{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Use British English|date=February 2023}} {{Infobox lighthouse | name = Naze Tower | image = The Naze Tower.jpg | caption = Naze Tower | location = Near [[Walton-on-the-Naze]], [[Essex]], England | coordinates = {{coord|51.868966|1.279564|display=inline,title}} | yearbuilt = 1720 | yearlit = | automated = | yeardeactivated = | foundation = | construction = Brick | shape = Octagonal | marking = | height = {{convert|86|ft|m|abbr=on}} | focalheight = | lens = | currentlens = | intensity = | range = | characteristic = | fogsignal = | racon = | admiralty = | canada = }} The [[House of Hanover|Hanover]]ian tower, more commonly known as the '''Naze Tower''', is situated at the start of the open area of [[the Naze]]. It was a [[sea mark|navigational tower]], constructed to assist ships on this otherwise fairly feature-less coast. Visitors can climb the 111-step spiral staircase to the top of the {{convert|86|ft|m|adj=on}} tower for a 360 degree view of the beach and countryside. The Naze Tower features a [[museum]] with exhibits about the tower, the [[ecology]] and [[geology]] of the Naze, and the [[coastal erosion]] problem. The tower also features a [[art museum|private art gallery]] on six floors with changing exhibits several times a year, and a tea room. The tower is privately owned. The tower is a Grade II* [[listed building]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Naze Tower, Frinton and Walton - 1165846 {{!}} Historic England |url=https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1165846 |access-date=2026-05-08 |website=historicengland.org.uk |language=en}}</ref>
==History== [[File:Tower at the Naze point, Essex UK BL KTOP271 2114X.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Tower at the Naze point in 1800, by [[John Thomas Smith (engraver)|John Thomas Smith]]]] [[File:The Naze Tower, Walton-on the Naze, Essex.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The Naze Tower (before 1837), attributed to [[John Constable]]]] The present tower was built in 1720–21 by [[Trinity House]], and was intended to work in conjunction with Walton Hall Tower to guide vessels through the Goldmer Gap.<ref name=blb/> Towers at Naze and at Walton Hall are marked on a map of 1673 by [[Richard Blome]], which in turn was based on a map drawn up in the late 1500s.<ref>{{cite web|last=English Heritage|title=British Listed Buildings: Tower at Walton Hall|url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-119937-navigation-tower-at-walton-hall-frinton-|publisher=British Listed Buildings|accessdate=31 March 2013}}</ref> The present Naze Tower therefore replaced an earlier construction at a similar location. It was of particular benefit to ships using the nearby port of [[Harwich]]. Both the current Naze Tower and its predecessor had beacons or lamps lit at the top, providing an early form of lighthouse.<ref name=naze>{{cite book|last=Nye-Browne|first=Michelle|title=Naze Tower: past, present and future|publisher=Naze Tower|location=Walton on the Naze}}</ref>
Over the years, the tower has had a variety of uses. In the eighteenth century it was a tea house, operated by the actress and aristocrats' mistress, Martha Reay. It was a lookout during the [[Napoleonic Wars]] and again during the [[World War I|Great War]] of 1914–18. In the [[World War II|Second World War]] it was used as a radar station, with its crenellations removed to accommodate a [[radar]] dish.<ref name=naze/>
Naze Tower was given Grade II* listed status in 1984 by [[English Heritage]].<ref name=blb>{{cite web|last=English Heritage|title=British Listed Buildings|url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-119945-naze-tower-frinton-and-walton-essex|publisher=British Listed Buildings|accessdate=31 March 2013}}</ref> Since 1986, it has been in private ownership.<ref name=naze/> The current owners purchased the tower in 1996, and after refurbishment, opened it to the public in 2005.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-08 |title=Walton-on-the-Naze tower: Life running the Essex landmark |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5ypzp141vro |access-date=2026-05-08 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>
The tower is at significant risk from both structural decay and coastal [[erosion]]. In 2011, a £1.2m project saw the construction of 'Crag Walk', a {{Convert|110|m}} long footpath, to slow the rate of erosion.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2011-04-08 |title=Walton-on-the Naze coastal erosion project completed |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-12983584 |access-date=2026-05-08 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> In 2015 the tower was re-added to the [[Heritage at Risk Register]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-10-21 |title=Historic Naze Tower put on at-risk list to help save it |url=https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/13883068.historic-naze-tower-put-on-at-risk-list-to-help-save-it/ |access-date=2026-05-08 |website=Gazette |language=en}}</ref> but was removed once more after restoration works to address damp problems.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2016-03-25 |title=Naze Tower re-opens after £250,000 facelift on Essex coast |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-35893857 |access-date=2026-05-08 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> {{wide image|The_view_south_from_the_top_of_Naze_Tower_-_geograph.org.uk_-_90081.jpg|400px|The view south from the top of Naze Tower, looking over the Naze to Walton town and pier}}
==References== {{reflist}} {{authority control}}
[[Category:Museums in Essex]] [[Category:Grade II* listed buildings in Essex]]