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KENT , a See also:south-eastern See also:county of See also:England, bounded N. by the See also:Thames See also:estuary, E. and S.E. by the See also:English Channel, S.W. by See also:Sussex, and W. by See also:Surrey. In the See also:north-See also:west the administrative county of See also:London encroaches upon the See also:ancient county of Kent, the See also:area of which is 1554.7 sq. m. The county is roughly triangular in See also:form, London lying at the See also:apex of the western See also:angle, the North See also:Foreland at that of the eastern and See also:Dungeness at that of the See also:southern. The county is divided centrally, from west to See also:east, by the well-marked range of hills known as the North See also:Downs, entering Kent from Surrey. In the west above Wester-See also:ham these hills exceed 800 ft.; to the east the height is much less, but even in Kent (for in Surrey they are higher) the North Downs form a more striking See also:physical feature than their height would indicate. They are intersected, especially on the north, by many deep valleys, well wooded. At three points such valleys cut completely through the See also:main See also:line of the hills. In the west the Darent, flowing north to the Thames below See also:Dartford, pierces the hills north of See also:Sevenoaks, but its See also:waters are collected chiefly from a subsidiary See also:ridge of the Downs See also:running parallel to the main line and south of it, and known as the Ragstone Ridge, from 600 to 800 ft. in height. The See also:Medway, however, cuts through the entire See also: The Little
Stour joins the Great Stour in these lowlands from a deep vale among the Downs.
About two-thirds of the boundary line of Kent is formed by tidal See also:water. The estuary of the Thames may be said to stretch from London See also:Bridge to See also:Sheerness in the Isle of See also:Sheppey, which is divided from the mainland by the narrow channel (bridged at Queensbridge) of the Swale. Sheerness lies at the mouth of the Medway, a narrow See also:branch of which cuts off a See also:tongue of See also:land termed the Isle of See also:Grain lying opposite Sheerness. Along the See also:banks of the Thames the See also:coast is generally See also:low and marshy, embankments being in several places necessary to prevent inundation. At a few points, however, as at See also:Gravesend, spurs of the North Downs descend directly upon the See also:shore. In the estuary of the Medway there are a number of low marshy islands, but Sheppey presents to the See also:sea a range of slight cliffs from 8o to 90 ft. in height. The marshes extend along the Swale to See also:Whitstable, whence stretches a low line of See also:clay and See also:sandstone cliffs towards the Isle of Thanet, when they become lofty and See also:grand, extending See also:round the Foreland southward to Pegwell See also:Bay The coast from Sheppey round to the South Foreland is skirted by numerous flats and sands, the most extensive of which are the See also:Goodwin Sands off See also:Deal. From Pegwell Bay south to a point near Deal the coast is See also:flat, and the drained marshes or levels of the See also:lower Stour extend to the west; but thence the coast rises again into See also:chalk cliffs, the eastward termination of the North Downs, the famous See also: At its south-eastern extremity, and at the extreme south of the county, is the shingly promontory of Dungeness. Within historic times much of this marsh was covered by the sea, and the valley of the See also:river Rother, which forms See also:part of the boundary of Kent with Sussex, entering the sea at See also:Rye harbour, was represented by a tidal estuary for a considerable distance inland.
See also:Geology.—The See also:northern part of the county lies on the southern rim of the London See also:basin; here the beds are dipping northwards. The southern part of the county is occupied by a portion of the See also:Wealden anticline. The London Clay occupies the tongue of land between the estuaries of the Thames and Medway, as well as Sheppey and a district about 8 m. wide stretching southwards from Whit-See also:stable to Canterbury, and extending eastwards to the Isle of Thanet. It reappears at Pegwell Bay, and in the neighbourhood of London it rises above the plastic clay into the See also:elevation of Shooter's Hill, with a height of about 45o ft. and a number of smaller eminences. The thickness of the formation near London is about 40o ft., and at Sheppey it reaches 48o ft. At Sheppey it is rich in various kinds of fossil See also:fish and shells. The plastic clay, which rests chiefly on chalk, occupies the See also:remainder of the estuary of the Thames, but at several places it is broken through by outcrops of chalk, which in some instances run northwards to the banks of the river. The Lower See also:Tertiaries are represented by three different formations known as the Thanet beds, the See also:Woolwich and See also:Reading beds, and the Old-haven and See also:Blackheath beds. The Thanet beds resting on chalk form a narrow outcrop rising into cliffs at Pegwell Bay and Reculver, and consist (I) of a See also:constant See also:base See also:bed of clayey greenish See also:sand, seldom more than 5 ft. in thickness; (2) of a thin and See also:local bed composed of alternations of See also: The thickness of the formation varies from 15 to 8o ft., but most commonly it is from 25 to 40 ft. The highest and most local series of the Lower Tertiaries is the Oldhaven and Blackheath beds lying between the London Clay and the Woolwich beds. They consist chiefly of flint pebbles or of light-coloured quartzose sand, the thickness being from 20 to 3o ft, and. are best seen at Oldhaven and Blackheath. To the south the London
basin is succeeded by the North Downs, an elevated ridge of See also:country consisting of an outcrop of chalk which extends from Westerham to Folkestone with an irregular breadth generally of 3 to 6 See also:miles, but expanding to nearly 12 miles at Dartford and Gravesend and also to the north of Folkestone. After dipping below the London Clay at Canterbury, it sends out an outcrop which forms the greater part of Thanet. Below the chalk is a thin See also:crop of Upper See also:Greensand between Otford and Westerham. To the south of the Downs there is a narrow valley formed by the See also:Gault, a fossiliferous See also:blue clay. This is succeeded by an outcrop of the Lower Greensand—including the Folkestone, Sandgate and Hythe beds with the thin Atherfield Clay at the base—which extends across the country from west to east with a breadth of from 2 to 7 m., and rises into the picturesque elevations of the Ragstone hills. The remains of See also:Iguanodon occur in the Hythe beds. The valley, which extends from the borders of Sussex to Hythe, is occupied chiefly by the Weald See also:clays, which contain a considerable number of marine and See also:freshwater fossils. Along the borders of Sussex there is a narrow See also:strip of country consisting of picturesque sandy hills, formed by the See also:Hastings beds, whose highest elevation is nearly 400 ft. and the south-west corner of the county is occupied by Romney Marsh, which within a comparatively See also:recent See also:period has been recovered from the sea. Valley gravels border the Thames, and See also:Pleistocene See also:mammalia have been found in fissures in the Hythe beds at Ightham, where ancient See also: Remains of See also:crag deposits See also:lie in pipes in the chalk near Lenham. See also:Coal-See also:measures, as will be seen, have been found near Dover. The London Clay is much used for bricks, coarse pottery and See also:Roman See also:cement. See also:Lime is obtained from the Chalk and Greensand formations. Ironstone is found in the Wadhurst Clay, a subdivision of the Hastings beds, clays and calcareous ironstone in the Ashdown sand, but the See also:industry has See also:long been discontinued. The last Weal-den See also:furnace was put out in 1828. See also:Climate and See also:Agriculture.—The unhealthiness of certain portions of the cot'nty caused by the marshes is practically removed by draining. In the north-eastern districts the climate is somewhat uncertain, and damage is often done to See also:early See also:fruit-blossoms and vegetation by See also:cold easterly winds and See also:late frosts. In the large portion of the county sheltered by the Downs the climate is milder and more equable, and vegetation is somewhat earlier. The See also:average temperature for See also:January is 37.9° F. at Canterbury, and 39'8° at Dover; for See also:July 63'3° and 61'6° respectively, and the mean See also:annual 5o° and 50.2° respectively. Rainfall is light, the mean annual being 27'72 in. at Dover, and 23'31 at See also:Margate, compared with 23'16 at See also:Greenwich. The See also:soil is varied in See also:character, but on the whole rich and under high cultivation. The methods of culture and the kinds of crop produced are perhaps more widely diversified than those of any other county in England. Upon the London Clay the land is generally heavy and stiff, but very fruitful when properly manured and cultivated. The marsh lands along the banks of the Thames, Medway, Stour and Swale consist chiefly of rich chalk See also:alluvium. In the Isle of Thanet a light See also:mould predominates, which has been much enriched by fish manure. The valley of the Medway, especially the district round Maidstone, is the most fertile part of the county, the soil being a deep loam with a subsoil of See also:brick-See also:earth. On the ragstone the soil is occasionally thin and much mixed with small portions of sand and stone; but in some situations the ragstone has a thick covering of clay loam, which is most suitable for the See also:production of hops and fruits. In the district of the Weald marl prevails, with a substratum of clay. The soil of Romney Marsh is a clay alluvium. No part of England surpasses the more fertile portions of this county in the See also:peculiar richness of its rural scenery. About three-quarters of the See also:total area is under cultivation. Oats and See also:wheat are grown in almost equal quantities, See also:barley being of rather less importance. A considerable acreage is under beans, and in Thanet See also:mustard, See also:spinach, See also:canary See also:seed and a variety of other seeds are raised. But the county is specially noted for the cultivation of fruit and hops. See also:Market gardens are very numerous in the neighbourhood of London. The See also:principal See also:orchard districts are the valleys of the Darent and Medway, and the See also:tertiary soilsoverlyingthechalk, between See also:Rochester and Canterbury. The county is specially famed for cherries and filberts, but apples, See also:pears, plums, gooseberries, strawberries, raspberries and currants are also largely cultivated. In some cases apples, cherries, filberts and hops are grown in alternate rows. The principal See also:hop districts are the country between Canterbury and See also:Faversham, the valley of the Medway in See also:mid Kent, and the district of the Weald. Much of the Weald, which originally was occupied by a forest, is still densely wooded, and See also:woods are specially extensive in the valley of the Medway. Fine oaks and beeches are numerous, and See also:yew trees of great See also:size and See also:age are seen in some Kentish churchyards, as at Stansted, while the fine See also:oak at Headcorn is also famous. A large extent of woodland consists of ash and See also:chestnut plantations, maintained for the growth of hop poles. See also:Cattle are grazed in considerable See also:numbers on the marsh lands, and See also:dairy farms are numerous in the neighbourhood of London. For the rearing of See also:sheep Kent is one of the See also:chief counties in England. A breed peculiar to the district, known as See also:Keats, is grazed on Romney Marsh, but Southdowns are the principal breed raised on the uplands. See also:Bee-keeping is extensively practised. Dairy See also:schools are maintained by the XV. 24technical See also:education See also:committee of the county See also:council The South-eastern Agricultural See also:College at Wye is under the See also:control of the county See also:councils of Kent and Surrey. Other See also:Industries.—There were formerly extensive ironworks in the Weald. Another industry now practically See also:extinct was the manufacture of woollen See also:cloth. The neighbourhood of Lamberhurst and See also:Cranbrook was the See also:special seat of these trades. Among the principal See also:modern industries are See also:paper-making, carried on on the banks of the Darent, Medway, Cray and neighbouring streams; See also:engineering, chemical and other See also:works along the Thames; manufactures of bricks, tiles, pottery and cement, especially by the lower Medway and the Swale. A variety of industries is connected with the See also:Government establishments at See also:Chatham and Sheerness. See also:Ship-See also:building is prosecuted here and at Gravesend, Dover and other ports. See also:Gunpowder is manufactured near See also:Erith and Faversham and else-where. Deep-sea fishing is largely prosecuted all round the coast. Shrimps, soles and flounders are taken in great numbers in the estuaries of the Thames and Medway, along the north coast and off See also:Ramsgate. The See also:history of the Kentish oyster See also:fisheries goes back to the See also:time of the Roman occupation, when the fame of the oyster beds off Rutupiae (Richborough) extended even to See also:Rome. The principal beds are near Whitstable, Faversham, See also:Milton, See also:Queenborough and Rochester, some being worked by ancient companies or See also:gilds of fishermen. After the cessation in 1882 of works in connexion with the Channel See also:tunnel, to connect England and See also:France, coal-See also:boring was attempted in the disused See also:shaft, west of the See also:Shakespeare Cliff railway tunnel near Dover. In 1890 coal was struck at a See also:depth of 1190 ft., and further seams were discovered later. The See also:company which took up the See also:mining was unsuccessful, and boring ceased in 1901, but the See also:work was resumed by the Consolidated Kent Collieries See also:Corporation, and an See also:extension of borings revealed in 1905 the See also:probability of a successful development of the mining industry in Kent. Communications.—Railway communications are practically nignopolized by the South Eastern & Chatham Company, a See also:monopoly which has not infrequently been the cause of complaint on the part of farmers, traders and others. This system *hides some of the principal channels of communication with the See also:continent, through the ports of Dover. Folkestone and Queenborough. The county contains four of the Cinque Ports, namely, Dover, Hythe, New Romney and Sandwich. Seaside resorts are numerous and populous---r on the north coast are See also:Minster (Sheppey), Whitstable and See also:Herne Bay; there is a See also:ring of watering-places round the Isle of! Thant—Birchington, Westgate, Margate, See also:Broadstairs, Ramsgate; while to the south are Sandwich, Deal, See also:Walmer, St See also:Margaret's-at-Cliffe, Dover, Folkestone, Sandgate and Hythe: Tunbridge See also:Wells is a favourite inland watering-See also:place. The See also:influence of London in converting villages into See also:outer residential suburbs is to be observed at many points, whether seaside, along the Thames or inland. The county is practically without inland water communications, excluding the Thames. The Royal military See also:canal which runs along the inland border of Romney Marsh, and connects the Rother with Hythe, was constructed in 1807 as part of a See also:scheme of See also:defence in connexion with the martello towers or small forts along the coast. See also:Population and See also:Administration.—The area of the ancient county is 995,014 acres, with a population in 1901 of 1,348,841 In 18or the population was 308,667. Excluding the portion which falls within the administrative county of London the area is 974,950 acres, with a population in 1891 of 807,269 and in 1901 of 935,855. The area of the administrative county is 976,881 acres. The county contains 5 lathes, a See also:partition peculiar to the county. The municipal boroughs are See also:Bromley (pop. 27,354), Canterbury, a See also:city and county See also:borough (24,889), Chatham (37,057), Deal (10,581), Dover (41,794), Faversham (11,290), Folkestone (30,650), See also:Gillingham (42,530), Gravesend (27,196), Hythe (5557), Lydd (2675), Maidstone (33,516), Margate (23,118), New Romney (1328), Queenborough (1544), Ramsgate (27,733), Rochester, a city (30,590), Sandwich (3170), See also:Tenterden (3243), Tunbridge Wells (33,373)• The See also:urban districts are Ashford (12,808), See also:Beckenham (26,331), See also:Bexley (12,918), Broadstairs and St See also:Peter's (6466), Cheriton (7091), See also:Chislehurst (7429), Dartford (18,644), Erith (25,296), Foots Cray (5817), Herne Bay (6726), Milton (7086), See also:Northfleet (12,906), Penge (22,465), Sandgate (2294), Sevenoaks (8106), Sheerness (18,179), Sittingboume (8943), Southborough (6977), Tonbridge (12,736); Walmer (5614), Whitstable (7086), See also:Wrotham (3571)• Other small towns are Rainham (3693) near Chatham, See also:Aylesford (2678), East Mailing (2391) and West Mailing (2312) in the Maidstone district; See also:Edenbridge (2546) and Westerham (2905) on the western border of the county; Cranbrook (3949), Goudhust (2725) and See also:Hawkhurst (3136) in the south-west. Among villages which have grown into residential towns through their II proximity to London, beyond those included among the boroughs and urban districts, there should be mentioned See also:Orpington (4259). The county is in the south-eastern See also:circuit, and assizes are held at Maidstone. It has two courts of See also:quarter sessions, and is divided into 17 See also:petty sessional divisions. The boroughs having See also:separate commissions of the See also:peace and courts of quarter sessions are Canterbury, Deal, Dover, Faversham, Folkestone, Gravesend, Hythe, Maidstone, Margate, Rochester, Sandwich andTenterden; while those of Lydd, New Romney, Ramsgate and Tunbridge Wells have separate commissions of the peace. The See also:liberty of Romney Marsh has petty and See also:general sessions. The justices of the Cinque Ports exercise certain See also:jurisdiction, the non-corporate members of the Cinque Ports of Dover and Sandwich having separate commissions of the peace and courts of quarter sessions. The central criminal See also:court has jurisdiction over certain parishes adjacent to London. All those See also:civil parishes within the county of Kent of which any part is within twelve miles of, or of which no part is more than fifteen miles from, Charing See also:Cross are within the See also:metropolitan See also:police district. The total number of civil parishes is 427. Kent is mainly in the See also:diocese of Canterbury, but has parts in those of Rochester, See also:Southwark and See also:Chichester. It contains 476 ecclesiastical parishes or districts, wholly or in part. The county (extra-metropolitan) is divided into 8 See also:parliamentary divisions, namely, North-western or Dartford, Western or Sevenoaks, South-western or Tunbridge, Mid or Medway, North-eastern or Faversham, Southern or Ashford, Eastern or St See also:Augustine's and the Isle of Thanet, each returning one member; while the boroughs of Canterbury, Chatham, Dover, Gravesend, Hythe, Maidstone and Rochester each return one member. History.—For the ancient See also:kingdom of Kent see the preceding See also:article. The See also:shire organization of Kent See also:dates from the time of Aethelstan, the name as well as the'boundary being that of the ancient kingdom, though at first probably with the addition of the suffix " shire," the form " Kentshire " occurring in a See also:record of the folkmoot at this date. The inland shire-boundary has varied with the altered course of the Rother. In 1888 the county was diminished by the formation of the county of London. At the time of the Domesday Survey Kent comprised sixty hundreds, and there was a further See also:division into six lests, probably representing the shires of the ancient kingdom, of which two, See also:Sutton and Aylesford, correspond with the See also:present-See also:day lathes. The remaining four, Borowast Lest, Estre Lest, Limowast Lest and Wiwart Lest, existed at least as early as the 9th See also:century, and were apparently named from their administrative centres, Burgwara (the See also:burg being Canterbury), Eastre, Lymne and Wye, all of which were See also:meeting places of the Kentish Council. The five modern lathes (Aylesford, St Augustine, Scray, Sheppey and Sutton-at-See also:Hone) all existed in the time of See also:Edward I., with the additional See also:lathe of Hedeling, which was absorbed before the next reign in that of St Augustine. The Nomina Villarum of the reign of Edward II. mentions all the sixty-six modern hundreds, more than two-thirds of which were at that date in the hands of the See also: In 1853 the deaneries of Mailing and Charing were subdivided into North and South See also:Malling and East and West Charing. Lympne was subdivided into North and South Lympne in 1857 and Dart-See also:ford into East and West Dartford in 1864. Gravesend and See also:Cobham deaneries were created in 1862 and Greenwich and Woolwich in 1868, all in the archdeaconry of Rochester. In 1873 East and West Bridge deaneries were created in the arch-deaconry of Canterbury, and See also:Croydon in the archdeaconry of Maidstone. In 1889 Tunbridge deanery was created in the archdeaconry of Maidstone. In 1906 the deaneries of East and West Dartford, North and South Mailing, Greenwich and Woolwich were abolished, and Shoreham and Tunbridge were transferred from Maidstone to Rochester archdeaconry.
Between the Conquest and the 14th century the earldom of Kent was held successively by See also:Odo, See also:bishop of See also:Bayeux, See also: Sir See also:Francis See also:Walsingham was born at Chislehurst, where his family had long flourished; Hever Castle was the seat of the Boleyns and the See also:scene of the courtship of See also:Anne See also:Boleyn by Henry VIII. Allington Castle was the birthplace of Sir See also: In the Kentish See also:petition of 1701 See also:drawn up at Maidstone the county protested against the peace policy of the Tory party. Among the earliest industries of Kent were the See also:iron-mining in the Weald, traceable at least to Roman times, and the See also:salt industry, which flourished along the coast in the loth century. The Domesday Survey, besides testifying to the agricultural activity of the country, mentions over one hundred salt-works and numerous valuable fisheries, vines at See also:Chart Sutton and Leeds, and See also:cheese at. Milton. The Hundred Rolls of the reign of Edward I. frequently refer to See also:wool, and Flemish weavers settled in the Weald in the time of Edward III. Tiles were manufactured at Wye in the 14th century. Valuable See also:timber was afforded by the vast forest of the Weald, but the restrictions imposed on the See also:felling of See also:wood for See also:fuel did serious detriment to the iron-See also:trade, and after the See also:statute of 1558 forbidding the felling of timber for iron-smelting within fourteen miles of the coast the industry steadily declined. The See also:discovery of coal in the northern counties dealt the final See also:blow to its prosperity. Cherries are said to have been imported from See also:Flanders and first planted in Kent by Henry VIII., and from this period the culture of fruits (especially apples and cherries) and of hops spread rapidly over the county. See also:Thread-making at Maidstone and See also:silk-See also:weaving at Canterbury existed in the 16th century, and before 1590 one of the first paper-See also:mills in England was set up at Dartford. The statute of 163o forbidding the exportation of wool, followed by the See also:Plague of 1665, led to a serious trade depression, while the former enactment resulted in the vast See also:smuggling trade which spread along the coast, 40,000 packs of wool being smuggled to See also:Calais from Kent and Sussex in two years. In 1290 Kent returned two members to parliament for the county, and in 1295 Canterbury, Rochester and Tunbridge were also represented; Tunbridge however made no returns after this date. In 1552 Maidstone acquired See also:representation, and in 1572 Queenborough. Under the See also:act of 1832 the county returned four members in two divisions, Chatham was represented by one member and Greenwich by two, while Queenborough was disfranchised. Under the act of 1868 the county returned six members in three divisions and Gravesend returned one member. By the act of 1885 the county returned eight members in eight divisions, and the representation of Canterbury, Maidstone and Rochester was reduced to one member each. By the London Government Act of 1892 the borough of Greenwich was taken out of Kent and made one of the twenty-eight metropolitan boroughs of the county of London.
Antiquities.—As was to be expected from its connexion with the early history of England, and from its beauty and fertility, Kent possessed a larger than average number of monastic See also:foundations. The earliest were the priory of See also:Christ's Church and the See also:abbey of St Peter and St See also:Paul, now called St Augustine's, both at Canter-See also:bury, founded by Augustine and the monks who accompanied him to England. Other Saxon foundations were the nunneries at Folkestone (630), Lyminge (633; nunnery and monastery), Reculver (669), Minster-in-Thanet (670), Minster-in-Sheppey (675), and the priory of St See also: For remains of a date before the Conquest the church of Lyminge is of first importance. Here, apart from the monastic remains, there may be seen portions of the church founded by fEthelburga, wife of See also:Edwin, king of See also:Northumberland, and rebuilt, with considerable use of Roman material, in 965 by St See also:Dunstan. There is similar early work in the church of Paddlesworth, not far distant. Among numerous Norman examples the first in interest is the small church at Barfreston, one of the most perfect specimens of its See also:kind in England, with a profusion of See also:ornament, especially round the south See also:doorway and east window. The churches of St Margaret-at-Cliff, Patrixbourne and Darenth are hardly less noteworthy, while the See also:tower of New Romney church should also be mentioned. Among several remarkable Early English examples none is finer than Hythe church, but the churches of SS. Mary and Eanswith, Folkestone, Minster-in-Thanet, Chalk, with its curious See also:porch, Faversham and Westwell, with fine contemporary See also:glass, are also worthy of See also:notice. Stone church, near Dart-ford, a late example of this See also:style, transitional to Decorated, is very fine; and among Decorated buildings Chartham church exhibits in some of its windows the peculiar See also:tracery known as Kentish Decorated. Perpendicular churches, though numerous, are less remarkable, but the fine glass of this period in Nettlestead church may be noticed. The church of Cobham contains one of the richest collections of ancient See also:brasses in England. Kent is also rich in examples of ancient See also:architecture other than ecclesiastical. The castles of Rochester and Dover are famous; those of Canterbury and Chilham are notable among others. Ancient mansions are very numerous; among these are the castellated Leeds Castle in the Maidstone district, Penshurst Place, Hever Castle near Edenbridge, Saltwood and Westenhanger near Hythe, the Mote House at Ightham near Wrotham, Knole House near Seven-oaks, and Cobham See also: Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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