Lord Warden House, Dover

Lord Warden House, Dover

We were appointed by the Port of Dover to undertake a condition survey to the significant fabric to Lord Warden House in Dover as part of their quinquennial review of buildings on their estate. The building is a former Victorian hotel; currently partially occupied as offices. It is Grade II listed and has what were once splendid ballrooms, which are in a very poor state of repair and have been unoccupied for some time. It was designed and built to designs by Samuel Beazley between 1848 and 1853 and in its hey-day it attracted a rich clientele on their way to and from the continent, including Charles Dickens and Emperor Napoleon III. During the Second World War the hotel was taken over by the Navy and was known as HMS Wasp; it was the headquarters of the Coastal Force.