Soldier graffiti may show Napoleon hanged - castle

Soldiers may have carved a picture of Napoleon being hanged as they killed time on guard duty at Dover Castle, while facing a threat of invasion from France, historians have said.

Earlier this year, staff scaled a ladder to the top of St John’s tower and discovered the graffiti, thought to date back to the 1789 French Revolution, on a scratched, wooden door.

More than 50 pieces of graffiti on the relic include at least nine “gruesome” hangings, English Heritage said.

People can see the door at an exhibition this July at the castle, which stands on the Kent coast overlooking the English Channel.

Paul Pattison, senior properties historian, said the "astonishing" discovery gave “a unique glimpse into the minds of these soldiers”.

He said Dover was a hive of activity at the time, with ships filling the harbour, amid the impending threat of war.

“What makes this door such an extraordinary object is that it is a rare and precious example of the ordinary person making their mark; whether that be simply for the purpose of killing time or wanting to be remembered,” he said.

Mr Pattison, and senior properties curator Roy Porter, climbed to the top of the tower and spotted the door - but the graffiti was not completely visible until layers of paint were removed.

The upper floors of the tower are now in ruins and for more than a century have been impossible to access without climbing a ladder to the base of a spiral staircase.

The carvings, dating from 1789 to 1855, include a ship and a symbol of a glass or chalice with a cross, which may represent Christian holy communion.

Historians said the ship was most likely an 8 Gun cutter - a fast vessel used by the Royal Navy, revenue service, smugglers and privateers.

One hanging, showing a man in a military uniform and bicorne (two-cornered) hat, could show a real hanging, or represent Napoleon himself. Napoleon died in exile after an illness in 1821.

Dover Castle was transformed into a modern military garrison in the 1790s, because of the threat of war, English Heritage said.

Six to 12 men would have guarded the 13th Century tower at any one time, with one or two in the tower itself.

English Heritage said with tensions high, but hours to kill, it seems they put their “questionable artistic talents" to use, using knives or bayonets to carve graffiti.

Graffiti has been found at other English Heritage sites including Richmond Castle, Audley End House in Essex and at Deal Castle in Kent.

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