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Henry VIII’s gun forts on the coast

The Tudor forts, gun by gun.

Why Henry VIII built a chain of gun forts round the coasts of England, how their round towers, bastions and gunports worked, and what happened to them afterwards, from Deal, Walmer and Sandown to Pendennis, St Mawes, Portland, Hurst, Calshot, Camber, Yarmouth and Upnor. Every fact is checked against English Heritage and the UK government, and where sources disagree we show each one.

The history The forts, place by place

Our own drawing of a Tudor gun fort by the sea. Not a picture of any one fort, and not to scale. English Heritage: Tudors: War English Heritage: Local Learning, Pendennis and St Mawes Castles
30+new gun forts on the east and south coasts English Heritage: Tudors: War
140+guns: what Deal Castle was designed for English Heritage: History of Deal Castle
2.7miles: the line from Walmer to Deal and Sandown English Heritage: History of Walmer Castle
400+years Pendennis guarded Carrick Roads English Heritage: History of Pendennis Castle

The short version

Between 1539 and 1547 Henry VIII made a national plan to defend England against invasion by powerful Catholic forces in Europe. English Heritage: Tudors: War He built over 30 new gun forts to stop enemies capturing harbours and estuaries along the east and south coasts. English Heritage: Tudors: War

The big forts had squat, rounded shapes, built to fire guns in every direction. English Heritage: Tudors: War The circular shape and several tiers let the guns fire outwards all the way round. English Heritage: Local Learning, Pendennis and St Mawes Castles

English Heritage’s Deal pages say these forts are known as Henrician castles or “device forts”. English Heritage: Deal Castle, history and stories The forts ran in a chain from Hull in the north-east round to Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire. English Heritage: History of Hurst Castle

The forts turned out to be a dead end in fort design, but they were strong obstacles for many years. English Heritage: Tudors: War The angle bastion became the main way to build forts for the next 300 years. English Heritage: Tudors: War

central towerrounded bastiongunportparapetmoatdrawbridgecannon
Our own labelled drawing of a Tudor gun fort cut through, seen from the side. Not any one fort and not to scale. English Heritage: History of Yarmouth Castle English Heritage: History of Deal Castle English Heritage: Tudors: War English Heritage: History of Deal Castle English Heritage: History of Yarmouth Castle

Start exploring

The history, from the 1490s to todayEarly gun towers, the king’s plan, the pope’s alliance, the Mary Rose, the Armadas, the Civil Wars, prime ministers and today. How they workedRound towers, rounded bastions, tiers of guns, crossfire, small garrisons and the angle bastion. The forts, place by placeDeal, Walmer, Sandown, Pendennis, St Mawes, Portland, Hurst, Calshot, Camber, Yarmouth and Upnor. People & storiesKings, a queen-to-be, gunners, pirates, smugglers, a prisoner king and prime ministers. Spotting a Tudor gun fortWhat to look for, which forts survive best, and forts that changed later. The big facts pageEvery fact on the site in one list, each with its source.
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How real was the threat?

The pope urged them to invade England to punish Henry VIII. English Heritage: History of Walmer Castle Portland’s history page says how real the invasion threat was is debatable. English Heritage: History of Portland Castle

Our sources describe the threat in different ways: see when sources disagree.

And how many forts were there?

Local Learning says over 30 forts were built, the largest coastal defence programme in England since the Roman period. English Heritage: Local Learning, Pendennis and St Mawes Castles By the end of Henry’s reign in 1547, Deal was one of 42 new artillery forts protecting ports, anchorages and estuaries. English Heritage: History of Deal Castle

Our sources give different numbers: see when sources disagree.

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Our own drawing of three fort shapes, seen from above: a round fort with a central tower and rounded bastions, a curved gun battery with a chevron-shaped keep behind it, and a square fort with an arrowhead-shaped angle bastion. Not any one fort and not to scale. English Heritage: History of Yarmouth Castle English Heritage: History of Portland Castle English Heritage: History of Portland Castle English Heritage: History of Yarmouth Castle
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Free Tudor forts printables sample, 6 pages. Pick your paper size:

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Tudor forts printables

Fact-checked PDFs in A4 and US Letter, for ages 7 to 11, ages 11 to 14, families, history fans and visitors.

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    Meet Deal Castle, label a Tudor gun fort, three fort shapes, Tudor-times-or-after sorting cards, put-it-in-order date cards, a true-or-false quiz, a crossword where every answer is a real fact, a word search, a comic strip, a fort to colour, a certificate and a full answer key

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  • Tudor Forts Timeline & Poster Set

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    Six poster pages: a timeline from the 1490s to 1984, a Tudor gun fort, three fort shapes, crossfire across a harbour, the angle bastion, and the forts in numbers

    $3.49
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