Welcome to Capel History Group
Get on your bike for a guided tour around Capel's History
If you are interested in finding out more of the history of where you live, then get on your bike and join us for a guided historical tour of Capel.
The tour will take you to various sites and explain the history, characters involved and importance to the local area of what you are looking at. Some of the stops will be at places you may already know such as St Thomas a Beckett church, Five Oak Green recreation ground and the Hoppers Hospital. Other stops will reveal stories of unexpected aircraft landings, criminal activity and tragic events.
We will be working out dates for our first historical bike tour during the summer dependent on interest. It is most likely we will run these over the Heritage Weekends which are 12-13 and 19-20 September 2026.
INTERESTED?
Who We Are
Capel History Group brings together Capel residents with an interest in the local history of the Parish. We use this website to publish the findings from our historical research about the area in which we live.
Want a quick update on Capel's history so far?
Click on the following link: A Brief History of Capel
As an alternative, why not take a virtual tour of some of the main sites around Five Oak Green and see what they looked like around 100 years ao while finding out a little more about each building. Just click on the link below to start your virtual tour of Five Oak Green
QR code History Trail virtual tour
The full version of many of the items on this website, along with pictures, appear in our three books, Capel Explored One, Two and Three, of which further information and how to buy a copy, can be found by clicking on this link Capel Explored
Where We Live
Capel is a hamlet and civil parish in the Tunbridge Wells district of Kent with a long involvement in hop and fruit farming and, from before then, the iron and charcoal industries.
The Parish is located on the North Weald, three miles to the east of Tonbridge. The southern part of the Parish lies within the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, while most of the land also falls within the Metropolitan Green Belt. As well as Capel itself, the Parish includes the communities of Castle Hill, Colts Hill, Five Oak Green, Postern, Tudeley and Whetsted.
