Maps & Background Information : Corfe Castle

• Dorset
• Bournemouth
• Corfe Castle
• Isle of Purbeck
• Jurassic Coast

• Neolithic England
• Round & Long Barrows
• Salisbury
• Stonehenge
• The New Forest

As the A351 spears southeast through Purbeck towards Swanage it approaches a gap in the chalk downland that bisects the Isle. Closer still and the great ruin of Corfe Castle looms stark against the skyline.

A Medieval Martyr! Originally a Saxon hall, Corfe was, in 978 AD, the site of the murder of the first English king to be canonised, St Edward the Martyr. Treacherously slain at the behest of his mother, Elfrida, miraculous events began to occur soon after his death, the site of the church of St Edward in Corfe, marking the first of these. The current stone keep was built during the pacification of the English during the Norman Conquest and then extensively fortified during periods of civil unrest that marked the next 200 years. By the 13th century it was complete, its fortifications and isolated position within the Isle of Purbeck making it perfect as both a royal treasury and prison.

Brave Dame Mary! The castle remained in the possession of the monarch until sold by Elizabeth I in the 16th century. It eventually passed into the hands of Sir John Bankes, Attorney General to Charles I. At the outbreak of the English Civil War the castle became a focus for pro-royalist sentiment and was twice besieged by the forces of parliament. During this period Sir John Bankes was part of King Charles’ retinue. Consequently the defence of the castle was led by his wife, Lady Mary Bankes. The defenders were eventually betrayed by a member of their own garrison and the castle succumbed to Roundhead forces in 1646. To make sure Corfe was never again used by the Royalists, it was deliberately undermined and demolished, resulting in the ruin we see today.

Something’s Rotten! Corfe's former royal status meant that it elected two members of parliament. The local power of the Bankes families allowed them to unduly influence these elections, giving Corfe the dubious status of a ‘Rotten Borough’. The 1832 Reform Act ended Corfe's direct representation in Parliament.