Upnor Castle (England)

Upnor Castle is an artillery fort in the village of Upnor on the west bank of the River Medway in the Borough of Medway, England. The fort is diagonally opposite and slightly downriver from Chatham Dockyard, a once important military facility that was designed to protect it along with the Royal Navy ships anchored in the River Medway. The fort was built at the behest of Queen Elizabeth I in the years 1559–1567, a time of tension between England and Spain and other European powers. The castle consists of a two-story main building protected by a curtain wall and towers. A triangular gun platform protrudes into the river. Upnor Castle had a garrison of 80 men and, at its best, was armed with 20 cannons of various calibers.

Despite their strategic importance, the castle and the defenses on the Thames and Medway Rivers were severely neglected in the 17th century. The Dutch Republic carried out an unexpected attack from the sea in June 1667 and the Dutch fleet was able to break through the defensive lines, capture two English warships, set others on fire and anchor in the river at Chatham. It was one of the worst defeats the Royal Navy has ever suffered. Upnor Castle fared better than the other defenses up the river, although poorly stocked. Gunfire from the fort and the nearby gun platforms forced the Dutch fleet to retreat after a few days before they managed to set the shipyard on fire themselves.

The attack revealed the weakness of the defenses on the Medway River and resulted in the abandonment of Upnor Castle as an artillery fort. New and stronger forts were built further downstream in the next two centuries, e.g. B. the massive casemate forts Garrison Point Fort, Fort Hoo and Fort Darnet. Upnor Castle became a Navy ammunition depot, where large quantities of gunpowder, ammunition and cannons were stored to equip ships that came to Chatham for repair or remunition. It remained in military use until 1945. The castle was then opened to the public and is now managed by English Heritage.