What is now a picturesque town in Powys, Wales, famed for the Hay-on-Wye Literary Festival, was once a brutal frontier. The dense network of castles that run north and south along the Welsh Marches, the borderland between England and Wales, attest to the conflict in the region during the medieval period. It’s also the reason for a myth surrounding the building of Hay Castle.
The legend goes that Hay Castle was built in a single night, by a giantess. The truth, of course, is far more down to earth, but the story of Hay Castle is nonetheless one of violence, treachery and tragedy.
Here’s the story of Hay Castle, and the tragic tale of its owners, William and Matilda de Braose.
The Ogre of Abergavenny
A castle was erected in Hay as part of Norman efforts to invade Wales after 1066. The original ringwork castle was located near to St Mary’s Church and the motte, known as Hay Tump, remains visible today. The castle that can be visited today was built in stone in the early 1200s and is associated with the de Braose family. William de Braose was close to King Richard I and then to King John before falling foul of John’s fickle temper.
