East Cliff and Warren Country Park is in

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 20t ...

, in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, England. This country park is formed of the East Cliffs of

, the sandy beaches of East Wear Bay and the land-slipped

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

land between the cliffs and the sea.

History

On the east cliffs, are three

Martello Towers Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up ...

. These were built on the cliffs in 1804-09 to protect against the French invasion of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. Number 3, since 1990 is used as a Martello Tower visitor centre by Folkestone and Hythe Council. Beside it is an information panel describing the

Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house built in the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Typology and distribution Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) distinguished two kinds of villas n ...

ruins on the site. In 1875 until 1892, near Martello Tower 1, was a public house called the Warren Inn. It was closed after people were caught drinking after hours. The

Earl of Radnor Earl of Radnor, in the County of Wiltshire, is a title which has been created twice. It was first created in the Peerage of England in 1679 for John Robartes, 2nd Baron Robartes, a notable political figure of the reign of Charles II. The ear ...

had it closed, as it was on his land. The east cliffs were popular with Victorians who picnicked on the grassy meadows of the cliffs before heading down towards the sandy beaches. The area was popular with burrowing

rabbits Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...

and was named informally 'The Warren'. Railway and train to Folkestone - geograph

In 1884, the

South East Main Line The South Eastern Main Line is a major long-distance railway route in South East England, UK, one of the three main routes crossing the county of Kent, going via Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Ashford and Folkestone to Dover. The other routes are the ...

railway was built from

Ashford Ashford may refer to: Places Australia *Ashford, New South Wales *Ashford, South Australia *Electoral district of Ashford, South Australia Ireland *Ashford, County Wicklow *Ashford Castle, County Galway United Kingdom * Ashford, Kent, a town ** ...

and then onwards to

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

, through the Warren. Folkestone Warren Halt railway station was opened in 1886, and a bridge was built over the Main Line leading to a gate on to The Warren from which the public could picnic and enjoy the dramatic scenery in the area. Also a zig-zag path led down the East Cliff to the station. In December 1915, a large

landslip Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of environments, ...

resulted in the entire undercliff supporting the Main Line moved towards the sea causing approximately 1.5 million cubic metres of chalk to slip or fall burying Warren Halt and the railway line. No-one was hurt in the occurrence. This was one of the largest landslides in Kent. The station and the line were closed until 1919. The Warren was still a popular picnic spot in Edwardian times and a nearby tea chalet served hundreds of visitors daily. The land was then defended from

coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward ...

with the intentional effect of stopping any more landslips to the land beyond the line. In 1923, the Halt Station was rebuilt by the Southern Railway which added a set of platforms. The station remained open for a further 16 years before another landslip in 1939. In 1924, the land was given to the council of Folkestone for perpetual recreational use by the

Earls of Radnor Earl of Radnor, in the County of Wiltshire, is a title which has been created twice. It was first created in the Peerage of England in 1679 for John Robartes, 2nd Baron Robartes, a notable political figure of the reign of Charles II. The ear ...

during the 19th century, and the country park was formed soon after by the council. The park covers an area of 299.4 hectares (or ) It has various paths leading through it towards the coastline and beach, or up to the cliffs towards Old Dover Road. Part of it is Folkestone Warren

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

, designated for both its biology and geology. The site is well known for the amount of fossils being found in the park, and the landslips are of great interest to those studying

geomorphology Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or n ...

. The land is generally formed out of

Gault Clay The Gault Formation is a geological formation of stiff blue clay deposited in a calm, fairly deep-water marine environment during the Lower Cretaceous Period (Upper and Middle Albian). It is well exposed in the coastal cliffs at Copt Point in ...

(for the cliffs) and

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

for the more resistant rocky headland of Copt Point. The site of a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

observation post An observation post (commonly abbreviated OP), temporary or fixed, is a position from which soldiers can watch enemy movements, to warn of approaching soldiers (such as in trench warfare), or to direct fire. In strict military terminology, an ...

Capel Cliffs and the Warren 1964 - geograph

After the Country Park was set up, grazing animals were banned, this has allowed shrubs and trees to seed naturally across the site. Patches of wildflower meadow still exist and these are the favoured habitats of various rare insects. Including a harvestman ('' Trogulus tricarinatus'') and a millipede ('' Polydesmus testaceus''). Also rare plant species in the park include; wild cabbage (''Brassica oleracea''), the Dover variety of

Nottingham catchfly ''Silene nutans'' is a flowering plant in the genus ''Silene'', most commonly known as Nottingham catchfly. Description ''Silene nutans'' is a diploid, mainly outcrossing, herbaceous, perennial plant. It grows up to tall, from a branching, wood ...

(''Silene nutans'' var. ''nutans'') and the extremely local clove-scented broom rape ('' Orobanche caryophyllacea''). The Warren is an important habitat for many insects. Over 330 species of moth have been recorded visiting the site, including the continental migrant sub-angled wave moth ('' Scopula nigropunctata''). The fiery clearwing moth (''Pyropteron chrysidiforme'') is only found here, as well as many butterflies. The

grayling Grayling or Greyling may refer to: Animals Fish * Grayling, generically, any fish of the genus ''Thymallus'' in the family Salmonidae ** European grayling (''Thymallus thymallus''), the European species of the genus ''Thymallus'' ** Arctic grayli ...

butterfly has a small colony in the site, the only one in Kent. The White Cliffs Countryside Project (WCCP), who are assisting by local volunteers to maintain the remaining areas of chalk grassland and meadow. They have created open grassy corridor habitats along the footpaths so that the wild flowers and insects can survive and access other parts of the important nature reserve. East Cliffside Path - geograph

The

Saxon Shore Way The Saxon Shore Way is a long-distance footpath in England. It starts at Gravesend, Kent, and traces the coast of South-East England as it was in Roman times as far as Hastings, East Sussex, in total. This means that around Romney Marsh the ...

and

North Downs Way The North Downs Way National Trail is a long-distance path in southern England, opened in 1978. It runs from Farnham to Dover, past Guildford, Dorking, Merstham, Otford and Rochester, along the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty ...

, (long distance trails lead through the park between Folkestone and Dover, via Capel-le-Ferne. Beside Wear Bay Road, on the northern fringes of the park, is Little Switzerland Camping Site; it is so named because of the mountainous-looking white cliffs nearby. The forementioned ''Tea Chalet'' is within the camp site.

Location

From Wear Bay Road in Folkestone, access to the Warren is from the Martello Towers on East Cliff, from a small car park past Little Switzerland Camp site, or via a cliffside path from New Dover Road, near Capel-le-Ferne.

In popular culture

Author Russell Hoban repurposes the Warren as the "Warnings" in his 1980, post apocalyptic novel '' Riddley Walker''.

References

External links

White Cliffs Countryside ProjectKent County Council page
{{DEFAULTSORT:East Cliff And Warren Country Park Country parks in Kent Folkestone Parks and open spaces in Kent