Early developments There has been evidence of human habitation around Ashford since the
Iron Age, with a barrow dated to 1500 BC on what is now Barrow Hill. Two axes from the
Lower Paleolithic period have been found near Ashford. During the construction of the Park Farm estate in the late 1990s, excavation produced tools from the
Upper Palaeolithic and
Mesolithic period dating back to the 7th millennium BC. A number of other Mesolithic tools were discovered during construction of the
Channel Tunnel Rail Link through Ashford. In
Roman Britain, iron ore was mined in the Weald and transported to Ashford where two ironworks processed the ore into a workable metal. Archaeological studies have postulated the existence of a Roman settlement to the north of the current centre, roughly at the junction of Albert Road and Wall Road. The present town originates from an original settlement established in 893 AD by inhabitants escaping a Danish Viking raid, who were granted land by a Saxon Lord for their resistance. The name comes from the
Old English æscet, indicating a
ford near a
clump of
ash trees. At the time of the
Domesday Book of 1086 it was still known by its original
Saxon name of
Essetesford (or
Eshetisford,
Esselesford,
Asshatisforde,
Essheford). The manor was owned by
Hugh de Montfort, Constable of England and
companion of William the Conqueror, and had a church, two mills and a value of 150
shillings (£7.50) at the time. One of the earliest houses in the area still in existence is Lake House at
Eastwell Park to the north of the town, which contains the grave of
Richard Plantagenet.
Middle Ages Ashford's importance as an agricultural and market town grew in the 13th century, and in 1243,
King Henry III granted the town a charter to hold a market for livestock. The pottery industry expanded in the 13th and 14th centuries, with the main works based at what is now Potter's Corner, a few miles west of the town centre. Later evidence from examining waste suggests that production was on a large scale. The Kent Archaeological society have discovered sandy ware at this location dating from around 1125 – 1250.
Jack Cade, who led a rebellion against corrupt Royal officials in 1450, may have had links to Ashford. In
William Shakespeare's
Henry VI, Part 2, Cade converses with "Dick, the Butcher from Ashford". In the 16th and 17th centuries, Ashford became known for
nonconformism. A local resident, John Brown, was executed for heresy in 1517, and may have inspired the later namesake of the song "
John Brown's Body".
Thomas Smythe acquired the manor of Ashford as dowry from
Queen Elizabeth I in the mid-16th century, and is buried in the parish church.
John Wallis, the internationally recognised
mathematician and one of
Isaac Newton's main tutors was born in Ashford in 1616, but moved to
Tenterden in 1625 to avoid the
plague. He was a promising student, and subsequently graduated from
Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
Modern developments By the 1780s, local farmers had begun to hold informal market days, and advertised the town's ideal location between London, Chatham and the Kent Coast. The market was held in the High Street until 1856, when local farmers and businessmen relocated to Elwick Road and formed a market company that is the oldest surviving registered company in England and Wales. There is still a regular street market in the town, but the market company relocated outside Ashford town centre after part of the 19th-century site was demolished to make way for the
Channel Tunnel Rail Link. It is still used by around 5,000 farmers. The town was a target in the
Battle of Britain during
World War II, including an attack on 15 September 1940. During the latter war ultimately 94 civilians were lost to enemy action in the Urban District. The
School of Service Intelligence was based at Templer Barracks to the west of town.
Robert Runcie, later to become the
Archbishop of Canterbury, was stationed at Ashford during the war while
Prince Andrew attended a course here in 1982 while he was stationed in the
Royal Navy. The barracks closed in 1997 to build the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, Repton Manor House, in the centre of the barracks, is a Grade II listed building and remains intact. Ashford has been associated with the German town
Bad Münstereifel since the 20th century. British forces occupied the town in 1919 under the command of Major J Goode, following the end of the war. Goode subsequently formed close friendships with some Bad Münstereifel residents. John Wiles, Major Goode's brother in law, later became mayor of
New Romney in 1946, and subsequently arranged a visit to the Rhineland with
Winston Churchill. Wiles arranged several other exchange visits between British and German families, when travel between the two countries was rare. He was declared an honorary citizen of Bad Münstereifel in 1961, which led to the two towns being formally twinned in 1964. Bad Münstereifel was twinned with the French town of
Fougères,
Brittany two years later, which led to a twinning with Ashford in 1984. and by the mid-1950s printed and exported over 2 million books. The business closed in 2017 and the factory was demolished two years later. The
Letraset company set up an arts material factory in Ashford in the 1960s. It closed in 2013, following the decline of Letraset and the company's decision to relocate works abroad.
Redevelopments Little is left of the old Ashford town centre, apart from a cluster of medieval
half-timbered buildings in Middle Row and around the churchyard in the town centre. A number of old buildings were removed to make way for the controversial ring road around the centre, including four public houses. Further demolition was required to build Charter House, an eight-story office building for Charter Consolidated, that opened in 1975. Charter subsequently moved back to London in 1985. The building is now converted into flats, though progress stalled during the conversion owing to the discovery of
asbestos. Charter compensated for the demolition by funding a restoration scheme on North Street, preserving several historic buildings. The borough council operated from a row of houses in Elwick Road, until the civic centre was opened by the
Duchess of Kent on 8 December 1983. To accommodate a growing population in the area, the
Finberry estate began construction in 2013. It is a site to the southeast of the town centre, which opened various houses, workspaces and shops in a series of phases through the remainder of the decade. It is planned to cater for 1,180 homes. The development also includes plans for a pub and shops.
Recent developments A large factor in Ashford's recent redevelopment has been Ashford Borough Council's 'Big 8' strategy. This centred on eight major projects designed to add cultural and economic value to the town. The first proposed was the Commercial Quarter near the station, which opened in 2018, and the second was a new junction 10A of the M20 motorway. The first of the housing projects to make progress was Chilmington Green, a 5,750-house development near Ashford's suburbs. A primary school is set to be built as part of the residential development, with planning permission granted in 2022. The first of the Big 8 projects to be fully completed was a new campus for
Ashford College, moving from Jemmett Road. The building works on the Elwick Road site cost £16 million, and was completed in 2017. The Designer Outlet was redeveloped in a £90 million expansion project. An expansion of the
Jasmin Vardimon Company is also planned. The former railway works is being redeveloped into
Ashford International Studios, a combined cinema studios, hotel and residential apartments. It is expected to open in 2025. == Governance ==