Nearest History & Heritage UK and Ireland

Eynsford Castle is a very early Norman ‘enclosure castle’ (c.1085-7). Unlike a lot of castles at this time rather than having a keep or motte, Eynsford was protected by an extensive curtain wall. Today, you can still see parts of the wall at their original height alongside the remains of the hall building. This rare survival stands in an attractive village setting, not far from Lullingstone Roman Villa.

Innisidgen Lower and Upper Burial Chambers includes two Bronze Age communal burial cairns.

An unfinished artillery fort, built above St Mary’s Pool harbour in 1552-53

Sherborne actually has two castles. The now ruins of Sherborne Old castle which was built in the 12th century as a strongly defended palace, Sherborne Old Castle became a powerful Royalist base during the Civil War. Sherborne Castle ‘new castle’ was built in 1594 by Sir Walter Raleigh as a stately home and now reflects over 400 years of English history. The 42 acres of grounds includes the 50-acre lake created by Capability Brown in 1753 and magnificent landscaped gardens of specimen trees, borders and sweeping lawns. The Castle’s interiors include collections of art, furniture and porcelain, together with Raleigh’s original kitchen, family artefacts and archaeological ‘finds’ from the old medieval castle on view in the castle cellars. The Castle Tea Room serves morning coffees, light lunches and afternoon teas, whilst the Gift Shop has a selection of gifts, souvenirs and our very own Sherborne Castle wines.

Marker’s Cottage at Killerton is a thatched medieval cob thatched cottage with smoke-blackened timbers and unusual painted wooden.

The Durlstone Head Globe is on the cliffs of Durlston Head and is often refered to as the “Large Globe” or the “Great Globe”. Erected 1891 the globe is constructed of Portland stone, weighs about 40 tonnes, is 3 metres (10 ft) in diameter and surrounded by a circle of cast iron railings. At the base is a tablet recording distances between stars and planets. To the rear are a series of panels with quotations from the Bible, Shakespeare, the Aeneid and Tennyson and further tables of distances.

Jamaica inn was built in 1750 and extended in 1778 with a coach house, stables and a tack room assembled in an L-shaped fashion. The inn became a smugglers’ stopping point while they used approximately 100 secret routes to move around their contraband. Originally, the half-way house was alone on this part of the moor, but later a church, parsonage, and school were added by Mr. Kodd, the proprietor of the land, satisfying the area’s residents. Now a bed and breakfast, with a pub, a museum and a gift shop.

Nothe Fort is at the entrance to Weymouth Harbour, constructed on three levels, with lift access, the Fort is filled with displays, guns and display areas that describe the history of this Victorian Fort. The Fort is a labyrinth of underground passageways and outdoor areas with stunning views of the coast.