Essex

• 1. Iron Age Trinovantes Origins

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  In the Iron Age, the land now known as Essex was controlled by a local tribe called the Trinovantes. They established their capital at Colchester, which stands today as Britain's oldest recorded town. This settlement featured its own mint and produced coinage that marked them out as one of the more advanced tribes on the island. Their wealth likely stemmed from a Belgic element within their elite class. The Trinovantes were in extended conflict with their western neighbours, the Catuvellauni. By AD 10 they had come under the complete control of the Catuvellauni, who took Colchester as their own capital.

• 2. Roman Conquest And Revolt

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  The Roman invasion began in AD 43 with a landing on the south coast, probably in the Richborough area of Kent. After some initial successes against the Britons, the army paused to await reinforcements and the arrival of Emperor Claudius. The combined force then proceeded to the capital of the Catevellauni-Trinovantes at Colchester and took it. Claudius held a review of his invasion force on Lexden Heath where the army formally proclaimed him Imperator. The invasion force included four legions, mounted auxiliaries and an elephant corps, a force of around 30,000 men. At Colchester, the kings of 11 British tribes surrendered to Claudius. Colchester became a Roman Colonia with the official name Colonia Claudia Victricensis. It was initially the most important city in Roman Britain and housed the largest temple to the God-Emperor Claudius in Roman Britain. The establishment of the Colonia involved extensive appropriation of land from local people. This and other grievances led the Trinovantes to join their northern neighbours, the Iceni, in the Boudiccan revolt. The rebels entered the city and methodically destroyed the temple of Claudius after a Roman last stand. They massacred many thousands. A significant Roman force attempting to relieve Colchester was destroyed in pitched battle known as the Massacre of the Ninth Legion. Tacitus estimated that 70, 80,000 people were killed in the destruction of three cities including London and St Albans.

• 3. Anglo-Saxon Kingdom Formation

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  The name Essex originates in the Anglo-Saxon period and has its root in the Old English name for East Saxons. Excavations at Mucking have demonstrated the presence of Anglo-Saxon settlers in the early fifth century. The first known king of the East Saxons was Sledd in 587. Less reliable sources give an account of Aescwine founding the kingdom in 527. The early kings of the East Saxons were pagan and uniquely amongst the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms traced their lineage back to Seaxnēat, god of the Saxons, rather than Woden. Nearly all of them began with the letter S. Sledd's son Sebert converted to Christianity around 604 and St Paul's Cathedral in London was established. On Sebert's death in 616 his sons renounced Christianity and drove out Mellitus, the Bishop of London. The kingdom re-converted after St Cedd, a monk from Lindisfarne and now the patron saint of Essex, converted Sigeberht II the Good around 653. In AD 824, Ecgberht, the King of the Wessex and grandfather of Alfred the Great, defeated the Mercians at the Battle of Ellandun in Wiltshire. The small kingdoms of Essex, Sussex and Kent were subsequently fully absorbed into Wessex.

• 4. Medieval Conflicts And Plague

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  After the Norman Conquest, William the Conqueror initially based himself at Barking Abbey for several months while a secure base could be established. The invaders established castles at Colchester, Castle Hedingham, Rayleigh, Pleshey and elsewhere. Hadleigh Castle was developed much later, in the thirteenth century. After the arrival of the Normans, the Forest of Essex was established as a royal forest. An analysis of Domesday returns has shown that the Forest of Essex was mostly farmland and that the county as a whole was 20% wooded in 1086. In 1218, Chelmsford became the county town. Population growth caused the proportion of woodland to fall steadily until the Black Death arrived in 1348. This plague killed between a third and a half of England's population. By 1381, England's economic situation was very poor due to the war with France. A new Poll Tax was levied with commissioners sent round the country to interrogate local officials. The Peasants' Revolt broke out in Brentwood on the 1st of June 1381. Several thousand Essex rebels gathered at Bocking on the 4th of June. They divided their forces with some heading to Suffolk and others heading to London. The revolt began to dissipate after events at West Smithfield on the 15th of June when the Mayor of London, William Walworth, killed the rebel leader Wat Tyler. Richard II rode toward the crowd and spoke to them, defusing the situation. His forces defeated rebels in battle at Billericay on the 28th of June. There were mass executions including hangings and disembowelments at Chelmsford and Colchester.

• 5. Modern Administrative Evolution

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  Essex County Council was formed in 1889. Before this time, administration was limited in nature with lord-lieutenants replacing sheriffs from the time of Henry VIII. Most administration was carried out by justices of the peace appointed by the Lord-Lieutenant of Essex based upon their reputation. These JPs carried out judicial and administrative duties such as maintenance of roads and bridges, supervision of the poor laws, administration of county prisons and setting the County Rate. At a very early but unknown date, small parts of the county on the east bank of the Stort near Bishops Stortford and Sawbridgeworth were transferred to Hertfordshire. The boundary with Greater London was established in 1965 when East Ham and West Ham county boroughs and several districts were transferred to form new London boroughs. In 1974, the county was made a non-metropolitan county meaning the role of the administrative county was redefined. Its present boundaries were set in 1998 when Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea were separated from the non-metropolitan county to become unitary authorities. In 2025, Essex County Council and fourteen local councils are working with central government on a scheme to reorganise how Essex is governed.

• 6. London Commuter Belt Economy

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  A high proportion of the population, especially in the south, work outside the county commuting to London and elsewhere by rail and by road. These London-based jobs are often well paid and complement the contribution made by employers based within Essex. Industry is largely limited to the south of the county with the majority of land elsewhere given over to agriculture. Harlow is a centre for electronics, science and pharmaceutical companies. Chelmsford has been an important location for electronics companies such as the Marconi Company since the industry was born. Basildon is home to New Holland Agriculture's European headquarters as well as the Ford Motor Company's British HQ. Parts of eastern Essex suffer from high levels of deprivation. One of the most highly deprived wards is in the seaside town of Clacton. In the Indices of deprivation 2007, Jaywick was identified as the most deprived Lower Super Output Area in Southern England. Unemployment was estimated at 44% and many homes were found to lack very basic amenities. In contrast, mid, west and south-west Essex is one of the most affluent parts of eastern England forming part of the London commuter belt. There is a large middle class here and the area is widely known for its private schools. The Green Belt zone close to London includes many prosperous commuter towns as well as the new towns of Basildon and Harlow originally developed to resettle Londoners after the destruction of London housing in the Second World War.