About Hythe, Kent

Heritage & Local History

• The Lost Harbour: Once a thriving central Cinque Port, Hythe’s harbour gradually disappeared due to silting over a 300-year period.
• Fending Off Invasion: In 1293, local townsmen successfully repelled a landing force of 200 French sailors.
• Town Life: The Town Hall was constructed in 1794 featuring a fireplace designed by the Adam Brothers. Red Lion Square hosts a popular farmers' market on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month.
• Brewing Legacy: Hythe was the original home of Mackeson Brewery and the birthplace of Mackeson Stout, first brewed here in 1909.

Royal Military Canal & Defence Works

• The Canal: Built between 1804 and 1815 to deter Napoleonic invasion, the 26-mile tree-shaded canal begins at Seabrook, passes through central Hythe, and stretches across Romney Marsh to Winchelsea.
• Martello Towers: Three original coastal defence towers remain in Hythe out of 74 built along the south coast. One along West Parade was converted into a residence in the 1930s.

St Leonard’s Church & The Ossuary

• Medieval Bone Store: Beneath the 13th-century chancel sits a rare processional ossuary storing over 2,000 skulls and 8,000 thigh bones—one of only two surviving ossuaries in England.
• Unique Details: Features early Norman stonework, reused Roman masonry in the arches, and ship graffiti carved into the nave pillars.
• Historical Figure: Lionel Lukin, inventor of the self-righting lifeboat, is buried in the churchyard.

Coastal & Local Terrain

Hythe sits on a series of natural geological terraces rising from the level ground near the canal up toward the hillside parish church. Narrow alleys lead up from the High Street to the upper town levels.