What makes for an influential figure in the county’s history? Is it power-wielded, culture significance or were they propelled there through sheer innovation?

The debate could rage on for hours but in this non-exhaustive list, we take a look at just a few of the people who have had a significant role in shaping Kent. Some will be familiar to you – others not so. But all have played a major part in making the county what it is today.

Nigel Farage

Love him or loathe him, there is a strong argument to say that Nigel Farage has been the single most influential figure in British politics of the 21st century so far. Which is impressive given he’s never held a position in government or, for that matter, even served as an MP.

Yet his relentless banging of the anti-EU drum changed our nation significantly. It stirred in a section of society the same sensations that Trump brought to parts of disaffected America; that suddenly they had a voice on the wider political stage.

For better or for worse, he engaged those people and got them to the polls to make a stand against the established parties. Whether it was a vote for UKIP or the Brexit Party, his image as a beer-drinking, fag-smoking, charismatic everyman meant he could not be ignored. Like Trump, his ‘man of the people’ persona disguised a privileged upbringing and former life as a City trader; far removed from most. Like Trump again, it didn’t matter and he rode a wave of popularity.

He may have been usurped as the ‘face of Brexit’ by the Johnny-come-lately figure of Boris Johnson to the EU-bashing ranks, but it was Farage who ensured the topic was centre-stage; building on a, pre-dominately, right-wing movement which had long campaigned to get us out of the European Union.

The result was, of course, Brexit – a vote won by the narrowest of margins in 2016. It divided – and in a diminishing way, still divides – the nation. Whether you think it was a good or bad thing, the impact it has had on Kent has been significant. Pick and choose your headlines depending on your political leaning.

His rhetoric has seen him termed ‘far-right’ by many and critics will say he has done more than most to stoke the fires of antagonism towards those arriving by small boats; an issue for which Kent finds itself on the frontlines.

Divisive he most certainly remains.

Edward Betts

Who is he? I hear you ask. Well, if you’ve travelled on a train in the county, the chances are you may have had him to thank.

It’s easy to forget in today’s modern era that once upon a time the railways were a new and exciting mode of transport. In an era before cars, transport options were relatively limited – the stagecoach being one of the key ways of getting from A to B.

Born in Dover in 1815, Edward Betts was the son of a railway contractor. He followed his father into the industry – learning his trade as an engineer under the likes of ‘Father of the Railways’ George Stephenson.

After successfully working on a host of projects in the north of England, he teamed up with Samuel Peto and the two formed one of the railway industry’s most successful, at the time, companies.

They worked on projects around the world – overseeing schemes in Denmark, Canada, Argentina and Russia. He was even involved in the building of railway lines during the Crimean war, linking the British base to the frontline.

In Kent, they built the Tunbridge Wells to Robertsbridge; Maidstone to Strood; Faversham to Whitstable; Maidstone to Ashford; and Gravesend to Chatham lines as well as many others.

As a sign of his success, he lived in Preston Hall in Aylesford (he even built Aylesford station nearby to allow him easy access to it) – a huge sprawling estate which saw him demolish the previous house and build a new one in Jacobean style which continues to stand today.

However, the financial crisis of 1866 brought his empire to an abrupt end and it fell into insolvency.

Ill health in late 1871 saw his doctors advise he travel to Egypt for the winter. He would not return, dying in Aswan in January 1872. He is buried in Aylesford, although his legacy lives on.

Mick Jagger

When, on October 17, 1961, an 18-year-old Mick Jagger bumped into an old primary school classmate at Dartford station, neither could have imagined they would still be on board the rock ‘n’ roll train more than 60 years later.

But that fateful meeting with a then 17-years-old Keith Richard would bring together a duo who would go on to re-write music history.

The Rolling Stones took the blues, blended it with the emerging rock ‘n’ roll sound emerging from the US and produced an edgier sound to their main rivals during the 1960s – The Beatles.

At their heart was the songwriting combination of Jagger and Richards.

Yet while The Beatles disintegrated as the Swinging Sixties faded into the Seventies, the Stones just kept on rolling...and rolling.

Band members have come and gone – the group’s founder Brian Jones drowned; Bill Wyman quit in the 1993 and drummer Charlie Watts died in 2021 – but the band continues to this day to tour the world and sell out stadiums.

In fact they were the sixth highest grossing live act in 2022 in what was the 60th anniversary of their formation. In 2021 they were number one. No mean feat given that Jagger turns 80 in July.

They are one of the biggest selling bands of all time with an estimated over 200 million albums sold worldwide; they have inspired numerous bands over the decades and come to define rock for generations. Culturally, it’s hard to argue with their significant influence and Jagger, as their talismanic frontman, is the force of nature which spearheads them.

Henry VIII

Every monarch has an influence on the county – from the years when they issued edicts from on high to the community celebrations which have taken place in more recent times.

But the impact of Henry VIII remains visible today – primarily through the ornate buildings he invested heavily in and which today are key parts of the tapestry of our rich tourism industry.

And given the sector today brings in more than £2.6 billion into the local economy and provides jobs for thousands of people, the county has a lot to thank perhaps the most famous monarch of all time for.

He cherished the likes of Leeds Castle, Hever Castle, Penshurst Place and once owned the likes of Rochester and Dover castles. He also built the fortresses at Deal and Walmer to protect the nation against the threat of invading forces.

Reigning for much of the first half of the 16th century, he remains a favourite of history lessons courtesy of his succession of wives in pursuit of a male heir (he worked through six, the fate of which is captured in the rhyme ‘divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived’) and larger than life character.

Not to mention, of course, the fact that by splitting from the Catholic Church and creating the Church of England in order to allow him to remarry, he changed the face of religion and saw the disolution of the many monastries which were scattered across the county as well as making the Archbishop of Canterbury the head of the Church.

Emperor Claudius

There’s a famous – and countlessly repeated – scene in Monty Python’s Life of Brian in which the question of ‘what did the Romans ever do for us’ get asked by the gathered ranks of rebellious movement the People’s Front of Judea.

Well, the same question – and many answers – could be asked right here in Kent. It’s easy to think the Roman invasion at Richborough in AD43 – led by Emperor Claudius - is something so far back as to have little or no revelance to this technology-dominated age we live in.

Firstly, there’s a good chance you’ve travelled on one of their most significant relics. While they certainly didn’t create the concept of roads, they did understand the need for long, straight and paved routes to get their soldiers from one outpost to the next.

Watling Street was perhaps the most significant. It linked the Roman forts at Richborough, Reculver, Lympne and Dover with a single route that led to London and beyond.

The Lympne arm is now better known as Stone Street.

In fact, the A2 from Dover to London pretty much follows its path. If you’re on a long, straight stretch of road, there’s a decent chance the Romans are to thank as they wanted to get from A to B as directly as the geography would allow.

They played no small role in the developing of industry too. Ragstone mined from quarries near Maidstone were used to build much of London.

Latin became a key language – an influence which would sculpt the English language as we know it today.

And let’s not forget the basic framework of society which we still adhere to today. They introduced Christianity to a previously pagan population. Where once there were disparate tribes across the country, the Romans carved out areas where the old timber homes were replaced with sturdy stone and timber.

We could go...suffice to say their 400 year stay in the county has left a footprint still very visible today. Granted, Emperor Claudius didn’t rule for much of that time, but he was the one who started what previous efforts by predecessor Julius Caesar had only attempted; taming us Brits.

Adolph Hitler

Now, before you give a knee-jerk reaction, the leader of Nazi Germany certainly didn’t influence Kent for the better. Yet influence he most certainly did.

As the commander-in-chief of the German war machine during the Second World War, it was upon his command that bombing raids took place across the country. And with Kent containing both strategic positions and being the land between key target London and the Channel, it was left badly scarred during the conflict.

Historic buildings were destroyed, towns and communities forever reshaped, families forever mourning.

Build back the county most definitely did, but homes and businesses which had stood for years were, along with precious landmarks, were turned into rubble.

From the railway works at Ashford to Canterbury city centre, the paper works in Gravesend to a cinema in Margate, across the county bombs destroyed industrial hubs, roads and the horizon people were so familiar with.

Today, the relics of war on Kent can still be seen – from the numerous memorials to the remains of buildings left standing as a permanent reminder to the attrocities.

Yes, Winston Churchill was pivotal in preventing an invasion...but it was Hitler who did all the damage.