Old maps of Dover

Maps of Dover

Canterbury (Kent)

Canterbury is the largest settlement featured on this drawing, with barracks recorded nearby. The draughtsman has also noted two military batteries along the coast, roughly level with Sandwich. Produced against the background of the Napoleonic Wars, the Ordance Survey drawings show a clear preoccupation with defensive structures, particularly along the vulnerable south coast. On this map, Deal Castle, Sandown Castle and Walmer Castle form a line of protection for the Downs anchorage. Commissioned by Henry VIII in the late 1530s, they were built as a defence against possible invasion after his divorce from Catherine of Aragon angered French and Spanish Catholics. The draughtsman has delineated the distinctive petal formation of Deal Castle, built to resemble the Tudor Rose.

A topographical-map, of the county of Kent, 15

1 Blatt : 54 x 71 cm A. Dury, W. Herbert

St Margaret's Bay

1 : 21120 This rough field sketch of the Kentish coastline was produced on about 12 pieces of thin, irregularly cut, paper which were then joined and laid on thick paper. There is considerable mismatch of detail at the joins. The plan runs from the Strait of Dover, through Dover Castle, St Margaret's Bay, Kingsdown, Walmer Castle and Deal. The red colouring normally used to distinguish buildings in settlement areas was not added to this drawing.

Folkstone (Kent)

Drawing of an area to the east of Folstone in Kent, showing Hawkinge and West Hougham. Dense brushwork interlining ('hachuring') is used in this plan to indicate the contours of the land. Wavy lines indicate woodland. Compared to the later surveys, this drawing is very crude, suggesting it is a preliminary sketch taken in the field.

TR25 - OS 1:25,000 Provisional Series Map

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TR24 - OS 1:25,000 Provisional Series Map

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Kent XLVIII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent LVIII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent LXVIII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent LVII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent LXVII - OS Six-Inch Map

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TR35 - OS 1:25,000 Provisional Series Map

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Plan of Dover Harbour

This is an anonymous plan of proposals for Dover harbour dating from 1552. It is titled 'ffor dovour pere. Thys platt exhibited vnto the kinges maiesties (?) most honorable pryvey counsell the xxiith daye of the monthe of november anno regis Edwardi Sexti sexto: de domini 1552. It is drawn and finished to a high standard, suggesting that it is a show plan intended for presentation. The map extends from Dover Castle to Folkestone. The surrounding area is shown schematically in yellow but is largely obscured by a large, pictorial cartouche containing an explanation of the proposals derived from a separate written statement. Dover Harbour is seen from an imaginary viewpoint to the north-east. The view of the town is considerable foreshortened. The sea is shown at high tide. South-West is at the top and there is a compass rose with North, South, East and West marked schematically with a crescent moon, sun, fleur-de-lys and star. The plan illustrates a variation on the proposals of 1541, shown in a map by Richard Cavendish, for the enclosure of Dover Harbour behind two immense piers stretching south from the old town and north, in this case, from Crane Head with further jetties envisaged to the south of the King's Pier and Archcliff ('Heckclyfe'). Outlines of the continuation of the pier from Crane Head are visible under the blue of the sea suggesting that there were intentions to continue on the shore side behind the pier from the North, but this idea seems to have been abandoned in the process of drawing the plan. The stylistic treatment of the depiction of the sea, the compass star, the land and the buildings, suggests that the draughtsman of this map is the same individual who created an anonymous Dover plan, convincingly dated about 1532 and is likely to have been by a painter rather than an engineer or surveyor. In contrast, this plan represents features of the harbour in a less artistic, more cartographic style. The proposed piers are shown in plan and not, as on the 1532 plan, as if completed. These developments in presentation may be a result of the presence of Sir Richard Lee, a regular visitor to Dover and probable draughtsman of a 1538 view of Dover and of a plan of Orwell Haven where the same presentation methods are employed.

Kent XXXVII - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XXXVI - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XXXVII.SE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XXXVII.SE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XXXVII.SE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XXXVII.SE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.NE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.NE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.NE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.NE - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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Kent XLVIII.SE & XLVIIIA.SW - OS Six-Inch Map

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