30 CWT ‘Cochrane’ Steam Hammer
Andrew Barclay Sons & Co Ltd, Kilmarnock
Anchors were made by a process known as forging. Iron bars, heated in a furnace, were joined together and hammered into shape by anchor smiths. No.1 Smithery's first . . . — — Map (db m118396) HM
Brunel Saw Mill Canal Lock, 1812-14
Scheduled Ancient Monument
During the Napoleonic Wars the Dockyard needed ever larger supplies of timber for shipbuilding and repair. To satisfy this increased demand the Navy built one of Britain’s . . . — — Map (db m118486) HM
The Coat of Arms of George III
erected 1811
Restored in 1994
In commemoration of Chatham Dockyard's role in
the support of Operation Overlord
the Allied Invasion of Europe
This Plaque was unveiled by
Councillor Mrs Ann Marsh
Mayor of . . . — — Map (db m118369) HM
First World War 100th Anniversary
To commemorate the loss of three Chatham Division Cruisers
His Majesty’s Ships Aboukir, Hogue and Cressy
and 1,459 men on 22nd September 1914 as a result of enemy action in the North Sea
Unveiled by
His . . . — — Map (db m118419) HM
On this Site
In the Old Single Dock
H.M.S.”Victory”
Was Laid Down on 23rd August 1759 and
Launched on the 7th May 1765 + + + She was
Almost Entirely Rebuilt in Chatham
Yard during the Years 1800 to 1803 and
On 30th July . . . — — Map (db m118438) HM
HM Submarine Ocelot, 1962
Launched in 1962 Ocelot was the last warship to be built at the Dockyard for the Royal Navy. It is preserved to commemorate the Dockyard's 20th century role as a builder of submarines. Between 1907 and 1966 . . . — — Map (db m118413) HM
HMS Cavalier, 1944
National Destroyer Memorial
National Historic Fleet
HMS Cavalier is preserved as a memorial to the 142 Royal Navy destroyers sunk during the Second World War with the loss of over 11,000 lives. Cavalier . . . — — Map (db m118418) HM WM
HMS Gannet, 1878
National Historic Fleet
Built on the River Medway at Sheerness Dockyard in 1878Gannet demonstrates the introduction of iron and steam to warship construction. Her composite construction hull is built with teak . . . — — Map (db m118411) HM
Mast Houses & Mould Loft
Scheduled Ancient Monument, Grade 1 Listed Building
Skilled mast-makers, working in these Mast Houses, made timber masts and spars for the sail-powered warsips of the age of sail. They were made from fir logs that . . . — — Map (db m118394) HM
No. 1 Machine Shop 1861; Armour Plate Shop 1865
Grade II* Listed Buildings
The decision to build HMS Achilles at the Dockyard in 1861 led to the requirement for new buildings to be able to house the machine tools required to work . . . — — Map (db m118440) HM
No.1 Smithery, 1808
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In 1805 the Dockyard Officers petitioned the Navy Board for a new Smithery at Chatham to replace an earlier and smaller 18th century Smiths' Shop as a result of the "great introduction of iron . . . — — Map (db m118480) HM
No.2 Dry Dock, 1856
Scheduled Ancient Monument
This was the site of the Old Single Dock where HMS Victory was built and launched in 1765.
As ship building changed from wood to iron and the size of vessels increased, there was . . . — — Map (db m118479) HM
During the Napoleonic Wars (1803-15) the Navy Board set about minimising the impact of dry rot on ships under construction by erecting covers over all the slips and docks used for shipbuilding.
At Chatham the large slips in front of . . . — — Map (db m118410) HM
No. 3 Dry Dock, 1820; No. 4 Dry Dock, 1840
Scheduled Ancient Monuments
The dry docks were used for both shipbuilding and ship repair. During the age of sail the Navy Board built more dry docks than any other country. Originally they were . . . — — Map (db m118412) HM
North Mast Pond, 1702
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the age of sail fir logs for mast-making were first seasoned by storing them under water in the mast ponds. This allowed the sap to die back without the resin drying out. The Dockyard had . . . — — Map (db m118489) HM
Plate-Bending Rolls, 1913
Hugh Smith & Co, Possil Works, Glasgow
One of the largest machine tools ever used in Chatham Dockyard, this set of 42ft (12.8m) plate-bending rolls weighs 200 tons. It was installed in the yard's No. 5 machine . . . — — Map (db m118483) HM
Propeller, RFA Reliant, c. 1954
Propeller from the 14,000 ton Royal Fleet Auxiliary Reliant. Originally built as the Somersby, a grain carrier, she was purchased by the Admiralty in 1957 and converted to become the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s first . . . — — Map (db m118395) HM
In Everlasting Memory
of
24 Royal Marine Volunteer Cadets
Aged 9 - 13 Years
Who Tragically Lost Their Lives
In Dock Road On
The 4th Day Of December 1951
Ever Remembered By
Family, Friends And The
Chatham Marine's Cadet Unit . . . — — Map (db m118372) HM
South Mast Pond, 1696
Scheduled Ancient Monument
The grey gravel area marks the location of the South Mast Pond. First dug in 1696, it is now the Historic Dockyard's oldest surviving Scheduled Ancient Monument. It was filled in during the . . . — — Map (db m118488) HM
Steam Hammer, 1955
R G Ross & Son, Glasgow
Steam hammers played an important role in iron and steel shipbuilding. They were used as part of the forging process to hammer iron, heated in furnaces, into shape. They were located in workshops . . . — — Map (db m118397) HM
( plaque 1 )
The story of the Bell Mast begins in the 1850’s at Chatham. The plan shows Chatham Dockyard in 1864. Many of the buildings shown on the plan still exist today. the Lower Boat House, North Mast Pond and Covered Slips can be . . . — — Map (db m118373) HM
The Clocktower Building, 1723
Scheduled Ancient Monument
The oldest naval store-house to survive in any of the Royal Dockyards. The Clocktower Building was constructed at the head of the docks as a 'present use store' for materials and . . . — — Map (db m118439) HM
1939
HMS Blanche · HMS Duchess · HMS Gipsy
1940
HMS Acasta · HMS Acheron · HMS Ardent · HMS Basilisk · HMS Brazen · HMS Cameron · HMS Codrington · HMS Daring · HMS Delight · HMS Escort · HMS Esk · HMS Exmouth · HMS Glowworm · HMS Grafton · HMS . . . — — Map (db m118416) HM
The Victory Dock
Named to commemorate the bicentenary of the
Battle of Trafalgar 1805
and the construction of HMS Victory on this site
23 July 1759 – 7 May 1765
Vice Admiral Sir James Burnell-Nugent KCB CBE ADC Martin
Second Sea . . . — — Map (db m118436) HM WM
Timber-Seasoning Sheds, 1774
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In May 1771 the Earl of Sandwich and other Commissioners of the Admiralty Board visited Chatham and were shown how ships built with improperly seasoned timber had rotted away. Shortly . . . — — Map (db m118484) HM
Victualling Inshore Craft (VIC) 56
Small wartime naval stores and munitions steamship
Supplying the Royal Navy, which had over nine thousand ships during the Second World War, was a huge challenge. By 1945, most were at anchor or moored to . . . — — Map (db m118414) HM
