New research has provided fresh insight into the past of Upnor Castle, a rare example of an Elizabethan artillery fort.
Upnor Castle is today best known for picnics, open air theatre and weddings, but it hides a more dramatic past.
Built in 1559 and redeveloped in 1599-1601 to protect warships moored at the Royal Dockyard, the defenders of this riverside castle went into battle in 1667 in a brave but ultimately doomed defence against the Dutch.
Now, as part of long-term plans to better inform visitors to Upnor Castle, Medway Council has commissioned a piece of research that promises to shed new light on what went on beneath the battlements, including the people who lived and worked there.
It has been carried out by Peter Kendall, a former Principal Inspector of Ancient Monuments for Historic England. Medway Council is responsible for managing and maintaining the site under a local management agreement with English Heritage. The castle is open from April to October each year, attracting more than 20,000 visitors.
Helping to bring history to life
Abby Found, Medway Council’s Heritage Operations Manager for Upnor Castle and Eastgate House, said: “We are always looking at ways we can improve the experience of those who visit Upnor Castle, whether that’s hiring the whole site exclusively for a wedding, attending our extensive calendar of events or just to soak up the history. We are looking at creating some audio guides and, as the first part of that, we have commissioned Peter Kendall to carry out some background research that will help us to bring the past of this beautiful and fascinating place to life. We’ve had conservation reports written up that help to guide the ongoing programme of maintenance that keeps the castle in good working order, but these tend to be quite dry.
“This research focuses more on what the spaces here were originally used for as well as offering intriguing insights on the people most associated with the castle – including the soldiers who served here as well as more famous visitors. Many people will have heard of the Dutch raid and the part Upnor Castle played in defending the Royal Dockyard and the fleet at anchor that day, but this research reveals how much more there is to the story of this place than that.”
As well as providing a detailed timeline of a castle that remained in active military service for nearly 400 years, up until the end of the Second World War the report provides suggestions of themes that could support the proposed audio guides – from artists inspired by the location – including JMW Turner and William Blake – to royal connections, sentries and spies.
Queen Elizabeth I who first approved construction of Upnor Castle may have been the first to visit, potentially during a four-day visit to Rochester in 1573 but as the research confirms, she wasn’t the last. Naval hero Horatio Nelson, known for his victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, will at least have sailed by.
The Kentish Gazette of 27 January 1772 carried a plea to residents of Chatham, Rochester and places nearby to heed the danger posed to them and their properties by the storage of the 20,000 barrels of gun powder it claimed were then stored at Upnor Castle. This fear was tested a century later when a worker smoking in a prohibited place hid a pipe in his pocket and then hung up his coat. Luckily, disaster was averted.
The Dutch Raid or the Battle of Medway, of course, looms large in the history of Upnor Castle. In the 1630s concern was already being expressed about “Dutch bottoms”, a type of ship, being allowed to trade into Chatham and Rochester amid fears of espionage, leading Peter Pett, Commissioner of the dockyard to write to the Admiralty to voice his concerns. His fears eventually came to pass, with the successful enemy attack, reportedly aided by disgruntled British sailors or pilots who assisted the Dutch Navy in navigating the difficult course of the river Medway – for a price.
These and many more stories will soon be revealed at Upnor Castle.