Cromwells Castle

Has been described as a Possible Artillery Fort

There are no visible remains

NameCromwells Castle
Alternative Names
Historic CountryIsles of Scilly
Modern AuthorityIsles of Scilly
1974 AuthorityIsles of Scilly
Civil ParishTresco

Cromwell's Castle is an artillery tower that was built between 1651 and 1652, comprising a circular gun tower 13.5 metres diameter and built of coursed rubble. It is situated on a small low rocky shelf projecting from the western coast of Castle Down on Tresco. The tower replaced an earlier blockhouse built between 1548 and 1554. The artillery tower was built after Parliamentarian forces recaptured Tresco during the Civil War and sought to defend it from the potential threat of the Dutch fleet, which had arrived off the Scillies in March 1651. It was strategically positioned to command the channel between Bryher and Tresco. It is about 15 metres high and originally comprised of a basement and two floors above which lay the gun platform with 6 gun ports. The first and second floor rooms included timber floors and stone fire places and were linked by a wooden ladder or steps. Access to the first floor was via stone steps within the wall of the tower. The gun platform was reached from the second floor by a spiral stone staircase within the walls of the tower. There was originally a walkway along the gun platform protected by a parapet. In around 1740, partly in response to threats from Spain, the defences were altered and refurbished by Abraham Tovey, Master Gunner. A pentagonal gun platform was added against the seaward side of the blockhouse and a guardhouse built between the two structures. In 1752, the monument was recorded by the antiquarian William Borlase who noted that the 'principal battery' was armed with nine-pounder guns and the tower platform had small four-pounder cannon. He also recorded that the structure had no garrison and that the timber was 'already much decayed'. (PastScape)

This enigmatic gun tower with attached platform, covering New Grimsby harbour, is of mid 16th-century form but documentary evidence suggests that it was built in 1651-2 (see Bowden and Brodie 2011, 27-9); this issue still requires resolution

(Bowden 2011)

Gatehouse Comments

There seems to be some question for Bowden that an earlier fort C16 fort was here on the site now occupied by the C17 building although the location alone does seem to make this entirely likely.

- Philip Davis

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law

This is a Grade 2* listed building protected by law

Historic England Scheduled Monument Number
Historic England Listed Building number(s)
Images Of England
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceSV881159
Latitude49.9621810913086
Longitude-6.34952020645142
Eastings88180
Northings15900
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

No photos available. If you can provide pictures please contact Castlefacts

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Books

  • Bowden, Mark and Brodie, Allan, 2011, Defending Scilly (London: English Heritage) p. 27-9
  • Campbell, Adele (ed), 2004, Heritage Unlocked; Guide to free sites in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (London: English Heritage) p. 64-5
  • Duffy, Michael, 1999, 'Coastal Defences and Garrisons 1480-1914' in Kain, R. and Ravenhill, W., Historical Atlas of South-West England (University of Exeter Press) p. 158-60
  • Salter, Mike, 1999, The Castles of Devon and Cornwall (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 16
  • Saunders, Andrew, 1997, Channel Defences (London; Batsford/English Heritage) p. 50, 51, 55, 90, 120
  • Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) p. 207
  • Saunders, Andrew, 1989, Fortress Britain (Beaufort Publishing Ltd) p. 28-30
  • Spreadbury, I. D., 1984, Castles in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (Redruth)
  • Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p. 217
  • Laws, P., 1980, The Buildings of Scilly (Redruth) p. 8
  • Pevsner, Nikolaus (revised by Enid Radcliffe), 1970, Buildings of England: Cornwall (Harmondsworth) p. 211

Journals

  • Bowden, Mark and Brodie, Allan, 2011, 'Defending Scilly' Research News No. 16 p. 8-11 online copy
  • < >Brodie, A., 2010, 'The Tudor Defences of Scilly' English Heritage Historical Review Vol. 5 p. 24-43 < >

Guide Books

  • O'Neil, B.H.St.J., 1950, Ancient Monuments of the Isles of Scilly (HMSO) p. 18-19

Primary Sources

Other

  • Bowden, Mark, 2011, Isles of Scilly: Military Defences, 1540-1951: Earthworks and Minor Sites (English Heritage Research Department Report series 56-2011) p. 6 (slight) online copy