Rochester Castle

Situated on the River Medway and Watling Street Rochester castle served as a strategically important royal castle. It was founded in the aftermath of the Norman Conquest almost certainly by William the Conqueror after his conquest of 1066, to protect the crossing point of the river Medway. 

Part of the river crossing

View over the river Medway

After William's death ownership passed to his son William Rufus. He had a hard time defending the castle from violent conflict with his rebellious uncle, Bishop Odo of Bayeux. After gaining temporary control of the castle Odo surrendered his garrison and was banished abroad.William Rufus decided to strengthen the castle and commissioned Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester to rebuild the walls in stone. At the time Gundulf was already building Rochester's new cathedral. The collaboration between Crown and Church continued and in 1127 Henry I entrusted custody of the castle in perpetuity to the Archbishops of Canterbury with the condition that a fortification was to be built within the castle walls. The then archbishop, William de Corbeil, constructed a tower – the present keep. Chronicled at the time as ‘noble’ and ‘outstanding’, it is thought to have been the tallest building of its type in Europe.

The collaboration between Crown and Church became an uneasy one and eventually conflict arose between Henry II and Thomas Becket. But the most serious conflict arose during the reign of King John and escalated into one of the most famous castle sieges in English history. In the summer 1215, Rebel Baron held the castle in order to protect London (in rebels hands) from the King. On 25 November King John urgently requested 40 pigs and burnt their fat so as to bring down the corner turret and large parts of the east and south walls on either side. Henry III later repaired the curtain walls. Norman round arches were copied and mouldings were plainer. The new South-east turret was circular while the tower in the same corner was round in an attempt to avoid vulnerable corners that could be undermined, and to follow contemporary fashion. In 1239 the king ordered that the chapel be whitewashed and in 1244 an additional chapel was built next to the king’s new chambers.

Keep Entrance as it was

Further sieges followed, building materials from the decaying castle were stolen and in 1281 Henry’s son Edward ordered the hall and chambers be pulled down and to reuse their materials elsewhere. As the 14th century progressed, the castle steadily declined and was used for the custody of prisoners. By 1369, the only buildings reported left standing were the keep, the “first and second gates”, and a hall, kitchen and stable. In the summer of 1381 the castle was attacked and taken for the last time in the Peasant’s Revolt against King Richard II.

Plan of how the castle used to look

Almost nothing is known of the castle in the 15th century. In 1559 and 1600 Elisabeth I licensed the removal of stones and brick from the castle walls for a new artillery fort at Upnor. By the mid-1660s the keep had lost its roof and floors. During the 18th and the 19th centuries Rochester Castle continued to decay.

In 1884 the Corporation of Rochester opened the castle grounds as a park and a tourist attraction, which led to the destruction of some historic features such as the main gatehouse and the remains of Richard II’s 1370's tower. From 1896 to 1904 several buildings in the castle were repaired such as the keep, the mural galleries, wall tops, battlement and corner turrets. The basement was excavated to the present level.

 I think the castle was on 4 or 5 levels, it must have been quite impressive

The Great Hall poster

The Great Hall today

The cesspit cleaner had to be one of the worst jobs ever!

We did a walk around the town and found the cathedral and museum, up next.

~ Be warm and well ~ 

Polly x