Dover's 'Lost Castle': The Court's Folly

The 200-year-old two-storey structure of the Court's Folly is hidden on the cliffs on the opposite side of the valley to its more famous big brother, the 12th Century Norman Dover Castle.

The collapsed arch underneath the West Tower in the above photo may have been an entrance; the windows of the ground floor can just be made out to the right of the arch/vault.

Standard Info

The "Court's Folly" was built on the cliffs below the Western Heights in the early 1800s by two Wine Merchants, Stephen and Rogers Court of 140 Snargate Street, Dover, and it was a tourist attraction of its day.

For much of its history, however, this 'miniature castle' has been neglected and its ruins are now hidden behind the trees and other undergrowth which cover this part of the cliff-face. Access to the site is 'difficult'. [Continued at the photo's original webpage]

Many Dovorians, yet alone those living further afield, are unaware of this castle's existence.

John Latter / Jorolat