The early medieval Welsh princes and Irish Gaelic lords are comparable in several ways. Both had to deal with the ever-increasing presence of the Anglo-Normans and were able to maintain some form of native rule throughout the period (“Gaelic lordly Settlement” 209). Furthermore, castles played a significant role in proceedings, whether they were built or captured and whether they were of native or Anglo-Norman origin. This can be attributed to their ability to withstand various levels of warfare and to be one of the means of displaying lordly rank (“Settlement and Society” 97). However, the functions, characteristics and prevalence of castles are not necessarily uniform across the three groups. Using historical and archaeological evidence derived from scholarly sources, the various uses, distinctive features and similarities of castles by native Irish Welsh and Gaelic lords during the late 12th and 13th centuries can be explained more fully. The account will be structured by outlining for the first time the evidence for the existence of native Welsh castles during that time period. This will involve a description of the historical context of their construction, functions, prominent builders, distinguishing features and notable examples. The examination will be interspersed with comparisons with contemporary Anglo-Norman construction models. The regions of Wales referred to throughout this document will include Gwynedd in the north, Powys in the east and Deheubarth in the south, as shown in Figure 1. Following these Welsh examples, the discussion will move to a comparison between the native Welsh and the Gaels . Irish lords regarding the extent of the construction of their castle. This will contain a section describing the use of... half the paper...) pg. 130-146.Davis, P. Castles of the Welsh Princes (Talybont, 2008).McNeill, T. E. Castles in Ireland – Feudal Power in a Gaelic World (London and New York, 1997) p. 157-164.O'Conor, K. Chapter 4: “Settlement and society in medieval Gaelic Ireland” in The archeology of medieval rural settlement in Ireland. Discovery Program Monographs 3 (Dublin, 1998) pag. 73-107.O'Conor, K. “Gaelic lordly settlement in 13th- and 14th-century Ireland” in Holm, I., Innselet, S. and Oye, I. (eds.) 'Utmark' – the outfield as industry and Ideology in the Iron Age and the Middle Ages (Bergen, 2005) pag. 209-221.O'Conor, K., Brady, N., Connon, A. and Fidalgo-Romo, C. “The Rock at Lough Cé, Co. Roscommon” in T. Finan (ed.) Medieval Lough Cé – History, archeology and landscape (Dublin, 2010) pag. 15-40.Rees, S.E. and Chapple, C. Dinefwr Castle and Dryslwyn Castle (Cardiff, 1999).