The shop, located on the south western side of the inner bailey, is one of the buildings within the inner bailey that appear as a group of mid-18th-century barrack blocks with a reasonably homogenous character. It is likely however that this building originated in the medieval period as ‘Arthurs Lesser Hall’, immediately north west of the Palace Gate. In the mid-1740s this building was converted into accommodation for enlisted men within the barracks complex. Most of the buildings within the inner baily were converted in the same way and to cover the haphazard assortment of structures, a uniform external finish was employed in which the joints in the fabric were treated with galetting. Where the external face of a wall was new, coursed stone was employed, but where older fabric was being employed without being refaced, the existing rubble was tidied up. Originally the conversion consisted of a pair of two-storey barracks (with a central stair) for enlisted men. There was a proposed conversion in 1925 which was carried out, creating a higher elevation and shallower roof pitch, as well as different fenestration. It is clear from the surviving building that alterations were also made after that conversion – an extra window for instance and the conversion of two windows to doors. The buildings interior was extensively modernised in the 1960s and contains no original fittings. (1-3)

<1> English Heritage, 2014, Dover Castle Conservation Management Plan Volume 2 Gazetteer (Unpublished document). SKE52105.

<2> Johnathan Coad, 1995, English Heritage Book of Dover Castle and the Defences of Dover (Monograph). SKE52106.

<3> English Heritage, 2010, Inner Bailey, Dover Castle, Kent; Historic Buildings Report (Unpublished document). SKE31743.