Kingswear Castle, Castle Road, Kingswear, Devon
This blockhouse was built in 1491-1502 as part of the defences at the entrance to Dartmouth harbour. It stands on the east side of the estuary and Dartmouth Castle stands on the west side. There was a fort on the Dartmouth side of the harbour mouth as early as 1388 and Dartmouth Castle was built between 1481 and 1494. By the mid 17th century the long range guns installed at Dartmouth Castle made Kingswear Castle obsolete and it was abandoned. It was, however, 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 a redoubt immediately above the town. In 1855 Kingswear Castle was converted by T Lidston, architect, into a summer residence for Major Charles Seale- Hayne.
