King's Engineers and The Corps of Royal Engineers
Bishop Gundulf's talent for architecture had been spotted by King William I and was put to good use in Rochester where he was sent as bishop. Almost immediately the king appointed him to supervise the construction of the White Tower, now part of the Tower of London in 1078. Under William Rufus he also undertook building work on Rochester Castle. Having served three Kings of England and earning "the favour of then all". Gundulf is accepted as the first King's Engineer. Gundulf died in 1108 and his statue adorns the west door of Rochester Cathedral.
Because of his 'military' engineering talent, Bishop Gundulf is regarded as the "father of the Corps of Royal Engineers", military engineers of the British Army. The Corps claims a line of 'King's Engineers' pre-dating the engineers of the Board of Ordnance in 1414 and the formal founding of the corps in 1716 all the way back to Gundulf of Rochester. This shared heritage and the close proximity to the cathedral of the Royal School of Military Engineering in Brompton means the Corps of Royal Engineers and Rochester Cathedral maintain strong links to this day.
Read more about this topic: Gundulf Of Rochester
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