Brownsea Castle, built on Brownsea Island between 1545 and 1547, was a Device Fort constructed by Henry VIII to protect Poole Harbour from French attack. The fortification comprised a one-storey square stone blockhouse approximately 44 feet across, topped with a gun platform and surrounded by a moat on three sides with a 24-foot drawbridge for access. Owned by the National Trust with the island managed in partnership with the Dorset Wildlife Trust, the castle is currently managed by the John Lewis Partnership as a corporate hotel for employees and remains closed to the public. The island is celebrated as the birthplace of the global Scouting and Guiding movement.
