Withdean is a former village, now part of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex.

Overview

The area was originally named in the 12th century, when it was called Wictedene. The area was historically farm land but has been developed, mainly in the 1920s and 1930s, with a mix of detached, semi-detached and mid-rise flats. The Withdean manor was originally the property of the great Cluniac Priory of St. Pancras at

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...

, until 1537. This was then given to Anne of Cleves in 1541 by

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 ...

. The manor was demolished in 1936. This is where Withdean Stadium is located, which was the temporary home of

Brighton and Hove Albion F.C. 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 ...

between 1999 and 2011. The stadium site was formerly Brighton Zoo built in 1920. Withdean Woods, next to the stadium, is a wooded hillside nature reserve approximately 2.47 acres (1 ha) in size. This is the home of several woodland birds including the

great spotted woodpecker The great spotted woodpecker (''Dendrocopos major'') is a medium-sized woodpecker with pied black and white plumage and a red patch on the lower belly. Males and young birds also have red markings on the neck or head. This species is found acros ...

, tawny owl and goldcrest. Withdean Park is also located in this area, and is home to the national collection of

lilac ''Syringa'' is a genus of 12 currently recognized species of flowering plant, flowering woody plants in the olive family or Oleaceae called lilacs. These lilacs are native to woodland and scrub from southeastern Europe to eastern Asia, and wid ...

s with over 320 varieties.The Lilac Collection at Brighton by Phil Williamson
/ref> Collections of berberis, cotoneaster and

viburnum ''Viburnum'' is a genus of about 150–175 species of flowering plants in the moschatel family Adoxaceae. Its current classification is based on molecular phylogeny. It was previously included in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. The membe ...

can also be found here. Withdean is referenced in the chapter "The Wiseman of Withdean" of the fantasy novel ''

The Brightonomicon ''The Brightonomicon'' is a novel by British fantasy author Robert Rankin. The title parodies that of the fictional grimoire ''Necronomicon'' from the Cthulhu Mythos. The author lives in Brighton, England, and the book is set in an accurate fic ...

''.

References

Areas of Brighton and Hove Conservation areas in England {{EastSussex-geo-stub