During the Second World War, part of the city walls near the Dane John Gardens were turned into an ammunition depot, dug into the bank of the wall.
German bombing campaigns in 1942 caused extensive damage to Canterbury, including the city walls around Riding Gate.
 The bomb damage provided fresh opportunities for archaeological investigation, however, and work by the Canterbury Excavation Committee began in 1944.
This research disproved older theories about the shape of the Roman city walls, demonstrating that the Roman and medieval defences formed an identical circuit.

In the post-war years, the city walls shaped the route of Canterbury's modern ring road system, protecting the inner core of the ancient city, despite proposals under the Holden Plan of 1945 for a radical reshaping of the city's road network.
During the 1950s, a stretch of Canterbury's walls were reconstructed, including two circular towers, as part of the redevelopment of the St George district.
In the early 1980s, the volume of traffic around the West Gate was causing damage to the structure of the building.
The remaining walls and West Gate are protected under UK law as scheduled monuments and as a Grade I listed building.
During the Second World War, part of the city walls near the Dane John Gardens were turned into an ammunition depot, dug into the bank of the wall. German bombing campaigns in 1942 caused extensive damage to Canterbury, including the city walls around Riding Gate.  The bomb damage provided fresh opportunities for archaeological investigation, however, and work by the Canterbury Excavation Committee began in 1944. This research disproved older theories about the shape of the Roman city walls, demonstrating that the Roman and medieval defences formed an identical circuit.
In the post-war years, the city walls shaped the route of Canterbury's modern ring road system, protecting the inner core of the ancient city, despite proposals under the Holden Plan of 1945 for a radical reshaping of the city's road network. During the 1950s, a stretch of Canterbury's walls were reconstructed, including two circular towers, as part of the redevelopment of the St George district. In the early 1980s, the volume of traffic around the West Gate was causing damage to the structure of the building. The remaining walls and West Gate are protected under UK law as scheduled monuments and as a Grade I listed building.
Canterbury city walls