Visit Penenden Heath Places

Welcome to Visit Penenden Heath Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Penenden Heath

  

Penenden Heath Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Penenden Heath

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Penenden Heath history

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Before the expansion of Maidstone, the heath was often used as a venue for a site for shire moots (or assemblies) during the Middle Ages. The most famous of these occurred shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066 and involved a dispute between Odo bishop of Bayeux, half-brother of William the Conqueror and Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury (see below). The Domesday Book of 1086 subsequently recorded Pinnedenna as the place for the landowners of Kent to gather to receive notice in matters of administration at the shire court (and, if they did not attend, they should pay forfeiture of “one hundred shillings” to the King). The heath was used for local administrative meetings and executions for several hundred years as well as a site for large gatherings of the populace. Wat Tyler led a mob gathered at Penenden Heath to Union Street in Maidstone in an early skirmish in the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. The heath continued to be used as a gathering place in the 16th century to voice popular opinion or to amass the public, in particular during Wyatt’s rebellion, and early references to the heath as such were made in Alfred Tennyson’s 1875 drama Queen Mary about the 1554 Rebellion. George Goring, Earl of Norwich and leader of the Kent Royalists during the Second English Civil War gathered an army of 7,000 men on Penenden Heath in May 1648 in his unsuccessful defence of the town of Maidstone from the Roundhead army of Lord Fairfax. Executions took place at the site from the Anglo-Saxon period through to the 19th century and suspected witches are believed to have been tried and hanged on the heath between the 12th and 17th centuries. It is reported that, in 1652 at Penenden Heath:”Anne Ashby, alias Cobler, Anne Martyn, Mary Browne, Anne Wilson, and Mildred Wright of Cranbrook, and Mary Read, of Lenham, being legally convicted, were according to the Laws of this Nation, adjudged to be hanged, at the common place of Execution. Some there were that wished rather, they might be burnt to Ashes; alledging that it was a received opinion among many, that the body of a witch being burnt, her bloud is prevented thereby from becoming [sic] hereditary to her Progeny in the same evill.” In 1798 Edward Hasted described the heath as follows: “[T]hat noted plain Pinnenden, now usually called Pickenden heath, a place made famous in early times; the western part is in Maidstone parish, the remainder in this of Boxley. From its situation almost in the middle of the county or shire of Kent, this heath has been time out of mind used for all county meetings, and for the general business of it, the county house for this purpose, a poor low shed, is situated on the north side of it, where the sheriff continues to hold his county court monthly, and where he takes the poll for the members of the county, and for the coroners, the former of which, after a few suffrages is usually adjourned to Maidstone; on a conspicuous hill on the opposite side of the heath, though in Maidstone parish, is the gallows, for the public execution of criminals condemned at the assizes.” During the 18th and 19th centuries the heath remained a common site for the execution of criminals (by hanging). The Rev. James Coigly a United Irishman, was arrested en route to France. Upon his arrest, English authorities discovered a letter by the United Britons addressed to the French Revolutionary Government calling for an invasion of England, hidden in Coigly’s garments. He was hanged at Penenden Heath, Maidstone on 7 June 1798. The last public execution on the heath took place in 1830 where John Dyke from the nearby village of Bearsted was hanged for burning a rick, although it later emerged he was innocent. New gallows were subsequently built outside Maidstone Prison. In 1828 the heath was again recorded as the site of a large gathering to debate the issue of “Protestant Ascendancy” before the passing of the Catholic Relief Act of 1829. A detailed report of the assembly on 24 October 1828 by Richard Lalor Sheil describes the heath as a “gently sloping amphitheatrical declivity” and still, in the 19th century, the principal venue in the area for massing the populace. However during this time the heath was also used for recreation and was the venue for at least two early examples of county level cricket matches. Between 31 August and 2 September 1795, a team from Kent played England on the heath with England winning by five wickets. Later, on 20 July 1807, “All England” again played Kent at Penenden, with the county winning by 162 runs. During the 19th century the heath was slowly enveloped by the growth of the town of Maidstone, becoming a residential area at the junction of the main routes to Sittingbourne and Boxley. Following landscaping, the heath was presented to the people of Maidstone by the Earl of Romney in 1882 for use as a recreation ground.

Penenden Heath toponymy

The heath first appeared in the Domesday Book as Pinnedenna. It has also been recorded as Pinnenden, Pickenden and Pinenden. It is thought to have been used as a place for executions before the Norman Conquest.

You can visit Penenden Heath places with Walkfo Penenden Heath to hear history at Penenden Heath’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Penenden Heath has 70 places to visit in our interactive Penenden Heath map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Penenden Heath, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Penenden Heath places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Penenden Heath & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 70 audio facts unique to Penenden Heath places in an interactive Penenden Heath map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Penenden Heath Places Map
70 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Penenden Heath historic spots	Penenden Heath tourist destinations	Penenden Heath plaques	Penenden Heath geographic features
Walkfo Penenden Heath tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Penenden Heath

  

Best Penenden Heath places to visit

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Penenden Heath has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Penenden Heath’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Penenden Heath’s information audio spots:

Mote Park Mote Park is a 440-acre (1.8 km) multi-use public park in Maidstone, Kent. Includes the former stately home Mote House together with a miniature railway and boating lake. A ground of the same name within the park has also been used as a first-class cricket ground by Kent County Cricket Club.

Minor Centre Minor Centre, also known as Grove Green Centre, is a shopping area in the development of Grove Green, and Weavering village. The complex includes a Tesco superstore, The Grove Green medical Centre, Mann Countrywide estate agents offices and Lloyds pharmacy. The Shepherd Neame Early Bird Public House is also located.

Mote Park (cricket ground) Mote Park, also known as The Mote, is a cricket ground in Maidstone, Kent. The ground is inside the grounds of the Mote Cricket Club and is owned by The Motes Cricket Club. It was used by Kent County Cricket Club as one of their out-grounds for county cricket matches.

KIMS Hospital KIMS Hospital is the largest independent private hospital in Kent. It treats privately insured, self-funding and NHS patients. It is situated on the Kent Medical Campus, off Junction 7 of the M20 Motorway.

Loose Stream The Loose Stream is a tributary of the River Medway. It rises in Langley, flows through Boughton Monchelsea, Loose and enters the Medway at Tovil. The stream has been dammed in many places, resulting in many mill ponds.

Battle of Maidstone The Battle of Maidstone (1 June 1648) was fought in the Second English Civil War. Parliamentarian troops won the battle over the defending Royalist forces.

Tithe Barn, Maidstone The Tithe Barn in Maidstone, Kent, was constructed in the 14th century as a tithe barn for the nearby Archbishop’s Palace. It was later used as the palace’s stables. The barn is a Grade I listed building and a scheduled monument.

Hazlitt Theatre The Hazlitt Theatre is one of the main theatres in Maidstone, Kent. It was named after the famous essayist William Hazlit, who was born in 1778. The traditional proscenium arch theatre seats 353.

Fremlin Walk Fremlin Walk is an outdoor shopping centre in Maidstone town centre, Kent. It opened in 2005 after several years of development by Centros Miller. The original owner was Land Securities plc. Legal & General Property bought the centre in 2011 for £92 million.

Maidstone Museum Maidstone Museum is a local authority-run museum located in Maidstone, Kent. The museum is one of three operated by Maidstone Borough Council. The building is Grade II* listed.

Visit Penenden Heath plaques