The Covered Slips
Together with the dry docks, the covered slips (above), formed the industrial heart of Chatham Dockyard during the age of sail. The majority of shipbuilding was concentrated in this area and, although some shiops were built in dry docks, most were constructed on slipways which sloped into the river.
The first slips had been built during the 17th century and were shallow, timber-lined structures. They remained in this form until shortly after the Napoleonic Wars, when they were renewed in stone. At the same time, the Royal Navy embarked on a programme to build covers over those that were used for shipbuilding to help prevent ships from rottig before they were launched.
At Chatham, this process started with the slips and docks at the south end of the yard, which no longer exist, and it was not until 1838 that work started to cover the northern slips seen above.
By then, the use of cast and wrought iron in buildings had become feasible, and this range of buildings clearly demonstrates the rapid pace of technological change in Victorian Britain. Built within a 17-year period (1838-1855), the first (left) slip roof is of timber, the second three are largely cast iron and the fourth and last is of wrought iron. Together, they form a unique and important monument to the development of the wide-span structure in the 19th century.
No. 3 Slip, now also called the Big Space, is on the left above. It is thought to have been Europe's largest wide-span timber structure when built. It has a cantilevered frame and an apsidal end, which was shaped to match a ship's bow. The slipway underneath was filled in and the present large mezzanine floor inserted in 1904 to create a store for ship's boats. The building today is a museum store for large obects from both the Historic Dockyard and the Royal Engineers' Museum.
The buildings are Grade I listed structures.
The Covered Slips
Together with the dry docks, the covered slips (above), formed the industrial heart of Chatham Dockyard during the age of sail. The majority of shipbuilding was concentrated in this area and, although some shiops were built in dry docks, most were constructed on slipways which sloped into the river.
The first slips had been built during the 17th century and were shallow, timber-lined structures. They remained in this form until shortly after the Napoleonic Wars, when they were renewed in stone. At the same time, the Royal Navy embarked on a programme to build covers over those that were used for shipbuilding to help prevent ships from rottig before they were launched.
At Chatham, this process started with the slips and docks at the south end of the yard, which no longer exist, and it was not until 1838 that work started to cover the northern slips seen above.
By then, the use of cast and wrought iron in buildings had become feasible, and this range of buildings clearly demonstrates the rapid pace of technological change in Victorian Britain. Built within a 17-year period (1838-1855), the first (left) slip roof is of timber, the second three are largely cast iron and the fourth and last is of wrought iron. Together, they form a unique and important monument to the development of the wide-span structure in the 19th century.
No. 3 Slip, now also called the Big Space, is on the left above. It is thought to have been Europe's largest wide-span timber structure when built. It has a cantilevered frame and an apsidal end, which was shaped to match a ship's bow. The slipway underneath was filled in and the present large mezzanine floor inserted in 1904 to create a store for ship's boats. The building today is a museum store for large obects from both the Historic Dockyard and the Royal Engineers' Museum.
The buildings are Grade I listed structures.