Westgate (West Gate) - medieval gate height of 18 meters, located in Canterbury, Kent. Previously, the city was surrounded by a fortress wall, consisting of the seven gates, but only preserved these. Gates made of Kentish limestone, was built around 1379 and is the largest preserved city gates in all of England. Above the gate tower are two round towers. Gates still serve as the entrance to the city, and they are large enough that they could pass through a double-decker bus. In 1908, the gate was opened museum, but now it is temporarily closed.

At the site of today's West Gate stood before the Roman Gate, which served as the main entrance to the city. The main purpose of the construction of the new gate was considered an attraction in Canterbury greater number of pilgrims visiting the tomb of Thomas Becket. However, given the possibility of a military invasion of the French army, the gates were built as more than a defensive structure, as evidenced by the loopholes and narrow spiral staircases to climb the towers.

West Gate Towers consists of three floors, each in the XV century were cut loopholes, there are about 18. In the halls on each tower mounted fireplaces. In the years 1491-1492 on the second floor of the tower was cut through a large window facing east, directly on the Cathedral. From the towers you can climb on the roof, which was never completed, probably because of the beginning of a peasant uprising in 1381. In the years 1793-1794 was built on the roof of the square lantern has been preserved to this day.

On the orders of King Henry VI in Uestgeyte to 1453 housed the city's prison. In the XIX century, it was destroyed by a fortress wall. In the years 1823-1829 to the north of the gate housed the room jailer, later transformed into a police station and now it - the music school. At the end of the XIX century, the building housed the city archive Westgate.

Through the Western Gate of the writer Geoffrey Chaucer took place during his pilgrimage to the tomb of Thomas Becket. Just passed through this gate and English monarchs, including King George VI in 1948.

After Christmas 1648 parliamentary rebellion troops burned the wooden doors of the city gate, they have restored in 1660, but again destroyed at the end of the XVIII century.

Since 1908 in the building of the West Gate is a museum to visit as both towers are open, you can climb to the roof and enjoy the view of Canterbury. Among the exhibits presented arms, starting with the Civil War and ending with the Second World War. You can also go down to the prison cells. Children are allowed to try on a copy of military uniforms.

In 1908 the museum was exposed to a copy of the bronze sculptures of 16 barons and two bishops who signed the Magna Carta. Original sculptures, cast in the years 1847-1851, is now kept in the House of Lords at Westminster Palace. Some sculptures were exhibited in the museum, some were lost and then found again in one of the towers. It is known that preserved sculpture representing the Archbishop of Canterbury Stephen Langton, the fate of the five sculptures is still unknown.