 Lord Anglesey became the captain of Cowes Castle in 1826 , by now a sinecure rather than a regular military appointment , and spent part of each year at the castle , making further , lavish improvements to the interiors . Anglesey was also a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron , first established in 1815 , which then operated from the Gloster Hotel in Cowes . By this time yachting had become a prestigious local event ; the painter J. M. W. Turner sketched the yachts sailing off the castle when he visited in 1827 . When Anglesey died in 1854 the government decommissioned the castle and leased the property initially to Anglesey 's son @-@ in @-@ law Lord Conyngham , and then to the Squadron in 1855 . 
