IHouse · listed 1952Old Cloth Workers Hall The Old Cloth HallOn the list as East Wing and West WingPhoto: Alexander (Alex) Ridley (?-1943) · Public domain
Photo: Marathon · CC BY-SA 2.0A−History Grade
History of Biddenden · Historic England
40 listed buildings, 3 of them Grade I
Historic England counts them inside Biddenden’s built-up area, 297 for every 10,000 residents. Of the listed buildings in Biddenden, 35 are Grade II. We have photos of 5 of its listed buildings. 13% of its homes were built before 1919. Biddenden grades A− for history.
Listed buildings
40
297 per 10,000 residents
Grade I
3
exceptional interest
Grade II*
2
more than special interest
Scheduled monuments
0
nationally important sites
Homes built before 1919
13%
typical UK town 15%
In pictures
Biddenden in 5 photos
Nearly every Grade I and II* building, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
3-17 High StreetGrade I listed
East Wing and West WingGrade I listed
Parish Church of All SaintsGrade I listed
Biddenden PlaceGrade II* listed
Henden HallGrade II* listedPhotos from Wikimedia Commons and Geograph, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the building’s page or its official list entry.
The map
Where Biddenden’s history is
Every Grade I and II* building, monument and historic park.
Grade IGrade II*
Hover a dot for its name; tap one with a photo to open it.
40 listed buildings by grade
3 Grade I2 Grade II*35 Grade II
Historic England lists buildings in three grades: Grade I for buildings of exceptional interest (about 2.5% of all listed buildings), Grade II* for particularly important buildings of more than special interest (about 5.8%), and Grade II for buildings of special interest (about 91.7%). Listing protects the whole building, inside and out.
Every entry on the National Heritage List for England whose point lies inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary. One list entry can cover a terrace or a group of buildings.
Grade I
The 3 Grade I listed buildings in Biddenden
Buildings of exceptional interest, about 2.5% of all listed buildings. Every one is photographed. Each opens its own page, with the official list entry.
IChurch · listed 1962Parish Church of All SaintsPhoto: Poliphilo · CC0
IHouse · listed 19523-17 High StreetPhoto: John Brown · CC BY-SA 2.0
Grade II*
The 2 Grade II* listed buildings in Biddenden
Particularly important buildings of more than special interest. Every one is photographed.
II*House · listed 1952Biddenden PlacePhoto: D Gore · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*Public · listed 1952Hendon HallOn the list as Henden HallPhoto: N Chadwick · CC BY-SA 2.0
What’s protected
Most of Biddenden’s listed buildings are homes
Every listed building sorted by what its list name says it is.
Houses, terraces & villas30
Public & civic buildings4
Churches, chapels & priories3
Walls, gates & bridges2
Inns, shops & warehouses1
30 entries (75%) are houses, terraces and villas. 3 are churches, chapels and priories, including 1 of the 3 Grade I buildings.
Buildings are sorted by words in each entry’s name (church, gate, inn, memorial…): the list’s open data has no building type. An entry named only by its address counts as a house.
Grade II
35 Grade II listed buildings
Most listed buildings are in this grade, which covers buildings of special interest. Open any building to read its official list entry.
All 35 Grade II listed buildings, A to Z
Barn and Oasthouse Adjoining No 53 to the NorthBiddenden Post OfficeBlackfriarsChurch CottagesChurch CottagesField CottageGarden Wall and Gate to the Old Cloth Workers HallLilac HouseMalt HouseMansion HouseNewhouse FarmhouseNimrod HallOld Kent HousePell HouseRandolph's FarmhouseThe Former Stables to the Cloth Workers' Hall Situated to the South of Cloth Workers' HallThe Garden wall and gazebo of Henden HallThe LaurelsThe Red Lion InnThe White HouseThe WillowsTownland FarmhouseVine Cottages Vine HouseWest House18-26, High Street19 and 21, High Street2 and 4, High Street2, North Street23 and 25, High Street32, High Street4, North Street41, North Street6 and 8, North Street6-12, High Street66 and 68, North Street
Conservation areas
1 conservation area covers 100% of Biddenden
Areas the council protects as a whole: demolition and changes to how buildings look need consent, and trees are protected.
No data available for publication by HE60 ha
60 hain conservation areas, of 60 ha inside the built-up area.
40 of the 40 listed buildings stand in one.
Historic England’s conservation areas layer, supplied by councils (incomplete in places, so a page fact, never graded). Hectares are the part of each area inside the built-up area.
How the list grew
15 of Biddenden’s 40 listed buildings were added in 1962
The year each building now on the list was first listed.
1962 · 151979 · 121952 · 11
19501960197019801990200020102020
The first 11 entries were listed in 1952, 2 of the 3 Grade I buildings among them. 15 came in 1962. Only 0 have been added in the last 15 years.
History Grade
Biddenden grades A− for history
Protected heritage and the age of the town’s homes, against all UK towns.
Protected heritage, for its size and in all (48 points, 357 per 10,000 residents)More than 84% of UK towns
Homes built before 1919 (13%)More than 36% of UK towns
Two measures, each ranked against every UK town of 1,000 or more, with protected heritage counting twice as much as the age of homes. Protected heritage counts each listed building by its grade (Grade I three points, II* two, II one), each scheduled monument and battlefield two, and each registered park or garden by its grade; it is ranked both per 10,000 residents and as a total, so a village with one fine church doesn’t outrank a historic city. The second measure is the share of homes built before 1919, from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax records. History is a character grade: it describes the town and isn’t part of the overall grade.
Born here
3 notable people born in Biddenden before 1900
Their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
John R. Winder
Charles Hillyer
William Guy
1800182518501875190019251950
John R. Winder1821–1910 · First Counselor in the First Presidency under Joseph F. Smith (1821-1…
CH
Charles Hillyer1845–1872 · Cricketer (1845-1872)
WG
William Guy1859–1950 · British pioneer of modern dentistry
Everyone born in Biddenden → Birthplaces from Wikidata; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Towns its size
Biddenden has the 13th most Grade I buildings of 1,849 towns its size
Places of 1,000–2,000 people outside London, by Grade I listed buildings.
Biddenden3
#256 of 1,849for listed buildings per resident (297 per 10,000). Aberaeron, Beaumaris and Burford lead.
12 have more. The typical town its size has 0.
Neighbours
Listed buildings in the places around Biddenden
| Town | People | Listed | Grade I | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biddenden | 1,345 | 40 | 3 | A− |
| Tenterden | 7,775 | 151 | 1 | A |
| Headcorn | 3,293 | 40 | 1 | B+ |
| Benenden | 1,409 | 56 | 0 | A+ |
| Cranbrook | 3,962 | 178 | 3 | A+ |
| Bethersden | 1,008 | 38 | 1 | A |
| Staplehurst | 6,181 | 59 | 1 | B+ |
| Woodchurch | 1,201 | 34 | 1 | A |
In brief
Biddenden in brief
Per resident, Biddenden has more listed heritage than 84% of UK towns. In all there are 40 listed buildings, 3 of them Grade I. Old Cloth Workers Hall The Old Cloth Hall sits at the heart of it all, with 3 of the town’s Grade I buildings within 400 m. Only 12 of the 1,849 towns nearest its size have more Grade I buildings.
A conservation area protects part of it. Of the whole list, 75% are houses, terraces and villas. John R. Winder (1821), Charles Hillyer (1845) and William Guy (1859) were all born here before 1900. The rest is about typical: 13% of its homes were built before 1919, close to the 15% in the typical UK town.
Questions about Biddenden’s history
How many listed buildings are there in Biddenden?
Historic England lists 40 buildings inside Biddenden’s built-up area: 3 Grade I, 2 Grade II* and 35 Grade II.
What are the Grade I listed buildings in Biddenden?
3, including East Wing and West Wing, Parish Church of All Saints and 3-17 High Street.
How many conservation areas are there in Biddenden?
1, covering about 60 hectares of the town. The largest is No data available for publication by HE.
When were Biddenden’s buildings listed?
The first in 1952; the most, 15, in 1962.
Who was born in Biddenden?
Among people born before 1900: John R. Winder (1821), Charles Hillyer (1845) and William Guy (1859).
How old are the homes in Biddenden?
13% of homes were built before 1919 and 16% before 1940, from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax records (March 2025).
© Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. The National Heritage List for England is the official, up-to-date register of all nationally protected historic buildings and sites in England; check an entry on Historic England’s website before relying on it.
Sources: Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only · Historic England conservation areas (supplied by local planning authorities; October 2026). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.