Bodowen is located in the south-west of Anglesey. It is an estate with medieval origins and lies adjacent to the Bodorgan estate (nprn 700172). The last Bodowen mansion was built in 1615 (to the south-east of the present Bodowen farmhouse) but was demolished in 1829 as the estate was gradually absorbed by the Bodorgan estate and the two became a single unit (700172).

The relict garden of Bodowen lies to the west of the house site, on slightly rising ground above it, and is contemporary with the house, dating to the early seventeenth century (15586). It consists of a four-sided, walled enclosure with a raised terrace along its west side. Beyond, to the west, is the rocky ridge of Bonc-grogwen. The west wall of the house formed the southern half of the east wall of the garden. The structure and much of the walling of the early seventeenth-century garden remain, with some fine, ornamented entrance gateways (15586). Walls are of variable height rising to a maximum of about 3.8m.

The garden within the walls is grassed over and on two levels: along the west side is a raised, revetted, terrace, about 4m wide and 1.8m high, formerly accessed by a flight of steps flanked by the two sycamore trees (one dead) which still stand either side of the gap, at the foot of the wall. Aside from these, the only ornamental planting to survive is a row of gnarled old sycamores along the outer edge of the terrace, deliberate ornamental planting, but hard to date. A pair of old damson trees, still very productive, lie at the south end of the terrace.

The house and garden lay within parkland (700170).

Source:
Cadw Historic Assets Database (ref: PGW(Gd)44(ANG).

RCAHMW, 6 July 2022

Site Record

Bodowen Relict Garden, Anglesey