Having satisfied ourselves with the antiquities of Caerwent, we planned an excursion, to comprise the six castles mentioned by the author of “Secret Memoirs of Monmouthshire” as surrounding the forest of WENTWOOD. These were erected soon after the Normans established themselves in Monmouthshire, in order to keep the natives in check, who were wont to sally from their impenetrable fastnesses in the woods, and take a severe revenge on their conquerors and oppressors. Great part of this forest still exists in its original wildness, although it has been considerably curtailed by late enclosures. The castles enumerated are, Dinham, Penhow, Pencoed, Lanvasches, Lanvair, and Castrogy or Striguil. On a bridle-road, extending to Share Newton, we proceeded to the village of DINHAM, a poor place consisting of a few farm-houses and cottages: we had some difficulty in discovering the ruins of its castle, which consist of some low walls obscured by trees; merely pointing out its site on a gentle eminence near the borders of the forest. The ruin is called in the neighbourhood the old chapel. There being nothing here to fix our attention, we made the best of our way to LANVAIR CASTLE, situated on a small rise about two miles from Caerwent, near the road to Usk. In our approach to the ruin, an effect caught through intervening trees was pleasing and picturesque; but the ruin aspires not to grandeur, and is in a great degree concealed by embowering verdure: a nearer inspection of the castle increased our opinion of its former extent and prowess; large foundations are evident; and the walls are nowhere less than seven feet in thickness: a square and two round towers are the most conspicuous features of the ruin, which is in part moulded into a farm-house: the area of the principal court is employed as a kitchen-garden. Beneath the castellated eminence is the village-church, a simple rustic building; passing which, and proceeding on the road to Usk, we quickly entered the forest of Wentwood. In this tract a dreary ride among dark woods, and russet heaths, laboriously ascending, brought us to the PENCAMAWR summit; a remarkable eminence in the long ridge of hills crossing the midland parts of Monmouthshire, from the vicinity of Caerleon to the banks of the Wye near Landago.