Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. The county town is Maidstone. The city of Canterbury and Rochester (which was a city
until 1998) have cathedrals.
The county has borders with East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London, and a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames estuary. The area has always had close transport links with Europe through its ports and since 1994 through the Channel Tunnel, it has a nominal border with France halfway along the tunnel.
Kent is known as the "Garden of England" because of its agricultural influence, extensive orchards and hop-gardens. Distinctive oast houses
are common in the countryside, although many have been converted into residential dwellings.