Bishopstone Village is a rural hamlet located in the

South Downs National Park The South Downs National Park is England's newest national park, designated on 31 March 2010. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hamp ...

. Bishopstone Village has a population of about 200 people, including the nearby hamlet of Norton. It is located on a no-through country lane west of the town of

Seaford, East Sussex Seaford is a town in East Sussex, England, east of Newhaven and west of Eastbourne.OS Explorer map Eastbourne and Beachy Head Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. In the Middle Ages, Sea ...

. Bishopstone Village is in the county of East Sussex, England.

History

Bishopstone was an episcopal manor, hence its name meaning "dwelling place of the

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

". The

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

, dedicated to Saint Andrew, is thought to date from the 8th century, and may well be the oldest in the county. Bishopstone church has an ancient

canonical sundial A tide dial, also known as a Mass or scratch dial, is a sundial marked with the canonical hours rather than or in addition to the standard hours of daylight. Such sundials were particularly common between the 7th and 14th centuries in Europe, at w ...

above its porch. The sundial is inscribed with the name Eadric, probably

Eadric of Kent Eadric (died August 686/ 687?) was a King of Kent (685–686). He was the son of Ecgberht I. Historical context In the 7th century the Kingdom of Kent had been politically stable for some time. According to Bede: Eorcenberht was succeeded by ...

, the King of Kent in 685/6.Wall, J. Charles (1912), ''Porches & Fonts.'' Pub. Wells, Gardner, Darton & Co., Ltd., London. P. 67. The church was rebuilt in 1200. Bishopstone village hall is part of the village life and has local events, it is also the venue for the local

table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

club and is located behind the church. There are no shops or pubs in the village.

Notable residents

In the 7th century the village is believed to have been the home of a saint,

Leofwynn Saint Lewina (or Lewinna, Levinna, Lewine, Leofwynn; 7th century) was a British virgin and martyr who was put to death by Saxon invaders. Her feast day is 25 July. Life Little is known of Lewinna's life. One source says she was a British woman w ...

; she was

venerated Veneration ( la, veneratio; el, τιμάω ), or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Etym ...

locally in the Dark Ages and

medieval 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 ...

times. The poet

James Hurdis James Hurdis (1763–1801) was an English clergyman and poet. Life Born in Bishopstone, East Sussex, Hurdis studied at St Mary Hall, Oxford, and Magdalen College, Oxford, later becoming a Fellow of Magdalen College. Hurdis was curate for the ...

was born in the village and there is a memorial to him in the church. The writer and "clairvoyante" Nell St. John Montague is buried in Bishopstone, and her name is included on a memorial for the war dead (she died in London during a bombing in World War II).Kevin Gordon, (2018-02-21)
"A War-Memorial Mystery!"
''Quirky Sussex History''. Retrieved 2019-08-15.

Transportation

Bishopstone is served by

Bishopstone railway station Bishopstone railway station is on the western side of the town of Seaford, East Sussex, England. It is situated close to the coast, and about from the downland rural village of Bishopstone after which it is named. Train services from the statio ...

, which replaced the original station, Bishopstone Beach Halt in 1942. Bishopstone station was built in 1938 in a distinctive red-brick Charles Holden based Art Deco style, a house style common to the Southern Railway at the time. An integrated pill box was added later above the roof early in World War 2 because of the defensive coverage it gave over the nearby bay and beaches. From Bishopstone railway station there is a regular train service eastwards to Seaford, and north-westwards to Lewes, Brighton, Gatwick, and London.

References

External links

St Andrews church
Villages in East Sussex Lewes District Seaford, East Sussex {{EastSussex-geo-stub

History

Notable residents

Transportation

See also

References

External links