Kent (pronounced /kɛnt/) is a county The counties of England are territorial divisions of England for the purposes of administrative, political and geographical demarcation. Many current counties have foundations in older divisions such as the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. The name county originates in the area formerly or nominally administered by a Count, although in Britain the situation in southeast England England /ˈɪŋɡlənd/ is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population, while its mainland territory occupies most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain. England is bordered by Scotland to the north, Wales to the west and the North Sea, Irish Sea, Celtic Sea,, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey, Brighton and Hove and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel, Surrey Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of Greater London since 1965 and Greater London Greater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The administrative area was officially created in 1965 and covers the City of London , the City of Westminster and the other 31 London boroughs. Its area also forms the London region of England and the London European Parliament constituency. The region has by far and has a defined boundary with Essex Essex is a county in the East of England. The county town is Chelmsford, and the highest point of the county is Chrishall Common near the village of Langley, close to the Hertfordshire border, which reaches 482 feet (147 m) in the middle of the River Thames The Thames ( tɛmz ) is a major river flowing through southern England. While best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows through several other towns and cities, including Oxford, Reading and Windsor estuary An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. They are affected by both marine influences, such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water; and riverine influences, such as flows of fresh water and sediment. As a result they may contain many. The ceremonial county boundaries The ceremonial counties are areas of England that are appointed a Lord Lieutenant, and are defined by the government as the Counties for the purposes of the Lieutenancies Act 1997 with reference to the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England and Lieutenancies Act 1997. They are often used in a geographic reference frame, and in this of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national government of Medway Medway is a conurbation and unitary authority in South East England. The Unitary Authority was formed in 1998 when the City of Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with Gillingham Borough Council to form Medway Council, a unitary authority independent of Kent County Council, though still within the ceremonial county of Kent. Kent has a nominal border with France France (pronounced /ˈfræns/ or /ˈfrɑːns/; French: [fʁɑ̃s]), officially the French Republic (French: République française, pronounced: [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the halfway through the Channel Tunnel The Channel Tunnel , also known as the Chunnel, is a 50.5-kilometre (31.4 mi) undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in England with Coquelles, near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point it is 75 m (250 ft) deep. The Channel Tunnel has the longest undersea portion of any tunnel in. Maidstone Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, 32 miles south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural county of Kent, known as the Garden of is its county town A county town is the 'capital' of a county in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland. County towns are usually the location of administrative or judicial functions, or established over time as the de facto main town of a county. The concept of a county town eventually became detached from its original meaning of where the county and historically Rochester Rochester is a town in Kent, England. It is located within the unitary authority area of Medway and is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway about 30 miles from London. The town is known for its cathedral and castle, and for an epic siege in 1215. Rochester, together with neighbouring Chatham, Gillingham, Strood and a number of outlying and Canterbury Canterbury (pronounced /ˈkæntɚbri/ or /ˈkæntɚbɛri/, listen (help·info)) lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a local government district of Kent, in South East England. It lies on the River Stour have been accorded city status City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the British monarch to a select group of communities. The holding of city status gives a settlement no special rights other than that of calling itself a "city". Nonetheless, this appellation carries its own prestige and, consequently, competitions for the status are hard fought. The status though only the latter still holds it.

Kent's location between London London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been an influential city for two millennia and its history goes back to its founding by the Romans. The city's core, the ancient City of London, still retains its limited medieval boundaries. However, since at least the nineteenth century, the name "London" has also referred and the continent Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands and, at times, peninsulas. Notably, in British and Irish English usage, the term means Europe excluding the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Republic of Ireland and Iceland. One has led to its being in the front line of several conflicts, including the Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain is the name given to the sustained strategic effort by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) during the summer and autumn of 1940 to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force (RAF), especially Fighter Command during the Second World War. The name derives from a speech made on 18 June, 1940 in the House of Commons by Prime during World War II World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all of the great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. The war involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history. East Kent was named Hell Fire Corner during the conflict. England has relied on the county's ports to provide warships through much of the past 800 years; the Cinque Ports The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex, at the eastern end of the English Channel where the crossing to the continent is narrowest. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial in the 12th–14th centuries and Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional defences. For 414 years Chatham Dockyard provided over in the 16th–20th centuries were of particular importance to the country's security. France can be seen clearly in fine weather from Folkestone Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site lay in a stream valley in the cliffs here; and its subsequent development was through fishing and its proximity to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways and the building of a ferry port, together with its growing, and the iconic White Cliffs of Dover The white cliffs of Dover are cliffs which form part of the British coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliffs are part of the North Downs formation. The cliff face, which reaches up to 106 metres high, owes its striking façade to its composition of chalk accentuated by streaks of black flint. The cliffs spread east and west from.

Because of its abundance of orchards An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive purpose. A fruit garden is generally synonymous with an orchard, and hop Humulus, is a small genus of flowering plants native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The female flowers (often called "cones") of H. lupulus are known as hops, and are used as a culinary flavoring and stabilizer, especially in the brewing of beer. The hop is part of the family Cannabaceae, which also includes the genus gardens, Kent is widely known as "The Garden of England" — a name often applied when marketing the county or its produce, although other regions have tried to lay claim to the title.^[1][2] Major industries in the north-west of Kent have included cement In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance which sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term "opus caementicium" to describe masonry which resembled concrete and was made from crushed rock with burnt lime as binder, papermaking In papermaking a dilute suspension of fibers in water is drained through a screen, so that a mat of randomly interwoven fibers is laid down. Water is removed from this mat of fibers by pressing and drying to make paper. Most paper is made from wood pulp, but other fiber sources such as cotton and textiles may be used, and aircraft construction, but these are now in decline. Large parts of Kent are within the London commuter belt The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding London, England from which it is possible to commute to work in the capital. It is alternatively known as the London metropolitan area or the Southeast metropolitan area. It should not be confused with Greater London or the Greater London Urban Area. South and East Kent rely on tourism and agriculture. Coal mining has also played its part in Kent's industrial heritage.

History

The area has been occupied since the Palaeolithic Lower Paleolithic (genus Homo) era, as attested by finds from the quarries at Swanscombe. The Medway megaliths were built during the Neolithic The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age. The Neolithic followed the terminal Holocene Epipalaeolithic periods, beginning with the rise of farming, which produced the " era. There is a rich sequence of Bronze Age The Bronze Age is, with respect to a given prehistoric society, the period in that society when the most advanced metalworking included smelting copper and tin from naturally-occurring outcroppings of copper and tin ores, creating a bronze alloy by melting those metals together, and casting them into bronze artifacts. The Bronze Age also included, Iron Age In archaeology, the Iron Age was the stage in the development of any people in which tools and weapons whose main ingredient was iron were prominent. The adoption of this material often coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles, and Roman The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor, Augustus. The nearly 500-year-old Roman Republic, era occupation, as indicated by finds and features such as the Ringlemere gold cup and the Roman villas of the Darent valley.^[3]

The modern name of Kent is derived from the Brythonic The Brythonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist Sir John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael. The name Brittonic derives ultimately from the name Prettanic recorded word Cantus meaning "rim" or "border". This describes the eastern part of the current county area as a border land or coastal district. Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar , (13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire had described the area as Cantium, or home of the Cantiaci The Cantiaci or Cantii were a Celtic or Belgic people living in Britain before the Roman conquest, and gave their name to a civitas of Roman Britain. They lived in the area then called Cantium, now called Kent, in south-eastern England, and spoke a Brythonic language - most likely a dialect of British with influence from Gaulish. Their capital was in 51 BC.^[4]

The extreme west of the modern county was occupied by Iron Age tribes, known as the Regnenses. It is possible that another ethnic group occupied The Weald and East Kent. East Kent became a kingdom of the Jutes The Jutes, Iuti, or Iutae were a Germanic people who, according to Bede, were one of the three most powerful Germanic peoples of the time. They are believed to have originated from Jutland in modern Denmark, Southern Schleswig (South Jutland) and part of the East Frisian coast during the 5th century^[5] and was known as Cantia from about 730 and as Cent in 835. The early medieval inhabitants of the county were known as the Cantwara, or Kent people. These people regarded the city of Canterbury as their capital.^[6]

In 597, Pope Gregory I Pope St. Gregory I (Latin: Gregorius I ; c. 540 – 12 March 604), better known in English as Gregory the Great, was pope from 3 September 590 until his death appointed Augustine Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 598. He is considered the "Apostle to the English" and a founder of the English Church as the first Archbishop of Canterbury The Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, the see that churches must be in communion with in order to be a part of the Anglican Communion. In the previous year, Augustine successfully converted the pagan Paganism is the blanket term given to describe religions and spiritual practices of pre-Christian Europe, and by extension a term for polytheistic traditions or folk religion worldwide seen from a Western or Christian viewpoint. The term has various different meanings, though, from a Western perspective, it has modern connotations of a faith that King Æthelberht of Kent to Christianity. The Diocese of Canterbury became Britain's first Episcopal See An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral. The seat is also called the bishop's throne, especially in the Eastern Orthodox Church and has since remained Britain's centre of Christianity.^[7]

In the 11th century, the people of Kent adopted the motto Invicta, meaning "undefeated". This naming followed the invasion of Britain by William of Normandy. The Kent people's continued resistance against the Normans The Normans were the people who gave their names to Normandy, a region in northern France. They descended from Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of mostly Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock. Their identity emerged initially in the first half of the tenth century, and gradually evolved over succeeding centuries until they led to Kent's designation as a semi-autonomous County Palatine A county palatine is an area ruled by a count palatine with special authority and autonomy from the rest of the kingdom. In feudal times, counts palatine exercised royal authority, and ruled their counties largely independently of the king, though they owed allegiance to him in 1067. Under the nominal rule of William's half-brother Odo of Bayeux, the county was granted similar powers to those granted in the areas bordering Wales Wales /ˈweɪlz/ (Welsh: Cymru; pronounced /ˈkəmrɨ/ (help·info)) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union. Wales has a population estimated at three million and is officially bilingual, with both Welsh and Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. In addition to the mainland, Scotland.^[8]

During the medieval and early modern period, Kent played a major role in several of England's most notable rebellions, including the Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, Tyler’s Rebellion, or the Great Rising of AD 1381 was one of a number of popular revolts in late medieval Europe and is a major event in the history of England. Tyler's Rebellion was not only the most extreme and widespread insurrection in English history but also the best documented popular rebellion ever to have occurred of 1381, led by Wat Tyler,^[9] Jack Cade's Kent rebellion of 1450, and Wyatt's Rebellion of 1554 against Queen Mary I.^[10]

The Royal Navy first used the River Medway in 1547. By the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603) a small dockyard had been established at Chatham. By 1618, storehouses, a ropewalk, a drydock, and houses for officials had been built downstream from Chatham.^[11]

By the 17th century, tensions between Britain and the powers of the Netherlands and France led to increasing military build-up in the county. Forts were built all along the coast following the raid on the Medway, a successful attack by the Dutch navy on the shipyards of the Medway towns in 1667.^[12]

The 18th century was dominated by wars with France, during which the Medway became the primary base for a fleet that could act along the Dutch and French coasts. When the theatre of operation moved to the Atlantic, this role was assumed by Portsmouth and Plymouth, with Chatham concentrating on shipbuilding and ship repair. As an indication of the area's military importance, the first Ordnance Survey map ever drawn was a one-inch map of Kent, published in 1801.^[13] Many of the Georgian naval buildings still stand.

In the early 1800s, smugglers were very active on the Kent coastline. Gangs such as The Aldington Gang brought spirits, tobacco and salt to the county, and transported goods such as wool across the sea to France.^[14]

In 1889, the County of London was created and the townships of Deptford, Greenwich, Woolwich, Lee, Eltham, Charlton, Kidbrooke and Lewisham were transferred out of Kent and in 1900 the area of Penge was gained. Some of Kent, notably Dartford, is contiguous with Greater London.

During World War II, much of the Battle of Britain was fought in the skies over the county. Between June 1944 and March 1945, over 10,000 V1 flying bombs, known as "Doodlebugs", were fired on London from bases in Northern France. Many were destroyed by aircraft, anti-aircraft guns, and barrage balloons, yet both London and Kent were hit by around 2,500 of these bombs.

After the war, Kent's borders changed several more times. In 1965 the London boroughs of Bromley and Bexley were created from nine towns formerly in Kent.^[15] In 1998, Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham, and Rainham left the administrative county of Kent to form the Unitary Authority of Medway. They have, however, remained in the ceremonial county of Kent.^[16] During this reorganisation, through an administrative oversight, the city of Rochester lost its official city status.^[17]

Climate

Kent is one of the warmest parts of Britain. On August 10 2003, in the hamlet of Brogdale near Faversham a temperature of 38.5°C (101.3°F), the hottest temperature ever recorded in the United Kingdom.^[18]

Physical geography

Kent is in the southeastern corner of England. It borders the River Thames and the North Sea to the north, and the Straits of Dover and the English Channel to the south. France is 21 miles (34 km) across the Strait.^[19]

The major geographical features of the county are determined by a series of ridges and valleys running east-west across the county. These are the results of weathering of the Wealden dome, a dome across Kent and Sussex created by Alpine movements 10–20 million years ago. This dome consists of an upper layer of chalk above successive layers of upper greensand, upper clay, lower greensand, lower clay, and red sandstone. The ridges and valleys formed when the exposed clay eroded faster than the exposed chalk, greensand, or red sandstone.

Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Ashford, and Folkestone are built on greensand,^[20] while Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells are built on red sandstone.^[21] Dartford, Gravesend, the Medway towns, Sittingbourne, Faversham, Canterbury, Deal, and Dover are built on chalk.^[20][21] The easterly section of the Wealden dome has been eroded away by the sea, and cliffs such as the white cliffs of Dover are present where a chalk ridge known as the North Downs meets the coast. Spanning Dover and Westerham is the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.^[22]

The Wealden dome is a Mesozoic structure lying on a Palaeozoic foundation, which usually creates the right conditions for coal formation. This is found in East Kent roughly between Deal, Canterbury, and Dover. The coal measures within the Westphalian Sandstone are deep (below 800 - 1300 ft or approximately 250 m – 400 m) and subject to flooding. They occur in two major troughs, which extend under the English Channel where similar coalfields are located.^[23]

Seismic activity has occasionally been recorded in Kent, though the epicentres were offshore. In 1382 and 1580 there were two earthquakes exceeding 6.0 on the Richter Scale. In 1776, 1950, and on 28 April 2007 there were earthquakes of around 4.3. The 2007 earthquake caused physical damage in Folkestone.^[24]

The coastline of Kent is continuously changing, due to tectonic uplift and coastal erosion. Until about 960, the Isle of Thanet was an island, separated by the Wantsum channel, formed around a deposit of chalk; over time, the channels silted up with alluvium. Similarly Romney Marsh and Dungeness have been formed by accumulation of alluvium.^[21]

Kent's principal river, the River Medway, rises near East Grinstead in Sussex and flows eastwards to Maidstone. Here it turns north and breaks through the North Downs at Rochester, then joins the estuary of the River Thames as its final tributary near Sheerness. The Medway is some 70 miles (113 km) long.^[25] The river is tidal as far as Allington lock, but in earlier times, cargo-carrying vessels reached as far upstream as Tonbridge.^[25] The Medway has captured the head waters of other rivers such as the River Darent. Other rivers of Kent include the River Stour in the east.

Demographics

As of the 2001 UK census,^[26] Kent, including Medway, had 1,579,206 residents and 646,308 households, of which 1,329,718 residents and 546,742 households were within the administrative boundaries. Of those households, 48.9% were married couples living together, 9.0% were co-habiting couples and 8.7% were lone parents; 28.0% of households consisted of individuals, 14.6% had someone of pensionable age living alone, and 30.4% included children aged under 16 or a person aged 16 to 18 who was in full-time education. For every 100 females, there were 93.9 males.

The ethnicity of the Kent was 96.5% White, 0.9% mixed race, 0.3% Chinese, 1.7% other Asian and 0.4% Black. The place of birth for residents was 94.2% United Kingdom, 0.7% Republic of Ireland, 0.5% Germany, 0.9% other Western Europe countries, 0.3% Eastern Europe, 0.8% Africa, 0.6% Far East, 0.9% South Asia, 0.2% Middle East, 0.4% North America, 0.1% South America and 0.3% Oceania. Religion was recorded as 74.6% Christian, 0.7% Sikh, 0.6% Muslim, 0.4% Hindu, 0.2% Buddhist and 0.1% Jewish, while 15.2% were recorded as having no religion, 0.3% had an alternative religion, and 7.8% did not state their religion.

Government

Kent County Council (KCC) and its 12 district councils administer most of the county (3352 km²), while the Medway unitary authority administers the more densely populated remainder (192 km²). Together they have around 300 town and parish councils. Kent County Council's headquarters are in Maidstone,^[27] while Medway's offices are in Strood and Gillingham.

As of the 2005 county council elections, Kent County Council was controlled by the Conservative Party;^[28] 57 of the Council's 84 seats were held by the Conservatives, 21 by the Labour Party, 6 by the Liberal Democrats and 1 by an Independent.^[29] As of the 2007 local elections, Medway Council was controlled by the Conservatives; 33 of the Council's 55 seats were held by the Conservatives, 13 by the Labour Party, 8 by the Liberal Democrats and 1 by an Independent.^[30] Currently, all of Kent's district councils are controlled by the Conservatives; the only British county that is in this position.

At the national level, Kent is represented in Parliament by 17 MPs, 10 of whom are Conservative and 7 are Labour. Kent is in the European Parliament constituency of South East England, which elects ten members of the European Parliament.^[31]

Economy

As of the 2001 UK census,^[26] employment statistics for the residents in Kent, including Medway, were as follows: 41.1% in full-time employment, 12.4% in part-time employment, 9.1% self-employed, 2.9% unemployed, 2.3% students with jobs, 3.7% students without jobs, 12.3% retired, 7.3% looking after home or family, 4.3% permanently sick or disabled, and 2.7% economically inactive for other reasons. Of residents aged 16–74, 16% had a higher education qualification or the equivalent, compared to 20% nationwide.^[26]

The average hours worked per week by residents of Kent were 43.1 for males and 30.9 for females. Their industry of employment was 17.3% retail, 12.4% manufacturing, 11.8% real estate, 10.3% health and social work, 8.9% construction, 8.2% transport and communications, 7.9% education, 6.0% public administration and defence, 5.6% finance, 4.8% other community and personal service activities, 4.1% hotels and restaurants, 1.6% agriculture, 0.8% energy and water supply, 0.2% mining, and 0.1% private households. This is higher than the whole of England for construction and transport/communications, and lower for manufacturing.

Kent is sometimes known as the "Garden of England" for its abundance of orchards and hop gardens. Distinctive hop-drying buildings called oasts are common in the countryside, although many have been converted into dwellings. Nearer to London, market gardens also flourish.

However, in recent years, there has been a significant drop in agriculture, and industry and services are increasing their utilization of the area. This is illustrated by the following table of economic indicator gross value added (GVA) between 1995 and 2000 (figures are in millions of British Pounds Sterling).^[32]

^A Components may not sum to totals due to rounding

^B includes energy and construction

^C includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured

North Kent is heavily industrialised with cement-making at Northfleet and Cuxton, brickmaking at Sittingbourne, shipbuilding on the Medway and Swale, engineering and aircraft design and construction at Rochester, chemicals at Dartford and papermaking at Swanley, and oil refining at Grain.^[15] A steel mini mill in Sheerness and a rolling mill in Queenborough.There are two nuclear power stations at Dungeness, although the older one, built in 1965, was closed at the end of 2006.^[32]

Cement-making, papermaking, and coal-mining were important industries in Kent during the 19th and 20th century. Cement came to the fore in the 19th century when massive building projects were undertaken. The ready supply of chalk and huge pits between Stone and Gravesend bear testament to that industry. There were also other workings around Burham on the tidal Medway.^[33]

Kent's original paper mills stood on streams like the River Darent, tributaries of the River Medway, and on the River Stour. Two 18th century mills were on the River Len and at Tovil on the River Loose. In the late 19th century huge modern mills were built at Dartford and Northfleet on the River Thames and at Kemsley on The Swale. In pre-industrial times, almost every village and town had its own windmill or watermill, with over 400 windmills known to have stood at some time. Twenty eight survive within the county today, plus two replica mills and a further two in that part of Kent now absorbed into London. All the major rivers in the county were used to power watermills.

From about 1900, several coal pits operated in East Kent. The Kent coalfield was mined during the 20th century at several collieries,^[34] including Chislet, Tilmanstone, Betteshanger, and the Snowdown Colliery, which ran from 1908 to 1986.^[35]

The west of the county (including Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells & Sevenoaks) is generally more affluent than the east, especially when compared to the coastal regions of Folkestone, Dover & Thanet. This is partly due to the former's proximity to London, making it prime "commuter belt" and the latter's geographic extremities. The eagerly awaited CTRL 2009 rail service, using the high speed Channel Tunnel line to bring coastal areas' travel times to London down to around an hour, is hoped to further regeneration.

Arts

Kent has provided inspiration for several notable writers and artists. Canterbury's religious role gave rise to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, a key development in the English language. The father of novelist Charles Dickens worked at the Chatham Dockyard; in many of his books, the celebrated novelist featured the scenery of Chatham, Rochester, and the Cliffe marshes.^[36] The landscape painter J. M. W. Turner spent part of his childhood in the town of Margate in East Kent, and regularly returned to visit it throughout his life. The East Kent coast inspired many of his works, including some of his most famous seascapes.^[37] During the late 1930s, Nobel Prize-awarded novelist William Golding worked as a teacher at Maidstone Grammar School, where he met his future wife Ann Brookfield.^[37]

Transport

Roads

With the Roman invasion, a road network was constructed to connect London to the Channel ports of Dover, Lympne and Richborough. The London–Dover road was Watling Street. These roads are now approximately the A2, B2068, A257, and the A28. The A2 runs through Dartford (A207), Gravesend, Rochester, Canterbury and Dover; the A20 through Eltham, Wrotham, Maidstone, Charing, Ashford. Hythe, Folkestone and Dover; the A21 around Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and on to Hastings in East Sussex.^[15] In the 1960s, two motorways were built; the M2 from Medway to Faversham, and the M20 from Swanley to Folkestone. Part of the M25 runs through Kent, from Westerham to the Kent and Essex tunnel at Dartford. The Dartford tunnel has been joined by the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, together providing four lanes in each direction. The M26 motorway, built in 1980, provides a short link between the M25 at Sevenoaks and the M20 near Wrotham.

Water

The medieval Cinque Ports, except for Dover, have all now silted up. The Medway Estuary has been an important port and naval base for 500 years. The River Medway is tidal up to Allington and navigable up to Tonbridge. Kent's two canals are the Royal Military Canal between Hythe and Rye, which still exists, and the Thames and Medway Canal between Strood and Gravesend. Built in 1824, it was purchased in 1846 by the railways, which partially backfilled it.^[15] Container ports are located at Ramsgate and Thamesport.

Railways

The earliest locomotive-driven passenger-carrying railway in Britain was the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway which opened in 1830.^[38] This and the London and Greenwich Railway later merged into South Eastern Railway (SER).^[39] By the 1850s, SER's networks had expanded to Ashford, Ramsgate, Canterbury, Tunbridge Wells, and the Medway towns. SER's major London termini were London Bridge, Charing Cross, and Cannon Street. Kent also had a second major railway, the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR). Originally the East Kent Railway in 1858, it linked the northeast Kent coast with London terminals at Victoria and Blackfriars.

The two companies merged in 1899, forming the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SECR). In the aftermath of World War I, the government's Railways Act 1921 grouped railway companies together; the SECR joined neighbouring London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) and London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to form the Southern Railway.^[39] Britain's railways were nationalised in 1948, forming British Rail. The railways were privatised in 1996 and most Kent passenger services were franchised to Connex South Eastern.^[40] Following financial difficulties, Connex lost the franchise and was replaced by South Eastern Trains and after Southeastern.^[41]

The Channel Tunnel was completed in 1994 and High Speed 1 in November 2007 with a London terminus at St Pancras. A new station, Ebbsfleet International, opened between Dartford and Gravesend, serving northern Kent.^[42] The high speed lines will be utilised to provide a faster train service to coastal towns like Ramsgate and Folkestone. This station is in addition to the existing station at Ashford International, which has suffered a massive cut in service as a result.

In addition to the "mainline" railways, there are several light, heritage, and industrial railways in Kent. There are three heritage, standard gauge railways; Spa Valley Railway near Tunbridge Wells on the old Tunbridge Wells West branch, East Kent Railway on the old East Kent coalfield area and the Kent and East Sussex Railway on the Weald around Tenterden. In addition there is the 15-inch (380 mm) gauge, tourist-oriented Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway on the southeast Kent coast along the Dungeness peninsular. Finally, there is the 2 ft 6 in (0.76 m), industrial Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway.

Air

A limited number of charter flights are provided by Kent's Kent International Airport at Manston, and London Ashford Airport at Lydd. However, most passengers across the South East use the larger Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton airports. In 2002, it was revealed that the government was considering building a new four-runway airport on the marshland near the village of Cliffe on the Hoo Peninsula.^[43] This plan was dropped in 2003 following protests by cultural and environmental groups.^[44]

Education

The county has three universities; Canterbury Christ Church University with campuses throughout East Kent, University of Kent, with campuses in Canterbury and Medway, and University of Greenwich(a London University), with sites at Woolwich, Eltham, London and Medway. The University of Creative Arts (UCA) also has three of its five campuses in the county.

Whereas much of the UK adopted a comprehensive education system in the 1970s, Kent County Council (KCC) and Medway Unitary Authority are among around fifteen^[45] local authorities still providing wholly selective education through the eleven-plus high schools and grammar schools. Together, the two Kent authorities have 38 of the 164 grammar schools remaining in the UK.^[46]

KCC has the largest education department of any local authority in the UK,^[47] providing school places for over 289,000 pupils.

For the 2005-06 school year, KCC and Medway introduced a standardised school year, based on six terms, as recommended by the Local Government Association in its 2000 report, "The Rhythms of Schooling".^[49]

Local media

Television

Kent is served by the BBC's South East region, which is based in Royal Tunbridge Wells and provides local news for the county and East Sussex. Its commercial rival is ITV Meridian Ltd, which has a newsroom at The Maidstone Studios despite the main studio being based in Hampshire. Parts of Kent close to the London area such as Gravesend or Dartford can also pick up ITV London.

The county is also served by two internet-based TV channels, Kent TV (part-owned by Kent County Council) and YourKentTV which is owned by the Kent on Sunday group.

Radio

Kent has three county-wide stations - BBC Radio Kent, based in Royal Tunbridge Wells; and the commercial stations Invicta FM, based in Whitstable, and the Kent opt-out for Gold.

The county is covered by 9 smaller radio stations each covering one or more towns or cities. Seven of these are branded KMFM and are owned by the KM Group, covering the following areas:

• KMFM Ashford
• KMFM Canterbury
• KMFM Dover and Folkestone
• KMFM Maidstone
• KMFM Medway
• KMFM Thanet
• KMFM West Kent

Gravesend and Dartford were served by Time 106.8, which also served parts of south-east London. The station closed in April 2009. BRFM covers the Isle of Sheppey, while Sittingbourne is served by SFM. Canterbury is also covered by the university station CSR 97.4FM, a joint production between the city's two universities.

Newspapers

The KM Group, Kent on Sunday and Kent Regional News and Media all provide local newspapers for most of the large towns and cities. County-wide papers include the Kent Messenger, Kent on Sunday and the Saturday Observer, and the Kent and Sussex Courier.

See also

• List of places in Kent
• List of civil parishes in Kent
• Category:Towns in Kent
• Category:Villages in Kent
• List of tourist attractions in Kent
• Recreational walks in Kent
• Thames Gateway - includes details of regeneration projects in the northern areas of Kent
• List of people from Kent
• Thanet
• Duke of Kent

References

1. ^ Kent loses its Garden of England title to North Yorkshire The Guardian 1 June 2006
2. ^ Garden of England title defended BBC 1 June 2006
3. ^ Ashbee, Paul (2005). Kent in prehistoric times. Tempus.
4. ^ Glover, J.. Place names of Kent.
5. ^ Witney, K. P. (1982). The Kingdom of Kent.
6. ^ "Victoria County History of Kent". KentArchaeology.org.uk. May 2006. http://www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/Research/03/03/01C/064.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
7. ^ "Archbishop of Canterbury". Spartacus.SchoolNet.co.uk. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/NORarchcanterbury.htm. Retrieved on 2007-06-19.
8. ^ David Bates (1975). The Character and Career of Odo, Bishop of Bayeux (1049/50-1097). Speculum.
9. ^ "Peasants' Revolt". Britannia.com. http://www.britannia.com/history/articles/peasantsrevolt.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
10. ^ "Sir Thomas WYATT, "The Younger"". TudorPlace.com.ar. http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Bios/ThomasWyatt(Sir)2.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
11. ^ The Historic Dockyard Chatham — where legends were created. Jarrold Publishing. 2005.
12. ^ "The Dutch In The Medway". DeRuyter.org. http://www.deruyter.org/CHATHAM_Dutch_in_the_Medway.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
13. ^ Oliver, Richard (1995). Ordnance Survey maps: a concise guide for historians 2nd Ed. Ordnance Survey. ISBN 1870598245.
14. ^ "South-East England". Smuggler's Britain. http://www.smuggling.co.uk/gazetteer_se_14.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
15. ^ ^{a b c d} Jessup, Frank W. (1966). Kent History Illustrated. Kent County Council.
16. ^ "Medway". Communities and Local Government. http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1170128. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
17. ^ "Error costs Rochester city status". BBC News. 2002-05-16. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/england/1991827.stm. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
18. ^ "UK Records". BBC Weather. http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/features/understanding/uk_records.shtml. Retrieved on 2009-06-10.
19. ^ "English Channel". Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007. http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761564966. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
20. ^ ^{a b} Greensand Way in Kent. Kent Count Council. 1992. ISBN 1-873010-23-0.
21. ^ ^{a b c} Britain's Structure and Scenery, L.Dudley Stamp, Pub September 1946, Collins New Naturalist Series.
22. ^ "Kent Downs". KentDowns.org. http://www.kentdowns.org.uk/. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
23. ^ "Geology of Kent and Boulonnais". The Geology Shop. 2000. http://www.geologyshop.co.uk/geolkb.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
24. ^ "Quake causes Kent Families to flee Homes". The Guardian. 2007-04-29. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2068090,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
25. ^ ^{a b} Bowskill, Derek. Map Of The River Medway.
26. ^ ^{a b c} "Neighbourhood Statistics". Statistics.gov.uk. http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadHome.do;jsessionid=ac1f930bce6a711447e60ba4446bb56c21648d42c51.e38PbNqOa3qRe38OaNeKahqMai1ynknvrkLOlQzNp65In0?bhcp=1. Retrieved on 2007-03-29.
27. ^ "Council and democracy". Kent County Council. http://www.kent.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/. Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
28. ^ "2005 - Election Results In Kent". Kent Liberal Democrat. http://www.kent.libdems.org.uk/pages/election-results-2005.html?PHPSESSID=ef6ae3bdad68f6598ef0262e00c52abe. Retrieved on 2007-04-03.
29. ^ "Councillors". Kent County Council. http://www.kent.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/councillors/. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
30. ^ "Democratically elected representatives in Medway". Medway Council. http://www.medway.gov.uk/index/council/councillor.htm. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
31. ^ "UK MEPs". UK Office Of The European Parliament. http://www.europarl.org.uk/uk_meps/MembersMain.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03.
32. ^ ^{a b} "Regional Gross Value Added" (PDF). Office for National Statistics. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/RegionalGVA.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-04-03.
33. ^ "The Chatham News Index" (PDF). Parret & Neves. 1996. http://www.gparrett.btinternet.co.uk/chatnews/cnidx_r2.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
34. ^ "Coal fields Heritage Initiative". Dover Museum. http://www.dover.gov.uk/kentcoal/intro.asp. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
35. ^ "Snowdown Colliery". FreeUK.com. http://home.freeuk.com/eastkent/mining/snowdown_colliery.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
36. ^ "Charles Dickens". InfoBritain. http://www.infobritain.co.uk/Charles_Dickens.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-20.
37. ^ ^{a b} "The Turner Connection". TurnerContemporary.org. http://www.turnercontemporary.org/about/?p=15. Retrieved on 2007-06-20.
38. ^ "The lost railway". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/kent/content/articles/2008/05/27/history_lost_railway_feature.shtml. Retrieved on 2008-08-01.
39. ^ ^{a b} "History of the South Eastern & Chatham Railway". The South Eastern & Chatham Railway Society. http://www.southeasternandchathamrailway.org.uk/webpages/History.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-22.
40. ^ "Failed rail franchise 'needed time'". BBC. 2003-11-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3268719.stm. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
41. ^ "Rail workers vote to hold strikes". BBC. 2006-04-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/4905966.stm. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
42. ^ "New station means Eurostar change". BBC. 2006-09-12. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/5337586.stm. Retrieved on 2007-04-22.
43. ^ "Airport plan threatens Dickens' legacy". BBC. 2006-09-12. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2093415.stm. Retrieved on 2007-06-20.
44. ^ "Saving nature". The Times. 2008-03-23. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/related_features/love_nature/article3625154.ece. Retrieved on 2009-09-06.
45. ^ "Call for end to selective education as 'grammar school areas' fail". The Independent. 2007-01-20. http://education.independent.co.uk/news/article2169188.ece. Retrieved on 2007-05-14.
46. ^ "Grammar schools have expanded". BBC News. 2004-03-26. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/3571387.stm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03.
47. ^ "Kent's selective schools compared". BBC News. 2003-01-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2666605.stm. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
48. ^ "Department for Education and Skills". Department for Education and Skills. http://www.dfes.gov.uk/. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
49. ^ "Kent County Council". Kent County Council. http://www.kent.gov.uk/. Retrieved on 2007-04-03.

External links

• Kent at the Open Directory Project
• Kent Parishes – Forum for History, Genealogy, Ancestry and local information
• Kent County Council – local government website
• Kent Wildlife Trust – Kent Wildlife Trust is the most active conservation trust in the county
• Kent Online – a Kent Messenger Group website
• Camelot Village – Kent heritage
• Kent Downs – Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty website
• CPRE Kent- Kent Branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE)
• historic-kent.co.uk – further information on villages throughout Kent.
• BBC – origins of Kent placenames
• Kent Coast in Pictures – photographs of the coastline of Kent.
• Kent County Cricket Club
• Official Kent Tourism Guide
• BBC feature on the Kent eleven-plus

Coordinates: 51°11′N 0°44′E / 51.19°N 0.73°E

Categories: Kent | Non-metropolitan counties

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