Reposted by Historical Association Canterbury
Join us for the branch's first event of the year. Dr Fern Riddell's lecture is based on her highly acclaimed recent book Victoria's Secret: The Private Passion of a Queen (2025), a provocative re-evaluation of Queen Victoria's relationship with her servant John Brown.
![Shown here is a sepia photographic negative capturing a scene of caravans and trucks parked at Steeds Lane, Kingsnorth, 13th May 1966 [collection ref. KHLC-2018/56]. Photograph copyright KM Media Group Ltd.
About the talk:
Kent has the UK’s biggest Gypsy/Traveller population and was at the forefront of efforts to address the accommodation crisis facing these communities in the post-war period. This talk will examine the impact and implementation of the 1960 and 1968 (Pt. II) Caravan Acts in Kent, focusing especially on Maidstone, and will use local authority and press sources to consider the factors determining who, where and how itinerants were accommodated and their enduring impacts at the local level.
Dr David Smith is a Reader in Social Policy. His research aims to document the experience of minority and underprivileged communities including Roma, Gypsies and Travellers, foreign workers in the NHS, and working class localities affected by public policy and housing development.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:o3vof7rjobhzoxvub42zxtot/bafkreifzyexowjjinh5sjqgzsld3wrshjj6chheasznzqscfujzcm4wgce)
![Shown here is Alice Imperatori consulting a volume in the Search Room at Kent Archives. Alice joined the team as an Archive Services Officer in April 2025 and, in our latest newsletter, reflects on her academic background, previous experience in the archives sector, and her first nine months working with our collections.
[Archives@Kent] is the quarterly newsletter published by Kent Archives and Local History Service, Maidstone. From publicising newly catalogued material to exploring documents in detail and sharing information about upcoming events, our newsletters can be delivered straight to your email inbox or accessed at www.kentarchives.org.uk/archive-newsletter
Have yet to subscribe? Contact us today and we’ll be happy to add you to our mailing list –
Email: archives@kent.gov.uk
Telephone: 03000 420 673](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:o3vof7rjobhzoxvub42zxtot/bafkreic2vvlgfgpsszrbij6gjul4ws67ugstmxkoloaklnwqxuxdxjhjii)
