Swalecliffe

Last updated

Swalecliffe
Swalecliffe Village entrance.jpg
View facing West on St. Johns Road in Swalecliffe
Kent UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Swalecliffe
Location within Kent
OS grid reference TR136671
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town WHITSTABLE
Postcode district CT5 2
Dialling code 01227
Police Kent
Fire Kent
Ambulance South East Coast
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Kent
51°21′47″N1°04′12″E / 51.363°N 1.07°E / 51.363; 1.07

Swalecliffe is a part of the ribbon development of the north Kent coast between Whitstable and Herne Bay in Southeast England. It forms Swalecliffe ward of City of Canterbury Council.

Contents

History

The Doomsday book provides an early record of Swalecliffe: [1]

Vitalis holds Swalecliffe of the bishop [ Odo of Bayeux ]. It is assessed at half a sulung. There is land for 1+1⁄2 ploughs. In demesne there is 1 plough, with 8 cottars who pay 4s 6d. Woodland for 20 pigs. TRE [a] it was worth 21s; when Vitalis received it 12s; now 30s. Edward Snoch held it of King Edward.

There is no mention of a church, but when the old church was demolished in 1875 there were traces of an earlier building. This may have been an early phase of the Norman church, but Whitley [2] says that "it seems highly probable that the original church was a Saxon Foundation". Sketches of the old church appear to show Norman windows along with later features. [2]

Throughout the later Middle Ages there are records of gifts to the church for a variety of purposes. [3] There is little other information about the village. The church records do however record periods of frost, floods and gales to which a sea-facing, low-lying land would be subject. In the winters of 1812 and 1813 the sea froze in the Thames Estuary. [4]

Swalecliffe's only mention in Hasted's monumental history of Kent records the gift in 1581 of a farm called "Bodkin's" (worth £11 6s 8d) to Gonvyle and Caius college in Cambridge University. Most of the money (£10 13s 4d) was used to fund four scholars. [5]

In 1861, the parish was 1,297 acres (525 ha) in extent with a population of 168. [6] The description in the National Gazetteer of 1868 reads: [7]

Swalecliffe, a parish in the hundred of Bleangate, lathe of St. Augustine, county Kent, 7 miles N. of Canterbury, its post town, and 2 E. of Whitstable. The village is a coastguard station, situated on the Thames at the East Swale's mouth. The village is interesting as having been once the residence of William of Wykeham, whose mantelpiece is preserved in the old parsonage house. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Canterbury, value £292. The church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, contains monuments to the families of Loggin, Duncombe, and Wykeham. There is an endowed school for ten free scholars.

In 1931, the civil parish had a population of 427. [8] On 1 April 1934 the parish was abolished to form Whitstable. [9] It is now in the unparished area of Whitstable.

Transport

The Ramsgate branch of the Chatham Main Line runs south of Swalecliffe which is served by Chestfield & Swalecliffe railway station.

The A2990 Thanet Way runs between Swalecliffe and the neighbouring settlement of Chestfield and provides access to the main transport network.

There used to be an aerodrome at Swalecliffe, but its location is unknown. [10] According to the Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust it functioned from prior to August 1946 up to c. 1950, however there is a picture taken on 28 June 1934 which purports to be at Swalecliffe Aerodrome. [11] There is a report of a "Flying Circus" visiting the aerodrome in 1935. [11]

Recreational facilities

The ponds, stream and sea are all centres for birdwatching. In 2016 158 species of birds were recorded by members of Kent Ornithological Society. [12]

To the north of the village the links provide a recreational resource and include a skateboard park. [13] Part of the Saxon Shore Way footpath runs along the coast here. [14]

Healthcare provision

Swalecliffe Community Day Service provides support for people with learning disabilities both at Swalecliffe Day Centre and by organising outings to other facilities in the area. [15]

Notes

  1. ↑ Tempore Regis Edwardi, in the time of King Edward (before the Norman Conquest).

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erith</span> Town in England

Erith is an area in south-east London, England, 13.3 miles (21.4 km) east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. Since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north-east of Bexleyheath and north-west of Dartford, on the south bank of the River Thames.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitstable</span> Town in Kent, England

Whitstable is a town on the north coast of Kent, England, at the convergence of the Swale and the Greater Thames Estuary, five miles north of Canterbury and two miles west of Herne Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Canterbury</span> Local government district in Kent, England

Canterbury, also known as the City of Canterbury, is a local government district with city status in Kent, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Canterbury, where the council is based. The district also includes the towns of Fordwich, Herne Bay and Whitstable, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Parts of the district lie within the designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty of the Kent Downs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reculver</span> Seaside village in Kent, England

Reculver is a village and coastal resort about 3 miles (5 km) east of Herne Bay on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. It is in the ward of the same name, in the City of Canterbury district of Kent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canterbury (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1295 onwards

Canterbury is a constituency in Kent represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Rosie Duffield formerly of the Labour Party and since September 2024 an Independent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawkinge</span> Town in Kent, England

Hawkinge is a town and civil parish in the Folkestone and Hythe district of Kent, England. The original village of Hawkinge is actually just less than a mile due east of the present village centre; the village of Hawkinge was formed by the merging of Hawkinge and Uphill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blean</span> Village in Kent, England

Blean is a village and civil parish in the Canterbury district of Kent, England. The civil parish is large and is mostly woodland, much of which is ancient woodland. The developed village within the parish is scattered along the road between Canterbury and Whitstable, in the middle of the Forest of Blean. The parish of St Cosmus and St Damian in the Blean was renamed "Blean" on 1 April 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saxon Shore Way</span> Long-distance footpath in England

The Saxon Shore Way is a long-distance footpath in England. It starts at Gravesend, Kent, and traces the coast of South-East England as it was in Roman times as far as Hastings, East Sussex, 163 miles (262 km) in total. This means that around Romney Marsh the route runs significantly inland from the modern coastline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Halstow</span> Village in Kent, England

Lower Halstow is a village and civil parish in the Swale district of Kent, England. The village is northwest of Sittingbourne on the banks of the Medway Estuary. It lies north of Newington on the A2 Roman road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestfield</span> Human settlement in England

Chestfield is a village in the Canterbury District of Kent, England. The parish is centred 0.5 miles (0.80 km) from the sea on the north coast of Kent, between the towns of Whitstable and Herne Bay. It is approximately five miles (8 km) north of Canterbury. Over a third of the parish, all of which is the south of its ambit, is woodland. The north-west consists of a business park and superstore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Littlebourne</span> Human settlement in England

Littlebourne is a village and civil parish 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Canterbury in Kent, South East England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milton Regis</span> Human settlement in England

Milton Regis is a village in the district of Swale in Kent, England. Former names include Milton-next-Sittingbourne, Milton Royal, Middleton, Midletun and Middletune. It has a population of about 5,000. Today it is a suburb of Sittingbourne, although this has not always been the case. Until around 1800, Sittingbourne was a small hamlet and under the control of the Manor of Milton Regis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graveney</span> Village in Kent, England

Graveney is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Graveney with Goodnestone, in the Swale district, in Kent, England. It is located between Faversham and Whitstable. The main part of the village is located along the intersection of Seasalter Road, Sandbanks Road and Head Hill Road, which is surrounded by farmland. The rest of the village is dispersed amongst this farmland. In 1961 the parish had a population of 305.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Throwley</span> Human settlement in England

Throwley is an English village south of Faversham in the Borough of Swale in Kent. The name is recorded in the Domesday Book as Trevelai, which corresponds with a Brittonic origin, where "trev" means a settlement or farm house and "elai" typically relates to a fast moving river or stream. In 2011 the parish had a population of 300.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tunstall, Kent</span> Village in Kent, England

Tunstall is a linear village and civil parish in Swale in Kent, England. It is about 2 km to the southwest of the centre of Sittingbourne, on a road towards Bredgar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tonge, Kent</span> Village in Kent, England

Tonge is a village near Sittingbourne in Kent, England. The hamlet is north of Bapchild, close to Murston Marshes beside the Swale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stodmarsh</span> Village in Kent, England

Stodmarsh is a small village in the civil parish of Wickhambreaux, in the Canterbury district, in east Kent, England. It is 5 miles to the east of Canterbury, overlooking the valley of the River Stour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seasalter</span> Village in Kent, England

Seasalter is a village in the Canterbury district of Kent, England. Seasalter is on the north coast of Kent, between the towns of Whitstable and Faversham, facing the Isle of Sheppey across the estuary of the River Swale. The settlement of Yorkletts is included in the ward. It is approximately 6 miles (10 km) north of Canterbury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tankerton Slopes</span> Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Whitstable, Kent

Tankerton Slopes is a 2.3-hectare (5.7-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Whitstable in Kent. It is part of the Tankerton Slopes and Swalecliffe Special Area of Conservation

References

  1. ↑ Williams & Martin 2003, p. 24.
  2. 1 2 Whitley 2005, p. 3.
  3. ↑ Whitley 2005, p. 6.
  4. ↑ Whitley 2005, pp. 7–8.
  5. ↑ Hasted 1800, pp. 152–216.
  6. ↑ 1861 Census. Summary quoted in Hamilton 1868 , p. 118, appendix, vol 12
  7. ↑ Hamilton 1868, p. 597, vol 11.
  8. ↑ "Population statistics Swalecliffe CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Archived from the original on 21 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "Relationships and changes Swalecliffe CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Archived from the original on 21 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  10. ↑ Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust 2018.
  11. 1 2 Chestfield in Kent History Site.
  12. ↑ Kent Ornithological Society 2018.
  13. ↑ Skatepark Hunter 2015.
  14. ↑ See Ordnance Survey maps of the area.
  15. ↑ Kent County Council 2017.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.