Hurst Green is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the Rother district of

East Sussex East Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Kent to the north-east, West Sussex to the west, Surrey to the north-west, and the English Channel to the south. The largest settlement ...

, England, and is located south of the East Sussex / Kent border at Flimwell. The area is entirely contained within the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The village is located on the A21 road, halfway between

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone ...

, Kent, in the north and

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

in the south, approx 13 miles (20 km) each way. The A265 road starts in the village at the A21, previously starting in

Hawkhurst Hawkhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The village is located close to the border with East Sussex, around south-east of Royal Tunbridge Wells and within the High Weald Area of Outstanding N ...

. There is one active church in the village: the brick-built

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

parish church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity. The

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church of Our Lady Help of Christians is now disused and has now been converted into a community shop, which also contains the village post office. The local primary school is Hurst Green CE Primary School. The settlements of Silver Hill and Swiftsden are also located within the parish. There is an active parish council.

History

Before the

Norman conquest 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, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

, Hurst Green was part of the parish of Salehurst which belonged to Countess Goda, however it is likely that few people lived in the area. There is a ridgeway track that runs through Hurst Green via Etchingham to Heathfield, and which was likely to have been in use during the Iron Age. In 1744 the village green covered a triangular area from the courthouse to the village hall, including land on which some houses in Station Road now stand. "The Cottage" (MES3972) and "Yew Tree" (DES4516) are shown on a map dated 1650, and so must have stood on the edge of the village green. In the 1870s Hurst Green was described as a "hamlet in Salehurst parish, Sussex; 1½ mile ENE of Etchingham station, and 7 N of Battle. It has a head post office and Iridge Place is adjacent". The Church of England primary school was originally built in 1862 with an adjacent residence for the master. The tower and the clock were erected by public subscription in memory of George Burrow Gregory of Boarzell who died 5 March 1892. In 1952 the civil parish of Hurst Green was created from portions of the parishes of Etchingham, Salehurst and Ticehurst and the ecclesiastical parish was formed in 1907. By the 1930s, the population of Hurst Green was 628 (counts in 1934 and 1938).

Local legend

* It is possible that the area known locally as Burgh Hill on the south side of the village was the site of a fort built by King

Alfred the Great Alfred the Great ( ; – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who both died when Alfr ...

, this is mentioned in the Burghal Hidage (a record of the forts from Alfred's reign) as being called Eorpeburner. * There are reports of possible tunnels under and around the village that were used by the infamous Hawkhurst Gang that ran between the village and Hawkhurst to enable their smuggling operations. However, none have ever been found.

Village organisations

Hurst Green has several clubs and organisations, many of these use the village hall to meet and details of upcoming meetings are posted on the noticeboard within the hall foyer. * The Hurst Green Short mat bowls Club gives villagers, both young and more mature, the opportunity to play short mat bowls for fun, and competitively.

Twin towns

* Ellerhoop, Germany

Notable buildings

Hurst Green and surrounding areas are home to several notable buildings and areas, including: * Iridge Place * Barnhurst * Drewett Cricket Field * Etchingham Lodge * Haremere Hall, a Grade I listed Jacobean building * Hurst Green Courthouse Despite its small size, Hurst Green has a considerable number of Grade II listed buildings, including: * Antiques, the Pigeon House * April Cottage Cordwainers * London Road, Nos 15-25, 28, 30, 43, 45, 76, 87, 89, 91, 93, 115, 117, 119, 121, 123 * Barnhurst * Bellhurst Oast Cooper's Farm Oast * Burghwood Cottage Iden Cottage * Cooper's Corner Farmhouse * Drinking fountain in front of Lancefield House * Firs Cottage * Grove Cottage * Grove Hill Farmhouse * Haremere Hall Stables * Hawthorne Cottage * Hurst Green Stores and Post Office * Kim Cottage Two Hoots * Lancefield House * Little Barnhurst * Sandstones, the former stables of the Royal George * Silver Hill Farmhouse * Stangate * Station Road, No. 4 * Old Bull Inn * Royal George public house * Stables of Iridge Place * White Horse public house * Woolpack Inn * Yew Tree House

Photographs

File:Hurst Green village sign.JPG, Village sign File:Hurst Green village hall in East Sussex.jpg, Village hall File:Old Post Office in Hurst Green.JPG, Old Hurst Green Post Office on the A21 File:Station Road Hurst Green.JPG, Station Road (A265)

References

External links

Photos of Hurst Green from the early 20th century

Parish Council

Parish magazine
{{authority control Villages in East Sussex Civil parishes in East Sussex Rother District