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Dover: Lock and Key of the Kingdom
Dover Castle - History
Dover is a giant among castles. It has the longest recorded history of
any major castle in Britain. Indeed Dover Castle began before history
itself, its earliest rampart defences date back to the prehistoric Iron Age.
Then the Romans built a pharos (lighthouse) here in the first century
AD. The same tall headland, already partially defended, was resettled in
the tenth century or earlier by the Anglo-Saxons. They built a burh, a
fortified town, of which St Mary-in-Castro was the church.
The bulk of Dover Castle, as we know it today, dates from a century
after the Norman Conquest. Soon after the Battle of Hastings, in the
autumn of 1066, William the Conqueror spent eight days at Dover
strengthening fortifications which had only recently been rebuilt by the
defeated Harold. Yet neither William's works nor those of Harold are
identifiable today and, with the exception of the church and pharos, the
masonry of Dover Castle dates from the twelfth century or later.
Most monumental is the great square tower, or keep, built in the 1180s
for King Henry II (1154-89). Also of the1180s are the walls of the keep's
surrounding court (the inner bailey), as is a stretch of outer curtain wall
towards the east. The remainder of this substantial outer curtain, with
its sophisticated gate houses and many flanking towers, is chiefly the
work of Hubert de Burgh, Constable of Dover (1202-32), and his
successors under Henry III.
After the thirteenth century little of substance was added to the Castle
before the present barracks were built and the defences remodelled,
starting in the 1740s. It was then that the Castle, after years of neglect,
entered a new lease of life. The Georgians and Victorians stripped Dover
bare, towers were lowered to create positions for artillery and the outer
defences strengthened.
The Castle continued in use as a military base until the second half of
the twentieth century. The underground tunnels cut into the cliffs in
Napoleonic times came into their own during the Second World War as a
bomb proof base for military command in the area. After the war the
barracks within the Castle fell into disuse and some were demolished.
However it wasn't until the end of the Cold War that the castle's
defensive role finally came to an end when the Regional Centre of
Government, deep in the cliffs, which would have been activated in the
event of a nuclear war, was decommissioned.
The Castle is now a major tourist attraction.
any major castle in Britain. Indeed Dover Castle began before history
itself, its earliest rampart defences date back to the prehistoric Iron Age.
Then the Romans built a pharos (lighthouse) here in the first century
AD. The same tall headland, already partially defended, was resettled in
the tenth century or earlier by the Anglo-Saxons. They built a burh, a
fortified town, of which St Mary-in-Castro was the church.
The bulk of Dover Castle, as we know it today, dates from a century
after the Norman Conquest. Soon after the Battle of Hastings, in the
autumn of 1066, William the Conqueror spent eight days at Dover
strengthening fortifications which had only recently been rebuilt by the
defeated Harold. Yet neither William's works nor those of Harold are
identifiable today and, with the exception of the church and pharos, the
masonry of Dover Castle dates from the twelfth century or later.
Most monumental is the great square tower, or keep, built in the 1180s
for King Henry II (1154-89). Also of the1180s are the walls of the keep's
surrounding court (the inner bailey), as is a stretch of outer curtain wall
towards the east. The remainder of this substantial outer curtain, with
its sophisticated gate houses and many flanking towers, is chiefly the
work of Hubert de Burgh, Constable of Dover (1202-32), and his
successors under Henry III.
After the thirteenth century little of substance was added to the Castle
before the present barracks were built and the defences remodelled,
starting in the 1740s. It was then that the Castle, after years of neglect,
entered a new lease of life. The Georgians and Victorians stripped Dover
bare, towers were lowered to create positions for artillery and the outer
defences strengthened.
The Castle continued in use as a military base until the second half of
the twentieth century. The underground tunnels cut into the cliffs in
Napoleonic times came into their own during the Second World War as a
bomb proof base for military command in the area. After the war the
barracks within the Castle fell into disuse and some were demolished.
However it wasn't until the end of the Cold War that the castle's
defensive role finally came to an end when the Regional Centre of
Government, deep in the cliffs, which would have been activated in the
event of a nuclear war, was decommissioned.
The Castle is now a major tourist attraction.
