FR

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Walk or cycle along the old Weymouth to Portland railway and visit Henry Vlll’s ruined castle set in a cliff top garden overlooking Portland Harbour.

FRIENDS of RODWELL TRAIL

WEYMOUTH

PORTLAND

PORTLAND HARBOUR

www.rodwel l tra i l .org .uk www.sandsfootcast le .org .uk

The Rodwell Trail is a green link for walkers and cyclists between Weymouth and Ferrybridge, where the Fleet Lagoon with its nature reserve enters Portland Harbour. It follows the course of the old Weymouth to Portland Railway with links to the South West Coast Path and the Isle of Portland and for part of the way follows the Jurassic Coast and an area of Special Scientific Interest. Stretching for 3.4 km it is a 1 hour walk each way on the level, suitable for all ages from 1 to 101. Wheelchair friendly but access points are steep, except at Ferrybridge and Rylands Lane. Rodwell Trail is part of National Cycle Route 26.

Car parks with public toilets and refreshments are close by, just a 6-7 minute walk from either end. Buses travel frequently between Ferrybridge (south end of the Rodwell Trail) to central Weymouth. There is also a café and toilet in the gardens of Sandsfoot Castle.

From Swannery car park go under Swannery Bridge, along the Backwater, turn right over Westham Bridge through the underpass to the Abbotsbury Road entrance. From Chesil Beach car park turn left towards Weymouth, over Ferrybridge and you will find the entrance on the opposite side of the road from the Ferrybridge Inn.

Rodwell Trail CodeCyclists - Moderate your speed and sound bell near walkers.Walkers - Bin or take home your litter and listen for cyclists.Dogs - Make certain your owner keeps you under control and picks up your ‘mess’.

Share and Enjoy a historic trip along Weymouth’s green trail

P

P

P

Nothe FortTudor House

Sandsfoot Castle

Portland Museum

RufusCastle

Portland Castle

Chesil Beach Centre

N AT U R A L H I S TO RY

The Rodwell Trail is a haven for wildlife and forms a green lung linking Ferrybridge with the RSPB Radipole Lake wildlife reserve.

At Abbotsbury Road end you can see Hedge Sparrows and Blackbirds in the hedges along with Garden

Spiders at the side of the Trail. Listen out for the Great Green Bush Crickets calling. At dusk you may see a Serotine Bat, or later

on, Pipistrelle Bats flying about.

South of Wyke Tunnel is a damper area where Pendulous Sedge and Heart’s Tongue Ferns grow on the banks. Common Frogs hop about in the damp undergrowth while up in the canopy Blackcaps can be heard calling. Mammals such as Foxes and Badgers will come out in the evenings

Past Buxton Road Bridge many species of butterfly can be seen on the wing in summer, including Red Admiral, Comma and Holly Blue. You might also see a Mouse searching for its supper.

In winter Sandsfoot Castle Gardens is an excellent spot to look out over Portland Harbour to see the overwintering birds such as Great Northern Diver, Slavonian Grebes and Merganzers.

Between Sandsfoot and Wyke Halts the Trail is more open with many different species of wildlife, especially in the Wyke Halt area. In summer Common

Lizard bask in the sunshine and Common Blue Butterfly flit about. In amongst the reeds you might find a Wasp Spider with its distinctive yellow and black abdomen, also look out for the rare Bithyinian Vetch and Little Robin plants that growin this area.

For more about the natural history of the Rodwell Trail see: www.dorsetwalks.com/rodwelltrail

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150

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6 m

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to a

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sp

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old

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ACCESS POINTS

A A

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I O

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Roa

dB

Ilch

este

r Roa

d J

Parr

Way

C S

alisb

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K

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ane

D N

ewst

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Road

L

Dou

glas R

oad

E Pr

ince

of W

ales R

d M

Dun

dee/

Dov

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Wyk

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N O

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Bux

ton

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O

Whi

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rive

H C

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mon

t Roa

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Fe

rryb

ridge

Littl

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d Cr

ossin

g by

Wes

tham

Hal

t

Wyk

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nel

Rodw

ell S

tatio

n

Sand

sfoo

t Cas

tle

Whi

tehe

ads T

orpe

do F

acto

ry

Rail

brid

ge to

Por

tland

PLA

N o

f R

OD

WE

LL T

RA

IL -

App

roxi

mat

e Sc

ale:

1 in

ch e

qual

s ¼

mile

SAN

DSF

OO

TC

AST

LE

STA

RT

STA

RT

RSPB Radipole Lake

P

Portland Bill

R O D W E L L T R A I L & S A N D S F O OT C A S T L E

WHY WAS SANDSFOOT CASTLE BUILT?After Henry VIII’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and his break with the Roman Catholic Church, England was left politically isolated. A treaty between France and Spain in 1538 led to fears of invasion and so an intensive campaign of fortifying the south and east coasts of England against the possible invasion was started. Built between 1539 and 1541, at a cost of £3,887 4s 1d (approximately £1.5 million today), Sandsfoot Castle was described as ‘a right goodly and warlyke castle, having one open barbicane’. It is a Henrician blockhouse of a square design and the only survivor of its type, its ruinous state gives the public a unique opportunity to see the construction of this Tudor castle that has dominated Portland Roads for almost 500 years.

S A N D S F O OT C A S T L E

SANDSFOOT CASTLE IN HENRY VIII’s TIMESandsfoot Castle provided not only for the defence of Portland Roads with her guns but also living quarters for soldiers garrisoned there in times of need to repel invaders. Domestic quarters were therefore as necessary as the ramparts and gun floors. The kitchen and eating hall were on the ground floor, the alcove for the kitchen fire and bread oven with a slop chute to outside can be seen. The remains of fireplaces at both ground and first floor levels and windows that would have been glazed and protected by iron bars externally with timber shutters internally can still be seen. From the ground floor a door gave access to the lower gun floor, which was lost to the sea in 1835. Circular staircases within the walls of the castle lead to the first floor where the sleeping quarters and toilets, known as ‘garderobes’, were located. From the first floor a doorway led out to the upper level of the gun emplacement. The basement was used for the storage of munitions and stores with ventilation and light provided by chutes to the outside.

SANDSFOOT CASTLE’S STRATEGIC LOCATIONPortland Roads has always been a safe haven for ships, protected from the prevailing south-westerly winds by Chesil Bank and therefore an ideal landing place for an invading enemy. Due to the limited range of Tudor guns, it was necessary to have castles at both Sandsfoot and Portland to protect the complete bay. The castles were initially armed with a type of gun known as a demi-culverin that could fire 10 pound missiles up to 2,000 yards. These sister castles were not built to the same design. Sandsfoot is a square blockhouse with a facetted gun emplacement on the seaward side, while Portland’s two storey circular tower has a curved front gun emplacement.

The cliff upon which Sandsfoot Castle was built, whilst better than the ground either side of it, has been progressively eroded by the sea. By the mid 19th century a majority of the gun floor had fallen into the sea, however with the building of Portland Breakwater this erosion greatly reduced. The last piece of the gun floor fell in 1954 and can be seen on the foreshore.

Initially designed solely to protect the coast from a seaward attack, about the time of the threat of invasion from the Spanish Armada, landward defences were built to protect the castle from an enemy landing further along the coast and advancing by land. These defences can still be seen today, consisting of an open earthen barbican with an external ditch protecting the main entrance. The earthworks would have supported infantry behind by a wooden palisade and possibly artillery positioned behind stone-filled gabion baskets.

CHRONOLOGY

1250 Bindon Abbey built at Wool.

1541-1665 - MILITARY SERVICE1539 Henry VIII’s fear of invasion, after his dispute with Catholic Europe,

results in 20 castles being built along the south coast, funded by the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

1539-41 Castle built using some recovered stone, probably from Bindon Abbey to complement Portland Castle in defence of Weymouth Bay.

1548 First reported repairs.1580 Approx. date of earthworks built to give protection from land attack.1588 Battle of Portland, second engagement with the Spanish Armada.1610 & 1623 Major repairs required1644 Civil War - Royalists surrendered the castle to Parliamentary forces 1645 Sandsfoot Castle used as a mint or money store.1665 Castle removed from the Military Register after 124 years of service.1691 Castle ceased to be used as a storehouse.

1692-2008 - THE NEGLECTED YEARS1701 Permission given to use outer stone in repairs to the town bridge1725 It is recorded that the castle “had become a ruin”.1825 Royal Coat of Arms taken from castle and put in Wyke church.1837 Southern section falls into the sea.1849 Erosion of the cliff slowed by the new Portland breakwater.1902 The ruined castle purchased by Weymouth Borough for £150.1930 Castle is closed to the public as it had became unsafe.1931 Tudor style gardens laid out.1954 Last part of gundeck falls onto the beach.

2008-12 – RESTORATION Friends of Rodwell Trail with Weymouth & Portland Borough Council

undertake a joint project to stabilise and repair the remaining structure with financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

2012 Sandsfoot Castle is opened to the public. The waters below are the venue for the sailing events of 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games

Sandsfoot’s Royal Coat of Arms, now located in Wyke church.

Model showing three views of Sandsfoot Castle as it would have looked in Tudor times

Artist’s impression of Tudor life in the castle.

The only image of Sandsfoot Castle before it became a ruin by the Board of Ordnance Plan of the castle drawn in 1789 after “it had become a ruin”

Floodlit at night

Sandsfoot in 1803 showing the remains of the gateway through the earthworks

The ruins of Sandsfoot Castle today

Castle GardensInternal view of the Castle today