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Dover (district)
Encyclopedia
Dover is a local government district
in Kent
, England. Dover
is its administrative centre. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the boroughs of Deal
, Dover
, and Sandwich
along with Dover Rural District and most of Eastry Rural District
. There are three towns within the district: Dover
, Deal
and Sandwich
; and the parishes below:
The northern boundary of the district is the River Stour
; on its eastern side is the district of Canterbury; to the south the parish of Capel-le-Ferne
; and to the east the Straits of Dover. The southern part of the latter is the point where the North Downs
meets the sea, at the so-called ‘White cliffs of Dover
’. Further north along the coast, from Deal
onwards, the land is at sea level, where the River Stour
enters the sea by a circuitous route. It is here, on the sand-dunes, that the Royal St George's Golf Club
, founded in 1887, and of international repute, is situated.
In the district are industrial remains of the erstwhile Kent coalfield
, situated around Tilmanstone
and Betteshanger
. Technically speaking, half of the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel
is under British Sovereignty and thus part of the district.
s of Watling Street
and that leading from Richborough
. Today the main road, the A2
, closely follows Watling Street to Dover.
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England. Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
is its administrative centre. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the boroughs of Deal
Deal, Kent
Deal is a town in Kent England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover and eight miles south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town...
, Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, and Sandwich
Sandwich, Kent
Sandwich is a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the Non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England. It has a population of 6,800....
along with Dover Rural District and most of Eastry Rural District
Eastry Rural District
Eastry Rural District was a rural district in the county of Kent, England, from 1894 to 1974. It was subject to a significant boundary reform in 1935 when several parishes were gained from the disbanded Isle of Thanet Rural District and other parishes were reorganised.It included the following...
. There are three towns within the district: Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, Deal
Deal, Kent
Deal is a town in Kent England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover and eight miles south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town...
and Sandwich
Sandwich, Kent
Sandwich is a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the Non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England. It has a population of 6,800....
; and the parishes below:
- AlkhamAlkhamAlkham is a village and civil parish in the Dover district of Kent, England, about five miles west of Dover, on the B2060 secondary road. Within the parish are the settlements of Chalksole and Ewell Minnis; the parish population was 691 people...
- Ash
- AyleshamAyleshamAylesham is a village and civil parish near the cathedral town of Canterbury. Aylesham has its administrative and political seat in the Dover district of Kent in England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 3,884....
- Capel-le-FerneCapel-le-FerneCapel-le-Ferne , the name of which derives from the phrase "Chapel in the Ferns", is a village situated near Folkestone, Kent. It has a population of approximately 2400...
- DentonDenton, DoverDenton is a village near Canterbury in Kent, England.The Jackdaw Inn features in the 1969 film "The Battle of Britain"....
with WoottonWootton, KentWootton is a village near Dover in Kent, England. Birthplace of Leonard Digges, inventor of the Telescope.It once had a Baptist chapel, linked to the Eythorne Baptist Church group.... - EastryEastryEastry is a civil parish and remote, yet historically significant village four kilometres SW of Sandwich, in Kent, that was voted "Kent Village of the Year 2005".-Etymology:...
- EythorneEythorneEythorne is a civil parish and small village of about 1000 homes, located 7.3 miles NNW of Dover in Kent. There are currently about 2500 residents. Eythorne holds many historical attributes. Situated a few miles away from Dover beach, it offers many articles of evidence of the war...
- GoodnestoneGoodnestone, DoverGoodnestone is a village in the district of Dover, Kent, England.-Goodnestone Park near Sandwich:Goodnestone Park is a stately home near the Canterbury–Sandwich village. It was built in 1704 by Brook Bridges, 1st Baronet....
- Great MongehamGreat MongehamGreat Mongeham is a village and civil parish in East Kent, on the outskirts of Deal. Its name is derived from Mundelingham or village of Mundel. Parts of Great Mongeham's church, St Martin's, date back to the 13th century...
- GustonGustonGuston is a village near Dover in Kent, England. The village lies about a quarter of a mile North of the campus of the Duke of York's Royal Military School, near Martin Mill. The village, in the 1950s, was the site of one public house, one post office, one Saxon church and about one-hundred homes....
- Hougham without
- LangdonLangdon, KentLangdon is a village near Dover in Kent, England. It was the site of West Langdon Abbey which was dissolved in 1535....
- LyddenLyddenLydden is also the name of a hamlet in the Manston, Kent civil parishLydden is a civil parish and small village in the Dover district of Kent, England...
- NoningtonNoningtonNonington, also, variously, Nonnington, Nunyngton, Nonnyngton, Nunnington, is a small village in the southeast corner of Kent, situated halfway between the historic city of Canterbury and the channel port town of Dover...
- NorthbourneNorthbourneNorthbourne is a village near Deal in Kent, England. It has a public house, The Hare and Hounds, a primary school and is the home of the current Baron Northbourne. It should not be confused with an area in Bournemouth of the same name....
- PrestonPreston, Dover districtPreston near Wingham is a village and civil parish located on a secondary road in the valley of the Little Stour in the Dover District of the English county of Kent...
- RingwouldRingwouldRingwould is a village near Dover in Kent, England. Ripple Windmill, which is being restored, lies within the parish....
with KingsdownKingsdown, KentKingsdown is a village immediately to the south of Walmer, itself south of Deal, on the English Channel coast of Kent. Parts of the village are built on or behind the shingle beach that runs north to Deal and beyond, while other parts are on the cliffs and hills inland... - RippleRipple, KentRipple is a village in Kent, England. It is also known as Ripple Vale. John French, 1st Earl of Ypres, the commander of the first British Expeditionary Force was born there in 1852, and is buried at the village church...
- RiverRiver, KentRiver is a village and civil parish in Kent, England, United Kingdom, situated between the historic town of Dover and the neighbouring village of Temple Ewell. "Village" is a somewhat loose term for River; it is a community of several thousand and is probably more usefully regarded as a suburb of...
- ShepherdswellShepherdswellShepherdswell is a village in Kent, England, UK. It is notable for the East Kent Railway, whose terminus is sited there.This was originally one of Colonel Stephens' lines & ran to Wingham.The section as far as Eythorne is now run by a preservation society.The village social life centres around the...
with ColdredColdredColdred is a small rural community, some 7 miles NW of Dover. One of the highest places in East Kent, nearly 400 ft above sea level, it has the reputation of being a "healthy and salubrious place in which to live". As far back as 1700, Coldred held the county record for the longevity of its... - SholdenSholdenSholden is a quiet village near Deal towards Sandwich in Kent, South East England. It has one church, a school and a cricket field.-External links:*...
- St Margaret-at-CliffeSt Margaret-at-CliffeSt Margaret-at-Cliffe is a three part village situated just off the coast road between Deal and Dover in Kent, England. The heart of the village is about two miles from the sea with the residential area of Nelson Park further inland and St Margaret's Bay situated along and below the cliffs north...
- StapleStaple, KentStaple is a small village and civil parish in east Kent. It lies southwest of the nearby village of Ash and the town of Sandwichand east of Canterbury.-History:...
- StourmouthStourmouthStourmouth is a civil parish in the Dover local government district of Kent, England.Its name comes from the fact that, before the Wantsum Channel was cut off from the sea, the village was at the mouth of the River Stour.-Geography:...
- Sutton by Dover
- Temple EwellTemple EwellTemple Ewell is a civil parish and historic village in the county of Kent, England. The village is part of the Dover district of Kent, and forms part of the Dover urban area, it is situated three miles North West of the town of Dover....
- TilmanstoneTilmanstoneTilmanstone is a small village in Kent, in the South East of England, near Eastry a much bigger and more developed area. Tilmanstone has no schools, few shops and a church and town hall. The population of Tilmanstone often work for the nearby companies, such as Pfizer or Tilmanstone Salads, or in...
- WalmerWalmerWalmer is a town in the district of Dover, Kent in England: located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is six miles north-east of Dover. Largely residential, its coastline and castle attract many visitors...
- WhitfieldWhitfield, KentWhitfield is an ancient village and civil parish in the English county of Kent. It has a modern counterpart in the large settlement located at the junction of the A2 and A256 roads, some four miles north of Dover, of which that part of Whitfield has become a suburb of the Dover urban area.The...
- WinghamWingham, KentWingham is a civil parish and English Kent village situated along the ancient coastal road, now the A257, from Richborough to London and close to Canterbury. It has existed since the Stone Age but only became established as a village in Roman times. The Domesday book tells us that during Saxon...
- WoodnesboroughWoodnesboroughWoodnesborough is a village in East Kent two miles west of Sandwich.Its name is believed to originate from Woden's Borough after Anglo-Saxon god Woden ....
- WorthWorth, KentWorth is a small village situated near Sandwich, Kent, England. It has two public houses, a church, and a school.C.S. Forester's fictional naval hero Horatio Hornblower was born in the village of Worth, according to Hornblower's biographer Cyril Northcote Parkinson [see The Life and Times of...
The northern boundary of the district is the River Stour
River Stour, Kent
The River Stour is the river in Kent, England that flows into the English Channel at Pegwell Bay. Above Plucks Gutter, where the Little Stour joins it, the river is normally known as the Great Stour. The upper section of the river, above its confluence with the East Stour at Ashford is sometimes...
; on its eastern side is the district of Canterbury; to the south the parish of Capel-le-Ferne
Capel-le-Ferne
Capel-le-Ferne , the name of which derives from the phrase "Chapel in the Ferns", is a village situated near Folkestone, Kent. It has a population of approximately 2400...
; and to the east the Straits of Dover. The southern part of the latter is the point where the North Downs
North Downs
The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. The North Downs lie within two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty , the Surrey Hills and the Kent Downs...
meets the sea, at the so-called ‘White cliffs of Dover
White cliffs of Dover
The White Cliffs of Dover are cliffs which form part of the British coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliffs are part of the North Downs formation. The cliff face, which reaches up to , owes its striking façade to its composition of chalk accentuated by streaks of black flint...
’. Further north along the coast, from Deal
Deal, Kent
Deal is a town in Kent England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover and eight miles south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town...
onwards, the land is at sea level, where the River Stour
River Stour, Kent
The River Stour is the river in Kent, England that flows into the English Channel at Pegwell Bay. Above Plucks Gutter, where the Little Stour joins it, the river is normally known as the Great Stour. The upper section of the river, above its confluence with the East Stour at Ashford is sometimes...
enters the sea by a circuitous route. It is here, on the sand-dunes, that the Royal St George's Golf Club
Royal St George's Golf Club
The Royal St George's Golf Club is one of the premier golf clubs in the United Kingdom, and one of the courses on The Open Championship rotation. It has hosted 13 Open championships since 1894, when it became the first club outside Scotland to host the championship...
, founded in 1887, and of international repute, is situated.
In the district are industrial remains of the erstwhile Kent coalfield
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
, situated around Tilmanstone
Tilmanstone
Tilmanstone is a small village in Kent, in the South East of England, near Eastry a much bigger and more developed area. Tilmanstone has no schools, few shops and a church and town hall. The population of Tilmanstone often work for the nearby companies, such as Pfizer or Tilmanstone Salads, or in...
and Betteshanger
Betteshanger
Betteshanger is a village near Deal in East Kent, England. It gave its name to the largest of the four chief collieries of the Kent coalfield.-Before the coal mine:...
. Technically speaking, half of the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
is under British Sovereignty and thus part of the district.
Communications
Crossing Dover district are the Roman roadRoman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
s of Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
and that leading from Richborough
Richborough
Richborough is a settlement north of Sandwich on the east coast of the county of Kent, England. Richborough lies close to the Isle of Thanet....
. Today the main road, the A2
A2 road (Great Britain)
The A2 is a major road in southern England, connecting London with the English Channel port of Dover in Kent. This route has always been of importance as a connection between the British capital of London and sea trade routes to Continental Europe...
, closely follows Watling Street to Dover.
External links
- Parish listing
- Kent coalfield history
- Dover Soul Local Website for Dover & White Cliffs Country: history, geography, Kent's radio history, pictures and community information
- Dover pictorial website
- Dover Community Radio (DCR)