MEDWAY DISTRICT
STATELY HOMES, CASTLES & TOWERS
Various Stately homes, Country houses, Castles and Towers still exist around our county of Kent and in among the history, some are rumored to be haunted. These include Sir Winston Churchill and Charles Darwin among others. there is also a few lesser known treasures which have their own surprises in store. check out what we found so far for the District of Medway
It should not be assumed that these sites are all publicly accessible and may be on private property. Please check first and get permission, if necessary....Do not trespass!
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If we have missed any out or you hear of any reports of Paranormal Activity at any of the ruins or the castles that arent reported here, please get in touch. Thankyou
RESTORATION HOUSE - 17-19 CROW LANE, ROCHESTER, ME1
Restoration House as we see it today is the amalgamation of two buildings which were combined in the late 16th or early 17th century to create a mansion house just outside the south east corner of the city wall of Rochester. It takes its name from the stay of King Charles II on the eve of the Restoration. It is also the Satis House of Dickens’ “Great Expectations”, the home of Miss Havisham.
It originally two medieval buildings (1454 and 1502–22) with a space between. They were joined together in 1640-1660 (tree ring data from roof) by inserting a third building between the two, to create a larger house. The first owner of the completed house was Henry Clerke and his son Francis, both ambitious lawyers and were both elected several times as Royalist members of Parliament for Rochester.
The Civil War during the 1640’s led to this property, which was central to their political effectiveness and being secluded, was occupied by Colonel Gibbon, Cromwell’s commander in the South East. however with the death of Cromwell in 1658 and the weakness of his son, Royalist forces began plotting to restore the deposed King’s son, Charles Stuart, exiled in France and Holland, back onto the throne.
From early 1660 plans were advancing and Rochester being the only crossing of the Medway on the road from Dover to London, it was a strategic consideration, more so with a large part of the nation’s fleet, much expanded under Cromwell, being moored at Chatham Dockyard nearby.
The mansion in the ownership of Royalist Francis Clerke and presumably with the cooperation of Colonel Gibbon, was fitted up to receive the young Charles and to act as his overnight base in Rochester, an important stage on his progress to London. With Charles were his two younger brothers the Dukes of York and Gloucester.
Charles had landed in Dover on 25th May 1660 and by the evening of the 28th arrived in Rochester. He was received by the Mayor and eventually retired for the night at Restoration House. The following day Charles continued to London and was proclaimed King on 29 May, his 30th birthday. Although the home of Colonel Gibbon, the property was actually still owned by Sir Francis Clerke (he was knighted during the visit), a fact which has led to confusion in the past.
Clerke made further works in 1670, by refacing the entrance facade, the Great Staircase and other internal works. The house was then bought by William Bockenham and then it was owned by Stephen T. Aveling in the late 19th century and he wrote a history of the house which was published in Vol. 15 of "Archaeologia Cantiana"
The house was purchased by the English entertainer Rod Hull, in 1986, to save it from being turned into a car park and he then spent another £500,000 restoring it but It was taken by the Receiver in 1994 to cover an unpaid tax bill.
The current owners over the past decade have uncovered decoration schemes from the mid 17th century, which reveal the fashionable taste of the period, much influenced by the fashions on the continent.
Although essentially a private home, the house and garden are open to the public during the summer
HAUNTING
It is said to be haunted by the ghostly apparition of a man, who has been seen to walk across the room and walk through the wall in the bedroom King Charles II slept in. There is also said to be the ghost of a young pregnant woman, possibly a maid, who is seen to run from the house in the middle of the night, slamming shut the great door and heading towards the Vines. There is also the ghostly apparition of a Benedictine monk, who has been seen appearing next to a fireplace and glide around the house.
ROCHESTER CASTLE - ROCHESTER ME1
Rochester Castle and its massive keep are situated in the City of Rochester, one side is the River. Rochester Cathedral stands opposite and many Victorian and older buildings surround on all sides. The moat has long since silted up and was used as a graveyard and it also protected the River Medway, which once served as a vital route to London.
Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, started work on building the castle in about 1087. The keep (great tower) was built by William de Corbeil, Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1127, when he was granted custody of the castle. The Archbishops of Canterbury remained in custody of the castle until 1215, when King John of England launched a two month siege against baron rebels who took refuge in the castle. During this siege considerable damage was sustained. Having first undermined the outer wall, John used the fat of 40 pigs to fire a mine under the keep, bringing its southern corner crashing down. Even then the defenders held on, until they were eventually starved out after resisting for two months.
In 1264, between 17-26 April, the castle was attacked by two rebel armies. Gilbert de Clare came up from his castle at Tonbridge, then the following day (Good Friday) Simon de Montfort came from London. Within a day they had captured the outer bailey and trapped the defending soldiers, led by Roger de Leybourne, within the keep. A truce was declared on Easter Sunday, but the following day saw more fighting. The castle was extensively damaged by stone throwing machines, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. Simon de Montfort gave up his fight after hearing that the King was approaching with a large army.
The castle saw military action for the last time in 1381 when it was captured and ransacked during the Peasants' Revolt. As Rochester Castle fell out of use its materials were reused elsewhere and custodianship relinquished by the Crown.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, some parts of Rochester Castle were in a state of ruin and others were still being used. Some of the stone of the outer wall was sold as building material, yet some of the towers were still being lived in.
The castle and its grounds were opened to the public in the 1870's as a park. At various points during the 19th and 20th centuries repairs were carried out. The castle is now protected as a Grade I listed building and Scheduled Monument. Today the ruins are in the guardianship of English Heritage and Medway Council now look after the property and it is now open to the public as a tourist attraction.
HAUNTINGS
The siege by Simon de Montfort give rise to the legend of 'The White Lady of Rochester Castle' said to be that of Lady Blanche De Warrene, who was watching the skirmish from the southern battlements of the castle. Sir Gilbert de Clare, the rejected suitor of Lady Blanche de Warrene had donned an identical surcoat to that worn by Sir Ralph and was able to ride unchallenged into the castle and climb to the ramparts where he seized her. Sir Ralph looked up from the fighting and saw his lover struggling against a vicious assault. He seized an archer's bow, took aim, and fired an arrow high into the air. Tragically, it bounced off de Clare's armour and killed Blanche and since that night, her ghost was seen walking upon the battlements, on the anniversary of her death, the arrow still protruding from her, said to be a sad figure, whose dark hair, streaming in the breeze, provides a vivid contrast to the brilliant white of her dress."
The ghost of a man, thought to be the writer Charles Dickens, has also been seen near the Old Burial Ground in the moat of Rochester Castle on the 24th December each year. Dickens had expressed a wish that he should be buried there but after his death he was deemed to be too important to have a resting place there and so he is interred in Westminster Abbey.
There is also story of a ghostly Drummer Boy, that can be heard beating his drum from time to time at certain hours throughout the night.
During an investigation by A.S.S.A.P, it was reported the movement activated security light turned itself on and off many times throughout the night, when no-one was in range. Metallic Clicks were heard from the Keep and many other unexplained noise, including footsteps were heard during the investigation but nothing caught on camera or seen.
UPNOR CASTLE - UPNOR RD, ROCHESTER ME2
It’s rumored that Queen Elizabeth 1 visited the castle to inspect her fleet. Although not recorded anywhere, it seems likely, as it was Her Majesty who commissioned the castle in 1559, when the Privy council decided that some kind of fortification was required. A gun fort to protect her warships anchored in the Medway. It was started under the supervision of Richard Watts, MP for Rochester (the Richard Watts of the Six Poor Travellers/Almshouses fame) with a chain across the Medway added in 1585. It was finally completed in 1601 and protected the naval harbour at Chatham. In 1603 2 sconces were added for extra protection for the rear, they were named the Warham and Bay sconces
In the Civil war in 1642, the Castle and Sconces were taken by Parliament from the crown and stayed in their hands for the rest of the war, except for a short time during the Kentish uprising, when workers from the Chatham dockyard seized the castle and the ships anchored below it and set free the Royalist imprisoned there. the rising collapsed and the Parliamentary forces gained control again.
In 1667 during the Dutch raid, the Duke of Albemarle, was sent to take charge of the English forces, as the Dutch had delivered a crippling blow to the English fleet, after their defeat at sea and had destroyed and captured over 20 of the English fleet, including the Flag ship 'The Royal Charles'. He set up an eight gun battery outside the castle, which became known as Middletones Battery and when the dutch resumed their attack with a bombardment of Upnor castle, found they couldn't further their advances, so returned to Queensborough and set to sea 4 days later and this was the only military engagement that the castle was involved in.
In 1668 the castle was converted into stores and magazines for the Navy, barrels of gunpowder was stored there.
In 1718 the Barracks were constructed to accommodate 2 officers and 64 men.
in 1778 the castle was controlled by a Governor
The castle remained a magazine fort until 1827 when it became an ordnance laboratory and by 1840 had no explosives stored. In 1891 the castle was transferred from the war office to the admiralty and it was used as a navy supply department and during WWI & WWII the castle was part of a magazine establishment.
In 1961 the ministry of defence handed the castle to the Ministry of Works to be kept as an ancient Monument
HAUNTINGS
Upnor Castle visitors have reported to Custodians of the castle, seeing a soldier in full uniform, thinking it was someone in costume, until told otherwise and the have been witness to strange things themselves, Castle Custodians Dave and Phil shared their experiences and a stories of the visitors and there have been various Paranormal Investigations held there over the years.