Sunday Times Where Was I? Holiday Competition

Not too challenging this week. Near as I can figure it, the most likely answers, seem to me to be:

Q1 . Hen Gwrt

Q2. The Kymin

(NB from looking at the national trust site and other references, the hill is called 'Kymin hill' and the estate seems to be called 'The Kymin' so the Eastender Himself is going with 'The Kymin' as the name of the nine acre site)

Some huge giveaway clues this week, 'Trilateral' gets you the answers almost immediately, there is a group of Norman castles in monmouthshire which are called 'The Trilateral castles'. These are Grosmont Castle, Skenfrith Castle and White castle. From the initial clues given, it looks like the author is at Grosmont castle, travelling four miles south east of there brings us to Skenfrith castle, which stands next to the river monnow and from the photographs I found of it, it does indeed have four ruined towers and a keep inside the walls (looks like a very beautiful, if somewhat eldritch place).

Travelling south west from Skenfrith castle takes us to the hamlet of Llantilio Crosseny, where a moat (or more accurately 'a moated site') called Hen Gwrt can be found. It is indeed square and surrounds the remains of a house . Some of the references I found on this claim that it was possibly a manorial site used by the bishops of Llanduff in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, later being used as a hunting lodge.

A sixth century saint who came to the aid of the district around Lantilio Crosseny, was Saint Teilo (feast day 9th February). Some sources claim that he was asked for help by a king Iddon to see off some Saxon hoodies who were drinking cider, doing club style singing at 3 am and plundering the place. Teilo is reputed to have planted a cross on a pre christian mound where the church now stands and prayed for their defeat. It seems to have worked because Iddon gave the church some lands in grattitude after the Saxons were routed and given an ASBO. Llantilo Crosseny may be a corruption of 'St Teilo's at Iddon's Cross'. Teilo's PR people put out a story claiming that he had a pet dragon (captured by him while on holiday in Brittany) but they may just have been trying to big him up a bit.......

Travelling around seven miles east south east of Llantilo Crosseny, brings you to the town of Monmouth and about a mile east of the town lies a nine acre estate called 'The Kymin', where there is a hill which has been used as a picnic spot since around 1793. The hill has two notable structures on it, a Georgian round house (built c1794) and a Naval temple (built c 1800). Lord Nelson did lunch at the Kymin, while inspecting the temple, which is dedicated to the victories of the British navy.