- Heritage

Reculver Towers and Roman Fort

Owing to historic coastal erosion, the church ruins are now on the edge of a cliff. They form a backdrop to wide Thames-side marshes, and are sited within the remains of the Roman, Saxon Shore fort. Called "Regulbium", the fort guarded the north end of what were then the broad waters of the Wantsum Channel, which separated the Isle of Thanet from the rest of Kent, and was open to shipping. Recent archaeological excavation has shown that the site had been occupied in pre-historic times, and it is of interest that the name "Regulbium" is Celtic in origin, probably meaning "at the promontory", or similar. The place is elevated above the surrounding countryside, and it still sits on a slight promontory today. In Old English, the…

Richborough Roman Fort

Rutupiæ was the Roman name for Richborough near Sandwich, Kent, which they founded after they landed in England in AD 43. A major port of Roman Britain (with Dubris, it was one of the start-points for the Roman road of Watling Street, which ran on to Canterbury and London), it has many phases of Roman remains, collectively known as Richborough Fort or Richborough Roman Fort, still visible today and under the care of English Heritage. (A third, local name, Richborough Castle, is used mainly just for the Saxon Shore Fort walls.) Earth fortifications were first dug on the site in the 1st century, probably was as a storage depot and bridgehead for the Roman army. This transformed into a civilian and commercial town, which was later replaced by a Saxon Shore Fort around the year…

Rochester Castle

Rochester Castle stands on the east bank of the River Medway, in Rochester, Kent. It is one of the best-preserved castles of its kind in the UK. There has been a fortification on this site since Roman times (c AD43), though it is the keep of 1127 and the Norman castle which can be seen today. With the invention of gunpowder other types of defence became more…

St Augustine's Abbey

This great abbey, marking the rebirth of Christianity in southern England, was founded shortly after AD 597 by St Augustine. Originally created as a burial place for the Anglo-Saxon kings of Kent, it is part of the Canterbury World Heritage Site, along with the cathedral and St Martin’s Church.The impressive abbey is situated outside the city walls and is sometimes missed by visitors. At…

St Augustine's Cross

This 19th-century cross of Saxon design marks what is traditionally thought to have been the site of St Augustine’s landing on the shores of England in AD 597. Accompanied by 30 followers,…

St John's Commandery

The flint-walled 13th-century chapel and hall of a ‘Commandery’ of Knights Hospitallers, later converted into a farmhouse. It has…

St Leonards Tower

An early and well-preserved example of a small free-standing Norman tower keep, surviving almost to its original height. It was probably built c. 1080 by Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, and takes…

Sutton Valence Castle

The ruins…

Temple Manor

Part of a manor house of the Knights Templar, built in about…

Upnor Castle

Upnor Castle is an Elizabethan artillery fort located in the village of Upnor, Kent, England. Its purpose was…