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Upnor Castle, Kent

Upnor Castle was built in 1589 on the orders of Elizabeth I, as a means of defending Chatham Dockyard, and warships anchored in the Medway. Upnor Castle's big moment came in June 1667 when Admiral de Ruyter led a daring Dutch raid up the Medway. Charles II had reluctantly agreed to engage in a naval war with Holland at the time, as part of a struggle for trading supremacy. The war did not go well, with the Royal Navy chronically underfunded. The diarist Samuel Pepys in his role as a senior naval administrator would inflate costs in an attempt to get more money out of Parliament. When the Dutch staged their Medway raid in 1667 they met little resistance, and penetrated all the way up to Chatham. In the process they destroyed much of the English fleet, and captured Charles's flagship, the Royal Charles. A two day battle finally ended after gun fire from Upnor and a battery on the opposite river bank began inflicting damage on the Dutch ships. In his diary Pepys said that the castle gunners "shot until they hardly had a gun left". An effective audio visual display at Upnor Castle describes the battle.

 

 

 

 

Upnor Castle is just outside the charming village of Upnor, which until the 1930s was a miniature resort centred on a river beach. Upnor's time as a resort ended when the Admiralty closed its beach during World War Two. Upnor, however, remains a lovely little village, and offers a number of places to eat and drink.

 

Opening Times: The castle is open daily from April 1st to October 31st 10am - 6pm. Last admission is 45 minutes before closing. May close early Friday or Saturday for weddings. Do ring ahead to check.

Directions: Upnor is just off the A289. Turn right onto the Upnor Road, about a quarter of a mile after the Medway tunnel. Click here for an interactive road and satellite map centred on Upnor Castle. Postcode ME2 4XG.

Access: Wheelchair access to some of the grounds would be possible, but there are steep slopes. The castle itself is largely inaccessible to those with mobility problems.

 

 

 

 

 

Contact:

telephone: 01634 718742

when castle closed telephone: 01634 338110

web site: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/upnor-castle/

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