![]() Military engineers from the Ordnance Office installed 12 modern 9-pounder guns. Peace prompted a review of coastal fortifications which, at Deal, resulted in modernisation. In 1713 British involvement in the War of the Spanish Succession, which had engulfed Europe since 1701, came to an end. Deal Castle had guns mounted in five tiers. They are beautiful architectural designs, intricately and scientifically planned to concentrate the fire of heavy guns against ships, while also enabling close defence against a land force. Those built in the first few years, including Deal, adopted a form that enabled all-round defence, and were planned and built by the staff of Henry’s Works departments. The Downs castles were completed in October 1540, and by the end of Henry’s reign in 1547 Deal was one of 42 new artillery forts that protected ports, anchorages and estuaries. ![]() By 1539, Henry’s conduct in his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, in the destruction of monasteries and in taking control of the Church in England, had resulted in their alliance against him, urged on by an enraged Pope. These castles were a response to an invasion threat that resulted from Henry VIII’s foreign policy, particularly his involvement in the struggle between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1516–56), and Francis I, King of France (r.1515–47). Three castles were to protect the vulnerable beaches around Deal and the Downs, an important naval offshore anchorage. In 1539, Henry VIII’s preparations for war included a huge construction programme of new artillery forts on the south and east coasts of England.
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