It is not known who designed Deal Castle, but Sir Edward Ryngeley and Thomas Wingfield served as the commissioners for the project, with Robert Loyrde and David Marten as the paymaster and comptroller, and Christopher Dickenson and William Clement as the master mason and carpenters.[14] Work began at Deal in April and progressed at speed, with 1,400 men at work on the site by the following month.[15] A strike for higher pay was broken up over the summer by Ryngeley and by December, when Anne of Cleves dined there, the castle was mostly completed.[16] Deal and the other fortifications along the Downs cost the Crown a total of £27,092 to build, much of which came from proceeds of the dissolution of the monasteries a few years before.[17][lower-alpha 1] Lead, timber and stone from local monasteries were also recycled for use in Deal Castle.[18]