234 THE ISLE OF RUIM. 



must always have been a great commercial focus, and the 

 Pool by Tower Hill must always have been what Bede 

 called it many centuries later, ' a mart of many nations.' 

 But under the Eomans London grew into a considerable 

 city ; and as the regular sea highway to the Thames lay 

 through the Wantsum, in the rear of Thanet, that strip 

 of estuary became of immense importance. In those 

 days of coasting navigation, indeed, the habit was to 

 avoid headlands, and take advantage everywhere of 

 shallow short cuts. Ships from the continent, therefore, 

 avoided the North Foreland by running through the 

 Wantsum at the back of Thanet ; as they avoided 

 Shellness and Warden Point by running through the 

 Swale, at the back of Sheppey. 



To protect this main navigable channel, accordingly, 

 the Eomans built the two great guardian fortresses of 

 the coast, Eutupiae, or Eichborough, at the southern 

 entrance, and Eegulbium, or Eeculver, at the northern 

 exit. Under the walls of these powerful strongholds, 

 whose grim ruins still frown upon the dry channel at 

 their feet, ships were safe from piracy, while Euim itself 

 sheltered them from the heavy sea that now beats with 

 north-east winds upon the Foreland beyond. In fact, 

 the Wantsum was an early Spithead : it stood to 

 Eutupise as the Solent stands to Portsmouth and 

 Southampton. But Thanet Isle hardly shared at all in 

 this increased civilisation ; on the contrary, Eutupiao 

 (the precursor of Sandwich Haven) seems to have 

 diverted all its early commerce. For Eutupise became 

 clearly the naval capital of our island, the seat of that 

 vir spectabilis, the Count of Saxon Shore, and the 



