Chatham (Kent)
Chatham [ ˈtʃætəm ] is a port town on the south bank of the River Medway (a tributary of the Thames ) in Kent with about 70,000 inhabitants. Together with the neighboring cities of Rochester and Gillingham , Chatham is part of the Borough of Medway administrative unit .
history
Chatham is first mentioned in 1086. In June 1667, the Chatham docks were the target of a Dutch naval attack, the Medway raid . The port, in operation until 1984, is now a historic site. The ship of Lord Nelson , the HMS Victory and the frigate HMS Unicorn were built in Chatham .
The Royal School of Military Engineering, founded in 1812, is also located in Chatham . The fortifications of the place were classified according to the report of the Royal Commission on the Defense of the United Kingdom of 1860 as particularly important and expanded.
About three kilometers southwest of the city center was the Fort Bridgewoods military base from 1892 to about 1970 , which during World War II housed an important radio eavesdropping station for the British secret service , called Chatham Y Station .
Attractions
The extensive area of the old shipyards has been rededicated as Historic Dockyards Chatham for museum purposes.
Town twinning
- Valenciennes , France
Personalities
- Charles Dickens (1812–1870), writer, lived in Chatham between 1817 and 1821.
- James McGee (born 1950), writer
- Billy Childish (* 1959), painter, musician and writer
- Lee Ryan (born 1983), singer
- George Boyd (born 1985), football player
Web links
- Historic dockyards Chatham (English)
Coordinates: 51 ° 23 ' N , 0 ° 31' E