In the dead of night, on 2 September 1821, a small party of Navy sailors patrolling Kent's Marsh Bay (now Mildred's Bay) spotted a large group of smugglers armed with muskets heaving 'tubs' of spirits 'slung with ropes' ashore.
Ten minutes of 'continual firing' ensued, with bullets whistling across the beach. The Navy managed to seize 17 of the tubs, but the smugglers made away with 50, before disappearing into the Thanet marshland.
The following March, 19 of the suspected smugglers were brought to trial at Maidstone. Unusually for this period, a full transcript of the court proceedings survives.
The full story can be read at the National Archives website.
Plus this January you can visit the National Archives in Kew to see this rare document on show for this month's 'Stories Unboxed' display.