Sissinghurst is a small village in the

borough of Tunbridge Wells The Borough of Tunbridge Wells is a local government district with borough status in Kent, England. It takes its name from its main town, Royal Tunbridge Wells. The borough also contains the towns of Paddock Wood and Southborough, along with n ...

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 ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Originally called ''Milkhouse Street'' (also referred to as ''Mylkehouse''), Sissinghurst changed its name in the 1850s, possibly to avoid association with the smuggling and

cockfighting Cockfighting is a blood sport involving domesticated roosters as the combatants. The first documented use of the word gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or entertainment, was recorded in 1634, after the term ...

activities of the Hawkhurst Gang. It is in the

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 ...

of Cranbrook and Sissinghurst. The nearest railway station is at

Staplehurst Staplehurst is a town and civil parish in the borough of Maidstone in Kent, England, south of the town of Maidstone and with a population of 5,947. The town lies on the route of a Roman road, which is now incorporated into the course of the A2 ...

, to the north.

Geography

Sissinghurst is situated with Cranbrook to the south,

Goudhurst Goudhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. It lies in the Weald, around south of Maidstone, on the crossroads of the A262 and B2079. The parish consists of three wards: Goudhurst, Kilndown a ...

to the west,

Tenterden Tenterden is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ashford in Kent, England. The 2021 census published the population of the parish to be 8,186. Geography Tenterden is connected to Kent's county town of Maidstone by the A262 road an ...

to the east and

to the north. It sits just back from the A229 which goes from Rochester to

Hawkhurst Hawkhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The village is located close to the border with East Sussex, around south-east of Royal Tunbridge Wells and within the High Weald Area of Outstanding N ...

History

Sissinghurst's history is similar to that of nearby Cranbrook. Iron Age working tools have been found and the village was for centuries a meeting and resting place for people travelling towards the south coast.

Sissinghurst Castle Garden

Sissinghurst's garden was created in the 1930s by

Vita Sackville-West Victoria Mary, Lady Nicolson, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (née Sackville-West; 9 March 1892 – 2 June 1962), usually known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author and garden designer. Sackville-West was a successful nov ...

, poet and gardening writer, and her husband

Harold Nicolson Sir Harold George Nicolson (21 November 1886 – 1 May 1968) was a British politician, writer, broadcaster and gardener. His wife was Vita Sackville-West. Early life and education Nicolson was born in Tehran, Persia, the youngest son of dipl ...

, author and diplomat. Sackville-West was a writer on the fringes of the

Bloomsbury group The Bloomsbury Group was a group of associated British writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the early 20th century. Among the people involved in the group were Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, E. M. Forster, Vanessa Bell, a ...

who found her greatest popularity in the weekly columns she contributed as gardening correspondent of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'', which incidentally – for she never touted it – made her own garden famous. The garden itself is designed as a series of "rooms", each with a different character of colour and/or theme, divided by high clipped

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced (3 feet or closer) shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate ...

s and pink brick walls.

Trinity Church

The

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

'Trinity Church' and was built in 1838. It is currently managed by Rev. Pete Deaves who is also Rector of Frittenden.

People

People of note who have lived in Sissinghurst include: * Sir Richard Baker (–1645) a politician, historian and religious writer * Laurence Drummond (1861–1946) a British Army

general officer A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

* Sir Harold Nicolson (1886–1968) British diplomat, author and politician *

CH (1892–1962) The Hon Lady Nicolson, English poet, novelist and gardener * Pamela Schwerdt (1931–2009) joint head gardener at

Sissinghurst Castle Garden Sissinghurst Castle Garden, at Sissinghurst in the Weald of Kent in England, was created by Vita Sackville-West, poet and writer, and her husband Harold Nicolson, author and diplomat. It is among the most famous gardens in England and is design ...

from 1959 to 1990 and a pioneering horticulturalist * Christopher Lee (1941–2021) a British writer, historian and broadcaster *

Ian Hislop Ian David Hislop (born 13 July 1960) is a British journalist, satirist, and television personality. He is the editor of the satirical magazine '' Private Eye'', a position he has held since 1986. He has appeared on many radio and television pr ...

(born 1960) editor of ''

Private Eye ''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely recognised ...

'' and team captain of '' Have I Got News for You'', husband of Victoria Hislop. *

Victoria Hislop Victoria Hislop (''née'' Hamson; born 1959) is an English author. Early life Born in Bromley, Kent, she was raised in Tonbridge and attended Tonbridge Grammar School. She studied English at St Hilda's College, Oxford, and worked in publishing ...

(born 1959) novelist and author.

References

External links

Cranbrook and Sissinghurst Parish Council

Sissinghurst Village website
{{authority control Villages in Kent