The castle was constructed by George Mills under the direction of Richard Worsley, the Captain of the Island, on land belonging to the Crown, possibly on the site of a church destroyed during the events of 1543.[13] Henry had dissolved the monasteries in England a few years before, and stone from the local Quarr Abbey was probably reused in the construction of the castle.[14] It was finished by 1547, when Mills was paid £1,000 for his work and to discharge the soldiers who had been guarding the site during the project.[13][lower-alpha 2]