Dover is the port of the short crossing to Wissant, the road of kings, legates, pilgrims and couriers between England and France, and one of the head ports of the Cinque Ports, the confederation of Kent and Sussex ports that owe the king ships and men each year in return for freedom from tolls, their own courts and a share in the Yarmouth herring fair.
Under the castle on the cliff lies a town of mariners and ferrymen with the priory of St Martin, a cell of Christ Church Canterbury.
Who holds it
- Name
- The barons of Dover; the reeve or bailiff for 1199-1200 is not pinned
- Title
- The barons (portsmen) of Dover under the king's officer
- Since
- Customs recorded in Domesday (1086)
- Confidence
- medium
Dover is a royal town whose portsmen hold their liberties in return for ship service. Domesday records that the burgesses gave the king 20 ships once a year for 15 days, with 21 men in each, in return for sac and soc and freedom from toll. Their twelfth-century charters are recited in later confirmations; we could not confirm the date of a charter of John to Dover or to the ports collectively in 1199.
Lord in 1200
The king. The portsmen run their own court and the passage under the king's officer; the castle above is separate (Dover castle).
Overlord
King John
Allies and rivals
The other ports, rivals in the passage trade; the castle's constable.
How things stand that morning
At peace, under its customary liberties.
Wealth
The passage and fishing. No figures.
Military
Ship service for the king.
Threats
- A French descent on the coast
Charter
Ship service and liberties recorded in Domesday; twelfth-century royal charters to the individual ports, recited later. Whether John confirmed Dover's liberties in 1199 is not pinned in the sources we could reach. The ports' first general charter in common is of 1260 (later).
Council
The barons of Dover with their reeve or bailiff and their own court; the court of Shepway, under the king's officer, hears pleas touching the ports.
Communities
St Martin's priory (Benedictine, a cell of Christ Church Canterbury); pilgrims and travellers. The Maison Dieu is founded by Hubert de Burgh in 1203 (later).
Militia
The ship service: 20 ships with 21 men each for 15 days a year (Domesday). The portsmen are seamen and fight at sea.
Walls and castle
The castle above (royal, Dover castle). The town's walls are later.
Trade and crafts
The passage across the Channel; fishing (herring at Yarmouth); wine and goods for the castle and Canterbury.
Places of note
- St Martin's priory: Cell of Christ Church
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Domesday and the later charters are firm; the state of John's confirmations in 1199 is not.
On the map: The town and its immediate liberty; its limbs (Folkestone, Faversham, Margate and others) are not drawn here.
Primary sources for England
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
- Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
- Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
- English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
- Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
- Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online
22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.