InfoBritain

 

Portland Castle, Dorset

 

Portland Castle was built in the 1540s on the orders of, Henry the Eighth as part of his coastal defence, and has survived largely unaltered since the sixteenth century. Ironically the only time the castle saw real action was not during an attempted invasion, but during the civil war in the seventeenth century when it was the scene of battles between Royalist and Parliamentarian troops. In the Second World War the castle once again became the focus of a national effort when it was used in preparations for the D-Day invasion of France. From the castle you will be able to see a huge section from one of the Mulberry harbours used to dock ships off the Normandy beaches during the D-Day invasion in 1944. These portable harbours were floated over to Normandy in sections and used to unload supplies required for the invading Allied armies.

 

Mulberry Harbour "Phoenix" breakwater at Portland: photo by Mark Murphy. This photo is copyright free

The castle, with its civil war past, and the Mulberry harbour recalling a time of national unity againt an external enemy, remind us of the unpredictability of national identity. There is something rather moving about that huge Second World War sea wall sitting off Portland, the water washing around it. Walls often have more of a symbolic value than practical purpose. In the Iron Age the huge earth banks of hill top forts were only a step away from the circular earth banks, and the stone circles of sacred sites symbolising the circle of life. The walls of Portland Castle no longer have any practical role to play in defending Britain, but remain as a symbol, like the iron age earth banks of Maiden Castle, or the standing stones of Stonehenge. They seem to symbolise permenance, identity, "proud history." In fact castle walls have a distant historical association with circular symbols for the fluidity of life, where nothing is secure or permenant, except the movement of life.

Portland Castle is one of a chain of castles built by Henry the Eighth along the south coast of England ostensibly to protect the country from French and Spanish attack. To allow his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, Henry had switched the religion of England from Catholicism to Protestantism. This led to short lived fears of invasion from Catholic France and Spain. Although the threat of invasion was never serious, a huge building programme of shore line defence began in 1539. The chain of forts included Camber Castle in East Sussex, Walmer Castle, Deal Castle, and Sandown Castle in Kent, Southsea Castle, Hurst Castle, Calshott Castle and Yarmouth Castle along the Solent, and the sister fortifications of Pendennis Castle and St Mawes Castle in Cornwall. The functional appearance of these castles belies their largely symbolic role. The threat of invasion was never serious, but the effect of changing a religion was explosive, and indeed the aftershocks of the changes of the fifteenth century remain with us today, most clearly in the divisions between people in Northern Ireland. Religions are designed to hold people together and maintain hierarchy and discipline. With the change of religion and the possibility of division, perhaps the country needed to feel itself pulled together by the illusion of imminent invasion, which apparently could only be countered by the building of huge forts. The symbolism was taken further in the use of stone from demolished monasteries going into the building of the forts. The solid walls of these forts, almost all of which survive, is the physical manifestation of a struggle of ideas and beliefs. They are solid, squat and functional, and yet they have all the symbolism of the churches they were built from. They were not really built to face an external enemy. Instead they were designed to create a symbolism that would prevent divisions appearing from within.

 

In the castle grounds there is an attractive garden, and a two hundred seat amphitheatre made from local Portland stone. The views from here are very impressive.

There are limited refreshments available from the shop. Picnics can be enjoyed in the grounds.

Opening Times: The castle is closed from the beginning of November to the end of March. From the 1st April to 30th June it is open daily 10am - 5pm, from 1st July to 31st August 10am - 6pm, September 10am - 5pm and October 10am - 4pm.

 

Directions: Portland Castle is just off the A354 in Portland, Dorset. Click here for an interactive road and satellite map centred on Portland Castle.

Access: wheelchair access is possible to the grounds and to the lower floor, although doorways are narrow. There is an audio and photo album tour of upper floors. Adapted toilet facilities are available. Braille and tactile signs are included on all displays.

Contact:

telephone: 01305 820539

web site:www.english-heritage.org.uk