Romney Marsh, Kent
Historical Description
Romney Marsh, a district in the S of Kent, and a liberty partly also in Sussex. The district lies on the coast, between Hythe and the boundary with Sussex; is divided into the sub-districts of New Romney and Lydd; and contains the parishes of West Hythe, Burmarsh, Dymchurch, Blackmanstone, Orgarswick, Eastbridge, Newchurch, St Mary-the Virgin, Hope All Saints, New Romney, Ivychurch, Lydd, Midley, Old Romney, Snave, Snargate, Brenzett, Brookland, and Fairfield. The liberty includes all the parishes of the district except Eastbridge and Fairfield; includes also thirteen other parishes; measures about 14 miles in length and 8 in breadth; comprises Romney Marsh proper, Wallend Marsh, Denge Marsh, and Guildford Marsh; belonged chiefly in old times to the two great Canterbury abbeys; and has been governed since the time of Edward IV. by a bailiff, jurats, and commonalty, in connection with the lords of twenty-three adjoining manors. The land is low and flat, has been formed by reclamation from the sea, is protected from the billows by a sea-wall 3 miles long and from 12 to 20 feet high, has very few trees, is subdivided by dykes and water-courses, and serves as rich feeding-gronnd for great flocks of sheep and herds of cattle.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
| Ancient County | Kent | |
| Lathe | Shepway | |
| Liberty | Romney Marsh | |
| Poor Law union | Romney Marsh |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Romney Marsh from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Romney-Marsh)
Maps
Online maps of Romney Marsh are available from a number of sites:
- Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
- Google Streetview.
- National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
- OpenStreetMap.
- old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
- Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
- A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)
Newspapers and Periodicals
The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Kent newspapers online:
- Kent & Sussex Courier
- Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald
- Dover Express
- Kentish Gazette
- Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald
- Kentish Chronicle
- Maidstone Telegraph
Visitations Heraldic
The Visitation of Kent, 1619 is available on the Heraldry page, as is also The Visitation of Kent, 1663-68.