KENT 39
at a very early period enjoyed the advantage of railway intercourse; and it is now very completely intersected with railway lines.
Administration. – Kent is divided into five lathes a partition peculiar to the county, and dating from Anglo-Saxon times. The lathes are St Augustine, Shepway, Scray, Aylesford, and Sutton- at-Hone. The county comprises 61 hundreds, the lowey of Tun- bridge, the franchise and barony of Bircholt, the liberty of the Isle of Sheppey, the liberty of New Romney; two cities, Canterbury (21,701) and Rochester (21,590), which are also municipal and parliamentary boroughs; one parliamentary borough, Chatham (46,806); five boroughs which are both municipal and parliamen tary, viz., Dover (28,486), Gravesend (m. 23,375, p. 31,355), Hythe (m. 4069, p. 28,066), Maidstone (m. 29,638, p. 39,662), Sandwich (m. 2846, p. 15,566); part of the parliamentary borough of Green wich and five municipal boroughs, viz., Deal (8422), Faversham (8627), Folkestone (18,887), Margate (15,889), and Tenterden (3620). The liberty of New Komney and all the municipal boroughs except Gravesend and Maidstoue are included among the Cinque Ports. The Cinque Port districts in Kent are those of Sandwich, partly in Essex, Dover, Hythe, New Romney, and a portion of Rye, namely, Tenterden (see CINQUE PORTS, vol. v. p. 786). Until 1867 Kent was for parliamentary purposes formed into only two divisions, East and West Kent, but by the Reform Act of that year West Kent was divided into West and Mid Kent. The city of Canterbury, which returns two members, Dover arid Sandwich, which return two members each, and Hythe, which returns one member, are included in East Kent, which returns in all nine members. In Mid Kent are included the city of Rochester, returning two members, Maidstone, returning two members, and Chatham and Gravesend, returning one member each; it returns in all eight members. West Kent, which returns two members, in cludes part of the borough of Greenwich, which returns two mem bers. The total representation of the county, including Greenwich, is thus twenty-one members. The county has one court of general sessions and two of quarter sessions; the number of sessional divisions is sixteen, exclusive of the liberty of Romuey Marsh, which has petty and general sessions under its charters. The central criminal court has jurisdiction over certain parishes in the county. The city of Canterbury (a county in itself), the city of Rochester, and the boroughs of Gravesend and Maidstone have commissions of the peace and separate courts of quarter sessions, as have also the ports and boroughs of Deal, Dover, Faversham, Folkestone, Hythe, Margate, Sandwich, and Tenterden. The ancient borough of Queenborough, governed by an old charter, has a recorder and a court of quarter sessions with a separate juris diction limited to misdemeanours. Summary cases are dealt with by the mayor and magistrates in petty sessions. With the excep tion of the portion included in the metropolitan police district, the shire for judicial purposes belongs to the south-eastern cir cuit, and for police purposes is divided into twelve districts, which are generally identical with the petty sessional divisions. The cities of Canterbury and Rochester, the boroughs of Deal, Dover, Faversham, Folkestone, Gravesend, Hythe, Maidstone, Margate, Sandwich, and Tenterden, and the towns of Ramsgate (22,605) and Tunbridge Wells (24,309) have their own police. Ecclesiastically, with the exception of portions of two parishes, Kent is within the dioceses of Canterbury and Rochester; and it contains thirty-seven civil parishes or places, as well as parts of other parishes extending into adjoining counties.
Population. – Since 1801, when it numbered 308,667, the population has been rapidly and uninterruptedly increasing. In 1821 it was 427,224, and in 1841 it had increased to 549,353, in 1861 to 733,381, in 1871 to 848,294, and in 1881 to 977,585, of whom 477,715 were males and 499,870 females.
History and Antiquities. – A tribe of the Belgre from Gaul had before the time of Cæsar's invasion taken possession of a large por tion of southern Britain, including Kent. The remarkable crom lech, Kit's Coity House, near Aylesford, belongs to this early period, as do numerous earthworks, encampments, stone circles, and excava tions on the coast which are now generally regarded as ancient chalk pits. The spot of Cæsar's landing was probably either some part of the coast between Walmer and Thanet – the neighbourhood of Deal finding most supporters – or the Portus Lemanis in Romney Marsh, which is identical with the town of Lymne. In his first invasion he did not penetrate farther than Kent, and the absence of lapidary inscriptions is regarded as evidence that its conquest was easily effected. The principal Roman road was the Watling Street, between Dubris (Dover) and London, which had much the same course as the present highway. This road was joined at Durovernum (Canterbury) by two others, one from the Portus Lemanis (Lymne) and the other from Regulbium (Reculver). The traces of the road from the Portus Lemanis are still well marked throughout its whole extent, but agricultural operations have almost wholly obliterated the traces of that from Regulbium. Of two other Roman stations, Durolevum and Vagniacæ, the site cannot be absolutely determined, but most probably the former was near Faversham, and for the latter, which was somewhere between
Rochester and London, most opinions favour Springhead near Gravesend. There are still important remains of Roman fortresses at Dover, Richborough, Reculver, and Lymne; many traces of Roman villas have also been discovered; and portions of Roman j structures have frequently been utilized in the construction of I churches and other buildings. A great variety of Roman relics j have been discovered in nearly every part of the county. The most remarkable are profuse traces of extensive potteries of purple or black ware at Upchurch on the south bank of the Medway, leaden coffins elaborately ornamented, and glass and bronze vessels in various Roman cemeteries. The earliest Teutonic settlement, under Hengest and Horsa, took place in Kent ; and, on the arrival of Augustine in 597, Canterbury became the Christian metropolis of the island. Separate kings appear to have occasionally ruled in East and West Kent; and a bishopric was established at Rochester, in West Kent, as well as at Canterbury. Of this period of Kentish history the principal antiquarian remains are the cemeteries; from those at Sarre and Osengal in Thanet, and at Bifrons, Barham, Bishopsbourne, Gilton, arid Sittingbourne, a large number of relics of various kinds have been obtained. Some old customs belonging to this period, including that of gavelkind in cases of intestacy, are still extant, Kent in 823 was united by Egbert to the kingdom of the West Saxons. In the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries it suf fered greatly from the ravages of the Danes. After the Conquest the earldom of Kent, which had been held by Godwine and after wards by Harold, was bestowed by William on his brother Odo bishop of Bayeux. Among other events of historic importance the following may be mentioned : the capture of Rochester by AVilliam Rufus in 1088, an incident connected with the rebellion of Odo, which was subdued in the same year; the murder of Thomas à Becket at Canterbury in 1170; the submission of King John to the pope's legate at Dover in 1215; the capture of Rochester Castle by King John in the same year, and of the same castle by the dauphin of France in 1216, the greater part of Kent formally submitting to him with the exception of Dover Castle; Wat Tyler's insurrection in 1381 and that of Jack Cade in 1450; the encamp ment of Cornish insurgents at Blackheath in 1497, where they were surprised by Henry VII.; the insurrection of Sir Thomas Wyatt, which was commenced at Maidstone in 1554; the suppres sion of the Kentish insurrection by Fairfax at Maidstone, June 1, 1648; and the burning of certain ships at Chatham by the Dutch fleet under De Ruyter in 1667 after the fort of Sheerness had been levelled by his guns.
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 foundations. The earliest were the priory of Christ's Church and the abbey of St Peter and St Paul now called St Augustine's, both at Canterbury, founded by Augustine and the monks who accompanied him to England. In the time of Henry VIII. the other principal religious houses were a priory at Rochester founded in 1089, a priory founded at Folke stone in 1100 on the site of a nunnery originally founded in 630, a nunnery of St Sepulchre at Canterbury, founded about 1100, a nunnery at Minster in Sheppey built in 1130 on the site of a nunnery which was founded in 675, but destroyed by the Danes, St Martin's Priory at Dover established in 1140 in place of one founded in 696 but afterwards dissolved, an abbey at Faversham founded in 1147, and nunneries at Lillechurch in Higham founded before 1151, at Davington founded in 1153, and at Mailing founded in the time of William Rufus; the Black Canons possessed a priory at Leeds founded in 1119, an abbey at Westwood in the parish of Erith founded in 1178, a priory at Combwell in Goudherst founded in the reign of Henry II., a priory at Tunbridge founded in the same century, a priory at Bilsington founded in 1253, St Gregory's Priory at Canterbury, changed in the time of Henry I. from one of secular priests, originally founded in 1084; the White Canons had St Radegund's Abbey near Dover, founded in 1193, and an abbey at West Laugdou, founded in 1192; houses belonging to the Carmelites existed at Aylesford and Newenden, both founded in 1240, and at Sandwich founded in 1272; one belonging to the Dominicans was founded at Canterbury in 1221, the Franciscans having one at the same city founded in 1225, and the Eremite Friars also one at the same city founded in the time of Edward I. or Edward II.; an abbey of Cistercian monks was founded at Boxley in 1146, a preceptory of Knights Templars at Swingfield near Dover some time before 1190, a priory of Trinitarian Friars at Mottenden in the parish of Headcorn in 1224, a nunnery of the order of St Augustine at Dart ford about 1355, a cell of Cluniac monks at Monks Horton in the time of Henry II., and a pre ceptory belonging to the knights of St John of Jerusalem at West Peckham in the time of Henry IV. Of the monastic buildings the principal remains are those of the Benedictine monastery of St Augustine at Canterbury, the priory of Christ's Church, Canter bury, adjoining the cathedral, the Dominican convent, Canter bury, St Radegund's Abbey near Dover, St Martin's Priory, Dover, Horton Priory, Mailing Abbey, Aylesford Friary, and the abbeys of Minster in Sheppuy and Minster in Thanet. In addition to
