The George Hotel Lydd

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Built in 1620 during the reign of James the First on the site of an earlier Tavern The George has nearly 400 years of history, and needless to say some ghosts.

The Battle of Lydd took place at the George Hotel in 1721 when Jacob Walter & Thomas Biggs, both smugglers were taken as they came ashore at Dungeness. They were manacled, brought to the George and placed under armed guard.
What follows is an eye witness account by Stanton Blacklocks Landlord of The George at the time.
"They was in a chamber, 6 officers with them, 20 firelocks loaded with powder and ball. at 5 o'clock on Sunday night 9 men well mounted and as well armed with pistols, swords, coopers adzes, wood bills and forks, comes up to ye house, dismounts from their horses and runs upstairs, firing all ye way. They wounded 3 offices and got between the offices and their arms and carried away Walter and Biggs; if these 9 men had not carried them off, a 100 more was hard by ready to make another attack. Jacob Walter was later recaptured by a commander in the Queens' Dragoons. The outcome of Thomas Biggs is unknown"
See or buy a card of the Battle of Lydd painting by local artist ANDY HOLYER by following the link below
BATTLE OF LYDD -OUTSIDE THE GEORGE HOTEL by ANDY HOLYER

The 15th century church of All Saints.

All Saints in Lydd is the longest parish church in Kent and its 15th century tower one of the tallest with a height of 132ft, and was possibly raised to its present height by Cardinal Wolsey when Rector of Lydd. A magnificent church known locally as the Cathedral of the Marsh. In the north chancel is a stone altar which, having been thrown out by the Reformers, was re-discovered during reconstruction work following bomb damage inflicted in 1940.

The area was famous for smuggling during the 18th & 19th centuries with many a customs man thwarted by the ingenious methods used to ensure that the smugglers were not seen carrying their contraband.

follow this link to find out more about smuggling on the Romney Marsh www.smuggling.co.uk/gazetteer_se_15.html

Lydd is one of the larger towns on the Marsh and once had Borough status. It was originally an island, separated from Romney by the Rother estuary. Its 8th century Saxon name "Hlydda" derives from the Latin word "littus", meaning shore. By the 13th century it had become a Corporate Member of the Cinque Ports. However, the sea has long since receded as a result of natural processes and land reclamation.

South-west of the town is the large military training camp and firing ranges. It was set up in 1881, with the first permanent buildings erected in 1906. The explosive "Lyddite" was first tested here in 1888.

The South Eastern Railway branch line from Appledore was opened in 1881. It was later extended to New Romney. Lydd (later Lydd Town) was the principal station on the line, with a large goods yard and, for a while, a siding to the military camp. The line closed to passengers in 1967, but is still used to transport nuclear waste from Dungeness Power Station.

To the north-east is Lydd Airport, opened in 1954 and the first in the world to be designed for transporting motor vehicles. Its heyday was in the 1960s, but it lost custom to the cross-channel ferries and is now used mainly for private, light commercial and training flights only. However, there is development at the airport which is going to create several thousand jobs over the next 5 to 8 years, which will bring with it prosperity back to the Romney Marsh, and increase business in the area, also there is now again a daily scheduled service to Le Touquet.

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The 15th century church of All Saints.

Send mail to tim@thegeorgelydd.com with questions or comments about this web site.