Essex
Art, History & Archaeology Sites & Museums

Named for the kingdom of the East Saxons, Essex has a lengthy history. A comparative absence of ready stone means that Essex lacks the megalithic structures found in certain other parts of England, but evidence of late prehistoric activity can still be found at Lexden Earthworks and at Ambresbury Banks and Loughton Camp, both in Epping Forest. After the early medieval East Saxon kingdom was absorbed into what became the unified English state, Essex became home to a number of significant medieval structures, including Colchester Castle, which had the largest Norman keep in England, and Saint Botolph’s Priory, the country’s first Augustinian convent. Encompassing the northern half of the Thames Estuary, Essex played an important role in the country’s defence, for this reason becoming home to the Tilbury Fort, an artillery fortification established in the reign of King Henry VIII which remained active until the 19th century.