All Over Dover

SPECTACULAR CASTLES:  The first night on our trip to Europe was spent in Dover, U.K. We chose Dover because it would be a good jump-off point for the ferry over to France the next day.

Jet lagged, we motored into Dover on Saturday midday. We were looking for our hotel, a Ramada Inn, if you can believe that, when we saw signs about a castle in Dover. Not having anything else planned for the afternoon, we decided to check it out.

Boy were we glad we did. We had no idea that we were about to tour  "the most iconic of all English fortresses," according to Trip Advisor. 

From the Romans to the Cold War, Dover has been a pivotal spot for England for multiple millenniums. 

I'll let CJ tell you a bit more about it.

Dover, a notable city in Kent, England, is home to Dover Castle, which is the largest castle in England. Established in the eleventh century, and accompanied by the oldest currently-existing lighthouse in England, Dover Castle is widely known as "The Key to England".

The lighthouse by Dover Castle was built by Roman invaders circa 115-140 C.E, around a millennium before the construction of the nearby castle. During my visit to the lighthouse, I noticed that the inside of it was very hollow, no staircases, ladders, or anything of the sort. The castle was surrounded by a small valley, formerly filled with water. These valleys were known as "moats", designed with the intent of getting intruders out.

The castle began looking more like its present form during the rule of Henry II, the monarch of England from 1154 to 1189. For centuries, Dover Castle was inhabited by Henry II's descendants, until 1642, when Parliament seized the castle during the English Civil War. Dover Castle is known as "The Key to England" because it was vital in defense against the 1216 French invasion of England.

When we arrived on site, I was struck by the juxtaposition of modern cars right next to a castle.

But we quickly moved away from the parking lot, and toward more frozen-in-time vantage points.

The Roman-era buildings were especially amazing, I thought. Look at this ancient lighthouse, still largely standing.

Romans built the lighthouse after they invaded in AD 43. It is one of the best-preserved in Europe.

 Here's a peek at the lighthouse inside, up toward its ceiling. Netting helps keep it safe these days.

This shot is the shore/south side of the lighthouse and the adjacent church. They still hold regular services in the church, by the way.

It is believed the Anglo-Saxon church beside the lighthouse was once probably part of a Saxon fortified settlement. The church was restored in the late 19th century by Sir George Gilbert Scott and William Butterfield. Today, it remains the largest and finest Saxon building in Kent.

 I just loved this old wooden door to the church. How many times has it been pushed open, I wonder?

 Inside, it was ornate. It was impossible to capture it all with my camera.

Below is the southeast corner of the church next to the lighthouse.

This photo shows the lighthouse with the 'new' medieval castle in the background. That's where we headed next. If you look to the left of the frame, you can see the top of the gate to the castle.

And here are the kids at the gate for the "new" castle. 

 And here's what Annabelle had to say about the visit.

Dover Castle is a fortress located just above the famous White Cliffs of Dover. It was originally constructed in the 11^th century and is usually referred to as the “Key to England” due to its effective defense throughout history. The castle was originally owned by citizens of the Dover region, but King Henry II Destroyed it, took control of it, and repaired the damage. Dover Castle was originally built entirely of clay, which quickly collapsed, so the building materials were switched to stone and the clay was used for most of the flooring on lower floors. The castle has said great defenses because of multiple reasons: the castle is surrounded by steep hills too difficult to climb, and has a large moat surrounding it with many crevices in the walls strategically positioned so archers could target anyone attempting to cross. The king lived in a tall building in the center known as the Great Tower. The Great Tower included everything the king needed, such as a bedroom, a courtroom, and multiple small rooms for praying.

The tower was under many different controls over the years, and it was used as a defense hub up until World War 2, where the underground tunnels were converted into hospitals, barracks, and bomb shelters, to great advantage of the Britons, as the tunnels could easily protect them from attacks from the sky, and provide many necessary services to live for a short time underneath the surface such as kitchens and a small counsel room. 

Today, the castle is an English Heritage site and “Scheduled Monument”, meaning it can’t be altered without permission. Between 2007 and 2009, £2.45 million was spent refurbishing and recreating the interior of the castle. The castle has been restored to a beautiful quality and it almost seems like it hasn’t been touched since it was first built. I highly recommend visiting if you find yourself in Dover. The view is breathtaking, you can learn a lot about England’s history, and even buy some locally-made fudge!

Below is the little room inside an outbuilding where we bought some amazing, old school fudge.

 And following is a close up of the detail in the "grout" lines on the building's exterior wall. Very cool.

We climbed many, many stairs to get to the roof of the Great Tower. The reward was a commanding view. 

Below is the western part of Dover. 

 The vantage point also afforded a bird's eye look at other buildings on site.

We had a nice view of the port, as well. It's easy to tell why this spot had been so strategically important for so long. 

Below, a peek a the Roman church and lighthouse from so very long ago. Can you see the ferry in the distance? It's right behind the lighthouse.

Inside the Great Tower, there were many rooms, including a spot to get some supper.

 There was a lovely little stained glass window.

 And a stately throne room. The ceiling was something else.

 We marveled at how windows and other openings were carved into the thick cave walls.

There were strategic peer-out points ...

 And tall, thin openings through which archers could shoot arrows. 

 There were bigger openings for cannon blasts.

We walked all over the the medieval castle on site. Per the English Heritage organization, "In the 1180s Henry II remodeled the castle, planning its great tower as a palace in which to entertain great visitors as well as a last redoubt for a strategically important castle. At 83 feet (25.3 metres) high, just under 100 feet (30 metres) square and with walls up to 21 feet (6.5 metres) thick, it has three floors of rooms, the topmost being state apartments for the king himself."

You can check out an interactive map of the historic site on the English Heritage's Website: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/dover-castle/plan-your-visit/dover-castle-interactive-map/

Here's CJ doing one last survey of the site before we called it a day.

What an amazing afternoon - and completely unplanned!

SPEAKING OF TRAVEL: Who wants to go to Mars?! 

Visit the NASA website before Nov. 1 to get your names on board the InSight mission, set to launch to the Red Planet in May of 2018, and arrive in Nov. 2018.

https://mars.nasa.gov/participate/send-your-name/insight/
When you enter your name and email address, you'll get a boarding pass!

To learn more about the InSight lander, check out the mission Website here: https://insight.jpl.nasa.gov/home.cfm