Maldon

Maldon (môl'dən), town (1991 pop. 14,754) and district, Essex, E England, on the Blackwater estuary. Maldon is a market town with iron foundries and other small industries. The Maldon area has long been known for its sea salt; salt has been harvested there for more than 2000 years. The 13th-century Church of All Saints has a unique triangular tower with a hexagonal spire, and the town hall dates from the 15th cent. Prehistoric traces have been found in the vicinity. A battle against Danish raiders was fought near Maldon in 991; the leader of the East Saxons, Byrhtnoth (or Brihtnoth), was killed. The battle was celebrated in one of the last Anglo-Saxon heroic poems, "The Battle of Maldon" (of unknown authorship).