The Landing in Thanet island in Kent

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• St. Augustine and his companions landed in Kent at Easter 597 .
• Bede wrote in his Ecclesiastical history( EH I:25). "Over against the eastern districts of Kent there is a large island called Thanet " Tanatos" which, in English reckoning, is 600 hides "or families" in extent. It is divided from the mainland by the river Wantsum, which is about three furlongs wide, can be crossed in two places only, and joins the sea at either end. Here Augustine, the servant of the Lord, landed with his companions, who are said to have been nearly forty in number. They had acquired interpreters from the Frankish race according to the command of Pope St Gregory."
• Bede did not specify the exact spot; thus left it to speculation.
• In the 19th century there was some argument on the exact site. There were four suggestions:

1. The first suggestion was Richborough Castle because it had quays and other facilities. This suggestion was dated back to WilliamThorne who called it Retesborough. Thorne said that St. Augustine came ashore in the Isle of Thanet, at Retesborough. He added "Our father Augustine, on stepping ashore, happened to stand on a certain stone, which took the impression of his feet as if it had been clay. That stone was removed and put inside the saint's chapel there, and every year on the day of his burial crowds of people gathered together for devotion and in the hope of recovering their health. He mentioned in his chronicle that "we will worship in the place were he stood". It was obvious that there was a chapel of St. Augustine in Richborough.
2. Ebbsfleet was the most probable site inte 19th C. Although there are no ancient writer to mention that. This spot was known to be the site of the landing of Jutes Hengist and Horsa as reported by Bede. The main provocatour for this theory was Dean A. P. Stanely in his Historical Memorials of Canterbury and was endorsed by Lord Granville's committee. This committee later on erected a commemorative cross "St. Augustine cross" half a mile from the Ebbs farm near which was a well which was known locally as St. Augustine Well. This site is  also thought to be the meeting point with King Ethelbert.
3. The other sites was the Eastern site of the Ebbs on the Pegwell (the site called Broaded Groin). This site is not far away from where Lord Cranville's Augustine Cross was erected. This site was used by the Danes on their invasion. And was also used by Saxon and Jute. It is still present to our day.
4. There was suggestion that North of Stonar was a probable landing site. This site was an Island at the entry of Wantsum. It had a small Roman settlement, probably used to guard Richborough. it was mentioned by Stanely who refered to Sandwich MSS in support of this hypothesis.

However all these site are in land now and they are all within one mile radius.