Hawley’s Fortalice, Dartmouth’s First Castle

In 1336 Edward III ordered precautions to be taken against French attack on the Devon coast. But fifty years passed before John Hawley, then Mayor of Dartmouth, began to build the town’s first castle, or “fortalice”, at the mouth of the river. Terry Edwards’ work with English Heritage led him into researching this ancient fortress, and he pieced together an impressive picture of how the structure would have looked some 600 years ago. Although today’s Dartmouth Castle is a later building, a surprising amount of the original fortalice can still be discovered. Terry Edwards’ book provides a useful guide to the remains of Dartmouth’s first castle.