Portland Roads, the anchorage sheltered by the great curved arm of Chesil Beach and the Portland peninsula, was both a potential refuge for a damaged English fleet and a potential base for French forces if not properly defended. The 1545 alert demonstrated how the chain of Device Forts along the Dorset coast — anchored at Portland Castle — could mobilise rapidly in response to a specific threat. The preparedness of Portland Roads in 1545 compared favourably with the repeated vulnerability of Dorset ports in the Hundred Years War.
None; French fleet passed without attacking Portland Roads
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