Lympne Avenue/h1>

Built in 1949-52, Lympne Avenue was, like its neighbours who were built as part of the same post-war redevelopment, named after significant RAF airfields that featured in the Battle of Britain in 1940.

RAF Lympne was part of 11 Group Fighter Command and based on the south coast, not far from Folkestone. One of the closest bases to enemy occupied France, it was only about 10 minutes flying time from the Luftwaffe airfields in the Pas-de-Calais. Subsequently, it was also within reach of the German shore batteries’ long range shelling from the French coast, earning the surrounding area the nickname ‘Hellfire Corner’.

The name itself is derived from a Celtic place name relating to the River Limen, now known as the East Rother, which means ‘elm-wood river’ or ‘marshy river’. Lympne therefore means ‘elm-wood place’ or ‘marshy place’.

EH 07 October 2006