Visited April 2014

Location	Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales
Entrance Fee	No
Railway Station Nearby	Yes- Fairwater (Cardiff)
Parking	Yes-by Cathedral
Facilities	None
Map

Review

Llandaff Bishop's Palace is a medieval defensive structure built by Bishop William de Broase who was bishop from 1266-87.

It was used as a residence by the bishops of Llandaff Cathedral, but was vacated by the clergy after an attack by Owain  Glyndwr in the early 1400's. It was still in reasonable tact in 1600's, but was probably slighted in the Civil War, like so many other fortified structures.

The ruins left today consist mainly of the gatehouse, parts of the curtain wall and some masonry ruins, all of which form part of a small park. The gatehouse still has a tower and some of the parapet seems intact, but this is all blocked off with no access to anything above ground level.

The day we visited it was very quiet in the park, with just a few people eating their packed lunches. It was a pleasant stroll through the park, where there are some interesting trees which just had to be climbed!!

Next to the Bishop's Palace is Llandaff Cathedral, which is also worth a visit if you are in the area. Heavily repaired after war time bombing, the cathedral today has quite a modern interior, in contrast to the remains of the palace. There is a small gift shop inside.

We combined a short detour to this palace with a trip to nearby  St Fagans Castle  , which contains the National History Museum of Wales. The two sites are easily visited in the same day.

Parking for the palace is just next to the Cathedral in the main square at Llandaff. It seemed to be plentiful on the day we were there.

More info: Bishop's Palace