england 3

Dover CastleDover Castle

A virtual tourA virtual tour


Through the keyholeThrough the keyhole

Besiege the castle!Besiege the castle!

What’s my job?What’s my job?


Through the keyholeThrough the keyhole


Besiege the Castle!Besiege the Castle!

Mission Impossible!

In 1216 Prince Louis of France invaded England. All of south east England fell to his armies, only Dover and Windsor held out. Imagine you are a spy working for the Prince. Disguised as a medieval tradesman you manage to penetrate the Castle’s outer defences. Your mission is to find out how Dover Castle is defended and report back to Prince Louis without being captured by its constable Hubert de Burgh. Good luck!

Colton’s GatewayColton’s Gateway

Colton’s Gateway – arrow loopColton’s Gateway – arrow loop

Palace GatewayPalace Gateway

Palace Gateway drawbridgePalace Gateway drawbridge

Henry II’s KeepHenry II’s Keep

Keep stairs into forebuildingKeep stairs into forebuilding

Entrance to the forebuildingEntrance to the forebuilding

Wall at the entrance to the forebuildingWall at the entrance to the forebuilding

Looking down the stairs from the Looking down the stairs from the entrance to the forebuildingentrance to the forebuilding

Inside the entrance to the forebuildingInside the entrance to the forebuilding

Detail of the arch above the lower Detail of the arch above the lower chapelchapel

Detail of zig-zag stonework inside the chapel

Steps to the drawbridgeSteps to the drawbridge

Detail of wall alongside the stepsDetail of wall alongside the steps

Stairs over drawbridge pitStairs over drawbridge pit

Top of main staircase looking down into forebuilding

Supports for the drawbridge and slots Supports for the drawbridge and slots for the counter-weightsfor the counter-weights

Bottom of the drawbridge pitBottom of the drawbridge pit

Top of the stairs at the entrance to the Top of the stairs at the entrance to the well roomwell room

WellWell

Inside the well

Lead pipes

The Great Hall

Windows inside the Great Hall

Doorway to spiral staircaseDoorway to spiral staircase

Spiral staircase to the roofSpiral staircase to the roof

RoofRoof

View from the roof topView from the roof top


Mission completed!

Now you have to get out again!

PortcullisPortcullis

Portcullis

Portcullis groove

Murder holes

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Draw-bar hole: deep hole cut into the sides (or jambs) of the door into which a stout wooden beam could be thrust to secure the door.

Draw bar slots

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Drawbridges were heavy wooden platforms that spanned a pit or moat between the approach and the gateway. They were lifted using winding gear known as ‘a windlass’ or massive counter-weights.

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Arrow LoopsThe only holes in the outer walls were arrow loops. They were too small for soldiers to climb through (especially in chain mail).

There were three types: the single slit, the cross slit and the gun loop. The cross slit was designed for crossbows.

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Defending the gateway

The gateway would have been defended with a drawbridge and/or a portcullis. Look for grooves in the walls to show where they descended.

Inside the gateway, above the heads of the enemy murder holes could be unplugged and stones or hot liquids such as tar poured down on the unfortunate attackers.

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Henry II’s Keep

The keep was begun in 1180 by the king’s architect, Maurice the Engineer. The total cost was £7,000 (nearly ¾ of the king’s annual income!)

In 1185 work begun on the walls around the castle. There are two rings of curtain walls and this was the first time such imposing defences had been used in the West.

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Draw-bars

Look out for square shaped holes either side of doorways. This one is at the entrance to the forebuilding and there are more inside the entrance to the keep itself.

Graffiti

The Keep is covered with Graffiti. Much of it was carved by French prisoners of war when the Keep was used as a prison during the Napoleonic Wars.

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The forebuilding

The forebuilding comprises three massive towers. Inside it used to be open to the sky so the defending soldiers could rain arrows and missiles on their attackers from above.

Plan of the keep at Dover

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Walls The massive width of the walls in Dover

Castle can be judged by measuring the distance between the inner and outer wall surfaces (or ‘skins’).

The walls at Dover are between 5.2 and 6.4 metres thick!

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Spiral stairs

Spiral stairs were deliberately turned in a clockwise direction. This meant it was easier for the defender to wield a sword or axe in his right hand as he came down the stairs towards his enemy.

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Well shaft The well shaft is 122 metres deep! The opening to the shaft is on the second floor to

keep the water supply away from attackers in the lower areas of the castle. Besieging armies tended to put dead animals down wells to pollute the water supply.

Two lead pipes can still be seen, taking water to other parts of the castle. Funnily enough lead is also poisonous!

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Hubert de Burgh

A man who had many roles: civil servant, soldier and guardian

of Dover Castle. He served under Richard I, John and Henry III.

In 1215 he became justiciar (chief minister) to the king and was

one of the most powerful men in Britain after the king. When

the French began to besiege Dover, he reportedly cried, “I

beseech you by the blood of Christ allow me to hang, rather

than give up the castle to any Frenchman, for it is the key of

England!”

Examples of Castle GraffitiExamples of Castle Graffiti

GraffitiGraffiti

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Stone There were several types of stone used for

the castle. The best quality was Caen stone, a pure white sandstone brought especially from Normandy.

Flint and Kentish ragstone were used for general building work and may have been dressed with lime mortar.

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Caen stone

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Flint & Ragstone

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Stairs into the keep

Originally the stairs were slightly higher. You can see evidence along the side of the walls.The wooden stairs you see today over the drawbridge pit are modern.

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Forebuilding stairs

Originally these stairs went straight down to the ground and didn’t turn a right angle as they do now.

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Roof

The roof was strengthened to take the weight of heavy artillery placed here during the Napoleonic Wars.

The crenellations you can see are sections of masonry approximately the height of a man with spaces in between (merlons) for shooting arrows (crenels)

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Maurice the Engineer

Maurice the Engineer (or mason) was responsible for designing the Keep and concentric walls. He worked directly for Henry II and was commissioned to work on numerous buildings, including the keep at Newcastle upon Tyne which is similar in some respects to Dover.

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Prince Louis of France

Son of the fabled French king, Philip Augstus and eventual Louis VIII, he came to England in 1216 following the sudden death of King John in the hope of claiming the crown for his father.

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Henry II (1154-1189)

Father of Richard the Lionheart and King John, and husband of Eleanor of Aquitaine, he was the first of the Plantagenet Kings and one of medieval England’s most able rulers. During his reign he built or improved nearly 90 castles!

Henry II

Newcastle upon Tyne Castle


What’s my job?What’s my job?

At work in Dover Castle

Can you identify the trades and professions of these medieval people from the tools and objects they’ve left behind?

A barber-surgeon’s work bench.Can you spot the fingers?

Ouch!Ouch!

A glazier’s work bench.Where would you have seen ‘stained glass’ like

this?

A carpenter’s workbench. What are each of the tools for?

A mason’s work bench. Where might this stone have gone?

Not a workbench – a medieval loo or ‘garderobe’!


Well done!Well done!

Through the keyhole!Through the keyhole!

Level OneLevel One

garderobegarderobe

Level OneLevel One


Level TwoLevel Two

Chapel of Thomas BecketChapel of Thomas Becket

Level TwoLevel Two


Level ThreeLevel Three

Great Chamber

Level ThreeLevel Three


Level FourLevel Four

The Royal Bedchamber

Level FourLevel Four


Level FiveLevel Five

The Keep ovenThe Keep oven

Level FiveLevel Five

england 3

Documents

dover castle mission

guardian of dover castle

factoids walls

examples of castle graffiti

factoids arrow

factoids stone

palace gateway drawbridge

factoids drawbridges