Chatham Dockyards

A dockyard has existed at Chatham since the 1500s, however none of those old tutor structures survive today. A dockyard has existed on the current Chatham Historic Dockyard site, located in Kent, England, since the 1600s. The Chatham Dockyard has been a major part in the Royal Navy given it's status as a Royal Dockyard. Two ships built in Chatham fought against the Spanish Armada during 1588, and Admiral Nelson's flagship which fought at the Battle of Trafalgar was built here. As the ships became too big for Chatham, this dockyard found it's purpose go from building battleships to building submarines; and so it gained a specialism in submarine construction.

For both world wars, Chatham returned to being a fleet base with new Royal Naval Barracks being constructed to the east of the Victorian Dockyard extension. These Chatham Division men saw conflict through both world wars during conflicts such as Gallipoli and the Somme. Following 1956, Chatham became home to the reserve fleet with a number of operational ships being based here. The dockyard's final day of operation was the 30th of March 1984, and the Chatham Historic Dockyard has operated as a museum ever since.

There are a few hauntings reported at this location, although not as many as you'd expect for a place so heavily involved in war. Lord Nelson is the famous spirit of this location, although no one knows exactly why he is said to haunt here. The Commissioner's House and Ropery seem to be the most active parts of the dockyard. Other spirits present include a grey lady, a headless drummer boy, a Spanish-looking man, and a prior master shipwright.

History

The Chatham Historic Dockyard has been referred to as the world's most complete dockyard of the Age of Sail; this being a time when the Royal Navy dominated the oceans. It was through this domination that Great Britain was established as a global power. Regarding the dockyard today, it seems like what was once all one big dockyard has been split into three seperate segments. More detail on this split will occur towards the end of the article. The segment which is a museum today is known as the Chatham Historic Dockyard. I will discuss all three segments as one complete part through this article, until discussing the split in more detail, as I'm unsure as to exactly what was in which segment as time progressed.

The first documented evidence of the Royal Navy using the River Medway, which is where the Chatham Dockyard is based, dates back to 1547. This documentation was in the Pipe Roll Accounts of 1547 and it records a rental of two storehouses on 'Jyllingham Water'. By 1570, dockyard facilities had been constructed below Chatham Church. This location was close to where Chatham Waterfront Bus Station is today. The early dockyard had a wharf, storehouses, and a slipway. Apparently, it's generally agreed that the location's status as a Royal Dockyard was established by Queen Elizabeth I during the year of 1567. These Royal Dockyards were the heart of shore support infrastructure, and so provided the navy with facilities required to build, repair, and maintain the fleet.

The first warship known to be built in the Tudor Chatham Dockyard was the Merlin. This ship launched during 1579 and was a Pinnace which had ten guns. During the year of 1588, the shipwrights based at Chatham prepared the Queen's ships to face the Spanish Armada. The majority of the fleet set sail during the March of 1588 under the Lord High Admiral, Lord Howard of Effingham. In order to fight the Spanish fleet, they made their way West towards Plymouth. Two of the ships which fought the Armada were built in Chatham. These ships were the Merlin and the Sunne. During the year of 1618, the dockyard was moved to the site of the present Historic Dockyard site. The old Tudor site was redeveloped as Gun Wharf for the Ordinance Board's facilities at Chatham, and so no buildings from the Tudor dockyard survive today.

A reason for the dockyard moving site downstream is the Tudor dockyard lacked the space needed to build dry docks. By 1618, the new Stuart dockyard was built and it was operational with storehouses, slips, and a Ropery. By 1625, a dry dock had been built along with houses for senior dockyard officers. Dry docks were central to the Royal Dockyards. The quantity of these expensive structures were what set the Royal Dockyards apart from merchant shipyards. This new location for the dockyard meant it was well placed to support the Royal Navy through a series of trade wars with the Dutch which were predominantly fought in the English Channel and the North Sea. It was due to these Dutch trade wars that the dockyard became the Royal Navy's principal fleet base; a role it maintained until the early years of the 1700s.

Today, only archaeological evidence remains of the early Stuart dockyard. This evidence is located around the Commissioner's House and the garden. During the year of 1667, Chatham was attacked by the Dutch fleet. The Dutch fleet not only destroyed much of the fleet which was at anchor, but they also towed away the flagship Royal Charles. During 1688, the Glorious Revolution occured which united Britain and Holland under William and Mary. This unification led to over a century of conflict with France and Spain as all three powers sought control of territory and trade with the Americas, East Indies, and Asia. This meant British naval activity was drawn westwards away from the North Sea and English Channel. Due to the conflict moving further away from Chatham Dockyard, the role of fleet base passed to Portsmouth and the newly built Plymouth Dock.

Chatham Dockyard took the role of being Britain's principal shipbuilding and repair yard. This meant it built many of the largest ships of the fleet. It also undertook the larger and longest repairs, rebuilds, and refits. When new facilities were acquired, the Stuart Dockyard was heavily rebuilt to take on much of the shape and form of the current Historic Dockyard. During the years of 1696 and 1702, two new Mast Ponds were dug. These were added to enable that fir logs used for mast making could be seasoned underwater. Both of these ponds remain today with the first being an archaeological site. The second pond is known as the North Mast Pond, and it is the Historic Dockyard's earliest surviving visible historic structure.

During both the 1700s and 1800s, the Royal Navy had great success at sea. This was possible through Britain's long-term funding of both the Navy and a network of shore support facilities across the world; at the heart of which was the Royal Dockyards. By the middle of the 1700s, the Royal Dockyards had developed into the world's largest industrial organisations. They employed thousands of well-paid and skilled artisans across a wide number of trades. During 1704, the Commissioner's House was completed at the Chatham Dockyard; and this structure is Britain's oldest surviving intact naval building. The house was built for Captain George St Lo who was newly promoted from Plymouth Dock. The house was built on the same site as it's predecessor, and so it inherited the garden which was first laid out by Phineas Pott during the 1640s.

From 1704, over the next thirty years many of the surviving buildings and structures were built. These include the Clock tower Building, which was built during 1723, plus the Main Gate Dockyard Wall, the Officer's Terrace, the Sail and Colour Loft, and the first Hemp House. There are over one hundred buildings and structures at the Historic Dockyard. Forty-seven of these are scheduled Ancient Monuments which are protected by law, and the majority of the buildings were built between the years of 1704 and 1855. In total, the Historic Dockyard is eighty acres in size. The mid-years of the 1700s saw the timber framed, timber clad Mast Houses and Mould loft built. This was done between the years of 1753 and 1755. During the 1770s and 1780s, the Timber Seasoning Sheds and the Wheelwrights Shop were built.

During the last decades of the 1700s, the Navy Board's attention returned to Chatham with the wholesale rebuilding of the Southern end of the dockyard. Two new large storehouses were built on the Anchor Wharf with a new large Double Ropehouse. This combined both spinning and ropelaying operations under one roof for the first time. This Ropery was built during 1790, and it is apparently the longest brick building in Europe. On the 7th of July 1759, the order for the HMS Victory to be built at Chatham was signed by the Navy Board. On the 23rd of July 1759, the first timbers to be used for the keel were brought together at the Old Single Dock in a ceremony that William Pitt the Elder, who was Prime Minister at the time, and the Future Earl of Chatham are thought to have attended.

Once the frame was complete, it was left to 'season in frame' until the Seven Years War had ended and work could restart. The HMS Victory was launched on the 7th of May 1765 after it was completed and fitted out. This vessel was not originally for war, but was instead for the reserve fleet. During 1778, the HMS Victory left Chatham to serve as Augustus Keppel's flagship. Following the Battle of Cape St Vincent, which occured during 1797, the HMS Victory returned to Chatham and underwent a great amount of repair. It returned to sea as Nelson's flagship and fought in the Battle of Trafalger on the 21st of October 1805. This battle ended France's ambitions of invading Britain during the Napoleonic Wars.

As there was need for greater speed and efficiency in the Royal Dockyards to keep up with demand during the Napoleonic Wars, many of the great engineers and architects of the day came to be. These included Marc Brunel, Henry Maudslay, John Rennie, Samuel Bentham, Simon Goodrich, and Edward Hill. They all became involved in mechanisation of industrial processes from sawing timber to the manufacture of rope and paint. During 1808, new ironworks facilities were built at Chatham Dockyard and this included the No. 1 Smithery which remained in use until 1974. The Ropery became mechanised during 1809, and No. 2 slip became covered during 1813 with No. 1 slip becoming covered during 1815. The covered slips were vast timber-roofed buildings designed to protect ships under construction or repair from the weather. During 1814, one of Britain's first steam powered saw mills was built at Chatham Dockyard.

During 1815, the Napoleonic Wars ended and this ushered in a century of 'Pax Britannica'. This is Latin for 'British Peace' and meant that the major powers were not at war until 1914. During this time, Britain had undisputed naval power and they secured their position as a global superpower. This period laid the foundations for the modern world today. Despite the peace, Chatham Dockyard continued to improve and so the Lead and Paint Mill was built during 1818, and a new stone dry dock with a steam powered pumping station was completed during 1820. New office accommodation for the dockyard's principal officers, which is now the Admiral's Offices, was added too along with the Royal Dockyard Church for the dockyard's employees.

From 1832, the Navy entered a period of technological change with the introduction of both steam and iron to shipbuilding. During the September of 1832, the first steam vessel to be built at Chatham was launched; this being the paddle sloop 'Phoenix'. During 1836, No. 3 slip was built at Chatham Dockyard and it was later covered during 1838. This particular slip is thought to be Europe's widest wide-span structure in timber. The middle of the 1800s was the last major period of construction of buildings and structures on the Historic Dock site, and this is reflected by a new range of covered slips being built between 1838 and 1855. Most of these were built on land which was reclaimed from the River Medway. During 1840, No. 4 dry dock was built and then later enlarged during 1908.

Regarding the shipbuilding, from 1840 a number of trials were carried out with screw propellers, and this led to the Bee being built during 1842. The Bee was a small craft built built with both paddle wheels and a screw propeller. The No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6 slips were later built between 1847 and 1848. These slips provided examples of the world's first wide-span structures in metal as they had cast iron frames and pre-dated victorian train shed roofs. During 1849, the Admiralty suspended construction of all remaining sailing ships. This led to Chatham Dockyard's first screw frigate, Horatio, being launched a year later. During the 1850s, timber-hulled sail-powered warships were fitted with auxiliary steam engines. Doing this formed the 'black battlefleet' which fought during the Crimean War.

It was during 1855 that the No. 7 slip was built. This slip was one of the first wide span structures in wrought iron and led to the development of modern portal framed buildings. The No. 2 dry dock was then lengthened and rebuilt between the years of 1855 and 1856. During 1863, the first iron-built battleship to be constructed in a Royal Dockyard was launched from Chatham. This ship, called Achilles, marked the start of a new generation of steam powered metal-hulled ships. The use of iron and steel meant the size limitations caused by timber construction were no longer present. While this meant bigger ships could be made, it also meant the largest ships of the fleet quickly outgrew the facilities of the Chatham Dockyard which had been used through the Age of Sail.

New machine shops were needed to house the steam powered iron and steel working equipment which were now being used in shipbuilding. The buildings to construct ship engines and boilers were also required, and so these needs all led to the Victorian Dockyard extension happening during the 1860s. This created an entirely new dockyard to the north of the Historic Dockyard site, and it is now known as Chatham Maritime. For building the Victorian Dockyard, convicts from the local prison were used as labourers. Both ship fitting and repairing were largely moved to the new dockyard extension. Shipbuilding generally didn't move site, and No. 7 slip was used intensively through the late 1800s to build new generations of steam powered armour plated battleships and cruisers. At the end of the 1800s, No. 1 slip was taken down.

During the early years of the 1900s, the Royal Navy underwent a major programme of remodernisation. This resulted in ships being split into three equal divisions with each being based in one of the home Royal Dockyards; Chatham, Portsmouth, and Plymouth. Due to the length of ships having outgrown the slipway at Chatham Dockyard by the 1850s, a new mezzanine floor was inserted during 1904 to create a store for ship's boats. It was in the year of 1905 that the last battleship to be built at Chatham Dockyard was launched. This ship was the HMS Africa, and it was launched from No. 8 slip which was located north of No. 7 slip.

When the HMS Dreadnought launched from Portsmouth Dockyard during 1906, it changed the face of battleship construction and issued a new age of navel competition with France and Germany. This ship was powered by steam turbines and had large calibre guns in turrets mounted in centreline turrets. The HMS Dreadnought led to battleship designs which were too big to be built on Chatham's slips and launched into the River Medway. Luckily for Chatham Dockyard, the Royal Navy began to embrace the submarine as a new weapon of war. During 1906, the Admiralty ordered the construction of thirty-eight coastal submarines; of which six were built at Chatham Dockyard to ensure the Royal Dockyards kept up to date with this new technology. Most of the submarines built here were done so between the years of 1907 and 1966.

On the 13th of August 1908, the first of the six submarines, C17, was launched from No. 7 slip. Chatham Dockyard gained a specialism in submarine construction which spanned both world wars, entered the nuclear age, and provided continued work for at least two of the covered slips until the mid-1960s; these two covered slips being No. 6 and No. 7. In total, fifty-seven submarines were built at Chatham Dockyard between the years of 1908 and 1960. Significant vessels included giant 'M' and 'X' class boats of the interwar period, 'T' cpass submarines such as Torbay, and post war 'O' or Oberon class boats. Six of the 'O' class boats were built at Chatham Dockyard including Oberon and the class leader Ocelot. Ocelot was the last warship to be built for the Royal Navy at Chatham Dockyard and it was first launched during 1962. This submarine is now preserved by the trust. Three 'O' class submarines were built at Chatham Dockyard for the Royal Canadian Navy, and these were Ojibwa, Onondaga, and Okanagan.

Chatham returned to being a fleet base and new share-based naval barracks were built alongside each of the three dockyards. At Chatham Dockyard, the new Royal Naval Barracks were named HMS Pembroke and were built to the east of the Victorian Dockyard extension. By World War One, 205 ships were manned by Chatham Division men. These men saw action across the world on both sea and land. The first shot of the naval war was fired by the Chatham Division destroyer HMS Lance in the North Sea. The Chatham Division ships bore the brunt of naval casualties in the first months of the war, and this included the loss of three Chatham cruisers; the HMS Hogue, Aboukir, and Cressy. These three ships all sunk together during the morning of the 22nd of September 1914 by one German submarine; the U-9.

The Chatham Division provided men for the Royal Naval Division which fought in Gallipoli during 1915, and the Somme during 1916, with great loss of life occuring in both battles. During the May of 1916, Chatham Division ships fought at Jutland and during the April of 1918, Chatham Division men took part in the Zeebrugge Raid. The names of over 8,000 men of the Chatham Division who lost their lives during World War One, and for who there is no known grave, are commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial which stands above the Historic Dockyard on the Great Lines. The Chatham, Division also saw action through World War Two with the Chatham manned cruiser HMS Ajax leading the South Atlantic Squadron at the Battle of the River Plate on the 13th of December 1939.

During 1956, divisional manning was replaced by central manning as the navy became smaller. After 1956, Chatham became home to the reserve, or standby, fleet. A number of operational ships were also based at the dockyard, and this included the Antarctic patrol vessel HMS Endurance. During 1966, there was a fire at Chatham Dockyard and No. 2 slip was lost in this fire. During the October of 1980, the Chatham Dockyard Historical Society was founded. They held meetings in the Lead and Paint Mill and set up a museum there at the time. On the 25th of June 1981, it was announced that Chatham Dockyard would close, and the museum officially opened to the public during the April of 1982. It was opened by Rear Admiral Brewer and called the 'Chatham Dockyard Historical Centre'

The final day of Chatham Dockyard being operational was the 30th of March 1984 as cited by it's official website. A BBC article does make it seem like the final day was the 31st of March 1984, but this is in reference to when those employed at the site were no longer required to work. Over 7,000 workers at Chatham Dockyard lost their jobs when the site closed along with 10,000 others in supportive industries. The Chatham Dockyard site has been a museum since ship production stopped during 1984, and the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust was formed on the same day that the dockyard closed. The museum which was set up in the old Lead and Paint Mill was eventually moved to the ground floor of the Fitted Rigging House on Anchor Wharf.

Following Chatham Dockyard's closure, the ships based there were redeployed to Portsmouth and Devonport. Today, No. 7 slip is operated commercially by Turks Shipyard. As the Chatham Historic Dockyard, there are a number of exhibits present on the site. You can see the warship HMS Gannet, which was first launched during 1878, and the warship HMS Cavalier. You can also see the Submarine HM Ocelot, which was first launched during 1962. The Chatham Historic Dockyard is also home to the RNLI Lifeboat Collection. Through the dockyard's history, a railway system was present; however, only less than one mile of track remains in the dockyard today.

The Chatham Historic Dockyard has been used as a filming location for 'Sherlock Holmes', 'Les Misérables', 'Mission: Impossible', and 'Call the Midwife'. During 2007, construction work did occur; although I'm unsure on exactly which building. I assume the work occured on the Commissioner's House, but this could be wrong and is purely speculation. The building underwent work with a new lift, two new staircases, three new windows overlooking the river, upgraded cladding on the riverside, upgraded handrails, and new fire detection systems. The Chatham Historic Dockyard does have a number of grade listed buildings. The No. 1 Smithery is Grade II listed, the Ropery is Grade I listed, and the Commissioner's House is also Grade I listed.

As mentioned towards the start of the article, the Chatham Dockyard site is in three seprate sections. The easternmost basin is now a commercial port which was handed over to the Medway Ports authority. The core of this site was transferred to the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust and is open as an attraction. The second part is St Mary's Island, and this is a residential community. Peel Ports run a portion of the commercial port in Basin No. 3. It seems Peel wants to redevelop this third area for housing and commercial use with intention during 2019 to close the docks by 2025 for redevelopment. A consultation on the redevelopment was held on the 21st of November until the 5th of December 2023, and a planning application was submitted during the January of 2024 following the consultation.

Hauntings

Lord Nelson is a famous name cited to haunt the Chatham Dockyard, but no other details on his haunting have been found. A woman is also said to haunt this location, and it seems there is misinformation regarding her haunting. The Paranormal Database has said she was a female supervisor who died at the location during the 1980s, and that she pokes and prods you if you aren't working fast enough. I believe at some point this information has been misinterpreted or mistyped in various articles as it has also been reported that there is the spirit of a woman who pokes and prods you if you aren't walking fast enough. I believe due to the similarity of the reports, the female spirit is likely the same in both reports and that either 'walking' or 'working' has been misinterpreted. Due to the spirit being cited in a more detail report as being a female supervisor, I believe 'working' would make more sense to being correct.

Two locations have been cited as the most haunted in the dockyard; these being the Ropery and the Commissioner's House. Peter Pett, apparently the master shipwright during the 1600s, is said to haunt the Commissioner's House. It's said Peter was shamed with not being able to protect the English fleet from the Dutch raid of 1667 and this led to Peter commiting suicide. It's said Peter's ghost has been seen through all areas of the house and thst he walks through walls. There is also reported to be a grey lady in the house who tends to be sighted around the stairs and landing area. She is said to have once appeared behind one of the cleaners and that cleaner then refused to return to work through fear.

Other spirits include a headless drummer boy who haunts the quay walls, although some sources neglect to mention the headless detail. There is also thought to be a young boy and girl, plus a girl who looks out of the Commissioner's House window. It's unclear if this girl is the same as the young girl, but there are rumours that a worker was filming the house and caught the girl looking out of the window on camera. Apparently the spirit of a sailor stomps around the HMS Gannet, and the spirit of a Spanish-looking man wanders the exhibitions at night. Footsteps and disembodied voices are also heard around the location. Apparently, anything from sailor's to knights has been reported to haunt the dockyard, but I haven't found anything beyond what I've discussed in this article.

Summary Of Hauntings

1. Lord Nelson

2. A woman, female supervisor died in 1980s

3. Peter Pett, master shipwright of 1600s, killed himself - Commissioner's house

4. A grey lady - Commissioner's House stairs and landing

5. A maybe headless drummer boy - the quay walls

6. A young boy (the drummer boy?)

7. A young girl

8. Girl looking out of window (the young girl?) - the Commissioner's House

9. A sailor - HMS Gannet

10. A Spanish-looking man - wanders exhibitions, night

11. Footsteps

12. Disembodied voices

13. A knight?

My Thoughts

I honestly wasn't expecting for a dockyard to have as much history as what Chatham Dockyard has. My thoughts on the hauntings are that they are oddly lacking, but some of them do somewhat tie into the history. Usually when researching a reportedly haunted location, websites are very quick to mention the hauntings alongside the history; however, this was not the case with this location. Therefore, as the official website didn't mention the hauntings, I'm quite confident in saying the rumoured hauntings haven't arisen from a tourism aspect like what could be the case with other locations. Many people who were stationed at this location will have lost their lives during war, and so I absolutely believe there is ample opportunity for those people to haunt this location.

Regarding Lord Nelson, his flagship was built here; however, as he didn't visit the location and the HMS Victory isn't stationed here, I don't believe he would be able to haunt the location. If he did visit the site, then that changes things. However, if he didn't visit the site, then I think this name was likely connected to the hauntings in order for a paranormal investigation team to gain views through a well-known name. Peter Pett could absolutely haunt this location as, with further research, I've found that he was the commissioner at Chatham Dockyard from 1647 to 1667 and he was disgraced after he saved his own property during the Dutch attack on the Medway which happened during the June of 1667. It's said he died during 1672, so I absolutely believe as he did have connection to the site that he could haunt it.

The rest of the hauntings are quite generic for me to properly discuss in depth. Grey ladies, young girls, and young boys are all typical of haunted locations. How common these tales are could indicate the reports here, especially as they have a lack of detail, could just be ghost stories. As for the sailor and spanish-looking man, they could be genuine. Sailors would have connection with the ships there, and perhaps there are exhibits here which the Spanish had connection to. Finally, I think the knight isn't legitimate. Although a source has said they have everything from soldiers to knights rumoured here, I suspect this source was speaking in hyperbole as no other source has mentioned any spirit resembling a knight.

Thank You!

Thank you for reading this article! I know it's a few days later than the intended Monday release, but it was incredibly lengthy for what I was initially expecting. I'm still surprised on the lack of information about hauntings though, so if you know of anything which is reported to haunt here, and can point me to a source backing you up, then I will absolutely amend the article to include the missing information. The next article will hopefully be published at 8pm on Friday the 17th of January, but this could be delayed as this article is being published a couple of days late. Regardless, it will document a paranormal artifact. Then, hopefully on Monday the 20th of January at 8pm, I will publish the next location article which will document a building in Leicester.

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Sources I Have Used

1. The Historic Dockyard Chatham

2. The Historic Dockyard Chatham: History

3. The Historic Dockyard Chatham: Buildings

4. Chatham Maritime Trust

5. BBC News

6. World Heritage Site

7. The Historic Dockyard Chatham: 40 Years

8. The Historical Dockyard Chatham: Historical Society

9. Kent County Council

10. Bridgewood Manor Hotel & Spa

11. Tim Wood Healthcare