KENT, a south-eastern county of England, bounded N. by the Thames estuary, E. and S.E. by the English Channel, S.W. by Sussex, and W. by Surrey. In the north-west the administrative county of London encroaches upon the ancient county of Kent, the area of which is 1554.7 sq. m. The county is roughly triangular in form, London lying at the apex of the western angle, the North Foreland at that of the eastern and Dungeness at that of the southern. The county is divided centrally, from west to east, by the well-marked range of hills known as the North Downs, entering Kent from Surrey. In the west above Westerham these hills exceed 800 ft.; to the east the height is much less, but even in Kent (for in Surrey they are higher) the North Downs form a more striking physical feature than their height would indicate. They are intersected, especially on the north, by many deep valleys, well wooded. At three points such valleys cut completely through the main line of the hills. In the west the Darent, flowing north to the Thames below Dartford, pierces the hills north of Sevenoaks, but its waters are collected chiefly from a subsidiary ridge of the Downs running parallel to the main line and south of it, and known as the Ragstone Ridge, from 600 to 800 ft. in height. The Medway, however, cuts through the entire hill system, rising in the Forest Ridges of Sussex, flowing N.E. and E. past Tonbridge, collecting feeders from south and east (the Teise, Beult and others) near Yalding, and then flowing N.E. and N. through the hills, past Maidstone, joining the Thames at its mouth through a broad estuary. The rich lowlands, between the Downs and the Forest Ridges to the south (which themselves extend into Kent), watered by the upper Medway and its feeders, are called the Vale of Kent, and fall within the district well known under the name of the Weald. The easternmost penetration of the Downs is that effected by the Stour (Great Stour) which rises on their southern face, flows S.E. to Ashford, where it receives the East Stour, then turns N.E. past Wye and Canterbury, to meander through the lowlands representing the former channel which isolated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland. The channel was called the Wantsume, and its extent may be gathered from the position of the village of Fordwich near Canterbury, which had formerly a tidal harbour, and is a member of the Cinque Port of Sandwich. The Little Stour joins the Great Stour in these lowlands from a deep vale among the Downs.
About two-thirds of the boundary line of Kent is formed by tidal water. The estuary of the Thames may be said to stretch from London Bridge to Sheerness in the Isle of Sheppey, which is divided from the mainland by the narrow channel (bridged at Queensbridge) of the Swale. Sheerness lies at the mouth of the Medway, a narrow branch of which cuts off a tongue of land termed the Isle of Grain lying opposite Sheerness. Along the banks of the Thames the coast is generally low and marshy, embankments being in several places necessary to prevent inundation. At a few points, however, as at Gravesend, spurs of the North Downs descend directly upon the shore. In the estuary of the Medway there are a number of low marshy islands, but Sheppey presents to the sea a range of slight cliffs from 80 to 90 ft. in height. The marshes extend along the Swale to Whitstable, whence stretches a low line of clay and sandstone cliffs towards the Isle of Thanet, when they become lofty and grand, extending round the Foreland southward to Pegwell Bay. The coast from Sheppey round to the South Foreland is skirted by numerous flats and sands, the most extensive of which are the Goodwin Sands off Deal. From Pegwell Bay south to a point near Deal the coast is flat, and the drained marshes or levels of the lower Stour extend to the west; but thence the coast rises again into chalk cliffs, the eastward termination of the North Downs, the famous white cliffs which form the nearest point of England to continental Europe, overlooking the Strait of Dover. These cliffs continue round the South Foreland to Folkestone, where they fall away, and are succeeded west of Sandgate by a flat shingly shore. To the south of Hythe this shore borders the wide expanse of Romney Marsh, which, immediately west of Hythe, is overlooked by a line of abrupt hills, but for the rest is divided on the north from the drainage system of the Stour only by a slight uplift. The marsh, drained by many channels, seldom rises over a dozen feet above sea-level. At its south-eastern extremity, and at the extreme south of the county, is the shingly promontory of Dungeness. Within historic times much of this marsh was covered by the sea, and the valley of the river Rother, which forms part of the boundary of Kent with Sussex, entering the sea at Rye harbour, was represented by a tidal estuary for a considerable distance inland.
Geology.—The northern part of the county lies on the southern rim of the London basin; here the beds are dipping northwards. The southern part of the county is occupied by a portion of the Wealden anticline. The London Clay occupies the tongue of land between the estuaries of the Thames and Medway, as well as Sheppey and a district about 8 m. wide stretching southwards from Whitstable to Canterbury, and extending eastwards to the Isle of Thanet. It reappears at Pegwell Bay, and in the neighbourhood of London it rises above the plastic clay into the elevation of Shooter’s Hill, with a height of about 450 ft. and a number of smaller eminences. The thickness of the formation near London is about 400 ft., and at Sheppey it reaches 480 ft. At Sheppey it is rich in various kinds of fossil fish and shells. The plastic clay, which rests chiefly on chalk, occupies the remainder of the estuary of the Thames, but at several places it is broken through by outcrops of chalk, which in some instances run northwards to the banks of the river. The Lower Tertiaries are represented by three different formations known as the Thanet beds, the Woolwich and Reading beds, and the Oldhaven and Blackheath beds. The Thanet beds resting on chalk form a narrow outcrop rising into cliffs at Pegwell Bay and Reculver, and consist (1) of a constant base bed of clayey greenish sand, seldom more than 5 ft. in thickness; (2) of a thin and local bed composed of alternations of brown clay and loam; (3) of a bed of fine light buff sand, which in west Kent attains a thickness of more than 60 ft.; (4) of bluish grey sandy marl containing fossils, and almost entirely confined to east Kent, the thickness of the formation being more than 60 ft.; and (5) of fine light grey sand of an equal thickness, also fossiliferous. The middle series of the Lower Tertiaries, known as the Woolwich and Reading beds, rests either on the Thanet beds or on chalk, and consists chiefly of irregular alternations of clay and sand of very various colours, the former often containing estuarine and oyster shells and the latter flint pebbles. The thickness of the formation varies from 15 to 80 ft., but most commonly it is from 25 to 40 ft. The highest and most local series of the Lower Tertiaries is the Oldhaven and Blackheath beds lying between the London Clay and the Woolwich beds. They consist chiefly of flint pebbles or of light-coloured quartzose sand, the thickness being from 20 to 30 ft, and, are best seen at Oldhaven and Blackheath. To the south the London basin is succeeded by the North Downs, an elevated ridge of country consisting of an outcrop of chalk which extends from Westerham to Folkestone with an irregular breadth generally of 3 to 6 miles, but expanding to nearly 12 miles at Dartford and Gravesend and also to the north of Folkestone. After dipping below the London Clay at Canterbury, it sends out an outcrop which forms the greater part of Thanet. Below the chalk is a thin crop of Upper Greensand between Otford and Westerham. To the south of the Downs there is a narrow valley formed by the Gault, a fossiliferous blue clay. This is succeeded by an outcrop of the Lower Greensand—including the Folkestone, Sandgate and Hythe beds with the thin Atherfield Clay at the base—which extends across the country from west to east with a breadth of from 2 to 7 m., and rises into the picturesque elevations of the Ragstone hills. The remains of Iguanodon occur in the Hythe beds. The valley, which extends from the borders of Sussex to Hythe, is occupied chiefly by the Weald clays, which contain a considerable number of marine and freshwater fossils. Along the borders of Sussex there is a narrow strip of country consisting of picturesque sandy hills, formed by the Hastings beds, whose highest elevation is nearly 400 ft. and the south-west corner of the county is occupied by Romney Marsh, which within a comparatively recent period has been recovered from the sea. Valley gravels border the Thames, and Pleistocene mammalia have been found in fissures in the Hythe beds at Ightham, where ancient stone implements are common. Remains of crag deposits lie in pipes in the chalk near Lenham. Coal-measures, as will be seen, have been found near Dover.
The London Clay is much used for bricks, coarse pottery and Roman cement. Lime is obtained from the Chalk and Greensand formations. Ironstone is found in the Wadhurst Clay, a subdivision of the Hastings beds, clays and calcareous ironstone in the Ashdown sand, but the industry has long been discontinued. The last Wealden furnace was put out in 1828.
Climate and Agriculture.—The unhealthiness of certain portions of the county caused by the marshes is practically removed by draining. In the north-eastern districts the climate is somewhat uncertain, and damage is often done to early fruit-blossoms and vegetation by cold easterly winds and late frosts. In the large portion of the county sheltered by the Downs the climate is milder and more equable, and vegetation is somewhat earlier. The average temperature for January is 37.9° F. at Canterbury, and 39.8° at Dover; for July 63.3° and 61.6° respectively, and the mean annual 50° and 50.2° respectively. Rainfall is light, the mean annual being 27.72 in. at Dover, and 23.31 at Margate, compared with 23.16 at Greenwich. The soil is varied in character, but on the whole rich and under high cultivation. The methods of culture and the kinds of crop produced are perhaps more widely diversified than those of any other county in England. Upon the London Clay the land is generally heavy and stiff, but very fruitful when properly manured and cultivated. The marsh lands along the banks of the Thames, Medway, Stour and Swale consist chiefly of rich chalk alluvium. In the Isle of Thanet a light mould predominates, which has been much enriched by fish manure. The valley of the Medway, especially the district round Maidstone, is the most fertile part of the county, the soil being a deep loam with a subsoil of brick-earth. On the ragstone the soil is occasionally thin and much mixed with small portions of sand and stone; but in some situations the ragstone has a thick covering of clay loam, which is most suitable for the production of hops and fruits. In the district of the Weald marl prevails, with a substratum of clay. The soil of Romney Marsh is a clay alluvium.
No part of England surpasses the more fertile portions of this county in the peculiar richness of its rural scenery. About three-quarters of the total area is under cultivation. Oats and wheat are grown in almost equal quantities, barley being of rather less importance. A considerable acreage is under beans, and in Thanet mustard, spinach, canary seed and a variety of other seeds are raised. But the county is specially noted for the cultivation of fruit and hops. Market gardens are very numerous in the neighbourhood of London. The principal orchard districts are the valleys of the Darent and Medway, and the tertiary soils overlying the chalk, between Rochester and Canterbury. The county is specially famed for cherries and filberts, but apples, pears, plums, gooseberries, strawberries, raspberries and currants are also largely cultivated. In some cases apples, cherries, filberts and hops are grown in alternate rows. The principal hop districts are the country between Canterbury and Faversham, the valley of the Medway in mid Kent, and the district of the Weald. Much of the Weald, which originally was occupied by a forest, is still densely wooded, and woods are specially extensive in the valley of the Medway. Fine oaks and beeches are numerous, and yew trees of great size and age are seen in some Kentish churchyards, as at Stansted, while the fine oak at Headcorn is also famous. A large extent of woodland consists of ash and chestnut plantations, maintained for the growth of hop poles. Cattle are grazed in considerable numbers on the marsh lands, and dairy farms are numerous in the neighbourhood of London. For the rearing of sheep Kent is one of the chief counties in England. A breed peculiar to the district, known as Kents, is grazed on Romney Marsh, but Southdowns are the principal breed raised on the uplands. Bee-keeping is extensively practised. Dairy schools are maintained by the technical education committee of the county council. The South-eastern Agricultural College at Wye is under the control of the county councils of Kent and Surrey.
Other Industries.—There were formerly extensive iron-works in the Weald. Another industry now practically extinct was the manufacture of woollen cloth. The neighbourhood of Lamberhurst and Cranbrook was the special seat of these trades. Among the principal modern industries are paper-making, carried on on the banks of the Darent, Medway, Cray and neighbouring streams; engineering, chemical and other works along the Thames; manufactures of bricks, tiles, pottery and cement, especially by the lower Medway and the Swale. A variety of industries is connected with the Government establishments at Chatham and Sheerness. Ship-building is prosecuted here and at Gravesend, Dover and other ports. Gunpowder is manufactured near Erith and Faversham and elsewhere.
Deep-sea fishing is largely prosecuted all round the coast. Shrimps, soles and flounders are taken in great numbers in the estuaries of the Thames and Medway, along the north coast and off Ramsgate. The history of the Kentish oyster fisheries goes back to the time of the Roman occupation, when the fame of the oyster beds off Rutupiae (Richborough) extended even to Rome. The principal beds are near Whitstable, Faversham, Milton, Queenborough and Rochester, some being worked by ancient companies or gilds of fishermen.
After the cessation in 1882 of works in connexion with the Channel tunnel, to connect England and France, coal-boring was attempted in the disused shaft, west of the Shakespeare Cliff railway tunnel near Dover. In 1890 coal was struck at a depth of 1190 ft., and further seams were discovered later. The company which took up the mining was unsuccessful, and boring ceased in 1901, but the work was resumed by the Consolidated Kent Collieries Corporation, and an extension of borings revealed in 1905 the probability of a successful development of the mining industry in Kent.