Kent

Kent is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Greater London to the north-west.

The county has an area of and had an estimated population of in . The north-west of Kent is densely populated, with Dartford and Gravesend belonging to the Greater London conurbation and Chatham, Gillingham and Rochester forming a second conurbation around the River Medway; the town of Maidstone is to their south. The remainder of the county is more rural, and its principal settlements include the city of Canterbury in the north-east, the seaside resort of Margate on the north-east coast, and the ports of Dover and Folkestone on the east coast. For local government purposes Kent consists of a non-metropolitan county, with twelve districts, and the unitary authority area of Medway. The county historically included south-east Greater London, and is one of the home counties.

The north of Kent is a plain bordering the Thames Estuary. South of this is the North Downs, a chalk downland ridge which crosses the county from north-west to south-east and which forms dramatic chalk cliffs, including the White Cliffs of Dover, where it meets the English Channel. The south-west of the county contains part of the Greensand Ridge and the Weald, the area between the North and South Downs. The south-east of the county contains the low-lying Romney Marsh. The North Downs and High Weald have been designated national landscapes. The geography of the county lends itself to the cultivation of fruit orchards, and it has been nicknamed "the Garden of England". In north-west Kent, industries include aggregate building material extraction, printing, and scientific research. Coal mining has also played its part in the county's industrial heritage.

Kent's location between London and the Strait of Dover, the narrowest crossing point between England and mainland Europe, has led to the county being the point of entry for many prominent figures and groups in British history. It was one of the first British territories to be settled by Germanic tribes, most notably the Jutes, following the withdrawal of the Romans. In the 6th century, Saint Augustine landed in the county to begin the conversion of England to Christianity and became the first archbishop of Canterbury; Canterbury Cathedral is now a World Heritage Site. England relied on the county's ports to provide warships through much of its history; the Cinque Ports in the 10th–14th centuries and Chatham Dockyard in the 16th–20th centuries were of particular importance. Dover Castle has been described as the "key of England" due to its strategic significance. Provided by Wikipedia