Sussex (), from the
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 ...
(), is a
historic county in
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England at the ITL 1 statistical regions of England, first level of International Territorial Level, ITL for Statistics, statistical purposes. It consists of the counties of england, ...
that was formerly an independent medieval
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- ...
kingdom
Kingdom commonly refers to:
* A monarchy ruled by a king or queen
* Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy
Kingdom may also refer to:
Arts and media Television
* ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...
. It is bounded to the west by
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
, north by
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
, northeast by
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 ...
, south by the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
, and divided for many purposes into the
ceremonial counties
The counties and areas for the purposes of the lieutenancies, also referred to as the lieutenancy areas of England and informally known as ceremonial counties, are areas of England to which lords-lieutenant are appointed. Legally, the areas i ...
of
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 ...
and
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 ...
.
Brighton and Hove
Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages.
Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...
, though part of East Sussex, was made a
unitary authority
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
in 1997, and as such, is administered independently of the rest of East Sussex. Brighton and Hove was granted
city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose.
Historically, city status ...
in 2000. Until then,
Chichester
Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...
was Sussex's only city. The
Brighton and Hove built-up area
The Brighton and Hove Built-up area or Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation has a population of 474,485 (2011 census), making it England's 12th largest conurbation. This was an increase of around 3% from the 2001 population of 461,181. Na ...
is the 15th largest conurbation in the UK and
Brighton and Hove
Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages.
Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...
is the most populous city or town in Sussex.
Crawley
Crawley () is a large town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a population of 106,597 at the time of th ...
,
Worthing
Worthing () is a seaside town in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 111,400 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Brighton and Hov ...
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 ...
are major towns, each with a population over 100,000. Sussex has three main geographic sub-regions, each oriented approximately east to west. In the southwest is the fertile and densely populated
coastal plain
A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Coa ...
. North of this are the rolling
chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk ...
hills of the
South Downs
The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...
, beyond which is the well-wooded
Sussex 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 ...
.
Sussex was home to some of Europe's earliest known hominids (''
Homo heidelbergensis
''Homo heidelbergensis'' (also ''H. sapiens heidelbergensis''), sometimes called Heidelbergs, is an extinct species or subspecies of archaic human which existed during the Middle Pleistocene. It was subsumed as a subspecies of ''H. erectus'' in ...
''), whose remains at
Boxgrove
Boxgrove is a village, ecclesiastical parish and civil parish in the Chichester District of the English county of West Sussex, about north east of the city of Chichester. The village is just south of the A285 road which follows the line of the R ...
have been dated to 500,000 years ago. Sussex played a key role in the
Roman conquest of Britain
The Roman conquest of Britain refers to the conquest of the island of Britain by occupying Roman forces. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by 87 when the Staneg ...
, with some of the earliest significant signs of a Roman presence in Britain. Local chieftains allied with Rome, resulting in
Cogidubnus
Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus (or Togidubnus, Togidumnus or similar; see naming difficulties) was a 1st-century king of the Regni or Regnenses tribe in early Roman Britain.
Chichester and the nearby Roman villa at Fishbourne, believed by some ...
being given a
client kingdom
A client state, in international relations, is a State (polity), state that is economically, politically, and/or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (called the "controlling state"). A client state may variously be described as ...
centred on Chichester. The
kingdom of Sussex
la, Regnum Sussaxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the South Saxons
, capital =
, era = Heptarchy
, status = Vassal of Wessex (686–726, 827–860)Vassal of Mercia (771–796)
, governm ...
was founded in the aftermath of the
Roman withdrawal from Britain
The end of Roman rule in Britain was the transition from Roman Britain to post-Roman Britain. Roman rule ended in different parts of Britain at different times, and under different circumstances.
In 383, the usurper Magnus Maximus withdrew tr ...
. According to legend, it was founded by
Ælle, King of Sussex, in AD 477. Around 827, it was annexed by the kingdom of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
and subsequently became a county of England. Sussex played a key role in the
Norman conquest of England
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, Duchy of Brittany, Breton, County of Flanders, Flemish, and Kingdom of France, French troops, ...
when in 1066,
William, Duke of Normandy
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087 ...
, landed at
Pevensey
Pevensey ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The main village is located north-east of Eastbourne, one mile (1.6 km) inland from Pevensey Bay. The settlement of Pevensey Bay forms part of ...
and fought the decisive
Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings nrf, Batâle dé Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William the Conqueror, William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godw ...
.
In 1974, the
Lord-Lieutenant
A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...
of Sussex was replaced with one each for East and West Sussex, which became 2 separate ceremonial counties. Sussex continues to be recognised as a geographical territory and
cultural region
In anthropology and geography, a cultural region, cultural sphere, cultural area or culture area refers to a geography with one relatively homogeneous human activity or complex of activities (culture). Such activities are often associated ...
. It has had a single police force since 1968 and its name is in common use in the media.
In 2007,
Sussex Day
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English C ...
was created to celebrate the county's rich
culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...
and
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
and in 2011 the
flag of Sussex
The Flag of Sussex is the flag of the traditional and historic county of Sussex. The flag was registered by the Flag Institute on Friday 20 May 2011 as a 'traditional' county flag as a result of a campaign started in August 2010, by Sussex resi ...
was recognised by the Flag Institute. In 2013,
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
Eric Pickles
Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar (UK Parliament co ...
formally recognised and acknowledged the continued existence of England's 39 historic counties, including Sussex.
Toponymy
The name "Sussex" is derived from the
Middle English
Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English p ...
, which is in turn derived from the
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 ...
, meaning "(land or people) of the
South Saxons
la, Regnum Sussaxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the South Saxons
, capital =
, era = Heptarchy
, status = Vassal of Wessex (686–726, 827–860)Vassal of Mercia (771–796)
, governm ...
" (cf.
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
,
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
and
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
). The South Saxons were a
Germanic tribe
This list of ancient Germanic peoples is an inventory of ancient Germanic cultures, tribal groupings and other alliances of Germanic tribes and civilisations in ancient times. The information comes from various ancient historical documents, beginn ...
that settled in the region from the
North German Plain
The North German Plain or Northern Lowland (german: Norddeutsches Tiefland) is one of the major geographical regions of Germany. It is the German part of the North European Plain. The region is bounded by the coasts of the North Sea and the Balti ...
during the 5th and 6th centuries.
The earliest known usage of the term South Saxons (Latin: ) is in a royal charter of 689 which names them and their king,
Noðhelm, although the term may well have been in use for some time before that. The monastic chronicler who wrote up the entry classifying the invasion seems to have got his dates wrong; recent scholars have suggested he might have been a quarter of a century too late.
Three
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
(in
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, and
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
), and a former
county/land division of
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
, are named after Sussex.
Symbols
![Sussex shield](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Sussex_shield.svg)
The
flag of Sussex
The Flag of Sussex is the flag of the traditional and historic county of Sussex. The flag was registered by the Flag Institute on Friday 20 May 2011 as a 'traditional' county flag as a result of a campaign started in August 2010, by Sussex resi ...
consists of six gold
martlet
A martlet in English heraldry is a mythical bird without feet that never roosts from the moment of its drop-birth until its death fall; martlets are proposed to be continuously on the wing. It is a compelling allegory for continuous effort, expre ...
s, or heraldic
swallow
The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...
s, on a blue background,
blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vis ...
ed as ''Azure, six
martlet
A martlet in English heraldry is a mythical bird without feet that never roosts from the moment of its drop-birth until its death fall; martlets are proposed to be continuously on the wing. It is a compelling allegory for continuous effort, expre ...
s or''. Recognised by the
Flag Institute
The Flag Institute is a UK membership organisation headquartered in Kingston upon Hull, England, concerned with researching and promoting the use and design of flags. It documents flags in the UK and internationally, maintains a UK Flag Registr ...
on 20 May 2011, its design is based on the
heraldic shield of Sussex. The first known recording of this emblem being used to represent the county was in 1611 when cartographer
John Speed
John Speed (1551 or 1552 – 28 July 1629) was an English cartographer, chronologer and historian of Cheshire origins.S. Bendall, 'Speed, John (1551/2–1629), historian and cartographer', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (OUP 2004/ ...
deployed it to represent the
Kingdom of the South Saxons. However, it seems that Speed was repeating an earlier association between the emblem and the county, rather than being the inventor of the association. It is now firmly regarded that the county emblem originated and derived from the coat of arms of the 14th-century
Knight of the Shire
Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...
, Sir
John de Radynden
Sir John de Radynden (1274-1350) was the only child of Walter and Agatha (daughter of Simon de Mucegros). He inherited his father's estate of Radynden, as well as the properties of his mother and his aunt, Alice de Mucegros. He initially was in ...
. Sussex's six martlets are today held to symbolise the traditional six sub-divisions of the county known as ''
rapes
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or agai ...
''.
![Campanulaceae - Phyteuma orbiculare](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Campanulaceae_-_Phyteuma_orbiculare.JPG)
''
Sussex by the Sea
"Sussex by the Sea" (also known as "A Horse Galloping") is a song written in 1907 by William Ward-Higgs, often considered to be the unofficial county anthem of Sussex. It became well known throughout Sussex and is regularly sung at celebrations t ...
'' is regarded as the unofficial anthem of Sussex; it was composed by
William Ward-Higgs
William Ward-Higgs (3 January 186621 June 1936) was an English lawyer and songwriter who wrote " Sussex by the Sea": The unofficial anthem of that county, a regimental march of the Royal Sussex Regiment, and the official song of Brighton & Hove ...
in 1907, perhaps originally from the lyrics of
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
's poem entitled ''Sussex''. Adopted by the
Royal Sussex Regiment
The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...
and popularised in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, it is sung at celebrations across the county, including those at
Lewes Bonfire
Lewes Bonfire, or Bonfire for short, describes a set of celebrations held in the town of Lewes, Sussex, England, that constitute the United Kingdom's largest and most famous Bonfire Night festivities, with Lewes being called the bonfire capit ...
, and at sports matches, including those of
Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...
and
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Sussex. Its limited overs team is called the Sussex Sharks. The c ...
.
The county day, called
Sussex Day
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English C ...
, is celebrated on 16 June, the same day as the feast day of
St Richard of Chichester
Richard of Chichester (1197 – 3 April 1253), also known as Richard de Wych, is a saint (canonized 1262) who was Bishop of Chichester.
In Chichester Cathedral a shrine dedicated to Richard had become a richly decorated centre of pilgrima ...
, Sussex's
patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
, whose shrine at
Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of the ...
was an important place of pilgrimage in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
.
Sussex's motto, ''
We wunt be druv
"We wunt be druv" is the unofficial county motto of Sussex in southern England. It is a Sussex dialect phrase meaning "we will not be driven". The motto asserts that people from the English county of Sussex have minds of their own, and cannot ...
'', is a
Sussex dialect
English in Southern England (also, rarely, Southern English English; Southern England English; or in the UK, simply, Southern English) is the collective set of different dialects and accents of Modern English spoken in Southern England.
As of ...
expression meaning "we will not be pushed around" and reflects the traditionally independent nature of Sussex men and women. The
round-headed rampion
Phyteuma orbiculare, common name round-headed rampion or Pride of Sussex, is a herbaceous perennial plant of the genus ''Phyteuma'' belonging to the family Campanulaceae.
Description
''Phyteuma orbiculare'' reaches on average of height. A dee ...
, also known as the "Pride of Sussex", was adopted as Sussex's
county flower
In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...
in 2002.
Geography
Landscape
![Seven Sisters cliffs and the coastguard cottages, from Seaford Head showing Cuckmere Haven (looking east - 2003-05-26)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Seven_Sisters_cliffs_and_the_coastguard_cottages%2C_from_Seaford_Head_showing_Cuckmere_Haven_%28looking_east_-_2003-05-26%29.jpg)
The physical geography of Sussex relies heavily on its lying on the southern part of the
Wealden anticline, the major features of which are the high lands that cross the county in a west to east direction: the
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 ...
itself and the
South Downs
The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...
.
Natural England
Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...
has identified the following seven
national character areas in Sussex:
*
South Coast Plain
The South Coast Plain is a natural region in England running along the central south coast in the counties of East Sussex, East and West Sussex and Hampshire.
It has been designated as National Character Area No. 126 by Natural England. The NCA h ...
*
South Downs
The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...
*
Wealden Greensand
Wealden may refer to:
* Wealden District, a local government district in the county of East Sussex, England
* Wealden Group, a group of rock strata in southern England, occasionally also referred to as the Wealden Supergroup
* Wealden iron indus ...
*
Low Weald
Low or LOW or lows, may refer to:
People
* Low (surname), listing people surnamed Low
Places
* Low, Quebec, Canada
* Low, Utah, United States
* Lo Wu station (MTR code LOW), Hong Kong; a rail station
* Salzburg Airport (ICAO airport code: LO ...
*
High Weald
High may refer to:
Science and technology
* Height
* High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area
* High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory
* High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift t ...
*
Pevensey Levels
Pevensey Levels is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Bexhill-on-Sea and Hailsham in East Sussex. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, a Ramsar site and a Special Area of Conservation. An area of is a nat ...
*
Romney Marsh
Romney Marsh is a sparsely populated wetland area in the counties of Kent and East Sussex in the south-east of England. It covers about . The Marsh has been in use for centuries, though its inhabitants commonly suffered from malaria until the ...
es
At ,
Blackdown is the highest point in Sussex, or
county top
The mountains and hills of the British Isles are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of elevation, prominence, and other criteria such as isolation. These lists are used for peak bagging, whereby hillwalkers attempt ...
. With a height of
Ditchling Beacon
Ditchling Beacon is the highest point in East Sussex, England, with an elevation of . It is south of Ditchling and to the north-east of Brighton. It is a large chalk hill with a particularly steep northern face, covered with open grassland a ...
is the highest point in East Sussex. At long, the
River Medway
The River Medway is a river in South East England. It rises in the High Weald AONB, High Weald, East Sussex and flows through Tonbridge, Maidstone and the Medway conurbation in Kent, before emptying into the Thames Estuary near Sheerness, a to ...
is the longest river flowing through Sussex. The longest river entirely in Sussex is the
River Arun
The River Arun () is a river in the English county of West Sussex. At long, it is the longest river entirely in Sussex and one of the longest starting in Sussex after the River Medway, River Wey and River Mole. From the series of small stream ...
, which is long. Sussex's largest lakes are man-made reservoirs. The largest is
Bewl Water
Bewl Water is a reservoir in the valley of the River Bewl, straddling the boundary between Kent and East Sussex in England. It is about south of Lamberhurst, Kent. The reservoir was part of a project to increase supplies of water in the area ...
on the Kent border, while the largest wholly within Sussex is
Ardingly Reservoir
Ardingly Reservoir is west of Ardingly in West Sussex. The southern end is a Local Nature Reserve owned and managed by South East Water.
The reservoir feeds the River Ouse located in West Sussex, England north of Haywards Heath. The villages o ...
.
Climate
The coastal resorts of Sussex and neighbouring
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
are the sunniest places in the United Kingdom.
The coast has consistently more sunshine than the inland areas: sea breezes, blowing off the sea, tend to clear any cloud from the coast.
The sunshine average is approximately 1,900 hours a year; this is much higher than the UK average of 1,340 hours a year. Most of Sussex lies in
hardiness zone
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
8; the exception is the coastal plain west of Brighton, which lies in the milder zone 9.
Rainfall is below average with the heaviest precipitation on the South Downs with of rainfall per year.
The close proximity of Sussex to
the Continent
Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...
of Europe, results in cold spells in winter and hot, humid weather in summer.
The climate of the coastal districts is strongly influenced by the sea, which, because of its tendency to warm up slower than land, can result in cooler temperatures than inland in the summer. In the autumn months, the coast sometimes has higher temperatures.
Rainfall during the summer months is mainly from thunderstorms and thundery showers; from January to March the heavier rainfall is due to prevailing south-westerly frontal systems.
In winter, the east winds can be as cold as further inland.
Selsey
Selsey is a seaside town and civil parish, about eight miles (12 km) south of Chichester in West Sussex, England. Selsey lies at the southernmost point of the Manhood Peninsula, almost cut off from mainland Sussex by the sea. It is bounde ...
is known as a
tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
hotspot, with small tornadoes hitting the town in 1986, 1998 and 2000,
with the 1998 tornado causing an estimated £10 million of damage to 1,000 buildings.
Conurbations
Most of Sussex's population is distributed in an east–west line along the English Channel coast or on the east–west line of the
A272. The exception to this pattern is the 20th century north–south development on the
A23-
Brighton line corridor
Corridor or The Corridor may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Films
* ''The Corridor'' (1968 film), a 1968 Swedish drama film
* ''The Corridor'' (1995 film), a 1995 Lithuanian drama film
* ''The Corridor'' (2010 film), a 2010 Canadia ...
, Sussex's main link to London. Sussex's population is dominated by the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation that, with a population of over 470,000, is home to almost 1 in 3 of Sussex's population. According to the
ONS urban area populations for continuous built-up areas, these are the 5 largest conurbations (population figures from the 2001 census):
Population
The combined population of Sussex as of 2011 is about 1.6 million.
[Combined population of local authority areas of Brighton and Hove (273,400), East Sussex, (527,200) and West Sussex (808,900)] In 2011, Sussex had a population density of 425 per km
2, higher than the average for England of 407 per km
2.
The earliest statement as to the population of Sussex is made by Bede, who describes the county as containing in 681 land of 7,000 families; allowing ten to a family (a reasonable estimate at that date), the total population would be 70,000.
In 1693 the county is stated to have contained 21,537 houses. The 1801 census found that the population was 159,311. The decline of the Sussex ironworks probably accounts for the small increase of population during several centuries, although after the
massacre of St Bartholomew
The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre (french: Massacre de la Saint-Barthélemy) in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations and a wave of Catholic mob violence, directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French War ...
upwards of 1,500
Huguenots
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...
landed at Rye, and in 1685, after the revocation of the
Edict of Nantes
The Edict of Nantes () was signed in April 1598 by King Henry IV and granted the Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was in essence completely Catholic. In the edict, Henry aimed pr ...
, many more refugees were added to the county.
[ The population of Sussex was 550,446 in 1891 and was 605,202 in 1901.][
]
History
Beginnings
Finds at Eartham Pit in Boxgrove show that the area has some of the earliest hominid remains in Europe, dating back some 500,000 years and known as Boxgrove Man or ''Homo heidelbergensis
''Homo heidelbergensis'' (also ''H. sapiens heidelbergensis''), sometimes called Heidelbergs, is an extinct species or subspecies of archaic human which existed during the Middle Pleistocene. It was subsumed as a subspecies of ''H. erectus'' in ...
''. At a site near Pulborough called The Beedings, tools have been found that date from around 35,000 years ago and that are thought to be from either the last Neanderthals
Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an Extinction, extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ag ...
in northern Europe or pioneer populations of modern humans. The thriving population lived by hunting game such as horses, bison, mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks and, ...
and woolly rhinos. Around 6000 BC the ice sheet over the North Sea melted, sea levels rose and the meltwaters burst south and westwards, creating the English Channel and cutting the people of Sussex off from their Mesolithic
The Mesolithic (Greek: μÎσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymous ...
kinsmen to the south. Later in the Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
period, the area of the South Downs above Worthing was one of Britain's largest and most important flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...
-mining centres. The flints were used to help fell trees for agriculture. The oldest of these mines, at Church Hill in Findon, has been carbon-dated to 4500 BC to 3750 BC, making it one of the earliest known mines in Britain. Flint tools from Cissbury
Cissbury Ring is an biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Worthing in West Sussex. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated a Scheduled monument for its Neolithic flint mine and Iron Age hillfort.
Cissbury Ring is ...
have been found as far away as the eastern Mediterranean.
Sussex is rich in remains from the Bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
and Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
s, in particular the Bronze Age barrows known as the Devil's Jumps and Cissbury Ring
Cissbury Ring is an biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Worthing in West Sussex. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated a Scheduled monument for its Neolithic flint mine and Iron Age hillfort.
Cissbury Ring is ...
, one of Britain's largest hillforts. Towards the end of the Iron Age in 75 BC people from the Atrebates
The Atrebates (Gaulish: *''Atrebatis'', 'dwellers, land-owners, possessors of the soil') were a Belgic tribe of the Iron Age and the Roman period, originally dwelling in the Artois region.
After the tribes of Gallia Belgica were defeated by Caes ...
, one of the tribes of the Belgae
The Belgae () were a large confederation of tribes living in northern Gaul, between the English Channel, the west bank of the Rhine, and the northern bank of the river Seine, from at least the third century BC. They were discussed in depth by Ju ...
, a mix of Celtic and German stock, invading and occupying southern Britain.[Armstrong. A History of Sussex. Ch. 3.] This was followed by an invasion by the Roman army under Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...
that temporarily occupied south-eastern Britain in 55 BC.
Soon after the first Roman invasion had ended, the Celtic Regni
The Regni, Regini, or Regnenses were a Tribe which occupied modern West Sussex, East Sussex, south-west Kent, eastern Surrey, and the eastern edges of Hampshire. Their Tribal centre was at Noviomagus_Reginorum (Chichester in West_Sussex), close ...
tribe under their leader Commius
Commius (Commios, Comius, Comnios) was a king of the Belgic nation of the Atrebates, initially in Gaul, then in Britain, in the 1st century BC.
Ally of Caesar
When Julius Caesar conquered the Atrebates in Gaul in 57 BC, as recounted in his '' ...
initially occupied the Manhood Peninsula
The Manhood Peninsula is the southwest of West Sussex in England. It has the English Channel to its south and Chichester to the north.
It is bordered to its west by Chichester Harbour and to its east by Pagham Harbour, its southern headland bein ...
. Eppillus
Eppillus (Celtic: "little horse") was the name of a Roman client king of the Atrebates tribe of the British Iron Age. He appears to have ruled part of the territory that had previously been held by Commius, the Gaulish former ally of Julius Cae ...
, Verica
Verica (early 1st century AD) was a British client king of the Roman Empire in the years preceding the Claudian invasion of 43 AD.
From his coinage, he appears to have been king of the, probably Belgic, Atrebates tribe and a son of Commius. Th ...
and Cogidubnus
Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus (or Togidubnus, Togidumnus or similar; see naming difficulties) was a 1st-century king of the Regni or Regnenses tribe in early Roman Britain.
Chichester and the nearby Roman villa at Fishbourne, believed by some ...
followed Commius as rulers of the Regni or southern Atrebates, a region which included most of Sussex, with their capital in the Selsey area.[Cunliffe. Iron Age communities in Britain. p. 169.]
Roman canton
A number of archaeologists now think there is a strong possibility that the Roman invasion of Britain
The Roman conquest of Britain refers to the conquest of the island of Britain by occupying Roman forces. It began in earnest in AD 43 under Emperor Claudius, and was largely completed in the southern half of Britain by 87 when the Staneg ...
in AD 43 started around Fishbourne and Chichester Harbour rather than the traditional landing place of Richborough
Richborough () is a settlement north of Sandwich on the east coast of the county of Kent, England. Richborough lies close to the Isle of Thanet. The population of the settlement is included in the civil parish of Ash.
Although now some dist ...
in Kent. According to this theory, the Romans were called to restore the refugee Verica
Verica (early 1st century AD) was a British client king of the Roman Empire in the years preceding the Claudian invasion of 43 AD.
From his coinage, he appears to have been king of the, probably Belgic, Atrebates tribe and a son of Commius. Th ...
, a king whose capital was in the Selsey and Chichester area, who had been driven out by the Catuvellauni
The Catuvellauni (Common Brittonic: *''Catu-wellaunī'', "war-chiefs") were a Celtic tribe or state of southeastern Britain before the Roman conquest, attested by inscriptions into the 4th century.
The fortunes of the Catuvellauni and their k ...
, a tribe based around modern Hertfordshire.
Much of Sussex was a Roman canton of the Regni
The Regni, Regini, or Regnenses were a Tribe which occupied modern West Sussex, East Sussex, south-west Kent, eastern Surrey, and the eastern edges of Hampshire. Their Tribal centre was at Noviomagus_Reginorum (Chichester in West_Sussex), close ...
, probably taking a similar area to the pre-Roman tribal area and kingdom. Its capital was at Noviomagus Reginorum
Noviomagus Reginorum was Chichester's Roman heart, very little of which survives above ground. It lay in the land of the friendly Atrebates and is in the early medieval-founded English county of West Sussex. On the English Channel, Chichester ...
, modern-day Chichester, close to the pre-Roman capital of the area, around Selsey. Sussex was home to the magnificent Roman Palace at Fishbourne, by far the largest Roman residence known north of the Alps. The Romans built villas, especially on the coastal plain and around Chichester, one of the best preserved being that at Bignor
Bignor is a village and civil parish in the Chichester (district), Chichester district of the England, English county of West Sussex, about north of Arundel. It is in the civil parish of Pulborough.
The nearest railway station is south east of ...
. Christianity first came to Sussex at this time, but faded away when the Romans left in the 5th century. The nationally important Patching hoard of Roman coins that was found in 1997 is the latest find of Roman coins found in Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
, probably deposited after 475 AD, well after the Roman departure from Britain
The end of Roman rule in Britain was the transition from Roman Britain to post-Roman Britain. Roman rule ended in different parts of Britain at different times, and under different circumstances.
In 383, the usurper Magnus Maximus withdrew tr ...
around 410 AD.
Saxon kingdom
The foundation legend of Sussex is provided by the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', which states that in the year AD 477 Ælle landed with his three sons.[ASC Parker MS. 477AD.] Having fought on the banks of the Mearcredesburna, it seems Ælle secured the area between the Ouse and Cuckmere in a treaty. Traditionally this is thought to have been against native Britons, but it may have been to secure the area east of the Saxon Shore
The Saxon Shore ( la, litus Saxonicum) was a military command of the late Roman Empire, consisting of a series of fortifications on both sides of the Channel. It was established in the late 3rd century and was led by the "Count of the Saxon Shor ...
fort of Anderida
Anderitum (also ''Anderida'' or ''Anderidos'') was a Saxon Shore fort in the Roman province of Britannia. The ruins adjoin the west end of the village of Pevensey in East Sussex, England. The fort was built in the 290s and was abandoned after it ...
from the influence of the Kingdom of Kent, with whom the South Saxons may have had occasional disputes. Ælle was recognised as the first 'Bretwalda
''Bretwalda'' (also ''brytenwalda'' and ''bretenanwealda'', sometimes capitalised) is an Old English word. The first record comes from the late 9th-century ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle''. It is given to some of the rulers of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms from ...
' or overlord of southern Britain. He was probably the most senior of 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- ...
kings and led the ill-fated campaign against King Arthur
King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain.
In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...
at Mount Badon
The Battle of Badon /ˈbeɪdən/ also known as the Battle of Mons Badonicus ( la, obsessio isBadonici montis, "Blockade/Siege of the Badonic Hill"; ''Bellum in monte Badonis'', "Battle on Badon Hill"; ''Bellum Badonis'', "Battle of Badon"; Old ...
.
By the 7th century at the latest the South Saxon kings were ruling from sites around Selsey, the pre-Roman capital of the area, and the Roman capital of the area, now renamed Chichester, initially with similar borders to the pre-Roman kingdom and Roman canton. For much of the 7th and 8th centuries, Sussex was engaged in conflict with the kingdom of Wessex to its west. King Æðelwealh formed an alliance with Christian Mercia
la, Merciorum regnum
, conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia
, common_name=Mercia
, status=Kingdom
, status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex ()
, life_span=527–918
, era=Heptarchy
, event_start=
, date_start=
, ye ...
against Wessex, becoming Sussex's first Christian king. With support from St Wilfrid
Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and ...
, Sussex became the last major Anglo Saxon kingdom to become Christian. South Saxon and Mercian forces took control of what is now east Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Cædwalla of Wessex
Cædwalla (; 659 – 20 April 689 AD) was the King of Wessex from approximately 685 until he abdicated in 688. His name is derived from the Welsh Cadwallon. He was exiled from Wessex as a youth and during this period gathered forces and ...
killed Æðelwealh and "ravaged Sussex by fierce slaughter and devastation". The South Saxons forced Cædwalla from Sussex and were able to lead a campaign into 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 ...
, replacing its king. At this time Sussex could have re-emerged into a regional power. Shortly afterwards, Cædwalla returned to Sussex, killing its king and oppressing its people, putting them in what Bede called "a worse state of slavery". The South Saxon clergy were put under the control of West Saxon Winchester
Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...
. Only around 715 was Eadberht of Selsey
Eadberht of Selsey (died circa 716) was an abbot of Selsey Abbey, later promoted to become the first Bishop of Selsey. He was consecrated sometime between 709 and 716, and died between 716 and 731.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology' ...
made the first bishop of the South Saxons, after which further invasion attempts from Wessex ensued.
Following a period of rule by King Offa of Mercia, Sussex regained its independence but was annexed by Wessex around 827 and was fully absorbed into the crown of Wessex in 860, which later grew into the kingdom of England.
Norman Sussex
The Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings nrf, Batâle dé Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William the Conqueror, William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godw ...
was fought in Sussex, the victory that led to the Norman conquest of England
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, Duchy of Brittany, Breton, County of Flanders, Flemish, and Kingdom of France, French troops, ...
. In September 1066, William of Normandy
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 108 ...
landed with his forces at Pevensey
Pevensey ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The main village is located north-east of Eastbourne, one mile (1.6 km) inland from Pevensey Bay. The settlement of Pevensey Bay forms part of ...
and erected a wooden castle at 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 ...
, from which they raided the surrounding area.[Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 79–89] The battle was fought between Duke William of Normandy and the English king, Harold Godwinson
Harold Godwinson ( – 14 October 1066), also called Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king. Harold reigned from 6 January 1066 until his death at the Battle of Hastings, fighting the Norman invaders led by William the C ...
, who had strong connections with Sussex and whose chief seat
A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense.
Types of seat
The following are examples of different kinds of seat:
* Armchair (furniture), ...
was probably in Bosham
Bosham is a coastal village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England, centred about west of Chichester with its clustered developed part west of this. Its land forms a broad peninsula projecting into natural Chiche ...
. After having marched his exhausted army from Yorkshire, Harold fought the Normans at the Battle of Hastings, where England's army was defeated and Harold was killed. It is likely that all the fighting men of Sussex were at the battle, as the county's thegns
In Anglo-Saxon England, thegns were aristocratic landowners of the second rank, below the ealdormen who governed large areas of England. The term was also used in early medieval Scandinavia for a class of retainers. In medieval Scotland, there w ...
were decimated and any that survived had their lands confiscated. William built Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined Benedictine abbey in Battle, East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the site of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St Martin of Tours. It is a Scheduled Monument.
The Grade I listed site is now op ...
at the site of the battle, with the exact spot where Harold fell marked by the high altar.
Sussex experienced some of the greatest changes of any English county under the Normans, for it was the heartland of King Harold and was potentially vulnerable to further invasion. In the immediate aftermath of the Normans' landing at Pevensey and the Battle of Hastings and to put an end to any rebellion, the Norman army destroyed estates and other assets on their route through Sussex, leading to a 40 per cent reduction in Sussex's wealth, a situation worse than any other southern or midland county. By 1086 wealth in Sussex was still 10—25 per cent lower than it had been in 1066.
It was also during the Norman period that Sussex achieved its greatest importance in comparison with other English counties. Sussex was on the main route between England and Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
, and the lands of the Anglo-Norman nobility in what is now western France. The growth in Sussex's population, the importance of its ports and the increased colonisation of the 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 ...
were all part of changes as significant to Sussex as those brought by the neolithic period, by the Romans and the Saxons. Sussex also experienced the most radical and thorough reorganisation of land in England. The county's existing sub-divisions, known as rapes, were made into castleries and each territory was given to one of William's most trusted barons. Castles were built to defend the territories including at Arundel, Bramber, Lewes, Pevensey and Hastings. Sussex's bishop, Æthelric II
Æthelric (died ) was the second to last medieval Bishop of Selsey in England before the see was moved to Chichester. Consecrated a bishop in 1058, he was deposed in 1070 for unknown reasons and then imprisoned by King William I of England. He ...
, was deposed and imprisoned and replaced with William the Conqueror's personal chaplain, Stigand
Stigand (died 1072) was an Anglo-Saxon churchman in pre-Norman Conquest England who became Archbishop of Canterbury. His birth date is unknown, but by 1020 he was serving as a royal chaplain and advisor. He was named Bishop of Elmham in 104 ...
. The Normans also built Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of the ...
and moved the seat of Sussex's bishopric from Selsey to Chichester. The Normans also founded new towns in Sussex, including New Shoreham (the centre of modern Shoreham-by-Sea), Battle, Arundel, Uckfield and Winchelsea.
Sussex under the Plantagenets
In 1264, the Sussex Downs were the location of the Battle of Lewes
The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264. It marked the high point of the career of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, and made h ...
, in which Simon de Montfort
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester ( – 4 August 1265), later sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from his namesake relatives, was a nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the ...
and his fellow barons captured Prince Edward (later Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
), the son and heir of Henry III. The subsequent treaty, known as the Mise of Lewes
The Mise of Lewes was a settlement made on 14 May 1264 between King Henry III of England and his rebellious barons, led by Simon de Montfort. The settlement was made on the day of the Battle of Lewes, one of the two major battles of the Second Ba ...
, led to Montfort summoning the first parliament in English history without any prior royal authorisation. A provisional administration was set up, consisting of Montfort, the Bishop of Chichester
The Bishop of Chichester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of East and West Sussex. The see is based in the City of Chichester where the bishop's seat ...
and the Earl of Gloucester
The title of Earl of Gloucester was created several times in the Peerage of England. A fictional earl is also a character in William Shakespeare's play ''King Lear.''
Earls of Gloucester, 1st Creation (1121)
*Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (1100â ...
. These three were to elect a council of nine, to govern until a permanent settlement could be reached.
During the Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
, Sussex found itself on the frontline, convenient both for intended invasions and retaliatory expeditions by licensed French pirates. Hastings, Rye and Winchelsea were all burnt during this period and all three towns became part of the Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports () is a historic group of coastal towns in south-east England – predominantly in Kent and Sussex, with one outlier (Brightlingsea) in Essex. The name is Old French, meaning "five harbours", and alludes to th ...
, a loose federation for supplying ships for the country's security. Also at this time, Amberley Amberley may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Amberley, Queensland, near Ipswich, Australia
*RAAF Base Amberley, a Royal Australian Air Force military airbase
United Kingdom
* Amberley, Gloucestershire, England
* Amberley, Herefordshire, England
...
and Bodiam
Bodiam () is a small village and civil parish in the Rother District of East Sussex, England. It lies in the valley of the River Rother, near to the villages of Sandhurst and Ewhurst Green.
The MP of the local UK Parliament constituency is Hu ...
castles were built to defend the upper reaches of navigable rivers.
One of the impacts of the war and the Black Death
The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...
, which killed around half of the population of Sussex, was the perceived injustice that led many Sussex people to participate in the Peasant’s Revolt
The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...
of 1381. Coastal areas suffered most from the Black Death, and took longest to recover. Instead much economic activity in Sussex was focused on the Weald. Merchants moved north from the coastal towns and many Continental craftsmen, fleeing religious persecution, brought their expertise to the timber, iron, clothmaking and glass industries. Economic and social tensions continued for many years as Sussex people were also involved in Jack Cade
Jack Cade's Rebellion was a popular revolt in 1450 against the government of England, which took place in the south-east of the country between the months of April and July. It stemmed from local grievances regarding the corruption, maladmini ...
's rebellion of 1450, in which Cade may have been killed at Cade Street
Cade is a gender-neutral given name of English origin meaning "stout" or "sturdy". It is currently the 97th most popular baby name, and 340th in the United States.
Cade
Given name
*Cade Cavalli (born 1998), American baseball player
*Cade Cou ...
, near Heathfield. Demands grew more radical in Sussex in 1451 when John and William Merfold
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
advocated rule by common people. They also demanded that Henry VI be deposed and publicly incited the killing of the nobility and clergy.
Early modern Sussex
The Wealden iron industry
The Wealden iron industry was located in the Weald of south-eastern England. It was formerly an important industry, producing a large proportion of the bar iron made in England in the 16th century and most British cannon until about 1770. Iron ...
expanded rapidly, especially after the first blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being "forced" or supplied above atmospheric ...
arrived in Sussex 1496, from the Low Countries
The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
, which greatly improved efficiency. Skilled Flemish workers moved to Sussex, followed again by Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
craftsmen from France, who brought new techniques. The industry was strategically important and flourished into the 17th century, after which it began to decline. It also brought widespread deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...
of parts of the Sussex Weald.
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 disa ...
's separation of the Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
from Rome and the dissolution of the monasteries led to the demolition of Lewes Priory
Lewes Priory is a part-demolished medieval Cluniac priory in Lewes, East Sussex in the United Kingdom. The ruins have been designated a Grade I listed building.
History
The Priory of St Pancras was the first Cluniac house in England and had o ...
and Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined Benedictine abbey in Battle, East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the site of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St Martin of Tours. It is a Scheduled Monument.
The Grade I listed site is now op ...
and the sites being given to Henry’s supporters. The shrine to St Richard at Chichester Cathedral was also destroyed. Queen Mary returned England to Catholicism and in Sussex 41 Protestants were burned to death. Under Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
El ...
, religious intolerance continued albeit on a lesser scale, with several people being executed for their Catholic beliefs. In Elizabeth's reign, Sussex was open to the older Protestant forms practised in the Weald as well as the newer Protestant forms coming from Continental Europe; combined with a significant Catholic presence, Sussex was in many ways out of step with the rest of southern England.
Sussex escaped the worst ravages of the English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
, although control of the Wealden iron industry was strategically important to both sides. In 1642 there was a skirmish at Haywards Heath
Haywards Heath is a town in West Sussex, England, south of London, north of Brighton, south of Gatwick Airport and northeast of the county town, Chichester. Nearby towns include Burgess Hill to the southwest, Horsham to the northwest, Crawl ...
when Royalists
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...
marching towards Lewes were intercepted by local Parliamentarians. The Royalists were routed with around 200 killed or taken prisoner. Shortly after there were siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...
s at Chichester
Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...
and Arundel
Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England.
The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much large ...
, and a smaller battle at Bramber Bridge. Despite its being under Parliamentarian control, Charles II was able to journey through the county after the Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell def ...
in 1651 to make his escape to France from the port of Shoreham.
In 1681 Charles II granted William Penn
William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
lands in what became Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
and Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
. Amongst those whom he carried to North America as colonists were 200 people from Sussex, mostly Quakers,[Lower. Worthies of Sussex. p. 341] who founded settlements named after places in Sussex including 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 ...
and Seaford in Sussex County, Delaware and Horsham Township and Chichester
Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...
in Pennsylvania.
The Sussex coast was greatly modified by the social movement of sea bathing
The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...
for health which became fashionable among the wealthy in the second half of the 18th century. Resorts developed all along the coast, including at Brighton, Hastings, Worthing, and Bognor.
Late modern and contemporary Sussex
Poverty increased and by 1801 Sussex had the highest poor law
In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...
rates in England, with 23 per cent of its population (37,000 people out of 160,000) living on the breadline and receiving regular relief. Socially acceptable crimes including protest, riot, collective action and smuggling
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.
There are various ...
were commonplace in Sussex and were seen by many as a legitimate way to address grievances and assert freedoms. Sussex became a centre for radicalism. Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...
developed his political ideas in Lewes, and later wrote ''Common Sense'' which was influential in the American Revolution. Known as 'the radical duke', Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond, was an early supporter of parliamentary reform and US independence. Richard Cobden was a product of Sussex's rural radicalism, and became a campaigner for free trade and peace. Poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was another influential radical from Sussex.
At the beginning of the 19th century agricultural labourers' conditions took a turn for the worse with an increasing amount of them becoming unemployed, those in work faced their wages being forced down.[Harrison. The common people. pp. 249-253] Conditions became so bad that it was even reported to the House of Lords in 1830 that four harvest labourers (seasonal workers) had been found dead of starvation. The deteriorating conditions of work for the agricultural labourer eventually triggered riots, first in neighbouring Kent, and then in Sussex, where they lasted for several weeks, although the unrest continued until 1832 and became known as the Swing Riots.[Horspool. The English Rebel. pp. 339 -340]
During World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, on 30 June 1916, the Royal Sussex Regiment
The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...
took part in the Battle of the Boar's Head at Richebourg-l'Avoué. The day subsequently became known as The Day Sussex Died. Within five hours the 17 officers and 349 men were killed, and 1,000 men were wounded or taken prisoner. In 1918 the terms of the armistice to be offered to Germany at the end of World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
were agreed at a meeting at Danny House, Hurstpierpoint. With the declaration of World War II, Sussex found itself part of the country's frontline with its airfields playing a key role in the Battle of Britain and with its towns being some of the most frequently bombed.[Kim Leslie and Marlin Mace. Sussex Defences in the Second World War ''in'' Kim Leslie. An Historical Atlas of Sussex. pp. 118-119.] Sussex was garrisoned by multiple British and Canadian Army units from 1940 until at least May 1942. During the lead up to the Dieppe Raid and D-Day landings, the people of Sussex were witness to the buildup of military personnel and materials, including the assembly of landing crafts and construction of Mulberry harbours off the county's coast.[Brandon. Sussex. pp. 302-309.]
In the post-war era, the New Towns Act 1946 designated Crawley as the site of a new town. As part of the Local Government Act 1972, the eastern and western divisions of Sussex were made into the ceremonial counties of East and West Sussex in 1974. Boundaries were changed and a large part of the rape of Lewes was transferred from the eastern division into West Sussex, along with Gatwick Airport, which was historically part of the county of Surrey.
Governance
Politics
From 1290, Sussex returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England, House of Commons of the Parliament of England. Each county returned two MPs and each borough designated by Royal charter also returned two MPs. After the Acts of Union 1707, union with Scotland two members represented the county in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. The Reform Act 1832 led to the disenfranchisement of some of the smaller Sussex boroughs and divided what had been a single county constituency into East Sussex (UK Parliament constituency), eastern and West Sussex (UK Parliament constituency), western divisions, with two representatives elected for each division.[Horsfield. The History, Antiquities and Topography of the County of Sussex. Volume II. Appendix pp. 23-75.] The reforms of the 19th century made the electoral system more representative, but it was not until 1928 that there was universal suffrage.[Richard Childs. Parliamentary Representation ''in'' Leslies, An Historical Atlas of Sussex. pp. 72-73.]
There was a strong Radical politics, radical and Republicanism in the United Kingdom, republican tradition in Sussex from the 19th century, although for most of the 20th century Sussex was a Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party stronghold. From the 1906 United Kingdom general election, 1906 to 1997 United Kingdom general election, 1997 general elections the only seats in Sussex won by parties other than the Conservatives were in the constituencies of Brighton (UK Parliament constituency), Brighton and Brighton Kemptown (UK Parliament constituency), Brighton Kemptown. Since 1997 there has been a gradual shift to the left, especially in more urban areas. This has been most notable in Brighton and Hove, where in Brighton Pavilion (UK Parliament constituency), Brighton Pavilion the UK's first and only Green Party of England and Wales, Green MP, Caroline Lucas, was elected in 2010 and the UK's first Green-led local authority was elected in 2011. In the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament, Sussex is represented by 16 MPs. At the 2019 United Kingdom general election, 2019 general election, 13 Conservative Party (UK), Conservative MPs, 2 Labour Party (UK), Labour and Labour and Co-operative, Labour Co-op MPs and 1 Green Party of England and Wales, Green MP were elected from Sussex constituencies.
Amongst top-tier local authorities, East Sussex County Council, East and West Sussex County Councils are both held by the Conservatives and Brighton and Hove City Council is led by a minority Green administration. Amongst district councils, as of December 2021 the Conservative Party had majorities in 4 local authorities (Adur District, Adur, Horsham District, Horsham, Mid Sussex District, Mid Sussex and Wealden District, Wealden), the Lib Dems had a majority in 1 local authority (Eastbourne Borough Council, Eastbourne) and the Labour Party had a majority in 1 local authority (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 ...
). Of the 6 local authorities in no overall control, 2 had minority Conservative administrations (Chichester District, Chichester and Worthing Borough Council, Worthing), 2 had minority Lib Dem administrations (Arun District, Arun and Rother District, Rother), 1 had a minority Labour administration (Crawley
Crawley () is a large town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a population of 106,597 at the time of th ...
) and 1 was run by a Lib Dem-Green-Labour-Independent coalition (Lewes District, Lewes). Conservative Katy Bourne is the Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner, having first been elected in 2012. In the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, 2016 referendum on UK membership of the EU, the people of Sussex voted to leave the EU by the narrowest of margins, by 50.23% to 49.77% or 4,413 votes.
Law
Headquartered in Lewes, Home Office policing in Sussex has been provided by Sussex Police since 1968.
The first-tier Crown Court for all of Sussex is Lewes Crown Court, which has courts in Lewes, Brighton and Hove. Like other first-tier Crown Courts it has its own resident High Court judge (England and Wales), High Court Judge. There is also a third-tier Crown Court at Chichester. The Prisoner security categories in the United Kingdom, local prison in Sussex for men is Lewes (HM Prison), Lewes Prison and there is also a Category D prison at Ford (HM Prison), Ford.
Administrative divisions
Historic sub-divisions
A Rape (county subdivision), rape is a traditional territorial sub-division of Sussex, formerly used for various administrative purposes. Their origin is unknown, but they appear to predate the Norman Conquest Each rape was split into several hundred (division), hundreds and may be Romano-British or 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- ...
in origin.
At the time of the Norman Conquest, there were four rapes: Arundel, Lewes, Pevensey and Hastings. The rape of Bramber was created later in the 11th century and the rape of Chichester was created in the 13th century.
Modern local authority areas
Local government in Sussex has been History of local government in Sussex, subject to periodic review over time and Sussex is currently divided two counties for ceremonial purposes and for administrative purposes into two non-metropolitan counties, county council areas, East and West Sussex, and one unitary authority, the city of Brighton and Hove. There is a non-metropolitan district, two-tier structure for East Sussex and West Sussex with local education authority, education, social services, library, libraries, public transport and waste disposal carried out by the county councils and planning permission, local planning and Building regulations in the United Kingdom, building control carried out by the district and borough councils.
For the governance of a long narrow territory it became practical to divide the county into two sections. The three eastern rapes of Sussex became east Sussex and the three western rapes became west Sussex. This began in 1504 with separate administrations (Quarter Sessions) for east and west, a situation recognised by the County of Sussex Act 1865. Under the Local Government Act 1888, the two divisions became two administrative counties of England, administrative counties (along with three county boroughs: Brighton, 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, from 1911, 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 ...
).
Economy
Despite its location in the prosperous South East of England, there is considerable economic variation within Sussex. In most areas within Sussex, economic output is close to or significantly lower than the UK average and is far below the average for South East England. For statistical purposes, the UK Government pairs Sussex at the NUTS2 level with Surrey, a significantly better off region, which to some degree masks the level of deprivation in Sussex. In 2018 the four Sussex statistical areas at the NUTS3 level had a GDP per head that varied between £18,852 (58.6% of the UK average) and £33,711 (104.6% of the UK average), and was typically below the UK average of £32,216. This was in contrast to the two areas in Surrey, which had a GDP per head of £37,429 and 42,433, well above the UK average. There is also serious deprivation in Sussex comparable to the most deprived UK inner city areas. Some areas of Sussex are in the top 5 per cent most deprived in the UK and, in some areas, two-thirds of children are living in poverty. In 2011, two Local Enterprise Partnerships were formed to improve the economy in Sussex. These were the Coast to Capital LEP, covering West Sussex, Brighton and Hove and the Lewes district in the west of East Sussex, as well as parts of Surrey and South London; and the South East LEP, which covers the local authority area of East Sussex, as well as Kent and Essex. In the most populous part of Sussex, around the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton, Brighton and Hove Built-up area, the Greater Brighton City Region, Greater Brighton City Deal was formed to enable the area to fulfil its economic potential, into one of the highest performing urban economies in the UK.
Tourism in Sussex is well-established, and includes seaside resorts and the South Downs National Park. Brighton and Hove has a high density of businesses involved in media, particularly digital or "new media"; since the 1990s Brighton has been referred to as "Silicon Beach". The Greater Brighton City Deal seeks to develop Brighton's creative-tech cluster under the name Tech City South. The University of Sussex and the University of Brighton provide employment for many more. A large part of the county, centred on Gatwick Airport has been recognised as a key economic growth area for South East England whilst reasonable rail connections allow many people to work in London.
Several large companies are based in Sussex including American Express (Brighton), The Body Shop (Littlehampton), Bowers & Wilkins (Worthing), Hastings Insurance and Park Holidays UK (Bexhill), Ricardo plc (Shoreham-by-Sea), Rolls-Royce Motor Cars (Goodwood), Thales UK (Crawley), Alfa Laval (Eastbourne) and Virgin Atlantic (Crawley).
The Sussex Weald had an Wealden iron industry, iron working industry from the Iron Age until the 19th century. The glass making industry started on the Sussex/Surrey border throughout the late medieval period until the 17th century.[Brandon. Sussex. pp. 175 -176.] Agriculture in Sussex depended on the terrain, so in the sticky clays and acid sands of the Sussex Weald, pastoral and mixed farming took place, with sheep farming being common on the chalk downland. Fishing fleets continue to operate along the coast, notably at Rye and Hastings. There are working harbours at Rye, Hastings, Newhaven and Shoreham; whilst Pagham, Eastbourne and Chichester harbours cater for leisure craft, as does Brighton Marina. The Mid Sussex area had a thriving clay industry in the early 20th century.
Education
The oldest university in Sussex is the research intensive University of Sussex, founded in 1961 at Falmer in Brighton, the first new university in England since World War II. The university consistently ranks among the top 20 universities in the UK. It is home to the renowned Institute of Development Studies and the Science Policy Research Unit, alongside over 40 other established research centres.
In 1992 it was joined by the University of Brighton (with campuses in Brighton, Eastbourne and University Centre Hastings, Hastings) and in 2005 by the University of Chichester (with campuses in Chichester and Bognor Regis). Validated by University of the Arts London, higher education is also provided at Greater Brighton Metropolitan College, whose campuses in Brighton, Worthing and Shoreham-by-Sea are referred to as MET University Centre.
The Prebendal School in Chichester is the oldest known school in Sussex and probably dates to when the Normans moved the Sussex bishopric from Selsey Abbey, Selsey to Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of the ...
in the 11th century. Primary and secondary education in the state sector in Sussex is provided by its three Local education authority, local education authorities of East Sussex County Council, East and West Sussex County Councils and Brighton and Hove City Council. Sussex also has some of the best-known independent schools in England including Christ's Hospital, Christ's Hospital School, Brighton College, Eastbourne College, Lancing College and Battle Abbey School.
Healthcare
The Sussex County Hospital (now the Royal Sussex County Hospital) was founded in 1828 at Brighton whilst the Sussex County Mental Asylum (later 'St. Francis Hospital' and now the Princess Royal Hospital, Haywards Heath, Princess Royal Hospital) was founded in 1859 in the centre of county at Haywards Heath.
Sussex's first medical school, the Brighton and Sussex Medical School, was set up in 2002. In 2011 the four Sussex NHS primary care trusts (PCTs) joined forces to become NHS Sussex. The Major Trauma Centre at the Royal Sussex County Hospital is the Trauma centre, Major Trauma Centre for Sussex with the Sussex's other hospitals acting as trauma units. It is one of only five major trauma centres across the NHS's South of England area. The hospital also houses the Sussex Cancer Centre which serves most of Sussex.
Culture
Sussex has a centuries-old reputation for being separate and culturally distinct from the rest of England. The people of Sussex have a reputation for independence of thought and have an aversion to being pushed around, as expressed through the Sussex motto, We wunt be druv
"We wunt be druv" is the unofficial county motto of Sussex in southern England. It is a Sussex dialect phrase meaning "we will not be driven". The motto asserts that people from the English county of Sussex have minds of their own, and cannot ...
. Sussex is known for its strong tradition of Sussex Bonfire Societies, bonfire celebrations and its proud musical heritage. Sussex in the first half of the 20th century was a major centre for modernism, and saw many radical artists and writers move to its seaside towns and countryside.
The county is home to the Brighton Festival and the Brighton Fringe, England's largest arts festival. Brighton Pride is one of the UK's largest and oldest gay pride pride parade, parades and other pride events take place at most other major towns including Crawley, Eastbourne, Hastings and Worthing Pride, Worthing. Chichester is home to the Chichester Festival Theatre and Pallant House Gallery.
Architecture
Sussex's building materials reflect its geology, being made of flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...
on and near the South Downs and sandstone in the Weald. Brick is used across the county.
Typically conservative and moderate, the architecture of Sussex also has elaborate and eccentric buildings rarely matched elsewhere in England including the Saxon architecture, Saxon Church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin, Sompting, Castle Goring, which has a front and rear of entirely different styles and Brighton's Indo-Saracenic Royal Pavilion.
Dialect
Historically, Sussex has had its own dialect with regional differences reflecting its cultural history. It has been divided into variants for the three western rapes of West Sussex, the two eastern rapes of Lewes and Pevensey and an area approximate to the easternmost rape of Hastings. The Sussex dialect is also notable in having an unusually large number of words for mud, in a way similar to the popular belief which exists that the Inuit have an Eskimo words for snow, unusually large number of words for snow.
Literature
Writers born in Sussex include the Renaissance poet Thomas May and playwrights Thomas Otway, and John Fletcher (playwright), John Fletcher. One of the most prolific playwrights of his day, Fletcher is thought to have collaborated with Shakespeare. Notable Sussex poets include William Collins (poet), William Collins, William Hayley, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Richard Realf, Wilfrid Scawen Blunt, Edward Carpenter and John A. Scott, John Scott. Other writers from Sussex include Sheila Kaye-Smith, Noel Streatfeild, Patrick Hamilton (writer), Patrick Hamilton, Rumer Godden, Hammond Innes, Angus Wilson, Maureen Duffy, Angela Carter, William Nicholson (writer), William Nicholson, Peter James (writer), Peter James, Kate Mosse and Alex Preston (author), Alex Preston.
In addition there are writers, who while they were not born in Sussex had a strong connection. This includes Charlotte Turner Smith, William Blake, Alfred Tennyson, H. G. Wells, Hilaire Belloc, John Cowper Powys, Arthur Conan Doyle, Henry James, E.F. Benson, John Roman Baker, James Herbert and AA Milne, who lived in Ashdown Forest for much of his life and set his Winnie-the-Pooh stories in the forest. Sussex has been home to four winners of the Nobel Prize in Literature: Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
spent much of his life in Sussex, living in Rottingdean and later at Burwash. Irishman W.B. Yeats spent three winters living with American poet Ezra Pound at Colemans Hatch in the Ashdown Forest and towards the end of his life spent much time at Steyning and Withyham; John Galsworthy spent much of his life in Bury in the Sussex Downs; and Harold Pinter lived in Worthing in the 1960s.
Music
Sussex's rich musical heritage encompasses folk, classical and popular genres amongst others. Composed by William Ward-Higgs, ''Sussex by the Sea
"Sussex by the Sea" (also known as "A Horse Galloping") is a song written in 1907 by William Ward-Higgs, often considered to be the unofficial county anthem of Sussex. It became well known throughout Sussex and is regularly sung at celebrations t ...
'' is the county's unofficial anthem. Passed on through oral tradition, many of Sussex's traditional songs may not have changed significantly for centuries, with their origins perhaps dating as far back as the time of the South Saxons
la, Regnum Sussaxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the South Saxons
, capital =
, era = Heptarchy
, status = Vassal of Wessex (686–726, 827–860)Vassal of Mercia (771–796)
, governm ...
. William Henry Hudson compared the singing of the Sussexians with that of the Basques and the Tehuelche people of Patagonia, both peoples with ancient cultures. The songs sung by the Copper Family, Henry Burstow, Samuel Willett, Peter and Harriett Verrall, David Penfold and others were collected by John Broadwood and his niece Lucy Broadwood, Kate Lee (English singer), Kate Lee and composers Ralph Vaughan Williams and George Butterworth. Sussex also played a major part in the folk music revival of the 1960s and 1970s with various singers including Pop Maynard, George 'Pop' Maynard, Scan Tester, Tony Wales and the sisters
Dolly Collins, Dolly and Shirley Collins.
Sussex has also been home to many composers of classical music including Thomas Weelkes, John Ireland (composer), John Ireland, Edward Elgar, Frank Bridge, Sir Hubert Parry and Ralph Vaughan Williams, who played a major part in recording Sussex's traditional music. While Glyndebourne is one of the world's best known opera houses, the county is home to professional orchestras the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Worthing Symphony Orchestra.
In popular music, Sussex has produced artists including Leo Sayer, The Cure, Levellers (band), The Levellers, Brett Anderson, Keane (band), Keane, The Kooks, The Feeling, Rizzle Kicks, Conor Maynard, Tom Odell, Royal Blood (band), Royal Blood, Rag'n'Bone Man, Celeste (singer), Celeste and Architects (British band), Architects. In the 1970s, Sussex was home to Phun City, the UK's first large-scale free music festival and hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 1974, 1974 Eurovision Song Contest which propelled ABBA to worldwide fame. Major festivals include The Great Escape Festival and Glyndebourne Festival Opera.
Television
Due to the size of the county, BBC South East covers Brighton, Hove & 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 ...
. BBC South covers 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 ...
(Excluding Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill and Shoreham-by-Sea which is covered by BBC South East). ITV Meridian is another regional news covers the county. Crawley
Crawley () is a large town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a population of 106,597 at the time of th ...
is covered by both regions, however they receive a better tv signal from BBC London and ITV London.
Religion
Christianity is the predominant religion in Sussex with 57.8 per cent of the population identifying as Christian in the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census. Other results from the 2011 census are: 1.4 per cent as Islam, Muslim, 0.7 per cent as Hinduism, Hindu and 30.5 per cent as having irreligion, no religion.[
]
Sussex has been a single diocese of the established church since the eighth century, after St Wilfrid founded Selsey Abbey on land granted by King Æðelwealh, Sussex's first Christian king. The Normans moved the location of Sussex's cathedral to Chichester Cathedral, Chichester in 1075. Since 1965 Arundel Cathedral has been the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, Bishops of Arundel and Brighton, which covers Sussex and Surrey. The Church of England, established church and the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Catholic Church were historically strongest in western and southern areas. In contrast, Protestant Nonconformist (Protestantism), non-conformity was historically strongest in areas furthest from diocesan authorities in Chichester, in the south-west. This included in the Weald and in the east, where there were also links to Protestant northern Europe. St Richard of Chichester
Richard of Chichester (1197 – 3 April 1253), also known as Richard de Wych, is a saint (canonized 1262) who was Bishop of Chichester.
In Chichester Cathedral a shrine dedicated to Richard had become a richly decorated centre of pilgrima ...
is Sussex's patron saint.
According to the 2011 census there were about 23,000 Islam, Muslims in Sussex, constituting 1.4 per cent of the population. Within Sussex, Crawley had the highest proportion of Muslims with 7.2 per cent of the population.[
Jewish people have been recorded as living in Sussex since the 12th century and are first mentioned in 1179/80 pipe roll for Chichester. A considerable Jewish community existed in Chichester by 1186. All Sussex's Jews would have been expelled in 1290 when Edward I of England issued the Edict of Expulsion. A Jewish population had returned to Sussex by the late 18th century in Brighton and Arundel.
A wide variety of non-traditional religious and belief groups have bases in and around East Grinstead. Groups include the Church of Scientology at Saint Hill Manor, Opus Dei, the Rosicrucian Order, the Pagan Federation and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons).
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Science
Pell's equation and the Pell number are both named after 17th century mathematician John Pell (mathematician), John Pell. Pell is sometimes credited with inventing the division sign, which has also been attributed to Swiss mathematician Johann Heinrich Rahn, one of his students. In the 19th century, geologist and palaeontologist Gideon Mantell began the scientific study of dinosaurs. In 1822 he was responsible for the discovery and eventual identification of the first fossil teeth, and later much of the skeleton of Iguanodon. Braxton Hicks contractions are named after John Braxton Hicks, the Sussex doctor who in 1872 first described the uterine contractions not resulting in childbirth.
In the 20th century, Frederick Soddy won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on radioactive substances, and his investigations into the origin and nature of isotopes. Frederick Gowland Hopkins shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1929 with Christiaan Eijkman, for discovering the growth-stimulating vitamins. Martin Ryle shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1974 with Cornishman Antony Hewish, the first Nobel prize awarded in recognition of astronomical research. While working at the University of Sussex, Harold Kroto won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Richard Smalley and Robert Curl from Rice University in the US for the discovery of fullerenes. David Mumford is a mathematician known for distinguished work in algebraic geometry and then for research into vision and pattern theory. He won the International Mathematical Union's Fields Medal in 1974 and in 2010 was awarded the United States National Medal of Science.
In the social sciences, Sussex was home to economist John Maynard Keynes from 1925 to 1946. The founding father of Keynesian economics, he is widely considered to be one of the founders of modern macroeconomics and the most influential economist of the 20th century. David Pilbeam won the 1986 International Prize (Fyssen Foundation), International Prize from the Fyssen Foundation.
In the early 20th century, Sussex was at the centre of one of what has been described as 'British archaeology's greatest hoax'. Bone fragments said to have been collected in 1912 were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human, referred to as Piltdown Man. In 1953 the bone fragments were exposed as a forgery, consisting of the lower jawbone of an orangutan deliberately combined with the skull of a fully developed modern human. From 1967 to 1979, Sussex was home to the Isaac Newton Telescope at the Royal Greenwich Observatory in Herstmonceux Castle.
Sport
Sussex has a centuries-long tradition of sport. Sussex has played a key role in the early development of both cricket and stoolball. Cricket is recognised as having been formed in the 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 ...
and Sussex is where cricket was first recorded as being played by men (in 1611), and by women (in 1677), as well as being the location of the first reference to a cricket bat (in 1622) and a wicket (in 1680). Founded in 1839, Sussex CCC is England's oldest county cricket club and is the oldest professional sports club in the world. Slindon Cricket Club dominated the sport for a while in the 18th century. The cricket ground at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground, Arundel Castle traditionally plays host to a Duke of Norfolk's XI which plays the national test cricket, test sides touring England. Founded in 1971, the Sussex Cricket League is believed to be the largest adult cricket league in the world, with 335 teams in 2018. Referred to as Sussex's national sport, 'national' sport and a Sussex game or pastime, Sussex may be where the sport of stoolball originated and is where the sport was formalised in the 19th century and its revival took place in the early 20th century.
Sussex is represented in the Premier League by Brighton & Hove Albion and in the Football League by Crawley Town F.C., Crawley Town. Brighton has been a League member since 1920, whereas Crawley was promoted to the League in 2011. Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C., Brighton & Hove Albion play in the FA Women's Super League and Lewes F.C. Women, Lewes play in the FA Women's Championship. Sussex has had its own Sussex County Football Association, football association, since 1882 and its own Sussex County League, football league, which has since expanded into Surrey, since 1920. In horse racing, Sussex is home to Goodwood Racecourse, Goodwood, Fontwell Park, Brighton Racecourse, Brighton and Plumpton Racecourse, Plumpton. The All England Jumping Course at Hickstead, All England Jumping Course show jumping facility hosts the British Jumping Derby and the Royal International Horse Show. Eastbourne Eagles motorcycle speedway, speedway team race in the SGB Championship.
Cuisine
The historic county is known for its "seven good things of Sussex". These seven things are Pulborough eel, Selsey cockle, Chichester lobster, Rye herring, Arundel mullet, Amberley trout and Bourne wheatear. Sussex is also known for Ashdown Partridge Pudding, Chiddingly Hot pot, Sussex Bacon Pudding, Sussex Hogs' Pudding, Huffed Chicken, Sussex Churdles, Sussex Shepherds Pie, Sussex Pond Pudding, Sussex Blanket Pudding, Sussex Well Pudding, and Chichester Pudding. Sussex is also known for its cakes and biscuits known as Sussex Plum Heavies and Sussex Lardy Johns, while banoffee pie was first created in 1972 in Jevington.
The county has vineyards and a long history of beer in Sussex, brewing of beer. It is home to the 18th century beer brewers, Harveys Brewery, Harveys of Lewes as well as many more recently established breweries. There are also many cider makers in Sussex, Hunts Sussex Cider and SeaCider are the largest cider producers. In recent decades Sussex wines have gained international acclaim winning awards including the 2006 Best Sparkling Wine in the World at the Decanter World Wine Awards. Many vineyards make wines using traditional Champagne varieties and methods, and there are similarities between the topography and chalk and clay soils of Sussex downland and that of the Champagne region which lies on a latitude to the south.
Visual arts
Some of the earliest known art in Sussex is the carvings in the galleries of the Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
flint mines at Cissbury
Cissbury Ring is an biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Worthing in West Sussex. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated a Scheduled monument for its Neolithic flint mine and Iron Age hillfort.
Cissbury Ring is ...
on the South Downs near Worthing. From the Roman period, the palace at Fishbourne Roman Palace, Fishbourne has the largest in situ collection of mosaics in the UK, while the villa at Bignor Roman Villa, Bignor contains some of the best preserved Roman mosaics in England.
Dating from around the 12th century, the 'Lewes Group' of wall paintings can be found in several churches across the centre of Sussex, some of which are celebrated for their age, extent and quality. Of uncertain origin, the Long Man of Wilmington is Europe's largest representation of the human form.
In the late 18th century three men commissioned important works of the county which ensured that its landscapes and daily life were captured onto canvas. Sir William Burrell, 2nd Baronet, William Burrell of Knepp Castle commissioned Swiss-born watercolourist Samuel Hieronymus Grimm to tour Sussex, producing 900 watercolours of the county's buildings. George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont of Petworth House was a patron of painters such as J. M. W. Turner and John Constable. John 'Mad Jack' Fuller also commissioned Turner to make a series of paintings which resulted in thirteen finished watercolours of Fuller's house at Brightling and the area around it.
In the 19th century landscape watercolourist Copley Fielding lived in Sussex and illustrator Aubrey Beardsley and painter and sculptor Eric Gill were born in Brighton. Gill went on to found an art colony in Ditchling known as The Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic, which survived until 1989. The 1920s and 1930s saw the creation of some of the best-known works by Edward Burra who was known for his work of Sussex, Paris and Harlem and Eric Ravilious who is known for his paintings of the South Downs.
In the early 20th century Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, both members of the Bloomsbury Group, lived and worked at Charleston Farmhouse near Firle. Sussex also became a major centre for surrealism in the early 20th century. At West Dean, West Sussex, West Dean, Edward James was patron to artists including Salvador Dalà and René Magritte while at Farley Farm House near Chiddingly the home of Roland Penrose and Lee Miller was frequented by artists such as Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, Henry Moore, Eileen Agar, Jean Dubuffet, Dorothea Tanning and Max Ernst. Both collections form one of the most important bodies of Surrealist art in Europe.
Notable people
See also
*Culture of Sussex
*Geography of Sussex
*History of Sussex
*Timeline of Sussex history
*Flag of Sussex
*Coat of arms of Sussex
*Lord Lieutenant of Sussex, List of Lord Lieutenants of Sussex
*High Sheriff of Sussex, List of High Sheriffs of Sussex
*Custos Rotulorum of Sussex – Keepers of the Rolls
*Sussex (UK Parliament constituency) – Historical list of MPs for Sussex constituency
*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 ...
*Geology of East Sussex
*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 ...
*Kingdom of Sussex
*Sussex by the Sea
"Sussex by the Sea" (also known as "A Horse Galloping") is a song written in 1907 by William Ward-Higgs, often considered to be the unofficial county anthem of Sussex. It became well known throughout Sussex and is regularly sung at celebrations t ...
*Recreational walks in East Sussex
*Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Sussex. Its limited overs team is called the Sussex Sharks. The c ...
*Twitten
*The Sussex Newspaper
*Royal Sussex Regiment
The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...
*Sussex Police
*Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner
*Stoolball
Footnotes
Notes
References
Bibliography
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External links
Map of Sussex
on Wikishire
{{authority control
Sussex, *
Home counties
Counties of England established in antiquity
Counties of England disestablished in 1974