 14th-century fortified manor house built by the de Cantilupe family, later held by the Cantelupes (hence Candleston). Located at Merthyr Mawr Warren near Bridgend, the ruins are gradually being engulfed by one of the largest sand dune systems in Europe. The advancing sand also buried the medieval village and church. The atmospheric ruins stand amid marram grass and dunes, accessible by woodland paths.