Dover Castle ‘rises from ashes of the 1216 siege’ in digital exhibition

English Heritage's display shows the castle before an epic battle for control against French and rebel forces

In 1216, as a civil war raged in England, with French soldiers and English rebels joining forces to overthrow King John, Dover Castle became a fortress for the monarch and helped decide the fate of the kingdom.

But an epic and bloody struggle for control of the castle left it badly damaged, including destroying multiple towers and its defensive walls.