Eynsford ( or ) is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located south east of Swanley, south of Dartford. The village including its farmland and woods occupies the northern half of the triangle formed by three motorways in west Kent barring its very northernmost part which is Farningham. This area is undulating and has a large minority of woodland. In the south of the parish is Lullingstone, much of which was owned for many centuries by the large, late medieval Lullingstone Castle, whereas other parts of the village were owned by Eynsford Castle, which is older. Well before the founding of the Kingdom of England, Lullingstone Roman villa was founded in this part of the parish, which is open to the public today. The Darent Valley Path takes in a cross-section of the area. The village Eynsford is first mentioned in writing in 864, as "Egenes homme". The derivation is unclear, but one possibility is that it represents "Ægen's river-meadow", from the Old English hamm "river-meadow, enclosure". In 1801 the village had the highest population in the Dartford area, at 841 persons. In the centre of the village is a ford over the river, with a picturesque hump-back bridge alongside. There are many old buildings including the 16th-century Plough Inn and the Old Mill. The church is dedicated to St Martin. In about 1163, Thomas Becket is reputed to have excommunicated William de Eynsford, the owner of Eynsford castle. The excommunication was cancelled by King Henry II and the issue became part of the quarrel that led to Becket's murder in 1170. John Wesley is thought to have preached here: he was a friend of the then vicar of Shoreham, the next village along the valley. The Wesley Stone by the bridge commemorates the spot. It was near Eynsford village (at Austin Lodge) that Percy Pilcher constructed and successfully flew lightweight gliders. On 30 September 1899, having completed his triplane, he had intended to demonstrate it to a group of onlookers and potential sponsors in a field near Stanford Hall. However, days before, the engine crankshaft had broken and, so as not to disappoint his guests, he decided to fly the Hawk instead. The weather was stormy and rainy, but by 4 pm Pilcher decided the weather was good enough to fly. Whilst flying, the tail snapped and Pilcher plunged to the