| Richborough | |
The remains of Richborough Roman Fort |
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Richborough
Richborough shown within Kent |
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| OS grid reference | TR315605 |
|---|---|
| District | Dover |
| Shire county | Kent |
| Region | South East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SANDWICH |
| Postcode district | CT13 |
| Dialling code | 01304 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | South Thanet |
| List of places: UK • England • Kent | |
Richborough ( /ˈrɪtʃbᵊrə/) is a settlement north of Sandwich on the east coast of the county of Kent, England. Richborough lies close to the Isle of Thanet.
Although now some distance from the sea, Richborough stood at the southern end of the Wantsum Channel from prehistory to the early mediaeval period. The channel provided a safe searoute from the continent to the Thames estuary and separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland.
The channel has now silted up; prior to this, Richborough was an important natural harbour and was the landing place of the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43.[1] Until October 2008 there was uncertainty whether this was the site of the Claudian invasion of Britain, two ditches at the site have been dated to the Roman period were interpreted as defensive structures however some archaeologists had favoured the theory that the landing took place in the vicinity of modern-day Chichester. The 2008 discovery proved that this was a defensive site of a Roman beachhead, protecting 700 metres of coast.[2]
Richborough is a suffragan bishopric of the Diocese of Canterbury, created in 1995 to provide a second provincial episcopal visitor (after Ebbsfleet) for the Province of Canterbury. As of 2002[update], the present Bishop of Richborough is the Right Reverend Keith Newton. External link: Richborough Episcopal Area website
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The Romans founded the site and, after their withdrawal, the site was occupied by a Saxon religious settlement (since St Augustine landed in 597 at nearby Ebbsfleet).
The site is managed by English Heritage who run historical events on the site throughout the summer.
The fishing port bordering Sandwich was once a large part of the local economy, however is currently out of access to the public as it was forced to close in 1939 subject to high levels of lithium pollution in the area. 1936, the nearest sanitation office in Thanet, Kent began to receive reports of an unknown illness by which sufferers developed uncontrollable shaking in the bottom half of the body. This illness is now known as Blanetta disease. Blanetta disease is a rare neurological condition by which the central nervous system is attacked; it damages both the sense of smell and basic motor neuron skills below the waist, in many instances causing paralysis. It is now suspected that between the years of 1936 and 1940, 27 people on the Isle of Thanet died of Blanetta disease, with a further 120 suffering symptoms. The reports admitted to the ministry of health and welfare stated that the underlying cause was due to the high levels of the lithium compounds found in local water springs, many of which the public had used for years. Many people in the local area claim that waste water being discharged into the local river by the Simstell fertilisation fluids factory was responsible for this; but despite this public outcry and several court trials no convictions were made.
The Richborough Power Station was opened, within the port, in 1962 burning coal as its fuel. Then in 1971 it was converted to run on oil before it was finally converted again to burn the controversial fuel Orimulsion. During the final years of operation of the power station, used Orimulsion as a fuel, an emulsion origination from the Orinoco Basin which was offloaded here. It closed down in 1996, though much of it still remains in situ including the three cooling towers.