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COITY
Almost dwarfed by its Mighty Castle is the quaint little village of Coity. The village is small and compact with its own post office and inn serving traditional lunches and bar snacks. The centre point of the village is naturally the castle. Coity Castle is much grander than its near-neighbour Newcastle.
The Legend of Coity
Like all Castles, there are stories of ghosts and horrible deeds committed. Some are too fanciful to be considered, but many have their origin firmly fixed in historical truths.
One such story tells of the marriage of Payn de Turberville to Sybil the daughter of a Welsh Chieftain called Morgan. Payne was a Norman knight who was attempting to take the castle from Morgan. Morgan however told Payn that if he would marry his daughter then he could enter and have the Castle. If he decided not to marry her, then Morgan stated that the taking of the castle would have to be settled by a duel between Morgan and Payn.
Payn was an ambitious man and after due consideration he agreed. He therefore handed Morgan his sword with his left hand and placed his right arm around Sybil. They were soon married and Payn moved into the Castle temporarily switching his allegiance from the Normans to the Welsh. He built up a powerful force of Welshmen with Morgan’s aid.
The story goes on to add that Payn was unfaithful to Sybil on many occasions, slipping out of the castle by making sure that his own original soldiers were on guard each night. Apparently Sybil got to hear of one such time, and arranged for her own guards to replace Payn’s while he was out of the Castle. On his return, the guards challenged him and when he stated who he was; they called for Sybil to identify him. Sybil refused to come down to the gate at such a late hour and stated that her husband Payn was in their bed beside her, so the man must be an impostor. Payn could hardly argue the point without admitting his fault. He was therefore refused admission and had to spend the night outside the castle in the pouring rain. Whether it is historically true or not, can never be proved, but why allow historical truth to interfere with a good story!
Tours by foot - Nant Brynglas
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