Exploring Kent's Past

It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.

Monument details

Summary

The original entrance to the citadel was located on the eastern side of the fort, near the north eastern corner and it would have been accessed via a bridge over the Gorge ditch. It would have consisted of a simple revetted passage. This original entrance is shown on an early plan of the fort dating to 1787, this location was however, abandoned in favour of the present location (further to the south) when the Napoleonic works on the fort were undertaken. (location accurate to the nearest 10m based on available information)

Monument Types

• BRIDGE (Demolished, Post Medieval - 1787 AD? to 1805 AD?)
• GATEHOUSE (Demolished, Post Medieval - 1787 AD? to 1805 AD?)

Full description

If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.

Summarised from report:

The original entrance to the citadel was located on the eastern side of the fort, near the north eastern corner and it would have been accessed via a bridge over the Gorge ditch. It would have consisted of a simple revetted passage. This original entrance is shown on an early plan of the fort dating to 1787, this location was however, abandoned in favour of the present location (further to the south) when the Napoleonic works on the fort were undertaken. (1)

A Survey plan by Lieutenant Lewis Hay showing the defences built on the Western Heights, dated 1787, shows the road leading into the fort at this location (2) and a slightly earlier plan dated to 1784 details the location of the bridge and a gap in the ramparts in the north eastern corner of the fort. (3)

Further information about the early history and development of the citadel is available inf the conservation framework by Luv Gibbs. (4)

<1> English Heritage, 2004, The Western Heights, Dover, Kent: Report No. 2: The Citadel (Unpublished document). SKE17690.

<2> Lieutenant Lewis Hay, 1787, Plan of the Citadel dating to 1787 showing the defences built on the Western Heights (Map). SKE51520.

<3> Lieutenant Page, 1784, Early designs for the Citadel dating to 1784 produced by Lieutenant Page (Map). SKE51521.

<4> Liv Gibbs, 2012, Built Heritage Conservation Framework for Dover Western Heights (Unpublished document). SKE17708.

Sources and further reading

Related records