Borough of Maidstone the February 2017 the council has 23 Conservative, 22 Liberal Democrat, 4 UKIP, 4 independent and 2 Labour party councillors. The council is based in the town centre having replaced its many small offices with one large building called Maidstone Gateway. The shopfront appearance is intended to make it easier to access information and services. The third tier of local government is the civil parish; in Maidstone some of the parishes have a neither a parish council or a parish meeting, as indicated (1) : The River Medway was the earliest form of transport through the area. It was navigable
History of Rochester, Kent crossing the river near Maidstone thus provoking the Battle of Maidstone. By the time Fairfax approached Rochester Lord Norwich had marched off towards London, and Rochester itself was spared a battle. The bridge did not get off as lightly as the town however, the retreating Royalists destroyed the drawbridge section of the bridge and threw the planks into the river. In another contrasting pair of events, Rochester houses saw one king restored and another abdicate. Sir Francis Clarke entertained King Charles II on the eve of his restoration to the throne on 20 May 1660. Following this, his home in