Page "Reculver" Paragraph 11

After the Roman occupation of Britain ended in about 410, Reculver became a landed estate of the Anglo-Saxon kings of Kent, possibly with a royal toll-station or a " significant coastal trading settlement ," given the types and quantity of coins found there.

Other early Anglo-Saxon items found at Reculver include a fragment of a gilt bronze brooch, or " fibula ", which was originally circular and set with coloured stones or glass, a claw beaker, and pottery.

King Æthelberht of Kent was traditionally said to have moved his royal court there from Canterbury in about 597, for example by John Duncombe in 1784, and to have built a palace on the site of the Roman ruins ; but archaeological excavation has shown no evidence of this, and the story has been described as probably a " pious legend ".

A church was built on the site of the Roman fort in about 669, when King Ecgberht of Kent granted land for the foundation of a monastery there, which was dedicated to St Mary.