Sunday 25 September 2011

The Keep, or Great Tower, of Dover Castle and Constable's Gateway, Kent, UK

This is a re-issued view of Dover Castle Keep and Constable's Tower (alt. Constable's Gate, or Constable's Gateway) taken at dusk on May 23rd, 2007.

Plantagenet Henry II's Palace Tower of Dover Castle designed by architect Maurice the Engineer in the 1180s. Constable's Tower built under Hubert de Burgh after the Great Siege of Dover Castle in 1216.
(Click this text link to see the largest size)


The Keep, or Great Tower (night view),, is 83 feet high with walls 21 feet thick. Also note the Second World War anti-tank defences called 'dragon's teeth' on the embankment, left of centre.

The Keep is surrounded by the massive walls and rectangular towers of the Inner Bailey (Inner Curtain Wall).

Abridged extract from "The History of the Castle, Town and Port of Dover" by Reverend S. P. H. Statham, Rector of St Mary-in-the-Castle (ie St Mary-in-Castro) (Longmans, Green, and Co., 1899):

The Constable's Tower: One of the grandest gateways in England. Its plan is that of a triangle with its obtuse angle presented to the field. The angles at the base fall within the line of the curtain and are capped by two large drum towers. The salient angle in like manner is capped by an oblong tower, rounded at each end and flat in the centre.

This photo originally appeared on the Images of Dover website at the following url (contains Google Earth satellite map location):

The Great Tower of Dover Castle and Constable's Gateway, Kent, UK (Panoramio)

Also see:

The Keep and Western Outer Curtain Wall of Dover Castle from the Harbour
Night Panorama of Dover Castle overlooking the Seafront and Harbour
The Keep, Peverell's Gateway, and Hurst Tower of Dover Castle

A Dover Norman history photo.

Links to the main Images of Dover website:

All Dover Castle photos first appear under the Castle and Dover Castle tags.

The castle is a Dover Grade I Listed Building and an English Heritage site.

John Latter / Jorolat

Dover Blog: The Psychology of a Small Town

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