About us

Westcentingas is a Saxon living history group and part of the international society called Regia Anglorum. Pronounced �west-kent-ing-as� on its own and �west-kent-ingers� in the flow of conversation, it generally means �the folk of West Kent� or �west Kent folk�. The Group was formed in August 2007 and ratified by the main society in October of the same year.

Regia Anglorum as a whole seeks to accurately portray Early English history from the 9th through to the 12th centuries and includes Saxon, Viking and Norman groups within its membership.

Incidently, you may have noticed that our emblem - the stag - looks rather Viking. That is because it is...sort of. It was inspired by Norse craftsmanship found on a grave slab in London and dates from around 1035AD. Kent in that period, as it was in Roman times before and as it is today, would have been a melting-pot of cultures on the cleared and coastal territories. Inland, within the dense Wealden forest, long-settled Saxons would have predominated but not been isolated. They would have traded along the navigable rivers and Roman roads with their more 'cosmopolitan' neighbours and may well have been captivated by Norse art. Since, one of the prized animals within the Weald would have been the stag, the thought of this image being taken back home works for us. Archaeologically, much of our area remains devoid of rich finds. However, as many are at pains to point out: an absence of evidence does not imply evidence of absence.

Westcentingas was established to provide a focus for anyone interested in exploring predominantly - but not exclusively - pre-Conquest Saxon history in the Weald of Kent.

Today, the membership is made up of families and individuals from diverse backgrounds who have one common passion: to explore, understand and educate others through displays just what it was like to have lived in the turbulent period between the rise of Wessex under Alfred the Great and the death of King Harold and the supremacy of the Duchy of Normandy. As a group we portray in general the people who would have lived on and around the estate of a late-Saxon Eorl. This encompasses craftspeople, the church, and of course, the military. The ethos of Westcentingas is that we are an �English' group, i.e. if we are recreating a time before the Norman Conquest then we are all �Anglo-Saxon� English, or �a Engliscan. However, if the event is post-conquest then at least the higher ranks are Norman, while the ordinary folc (people) remain Englisc (English).

Living History >>

Where We Are

Westcentingas covers that part of Kent that extends from roughly Ashford in the east to Westerham in the west, Aylesford in the north, to the Surrey and Sussex borders in the south. The modern day boundaries are set as A28 in the east, Clacket Lane Services on the M25 in the west, the M25, M26 & M20 as the approximate northern border, with the Kent county boundary forming the remainder where the roads intersect with it.

The green area in the modern inset map is our "land grant" (a Society term reflecting how land was distributed by the King, Church and the aristocracy). Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, West Malling, Chart, Edenbridge and Tenterden fall within or sit on the boundary of our area.

This division of the county is due to the fact that two other groups of the Regia Anglorum exist within Kent. The Milites de Bec - a Norman and Viking group - covers east Kent from the A28 to the coast and Medwaeg - a former Saxon group that is evolving into an Anglo-Norman riding team - covers the remainder.


About Us Living History The Warriors What We Do Forum Joining Westcentingas Links About us Westcentingas is a Saxon living history group and part of the international society called Regia Anglorum. Pronounced �west-kent-ing-as� on its own and �west-kent-ingers� in the flow of conversation, it generally means �the folk of West Kent� or �west Kent folk�. The Group was formed in August 2007 and ratified by the main society in October of the same year. Regia Anglorum as a whole seeks to accurately portray Early English history from the 9th through to the 12th centuries and includes Saxon, Viking and Norman groups within its membership. Incidently, you may have noticed that our emblem - the stag - looks rather Viking. That is because it is...sort of. It was inspired by Norse craftsmanship found on a grave slab in London and dates from around 1035AD. Kent in that period, as it was in Roman times before and as it is today, would have been a melting-pot of cultures on the cleared and coastal territories. Inland, within the dense Wealden forest, long-settled Saxons would have predominated but not been isolated. They would have traded along the navigable rivers and Roman roads with their more 'cosmopolitan' neighbours and may well have been captivated by Norse art. Since, one of the prized animals within the Weald would have been the stag, the thought of this image being taken back home works for us. Archaeologically, much of our area remains devoid of rich finds. However, as many are at pains to point out: an absence of evidence does not imply evidence of absence. Westcentingas was established to provide a focus for anyone interested in exploring predominantly - but not exclusively - pre-Conquest Saxon history in the Weald of Kent. Today, the membership is made up of families and individuals from diverse backgrounds who have one common passion: to explore, understand and educate others through displays just what it was like to have lived in the turbulent period between the rise of Wessex under Alfred the Great and the death of King Harold and the supremacy of the Duchy of Normandy. As a group we portray in general the people who would have lived on and around the estate of a late-Saxon Eorl. This encompasses craftspeople, the church, and of course, the military. The ethos of Westcentingas is that we are an �English' group, i.e. if we are recreating a time before the Norman Conquest then we are all �Anglo-Saxon� English, or �a Engliscan. However, if the event is post-conquest then at least the higher ranks are Norman, while the ordinary folc (people) remain Englisc (English). Living History >> Where We Are Westcentingas covers that part of Kent that extends from roughly Ashford in the east to Westerham in the west, Aylesford in the north, to the Surrey and Sussex borders in the south. The modern day boundaries are set as A28 in the east, Clacket Lane Services on the M25 in the west, the M25, M26 & M20 as the approximate northern border, with the Kent county boundary forming the remainder where the roads intersect with it. The green area in the modern inset map is our "land grant" (a Society term reflecting how land was distributed by the King, Church and the aristocracy). Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, West Malling, Chart, Edenbridge and Tenterden fall within or sit on the boundary of our area. This division of the county is due to the fact that two other groups of the Regia Anglorum exist within Kent. The Milites de Bec - a Norman and Viking group - covers east Kent from the A28 to the coast and Medwaeg - a former Saxon group that is evolving into an Anglo-Norman riding team - covers the remainder.