Margate

Sister cities

• Idar-Oberstein
• Astana
• Les Mureaux
• Yalta

History

Margate was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as lying within the hundred of Thanet and the county of Kent. Margate was recorded as "Meregate" in 1264 and as "Margate" in 1299, but the spelling continued to vary into modern times. The name is thought to refer to a pool gate or gap in a cliff where pools of water are found, often allowing swimmers to jump in. The cliffs of the Isle of Thanet are composed of chalk, a fossil-bearing rock. Margate gives its name to the relatively unknown yet influential Battle of Margate, starting on 24 March 1387, it was the last major naval battle of the Caroline War phase of the Hundred Years' War. Despite the battle being named after Margate, very little actually happened near the coastal town - the battle is named after Margate as this was where an English fleet of 51 vessels that was anchored at Margate Roadstead first spotted a Franco-Castilian-Flemish wine fleet of around 250-360 vessels. The English gave chase after the undermanned wine fleet and finally defeated the fleet a day later on 25 March 1387 off the coast of Cadzand, Zeeland, Netherlands. The town's history is tied closely to the sea and it has a proud maritime tradition. Margate was a "limb" of Dover in the ancient confederation of the Cinque ports. It was added to the confederation in the 15th century. Margate has been a leading seaside resort for at least 250 years. Like its neighbour Ramsgate, it has been a traditional holiday destination for Londoners drawn to its sandy beaches. Margate had a Victorian jetty which was largely destroyed by a storm in 1978. In the late 18th century, the town was chosen by the physician John Coakley Lettsom as the place in which he would build the Royal Sea Bathing Hospital, which was the first of its kind in Britain. Like…

Most-observed species

• Herring Gull

  Larus argentatus Pontoppidan, 1763 · Aves
  9,802
• Carrion Crow

  Corvus corone Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  9,639
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  9,217
• Black-headed Gull

  Chroicocephalus ridibundus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  8,326
• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,030
• Great Cormorant/European Shag

  Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  7,858
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  7,685
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  7,646

Most recent

• M 3.7 — 2015-05-22
  3 km SSE of Ramsgate, United Kingdom
• M 3.5 — 2009-03-03
  1 km ENE of Hawkinge, United Kingdom
• M 2.7 — 2008-08-08
  27 km ESE of Felixstowe, United Kingdom
• M 4.6 — 2007-04-28
  1 km WNW of Lympne, United Kingdom
• M 2.6 — 2007-03-02
  46 km NE of Broadstairs, United Kingdom
• M 4.1 — 2007-01-23
  57 km ENE of Broadstairs, United Kingdom