April Fools Day Canal (very long)
Dral
I wonder how many of you have read about the Royal Military Canal. I
wrote my file on it a number of years ago and today I checked it and
updated it before it goes up onto /that/ forth coming web site.
In view of today's date, as I read, I began to think somebody was
pulling my leg. This really is an excellent and relatively little
known waterway. Its history is well worth reading because it is so
different from all other canals.
As a taster for my Web Site (which is only days away now) I thought
I'd give you my Royal Military Canal file. Its a bit long so I'm sure
it won't suit you all but for those who do read it, you'll feel it was
worth it...
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THE ROYAL MILITARY CANAL (or Romney Canal)
1799 The French revolution was over after 16 years of unrest. The
British had often feared that revolution fever would cross the channel
and cause a rebellion in Britain too. Although this never happened, the
worry was enough to put businessmen off investing canal ventures and
the canal mania era had could to an end. Unfortunately the end of the
French revolution was not the good news it should have been. France had
a new leader - Napoleon! He systematically began to invade Europe and
the worries of a British civil war now changed into fears of being
invaded.
1804 A truce known as the Peace of Amiens had been agreed between
Britain and France but the British were forced to go into war with
Napoleon when he seized Malta. The British military became
increasingly worried about a French invasion of Britain. They felt it
was only a matter of time before Napoleon attempted to cross the
channel and land on the south coast.
The most likely place for the French to arrive was at Dungeness, right
in the south east corner of the country. The area was not well defended
because much of it was unused marsh land - ideas were put forward as to
how to defend this land. One idea was to built dozens of fortified
towers along the coast, another idea was to simply flood the flat marsh
land but the assistant Quartermaster-General, Lt. Col. John Brown, put
forward the idea of using a canal as a defence. It would be wide and
deep enough to cause the attacking forces many problems and could also
serve as a fast route on which to move troops and ammunition. General
Dundas and the Commander-in-Chief, the Duke of York, fully backed the
scheme and it was decided to build a canal slightly inland with 86
defence towers along the coast.
Prime Minister, William Pitt, (himself a great supporter of canals)
received the idea with enthusiasm. The waterway was to be named the
Romney Canal, it would run from Winchelsea Beach in East Sussex to
Hythe in Kent.
Civilian contractors were appointed to build the canal with John Rennie
as "consultant". He surveyed a line and was then given the job of
devising ways to stop flooding in winter. (It is quite ironic that
Rennie should have been given the task of getting rid of surplus water
because most of the other canals he built suffered from water
shortages)!
Rennie re-routed streams into the canal and constructed water pipes to
serve as extra feeders in dry weather. The western end of the route
would use two rivers so water would not be a problem there. The main
"ditch" (as it was called by the military) was to be 62 feet wide and 9
feet deep. It would be around 25 miles long with a further 5 miles made
up of the two rivers. A road was to be built all the way along the
northern bank, around 50 feet away from the water's edge. The road
would be raised 3 feet above land (or marsh) level and would be 30 feet
wide. A parapet would be built along the road, built from the soil dug
from the canal cut. Work was estimated at £200,000 and this was one
canal which would not see prospective shareholders fighting over
subscriptions! It was paid for in full by the government.
William Pitt got very involved with the construction of the new
waterway. He spoke to all the local landowners and convinced them that
the scheme was of great benefit to them whether the French invaded or
not. It would provide an excellent drainage system during floods and
act as a linear reservoir during summer. The landowners trusted and
supported Pitt so much that they willingly gave up the necessary
portions of their land, the canal was often referred to as "Pitt's
Ditch"!
1805 The government, ever fearful of a French invasion, grew
impatient with the slow progress of construction work, only 6 miles had
been built in the first year. There had been delays caused by bad
weather and flooding and the marshes were by no means the greatest
landscape to cut a canal through. The contractors were to blame (said
Rennie) for poor workmanship due to bad supervision. The government
sacked the contractors and took over the running of the canal
themselves. This caused the navvies to walk out and eventually Rennie
resigned. The government then installed a military work force to
continue construction led by the assistant Quartermaster-General, Lt.
Col. John Brown. This would seem to be a devastatingly bad tactic but
in fact the rest of the route was quickly finished and the whole 30
miles was ready just one year later!
1806 In August the full line of the Romney Canal was complete.
It ran for 25 miles from Hythe to the River Rother. It had cost (for
once) almost the exact amount originally estimated and was finished
well on schedule. However, in the 2 years that it had taken to
construct, the French had lost the Battle of Trafalgar, given up the
idea of taking over Britain and turned their attentions on Austria
instead!
The likelihood of an attack on Kent was now very small. Instead of an
important strategic problem for the French, the waterway was now an
important political problem for its owners - the British government. It
was fast becoming an embarrassment as people began to ask questions
about the appallingly high costs of a 30 mile ditch which did nothing,
went nowhere and was widely regarded (by the press) as something that
Napoleon would have sniggered at if he'd ever come across it! After
all, he'd conquered most of Europe, if he could cross the Channel to
reach England he was hardly likely to be put off by a 60 foot ditch!!
A lot of the canal was built with "steps" along its course which were
planned as a defence against an attacking army. These take the form
of "zigzag" bends where guns could be placed with a perfectly
straight view along the canal. An approaching invader could
(theoretically) be destroyed before they knew what hit them.
Ironically this idea was invented by a French military engineer!
1807 Following the death of William Pitt in 1806 the government
changed from Tory to Whig and back to Tory again within the space of 12
months. During this period some local landowners began to get annoyed
over the amount of their land that had been taken up by the "useless
ditch" with no compensation being paid to them. To remedy this the
government decided to put the canal on a proper legal footing and in
August parliament granted itself an Act for "The Royal Military Canal"
which would allow the waterway to be opened to commercial traffic.
However, much improvement work would be needed and it would take around
3 years to bring the route up to commercial standards.
The new "company" needed to be run properly so commissioners were
appointed. Amazingly the government appointed themselves; the Prime
Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Speaker of the House, the
Commander-in-Chief, the Quartermaster General and the Master General of
the Ordnance! The Commissioners first act was to reward Lt. Col. John
Brown for all his efforts in devising the canal and finishing its
construction. He received £3,000 and a mansion in Hythe.
1808 In November, while improvement work was in progress, a
massive storm led to extensive flooding between West Hythe and
Shorncliffe (at the far eastern end) which washed away nearly 2 miles
of the south bank of the canal. The government purchased a wider band
of land to the south of the canal to strengthen the sea defences.
1809 In January the regimental stores burnt down and severely
hampered the repairs to the south bank. Three weeks later a heavy storm
hit the area and coincided with a large spring tide causing the
unfinished repairs to be washed away once again. The canal became
filled with shingle and portions of the military road were also badly
damaged. Amazingly the whole length was fully repaired within 3 months.
During 1808 and 1809 the commissioners spent over £80,000 of government
money finishing off the canal by replacing temporary wooden bridges and
building a brand new stone bridge at Iden. They resurfaced the whole of
the road and re-covered the towpath with shingle.
1810 Finally, in April, the canal was fully opened to the
public (though short haul journeys were already being made on the route
for several months prior to its official opening). Before the canal had
opened, a wharf at Shorncliffe was already being used as a busy landing
place for timber and coal and the route also became unique in Britain
as it was the only canal to make a trade out of carrying hop poles!
The canal's Act of 1807 allowed the government to charge tolls on the
carriage of manure (fertilizer) and farm produce. It also allowed the
"company" to exclude local landowners (who's land adjoined the
waterway) from having to pay tolls. As well as the usual navigation
tolls the government were also able to charge for passage along the
well built military road which ran beside the canal throughout the
whole route. They also sold grass for sheep grazing along the canal
banks and on the parapet which ran along the road. The Commissioners
even decided to run their own carrying company with barges pulled by
the Royal Waggon Train!
1812 A sluice at Star Lock (known as Scots Float today) just
east of Rye was destroyed by floods and was not replaced for nearly 20
years. Although this left the land to its east susceptible to floods
and made the river tidal to the east of it, it did not hamper
navigation.
Once again the country was fearing attacks from France and the
government were pleased to have kept the Military Canal under their own
control. A defensive cannon and 80 Danish guns which had been captured
(stolen) from Copenhagen were fixed in place along the canal.
Of course, the attack from France never happened and the canal simply
continued as a fairly useful transport system. As well as goods there
was also a passenger service between Hythe and Rye which was run by a
Mr. Pilcher, though its success was fairly short lived. The army ran a
regular convoy of barges from the River Rother to Hythe - taking 4
hours.
1819 Poor Mr. Pilcher's passenger service was struggling and he
cut his route from 22 miles to 19 miles by terminating at Iden rather
than Rye. Three years later he had to cut the service by a further 3
miles to Appledore.
1831 A sluice was rebuilt (19 years after the original was
destroyed) at Star Lock, just east of Rye. This meant that the River
Rother was no longer tidal to the east of here.
1833 Mr. Pilcher gave up his packet boat service and passenger
travel on the canal came to an end. His reason for abandoning the
business was mainly due to pressure from the canal commissioners who
claimed his fast moving boats were damaging the canal banks.
1836 The canal saw its best year in terms of income though just
as much money was coming in from the canalside road tolls as it was
from the actual waterway. Even then the usage was low compared to most
canals and the route never returned a profit.
1837 The government decided it was time to stop playing with
boats and they handed the running of the route to the Ordnance
Department. The whole canal was run by one army officer and 60 troops
who performed the duties normally associated with lengthsmen an lock
keepers.
At first very little changed and commercial traffic continued to use
the waterway as it always had done. However, once again the public were
asking questions about the cost of the route, the canal was well known
throughout the country as an embarrassing military folly, people like
William Cobbett wrote articles on the great waste of public funds and
also harped back to the ridiculous notion that Napoleon could ever have
been foiled by a 60 foot ditch.
No matter how ridiculous its defensive qualities were, there is no
doubt that the Royal Military Canal helped the local people immensely.
It provided both a waterway and one of the best roads in the country.
People could travel easily between Rye and Hythe which had previously
been a near impossible journey across Romney Marsh. The canal also
provided excellent drainage which meant there was more arable land
available and this in turn greatly reduced incidents of "marsh fever"!
c1840 A new passenger service is thought to have begun though
the dates are not clear and the service didn't last long. In total
there were just 21 barges licensed to use the canal at this time.
1841 A survey showed that the canal desperately needed dredging
if it was to stay open to navigation. The man in charge at this time
was Master General Sir Hussey Vivian who had already described the
canal as "an absurd means of defence which ought never to have been
built". Clearly the right man for the job (not).
He clearly did not understand (or agree) that dredging would aid
passage on the route, he thought enough money had already been wasted
on the canal over that past 40 years and rather than help to keep the
route going, he drastically cut the number of soldiers who were
employed on it. He also reduced expenditure and maintenance.
By May of 1841 Sir Hussey Vivian cut the work force down from 60 Royal
Sappers to just 7 full time workers - and these were mainly pensioners!
By October he'd cut the work force to zero.
c1845 The Royal Military Canal began to suffer the fate of many
other canals; poor maintenance, competition from 2 local railways and
tonnages fell each year.
c1848 While still receiving periodic knocks from the public and
press, the canal received a bit of a confidence boost when the Duke of
Wellington (who had been Prime Minister from 1828 to 1830 - and
therefore had been Head Commissioner of the canal) commented on its
strategic value.
c1849 Despite the efforts of Wellington and other prominent
spokesmen, the canal was virtually on its last legs with the only cargo
being shingle, carried inland for use in repairing roads. In fact, the
canal was receiving more income from sheep grazing than water-bourn
transport! The government tried to increase its "grass sales" by
leasing more land to farmers.
c1850 Two attempts were made in the early 1850's to buy the
canal. One was a railway who wanted to close the canal and lay tracks
in its place, this was rejected by parliament. The other was a proposal
by the Lords of Romney Marsh but this fell through due to financial
difficulties.
1855 Britain was once again at war, this time in Crimea. The
Royal Military Canal was placed under the authority of the Secretary of
State for war. The first thing he had to do was refuse another offer to
buy the canal, this time from a Mr. Smith. The best policy was now
thought to be to keep the canal in government hands because even as a
flimsy line of defence it could still stall an attacking force - if
they came that way!
1857 A survey was published which made suggestions on how the
canal could be used to earn more money. Among other things it was
suggested that the government could make money from selling Elm wood
from the trees along the banks which were now over 50 years old.
1860's Traffic continued to use the canal at a small but steady
level. There was never a profit though the losses were never more than
£400 a year.
1867 Discussions were continually brought back to the subject
of public money being wasted to keep the line open. It was finally
decided that the canal should be sold off. In February the Kentish
Gazette reported that Seabrook Harbour & Dock Company was about to buy
the canal (which terminated very close to them near Hythe). However,
there was more to it than simply taking on the running of an old
waterway. The canal served more importantly as a land drainage system
than as a goods carrying route and anybody who took it on had to
realise this.
1872 Five years later the government were still running the
route but had passed an Act allowing them to give the canal away to
anybody who agreed to take on the responsibility of looking after land
drainage.
1873 The Lords Of The Level (!) offered to take the canal on
and the war department was able to lease the whole artificial stretch
from Iden to Hythe. This was no small agreement though, the lease would
not run out till 2872! It could be argued that the rent was a little
high however - it was set at one shilling per year! This was soon
followed by Hythe Corporation who wanted to buy the stretch through
their town to convert it into ornamental gardens.
1874 The war department sold off the stretches on the west side
of Rye to 4 different owners. By now, trade on the canal was almost
none existent.
1903 After a few years of mini revival the canal was down to
its last boat.
1909 Commercial traffic ceased after 99 years when the barge
"Vulture" paid the last toll at Iden Lock.
1935 The final stretch of the canal to be sold was the length
between Appledore and Hamstreet. This was sold to a woman named Miss
Dorothy Johnston who instantly presented the whole length to the
National Trust. The last part of the "canal" still under War Department
ownership was the parapet along the side of the military road. However,
just 4 years later the whole canal was requisitioned when WW2 began.
The government had a brain storming idea.... If the Germans attacked
... maybe the canal could be used as a line of defence!!!!!
RESTORATION
As far as I am aware, there are no plans to restore the RMC to full
navigation. However, such a scheme would probably be relatively easy.
Locks would need to be converted back from their sluices and culverts
under flattened bridges would have to be rebuilt into navigable bridges
but most of the canal is in pretty good condition. The waterway's
survival is secure as it is used for irrigation, fishing and pleasure-
boating for a short stretch within Hythe and also near Rye.
From a walkers point of view there are many stretches which would make
for a good day out though annoyingly there are other stretches which
are closed to the public for no real reason. However, Kent County
Council are said to be strongly looking into creating a continuous
linear walkway along the canal. Maybe this has been created by now?
There is nothing left on the route to hint to the unwary as to why the
canal was originally built. The only obvious signs of a military or
defensive presence are the second world war pill boxes positioned along
the route which were built some 130 years after the canal was opened!
Copyright © Peter Hardcastle 1996, 1998
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If you lasted this far - thank you. If anybody would like a full
description of the route as it stands today I can upload that for you
too.
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