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These aerial photos capture Old Beaupre Castle, located near Cowbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan. Despite its name, what you see isn't actually a military fortress, but a magnificent Elizabethan manor house built upon the foundations of a medieval predecessor.

The images highlight the dramatic contrast between the functional and the decorative. The most significant feature visible is the three-story inner gatehouse, an Italianate Renaissance masterpiece completed in 1600 by Richard Bassett. Notice the intricate carved columns—representing the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders—which stand in stark defiance of the surrounding rugged, roofless ruins.

Key Historical Features
• The Medieval Core: The L-shaped block at the rear dates back to the 14th century.
• Tudor Transformation: The 16th-century expansion turned it into a high-status residence.
• The Outer Gatehouse: Seen in the foreground of the first photo, this 1580 addition signalled the family's immense wealth and social ambition.

The photos emphasise the isolated, rural setting that allowed the Bassetts to display their architectural sophistication. Today, maintained by CADW, the site remains a hauntingly beautiful skeleton of Welsh gentrified life.

Parking is a 10 minute walk away (small lay-by with space for only 2 cars). TOAL point is on the footpath between the parking POI and the castle – flying from the parking side of the castle is fine, but be careful if you overfly the castle or try to shoot it from the other side as you will have strayed into the St Athan FRZ and ATZ which start immediately the other side of the castle

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Co-ordinates: 51.4388, -3.427359 • what3words: ///mountain.skippers.restless

Grid Ref: SK577164
This section of the River Soar floods every year, and this year's floods were quite spectacular. By the time these were taken, the floods had receded so local roads had re-opened but they give a good idea of the extent of the inundation.
The area is popular in summer when the waterway is cleaner and the banks greener.
Many access points for TOAL: I used a lane off the A6.

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Co-ordinates: 52.7413, -1.144221 • what3words: ///unveils.ratty.headlight

Grid Ref: SK843361
The Dirty Duck pub is one of the more interesting features on the navigable section of the Grantham Canal, next to a flight of three locks. Easy to get to and to park. Also not far from Belvoir Castle.
No flight restrictions other than the generic Lincolnshire training area.

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Co-ordinates: 52.90712, -0.747409 • what3words: ///cheetahs.sprawls.limitless

Perched atop a commanding ridge in western Cardiff, the Caerau Hillfort and the ruins of St Mary’s Church represent over 5,000 years of continuous human history.

The hillfort is one of the largest and most significant Iron Age sites in South Wales, originally a stronghold of the Silures tribe. The overall site covers an area over 5 hectares – larger than 4 full size football pitches. Its multiple ramparts and ditches, clearly legible in the aerial photographs, enclose a strategic plateau overlooking the Ely Valley. The sweeping curves of earthworks visible from above reveal successive phases of construction, reflecting the site’s long occupation and defensive importance within pre-Roman tribal territories

At the hillfort’s heart lie the roofless ruins of St Mary’s Church, founded in the 13th century and abandoned after the medieval period. Though it was restored in the 1960s, it fell victim to severe vandalism and was deconsecrated in the 1970s.The images show the church isolated within its oval churchyard, itself set inside the prehistoric enclosure—an explicit layering of sacred and defensive landscapes. Together, the photographs emphasise how medieval Christian worship appropriated an ancient stronghold, illustrating over two millennia of adaptation and reuse within Cardiff’s historic landscape.

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Co-ordinates: 51.46731, -3.248114 • what3words: ///grab.useful.tribune

Nestled in the South Downs and dating from the 12th century is St Peters Parish Church in Firle East Sussex. It is a grade 1 listed building.
Firle Place, just next to the church is worth a visit

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Co-ordinates: 50.84498, 0.088493 • what3words: ///agency.prone.deriving

Situated in a nature reserve so stick to footpaths and I would suggest be aware of any nesting birds or wildlife. It is a an amazing location though.

Built in 1822, the Semaphore Tower is a unique survival. Commissioned in the aftermath of the Battle of Waterloo, it was once a cutting-edge building at the forefront of technology and is now a remarkable retreat in the heart of a peaceful nature reserve.

The only remaining semaphore tower in Britain

A unique remnant from the Napoleonic era, this Grade II* listed brick structure is the only surviving semaphore tower in Britain. It was once a building at the forefront of technology and design, a vital link in a signalling chain that transmitted messages from Admiralty House in London to Portsmouth Docks in just a few minutes.

The semaphore machinery has been refurbished, providing a living lesson in technological and engineering history.

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Co-ordinates: 51.31523, -0.438166 • what3words: ///both.exams.party

St Andrew’s is a quintessential Welsh border church, primarily dating to the 14th and 15th centuries, though it occupies a much older sacred site. Its most famous historical treasure is a Roman funerary monument—the Julian Gaudentius stone—discovered beneath the floor, dedicated to a soldier of the Second Augustan Legion based at nearby Caerleon.

The Julian Gaudentius stone is one of the most significant Roman artifacts found in a Welsh parish church. Discovered in the late 18th century, it is a Di Manibus (dedicated to the spirits of the dead) funerary monument. The stone's presence suggests that the site of St Andrew’s may have been a Roman villa or a roadside burial ground long before the first Christian timber or stone church was erected.

Roman law forbade burials within the walls of a fortress, so soldiers were often buried along the roads leading out of Caerleon.

The architectural character of the church is defined by its sturdy, defensive-looking western tower and a traditional nave and chancel.

The image highlights the church’s secluded position within the rolling Monmouthshire landscape. The sprawling graveyard, dotted with weathered headstones, underscores its role as a focal point for the community over the centuries.

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Co-ordinates: 51.64906, -2.897732 • what3words: ///divider.lengthen.assets

St Michaels grade 1 listed parish church is quite unusual as it is located in the middle of Plumpton Agricultural College in East Sussex. When I went the fields around the church had lamas and sheep in them. The church dates from the 11th Century

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Co-ordinates: 50.90506, -0.071677 • what3words: ///skater.fracture.baroness

Inaugurated in 1965 by Cardiff Corporation Waterworks, Llandegfedd Reservoir was constructed to meet the burgeoning industrial and domestic water demands of Southeast Wales. Spanning 434 acres on the border of Monmouthshire and Torfaen, it was created by damming the Sor Brook, though its primary water source is pumped directly from the River Usk.

The two images i've posted capture the reservoir’s dual identity as a feat of civil engineering and a premier site for recreation -

• The Panorama: This wide shot highlights the massive earth-fill embankment dam and the surrounding 400 acres of SSSI-designated land (Site of Special Scientific Interest), emphasising its role as a vital habitat for overwintering wildfowl.

• The Intake Tower: The top-down perspective showcases the iconic concrete valve tower and access bridge. This structure is the "heart" of the operations, regulating water flow before it is pumped to the Sluvad Treatment Works.

Today, managed by Welsh Water, the site has evolved from a strict utility into a hub for sailing, fishing, and conservation, balancing the region's thirst with a commitment to ecological preservation.

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Co-ordinates: 51.6861, -2.97502 • what3words: ///fallback.perfect.silks

The tiny hamlet of Hamsey in the South Downs National park has a lovely ancient grade 1 listed church of St Peters and fine views over the river ouse. It is reached via a long single lane track with little parking if you drive

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Co-ordinates: 50.89117, 0.009614 • what3words: ///fire.consults.diet