The Gate House

The Gate House

Gate lodge built in 1850 in Gothic style, situated at the junction of Victoria Park and Castle Hill in Dover. The building is constructed of squared and knapped flints with some flint galleting, cement dressings, and a slate roof with two cemented chimneystacks rising to the east side.

The structure has an unusual plan, being narrow in footprint with one storey to the north and two storeys to the south, culminating in a narrow two-storey circular stair tower at the south end. The west or entrance front is faced in squared flints and features a projecting gable with stepped kneelers to the south. This gable contains a small single-light 20th-century casement on the first floor and a tripartite window on the ground floor with a 20th-century four-pane wooden casement and cemented dressings. The north bay is set back and rises to one storey only, with two narrow light windows. A 20th-century flat-roofed wooden extension is attached to the north, to the west of the original retaining wall, but is not of special interest. The entrance is positioned to the south in a narrow two-storey circular tower of squared flint. This tower features cemented crenellated battlements with pseudo-machicolations, a cemented band between floors, a lancet window, and an arched doorcase with crenellated top, offset buttresses, and a ribbed wooden door. The adjoining south gable end has a ground-floor narrow wooden 20th-century fixed window with an iron footscraper below. The east side rear elevation facing Castle Hill is built of knapped flint with flint galleting and has no window openings. The parapet is finished with cement crenellations and cement end quoins.

The interior was refurbished in the 20th century, though some original wooden ceiling beams are reported to survive. The living room fireplace may be 19th century in date. The bathroom and bedroom doors were brought in from houses in Victoria Park. The wooden spiral staircase in the tower is thought to be a replacement.

The Gate House was built as the gate lodge to Victoria Park, constructed in 1850 at the same time as the crescent opposite. Victoria Park was an exclusive crescent of houses built facing a green to the south-east, below Dover Castle, and features prominently in views of Dover Castle from the south. The houses are reported to have been built as officers' quarters for the Dover garrison. Originally, a gate in front of the lodge controlled access to Victoria Park. The exterior survives substantially intact, with later window alterations made largely in character.