Holt Castle

Not much to see here, in terms of the castle, but if you have a good imagination and your into medieval history, it's a fun visit.

It is worth to visit when you are somewhere near there. However it is not a lot to see. Pictures are not showing the castle, but the are clues how to get find it as was no information about direction at all.

What a find. Little gem. Lovely little walk along the river.
What people don't often realise this with this place. Is the original Castle was massive. Like massive. The main road that runs past it is the line of the walls.
Not lots to see what's left here. But the village is good to visit as there is some really nice little cafés.

Great space, peaceful. Right on the English Border. Good signs and information. Nice for walking or just looking at the views. Interesting and unique medieval fortification.

Wish I hadn't been drawn to this place by the rave Google reviews! For me, it was not worth travelling to for a visit. But if you are into castles and passing, it might be worth a stop. Interesting history, just not much left of it to look at (most of it was dismantled to be used for a manor house in Chester). It says something that the Welsh clearly weren't bothered about maintaining it. (It's looked after by English Heritage). All the protective fencing around the top of it, though for health and safety, makes the ruins look like an eye sore. They could have used wooden fencing / steps to blend into the environment and stop it from looking like it's under construction. Popular dog walking area for the locals, so visiting on a hot summers day meant the place smelt unpleasant! 💩🐕

Lovely afternoon at Holt Castle & Farndon.

Holt Castle is another unassuming ruin, a squat sandstone stack decaying on the Welsh side of the River Dee; but during its heyday, Holt Castle was one of the most impressive strongholds in Britain.
Constructed between 1282 and 1311, the castle was built by John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey to defend a strategic river. De Warenne was given the Welsh lands on which the castle now sit by Edward I, as part of the king’s wider plans for the invasion and subjugation of Wales.
De Warenne was aware of James of Saint George’s work along the North Wales coast in the massive fortifications at Conwy, Caernarfon, Beaumaris and Harlech. The castle at Holt was smaller but no less imposing or defensible.
Holt Castle is very much an English construction, the land was shaped around the fortress. The 12 metre sandstone promontory on which the castle sits is not a natural formation but was created intentionally by quarrying out the area around it. The resulting moat was far deeper than it is today and was flooded by the Dee for much of the year. Holt Castle was pentagonal, with substantial towers on each corner. The castle was approached by a steep ramp up to the barbican.
King Richard II used the castle as his personal treasure house. Owain Glyndwr failed to capture the castle during his rebellion in 1400. Apart from a brief period in late 1643 where the castle was held by the Parliamentarians, Royalists garrisoned Holt Castle throughout the Civil War. The garrison only surrendered in 1647 after 9 months of siege. The castle was slighted a year later
After the Civil War, Holt Castle was largely dismantled. Using barges to carry the stonework down the Dee, between 1675 and 1683 Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet of Eaton, took the castle apart stone by stone to rebuild Eaton Hall.

Park sensibly at 'The Cross' and head down the public footpath and the structure opens out before you beside the river.