Art

A beautiful map of Kent based on the work of Philip Symonson. Insets of the cathedral cities of Canterbury and Rochester, and seven coats of arms. Due to Kent's extensive coastline, and proximity to France and the Netherlands, it had unrivalled advantages for trade, thus making its defence imperative. Dover Castle had long been a linchpin in the defence of the realm, but most other castles in Kent were made redundant when a series of modern artillery forts like Deal and Walmer were constructed in the 1540's by Henry VIII. These were to protect the anchorage of the Downs which the Navy had recently taken to using. The adoption of other fleet-anchorages along the Thames and the Medway, and the establishment of dockyards at Deptford and Woolwich by Henry VIII, and at Chatham by Elizabeth I, turned Kent into the best defended area in the kingdom throughout the Tudor and early Stuart periods. Ref. Nigel Nicolson: A Tudor Atlas by John Speed. Copper engraving. Hand coloured. Very good condition. Sheet size: 395 x 510 mm. Mount size: 590 x 705 mm