Dorking is a market town in the centre of the county. The town has Saxon origins, though there has been discovered evidence of human inhabitation in the area from Mesolithic, Palaeolithic and Roman times. In 1086 the town was known as Dorchinges and has origins from at least the eighth century.
After the Norman Conquest, Dorking was held by William the Conqueror. Dorking was granted to the first Earl of Surrey by William II and the town remained under the control of the Lord of the Manor during the Middle Ages.
The parish church of St Martin dates from the 12th century, built on the site of an earlier Saxon church. The town is served by Dorking, Dorking West and Dorking Deepdene railway stations, the railways reaching the town in 1849.
