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The River Medway in England flows for 70 miles (112 km) from Turners Hill , in West Sussex , through Tonbridge , Maidstone and the Medway Towns conurbation in Kent , to the River Thames at Sheerness , where it shares the latter's estuary. The mouth of the river is defined by Garrison Point, between the Isle Of Sheppey and the Isle Of Grain . It has a to the north and the Weald to the south. TRIBUTARIES See Also: Rivers of Kent The major tributaries are:
The river and its tributaries flow through largely rural areas, Tonbridge , Maidstone and the Medway Towns being the exceptions. The Medway itself initially flows in a west-east direction south of the North Downs ; at the confluence of the River Beult, however, it turns northerly and breaks through the North Downs at the Medway Gap , a steep and narrow valley near Rochester , before its final section to the sea. NAVIGATION Until 1746 the river was impassable above Maidstone. To that point each village on the river had its , Snodland , New Hythe and Aylesford . Cargoes included corn, fodder, fruit, stone and timber. In 1746 improvements to the channel meant that barges of 40 tons (41000 kg) could reach East Farleigh , Yalding and even Tonbridge. In 1828 the channel was further improved to Leigh in 1828. There are eight Locks on the river. The lowest, opened in 1792, is at Allington , and is the extent of tides. The others are Farleigh, Teston , Hampstead Lane, East Lock, Porter's, Eldridge's and Tonbridge Town. Small craft such as canoes can sometimes travel as far as Penshurst . The stretch from Leigh to Allington is known as the Medway Navigation, and is 19 miles (31 km) in length. RIVER CROSSINGS Until recently the lowest crossing of the Medway was at Rochester , where there has been a bridge since Roman times. In the 14th century, the Wardens And Commonalty Of Rochester Bridge were instituted by Sir John De Cobham to pay for the rebuilding and upkeep of the bridge. Until 1963, the nearest crossing to Rochester Bridge was the 14th century bridge at Aylesford, 12 miles (19 km) upstream. Since then the following additional crossings have come into use:
Two other major crossings are at Tonbridge where two bridges carry the A227 road and a rail link over the river. FLOODING The middle section of the Medway above Tonbridge, because of the many tributaries entering the river in this stretch, has always been subject to extensive flooding. The town itself has suffered frequent flooding over the centuries - so much so that the higher part of the town to north is called ''Dryhill''. Flood protection measures have therefore had priority. In 1981, a Flood Barrier was constructed near Leigh to protect Tonbridge, which had been severely affected by the Flooding of 1968. During periods of high flow, the downstream flow is controlled by allowing up to 1 mile&2 (2.78 km&2) of farmland upstream of the barrier to flood. HISTORY
LITERARY REFERENCES (1906). USES IN FILMS For the 1999 film '' The Mummy '' the river Medway was filmed outside the remainder (after its closure in 1984) of Chatham Dockyard and passed off as a port at Cairo . The scene is brief but involves the main protagonists departing on their mission to the city of the dead. The River Medway was used for this film as opposed to the River Nile itself (most likely for cost reasons) The Medway's 'marriage' to the Thames is given extensive treatment in Book IV, Canto xi of Edmund Spenser 's Faerie Queene . SEE ALSO FURTHER READING EXTERNAL LINKS
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