Kent

• 1. The Garden Of England

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  Kent is a ceremonial county in South East England. It has an area of 3,192 square kilometers and had a population of 1,727,665 residents according to the 2011 census. The north-west of Kent is densely populated with towns like Dartford and Gravesend belonging to the Greater London conurbation. Maidstone sits to their south as the principal settlement for the remainder of the county which is more rural. Principal settlements include Canterbury in the north-east and Margate on the north-east coast. Dover and Folkestone serve as ports on the east coast. The geography lends itself to fruit orchards earning it the nickname "the Garden of England".

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• 2. Roman Conquest And Cantiaci

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  Julius Caesar described the area as Cantium or the home of the Cantiaci in 51 BC. The extreme west was occupied by a Celtic Iron Age tribe known as the Regni. Caesar wrote that the people of Kent were "by far the most civilised inhabitants of Britain". Early human occupation occurred intermittently during the Palaeolithic era as attested by a Neanderthal skull found in Swanscombe quarries. Medway megaliths were built during the Neolithic era. A rich sequence of Bronze Age, Celtic Iron Age, and Britto-Roman era occupation exists indicated by finds such as the Ringlemere gold cup. Roman villas in the Darent valley further evidence this long history of settlement.

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• 3. Saint Augustine And Christianity

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  In 597 Pope Gregory I appointed Saint Augustine of Canterbury as the first Archbishop of Canterbury. In the previous year Augustine successfully converted the pagan King Aethelberht of Kent to Christianity. The Diocese of Canterbury became England's first Episcopal See with its first cathedral. It has since remained England's centre of Christianity. The second designated English cathedral was for West Kent at Rochester Cathedral. Canterbury Cathedral is now a World Heritage Site. The city of Canterbury was the largest in Kent during medieval times. The county adopted the motto Invicta meaning "undefeated" or "unconquered" following William of Normandy's invasion in the 11th century.

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• 4. Gateway For Invasion And Defense

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  Kent's location between London and the Strait of Dover made it the point of entry for many prominent figures in British history. Dover Castle has been described as the "key of England" due to its strategic significance. During the Second World War much of the Battle of Britain was fought in the skies over Kent. Between June 1944 and March 1945 more than 10,000 V1 flying bombs were fired towards London from bases in Northern France. Both London and Kent were hit by around 2,500 of these bombs known as Doodlebugs. Chatham Dockyard served as a primary base for fleets acting along Dutch and French coasts during wars with France in the 18th century.

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• 5. Coal Mining And Industry

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  From about 1900 several coal pits operated in East Kent including Chislet Tilmanstone Betteshanger and Snowdown Colliery which ran from 1908 to 1986. Cement-making papermaking and coal-mining were important industries in Kent during the 19th and 20th centuries. Massive building projects brought cement to the fore in the 19th century with huge pits between Stone and Gravesend. North Kent is heavily industrialised with shipbuilding on the Medway and Swale. Engineering and aircraft design occur at Rochester while chemicals are produced at Dartford. Two nuclear power stations exist at Dungeness though the older one built in 1965 was decommissioned in 2006.

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• 6. Writers And Composers

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  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 books the celebrated novelist featured scenery of Chatham Rochester and Cliffe marshes. William Golding worked as a teacher at Maidstone Grammar School during the late 1930s where he met his future wife Ann Brookfield. Richard Rodney Bennett composer and pianist was born at Broadstairs in 1936. Alfred Deller counter-tenor singer was born at Margate in 1912. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart stayed at Bourne Park House near Canterbury from 25 to the 30th of July 1765.

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