Portland Castle (English Civil War Sieges, 1644–1646)
Who Fought
History & Significance
Portland Castle is an artillery fort constructed by Henry VIII on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, between 1539 and 1541. It formed part of the King's Device programme to protect against invasion from France and the Holy Roman Empire, and defended the Portland Roads anchorage. The fan-shaped castle was built from Portland stone, with a curved central tower and a gun battery, flanked by two angular wings. Shortly after its construction it was armed with eleven artillery pieces, intended for use against enemy shipping, operating in partnership with its sister castle of Sandsfoot on the other side of the anchorage. During the English Civil War, Portland was taken by the Royalist supporters of King Charles I, and then survived two sieges before finally surrendering to Parliament in 1646.
Portland continued to be used as a fort until the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, when it was converted into a private house. Fresh concerns over invasion led to the War Office taking it over once again in 1869, but the castle was not rearmed and was instead formed as accommodation for more modern neighbouring fortifications. During the First and Second World Wars it was used as offices, accommodation and as an ordnance store. In 1949, the War Office relinquished control, and in 1955 it was opened to the public by the state. In the 21st century it is managed by English Heritage and operated as a tourist attraction, receiving 22,207 visitors in 2010. Historic England consider the castle to form "one of the best preserved and best known examples" of King Henry's forts.
Portland Castle was built as a consequence of international tensions between England, France and the Holy Roman Empire in the final years of the reign of Henry VIII. Traditionally the Crown had left coastal defences to the local lords and communities, only taking a modest role in building and maintaining fortifications, and while France and the Empire remained in conflict with one another, maritime raids were common but an actual invasion of England seemed unlikely. Basic defences, based around simple blockhouses and towers, existed in the south-west and along the Sussex coast, with a few more impressive works in the north of England, but in general the fortifications were very limited in scale.
In 1533, Henry broke with Pope Paul III in order to annul the long-standing marriage to his wife, Catherine of Aragon and remarry. Catherine was the aunt of Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, and he took the annulment as a personal insult. This resulted in France and the Empire declaring an alliance against Henry in 1538, and the Pope encouraging the two countries to attack England. An invasion of England appeared certain. In response, Henry issued an order, called a "device", in 1539, giving instructions for the "defence of the realm in time of invasion" and the construction of forts along the English coastline.
The ground they fought on
The site of Portland Castle (English Civil War Sieges, 1644–1646) lies on West Walton Formation, Ampthill Clay Formation And Kimmeridge Clay Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Kimmeridgian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.
Perhaps the most striking episode in Portland Castle's Civil War story is the manner in which Royalists first took it in 1643, gaining entry by the simple but audacious trick of impersonating Parliamentary soldiers. For a fort designed to keep enemies at arm's length with heavy artillery, it fell not to cannon or assault but to deception, a reminder that in the confusion of civil war, the greatest vulnerability could be a garrison's willingness to trust those who appeared to be on the same side.
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