Specialists hanging from ropes will spend the next three years helping restore the walls of this famous 11th century caste in Dorset.
The National Trust has launched a £2 million conservation project at Corfe Castle, Dorset. Over the next three years, specialists will remove vegetation and restore the walls of the castle, which dates back to the 11th century, including its nine towers, keep and 26ft-high curtain wall. Most work will be carried out by specialists hanging from ropes high above the ground, particularly precarious as the castle is perched on a steep-sided hill rising 180ft above the valley.
Corfe Castle is considered structurally stable, but extreme weather has caused stones to loosen and fall. Heat and drought have dried out the stone and killed vegetation, causing roots to shrink, creating gaps. Subsequently, warm, wet winters have encouraged plant growth, often deep within the walls.
Conservators on their ropes to get to the walls of the castle. Credit: Neil Davidson/National Trust
It is hoped that the removal of vegetation will also reveal parts of the castle not seen for more than a century. Some 30 years ago, part of an arch was glimpsed through ivy and rubble at the base of the east turret — project manager Christina Newnham believes this could be the famous sallyport, the gateway through which parliamentary troops were let in during the 1645 siege, which led to the castle’s capture and ruin. ‘It is a really significant part of the castle’s history and we would like to find it if we can,’ she says.
As the castle was built in different phases, various types of mortar have been used. Conservationists have thus developed ‘recipe books’ for mortar mixes that mimic the originals, ‘sourcing aggregates from across Purbeck as the original castle builders did,’ says Ms Newnham, and will use traditional techniques to re-pin loose stones and repoint with fresh lime mortar as it would have been done hundreds of years ago.
Amid this painstaking work, important lichens will be protected, as will the habitats of adders and lizards, and the homes of ravens and peregrine falcons, which nest in the highest parts of the ruins. A further £100,000 is needed to complete the work.
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