Knockholt is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the Sevenoaks District of

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

. It is located north west of Sevenoaks & south of Orpington, and is adjacent to the Kent border with

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

. The village is mostly a ribbon development, surrounded by fields that are a part of the

Green Belt A green belt or greenbelt is a policy, and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wilderness, wild, or agricultural landscape, land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts ...

. There is mixed arable farming. It is in a hilly, rural location, on the top of the dip slope of the North Downs, and has views over London. The village name, originally Nockholt, is one of many villages in England with a derivation from oak trees, most a strong departure from today's spelling of oak such as Aike.

History

The village's name is derived from the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

''āc-holt'' meaning " oak wood", to which the final -n of the late Old English dative definite article "ðen" ("the") was accreted. The spelling with initial K- is a relatively recent one. Knockholt was included in Orpington Urban District in 1934. When

was created in 1965, as part of Orpington UD, Knockholt was included in the new

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is a London Borough, borough in London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 ...

. On 1 April 1969, following a concerted campaign by villagers it was removed from the Borough and returned to Kent, being included in Sevenoaks Rural District. The area of the parish is virtually unchanged since first drawn in the late medieval period. When it temporarily merged into Orpington (in 1934) and fell under Bromley Rural District, it was , 18 more than in 1848. The Ivy Farm Communications Centre at Knockholt Pound was the Radio Intercept Station for the non-Morse radio traffic, known as

Fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

, decoded by

Bletchley Park Bletchley Park is an English country house and Bletchley Park estate, estate in Bletchley, Milton Keynes (Buckinghamshire), that became the principal centre of Allies of World War II, Allied World War II cryptography, code-breaking during the S ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The importance of the station is noted in Paul Gannon's book. There are two parts to the village, Knockholt, near the church and school and The Pound, near the Three Horseshoes pub, The Harrow pub, the village shop and garage. St Katharine's Church, a Grade II*-

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, is the

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

. Near Knockholt Pound is the London Road Evangelical Church, built in the late 19th century as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

chapel. Its registration on behalf of the denomination was cancelled in July 1967, and in August 1968 it was re-registered for Evangelical use. Opposite the parish church is St Katharine's Church of England Primary School.

Transport

Rail

The nearest National Rail station is

Knockholt Knockholt is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent. It is located north west of Sevenoaks & south of Orpington, and is adjacent to the Kent border with Greater London. The village is mostly a ribbon development, surrou ...

, though it is located away from the village in Chelsfield in the London Borough of Bromley.

Buses

Knockholt is serves by London Buses routes R5 and R10 which provide connections to Orpington, Cudham and Halstead.

Local activities

Knockholt residents host a village carnival every two years, the most recent being in July 2024, and a fireworks night every year, late October to early November. Funds raised through these and other events go to national and local charities. A new regular event in the village is the Knockstock music festival, starting in July 2013 and with plans to run in alternating years when the carnival is not operating. Knockholt Amateur Theatrical Society produce one play and pantomime every year. This charitable society was formed in 1945. Kytens is the local youth amateur theatrical group linked to KATS above. There are many other groups including Bowls, Cricket, Tennis, Horse Riding, Horticulture, Christian Fellowship. This is a popular area for horse riders, walkers, ramblers and cyclists, due to its beauty. Knockholt Cricket Club completed the 2009 season unbeaten in the Kent County Village League (KCVL) Division 3, which was believed to be a KCVL first.

References

External links

Knockholt Parish
{{authority control Villages in Kent Civil parishes in Kent