The Isle of Thanet is an area of northeast Kent, England. The name Thanet is very old, as the following extract from the Historia Britonum testifies: Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the United Kingdom (light green), with the Republic of Ireland (blue) to its west Languages English Capital London Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid... The Historia Britonum, or The History of the Britons, is a historical work that was first written sometime shortly after AD 820, and exists in several recensions of varying difference. ...

Then came three keels, driven into exile from Germany. In them were the brothers Horsa and Hengest . . . Vortigern welcomed them, and handed over to them the island that in their language is called Thanet, in British Ruoihm.

It was one of the islands of chalk left when the sea broke through to form the English Channel in 6500 BC: the others are now beneath the sea. It was left separated from the mainland by what became known as the Wantsum Channel, until the deposition of silt from the River Stour and the build up of shingle along the coast joined the Isle to the mainland. Horsa, according to tradition, was a fifth century warrior and brother of Hengest who took part in the invasion and conquest of Britain from its native Romano-British and Celtic inhabitants. ... Hengest or Hengist (d. ... The Needles, part of the extensive Southern England Chalk Formation For other uses, see Chalk (disambiguation). ... Satellite view of the English Channel Map of the English Channel The English Channel (French: La Manche (IPA: ) is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates the island of Great Britain from northern France and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. ... (8th millennium BC – 7th millennium BC – 6th millennium BC – other millennia) // Events Circa 7000 BC – Agriculture and settlement at Mehrgarh in South Asia. ... The Wantsum Channel is the name given to a now silted-up watercourse in the English county of Kent. ... The River Stour is a river in Kent, England. ...

The Wantsum Channel

Two thousand years ago Thanet was cut off from the mainland by the Wantsum Channel, which in some places was a mile or two in width. Two branches of the Stour flowed into the Wantsum, at Stourmouth. At the eastern end, the Romans built a port protected by Richborough Castle; Reculver fort was at the western end. The Wantsum Channel is the name given to a now silted-up watercourse in the English county of Kent. ... The River Stour is a river in Kent, England. ... The River Wantsum is one of the source rivers of the River Stour, in Kent, England. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... Map sources for Richborough Castle at grid reference TR3361 Richborough Castle is the name given to the remains of the Roman fort which is now in ruins at Richborough (Rutupiae) near Sandwich, Kent. ... Reculver is a small seaside farmstead and summer resort situated about 3 miles east of Herne Bay along the North Kent coast and is popular with visitors. ...

In the eigth century it was reported that the Channel was now three furlongs wide (660 yards, 600 m), and a map of 1414 showed a ferry crossing at Sarre. The first bridge over the channel was built there in 1485. Until the mid 18th century there was a ferry between Sandwich and the island; a wooden drawbridge was built, and the ferry was closed. The 5 furlong (1006 m) post on Epsom Downs A furlong is a measure of distance within Imperial units and U.S. customary units. ... // Events August 5-7 - First outbreak of sweating sickness in England begins August 22 - Battle of Bosworth Field is fought between the armies of King Richard III of England and rival claimant to the throne of England Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond. ... Location within the British Isles Arms of Sandwich Town Council Sandwich is an historic town in Kent, south-east England. ...

The combination of those factors meant that from the 15th century there are only marshes and mudbanks through which the Stour meanders, finally reaching the sea at Sandwich. The Wantsum valley is still liable to flooding, since it is only a few feet above sea level. During the 1953 floods Thanet was cut off for a few days, but the sea defences have been strengthened since then. ¹ (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... The River Stour is a river in Kent, England. ... The Isle of Thanet is an area of northeast Kent, England. ...

History

Because of its proximity to France and mainland Europe, Thanet received the first of the Roman invaders in 55 BC. Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... Roman invasion of Britain: Britain was the target of invasion by forces of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire several times during its history. ... Centuries: 2nd century BC - 1st century BC - 1st century Decades: 100s BC 90s BC 80s BC 70s BC 60s BC - 50s BC - 40s BC 30s BC 20s BC 10s BC 0s BC Years: 60 BC 59 BC 58 BC 57 BC 56 BC 55 BC 54 BC 53 BC 52...

Thanet is notable as the place where the Romans in the time of the Emperor Claudius decided to invade in order to deliver the new Emperor a military success. Richborough at the southern end of the Wantsum Channel was where the fleet landed and where one of the largest triumphal arches in the empire was built. It provided the formal entrance to the Roman road network and Watling Street, and was situated to the north of the present Pfizer complex near Sandwich, Kent. The modern Watling Street crossing the Medway at Rochester near the Roman and Celt crossings Watling Street is the name given to a British ancient trackway which was first used by the Celts mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. ... Location within the British Isles Arms of Sandwich Town Council Sandwich is an historic town in Kent, south-east England. ...

The Romans crossed the Channel from Boulogne, and legions with some support from elephants were sent to conquer different parts of Southern Britain, meeting stiff resistance from tribes under Caractacus and having to fight two major battles to cross the Medway near Rochester and the Thames, possibly near where the QEII bridge is today. A modern reconstruction of a roman centurion around 70 AD The Roman legion (from Latin , from lego, legere, legi, lectus — to collect) was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army. ...

Following the departure of the Romans, it was in Thanet that Vortigern formed an uneasy alliance with Hengest and Horsa, by tradition chieftains of the Jutes, who led the Anglo-Saxon invasion in AD 449. By the end of the fifth century, Thanet had become part of the Jutish kingdom in Kent. In this way, Thanet is a mirror of Hampshire's Isle of Wight. Vortigern, Vortiger, or Vortigen was a fifth century warlord, possibly legendary, traditionally said to have invited the Anglo-Saxons to settle in Britain as mercenaries, who later revolted and established their own kingdoms. ... Hengest or Hengist (d. ... Horsa, according to tradition, was a fifth century warrior and brother of Hengest who took part in the invasion and conquest of Britain from its native Romano-British and Celtic inhabitants. ... The Jutes were a Germanic people who are believed to have originated from Jutland in modern Denmark and part of the Frisian coast. ... The famous parade helmet found at Sutton Hoo, probably belonging to King Raedwald of East Anglia circa 625. ... Events August 3 - The Second Council of Ephesus opens, chaired by Dioscorus, Patriarch of Alexandria. ... Hampshire (abbr. ... The Isle of Wight is an English island, south of Southampton off the southern English coast. ...

St. Augustine is said by the Venerable Bede to have landed with 40 men at Ebbsfleet, north of Sandwich, before founding Britain's first Christian monastery, in Canterbury. Saint Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (birth unknown, died May 26, 604) was the first Archbishop of Canterbury, sent to Ethelbert of Kent, Bretwalda of England by Pope Gregory the Great in 597. ... Bede depicted in an early medieval manuscript Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. ... This article or section is missing references or citation of sources. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as recounted in the New Testament. ... St Peters St, Canterbury, from the West Gate, 1993 Canterbury (Latin: Duroverum) is a cathedral city in the county of Kent in southeast England. ...

The Vikings wintered on Thanet twice in the ninth century, in 851 and 864. The importance of Sandwich as one of the Cinque Ports in medieval times meant that no fewer than seven places on the Isle were part of the Confederation: Sarre, Birchington, St John's, Margate, St Peter's, Woodchurch and Ramsgate. The name Viking is a loan from the native Scandinavian term for the Norse seafaring warriors who raided the coasts of Scandinavia, Europe and the British Isles from the late 8th century to the 11th century, the period of European history referred to as the Viking Age. ... As a means of recording the passage of time the 9th century was that century that lasted from 801 to 900. ... Events Vikings plunder London Charles the Bald, Louis the German and Lothar meet in Meersen Oldest known mention of the Andaman Islands Garcia Iñiguez succeeds his father Iñigo Arista as king of Navarra Births Deaths March 7 - Nominoe, Duke of Brittany Categories: 851 ... Events Khan Boris I of Bulgaria is baptized an Orthodox Christian. ... Flag of the Cinque Ports Formally, in Kent and Sussex there are five Head Ports making up the Confederation of the Cinque Ports, often pronounced as the anglicised sink ports, and meaning five ports (cinque in French means five and ports is to be connected to the Italian word porto... Sarre can refer to: the Saar River in France and Germany the German state Saarland (French name) the former French département: Sarre (département) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Birchington-on-sea is a town in Thanet, Kent. ... Margate was known as Meregate (in 1254) or Margate (in 1293) is on the Isle of Thanet in Kent, England. ... The Basilica of Saint Peter from Castel SantAngelo. ... Ramsgate is an English seaside town on the Isle of Thanet in East Kent. ...

By 1334-1335 Thanet had the highest population density in Kent according to Edward III's lay subsidy rolls. It acted as a granary for Calais and documents towards the end of that century refer to turreted walls beneath the cliffs needing maintenance. Coastal erosion has long since destroyed these structures.

As the popularity of the seaside resort grew, so did that of the Isle of Thanet. At first the holidaymakers came by boat from London; after the coming of the railways in the mid 1840s, that became the preferred mode of transport. The population grew, as the following figures show: The seafront of Torquay, a seaside resort in Devon, England. ...

Margate has its roots in a name that "Has been variously spelt as Margat, Meregate and in the 13th Century, de Mergate. Indeed 'maris', 'mare' in latin means, 'sea' and "gate" a way in or out of the country. Perhaps the Brooks, now the site of Dreamland, low-lying and fed by springs, did become a lake (sometimes freezing, to give the locals some skating). For another possibility, a monk of Reculver, Ymar by name, had a dying wish to be buried in St Johns Parish Church. Ymar could have become Margate in time. Tradition insists that an old stone coffin lid at the church was his."

Local government

• Under the 1888 Act, Ramsgate and Margate became municipal boroughs, Broadstairs an Urban District.
• The Isle of Thanet now forms the Thanet local government district of Kent.

Broadstairs is a town in Kent, England, with a population of about 22. ... Thanet is a local government district of Kent, England which was formed under the Local Government Act 1972, and came into being on 1 April of 1974. ... The districts of England are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. ...

Notes & references

References

• Jessup, Frank W.: Kent History Illustrated (KCC 1966)

Notes

• ¹ There is a common local Thanet story that the closure of the Wantsum was as a direct result of an Earl of Sandwich deciding to open his sluices to silt the Wantsum so he might own more acres.

See also

• List of clubs and societies in Thanet
• Kent International Airport
• Reculver

Thanet has a comprehensive range of clubs and societies. ... Kent International Airport (IATA airport code: MSE) is an airport, formerly a Royal Air Force airbase (RAF Manston), in Kent, England. ... Reculver is a small seaside farmstead and summer resort situated about 3 miles east of Herne Bay along the North Kent coast and is popular with visitors. ...

External links

• Google Maps of Thanet
• ThanetLife
• ThanetOnline
• Thanet Photos
• Minster Village
• Arts & Elbows
• oonagi, original rock music from Thanet