The River Brede is an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
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Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
river in East Sussex. It flows into the Rock Channel (tidal section of the
River Tillingham
The River Tillingham flows through the English county of East Sussex.
It meets the River Brede and the eastern River Rother near the town of Rye. A navigable sluice controlled the entrance to the river between 1786 and 1928, when it was repla ...
) and then onto the
River Rother at
Rye, Sussex. It takes its name from the village of
Brede, which lies between
Hastings
Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England,
east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...
and
Tenterden
Tenterden is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. It stands on the edge of the remnant forest the Weald, overlooking the valley of the River Rother. It was a member of the Cinque Ports Confederation. Its riverside today is not ...
.
Etymology
The river takes its name from the village of
Brede. The village is on the north bank of the river, and its name in Old English means ''breadth'', as it overlooks the wide river valley. Prior to the fifteenth century, the river was known as the ''Ee'' or ''Ree'', which simply means 'river' in Old English. A new channel was then constructed for much of its course downstream from its junction with Doleham Ditch, slightly to the north of the Ee, and running parallel with it, which was for many years known as ''the Channel'', but subsequently became the Brede.
History
The Brede flows through a wide valley in its lower reaches, surrounded by marshland which is at much the same level as the river. After passing close to the higher ground on which New Winchelsea was later built, it turns to the north, passing through an area known historically as Cadborough Marsh, which contained a network of tidal channels in the 13th century. During the 12th century, large areas of marsh were enclosed, beginning at the edge of Cadborough Cliff, and working southwards towards the river. Similar work was taking place further east at Broomhill, near to the seaward end of Jury's Gut Sewer, and it is likely that the marshes were protected from the sea by a large shingle bank that ran westwards from Broomhill to
Fairlight Fairlight may refer to:
In places:
* Fairlight, East Sussex, a village east of Hastings in southern England, UK
* Fairlight, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia
* Fairlight, Saskatchewan, Canada
In other uses:
* Fairlight (company), an ...
. Many of the people involved in the enclosures were doing so at both locations, and the work seems to have been influenced by Flemish immigrants. There is little documentary evidence for reclaiming of marshland further upstream, although it clearly took place in the 12th or early 13th centuries.
Climatic conditions deteriorated in the 13th century, with many more storms occurring. At some point, the shingle bank was breached, and the
River Rother carved a new course through the gap to enter the sea near
Rye
Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe (Triticeae) and is closely related to both wheat (''Triticum'') and barley (genus ''Hordeum''). Rye grain is u ...
. The winter of 1287-88 was particularly bad, and the village of Old Winchelsea was overwhelmed, as was much of the reclaimed marshland near Cadborough Cliff, which remained flooded for 15 years. At some point around this time, the Brede valley was protected by the construction of a wall, some long known as the ''Damme'', which crossed the valley from
Icklesham
Icklesham is a village and civil parish in the Rother district of East Sussex, England. The village is located about six miles (10 km) east of Hastings, on the main A259 Hastings to Rye road. The surrounding countryside is a made up of fie ...
in the south to the modern-day Float Farm in the north. It protected to the west of it, and provided a convenient way to cross the valley, although tolls were collected for its use. There was a bridge in the centre and a sluice to control the flow of water, which was operated by pulleys. A dock was constructed on the eastern side, which was known as a ''flota'', from which the name of Float Farm derives. Ships were loaded with firewood for onward transfer to London and Europe, while other timber products included a shipment of hurdles for Dover Castle.
A second embankment was constructed further downstream, running northwards from Winchelsea, but the effect of the sea walls was to reduce the volume of sea water that entered the valley with each tide, reducing its scouring action. As the consequence, the river silted up, and by 1357 it was difficult for ships to reach Winchelsea. The king visited the town, and instructed that walls should be built along the valley and that the obstruction at ''Sloughdam'' should be removed. It is unclear whether this referred to the embankment at Winchelsea of to the ''Damme'' further upstream. The solution adopted to resolve the silting was to construct a new channel for the river, with embankments on both sides. It was around long and wide, and was completed some time between 1419 and 1442. Its western end was just below the point at which Doleham Ditch joined the Ee. The dock at ''Damme'' ceased to be used, as the river then became navigable to Brede Bridge, where a new quay was constructed.
The Brede is known to have been used for navigation beyond Brede Bridge, with boats reaching
Sedlescombe.
Lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
was carried for
Battle Abbey,
and in the
Tudor period
The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in History of England, England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in Englan ...
, an iron furnace was built at Brede, which continued to operate until 1766. Between 1747 and 1766, boats brought iron ore to the furnaces from Strand Wharf in Rye, and transported guns which had been manufactured from the iron back down the river. There was also a trade in groceries, moving up the river.
Access to the sea from Winchelsea and Rye was continually changing, as the whole area is subject to deposition of shingle and silt. Winchelsea once had a harbour, but by the 1550s, it had been abandoned as a port. The future of the port of Rye, a little further to the north, was in doubt by 1600, and Camber Castle, which had once protected the entrances to Winchelsea and Rye harbours was abandoned in the 1640s, as it could no longer serve that function, due to the changing channels. The idea of cutting a new channel was first suggested by the Italian engineer Frederico Genebelli in 1593, but was rejected by Rye Corporation, who thought it would enhance the port of Winchelsea, more than the port of Rye. Commissioners from the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
and
Trinity House decided that Rye Harbour was of no further use in 1698.
However, it 1723, an
Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
was obtained, which authorised a new cut to be made from the Brede near Winchelsea to the sea. The plans are not clearly understood, for the records of the Harbour Commissioners are often confused and garbled. The new channel would run from the right-angled bend where the present river turns northwards towards Rye, and run to the south, broadly following Sea Road and Dogs Hill Road, but a little further to the east.
[ The Harbour Commissioners consulted the naval officer and civil engineer John Perry, who estimated that the project would cost £13,732, and a second Act of Parliament was obtained in 1724. £4,000 was borrowed from the ]Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...
, to allow the work to start, and one of the first tasks was the construction of a drawbridge over the existing Winchelsea Channel of the River Brede, so that access from Rye to the new works was possible. John Reynolds completed the bridge in 1725. Meanwhile, Perry had marked out the route, and the process of buying the land began.
The canal was to be deep at high water on spring tides, which would make it suitable for ships of 300 tons, with a draught of up to . In the lower half there would be a scouring sluice and navigation gates. The canal would be wide above the sluice and wide below it. Work on the scouring sluice and the reservoir which would store the water for scouring of the channel was undertaken by Humphrey Smith in 1727 and 1728. Piers were to be constructed where the canal met the sea, and the west pier was the first to be started in 1728. Building of the foundations was overseen by Edward Rubie, Perry's foreman, and the contract for the main stonework was awarded to Christopher Cass and Andrews Jelfe. They completed the work in 1730. Perry then left the project, and Rubie went on to supervise the construction of the east pier and the grand sluice, although it is thought that his working drawings were based on Perry's original plans. The grand sluice was the largest of its kind at the time, having five gates, each of which was wide, and had huge abutments and a large central pier. Next to it was a navigation channel, which was wide, and had a pair of pointed gates. By 1733 some £20,000 had been spent on the project, and after a brief pause to raise some more money, work resumed under the supervision of Robert Cooper.
The canal had initially only been excavated to a depth of , and Cooper oversaw the deepening of the channel to . Wharfs were built, and the canal had been excavated to its full depth for from the piers at its southern end by the time Rubie left the project in 1748. Cooper continued making the channel deeper, built a jetty on the end of the west pier, and finally removed the shingle bank which kept the water out of the workings. The project had cost £42,000 by this point. The Commissioners then attempted to obtain another Act of Parliament, to authorise additional charges to shipping to cover the cost of the work. They succeeded on a second attempt in 1764.
Meanwhile, the Commissioners asked for advice from the civil engineer John Smeaton
John Smeaton (8 June 1724 – 28 October 1792) was a British civil engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbours and lighthouses. He was also a capable mechanical engineer and an eminent physicist. Smeaton was the fir ...
, who recommended that the Brede, the Tillingham and the Rother should all be diverted into the new channel. He suggested that a new course for the Rother should be cut to the north of Rye, but was never involved in the practical management of the scheme. A new channel was cut to the south of the town. The historian John Collard has suggested that this latter phase was marked by incompetence and failure at a managerial level. The Commissioners ordered that the old channel was not to be used after 14 July 1787, with traffic passing up the new harbour to the Strand Wharf. It was not entirely successful, as the harbour mouth still suffered from shingle deposition and silting. A wet autumn in 1787 caused extensive flooding of the levels, and the Harbour Commissioners, many of whom were also Commissioners for the various levels, resolved to abandon the new harbour on 6 November 1787, and the old route to the sea was re-opened. After 63 years work, the new harbour was only used for four months.[ The entrance lock to the Brede at Rye was built in the following year,][ and the merchants of Rye thanked the Commissioners in April 1789 for restoring "the Ancient Harbour of Rye."][
When the ]Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
with the French began in 1803, less than a year after the signing of the Treaty of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens (french: la paix d'Amiens, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition
The War of the Second Coalition (1798/9 – 1801/2, depending on perio ...
, which had ended the previous war with France, there were fears that the French might invade England. Consequently, a number of Martello towers were built, and the Royal Military Canal was proposed. This became a project for a defensive canal from Hythe, Kent
Hythe () is a coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the district of Folkestone and Hythe on the south coast of Kent. The word ''Hythe'' or ''Hithe'' is an Old English word meaning haven or landing place.
History
The town has m ...
in the east to Cliff End, near Pett in 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 ...
. Two sections were new, with the middle part of it consisting of the River Rother from Iden Lock to Rye, and the Brede from Rye to Winchelsea. By the time it was completed in 1809, the threat of invasion had passed.
The Commissioners of Sewers for the Levels of Brede and Pett were required, under powers granted by the Rye Harbour Act of 1833, to ensure that Brede Sluice was navigable, and that barges could travel up the river as far as Brede Bridge. This was carried out, as there is evidence that barges operated on the river during the nineteenth century. In 1903, when the Brede Valley Waterworks was being built, materials were transported by barge to a wharf immediately upstream of Brede Bridge.[ They were unloaded by a steam crane, and transferred to an gauge tramway, operated by an ]0-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven. The wheels on the earliest four-coupled locomotives were ...
saddle tank and four waggons. Coal to power the triple-expansion steam engine
A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages.
A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...
s continued to be delivered by water until around 1928. 20-ton barges could only reach Brede Bridge on 2 days every two weeks, when water levels were adequate. There was also a brickyard in the vicinity, which was served by a wharf on the south bank of the river below the bridge.[ There was an entrance lock just to the south of Rye, which had two sets of gates facing in both directions, so that it could be used at most states of the tide. It was suitable for boats which were , drawing .] By the time of the Land Drainage Act 1930
The Land Drainage Act 1930 was an Act of Parliament passed by the United Kingdom Government which provided a new set of administrative structures to ensure that drainage of low-lying land could be managed effectively. It followed the proposals of ...
, the land drainage function of the rivers was more important, and from 1933, river levels were reduced.[ A regulation to abolish the right of navigation became effective in 1934, although boats continued to deliver fuel to the Brede Valley Waterworks until 1935, when a road was built from the village to the works.][ Navigation is still possible in the winter months, but during the summer, Udimore sluice is used to retain water in the upper river, preventing the use of boats on parts of the river.][
]
Route
The Brede rises from several springs to the south of Netherfield, close to the and contours. They join together, and flow initially to the south east, before turning to the north east, to pass under a minor road and the A2100, by which time the river is already below the contour. At Pond Bay, Rat Gill joins the river, which turns to the east, to pass under a railway bridge on the Hastings Line. The River Line joins it at Whatlington, as do several more streams as it passes under the A21 and B2244 roads to the south of Sedlescombe. To the south of the river is the Pestalozzi International Village
Pestalozzi International Foundation (formerly called Pestalozzi Children's Village Trust and then Pestalozzi International Village Trust) is an educational charitable organisation based in East Sussex, England.
Overview
The Pestalozzi Childrenâ ...
, formerly the Pestalozzi Children's Village, set up by a Trust
Trust often refers to:
* Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality
It may also refer to:
Business and law
* Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another
* Trust (bus ...
following the end of the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The river channel is now flanked by drainage ditches on both sides, and soon drops below the contour.[Ordnance Survey, 1:25,000 map, availabl]
here
/ref>
A little further to the east is Brede Valley Waterworks, situated on the north bank. It was built in the early 1900s, and parts of it are grade II 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 ...
. The red-brick engine house still contains one of the original Tangye
Tangye is a surname of Breton origin and is common in Cornwall. It may refer to:
* Richard Tangye, industrialist (1833–1906)
**His son, Sir , 1st Baronet (1866–1935)
***His son, Sir , 2nd Baronet (1895–1969)
** His son, Lt. Colonel O.B.E ...
triple-expansion steam engine
A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages.
A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...
s supplied in 1904, while a later building, dating from the 1930s, houses a Worthington-Simpson
Worthington-Simpson was a British pump manufacturer. Many of their pumps were used in municipal waterworks in Great Britain.
The company has its roots in a steam engine workshop founded by Thomas Simpson around 1785. His sons took over the worksho ...
pumping engine dating from 1940. Before Brede Bridge, there is a derelict pumping station, which formerly pumped water from the drains into the main channel. An area of is being returned to marshland, and water levels are gradually rising to recreate a traditional waterside landscape. The bridge is a modern structure with a flat concrete deck, which was built to replace a hump-backed bridge during the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, to allow tanks to cross it. Beyond the bridge, Doleham Ditch joins from the south, and the Marshlink railway line which has followed the valley of a stream northwards, turns to the east to follow the Brede Valley. The valley floor widens, and a network of drains keeps this area, which is known as the Brede Level, from flooding.[
As the river passes to the north of Icklesham, the railway crosses to the north bank of the channel. Another pumping station pumps water into the river from a network of drains to the south of the river, which soon reaches Winchelsea. Large areas of the town are listed as a Scheduled Ancient Monument Station Road, which leads to ]Winchelsea railway station
Winchelsea railway station is a railway station in East Sussex, England. It is about from Winchelsea and is actually in the neighbouring parish of Udimore. It is on the Marshlink line north east of Hastings, and train services are provided b ...
, crosses the river at Ferry Bridge, and the A259 Royal Military Road, built in 1805 as part of the defensive Royal Military Canal crosses at Strand Bridge, on the eastern side of the town. Immediately beyond the bridge, the western section of the Royal Military Canal heads southwards towards Cliff End, near Pett. Like the town, it is an ancient monument. The Saxon Shore Way
The Saxon Shore Way is a long-distance footpath in England. It starts at Gravesend, Kent, and traces the coast of South-East England as it was in Roman times as far as Hastings, East Sussex, in total. This means that around Romney Marsh the ...
long-distance footpath follows its eastern bank, and continues to the south of the river.[
After two meanders, and just before the channel turns sharply to the north, was the junction with the abortive New Harbour. It followed the course of the later Old River Way. As the river progresses towards Rye, there is a sewage treatment works on the east bank, and the remains of Camber Castle, which was built in 1538 by ]King Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disag ...
, but abandoned in 1640 after the sea retreated. The structure and the grounds are a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and the remains have been restored and repaired since they were bought by the Department of National Heritage
, type = Department
, logo = Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport logo.svg
, logo_width =
, logo_caption =
, seal =
, seal_width =
, seal_caption =
, picture = Gove ...
in 1977. To the north of the castle is Castle Water Nature Reserve. The site covers , and was bought by the Sussex Wildlife Trust in 1992. Gravel was extracted there between 1935 and 1970, and it now provides a valuable wetland habitat for birds. Brede Sluice is actually a lock, and leads into the Rock Channel, which was cut around the south side of Rye in the 1760s. At its far end, the river flows into the River Rother.[
]
Water quality
The Environment Agency measure the water quality of the river systems in England. Each is given an overall ecological status, which may be one of five levels: high, good, moderate, poor and bad. There are several components that are used to determine this, including biological status, which looks at the quantity and varieties of invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
s, angiosperm
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s and fish. Chemical status, which compares the concentrations of various chemicals against known safe concentrations, is rated good or fail.
The water quality of the Brede system was as follows in 2019.
The reasons for the quality being less than good include sewage discharge and quarrying activities affecting the River Line, sewage discharge from a sewage treatment works and from industry on the Doleham Ditch, while the Brede itself suffers from sewage discharge, barriers which prevent fish accessing the river, and impounding of the water. Like many rivers in the UK, the chemical status changed from good to fail in 2019, due to the presence of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) and mercury compounds, neither of which had previously been included in the assessment.
Points of interest
Bibliography
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* (Chapter 10 of )
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References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brede, River
Rivers of East Sussex