Building England’s Castles:
A Look at
Some of the Chosen Locations, Building Materials, and a Peek into Their History
TESC 417
Kathy
Deraitus
August, 2006
Location of Corfe, Lulworth and Portland Castles
Map by Google.com
During my travels with the University of Washington geology class in July/ August, 2006, I had the
opportunity to visit a variety of castles along the South West Coast of England and within the interior. It’s one thing to see pictures in a book or
watch a movie on castles, but the chance to actually walk into one of these
majestic buildings is an awe-inspiring experience—it was truly a walk back in
time. Why these stone castles were built
in their chosen locations, and the materials the people used to build
them, and why they designed them in the
manner they did, gives us an opportunity to understand English life dating back
to the time of the Normans and Saxons—and gives us insight into a very exciting
time in England’s history. Let’s take a
step back in time.
Military defenses, in one form or another, have
populated English lands as far back in history as 1000 BC. These defenses, although much more primitive
than the spectacular stone forms of castles we know today, nonetheless served
as a form of protection for the community.
These precursors to the English castles would range anywhere from a type
of hillfort of loops, ditches and banks used during the Bronze Age to the early
timber castles built by the Normans. Going
forward in time, these fortifications evolved into the majestic and awe-inspiring
stone castles that we see today. Castles
were built for a variety of reasons and uses. They might serve as a stronghold
to protect the peoples of the town from invasion—from the royal kings and
queens, to the wealthy lords and ladies, and to poorest of the peasants. They were a show of strength and power for
land-owning lords and a mighty symbol of the Middle Ages. It was a warring time in history and the
weapons of the day were no match for the strength of these mighty fortifications. Choosing the best strategic location, the
right design and using the strongest materials was imperative—with this
accomplished, the castle could defend its inhabitants with a favorable advantage
against large warring bands of opponents.
The South West coast of England provides us with a good variety of
castles to explore—some intact and others just skeletons of better days gone
by. Whether intact or falling down,
however, they all provide a rich history of man’s strength, ingenuity and
resourcefulness. There are obvious
strategic locations--whether along the coast, at the river’s mouth or at a
natural low area of a valley. Other
locations, while not as obvious to the casual observer, may have been chosen
because of family history, personal hobbies or
a beautiful view. Once the location
was chosen, the builders would need to decide on design and materials. The onerous job of quarrying the stone and bringing
it to location was no easy job, given the tools of the day. All these components had to be considered
before plunging forward on the arduous job of castle building.
I will focus this paper on
three castles along the South West coast of England, Corfe Castle which is north
west of Swanage on the Isle of Purbeck; Lulworth Castle, in East Lulworth, Dorset;
and Portland Castle overlooking Portland Harbor in Castleton and on the Isle of
Portland .
CORFE CASTLE
On a majestic hill in South West England stands
the shell of a magnificent castle—still standing, against all odds. Its fight not quite over, maybe its job not quite
done—its remains act as if it is still defending the Isle of Purbeck. Built of Purbeck limestone by William the
Conqueror in 1100, sits Corfe Castle—spanning over a 1,000 year-old, rich
history.
“Corfe Castle is a dramatic ruin in a dramatic setting,
standing on a steep-sided natural conical hill commanding the narrow,
ravine-like gap through the chalk ridge that defends the Isle of Purbeck.” (Castelden, 61)
The word Corfe comes from the Ango-Saxon word for ‘pass’
or ‘cutting’—and that’s just where Corfe Castle sits--at the top of a steep
hill overlooking a naturally occurring ravine.
The castle sits on top of the gap in the Purbeck Hills--to the north and
south are vast stretches of land. Its imposing location of the surrounding
lands was enough to suppress the most avid enemy. Two streams, the River Wicken and the Byle
Brook, were responsible for eroding the rock and causing the gap that allows
passage to the southern section of the Isle of Purbeck. This gap was once called a “Corvesgate.” The
castle itself sits upon a steep chalk peninsula.
Corfe is located on the South West coast of England between Swanage and Kimmeridge and lies
on beds of Chalk, Wealdon Clay and
Purbeck Limestone. These beds
were laid down during the Cretaceous Age during the Mesozoic period, from 65 to
142 million years ago. The Purbeck was
laid down first, then the Wealdon beds and the earliest are the chalk
beds. These variations in sedimentology
and the resistance of each, has resulted in the deep ravine at the foot of the
Corfe castle. The Wealdon clay was the
least resistant and was eroded by the stream, resulting in the formation of the
ravine. The geology that is underlying the
surface ultimately controls how the landscape is formed.
Although the castle sits upon chalk,
it is actually made from the local Purbeck limestone which is a much sturdier
material. The limestone was quarried a
few miles to the south-
east of the castle and was an easy
material to work with as it was soft yet sturdy and could easily be cut and is
also quite resistant to the weather.
As our class climbed the hill to Corfe and roamed
the ancient grounds and ruins, we observed some interesting and telling
features used in its building. A filler
material was used within the walls to create a wider wall structure—likely for
strength and a way to build it faster.
This filler contained chert pebbles from Cretaceous chalk. There was an interesting wall with a zigzag
pattern to it—it was unusual as it didn’t match any of the other walls. The herringbone pattern of stonework comes
from a Saxon style of stone work.
Due to its strategic location, it is likely that
the site this site was used for defense from as far back as the Roman and
Bronze Age--remains of Roman pottery and Bronze Age burial grounds have been
discovered. Next to use the site were
the pre-Saxons who built a fortified site; and following them were the Saxons
who added an inner ward, a gatehouse and domestic buildings of stone and timber.
During the Saxon reign, and amongst Corfe’s many
rich and often infamous stories, is the one of the vulnerable, young King
Edward. While out on a hunting trip in
the Royal Forest in 978, he stopped at Corfe Castle to see his stepmother and half-brother. To assure himself the throne, his
half-brother stabbed King Edward who soon died after being dragged by his
horse. The dead King Edward’s
half-brother did succeed to the throne
while King Edward was named as a saint – “Edward, King and Martyr.”
Next to occupy this site were the Normans, around 1050-1100 William the Conqueror
started building Corfe and it was one of his earliest castles. He understood the great defensive location
that the hill provided. Normally castles
of the day had a motte around them.
However, the hill at Corfe provided a natural defense so a motte was not
necessary. The Normans used the Purbeck limestone from the
surrounding area as building materials for the castle which was the same stone
that was used to build the village surrounding the castle.
Corfe Castle has been considered one of England’s most important castles—indications of
this show up in the use of stone for its walls which was unusual at the time it
was built by the Normans. It was important because of its great
natural defensive location as well as it close proximity to the coast which
helped William the Conqueror stay in touch with Normandy. The design of the Keep, the inner tower, was
the heart of the Norman castle. It had only one or two ways to get in which
created a last line of defense for its inhabitants. The design, materials and location made Corfe
one of the most secure castles of its time.
It was used not only as a fortress for safety and security but also
housed the royal treasury.
Corfe castle is rich in its history: starting with the pre-Saxons, then the
Saxons, then the Normans and through the Middle Ages, through numerous kings
and queens and ending in destruction during England’s Civil War. A descriptive text taken from the 16th
century states: Corfe castle is “a very fair castle with gatehouse with fair
rooms, kitchens, cellars, halls, chambers and necessaries enclosed within a
great stone wall.” (Yarrow 1) Corfe was destroyed by orders of Parliament
in 1646 but its history lives on, and, somehow its ruined state only adds to
its intrigue.
LULWORTH CASTLE
As our class moved westward along the Jurassic
World Hertitage site on the South West Coast, we were treated to beautiful
views of Lulworth Cove and the fascinating Purbeck and Portland rock formations along this
coastline. “Purbeck is a classic place
to see how the underlying rocks control the development of the landscape and
coastline. Around Lulworth, hard bands
of Portland Limestone form a barrier to
the sea but once breached the softer rocks behind are eroded away to form a
bay.” (Dorset County Council). Visiting the Lulworth Castle provided a good opportunity to see this
stone worked in a grand way. Lulworth Castle sits inland three miles north-east of Lulworth
Cove in Dorset County and has a very classic castle design. Built between 1608 and 1610, its purpose was
for a hunting lodge, rather than for defense, and in the hopes that the
reigning King James I would visit since he enjoyed deer hunting. King James I finally paid it a visit in 1615,
and it has subsequently has hosted five reigning monarchs.
The Purbeck-Portland stone that was used to build
the castle has been quarried since early Roman times. Although it is actually limestone, it has sometimes
been confused with marble because it can take such a fine polish which leaves a
beautiful finish. Quarried from Tilly Whim Caves, Dancing Ledge and Winspit the Purbeck-Portland
Limestone provided the stone for such buildings as Lulworth Castle and Swanage Town Hall.
The Purbeck and Portland limestone was formed towards the end of
the Jurassic and beginning of the Cretaceous periods, around 142 million years
ago.
The location for Lulworth Castle was chosen
because of its beautiful location—the estate includes 20 square miles,
including some of the most beautiful coastline in England. It also includes woodlands, streams, lakes
and grasslands which provided wonderful hunting grounds. (Lulworth, Dorset, 37)
Lulworth Castle also provides the visitor with a wonderful
glimpse into castle life-- since it is more intact than the castle ruins of
Corfe Castle, one can easily image being back in history some 400 years ago
when walking its grand hallways and entering the immense rooms.
PORTLAND CASTLE
As our class moved
westward along the coastline, we were again treated to more spectacular sights at
Chesil Beach,
Portland Harbor
and the Isle of Portland. The Saxon word
for Chesil means ‘pebble’ and the beaches of Chesil were hills of vast quantities of medium-sized
pebbles as far as the eye could see.
Overlooking Portland
Harbor on the north-east coast of
the Isle of Portland in a strategic defensive location,
stands Portland Castle. Built as an artillery fort by Henry VIII in
1539, it was known as one of his best coastal fortresses. It was during this time that Henry VIII had
broken away from the Catholic Church after divorcing Catherine of Aragon and
was fearful of a threat of invasion from France
and Spain. He went to great lengths to arm England—building
and personally involving himself in the design of a series of artillery
fortifications which were named “Device Forts.”
Portland
Castle, along with Sandsfoot Castle
across the cliff, were built to protect the town of Weymouth
which today is located between two Heritage
Coasts, Purbeck
and West Dorset.
(Osprey Quay, Portland Castle)
Photo
by (c) Skyscan Balloon Photography
The appearance of Portland
Castle differs from the more
classic English castle design in that it’s built low to the ground with 14 feet
thick walls, giving it a squat appearance and, at the time, made it almost
indestructible. It stands on a cliff
overlooking Portland Harbor
and has a large round wall facing the sea and two rectangular wings on the
opposite side. Inside is a two-story
tower in the center with guns mounted on two levels facing the sea. It would have certainly been a
threatening site to anyone considering challenging its force.
The materials
Henry chose to build his castle came from the local white Portland
limestone which has been quarried from the Isle of Portland for centuries. “The Isle of Portland is a rock outcrop formed
from a block of
limestone, 4 miles by 1 ½ miles, that protrudes from Dorset
coast into the English Channel.” (Learning – Portland
Stone web site) This limestone was laid
down during the Jurassic Period, approximately 142 million years ago. Portland
Castle is still standing proudly—a
testament to its good design and fine stone work.
These wonderful relics of the past stand in all
their glory to this day—some in ruins, others intact. Corfe Castle stands majestically against the
countryside, a mere skeleton of what it was.
Parliament went to great lengths to turn it into rubble but it fought
back and stands in testimony to its shear strength. It welcomes people from all over the world to
walk through its broken walls and soak up its rich history. Lulworth Castle attracts multitudes of visitors for a day of
jousting and medieval skits—to anyone wanting to transport themselves from the
Twenty-first Century and go back in time to the Middle Ages. Portland Castle stands strong and proud over the harbor as if
still protecting England from unwanted visitors. The materials and locations that were chosen
were good choices; they served their rulers well for many, many years—whether
it be to defend or entertain. With the
invention of new warfare, these strong, old protectors were no longer the
biggest and strongest defenders--they could no longer serve their original
purpose. However, they haven’t died--these
heroic old relics still live on.
Bibliography
Books and Pamphlets:
Castleden, Rodney. English
Castles, A Photographic History. London, 2006.
Dorset and Devon County Councils. Dorset
& East Devon Coast: England’s First
Natural World Heritage Site. Costal Publishing, 2006.
Lockhart, Anne. Corfe Castle. Hants.
Yarrow, Anne. Corfe Castle. Swindon, 2005.
Weld, Wilfrid. Lulworth, Dorset. Epic Printing.
Web sites:
Castle Xplorer. Simon and Gina Robins. 2001 – 2006. August
22, 2006. http://www.castlexplorer.co.uk/england/portland/portland.php
Jurassic Coast. World Heritage Coast Trust. August
25, 2006. http://www.jurassiccoast.com/index.jsp?articleid=26755
Learning – Portland Stone; thebeasts.info.
Harrisdigital.co.uk.
2005. August 20, 2006. http://thebeasts.info/learning/portland_stone/index.htm
Osprey Quay, Portland Castle. 2004. August
28, 2006. http://www.ospreyquay.com/leisure/portland.asp
Portland Castle. Excelsior Information Systems Limited. 1999 – 2006.
August 21, 2006. http://www.aboutbritain.com/PortlandCastle.htm
Portland Castle. Best Loved
Hotels. 2006. August 25, 2006.
http://www.bestloved.com/attractions/portland-castle-in-portland-dorset-west-country-england-uk.php
Wikipedia. July 27, 2006. August 21, 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Device_Forts
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