There may have been a Celtic defensive site on the red sandstone ridge beside Ruthin – the very name 'Rhuthun' translates as 'red fort' – but the first recorded castle was given to Dafydd ap Gruffydd, brother of and traitor to Prince Llewelyn ap Gruffudd, in 1277 by Edward I of England. Consolidation of the English invasion meant ownership soon passed to Reginald de Grey in 1282, who developed the sandstone fortress and town walls. Further work in 1295 was supervised by Master James of St George, the King's renowned military architect.

The castle withstood a raid by Owain Glyndwr in the 15th Century (though the town was destroyed), but it was delapidated by 1632 when the near-bankrupt Charles I considered it merely a source of building stone. However, it didn't even have 'scrap value': it was more economical to extract fresh stone from the original quarries.
A decade later, the King's forces hastily refortified the castle for the English Civil War. Besieged for eleven weeks in 1646, the castle was finally dismantled two years later.

The current castellated manor house was constructed on the site of the mediaeval castle in 1826 and was extended between 1849 and 1852, with the development of landscaped gardens. Since 1963 the house has been a hotel offering costumed mediaeval banquets and conference facilities... oh dear....

Moel Famau is in the background; Jubilee Tower is just visible.