Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Fort Amherst was constructed as part of the government's response to the Dutch Raid of 1660. At that time there were no defences protecting the Royal Dockyard from land attack. Plans for Fort Amherst began to be developed from 1708 but construction did not start until 1755 and continued until c. 1803. The fort was then a key part of the defences of the Dockyard area until it was finally declared obsolete in 1860.

Monument Types

• FORT (Closed 1956, Post Medieval to Modern - 1755 AD? to 2050 AD (between))
• MUSEUM (Modern - 1980 AD? to 2050 AD? (between))

Full description

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Fort Amherst was constructed as part of the government's response to the Dutch Raid of 1660. At that time there were no defences protecting the Royal Dockyard from land attack. Plans for Fort Amherst began to be developed from 1708 but construction did not start until 1755 and continued until c. 1803. The fort was then a key part of the defences of the Dockyard area until it was finally declared obsolete by the 1860 Royal Commission.

From the DRAFT Chatham Dockyard and its Defences: World Heritage Draft Management Plan: " Fort Amherst is the major complex of fortifications that was developed to guard the southern end of the Chatham Lines. It was designed to control both river and landward access, and its position was such that it would have been able to command a wide area of the Chatham Valley and the River Medway. It included gun positions, magazines, barracks and tunnels, and controlled access into the military zone by means of guarded gates at bridges over a deep barrier ditch. It represents the acme of military engineering at the start of the 19th century, and is among the most complex and complete Napoleonic forts to survive in Britain. The site was constructed in three main phases – initial earthworks construction (c1756), strengthening in brickwork (from c1778) and creation of a citadel (1803-15). As a citadel, it had arrangements for all-round defence and would have served as a place of last resort, capable of continuing to mount a defence even if an enemy had broken through the Lines. It thus had gun positions covering land to the north (Inner Lines and Amherst Hill) as well as a majority of guns that face south and east, in the anticipated direction of a main attack. Fort Amherst remains substantially intact, and has been partially restored as a visitor attraction. "

One of the three main entrances into the area protected by the Chatham Lines - the Upper Barrier Guardhouse - can be found within the lower area of Fort Amherst.

New trenching for services next to the Lower Barrier Wall. No archaeological features found. (1)

The depth of the Moat was apparently much deeper than at present with infilling taking place in the late 18th or early 19th centuries. (2).

Additional Info. (3)

A low wall running parallel to the southern wall of the fort, rather than being a firing position for defenders, is likely to have acted as a rainwater trap. (4)

A small privy stands 3.4m to the west of the internal face of the main gate. It consists of two short vaulted passages 1.15m and 1.55m long, set at right angles to one another. A stone bowl 0.6m by 0.35m by 0.6m served as a urinal and fed into a drain or soakaway. A more substantial privy exists in the tunnels beneath the fort, divided into two sections, one for officers and another for men. (5)

Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 2003, Archaeological Evaluation Trenching Adjacent to the Lower Barrier, Fort Amherst, Chatham (Unpublished document). SKE12438.

Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 2003, Archaeological Evaluation Trenching Adjacent to the Lower Barrier, Fort Amherst, Chatham (Unpublished document). Ske12438.

<1> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1997, An Archaeological 'Watching Brief' Adjacent to the Lower Barrier Wall, Fort Amherst, Chatham (Unpublished document). SKE12398.

<2> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1997, Archaeological Watching Brief in the 'Moat' Adjacent to the Main Gatehouse, Fort Amherst, Chatham (Unpublished document). SKE12400.

<3> Gulvin, K., 1977, Fort Amherst - Chatham (Article in serial). SWX7697.

<4> CgMs Consulting, 2001, Archaeological Desk Based Assessment of Land at Barrier House, Barrier Road, Chatham, Kent (Unpublished document). SKE12416.

<5> Alan Ward, 1995, Fort Amherst and Lines Trust. Archaeological projects 1993-1994 (Unpublished document). SKE15826.

Sources and further reading

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