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Canterbury
Excursion
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Westgate
Tower Gardens
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The Westgate Tower Gardens
were formally opened in 1936.
The site has been a public space
since the middle ages but prior
to that many disputes arose
between residents and the
Prior of Christ Church about
the garden’s ownership. The
site is one of the oldest parks in
the UK. The Westgate Gardens
extend along the river Stour.
Westgate
Tower
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TheWestgate Tower is 60 foot
high and it is one of the largest
surviving city gates in the UK. It
was built around 1397 and it is
the last survivor of Canterbury’s
seven medieval gates.The Gate is
still verywell preserved and it is
one of the city’s most distinctive
landmarks.TheWest Gate was
built by Archbishop Sudbury to
replace an earlier Roman gate.
For many years theWest Gate
served as the town prison and
it was connected by a walkway
to the police station next door.
Today theWest Gate houses
theWest Gate Towers Museum,
which houses armour and
weapons used by the defenders
of Canterbury from the medieval
period toWorldWar II.
Castle Ruins
(Norman Castle)
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The ruins of the Canterbury
Castle are amongst the most
ancient in the UK. The castle
has acted as a royal residence,
a fortification and a prison. By
the 17th century the castle was
already completely ruined and
could not be used for any of
its former purposes. The sole
surviving and visible part of
the castle is the great tower or
’keep’. Today you can climb half
way up the tower.The Castle was
once one of the three original
Royal castles of Kent, the other
two being Rochester Castle and
Dover Castle.The Castle was built
soon after the Battle of Hastings
on the main road fromDover to
London and used byWilliam the
Conqueror. It was originally built
as a mote-and-bailey castle to
guard the important route
fromDover to London.
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