Cliffe Fort, does it have a future?
My interest in Cliffe Fort, is not specifically as a Fortification (although I am interested in the subject) but as a case study in Heritage Management, and specifically the issues relating to Schedule Monuments, where substantial remains exist. Cliffe Fort is clearly a good example, and is also at significant risk of being lost, and is listed on the Heritage at Risk Register.
Now the question is, is what to do with Fort Cliffe, to ensure its survival and future?
Clearly as people with an interest in History and Heritage, I would value your input and ideas on this, both specifically on Cliffe Fort, and the wider issues relating to managing and conserving large monuments.
Now there are a number of points to consider:
Cliffe is one of 5 surviving coastal forts in the Thames and Medway, the others are Coalhouse, Garrison Point, Hoo and Darnet. All are these are Royal Commission Coastal Forts, built in the same period 1860-70, and are casemented coastal batteries. Each is different in terms of layout and design. Slough also exist, but is substantially smaller than the other coastal forts. There are also remains of two others, Shornmead/Shornemead/Shormead (I seen it spelt differently in a number of sources, at Kew is listed under Shormead) and Grain.
Coalhouse is already undergoing restoration and is open as a heritage attraction, and there are a further 5 fortification heritage attraction close by. These are Tilbury Fort, Newtaven Fort, Upnor Castle, Rochester Castle, and Fort Amherst and the Brompton Lines. All are either open as heritage attraction and or undergoing restoration to that end. Further, there are over 30 fortification sites in the area, not including post 1914 structures, where substantial remain exist or are know to survive underground.
In the UK, there are additional substantial numbers of coastal forts of the same period of construction, of which Fort Nothe, and Hurst Castles are open to the public, the rest are either in alternative use, or derelict.
Cliffe Fort, is privately owned, and lies in an area that is use commercially, and this involves the use of machinery and heavy moving plant. There are number of additional significant monuments in the area, included the Lime Kilns and Romano-British cremation and burial site (see Pastscape). The fort lie within the area of The Thames Estuary and Mashes SPA and is a designated RAMSAR estuary and wetland, and there is the RSPB Cliffe Pools reserve next door.
Now bearing in mind all the above in mind, what
A. Would you like to be done with Cliffe Fort? and
B. What do you think realistically can be down with Cliffe Fort?
C. How could this be done?
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I am working of hypothetical Heritage Management Plan, and while it is for a course, I am hoping that it might form the basis of something real, at the very minimum perhaps excite some interest in Cliffe Fort and its future.