| The development of Ryde seafront and foreshore has been evolving ever since the small settlement of Lower Ryde became a communication point in medieval times. At some point, its proximity to Portsmouth encouraged the use of this small straggling village as the crossing point or 'passage' to and from the mainland. The modern use of the word port must be ignored when describing Ryde. A port in pre-19th century terms was any place where people, animals or goods could be loaded. Given the small size of ships and the modest amount of goods to be transported, any inlet or sheltered beach could be used to fulfill the function of a port. While Portsmouth remained insignificant as a town and port, and while the Island could maintain a self-sufficiency, then there was little to stimulate a large sea-borne traffic between Ryde and Portsmouth. In addition, in medieval times, the crossing was also undertaken by mariners from Barnsley Creek or Harbour, which was a small harbour situated between modern Seaview and Springvale, a couple of miles to the east of Ryde. However, by the 16th century, this creek had silted up and was no longer navigable, thus adding to the importance of and dependence on Ryde. By Elizabeth I's reign, Ryde's increased significance is highlighted by the title taken for the manor court of Ashey, which from 1578 becomes 'The Manor of Ashey and Ryde'. Indeed, during the troubled and unsettled times of the Hundred Years War, Ryde was one of three permitted ports of entry and departure and a warden was appointed to supervise movements here. The fact that a fort was built in the 15th century to protect the passage at Ryde also points to an increased role for Ryde. Below are a series of plans of the seafront of Ryde, based on contemporary maps, leases and geological surveys. The c. 1200 map is a conjectural interpretation of the available evidence.
     It is clear from leases that the dwellings on the front at lower Ryde were situated right next to the "sea beach", which is usually given as the northern abuttal for these seafront properties. This seafront line, about where the pavement of the Esplanade road runs from lower St. Thomas's Street to George street, was planted with a row or rows of plashed hedging to help build up and fix the sand, such that it would afford some protection against the sea. At some point , probably in the late 17th or early 18th century , it would seem that a strip along the foreshore, stretching from George Street to the lower car park in St. Thomas's Street next to the Prince Consort, was reclaimed. It became known as the 'waste' and it was on this 'waste' next to the East Key that the watch-house was built, and was most probably taken down, when Henry Player bought the manor of Ryde and started to develop the seafront.
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