Sedlescombe is a village and civil parish in the Rother 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. The village is on the B2244 road, about north of Hastings. The parish includes the hamlet of Kent Street, which is on the A21 road. The parish is in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The River Brede and its tributary the River Line flow through it; Powdermill Reservoir is on its eastern boundary. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,476.

Manor

In the reign of

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æth ...

(1042–66) Countess Godgifu was

overlord An overlord in the English feudal system was a lord of a manor who had subinfeudated a particular manor, estate or fee, to a tenant. The tenant thenceforth owed to the overlord one of a variety of services, usually military service or serje ...

of the

manor Manor may refer to: Land ownership *Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England *Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism *Man ...

of Sedlescombe. Her Lord of the manor was a Saxon called Leofsi, who also held a manor at Marden in what is now West Sussex. The Domesday Book records that by 1086 the Norman nobleman Robert, Count of Eu held the manor of Sedlescombe. His tenant-in-chief was one Walter, son of Lambert, who also held manors at Crowhurst, Hazelhurst and Ripe. The village name seems to derive from

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

'setl' meaning a seat or residence, and 'comb' meaning valley or low place

Manor houses

Manor Cottages in The Street are a 15th-century timber-framed building with a 16th-century extension. They were built as a single manor house but later divided into five cottages. They are a Grade I listed building. Durhamford Manor in Stream Lane is an early 16th-century timber-framed house. It is a Grade II* listed building.

Churches

Church of England

The

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

of St John the Baptist has a 15th-century

Perpendicular Gothic Perpendicular Gothic (also Perpendicular, Rectilinear, or Third Pointed) architecture was the third and final style of English Gothic architecture developed in the Kingdom of England during the Late Middle Ages, typified by large windows, four-c ...

nave, north aisle and west tower. The present chancel, south aisle and south porch were added in 1866–74 as part of a restoration by Norman and Billing. The chancel's north and south windows have stained glass made by CE Kempe in 1890. The building is Grade II* listed. The west tower has a ring of six bells. Robert Mot of

Houndsditch Houndsditch is a street running through parts of the Portsoken and Bishopsgate Without wards of the City of London; areas which are also a part of the East End of London. The road follows the line of the outside edge of the ditch which once ran ...

and Whitechapel cast the tenor bell in 1592. Joseph Carter of Whitechapel cast the fifth bell in 1606 and the second, third and fourth bells in 1607. Mears & Stainbank of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry cast the treble bell in 1929. St John's parish is now part of the

Benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of Sedlescombe with Whatlington. Sedlescombe United Reformed Church

United Reformed

Sedlescombe has a United Reformed Church.

Other notable buildings

Asselton House in The Street is a 15th-century timber-framed house. Its northwest wing was added in the 19th century. Pestalozzi International Village is an educational charity founded in 1946. In 1959 it moved to Oaklands, a Tudor Revival house in Sedlescombe. A Warden's House and International House were designed for it by Hugh Casson and Neville Conder and built in the grounds.

Amenities

The Queens Head PH, Sedlescombe - geograph

Sedlescombe has a 15th-century pub, the Queen's Head Inn, that is now a gastropub. There is also a hotel and a bed and breakfast guest house. The village has a post office and general store and a Church of England primary school. Just outside the village is Sedlescombe Golf Club, which includes the James Andrews School of Golf.The James Andrews School of Golf
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References

Sources and further reading

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External links

Sedlescombe Parish Council
* {{Authority control Villages in East Sussex Rother District Civil parishes in East Sussex