OTHER ATTRACTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

Roman Painted House

Early in the second century, the Romans established one of their main bases, Classis Britannica, at Dover and as part of the complex built a large hotel-like facility to accommodate the officials and merchants traveling back and forth across the English channel. However, as often happens when a town expands, most of this building was later was demolished when the Roman army started construction of a larger fort. Buried under the walls of the new fortress, only three of the main rooms survived substantial intact.

In 1971, eighteen hundred year later, workers engaged in a highway improvement project near Market Square in Dover's town center uncovered the structure's remains. Archeologists have called this discovery the British Pompeii, although it is more commonly referred to as the Roman Painted House. One of Dover's main tourist attractions, the Roman House is noted for the Bacchic murals painted on its walls, the most extensive such artwork ever found north of the Alps.

Visitors can also see amazing under-floor central heating system that kept the building comfortably warm 1,800 years ago. In addition, there is an interesting "touch me" display with finds--- pottery, bones, and tiles---from the excavation and visitors are invited make brass-rubbing from several ancient figures (necessary rubbing materials can be purchased on site). The exhibition, open all year long, has won several national awards for excellence in historic preservation.

Crabble Corn Mill

Built in 1812, the Crabble Corm Mill is a working museum that demonstrates past engineering excellence at work using one of natures most powerful forces--- water. It is considered to be one of England's best examples of a still operational Victorian-age watermill. In its heyday, Crabble was only one of over a dozen such mills along the scant three miles from the River Dour's source and the point where it empties into Dover harbor.

Aside from its attraction as a historical site, the Mill boasts a riverside tearoom and serves distinctive food and drink from the Kent region, particularly home-baked items made with the mill's flour.
(Factoid: Records show that there has been a mill on this site since at least 1227.)

Knights Templar Church Site

On the Western Heights above Dover, are the remains of a small building, a Knights Templar "round church." Discovered in 1806 during construction of military fortifications, its well-preserved footings show this church followed the same plan as the Knights Templar church in London, with a circular nave imitating the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Some historians believe this to be the site where of King John, younger brother of King Richard the Lionhearted, submitted to the authority of the Pope Innocent III in 1213.
(Factoid: The history of the Knights Templar in England began when Hughes de Payens, founder and Grand Master of the Order of the Knights Templar, visited the country in 1118 to raise support for the Crusades.)

St. Edmund's Chapel

In the early 1300s, the monks of the Priory of St. Martin became known for the assistance the gave those who traveled on the busy road to Canterbury and London. They provided housing and food that they grew on their own farmlands and ultimately added a small chapel (28 feet by 14 feet) and cemetery for the local poor and those pilgrims who may have died along the wayside.

In 1253, after some years in service, the chapel was consecrated Bishop Richard of Chichester who had always wanted to dedicate a chapel to his friend, St. Edmund of Abingdon who had been Archbishop of Canterbury from 1234 to 1240 The fulfillment of this wish was one of Richard’s last acts as he died four days later in the nearby Maison Dieu. After his death, Richard’s body was returned to the chapel to be ‘eviscerated’ (have the internal organs removed) in preparation for the journey to Chichester Cathedral to be buried. Some of his remains were buried at the chapel and Dover thereby became an important stop for pilgrims.

Along with the more prominent Maison Dieu, the chapel was "decommissioned" in 1544 and became part of provisioning station for the Royal Navy. After that it became a warehouse used by the shopkeepers along Biggin Street. In the mid-1800s, it was again converted, this time used a private dwelling and smithy. The chapel's long history was almost completed in WWII when German artillery shells rained down on Dover from across the English Channel. Shellfire actually destroyed two buildings immediately next to St. Edmund's--- the fact that its walls are about two feet thick certainly was instrumental in its survival.

After the war, there were efforts made to tear the chapel down as Dover began a program of "urban renewal." However, it was privately purchased and, after considerable restoration in the 1906s, is again "whole" (It is estimated that roughly three-quarters of the building seen today is original). Located on Priory Street, just behind Dover's main shopping neighborhood is the property of the Saint Edmund of Abingdon Memorial Trust, which makes it available for ecumenical observations, such as the Saturday morning Communion, the Christian Unity vigil, and candlelit services for the Feast Days of St. Edmund and St. Richard.

(Factoid: The chapel is the only one dedicated by one English saint--- St. Richard of Chicester--- to another English saint---(St. Edmund of Abingdon.)

Canterbury Castle

The ancient city of Canterbury has been the center of Christian worship in England ever since St. Augustine was sent here by Pope Gregory in 597AD. Its biggest attraction is Canterbury Cathedral, the most important church within the worldwide Anglican faith. The Cathedral is known in history as the setting for the 1170 murder of St. Thomas à Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury. When Henry II snapped "Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?", four of his knights rode to the Cathedral and beheaded the priest. This action resulted in Canterbury soon becoming the focal point of one of the most important medieval pilgrimages in Europe, set forth by Geoffrey Chaucer in one of the classics of English literature, The Canterbury Tales.

This magnificent Gothic style architecture and features--- the central 'Bell Harry Tower' dating back to 1498 and the crypt going back even earlier--- are lasting testaments to the Cathedral's enduring power of its first Christian missionaries.

Leeds Castle

Often described as England's "loveliest and most romantic castle," Leeds Castle was a residence of several medieval queens, a palace of Henry VIII, and a retreat for the rich and powerful. The stone castle, built on two small islands in the middle of a lake, was started about 1119 and today remains one of the region's top tourist attractions. Its chapel, galleries, courtyards, and banqueting hall offer a good glimpse of what medieval life might have been like. Outside, the Culpeper Garden is beautiful and the grounds surrounding the castle--- with wildlife, peacocks, black swans, and an aviary--- also lend themselves well to outdoor photography.

Dover's Statues

Although not particularly noted as a "statue city," Dover does have several memorials honoring notable figures and events in the city's history. Located on Marine Parade, the Waiting Miner commemorates the men who worked in the now-closed coal mines of Kent. Not far away, between the Gateway Flats and the Promenade, is a bust of Captain Matthew Webb who in 1875 became the first person on record to swim the English Channel.

A statue erected to Admiral Sir Bertram Home Ramsay stands in the grounds of Dover Castle. Ramsay was the officer in charge of “Operation Dynamo” and the successful rescue of the British forces trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk early in WW II. He also served as Naval Commander in Chief for “Operation Overlord,” the massive Allied invasion of Normandy that led to the end of that war.

Still another well-known statue facing the English Channel is that of Charles Stewart Rolls, co-founder Rolls Royce automobile manufacturing company, commemorating his nonstop flight across the English Channel and back in 1910.

White Cliffs of Dover Boat Tour

Probably the best way to get a panoramic view of the White Cliffs of Dover is by taking a boat tour. Such tours are offered by company called, aptly enough, the Dover White Cliff Boat Tours which operates the Southern Queen, a seventy-seat passenger vessel. The tour consists of a spectacular sightseeing trip around the harbor and out into the English Channel. Lasting around a hour or so, the tour a commentary on the history of the Dover and its main attraction. If sea and weather conditions are favorable, a special treat for children is a chance to help the captain street the boat and learn a little about navigation. The boat tour can also be combined with a guided bus trip that visits landmarks and attractions in the Dover area.

The tours are conducted on weekends only from Easter to June but operate daily in July and August. Tours for organized groups can be arranged in September and October.

 

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