Castle Down bastion (The Gatehouse Record)

In the civil parish of Tresco.
In the historic county of Isles of Scilly.
Modern Authority of Isles of Scilly.
1974 county of Isles of Scilly.
Medieval County of Isles of Scilly.

OS Map Grid Reference: SV88571605
Latitude 49.96279° Longitude -6.34471°

Castle Down bastion has been described as a probable Artillery Fort.

There are earthwork remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

Description

Outwork from C16 surviving as a bank 2.5m wide and 0.2m high with an occasional outer or south facing ditch. It is a setting out work with a south facing bastion with orillons in the centre of Castle Down plateau. West from the main bastion are traces of another which appears to be unfinished. (PastScape)

On the ground it appears, for the most part, as a bank 2.5 m wide and 0.2 m high with, occasionally, an outer or southward facing ditch 1.5 m wide and 0.1 m deep. It is clearly a setting out work with a massive south facing bastion with orillons set in the centre of Castle Down plateau. From it two 75.0 m lengths of walling would form an angle of 120. At the east end of the 'wall' there is a half bastion from which a scarp extends northwards for 60.0 m along the crest of the steep coastal slopes and ending at some out- cropping rock. Going westwards from the main bastion for 75.0 m there are traces of another which seems to have been unfinished in its setting out. Its plan, however, would, of necessity have been distorted since it is on the lip of the coastal slopes at this side of the island. There is a gap of 30.0 m and then a flanking scarp, similar to that on the east but slightly below the crest of the plateau, can be traced for 60.0 m towards the 16th century, mis-named, King Charles' Castle. The flanking scarp ceases near a small quarry pit. This unfinished and previously unrecorded fortification would have enclosed some 36 hectares of the north part of Tresco. Commenting on the earthwork Mr A D Saunders says the work "is clearly 16th century in form. The shape of the bastions suggests it could belong to the 1550's, contemporary with Harry's Walls, and designed as an outwork to King Charles Castle". (PastScape)

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Scheduled Monument Number 1017783, Legacy Scheduled Monument Number 15515
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 303465.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 168741.

Books
- Bowden, Mark and Brodie, Allan, 2011, Defending Scilly (London: English Heritage)
Periodical Articles
- Brodie, A., 2010, 'The Tudor Defences of Scilly' English Heritage Historical Review Vol. 5 p. 24-43
  Quinnell, N.V., 1978, 'A 16th Century Outwork to King Charles' Castle, Tresco' Cornish Archaeology Hendhyscans Kernow Vol. 17 p. 142-3 online copy
Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
- SP16/368, No. 110 (Survey of 1637) The National Archives reference
Other sources: Theses; 'grey' literature; in-house reports; unpublished works; etc.
- Bowden, Mark, 2011, Isles of Scilly: Military Defences, 1540-1951: Earthworks and Minor Sites (English Heritage Research Department Report series 56-2011) p. 8-9 online copy

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown. Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.

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