Broomfield, Maidstone Broomfield, Maidstone Broomfield is a village in the Maidstone District of Kent, England, and forms part of the civil parish of Broomfield and Kingswood. It lies to the east of Maidstone. The village is located just upstream of Leeds Castle on the River Len, one of the tributaries of the River Medway. The parish church is dedicated to Saint Margaret. In the 16th and 17th centuries Broomfield was home to the first two generations of the Hatch family of bellfounders, who lived in the farmhouse at Roses Farm. Their output included the bell known as "Bell Harry", after which the
HMS Maidstone (1937) the land, entry to the jetty being guarded by sand-bagged army emplacements. "Maidstone" was also notable for a successful escape by seven Provisional IRA members on 17January 1972. The men swam close to through icy water and evaded army and police only to later hold a press conference. On 23 May 1978 "Maidstone" was broken up for scrap at the Thos W Ward scrapyard in Inverkeithing. HMS Maidstone (1937) HMS "Maidstone" was a submarine depot ship of the Royal Navy. She was built to support the increasing numbers of submarines, especially on distant stations, such as the Mediterranean and the