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A Brief History of the Cinque Ports

The banner of the Cinque Ports bailiffs

(Cinque is pronounced as ‘SINK' and not ‘SANK' in this case).

The Cinque Ports:	Hastings, Romney, Hythe, Dover and Sandwich
Modern members:	Dover, Hastings, New Romney, Hythe, Sandwich, Winchelsea and Rye, Faversham, Folkestone, Lydd, Margate, Ramsgate, Tenterden.
Present Lord Warden:	Admiral Sir Michael Boyce

Map of Cinque Ports

The Confederation of Cinque Ports was formed C.1050 in the time of Edward the Confessor when Hastings, Romney, Hythe, Dover and Sandwich assumed responsibility for ‘ship service'. This was a special arrangement between the towns and the king whereby in return for the provision of ships and men for 15 days free service a year to the Crown the town's Portsmen received many privileges.

The ship shown on the Sandwich Seal

Limbs or Members

By the 12th Century the original five ports were unable to carry out all the services needed by the Crown and the Confederation was increased in size. Winchelsea and Rye had become head ports in their own right and in response the new title of the Confederation became 'The Cinque Ports and two Antient Towns'. Other towns were allowed to join as ‘limbs' or ‘members' under a head port.

Corporate members shared many of the Portsmen's privileges, non-corporate members did not. Hastings had 14 members, Romney five, Hythe one, Dover three and Sandwich five.

The Portsmen and Their Rights

The original list of privileges was as follows:-

'exemption from Tax and Tallage, Sac and Soc, Toll and Team, Blodwit, Fledwit, Pillory and Tumbrill, Infrangentheof, Outfrangeneof, Mundbryce, Waifs and Strays, right to Flotsam, Jetsam or Legan, Privilege of Assembly as a guild, Rights of Den and Strond, and Honours at Court'

Almost incomprehensible to the modern reader, the rights gave the Portsmen full self-government allowing them the organisation of their own taxation and legal affairs. The Portsmen had their own courts, could judge and punish criminals, levy tolls and claim any wreckage found in the sea or on shore. Their special honours at court gave them the right to carry a canopy over the King at his Coronation and sit at his side at the Coronation Feast. In addition they controlled the yearly Yarmouth Herring Fair, a tradition which brought them into frequent conflict with the Portsmen of Norfolk.

Such rights and privileges gave considerable power in the Medieval World and made the Portsmen difficult to contol.

The Lord Wardens

The position of Lord Warden was created in an attempt to control the activities of the Portsmen. From the early 13th Century the position was combined with that of the constable or governor of Dover Castle. Appointed by the King the Lord Warden had to represent both the King's and the Portsmen's interests. In modern times the title is an honour bestowed in recognition of long service to the Crown.

William Pitt, the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill and Sir Robert Menzies are some of those who have held this position. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was installed as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports in Dover on 1st August 1979. The current Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports Admiral Sir Michael Boyce (retired Chief of Defence staff).

Decline of The Cinque Ports

The Cinque Ports reached the peak of their power in the 13th Century, acting on many occasions for the King but also suffering some disgrace for unofficial piracy, robbery and pillage that had become commonplace activities of many of the Portsmen.

In the fourteenth century however, the ports began to decline as changes in the local coastline caused many Cinque Ports harbours to become unnavigable or even in some cases completely landlocked. In 1588 the Cinque Ports fleet carried out its last action against the Spanish Armada. In 1663 the Cinque Ports bailiffs made their final appearance at the Yarmouth Herring Fair.

More Information

The history of the Cinque Ports is a complex and fascinating one. To find out more please consult the books below: