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Creydi
December 27, 2021
The Round Tower. Broad Street, Old Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 2JE. For hundreds of years, Portsmouth’s importance as a naval base meant that it was one of the most heavily defended cities in Europe. The Round Tower was the first of a series of permanent fortifications that were built in Portsmouth over the centuries. Work on the Round Tower was begun in about 1418, and it was completed in the 1420s. Before 1400, Portsmouth had been attacked and burnt several times by the French during the Hundred Years War. The Tower was intended to defend the entrance to the Harbour and prevent enemy ships from entering. It was not built specifically to defend the town. At the time it was built, the Round Tower was actually outside the town walls, on the small peninsula known as Point. The nearest gate into Portsmouth – Point Gate, later known as King James’ Gate – was roughly halfway along Broad Street between the Round Tower and the nearby Square Tower (built 1494). The Dockyard as we know it did not exist, and the King’s ships were moored in The Camber, the small harbour that today is mainly used by fishing boats. At first the Round Tower was known as “Master Ridley’s Tower”, after John Ridley who in 1536 had been put in charge of it and other royal buildings in the town. Like most fortifications, the Round Tower has been modified many times in its history. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603) it was rebuilt with six gun ports for cannons, three of which have since been filled in (to the left of the existing gun ports, as seen from inside the Tower). The Tower has always been at risk of being undermined by the sea. In the reign of Elizabeth I, all boats that regularly went back and forth between the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth had to deposit a boatload of stones around its base. The Tower was extended in height shortly before 1815, and again in 1850 to bring it to its present height of 35 ft (11 m). The interior of the Tower as seen today dates from the period of the Napoleonic Wars (before 1815) when the central column and brick vaulting were added to support the weight of guns on the roof. The stalactites growing from the ceiling are due to minerals being washed out of the mortar holding the bricks together. As an additional defence, an iron chain could be stretched across the Harbour mouth from Capstan Square next to the Round Tower, over to the Gosport side, where a wooden tower was built at around the same time as the Round Tower. This chain boom was used for hundreds of years, with the chain being replaced at intervals, and a similar defence was even in place during the Second World War. Two original links from one of these chains can be seen in Southsea Castle (a replica link is also on display in Capstan Square). In front of the Round Tower is a rock that was brought back to Portsmouth on board HMS Hecla. The inscription on the rock reads "During the Russian War (1854) a landing party from HMS HECLA was attacked by a large body of Cossacks and many would have fallen had it not been for the courage of two sailors who taking cover behind this stone kept the enemy at bay until the safety of the whole party was assured. Captain HALL had this boulder carried to his ship and transported to Portsmouth. "
The Round Tower. Broad Street, Old Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 2JE. For hundreds of years, Portsmouth’s importance as a naval base meant that it was one of the most heavily defended cities in Europe. The Round Tower was the first of a series of permanent fortifications that were built in Portsmouth…
John
October 10, 2018
Cimb to the top of the round tower for wonderful view of the harbour entrance and its environs.
Lucy
April 14, 2022
One of Southsea's most iconic landmarks- this is where families wave to their loved ones as the warships depart the harbour.
Wendy
July 27, 2016
Cakes, pastries and coffee plus... with views over the water.

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Broad Street
Old Portsmouth, England
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