At the town hall during Tuesday 16 June’s event, the celebration of Sussex Day, the Right Worshipful Mayor of Rye, Councillor Chris Hoggart, listed the many things that make Sussex special.
Asking a series of questions, the answer to each he posed had the same answer – “Sussex” – and his audience quickly fell into bellowing out the response.
Fact: The largest Roman home in Britain – Fishbourne Palace (near Chichester).
Where? Sussex.
Fact: The world’s oldest continuously operating aquarium is Sea Life in Brighton.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: Sussex was divided into two counties in 1889.
Fact: The world’s smallest vineyard (two grape vines) is at Upper Lodge near Ringmer.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: The oldest human remains (500,000 years old) in Britain were found at Boxgrove near Chichester.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: Canute (Cnut) tried to hold back the sea at Bosham.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: The oldest purpose-built cinema in the UK is The Duke of York’s in Brighton, still operating.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: England’s first land-based casino opened at the Metropole Hotel Brighton in 1962.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: The Grand National was held at Gatwick from 1916 to 1918.
Where? Sussex.
Fact: Pond Pudding – made of suet pastry, butter, sugar (and cholesterol?) and steamed for hours comes from.
Where? Sussex.
More reasons to be proud:
“We wunt be druv!” This is the traditional Sussex motto meaning “We will not be pushed around!”, reflecting the independent spirit for which Sussex people are famous.
Sussex has England’s newest National Park. The beautiful South Downs National Park stretches across much of Sussex and contains some of England’s finest chalk downland landscapes.
The highest point in Sussex is Blackdown, at 279.7 metres (917 feet). On a clear day you can see for miles across southern England.
Sussex once powered England’s iron industry. Long before Sheffield became famous for steel, the Weald of Sussex was the centre of England’s iron industry. The forests provided the charcoal needed to fuel the furnaces.
Sussex sparkling wine rivals Champagne. Sussex is now one of Britain’s leading wine-producing regions, with more than a quarter of the UK’s vineyards. Sussex wines even have Protected Designation of Origin status.
People have lived here for half a million years. Evidence suggests that humans were living in Sussex around 500,000 years ago, making it one of Britain’s oldest continuously inhabited regions.
Sussex loves a good ghost story. Our town of Rye is famous for legends of smugglers and ghosts. The historic Mermaid Inn is said to be one of England’s most haunted. Our town crier Paul Goring does a wonderful ghost walk through Rye during the summer months.
One of the most famous battles in English history happened here. The Battle of Hastings actually took place near modern-day Battle, not Hastings itself. William the Conqueror’s victory changed the course of English history forever.
Those six golden birds on the Sussex flag are martlets – mythical swallows with no feet. They represent the six historic divisions of Sussex known as the “Rapes”: Chichester, Arundel, Bramber, Lewes, Pevensey and Hastings.
Sussex has its own anthem, Sussex by the Sea, is regarded as the unofficial anthem of the county and is sung at celebrations, football matches and Sussex Day events as it was on 16 June, when Rebekah Gilbert led communal singing.
For Rye residents one particularly special fact is that Sussex’s history can be seen almost everywhere around the town — from medieval streets and smuggling stories to the marshes, the sea and the enduring independent spirit summed up perfectly by “We wunt be druv.”
Image Credits: Kt bruce .