URPoint Details
Disabled parking outside Palace; accessible at ground level; toilets.
The tiny city of St David’s boasts not only one of Britain's finest cathedrals but also the most impressive medieval palace in Wales.
This palace owes it magnificence to Bishop Henry de Gower of St Davids, an astonishingly energetic builder. Not content with major works in his cathedral and elsewhere, between 1328 and 1347 he rebuilt his principal residence on the grandest scale.
Ranged round an imposing courtyard, the palace possesses two complete sets of state rooms, one for the bishop's own use and the other for ceremonious entertainment. It is lavishly encrusted with fine carving, probably the work of Bristol craftsmen. But its most striking features are the multi-arched parapets which crown its wall-tops, surmounted by chequerboard facades of purple, green and white.
- Type:
- Landmark