Welcome to the town page for Maidstone. Explore your town map to discover people who lived in your town during the First World War.

Don’t forget to visit the 100 MILES page for the Trail information and downloadable leaflet, booklet, walking directions and quiz.

Situated on the River Medway as a fording point Maidstone had a rich and varied history, it has also had an army barracks since the Napoleonic times. At the outbreak of the First World War Maidstone was the headquarters of the Home Counties Division and on August 14th 1914 the paper reported that there were 2,000 Territorials in Maidstone waiting to be sent to their war stations. The regimental depot for the West Kent Yeomanry was in Union Street and men were encouraged to enlist directly there, a regular site would have been the troops marching along the High Street.

In August 1914 there were a number of exercises testing the troops readiness, with alarms being sounded whilst the troops were off duty – they caused quite a disturbance as they rushed back to their stations and then marched out of the town – and when they returned to the town at 5a.m. the residents were woken up again.

Equipment for the men about to serve overseas was in short supply and in 1915 there was an appeal to all of Kent public to send contributions to the Kent Territorial Force in Union Street Maidstone.

The Tilling- Stevens Factory became controlled by the Ministry of Munitions making engines and lorries for the Army.

VAD hospitals mobilised in October 1914 included Howard- le- Warden Institute and Hayle Place with several local women giving their time in a variety of roles such as housekeeping, cooking as well as nursing. Preston Hall was taken over by the military in 1915 to be used as a Military Hospital (now the site of the Royal British Legion Village at Aylesford). A VAD working at Preston Hall in 1915 appealed to the public for newspapers and magazines to help keep the patients occupied during their convalescence.

Maidstone was where the weekly Kent Fruit Market was held and newspapers during the War recorded the steady rise in prices of fresh produce, as was mirrored across the rest of the country, which led to rationing being introduced from 1917/18. The role of Women in agriculture was demonstrated when 6,000 people attended an event in 1917 near Allingham where women displayed their many skills including horse ploughing, fruit planting as well as butter making- there were 9,000 women registered as land workers in Kent.

Sources :- various newspapers such as the Kent Courier and the Kent Gazette

Please add information to your town page by clicking Upload Your Story. Tell those important stories about your relatives – share their experiences to help build a picture of your community during this period. Don’t forget to check out your local clubs and societies, and whilst you are exploring our site take a look at the other towns around the coast to discover more about Kent’s rich history during the First World War.