What to See in Cardigan - Top Sights and Attractions

Castle in Wales. Cilgerran Castle is a 13th-century ruined castle located in Cilgerran, Pembrokeshire, Wales, near Cardigan. The first castle on the site was thought to have been built by Gerald of Windsor around 1110–1115, and it changed hands several times over the following century between English and Welsh forces. In the hands of William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, the construction of the stone castle began after 1223. After passing through successive families, it was left to ruin and eventually abandoned by 1400. The castle backs onto a cliff face, with the remaining ruins dating from the 13th century. It was most heavily fortified where it faces inland, and includes a pair of drum towers, rather than a central keep, which remain standing. It passed into the hands of the National Trust in 1938. It is open to the public on payment of an entry fee but times vary.^[3]

Abbey. The Abbey of St. Mary is Grade I listed ruined abbey in St Dogmaels in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the banks of the River Teifi and close to Cardigan and Poppit Sands.

It is the ruins of a medieval abbey, originally founded in 1115 by the Fitzmartin family of Cemais. It was established by the Order of Tiron, a medieval monastic order, which owned a large number of priories and abbeys in France, England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

It is now in ruins, but substantial parts of the abbey remain, including the western end wall, the north wall, the north transept, and eastern walls of the crypt. There are also several monastic buildings which survive to the south of the abbey and a detached 13th century building, most likely an infirmary, which is located to the south east.^[4]