Chatham, Kent

Chatham ( CHAT-əm) is a town within the Medway unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. It forms a conurbation with the neighbouring towns of Gillingham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham, and had a population of 80,596 in 2020. The town developed around Chatham Dockyard, established as a Royal Naval Dockyard in 1567, along with barracks for the British Army and the Royal Navy. A chain of defensive fortifications, including Fort Amherst (begun 1756) and expanded during the Napoleonic Wars, was constructed to protect the dockyard from land-based attack. The Corps of Royal Engineers remains based at Brompton Barracks. The dockyard closed on 31 March 1984 after more than four centuries of continuous operation. Part of the site was subsequently developed as a commercial port, other parts redeveloped for business and residential use, and 84 acres preserved as the Chatham Historic Dockyard museum, the most complete dockyard of the Age of Sail in the world. Its exhibits include the warships HMS Gannet, HMS Cavalier, and the submarine HMS Ocelot. Chatham is the administrative headquarters of Medway Council and the principal retail centre of the Medway area. Chatham railway station and Chatham Waterfront bus station serve as the main transport interchanges for the wider conurbation.