Location

Tonbridge & Malling borough covers an region from either a Northerly Downs at Burham and Snodland in the north to the town of Tonbridge in the south. A River Medway flows in a northerly easterly counsel, through the borough towards the Medway Gap. History

Ancient times
A vicinity has been occupied for hundreds to thousands of years. A Neolithic people left behind much grounds to believe: megalithic structure like Kit's Coty House at Aylesford and the Coldrum Stones at Trottiscliffe; and the Long barrows at Addington being examples. Bronze and Iron Age finds are besides plentiful. Therefore as well is Romano-British: evidence is to exist as witnessed right along a Medway Valley.

A quick district of Tonbridge is omitted from either a Domesday Book; however virtually all more settlements in the Borough come involved. Castles were built at Tonbridge, Allington and West Malling in the 13th century. Religious houses: Malling, Aylesford and Tonbridge were built: one such was St Mary's Abbey dating from either 1092. Aylesford Priory on the banks of the Medway, was built in the 13th century.

Mediaeval manor could however exist as seen: Ightham Mote and Old Soar Manor being two of the children.

19th century onwards

Description of the district

"Tonbridge district can be divided in two distinct areas, which were divided at the beginning of the nineteenth century by the woods and heaths of the ragstone (1) ridge from Great Comp to East Malling. Northwards lies the well peopled Holmesdale with the market town of West Malling as the principal centre of population, an area now crossed by the railway and motorway (M20); southwards of the ridge is the heavy clay of the Weald and valley of the Medway"

extract from either Kent Dr Felix Hull (An Ordnance Survey Historical Conclusion 1988) (Single) Referred to as Kentish ragstone - geologically speaking Upper Greens& - and very much utilized within church throughout a county.

The modern district

Usually speaking, a territorial dominion is primarily agricultural - orchards, & farm animal in a main - although a proximity of the railways & the throughway means that there is a proficient treat of commuting from either occasionally of the further built-higher villages. A newly award of Kings Hill is also the magnet for such commutation, since it will bring much of employment chance.

The remnant of the another time flourishing hop-growing industry is provided by the holidaymaker attraction at Beltring: once a Whitbread Hop Domestic, it puts in frequent weekend exhibitions & shows of varying sort. On this text twenty-xxv of the finest examples of Victorian oast houses, once utilized for preparing hops for brewing.

At East Malling is a Research Station designed to "benefit research development and dissemination of useful results of such research in matters directly affecting horticultural crops generally with particular emphasis on the fruit, hop and nursery stock industries" (taken from either internet site).

Numerous of the villages come placed on the Holidaymaker Trails designed, possibly, to show a Territory supplementary when existence "scattered with picturesque villages, orchards and bluebell woods" instead of being the protective working vicinity.

Local government

Tonbridge & Malling Council is based in Tonbridge and Kings Hill. A Territory is divided for political purposes, into Twenty-six wards, including vii in the town of Tonbridge (known as Cage Green, Castle, Higham, Judd, Medway, Trench & Vauxhall wards). A rural wards come:

Aylesford Blue Bell Hill & Walderslade Borough Green & Lenham Ditton East Malling, East Peckham & Golden Green Hadlow, Mereworth & West Peckham Hildenborough Ightham Kings Hill Larkfield - two wards: N & South Snodland - two wards: East & West Wateringbury, West Malling & Leybourne Wrotham

Within Parliament of the United Kingdom the area is covered by the big Tonbridge and Malling Parliamentary Constituency.

Other villages in the District

Villages in people wards include: Addington: on the A20 Birling: again on the A20 Plaxtol Ryarsh: also on the A20. A foremost secretary of a Kent Archaelogical Society was vicar inside Victorian days; the Ryarsh Brick Company is on this button. Shipbourne Stansted Trottiscliffe Wouldham

Population

In a 2001 nose count the people was 107,561.