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Kent
 For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation).
Kent is a county in southeast England. It has land borders with East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London, and a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames estuary. The ceremonial county of Kent includes the unitary authority of Medway, and the administrative county of Kent. Kent has a nominal border with France halfway through the Channel Tunnel. Its county town is Maidstone and its only city is Canterbury. Its location between London and the continent has led to Kent being a front line of a number of conflicts, such as the Battle of Britain in World War II. The entire country relied on the county's ports to provide warships through much of the past 800 years, with the Cinque Ports during the 12th–14th centuries and Chatham Dockyard during the 16th–20th centuries being of particular importance. Kent is known as the Garden of England due to its abundance of orchards and hop-gardens. Cement, papermaking and aircraft construction have also been major industries in northwest Kent, although these are now in decline.
HistoryThe area has been occupied since the Palaeolithic times as finds from the quarries at Swanscombe attest. The Medway megaliths were built during the Neolithic; and there is a rich sequence of Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman occupation indicated by finds and features such as the Ringlemere gold cup and the Roman villas of the Darent valley.[1] The modern name of Kent is derived from the Brythonic word Cantus meaning a rim or border, being applied as a name to the eastern part of the current county area, and meaning border land or coastal district. Julius Caesar described it as Cantium, home of the Cantiaci in 51 BC.[2] The extreme west of the modern county was occupied by other Iron Age tribes; the Regnenses and possibly another ethnic group occupying The Weald and East Kent. East Kent became one of the kingdoms of the Jutes during the 5th century[3] and the area was later known as Cantia from about 730 and Cent in 835. The early mediaeval inhabitants of the county were known as the Cantwara or Kent people, whose capital was Canterbury.[4] In 597, Pope Gregory I appointed Augustine as the first Archbishop of Canterbury, after Augustine had successfully converted the Pagan King Æthelberht of Kent to Christianity the previous year. The Diocese of Canterbury became Britain's first episcopal see and has remained its of centre Christianity since.[5] The people of Kent adopted the motto Invicta, meaning undefeated, following the invasion of Britain by William of Normandy. Continued resistance against the Normans led to Kent being created a semi-autonomous County Palatine in 1067. Under the nominal rule of William's half-brother Odo of Bayeux, the county had special powers otherwise reserved for those bordering Wales and Scotland.[6] During the medieval and early modern period, Kent produced several of England's most notable rebellions. Kent provided the main force, led by Wat Tyler, for the Peasants' Revolt of 1381,[7] as well as producing Jack Cade's Kent rebellion of 1450, and Wyatt's Rebellion of 1553 against Queen Mary I.[8] The Royal Navy first used the River Medway in 1547 when a storehouse was rented on 'Jyllingham Water'. 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.[9] By the 17th century, tensions between Britain and the continental powers of the Netherlands and France led to increasing military build-up in the county. Forts were built all along the coast following a raid by the Dutch navy on the shipyards of the Medway towns in 1667.[10] The 18th Century was dominated with wars with France, and the Medway became the prime position to base a fleet that would act along the Dutch and French coasts. When the theatre of operation moved to the Atlantic, these roles were assumed by Portsmouth and Plymouth, and Chatham concentrated on shipbuilding and ship repair. Many of the Georgian naval buildings are still extant. In peacetime the work force at Chatham Dockyard was reduced to a quarter of its wartime roll.[9] As an indication of the area's military importance, the first Ordnance Survey map ever drawn was the one-inch map of Kent, published in 1801.[11] Chatham Dockyard built over 400 naval ships, including HMS Victory in the age of ship-of-the-line, ironclads such as HMS Africa, and 57 submarines. During World War II, Chatham refitted 1360 warships such as HMS Ajax.[9] In the early 1800s, smugglers were very active on the Kent coastline. Gangs such as The Aldington Gang brought spirits, tobacco and salt to Kent, and took goods such as wool across to France.[12] 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 or barrage balloons, but around 2,500 fell on the capital and almost the same number fell in Kent. These areas became known as Doodlebug Alley.[13] Kent's borders have changed several times over the years. In 1881, the County of London was created and the townships of Deptford, Greenwich, Woolwich, Lee, Eltham, Charlton, Kidbrooke and Lewisham were transferred out of Kent. Similarly, in 1965, the London Borough of Bromley and the London Borough of Bexley were created from nine towns formerly in Kent.[14] 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.[15] During this local government reorganisation, Rochester lost its official city status through an administrative oversight, but attempts to regain it are now being made.[16] Kent is traditionally divided into West Kent and East Kent by approximately the River Medway. This division into east and west is reflected in the terms 'Men of Kent' for residents east of the Medway and 'Kentish Men' for those to the west. The female equivalents are 'Maid of Kent' and 'Kentish Maid'.[17] Physical geography
Kent is the southeastern most county in England. It is bounded on the north by the River Thames and the North Sea, and on the south by the Straits of Dover and the English Channel. The continent of Europe is a mere 21 miles (34 km) across the Strait.[18] 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 to the Wealden dome, a dome across Kent and Sussex created by Alpine movements 10–20 million years ago. The dome was formed of an upper layer of chalk above subsequent layers of upper greensand, upper clay, lower greensand, lower clay and red sandstone. The ridges and valleys formed due to exposed clay eroding at a faster rate than exposed chalk, greensand or red sandstone. Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Ashford and Folkestone are built on greensand,[19] while Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells are built on red sandstone.[20] Dartford, Gravesend, the Medway towns, Sittingbourne, Faversham, Canterbury, Deal and Dover are built on chalk.[19][20] 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. From Dover to Westerham is the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.[21] 
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 244 m – 396 m) and subject to flooding. They occur in two major troughs, which extend under the English Channel where similar coalfields are sited.[22] Seismic activity has occasionally been recorded in Kent, though the epicentre is offshore. In 1382 and 1580 there were two earthquakes exceeding 6.0 on the Richter Scale. In 1776, 1950 and 28 April 2007 there were earthquakes of around 4.3. The 2007 earthquake caused physical damage in Folkestone.[23] 
The coastline of Kent is continually changing, due to uplift and tidal erosion. Until about 960, the Isle of Thanet was an island, formed around a deposit of chalk. The channels silted up with alluvium. Similarly Romney Marsh and Dungeness have been formed by accumulation of alluvium.[20] Kent's principal river, the River Medway, rises near Edenbridge and flows some 25 miles (40 km) eastwards to a point near Maidstone when it turns north. Here it breaks through the North Downs at Rochester before joining the River Thames as its final tributary near Sheerness.[24] The river is tidal as far as Allington lock, but in earlier times cargo-carrying vessels reached as far upstream as Tonbridge.[24] The Medway has captured the head waters of other rivers such as the River Darent. There are other rivers in Kent, most notably the River Stour in the east. Demographics
As of the 2001 UK census,[25] 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 all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone at pensionable age. 30.4% of households 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 of 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. 15.2% were recorded as having no religion, 0.3% had an alternative religion and 7.8% didn't state their religion. GovernmentKent County Council and its 12 district councils administer the majority of the county (3352 km²), while the unitary authority Medway Council administers the more densely populated remainder (192km²). Together they have around 300 town and parish councils. Kent County Council's headquarters are in Maidstone,[26] 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;[27] 57 of the Council's 84 seats were held by the Conservatives, 21 by the Labour Party, six by the Liberal Democrats and one by an Independent.[28] As of the 2007 local elections, all of Kent's district councils were controlled by the Conservatives except for Ashford Borough Council, which was in no overall control.[29] Medway Council was controlled by the Conservatives; 33 of the Council's 55 seats were held by the Conservatives, 13 by the Labour Party, eight by the Liberal Democrats and one by an Independent.[30] At national level, Kent is represented in Parliament by seventeen MPs, ten of whom are Conservative and seven are Labour. Kent is in the European Parliament constituency of South East England, which elects ten Members of the European Parliament.[31] EconomyAs of the 2001 UK census,[25] the economic activity of residents in the Kent, including Medway, was 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. 16% of the county's residents aged 16–74 had a higher education qualification or the equivalent, compared to 20% nationwide.[25] The average hours worked a week by residents of Kent in employment 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. Compared to figures for the whole of England, Kent had a relatively high number of workers in construction and transport/communications, and had a relatively low number of workers in manufacturing. The following chart shows the trend of the economic indicator gross value added (GVA) with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.[32]
The table shows a significant drop in agriculture between 1995 and 2000. Industry and services are increasing their contribution to the area, services at a higher rate. The district of Thanet has been regarded as one of the most disadvantaged areas in the southeast of England,[33] whilst Kent's ports, Dover, Folkestone, Ramsgate and the Channel Tunnel, provide a lot of income to the county, and the two motorways provide links with the European continent and the remainder of the Great Britain. 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 and papermaking at Dartford, and oil refining at Grain.[14] There are two nuclear power stations at Dungeness, although the older one (built in 1965) was closed at the very end of 2006.[32] 
Kent is sometimes known as the Garden of England due to its abundance of orchards and hop-gardens. Distinctive hop-drying buildings called oast houses are common in the countryside, although many have been converted into dwellings. Nearer London, market gardens also flourish. Cement-making, paper-making, 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 being undertaken. The ready supply of chalk available, and huge pits between Stone and Gravesend bear testament to that industry. There were also other workings around Burham on the tidal Medway.[34] 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. From about 1900, several coal pits operated in East Kent. The East Kent coalfield was mined during the 20th century at several collieries,[35] including Chislet, Tilmanstone, Betteshanger and the Snowdown Colliery which ran between 1908 and 1986.[36] ArtsKent 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 rise of the written English language and ostensibly set in the countryside of Kent. The father of the novelist, Charles Dickens, worked at the Chatham Dockyard, leading to Chatham, Rochester and the Cliffe marshes featuring in many of his books.[37] The landscape painter J. M. W. Turner spent part of his childhood in the town of Margate in East Kent, which he regularly returned to visit throughout his life. The East Kent coast provided inspiration for many of his works, including some of his most famous seascapes.[38] During the late 1930s, the Nobel Prize winning novelist, William Golding, worked as a teacher at Maidstone Grammar School, where he met his future wife Ann Brookfield.[38] TransportRoads
With the Roman invasion, a road network was constructed to contact London to the Channel Ports of Dover, Lympne and Richborough. The London–Dover road was Watling Street. These road 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 through Bromley, Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and on to Hastings in East Sussex.[14] In 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, allowing 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. WaterThe medieval Cinque Ports of Sandwich, Dover, Hythe, Romney and Hasting, and later Rye and Winchelsea have now silted up with the exception of Dover, which is now a busy roll-on/roll-off ferry port. Ramsgate is a container port. 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. There are two canals in Kent, the Royal Miliary Canal between Hythe and Rye, which is still extant, and the Thames and Medway Canal between Strood and Gravesend. Built in 1824, it was bought up by the railways in 1846 and partially backfilled.[14] Railways
The earliest locomotive driven passenger carrying railway in Britain was the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway which opened in 1830.[39] This and the London and Greenwich Railway later merged into South Eastern Railways (SER).[40] 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 One, the government's Railways Act 1921 grouped railway companies together; the SECR joined neighbouring LBSCR and LSWR to form the Southern Railway.[40] Britain's railways were nationalised in 1948, forming British Rail. The railways were privatised again in 1996 and most Kent passenger services were franchised to Connex South Eastern.[41] Following financial difficulties, Connex lost the franchise, and was replaced by Southeastern.[42] The Channel Tunnel was completed in the 1990s and connected by a high speed link to London Waterloo via Ashford International. In late 2007, the London terminus will move from Waterloo to St Pancras and a new station, Ebbsfleet International serving north Kent, will open between Dartford and Gravesend.[43] 
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 gauge, tourist oriented Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway on the southeast Kent coast along the Dungeness peninsular and the 2ft 6in, ex industrial Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway. AirA limited number of charter flights are provided by Kent's London Biggin Hill Airport, Kent International Airport at Manston and London Ashford Airport at Lydd. However, most passengers across the South East use the larger Heathrow, Gatwick, Stanstead and Luton airports. In 2002, it was revealed that the government is considering building a new four-runway airport on the marshland near the village of Cliffe on the Hoo Peninsula, however, the proposal has led to protests by cultural and environmental groups.[44] Education
The county has three universities; Canterbury Christ Church University, University of Kent with campuses in Canterbury and Medway, and University of Greenwich with sites at Woolwich, Eltham and Medway. Whereas much of the UK adopted a comprehensive education system in the 1970s, Kent County Council and Medway Unitary Authority are among around 15[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.
From the 2005-06 school year, KCC and Medway introduced the standardised school year, based on six terms, as recommended by the Local Government Association following its 2000 report, "The Rhythms of Schooling".[49] Between September 2003 and August 2004, 70% of pupils in the Kent authority achieved Key Stage 2 Level 4 in mathematics, compared to 74% of pupils in England as a whole. 74% of pupils achieved Key Stage 2 Level 4 in English, compared to 78% of pupils nationally. 56% of pupils achieved five or more GCSE A*–C grades or the equivalent, compared to 54% nationally.[50] As of the 2001 census, the highest academic qualification attained by residents aged between 16 and 74 in the Kent LEA area was 16.8% a higher education qualification or the equivalent, 8.0% two or more A-levels or the equivalent, 21.0% five or more GCSE grades A*–C or the equivalent, and 18.2% one or more GCSEs passes or the equivalent. 28.3% had no qualifications and 7.7% had a qualification of an unknown level.[51] See also
References
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