 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Walmer" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Walmer | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Walmer Location withinKent | |
| Population | 7,842 (2021 census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TR374505 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Deal |
| Postcode district | CT14 |
| Dialling code | 01304 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| UK Parliament | |
| 51°12′15″N1°23′55″E / 51.2043°N 1.3985°E /51.2043; 1.3985 | |
Walmer is a town inthe district of Dover, Kent, in England. Located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is six miles (9.7 km) south-east ofSandwich, Kent. The town's coastline and castle are popular amongst tourists. It has apopulation of 6,693 (2001), increasing to 8,178 at the2011 Census.[1]
Walmer is closely associated with its adjoining neighbour, the town ofDeal - sharing many amenities and services and benefiting from Deal's High Street shopping area.
Walmer railway station is on theKent Coast Line.
Julius Caesarreputedly landed on the beach here in 55 BC and 54 BC. It is only one possible landing place, proposed judging from the distances given in his account of the landings in hisGallic Wars. In the 19th century it was thought that he had landed byDeal Castle – hence a house there withSPQR emblazoned on its gate – but in 1907 the landing point has been proposed to be half a mile further south, beyond the lifeboat station, and marked by a concrete memorial. However, new archaeological excavations performed since 2015 suggest instead that the landing occurred atEbbsfleet, at the head ofPegwell Bay,[3][4][5] inThanet, further north along the Kent coast.
The coastal confederation ofCinque Ports during its mediæval period consisted of a confederation of 42 towns and villages in all.This includes Walmer, as a 'Limb' ofSandwich, Kent.[6]
Walmer Castle and its formal gardens are an attraction for visitors. The official residence ofLord Warden of the Cinque Ports since the 18th Century,[7] the building is now anEnglish Heritage property.Famous Lords Warden have includedQueen Elizabeth the Queen Mother,[8] SirWinston Churchill,[9]William Pitt the Younger[7] (whose nieceLady Hester Stanhope[10] first created the gardens), andthe Duke of Wellington[7] (of theBattle of Waterloo fame). Wellington lived there for 23 years and the castle houses not only a collection of Wellington memorabilia but also the room in which he died.
The Castle was built in 1540 as one of three on this part of the Kent coast by orders ofHenry VIII.[11] The others were nearby atDeal (southern Deal) andSandown (north Deal) - the Deal one survives, the Sandown one has been lost tocoastal erosion.[12]
Walmer Aerodrome was a First World War airfield established by the Royal Naval Air Service in 1917 on Hawkshill Down near Walmer, Kent.[13] Its primary role was to provide air defence during both World Wars. The station operated fighter aircraft includingSopwith Camels during the First World War, and accommodated both British and Allied pilots.[13]
The last aeroplanes left the aerodrome in 1919, and the site later reopened during the Second World War for radar tracking.[13] After 1945 the land returned to agricultural use, though memorials and information boards mark its historical significance.[14]
Brewing in Walmer is thought to date back to at least the Tudor period, but the best-known brewery began in 1816 when Edmund Thompson acquired a small brewery on Dover Road, just south of old Walmer village.[15] He operated it as Thompson & Sons until 1867, when the business was sold to John Matthews, who expanded and modernised the site while retaining the Thompson name.[16]
By the late nineteenth century the brewery includedmaltings, abrewhouse, abottling plant, stables and workers’ cottages, making it a significant local employer.[15] In the 1950s it was taken over byCharringtons, after which production declined and the site was used mainly for bottling and distribution.[16] The brewery closed in 1972 and was demolished in 1978 to make way for the Downlands housing development.[17] The name of the Thompson’s Bell public house commemorates the brewery’s former bell tower, although it is unclear whether the original bell was ever relocated to the pub, and some reports even suggest the bell may have been damaged in the move and might no longer be on site.[18]
Anelectoral ward in the same name exists. The population of this ward at the 2011 census was 7,434.[19]
People born in Walmer include:
People who died in Walmer include:
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
