Ramsgate
Encyclopedia
Ramsgate is a seaside town
in the district of Thanet
in east Kent
, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports
. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main industries are tourism and fishing. The town has one of the largest marinas on the English south coast and Port of Ramsgate has provided cross channel ferries for many years.
Ramsgate began as a fishing and farming hamlet. Ramsgate as a name has its earliest reference as "Hraefn's gate", or "raven's cliff gap", later to be rendered 'Ramisgate' or 'Remmesgate' around 1225 and 'Ramesgate' from 1357. The legendary mercenaries Hengest
and Horsa landed in the 5th century to herald the pagan Anglo-Saxon age in England. The Christian missionary St. Augustine
landed in Ramsgate in 597 which re-established the link between England and the Christian church in Rome.
Ramsgate's harbour is a defining characteristic of the town. The construction of Ramsgate Harbour began in 1749 and was completed in about 1850. The Harbour has the unique distinction of being the only Royal Harbour in the United Kingdom. Because of its proximity to mainland Europe, Ramsgate was a chief embarkation point both during the Napoleonic Wars
and for the Dunkirk evacuation
in 1940.
In 1901, the Isle of Thanet
saw the introduction of an electric tram service which was one of the few inter-urban tramways
in Britain. The towns of Ramsgate, Margate
and Broadstairs
were linked by 11 miles of track.
In 1915-1916 early aircraft began to use the open farmlands at Manston
as a site for emergency landings. The location near the Kent coast gave Manston some advantages over the other previously established aerodromes. During the first World War, Ramsgate was the target of bombing raids by Zeppelin airships. By 1917 the Royal Flying Corps
was well established and taking an active part in the defence of England. As RAF Manston
the aerodrome played an important role in the second World War and is now called Kent International Airport
.
Ramsgate is located 78 miles from central London in an East South Easterly direction at one of the most Easterly points of the country (the furthest point east is Lowestoft
in Suffolk
). Ramsgate has its own meridian line and Mean Time which is 5 minutes 41 seconds ahead of Greenwich Mean Time
. Ramsgate is about 1 hour from the M25.
The town is now the amalgamation of two settlements. One is the fishing community based on the coast in the shallow valley between two chalk cliffs and the other a farming community inland that is now the Parish of St. Lawrence. The cliffs are now known as the East Cliff and the West Cliff and are predominantly residential areas. There are promenades along both cliff tops with parks at either end and sand beaches on the coast.
(Köppen climate classification
Cfb) as is typical in the United Kingdom; the nearest Met Office weather station for which data is available is Manston airport, about 2 miles west of the town centre.
The absolute maximum temperature attained is 34.6c(94.3f) set in August 2003, though typically the warmest day of the year averages out at 28.5c(83.3f) and 8.8 days will record a temperature of 25.1c(77.2f) or above.
The absolute minimum temperature stands at -14.5c(5.9f), set in February 1986, though typically the coldest night of the year averages -6.2c(20.8f). A total of 28.9 days of the year should record an air frost.
Rainfall averages around 550mm per year, a level similar to the driest parts of England. Over 1mm of rain can be expected on 102.9 days. All averages refer to the 1971-00 period.
Being close to the coast, and in Southern England, sunshine compares favourably with most of the United Kingdom, at over 1700 hours a year. Only the Sussex coast tends to be notably sunnier, although much of the remainder of the south coast receives a similar amount of sunshine as Ramsgate.
MP Laura Sandys
who won the seat in the 2010 general election.
Before 6 May 2010 the MP was Stephen Ladyman
a senior Labour
minister, preceded by Jonathan Aitken
.
Ramsgate was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1884. This was abolished in 1974, since which date
Ramsgate has been within the Thanet
local government district. The town contains the seven electoral wards of Central Harbour, Cliffsend and Pegwell, Eastcliff, Nethercourt, Newington, Northwood, and Sir Moses Montefiore. These wards have seventeen of the fifty-six seats on the Thanet District Council
; as of 2011
fifteen of those seats were held by Labour
and two by the Conservatives
Following a successful campaign by local activist Gerry O'Donnell, a Ramsgate Town Council was established in June 2009. The Town Mayor of Ramsgate is currently Cllr David Green.
Ramsgate's main industries are tourism
and fishing
. The town has a thriving marina with over 800 moorings and a range of marine-related businesses that operate in premises in the renovated arches under Royal Parade. The town caters for students of EFL (English as a foreign language) at its colleges.
Although Ramsgate has the most valuable fish landings in Kent (~£700,000 in 2003), the fishing industry is in decline.
Port of Ramsgate has provided cross channel ferries for many years. Previously Sally Ferries UK provided a service of passenger and car ferries to Dunkirk. Currently a service of freight and car is provided to Oostende
by the company Transeuropa Ferries
.
Unemployment for Thanet is higher (4.1%) than the national average (2.5%).
There is some light industry in the town. An emerging industry is power generation, with 800 jobs expected to be created by the Thanet offshore wind project
, a wind farm
just off the coast.
Ramsgate Market is held in High Street, King Street and Queen Street every Friday and Saturday between 8a.m. and 4p.m.
As of the 2001 UK census
, Ramsgate had a population of 39,639.
The ethnicity of the town was 98.0% white
, 0.8% mixed race, 0.3% black
, 0.3% Chinese
, 0.4% other Asia
n and 0.1% other ethnicity.
The place of birth of residents was 95.6% United Kingdom, 0.7% Republic of Ireland
, 0.6% Germany
, 0.6% other Western Europe
countries, 0.3% Eastern Europe
, 0.6% Far East
, 0.5% Africa
, 0.3% North America
, 0.3% South Asia
, 0.2% Middle East
, 0.2% Oceania
and 0.1% South America
Religion was recorded as 71.6% Christian
, 0.3% Muslim
, 0.1% Hindu
, 0.3% Buddhist, 0.1% Sikh
and 0.1% Jewish. 17.9% were recorded as having no religion, 0.3% had an alternative religion and 7.1% didn't state their religion.
For every 100 females, there were 91.2 males. The age distribution was 6% aged 0–4 years, 16% aged 5–15 years, 5% aged 16–19 years, 31% aged 20–44 years, 24% aged 45–64 years and 18% aged 65 years and over.
Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline, particularly Ramsgate Main Sands, which has been awarded a 2008 Blue Flag award
. The water quality, tested in 2007, passed the legal minimum, mandatory standard.
The local council publishes a website specifically aimed at tourists visiting Ramsgate and neighbouring towns.
The previous prime seafront site which was Ramsgate pleasure park is currently undergoing major redevelopment.
Ramsgate has developed a continental cafe style culture with bars and restaurants on its seafront parade.
There is an annual Powerboat Grand Prix
event based out of the harbour of Ramsgate during the summer. Ramsgate carnival is an annual parade also during the summer. Other events include the annual Addington Street Fair and the French Market.
, plays in the Isthmian League Premier Division. The main local rivals of the club are Margate F.C.
who are situated 4 miles away. When the two teams meet, it is known as the Thanet derby
. Ramsgate have achieved The FA’s Charter Standard "Development" award. Ramsgate also run a Reserves Team which plays in Kent Football League Second Division, a women's team which plays in South East Counties Women's League Kent County Division.
Ramsgate F.C. also run five main youth teams, under-13 to under-18 all feature in the Valley Express Kent Youth League and also run Ramsgate Youth U7 to U16 who play in The Molten East Kent Youth League; two other popular youth teams who are based in Ramsgate are Trinity & Hugin Vikings both also play in The Molten East Kent Youth League.
Thanet Galaxy is a Pan Disability Football Club. They provide structured coaching for male and female footballers of all ages who qualify within the nationally and internationally recognised Pan Disability categories they Train at Chatham House Grammer School and play in Kent Disability Football League, They play and train in three age bands: U-11, U-16, 16+. In their first season, 2008/2009, the Adult A Team won the Kent Disability League Adult Championship.
Ramsgate's sports facilities include a public swimming pool, a fitness centre with gym and sports hall. Tennis clubs can be found at Spencer square and St. Laurence. Ramsgate has three golf clubs: St. Augustines, Stonelees, and Manston. Being a harbour town, there is also a sailing club - The Royal Temple Yacht Club. The Royal Temple Yacht Club is steeped in yacht racing history, and hosts racing throughout the year for a variety of historic trophies. The highlight of the season is the annual international sailing regatta - 'Ramsgate Week', usually held in August.
Ramsgate Maritime Museum
near the harbour quayside has exhibits showing the evolution of Ramsgate Harbour and East Kent maritime history. Ramsgate's sole cinema and theatre is the Granville Cinema
, situated on Victoria Parade, in the town's Eastcliff area.
Ramsgate has two paid for newspapers, the Isle of Thanet Gazette and Thanet Times which are owned by Northcliffe Media
. Free newspapers for the town include the Thanet Extra, part of the KM Group
; and yourthanet, part of KOS Media
.
Local radio stations are KMFM Thanet
, owned by the KM Group, community radio
station Academy FM (Thanet)
; and the county-wide stations Heart Kent, Gold and BBC Radio Kent
. Thanet
Community Radio (TCR offer an online arts and features based service for Thanet District and the surrounding area where people can listen to pod-casts of local interest. The service works closely with Dover district based Dover
Community Radio.
is a reconstructed Viking longship located at Pegwell Bay in Ramsgate. It was a gift from the Danish government in commemoration of the 1500th anniversary of the arrival of Hengist and Horsa to the country in 449.
and Victorian architecture
. There are 900 listed buildings in the town with more than 200 surrounding the Marina.
The town has three notable churches.
The first building used for worship in the Thanet parish of 'St Lawrence' was at St Laurence-in-Thanet, built in 1062 and rebuilt during the following centuries with the most significant changes being in the 16th century. Note the difference in spelling between that of the Village of St Lawrence and the church, which is dedicated to the Roman
Martyr
, Laurence
.
The second notable church is St Augustine's, which is situated on the town's westcliff. Considered one of the most August and distinct surviving it was designed by Augustus Pugin
in 1847 in the neo-Gothic style. Its dedication commemorates Augustine
, the first Archbishop of Canterbury
, who landed at Ramsgate in AD 596 and brought Christianity
to Britain.
Thirdly, the town's Parish Church of St George is situated just off the town's High Street. Its lantern tower was added at the request of Trinity House
as a navigational aid to passing ships and looks over the town. The ground was consecrated on 23 October 1827.
St Augustine' serves its own abbey and the town's Catholic
community, whilst St Laurence and St George are both Church of England
, and serve the Anglican community as part of the Diocese of Canterbury
. Christ Church http://www.christchurchramsgate.co.uk built in 1847 also serves the Anglican community.
Ramsgate library was originally built and paid for by Andrew Carnegie
in 1904. On the evening of Friday 13 August 2004 a fire destroyed Ramsgate library just two months short of its 100th anniversary. Though suspicions were raised as to what started the fire due to a similarly timed fire at the towns registry office, an investigation concluded that the blaze was too intense to pinpoint where and how the fire started.
Shortly after the blaze, planning permission was granted for a new library. The library has now been fully restored, and was officially re-opened on 20 February 2009. http://www.ramsgate-society.org.uk/library-news.html
, Royal Harbour Marina, and a ferry terminal built on reclaimed land. The harbour provides shelter from the effect of storms. The Goodwin Sands
are nearby. In 2005, the marina had 12,000 visiting boats. Transeuropa Ferries
passenger (with vehicle only) and freight ferries now sail to the Port of Ostend
in Ostend
, Belgium
. The Port of Ramsgate has its own road access tunnel from outside of the town, avoiding town centre congestion. The RNLI Ramsgate Lifeboat Station
is based in Ramsgate Harbour.
Thanet Way which continues onto the M2/A2
for the M25
(approx 1 hour) and London. The A256
provides a link to Dover
and onwards onto the A20 for the Channel Tunnel
.
Bus services are provided by Stagecoachbus' "Thanet Loop" scheme.
is situated at the top of the town near the parish of St Lawrence.
A new high-speed service to London started in December 2009, running on High Speed 1 (HS1), the UK’s first high speed rail line, between London’s St. Pancras station and Kent. The journey time from Ramsgate to the new St. Pancras terminal, with excellent transport links, is 1 hour and 16 minutes.
Other trains run from Ramsgate to London Charing Cross
and London Victoria
. Commuting time to the capital on these lines is approximately 1 hour 50 minutes.
Trains from Ramsgate pass via Margate
, Chatham
and Bromley South
, or via Canterbury West
or Dover Priory
and Ashford International
. Ramsgate railway station is operated by Southeastern
.
, it closed in 1940. The airport was re-opened in 1952 and operated until closure in 1968.
The town is situated directly under the flight path of Kent International Airport
at Manston
. From September 2004 to August 2005 a low-cost airline EUjet
operated frequent flights to many European destinations, replacing a large freight operator. However, flights were suspended after the collapse of its parent company, PlaneStation Group plc.
Manston was sold to Infratil
(owner of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport
) on 26 August 2005. As of , Flybe
operates flights from the airport to Edinburgh
and Belfast
and is regularly used by freight operators such as Cargolux and Meridian.
Infant schools
Junior schools
Primary schools
Secondary schools
The Marlowe academy failed the 30% GCSE target.
Colleges and further education
, France
- Chimay
, Belgium
- Frederikssund
, Denmark
Seaside resort
A seaside resort is a resort, or resort town, located on the coast. Where a beach is the primary focus for tourists, it may be called a beach resort.- Overview :...
in the district of Thanet
Thanet
Thanet is a local government district of Kent, England which was formed under the Local Government Act 1972, and came into being on 1 April 1974...
in east Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports
Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial. It lies at the eastern end of the English Channel, where the crossing to the continent is narrowest...
. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main industries are tourism and fishing. The town has one of the largest marinas on the English south coast and Port of Ramsgate has provided cross channel ferries for many years.
History
Hengest
Hengist and Horsa are figures of Anglo-Saxon, and subsequently British, legend, which records the two as the Germanic brothers who led the Angle, Saxon, and Jutish armies that conquered the first territories of Great Britain in the 5th century AD...
and Horsa landed in the 5th century to herald the pagan Anglo-Saxon age in England. The Christian missionary St. Augustine
Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
landed in Ramsgate in 597 which re-established the link between England and the Christian church in Rome.
Ramsgate's harbour is a defining characteristic of the town. The construction of Ramsgate Harbour began in 1749 and was completed in about 1850. The Harbour has the unique distinction of being the only Royal Harbour in the United Kingdom. Because of its proximity to mainland Europe, Ramsgate was a chief embarkation point both during the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
and for the Dunkirk evacuation
Operation Dynamo
The Dunkirk evacuation, commonly known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, code-named Operation Dynamo by the British, was the evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, France, between 26 May and the early hours of 3 June 1940, because the British, French and Belgian troops were...
in 1940.
In 1901, the Isle of Thanet
Isle of Thanet
The Isle of Thanet lies at the most easterly point of Kent, England. While in the past it was separated from the mainland by the nearly -wide River Wantsum, it is no longer an island ....
saw the introduction of an electric tram service which was one of the few inter-urban tramways
Interurban
An interurban, also called a radial railway in parts of Canada, is a type of electric passenger railroad; in short a hybrid between tram and train. Interurbans enjoyed widespread popularity in the first three decades of the twentieth century in North America. Until the early 1920s, most roads were...
in Britain. The towns of Ramsgate, Margate
Margate
-Demography:As of the 2001 UK census, Margate had a population of 40,386.The ethnicity of the town was 97.1% white, 1.0% mixed race, 0.5% black, 0.8% Asian, 0.6% Chinese or other ethnicity....
and Broadstairs
Broadstairs
Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about south-east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St. Peter's and had a population in 2001 of about 24,000. Situated between Margate and...
were linked by 11 miles of track.
In 1915-1916 early aircraft began to use the open farmlands at Manston
Manston, Kent
Manston is a village and civil parish in the Thanet district of Kent, England. The village is situated one mile north-west of Ramsgate. The parish includes four hamlets and Kent International Airport.-Etymology:...
as a site for emergency landings. The location near the Kent coast gave Manston some advantages over the other previously established aerodromes. During the first World War, Ramsgate was the target of bombing raids by Zeppelin airships. By 1917 the Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
was well established and taking an active part in the defence of England. As RAF Manston
RAF Manston
RAF Manston was an RAF station in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site is now split between a commercial airport Kent International Airport and a continuing military use by the Defence Fire Training and Development Centre , following on from a long...
the aerodrome played an important role in the second World War and is now called Kent International Airport
Kent International Airport
Manston - Kent's International Airport is an airport located at Manston in the District of Thanet within Kent, England, northeast of Canterbury. It was formerly called RAF Manston , and was also known as London Manston Airport...
.
Geography
Lowestoft
Lowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
). Ramsgate has its own meridian line and Mean Time which is 5 minutes 41 seconds ahead of Greenwich Mean Time
Greenwich Mean Time
Greenwich Mean Time is a term originally referring to mean solar time at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London. It is arguably the same as Coordinated Universal Time and when this is viewed as a time zone the name Greenwich Mean Time is especially used by bodies connected with the United...
. Ramsgate is about 1 hour from the M25.
The town is now the amalgamation of two settlements. One is the fishing community based on the coast in the shallow valley between two chalk cliffs and the other a farming community inland that is now the Parish of St. Lawrence. The cliffs are now known as the East Cliff and the West Cliff and are predominantly residential areas. There are promenades along both cliff tops with parks at either end and sand beaches on the coast.
Climate
Ramsgate experiences an oceanic climateOceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also called marine west coast climate, maritime climate, Cascadian climate and British climate for Köppen climate classification Cfb and subtropical highland for Köppen Cfb or Cwb, is a type of climate typically found along the west coasts at the middle latitudes of some of the...
(Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Cfb) as is typical in the United Kingdom; the nearest Met Office weather station for which data is available is Manston airport, about 2 miles west of the town centre.
The absolute maximum temperature attained is 34.6c(94.3f) set in August 2003, though typically the warmest day of the year averages out at 28.5c(83.3f) and 8.8 days will record a temperature of 25.1c(77.2f) or above.
The absolute minimum temperature stands at -14.5c(5.9f), set in February 1986, though typically the coldest night of the year averages -6.2c(20.8f). A total of 28.9 days of the year should record an air frost.
Rainfall averages around 550mm per year, a level similar to the driest parts of England. Over 1mm of rain can be expected on 102.9 days. All averages refer to the 1971-00 period.
Being close to the coast, and in Southern England, sunshine compares favourably with most of the United Kingdom, at over 1700 hours a year. Only the Sussex coast tends to be notably sunnier, although much of the remainder of the south coast receives a similar amount of sunshine as Ramsgate.
Governance
Ramsgate is in the parliamentary constituency of Thanet South represented by ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MP Laura Sandys
Laura Sandys
Laura Jane Sandys is a British Conservative Party politician. She has been the Member of Parliament for South Thanet since the general election on 6 May 2010.-Early life:...
who won the seat in the 2010 general election.
Before 6 May 2010 the MP was Stephen Ladyman
Stephen Ladyman
Stephen John Ladyman is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for South Thanet from 1997 until 2010.-Early life:...
a senior Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
minister, preceded by Jonathan Aitken
Jonathan Aitken
Jonathan William Patrick Aitken is a former Conservative Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, and British government minister. He was convicted of perjury in 1999 and received an 18-month prison sentence, of which he served seven months...
.
Ramsgate was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1884. This was abolished in 1974, since which date
Ramsgate has been within the Thanet
Thanet
Thanet is a local government district of Kent, England which was formed under the Local Government Act 1972, and came into being on 1 April 1974...
local government district. The town contains the seven electoral wards of Central Harbour, Cliffsend and Pegwell, Eastcliff, Nethercourt, Newington, Northwood, and Sir Moses Montefiore. These wards have seventeen of the fifty-six seats on the Thanet District Council
Thanet District Council
Thanet District Council is the local government body for the Thanet district. Its administrative centre is Margate. It is one of the district councils in Kent...
; as of 2011
United Kingdom local elections, 2011
The 2011 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 5 May 2011. In England, direct elections were held in all 36 Metropolitan boroughs, 194 Second-tier district authorities, 49 unitary authorities and various mayoral posts, meaning local elections took place in all parts of England with...
fifteen of those seats were held by Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and two by the Conservatives
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Following a successful campaign by local activist Gerry O'Donnell, a Ramsgate Town Council was established in June 2009. The Town Mayor of Ramsgate is currently Cllr David Green.
Economy
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
and fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
. The town has a thriving marina with over 800 moorings and a range of marine-related businesses that operate in premises in the renovated arches under Royal Parade. The town caters for students of EFL (English as a foreign language) at its colleges.
Although Ramsgate has the most valuable fish landings in Kent (~£700,000 in 2003), the fishing industry is in decline.
Port of Ramsgate has provided cross channel ferries for many years. Previously Sally Ferries UK provided a service of passenger and car ferries to Dunkirk. Currently a service of freight and car is provided to Oostende
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
by the company Transeuropa Ferries
Transeuropa Ferries
TransEuropa Ferries operates a ferry service between Ramsgate, Kent, UK and Ostend, West Flanders, Belgium. TransEuropa Ferries n.v. is the cross channel satellite arm of TransEuropa Shipping Lines d.o.o. of Slovenia....
.
Unemployment for Thanet is higher (4.1%) than the national average (2.5%).
There is some light industry in the town. An emerging industry is power generation, with 800 jobs expected to be created by the Thanet offshore wind project
Thanet Offshore Wind Project
The Thanet Wind Farm is an offshore wind farm off the coast of Thanet district in Kent, England. As of September 2010, it is the world's biggest offshore windfarm. It has a nameplate capacity of 300 MW and it cost £780-900 million...
, a wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
just off the coast.
Ramsgate Market is held in High Street, King Street and Queen Street every Friday and Saturday between 8a.m. and 4p.m.
Demographics
| Ramsgate Compared | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 UK Census United Kingdom Census 2001 A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194.... |
Ramsgate | Thanet District | England |
| Total population | 39,639 | 126,702 | 49,138,831 |
| Foreign born | 4.4% | 5.1% | 9.2% |
| White | 98% | 98% | 91% |
| Asian | 0.7% | 0.6% | 4.6% |
| Black | 0.3% | 0.3% | 2.3% |
| Christian | 72% | 74% | 72% |
| Muslim | 0.3% | 0.5% | 3.1% |
| Hindu | 0.1% | 0.2% | 1.1% |
| No religion | 18% | 16% | 15% |
| Over 65 years old | 18% | 22% | 16% |
As of the 2001 UK census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, Ramsgate had a population of 39,639.
The ethnicity of the town was 98.0% white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
, 0.8% mixed race, 0.3% black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
, 0.3% Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
, 0.4% other Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n and 0.1% other ethnicity.
The place of birth of residents was 95.6% United Kingdom, 0.7% Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, 0.6% Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, 0.6% other Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
countries, 0.3% Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
, 0.6% Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
, 0.5% Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, 0.3% North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, 0.3% South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
, 0.2% Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, 0.2% Oceania
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
and 0.1% South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
Religion was recorded as 71.6% Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, 0.3% Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
, 0.1% Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
, 0.3% Buddhist, 0.1% Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
and 0.1% Jewish. 17.9% were recorded as having no religion, 0.3% had an alternative religion and 7.1% didn't state their religion.
For every 100 females, there were 91.2 males. The age distribution was 6% aged 0–4 years, 16% aged 5–15 years, 5% aged 16–19 years, 31% aged 20–44 years, 24% aged 45–64 years and 18% aged 65 years and over.
Tourism
Blue Flag beach
The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education that a beach or marina meets its stringent standards.The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE which is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organisation consisting of 65 organisations in 60 member countries in Europe,...
. The water quality, tested in 2007, passed the legal minimum, mandatory standard.
The local council publishes a website specifically aimed at tourists visiting Ramsgate and neighbouring towns.
The previous prime seafront site which was Ramsgate pleasure park is currently undergoing major redevelopment.
Ramsgate has developed a continental cafe style culture with bars and restaurants on its seafront parade.
There is an annual Powerboat Grand Prix
F1 Powerboat Racing
F1 Powerboat World Championship is a competition of powerboats with rules similar to Formula One car racing. Each F1 powerboat race lasts approximately 45 minutes following a circuit marked out in a selected stretch of water, usually a lake, river, or sheltered bay.Qualifying periods decide the...
event based out of the harbour of Ramsgate during the summer. Ramsgate carnival is an annual parade also during the summer. Other events include the annual Addington Street Fair and the French Market.
Sports
Thanet Wanderers is the island's only rugby team, which has enjoyed recent success at London Division 1 level and achieved its best result in defeating Doncaster at Twickenham in the final of the intermediate cup in 1997. The club runs five senior sides and many junior teams. The sides play at St Peters. Ramsgate's main football club, Ramsgate F.C.Ramsgate F.C.
Ramsgate Football Club are a football team based in Ramsgate, Kent. Having played for many years in the Kent League, they have been promoted for two consecutive seasons and spent the 2006-07 to 2008-09 seasons in the Isthmian League Premier Division....
, plays in the Isthmian League Premier Division. The main local rivals of the club are Margate F.C.
Margate F.C.
Margate Football Club is an English football team based in the seaside resort of Margate, Kent, currently playing in the Isthmian League Premier Division. The club was known for a number of years during the 1980s as Thanet United....
who are situated 4 miles away. When the two teams meet, it is known as the Thanet derby
Thanet derby
The Thanet derby is the name given to football matches between Margate and Ramsgate , the two senior non-league teams located on the Isle of Thanet...
. Ramsgate have achieved The FA’s Charter Standard "Development" award. Ramsgate also run a Reserves Team which plays in Kent Football League Second Division, a women's team which plays in South East Counties Women's League Kent County Division.
Ramsgate F.C. also run five main youth teams, under-13 to under-18 all feature in the Valley Express Kent Youth League and also run Ramsgate Youth U7 to U16 who play in The Molten East Kent Youth League; two other popular youth teams who are based in Ramsgate are Trinity & Hugin Vikings both also play in The Molten East Kent Youth League.
Thanet Galaxy is a Pan Disability Football Club. They provide structured coaching for male and female footballers of all ages who qualify within the nationally and internationally recognised Pan Disability categories they Train at Chatham House Grammer School and play in Kent Disability Football League, They play and train in three age bands: U-11, U-16, 16+. In their first season, 2008/2009, the Adult A Team won the Kent Disability League Adult Championship.
Ramsgate's sports facilities include a public swimming pool, a fitness centre with gym and sports hall. Tennis clubs can be found at Spencer square and St. Laurence. Ramsgate has three golf clubs: St. Augustines, Stonelees, and Manston. Being a harbour town, there is also a sailing club - The Royal Temple Yacht Club. The Royal Temple Yacht Club is steeped in yacht racing history, and hosts racing throughout the year for a variety of historic trophies. The highlight of the season is the annual international sailing regatta - 'Ramsgate Week', usually held in August.
Arts and local media
The Gallery IOTA (Isle Of Thanet Arts) was based on the towns west cliff but is now on the harbour front.Ramsgate Maritime Museum
Ramsgate Maritime Museum
The Ramsgate Maritime Museum is a maritime museum in Ramsgate, Kent, England that describes the maritime history of East Kent. The museum is situated in the Clock House on the quayside of Ramsgate harbour....
near the harbour quayside has exhibits showing the evolution of Ramsgate Harbour and East Kent maritime history. Ramsgate's sole cinema and theatre is the Granville Cinema
Granville Cinema
The Granville Cinema is located in the Granville Theatre complex located in Victoria Parade, Ramsgate, Kent, and is the town's sole multi-purpose entertainment venue. It has two large cinemas screens, Dolby surround sound, lounge seats and free parking....
, situated on Victoria Parade, in the town's Eastcliff area.
Ramsgate has two paid for newspapers, the Isle of Thanet Gazette and Thanet Times which are owned by Northcliffe Media
Northcliffe Media
Northcliffe Media Ltd. is a large regional newspaper publisher in the UK and Central and Eastern Europe, owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. The company's name was changed to Northcliffe Media from Northcliffe Newspaper Group in 2007.It operates from over 30 publishing centres, and also...
. Free newspapers for the town include the Thanet Extra, part of the KM Group
KM Group
The KM Group, formerly known as the Kent Messenger Group until 2008, is a multimedia company based in the county of Kent in South East England...
; and yourthanet, part of KOS Media
KOS Media
KOS Media is a multimedia company based in the county of Kent in South East England. The company operates local newspapers and internet sites throughout the county.-History:...
.
Local radio stations are KMFM Thanet
KMFM Thanet
KMFM Thanet is an Independent Local Radio serving the Isle of Thanet and the surrounding areas in Kent, South East England. It is part of the KMFM group of radio stations in the county, which are part of the KM Group.-History:...
, owned by the KM Group, community radio
Community radio
Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...
station Academy FM (Thanet)
Academy FM (Thanet)
107.8 Academy FM is a non commercial community 24 hour local radio station based in Ramsgate, Kent and serving the Isle of Thanet. It launched on 5 April 2010, Easter Monday.107.8 Academy FM is based within The Marlowe Academy,Ramsgate...
; and the county-wide stations Heart Kent, Gold and BBC Radio Kent
BBC Radio Kent
BBC Radio Kent is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Kent.It broadcasts on FM on 96.7 , 97.6 and 104.2 also 774 and 1602 MW and DAB.- History :The radio station was launched in 1970 under the name of BBC Radio Medway, originally only serving the...
. Thanet
Thanet
Thanet is a local government district of Kent, England which was formed under the Local Government Act 1972, and came into being on 1 April 1974...
Community Radio (TCR offer an online arts and features based service for Thanet District and the surrounding area where people can listen to pod-casts of local interest. The service works closely with Dover district based Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
Community Radio.
Landmarks
The HuginHugin (longship)
The Hugin is a reconstructed Viking longship that is located at Pegwell Bay in Ramsgate, Kent, England. The boat was built in Denmark from where it was sailed by 53 Danes to England in 1949. The ship landed at Viking Bay in Kent, before being moved to its current site...
is a reconstructed Viking longship located at Pegwell Bay in Ramsgate. It was a gift from the Danish government in commemoration of the 1500th anniversary of the arrival of Hengist and Horsa to the country in 449.
Architecture
Many buildings in Ramsgate are of RegencyRegency architecture
The Regency style of architecture refers primarily to buildings built in Britain during the period in the early 19th century when George IV was Prince Regent, and also to later buildings following the same style...
and Victorian architecture
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
. There are 900 listed buildings in the town with more than 200 surrounding the Marina.
The town has three notable churches.
The first building used for worship in the Thanet parish of 'St Lawrence' was at St Laurence-in-Thanet, built in 1062 and rebuilt during the following centuries with the most significant changes being in the 16th century. Note the difference in spelling between that of the Village of St Lawrence and the church, which is dedicated to the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
Martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
, Laurence
Laurence
Laurence is an English male given name and surname. A female given name with identical spelling exists in French.In all cases it is derived from the Roman given name, Laurentius, which can mean either "from Laurentum" or "wreathed/crowned with laurel".-Given name:*Laurence Fishburne, American...
.
The second notable church is St Augustine's, which is situated on the town's westcliff. Considered one of the most August and distinct surviving it was designed by Augustus Pugin
Augustus Pugin
Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin was an English architect, designer, and theorist of design, now best remembered for his work in the Gothic Revival style, particularly churches and the Palace of Westminster. Pugin was the father of E. W...
in 1847 in the neo-Gothic style. Its dedication commemorates Augustine
Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
, the first Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, who landed at Ramsgate in AD 596 and brought Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
to Britain.
Thirdly, the town's Parish Church of St George is situated just off the town's High Street. Its lantern tower was added at the request of Trinity House
Trinity House
The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
as a navigational aid to passing ships and looks over the town. The ground was consecrated on 23 October 1827.
St Augustine' serves its own abbey and the town's Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
community, whilst St Laurence and St George are both Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, and serve the Anglican community as part of the Diocese of Canterbury
Diocese of Canterbury
The Diocese of Canterbury is a Church of England diocese covering eastern Kent, founded by St. Augustine of Canterbury in 597. It is centred on Canterbury Cathedral, and is the oldest see of the Church of England....
. Christ Church http://www.christchurchramsgate.co.uk built in 1847 also serves the Anglican community.
Ramsgate library was originally built and paid for by Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
in 1904. On the evening of Friday 13 August 2004 a fire destroyed Ramsgate library just two months short of its 100th anniversary. Though suspicions were raised as to what started the fire due to a similarly timed fire at the towns registry office, an investigation concluded that the blaze was too intense to pinpoint where and how the fire started.
Shortly after the blaze, planning permission was granted for a new library. The library has now been fully restored, and was officially re-opened on 20 February 2009. http://www.ramsgate-society.org.uk/library-news.html
By sea
The Port of Ramsgate has a 700 berth marinaMarina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
, Royal Harbour Marina, and a ferry terminal built on reclaimed land. The harbour provides shelter from the effect of storms. The Goodwin Sands
Goodwin Sands
The Goodwin Sands is a 10-mile-long sand bank in the English Channel, lying six miles east off Deal in Kent, England. The Brake Bank lying shorewards is part of the same geological unit. As the shoals lie close to major shipping channels, more than 2,000 ships are believed to have been wrecked...
are nearby. In 2005, the marina had 12,000 visiting boats. Transeuropa Ferries
Transeuropa Ferries
TransEuropa Ferries operates a ferry service between Ramsgate, Kent, UK and Ostend, West Flanders, Belgium. TransEuropa Ferries n.v. is the cross channel satellite arm of TransEuropa Shipping Lines d.o.o. of Slovenia....
passenger (with vehicle only) and freight ferries now sail to the Port of Ostend
Port of Ostend
The port of Ostend is situated in Ostend, West Flanders . The port is mainly known as a ferry port. Freight, and recently also passenger transport between Ostend and Ramsgate is provided by Transeuropa Ferries...
in Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The Port of Ramsgate has its own road access tunnel from outside of the town, avoiding town centre congestion. The RNLI Ramsgate Lifeboat Station
Ramsgate lifeboat station
Ramsgate lifeboat station is an RNLI station located in the Port of Ramsgate in the English county of Kent. The station is one of the oldest to operate in the British Isles and has launched to many notable services...
is based in Ramsgate Harbour.
By road
Ramsgate is connected to the national road network primarily through the A299A299 road
The A299, better known as the Thanet Way, is a major road in the county of Kent, England, and runs from Brenley Corner near Faversham to Ramsgate via Whitstable and Herne Bay. It is predominantly used for freight traffic to Ramsgate Harbour and local traffic to Thanet.Most of the A299 was...
Thanet Way which continues onto the M2/A2
A2 road (Great Britain)
The A2 is a major road in southern England, connecting London with the English Channel port of Dover in Kent. This route has always been of importance as a connection between the British capital of London and sea trade routes to Continental Europe...
for the M25
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
(approx 1 hour) and London. The A256
A256 road
The A256 is a key road running north-south through East Kent which connects the Thanet towns to Dover.- Thanet :The road begins in the outskirts of the Thanet town of Broadstairs, at a roundabout with the A255 where it heads westwards through the Westwood Retail Parks via "Westwood Road".The A256...
provides a link to Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
and onwards onto the A20 for the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
.
Bus services are provided by Stagecoachbus' "Thanet Loop" scheme.
By rail
Ramsgate railway stationRamsgate railway station
Ramsgate railway station serves the town of Ramsgate in Thanet in Kent, England, and is located about 10 minutes away on foot from the town centre. The station lies on the Chatham Main Line 127 km east of London Victoria, the Kent Coast Line, and the Ashford to Ramsgate line...
is situated at the top of the town near the parish of St Lawrence.
A new high-speed service to London started in December 2009, running on High Speed 1 (HS1), the UK’s first high speed rail line, between London’s St. Pancras station and Kent. The journey time from Ramsgate to the new St. Pancras terminal, with excellent transport links, is 1 hour and 16 minutes.
Other trains run from Ramsgate to London Charing Cross
Charing Cross railway station
Charing Cross railway station, also known as London Charing Cross, is a central London railway terminus in the City of Westminster, England. It is one of 18 stations managed by Network Rail, and trains serving it are operated by Southeastern...
and London Victoria
Victoria station (London)
Victoria station, also known as London Victoria, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. It is named after nearby Victoria Street and not Queen Victoria. It is the second busiest railway terminus in London after Waterloo, and includes an air terminal for passengers...
. Commuting time to the capital on these lines is approximately 1 hour 50 minutes.
Trains from Ramsgate pass via Margate
Margate railway station
Margate railway station serves the town of Margate in Thanet in Kent, England. Train services are provided by Southeastern.Trains from the station generally run to London Victoria via , or to via Ramsgate, Canterbury West and Ashford International...
, Chatham
Chatham railway station
Chatham railway station is situated in Chatham, one of the Medway Towns in Kent, England. It is on the Chatham Main Line between Rochester and Gillingham, and is 34.3 miles from London Victoria...
and Bromley South
Bromley South railway station
Bromley South railway station is a major interchange and station in Bromley town centre within the London Borough of Bromley in southeast London. It is in Travelcard Zone 5, and the station and all trains are operated by Southeastern...
, or via Canterbury West
Canterbury West railway station
Canterbury West railway station is one of two stations in Canterbury in Kent. It is north-northwest of the city centre. It is served by Southeastern....
or Dover Priory
Dover Priory railway station
Dover Priory railway station is the main station in Dover in Kent, with the other station being Kearsney situated on the outskirts of Dover. . All train services are provided by Southeastern...
and Ashford International
Ashford International railway station
Ashford International railway station serves Ashford in Kent, England. Services are provided by Southeastern, Southern and Eurostar.International services use platforms 3 & 4, whilst domestic trains use the original platforms 1 & 2, and a new island built when the Channel Tunnel opened...
. Ramsgate railway station is operated by Southeastern
Southeastern (train operating company)
London & South Eastern Railway Limited, trading as Southeastern is a train operating company in south-east England. On 1 April 2006 it became the franchisee for the new Integrated Kent Franchise , replacing the publicly owned South Eastern Trains on the former South East Franchise...
.
By air
A municipal airport was opened on 1 July 1935, operating until the Second World War broke out in 1939. Following a short spell as a satellite of RAF ManstonRAF Manston
RAF Manston was an RAF station in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site is now split between a commercial airport Kent International Airport and a continuing military use by the Defence Fire Training and Development Centre , following on from a long...
, it closed in 1940. The airport was re-opened in 1952 and operated until closure in 1968.
The town is situated directly under the flight path of Kent International Airport
Kent International Airport
Manston - Kent's International Airport is an airport located at Manston in the District of Thanet within Kent, England, northeast of Canterbury. It was formerly called RAF Manston , and was also known as London Manston Airport...
at Manston
Manston, Kent
Manston is a village and civil parish in the Thanet district of Kent, England. The village is situated one mile north-west of Ramsgate. The parish includes four hamlets and Kent International Airport.-Etymology:...
. From September 2004 to August 2005 a low-cost airline EUjet
EUjet
EUjet was a low-cost airline based at Shannon Airport, Ireland. It operated a network of services from its main base at Shannon Airport , with a hub at Kent International Airport , Manston, Kent, UK. The airline was sold to a British company, PlaneStation, which also owned Kent airport, for €10m...
operated frequent flights to many European destinations, replacing a large freight operator. However, flights were suspended after the collapse of its parent company, PlaneStation Group plc.
Manston was sold to Infratil
Infratil
Infratil Limited is a New Zealand-based infrastructure investment company. It owns several airports, electricity generators and retailers, and a public transport business, with operations in New Zealand, Australia and Europe. Infratil was founded by Lloyd Morrison, a Wellington-based merchant...
(owner of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport
Glasgow Prestwick International Airport
Glasgow Prestwick Airport is an international airport serving the Greater Glasgow urban area, situated northeast of the town of Prestwick in South Ayrshire and 32 miles from the city centre of Glasgow....
) on 26 August 2005. As of , Flybe
Flybe
Flybe Group PLC is a British low-cost regional airline headquartered at the Jack Walker House at Exeter International Airport in Devon, England...
operates flights from the airport to Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
and is regularly used by freight operators such as Cargolux and Meridian.
Education
- Dame Janet Infant School
- Ellington Infants School
- Priory Infants School
Junior schools
- Christ Church C Of E Junior School
- Dame Janet Junior School
- St Ethelbert's R C Junior Mixed & Infants School
- St Laurence-in-Thanet CE Junior School
Primary schools
- Newington Community Primary School.
- Newlands Primary School
- Chilton County Primary School
Secondary schools
- Chatham House Grammar SchoolChatham House Grammar SchoolChatham House Grammar School, often abbreviated to "Chatham House" is a grammar school in Ramsgate, Kent, England, founded in 1797 as a private boy's boarding school by William Humble, under the name Humbles Boys' School...
- Clarendon House Grammar SchoolClarendon House Grammar SchoolClarendon House Grammar School, or simply "Clarendon" is a grammar school for girls in Ramsgate, Kent, opened in 1905. The school was granted specialist language school status in September 2004.-Relations with Chatham House:...
- Ellington High School
- The Marlowe Academy
- St Lawrence CollegeSt. Lawrence College, RamsgateSt. Lawrence College is a co-educational independent school situated in the town of Ramsgate in Kent.- History :It was founded in 1879, known as South Eastern College. The school rapidly outgrew the single house, leading to the main building of the present day college by 1884. The chapel was...
The Marlowe academy failed the 30% GCSE target.
Colleges and further education
- Ramsgate's nearest college is Thanet CollegeThanet CollegeThanet College is a further education college located on the Isle of Thanet in Broadstairs, Kent on the southeast coast of the United Kingdom.The main campus is located on Ramsgate Road, Broadstairs...
. This is situated in the nearby town of BroadstairsBroadstairsBroadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about south-east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St. Peter's and had a population in 2001 of about 24,000. Situated between Margate and...
. There is also a campus for Canterbury Christ Church UniversityCanterbury Christ Church UniversityCanterbury Christ Church University is a university in Canterbury, Kent, England. Founded as a Church of England college for teaching training it has grown to full university status and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2012. The focus of its work is in the education of people going into...
which is situated in Broadstairs which is within very easy reach of Ramsgate.
Affiliations
Twin cities/towns: - Conflans-Sainte-HonorineConflans-Sainte-Honorine
Conflans-Sainte-Honorine is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the north-western suburbs of Paris from the center....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- Chimay
Chimay
Chimay a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. On January 1, 2006, Chimay had a total population of 9,774. The total area is 197.10 km² which gives a population density of 50 inhabitants per km²...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
- Frederikssund
Frederikssund
Frederikssund Kommune is a municipality on the shores of Roskilde Fjord in the northern part of the island of Zealand in eastern Denmark. On 1 January 2007, the municipality was enlarged to include the old Jægerspris, Slangerup, and Skibby municipalities. It now covers an area of 260 km² and...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
See also
These are internal links associated with Ramsgate- History of RamsgateHistory of RamsgateRamsgate as a name has its earliest reference as Hraefn's ate, or cliff gap, later to be rendered 'Ramisgate' or 'Remmesgate' around 1225 and 'Ramesgate' from 1357.-Electric Tramways & Lighting Co. Ltd.:...
-
-
- Historic buildings in RamsgateHistoric buildings in Ramsgate-Churches:The town has three notable churches. St Augustine's serves its own abbey and the town's Catholic community, whilst St Laurence and St George are both Church of England, and serve the Anglican community as part of the Diocese of Canterbury....
-
- The Grange, RamsgateThe Grange, RamsgateThe Grange in Ramsgate, Kent, on the coast in southern England was the home of the Victorian architect and designer August Pugin. It was designed by him in the Victorian Gothic style....
Home of the Victorian architect and designer August Pugin. - Montefiore SynagogueMontefiore synagogueThe Montefiore Synagogue was the private synagogue of Sir Moses Montefiore. It is an 1833, Grade II* listed building in Ramsgate, Kent, England.-History:The synagogue was in the European tradition of great men having private chapels on their estates...
Private synagogue of Sir Moses MontefioreMoses MontefioreSir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, Kt was one of the most famous British Jews of the 19th century. Montefiore was a financier, banker, philanthropist and Sheriff of London...
. - Townley House Queen Victoria used to stay here on summer holidays as a child.
- Chatham House Grammar SchoolChatham House Grammar SchoolChatham House Grammar School, often abbreviated to "Chatham House" is a grammar school in Ramsgate, Kent, England, founded in 1797 as a private boy's boarding school by William Humble, under the name Humbles Boys' School...
Founded in 1797 as a boarding school by William Humble- Port of Ramsgate
- The Grange, Ramsgate
- Ramsgate Maritime MuseumRamsgate Maritime MuseumThe Ramsgate Maritime Museum is a maritime museum in Ramsgate, Kent, England that describes the maritime history of East Kent. The museum is situated in the Clock House on the quayside of Ramsgate harbour....
Situated in the Clock House in Ramsgate harbour.
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- ST Cervia (1946 Tugboat)ST Cervia (1946 Tugboat)ST Cervia was built in 1946 as a sea going tug for use as a fleet auxiliary by Alexandra Hall & Company Ltd of Aberdeen, Scotland. Today she is a floating Museum still undergoing restoration in Ramsgate, Kent.-Design and construction:...
The Steam Tug (ST) Cervia was originally named Empire Raymond. - Sundowner (yacht)Sundowner (yacht)Sundowner is a motor yacht, formerly owned by Charles Lightoller, 2nd Officer of . One of the "little ships", she participated in the Dunkirk evacuation, and is now a museum ship at the Ramsgate Maritime Museum in Southern England.-Construction:...
Motor yacht owned by Charles LightollerCharles LightollerCommander Charles Herbert Lightoller DSC & Bar, RD, RNR was the second mate on board the , and the most senior officer to survive the disaster...
, 2nd Officer of RMS Titanic.
- ST Cervia (1946 Tugboat)
- Ramsgate lifeboat stationRamsgate lifeboat stationRamsgate lifeboat station is an RNLI station located in the Port of Ramsgate in the English county of Kent. The station is one of the oldest to operate in the British Isles and has launched to many notable services...
Provides an inshore boat and an offshore boat.- Ramsgate railway stationRamsgate railway stationRamsgate railway station serves the town of Ramsgate in Thanet in Kent, England, and is located about 10 minutes away on foot from the town centre. The station lies on the Chatham Main Line 127 km east of London Victoria, the Kent Coast Line, and the Ashford to Ramsgate line...
- Ramsgate railway station
- Ramsgate Harbour railway stationRamsgate Harbour railway stationRamsgate Harbour railway station is a former railway station in Ramsgate, in the Thanet district of Kent, England. Opened in 1863 as part of the Kent Coast Railway company's extension of its line from Herne Bay, it was conveniently situated for the seaside resort's beach, but it closed in 1926...
- Ramsgate Town railway stationRamsgate Town railway stationRamsgate Town railway station is a former railway station in Ramsgate, in the Thanet district of Kent, England. It was the seaside resort's first station, but was closed in 1926 when a new, more direct railway line bypassed it and the town's other station, Ramsgate Harbour.-History:Ramsgate...
- Ramsgate Cliff Railway
- Ramsgate F.C.Ramsgate F.C.Ramsgate Football Club are a football team based in Ramsgate, Kent. Having played for many years in the Kent League, they have been promoted for two consecutive seasons and spent the 2006-07 to 2008-09 seasons in the Isthmian League Premier Division....
Football team based in Ramsgate. - List of people from Thanet#Ramsgate
- Ramsgate F.C.
- Historic buildings in Ramsgate
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