Cruise Terminal 1, including attached pedestrian walkway, war memorial, and four K6 Telephone Kiosks

Cruise Terminal 1, including attached pedestrian walkway, war memorial, and four K6 Telephone Kiosks

A railway station opened in 1914 for the South Eastern and Chatham Railway, later converted to a cruise terminal. It was designed by Mr P Tempest, Engineer to the railway company, in Beaux Arts style. The building underwent restoration following war damage.

The structure comprises a large rectangular terminus station with the particular character of a port station designed for a very large volume of traffic. It consists of a large formal frontage with a steel and glass-roofed trainshed containing the usual offices, together with a war memorial, and a linked small pedestrian entrance block on Lord Warden Square connected to the main station building by a long elevated walkway.

The main station building is constructed of stone on its north-western end with red brick sides. The roof is steel and glass in cathedral style, not visible behind the parapet. The north-western elevation features ashlar with rusticated dressings. The central section has a large central round-headed opening, originally accommodating two tracks, with a rusticated surround and enriched keystone bearing the inscription "S E and C R" above. Flanking this are full-height narrow rusticated arches containing circular windows with Gibbs surround pedestrian entrances. The rusticated surrounds rise to an interrupted cornice with blank cartouches in the parapet. The flanking lower bays have rusticated round-headed arches and end quoins, originally containing single tracks. The other elevations are mainly of red brick with some ashlar dressings. The south-east elevation features pilasters at regular intervals and some black brick dressings, with five sash windows having cambered heads and a glazed canopy. Two K6 telephone kiosks are situated at the south-western corner.

The pedestrian walkway entrance block is a three-bay single-storey structure with doors flanking a central window. The north-west side has channelled vermiculated stonework with quarry-faced quoins and voussoirs to semi-circular headed openings. An elaborate cornice runs above, supporting a slate French pavilion roof. A nine-pane circular window is positioned centrally. The central window has thirty panes. The return bays have round-headed windows flanked by rusticated engaged Tuscan columns, with the remainder constructed of brick with stone dressings. The sides of the walkway are constructed of steel with elliptical roof trusses and continuous windows. Internal flights of steps have cast iron railings with circular designs.

The interior of the main station features a steel and glass cathedral roof with steelwork by the Butterley Company of Derby. Red brick platform buildings with black brick dressings support a central nave with double aisles on either side. Square section columns support elliptical trusses to the nave and semi-circular trusses to the aisles, all in riveted steelwork. Steel footbridges with cast iron railings featuring circular motifs span the platforms. The platform buildings are single-storey in Flemish bond brickwork with bands of black brick, featuring twelve-pane sash windows with elliptical heads and horns, and doorcases with elliptical fanlights. Two K6 telephone kiosks are situated adjoining the northern platform buildings.

The northern range of platform buildings terminates on the north-eastern side in a stone-faced war memorial bearing the names of 356 men of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway who died in the First World War and 626 men of the Southern Railway who died in the Second World War. The memorial takes the form of a round-headed arch with a weeping figure at each corner and a central inscribed tablet with names under a stylised wreath, flanked by the dates of the First World War. Further south-east, on a carved granite plinth raised on two steps, stands a bronze sculpture by W C H King, cast by Mario Manenti of Fulham Road. The sculpture represents the winged figure of Victory, battered by conflict but still holding aloft the Torch of Truth, flanked by a soldier and a sailor, determined despite weariness. Behind stands a bugler who has just sounded the Last Post over the fallen.