Kingswear Castle, Kingswear, Devon

Entry Name: Kingswear Castle

Listing Date: 8 October 1949

Grade: I

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1108543

English Heritage Legacy ID: 100569

ID on this website: 101108543

Location: South Hams, Devon, TQ6

County: Devon

District: South Hams

Civil Parish: Kingswear

Traditional County: Devon

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Devon

Church of England Parish: Brixham St Mary

Church of England Diocese: Exeter

Tagged with: Castle

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Kingswear

Description

SX 85 SE KINGSWEAR CASTLE ROAD

9/32 Kingswear Castle
(formerly listed in
8.10.49 Brixham UD)

- I

Blockhouse for the defence of Dartmouth Harbour, converted into summer residence.
Built in 1491 to 1502 as part of the defences at entrance to Dartmouth harbour on
the east side and with Dartmouth Castle on the west side of the estuary. Slate
rubble with red sandstone dressings. Square on plan with slightly battered walls.
Corbelled embattled parapet, stepped up to higherlevel on north side. North side
has chamfered two-centred arch doorway and corbelled machicolations above, and
an octagonal stair turret to right on north west corner, with battlements, small
four-centred arch windows at top and loops below. On the other sides four-
centred head openings and loops at high level and square openings below with
relieving arches. Low circular detached tower to north west with corbelled
embattled parapet, openings with cambered arches, and round stair turret on south
east side also with corbelled parapet with battlements. C20 concrete accretions
linking it to main building. There was a fort on the Dartmouth side of the har-
bour mouth as early as 1388 but the existing Dartmouth Castle was begun in 1481
and most of the surviving work is of 1488-94. By the mid C17 the long range
guns installed at Dartmouth Castle made Kingswear Castle obsolete and it was
abandoned. But it was held by Sir Henry Cary for the King during the Civil War
and captured in 1646 by Sir Thomas Fairfax. Further defences for Kingswear were
built by the Royalists in the form of the redoubt immediately above the town.
Kingswear Castle was converted into a summer residence (for Major Charles Seale-
Hayne) in 1855 by T Lidston, architect, and it is still used for this purpose.
Reference: B.H. St J O'Neil, "Dartmouth Castle and other defences of Dartmouth
Haven", Society of Antiquaries 1936.

Listing NGR: SX8910150282

External Links

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