Historically the land of the East Saxons, and today an important gateway to Europe through its ports of Harwich and Tilbury, and airports at Stansted and Southend, Essex occupies a unique position between London and East Anglia. It is a county of contrasts: from the bustling activity of the docks at Tilbury, to the holiday resorts along the coast, and inland vast areas of forest, farmland, unspoilt villages, and tranquil waterways. There are excellent road and rail links with all parts of Great Britain.

Land and Resources
Geologically Essex forms part of the downwarp known as the London Basin, covered largely with deposits of London Clay and glacial drift material, yielding a variety of rich soils. Apart from the chalk uplands of the northwest, the county is generally low-lying and flat. Much of the former marshland towards the coast has been reclaimed. Primeval forests once stretched over the whole region, from the River Thames to The Wash. In Norman times and for many centuries afterwards they were favourite hunting grounds of the English kings. Today, Epping Forest, noted for its magnificent hornbeam trees and located on the northeast edge of Greater London, and Hatfield Forest a little farther north, are the main survivors. Fallow deer once roamed in Epping Forest, but have now virtually died out. Essex is well drained, principally by the rivers Stour, Colne, Blackwater, and Crouch flowing into the North Sea, and by the rivers Lea and Roding flowing into the Thames.

Timber has traditionally been the principal building material. The county still has many timber-framed houses, plastered and often colour-washed in a distinctive pinky-red. Weatherboarding is also typical. The original Saxon churches were all built of wood. Bricks have been made from local clay since the Middle Ages, and local flint and thatch are much used.

Essex enjoys a moderate temperate climate. The average annual rainfall is under 635 mm (25 in) on the coast and 635-760 mm (25-30 in) inland (although it doesn't always seem like it!). Because of the flat nature of the terrain, gales may sweep across the region at any time of year. The drying action of sun and wind combine to make the Essex estuaries very salty, giving rise to the flourishing salt industry centred around Maldon, which has existed for many centuries.

Population and Administration
The population of Essex was estimated in 1992 at 1,555,800. The major towns are Chelmsford (150,000) the seat of local government, Basildon (157,500), Colchester (146,100), Tilbury, Harlow (79,800), Harwich, (15,500), Clacton-on-Sea (43,600), and Southend-on-Sea (153,700). Harwich and Tilbury are the main ports, Clacton-on-Sea and Southend-on-Sea the principal seaside resorts. A large number of workers commute daily to London.

Chelmsford became a diocese and its parish church a cathedral only in 1914. Harlow and Basildon, designated as new towns in 1947 and 1949 respectively, were planned to take a vast overspill of population from London. Southwest Essex is today a dormitory suburb of the metropolis, enjoying excellent road, rail, and underground communications with the capital. The Dartford-Purfleet tunnel, opened in 1963, facilitates road traffic between Essex and Kent; since 1991 a bridge has taken the northbound traffic.

Essex has 14 local government district councils: Basildon, Braintree, Brentwood, Castle Point, Chelmsford, Colchester, Epping Forest, Harlow, Maldon, Rochford, Southend-on-Sea, Tendring, Thurrock, and Uttlesford. The headquarters of the Essex Police is at Springfield, Chelmsford. Crown courts sit at Chelmsford and Southend. Under an 1878 Act of Parliament, Epping Forest is administered by the Corporation of London.

Education and Culture
The University of Essex, at Colchester, was founded in 1964. In 1992 two former polytechnics were granted university status in the county: Anglia Polytechnic University, at Chelmsford, and the University of East London, at Dagenham.

Gastronomically, Essex is renowned for its shellfish. Oysters have been farmed since Roman times, and those from the Colne estuary, known as "Colchester natives", have always been much prized. Leigh-on-Sea, near Southend, is famous for its cockles and whelks. Whitebait is a speciality of Southend. Traditional bacon products include Essex Ham Cake and Old Epping Sausage. At one time the saffron crocus was grown around Saffron Walden, giving rise to the local Saffron Cake; nowadays saffron is imported. Sea spinach and samphire ("poor man's asparagus") grow wild along the coast and are often eaten with seafood. Essex is rich in superstition and ghosts. Ancient ley lines are said to cross the county. Borley Rectory, possibly the most celebrated haunted house in England, was haunted for centuries by a phantom nun and coach; the rectory burned down in 1939, but the nun and coach are still seen. Other sightings include a huntsman who rides through Epping Forest in search of human prey; the notorious highwayman Dick Turpin, riding down Traps Hill; a Roman centurion marching across Mersea Island, and many more.

There is an unusual custom held at the village of Great Dunmow every four years on Whit Monday, the origin of which is unknown. It is called the Dunmow Flitch Trials, when a flitch or gammon of bacon is given to any couple who can swear, a year and a day after their marriage, that during this time they have never quarrelled or wished themselves single again.

Places of Interest
The seaside resorts of Essex provide all the amenities demanded by the modern holidaymaker. The inland Essex villages also have much to offer visitors, with their historic parish churches and quaint gabled, thatched, and sometimes half-timbered, cottages. A few of the remaining windmills have been restored to working order. Some of the small riverside towns have developed into yachting centres. Ingatestone Hall, built in the 16th century for the Secretary of State Sir William Petre, and Audley End, near Saffron Walden, dating from the Jacobean period, are stately homes of interest. Waltham Abbey, founded in 1030 and much restored in the 19th century, contains a fine stained glass window by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones. At Castle Hedingham there still survives the Norman keep, part of a great fortress built by the de Vere family, Earls of Oxford, in about 1140. A 20th-century attraction is the visitor centre at Bradwell Power Station.

Economy
The cloth trade, once the mainstay of the county, declined towards the end of the 18th century, unable to compete with cheaper cloth produced in the north of England. Wheat, barley, and sugar beet are the chief crops. Potatoes and a variety of fruit and vegetables are also grown for the London market. There are oyster beds in the Colne estuary. Fishing was once a major industry, but has declined due to foreign competition.

Tilbury, once a port for transatlantic liners, is now a major container port handling trade from all over the world. There is a nuclear power station at Bradwell-on-Sea. Industry is otherwise confined to the southwestern region, close to Greater London. The Ford Motor Company manufactures cars at Dagenham. Agricultural tractors are made at Basildon. Other industries include light engineering, electronics, printing, brewing, furniture, and glass. Scientific and surgical instruments are manufactured at Harlow. Maldon is famous for its natural sea salt, and there is a well-known jam and preserves factory at Tiptree, near Colchester. Tourism is a major source of revenue; the rival resorts of Clacton-on-Sea and Southend-on-Sea compete for popularity, especially for day trippers from London.

Stansted, confirmed as London's third airport in 1986, has been designed to handle up to 8 million passengers a year, with an option to expand to 15 million. A new terminal was opened in 1991.

History
There is some evidence of settlement prior to the Roman occupation of Britain. It is known that the town the Romans called Camulodunum (now Colchester) had been previously the capital city of a kingdom ruled by the Celtic king Cunobelin, who was immortalized by William Shakespeare in his play Cymbeline. A royal tomb was excavated nearby in 1992 and is believed to be that of a member of Cunobelin's family. Captured by the Emperor Claudius I in AD 44, Colchester became the first colonia (municipality) in Roman Britain. In 60 it was stormed by Boudicca, queen of the local Iceni tribe. Following her defeat, it became an important Roman garrison town. The region came subsequently under Saxon rule, first as part of the kingdom of East Anglia and then under the rule of the powerful kings of Wessex. Throughout this period there were continual invasions by the Danes and much fighting on Essex soil. In 878, following the victory by Wessex King Alfred at Edington and the withdrawal of the Danes to East Anglia, Essex became part of the Danelaw. Early in the 10th century it was reconquered, but still subjected to the menace of the Scandinavian invaders, quick to take advantage of a somewhat inefficient English king, Ethelred II (nicknamed the " Unraed", or poorly advised, but now popularly known as "the Unready"). The Danes won a famous victory at the Battle of Maldon (991), recorded in the old English poem of that name. Christianity came to Essex during the Saxon occupation, when many wooden churches were built. The oldest surviving church in England, in this case built from Roman materials, is at Bradwell-on-Sea. The Normans in their turn built many castles and churches; Castle Hedingham and Colchester Castle are well-preserved examples. In the early Middle Ages, Essex became prosperous through the wool trade. English wool was much sought after on the Continent. Flemish weavers were eventually brought to the region in order to teach the art of weaving fine cloth. During this period, many churches were handsomely endowed by wealthy cloth merchants and fine estates were built.

The Tudor monarch Henry VIII built a fort at Tilbury in order to guard the Thames estuary. It was here that an army was assembled in 1588 to face a possible invasion, should the Spanish Armada not be defeated at sea. In August 1588 Elizabeth I rode in procession to Tilbury to address her soldiers in impassioned terms. By this time Essex was becoming a much-favoured residential region for the aristocracy and landed gentry, a pattern that would continue into the 19th century. There was, however, considerable popular discontent at the enclosure of common land. During the 17th century there was much support in the county for the Puritan (Nonconformist) movement.

Home