Eynsford (pronounced Ainsfud) is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located on the River Darent, south of Dartford in Kent. The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using latitude or longitude. ... The districts of England are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. ... Sevenoaks is a local government district in Kent, England. ... Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... The region, also known as Government Office Region, is currently the highest tier of local government subnational entity of England in the United Kingdom. ... South East England is one of the nine official regions of England. ... Constituent country is an official term used to describe three of the four principal component parts of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK): England; Scotland; Wales. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... This is an alphabetical list of the sovereign states of the world, including both de jure and de facto independent states. ... The Ceremonial counties of England are areas of England that are appointed a Lord-Lieutenant, and are defined by the government with reference to the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... The historic counties of England are ancient subdivisions of England. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... There are a number of policing agencies in the United Kingdom. ... A fire engine belonging to the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service The fire service in the United Kingdom has undergone dramatic changes since the beginning of the 21st century, a process that has been propelled by a devolution of central government powers, new legislation and a change to operational... This is a list of ambulance services in the United Kingdom: Ambulance services in England, after July 1, 2006 are A few deviations from the above have been made for operational reasons. ... As of 1st July the NHS Ambulance Services Trusts of Kent, Surrey and Sussex are being joined together to form a new South East Coast Ambulance Service . ... A post town is a required part of all UK postal addresses. ... Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. ... UK postal codes are known as postcodes. ... The DA postal area is a group of 18 postal districts in south east Greater London and north west Kent which are subdivisions of 11 post towns. ... The UK telephone numbering plan, also known as the National Numbering Plan, is regulated by the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which replaced the Office of Telecommunications (Oftel) in 2003. ... The United Kingdom House of Commons is made up of Members of Parliament (MPs). ... Sign in the entrance of the European Parliament building in Brussels, written in all the official languages used in the European Union as of July 2006 The European Parliament building in Strasbourg The debating chamber, or hemicycle, in Strasbourg The European Parliament building in Brussels The European Parliament (formerly European... South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England_(bordered). ... A village is a human residential settlement commonly found in rural areas. ... A civil parish (usually just parish) in England is a subnational entity forming the lowest unit of local government, lower than districts or counties. ... Sevenoaks is a local government district in Kent, England. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... The confluence of the River Darent (left) and the River Cray (right) on Crayford Marshes. ... Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ...

Eynsford is first mentioned in writing in 864, as Egenes homme. The derivation is unclear, but one possibility is that it represents ‘Ægen’s river-meadow’, from the Old English hamm ‘river-meadow, enclosure’.^[1] In 1801 the village had the highest population in the Dartford area at 841 persons. Events Khan Boris I of Bulgaria is baptized an Orthodox Christian. ...

The village

In the centre of the village, which is six miles (10km) south of Dartford, is a ford over the river, with a picturesque hump-back bridge alongside. There are many old buildings including the 16th century Plough Inn and the Old Mill. The church is dedicated to St Martin. In about 1163, Thomas Becket is reputed to have excommunicated William de Eynsford, the owner of Eynsford castle. The excommunication was cancelled by King Henry II and the issue became part of the quarrel that led to Becket's murder in 1170. A ford is a section of water (most commonly a section of a river) that is sufficiently shallow as to be traversable by wading. ... A small triple arch pedestrian bridge in Bourton-on-the-Water, England An muffinarch burgerbridge (sometimes deck arch bridge to distinguish it from a through arch bridge) is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. ... St Martin as a bishop: modern icon in the chapel of the Eastern Orthodox Monastery of the Theotokos and St Martin, Cantauque, Provence. ... St. ... Henry II of England (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189) ruled as Count of Anjou, Duke of Normandy, and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland[], eastern Ireland, and western France. ...

John Wesley is thought to have preached here: he was a friend of the then vicar of Shoreham, the next village along the valley. The Wesley Stone by the bridge commemorates the spot. John Wesley (June 17, 1703–March 2, 1791) was an 18th-century Anglican clergyman and Christian theologian who was an early leader in the Methodist movement. ... Shoreham is a village and civil parish in the valley of the River Darent six miles north of Sevenoaks in Kent: it is in the District of Sevenoaks. ...

The railway station is situated on the Swanley to Sevenoaks railway line, opened on 2 June 1862. Eynsford railway station serves Eynsford in Kent. ... Swanley is a town and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. ... Sevenoaks is a town in Kent, in south-east England. ...

It was in Eynsford that Percy Pilcher constructed and flew successful lightweight gliders, but tragically in 1899 he was killed minutes before he was able to demonstrate what might have been the world's first powered flying machine. Percy Sinclair Pilcher (1866-1899) was an English inventor and pioneer aviator who, in one of the big what if events of history, could well have become the first person to achieve controlled, powered, heavier-than-air flight well before the Wright brothers had he not been tragically killed in...

Another famous resident was Arthur Mee who built and lived in Eynsford Hill, a grand house overlooking the village. Mee edited both the weekly Children's Newspaper and the Children's Encyclopaedia, in which the design and construction of Eynsford Hill was chronicled. Whether the name of Eliza Doolittle's husband Freddy Eynsford-Hill in George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion is connected to the house is a matter of conjecture. Arthur Mee (1875 - 1943) was a British writer, journalist and educator. ... George Bernard Shaw (George) Bernard Shaw[1] (born Dublin, 26 July 1856 – died 2 November 1950 in Hertfordshire) was an Irish playwright based in the United Kingdom. ... Play cover, depicting Mrs Campbell as Eliza Pygmalion (1913) is a play by George Bernard Shaw. ...

The village was scandalized in the 1920s by the antics of composers E.J. Moeran and Peter Warlock who rented a house there; Warlock's habit of riding his motorbike round the village naked was matched by his housemate's singing sea shanties on a Sunday morning to try and drown out the congregation in the Baptist chapel next door. Although the time spent in Eynsford was productive for Warlock, Moeran never really recovered. Ernest John Moeran (December 31, 1894 - December 1, 1950) was an English composer. ... Peter Warlock was a pseudonym of Philip Arnold Heseltine (October 30, 1894 - December 17, 1930), an Anglo-Welsh composer and music critic. ...

Graham Sutherland lived for many years in the 17th century Willow Cottage opposite the old village school. Graham Vivian Sutherland (August 24, 1903 – February 17, 1980) was an English artist. ...

Within the village are three impressive sites: Eynsford Castle, Lullingstone Castle and the Roman villa.

Eynsford Baptist Church

In 1775, A Baptist Preacher, Mr. J. Morris opened his house in Eynsford for the preaching of the Gospel. This was the beginning of a Baptist Community, which grew despite opposition from the Established Church. In 1802, it is recorded in the history of the Church that when Mr. Rogers came to be Pastor "great difficulty was experienced in obtaining lodgings for the young Minister, that at one time the prejudice against a Baptist Minister was so strong that the people with whom he lodged had notice to quit their house unless he left, and it was with the greatest difficulty he secured a house when he married." The first building was completed in 1806, giving way to the present enlarged building in 1906. The work has continued to flourish, and the Church still supports its own full time Minister, even in the years where the local Established Church now has a Minister who is shared by three Parishes.

Eynsford Castle

(51°22′14″N, 0°12′48″E)

Dating from 1088, Eynsford Castle is one of the most complete Norman castles in England. Ransacked in the 14th Century it fell into decay and is now in the care of English Heritage and open to the public. For years it was used as dog kennels by the Hart-Dyke family of nearby Lullingstone. Eynsford Castle is one of the most complete Norman castles in England. ... The Nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the nave anticipates the Gothic style. ... English Heritage is a United Kingdom government body with a broad remit of managing the historic environment of England. ...

Lullingstone Castle

Not a true castle, but a manor house, built in the 15th century and substantially rebuilt in the 18th Century by Sir Percyvall Hart in honour of Queen Anne, who often stayed there. In 1875 Sir William Hart-Dyke and two of his friends framed the rules of lawn tennis at Lullingstone and first played the game there, using a ladder supported on two barrels for a net. It was here that the silk farm was situated which supplied Queen Elizabeth II with silk for her wedding dress, though by the time the Lullingstone Silk Farm provided Lady Diana Spencer with silk for hers, it had moved to Dorset. Ightham Mote For the London district, see Manor House, London. ... This article is about the sport, tennis. ... Silk weaver Silk is a natural protein fibre, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Diana, Princess of Wales (Diana Frances Mountbatten-Windsor; née Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was the first wife of Charles, the Prince of Wales, eldest son and heir apparent of Elizabeth II. Her two sons, Princes William and Harry, are second and third, respectively, in line to...

In 2004 the current heir to the estate, Tom Hart Dyke, created the World Garden of Plants in the grounds from a design made in 2000 while he was held captive by rebels in Colombia.^[2]. The two-acre walled garden is laid out like a map of the world,^[3] containing some 10 000 species planted to create the shapes of their areas of origin. Both house and garden are open to the public, and the garden has won an award for tourism.^[4] Thomas Hart Dyke (born c. ...

Also in the grounds is the parish church of Saint Botolph, recently restored and containing some of the oldest stained glass in England. Botolph or Botulph (born 610, died circa 680, pronounced with emphasis on the first syllable) was an English abbot and saint. ...

Lullingstone Roman Villa

Lullingstone Roman villa was discovered in 1939, and contains some of the finest excavated remains of a Roman villa in Britain, including a Romano-Christian chapel. The enclosed interior of Lullingstone Villa Lullingstone Roman villa is situated in northwest Kent in England. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Principal sites in Roman Britain Roman Britain refers to those parts of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between 43 and 410. ... The idea and function of a villa has evolved considerably since its invention towards the end of the Roman Republic. ...

Eynsford on television

20 Miles from Piccadilly Circus consisted of six half-hour episodes about various aspects of life in the village, including footage of one of its inhabitants getting caught by the police for speeding. The show was released in 1994 and initially aired only in the Carlton Television region, although the first three episodes were later repeated on Channel 4. Carlton Television is the United Kingdom ITV licensee for London and the surrounding areas from 9:25am every Monday to 5. ... Channel 4 is a public-service television broadcaster in the United Kingdom (see British television). ...

Save Lullingstone Castle was a six-part series by Keo Films, aired between April 4 and May 9, 2006, on BBC2. It followed the fortunes of Tom Hart Dyke as he developed the World Map of Plants and attempted to thereby turn the fortunes of the estate. A second series is due to be shown towards the end of 2006. BBC Two (or BBC2 as it was formerly styled) was the second UK television station to be aired by the BBC. History The channel was scheduled to begin at 7:20pm on April 20, 1964 and show an evening of light entertainment, starting with the comedy show The Alberts and...

In the movie Love Actually, the vicar at Eynsford church at the time played the vicar that married Juliet and Peter. Love Actually is a romantic comedy first released in cinemas in October and November 2003. ...

References

1. ^ "Kent place names" Spelling of placenames in Kent from BBC website.
2. ^ "Jungle captive's garden designs", BBC News, 2004-10-12. Retrieved on 2006-10-04.
3. ^ World Garden Aerial Views
4. ^ "Award for jungle captive's garden", BBC News, 2005-11-14. Retrieved on 2006-10-04.

• Lullingstone Castle
• Eynsford - A Story Through The Ages, by W.I. Curnow. First published by the Eynsford Village Society in 1953.

2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 4 is the 277th day of the year (278th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 4 is the 277th day of the year (278th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

Further reading

Various publications are available from the Farningham & Eynsford Local History Society.

External links

• Eynsford Castle
• Lullingstone Roman Villa
• History of Eynsford
• Eynsford Baptist Church