I was browsing the website of my historical society membership and saw an ad for Dover. It looked like an interesting place to visit and was a focal point for activity during World War II so I hopped in the car one weekend and drove down.
It was a couple hours drive out to the south east of England but it turned out to be an easy trip and I enjoyed the landscape. It was basically the same route I took to Canterbury as both locations are in the same geographic area of the country.
I have provided a good deal of information and pictures regarding the area including the overlook, tunnels, cliffs, port and surrounding area. It was a nice sunny day and with the membership I had in one of the historical societies I ended up with a discount on tickets while I was there.
The Castle – Spend hours visiting this place, the history and tie in to World War II was fascinating. Dover was an easy find and I located parking adjacent to a visitor center overlooking the cliffs and port. I drove up and parked behind the castle and walked up a bit higher to the building that contains the restaurant and ticketing.
It was a sunny day and I showed up early and was able to beat the crowds that showed up later on in the day. Another good thing was I received discounts for parking and for tour tickets as I was a member of a historical society. After purchasing my ticket I grabbed a sandwich and drink and sat out on the overlook and enjoyed the view of Dover and the port.
I walked over to the castle grounds and wandered around. In case I didn’t mention it, there are castles all over the place in England and Dover is no different. This one overlooks the port and coast and I believe I read the area has military and strategic importance as it is the narrowest part of the English channel. This is the launching point for the trip to Calais which I will cover on a narration for another trip I took.
As you can appreciate the ravages of time, the coast and probably a few other factors has created an environment wherein the castle has deteriorated from it’s former glory. It is still quite an interesting place as you move through the main gate and make your way into the various rooms still available for tours. I walked through a winding stone staircase to the upper floor probably where the guards were stationed and you really get a feel for Dover and the importance of the castle’s position on the coast.
I was able to walk through most of the castle, the grounds, guard towers and surrounding area. The spiral stairway leading to the upper area was somewhat narrow and I recall parts of some stairways had obstacles probably to keep the public from using them.
It was fascinating walking through history and stand on the same grounds that kings and queens probably stood on at some point in history. When I reached what amounted to the roof there were square turret areas on the corners, I assume for guards as they were on the corners. I was able to enter one of them and climb onto the roof of it as well and it provided quite a view of the channel and city below. I see why this place was chosen for a castle due to its position.
The Cathedral – Yep I visited this place as well, why pass up a chance to walk through history? After wandering around the castle for a bit I headed out to the Cathedral, it seems every castle had a Cathedral erected at some point. It also dominated the area, was large and commanding structure probably as a symbol of religion and strength of the kingdom I suppose. As I approached I got the feeling this building took quite some time to construct and with virtually every cathedral I visited in England was somewhat of an engineering marvel.
The architecture is impressive and the whole thing is well maintained. There were windows and stained glass everywhere which did a marvelous job illuminating the place. Good thing because there were no lights back then. That is another testament to the fortitude of the people who maintained the cathedral as there is no heating system nor lights other than candles, natural lighting and perhaps some type of a rudimentary boiler if they were lucky. Talk about people devoted to a cause!
The woodwork like chairs, molding and various pieces throughout the cathedral were all hand carved as again, no machinery.
The Tunnels – This place is quite interesting, the nerve center for operations during World War II. One of the passes I purchased allowed me to take a guided tour of the famous tunnels. Before we entered the guide properly scared everyone by asking who was afraid of confined spaces or the dark etc. I had a rather inexpensive camera with me at the time and took some pictures while inside and you can get a feel for what it was like.
It was quite dark throughout most of the tour. It could have been intentional to add to the theater of the trip and I played quite well with the theme. I think they wanted to convey the conditions that existed We saw quite a few small rooms as space was obviously at a premium. Some of them included:
A cafeteria – there were a few lunch tables or what amounted to lunch tables along with eating utensils and various other things you would expect to see.
A room with maps probably for documenting activity and to assist with plans
I think one of the areas was related to intelligence, strategy and plan
There was a a medical area complete with an operating room ,dispensary and sick call.
Of course there were storage areas for general supplies, food and ammunition as well as I think protective supplies for a gas attack.
The conditions were at best rudimentary and with the bombing and associated activity it must have been quite a scene at its peak.
Below are more pictures of the tunnel area, as you can see it is quite dark.
White Cliffs – What’s a tour without visiting the cliffs and port? After all the touring of the castle, cathedral, tunnels and general area I decided to head out to see the cliffs and port area. As you can see the view is striking and I spent several hours wandering along the coast admiring the view.
There is quite a bit of activity at the port with the ferries moving people, trucks, buses, cars and goods from here to Calais, France. The area has huge historical significance as well as being what appears to be a relatively important corridor between the two countries of England and France. I know I took the trip across but that is another story.
The channel looks like it stretches forever and this is the narrowest point I was told. Imagine what it must have been like during the war as a staging and launching area for allied support.
I walked the cliffs and looked over to get a glimpse and as you can appreciate it was quite a distance to the ground below me. So, I followed the street and a path down and around to get a view from the bottom and say I saw the “White Cliffs of Dover”.
After a full day I jumped in the car and returned to Huntingdon, with pictures and a load of information to look at and keep for posterity.
Wizard of Where