16th century Walmer Castle was built to defend the English coast from attack by
France and the
Holy Roman Empire in the final years of the reign of King
Henry VIII. Traditionally
the Crown had left coastal defences to the local lords and communities, only taking a modest role in building and maintaining fortifications, and while France and the Empire remained in conflict with one another, maritime raids were common but an actual invasion of
England seemed unlikely. Modest defences, based around simple
blockhouses and towers, existed in the south-west and along the
Sussex coast, with a few more impressive works in the north of England, but in general the fortifications were very limited in scale. In 1533, Henry broke with
Pope Paul III in order to
annul the long-standing marriage to his wife,
Catherine of Aragon and remarry. Catherine was the aunt of
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and he took the annulment as a personal insult. This resulted in France and the Empire declaring an alliance against Henry in 1538, and the Pope encouraging the two countries to attack England. An invasion of England appeared certain. In response, Henry issued an order, called a "
device", in 1539, giving instructions for the "defence of the realm in time of invasion" and the construction of forts along the English coastline. Walmer and the adjacent castles of
Deal and
Sandown were constructed to protect
the Downs in east Kent, an important anchorage formed by the
Goodwin Sands which gave access to
Deal Beach, on which enemy soldiers could easily be landed. The stone castles were supported by a line of four earthwork forts, known as the Great Turf, the Little Turf Bulwark, the Great White Bulwark of Clay and the Walmer Bulwark, and a defensive ditch and bank. Collectively the castles became known as the "castles of the Downs" and cost
the Crown a total of £27,092 to build. Walmer was built between April 1539 and autumn 1540, by a team including Richard Benese as the surveyor, William Clement as the master carpenter, and Christopher Dickenson as the master mason. It was initially garrisoned by a captain, two lieutenants, two porters, ten gunners and three soldiers, at an annual cost of £174. It was probably equipped with a range of brass and
cast-iron guns, along with
arquebuses and
bows for close defence. In 1597, a report listed the castle's artillery as comprising a
cannon, a
culverin, five
demi-culverins, a
saker, a
minion and a
falcon. Walmer Castle was seized by Parliamentary forces at the start of the first
English Civil War between the supporters of King
Charles I and
Parliament, but did not play a significant role in the remainder of the initial conflict. After the few years of unsteady peace after 1645, the
Second Civil War broke out in 1648, this time with Charles' Royalist supporters joined by Scottish allies. The Parliamentary navy was based in the Downs, protected by Walmer and the other Henrician castles, but by May a Royalist insurrection was under way across Kent. Vice-Admiral
William Batten had been forced to resign from his post as Commander of the Fleet the previous year by Parliamentary officials, and he now encouraged the fleet to join the Royalist faction. Sir Henry Palmer, a former sailor, accompanied by other members of the Kentish gentry, also called on the fleet to revolt, taking advantage of the many fellow Kentish men in the crews. Walmer and Deal Castle declared for the King, shortly after the garrisons at Sandown. With both the coastal fortresses and the navy now under Royalist control, Parliament feared that foreign forces might be landed along the coast or aid sent to the Scots. Parliament defeated the wider insurgency at the
Battle of Maidstone at the start of June, and then sent a force under the command of Colonel
Nathaniel Rich to deal with Walmer and the other castles along the Downs. Walmer Castle was the first to be besieged, and surrendered on 12 July. Deal was attacked in late July, and in August artillery assaults began on Sandown as well, leading to the surrender of both remaining fortifications. Walmer was badly damaged during the conflict and it was estimated by Rich, responsible for carrying out the repairs, that the work would cost at least £500. In 1649, Parliament ordered new supplies of ammunition and powder be sent to Walmer and the other castles of the Downs, which were brought back into good order. The garrison at Walmer remained substantial during the period, with a governor, a corporal and 20 soldiers, but when
Charles II was
restored to the throne in 1660 he reduced the numbers again to a captain, lieutenant, porter and 16 men. In the
Glorious Revolution of 1688 against Charles' brother, King
James II, the townsfolk of Deal seized Walmer Castle on behalf of
William III, the
Prince of Orange. By the end of the century, however, the castle was increasingly regarded as out of date from a military perspective. When
Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset, was appointed to the post in 1708 he decided that the existing residence in
Dover Castle was unsatisfactory, probably because of the semi-ruinous state of the castle, and moved into Walmer Castle instead. The Duke occupied the post of Lord Warden until 1765, save for two periods when it was filled by
James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde and
John Sidney, 6th Earl of Leicester. He carried out extensive work to make the castle more habitable, building extensions towards the north bastion and constructing a small house in the south bastion for the soldiers. The
Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger was then made the Lord Warden in 1792. Pitt was badly in debt and King
George III believed that the post, which came with a salary of £3,000 a year, would usefully supplement Pitt's income. Pitt made extensive use of the castle and by 1803 he used it as his main residence in an effort to reduce his living costs. Pitt's niece, Lady
Hester Stanhope, joined him at Walmer between 1803 and 1806; together with Pitt, she carried out extensive work on the castle gardens, transforming them from a simple
kitchen garden into a set of landscaped ornamental enclosures; Stanhope enlisted the Dover militia to help with the
landscaping and planting. With the outbreak of the
French Revolutionary Wars, Pitt became energetically involved in the protection of the ports along the coast, entertaining the local garrison commanders, naval captains and the local gentry at Walmer on a regular basis. After Pitt resigned as prime minister in 1801, fears remained of a French invasion and he formed a volunteer cavalry unit at Walmer Castle, where he lived with his new officers. He also formed a unit of bombardier infantry and a fleet of 35 fishing boats called
luggers, which he armed with or guns, reviewing them from the castle. Stanhope remarked on the constant drilling of army units around the castle during her time there.
Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, took possession of Walmer Castle following the death of Pitt in 1806. As prime minister, Liverpool used Walmer as a personal retreat and as a location for private political discussions with selected guests.
1829–99 's room, including his original chair and camp bed On Lord Liverpool's death in 1828,
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington and the prime minister at the time, asked King
George IV for the post of Lord Warden, primarily because he was seeking the use of Walmer Castle. Wellington took up post in 1829 and considered Walmer to be "the most charming marine residence". He was visited there twice by
Victoria, once when she was still a princess and later as queen. Wellington let the gardens fall into a poor condition. Wellington died in his room at Walmer on 14 September 1852. His embalmed body was kept in his room to lie in state until 10 November, and when the room was opened for public visitors during the final two days, around 9,000 attended. The Duke's body was finally removed to London via Deal, complete with a military escort.
James Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie became Lord Warden; on his death, the prime minister
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, took over the castle in 1861. This raised the risk that the historical contents of the castle might be sold off at open auction; and some of Wellington's former belongings were therefore removed by his family for safekeeping. Russell noted that the role would be expensive for Granville to perform — the salary had been abolished in 1828 — but that it would provide him with a property by the sea, which Granville had been seeking to acquire for a while. Granville took over Walmer in 1865. He expanded the gardens, built new kennels for a hunting pack and spent many years reassembling the furniture and other objects that Pitt and Wellington had used at the castle. He received large numbers of visitors, many of whom stopped off while travelling to or from France. The diplomat Baron de Malortie visited Granville and his family at Walmer, and later praised the homely atmosphere in the castle. He described how, after breakfast, the family and guests would all gather in the drawing room, which was the only large room in the house, and Granville would answer government correspondence amid the daily life of the rest of the household. The businessman and politician
William Smith was appointed Lord Warden in 1891, but died in Walmer Castle during his first visit here in October of that year. Smith had proposed that the historical artefacts in the castle should be protected from being removed by later Lord Wardens and suggested that government pass an Indenture of Heirlooms Bill.
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, became the next Lord Warden; with adequate legal protection now in place, the
3rd Duke of Wellington suggested returning his grandfather's possessions to the castle, but
Lady Salisbury declined the offer.
20th–21st centuries By 1904 the
War Office had concluded that Walmer had no remaining military value and agreed to transfer the castle to the
Office of Works, who accepted it on the condition that they were paid £2,400 in order to carry out repairs. The Office's survey noted that "the lower floor ... is very inconvenient, dark and not conducive to health while the women servants have to sleep in a sort of dormitory in the slopes of the roof... The principal floor is, generally speaking, badly arranged and badly lighted and the Dining Room is very small"; the report suggested that it would be best to demolish the building and rebuild it. Proposals were made to find the next Lord Warden,
George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, alternative accommodation and the
Royal Marines were approached as replacement tenants for the castle, but declined the offer. Lord Curzon moved into the castle when returned from
India in 1905. His wife,
Mary, fell ill, which Curzon believed to be a result of their poor accommodation, and despite being moved to a new residence, she died shortly afterwards. As a result, Curzon decided to resign the post of Lord Warden, leaving the castle, and subsequently the Prince of Wales, the future
George V, took up the post. His children later commented that they found the castle was chilly and cramped. The prime minister,
H. H. Asquith, was invited by Beauchamp to use the castle during the
First World War as a weekend retreat, as it had good communication links with the front line in France. Asquith's wife,
Margot, was not initially impressed by Walmer, noting in her diary that while it was "very distinguished" and had "great charm", it was "terribly exposed" with "cold... noisy corridors and small rooms"; she later came to like the castle and noted that she was sad to finally leave it. Lygon had sexual relations with men, which was illegal in England during this period. Rumours spread about the parties that he had held at Walmer Castle after the war, where, according to the historian
Richard Davenport-Hines, he had "behaved indiscreetly with young men". The King was informed about his lifestyle and Lygon fled the country in 1931, resigning the appointment of Lord Warden the following year. His wife,
Stella, attempted to restore Wellington's old bedroom to its earlier appearance during the Duke's tenure and, as part of this project, the
4th Duke of Wellington agreed to send the original contents of the room back to the castle, where they still remain. The politician
Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon, became Lord Warden in 1936, followed by Sir
Winston Churchill who followed him in 1941 during the
Second World War. Sir
Robert Menzies, the Australian politician, became the Lord Warden in 1965 and visited the castle on an annual basis, staying in the flat there.
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother followed Menzies in 1978, initially visiting the castle from the Royal Yacht
HMY Britannia, but from 1986 onwards taking over the entire castle for three days each July. This required moving furniture, silverware and other furnishings from London and caused difficulties for English Heritage, who managed the property. Admiral of the Fleet
Michael Boyce, Baron Boyce, took up the post of Lord Warden in 2004. until June 2024 when Sir
George Zambellas became the current Lord Warden. In the 21st century, the property is managed by
English Heritage, attracting 152,391 visitors in 2019. English Heritage carried out a £674,000 programme of improvements to the castle in 2015 intended to improve the visitor experience. The castle is protected under UK law as a
scheduled monument, while the surrounding gardens are protected with a grade II
listing. ==Architecture==