Rotherfield is a village and
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
in the
Wealden District of
East Sussex
East Sussex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England on the English Channel coast. It is bordered by Kent to the north and east, West Sussex to the west, and Surrey to the north-west. The largest settlement in East Su ...
, England. It is one of the largest parishes in East Sussex. There are three villages in the parish: Rotherfield, Mark Cross and Eridge. The
River Rother, which drains much of the county and discharges at
Rye Harbour
Rye Harbour is a village located on the East Sussex coast in southeast England, near the estuary of the River Rother: it is part of the civil parish of Icklesham and the Rother district. Rye Harbour is located some two miles (3.2 km) down ...
, has its source on the south side of the hill on which Rotherfield village is built.
Etymology
The name Rotherfield is thought to derive from the
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
''redrefeld'' meaning ''cattle lands'', although it has been speculated that it may have originally been called or ''Hrytheranfelda'' meaning ''Hrother's field''. On the south side of the hill on which the village of Rotherfield is built, the
River Rother has its source. The main tributary of the
River Adur
The Adur ( or ) is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river, which is long, was once navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large Saxon port, but by the 11th ce ...
in
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...
has the same name, as does the river which runs through
Rotherham
Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...
,
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham.
In N ...
.
History
There are written records of Rotherfield in the 8th century; it was also included in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
of 1086 and in various other medieval documents. In
Tudor times three of the inhabitants were burned at the stake for their religious beliefs.
In the 18th century, the road through the village became part of the
Turnpike Trust road between Tunbridge Wells and
Lewes
Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...
. Until 1880, when a new
ecclesiastical parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish priest ...
was formed,
Crowborough
Crowborough is a town and civil parish in East Sussex, England, in the Weald at the edge of Ashdown Forest in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 33 miles (53 ...
was also part of the parish; in 1905 the latter became a civil parish in its own right.
Governance
The parish council consists of thirteen members, three representing the Eridge and Mark Cross ward and ten representing the Rotherfield Ward. This ward had a population of 2,433 at the 2011 Census.
Landmarks
Rotherfield parish lies to the south of
Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...
in the High
Weald
The Weald () is an area of South East England between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It crosses the counties of Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It has three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the ...
, an
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...
. Within the parish boundaries lies
Bream Wood
Bream Wood is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Crowborough in East Sussex.
This steep sided valley wood has several locally rare ferns and mosses. There are a number of small ponds and acid springs and flora include t ...
, a designated
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
, comprising an area of woodland with a
ghyll
A gill or ghyll is a ravine or narrow valley in the North of England and other parts of the United Kingdom. The word originates from the Old Norse . Examples include Dufton Ghyll Wood, Dungeon Ghyll, Troller's Gill and Trow Ghyll. As a related ...
hosting several species of fern and moss not found elsewhere in the area.
The Rotherfield Millennium Green was set up in 2000. It is run by a group of volunteer trustees who manage it for the village.
Rotherfield has been designated as a
conservation
Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws.
Conservation may also refer to:
Environment and natural resources
* Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...
area because of the quality of the buildings, including the
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
St Denys Church.
The villages
Rotherfield
![Rotherfield Sussex cottages](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Rotherfield_Sussex_cottages.jpg)
Rotherfield was originally a
Saxon
The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic
*
*
*
*
peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
settlement in an area generally covered with oak forest. The church stands at the top of a hill, and was then surrounded by cleared land. The areas nearest to the valley bottoms, where water was available, were farmed. Rotherfield became a royal hunting estate in the times of Kings
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great (alt. Ælfred 848/849 – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who bot ...
,
Athelstan and
William Rufus
William II ( xno, Williame; – 2 August 1100) was King of England from 26 September 1087 until his death in 1100, with powers over Normandy and influence in Scotland. He was less successful in extending control into Wales. The third so ...
.
Winner of Calor East Sussex Village of the Year Award 2007
Eridge
Eridge () or Eridge Green is a small village but not a
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
: it is situated on a sandstone ridge in the northern borderlands of
East Sussex
East Sussex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England on the English Channel coast. It is bordered by Kent to the north and east, West Sussex to the west, and Surrey to the north-west. The largest settlement in East Su ...
next to
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, having some publicly accessible woodland and trails with far-reaching views across the Kent and Sussex countryside. Although the village is in East Sussex, its post town of
Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...
is in the former
postal county
The postal counties of the United Kingdom, now known as former postal counties, were postal subdivisions in routine use by the Royal Mail until 1996. The purpose of the postal county – as opposed to any other kind of county – was to aid the ...
of Kent.
The name Eridge is thought to derive from 'Eagle ridge', or 'ridge frequented by eagles'. It is directly north of Rotherfield, and largely overlaps the
ecclesiastical parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish priest ...
of Eridge Green. It was formed on 5 February 1856 out of parts of the former parishes of
Frant
Frant is a village and civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England, on the Kentish border about three miles (5 km) south of Royal Tunbridge Wells.
When the iron industry was at its height, much of the village was owned ...
, Rotherfield,
Eridge Park
Eridge Park () is a village and historic park located north of the parish of Rotherfield, to the north-east of Crowborough in East Sussex, England. The adjoining home of the same name is the seat of the Marquess of Abergavenny. The area is a b ...
and Eridge Castle, the latter being the seat of the
Earl and Marquess of Abergavenny. On the village street is the church which is grade II listed, a mainline railway station (Eridge) and six other
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
s including the
public house
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
, the ''
Neville Crest and Gun''. In 1792
Henry Nevill, 2nd Earl of Abergavenny
Henry Nevill, 2nd Earl of Abergavenny, Order of the Thistle, KT (22 February 1755 – 27 March 1843) was a British peer, styled Hon. Henry Nevill until 1784 and Viscount Nevill from 1784 to 1785.
The eldest son of George Nevill, 1st Earl of Aber ...
converted the old Eridge House into a
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
castle, which he named "Eridge Castle". It was replaced by a
Neo-Georgian mansion in the 1930s after the original structure was badly damaged by fire. The area also contains several
follies
''Follies'' is a Musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman.
The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on t ...
, including the Saxonbury Tower and several ornamental buildings near the Sham Farm
business park
A business park or office park is a designated area of land in which many office buildings are grouped together. These types of developments are often located in suburban areas where land and building costs are more affordable, and are typically ...
. The undulating park and garden of Eridge Park is densely wooded to its north (Whitehill Wood) and south (Saxonbury Hill) and is highly rated (Grade II* listed) for its landscape.
The
A26 road
The A26 road is a primary route in the southeast of England, going from Maidstone to Newhaven through the counties of Kent and East Sussex. The road is almost entirely single carriageway with one lane on each side, although some of the road is ...
between
Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...
and
Crowborough
Crowborough is a town and civil parish in East Sussex, England, in the Weald at the edge of Ashdown Forest in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 33 miles (53 ...
passes through the village.
Mark Cross
Mark Cross is located to the east of Rotherfield, at the junction of the
A267 and B2100
Lamberhurst
Lamberhurst ( is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The parish contains the hamlets of The Down and Hook Green. At the 2001 Census it had a population of 1,491, increasing to 1,706 at the 2011 Census.
...
to
Crowborough
Crowborough is a town and civil parish in East Sussex, England, in the Weald at the edge of Ashdown Forest in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 33 miles (53 ...
road. One notable residence is
Walter's Mill, a house converted from a windmill.
Boarshead
Boarshead, a hamlet within the parish, developed around the A26 road between Crowborough and Eridge. Current amenities include an eponymous pub and a public golf course.
Education
There are two primary schools in the parish: Rotherfield Primary School, located in North Street, and Mark Cross CE Primary School.
Community projects
Rotherfield St Martin is a charitable organisation that provides social support and arranges activities to older adults in the area.
Religion
![Rotherfield Sussex church](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Rotherfield_Sussex_church.jpg)
There are five churches within Rotherfield parish: Rotherfield's 11th-century parish church is dedicated to
St Denys
St Denys is a partially riverside district of Southampton, England, centred north north-east of the city centre facing variously Bitterne Park and quay across the River Itchen estuary. The river is here spanned in the mid-east extreme of t ...
. A timber church was first built on the site in 792 AD, and the present sandstone church occupies the same site; the original church is believed to have been under the north-east corner of the current building, in the area now known as the Nevill chapel. The Nevill family were Lords of the Manor from 1450. The building was extended at various times, with the last major alteration being the addition of the tower, porch and spire in the 15th century. The original spire was destroyed by a storm in October 1987, and reconstructed using a steel frame raised to the roof by helicopter. Construction of the tower meant that a new porch and entrance had to be built on the north side of the nave, to replace the west door obstructed by the tower. A new west door was also built.
Also in Rotherfield are the Providence Chapel (
Strict Baptist
Reformed Baptists (sometimes known as Particular Baptists or Calvinistic Baptists) are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology (salvation). The first Calvinist Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith ...
); and the
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Church dedicated to
St Peter
) (Simeon, Simon)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire
, death_date = Between AD 64–68
, death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire
, parents = John (or Jonah; Jona)
, occupation ...
, Prince of Apostles. A former
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
chapel at Town Row, between Rotherfield and Mark Cross, was closed in the early 21st century.
The church in Mark Cross is dedicated to
St Mark
Mark the Evangelist ( la, Marcus; grc-gre, Μᾶρκος, Mârkos; arc, ܡܪܩܘܣ, translit=Marqōs; Ge'ez: ማርቆስ; ), also known as Saint Mark, is the person who is traditionally ascribed to be the author of the Gospel of Mark. Accor ...
; that at Eridge Green, to the
Holy Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
.
Transport
The
A267 road
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...
between
Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...
and
Eastbourne
Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
passes through the parish.
The one
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
still operating in the parish is at
Eridge
Rotherfield is a village and civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England. It is one of the largest parishes in East Sussex. There are three villages in the parish: Rotherfield, Mark Cross and Eridge. The River Rother, which ...
, served by
Southern trains between Uckfield and London Bridge and since 2011 by the preserved
Spa Valley Railway
The Spa Valley Railway (SVR) is a standard gauge heritage railway that runs from Tunbridge Wells West railway station in Tunbridge Wells to High Rocks, Groombridge, and Eridge, where it links with the Oxted Line.
It crosses Kent and Ea ...
trains to Tunbridge Wells West. Until 1965 it was the junction for the cross-country railway to
Hailsham
Hailsham is a town, a civil parish and the administrative centre of the Wealden district of East Sussex, England.OS Explorer map Eastbourne and Beachy Head Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Dat ...
,
Polegate
Polegate is a town and civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England, United Kingdom.OS Explorer map Eastbourne and Beachy Head Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It ...
and
Eastbourne
Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
.
The parish used to be served by
Rotherfield and Mark Cross railway station on the
Cuckoo Line
The Cuckoo Line is an informal name for the now defunct railway service which linked Polegate and Eridge in East Sussex, England, from 1880 to 1968. It was nicknamed the Cuckoo Line by drivers, from a tradition observed at the annual fair at ...
which closed in 1965: It was situated adjacent to the B2100 road in the small village of Town Row about one mile east of Rotherfield. The former railway station is now a private house.
Leisure, culture and sport
In the Eridge area lies one of several local
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
outcrops used for climbing.
The village hosts two drama groups: Stage Door Drama School for young people and the Rotherfield Players.
The area has the following
pubs
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
: in Rotherfield, the ''Catts Inn'' and the ''Kings Arms''; in Mark Cross, the ''Mark Cross Inn''; and in Eridge, the ''Huntsman'' and the ''Nevill Crest and Gun''.
The local recreation ground is home to Rotherfield Football Club who play in the
Mid-Sussex Football League
The Mid Sussex Football League is an association football league formed in 1900. The league is headed by the Premier Division which is at level eleven of the English football league system and member clubs are based in East Sussex, West Sussex a ...
.
On the first Saturday in October, Rotherfield plays host to its annual carnival night organised by the Rotherfield and
Mark Cross Bonfire Society. This is a
torchlight procession through the village streets involving many other
Sussex Bonfire and Carnival societies. This is an old Sussex tradition which predates the discovery of the
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sought ...
but is now part of the buildup to the celebrations in
Lewes
Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...
on Bonfire night. This is the biggest event the village holds per year, and often sees crowds of up to 3,500 people lining the streets. The climax of the evening is the bonfire and
fireworks
Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...
display. Money raised from the event is given to local charities.
Notable residents
*
Richard Jefferies
John Richard Jefferies (6 November 1848 – 14 August 1887) was an English nature writer, noted for his depiction of English rural life in essays, books of natural history, and novels. His childhood on a small Wiltshire farm had a great influ ...
(1848–1887), writer, lived briefly at ''Rehoboth Villa'' (now ''Brook View House''), Jarvis Brook, Rotherfield.
*
Sophia Jex-Blake
Sophia Louisa Jex-Blake (21 January 1840 – 7 January 1912) was an English physician, teacher and feminist. She led the campaign to secure women access to a University education when she and six other women, collectively known as the Edi ...
(1840–1912), one of the first women doctors, lived in Mark Cross: she is buried in Rotherfield graveyard.
*
Anton Zwemmer
Anton Zwemmer (1892–1979) was a Dutch-born British bookseller, book distributor, art dealer, publisher and collectorChloe RendallZwemmer's modernistarchives.com. Retrieved 20 February 2021. who founded Zwemmer's Bookshop and the Zwemmer Gallery ...
(1892–1979), Dutch-born British bookseller, book distributor, art dealer, publisher and collector, lived here the late 1970s
References
External links
Rotherfield Parish Council
{{Authority control
Villages in East Sussex
Civil parishes in East Sussex
Wealden District