Yarmouth Castle on the Isle of Wight was begun in 1546–7 during Henry VIII's reign, designed with Hurst Castle to guard the western entrance to the Solent against French invasion. The fortress is architecturally significant for displaying the earliest use of an arrow-head bastion in England, representing a revolutionary shift toward artillery-focused defence. Built of local stone and finished by September 1547, it was the last fortification in Henry's nationwide coastal defence programme. Over centuries, the castle was modified to include gun batteries, served effectively until the Napoleonic Wars, and continued military roles through both world wars. Today it stands as a unique monument to the emergence of artillery in defensive warfare.
