Command of the Heights

Command of the Heights is a joint project between Medway Council and Fort Amherst Heritage Trust and has been funded by National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The work started on site in Fort Amherst on 1 October 2018 and the final element of the works down at Chatham Waterfront (Riverside) was completed in July 2020. The area is now open to the public.

The project has transformed areas of historic value including the Barrier Ditch in Chatham, a critical part of Chatham’s historic defences and Spur Battery within Fort Amherst which was once used for troop encampments, siege warfare and military punishment.

The project involved:

the demolition of Riverside One, which sat in the historic Barrier Ditch to restore
the relationship to the river and the dockyard that the fort was built to protect
the creation of a new pedestrian entrance to Fort Amherst from Chatham town centre via Barrier Road
the restoration of previously closed areas of the fort making them available for public access
the transformation of Spur Battery into an amphitheatre with seating for outdoor performance.

Down at Riverside the project unearthed archaeology previously thought to be destroyed:

3 brick chambers (casemates) that would have been gun positions to defend the river
the buried remains of the Barrier Ditch wall itself
military lithographic print blocks.

The project was successful in securing a grant increase from National Lottery Heritage Fund to incorporate the casemate finds into the completed works so that the public can engage with this important history of the area.

Throughout the project there have been opportunities to learn about Chatham’s heritage, including the history behind Gun Wharf which was the original location of the Tudor dockyard.

We ran a successful programme of activities to engage with the project with events such as: