Photos by John Latter : on the map, in Google Earth (KML)

A southern view of Colton Gateway from partway up Harold's Earthwork, upon which stand the East Pharos (Roman) and church of St Mary-in-Castro (Saxon).

Colton Gate or Colton Tower (alt. Coclico) is a Norman tower built on a Saxon or even earlier base. The entrance though which Romans, Saxons, and probably their Iron Age predecessors once entered their respective fortifications.

Click to see Colton Gate in 2007 and all photos of Dover Castle (an English Heritage site).

Extract from "The History of the Castle, Town and Port of Dover" by Reverend S. P. H. Statham, Rector of St Mary-in-the-Castle (Longmans, Green, and Co., 1899):

The Keep and curtain wall (of the Inner Bailey) formed the inner ward of the defences; the outer, or as it afterwards became, the middle ward, consisted of the old Roman (1) and Saxon earthworks... ...(and the) entrance to this ward was defended by the Colton Gate. This, as it now stands, is a Norman hexagonal tower on a square base, but there is reason to believe that it was either built on a Saxon foundation, or entirely replaced some stone defensive work of an earlier period. As has already been described, it was the regular residence of the military chaplains of the Castle and it was from this circumstance that they derived their peculiar title of "Coclico". The manor of Cocklescombe in the hundred of Bewsborough, Kent, was charged with its repair, and the gradual wear and tear of language will easily explain the change from Cocklescombe to Cocklico. This tower was known by several different names at various periods, Sir Edward Dering in the sixteenth century calling it "Caldicott, Coclico or Pennington" Tower, and in a bill of repairs for 1582 it is spoken of as " Cocklicowe called Colton". The wall running round the Roman rampart (2) was originally connected with this gate, and it was not pulled down until the year 1772, when one workman was killed, and several hurt, by its fall. (Pages 259 - 260)

And:

The queen (Elizabeth I) did not make her expected visitation (to Dover) until 1573, and before her arrival considerable repairs were effected. Beauchamp (ie Peverell), Hirst (Hurst), " Withred," Mortimer, Colton and two other towers, Arthur's Hall, the gates (King`s Gate?), the north wall and "King Lucius' Church" (ie St Mary-in-Castro) were put in order in 1576. The armoury and the Duke of Suffolk and the Monk's Towers and several other parts of the defences in 1578. After the queen's visit in 1580 the Duke of Norfolk's Tower, or the "old sally," Mortimer, Ashford, St. John and Rokesley Towers, Arthur's Hall, the Pharos, and a "great breach" in the wall near the Coclico Tower were repaired. The sums expended on these works have come down to us, and it is therefore just to presume that Elizabeth, or her ministers, were determined to keep this ancient place of arms in a proper state of defence. Other work, of which no record survives, may reasonably be supposed to have been undertaken and carried out. In 1580 a severe earthquake threw down a portion of the cliff on which the Castle stands, and a part of the walls; the breach above referred to was probably caused by this tremblement de terre. (Page 287)

(1) Also see the Dover Museum webpages on Roman, Saxon, Norman, and Medieval Britain. Dover Museum is located in the Market Square.

(2) Presumably referring to the large earthwork to the right of the above photo (ie Harold's Earthwork).

From Canon John Puckle's "The Church and Fortress of Dover Castle" (published 1864):

It seems that the way of entering by Colton Gate has always remained the same, having afforded access successively to the Roman and Saxon fortress; and visitors, still winding their way up the chalk cutting and under the Octagon Tower, are probably following the footsteps of Roman garrisons, British chiefs, Thanes (Thegns) and Churchmen of Saxon times, the forces of Earl Godwin, and many others of earlier generations, till the Normans made their own approach to their statelier towers and Keep. Passing under the gateway, the space to the left, within the double line of defence, is described as the site of the buildings serving for the primitive residences of the canons of Eadbald's foundation, close to the Church they had to serve. From thence, by a zigzag descent to the extreme angle on the cliff, under a tower long called the Canons` Gate, they could hold communication with the town. (Page 56)

Dover Castle appears in "Dover in World War Two: 1942", a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

John Latter, on December 12, 2009, said:

A late autumn view of the trees above Queen Elizabeth Road in the grounds of Dover's 12th Century Norman Castle in the county of Kent, England.

Queen Elizabeth Road leads to The Victorian Officers` Mess.

Click to see Peverell`s Gateway from the South.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

The Victorian Army Officers' Mess is located at the southern end of the grounds of Dover Castle, overlooking the harbour and English Channel beyond.

On top of Harold's Earthwork behind the Officers' Mess are the ruins of the East Pharos, a Roman lighthouse and watchtower, and the Saxon church of St Mary-in-Castro (Dover Castle itself is largely Norman and is now an English Heritage site).

Queen Elizabeth Road runs in front of the Officers' Mess and then turns into Godwin Road as it exits the photo on the right-hand side. The other end of Queen Elizabeth Road joins Knight's Road by the Naafi Restaurant, a building that also houses Queen Elizabeth`s Pocket Pistol (ie Queen Elizabeth I).

According to a Heritage Statement, the building's more correct name is "Officers’ New Barracks":

The Officers’ New Barracks was constructed between 1856 and 1858 to designs by Anthony Salvin (an English architect) and George Arnold, a clerk in the (British Army's) Royal Engineers. While Arnold was responsible for the plan and general arrangement of the barracks, its outward appearance and the decoration and detailing of its principal public rooms was the work of Salvin, who also designed the fireplaces and window shutters used throughout the building.

Salvin employed a Tudor gothic revival style in the design of the Officers’ New Barracks, which referenced the medieval environment in which the barracks were located. The building’s central block housed the main entrance, leading to a hallway with timber screen acting as a draught lobby and a staircase at the north end. Central doorways led to the main mess on the west side of the hall, and to an anteroom on the east side. The mess and anteroom were the most finely finished rooms in the barracks, with large stone fire places with moulded panels and traceried mantels, wooden dado panelling and wooden doorcases.

The building originally contained accommodation for 45 officers in two wings on either side of the centrally located mess. All the general accommodation consisted of two-room suites (sitting room and bedroom) opening from communal corridors. Superior accommodation was provided for the Commanding Officer and two Field Officers, who enjoyed larger rooms in self-contained apartments with their own private toilet facilities. The other officers had to use shared facilities.

The basement rooms provided accommodation for the officers’ servants, as well as the Commanding Officer and Field Officers’ personal kitchens, larders and private wine cellar

Gardens were planted on the north side of the barracks, while the terraced area currently used for car parking and containing the admissions building was originally occupied by stables and a coach house.

Following the departure of the army the building remained vacant except for the western part, which was used by the Immigrations Appeal Service into the 1980s. The interior suffered badly from dry rot, leading to the removal of much timber. Radical changes were made to the interior of the eastern half of the building in the 1970s when it was proposed to use it as a visitor centre. The scheme was never executed and the building remains largely empty.

Issue 3 of the Friends of Dover Castle magazine has an article on the Officers Mess which states:

On the same site (as the Mess), between the Roman Oval fortifications and the edge of the cliff, civilian inhabitants of Dover in Roman and Saxon times are reported to have had their dwellings.

This wide-angle view was taken from the Eastern Battlements (Curtain Wall); part of the Officers' Mess is visible in the statue ofVice-Admiral Sir Bertram Home Ramsay photo.

Extract from the Wikipedia entry for "Mess":

A mess is the place where military personnel socialise, eat, and (in some cases) live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined services eateries such as civilian fire fighting and police forces. The root of "mess" is the Old French "mes," portion of food, drawn from the Latin verb "mittere," meaning "to send" or "to put," the original sense being "a course of a meal put on the table." This sense of "mess," which appeared in English in the 13th century, was often used for cooked or liquid dishes in particular, as in the "mess of pottage" (porridge or soup) for which Esau in Genesis traded his birthright. By the 15th century, a group of people who ate together was also known as a "mess," and it is this sense that persists in the "mess halls" of today's military.

Dover Castle appears in "Dover in World War Two: 1942", a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

Another view of the bandstand in Pencester Gardens, this time with Dover Castle on the skyline (at no extra charge).

Below the Castle's outer curtain wall is the northern end of Victoria Park (see the Gate House photo).

Behind the Millenium pavilion, the River Dour runs from left to right below the level of the lawn

Two other views of the Witch's Hat are: The Millenium Pavilion of Pencester Gardens (2007) and The Witch`s Hat (Millenium Pavilion) of Pencester Gardens (2009).

The photo was taken at lunchtime on December 6th, 2009, just after leaving The Park Inn - only drinking coffee, though! :)

Standard Info for Pencester Gardens

Click to see all photos of Pencester Gardens

Pencester Gardens are bordered to the north and north-east by the River Dour and to the south-west by a children's play area (including a popular bicycle/bike 'adventure training area' or "skate park"). To the south-east Dieu Stone Lane provides the boundary. To the north-west is Pencester Road itself which was laid out in 1860.

Pencester Gardens hosts Fairs and other events throughout the year when the pavilion is often used as a stage/bandstand.

A Timeline Pathway, in which the history of Dover is engraved in 100 flagstones, connects the pavilion to the other pathways at the centre of the park.

A Dover Town Council webpage (under 'History and Heritage') states:

"Pencester Gardens may never have been built if some of the proposed schemes for this area had come to fruition.

When Pencester Road was laid out in 1860, it was intended to build a street, to be called Neville Road, from Pencester Road to Eastbrook Place but this never happened. About 1880 the land was acquired with the intention of using it for a Dover station in connection with the Channel Tunnel, which was then being planned to run from St Margarets.

When that project failed it was suggested that it be used for building a new Town Hall but in the end facilities were improved at the Maison Dieu instead. Other plans included a recreation ground and a relief road to ease congestion in Biggin Street. In its later years the site was used as a timber yard.

In November 1922 the land was purchased by the Corporation and the new gardens were laid out. Pencester Gardens opened in 1924, as well as the usual lawns and flowerbed there as also a play area for children and a miniature golf course. The gardens have been a pleasant green space in the centre of the town since then, and have provided a venue for many fetes and funfairs.

In 2000 a pavilion for band concerts and other performances was built to commemorate the new Millennium."

Click to see a blurry still from the above-mentioned video showing the central section of Pencester Gardens.

Dover in World War Two: 1942 (1) is a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

The video contains a short clip of Pencester Gardens in which a local resident (accompanied by her father) is interviewed.

(1) Original titles: Dover (1942) or Dover Front Line.

Pencester Gardens is the most central of Dover's major parks; Connaught Park, for example, is on the upper (but terraced) slopes of the Eastern Heights, just below Dover Castle (with the Zig Zags nearby, just below the Castle).

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

The Millenium Pavilion also appears in:

The Witch`s Hat Millenium Pavilion, Pencester Gardens, Dover, Kent, UK

The Millenium Pavilion also appears in:

The Witch`s Hat Millenium Pavilion, Pencester Gardens, Dover, Kent, UK

The Witch`s Hat (Millenium Pavilion) of Pencester Gardens

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

Fulbert's Tower is the square tower in the centre of the photo; behind it is a house occupying what was once part of the extended Debtor's Prison (1).

Out of shot to the right is Rokesley Tower and the Canons` Gate.

Peverell`s Gate, with its round tower capped with a conical roof, is on the left of the outer western curtain wall; between Peverell's and Fulbert's towers, parts of Gatton Tower and Hurst Tower (alt. Hirst's Tower) are visible (although Say's Tower isn't).

The crenellated top of the Keep (or Great Tower) projects from behind the left-hand side of Fulbert's Tower, with the uncrenellated walls of the Inner Bailey below; part of the Georgian Sergeant Major`s House can also be seen.

The photo was taken from on top of the outer moat.

Click to see all photos of Dover Castle, one of Dover's English Heritage sites.

In 1892, 750 copies of a book called, "Bygone Kent" were published, edited by Richard Stead, and with a chapter on Dover Castle written by E. Wollaston Knocker.

The following extract is from copy 94:

Fulbert of Dover was Lord of the Manor and Castle of Chilham in Kent, on condition that he kept one fort in repair. Hence the tower was first called Chilham, but its Deputy-Governor was one Chaldercot, and the tower later was called by his name. This tower had a small one as an appendage to it, which took its name from Hurst (ie Hurst's Tower, or Hirst's Tower), a village near Chilham, the rents of which were allotted to its repair and defence.

Near Fulbert's Tower was the Bodar's house. As sergeant-at-arms he was also gaoler of the adjoining prison.

For many centuries, and within the recollection of the present generation, it was used as a prison for debtors. These used to ring a bell near the outside of the Canon's Gate, and attract the attention of passers by, to obtain alms in a box placed close to the bell.

I'm wondering if E. Wollaston Knocker was copying from an earlier work because Hurst's Tower is some 60 yards away from Fulbert's Tower. Also, I haven't read the whole of his chapter on Dover Castle, but I did notice he consistently refers to Gatton, as in Gatton's Tower, as "Galton".

Abridged extract from the 'History of Kent' by William Henry Ireland (1829):

Fulbert de Dover's Tower was erected by Fulbert de Lucie, who accompanied William the Conquerer to England. Being appointed one of the knights to defend the fortress, by John de Fiennes, he assumed the name of Dover, and on his personal services being no longer required at the castle, retired to his baronial residence of Chilham: his successor, Hugh de Dover, his son, and Richard de Dover, a descendent of the latter, held the vast possessions of his progenitors: he ultimately retired to the abbey of Lesnes, which he had founded in 1179; and dying there, this famous name became extinct, when the estates passed, by the marriage of a female relative, to an illegitimate son of King John.

After Fulbert retired from his command, an officer named Calderscot held this tower, from whom it also derived the name of Calderscot's Tower.

Extracts from "Dover Castle" by R. Allen Brown (Her Majesty's Stationery Office, HMSO 1974) (Abridged):

To the north (of Canons` Gate) the towered outer curtain leads off along the crest of the original Iron Age earthen rampart to enclose the whole perimeter of the castle. The appearance of these outer defences was considerably altered in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by the deepening of the great ditch in front of them, by the addition of an outer parapet for defence by rifle fire, the further addition of various brick caponiers (alt. caponniers) and subterranean works and, above all, by the regrettable cutting down to a greater or lesser extent of most of the mural towers, many of which were turned into gun platforms, towers and wall alike being earthed up on the inside.

The entire curtain on the west side from the cliff's edge to Peverell's Gate is part of Henry III's work with some modern rebuilding of the wall itself towards Peverell. Fulbert of Dover's Tower is said to have been rebuilt by Edward IV in the later fifteenth century, and is both rectangular and different in appearance from its thirteenth-century neighbours with a 'keyhole'-type gunport in its northern face. The other towers in this section are semicircular in plan and rise from battered and/or spurred plinths, the three northernmost, Hurst, Say and Gatton, still forming an impressive thirteenth-century trinity to guard an original approach from the south to Henry Ill's new Constable`s Gate and Constable Barbican. Peverell's Gate or Tower marks the juncture of the work of King John and Henry III, and is itself a composite structure of both reigns.

Dover Castle appears in "Dover in World War Two: 1942", a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

(1) According to the 1916 book, "Annals of Dover", by John Bavington Jones, it was previously the Cinque Ports' Prison and subsequently "taken down in 1911 to make room for soldiers' quarters"

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

Rokesley's Tower is located towards the southern end of the outer western curtain wall; its proximity to the Canons Gateway entrance to Dover Castle, just a few yards to the right, can be seen in the Canons Gateway and Rokesley Tower photo. Further north, the next tower in the curtain wall is Fulbert`s Tower.

There are two small openings on the wall to the left of Rokesley's Tower. The first is the obvious "arrow-slit", the second is a square opening at the bottom left-hand corner of the shadow cast by the tower upon the wall. On the other side of Rokesley's Tower, a plaque above the entrance to the short passage containing both openings says, "Garderobe. Medieval Latrine":

In English a garderobe (or privy) has come to mean a primitive toilet in a castle or other medieval building, usually a simple hole discharging to the outside. A garderobe tower is tower specifically constructed to house such privies, usually projecting from the outer wall of a castle. (1)

Extract from "The History of the Town and Port of Dover and of Dover Castle (With a Short Account of the Cinque Ports)", Volume 2. Dedicated by the Reverend John Lyon, Minister of "Saint Mary`s", on April 21st, 1814, and published the same year:

Rokesley's Tower

This was a circular tower, built by Albrincis, and it has been called by his name; but the tower, in which he commanded, is on the north-east side of the Castle (see Avranches Tower). Several of the towers had open fronts, and without the least accommodation for the watchmen, when they were not on duty. This obliged them to build houses, near their stations; and Thomas de Rokesley, of Lenham, had a house belonging to this tower, near the old gate (Canon Gate or Monk Gate, close to the present Canons Gate entrance).

He probably descended from Malerinus de Rokesley, who settled at North Cray, in Kent, in the reign of William the First. It was the custom of those, who commanded in the different towers, to have their arms cut in stone, and fixed in the wall, to shew from what family they descended; and it is very probable that they were removed; either at the decease, or at the resignation of the commander, as vey few of them have reached our time.

Thomas de Rokesley's arms were - Argent, a fesse, between three etoiles.

Also see the Constable`s Barbican from on top of Rokesley Tower photo.

Extracts from "Dover Castle" by R. Allen Brown (Her Majesty's Stationery Office, HMSO 1974) (Abridged):

To the north (of Canons` Gate) the towered outer curtain leads off along the crest of the original Iron Age earthen rampart to enclose the whole perimeter of the castle. The appearance of these outer defences was considerably altered in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by the deepening of the great ditch in front of them, by the addition of an outer parapet for defence by rifle fire, the further addition of various brick caponiers (alt. caponniers) and subterranean works and, above all, by the regrettable cutting down to a greater or lesser extent of most of the mural towers, many of which were turned into gun platforms, towers and wall alike being earthed up on the inside.

The entire curtain on the west side from the cliff's edge to Peverell's Gate is part of Henry III's work with some modern rebuilding of the wall itself towards Peverell. Fulbert of Dover's Tower is said to have been rebuilt by Edward IV in the later fifteenth century, and is both rectangular and different in appearance from its thirteenth-century neighbours with a 'keyhole'-type gunport in its northern face. The other towers in this section are semicircular in plan and rise from battered and/or spurred plinths, the three northernmost, Hurst, Say and Gatton, still forming an impressive thirteenth-century trinity to guard an original approach from the south to Henry Ill's new Constable`s Gate and Constable Barbican. Peverell's Gate or Tower marks the juncture of the work of King John and Henry III, and is itself a composite structure of both reigns.

(1) Extract from the Wikipedia entry for Garderobe.

Click to see all photos of Dover Castle, one of Dover's English Heritage sites.

Dover Castle appears in "Dover in World War Two: 1942", a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.

The D-type Rokesley`s Tower, from where this photo was taken, is the southernmost tower on Dover Castle's Western Outer Curtain Wall, or Western Battlements (also see the Canons Gate and Rokesley Tower photo).

This view shows the earthwork of Constable's Barbican on the skyline with Dover Castle's dry moat in the foreground.

The first projection on the right-hand side is a buttress, the second (with the window) is Fulbert`s Tower.

Dover Castle is an English Heritage site.

Extract from "The History of the Town and Port of Dover and of Dover Castle (With a Short Account of the Cinque Ports)", Volume 2. Dedicated by the Reverend John Lyon, Minister of "Saint Mary`s", on April 21st, 1814, and published the same year:

Rokesley's Tower

This was a circular tower, built by Albrincis, and it has been called by his name; but the tower, in which he commanded, is on the north-east side of the Castle (see Avranches Tower). Several of the towers had open fronts, and without the least accommodation for the watchmen, when they were not on duty. This obliged them to build houses, near their stations; and Thomas de Rokesley, of Lenham, had a house belonging to this tower, near the old gate (Canon Gate or Monk Gate, close to the present Canons Gate entrance).

He probably descended from Malerinus de Rokesley, who settled at North Cray, in Kent, in the reign of William the First. It was the custom of those, who commanded in the different towers, to have their arms cut in stone, and fixed in the wall, to shew from what family they descended; and it is very probable that they were removed; either at the decease, or at the resignation of the commander, as vey few of them have reached our time.

Thomas de Rokesley's arms were - Argent, a fesse, between three etoiles.

Abridged from The English Heritage Trail:

Dover Castle

Guardian of the 'Gateway to England', Dover Castle displays a solid strength and determination that has obviously carried it through many troubled times. Proudly standing atop the White Cliffs, overlooking this busy port, Dover Castle has withstood the test of time remarkably well throughout its long and eventful history. Dover Castle, as it stands today, dates from the rebuilding work during Henry II's reign, but the site has been of vital importance since the Iron Age. The first castle at Dover was probably an Anglo-Saxon fortress and, on the arrival of William the Conqueror, the existing fortifications were improved with the building of an earthwork castle. This Norman 'motte' (mound) which supported the castle is today known as 'Castle Hill'.

Work began on Dover Castle in the latter part of the 12th century with the construction of the Keep (or Great Tower) - the largest in Britain - and is entered through a forebuilding more substantial than any other built before or since. At each corner of the Keep lies a buttress turret, and mid-way along each wall is a pilaster buttress. Four storeys high, the Keep comprises a basement, first floor, and a second floor that spans two storeys, the upper level of which is a mural gallery that can be seen today at the end of the Great Armour Hall. The second storey provided the royal accommodation, and the first floor, based on a similar plan to the second, contained rooms with a much less elaborate decor. All floors were connected by staircases set in the north and south corner turrets.

Providing the entry staircase, and two chapels, is the magnificent forebuilding. It is interesting to note the decor of the chapels - the lower chapel of a Gothic style, and the upper chapel late Norman and richly decorated. From outside of the Keep, the significance of the three-towered forebuilding can be fully appreciated, as it can be seen travelling along the eastern wall of the Keep and turning at the corner of the southern wall. It was around this stronghold that the concentric castle was developed and work was completed mid-13th century.

Dover Castle appears in "Dover in World War Two: 1942", a ten minute British Ministry of Information film, released by the US Office of War Information, and narrated by the American journalist, Edward R. Murrow.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

This is the Images of Dover website: click on any red or blue "John Latter" link to access the Entry Page.