Perhaps one of the most interesting things about Cowling Castle is the fact that it was built expressly for the defence of the coast against the French and the Spanish. This fact is rather pointedly referred to in the following contemporary inscription enamelled on copper plates attached to the eastern side of the gatehouse: Knouweyth that beth and schul be That i am mad in help of the cuntre In knowyng of whych thyng This is chartre and wytnessyng. The inscription is set out in the form of a regular charter, to which is attached a seal bearing the Cobham arms, gules, on a chevron or, three lions rampant sable. The situation of Cowling Castle on low-lying ground near the coast is a circumstance which confirms the idea that the fortress was built for coast defence purposes. On the other hand, however, inscriptions of this kind are of great rarity, and it has been suggested with great show of reason, that whilst the purpose was partly for the defence of the coast and partly to keep the people of Kent in order in what were peculiarly troubled times, the inscription was so worded as to divert attention from the latter. The suggestion is worthy of consideration, but the fact remains that towards the end of the fourteenth century this part of Kent was overrun by Frenchmen and Spaniards, who burned and destroyed all the houses they came across, and Cobham's intention in building Cowling Castle was to check these incursions. _Rochester._--It is clear that Rochester has in its time been an important part of our coast defences. It still retains many fragments of its Roman wall, whilst its Norman castle is represented mainly by a stately keep 70 feet square in plan, and 113 feet in height, which forms an impressive object, and is in fact a remarkably fine example of castle-building. The Norman keep was built between the years 1126 and 1139. The city wall, which was built in places on the site of the Roman wall, dates from the year 1225. _Queenborough._--There is a tradition, possibly it is little more, that a residence of the Anglo-Saxon kings of Kent was situated here near the north-western mouth of the Swale, the building being afterwards known as the castle of Sheppey, in which island it is situated. The whole fortress was rebuilt by Edward III about the year 1361 according to plans made by William of Wykeham. Edward III in due course visited the place and gave it the name of Queenborough in honour of his queen Philippa. As a coast defence a fortress on this site must have been of great value, commanding as it did the north-western mouth of the Swale, and protecting the water which divides the Isle of Sheppey from the mainland. Henry VIII recognized the value of this point, and repaired it so as to make it suitable for use as one of his coast castles. The plan of the mediaeval fortress, as might be expected when one remembers who designed it, is ingenious and remarkable.