Kingswear Castle
Description
Kingswear Castle is an early artillery fort built between 1491 and 1502 to defend Dartmouth Harbour in Devon against French attack. It is one of the first purpose-built gun forts in Britain and worked alongside Dartmouth Castle on the opposite side of the River Dart. The square, three-storey stone tower was designed with large gun ports positioned close to the water to control access to the harbour.
By the late 16th century, advances in artillery made the castle less effective, and it was no longer regularly manned. It saw action during the English Civil War, changing hands before being retained by the Crown. Although it continued to hold guns into the early 18th century, the castle gradually fell into ruin.
In 1855 Kingswear Castle was restored as a summer house, with later additions including a conical roof. During World War II it was briefly used by the Royal Marines. Today it is a Grade I listed building managed by the Landmark Trust and is used as a holiday let.