Folkestone. Folkestone is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England.
The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20th centuries.
There has been a settlement in this location since the Mesolithic era. A nunnery was founded by Eanswith, granddaughter of Aethelberht of Kent in the 7th century, who is still commemorated as part of the town's culture.
During the 13th century it subsequently developed into a seaport and the harbour developed during the early 19th century to provide defence against a French invasion, and expanded further after the arrival of the railway in 1843. The harbour's use has diminished since the opening of the nearby Channel Tunnel and stopping of local ferry services, but still remains in active use.
Main article: History of Folkestone The area of Folkestone has been occupied since at least the Mesolithic era. In 2010, worked flints were discovered below the remains of the Folkestone Roman Villa. The East Cliff area was excavated in 1924 and most recently from 2010 to 2011 and has produced artefacts from the Mesolithic period through to the Roman era. On the East Cliff, an extensive Iron Age oppidum existed, which produced quern-stones on an almost industrial scale. Those querns, or stones, which were used for grinding cereals into flour