ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to set only the excavation results from Wigmore, and the interpretation thereof, in a broader setting. The Welsh Marches are thickly clustered with the remains of motte and bailey castles. A general overview of the castles in the region indicates that there was a constant ebb and flow in castle fortunes against which probable building programmes and life at Wigmore can be viewed. A number of castles fell to the Welsh in the 12th century and their life ended then; castles such as the first ones at Builth Wells and Colwyn, and Dinieithon Castle, which seems not to have outlasted the 12th century. In many ways, Wigmore Castle still remains something of an enigma. The bold step, taken by English Heritage of returning the castle to its 'wild' state has much to recommend it, and the site now facing the visitor retains much of its grandeur and romance, lost at other more traditionally well-tended sites.
