Chislet is an English village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...

in northeast

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

between

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

and the

Isle of Thanet The Isle of Thanet () is a peninsula forming the easternmost part of Kent, England. While in the past it was separated from the mainland by the Wantsum Channel, it is no longer an island. Archaeological remains testify to its settlement in an ...

. The parish is the second largest in the district. A former spelling, 'Chistlet', is seen in 1418. The population of the civil parish includes the hamlet of Marshside. Most of the land use is fertile agricultural and a significant minority of the land is marsh where low-lying. Chislet has a Primary School, Chislet CofE School, which currently has 98 students aging from 4–11.

Geography

The Chislet marshes mark the western end of the

Wantsum Channel The Wantsum Channel was a strait separating the Isle of Thanet from the north-eastern extremity of the English county of Kent and connecting the English Channel and the Thames Estuary. It was a major shipping route when Britain was part of the Roma ...

, an arm of the North Sea that separated the

from the mainland. Saltmaking was an important activity in the marshes in ancient times. Chislet Windmill stood north of the Thanet Way on the road to Reculver until it burnt down in 2005; a replica of the exterior minus sails was built on the same site in 2011 during a housing redevelopment.

History

The village is served by the Anglican

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activitie ...

of St Mary the Virgin, a Grade I listed building. The Anglo-Westphalian Coal Syndicates Ltd was set up in 1911 to lease land near Chislet, and after various setbacks they finally moved approximately two miles south to take advantage of the A28 road on one side and the railway line on the other. Sinking started in 1914, with control taken over from the German company; a new company was set up called The Chislet Colliery Ltd. Coal was finally reached in 1918 at 1350 ft (411 metres). Chislet Colliery Housing Society was formed in 1924 to build a small colliery village of 300 houses north of the colliery on the main road to Thanet. Originally called Chislet Colliery Village, the name was changed to

Hersden Hersden is a village east of Canterbury in Kent, South East England. It was established as a planned coalmining village in the 1920s and is on the A28 road between Canterbury and the Isle of Thanet. Work in the Kent Coalfield was the main source o ...

in 1929 to avoid confusion with Chislet village some 2 miles away. Until its closure in July 1969, Chislet was the most northerly colliery in Kent.

Localities

Chislet parish includes several villages and localities: * Boyden Gate *Chislet *Chislet Forstal * Highstead * Marshside * Upstreet

References

External links

Details of the churchGENUKI page
Villages in Kent City of Canterbury Civil parishes in Kent {{Kent-geo-stub