Leland’s description is curious.—“This castelle hath bene a marvelus strong and notable forteres, and almost _situ loci inexpugnabile_, especially for the dungeon, that is on a great high terrible cragge, environed with the se, but having a draw-bridge from the residew of the castelle unto it. There is yet a chapel standing withyn this dungeon of S. Ulette _alias_ Ulianne. Shepe now fede within the dungeon. The residew of the buildinges of the castel be sore wetherbeten and yn ruine, but it hath beene a large thinge.” In another place he says—“The castel had be lykhod three wardes, wherof two be woren away with gulfing yn of the se: withowte the isle renneth alonly a gate howse, a walle, and a fals braye dyged and walled. In the isle remayne old walles, and yn the est parte of the same, the grownd beyng lower, remayneth a walle embatteled, and men alyve saw ther yn a postern, a dore of yren. There is in the isle a prety chapel, with a tumbe on the left syde.” Carew’s and Norden’s accounts of Tintagell castle are nearly similar; the latter of these, indeed, appears to have been taken from the former. “Half the buildings,” says Carew, “were raised on the continent, and the other halfe on an iland, continued together (within men’s remembrance) by a drawebridge, but now divorced by the downefaln steepe cliffes, on the farther side, which, though it shut out the sea from his wonted recourse, hath yet more strengthened the iland; for in passing thither you must first descend with a dangerous declyning, and then make a worse ascent, by a path, through his stickleness occasioning, and through his steepnesse threatning, the ruine of your life, with the falling of your foote. At the top, two or three terrifying steps give you entrance to the hill, which supplieth pasture for sheepe and conyes: upon the same I saw a decayed chappell. Under the iland runs a cave, through which you may rowe at full sea, but not without a kinde of horrour at the uncouthnesse of the place.” Norden is rather more particular in his description of the ascent to the island “by a very narrow rockye and wyndinge waye up the steepe sea-clyffe, under which the sea-waves wallow, and so assayle the foundation of the ile, as may astonish an unstable mayne to consider the perill, for the least slipp of the foote sendes the whole bodye into the devouringe sea; and the worste of all is the highest of all, nere the gate of entraunce into the hill, where the offensive stones so exposed hang over the head, as while a man respecteth his footinge, he indaungers his head; and lookinge to save the head, indaungers the footinge accordinge to the old proverbe; _Incidit in Scyllam qui vult vitare Charybdim_. He must have his eyes that will scale Tintagell. Most of the iland buyldings are ruyned.” It appears by the view of Tintagell annexed to Norden’s description, that a great part of the building on the main land was in his time standing.