Julius Caesar is on record as having spoken about Dover, which was one of the Roman Empire's most important naval bases in England about 2000 years ago. But Dover's history as a port stretches way back even further. In 1992, a Bronze Age boat was discovered in the town that proved to be 3,600 years old, indicating that the town's maritime history is among the oldest in the world.

Dover's sheltered position, and the fact that it is the closest land in Britain to continental Europe, has always been of great significance. By the time of the Norman conquest, the old mouth of the Roman harbour had changed. A delta of mud had divided the mouth of the river into two streams, the Westbrook, flowing into the western side of the bay, and the Eastbrook, emptying into the sea by the cliff on which the Castle stands. The mouth of the Eastbrook became the main harbour, called Warden Down, which was a flourishing community of seafarers, fishermen and shipbuilders. The little port was in constant danger of silting up and its life was finally ended when a fall of chalk from the cliffs blocked the river in the late thirteenth century.

Throughout it's long history, the port of Dover has always been of interest to Royalty. Richard the Lionheart departed from Dover on the third Crusade. King Henry VIII worked to improve the port, but much of the work he started was never completed and subsequent deposits of shingle caused major problems to shipping for many years after. In 1606, King James I gave Dover Harbour Board its Royal Charter, placing the Lord Warden and his Board in charge of running the port. By the terms of the Charter, not only were the harbour and pent made over to the Board but also reclaimed land up to the cliffs below Snargate and along the shore as far as the Castle should belong to it. The more land that was reclaimed, the more houses there would be, and so more rents to increase the Board's income. The present Board was created and incorporated by statute and is, therefore, a statutory body and has no shareholders to whom it is answerable.

The Admiralty Pier was begun in 1847 and by 1850 had reached 650ft from the shore, ending the problem of drifting shingle caused by the problems of previous years. Extension work continued until 1875 when the Admiralty, put off by the cost, lost interest in the harbour of refuge. Dover Harbour Board then decided to complete the inner harbour itself and began the Prince of Wales Pier in 1892, only for the government to decide to complete the outer harbour, which it did in 1909. The harbour became an enclosed area of still water which made life more convenient for ships using the port.

During both world wars, Dover's port played a vital role. The famous Dunkirk evacuations saw many vessels arriving in Dover with thousands of rescued troops. Dover's coastal defences also guarded the English Channel against enemy ships and aircraft.

Since the last War, considerable development has taken place at the port to keep pace with the demands from passengers, tourist cars, and roll-on roll-off freight. The Eastern Docks operates passenger and car ferries to the Continent run by P&O Stena, Seafrance, and NorfolkLine. At the Western Docks Hoverspeed operate their high-speed SeaCat services, and international cruise ships dock there throughout the year.

It's not for nothing that the port of Dover is known as the world's busiest port. You can visit it at any time of day or night, any day of the year, and it will always be bustling with activity. Millions of people pass through the port of Dover every year.

http://www.dover-web.co.uk/portofdoverhistory.asp