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A forgotten Cliftonville landmark is set to reopen this summer for the first time in 15 years.

The Margate Caves, off Northdown Road, were first dug as a small chalk mine in the late 17th to early 18th centuries.

After being rediscovered in 1798 by Francis Forster, who built Northumberland House, they were extensively decorated and used as a wine store and grotto.

Throughout the centuries the caves have been repeatedly opened up to tourists and blocked off, and were even used as air raid shelters during the First and Second World Wars.

(Image: Frank Leppard)

There were even rumours of the caves being used to smuggle goods into Britain from the sea.

And soon visitors will be able to take in the fascinating chalk caves once again.

The caves are in the process of being refurbished, thanks to funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery Fund, and are set to reopen in the summer.

Kent Live photographer Frank Leppard took an exclusive look around the caves earlier this month, and his stunning pictures show just how much needs to be done to restore the subterranean complex and its artwork.

The history of the Margate Caves

(Image: Frank Leppard)

The Margate Caves were first dug out at some point in the late 17th or early 18th century, but the exact date is not known.

It was believed the caves were used by smugglers to smuggle goods into the town, but these rumours are unfounded.

The caves were rediscovered entirely by accident, following the construction of Northumberland House in Northdown Road.

(Image: Frank Leppard)

It is believed that in 1798 the grounds of the garden gave way while the gardener was digging behind the house, and a vertical shaft leading into the caves was discovered.

The gardener was injured in the fall and one account reported that he died from his injuries.

Once homeowner Francis Forster had cleared out the caves, he adapted them for his own use and employed a local artist named Brazier to create carvings and paint figures and scenes on the chalk walls, many of which survive today.

(Image: Frank Leppard)

He used them for storage, as a wine cellar, and as a personal grotto, and at some point it is believed he dug a set of stairs to make accessing the caves easier.

Following the death of Mr Forster the caves were neglected for decades, until in 1863 a tenant turned them into a tourist attraction under the name Vortigern’s Tavern.

Northumberland House later became the vicarage for the Holy Trinity Church, and a new set of access stairs was dug from its cellar in 1914 to be used as private access to the caves in the event of air raids in the First World War.

The caves were reopened to the public again after the war, and were again used as air raid shelters in the Second World War until the vicarage and church were destroyed by bombing in 1943.

They were abandoned until 1958, when the caves were once again opened as a tourist attraction, but sadly they had to close in 2004 due to health and safety concerns.