| Gbgridref: | SU 47812 29576 |
| Location: | High Street, Winchester, Hampshire |
| Governing Body: | Hampshire Cultural Trust |
| Owner: | Winchester City Council |
| Designation1: | Grade I |
| Designation1 Offname: | The Westgate, Winchester |
| Designation1 Date: | 24 March 1950 |
The Westgate is one of two surviving fortified gateways in Winchester, England (the other is Kingsgate) formerly part of Winchester City Walls. The earliest surviving fabric is of Anglo-Saxon character. The gate was rebuilt in the 12th century and modified in the 13th and late 14th centuries, the latter including a portcullis in the western façade and two inverted-keyhole gunports (for use with hand-held cannon), the earliest in the country. The gate was in use until 1959 when the High Street was routed around it.[1]
In the 19th century the City Corporation (now Winchester City Council) acquired the Westgate and began to use it as a museum and repository for the City archives. In 2014, ownership of the museum space was transferred to Hampshire Cultural Trust.[2] Today, the Westgate Museum's displays include a famous collection of pre-Imperial weights and measures, and a fine painted ceiling made for Winchester College in anticipation of a visit by Mary Tudor and Philip of Spain on the occasion of their marriage in Winchester in 1554.[3]