Rufus Castle With Bridge

Rufus Castle, also known as Bow and Arrow Castle, is a castle located on Church Ope Road in Easton, Portland. The current structure likely dates from the late 15th century and stands on the site of an earlier building that was captured in 1142 by Earl Robert of Gloucester. The approach bridge and entry archway were added in the 19th century and were already present by 1842. The castle is constructed from squared and snecked Portland stone and is unroofed. It has an irregular pentagon shape with the remains of an outer bailey, which is enclosed by a section of wall to the southwest. A lofty 19th-century round-arched bridge connects the castle to higher land across Church Ope Road to the north.

The remaining keep features a 19th-century round-arched entry that leads across this bridge, and the walls display many regularly spaced putlog holes. A 'Tudor' arched entry on the southwest side was added by John Penn, who lived in the nearby Pennsylvania Castle. Some stones from the former machicolation can still be seen on the west and north walls, and while the walls generally reach full height, part of the southeast wall has collapsed. The north and west walls contain a series of round gun-ports with embrasures behind them. The Royal Commission on Historical Monuments notes a chamfered stone jamb at the southeast doorway. The outer bailey wall follows the slope of the land and stands between approximately 1 meter and 1.5 meters high, topped with rounded coping.