THE owner of Usk Castle says he is thankful for the reaction to the announcement he and his wife are closing the historic site due to drug issues and “plain rudeness”.

On Monday Henry and Rosie Humphreys announced they had made the decision to close the castle and its grounds public, following several incidents of “drug using, litter, and plain rudeness”.

The pair have overseen the management of the gardens and ruins for 30 years, and have always been open to visits from the public, but Mr Humphreys says that changed around five years ago.

“I am grateful to see good feeling towards us after the article,” Mr Humphreys said. “Ironically, it is also partly what people have said to us online in the past that has made us want to close. It has not always been this positive.

“Looking back we seemed to have problems after we put in a driveway to the castle a few years ago, with signs pinpointing the site.

“It was then the type of visitor started to change. People were coming to us to use the loo or get a coffee. That’s not the type of thing we were doing it for. We wanted to share our grounds.

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“After we made the grounds more visible we went from having very interesting and pleasant visitors to getting people who felt they had a God-given right to use our home for their advantage.

“During lockdown, having time to ourselves, we realised we actually rather liked the privacy, and that spurred the decision.”

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Mr Humphreys, who says he regularly came across drug users in his grounds late at night, says the decision to close the castle to the public might not be forever, and said when his son takes over he can “do what he wishes with the grounds”.

“I’d like to add to those who are particularly upset that we are closing to most, please look into being a member of Usk Castle Friends,” he added.

Prices to become a member of Usk Castle Friends are £18 for a family for the year, and £10 for an individual.

The Humphreys’ secretary David Collard said the family had “put up with a lot” in recent years and felt as though they were “living in a goldfish bowl”.

“I think the problems began with visitors coming who were not local,” he said. “Perhaps they didn’t understand the castle is privately owned."

Mr Collard says they have been surprised by the level of interest in Usk Castle Friends so far.

If you are not already a member of Usk Castle Friends and would like to join, contact secretary David Collard on 01291 673655, or email collarddavid@yahoo.co.uk.