New Tavern Fort facts for kids
Quick facts for kids New Tavern Fort |
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| Gravesend, Kent | |
Ramparts and emplacements at New Tavern Fort
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 New Tavern Fort
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| Coordinates | 51°26′37″N 0°22′36″E / 51.443626°N 0.376782°E |
| Type | Fortification |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Gravesham Borough Council |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Condition | Interior buildings mostly demolished, emplacements and magazines preserved |
| Site history | |
| Built | ca. 1780–83 |
| Built by | United Kingdom |
| In use | ca. 1780–1950s |
| Materials | Earth, brick, concrete |
New Tavern Fort is an old military fort located in Gravesend, Kent. Most of it was built in the 1700s and 1800s. This fort is a great example of an 18th-century fort that is still very well-preserved. It was used for defense until World War II.
The fort was first built during the American Revolutionary War. Its job was to protect the Thames River from French and Spanish ships. These ships were helping the new United States of America. Later, in the mid-1800s, the fort was updated. This was to defend against new, strong French warships made of iron.
By the early 1900s, the main defenses for the Thames moved further down the river. So, the fort's guns were removed. Its land became a public park with gardens. But the fort was used by the military again for a short time during the Second World War. Today, the fort, its underground rooms, and other parts have been fixed up. They are now open for everyone to visit. It's special because it shows different types of guns and gun positions from the 1700s to the 1900s.
Contents
What Does New Tavern Fort Look Like?
Fort Layout and River Defenses
The fort sits on the south side of the River Thames. It was built to help the older Tilbury Fort on the north side of the river. The fort has a wide, zig-zag shaped wall made of earth. In front of this wall is a wide ditch. Inside the wall are eight places for guns, called emplacements. Six are made of brick and two are made of concrete. There are storage rooms for ammunition (magazines) underneath them. The middle part of the fort used to be a parade ground. Now it's a grassy area with flowers, trees, and a bandstand.
The walls face the river and are split into three parts. The northern part has two round concrete emplacements. Two large 6-inch guns were put here in 1904. The fort still has guns like these, though they are not the original ones. This makes New Tavern Fort the only place in the UK with a fully re-armed two-gun battery for these types of guns. There's also a concrete spot nearby where soldiers would have aimed the guns.
The middle part of the wall is next to the fort's gardens. It has four brick emplacements built between 1868 and 1872. These held special guns called RML guns. One of these gun spots has a thick iron shield with a hole for the gun. The other three are open. All four are very well-kept and still have the tracks the guns moved on. Doors on the sides lead to shafts. These shafts brought shells and cartridges up from the magazines below. The shielded gun spot has an RML gun again. This makes it a rare example of how it looked originally.
The southern part of the wall also faces the river. It has two smaller brick emplacements built in the 1860s. These originally held guns that could turn to fire in different directions.
Underground Magazines and Other Areas
The entrance to the magazines is in the middle wall. It leads to a long, narrow brick tunnel that zig-zags under the wall. There are sixteen storage rooms off this tunnel. These were used to store cartridges and shells. Lifts connected these rooms to the gun positions above. The main magazine had two big rooms for cartridges and shells. From there, ammunition was moved along the tunnel to the smaller storage rooms. To prevent sparks or fires, special safety lights were used. Workers also wore special slippers and clothes so they wouldn't create sparks.
The magazines have been partly fixed up. They now have displays showing how they were used. They also have exhibits about Gravesend's military past. You can visit them on summer weekends. Another brick-arched magazine is under the north wall. It stored ammunition for the 6-inch guns and fire equipment.
A wide ditch is in front of the fort's walls. It was made wider in the 1860s. It used to have a fence to stop enemy soldiers. Now, it's filled with plants, small ponds, and paths. It's a nice nature area.
Most of the fort's original buildings, like barracks and offices, are gone. The only old building left is the medieval Milton Chantry. This is the oldest building in Gravesend. It was used as a barracks for soldiers.
History of New Tavern Fort
Why Was the Fort Built?
The lower part of the Thames River was very important for defense. It had major military sites like shipyards and storage areas. It was also vital to stop enemies from landing along the Thames. An enemy landing could open a path to London. The crossing between Gravesend and Tilbury was also very important. This is why the Tudors built forts on both sides of the river there.
New Tavern Fort was built because of a threat during the American Revolutionary War. The new United States of America and its allies, France and Spain, were a danger. In 1778, an American adventurer named John Paul Jones attacked a British port. This showed that Britain's coastal defenses were weak. His actions and a failed French-Spanish invasion in 1779 made the British government check its defenses. They found them to be very poor. So, plans were made to build 30 new forts along the southern and eastern English coast.
An engineer named Thomas Hyde Page checked the Thames area. He suggested fixing up the old Tilbury Fort. He also said a new fort should replace the older Gravesend Blockhouse. The new fort would be further downriver. This would allow its guns to cross fire with Tilbury Fort. Fears of a French invasion grew, so the government approved the plans. Construction began soon after.
Building the Fort and Its Early Days
The fort was built between 1780 and 1783. It was on land where the New Tavern Inn used to be, which is how it got its name. Since the land was private, a special law was passed to buy it. At first, it was an uneven earthwork with two gun batteries. It had fifteen heavy guns that fired through openings.
Milton Chantry was included inside the fort. It was turned into a barracks for artillery soldiers. By the 1790s, more buildings were added. These included homes for officers, stables, and magazines. The back of the fort was open at first. But by the late 1700s, a defense wall was built to close it off. A special kiln was also built to heat cannonballs red-hot. These hot cannonballs could set enemy ships on fire.
Updates in the 1800s
New Tavern Fort was rebuilt several times in the 1800s. But its basic shape and earth walls stayed the same. The gun positions were updated in 1848 for guns that could turn. More magazines were also built. More changes were soon needed. By the late 1850s, Britain and France were building many new warships. New ironclad ships with powerful guns, like Britain's HMS Warrior, were a big threat.
Because of this, the British government set up a group to review defenses. They noted how important the Thames was and how easily it could be attacked by sea. They suggested two main lines of defense for the Thames. Three new forts would be built or rebuilt further downriver. These would be the outer line of defense. Tilbury Fort and New Tavern Fort would form the inner line.
The fort's guns were updated again before these plans were fully carried out. In 1859, its guns were replaced with ten very powerful 68-pounder guns. These could shoot up to 3,500 yards (about 3,200 meters). Some of these were later replaced with even bigger guns.
The Army first focused on the outer forts. It wasn't until January 1868 that orders came to rebuild Tilbury and New Tavern Forts. The old magazines and walls were torn down. New brick gun positions were built. These held ten 9-inch and one 12-inch RML guns. These guns could shoot up to 4,600 yards (about 4,200 meters). Seven of the gun positions had iron shields for protection. The walls were changed a lot to make room for new magazines. These magazines were connected to the gun positions by lifts. Colonel Charles George Gordon, who later became famous, lived near the fort from 1865 to 1871. He was in charge of this project.
The Fort in the 1900s
By the early 1900s, New Tavern Fort was not as important. Naval guns had become much stronger. The main defense line for the Thames moved further downriver. Bigger guns there could control the entire river mouth. The old RML guns were now out of date. The fort's gun positions offered little protection against modern naval attacks. A report in 1887-8 said the fort's guns were too close together and had weak walls. It suggested fixing the walls and reducing the number of guns. But these changes were not made.
In 1905, the RML gun positions were replaced. Two concrete pits were built for a pair of 6-inch guns. These guns could shoot up to 6 miles (about 9.7 kilometers). Separate magazines were built for them. These guns were only there for a few years. The fort's guns were removed before World War I started in 1914. It was rearmed in 1930 with two replacement 6-inch guns. These were used to train soldiers. At the same time, the Gravesend Corporation bought the inside of the fort. The fort's interior opened to the public in 1932 as a pleasure garden. But the gun battery was still used until 1938. Some of the fort's inner buildings were also torn down then.
Even without guns, New Tavern Fort was used for military purposes during the Second World War. Two tall communication masts were built on top of the old magazines. These supported a naval radio station. People say this station listened in on enemy radio messages. These messages were then sent to Bletchley Park to be decoded. The Navy took over the magazines in 1941. They used them and the tunnels as air raid shelters for a nearby naval base.
After the war, the fort reopened as a garden. Fort House, where the commanding engineer lived, was badly damaged by a V-2 rocket in 1944 and had to be torn down. Part of the Milton Chantry was also demolished in 1948. The Chantry's chapel was used as a local history museum from 1953 to 1970. In 1969, most of the rest of the Chantry was torn down. The remaining part became a heritage center in 1972.
New Tavern Fort Today
Today, New Tavern Fort is part of Gravesham Borough Council's Riverside Leisure Area. The outdoor parts are open all year. A local heritage group opens the restored magazines on summer weekends. Restoration work started in 1975. In 1977, the fort was given a special Grade II* listing. This means it's an important building because it's a rare and complete example of its kind.
Two salvaged 6-inch guns were put back in the fort in the 1980s. This makes it the only fully armed two-gun battery of its type in mainland UK. The magazines have also been fixed up and re-equipped in a way that is unique in the UK. The fort's display of guns and gun positions from the 1700s to the 1900s is also very special.
