Dymchurch Martello Tower, High Street, Dymchurch, Kent
Martello tower number 24 was built in 1805-6 as part of the coastal defence system established against the threat of an invasion from Napoleonic France. The gun platform on the roof was armed with a 24 pounder cast iron gun. It could be turned through 360 degrees, was manned by between 10 and 14 men and had a firing range of one mile. The first floor is divided into three rooms by wooden partitions and provided accommodation for the garrison of 24 men and one officer. The brick-lined basement was used to store ammunition and supplies and cisterns were dug into the floor to provide additional sources of water. A total of 103 Martello towers were built in south-east England between 1805 and 1812. Tower 24 was built in association with Tower 25 as part of a chain of 21 towers guarding the coastline of Romney Marsh, and specifically the Marshland Sluice; the main drain of Romney Marsh. It was used as a coastguard station and look-out tower in the late 19th to 20th centuries. In 1959-69 it was restored by the Ministry of Works and opened to visitors. This site is now in the care of English Heritage (2011). Read detailed archaeological description.
