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Fowey Blockhouse

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Fowey Castle

In the civil parish of Fowey.
In the historic county of Cornwall.
Modern Authority of Cornwall.
1974 county of Cornwall.
Medieval County of Cornwall.

OS Map Grid Reference: SX12175133
Latitude 50.33193° Longitude -4.64045°

Fowey Blockhouse has been described as a certain Artillery Fort, and also as a certain Chain Tower.

There are major building remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This is a Grade 2* listed building protected by law*.

Description

at the entry of the haven on the west syd is a blokke howse and a chapel of S. Catarine be the same. Also ther is on the same syd a towre with ordenans for defens of the haven. (Leland)

Boom tower survives as a ruined three storied rectangular building, built into the side of the cliff which forms the bank of the River Fowey, and is located opposite another chain tower Polruan Blockhouse. The structure is roofless and is constructed of local slate, with three walls surviving, the south east wall having collapsed at some time in the past. The chain tower was probably built in response to a raid on the town of Fowey by the French in 1457. Leland states that the tower was built during the reign of Edward IV. The two boom towers were designed to have a chain laid across the river between them which could be raised to prevent enemy shipping reaching the town of Fowey. Advances in artillery made the tower obsolete and it was superseded by St Catherine's Castle in the 1520s. (PastScape)
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Sources of information, references and further reading
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Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.
This record last updated 26/07/2017 09:22:04

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