Inner Bailey, Dover Castle, Kent: The Development of the Buildings 1200 -1800
Author(s): Allan Brodie, G Higgott
The buildings of the Inner Bailey appear as a group of mid-18th-century barrack blocks with a reasonably homogenous character. In reality, the buildings are more complex and originate from a wide chronology spanning the period from the 13th to the 18th century. They also reflect a reduction in the concentration of buildings occupying this high-status space within the castle. The nature and extent of these buildings has changed repeatedly, leaving vestigial evidence of the earliest buildings. Along the north-east side of the Inner Bailey, in the mid-13th century, were the King’s Lodgings, but encapsulated within the centrepiece of this group, Arthur’s Hall, are walls that may date back to the early 13th century. Another surviving medieval building is Keep Yard 9, the Palace of the Duke of Suffolk, as it was described in c 1570. In 1625-6 the Duke of Buckingham converted this building into the Lord Chamberlain’s lodgings. John Bereblock, in c 1570, also depicted the old armoury, the site of Keep Yard 8, and Arthur’s Lesser Hall, now the shop, both of which appear to retain medieval building fabric. It is clear from the documentary record that there were a number of smaller medieval buildings of lower status that have not survived above ground.
- Report Number:
- 41/2011
- Series:
- Research Department Reports
- Pages:
- 33
- Keywords:
- Defence Medieval Fortification
