Lullingstone

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Lullingstone
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Lullingstone
Location within Kent
OS grid reference TQ528644
Civil parish
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Dartford
Postcode district DA4
Dialling code 01322
Police Kent
Fire Kent
Ambulance South East Coast
List of places
UK
England
Kent
51°21′29″N0°11′35″E / 51.35813°N 0.19318°E / 51.35813; 0.19318

Lullingstone is a rural hamlet in the civil parish of Eynsford, in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England, located south east of Swanley. It is best known for its castle, Roman villa and its public golf course.

Contents

Lullingstone was a civil parish until 1955. The parish was in Axstane Hundred and its successor Dartford Rural District.

History

Pre-Roman

It is believed that an Iron Age hill fort is sited on the hill above the castle, although this is unconfirmed.

Roman Occupation

Lullingstone Roman villa was discovered in 1939, and is believed to have been built around 100 AD. It contains some of the finest excavated remains of a Roman villa in Britain, including a Romano-Christian chapel, displaying some of the earliest evidence of Christianity in Britain.

20th century

1941 target dossier of the German Luftwaffe depicting the decoy airfield Target Dossier for Lullingstone, Kent, England - DPLA - 859abaa75e854074c1ce92171c864661 (page 2).jpg
1941 target dossier of the German Luftwaffe depicting the decoy airfield

Nearby is the site of a decoy airfield for the nearby Biggin Hill airfield. Known as a Q-site, this was intended to entice bombers to misinterpret it as Biggin Hill. [1]

In 1937 a plan was announced to create an airport the size of Heathrow in Lullingstone. The area of land had been reserved and construction of Lullingstone railway station to serve the site began. The proposal was abandoned at the outbreak of World War II. [2]

Lullingstone Country Park was established in the 20th century.

In 1951 the parish had a population of 127. [3] On 1 April 1955 the parish was abolished and merged with Eynsford. [4]

Transport

Railway

The nearest National Rail station is Eynsford.

A station to be named Lullingstone was built between Swanley and Eynsford in 1939, but never opened due to the outbreak of WWII. It appeared without a train service in Bradshaw's Guide by December 1944, through to September 1953, but had disappeared from Bradshaw by June 1954.

References

  1. The Lullinstone Decoy, Kent Life
  2. Lullingstone station kentrail.co.uk
  3. "Population statistics Lullingstone CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  4. "Relationships and changes Lullingstone CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 19 May 2024.