Appledore is a village and civil parish in the Ashford District of Kent, England. The village centre is on the northern edge of the Romney Marsh, 12 miles (19 km) south-west of Ashford town. The northerly part of this village is Appledore Heath. History The name Appledore comes from the Old English apuldre (meaning apple tree) and is first recorded in the 10th century. Although a Brythonic origin is more likely (given the widespread survival of Brythonic names in Kent) e.g. from or connected with "dwr/dor" meaning water. Appledore was once a port on the estuary of the River Rother. Famously, the greater part of the Danish army (280 ships - 5000 men) wintered at Appledore in 892–93, before moving into Wessex and suffering defeat at the hands of the Saxons led by King Alfred's son Edward the Elder at Farnham in Surrey. The defeated Danes fell back to Benfleet in Essex where they were again defeated in battle. The importance of Appledore as a port diminished suddenly in the 13th-century when great storms caused the river Rother to change its course; the village street now leads down to the Royal Military Canal. A French raid in 1380 resulted in the burning of the church: it was later rebuilt. The village was permitted to hold a market in the main street by Edward II. In 1804, when there was threat of invasion by Napoleon the Royal Military Canal was built: Appledore stands on its northern bank. The Rhee Wall, a 13th-century waterway, was built to carry silt away from the eastern part of the Romney Marsh; it runs from Appledore to New Romney. In film, the media and literature Appledore was the setting A. A. Milne's famous verse poem, "The Knight Whose Armour Didn't Squeak". Milne lived west in Hartfield. The fictional village of Plummergen, in the "Miss Seeton" series of crime novels by Heron Carvic, is based on Appledore. Appledore features in the series Darling Buds of May. Religion The medieval parish church is dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul. Transport The B2080 is a local road connecting Appledore with Tenterden and Brenzett, where it meets the A259 South Coast Trunk Road. The Royal Military Road follows the canal southwest from Appledore to Rye. The Marshlink Line railway line runs between and via Appledore railway station, which is around from the village. The line reduces from dual to single