Walmer & Deal

April 17, 2003

Walmer Castle was built by Henry VIII in 1539 to defend against the feared invasion from France & Spain.   After 1708 it became the official residence of the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports.   Famous Lord Wardens include Pitt, Wellington, & Churchill.

Walmer Castle

Deal Castle & Admiralty Building

Deal Castle and Sandown Castle were built at the same time as Walmer to defend shipping at anchor in the Downs (the sheltered water between the Kent coast and the Goodwin Sands).  Walmer has been extensively developed by successive Lord Wardens as a domestic residence, but Deal remains largely unchanged from its 16th century condition.  Sandown was eroded by the sea and is now mostly demolished.