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Turn back the clock across the county this week with Tia Challis.
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00:17Hello and welcome to Kent Chronicles live here on KMTV. We turn back time on all of Kent's
00:23history from the medieval era to the industrial revolution and everything in between. I'm Tia
00:28Chalice and join me as we turn back time and discuss all things history. But for this week we'll be
00:34looking into the history of the war in Kent prior to the industrial revolution. First I spoke with
00:39our reporter Daniel O'Domeo about Sandgate Castle for this week's long-standing landmarks.
00:51Hi Daniel, thank you so much for joining me. So first of all can you tell me a little bit
00:55about
00:56the origins of Sandgate Castle? Yeah so it was Henry VIII who ordered his construction as a
01:02part of the device program which was a host of small castles and forts along the coast.
01:07After he split with the Roman Catholic Church he became worried that the Holy Roman Empire would
01:13invade England. The cost of the construction was around I think five thousand pounds which is
01:21five million in today's currency. So obviously a lot of money went into building the castle so
01:26what was actually used for during wartime can you tell me about that? So Sandgate was seized by
01:32parliamentary forces around about the start of the first English Civil War which was around 1642
01:39which ended a couple years later but the peace didn't last long as in 1648 a second civil war broke
01:47out.
01:47The Parliamentary Navy which was based in Kent was protected by nearby castles. Later that year
01:54the fleet had joined in on the rebellion and Sandgate became occupied by the Royalists. A few weeks later
02:02Parliament went on to defeat the Wides insurgency at the Battle of Maidstone then sent forces to finally
02:09deal with the Kentish castles where Sandgate Castle finally fell.
02:14So it seems like the castle's had its fair share of disputes and challenges over the years but
02:18can you tell me a bit more about other challenges it's faced over the years?
02:22Oh yeah so coastal erosion has been a massive issue for Sandgate. The motor used to build the castle was
02:30of poor quality and by 1616 it had started to decay with the cost of repairs being around 260 pounds
02:40which is
02:4160,000 in today's currency. A few years later the castle's captain Richard Shawcroft reported that
02:48the castle was neither habitable or defensible against any assault nor any way fit to command
02:55the roads. While the castle was repaired in 1638 coastal erosion and damage from the sea have remained a
03:02constant issue in Sandgate's history.
03:12Now it's time to put on your thinking caps with this week's Tea Time Trivia with Becky Udall.
03:19The Wars of the Roses were a series of battles fought across England from 1455 to 1487 between the
03:28supporters of the House of Lancaster and the House of York as they vied for the control of the English
03:33throne. This week we visited Sandwich in Kent to ask the locals during the War of the Roses which side
03:41won the Battle of Sandwich. Was it a the Yorkists or b the Lancasters?
03:46I didn't know about that one. The Lancasters. Lancaster. Yorkists.
03:53That's right it was a the Yorkists. On the 15th of January 1460 Sir John Dinham of the House of
04:02York
04:02arrived at the port of Sandwich near dawn where he discovered the slumbering naval fleet of Lancaster
04:08King Henry VI of England. Taking advantage of this golden opportunity he launched a sneak attack on
04:14them. Dinham eventually joined by the Earl of Warwick and Sir John Wenlock succeeded in defeating
04:21the Lancaster fleet as well as capturing several of its ships.
04:29And earlier I was joined by Eleanor Gonsalves to learn all about the history of the Wellington boot
04:35and the supreme military commander that inspired the name. Let's take a look.
04:47Hi Eleanor thanks for joining me. So first off can you tell me all about this week's Alluring Artifact?
04:51Yeah of course. So this week's Alluring Artifact is an object that it feels quite every day to us but
04:56has a very interesting historical backstory and it's these boots on the screen behind me.
05:00And can you tell me what's so interesting about these boots? So these ones belong to the Duke of
05:05Wellington. He spent a lot of time in Kent, he spent a lot of time in Dover through his role
05:09as Lord
05:10Warden of the Sinkports and later in his life came to Warmer and even died in Warmer Castle where these
05:15boots are now housed with a lot of other artefacts related to the Duke of Wellington. A lot of history
05:20there with fashion and military and can you tell me a bit more about that? What makes these boots so
05:24important in relation to him? Yeah of course. So in the 1790s soldiers were generally wearing these
05:30boots called Hessians. They were knee high and they were calf skin and they were decorated with a tassel.
05:35As the 1790s went on soldiers started wearing these looser trousers that were better for warmer
05:40climates but unfortunately it meant that these tassels didn't work with those trousers. So in the 1800s
05:47then the Viscount Wellington went to his shoemaker and asked him to make him boots without this tassel which
05:52he then would wear into battle. So it seems like he set a lot of trends and have Wellingtons continued
05:58to be influential and worn by senior officers since then? Yeah so following on from him senior officers
06:04in the British Army continued to wear these boots and then in 1856 a rubber company started making
06:10the first ever rubber boots that we would know today as Wellingtons. Then when it came to the First
06:14World War in 1916 the same company was commissioned to make millions of these boots for soldiers and with
06:20the hopes that they would keep their feet dry and it would avoid trench foot. Then these soldiers came
06:25home they introduced them to farms they were used for gardening and today they're used for practical
06:29uses in the home and they're still known as Wellingtons. Thank you so much for all the information.
06:43And for this week's Periodic Profile our reporter Lucy Keane went back down to Dover Castle
06:49and spoke to Len Howell to learn all about Hubert de Burr.
07:02We're back at Dover Castle but this week instead of looking at the infamous landmark itself
07:08we are going to be investigating Hubert de Burr and his relationship to the castle.
07:15Hubert de Burr was a loyalist to the kings of England especially King John. In 1203, 1204 something
07:26like that he was made as constable of Sheenon Castle, a hugely important castle on the continent
07:32and indeed held it long after English influence there had collapsed. He came back to this country,
07:41he was made Justicia of England which is basically the chief law officer under King John. 1215 you
07:49get the barons, so the nobles of this country fed up with King John's rule, they start to rebel against
07:56him. You have Magna Carta that is forced on the king and as I often say most people don't realise
08:04neither side had any intention of honouring Magna Carta when it was initially produced. The king wasn't
08:10going to submit to the barons overview, they didn't trust him to give up the lands that they possessed
08:15but Hubert was still loyal to John. In 1216 those same barons invited Louis the son of the then king
08:24of France to come over to be king of this England. They said that John basically had given up his
08:29right
08:29to be king. Louis landed at Sandwich in May 1216 very quickly had taken over the vast majority of the
08:39south and east of this country but there were two major castles and some minor castles still loyal to
08:46John, one of which was Dover Castle and Hubert de Burt was constable of Dover Castle arranging the
08:52defences during the siege of the latter part of 1216. After the barons war ended Hubert became the
08:59new guardian of young King Henry III and when Henry came of age Hubert became justica for life as well
09:05as Earl of Kent, Governor of Rochester Castle and Lord of Montgomery Castle. He was one of the most
09:12influential English noblemen of the 13th century and he ensured that England remained stable and free
09:18of French invasion. Lucy Keane reports.
09:27And finally for this week's A Town Through Time, our reporter Manjosh Sohota joins me now to tell us
09:33all about the Battle of Maidstone, a historic conflict which took place during the Second
09:37English Civil War. So hi Manjosh, what can you tell me about the battle first of all?
09:42The Battle of Maidstone occurred during the Second English Civil War on June the 1st 1648 at
09:48Gabriel Hills. It was the Second English Civil War caused by discontent over heavy taxes
09:53and suppression of traditional Christmas celebrations which caused rebellion.
09:58So who was involved in the battle there? The battle was between parliamentary forces led by
10:03Sir Thomas Fairfax and the Royalists who were led by the Earl of Norwich
10:08in the Second English Civil War. To give some more detail, the largest bit was between Royalists
10:16loyal to King Charles and Oliver Cromwell's new model army. Cromwell's army had the superior strength
10:23and Royalists were a mix of local military and less experienced fighters in comparison to Fairfax troops
10:28who were bigger in number and better trained.
10:32So quite a lot of troops there and tell me what was the outcome of the battle between the two
10:36sides?
10:38The Royalists suffered many casualties and the defeat was a major blow to the Royalists effort
10:42in the South East and helped Parliament regain control of the County of Kent. The aftermath of
10:48this battle led to further campaigns ultimately leading to King Charles I's trial and execution.
10:54And finally, quickly now, is there anything from the battle that survives today?
10:59There is surviving architecture such as East Farley Bridge and All Saints Church. There is a memorial
11:05stone outside the museum and St Faith's Church with a plaque marking the last stand of Royalist defenders.
11:12The town also has historical groups who regularly host re-enactments.
11:16Thank you so much for joining me man, Josh. Well, it looks like that was one for the history books.
11:22You've been watching Kent Chronicles live here on KMTV. Don't forget though, there's always history
11:27happening around us and if you have a story you think we should cover, then please get in touch.
11:31And if you're more interested in the present than the past, we have other programmes to watch as well.
11:36But for now, have a very good evening. See you soon. Goodbye.
11:45Bye.
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