Kettering

Like most of what later became Northamptonshire, from early in the 1st century BC the Kettering area became part of the territory of the Catuvellauni, a Belgic tribe, the Northamptonshire area forming their most northerly possession.[7] The Catuvellauni were in turn conquered by the Romans in AD 43.

The town traces its origins to an early, unwalled Romano-British settlement, the remnants of which lie under the northern part of the modern town. Occupied until the 4th century, there is evidence that a substantial amount of iron smelting took place on the site.[8] Along with the Forest of Dean and the Weald of Kent and Sussex, this area of Northamptonshire "was one of the three great centres of iron-working in Roman Britain".[8] The settlement reached as far as the Weekley and Geddington parishes. However it is felt unlikely that the site was continuously occupied from the Romano-British into the Anglo-Saxon era.[9] Pottery kilns have also been unearthed at nearby Barton Seagrave and Boughton.

Excavations in the early 20th century either side of Stamford road (A43), near the site of the former Prime Cut factory (now the Warren public house), revealed an extensive early Saxon burial site, consisting of at least a hundred cremation urns dating to the 5th century AD. This suggests that it may have been among the earliest Anglo-Saxon penetrations into the interior of what later became England. The prefix Wic- of the nearby village of Weekley may also signify Anglo-Saxon activities in the area; Greenall reports that it could be "an indication of foederati, Anglo-Saxon mercenaries brought in to boost the defences of the Empire."[8] This was established imperial policy, which the Romano-British continued after Rome withdrew from Britain around 410, with disastrous consequences for the Romano-Britons.

By the 7th century the lands that would eventually become Northamptonshire formed part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia.[10] The Mercians converted to Christianity in 654 with the death of the pagan king Penda.[11] From about 889 the Kettering area, along with much of Northamptonshire (and at one point almost all of England except for Athelney marsh in Somerset), was conquered by the Danes and became part of the Danelaw, with the ancient trackway of Watling Street serving as the border, until being recaptured by the English under the Wessex king Edward the Elder, son of Alfred the Great, in 917. Northamptonshire was conquered again in 940, this time by the Vikings of York, who devastated the area, only for the county to be retaken by the English in 942.[12]

It is unlikely however that Kettering itself existed as a village earlier than the 10th century (the county of Northampton itself is not referenced in documents before 1011).[13] Before this time the Kettering area was most likely populated by a thin scattering of family farmsteads.[8] The first historical reference of Kettering is in a charter of 956 in which King Edwy granted ten "cassati" of land to Ælfsige the Goldsmith. The boundaries delineated in this charter would have been recognisable to most inhabitants for the last thousand years and can still be walked today. It is possible that Ælfsige gave Kettering to the monastery of Peterborough, as King Edgar in a charter dated 972 confirmed it to that monastery.

At the Domesday survey in 1086, Kettering manor is listed as held by the Abbey of Peterborough, the church owning 10 hides of land. Kettering was valued at £11, with land for 16 ploughs. There were 107 acres of meadow, 3 of woodland, 2 mills, 31 villans with 10 ploughs and 1 female slave.[14]

The nearby stately home of Boughton House, sometimes described as the 'English Versailles'[15] has for centuries been the seat of the Dukes of Buccleuch, major landowners in Kettering and most of the surrounding villages; along with the Watsons of Rockingham Castle, the two families were joint lords of the manor of Kettering.[16]

Kettering is dominated by the crocketed spire of about 180 feet (55 m) of the Parish church of SS Peter and Paul. Little is known of the origins of the church, its first known priest becoming rector in 1219–20. The chancel is in the Early Decorated style of about 1300, the main fabric of the building being mostly Perpendicular, having been rebuilt in the mid 15th century (its tower and spire being remarkably similar to the tower and spire of St Peter's[17] Oundle). Whether the current building replaced an earlier church on the site is unknown.[7] Two medieval wall paintings, one of two angels with feathered wings, and one of a now faded saint, can still be seen inside the church.[18]

The charter for Kettering's market was granted to the Bishop of Peterborough by Henry III in 1227.

In June 1607 at the nearby village of Newton, the Newton Rebellion broke out,[19] causing a brief uprising known as the Midland Revolt, which involved several nearby villages. Protesting at land enclosures at Newton and Pytchley by local landlords the Treshams, on 8 June a pitched battle took place between Levellers – many from Kettering, Corby and particularly Weldon,[20] – and local gentry and their servants (local militias having refused the call to arms). Approximately 40–50 local men are said to have been killed and the ringleaders hanged, drawn and quartered. The Newton rebellion represents one of the last times that the English peasantry and the gentry were in open conflict.

By the 17th century the town was a centre for woollen cloth.

In local government, Kettering falls within the areas of Northamptonshire County Council and Kettering Borough Council, which incorporates the small, satellite towns of Barton Seagrave, Burton Latimer, Desborough and Rothwell. The borough is split into 17 electoral wards, 10 of these in the town. These are All Saints, Avondale Grange, Barton, Brambleside, Northfield, Pipers Hill, Ise Lodge, St Michael & Wicksteed and St Peter's.[30]

In April 2021 the County Council, and the Borough of Kettering will be abolished and replaced by a new unitary authority called North Northamptonshire, which will cover the areas of the districts of Kettering, Corby, East Northamptonshire and Wellingborough. The new authority is due to come into being on 1 April 2021[31] Elections for the new authorities were due to be held on 7 May 2020 but these were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[32] Also on 1 April Kettering will become a civil parish.[33]

Kettering is represented in parliament by a constituency of the same name, which is currently (as of June 2017) represented by Conservative[34] MP Philip Hollobone, who gained the marginal constituency from former Labour MP Phil Sawford in the 2005 general election.

Before Brexit in 2020, for the European Parliament, Kettering fell within the East Midlands constituency.[35]

Politics in Kettering has not always been a sedate affair: in 1835 a horrified Charles Dickens, then a young reporter for the Morning Chronicle, watched aghast as a Tory supporter on horseback, intent (along with others) on taking control of by-election proceedings, produced a loaded pistol and had to be restrained by his friends from committing murder. The ensuing riot between Tory and Whig supporters led Dickens in his article to form various opinions of Kettering and its voters, none of them complimentary.[36]

In March 2007, a project was revealed to refurbish and bring new leisure and shopping to the town centre, including water features, public art, sculptures, street furniture, trees, plants and an innovative pavement lighting scheme.[45]

Kettering was home to Kettering Town F.C. The former chairman Imraan Ladak[49] installed former Tamworth manager Mark Cooper as the new Kettering Town supremo for the 2007–08 season. After a record-breaking start to the season (7 consecutive wins), the club held pole position virtually all season, winning the Conference North with 5 games in hand. The Poppies broke their win record of 28 games, now 30 and registered a record points tally for the Division of 96 points. Mark Cooper joined Peterborough United as manager in November 2009 with goalkeeper Lee Harper taking over. However, in 2011 the club moved out of the borough to Nene Park, Irthlingborough – the former ground of defunct rivals Rushden & Diamonds F.C.. The move was necessitated by the end of the lease at their 100-year-old ground at Rockingham Road, Kettering. Since then the club has played at Steel Park, Corby and currently (2020) Latimer Park, Burton Latimer. After several years of decline Kettering won the Evostik Central Division championship in the 2014–15 season to win promotion to the Evostik Premier (formerly known as the Southern League Premier Division).

Kettering is home to Kettering Rugby Football Club (KRFC), located in Waverley Road on the eastern side of the town.[50] The earliest available records indicate that the playing of Rugby Football in Kettering was initiated by the Rector of Barton Seagrave village in 1871. After a period of playing under Uppingham Public School Rules the club formally adopted RFU rules in 1875 and quickly became a significant participant in both the local community and the fast-developing Rugby scene in the East Midlands. In the early days games were played on a number of sites including farmers' fields and council-owned grounds. It was during this period, prior to adopting a home of their own, that the club developed its high profile in the town. Social occasions and players "meetings" were held traditionally at the Royal Hotel, later moving to the George, with more formal occasions such as the Annual Ball becoming the highlight of the local function calendar. KRFC currently plays in the Midlands 1st Division.

A short lived greyhound racing track was opened on 4 July 1930 and raced on Friday evenings. The racing was independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body the National Greyhound Racing Club) and was known as a flapping track, which was the nickname given to independent tracks.[51] It is not known how long the track traded.[52]

The A14 skirts the west and south of the town, links the town with the A45 dual carriageway, M1 and M6 motorways. The A6003 links Kettering to Corby. The A43 links Kettering with Corby and the county town of Northampton and the A509 (Kettering/Wellingborough Road) links Kettering with Wellingborough.

In April 1986, the bus station was relocated away from the market area to the Newland Street entrance of the modern Newlands shopping centre. This caused a fatal decline in market trade, although buses were re-allocated there in April 1987 before closing again in September 1989. A smaller version of a bus station was also closed in May 1999 and so buses just served the library and Newlands Shopping Centre; however, since May 2010, all buses now serve the new Horsemarket bus interchange and they no longer serve the library. New bus stops have been installed around the railway station and The Headlands.

The town is served by bus services operated by Stagecoach Midlands with the following routes:

• Corby X1 Corby- Kettering – Burton Latimer – Finedon – Wellingborough
• Kettering 15 Stamford road – Kettering – Kettering Train Station – Highfield road- Tesco
• Kettering 19 Kettering – Ise lodge
• Kettering 49 Rushden – Higham Ferrers – Irthlingborough – Finedon – Kettering – Brambleside
• Kettering 50 Bedford town centre (bus station) – Rushden – Higham Ferrers – Irthlingborough – Finedon – Kettering- Brambleside
• Kettering X43/43 Market Harborough – Desborough – Rothwell – Kettering
• Kettering 19 Kettering – Rothwell – Desborough – Rushton – Corby
• Kettering X4 Gold Peterborough – Oundle – Corby – Kettering – Wellingborough – Northampton – Milton Keynes
• Kettering X43/43 Northampton – Moulton – Broughton – Kettering – Rothwell – Desborough – Market Harborough
• Kettering 39 Kettering – Mawsley – Moulton – Northampton
• Kettering 34 Wellingborough – Little Harrowden – Orlingbury – Pytchley – Kettering – Lake Avenue

The town is also served by a local bus service ran by Centrebus Northamptonshire, with the following routes:

• Kettering 8 Corby – Stanion – Geddington – Weekley – Kettering
• Kettering 16 Kettering – Cranford – Thrapston – Raunds
• Kettering 34 Kettering – Wellingborough

Kettering railway station

Rail services operated by East Midlands Railway depart every 30 minutes from Kettering to London St Pancras, with an average journey time of 59 minutes.[53] St Pancras also provides an interchange with the Eurostar service to France and Belgium. Kettering is linked to Corby, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby and Sheffield to the north and Wellingborough, Bedford and Luton to the south.[54] With its good rail links, a large and growing commuter population takes advantage of Kettering's position on the Midland Main Line railway.

Five large UK airports are within 2 hours' drive of the town, these being Heathrow, Luton, East Midlands, Birmingham and Stansted. Luton can be reached directly by train, while East Midlands and Stansted can be reached by one change at Leicester. Sywell Aerodrome, located 6 miles (9.7 km) south-west of Kettering, caters for private flying, flight training and corporate flights.