Still one of my favourites. My photos compared to those sketched in a book on Raglan 1880. In August 1646, Raglan was surrendered by the Royalists to Sir Thomas Fairfax, commander of Cromwell’s forces and the place was looted. Most tragically, the library, which held ancient Welsh texts was destroyed:
“At the dismantling of the castle, a valuable library was destroyed by
the psalm-singing soldiery of the republican army, which contained the
archives of the territory of Gwent, and a most rare and interesting work
by Geraint Bardd Glas y Cadair, an illustrious Welshman, who flourished
about the close of the ninth century. He was the first who composed a
Welsh grammar, a work that was revised by Einien and Edeyrn, which
form and arrangement is now extant; but the original book, in the handwriting of Geraint, was in the castle at its capitulation.” [Waugh, 1880].
Local people decided to copy the actions of the parliamentary forces, stripping stone and destroying over twenty staircases and defacing the Great Hall, Chapel and the water features, amongst the rest. Thankfully, what can still be seen, visited, touched and appreciated today gives us a glimpse of a remarkable building with a remarkable history.
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