Folkestone Walk: Town Centre & Harbour【4K】

Located on the south coast of England, in the county of Kent, and around 7 miles west of Dover, is the town of Folkestone.

The first recorded reference to Folkestone dates back to the 7th century, where it was written as 'Folcanstan', derived from Old English meaning 'Folca's stone'. 'Folca' is a personal Saxon name and 'stone' refers to a literal stone that would have marked the meeting place of the local hundred ('hundred' in this sense refers to a type of county division).

In circa 630 AD an abbey was established at Folkestone by King Eadbald of Kent for his daughter Eanswith and her nuns. The abbey was later destroyed in the 9th century by Viking invaders, and its ruins are believed to have fallen into the sea.

In 1138, a new monastery was built, known as Folkestone Priory. Alongside it, a church dedicated to St Mary and St Eanswythe was constructed. In 1216 the church was destroyed by a French raiding party, but was later rebuilt. The priory was lost in the 16th century during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. The church remains standing to this day, albeit largely rebuilt during the 19th century.

During the 13th century, Folkestone became a limb of the Cinque Ports (a term derived from old Norman French, pronounced 'sink ports' in the anglicised fashion). This was a collection of towns around the southeast coast that provided naval and ferry services in return for tax exemption and other benefits. In Folkestone's case, it was a limb of the Cinque Port of Dover. This was officially recognised in a charter of 1313. As such, it was obliged to supply boats. Trade began through the port, especially of wool, but also of luxury goods such as wines and cloth.

In 1807 an Act of Parliament was passed to build a pier and harbour in Folkestone which, up until this point, had remained a small fishing community. This was in part to provide potential anchorages for warships during the Napoleonic Wars. By 1820 a harbour area of 14 acres had been enclosed, however problems with silting arose and the company responsible went bankrupt in 1842. The project was brought back to life in 1843 when the South Eastern Railway Company purchased the harbour with the intention of developing Folkestone as a ­rival to Dover for steam packets to France. During this same year, the town received its first rail connection.

With the arrival of the railways, Folkestone began to grow as people were now able to access the town via London and other locations within hours instead of days. In 1849 Folkestone Harbour station opened, and was resited in 1850, at the end of a short branch from Folkestone Junction. By this time an integrated rail / sea / rail service had begun operating between London  and  Paris via Folkestone   and Boulogne. It was also a hub of trade with goods such as coal, gold and wine passing through.

Between 1887 and 1888, Victoria Pier was built. It was 683 ft / 208m long. The pavilion was destroyed by fire in 1945, and the rest was dismantled nine years later.

In 1994 the Eurotunnel, commonly referred to as the Channel Tunnel, was opened after six years of construction. This is a railway tunnel spanning around 30 miles / 50 km beneath the English Channel, connecting Folkestone with Coquelles near Calais in France. The tunnel carries both Eurostar passenger trains and road vehicles - the latter of which enter the Eurotunnel Shuttle, a.k.a. Le Shuttle. The crossing takes just over 30 minutes.

The opening of the Channel Tunnel brought about the slow decline of Folkestone Harbour station, which eventually closed in 2014. Since then, the site of the old station and nearby tracks has been renovated to form a network of footpaths and walkways in and around the harbour and seafront.

Famous people from Folkestone include bass guitarist Noel Redding (from the Jimi Hendrix Experience).

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Filmed: 30th April 2022

Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/E2zwi7ugrahFNEuh7

Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Folkestone Garden of Remembrance
0:28 Sandgate Road
7:20 Church Street
7:59 Rendezvous Street
8:55 The Old High Street
12:16 Harbour Street
13:45 Harbour Approach Road
14:56 Folkestone Harbour
15:53 Folkestone Harbour Swing Bridge
17:33 Folkestone Harbour Steps
17:49 Beach Street
18:16 Fish Market
20:44 Folkestone Harbour
21:10 Fish Market
21:42 The Stade