Folkestone
Folkestone is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal resort for most of the 19th and mid-20th centuries.
This location has had a settlement since the Mesolithic era. A nunnery was founded by Eanswith, granddaughter of Æthelberht of Kent in the 7th century, who is still commemorated as part of the town's culture. During the 13th century, it developed into a seaport, and the harbour developed during the early 19th century to defend against a French invasion. Folkestone expanded further west after the arrival of the railway in 1843 as an elegant coastal resort, thanks to the investment of the Earl of Radnor under the urban plan of Decimus Burton.
In its Edwardian-era heyday, Folkestone was considered the most fashionable resort of the time, visited by royalty — amongst them Queen Victoria and Edward VII and other members of the English aristocracy. The town's architecture, especially in the West End part, is a testimony of this period, with many impressive buildings, townhouses, villas, private squares, and large hotels built to accommodate the gentry. After two world wars and the boom of the overseas holiday package, the town quickly declined. The harbour's trade diminished following the opening of the nearby Channel Tunnel and the ending of ferry services from Folkestone, but it still remains in active use.
Toponymy
Although Kent was the first part of the British mainland to be conquered and settled by the invading Angles, Saxons and Jutes from the middle of the 5th century AD, after the departure of the Romans, the name Folcanstan did not appear until the late 7th century. There is general agreement that this means Folca's stone, the stone possibly marking the meeting place of the local hundred. It was not until the mid-19th century that the spelling of "Folkestone" was fixed as such, with the Earl of Radnor requesting that the town's name be standardised. Folkestone is often misspelt with variants including Folkston, Folkstone & Folkeston.History
The area of Folkestone has been occupied since at least the Mesolithic era. In 2010, worked flints were discovered below the remains of the Folkestone Roman Villa. The East Cliff area was excavated in 1924 and most recently from 2010 to 2011, producing artefacts from the Mesolithic period through to the Roman era. On the East Cliff, an extensive Iron Age oppidum existed, which produced quern-stones on an almost industrial scale. Those quern-stones, which were used for grinding cereals into flour, were traded for continental exports such as pottery and wine. A modest Roman-style villa was constructed over the Iron Age settlement some time during the 1st century AD, followed by a more luxurious one in about 200 AD. The villa was abandoned during the 3rd or 4th century for unknown reasons.In 597 AD, monks, led by Augustine of Canterbury, arrived at Ebbsfleet on the Isle of Thanet, on a mission from Pope Gregory to re-Christianise Britain. He was greeted by the Anglo-Saxon pagan King of Kent, Æthelberht, and his Christian Queen, Bertha. Augustine was granted land in Canterbury, where he built his church and, outside the walls, founded the monastery of St Peter & St Paul, now known as St Augustine's. Æthelberht was succeeded as Anglo-Saxon king of Kent by his son Eadbald, whose daughter Eanswythe refused all offers of marriage. In 630, Eanswythe founded a nunnery on the site of her father's castle near Folkestone by the present parish church of St Mary & St Eanswythe.
File:Church of St Mary and St Eanswythe, Folkestone 01.JPG|thumb|upright|Church of St Mary and St Eanswythe, in the town centre, contains the remains of St Eanswythe, granddaughter of Æthelberht of Kent.
Eanswythe died around 640 and was quickly made a saint. Her remains were moved into the chancel of the current church on 12 September 1138, which has since been commemorated as the Feast of St Eanswythe. They became the focus of prayer and pilgrimage, so Eanswythe was quickly adopted as the town's patron. The religious community grew and developed into a monastery until it was dissolved by Henry VIII, and St Eanswythe's remains disappeared. They were rediscovered in June 1885 when workmen, carrying out alterations to the high altar, found a battered lead casket immured in a niche in the north wall of the chancel. Examination by archaeologists at the time, and again in 1981, confirmed that the casket was of Anglo-Saxon origin and the few bone fragments were those of a woman in her early thirties. The relics are still housed in the church, close to where they were discovered, flanked by a pair of small brass candlesticks. St Eanswythe also appears on the town's seal, along with William Harvey, the Folkestone-born 17th-century physician who discovered blood circulation.
A Norman knight held a Barony of Folkestone, which led to its entry as a part of the Cinque Ports in the thirteenth century and, with that, the privilege of being a wealthy trading port. At the start of the Tudor period, it had become a town in its own right. Wars with France meant that defences had to be built, and Folkestone Harbour was built, though the coming of the railways in 1843 had a greater impact on its development.
Dover Hill, the highest point in Folkestone, was a sighting point for the Anglo-French Survey, which measured the precise distance between the Royal Greenwich Observatory and the Paris Observatory. The hill provided a sight-line to the east along the line of the Folkestone Turnpike to Dover Castle, one of the two principal cross-channel observation points, the other being Fairlight Down in Sussex.
Folkestone Harbour
Until the 19th century, Folkestone remained a small fishing community with a seafront continually battered by storms and encroaching shingle, making it hard to land boats. In 1807, an act of Parliament, the Folkestone Pier and Harbour Act 1807, was passed to build a pier and harbour, which was built by Thomas Telford in 1809. By 1820 a harbour area of had been enclosed. Folkestone's trade and population grew slightly, but development was still hampered by sand and silt from the Pent Stream. The Folkestone Harbour Company invested heavily in removing the silt but with little success. 1842, the company went bankrupt, and the government put the derelict harbour up for sale. It was bought by the South Eastern Railway, which was then building the London to Dover railway line. George Turnbull was responsible in 1844 for building the Horn pier. Dredging the harbour, and the construction of a rail route down to it, began almost immediately. The town soon became the SER's principal packet station for the Continental traffic to Boulogne. The last ferry ran in 2001.The Harbour Arm, formerly used solely for port activities, has been extensively restored and developed as a recreational space and promenade to which the public has access, including bars and restaurants, with entertainment at weekends and on some evenings. The former railway station and harbour viaduct have been reconstructed as a successful public walkway and promenade following the full closure of the branch railway in 2014.
Governance
The governance of Folkestone lies in both national and local government. Insofar as the national government is concerned, Folkestone is part of the constituency of Folkestone and Hythe, which is currently represented by Tony Vaughan. Before Brexit in 2020, Folkestone was part of the South East England constituency in the European Parliament.The local government consists of three tiers. In the first tier, Kent County Council, Folkestone is divided into two divisions each returning one county councillor. Folkestone West is represented by Dylan Jeffrey. Folkestone East is represented by Jackie Meade.
The second tier of local government is the non-metropolitan district. Folkestone forms a part of Folkestone and Hythe district, which was first established by the Local Government Act 1972 as Shepway. Folkestone elects 10 of Folkestone and Hythe District Council's 30 councillors.
The third and lowest tier was established as the civil parish: in Folkestone's case, because it held a town charter, and when the then Folkestone Borough Council was abolished, councillors elected to represent Folkestone's wards were designated as the town's charter trustees, responsible for electing a town mayor. This role has since passed to Folkestone Town Council, a parish council which is based at Folkestone Town Hall.
The town council was established in 2004, comprising the area of the former Borough of Folkestone less Folkestone Sandgate ward, which was separately parished. The council comprises eight wards: Cheriton; Morehall; Park; Harvey West; Harvey Central; Harbour; East; and Foord. Each ward returns two or three members, for a total of 18 councillors elected to four-year terms. Each year, Folkestone Town Councillors attend the annual general meeting and mayor-making ceremony to appoint both a mayor and a deputy mayor from their number for the coming year.
Geography
Folkestone is located where the southern edge of the North Downs escarpment meets the sea. In contrast to the white cliffs at Dover further to the east, the cliffs at Folkestone are composed of greensand belonging to the Folkestone Formation and gault clay. A small stream, Pent Brook, cuts through the cliffs at this point, and provided the original haven for fishermen and cross-channel boats. The cliffs are constantly under attack from the sea, and the original headlands, which once protected the port, long ago ceased to do so. Artificial protection, in the form of breakwaters and piers, have been necessary since the 17th century.The town is now built on both sides of the original valley: the West Cliff and The Bayle to the West, and the East Cliff on the other side of the stream. The Pent Stream now runs through a culvert from the fire station, at the junction of Radnor Park Road, Park Farm and Pavilion Road, until it reaches the inner harbour. Remains of a quay, dating to the 17th century, were discovered under what is now a public car park, between the Old High Street and the railway viaduct, adjacent to the current harbour. Included in the town is Cheriton, where the Channel Tunnel's northern exit is located; Newington; and Peene.
In August 1996 a one-in-600-years storm left homes and businesses in Black Bull Road, in the Foord Valley, under two metres of water. Heavy rainfall combined with inadequacies in the Pent Stream and local drainage caused the flooding. A crowd of 2,332 saw Folkestone Invicta play hosts to West Ham United in a benefit football match following the flood.