Pennsylvania Castle

Pennsylvania Castle, Portland, United Kingdom, was constructed by British patrons and architects at the end of the eighteenth century.

Construction began in 1797 and concluded around 1800 to the designs of architect James Wyatt for John Penn, who served as Governor of Portland and was the grandson of William Penn. John Penn chose the site after visiting the stretch of coast while accompanying King George III and intended the house as a seaside mansion. The completed house was formally opened in 1800 by Princess Elizabeth.

A few years after the house was finished, Penn had a bathing structure erected below the gardens. Local custom was enforced by Portland’s Court Leet, which demanded rent on the grounds that the bath occupied common land. Penn refused to pay the demanded charges and the bathing facility was abandoned.

In literature the house appears under a different name: Thomas Hardy used it as his model for “Sylvania Castle” in the 1892 novel The Well-Beloved. During the Second World War the castle hosted senior Allied leaders; Winston Churchill, General Dwight D. Eisenhower and General Charles de Gaulle visited and met at the property to finalise plans for the Normandy landings.

After the war the private residence was converted into a hotel in 1950, operating as The Pennsylvania Castle Hotel into the 1990s. During the twentieth century the original rectangular main block was enlarged by later additions. The house returned to private ownership in the 1990s. In 2011 the estate was sold for £4 million to a buyer from Australia and was then offered as a holiday property and as a venue for weddings, private and corporate events. The main house holds Grade II listed status; the associated gatehouse and lodges are also Grade II listed and are now held separately.